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angelicspaceprince · 4 years

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Take Me To Church

Author: Ama

Title: Take Me To Church

Pairing: Zhuk/Reader

Character/s: Zhuk

Word Count: 6, 437 words

Warnings: Smut (18+ only please), cockwarming, tentacles, Priest Kink, sex in a church, Demon Priest, hypnosis, aphrodisiac, stomach bulge, double and triple penetration, sex on an altar

Prompt: You were just trying to keep to yourself and avoid the rain when no one seemed to want to help you after you are left stranded in the middle of nowhere. The thing that lives in this abandoned church seems to have other ideas.

Notes: I set out to destroy myself and managed to take some people down with me. It was.....fun. Many hours of work and putting it off, its finally done. Also. There is a part two in the works so if you want to be tagged in it....send me an ask. Translations for long pieces of Russian is at the bottom of the post in order of appearance. Enjoy.

Buy Me a Coffee

Take Me To Church

You hadn’t meant to get lost at this time of night. It was dark, it was raining, and you were just done with today. Your car broke down in the middle of nowhere, you walked for hours, getting lost and finally finding your way to a near-abandoned town and, once you found someone to actually help you, every door was slammed in your face. Rain turned into a storm, a downpour, and you just wanted somewhere to hide until the rain passed. You saw a rundown looking church when you first walked into the town, and that was only a block away. Perhaps there would do? As far as you knew, churches were open to all in need, and you were in need of not getting sick before finding a phone to call for a mechanic.

You shuffle in and move to sit on one of the pews. It was empty, cold, made of grey stone that seemed to be crumbling in places with stained glass windows, some broken and covered with increasingly dampening cardboard whilst others stayed intact. You weren’t fussy. It’ll do for now. You are dripping with the rainwater, the only sound in the entire church is your laboured breath from running and the drip, drip of water running down your hair and onto the floor. You think for a minute - is it really a good idea to be staying in these wet, cold clothes? You look around, no one else is in the church that you know of. Perhaps you should just slide your coat off.

The desire to at least see how wet your clothes were under your coat proves to be too great as you carefully slide it off and lay it beside you. Your clothes are plastered to your body, saturated from the intense weather. You sigh loudly in defeat, you just couldn’t win today.

The sound of the door opening and closing loudly followed by the gruff voice of the bar patron stirs you from your self-pitying thoughts. Fuck, you said you were going to leave and wait by your car. You couldn’t bear the idea of getting into another argument with the man. You look around for somewhere to hide, eyes flickering to the confessional. Maybe? It was certainly the closest.

You dash in, leaving your jacket behind, and close the door behind you, moving to sit on the surprisingly comfortable seat. You weren’t an expert in these sorts of things, but you thought these to be always uncomfortable and wooden, but this was almost like a cushion that went from the bottom of the seat all the way up above your head. Even if it was lumpy, it was more comfortable than the pews out there.

It was dark, and the only thing you could hear was your laboured breath and the steps of someone investigating the church. You swear he is nearby, you hold your breath and try to keep yourself silent when what you think is him brushes past the confessional.

A low, rumbling voice shocks you as he greets the bar patron, asking if he is well. You can’t quite make out the conversation, except for the newer voice reassuring the man that everything is okay, he has it sorted, and he can go home now. There is a bit more back and forth that slowly fades as the new man leads the bar patron away. You let out a small sigh of relief, sagging back slightly. Now you just have to wait for him to leave before you can get out of here. You don’t feel safe here, you need to get back to your car, weather be damned! You’d rather battle out a horrid respiratory infection than be in some weird cult sacrifice to the village’s local god, or whatever Stephen King-esque thing this town seemed to be into.

You wait quietly, trying to quiet your loud, uneven breaths as your adrenaline slowly starts to wane. Seconds before you go to leave, you feel it. Something cold, slimy, slippery curls its way around your foot. Before you even have a chance to jump or scream, the confessional screen opens, causing you to jolt and the thing to unhook from your ankle. You look down and see nothing. Perhaps it was just your mind playing tricks on you. But you still have a problem. The priest now knows you’re here. How were you going to explain that you were hiding from someone like a child, simply because you didn’t want to interact with them?

“Do you have anything you wish to confess?” He finally asks, his heavily accented voice giving you a small shock, having grown tired of the silence that stretches between the two of you.

You wince. “Well, actually, uh-” You trail off, and you can almost feel the amusement rolling off of him in waves.

“Or were you just hiding from Mr MacNamara?” His voice is kind, but also bemused. Even then, it’s calming and draws you in. Just something about it, something tinged within it makes you think there is something he is hiding. You shake it off, what would a priest have to hide?

“Yeah.” You say quietly, guiltily. “I’m sorry si- Father, I’ll go.” It wasn’t really polite or religiously sensitive to hide in what you believed to be a sacred place, at least to the priest.

Your hand barely leaves your side, however, when he speaks. “Never mind the reason you originally came here, my child. You are here now, there must be something you need to get off your chest. Why else would you run and hide into a church and then a confessional, unless you have a guilty conscience or something you need to speak about.” He offers softly, his voice drawing you closer and closer to him as you feel your body relax into the soft booth. You jolt. No. You shouldn’t be here. You are making a mockery of his religion, at least, you feel like you are.

“I’m not Catholic. Or religious.” You state bluntly.

“My confessional is open to all who need to clear their heart and mind.” He doesn’t sound like he’s insisting, rather that he’s just patient. Waiting for you to finally crumble and agree to confess to something. You might as well. Just to let him leave you alone.

“Where do you want me to start?” You sigh dramatically, leaning back and getting comfortable. If he wanted a confession, you were going to waste his time a little.

“Perhaps the one that is weighing you down the most.” He instructs, amusement seeping in his accented voice. What was it? Russian?

You shrug. “Lusted over a married man, that’s a pretty big sin I suppose. Would you consider it a major sin, Father?” You start with the one you are sure he will question the most and then have you move on and leave. The idea of making the priest squirm amuses you, and you’re almost tempted to state that you lusted over a man of God to see what he’d say. Alas, you decide against it. He stays silent for a second.

“Did you tempt him?”

“God yeah.” You try not to act proud. “Worked too. That’s adultery, isn’t it? Or at least, tempting someone into adultery.”

“Did you enjoy it?” He sounds slightly conflicted. Good.

You can feel your body begin to melt and relax into the pew, shifting slightly as you start to grow warm, starting from your ankles, almost like a blanket has been placed over your feet. “Mhm.” Is all you can get out. “It was. Good. We didn’t regret it. It happened a few times, but. Neither of us regretted it.”

“Did the wife know?” You shrug.

“Dunno. Don’t care, to be honest.” Silence begins to tick over you as you wait for your dismissal. But it doesn’t come.

“Anything else you wish to confess before I give you your penance?” His voice is still soft, inviting. You go to groan as he speaks again. “You’re here, you might as well use this time wisely.”

Wisely. Yeah right. Your jaw clicks, taking the challenge as you start to ‘confess’ your many sins. Missing mass, as you’ve never been to mass since after your confirmation, using contraception as every good girl does, being envious of others, having bouts of extreme anger, the times you had sex with another girl, both taking the Lord’s name in vain and being blasphemous, your slightly excessive masturbation habit, every lie you could think of, how you left religion behind a long time ago, your impressive pornography collection. Every little thing becomes pettier and pettier as you try to get him to shut you up and leave, but instead, he just keeps asking question after question, digging deeper as if trying to figure out what to add to your penance. You even stooped so low to start telling him about the time you stole chocolate from your local supermarket when you were a toddler, and every pen, eraser, piece of candy, anything from anyone as a child, be it malicious or by accident. Your eyes look firmly in the space in front of you, a dark nothingness - didn’t they have candles or something to light up this incredibly dark room? -, but better than to see his face and how schooled it must be. That would frustrate you even more. He didn’t get annoyed, or frustrated, or anything. Eventually, however, he decided he didn’t want to play your game anymore. “Y/N, look at me.”

You are so busy with your revenge that you don’t feel your body slowly growing warmer and warmer, relaxing into the soft back of the confessional seat, voice growing softer as your eyes start to close. That one command to look at him has your eyes snapping open as you turn to look him in the eye.

They were glowing.

Wait a minute.

You didn’t tell him your name.

But that’s not the thing that’s concerning you now, your eyes beginning to bulge out of your head when you take in the sight before you.

Bright amber eyes encourage you to relax for him, obey him, trust in him, which didn’t concern you at this moment. No, what concerned you were the mass amount of tentacles that seemed to be coming out of his back, covering his back wall and crawling your way into your small cubicle. You see him smirk faintly at your realisation. “Relax, Y/N. Do not worry about them, malen'kiy. Focus on my voice instead.” He instructs quietly, and it almost works. Were it not for the cold jab in your gut when you realise. Something was moving over you.

You look down and let out a loud gasp of air, your body in so much shock a scream couldn’t form. Every inch of your part of the confessional was crawling with tentacles. They filled the walls, the floor and, to your horror, was the cushion between you and the hard, uncomfortable wood of the confessional chair. “I-”

“Shhh, malyshka, don’t stress yourself. They won’t harm you.” He sounds bemused as you start to squirm, finding your movement restricted. You struggle, and something seems to squeeze you until you stop.

Oh.

Oh fuck.

Like a long, black snake, one of the tentacles had slowly wound its way up your legs, waist, hips and was slowly beginning to climb its way up to your torso and shoulders. “Dorogoy, relax.” He reminds you gently, voice inviting, warm. You relax as you feel the tentacle coil around you another time, slowly, gently.

Nope. Nope, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope. That was enough for you. You grab the doorframe, ignoring the tentacles now moving to hold you there, and you use it as leverage to pull yourself up and out of his grasp, slime from the one grasping onto you giving you enough leeway to climb out and into the cold of the stone church, tugging back on your hands until they are freed as you land on your back, scurrying back against the rough floor. You are freezing again and, when you look down, you realise that you had been worked out of your clothes, leaving you in just your bra and panties. You move to stand and rush towards the still slightly cracked open door when the other side of the confessional opens, tentacles that were once climbing out of the door you just lept from moving back into the shadows. Your blood turns to ice as you freeze in place as his loud footsteps echo through the room.

He’s huge.

Tall, dressed in the usual black slacks and shirt with the clerical collar that you’d expect all priests to wear, he was intimidating. The scar over one of his still bright and bemused amber eyes doing nothing to settle you as what seemed like countless, black, dripping, slimy tentacles came out from behind him, all constantly moving. You swallow, unable to move or think as you look at him. He couldn’t be human, a demon perhaps? But you thought no demon could ever set foot in a church?

“Ne boysya, ne begi, moy rebenok.” He speaks softly as the tentacles start to climb the floor directly towards your feet.

It was enough to break the spell. You stand up and bolt in the opposite direction, away from the door. Surely there was a back exit? You dash and, somehow, escape every grab attempt he makes at you as he calmly, slowly, follows you. He knows this church like the back of his hand, and he knows there is no escape for you. You trip over nothing, landing flat on the floor as something twists its way up your ankle and calf. Hot adrenaline kicks in and you kick back wildly until you are free and able to make another mad dash towards the back of the church.

Nothing.

Not a door, not even a window. A set of rickety-looking stairs. You look behind you and see his shadow slowly come into the doorway, his tentacles climbing the walls, ceiling, floor, slowly. As if searching for you. Another hot pump of adrenaline hits your body as you instantly run up the stairs, yelping when one gives way under your feet. You hear his chuckle, low and dark as he stands at the bottom of the stairwell, just staring up at you as you pull yourself up to the top stair. “Don’t hurt yourself, Y/N, ya predpochitayu, chtoby moi blyuda ostavalis' tselymi i nevredimymi, poka ya ne poluchu ikh v svoi ruki.” He purrs as his ever-moving appendages stop for a split second before rushing directly towards you.

You can’t help the scream that leaves your lips as you rush past the open door and slam it shut behind you, his loud laugh echoing into the room around you as you see the black, oozy tendrils, smaller than the main tentacles but still just as scary somehow, slowly make their way under the gaps of the door, slowly covering and dissolving the wood with their goo. Fuck. You need to keep running.

Up on the upper floor, there really wasn’t anything. A little nest of coats and blankets, obviously a makeshift bed, and a broken-down organ. You look over the edge as the door starts to shake, already on awful foundations, it won’t take long for it to break down. If you could just get downstairs and hide until he went searching for you, then you can make a run for the door. Your eyes scan what you had around you, knowing that if you jumped you’d probably break your neck on impact. Then you see it. A ladder. It looks old with the wood rotting, but it will suit your needs for now.

You rush over and start climbing down the ladder quickly, hitting the ground underneath the mezzanine just in time to hear the door break. Shit. No way you could make a run for the door now, even then beforehand your chances were slim. You remain well hidden from him as you plaster your back against the wall so as he looks over the church, not an inch of you or your shadow can be seen. He takes in a deep breath through his nose as you look for a hiding spot.

“I can smell your fear, zakuska.” He purrs. “It smells delicious.” You swallow as you continue to search before realising. The altar.

You lift the piece of fabric that reaches all the way to the ground and bite back a cry of success. There is a gap there big enough for you to hide. You smuggle your way in, unseen by the demon as you curl up and try to quieten and control your breathing.

His feet land heavily on the stone floor seconds later as he apparently grows tired of your game and jumps from the upper floor. You jolt when you realise he’s landed on the other side of the altar. Just stay quiet, and wait until he’s gone. Then you can run. Your stomach feels sick with nerves as you wait and listen to the demon’s footsteps as they fill the church. You don’t realise it yet, but he is pacing around the altar, smelling your scent and knowing exactly where you are hiding.

His low chuckle sounds even more ominous as it echoes around the empty church. “You can't hide from me now, roza. I grew up in this church, I know every inch of its cold walls, every shadow, every crack, every stone. Give up now, and I may just go easy on you.” He warns. You stay still. There is no way you are giving in to him, not now. Not ever. You’ll hide until you get the opportunity to run. “No? Alright then. Just remember, little one, you chose your fate.” He sounds tired as he says this and, before you know it, the cloth is pulled back and everything on it clatters to the ground and he is right there in front of you, sharp teeth gleaming as he stares at you. “Hello there roza. It appears that I’ve caught you.” He teases. Before you can even get a chance to move, you are dragged out into the air, warm vines sliding their way around your body and hoisting you into the air as they move to support your legs, arms, torso. Even one is so considerate to support your head. Higher and higher you go, them tightening as you struggle as if to keep you steady. “I wouldn’t continue that if I were you, Y/N.” He warns. “It wouldn’t be a pleasant landing if you do.” The threat is crystal clear. You fall, he won’t be catching you.

You go deadly still and try to bite back a sob. He caught you and now he has you. Suspended in the air in just your underwear, nowhere to go. Nowhere to hide. You were his.

You don’t even register the tentacle pressing against your lips until it’s made its way into your mouth, tasting salty yet strangely sweet as it pushes into your mouth and down your throat, causing you to choke slightly. It pulls back to just before where you started to gag and tear up and slowly starts to pump a thick, almost syrupy liquid, causing you to gulp out of fear of drowning in the air. For a hot second, the idea of biting down to hurt him crosses your mind, but his threat rings again in your ear. You could faintly hear the splat of you falling to your death if you did something wrong in the back of your mind. So, you continue to drink whatever it was filling your system, not noticing how your once tense muscles start to relax into the hold of the black, leaking appendages or how your face is becoming flushed, eyes glazed, body slowly beginning to warm despite the cool air. All you can feel is the throb between your legs and just how empty you feel. You whine, the sound quiet with your mouth stretched open as you start to suck, hips beginning to buck against nothing. You need to be full, you need something inside of you. You start to claw at your little clothing, even that’s too much of a barrier. You need to be full, to be touched, to be fucked. You can feel the demon’s amusement under you as he slowly starts to help, tendrils moving to tug down at your panties as others unhook and slide off your bra, leaving you bare as you continue to ride against nothing. You are already wet down to your knees, slick just dripping from your already sopping wet sex just from being given a little dose of….whatever it was he was feeding you.

You don’t even realise you’ve been lowered onto the altar until the cold marble was pressed against your skin, two large, cool hands tugging your knees apart so amber eyes could look down over you. His hair is a dark green mixed with magenta whereas before, you swore it was just green or black with a trick of the light changing its colour. What did that mean?

It didn’t matter now, all that mattered was being full. You whine pitifully as you jerk your hips up, coaxing him to at least slide a finger into you to relieve the pressure. He snickers at your desperate attempts for help before one of the thinner tentacles moves to press against your entrance, entering maybe an inch before withdrawing teasingly before finally, it pushes in slowly, confidently, until it’s pressing against your cervix. You clench around him, moaning softly as he stares down at you, the rims of his eyes slowly turning a matching magenta colour. Was he staring down at you hungrily or adoringly? Fuck it, you don’t care at this moment.

You grind up at him, babbling nonsense from your still full mouth as you try to beg for more. He tuts, taking pity on you as the tentacle inside of you begins to expand, slowly filling and stretching you out as you shudder around him. You felt so full, it felt perfect. All you needed. You rotate your hips, encouraging him to move, goddamnit, letting out a small whine as you feel him slowly pull out only to thrust back in, the movement bouncing you up the altar slightly. Fuck. You are sure nothing has ever felt so good in your entire life. It’s not long before the tentacle down your throat and the one in your pussy start to move in tandem, you being helpless to do anything but just suck and clench and cling on for dear life as you feel yourself go higher and higher, right to the very brink. Like waves crashing against a cliff, so does your orgasm in that moment, wave after wave hitting you as you cry out around the appendage in your mouth, clenching around the one inside of you as you jolt up as white-hot pleasure washes over you again and again.

Your hips twitch lazily as you feel the heat that bubbled over slowly return to its previously itching warmth. That couldn’t be the end of it, right? Surely not. You need more. More, more, more, more.

“Oh, malen'kaya zakuska,” his growl sends shivers up your spine as you feel his nails dig into your skin, leaving large crescent-shaped welts in their wake, “this is far from over.”

You whine as you start to feel the feelers inside of you start to move again, this time more roughly if at all possible. It wasn’t enough, why did you feel so empty? It’s not until you feel something small probe at your ass that you realise what you were missing. Yes.

The tendril pushes in slightly, just the tip slipping inside of you before a small gush of something hot, wet and sticky floods you. Then, slowly, almost gently, it starts to fill you, just enough that you’ll feel completely full once it’s finished. Slowly, it starts to grow and expand, thickening as it stretches you out, sating the heat inside your belly as well as making it erupt into an inferno as your blood boils, eyes rolling back as your ass joins in the brutal fucking. You barely have the energy to move, using what little energy you have left to babble out the words ‘please’ and ‘Father’ over and over, muffled with your mouth full, your arms and legs laying limp, dangling off the altar as your toes curl every time he hits a spot deep inside of you that causes electricity to course through your veins, each time a loud grunt falls from your lips, echoing in the room. You can hear his deep laugh and feel his amusement roll off of him in waves as he continues to fuck you nice and deep, everything moving almost inhumanely fast, your brain barely able to keep up.

Your body still sensitive from your last orgasm, it doesn’t take long for another to wash over you, more powerful than the last, your entire body shaking as you feel your slick slowly slide down your thighs and the ornate table under you before audibly dripping onto the floor right next to the priest’s feet. Your body tenses, it feels like you have been set on fire as your body is engulfed once again in a white-hot blaze as a hoarse scream leaves your throat, hands curling into fists before your body slowly relaxes again, feeling boneless and like you’re made of jelly, you try to catch your breath.

It still wasn’t enough.

The Father’s hands move from your hips to beside your face, caging you in against him, the look in his eyes positively feral as he takes in your fucked out frame, glazed eyes and mindless, dopey smile. He purrs as the tentacle inside your cunt slowly slips out, his grin widening when you protest weakly. “Shh, malen'kiy, I’m not through with you yet.” He growls lowly. You feel the head of his cock brush between your folds, collecting your slick as he prepares himself. He feels huge, like nothing you’ve ever had inside of you before. If you weren’t so high on endorphins and whatever he had pumped into you, you’d be frightened. But now? You crave it.

Your hips tilt upwards slightly for a bare second before slamming back against the stone of the altar. A clear invitation. Fuck me.

Slowly, he pushes inside of you, the mass of tentacles from his back beginning to slide up the sides of the altar and over your body as he does so. It feels like an eternity before he bottoms out, feeling stretched to the absolute limit, as you cry out loudly. Finally. It feels right. You feel absolutely perfect with him inside of you, the Goldilocks Zone, not too big, not too small. Just right. You could finally settle.

Unfortunately, the priest has other plans. It feels like he is waiting for you to adjust, but you feel a smaller, thinner tendril slowly wrap around his cock as he sits inside of you, slowly making it become almost ribbed in texture. At the same time, you feel something else slide into your mouth, another tentacle of the same size as the one currently occupying your throat, twirling with its twin as it does so and yet another, albeit smaller, one probe at your ass, slowly sliding into you without hesitation, ready to join in the fun. You can feel two slowly trail up your stomach and twist around your breasts once, twice, enough to squeeze them roughly as the tips open up to cover over your nipples and start sucking away gently. Finally, one more tendril, smaller than all the rest, moves to flick at your clit, causing your head to slam back as it causes a near painful jolt through your system. The priest chuckles, his hand moving to rub at the back of your head tenderly, making sure you haven’t hurt yourself before it returns to its previous position. “Ready, roza?” He asks softly, eyes watching yours for any notion of approval for him to continue.

You nod, slightly confused by his sudden gentle demeanour. His wicked smile returns, his hips rolling against yours as he groans lowly as he takes in just out tight and warm you are, in comparison to his cool body. “Fuck, malyshka, you take me so well.” He growls as you moan around the appendages stretching out your throat, the tendril around his cock dragging against your walls deliciously. Slowly, but surely, every growth out of his back moves in tandem, the ones in your ass withdrawing when his cock enters you and pushing deep inside you when he pulls out, leaving just the tip inside. Your tits being squeezed and sucked at every time the tentacles in your throat pulls back, only to relax when they advance forward again. The small one on your clit, however, never lets up. Each little flick causes you to buck up as you just try to hold on for the ride, eyes never leaving the priest’s in front of you as he stares down at you possessively, little growls leaving him every so often.

Eventually, every thrust up into you causes loud noises to leave your body, barely able to keep up you just accept what is given to you as your body tenses, ready to be taken over that abyss once more. Your mouth goes slack, drool pooling in your mouth before slowly dripping out, leaving your checks wet in its wake. Something about the sight of you amuses the Father as he laughs his low, rumbly laugh as he looks down at you. “I think I’ll keep you. Kak ugoshcheniye. My own little toy to chase down and play with and fuck. What do you think about that, moya milaya malen'kaya blyad'?” When you don’t answer with words but with a pleading whine, his grin grows to an almost unnatural size, white teeth glinting in the faint light the candles around you provide. “Oh, how could I ever give such a pretty little thing like you up?” He purrs, his face moving down to press small kisses against your neck as you turn your head to the side, baring it openly for him. Something about that he apparently approved of, as suddenly his teeth are pressing down into your skin, a barely audible ‘mine’ vibrating against your skin before he slowly starts to suck, marking you. “Oh, I am definitely going to keep you, little Y/N.” He purrs happily, his thrusts becoming harsher and faster by the second.

It takes a few more flicks of your clit, and you definitely had been right on the brink since your last orgasm, before your entire body almost seizes as the near painful experience of you coming and coming and coming around him begins. A barely-there cry rips from your throat, you only just able to piece together the Father’s loud grunt before he’s spilling inside of you, on you, marking you. You were his. In every way possible.

You don’t so much as come down from your high as slam into darkness for a few seconds as your body twitches as the sensation of overstimulation begins to wrack through you. You are barely able to piece together the sensation of everything slowly pulling out of you and being collected into the priest’s arms, a warmed, too big coat wrapped around as he starts to walk towards the front door slowly. Your ears barely hear his voice, now soft and caring, as he talks to you in a gentle, loving tone. “-ika. Settle now, I've got you.”

You faintly recognise getting into a warmed car and it taking off before you start to fidget and whine loudly. “Empty.” You complain. After what felt like hours of being, if anything, too full to quickly being completely empty? No, no you needed something inside of you.

The priest tries to shush you before a small chuckle falls from his lips when he realises all attempts will end in vain. He carefully repositions you, sliding you down his rehardened cock with ease as it becomes your time to purr, resting your head against the crook of his neck as his hands move to rub your back and sides. “Rest now, moya lyubov'.” He instructs. And it’s an easy command to obey as you fall asleep, sitting in his lap with his cock inside of you as you are driven home.

You wake up to the sensation of someone rubbing some form of oil against your skin, the sound of a heavily accented voice murmuring small praises to you as you slowly regain awareness. You hiss at the feeling of coldness between your thighs, an ice pack having been pressed up against your pussy in order to help with the inevitable swelling that was going to occur after the beating it had been given. Your eyes flutter open and instantly make contact with the concerned amber ones of Zhuk’s. “Hey.” You say, voice a little hoarse from sleep, overuse and the throat fucking it endured.

“Hello, roza.” He says with a small smile, leaning over to grab the glass of water for you as you sit up slightly in order to sip at it. You fall back to the bed with a small grunt when your arms give out.

“Thank you.” You say, your lips quirked up into a small grin.

Several months ago, the two of you had found an abandoned town a few hours away from the manor, including a crumbly, old, haunted-looking church and a very grouchy man who lived in a house on the outskirts of town, the only resident who was determined to stay there until he died. Two weeks later, after you, Bajo and Cia ended up getting a little too into the alcohol, as Zhuk carried your ass to bed, getting everything ready for the inevitable hangover in the morning, you told him about a fantasy you had since pretty much the onset of puberty.

“I want to get fucked in a church.” You stated bluntly, his lips twitching as he tries to hold back the amused look in his face. “I blame Catholic school. I spent too much time in Mass. I wanted there to be a demon priest who could fuck me brainless.” You declared. “With tentacles.” You added as an afterthought, turning to look at your husband with wide eyes. “Snuggles?”

He obliged, placing the asprin and water bottle on your bedside table before sliding into bed behind you, pulling you into his arms as you snuggled up. “What brought this confession on, moya zhena?” He asked, hand moving instantly to play with your hair as you wrap your arms around his chest.

You hummed. “The town we passed when you made the wrong turn.” You yawned, struggling to finish your sentence. “Brought it back to life because the church there looked hella haunted. Like a demon should live there.”

Zhuk went to ask more questions, but your gentle snores made it apparent that anything asked wasn’t going to be answered.

After that, plans were made. Zhuk was all too happy to fulfil your little fantasy, even going so far to offer to hypnotise you in order to make it feel more real and less like a scene. Everything was planned down to a T, with him promising to create a cheat so if you really were in distress and wished for the scene to end, the hypnosis would break and you could safeword out.

And it worked brilliantly.

Zhuk smiles as he looks down at you softly, hand moving to brush your hair back as he constantly scans your body for more bruises, more scratches, more cuts. Anything that needed attending to, and to make sure that he didn’t hurt you too badly. “Anything for you, kotenok.” He says, voice quiet as he slowly picks you up and pulls you into his arms and lap. “You did so well, took everything I had to give and were so beautiful whilst doing it.” He presses a gentle kiss to your lips. “Do you feel alright, little one?” He asks concern still very much apparent in his voice. You nod a little jerkily.

“Just tired.” You say with a fucked out grin. You feel incredible, and you wanted to ride this high for as long as possible. “Hold me?”

“Of course.”

A few seconds tick by as he moves to lay down on the bed, you in his lap as his fingers trace loose patterns on your skin. A thought was hammering his head and it was refusing to move on.

“Roza….” he starts hesitantly, knowing that under the hypnosis he gave you, anything you said had a basis of truth in it, “was I the married man you lusted over?”

You snort a small noise as your eyes flicker up to look at him, your body beginning to slowly relax as it prepares for sleep. “Duh.” You say, amusement sparkling in your eyes.

That does not help the confusion clouding Zhuk’s mind. “I married you, moya zhena.” He reminds as if you could have forgotten.

You nod as if to agree with his statement, secretly enjoying the baffled look on his face as he tries to follow your logic. “I know. I still lusted and lust over you though.” You say, grinning up at him.

His confusion leaks into amusement, a fond look taking over his face. “Y/N, I don’t think it counts if you are married to the person.” He corrects you gently, hands moving from tracing patterns on your skin to rest on your waist.

You shrug. “You never know. Could work like that. Who’s to say?” You tease him, voice playful before you yawn against his chest.

He shakes his head, moving down to press a gentle kiss against your forehead. “Go to sleep, moya lyubov'.”

Even if the fatigue wasn’t seeping into your bones, you wouldn’t be able to help but obey as you slowly fall into a peaceful slumber in your husband’s arms.

Translations (In Order):

Don't be scared, don't run, my child.

I prefer my meals to remain unharmed until I get my hands on them.

As a treat.

-my lovely little fucktoy?

#ama writes #fanfic #fanfiction #beetlejuice #beetlejuice the musical #beetlejuice/reader #beetlejuice x reader #zhuk #zhuk shoggoth #mafia au #oc based on beetlejuice #zhuk/reader #zhuk x reader #zhuk shoggoth x reader #zhuk shoggoth/reader #reader fanfic #interactive fanfiction #smut #very nsft

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crystalninjaphoenix · 4 years

Text

Not as it Seems

A Horror Septics Story

(This is not what I planned to post today, but things came up and I had this in the works. Enjoy reading the next series of events that happens to Stacy and her family, and also this weirdo called “John” who seems to know a lot. It’s pretty long, but not as long as the last one fjdskafh)

—————

There was a good few inches of snow on the ground, courtesy of the blizzard last night. Luckily the roads had been plowed quickly, or Stacy would’ve had a hard time driving. Still, the roads were slippery, and she elected to park two blocks away from the coffee shop and walk the rest of the way, braving the cold instead of risking driving the rest of the way.

Thus, she was even more relieved to step inside the warm, coffee-scented air of the cafe. She sighed, unwinding her scarf from around her neck as she scanned the shop.

“Stacy!”

Someone was waving at her from a table by the cafe’s front window. Stacy smiled, and walked over, sitting at the same table. “Hey, Jaqueline,” she said. “Sorry I’m late, driving was a bitch.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” Jaqueline said, leaning back in her chair. “I knew you’d show up eventually. You want to order?”

“Sure.” Stacy noticed the table was empty of drinks. “You didn’t order already?”

“Nah, I wanted to wait.”

“Aw.” Stacy smiled, touched. “You didn’t have to.”

“But I wanted to.” Jaqueline shrugged. “Besides, it’s no problem.”

The two of them went up to the counter and ordered. Stacy got a mocha latte with whip cream and Jaqueline got an americano. They chatted while they waited, just general small talk about the surprising blizzard last night, unusual for the area. The barista quickly filled their orders, and the two of them sat back down at the table.

“Y’know, you should really be wearing a coat, Jaq,” Stacy pointed out, taking a sip of her latte.

“Oh, I have a coat right here,” Jaqueline said. “I just took it off. Which you could stand to do, it’s warm enough in here.” She settled back into the seat. “So, how’s the job hunt going?”

Stacy sighed deeply. She shouldered off her coat, draping it over the back of the seat. “Not good. I keep getting denials online. Y’know, the whole ‘thank you for your application but we don’t think you’d be a good fit here,’ that whole shebang.” She tried not to let on how worried she was about it. She hadn’t gotten a job once since arriving in this new city of Rysbuwich. That was insane; surely she should’ve found something by now?

“Maybe you’re being too picky,” Jaqueline said, as if reading her mind. “You’re only going for food-related ones, right?”

“Well, I mean, that’s where all my expertise is, so yeah,” Stacy nodded. “It’s what’s on most of my resume. I’d prefer baking, like my old job, but I’ll take anything similar.”

“Hmm.” Jaqueline nodded. “That’s understandable. But, y’know, there’s only so long you can support two kids on unemployment. Maybe get a job you’re less qualified for, but one that’ll take anyone.”

“Yeah, I’ve started to do that,” Stacy agreed. Really, she’d only sent about two applications for positions like that,and both had been rejected. “I wonder if there’ll be a lot of those online...I’ve been seeing some help wanted signs around town, maybe I should just walk in.”

“Hey, it’s better than nothing.” Jaqueline chuckled. “Where have you been seeing them?”

“Uh...a bookstore, an arcade, a couple fast-food places, I think there was a toy store…” Stacy had been making a mental note of every place she’d seen one of the Help Wanted signs, but she couldn’t be sure she was getting them all. Staring out the window, she stifled a yawn.

“You seem tired, Stace,” Jaqueline said. “Long night?”

“Yeah, had something with my other friend,” she replied. “It went late.” She paused. “Y’know, I mentioned you, and he got real weird about it. Asked me if I knew your last name.”

“Really?” Jaqueline raised an eyebrow. “That’s a little weird. We only just met, and it’s not like people go around introducing themselves as So-and-so Last Name.”

“That’s exactly what I said!” Stacy laughed. “And, I mean, I don’t even know his last name, so it’s not really fair. Do you know my last name?”

“Yeah, it’s Allen, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. Guess I told you.”

Jaqueline smiled. “Yeah.”

Stacy paused, taking another sip of her coffee. “So, what’s yours?”

“Wait a sec, I just realized something.” Jaqueline frowned. “Your friend is a guy? And he got real weird about you seeing me?”

“Uh-huh.” Stacy nodded. “It was...it came out of nowhere, honestly.”

“Hmm.” Jaqueline pursed her lips. “You don’t think he could’ve been...well, protective of you? In like a...y’know. ‘Has feelings’ way?”

“Um...I don’t think so.” Stacy cast her mind back. “I mean, John’s a little...weird. Kind of crazy. Don’t tell him I said that,” she hurried to add. “‘Cause I know he has reasons for acting the way he does, even if I’ve never asked. And besides, he knows I’m still not over my, uh...he knows I’m not looking for a relationship.”

“Which is totally understandable,” Jaqueline assured her. “But I’m just saying, I’ve known some guy ‘friends’”—she made air quotes with her fingers on that word—“who would act weird and suspicious when their female friend started getting friends outside them. Just consider it.”

“I will, don’t worry,” Stacy took another drink. She really didn’t think John was the type to do something like that, but then again, she didn’t actually know that much about him. He helped her out back in the last town, Bronainise, with that...thing in her house. And she knew he had experience with things like that. And she couldn’t help but feel sorry for him after seeing him have that nightmare last night. But...she didn’t really know that much about him. She didn’t even know his real name. Stacy shook her head, putting those thoughts away for now. “Anyway, enough about me, how have things been going with you?”

* * * * * * * * * *

She arrived back home in a significantly better mood than she had been when she left. Being with Jaqueline always did that. They’d only met up twice since their initial meeting a few weeks ago, but Stacy could already tell she really liked her. There was just something about her that left Stacy feeling happy; like she was just full of energy and it rubbed off on her. She was really glad they’d met each other.

Walking into the house, she was greeted by the sight of Larkin lying on the couch, reading. “Hey, Lark,” she said. “What book is that?”

“Hi Mom!” Larkin said. He lifted up the cover for her to see. “I got it from the school library. It’s one of a bunch of series, The Magic Tree House. Mr. Teller said I’d like it.”

“Oh? And do you?”

Larkin nodded. “I like Annie.”

“That’s great!” Stacy smiled. Larkin was doing a lot better in English in this new school. Apparently all he needed was an encouraging teacher, who would point him towards books he would enjoy. He started to put more effort into trying to read, and had leaped ahead to be one of the best readers in the class. “Do you know where Mathew is?”

“Uh, I think he’s in the backyard.”

Stacy headed out back. Mathew wasn’t actually out in the yard, but she could clearly see him. Over the small brick wall. In the empty lot behind the house. She hurried over, snow crunching under her boots.

It appeared Mathew was talking with John, who had cleared a spot in the lot free of snow and was now trying to set up his tent. Stacy picked up their conversation as she approached. “—and I’m told that you get the true ending if you do a pacifist run, so you don’t hurt anyone, but I never got around to playing it when it came out,” Mathew was saying. “But I dunno...should I get it on my Switch?”

“Oh yeah, totally,” John said, busying himself with trying to set up some of the tent poles. “I played it, and I loved it. It’s seriously really good, totally worth your allowance.”

“You did?” Mathew asked skeptically.

“What, just ‘cause I live in a tent and don’t own anything electronic now doesn’t mean I never did,” John joked.

Mathew smiled a bit. “Are you sure you don’t need any help?”

“Nah, I’m good. Thanks for asking, though.” John glanced over, noticing Stacy. “Hey.”

“Hey,” she said. “Just checking on you two.”

“We’re good, Mom,” Mathew said, with a hint of what she called the “duh” tone that teenages sometimes used. “I just wanted to talk to John about games.”

“Nice.” Stacy nodded. “I’m going to make lunch. You good with sandwiches and chips?”

“Sure.”

“Um...John, do you want lunch, too?” Stacy asked tentatively.

John shook his head, not looking away from his tent. “I’ll get something somewhere.”

“Where?”

John shrugged. “You know.”

Stacy frowned. “Alright. I’ll make an extra one, if you change your mind.”

“...thanks,” John says softly. He managed to pull one of the tent poles into a standing position, using a spare rock to pound a stake into the ground. “So, Stacy. You, uh...saw your friend today?”

“Yes, I just came back,” Stacy said. Mathew, sensing the appearance of adult small talk, turned and hopped back over the wall into the yard and then the house. “It was nice.”

“Good. Good.” John sounded a bit curt. “Had fun?”

“...yeah.” Stacy narrowed her eyes. “You sound a bit, um...is everything okay with you?”

“With me, yeah. What about you?” John finally looked over at her.

“I mean...it’s going alright,” Stacy said haltingly. “I’m still looking for a job, but at least I’ve made a friend.” A friend, being key. Jaqueline was the only person she’d met in town who’d seemed interested in...well, meeting up with her more than once. Though it was hard to meet up with people when you didn’t have a lot of places to go. No job to socialize, and Larkin and Mathew were still making friends of their own so she couldn’t even chat with their friends’ moms.

“Hmm…” John pulled the other tent pole into place. “How’d you meet...her? She goes by Jaqueline, right?”

“Yes, that’s her name. We, uh...met in the grocery store.” Stacy smiled awkwardly. “I was shopping, she was shopping.”

“She approached you and started talking, then?” John drawled.

“Yeah.” Stacy couldn’t quite remember their first conversation, but Jaqueline had been so friendly it had left a good impression of her. “That’s how most conversations work. Usually you don’t walk up to someone and go ‘hello, there’s a demon in my house, can you help me?’”

“It really, really isn’t a demon in that house,” John said, frowning. “I told you why I don’t like that word for them.”

“Mm-hmm.” Stacy watched for a bit, just long enough to make sure John got the tent up. Then she turned around. “Well...I’ll be around.”

“Wait!” John suddenly stood up.

Stacy spun back around. “What? What is it?”

“I…” John now seemed to be regretting calling after her. “You, uh...really like this friend, huh? Y’know you should be, um...you should be careful about talking to strangers.”

“Yeah...I know.” Stacy raised an eyebrow. “I’m not seven years old, I know all about stranger danger.” Evidently she was feeling a bit sassy today. “Trust me, I know what I’m doing.”

“I know. You’re, uh. You’re smart.” John shifted awkwardly on his feet. “Very careful, I could tell when I saw you. Just, uh...remember to be careful, okay?”

“...okay.” Stacy backed up. “Talk to you later.” She turned and left, glancing back over at John as she hopped over the wall. John still seemed to want to say something, but she walked away before he could.

* * * * * * * * * *

The next morning, she went driving around town while the kids were at school, looking for a few of those Help Wanted signs she’d seen throughout the town. Retracing her usual routes, she was sure she’d run into one of them. But to her surprise, there wasn’t a single one. Strange...she wandered around for a while, glancing into store windows, but still saw nothing. After a bit, she stopped outside a bookstore that she distinctly remembered had a Help Wanted sign in the window. She would go in herself, talk to an employee, and see if they were still hiring.

Walking in, she was greeted by the small tinkling of a bell and soft music. It was a big enough shop, but still had the sort of atmosphere of a small bookstore. Stacy immediately thought that this wouldn’t be a bad place to work. She walked up to the counter, looking around. There was an employee with their back to her. “Um...hello?” she called. “I have a question.”

The employee straightened, and turned to face her. “Stacy?”

“Oh!” Stacy blinked. “Jaqueline! I didn’t realize you worked here.”

Jaqueline chuckled. “Really? I could’ve sworn I told you. Thought you were checking up on me.” She frowned exaggeratedly. “Aw.”

“I mean, if I’d known I might’ve,” Stacy said. “Are you guys, uh...hiring?”

“We were, but the position was filled yesterday,” Jaqueline sighed. She pointed down the shelves at a young man. “New guy right there. Sorry. It would’ve been great to work together.”

“Yeah.” Stacy sighed. “It seems nice. Looks like they have a lax uniform code to start, if they let you wear your jacket.”

“Hey, it’s cold. Management understands that.” Jaqueline smiled.

Stacy smiled back, but it quickly faded. “I just...I could’ve sworn there were more people hiring in town.”

“Well, jobs at places like this tend to get snatched up quickly. High turnover rate, y’know. I’m even new here.” Jaqueline reached over the counter and put her hand on Stacy’s shoulder. “It’ll be okay, y’know. Someone with your skills is sure to have many opportunities.” Jaqueline withdrew. “Most organizations actually favor online applications over in-person ones these days. Keep trying there, and keep talking to them about the application. It’ll get you somewhere eventually.”

“You think so?” Stacy asked.

“I know so,” Jaqueline said, reassuring her.

Stacy breathed out. “Thanks.” She already felt a bit calmer about the situation.

“Hey, you want to meet up next week? Maybe on Friday?” Jaqueline asked. “We could spend an evening together.”

“Yeah, that sounds great. I don’t have anything else to do.” Stacy paused. “Well, I’ll see you then, then?”

“I’ll meet up outside your house,” Jaqueline said.

Stacy frowned. “Do you know my address?”

“Yeah, you told me. And I told you mine, remember?” Jaqueline shook her head. “Sometimes I worry about your memory, Stace.”

“...huh.” Stacy considered this. Maybe her time back in Bronainise with the thing in her house had messed with her memory. Who knew? “Well, see you.”

“See you.”

Stacy left. She didn’t bother to check any of the other places she thought had hiring signs. Evidently all those posts had been filled.

* * * * * * * * * *

The week passed quietly, without change, and soon Friday arrived. Stacy was about ready to go out to meet Jaqueline when she got a call from the babysitter.

“Are you absolutely sure you can’t make it?” Stacy asked.

“Sorry, Ms. Allen,” the sitter said. “Nobody could’ve seen this coming. And it is an emergency.”

“It is, it is,” Stacy said, nodding even though nobody could see her. “Sorry to hear about it, by the way. Good luck.”

“Thanks, Ms. Allen.”

As soon as the sitter hung up, Stacy sighed, staring at the phone screen. It froze for a moment, the image freaking out briefly before settling to normal. She filed that away in her mind, to be worried about if it came up later. The more pressing concern was what she was going to do now. She’d promised Jaqueline she’d meet up with her, and though she trusted Mathew to be able to watch Larkin and himself for a day, she worried about the two of them being left alone for the night. Should she...just leave and trust the kids for the night? No, what if something happened?

Just at that moment, she heard a knocking sound. She jumped, and spun around, peering into the kitchen where the sound came from. John was standing at the glass door at the back of the house. He knocked on the glass again.

Stacy walked on over and opened the door. “Hi. What’s up?”

“I really need to talk to you,” John said.

“Oh, um. Okay. I was actually planning to go out—”

“With Jaqueline?” John interrupted.

“Yeah,” Stacy said, surprised. “How’d you know that?”

“Just a guess,” John said. “Look, that’s what I need to talk to you about. She’s not what you think she is.”

“You’ve never even met her,” Stacy muttered.

“You’re right, I’ve never met Jaqueline,” John said. “But—”

“Well, then, why do you care if I’m going out with her?” Stacy asked.

“I just don’t want you to get hurt!” John slammed his hands down on the kitchen table. “Look, you barely know this—this person.” He spat out the last word like he couldn’t come up with something better, and thought the one he’d found didn’t quite fit. “For all you know, she could be a serial killer!”

“I barely knew you when I gave you a ride to this town,” Stacy pointed out. “You were in the car with my kids and me for two hours, and you didn’t take the opportunity to do anything.”

“Yeah, but I’m different!”

Stacy blinked. “Wow. That sounds...kind of…” Entitled, if she was being honest.

“Okay, maybe I could’ve phrased that better,” John admitted, backing down. “What I mean is that...I-I know what she is.”

“A woman?”

“No!”

“Oh wow.” Stacy took a step back. “Look, don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t think you, as a man, have the right to judge someone on their womanhood. Especially someone you’ve never met before—”

“What—how the fuck did you jump to that conclusion?!” John gaped at her. “Look I didn’t mean it like that—”

“Um, kinda sounds like you did—”

“No shut the fuck up and let me talk!” John blurted out the words, and immediately his expression shifted to regret. “...sorry.”

Stacy took a few steps backwards. “I think we both need some time to cool down,” she said after a while.

“No, look, this is important, I have to tell you before you meet...your friend,” John said, approaching as Stacy retreated. There seemed to be genuine fear and concern in his visible eye. “I-I—what I mean to say is that, this friend of yours isn’t actually your friend.”

Stacy sighed, irritation rising. “You still don’t even know her. I’ve barely told you anything.”

“You’ve barely told me anything because you barely know anything!” John’s voice became hushed. “If I asked you what her eye color was, would you be able to tell me?”

“Of course, John.”

“Alright, what color are her eyes?”

“I don’t see what that has to do with anything,” Stacy snapped. “Look, she’ll be here any minute. I gotta go.”

“Just answer the question!” John suddenly lunged, grabbing onto her wrist as she turned to leave.

Stacy yelped, and instinctively slapped him across the face, startling him enough to get him to let go. Immediately, she backed up and then turned and ran. She was at the front door and heading out before John even had time to call out to her.

There was a car outside the house. When Stacy approached, she saw Jaqueline inside, who rolled down the window. “You okay, Stace?” Jaqueline asked. “You look a little shaken.”

“I’m fine,” Stacy dismissed. “Tell you about it later.” She rounded the car and got into the passenger side door. “Let’s just go.”

* * * * * * * * * *

Jaqueline ended up driving the two of them to a part of town that Stacy wasn’t too familiar with. When the car pulled into a parking lot, Stacy looked out at the nearby building and immediately frowned. “Is this a bar?”

“Well, no, it’s a restaurant with a bar inside it,” Jaqueline said. “Why, is that a problem?”

“Um...I don’t drink anymore,” Stacy explained uneasily.

“That’s alright, we’ll just get food,” Jaqueline said. “This place has great chicken.”

“...well...I do like chicken,” Stacy said slowly.

“I know! You’re gonna love it here, just give it a chance.” Jaqueline smiled, and stepped out of the car. Stacy hesitated, then followed.

They ended up sitting at the bar area, but that was because the place was packed. It seemed that this was one of the most active places in town, and on a Friday night that meant there was barely any room to sit anywhere. It also meant the wait for food was long, so Jaqueline suggested they ordered drinks to start. Stacy agreed, but stuck with just water while Jaqueline jumped straight into ordering a martini. After their drinks arrived, Jaqueline asked, “So, are you gonna tell me why you were so shaken when I went to pick you up?”

“Hmm? Oh, I did say I’d tell you later, didn’t I?” Stacy sighed, and took a big drink of her water. “Nothing, it’s just...I had a fight with my friend.”

“The same friend who started acting weird when you mentioned you were hanging out with me a week and a half ago?” Jaqueline asked.

“Well...yeah,” Stacy admitted.

“Hmm,” Jaqueline hummed. “What about?”

“Uh...well...you.” Stacy muttered the last word into her drink.

“Oh. Well, then.” Jaqueline sipped her martini through a straw, finishing the whole thing in one big drink. “That’s an interesting coincidence.”

“I mean, it’s not a coincidence,” Stacy said. “He just...really thinks I shouldn’t be hanging out with you.”

“I see. You ever ask him if he, y’know, liked you? In that way?” Jaqueline flagged down the bartender again, ordering another martini.

“No, but I can tell it’s not just that.” Stacy took another drink. “He’s paranoid. I think he thinks you’re gonna be, like, a murderer or something.”

Jaqueline laughed. “Wow. We’ve never even met! What have you been telling him about me?”

“Nothing, really. Just the normal stuff.” Stacy paused. “I mean, I understand why he is the way he is. Something happened to him that made him so crazy. And, well, at this point, it is a little crazy to be so paranoid about someone you don’t know. But there’s a reason, and I know it’s a bad one.” She sighed. “I feel kinda bad for fighting with him.”

“Hey, no matter what someone’s past is, that shouldn’t lead them to interfering with other people’s lives,” Jaqueline said.

Stacy nodded. Slowly at first, then she sped up. “Yeah, you’re right. You’re right.” She took a sip of her drink through the straw.

“Honestly if he’s bothering you this much about it, it sounds like it’s a problem that needs to be addressed,” Jaqueline said.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean, if you’re right and something happened in his past that made him like this, it sounds like any paranoia on his part is kinda just a reaction because of how, like, his mind formed or something,” Jaqueline said. Her voice, though it wasn’t any louder than anyone else’s, really stood out against the background chatter of the restaurant. Its familiar tone was soothing. “Maybe he should talk to someone professional about it. Sort out these issues.”

“Huh. That’s a good point.” Because John clearly had some sort of issues. Stacy had noticed them. He was paranoid about everything, about people with phones, about strangers, and about so much more. He lived in a tent, and she got the feeling that was because of a choice he made and not because he had no other option. Or maybe it was both. And she hadn’t forgotten how he had a criminal record back in Bronainise. For petty things, like pickpocketing and minor vandalism, but still. He had a past of being a bit...disruptive.

“Maybe you should just, like, remember that,” Jaqueline suggested. “I’m not saying you do anything about it unless it gets bad. You want a second drink?”

“Huh? Oh sure.” Stacy waved the empty martini glass she was holding. “Didn’t even realize I finished.”

“I’ll get you another one of those.”

“That would be great. Thanks.”

* * * * * * * * * *

The next thing Stacy knew, she was waking up on a cot in a holding cell at a police station with a pounding headache.

“Wh…?” Stacy tried to sit up, and immediately winced as the ache intensified. “Um...hello?”

A uniformed police officer outside the cell turned to look at her. “Oh good. You’re awake.”

“What...am I doing here?” Stacy asked, looking around.

“You don’t remember? Well, it doesn’t surprise me.” The officer shook her head. “With a BAC of 0.21, I’m surprised you were even able to keep walking.”

“Wait, I’m sorry, what?!” Stacy tried to stand up, but instead ended up rolling out of the cot onto the floor. “Th—that’s impossible, I don’t drink!”

“Well, you did last night,” the officer said, raising an eyebrow.

Stacy shook her head in disbelief. This was impossible. She’d sworn off drinking. “What happened? Why’d I get arrested?”

“Disorderly conduct,” the officer explained. “You and some other lady were making a ruckus on the street, walking all along Fleet St. for a couple hours. Ended up throwing some bottles and tipping over wheelie bins.”

“Oh my god…” Stacy whispered. “This other lady, where is she?”

“Some family member of hers posted bail an hour ago. She said she’d be back to post yours. Should be any minute now.”

Stacy nodded vaguely, muttering another “Oh my god…” before settling down on the cot. She put her head in her hands and started to wait. She’d sworn off alcohol. After her husband died, she fell pretty hard into that rabbit hole. She hated it, but she’d hated remembering what happened more. She was lucky enough to pull herself out of it. But it seemed that last night she relapsed. She’d thought she was doing pretty good...but now,the whole town will only know her as the lady who caused some crazy drunk disturbance.

It must’ve been ten minutes later when Stacy heard, “Wow...you don’t look good.”

Stacy looked up, and sighed. “Thanks, Jaqueline.”

“No problem.” Jaqueline flashed a smile of teeth, then nodded at the police officer, who unlocked the door of the holding cell. Stacy quickly left. “Wow, crazy last night. I’ve never been arrested before.”

“Really?” Stacy asked idly.

Jaqueline shrugged. “C’mon, I’ll drive you home. God, that whole thing last night must’ve been crazy. I walked out of the station and all the officers were staring at me.”

Stacy winced. Then the first statement really registered. “Oh my fucking god, I need to get home! I left the kids!” She hurried out of the station, Jaqueline following close behind.

* * * * * * * * * *

When Jaqueline dropped her off at her house, Stacy immediately rushed inside. “Mathew?! Larkin?!” she called, running into the living room. Upon not immediately seeing either of the boys, she ran down the hall, tripping over her own feet. She cried out, catching herself by grabbing the wall.

“Be careful, there.”

Stacy paused, then backed up, glancing into the entrance to the dining room. John was inside. He was sitting on the floor, back braced against one of the dining room chairs, one of her books in his hands. “How’d you get in here?” She asked, startled.

John folded over a corner of the page and set the book on the chair behind him. “You let me inside last night, remember?” He said, standing up. “And when you left, I figured, y’know, nobody was here to watch your kids for the night.”

Stacy flinched. “I-I didn’t mean to leave so suddenly. The sitter quit, she had a call from her mother in the hospital—I was going to stay, really!”

“Hmm.” John folded his arms. “I do agree it was...most unlike you. You must’ve really, really wanted to meet up with your...friend.”

“Well...yeah, but I wouldn’t have—!”

“Yeah, you would’ve,” John muttered. “When in this situation, anyone would’ve.”

Stacy blinked. “What?”

“Tell me, Stacy.” John took a few steps towards her before stopping and leaning on the nearest wall. “Why do you hang out with this...person?”

“Wh...Jaqueline?”

“If that’s what you want to call—yes, fine, Jaqueline.”

Stacy frowned. “John, you really shouldn’t be so concerned with this. You’ve never even met her, why do you care so much about me—”

“Because you just up and left your kids!” John suddenly shouted. “Overnight! In a town you’ve only lived in for a month and a half! For what, this thing?! Stacy, we haven’t known each other that long, but I know you wouldn’t ditch your kids without supervision to go out with friends. I can tell you care about them too much to do that. So maybe you should think about why you left them last night and I had to stay in your house with your fucking computer and electronics just so I could make sure nothing happened to them!”

Stacy bit her lip, holding back an immediate response. She took a few deep breaths before continuing. “John...I didn’t mean to leave last night. I was angry and not thinking clearly, but I know I shouldn’t have left all night.” She paused. “I...actually got arrested.”

John blinked, then his eye suddenly went wide. He ran over and grabbed her by the shoulders. “What did you do?! What did it make you do?! How are you back here now?! What does it plan to do next?!”

“Jesus christ!” Stacy grabbed John’s wrists and threw his hands away, taking a few steps back. “What are you talking about?”

“You don’t know?!” John suddenly calmed, shaking his head. “No, of course you don’t, I was talking to you earlier and you still called it by that name, but what’s it going to do next? What is it planning? This isn’t normal, it’s moving too fast.”

“John…” Stacy said softly. “Are you alright?”

“What?” His head snapped up. “Well, technically no, but as of my current standard of ‘alright,’ yeah, I guess.”

“Look, it’s very weird—no, that’s the wrong word, I mean...I know you’re aware that this way you’re acting isn’t normal,” Stacy emphasized.

John laughed. “Nothing about me is normal anymore.”

“It’s, um...it could be harmful,” Stacy said delicately. “To yourself, or others. Maybe you should talk to a therapist about it.”

That just made John laugh harder, bracing against the wall. “Oh, that’d be a great idea! Y’know I don’t really feel like being put in an institution again! Honestly, what I should be doing at this point is be fucking dead, but no way! Not gonna let that happen! It’d just love that!”

Stacy took another step backwards. “Look, I know it seems a bit ridiculous, but...I’ve been thinking recently, and you...well, you need help.”

John’s laughter suddenly cut off, and he leveled her with a single-eye stare. “Did your Jaqueline tell you that?”

“Look, this is exactly what I’m talking about!” Stacy said, exasperated. “You’re so focused on someone who didn’t even do anything.”

“Oh, a lot of people would disagree with you on that,” John muttered.

“Jaqueline is the one person who’s been friendly to me in this town!” Stacy shouted, her voice cracking. “She’s funny, gives great advice, always wants to hang out—”

“—makes you so happy to be around that you can’t wait to meet up again,” John jumped in. “So happy that you probably don’t even remember that you’re still looking for a job, or that your kids sometimes need help with school, or that you’re running out of food in the fridge—yeah, I checked that. A happiness so intense that it’s basically an addiction.”

“You don’t get addicted to people, John,” Stacy said flatly. “Look, I gotta check on Mathew and Larkin. I don’t...can you leave? By the time I get back downstairs?” Without waiting for an answer, she turned and went back down the hall. She felt John’s gaze on her the entire way, but when she came back down, he had left, just like she’d asked.

* * * * * * * * * *

Two days later, she finally found a place with a Help Wanted sign in the window. Her mood immediately lifted. She’d been applying heavily online, calling businesses just to make sure they were absolutely sure there wasn’t a spot open, but had got no results. This could be the game changer. She walked inside; this place was an arcade, so she was instantly hit with a wall of beeping electronic sounds and flashing lights. She walked up to the counter and asked, “Hi, I noticed you had a hiring sign? Is that still applicable?”

“Oh, yeah,” said the employee at the counter. “Hang on, let me get my manager, he’ll talk to you about it. Brenda? Can you man the till?”

Only a few minutes later, Stacy was sitting at a table in a back room, talking to an older man who identified himself as the manager and owner. An interview! Finally. And so quickly, too. Maybe she’d finally get a new job. And from there, she could continue her search on the side, but at least she’d have a source of income besides unemployment and her savings.

“Alright, just one more question, I have to ask this for security reasons,” the manager said, writing something down. “Do you have any sort of criminal record?” He asked the question like he already knew the answer.

“Oh...um…” Stacy tried not to squirm. “I mean, I got...arrested once.”

The manager stopped writing and looked up at her.

“It wasn’t for anything bad!” Stacy hurried to say, before it suddenly occurred to her that this would seem super suspicious. “I just—it was really recent, it was just for disorderly conduct, I got drunk—” The manager frowned slightly. “—but it was just a few days ago, and it was just the one time!”

“I see.” The manager wrote something else down. “Well, thank you Ms. Allen. Can I get your phone number? We’ll be in contact.”

Stacy gave him her number, but walked out of the building with a heavy heart. ‘We’ll be in contact’ was what employers said when they weren’t really considering you.

* * * * * * * * * *

“Hey, Stace!”

She was in the grocery store, three days later, and her lingering gray mood hadn’t faded. But then she looked up and saw Jaqueline approaching. Her mood suddenly lightened, and she beamed. “Hi, Jaqueline.”

“You looked a bit down before I showed up,” Jaqueline said in a joking tone. “What’s up?”

Stacy sighed heavily, grabbing a box of Lucky Charms from the shelf—it was Larkin’s favorite, but harder to find in this country. “I just...still haven’t had luck.”

“With the job hunt?”

“Yeah, and just...life.” She put the box in her cart. “I swear, people keep staring at me.”

“Me too,” Jaqueline said, tone sympathetic. “I think someone filmed us last Friday night and shared the video online, so we’re pretty well-known now.”

“Oh…” Stacy groaned. Of course it would be like that. Of course life would add another scoop of ice cream to the bad-luck sundae that was the past few years of her life. The metaphorical bowl must be overflowing by this point. “So now we’re both known as the crazy drunk ladies.”

“Yeah, it sucks,” Jaqueline sighed. “But, y’know, you look even more upset than that would warrant.”

“I just...still no job. Mathew and Lark are having a hard time making new friends. And now nobody’s gonna want to talk to me…” Stacy sighed again, this time blinking away tears.

“Maybe you never should’ve moved here,” Jaqueline said.

“Maybe I never should’ve moved here,” Stacy repeated. “Yeah...I mean, why’d we have to leave the whole town? The thing was probably only in that house, we could’ve just got a new one. The kids would be a lot happier, too.”

“Wait, you want to leave?” Jaqueline asked.

“I mean, nothing’s been good ever since we got here,” Stacy said. “I can’t work, I’m fighting with John all the time, I got drunk for the first time in months...yeah.”

“Aw, but I’ll miss you!” Jaqueline whined. “But...I understand. It’s for the best of everyone.”

“Yeah…” Stacy nodded slowly. “Yeah, it’s for the best.”

* * * * * * * * * *

She started idly making plans to move back to Bronainise. She didn’t book a moving van, or go online to look for houses like she had upon initially moving away, but she did bring it up with the kids. Larkin seemed vaguely okay with it, like he didn’t really care, but Mathew was confused about moving back when they’d only been there for a little under two months. Stacy had explained that she could tell the town wasn’t a good fit for any of them, but he’d still been a bit upset about so many moves in such a short time. But he relented.

Stacy was a little concerned about what to do with John. He probably wouldn’t want to move back, but should she ask him anyway? After all, if it hadn’t been for her, he wouldn’t even be in this town in the first place. Maybe she should at least offer to give him a ride. But then again, she hadn’t been seeing much of him lately.

Until about four days after she’d initially gotten the idea to move back. She pulled into the driveway after picking up the kids from school, and was greeted by the sight of John, wearing a backpack with his rolled-up sleeping bag attached, carrying a full duffel bag, rounding around the side of the house. She stepped out, followed soon by the kids. “What’s going on?” she asked, confused.

John stopped, letting go of the duffel bag. “I’m moving. I packed everything up, and I’m leaving.”

“...oh.” Stacy said. “Um...why?”

John rolled his visible eye. “Because you clearly don’t want me nearby, of course.”

“Hey, that’s not true,” Stacy said. Behind her, she heard Mathew and Larkin climb out of the car and walk up the drive to the front door, going inside. “I’ll be in in a minute, boys!” She called after them.

“Look, I think it’s best for both of us if I leave,” John said. “I never meant to hang around anyway. But I’m human, we get attached. Unless we’re pretending.”

That was an odd statement. Stacy stepped forward. “If this is about something I said, I’m sorry—”

“It’s not just that,” John interrupted. “Look, before I go, I just want to straight-up tell you what I’ve been trying to get at for the last three weeks. Apparently just hinting at it hasn’t worked.” He paused. “Your friend, Jaqueline? Is not human.”

After a long, quiet moment, Stacy sighed deeply. “John—”

“I know, you think it’s your friend, your only friend,” John pressed forward. “But it’s making you think that. You haven’t talked to anyone else because it’s made you focus on it. You’ve been acting weird because it’s been influencing you. You shouldn’t trust it.”

“John,” Stacy said sadly. “I really do appreciate you helping out with that thing in the house, but not everything is tied back to something supernatural.”

John laughed. “Oh, you don’t know my life. But trust me, this time, it is. I’ve seen this thing in action before.”

“John…” Stacy could only shake her head. He must’ve been so immersed in this world, so affected by whatever happened to him, that he saw it everywhere. “I’m sorry—”

“Y’know, I believe you, in some way,” John interrupted. “But this just proves I should go.” He picked up the duffel bag again. “Maybe we’ll see each other again.” And he started walking down the sidewalk, snow crunching under his feet.

Stacy watched him go. She wanted to say something, but couldn’t think of what. After a few seconds, she turned, and went inside.

She didn’t see the way John froze, stopped walking, and looked back.

* * * * * * * * * *

Inside the house, Stacy was dialing a number on her phone. She waited anxiously while it rang.

The other line was soon picked up. “Hello?”

“Jaqueline?” Stacy asked, already her mood brightening.

“Yeah, Stace? What’s up?”

“I just...I just wanted to talk to you.”

“Aw, that’s great! Hey, why don’t we meet up tonight? What about seven, in the park?”

“Sounds great.”

“You should bring your kids, too. I’ve always wanted to meet them.”

“Alright.”

“And we might be a while, so like, grab some entertainment for them. Books and stuff, y’know.”

“Yeah, they’ll get bored soon if we’re gonna go do something.”

“I’ll see you then.”

“See you.”

Jaqueline hung up. Stacy realized she’d been smiling the whole time. Well, that would be something to look forward to.

* * * * * * * * * *

Just before seven, Stacy gathered her kids and their entertainment and piled them all in the car. Of course, Mathew and Larkin questioned it. She explained that her friend wanted to meet them, but that they might get bored. Neither of them seemed too happy about that explanation.

“Mom, isn’t it a little late?” Mathew complained. “Larkin has school tomorrow.”

“I don’t mind staying up,” Larkin piped up.

“It shouldn’t take too long,” Stacy assured them. “Jaqueline’s great, you’ll like her.”

Mathew groaned. “Do you want us to call her ‘Aunt Jaqueline’?”

“Of course not!” Stacy said. “Not if you don’t want to.”

“Mom, I can watch Lark for the evening, it’s fine,” Mathew insisted. “You can go.”

“It won’t take too long,” Stacy repeated. “You have your Switch, fully charged. What would you be doing at home? Playing on your Switch.”

Mathew grumbled at the accurate statement. Meanwhile, Larkin was staring out the window, frowning. “Where are we going?” he asked.

“To the park, honey,” Stacy replied.

“I don’t wanna go,” Larkin whined.

“Why not? It won’t take too long.”

“I dunno,” Larkin said. “But I don’t wanna go.” He slumped in his car seat. “It feels...like this isn’t good. A bad idea.”

“It’s just a short meet-up, Lark,” Stacy said gently. “If you still want to leave after, just let me know, and I’ll drive you back home.”

Larkin still looked a bit upset, almost nervous, but accepted this. The rest of the drive was silent, and soon Stacy pulled up to the city park. “Alright, here we are,” she said, opening the car door and stepping out. It was a bit darker than she’d expected, the sky a dark, dusky blue. It was cold too, but luckily she and the kids had thought to bring their coats. Snow covered the grass in spots where there would’ve been shade in the daytime, and it crunched under their feet. There was a hole in the park, marked with stakes around it, attached with tape. A large shovel was shoved into the ground, standing upright. Stacy glanced into the hole. There was a pipe running along the ground. It appeared this was maintenance for something or other, probably a water pipe. Stacy ushered Larkin away from the hole, just in case.

“Hey Mom?” Mathew asked. “Is that your friend?”

Stacy glanced up. There was a figure standing nearby, underneath an elder tree. She instantly recognized the red hoodie. “Yes, that’s her,” she said, smiling. “C’mon.” She grabbed Larkin’s hand and walked on over, Mathew following close behind. “Hey!” She called.

“Hey, Stacy,” Jaqueline said, waving. “Glad you could make it. These are your kids?”

“Yep.” Stacy closed the distance between her and Jaqueline. “This is Mathew, and this is—Larkin, what’s wrong?”

Larkin had stopped walking, and now looked very pale. He pulled on Stacy’s hand, backing up.

Mathew, noticing this, frowned. “Lark, what’s up?”

“Moooom?” Larkin said in a whisper-shout. “I think we should leave. I don’t think your friend is coming.”

Stacy blinked. “What are you talking about, sweetie? She’s right here.” She pointed at Jaqueline.

Larkin whimpered slightly, and tried harder to pull Stacy away, causing her to stumble.

Jaqueline laughed. “Wow, he must get his sight from his father.”

“What? I mean, if you mean he has his father’s eyes, that’s not right, you can see he takes after me there…” Stacy trailed off. What an odd thing to say.

“Ah, I’m sorry, it’s dark,” Jaqueline said dismissively.

“Oh. It’s okay.” Stacy turned her attention back to Larkin. “Honey, what’s wrong? Do you want to leave?”

Larkin gestured for her to bend down. She did so, and he got up on his tiptoes to whisper in her ear: “Mom, we need to leave soon, before the monster catches on.”

The genuine fear in his voice made Stacy’s heart stop. This wasn’t even the sort of fear she’d heard in his voice when he was younger and scared of monsters under the bed. This was raw, real, life-under-threat fear. “What do you mean?” She asked quietly.

Larkin glanced back over at Jaqueline. “Mom,” he whispered. “I think the demon is tricking you.”

Slowly, Stacy straightened. She slowly looked back over at Jaqueline. This was...this was wrong. Why would Larkin be so afraid of her, call her a monster and a demon? She was perfectly normal.

But...

John had warned her away from Jaqueline. And...and he would know, wouldn’t he? He had a lot more experience with this kind of thing. He’d straight-up said that she wasn’t human, that she was tricking her. And Stacy had brushed it off as paranoia. Which...was sort of true, John was a bit paranoid, but he also knew his stuff. Wasn’t it a good idea to listen to the expert, even if the expert was a bit strange?

Jaqueline laughed. “I’m not good with kids,” she said dismissively. “Maybe he should wait in the car or something.”

“Alone?” Stacy asked, frowning.

“Of course not! The other one can go with him to make sure everything goes okay,” Jaqueline said, her tone soothing. “It won’t be too long while we talk.”

Stacy found herself relaxing, but then it struck her that she shouldn’t be relaxing. She wasn’t about to leave her kids alone in a car while it was dark out! Why would Jaqueline suggest that? Didn’t she know that wasn’t something you were supposed to do with kids?

Wait...had she ever told Jaqueline that she had kids?

She couldn’t remember...

In fact, she couldn’t really remember the specifics of most of their conversations. When she tried to recall how she’d met ‘Jaqueline,’ she only came up with a vague, fuzzy memory of being in a store somewhere.

She squinted at Jaqueline. “You’re just wearing a hoodie. No coat? There’s snow and everything,” she said slowly.

“Oh, I had a coat. I left it in my car cause I didn’t think this would take that long,” Jaqueline said dismissively.

But there wasn’t another car nearby. Actually, she couldn’t even remember what Jaqueline’s car looked like. “And...the hood up?” she asked. “It’s dark.”

“Oh, it’s not too dark.” ‘Jaqueline’ laughed. “What is this, an interrogation? I thought we were just gonna talk.”

Stacy didn’t say anything. She was too busy thinking. Had she ever seen Jaqueline without the hood up? In fact, had she ever seen her without the hoodie?

She then remembered one of the very first questions John had asked her about Jaqueline: What color are her eyes?

She realized she didn’t have an answer. She couldn’t picture Jaqueline’s eye color in her mind. She couldn’t even picture the shape of her features, or recall the pitch of her voice.

Eyes wide, Stacy took a step back.

Jaqueline tilted her head, and took a step closer. “What’s wrong, Stace? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“Um...Mom?” Mathew asked, confused. Suddenly remembering her kids, Stacy pushed Larkin behind her and went to stand in front of Mathew.

“Hey, don’t be like that,” Jaqueline said. Her voice was soothing...intoxicating.

“I just remembered—we left the lights on,” Stacy said casually. “Don’t want to run up the bill. We’ll be right back.”

“It won’t be that bad if you leave them on for a couple hours,” Jaqueline said in that lovely, luring voice. “Don’t worry about it. You worry too much, Stace. I just want to tal—”

WHACK!

Jaqueline’s head whipped to the side as she was hit with enough force to knock her over. Stacy blinked, stepping back, pushing her kids behind her. She looked to the side, and then she saw him. “John?” she whispered.

John backed up, holding a long shovel in both hands—the one from the hole she’d seen earlier. He was breathing heavily, at first looking a bit panicked, but then he turned his eye to Stacy and the kids, and his expression softened with concern. “Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Stacy said. “How’d you—”

Crack.

The noise drew her attention back to ‘Jaqueline.’ She watched as she—it—slowly stood up. Its head was twisted to the side, far more twisted than it should’ve been. Stacy gasped softly. It rolled its shoulders, the movement accompanied by snapping, crackling sounds. The sounds of bones and stiff flesh. Its hands reached up and grabbed its head, twisting it back into place with one more Crack. A smile stretched its face, just a bit too wide. “Well. That was rude.”

Larkin cried out, burying his face in Stacy’s side. Mathew’s eyes widened. “What the fuck?!” he shouted, staggering backwards. Normally Stacy would’ve chastised him, but in this case, she’d allow it, as she pushed him back behind her.

Before anything else could happen, John stepped in front of Stacy and her kids, holding the shovel in both hands like a weapon. “Back off,” he said, voice firm.

The thing that looked human laughed. “Or what? Are you going to hit me with a shovel again?”

“If I have to,” John retorted. He glanced over his shoulder at Stacy, his eye darting between her and the surrounding areas before turning back to look at the thing.

The smile stretched wider still. “Wow. Good luck with that. This has nothing to do with you, øħŐÁê. Unless...oh, oh you’re the friend she keeps talking about, aren’t you?” John didn’t answer, but the thing gasped like he had. “Oh, you are! She’s calling you John, I suppose you don’t object because it’s not too far off. You’ve been warning her away from me, but she hasn’t listened, has she?”

“Hey, I mean, it paid off in the end.” John glanced back at Stacy again, who was frozen in place, trying to figure out what that one word the thing had called John was. “Here we are, she’s on the other side of you. You failed, so go. Isn’t that sort of your thing?” John looked around the surrounding areas again, glancing back at Stacy with some urgency in his eye. What was that…? Stacy realized he was glancing back towards where she’d parked her car. He was telling her to run.

“So you assumed I wanted her for myself?” The thing sounded amused. “Oh, no. I’ve found humans with children are more resistant than the ones with no family. They have that connection.”

Stacy glanced back at Mathew and Larkin, squeezing Lark’s hand. She also glanced in the car’s direction, and luckily her kids were a lot quicker on the uptake than she had been. Mathew nodded firmly, and Larkin squeezed her hand back, biting his lip and straightening.

Confusion crossed John’s face. “...what?”

“Humans know each other, do you not think that things like us know each other?” The thing smirked. “Misery loves company, and I’m willing to do it a favor.”

The confusion gave way to realization. “Oh my god…” John whispered. Stacy tensed, her eyes wide as she reached the same realization.

“Gods have never been any help to you,” the thing said tauntingly. “Now, if you’ll just step aside—”

John stood up straight. “No.”

The thing’s mouth curved into a scowl, and for a moment its teeth seemed a bit too sharp. “Move,” it growled.

“No. What’re you going to do, kill me?” John smirked, suddenly confident. He gave Stacy one last look. She nodded imperceptibly. A part of her wanted to ask what he was going to do. She didn’t want to just abandon him. But...she had her kids behind her. They were practically everything she had left. She had to protect them at all costs.

Oddly, the thing seemed reluctant to move forward with John in the way. It stepped to the side, only for the movement to be shadowed by John. It hissed, and looked over his shoulder, gaze landing on Stacy. “Hey, Stace,” it said, tone shifting into something more human than not. “Maybe we should—”

Stacy turned and ran, grabbing Mathew by the arm and pulling him and Larkin behind her. She heard a decidedly inhuman shriek, followed by a few sounds of footsteps, then John yelled, and there was a heavy thump! Mathew tried to look over his shoulder, but stumbled and faced forward again.

They reached the car quickly. Stacy pulled open the driver’s side door. “Get in, get in!” She shouted, and Mathew and Larkin climbed into the car through the driver’s door. Larkin tumbled over into the back seat while Mathew smushed against the passenger side window and tried to untangle his legs and sit. Stacy turned the keys—which she just now realized she’d left in the unlocked car—and the engine started. Without even bothering to put on a seatbelt, she hit the gas and threw the car into reverse. It shot out of the parking space, and after a moment of squealing and turning, darted off.

“Mom…?” Mathew said slowly. “What’s going on?”

Stacy glanced at him. “It’s...a long story, Mat. Just...remember how our last house had a ghost?” Mathew’s eyes widened, and she looked away again, back into the park. She could make out two figures rolling around, one apparently pinning the other to the ground. Hitting the brakes, she watched, trying to make out details. But they were...fuzzy. Her eyes were going out of focus, her vision doubling at times. She backed up, pointing her car towards the fighting pair and turning on her high beams. Light flooded the scene, just in time for the figure being pinned to throw off the other and back up. That one was wearing a red hood…

Instinctively, Stacy hit the gas and the car lunged forward, surging over the curb, across the sidewalk and onto the grass. The red hooded one stood up, and seemed to look in her direction, surprisingly unbothered. But perhaps she was making that up, since it was only a few seconds before the front of the car slammed into the red hooded thing. Stacy shouted, Mathew yelled, and Larkin screamed as they all felt the four wheels bump over something. Stacy quickly hit the brakes again, jolting forward. Pain burst in her face, and blood started to trickle from her nose. “Ow! Fuck!” She shouted instinctively, then turned to look at her kids. “Is everyone alright?”

Mathew sat up straight, rubbing his forehead where it had hit the dashboard. Larkin poked his head around the back of Mathew’s seat, looking shaken but unharmed. “We’re okay, Mom,” Mathew muttered, and Larkin nodded.

“Good,” she muttered, and then she rolled down the window and poked her head out. “John?!”

John was standing a mere six inches away from where the car had barrelled forward. After Stacy called for him, he grabbed the back car door and threw it open, climbing inside. “Jesus fucking christ, Stacy!” He shouted.

“Look, I panicked, I didn’t want you to get hurt!” Stacy said.

“Fucking hell!” John slammed the car door closed. “Drive!”

“Drive?” Stacy repeated, puzzled.

“Drive!” John twisted over and pointed out the back windshield.

Stacy turned around to look, as did Mathew and Larkin. There was a crumpled form laying on the ground, but soon it began to move. Bones audibly snapped back into place, and the thing in the red hood arched its spine, lifting itself up onto its hands and feet in an extreme backbend. With another jerking motion, it elevated onto the tips of its fingers and toes, balancing its whole bent weight on those small points. Its head cracked to the side and back, and its smile widened.

“Oh fuck!” Stacy hit the gas again, just as the thing rushed at them, still in that bizarre bent-backwards position. Stacy swerved to the side and back onto the sidewalk, then off the curb onto the road again. As soon as she hit the road, she sped up even further.

“What was that?! What was that?!” Mathew cried.

“Mat, it’s a monster! Demon!” Larkin said. “Duh!”

“Don’t tell your brother ‘duh,’ Lark,” Stacy said automatically. “And yes, it’s a monster.”

“It was doing like, the crazy thing from The Exorcist!” Mathew shouted. “I thought that was Mom’s friend, was it possessing her?!”

“I don’t think so, honey,” Stacy said. “I think it was always like that, but it made me think it was a human, a-and it got close to me, and—wait, when did you watch The Exorcist?”

“Mom, I think there are more important things to think about right now!” Mathew protested.

“Yeah, I gotta agree with him,” John jumped in. “Keep driving!”

“I’m not stopping!” Stacy snapped. “Why don’t you drive?!”

“I don’t know how,” John said casually.

“You know what that was,” Stacy said to him. “You warned me against it. Then you hit it with a shovel!”

“I would not recommend anyone else to do that,” John said. “That’s just my special circumstances.”

Stacy laughed hysterically. “What special circumstances would let you wrestle an—an eldritch horror to the ground and walk away unhurt?!”

“What, do you want my whole life story?” John asked defensively.

“No, but maybe just something! I’m so sorry for doubting you,” Stacy hurried to say. “Really, I am. But I really don’t know—well, anything about you! I don’t even know your real name.”

John laughed. “I told you my real name! Guess you forgot, too.”

“When did you do that?” Stacy asked, confused. “Did that...thing mess with my memory? Can it do that?”

“Slightly, I think,” John said. “Really it just...it’s really good at suggesting things, to say the least. You lose track of time. Want to spend more time with it. Will do anything it asks. Last time I saw it, it had wormed its way so far into someone’s head that it made him lose his fucking mind, the guy was so out of it and just screaming for this thing to come get him.” He shivered a bit. “Anyway—”

Slam!

Stacy screamed as something hit the back of the car. Something red that rolled right off the back windshield, leaving a long group of five scratches. The kids screamed in unison. “Holy shit! What the fuck?!” Stacy started to hit the brakes, then glanced in the rearview mirror and saw a figure in a red hood standing up. She then decided to speed up instead of slow down. “How’d it get here so quickly?!”

“Oh, what, you think the laws of space govern these guys?! No! If anything, it’s the other way around!” John looked out the back again. “Fuck, you need to get out of town. There’s no time to get anything from your house.”

“What? Noooo,” Larkin protested.

“Lark, honey, do you want the demon to find us again?” Stacy asked.

Larkin closed his mouth, and silently shook his head.

“It doesn’t usually follow people who get away,” John muttered. “This is weird…” He glanced at Stacy. “Did you get the same feeling that I got?”

“That this thing was somehow working with the thing in that house?” Stacy asked.

John nodded.

“Well, if we get out of the city, it’ll leave us alone, right?” Stacy asked hopefully.

“Uh...no.” John sounded almost apologetic. “I know this one. It’s not bound to one place like the house thing was. It’s a wanderer. It’ll be able to follow us anywhere we go.”

“What?!” Stacy slapped the steering wheel. “Where are we supposed to go, then?!”

“Uh…” John trailed off. “I mean...you can always do what I do and...go around. Not stay in one place too long.”

Stacy paused. “Wait, is this thing the thing that…?”

“Ohhhh, no.” A slightly unhinged smile grew on John’s face. “Definitely not.”

Stacy fell silent for a while. She appeared to be concentrating on the road and not hitting anything at high speeds, but she’d still glance back at John every so often.

“Look, what do you want me to say, Stacy?!” John suddenly snapped, picking up on the glances. “That I clicked on some random video online that I thought was just an ordinary scary Internet video like fucking Blair Witch and then the video freaked out with glitches and my life went to shit from that moment on?! Cause, y’know, I don’t feel like talking about my time in literal hell!”

“Okay, I’m sorry,” Stacy said. Then she sighed, and repeated, more sincerely, “I’m sorry. I’m just...we can’t just wander around. The kids need stability, and to, you know...not be in danger.”

“That would be nice,” Mathew muttered.

John nodded silently. After a moment, he said tentatively, “There...might be one place it won’t follow us.”

“Where?” Stacy immediately asked.

“It’s a town in Ireland,” John said. “It won’t go near there.”

Stacy paused. “Why?”

“Uh...well.” John hissed, sucking air through his teeth. “More...supernatural shit. But if you don’t go into the woods, you should be okay. And at least you can, y’know, stay there. Instead of travelling all around Europe, afraid for your life.”

Stacy thought about it for a while. It was either this, or constantly flee. She sighed. “Alright, fine. How do we get there?”

“Uh, well, first you need to get to Ireland, so head west.” John glanced out the car window. “We’ve left town already, I see.”

“West. Okay.” Stacy awkwardly dug her phone out of her pocket—difficult under most circumstances, more dangerous when she was going this fast. She handed it to Mathew. “Mathew, can you use my GPS, please? Tell me how to head west.”

Mathew nodded, opening up the Maps app. Then he suddenly gasped. “I left my phone in the house.”

“We left a lot in the house,” Stacy sighed.

“I mean…” John piped up. “I grabbed your handgun.”

Stacy jumped, then coughed as Mathew and Larkin stared at her. “You...did, huh? When?”

“That night you left the kids alone and got arrested,” John explained. “I found it in your room. Wanted to make sure you didn’t...have anything that could hurt anyone. So I, uh, confiscated it. Put it with the rest of my stuff.” He paused. “Uh...then, earlier today, when I started to leave, I, uh...decided I couldn’t just...y’know, leave...you alone. So I, uh...put my stuff in your trunk.”

Stacy blinked. “Oh...I didn’t lock it?”

“You did. I picked it.” John smiled faintly. “Handy trick I figured out.”

“...huh.” Stacy bit her lip. “Maybe you can teach us how to do that.”

The car sped through the dark night, heading west, not stopping for as long as possible. And somewhere else, a thing in a red hood eventually stopped following. If they were heading where it thought they were heading, it would probably be for the best if he stayed away.

Still, there was more than one way to skin a cat. And more things hidden in the darkness that would be willing to help.

#jacksepticeye #jacksepticegos #jacksepticeye fanfiction #septic egos #tw: horror #tw: body horror #jackieboy man #brigid writes fanfiction #horrorseptics

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saintheartwing · 4 years

Text

Invader Zim: The Pigshit Troll, Part Two

"Well, son, I can tell something's truly bothering you." Professor Membrane remarked as he sat down next to Dib in his room, black-gloved hands folded in his lap, his eyes gazing down through his big, large white goggles…not that you could see them, that glass was thick! "I'd like us to be closer. Please, talk."

"Wow, that's new." Dib thought. His dad outright approaching him pretty much out of nowhere just to talk? "Uh…Dad, when you were young, did people call you names? Bully you? Like…a lot? I'm getting accused of being this horrible online bully that's just TRASHING people's stories on the school website."

"You? Oh, Dib, that sounds so silly! You're slightly whiny, my boy, not a troll."

"…thanks, I guess?" Dib muttered as his Dad ruffled his hair.

"Complaining isn't always a bad thing, Dib. When people were getting sick from the food they bought at their local groceries, it took going to Congress and complaining to the government that the food wasn't right to change things. If we don't point out when something doesn't work, then it won't ever get made better. And sometimes it works! Look at that delightful Sonic movie. I remember when I was young, seeing that trailer drop. My heart sank. My hopes were crushed. But then…then they listened to the outcry, made Sonic look far better, and it was as if I was a child again playing Genesis, hidden away in my closet!" He proclaimed. "Sometimes people listen, sometimes they make changes, and it makes things better. THAT'S the eternal hope of people who complain. That if they say just the right words to the right person at the right time…they'll convince them to be better than they are."

"I'd LIKE to think that." Dib sighed. "But sometimes…I think people just wanna get stuff off their chest."

"Well, that's a human response." His dad told him. "That's normal."

"And sometimes I think people just wanna scream at someone and be heard!"

"That's normal too." Professor Membrane added. "At any rate, I'm not going to tell you to simply get a thicker skin and "buck up". The studies show that doesn't work at all!" He remarked, shaking his head back and forth. "And I'm certainly not going to tell you to retreat into yourself either, or just never go online. No, you need to talk to people about it. Talking always helps, that's what the data shows." He told Dib with a firm, wise, nod. "You can always come to me about this sort of thing, son. I promise you."

"That does make me feel a little better." Dib admitted, his father ruffling his hair before he left the room, a soft warmth spreading through Dib's frame. That HAD been nice, being able to just chat with his Dad. Still…he needed a long term solution. Talking to his father about this sort of thing was pretty much just a band aid.

He needed a more permanent fix. Luckily he knew just who to turn to.

"I need your help."

Gaz couldn't believe what she was hearing. She stared at Dib, mouth agape, eyes wide.

"…YOU…need MY help." She remarked as she stopped playing the latest edition of "Super Smash Bros X Street Fighter", putting the controller down. "…I should call Ripley's Believe it or Not. Rarer than Bigfoot! Rarer than the Loch Ness Monster! Rarer than an actual alien! DIB MEMBRANE ASKING FOR MY HELP." She gave a big, fat, grin. "By the way, that reminds me, guess who was using the belt sander?"

"Wait, Bigfoot's back?!" Dib asked, gaping in surprise. "Is he still there?!" He wanted to know as Gaz led him to the garage door.

"It was never Bigfoot, Dib." She told him.

"Then who was it?"

"CHEWBACCA!" She proclaimed with a grin as, sure enough, a tall, crossbow-blaster-wearing furry alien stood there, black nose a bit ruffled as he finished putting the last touches on his new knife using the belt sander, and cheerily grinned at Gaz, waving at her.

"CHEWIE?!" Dib asked.

"What a Wookie." Gaz sighed. "He's been smuggling me parts for my room security ever since I found him. I can't believe you ever spooked him enough to chase him off, though. What on Earth did you use?"

"Well, evidently wookies are positively terrified of air horns." Dib confessed. "Sorry about that. Must have super sensitive ears, huh?"

"HUUUUHRRRRRUUNNHHH!" Chewie agreed, exiting the garage as Dib sighed and turned to Gaz.

"So can you help me track down that troll?" He wanted to know.

"I dunno…" Gaz rubbed her chin. "I mean, I don't like getting bad reviews left on my stories either, but it is KINDA funny to see you squirming and under so much scrutiny." She confessed. "And you can't just move away or anything. Even if you did, if more reviews popped up trashing people's work, they would just all assume it's still you. Other countries got internet, after all. Unless you were literally tied to a pole and couldn't TYPE, people would just assume you're still at it."

"You're all heart!" Dib grumbled.

"Hey, you wanted help, I'm giving you the truth. That's just how people feel, you can be a really condescending asshole." Gaz said. "You ain't no perfect little angel."

"As opposed to being a REGULAR asshole like you or Zim?" Dib said, his temper flaring up, Gaz looking astounded that Dib was actually talking back to her. "And I've never CLAIMED to be an angel, Gaz, I…I KNOW I can be kind of…pushy. Obsessive compulsive. And I know I can be…insensitive to what other people think and…okay yeah! Yeah, I can be a jerk!" He threw his hands in the air and sighed. "But I'm doing something literally no other kid has to do!" He paced around, shaking his head back and forth. "No OTHER kid has to put up with trying to stop an alien lunatic that's not just a megalomaniac and psychotic alien but somebody outright sadistic and evil and petty and manipulative and a total jerk! On a pretty much daily basis! And half the time he almost succeeds at what he does, and if I don't stop him, people DIE! That's…that is WAY too much to put on someone not old enough to shave!" Dib told Gaz.

"…yeah, I'll give you that one." Gaz sighed.

"But I'm the only one who gets shit on. Nobody at school criticizes you because you'll beat the crap out of them. You got those freaky powers and everything! Even the teachers are scared of you! Zim? Zim gets off because people see me trying to expose him and they think I'm bullying him unfairly! Even though every day he's always up to something horrible! Literally! Every day! I shouldn't have to deal with him, OR the stuff I get from you and my classmates and now all of this with people thinking I'm not just nutty for liking stuff they think is strange, but that I'm some rotten troll!"

"Maybe Zim is the troll." Gaz suggested.

Dib stopped in mid-spiel, and he gaped at her. "…that's…not baaaaad!" He murmured. "That IS the kinda thing he'd do! Framing me for something HE'S done! And when he wants to, he can be really fiendishly clever…" He paced back and forth. "But we need to check. Is there any way to check?" He murmured. "Could we trace his IP address?"

"We could if we hack into the school's computer system, and from there, we can access where the reviews got posted. But while you do that, I'm going to go call a…friend." She remarked, nonchalantly making her way off to her room as Dib raced for his, to begin his hard work. Gaz slid on into her chair in her room, typing into a little keyboard built into the armrest, and PING! A vid screen manifested before her, and a short, tubby Irken was on the other end.

Skoodge, Zim's…friend. Though given how he treated him, you'd think Skoodge was more of a servant. When they went to go get snacks and drinks, it was Skoodge who had to carry everything. When Zim wanted something moved, he got Skoodge to do it and never thanked him. And when it came to the food…

"You see, I can't stand eating anything day-old. So its only fair I make up for it in other ways!" Zim was insisting even now to Skoodge from the other end of the basement, leaving Skoodge with the day old donuts while Zim stuffed his face. Skoodge quietly sighed, shaking his head, and then turned to the screen on his computer station, seeing he had an incoming message, and turning it on.

"Ah, Gaz. How're you?" He asked. Gaz smiled back at him. Skoodge was very eager to please, easy to manipulate but, still…compared to most Irkens, he was a civil, nice sort. Conquering planets or the like was just a job to him, it wasn't personal, and he didn't seem to take any real delight in being a jerk the way Zim did, or Tak did. Besides, he also happened to find Gaz attractive. It was the purple hair. For some reason, Irkens looooved the color purple.

"Hey, Skoodge, I need a favor. Has Zim been bragging about being the troll at school leaving all those awful, sick reviews?" Gaz wanted to know.

"Oh, no. But he's loving seeing Dib go to pieces." Skoodge remarked. "It's really mean. He can't stop laughing uncontrollably whenever the topic gets brought up. He said he wishes he'd thought of it, it's so simple and evil a plan that it should have been his plan."

Gaz had to admit that she'd been pleasantly surprised to find Skoodge so agreeable. She'd gone gaming with him, playing online, and she'd grown to learn a lot about him, and also, in return, about Irkens, and it astounded her how much they really had in common with humans. After all, her leaders were also lazy, egotistic, smug jerks who liked hurting people for not being good enough, who forced you into bad jobs that paid barely anything, and thought they were a lot smarter and better than they really were!

And they also placed an emphasis on being tall too. Nobody really respected a short President Man!

Truly, two species joined at the hip without knowing it.

"Thanks, Skoodge. I appreciate it. You're really sure it isn't him, huh? Maybe…it's a long shot but…is GIR doing it? I mean, sometimes GIR gets up to weird things with Minimoose and the Computer."

"GIR has pretended to be a girl online, but he'd never be sadistic enough to leave those kind of messages." Skoodge remarked with a shake of his head.

This was true. The new MMO that came out, "Portal Defenders", a massive crossover game indeed, had come out about five months back and Skoodge had gotten super into it, and he'd been, along with Gaz, very surprised to find a very willing girl character who played as the one and only XJ9 from "My Life As A Teenage Robot" eager to help them. They'd gone on many a raid together and much to their delight, she'd proven invaluable…and also proven to be GIR.

Still, hey. It was a valid life choice. Fine by him.

"Hmm. So much for that. It's not you, is it?"

"No way!" Skoodge insisted. "I get my stories crapped on because I exclusively write fetish material. I'm VERY into macrophilia."

"Yeah, I always wanted to ask, how come you're so into big, huge stories with the rampages or the giants or the big aliens stomping around or eating people? It's kinda odd." Gaz admitted. "I mean, I'm into super metal stuff, I like weird things too, but I always wanted to ask…"

This was true. Skoodge also attended the school in disguise, the same grade as Gaz, and he actually had a lot of talent too. But he reaaaaally enjoyed writing stories with big monsters and aliens. Time after time, they'd be leveling cities or whole towns or some rando would end up becoming a big beast that gobbled up his coworkers or the like. Occasionally he even dived deeper and entire planets would be broken apart or devoured! It was well written, without a doubt, engaging, but it could get…kinda scary.

"Well…I'm short and fat and not the least bit threatening." Skoodge sighed. "Look at me. I'm a tubby loser." He murmured as he picked up his fat gut and shook it about. "But in these stories, I can be anything. I can be big, and powerful, wonderful and terrible all at once. Everyone loves me and fears me all at once. I kinda felt like that right after I conquered Blorch, and the Slaughtering Rat People…until the Tallest shot me outta the closet and another Invader took the credit for my work."

"Wish fulfillment, huh?" Gaz sighed. "Hey, y'know, I get it. I mean, it's why I keep watching "The Craft" or "Carrie" all the time, I'd love to do the kinda things those girls do in those films. Just let loose, y'know?"

"Yeah, sometimes you just gotta feed that wolf that's howling outside your door. Besides, the guidance counselor said it's a good way for me to deal with my more unpleasant urges by expressing them in a creative way." Skoodge added with a smile. "And it's worked! Putting all this on paper made me work through my thoughts and feelings and I began to realize how rotten my species are. We're just the literal worst. Did you know we executed the last artist we had on Irk because he refused to stop drawing propaganda?"

"That sounds dickish."

"It WAS! He said art should be about more than convincing people to blow stuff up. Then they blew him up. A bunch of pieces of him evidently got on Tallest Miyuki when she was in her Invader training, and that's why she decided to tone down the imperialistic tendencies of the Empire…for all the good it did us once Red and Purple came around." Skoodge sighed. "It's too bad, I missed working alongside the Vortians in the labs, those were good years." He confessed.

"Thanks for the help, Skoodge. Keep an eye on Zim for me, wouldja? Good to chat with you again. See you around!" Gaz told him, giving Skoodge a deliberate wink, then shutting the screen off as he sighed softly.

"Anything for you…" He murmured.

Dib meanwhile, had broken into the school system and was looking at various reviews left under people's stories. Hmm, this one was from Gaz-oh. OH! He hadn't seen this before. She was taking umbrage at how the character…an obvious stand-in for her, was portrayed. After all, she had a rough upbringing too, with Professor Membrane never around and yes, when Dib had been younger, he'd done a couple experiments on her. It had actually been what turned her hair purple, and he deeply regretted it, though she'd said she actually ended up LIKING her hair turning that way.

Dib cringed as he read the review. He got that she wanted to see herself as the hero, but…c'mon, Gaz. "I'M the one literally putting my life on the line just about every day, you're playing Game Slave and stuffing your face with pizza, I think I deserve a bit more understanding than you do." He muttered. She came off as so…entitled here!

Oh, and now a new review. "You should be nicer to Zim. He's got mental health issues."

"So do I, but I don't go around trying to destroy planets and enslave people." Dib muttered. "Zim isn't just insane. He's evil. Jesus. Why are there so many Stans for Zim? They all keep thinking he's being picked on when I'm the one who almost always gets it the worst…"

He cringed, stopping himself. "Stop it, Dib. No more pity parties. No more self-flagellating. You gotta focus." He murmured, examining the reviews, scrolling, scrolling. A lot of the troll reviews had been taken down by the teachers because they'd gotten sick of it too, but-wait. A new one. "ReVIEW MY STORiES! YOUR SToRiES ARE PIGSHIT!"

Ah ha. He had the IP address. His fingers swiftly moved across the keyboard, typing rapidly, his eyes widening as he saw where it came from.

It couldn't be. But…

The address was Membrane Labs.

His father's workplace.

What…the…fuuuuuuuck?

#Invader Zim #Zim #Dib #Gaz #Skoodge #fanfiction #fanfic #comedy #drama #dramedy

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sparklyaxolotlstudent · 5 years

Text

Karma Chameleon? I dunno...

First Part:

https://sparklyaxolotlstudent.tumblr.com/post/182697194270/first-miraculous-ladybug-fic-i-write-chameleon

Next part, still in the Chameleon episode. I suck writing action scenes, so I’m going to be lazy and say that the fight scenes and Lila’s akumatization happened pretty much the same way, with the only exception being that I’m going to try to keep this from Marinette’s POV, so she doesn’t know Adrien did confront Lila, and technically her akumatization was his fault I still blame Lila, but still)

Also, I’m sorry to use Marc as my mouthpiece, but he’s a) a school friend of Marinette, b) the only character that wasn’t directly involved in the whole “banish Marinette to the back” and c) we don’t have a good gauge of what his personality could be. I headcanon him as being similar to Marinette, so while he is still shy and unassuming with his crushes, he is comfortable around friends he trusts, he probably wouldn’t try to defend himself if he were in Marinette’s position, but he also won’t hesitate to cut a bitch if someone mistreats his friends.

SO!

--------

After the akuma attack of the week™, Marinette felt a bit better, especially after learning that Lie-la had been the “victim”. And to be completely honest, if she had learned Lie-la was the victim before, she probably would have left her as a clam… at least for a few days… but Tikki would have gone ballistic… and Lie-la would be playing the victim even harder with their classmates. At least she wouldn’t be lying this time... heh.

Lie-la had accepted her attempt to befriend Ladybug and stop lying, but Marinette was 99% sure she hadn’t been sincere, and she was pretty sure this wouldn’t be the last time she got akumatized. She also couldn’t help but wonder if Chloe or Lie-la would get a third Akuma form first.

Arriving at the school, of course Lie-la was playing the victim card to all their class. She was 100% sure now of her lying to Ladybug’s face. Marinette was a bit surprised the class hadn’t built a palanquin to transport Lila. At least not yet. She had to admit it was a bit admirable how she managed to convince them to pity and admire her at the same time, despite everyone in there having experienced akumatization first hand already. And being saved by Ladybug. And most of them knowing Jagged Stone AND Clara Nightingale. And a couple of them knowing Prince Ali.

“Of course Ladybug saved my life. She never misses an opportunity to rescue her best friends!” Marinette rolled her eyes so hard it was practically audible. Marc grinned at Marinette’s reaction, and they both chuckled. Marinette felt much better having Marc and Nathaniel at her side, even though Nathaniel was currently doing something else.

“Ladybug saves everyone” Alya said to the group. Lila nodded in agreement, but it was clear she had been annoyed by that comment.

“Didn’t your tinnitus give you vertigo when you went up the Tower Eiffel?” … Was Max trying to catch Lie-la too? Maybe Marinette should give her friends the benefit of doubt.

“Oh no. Ladybug knows me so well she brought me an earplug to stick in my right ear”

“Wasn’t her left ear this morning?” Wondered Marinette out loud. Marc looked at her and just shrugged. Adrien appeared out of nowhere.

“Are you going to tell everyone?”

“uh?”

“That Lila is a liar. Exposing her will only humiliate her and she’ll just be hurt more. Making a bad guy suffer has never turned them into a good guy.”

“But… Ladybug called out Queen Bee on her BS and it actually made her reconsider and turn into an actual hero? I mean, as heroic as Chloe can be, but still a step in the right direction.”

Marinette blinked in surprise, and she realized that Chloe hadn’t done anything with Lila the whole morning, even though she was all touchy feely with ‘Adrikins’ and was stealing her spotlight. Maybe Chloe *was* changing for the better?

“And are you seriously implying that Lila’s feelings are more important than Marinette’s?”

“What” Both Marinette and Adrien had said in unison, surprised.

“Adrien, in case you didn’t notice, Marinette had a miserable morning because your whole class, you included, shunned her to the back. It wouldn’t be so bad if Lila had an actual disability, that’s life, but she doesn’t, so Marinette suffered for NOTHING and now you come here and say …”

Marinette was quick to hug Marc before he reached a meltdown… or attracted another Akuma. She didn’t want for him to go super villain on her behalf.

“Dude, relax. I’m pretty sure Adrien wasn’t trying to say that. Lila is the one in the wrong.”

“Fine!” Marc returned the hug and calmed down. “But you’re still in thin ice Agreste.”

The school bell rang and everyone walked to their classrooms.

Marinette and Adrien arrived at their classroom. She went to her place at the back, and couldn’t help but notice that Alya was avoiding eye contact, as was Nino. She was surprised to find Nathaniel already sitting in her bench.

“Uh… Not that I mind but…”

“I tried to convince Alix that you should sit with us. We three are small, after all, and I doubt Miss Bustier would object to that…”

“… but?”

“Alix and the others are still mad at you for earlier, and want you to apologize, which, to steal a quote from Chloe, is ‘utterly ridiculous’… and long story short, now they’re kind of mad at me too.”

“I’m sorry”

“You don’t mind me sitting me here, do you?”

Marinette smiled at Nathaniel and took a seat at his side.

“Of course not! Don’t be silly”

Adrien was looking at them, but resigned himself to sit with Lila. What Marc had said had made him think. Was he being a bad friend? Exposing Lila would solve anything? He couldn’t finish thinking when Lila clung to his arm like a leech.

Class finished normally after that, with Miss Bustier agreeing to Nathaniel switching seats. A couple of the others had given them the stink eye, but Marinette couldn’t care less. She had actually had a fun time sitting with Nathaniel, and they almost got in trouble when Nathaniel laughed when Marinette told her about Marc’s outburst, and Marinette also laughed when he told how he called him out in a similar manner. “He said a couple of words I won’t dare to repeat.”

They found Marc out of his classroom and the three of them walked to the entrance of the school, where Alya and Nino were waiting for Marinette.

“Hey girl… can we talk?”

“Yeah?”

Alya and Nino eyed Marc and Nathaniel, clearly intending them to go away. Marinette shook her head ‘no’. “Anything you want to say to me you can say in front of them.”

Alya sighed. Nino reached for his neck, clearly nervous.

“We’re sorry on how we acted today” said Alya finally. “What we did… what I did… that’s not how friends should treat each other. And you are completely right about me not checking my sources, I took Lila’s videos down until I check with Ladybug, but even if she’s telling the truth, it doesn’t mean I was right in posting them. We didn’t do it in front of the class because we didn’t want to put you in an awkward position again in case you don’t want to forgive us, which we totally understand, but we *will* apologize in front of everyone if you want us to.”

“And it was unfair to send you to the back to accommodate Lila, when only I was the one that needed to move. In fact, if you want we can switch tomorrow.”

“Thank you Nino, but no. Nathaniel got in a fight with Alix because of me. I don’t abandon friends just because someone else appears.”

Alya and Nino looked at Marinette awkwardly. Marc and Nathaniel were expectant witnesses. Marinette seemed unsure herself, but a flush of emotions rushed through her. Alya was her first real friend, and Alya had supported Marinette a LOT of times, including that time with the giant baby and their crazy scheme to get a date with Adrien… and time she stole Adrien phone… and that time she deleted Alya’s video and her phone ended up in a trash can too… Alya had forgiven Marinette instantly that time, she wasn’t even mad. Alya and Nino had apologized, after all, and it she really didn’t want to throw away their friendship just like that.

“Of course I forgive you both, don’t be silly. It would take more than that to break our friendship.”

“I promise to be a better friend from now on”

“Yeah, me too dude”

Alya and Marinette hugged each other, while Nino bumped fists with her. Marinette was glad to have her best friend back.

--------

I know people want to see Alya punished, but honestly? I don’t think Marinette is a person that hold grudges(for long anyway) She seems pretty chill wtih Chloe(who made her life a living hell for four years prior the series) and doesn’t seem to hold any ill will to the classmates who never had her back before. Alya was the first to had her back in that sense, and she has screwed up a couple of times too, which is also important to note, she’s not perfect, but she’s far from the demon I have seen some people make of her. And Adrien... most salty fics I have seen for some reason give Adrien a pass on his passivity.. not me! Boy has to suffer so he can change for the better!

#miraculous ladybug #ml salt #ml fic #ml chameleon #marinette dupain-cheng #marinette deserves better #adrien agreste #nathaniel kurtzberg #marc anciel #alya cesaire #nino lahiffe #ml karma chameleon

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haechansmulti · 5 years

Text

Falling Into Place//Auston Matthews

Word count: 968

AN: this is the first thing I've written in a long time, and I've never posted anywhere. So, yeah. Lemme know how ya feel here. I love Aus, like a lot. So here ya go. GIF is not mine.

“FUCK” I slammed my head into the steering wheel of my dumbass Subaru. “WHAT THE FUCK AM I EVEN DOING… I'M USELESS” yelling through heavy sobs, that I'd convinced myself were for no reason, as I come to the conclusion that I hate my major and I feel like I'm wasting everyone's time. I tap my head a few times on the top of the steering wheel “DAMMIT” I can't help but yell as wonder what worth I have. I could guess most college students, maybe even high school students, go through the ‘is this right, am I a necessary part of society’, though I didn't think anyone would care to be around when I took my turn with it.

The sounds of tapping on my windows, other than the sounds of thick and rapid raindrops that only seemed to further my pity party, startled me. When I look up to see a large man, now thoroughly soaked as he'd been standing in the rain outside my car, he looks startled as well. I'd realized that my hair was now half out of the ponytail it'd been in when I left my dorm this morning, my face was one hundred percent red and splotchy, there were heavy tears covering my face and legs and well, car, and it felt as though I'd started popping blood vessels in my face from screaming like it would help me feel better. The man gestures at the window, and I shake my head, “I don't want rain in my car” I say, though he would never be able to hear me through the closed door mixed with rain. He gestures to my empty passenger seat and I shrug. It had taken me a moment to realize the man standing outside my car, his face laced with worry, had been Auston Matthews. The famous NHL star. A perfect first impression, a sloppy and deranged college student. Not that I could fix it now, much too late and the damage to my appearance had been done.

He walks around my car and I unlock my doors, he grabs the handle and climbs in. His large, soaking wet body, was now drenching the inside of my car. “I'm sorry I'm all wet” he looks absentmindedly around the car.

“I-I that's u-h ok-ay” I choke out as my body tried desperately to recover from sobbing, hiccuping I'm the process. I stop talking to save some face, but also to catch my breath.

“May I ask why you're alone in an empty parking lot of an ice rink?” He looks confused, and has every right to, stretching his long legs as much as he can as he speaks. “Though it's not the first time you've been here” that much was true. You'd done this, though far less extreme, when you'd changed your major the first time. And you occasionally came and sat in the farthest spot to do your homework. It was odd, but that didn't matter.

"I, uh, just a, uh, pity party I guess" I had mostly fixed my breathing, still struggling and stumbling through my words slightly.

“What for” He asks me, his concern confuses me slightly. I mean, the whole situation did. Why would he care about a complete stranger, who is clearly having a very hard time with herself, enough to stop and speak with her.

“I don't like my major and I've already changed it once. I switched from plant science to animal science and I'm still not happy” I spill as if a young man who'd been in the NHL when most others seek secondary education.

“What's your dream job” he looks deep into my eyes, like he's trying to figure me out, even though I'd said not even four sentences to him.

“I dunno. A trainer or physical therapist for and NHL team I guess” it had been something I'd thought about since I was fourteen, though it had always seemed way to unrealistic. Though, now sitting with one of the NHL’s most prized players, in your car no less, it seemed more doable.

“I, Yeah” I stare into my lap, where I'm playing with my own fingers. “Thank you”

“For what” he seems confused; I'm not entirely sure why though, because it seems pretty obvious. He looks away and then back again. “Okay I know for what”

“Why”

“Why what”

“Why talk to me. Sit in my car and force me to stop my pity party by talking to me”

“You're always here, I see you working your ass off all the time, and it sucks to feel like you're getting nowhere in hard work” he tells me, putting his elbow on the center console, which brushed mine. “No one deserves that. Especially not someone who seems to put in so much time.”

“Thank you” I turn towards him, I open my arms slightly like asking permission to hug him. He does the same and he wraps me in a hug. There she was. Looking like an absolute wreck, wrapped in the arms of the man she'd wanted most, and both because she couldn't get her shit together. Funny how that could lead to it falling into place.

#auston matthews #34 #toronto maple leafs #imagine #nhl #nhl hockey #leafs hockey #nhl imagines #nhl one shot #one shot #auston matthews imagine #maple leafs imagine #a matts imagine #a matts #maple leafs

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mewmewchann · 5 years

Text

DanganRWBY Chapter 1 - A Push in the Right Direction

It marks the next day of being in the world of kill or be killed. As Ruby desperately tries to find the mechanism powering the forcefield around the academy, tensions suddenly rise to a boiling point, only to be made worse by a sudden announcement from Beochi. Are they really trapped here until someone dies?

(I told you I’d post it today! Yeah, I’m sorry about such the long wait again. I kinda lost motivation for this for a while and finally got it back yesterday. But yeah!)

(Please send in asks/predictions! You don’t have long left until the first death, so you’d better hurry up your guesses! *evil laugh*)

DING-DONG! DING-DONG! DING-DONG!

“Huh- wha-?”

Ruby pulled herself up from the covers, half expecting to look down and see Weiss telling her to wake up or she’ll be late for class.

But then she remembered she wasn’t in a room with Weiss.

And that she wasn’t even in her bunk-bed.

And that she wasn’t usually woken up by a doorbell.

And that she and her friends were put into a scenario where they had to kill each other to leave.

The doorbell kept ringing.

DING-DONG! DING-DONG! DING-DONG!

“SIIIIIIIS!” Yang called out from the other side of the door, not slowing down for a second on the doorbell. “WAKE UP, SLEEPYHEAD!”

“Okay, okay, okay!” Ruby got up to her feet, still a little disoriented and half-asleep, before pulling her hood on, quickly fixing her hair and opening the door.

Yang stopped and stepped back, as if surprised by how quickly she opened the door.

There was a pause.

Yang raised her hand up and rang the doorbell again.

“OKAY I GET IT.” Ruby exclaimed. “Can you PLEASE stop ringing the doorbell!?”

“Alright, alright. Just wanted to make sure you were fully awake is all.” Yang replied with a devious smile. “So, you coming?”

“Coming?”

“Downstairs! To the dining hall. Weiss and Blake are down there. Team JNPR too! Ren’s making tea I think...” Yang put her hand to her chin. “It’ll give you a chance to go over your plan and get some more ideas.”

“Plan?” Ruby asked, before remembering the idea she had the night before. “Oh, the plan! With the forcefield!”

“Yeah, that. Also, after everything that happened yesterday, you need to relax.”

Ruby raised an eyebrow. “Kinda hard to relax when there’s a tiny Beowolf robot thing trying to get us to kill each other.”

“...Touche. Are you coming or not?”

“Yeah, yeah. Hold on.”

Ruby quickly fixed her hair and adjusted her hood, before stepping out of her room and closing the door.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

“It’s about time you guys showed up!” Nora called out, waving from the table.

“Yeah, yeah...” Ruby shyly flicked some of her hair behind her ear. “Did I miss anything?”

Weiss shrugged. “You didn’t.”

One of the many tables in the dining hall had been set up for them; with Team JNPR on one side, and Blake, Weiss and two empty chairs on the other. A Mistrali-style teapot was placed near the top end of the table, and eight small cups had been laid out at each person’s place.

“Whoa,” Yang said, impressed, as her and Ruby made their way to sit down. “Did you get all of this stuff from the kitchen?”

Ren nodded. “Yes, there are an array of supplies in the kitchen in order to keep us from malnourishment.”

“Huh. For someone who wants us to die, they sure want to keep us alive.”

“You sure that’s what he wants?” Jaune asked. “I mean, if Beochi wanted to kill us, why would he bother with putting us in this ‘killing game’ thing? Wouldn’t he have just gotten his hands, or claws, or whatever they are, dirty himself?”

“I don’t think any of us are sure of what he wants.” Blake replied.

“But Jaune DOES make a good point.” Weiss pointed out. “His objective isn’t for all of us to die, it’s for us to go along with whatever this killing game is supposed to be.”

“But we aren’t!” Ruby said hopefully. “We just gotta wait until help arrives. I mean, the authorities or the Atlesian guard or whatever are bound to notice at some point! All we gotta do is wait it out until they arrive.”

“That’s if Beochi doesn’t, y’know, try to make us by force.” Yang said, tracing along the rim of her cup with her finger.

“Huh?”

“Think about it. He obviously wants us to play this killing game, but right now we don’t want to. Who’s to say he isn’t gonna throw something in to make us try to kill someone?”

“What, like some kind of motive?” Nora asked.

“Yeah, like a motive. He’ll probably say something like...Oh, I don’t know…‘whoever kills someone first gets a lifetime supply of pancakes’.”

Nora’s ears perked up.

Ren sighed. “Nora, it’s just an analogy.”

“Aw...”

“But you see what I mean?” Yang continued. “Since we’re so against killing each other right now, he’s most likely gonna give us some kind of incentive to try and kick-start the game or something like that. I mean, he went to all this trouble, so I doubt he’d want his efforts to go to waste.”

“Yeah, well incentive or not,” Ruby said determinedly. “We’re not gonna kill each other! I mean, we’re friends! We’ve been through a lot together! Sure, team SSSN, Penny, Emerald and Mercury only got here not too long ago, but we still trust each other, right?”

“Of course.” Jaune said, quickly shoving his scroll into his pocket. “I mean, it’s not like he’s gonna say some kind of trigger word that makes us want to kill someone else, right?”

“Exactly.” Pyrrha seconded. “No matter what he tries, he cannot tear apart the bonds we already have.”

“Yeah!” Ruby smiled.

“Now that that’s out of the way,” Ren lightly tapped against the teapot with his forefinger. “Would you two like anything to drink?”

“O-oh! Yes, please!” Ruby nodded.

Yang gave a thumbs up. “Yeah, same here.”

Ren smiled a little, before pouring some tea into Ruby and Yang’s cups. Ruby had almost immediately lifted her cup to her mouth when Ren raised his hand.

“Ah.” He warned swiftly. “It’s still very hot.”

“Oh.” Ruby replied, taking a few seconds to blow a little on her tea in the hope of cooling it down.

“Does that even work?” Nora asked skeptically.

Blake shrugged. “It can.”

After a few more seconds of blowing, Ruby drank a little of her tea, before sighing and putting her cup down.

“Ahh...Thanks, I really needed that.”

Ren nodded. “No problem.”

“So back to the matter at hand.” Jaune said, raising his finger. “Your plan. To disable the forcefield surrounding the academy, right?”

Ruby nodded. “Yeah, if we can find what’s powering it.”

“Going by what Scarlet said last night, it has to be kept active by some kind of mechanism using hard light dust or something.” Weiss added. “Hard light dust is manufactured directly in Atlas and is pretty difficult to obtain, so I’m mainly confused as to how that thing got it...”

“Well, Blake did say that there had to be someone controlling him, right?” Nora asked, which Blake confirmed with a nod. “Maybe whoever’s controlling him got it from the SDC.”

Weiss’ eyes narrowed a bit when Nora brought up her family’s dust company, before quickly softening as she continued.

“Regrettably, you do have a point...” She said thoughtfully. “Beochi appears to run on some form of artificial intelligence. Someone who had the Lien to create something on that level must have enough Lien to make the mechanism powering the forcefield.”

Ren nodded. “That might be true-”

“Or maybe...” Jaune raised a finger up. “They stole it.”

Everyone stopped to look over at him. “What!?”

“Think about it.” He continued. “Sure, maybe they did have the Lien. But given that they’re using it to force us into whatever this killing game is supposed to be, it makes more sense that they just stole the dust, parts, and blueprints to put this whole thing together.”

Weiss shook her head. “That’s impossible! The Atlas security would have noticed all that going missing!”

Jaune shrugged. “Maybe they had a link on the inside, I don’t know! Point is they had some way to get all of this stuff! Who’s to say that they didn’t play dirty?”

Pyrrha hummed thoughtfully. “It would have been an extreme risk, but it sounds plausible...”

“We don’t know for sure right now, though.” Blake replied. “And it doesn’t look like we have a way of proving it.”

“Yeah, but why are we focusing so hard on the ‘how’?” Yang asked. “Y’know, when we should be focusing on the ‘where’.”

“As in where the heck this thing could be?” Nora asked.

“Exactly!”

“Hm...” Ruby thought for a bit. “There’s really only one place that comes to mind for me...”

“Where?” Jaune asked.

“I know it’s pretty obvious, but...”

Nora clicked her tongue. “...Well, that was a total bust.”

The elevator that usually took you to the top of Beacon Tower was completely boarded up.

“I’m sorry, it was the first place I thought of!” Ruby said defensively.

“Well, it makes sense,” Ren agreed, fiddling with the faded lotus flower in his hand.

“Yeah, but we can’t get inside.” Jaune gestured at the barricade blocking the elevator.

“That unfortunately means we can’t exactly check under the school building either...”

“Aaaahhh!” Yang cried out and threw her head back in frustration. “Dammit!”

“No need to get worked up-” Pyrrha said, trying to calm her down.

“There IS a need to get worked up!” Yang argued, her eyes flaring red a little. “We can’t get to the tower, we can’t get to the basement, and there’s nowhere else I can think of where the little bastard would hide a dust machine!” She growled and clenched her fists in frustration.

“Oh, can’t get in there either?”

Everyone stopped and spun around to find that team CFVY had suddenly appeared behind them.

“AAAH WHEN DID YOU GET HERE!?” Ruby exclaimed.

“We’ve been here.” Fox continued. “For the past...Uh...” He quickly turned to Coco. “Cocohowlonghavewebeenstandinghere?”

She shrugged. “I dunno, three minutes-?”

“Three minutes!” He turned back over to them. “We’ve been here for the past three minutes.”

“Yeah, we tried the elevator yesterday.” Yatsuhashi pointed at the boarded up elevator. “For some reason, Beochi felt the need to barricade the entrance.”

“Maybe he just really doesn’t want us to get into the tower.” Jaune suggested.

“Probably.”

“Wait,” Yang asked. “Yatsu, couldn’t you have just, like...Ripped the barricade off?”

Yatushashi gave her a deadpan expression. “I don’t see you trying.”

Yang stopped. “Uuuhhh...”

“And besides, I already tried.”

“Oh.”

“Anyway,” Velvet started to ask. “What do you need to get to the tower for? After what Beochi said yesterday, I doubt that Ozpin is going to be in there.”

“We weren’t looking for Ozpin!” Ruby replied.

“Yeah, what were we expecting,” Jaune started sarcastically. “To find him sitting at his desk, sipping his mug of coffee or hot chocolate or...Whatever the hell’s in that mug?”

“I think it’s coffee,” Fox added. “It explains how he’s able to deal with so much of team CRDL’s BS-”

“Wait a second!” Ruby cut him off. “Fox, you just made me realise something!”

He raised an eyebrow. “Realise what?”

“Where are they?”

“Who, team CRDL?”

“Yeah! I know they’re total bullies, but...Where the heck are they?”

Fox was just about to reply, but stopped. The rest of the group exchanged confused glances with each other.

“That’s...Actually a good point.” He said.

“Yeah,” Velvet added. “There were loads of teams from across Remnant at the academy for the Vytal Tournament. But now,” She started counting the teams on her hand. “We have us, you guys, team SSSN, two more people from Haven, and that girl from Atlas.”

“And that number is a definite far cry from everyone that was here before.”

“Exactly!” Ruby said. “So where the heck are they!?”

“We can’t be sure for now...” Yatsuhashi put his hand to his chin thoughtfully. “But we should hope that they’re somewhere safer than this.”

“Except for team CRDL.” Fox added bluntly.

“Fox.”

Fox shrugged in response. “What? They’re pricks.”

“Anyway,” Velvet continued. “If you aren’t looking for Ozpin, then what’re you doing trying to get in?”

“Oh, uh,” Ruby replied. “It’s just part of the plan.”

“Plan?” Coco echoed, perplexed.

Team CFVY collectively gave her a confused expression.

Weiss leaned over to Ruby. “...I don’t think you told them about your plan.”

“O-oh, sorry!” Ruby continued. “Well, you know the forcefield, right?”

This earned them another collective confused expression.

Jaune gave them a disbelieving look. “...Don’t tell me they don’t know about the forcefield either.”

Ren sighed. “Evidently, they don’t…”

“Okay, less talky-talky.” Coco waved her hand dismissively. “More explainy-explainy!”

“Is that even a word-?”

“Can one of you PLEASE just translate?”

“Right, right, okay!” Ruby said. “Uh...How do I put this simply-?”

“There’s a hard-light dust powered forcefield surrounding the academy.” Blake answered, completely deadpan.

“Blake!”

“What? They needed to know.”

“Waitwaitwait,” Coco replied. “A forcefield?”

“Yes, unfortunately.” Ren nodded. “Nora and I found it yesterday.”

“Yeah, and according to what that Sage guy said last night,” Nora seconded. “It surrounds the whole building.”

Yatsuhashi’s eyes narrowed in concern. “That sounds bad...”

“Wait, which one’s Sage again?” Fox asked.

“That guy in team SSSN.” Ruby replied. “Y’know, the green one?”

Fox gave her a completely deadpan expression.

It took Ruby a few seconds to realise why.

“O-oh, sorry…!”

Yang decided to pick it back up. “The one that sounds like he read an entire encyclopedia at age five?”

“Oooohhhh.” Fox recalled. “That guy.”

Yang shrugged. “Wouldn’t be surprised if he actually did, though.”

Ruby still looked embarrassed at her earlier comment. “Sorry about what I said earlier...”

“It’s fine.” Fox replied casually.

“Though I’m surprised none of you have found it.” Nora continued. “I mean, it's right outside! It's massive, it's not like you can-” She stopped and trailed off when she noticed Fox out of the corner of her eye. “Miiiiiisssssssss...”

“No, go ahead.” Fox replied with a smug glare. “Finish that sentence.”

“Fox, please!” Velvet snapped.

Fox laughed nonchalantly in response. “Velvet, I’m just messing around.”

Her ears folded over in irritation. “You’d better be...”

“Okay, so there’s a forcefield surrounding the academy.” Coco affirmed, adjusting her sunglasses a little. “What’s that got to do with the tower?”

“Well, when we were talking about it with him and Sage last night,” Ruby answered. “Scarlet figured there was some kind of mechanism powered by hard-light dust keeping it active.”

“And you...Assumed it was in the tower?”

“Kinda...”

“It makes some sense,” Yatsuhashi replied. “As it is at the centre of the academy building. And it is where the beacon for the CCT is.”

“Actually speaking of,” Coco whipped her scroll out and began tapping on it. “There’s no signal.”

Ruby stopped in surprise. “Really?”

“Look.” She turned her scroll around to show her. The symbol in the corner of the screen which would usually be displaying how many bars of signal there are was completely empty. “Nothing. Nope. Nada.”

“Maybe Beochi put some kind of jammer up,” Weiss suggested. “To stop us from contacting the authorities directly.”

Ruby shook her head nervously. “That’s not good...”

Pyrrha, who had been silent up to this point, decided to comfort her.

“I wouldn’t worry. The authorities would have noticed something as large-scale as this by now.” She had a reassuring smile. “I doubt that we’ll be stuck in this game for much longer.”

Ruby eventually nodded. “...Y-yeah...”

“What do we do now?” Blake asked. “We know it’s not the tower, and we can’t get into the basement either.”

“Actually,” Yang started. “Have any of us actually been into the basement? Before all this I mean.”

Coco shook her head. “Nope. You have to input some kinda code to get down to that floor. God knows what’s in there...”

Yang shrugged. “Could be in there.”

“But then we have to figure out what that code is.” Ren answered. “And we don’t have Ozpin, or Goodwitch, or any of the teachers here to tell us.”

“So what’re we-”

“GUUUUUYYYYYYYYSSSSSS!!!!!”

“Huh?” The twelve of them stopped and turned around.

Sun was sprinting through the hall towards them. He stopped when he got close enough and started panting to get his breath back.

“What is it?” Ruby asked.

Sun raised a finger up. “Gimmieaminute...” He said breathlessly. “I’vejustbeenrunningforatleastfiveminutesstraighttryingtofindyou...”

Ruby stepped back. “What!?”

Sun took a deep sigh and looked back up, before finally noticing team CFVY were also there.

“Oh, and you guys are here too. Bonus.”

“Sun, can you just tell us what’s going on?” Pyrrha asked.

“Well, uh...” He said. “There’s kinda an emergency.”

“Emergency!?” Ruby exclaimed.

“Kinda! It’s not REALLY an emergency but it also kinda is- how the hell am I supposed to word this…?” He got back on point. “We just really need your help!”

“Wait, ‘we’!?”

“Yeah, it’s pretty urgent! Come on!”

“But we can’t do that!” Penny argued. “It’s not right!”

Scarlet sighed. “I’m just telling the truth. It’s up to you whether you accept it or not.”

Sun, followed closely by teams RWBY, JNPR and CFVY, arrived at the courtyard near the statue at the front of the academy building. The rest of the group were there, and it appeared something was going on.

Scarlet growled under his breath and put his hand to his head in annoyance. “Perfect...”

“Oh hey, you guys finally arrived.” Mercury addressed the group. “What the hell took you so long?”

“Hey, I sprinted for at least five minutes straight trying to find them!” Sun argued.

“And what exactly were they doing?”

“Something about a forcefield, a dust mechanism and the tower.” Fox answered with a shrug. “Which we can’t even get inside.”

“Cool.”

Penny turned around to face Ruby.

“Oh! Ruby! Perfect timing!” She pointed over at Scarlet. “Your friend started saying some very bad things...”

“I’m being honest.” Scarlet replied coldly.

“Bullshit!” Neptune exclaimed. “Like hell you are!”

“Guys, calm down-” Sage tried to say, but was cut off.

“Oh GOD, what did he say this time!?” Yang asked angrily.

“Oh, great...” Coco muttered, pushing her sunglasses up a little.

“Guys, guys!” Ruby said desperately, trying to act as the peacekeeper. “Penny, what’s going on?”

“He started saying a lot of bad things.” Penny answered.

“What’d he say?”

“He said that there’s no point trying to escape!”

“WHAT!?” Teams RWBY, JNPR and CFVY simultaneously exclaimed.

Ruby turned over to Scarlet, who bitterly rolled his eyes.

“Think about it.” He said. “We’ll be able to survive if we stay here without killing each other.”

“What, and take Beochi’s rule lying down!?” Yang shouted back.

“We’re not taking it lying down. I never said we were killing each other, learn to clean your ears out.”

“Scarlet, what’re you saying!?” Ruby asked, disbelieving of what she just heard.

“You heard me.” Scarlet replied, completely cold in his delivery. “That there’s no point in trying to escape the academy.”

Ruby still couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

“He’s been saying this bullcrap for a while now...” Sun explained. “Claiming that it was the truth or something. Penny was trying to convince him otherwise, so I decided to try and get you before it turned into a full-blown screaming match.”

“It’s NOT a claim…!” Scarlet argued, some heat entering his tone.

“Scar, calm down-!” Sage attempted to negotiate.

“THIS DOESN’T INVOLVE YOU!” Scarlet snapped back, in an unnaturally bitter tone.

Sage took a step back in surprise.

“He’s never argued with him like that before…!” Sun muttered in amazement.

“Hey, that was uncalled for!” Jaune challenged.

Scarlet turned over. “Oh, you really think so?”

Jaune growled a little and started to walk over.

Pyrrha grabbed his arm to stop him. “Jaune, don’t-!”

Jaune brushed her hand off. “Sorry, I need to do this.”

He stormed over to him, prompting Penny to dart over to Ruby’s side.

Scarlet nonchalantly placed his hand on his hip and gave him a cold stare.

“I know things seem bad now,” Jaune explained. “But things will get better, hopefully! The Atlas Military will-”

“Oh, the Atlas Military will show up? If that’s the case...” He spun around and gestured at their surroundings. “Then where. The fuck. Are they.”

“They’re...Uh...” Jaune attempted to come up with something. “...Probably busy with-”

“The entire academy is on lockdown and the teachers are missing. If I were head of the Atlas Military, that would be at the top of my list.” He pointed towards the empty sky. “But they aren’t here.”

Ruby was about to interject, but realised he had a point.

Yeah, this should be their top priority...So why aren’t they here?

“Face it, Arc.” Scarlet continued. “Nobody knows what’s going on. Nobody’s coming to help us. Hell,” He laughed bitterly. “They’re probably in fucking Vacuo for all we know!”

“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean we still can’t try!” Jaune argued.

“Oh really? How do you suggest we do that?” Scarlet asked sarcastically. “We have no signal, there’s a massive forcefield around the academy, but by all means!” He mocked. “Give us your answers.”

“Being pessimistic isn’t gonna solve anything!” Jaune desperately tried to argue. “We just gotta...Have hope or something!”

Scarlet’s eyes narrowed in frustration.

“Hope…?” He echoed, before suddenly laughing coldly.

His laugh seemed to make the already tense atmosphere even darker.

He walked over to Jaune with an evil smirk.

“Want to know what I think of your ‘hope’?

Before Jaune could reply, Scarlet suddenly kicked him in the side. Hard.

“Jaune-!” Ruby exclaimed in shock.

Jaune tried to get up, but Scarlet stomped on his chestplate to pin him down.

“Scar, PLEASE-!” Sage tried to get his attention, but Scarlet ignored him.

“Shut the fuck up and listen to me, Arc.” He hissed, applying more pressure on his chest. “Your ‘hope’ is bullshit. We don’t have any. There’s no point in trying to escape.”

Jaune tried to reply, but due to the force on his chest, all that came out was a strained cough.

“Scarlet, stop it!” Ruby pleaded desperately. “You’re hurting him!”

Scarlet stopped for a few seconds when he heard her. Jaune decided to use this as a distraction and shove Scarlet’s foot off of him.

“What the fu-!?” He crashed to the pavement when Jaune pushed him over. “NGH-!”

Jaune managed to pull himself back up.

“Scarlet, you’re taking this too far.” He reprimanded. “You can’t just give up like this!”

“Grr...” Scarlet pulled himself back to his feet. “Who said I was…?”

“You literally just said that! You basically said we need to take this sitting down!”

“All I said was that there’s no point in trying to escape. Because there isn’t. Your blind optimism just translated it otherwise.”

“Blind optimism!?” Jaune exclaimed. “You’re one to talk with your blind pessimism!”

“You son of a…!”

Scarlet threw a punch in his direction. Jaune anticipated and dodged it, before punching him in the face himself.

“Guys, stop it!” Ruby pleaded, but neither of them were listening.

Scarlet staggered back from the punch, before charging back over. The two continued trading blows and catching each other’s attacks.

None of the others could do anything to stop them. They just looked on in horror as the fight went on.

Suddenly, one of the speakers nearby buzzed to life.

“Ahem!” Beochi’s voice crackled out of the speaker. “Uh, testing? Testing?”

Scarlet and Jaune stopped, as the group looked in the direction of the speaker.

“Ah! Perfect!” He continued. “I can see that you’re apparently...Busy...With something, but I have an announcement to make! Head over to the amphitheatre on the double! All of you!”

The speaker hummed for a few more seconds before dying out.

“An announcement…?” Ruby echoed questioningly.

Scarlet growled under his breath, still in pain from the blows he received from Jaune. “Anything to get the fuck out of this...” He strutted off towards the academy building angrily.

“Wh- hey!” Jaune called out, also hurt from the fight. “Get the hell back here!”

But Scarlet was either ignoring him or was too far away to hear him, as he continued towards the academy.

Sage sighed in resignation. “I’d...Better go after him...” He turned over to Jaune. “Sorry about that.”

Jaune shrugged. “Don’t worry. It wasn’t your fault.”

“Mmhm...” He nodded halfheartedly, before running after Scarlet to the building.

Ruby and Pyrrha immediately went to Jaune’s side.

“Are you okay!? Did he hurt you!? Do you need me to help you walk back!?”

“I’m fine. Mostly...” Jaune replied. “Thankfully, it doesn’t look like he gave me any fractures. Ehe...”

Penny looked over to him guiltily. “It was my fault for provoking him. I’m very sorry!”

“It wasn’t your fault either.” He reassured. “I was the one who stood up to him.”

“Though what on earth was he thinking, saying that?” Velvet asked. “We can’t just give up...”

Fox whispered something to Coco about needing a play-by-play, to which Coco whispered a long account back.

His blank eyes widened. “God...”

“Tch...” Mercury shook his head, before looking over at Sun and Neptune. “Your teammate’s fucked.”

The pair didn’t reply, just looked at each other in resigned agreement.

“Shouldn’t we go see what this announcement thing’s about?” Emerald asked, pointing to the speaker that just addressed them earlier.

“Hm...” Ren said thoughtfully. “We might have to.”

Ruby looked over to Jaune. “Are you sure you don’t need any help walking?”

“Ruby, just ‘cause I’m not as good a fighter as the majority of the others here doesn’t mean that I’m totally weak.” He replied with a smirk. “I’ll be fine.”

Ruby gulped. “As long as you’re sure...”

“Oh, good!” Beochi clapped his hands together happily. “Everyone came for the announcement!”

“You did just blare that you wanted us out of a speaker.” Emerald replied.

Ruby looked over to Scarlet, who was standing near the corner of the room. A lot of the others – with the exception of Sage – had purposely decided to try not to stand too close to him. The sight alone made her uneasy.

“Well, duh.” Beochi answered. “I don’t think any of you would wanna miss this!”

His words cut her train of thought. “Huh? What do you mean?”

“Well, this is something you wanna hear!...Actually, two things.”

“Two things?” Jaune questioned.

“Firstly, it appears that some of you have found my weapon drops!”

“Weapon...Drops?” Ruby echoed.

“Eeeeeeyup!” Beochi nodded. “Y’know when you’re playing a zombie game and you find a weapon on the ground? That’s basically what this is!”

Ruby recalled some of the events of the earlier day.

“Is that was that cleaver was we found in the kitchen?” She asked.

“Yeah,” Velvet added. “And those kunai that Yatsu and I found?”

“Exactly!” Beochi answered chirpily. “I mean, why ask you guys to kill each other, without actually giving you a method of killing each other? That’s like asking a chef to bake a pie without giving the poor guy a recipe book!”

“That’s completely different!” Yang argued.

“Really? How?”

“Because that example doesn’t involve murder!”

“Aaaand saying that magic word brings me to point número dos!”

“What,” Yang asked. “‘murder’?”

“Of course!” He nodded. “That’s why you’re here, after all.”

“But I already said!” Ruby challenged. “We’re not going to kill each other!”

“Oh really?” He gave her a condescending glare. “Good to see you still have your fire, Little Red.” He flashed her a sharp-toothed grin. “So that’s why I’m giving you all a motive.”

Ruby froze. “Motive?”

She recalled something Yang said earlier that day.

“So...” Ruby asked. “You’re going to say something to try and get us to kill each other?”

“Of course!” He replied. “I mean, I set this whole thing up, and you don’t even try to kill each other! The closest thing we had was just now,” he glanced at Scarlet and Jaune. “And nobody even got injured! Points for trying, though.”

Ruby glared back at him. “Whatever! You can’t say anything that’ll make us to kill each other! That’s a fact!” She gestured around at the others around her. “We’re all friends! We work together! And nothing is gonna change that!”

“Ya think so?” Beochi asked. “That’s why I’ve decided to use your so-called close-knit bond to my advantage.

His words made Ruby take a step back.

“Wh-what…?”

“Yup!” Beochi smiled. “I’m introducing a two for the price of one motive!”

His yellow eye flashed with an evil glare.

“If someone manages to kill someone and get away with it within the next 24 hours, they – and anyone here of their choice – will be allowed to leave the academy!”

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kitstwistfellau · 6 years

Text

Bucket List

This fic has two versions.

The first version, on AO3, contains triggering content. Link can be found HERE, but please mind yourself.

The version under the cut is trigger-free. It is a nice, fluffy fic, and it shouldn’t give you any trouble. The listed tags and pairings are for the fic posted below. The AO3 version has its own tags and triggers posted.

Summary: There's so much to do once they reach the surface. And Twist wants to try everything.

Pairings: Very, very mild Cash/Twist and Twist/Slim.

Tags: Twist-centric, fluff, mild warning for brief skydiving. Background sads if you consider what a Bucket List is and why Twist has one.

Edge sighed, staring at the fourth attempt at a cake. He ran a hand down his face, while Twist just studied it, puzzled. “So…what’d I do wrong?”

“Well I think being born was likely your first mistake.”

“Hey! I was created in a lab, an’ I think ya know that.”

Edge sighed, rubbing the space between his sockets. “Are you quite certain you don’t just want to let me make the cake?”

“No!” Twist said, and Edge raised a brow-bone. Twist rubbed the back of his neck, looking away. “Sorry, darlin’. But, uh, this is import’nt, yeah?”

Edge sighed. “Fine. Let’s try this again. For the fifth time.”

Twist, infuriatingly, beamed at him.

“Hey, sweetheart, ya ever thought ‘bout goin’ skydivin’?”

“…you’re joking, right?”

“So tha’s a no?”

“twist. that’s an emphatic ‘no’ with a series of exclamation marks at the end of it.”

“…Oh. Well. Uh…so now that ya’ve thought ‘bout it, ya think maybe ya’d be in’erested? Hey. Hey! Rus? Where’re ya goin’?”

“Hey, darlin’? If ya could go anywhere in the world…where would ya go?”

Red blinked, taking a pull on his beer. “dunno. haven’ thought ‘bout it much, i guess.”

Staring up the ceiling, Twist said. “There’re so many places up ‘ere. So many things ta see, ya know? An’ not half ‘nough time ta see ‘em all.”

Red just grunted. “so where’d you go, then? if ya could go anywhere?”

“The moon,” Twist said, dead serious. Red chuckled and Twist cracked a grin. “Not sure. Ev’rest would be cool ta see. Fun ta climb, too.”

Red laughed. “you an’ me got different definitions ‘a ‘fun’.”

Twist glanced at him and winked, clinking his beer against Red’s. “Not always, sweetheart. Not always.” For a little while, he was quiet, then he asked, “If ya could fuck anyone in the world, who would it be?”

Twist sat beside Slim, watching his fingers move over the keys. “So…how d’ya do this, darlin’? Where do I put my fingers?”

Slim smiled serenely and stilled his hands. “here. like this.” Twist laid his hands overtop his and waited.

“Right. Now what?”

Slim chuckled. “we’ll start with something simple.” He slowly moved his fingers over the board, and Twist followed him doggedly, a hesitant rendition of ‘Hot Cross Buns’ sounding out. Slim pulled his hands away. “now do it on your own.”

Twist nodded and took a breath, fingers playing over the keys. “Like this?”

“yeah. like that. you’re doing really good.” Slim smiled softly, and Twist beamed, a rumbling purr rattling his bones.

“Thanks, sweetheart. Fer, ya know, teachin’ me. ‘preciate it.”

“of course. i’m…i’m happy to.” Slim blushed as he said it, and for a moment, they were both aware of how close they were sitting, aware of the warmth of the monster beside them. Then Twist cleared his throat and returned his attention to the piano.

“So…I jus’ keep doin’ this, or…?”

“oh. right. um. here. let me get the sheet music. you’ll, uh, you’ll need to know how to read it.”

“Hey, Pap. Got a question fer ya.”

“OH! HELLO, TWISTED ME. WHAT CAN I HELP YOU WITH?”

“Ya wanna go ta Washington with me? ‘pparently there’re monsters up ‘ere that never got driven Underground. They’re shy, though. Wanna see if I can draw ‘em out. Ya know. Make friends.”

“THAT’S AN EXCELLENT IDEA! AS AMBASSADOR, IT IS MY DUTY—NAY! MY PLEASURE TO FIND THESE MONSTERS AND REUNITE THEM WITH THEIR PEOPLE!”

“Sweet. Pack a bag. Plane leaves in…” He checked his watch. “Five hours.”

“Heya, darlin’!”

Cash just glared at him and went back to reading his newspaper. Twist scooted closer. Cash scooted away. Twist scooted closer again, and Cash was out of room on the couch. He didn’t say anything until Twist was close enough to put his chin on Cash’s shoulder and say, almost directly into his acoustic meatus, “Whatcha doin’?”

“trying not to lose my patience. what do you want?”

“You’re inta gamblin’ an’ shit, right? A real high roller?”

Cash’s interest was peaked, but he tried not to show it. “you could say that, yes.”

“…So would ya be in’erested in goin’ ta Vegas with me? Got tickets to a magic show.” Cash shook out the newspaper, turning the page. “But tha’s more my thing than yers, I bet. Reserved the penthouse suite at….” He tilted his head back. “The Bellagio? Yeah. That sounds right. Figured tha’s a lot a space fer little ol’ me. More’n enough room fer a friend.” Cash glanced at him, brow-bone raised.

“twist. i’ve seen your pay check. how the fuck did you—?”

Twist smiled slowly and raised a hand, holding up Cash’s wallet. “Right. Yeah. So. Might’ve misspoke b’fore. You reserved a room at the Bellagio. Rented a convertible too, fer the trip out that way. Pretty little thing. Real smooth ride. Should—“

“you little—!” Cash snatched his wallet back and glared at him. Twist just grinned, somehow managing to look innocent after committing actual theft. He flipped through his wallet to make sure he hadn’t stolen anything else. “you picked my pocket?! when?”

Twist shrugged. “Sorry, sweetheart. You c’n take the rat outta the gutter, but ya can’t take the gutter outta the rat, I guess.”

Cash shook his head…but he was eyeing Twist with calculation now. “…yeah. i bet. and i bet a gutter-rat like you has more than a few tricks up his sleeve.”

A slow smile spread across Twist’s face, and he indeed produced a coin from seemingly nowhere. “Yeah. Ya could say that, darlin’.”

Cash grunted, looking between Twist and his recovered wallet. It had been ages since someone had rolled him like that. He could put those talents to good use. Especially in a place like Vegas. With another calculated look, he declared, “fine. but you’re sleeping on the floor.”

“Aw, darlin’—“ But a particularly harsh glare silenced him. It didn’t wipe the smug grin off his face, though.

Blue looked between Twist and the long trench filled with hot coals. He could feel the heat radiating off of them. “I’m not so sure about this.”

“Aw, c’mon, darlin’. Ya ain’t havin’ second thoughts are ya?”

Blue took a breath. “Second thoughts, yes. And third thoughts. Maybe even fourth thoughts.”

Twist leaned down, planting his hands on Blue’s shoulders. “Ya remember what they said durin’ class, yeah? Jus’ keep walkin’ an’ stay calm. Don’ run. Don’ rush it, and don’ stop no matter what. Here. I’ll go first, if it’ll make ya feel better ‘bout it.”

Blue shook his head. “No. No. I can do it. Just. Give me a moment.” He took a deep breath, and started across, blocking out Twist’s encouraging shouts.

At the end of the trench, when his bare feet were back on cool grass, all his breath left him in a rush and a huge grin lit up his face. He ran to his brother—watching anxiously from the sidelines—and hugged him, chattering excitedly while they watched Twist walk across the coals himself. A huge smile lit his face, and he joined them soon enough, laughing as he lifted them both off the ground in a celebratory hug.

Red grinned as he opened the mailbox, pulling out the latest series of post cards. There was one with a picture of Mount Everest on the front. The others were all places he couldn’t recognize, the caption on the bottom of the card little more than gibberish to his uneducated sockets. The back of each card was filled with Twist’s shockingly neat writing, narrating his journey across Nepal and the Himalayas.

He brought the cards inside, reading the backs as he drank his morning cup of coffee. Smiling to himself, he pinned the fresh batch of post cards to the corkboard. There was already a collage of similar cards from all over the world pinned to it.

Maybe Twist was right. Maybe there wasn’t enough time to see everything, but damn if the crazy fucker wasn’t trying his best.

“how did you talk me into this?” Rus demanded, knees shaking as the door of the plane was thrown open.

“Same way I talked my way inta bed with Cash. Persistence.”

Rus blinked. “…what?”

But Twist was grinning as his jump partner strapped him into the tandem harness. The instructor was reminding Rus that he would be just fine. He didn’t have to do anything—just let his jump partner do all the work. His soul pounded, terrified. But Twist and his partner were already out the door, and now everyone was looking at him and—

They.

They were.

Falling!

Rus swore at the top of his voice all the way down, the wind whipping his words away until even he couldn’t hear what he was saying. His soul only settled marginally when the parachute deployed and—after the initial jerk against the harness—they started to drift down at a more leisurely pace. When they landed, though, his knees were shaking and, if not for his flight partner, he’d likely have allowed himself to slip bonelessly to the ground in gratitude.

Twist, infuriatingly, was laughing recklessly and swearing in pure, undiluted joy. “Fuck yeah! Yes! Fucking hell!” Manic grin in place, he looked back at Rus and said, “We’ve gotta do that again.”

Rus, speechless, gave him both middle fingers—dissatisfied when Twist’s only response was another joyous whoop.

“Next time, ya wanna try Jersey? Heard there’s a monster out that way with a real nasty reputation. Poor guy’s prob’ly jus’ lonely.”

“HMMM. I SUPPOSE.” Papyrus rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “BUT I THINK WE SHOULD DO MORE RESEARCH NEXT TIME. I’M NOT SURE THE LOCALS TOOK OUR QUEST VERY SERIOUSLY. AND I’M QUITE CERTAIN ‘BIGFOOT’ IS SOME KIND OF PEJORATIVE.”

Twist nodded seriously. “Yeah. Yer prob’ly right. Can’t say I’d be all that keen ta come say ‘hi’ if someone was yellin’ racial slurs at me either. Can’t really blame the poor guy.”

Papyrus patted him on the back. “I KNOW YOU’RE DISAPPOINTED, TWISTED-ME, BUT WE DID LEAVE THEM SOME BROCHURES! I’M CERTAIN THEY’LL CALL US ONCE THEY REALIZE OUR INTENTIONS ARE ONLY GOOD.”

He brightened at that. “Yeah. Yeah!” He knocked his shoulder against Papyrus’. “Thanks, darlin’. Ya always know jus’ what ta say.”

Papyrus beamed. “NOW…JERSEY, YOU SAY?”

Twist’s fingers played across the keys. He stumbled in a few places, and he hit a few wrong notes, but the melody was recognizable, and his playing was soft and sweet—at odds with the look of intense concentration on his face. The song came to an end and he sat back, features inscrutable.

“something wrong?” Slim asked.

“…This is hard, sweetheart. Harder’n I expected.”

Slim nodded sagely. “yeah.” He sat beside Twist and, nudging him to make room, set his hands on the keys. His fingers flowed over the board, smooth and easy. He relaxed into it, smiling softly. “it takes time.”

“Time,” Twist echoed. “Yeah.”

Slim eyed him. “twist?”

He shook his head, his smile returning—just as bright as always. “Show me how it goes again?”

For a moment, Slim hesitated, tempted to push him. Instead, he shook away his unease and set about showing Twist how the song was played once more.

Smiling proudly, Twist carried the cake out to the dining room, singing ‘Happy Birthday’ at the top of his voice. Never mind that neither of them actually knew what day they’d been ‘born’. It was the thought that mattered. Blackberry was smiling and kicking his feet, pleased to be the center of attention. The others stood around the table, singing as well. Carefully, Twist set the cake on the table, soul warming when Blackberry leaned over the table to blow out the candles as the song came to an end.

He studied the cake. “Oh, wow, Edge you really outdid yourself this time! This is beautiful!”

“I didn’t make it,” Edge said, a very slight smile softening his features almost imperceptibly.

Blackberry cocked his head. “Blue?” Blue shook his head too. “Um…did you…buy…it?” They all shook their heads. “Then…who…?” Twist smiled and winked at his brother, pretending not to be hurt when Blackberry’s face fell a little. “Papy? You…? Really?”

“Yep!” Twist said, chin lifted. “Wan’ed ta su’prise ya.”

Blackberry did a remarkable job of hiding his disappointment. “Oh, Papy—you didn’t have to do that!” he said, voice bright.

“I know but….” He scuffed a foot against the floor. “Was important ta me. Dunno why. Jus’. Wan’ed ta do it.”

Blackberry’s smile grew more genuine. “Aw. Papy….”

“would someone just cut the fucking cake?” Cash asked gruffly. “you two are making me sick.”

Edge calmly cuffed him, earning a glare and a rude gesture. “Blackberry? Would you care to do the honors?”

Nodding eagerly, Blackberry grabbed the knife and—leaning away from the cake—cut through the frosting and the sponge. The smell of chocolate wafted through the air, rich and heady. When the cake failed to explode, Blackberry leaned close and observed, “Oh, wow. It looks…it looks really good, Papy!” He didn’t quite manage to hide his surprise, but Twist couldn’t exactly blame him for that.

“Hopefully it tastes good, too,” Twist said, scratching at the back of his neck. After several long sessions with Edge, he’d finally managed to consistently produce a cake that wasn’t just edible but tasted good. Still, Edge hadn’t been there to help him out this time. He might have fucked it up without the other skeleton around to monitor his progress.

“I’M SURE IT’S DELICIOUS, TWISTED-ME.” No one really commented on that, but there were a few uneasy glances exchanged. Edge, however, just stared back at him coolly and…confidently? Somehow, that made Twist’s shoulders relax marginally.

“Well?” Edge said, “You’re the guest of honor, Blackberry. It only seems fair you get the first bite.”

Blackberry hesitated, but ultimately nodded. “Yes! You’re…You’re absolutely right! As the birthday boy I am obligated—honored to have the first piece!”

He beamed at his brother, but Twist could see the strain in his cheekbones and around his sockets. He cut a piece of cake—a small piece, given Blackberry’s usual opinion that more was better—and set it on a plate. Daintily, he used a fork to cut a small piece away. He lifted the fork, holding it in front of his face as if to study it before putting it in his mouth. Smiling uneasily, he eyed Twist and, with a nearly imperceptible fortifying breath, took a bite.

His sockets went wide and his pupils burst into stars. Still holding the fork, he asked, “Papy? You made this? Really?”

Soul pounding so hard he could nearly hear it echoing in his skull, Twist nodded eagerly, breathing still a little unsteady. “So it’s...it’s good?”

“Good?” Blackberry asked, “It’s incredible!”

Twist didn’t doubt his word. The hesitance and traces of uneasiness were all gone. He cheerfully cut the rest of the cake and split it amongst the other guests, making sure to give himself another—more generous—slice. And when Twist took the first bite, his bones went limp with relief. He wasn’t exactly a fan of chocolate, but he knew that this was what the cake was supposed to taste like—sweet but not cloying, rich and moist.

Soul still fluttering in a mix of relief and adrenaline, he looked up and caught Edge’s socket—and grinned fiercely when Edge offered him a nearly imperceptible nod of approval.

#twistfell #twist papyrus #swap papyrus #fell papyrus #fell sans #swap sans #twist sans #sf papyrus #swell papyrus #casa #twistedmoney #mapletwist

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originaldisneydescendants · 6 years

Text

So you may have heard that @chiscribbles4smiles and I share a brain when it comes to Older! Varian and Cass ideas. We collaborated on some of these. Hopefully they will make you laugh. These are meant to be an extension of her earlier post which you can find here. If the Read More doesn’t work on mobile then I apologize because this is a very long post.

For example, here's one featuring that fortune-telling monkey that I suspect will show up at some point though I don't suspect it would actually go down like this 100%, I'm mostly using this example for a later idea:

Rapunzel: Wowww! A fortune-teller?! *Gasp* Can he tell me my future? Fernanda: Vigor the Visionary sees all! Go ahead, ask him anything! Eugene: Oh come on, Blondie, you're not buying this are you? Stuff like this is always a total hoax! Cassandra: Not to be rude to Miss Pizzazo, but Eugene is right. This is probably just a scam to get your money. Fernanda: Oh kids these days and their skeptical minds! If you'd like, we can give you a sample telling, free of charge! Rapunzel: No harm in that right? Hmm... oh I have one! Does Cassandra ever get a boyfriend? Cassandra: *Through grit teeth* Ra-PUNzel! Fernanda: *Reading the monkey's spastic hand signals* The Magnificent Vigor says yes! She does! Cassandra: *Crosses arms with a curious look* Rapunzel: *Leans forward with a broad smile* Fernanda: He says your friend's true love, like her, will be heavily armed, sassy and determined. Like you, he is perky, creative and freckled. He is also, how would you say... a dork? Eugene: Wow Cass, I never would have guessed that you had a thing for Pete! Cassandra: *After shooting Eugene an annoyed look* See? Now if I were gullible enough to believe any of this, I would only consider people who meet that description as my possible "true love" and be quick to dismiss anyone else. Self fulfilling prophecy. Scam. Rapunzel: Maybe... but maybe I just asked the wrong question. What I really want to ask is about my hair and the black rocks. I NEED answers! Fernanda: Not a problem! *Holds out hand* Rapunzel: Oh! I'm sorry, we don't have any money on us... but can I pay you with a portrait? Fernanda: *Deadpan look* Eugene, Cass, and Raps get tossed out one-by-one, landing in a dog pile. Fernanda: Cash only! *Yanks curtain shut* Eugene: MAN! She's stronger than she looks... Rapunzel: I guess THAT should have been my free question. Cassandra: *Dusting herself off* Don't worry about it. I don't think we're going to find any real answers here anyway.

One dramatic Redemption Arc later...

⦁ Varian: *Rubbing his arm while hanging his head and avoiding her eyes* I... I'm really sorry Cassandra... I know I don't deser-- Cassandra: *Hugs him as his expression reads shock and confusion* Hey Genius, I TOLD you, call me Cassie." Varian: *Tearing up, smiles and returns her hug*

⦁ Varian: *Amazed as Cass hands him the necklace he gave her* After everything you... you kept the cassandrium? Cass: It doesn't really go with any of my outfits, but it served as a pretty good reminder that somewhere underneath all that rage and emotional turmoil was still the same kid who was willing to drop everything to help me achieve my goals. Varian: *Puppy-eyed smile* Cass: *Teasingly* Don't read TOO much into it, okay. I'm not the mushy feely sort so there's no need to get all misty-eyed-- Varian: Uh, Cassie... *shyly pulls out a tattered blue ribbon and hands it to her* Cass: ... *Looks surprised then smiles softly* *puts it on him* Still a winner. Varian: *Smiles down at the ribbon then holds up the necklace* May I? Cass: *Pulls hair back and lets him put her necklace on for her*

⦁ Varian: Hey Cassie, so the royal wedding is tomorrow. Cass: *Hanging up decorations* You don't say? Varian: Right, *clears throat* so I was just thinking, I know you'll be busy but if you weren't planning on going with anyone maybe you could go with, er we could go as-- as uh... Cass: Hold up! Are you trying to ask me out on a DATE? Varian: Who ME?! Pssshhh noooooo, we're just friends! I wouldn't--! Cass: *Not buying it look* Varian: ... *Rubbing arm awkwardly* But, you know... if you happen to have fun and find that you actually enjoy yourself then maybe SOMEDAY you might consider a... a REAL... date? Cass: Hmmmmm, I dunno. You really think you can handle a WHOLE day celebrating someone else's romance with your 'just a friend'? Varian: *confident look* Uh absolutely! *softening and shrugging a little* The fact that I still get to BE your friend already makes me pretty lucky. Cass: *Looks surprised again then her expression softens a bit* Well... I am the head of security AND the Maid or Honor, so yeah I will be busy, but I think I can save a dance for you at the reception. Varian: Wow, really?! *After she's walked away he silently pumps his fist and mouths 'yessss!'* Cass: *Looks over her shoulder* Varian: *Spins around* I mean, sure, yeah, I-I'll see you then! Heh.

⦁ *Meanwhile just outside in the hall Stan and Pete are giving their commentary* "She said yes, pay up." "That wasn't a 'yes', that was a 'kinda'!" "It was an overall positive response so it counts!" "If that's your idea of romance then I feel sorry for--" "YOU LEAVE MY WIFE OUT OF THIS!" "I was gonna say your readers, since you're writing that romance novel but yeah, her too."

⦁ Varian doesn't care. That goof walks out with a happy heel click anyway.

⦁ At one point during the reception though Varian briefly doubts himself and decides to take a break away from the party. Cass stops him by catching his wrist causing him to turn around in surprise.

⦁ "Not so fast, you still owe me a dance."

⦁ Cassandra resting her head on his shoulder while they dance and Varian just looking like he’s going to implode from happiness.

⦁ Later on, Cass catches the bouquet and turns to see Shorty making kissy faces at her. There's a tap on her shoulder and she turns to see Varian. She grabs him and drags him away in a hurry saying, "I'll take it."

⦁ Getting into shenanigans with Rapunzel, Lance and Eugene like: Cassandra: *Standing on Varian's shoulders to reach a window* Hey Raps, we're all sneaking out to see the circus that everyone has been talking about just outside of town. You in? Varian: Whatever your answer is, please make it quick! Her heel is digging into my clavicle! Rapunzel: I'll be right out! Cassandra: *Losing her balance as Rapunzel tosses a rope of tied together curtains out the window* WHOA! WHOA!

WHAM

Varian: *Strained voice after breaking her fall* Ow...!

⦁ Owl letting Ruddiger use his wing as an umbrella.

⦁ After Varian is knocked unconcious and/or nearly drowns and doesn't seem to be breathing: Varian: *Smiling real big* Was I dreaming or did you actually kiss me? Cassandra: What did I say about flattering yourself? It wasn't a kiss. Lance: Oh, but it was a kiss! The kiss of life! Cassandra: Keep talking Big Guy, and you're gonna be the one needing it.

⦁ Cassandra slowly noticing how Varian is growing up and thinking things to herself like: "Wow, he's gotten a lot taller since I met him. It's actually sorta--" *smacks self* "HE'S SIXTEEN!" // "He really is such a smart guy, kind and-- NO! No! Nonononono he's just seventeen... ummm..." // *After he gives her a rose and a peck on the cheek* *internally* "Do NOT fall for it! Do NOT fall for HIM! DO NOT GO THERE!! He's--... eighteen... oh no..."

⦁ Cassandra at some point grabbing Rapunzel by the front of her dress in a panic and "I'M ACTUALLY STARTING TO LIKE VARIAN BACK! HOW DO I MAKE IT STOP?!" "Cass, it's okay if you have feelings for Varian. He's not a kid anymore and he IS a really nice guy... nowadays." "BUT HE'S SUCH A GEE-HEE-HEEK!" "That doesn't REALLY matter to you does it?" "Well, no... not anymore, but STILL... *clasping hands together pleadingly* Just, please don't tell Eugene okay? I'll never hear the end of it!" "I won't, don't worry. Look, from what I've heard, a crush only lasts a few months. If that's all it is, then all you have to do is wait it out. It's that simple." "MONTHS?!" "Oooooorrrr you can just come clean now and tell him how you feel. The choice is up to you." *Grabs a pillow and buries her face into it* *Muffled whining as Rapunzel pats her on the back*

⦁ Rapunzel: You know Varian, you grew up real handsome. I'm a little surprised that you're still single. Varian: *Bashfully rubbing the back of his neck* Really? I mean, I guess I've gotten a few looks, but I'm not exactly fighting off admirers with a stick. Rapunzel: *Noticing Cassandra giving a deadly look to a girl she catches staring at Varian while cleaning her halberd effectively scaring said girl off* I think that's been covered.

⦁ Eugene: *To Rapunzel* Big Nose told me. Cass has a thing for VARIAN?! I mean I shouldn't be surprised, he DID go rogue and try to destroy us all, he seems like Cassandra's type. But seriously, VARIAN?!

⦁ Varian being SO out of the loop: Varian: *To Cassandra* So this afternoon while we were watching you compete the prince said something to me that was kinda odd. "Wow Kid, you really are THE venomous cobra man aren't you?" Okay, so I've done things to deserve that, but it was still out of nowhere! Cassandra: *Awkward laugh* You know Eugene, he has no filter. I wouldn't pay attention to anything he says. Varian: *Raised brow* Okaaaayyy, but Rapunzel said something weird too. "Oh so YOU'RE the one the fortune-telling monkey was talking about!" Those two need a vacation. I think the grease has slipped off their frying pans a little bit if you know what I mean. Cassandra: Yeah, royalty right? I have no clue why they'd say things like that.

⦁ Cassandra finding herself being set up on a blind date with Varian. Cassandra: *Gesturing to a setup for a very romantic dinner* So you DIDN'T do all of this? Varian: I swear! Cassandra: Well if you didn't then who-- ... Both: RAPUNZEL!! Big Nose: *Hiding behind the door with the princess* Wow, that was fast! Varian: *Stops to think then pulls out a chair for Cass* Well, no point in letting a good meal go to waste right? Cassandra: *Brushing a strand of hair behind her ear* I... guess not. Big Nose: *Throws a hand over Rapunzel's mouth as she is about to squee out loud*

⦁ Varian's clumsiness leading to Accidental Affection™

⦁ Eugene: *To Cassandra* Why is your face so red? Did you actually spend some time in the sun for once?

⦁ Varian: Ugh, that necklace I made for you looks so cheap and gaudy to me now. Here, I can take it and make a better new one for you-- Cassandra: *Snatching it away protectively* No! Varian: *Surprised look* Cassandra: *Realizing how that sounded* I mean... it's fine. I'm fine with it just the way it is, thanks. Varian: *Smiling broadly*

⦁ Despite all of this, Varian is wondering if he'll be stuck in the friendzone for good. He pours his heart out in a sentimental song about wrestling with whether he should just let go and move on or take a chance and keep dreaming all while reminding himself over and over of why he finds her so amazing and while he only 'liked' her before, now he just might be falling in love.

⦁ Varian facing his hemophobia to help Cass when she gets a really bad cut on her arm in a fight though he is dizzy the whole time.

⦁ He lets himself faint as soon as it's all taken care of.

⦁ Cassandra slowly accepting her new feelings for Varian with the help of tender gestures like this.

⦁ Varian telling Cass that he has fallen in love with her with a romantic serenade that is a reprise of his earlier solo. She joins in and it becomes a duet as her way of saying "same". Needless to say, he was not expecting that. (Yes, I have lyrics but I'm not sharing them publicly until they're complete enough that I'm willing to pay a registration fee).

⦁ Each taking off a glove to hold hands.

⦁ "No time for dreams?!" "I know how it sounds, but my dad raised me to be very practical." "Yeah, mine too, but I grew up in a farming village. There's nothing BUT time to dream so I have lots *heh*... if you want, I could... share them with you..." *Cue the song A Million Dreams from the Greatest Showman*

⦁ Varian saying things to Cass that are so sweet that she doesn't know how to respond to at first so she just punches him while hiding a bashful smile.

⦁ "You're more than a queen to me." ... *same cheeky smile he gave her in the first episode* ... *pained grunt*

⦁ Cass finding sweet little love notes every once in a while and secretly keeping them all in a box under her bed.

⦁ Everyone knows Cass calls Varian things like "You Goof", and "Nerd" occasionally but what no one knows is that when no one else is around she slowly started to call him embarrassingly endearing nicknames too. She never does in front of others though because if Eugene ever found out about it, he'd have a field day.

⦁ Of course he and Lance find out about it and of course they do.

⦁ "BWAHAHAHAHAHA" --"HAHAHAHAHA AW MAN I CAN ONLY DREAM OF BEING THAT RICH!"--"HAHAHAHAHA I CAN'T BREEEATHE!! I'M DYING AGAIN!! HAHAHAHA OH MAN I'M ACTUALLY CRYING!! IT HURTS!! HAHAHAHA!!!"

⦁ A dagger narrowly misses his face and lands right between them. "Believe me, I can make it hurt a LOT worse."

⦁ "I believe her." "Me too." It's never brought up again.

⦁ The two of them working through relationship conflicts that have their own arc and coming out of it closer and better than before.

⦁ *In the middle of fighting off bad guys* "I feel like you're embarrassed to tell people I'm your boyfriend!" "I'm not! You can do embarrassing things, but I'm not embarrassed BY you. There's no one else in the world I'd rather be with! DUCK!" *Ducks as she throws a weapon knocking out the goon coming up behind him* "... Really?" "Of course! We wouldn't even be together if that wasn't true! You're smart enough to figure that out. I love you, Knucklehead!" "I... I love you too!" "That means a lot, really, but we should save this conversation for later! Now is a very bad time!"

⦁ This happening: Varian: *As Cass passes it to him* Herz Der Sonne's book? Why are you...? Cass: *Hands him a quill* My name is already in there, but the space next to it is still blank. She's handed him a book, but he looks at her like she's just handed him the world.

⦁ Being the pair that is ALWAYS laying a supportive hand on the other's shoulder/forearm/knee/back/waist etc. any time they are in the same room.

⦁ During a serious discussion, she places a hand on his cheek and he leans into her touch.

⦁ Varian being so relieved upon seeing that Cass is okay after a near fatal incident and peppering her face with kisses not caring who sees.

⦁ Forehead touches

⦁ Eugene: He has a goatee now! You said goatees were stupid! Cassandra: *Smugly* I implied that YOURS was stupid and that it made YOU look ridiculous, I never said they were stupid in general.

⦁ Cassandra: *Going through her weapons wardrobe* Okay, so you're meeting my dad tonight. After everything that went down a few years ago it's a safe bet that he's not going to like you so if worst comes to worst, I can hold him off for at least a few minutes while you run.

Varian: *Sitting cross-legged on the bed* Haha, "hold him off" that's funny. Cassandra: *Glancing over her shoulder with concern* I'm serious. *Comes over as he stands up, straightens his collar, dusts off his shoulders etc.* Now when you meet him, be sure to stand up straight, look him in the eye, only address him as 'Captain' or 'Sir' and if you see his mustache start to twitch then excuse yourself to the bathroom because that means he's about to explode and I'm going to need a minute to talk him down and-- Varian: *Taking Cass's hands* Whoa, hey, Cassie, I've never seen you this nervous before. It's kinda freaking me out. Cassandra: I know it's just... ugh! My dad can be really confrontational and he's not very good at letting go of grudges. It took years just for him to be able to stand in the same room as Eugene for more than five minutes without glaring him down and all he did was steal things! Varian: *Downcast* And I've done much... much worse. Cassandra: *Sympathetic, regretful look* You're not the same as you were back then. You've really grown up and you know that stuff was wrong. *Looking down* I just want him to see that too so we can all move on. Varian: *Tilting her chin up* Don't worry too much about it. Hey, us being together is all the proof I need that miracles can happen. We'll never know if we don't give it a shot right? Cassandra: *Smiles softly and kisses his cheek* Right.

⦁ The Captain grills Varian about his choice of career as an alchemist and almost brings up Varian’s past until Cass gives him a pointed look and clears her throat suggesting that she already made him agree not to bring that up. Everything is super tense until Cass is forced to leave dinner in a hurry so she can help Rapunzel and Varian tries to fill the uncomfortable silence.

⦁ Varian: *Swinging his arm in a gung-ho way* Heheh... well you know what they say, "when a friend is in need, whether in the raging seas below or the highest peaks above, there is nowhere else for a noble man to be." Captain: Hold it, Pencil Neck! Are you... quoting Knights of the Hidden World? Varian: Yeah... you've read it? Captain: *Anxiously scratching the back of his head* Oh, I uh... might have skimmed a chapter or two in my free time...

⦁ Cassandra coming back from an unexpected adventure and both her and Maximus are left slack-jawed to find that Varian and her dad are geeking out over a book series, quoting lines, sharing theories and reenacting dramatic scenes together like best buddies. Varian shows off how he recreated a high tech weapon from the books and the Captain tries not to let out a fanboy squeal.

⦁ "Yes, but they're MY dorks."

⦁ Eugene gagging as he witnesses an Eskimo kiss because he's seeing Cass being downright mushy and it's something his brain can't comprehend and doesn't want to.

⦁ Varian: I've always wanted to do this... *picks Cass up and spins her*

⦁ Playful shoulder nudging

⦁ *Holding her face* "Cassie, being with you is a dream come true! We've been dating for years now but I wake up every morning and feel like I need to pinch myself just to be sure I'm not still dreaming! You're the best thing that ever happened to me and I'm NOT going to take that for granted."

⦁ Now it's Cassandra's turn to look at him like he's just handed her the world.

⦁ Varian finally thinks they're ready and plans a whole romantic day where he intends to at some point propose to her. Throughout the day he tries several times and there is a whole montage of moments that get interrupted by something stupid or something goes horribly wrong. By the time the sun is setting, he's frustrated and a little discouraged but his spirits lift when he finally has the perfect moment.

⦁ When he goes for his pocket to retrieve the ring that he made himself, Cassandra surprises him by taking both of his hands, looking him in the eyes, saying the sweetest things she's ever said in her life and popping the question. He answers by taking out the ring and saying, "I-I guess I can't imagine my life without you either, Cassie, so... yes," with a crooked smile and in a small, soft tone that cracks a little on 'yes'. He cried. Rapunzel cried. I cried. Everyone cried.

⦁ They lived happily ever after. The end.

#tangled the series #tts #tangled cassandra #cassandra #varian #captain of the guard #variandra #cassarian

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who-has-done-the-thing · 6 years

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"I see, this place is delicious," Takei Toshihiko said, stuffing a hamburger into his mouth. "Have you never eaten at McDonald's before?" "Nope. I've always totally disregarded places like this." "That's what we call being an idiot." "Ouch," Takei said, smiling. Compared to when he was drunk, his image was completely different. He gave the impression of a super first-rate businessman, and wore a suit that Ayumi could tell at a glance was even more top-class than her father's. The two sat at a table on the second floor of the hamburger shop. Ayumi let her vision wander to Ariga Yuuichirou, who was sitting a short ways away. When he noticed her, he gave her a wink. "Takei-san, you work for Masuguchi-san's company?" "Yep. It's a pretty comfy position in the hotel division." "And you were going after the CEO's daughter?" "I mean—— From your perspective it might look a certain way. But I swear I didn't have any ulterior motives getting to know her. I don't know if you'll believe me though." "Assuming I do, please continue your story." "Yoshiko and I were engaged. About one year ago already. There wasn't any kind of pressure from the boss, nor was I specifically targetting her. We just happened to meet at various parties and tennis outings, one thing led to another, and… Well, it wasn't a super passionate love, but it was enough to propose to." "Did the parents resist?" "Masuguchi-san? No, not at all. I can say with confidance that Masuguchi-san likes me a lot. There was no possible way he'd be less than overjoyed to see me engaged to Yoshiko." "That's only what you think, correct?" "Sure, but that man's not the best at keeping these things inside. If something displeases him, it'll surely show on his face. ——I've worked under him for several years now. I understand that much at least." "I see," Ayumi said, slurping a milkshake. "So then why call the engagement off?" "Suddenly, for no reason," said Takei with a slight shrug. "No reason?" "In June, Masuguchi-san assigned me to observe European hotel chains to see if they'd be good candidates for partnering up. So in mid-June I left Japan and went all over Europe, to places like France, Germany, Spain, Italy…" "On the company's money? I'm jealous!" Ayumi sighed with longing. "It was still work. Plenty of stress to go around," said Takei, smiling. "Facilities, service, dining, location… I had to check every single point and list them out. I also spoke to the hotel managers. ——It was real tough, but I guess it was also kind of a fun two months." "Were you alone?" "Of course. ——So by the time I returned, it was later than August 20th. Except…" Takei trailed off. "——Except?" "I'd sent her a letter, but Yoshiko was nowhere to be found once I arrived in Narita. I figured she was just busy though, so I didn't worry too much and went straight to the company building. ——When I entered the CEO's office, Masuguchi-san was beaming at me, thanking me for my hard work. And then… he introduced me to the man standing there, Yoshiko's fiancee." "Tamura-san." "Yes. ——I'm sure you can understand my shock." "I've never experienced such a thing, but I can imagine," Ayumi said sympathetically. "So, what was Masuguchi-san's explanation?" "Nothing." "Nothing?" "Yep. Nothing. Of course I have my pride, but Yoshiko's fiancee himself was standing right there, so I didn't want to argue with Masuguchi-san. So I hid my distress and greeted this Tamura fellow. Later, when the two of us were alone, I went to ask what the hell was going on. But before I could say anything, Masuguchi-san said 'Don't ask questions' and patted my shoulder. 'It really is a shame. But there was no other way' he said." No other way…. Those words repeated in Ayumi's mind. "So, you didn't ask anything else?" "Nope. Naturally, I assumed Yoshiko changed her mind. That's safe to assume, right?" "I suppose so." "And it wouldn't be manly to dwell on that. With that in mind, I kept my mouth shut. Only, if she really did change her mind, why would she decide to get married again so fast?" "And that's why you drowned your sorrows at the reception?" "Yeah, I'm sorry I said all those mean things to you, so please forgive me." "I'll think about it." Ayumi didn't recall him saying anything all that rude, since she'd slapped him before he could. "I did get an opportunity to meet Tamura-kun afterwards though, and I have to say, I have no idea why Yoshiko chose to marry him so quick." "Me neither." "Oh? You neither?" Takei stared at Ayumi. "What do you mean by that?" "I meant like… She doesn't seem his type…. It's not like I knew Tamura-san super well, and I know it's impossible to judge a relationship from the outside, but… it just doesn't add up. Even if he was in love, it's hard to imagine Tamura-san wanting such an extravagant wedding." Ayumi shrugged her shoulders. "I didn't really explain it that well…" "No, I get it," Takei assured. "I also thought he was a good guy. At first I thought he was a dick, but when I actually talked to him, I couldn't hate the guy. I even kinda thought, it's no wonder he stole my girl." For the first time, Ayumi saw the man in front of her in a positive light. ——He is quite understanding, isn't he. Suddenly, Ayumi wondered if she should tell him. Tell him about those puzzling words Tamura whispered to her. "To tell you the truth, me inviting you here today…" Takei continued, "was because I got a weird phone call." "Go on…" "It was the night before yesterday——" Takei started to say, but he was interrupted by a strange whistle noise, like a broken flute. "Ohp. That's my beeper." Takei reached into the inside pocket of his jacket, stopped the sound, then said "I need to take this. One sec." He then got up and exited down the stairs to the first floor. Ariga got up and came over. "What a tool, amirite?" "But he doesn't seem like a bad person. Thanks for coming on such short notice, though." "Well your carelessness is scary. That guy was totally about to bring you off to some hotel." "Oh stop," Ayumi smiled. "Also, I'm quite worried about Tamura's wedding. It's something he told me, that makes me feel this way." "Worried? "Yes…. A bit." Ayumi could absolutely trust Ariga with Tamura's words. "Anyway, we've got time, so I'll just sit here." "What, no. What are you trying to——" Ayumi began, when a huge boom cut her off and the ground shook. The glasses on the tables made noise as they shook. "What was that?" she half rose to her feet. "Kyaah!" "Somebody!" "Help!" Screams rose from the lower floor. Ayumi flew down the stairs in a single bound. Ariga frantically followed. "——This is awful!" When she reached the first floor, Ayumi was momentarily petrified. Facing the street, this floor had a glass wall. There was now a small pickup truck crashed through it. The glass totally demolished, the body of the truck was most of the way inside the store. One of the tall tables was overturned and some injured children were crying. "——Ariga-kun! We have to help them!" "R, right." Ayumi and Ariga lifted the injured children and carried them to the back of the store. Once the stupefied store clerks came to their senses, they dialed the police and started bringing out the medkits. "Who the heck was driving it?" Ariga said angrily. "That's right. Where's the driver? They might be hurt." "Let's see." Ariga opened the truck door. "——Well?" "There's no one there." "No way!" "See for yourself," Ariga said, beckoning Ayumi over. Indeed, the driver's seat was empty. "Then how did it crash?" "Dunno. How could this have happened?" Ayumi suddenly remembered about Takei. That's right. He should be making a phone call. "Takei-san! ——Takei-san!" called Ayumi. "Wait, is that——" Ariga said, tugging Ayumi's arm. "Huh?" Looking in the direction Ariga indicated, Ayumi was in shock. The telephone booth had been knocked over, and underneath, a hand was sticking out holding the reciever. "We need to pull him out! Hurry!" Ayumi and Ariga ran over as fast as they could.

"——Goodness gracious, it's always something with you," Ayumi's mom Kiyomi said when she spread out Ayumi's clothes and looked at them. "They're filthy, and there's even blood on these." "I couldn't avoid it. I was helping people," Ayumi said, reclined on the sofa. "Is it really true, your story?" Kiyomi said. "What do you mean?" "Maybe you were actually… taken and raped somewhere?" "You say some amazing things, Mom!" Ayumi was shocked. "Watch the news! They'll show it on TV" she snarled. "Alright, alright." Kiyomi shrugged. "So, that guy you were with, did he die?" "Takei-san? No, he miraculously escaped with only light wounds. He's in the hospital for the time being." "Hmm… So what did he want?" "Oh, uh… nothing important." Ayumi was saved by the doorbell. Upon going to the entranceway and opening the door, her father flew inside. "Idiot! Answer the door faster!" he said, flinging off his shoes and charging into the living room. "What's wrong?" When Ayumi followed him, he turned on the TV while panting "The train was late. I barely made it in time!" An anime program aimed at little girls started playing, and the theme song filled the room.

——In her room on the second floor, Ayumi was surprisingly(?) studying, when she got a call. "It's Ariga-san," said her mother's voice. She knew Ariga. "——Yo, did you see the news?" Ariga started as soon as he was connected. "No I haven't. My father has authority over the remote in this house." "Ah, I see." "So what's up?" "About the incident. I just saw on NHK, they even got you on film." "Did I look pretty?" Ayumi joked. "More importantly, according to the police investigation, whoever was driving the truck crashed it on purpose." "On purpose?" "The owner of the vehicle was eating at a nearby soba place when it happened. The engine was entirely off and the hand brake applied. They're thinking maybe someone hijacked the truck." "That's horrible! Do they not know who did it?" "They're looking for witnesses, but it seems they don't have many leads." "But… is that really all they're going on?" "Well, it most likely isn't just a mean-spirited prank. There was probably a specific target…" "Is that what the police said?" "No, that's my own reasoning." "What the heck." "Don't just say what the heck." "Sorry, sorry. ——I mean, Takei-san might have been the target." "It's possible. But the only others injured were in middle or high school." "I see. ——The telephone booth was facing the glass. The car crashed right in front of it, right?" "We could definitely see the phone from the front of the building." "Then… was Takei-san actually being targeted?" "I don't know, but, well, we probably shouldn't get involved, don't you think?" Ayumi pondered for a moment, then said "Thanks for the advice" and hung up. Tamura's words, and Yoshiko's former fiancee Takei being targeted…. Additionally, the mystery of why Yoshiko suddenly switched from Takei to Tamura. "Something's going on…" the novel and TV drama-loving Ayumi muttered with excitement in her breath. "The news, the news!" Ayumi flew out of her room with the determination to make her dad watch the news by any means necessary.

To be continued in chapter 3...

#The Busy Bride #translation

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steampunk-magicalgirl · 7 years

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I ship it!

Alright guys! It seems like we unfortunately won’t be getting any big celebration for TAU’s birthday this year. That doesn’t stop me from celebrating it in my own way though, so here’s a fanfic thats been sitting in my head for about two years now, enjoy!

(Also, just a note, Timothy is a r!Henry)

on ao3

Timothy Jackson, 15 years old was, in their own opinion, one of the best writers that had ever been born on planet earth! They had written both comedies and tragedies, made people of all ages both laugh and cry, and now, finally, their latest work had been completed. In just a few minutes it would be posted online for the world to see, and Timothy would finally receive all the praise and glory that they knew they deserved. Anticipation filled the room as Timothy carefully typed out the words that would make up the summary of the story.

‘Human! Alcor, human! Woodsman, high school-coffee shop au!’ they wrote ‘When a young student named Alcor looks for a new job in the town’s coffee shop what will happen when he meets his new super handsome manager? Will their love blossom despite the rest of the cruel world’s disapproval? Read to find out.’

They did not add the classic ‘fic better than summary’ comment that most authors liked to use. They knew they didn’t need it, Timothy’s summary was perfect! Just like the rest of their carefully crafted masterpiece. Sure, Woodcore might not have been the most popular ship around at the moment, but surely that would change as soon as people read this fanfic. Alcor and The Woodsman were perfect together, they knew it! People just needed a little help to realize what Timothy had already seen long ago.

They smiled to themselves as they pressed the button for publishing stories and made their hard work public. As soon as the story appeared on the screen Timothy refreshed the page to see if they´d gotten any reviews. When they hadn’t they refreshed again, and again, and again until their cat Mason decided to jump up on Timothy’s desk and sit in front of the computer screen, effectively blocking Timothy’s view in the process.

“Mason get down!” Timothy ordered, however the cat didn’t even seem fazed at all, in fact it simply laid down in front of the computer and started to lick at its paws, Timothy sighed and moved out of their chair to pick Mason up and carry him out of the room. As soon as Timothy and Mason walked out into the hallway they were met by Timothy’s mom.

“Oh hello darling” she said “I was just about to ask you if you wanted to help me make dinner?”

“What are we eating?” Timothy asked her, “We’re making hamburgers.” Their mom answered “I thought you might want to help me fry them…”

“YES I DO!” Timothy happily exclaimed, and soon all thoughts of going back to the computer to refresh the page again were forgotten in favour of making dinner with mom, and when Timothy finally got back to their room after the meal they simply turned off the computer, and went to sleep.

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

The next day after school Timothy threw their bag onto the bed as soon as they got home and eagerly logged on to their computer. Surely somebody had to have read their fic by now. They probably had a million kudos, maybe even a few reviews! Oh how they wished somebody was there so they could share their excitement, but Mason was nowhere to be seen at the moment, although that was probably a good thing considering what had happened yesterday. Timothy´s heart raced as they opened up the site where they posted all their fanfics, and just as they thought, somebody had left a review! Oh this was perfect, everything Timothy had always wanted would soon be delivered to them, all the glory and praise that the Twin Souls fandom could offer was just a click with the mouse away! Timothy opened up the review…. And their heart sank

‘umm not to be rude but this was kind of awful, I almost feel sorry for you! Alcor was just so out of character and I found at least a thousand spelling errors. Again I don’t want to be an asshole but I think you should practice you´re writing more before you publish anything, just some friendly advice lol! Then again, what would you expect from someone who writes woodcore? Micor is just so much better, plus it´s cannon‘

Timothy was shocked, how could somebody say that to them? After all their hard work, this was it? Was this really how the fandom would remember them? Just another failed author like so many others before them? No that couldn’t be it, obviously this person didn’t know what they were talking about. After all they seemed to believe that Micor was somehow superior to Woodcore. Their bad taste had to be reason why they were being so rude, people just couldn’t accept that Timothy’s fic was better than cannon, and thus they got mad at them. That had to be it, that had to be the reason, Timothy decided! Well then, if they wouldn’t accept a ship unless it was cannon, then it was a good thing that Timothy was such a good matchmaker… at least in their own opinion.

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

Dipper was bored, and considering that he was an ultra-powerful demon who could alter reality at his will and make anything he wanted (well almost anything) happen with a snap of his fingers, that was really saying a lot. So when he felt the familiar tug of a summons, one that felt vaguely like he should already know the summoner, he didn’t hesitate to follow it! It felt too weak to be Mizar summoning him. He thought that maybe Cassie had managed to find his circle again and needed some homework help, or maybe it was a cult that had summoned him before that he´d just forgotten about, however he wasn’t prepared for what actually met him the moment he appeared over the circle. He was in somebody´s bedroom. That much was obvious from the bed standing behind him and the posters on the walls and, oh God was that a Twin Souls movie poster? Dipper immediately felt on edge, as he looked down to face whoever had summoned him, and was once again taken aback at what he saw. The child was young, probably in their mid-to-late teens, they had dark skin and bright blue hair, and was wearing a white dress shirt and black slacks (Dipper had to admit, they had good taste in fashion), but what really caught the demons attention was the antlers crowning their head.

“w̞͚̕hy̤̟̖̬̝͜ ̡͔̞̤h̢͓ͅa̶͖̻͖v̵̗̻̞͉̘e͢ ̸̹̳̱̪ͅy͔̜͞o̠̘u̢͖̫ ̯̺͕͍̦͙ͅsư͖̯̯̠̭͔m̰̼̪̭̺̱̖m͢o̷n̻̘e̘͔̗̳̲͟d͏͕͖̩̖ ̼̮̥͚͚͙̦͘m̥̺̤̣̯̘e̸͈ͅ?” Dipper asked, because this child might have his brothers’ soul, but they also had Twin Souls posters on all their walls and Dipper didn’t want to take any chances.

“Oh great, hot and powerful Alcor!” the child spoke “I have summoned you here because I wish to help aid you in your great quest for love!”

…. Okaaaay that was weird and not at all what Dipper had expected. The shock must have been visible on his face, because the child looked worriedly at him and asked

“Is everything okay Al? You don’t look very good, are you sick?”

Dipper just sighed.

”l͚͓̟̱̻̠o̪͎ok̺̣̰̭ ͚̫ki̘̥̮̮͕d̩̱̘͚̫̘̬” Dipper began, “I ̹d̠͈o ̱͕̳̪̮͇̲n͕͕̩̖͙o͍̻̠̝̳t̠̻̫̻̳̳ ̬͇̭̬̪͎n̹ee͙̰̲d̬ ̖̺̯y͈͙͚͈o̭̪̯̘̰u̺̺r ̻̤ͅͅh̗͔͉̠̣̘e̺̪̲̞lp̣̭,̹̼̤̥ ̤͍̮̰̺I̲͖͕̫̲̮ ͙͈̝a̪͎͔̲m̼͚̼̝̯ ̗̭̬̘͕̣̰n̲͙o͓̺ͅt ͙͇͓̻̖͚͓i̬̻̤̗̳n̞͙v͍̖̭͎̖̘̱o͇l̙v̙̥̬̝͔͙̹e̞̥̹̞͚d̳͔̯ ͉͎̫̘̫͔͈i͍̲n̦̖̪͔̥̗ ̪͙̰̜a̮̜̲͎͇̯ny̗̣ͅ

ġ͉r̼͎̘̩̰e̟̹͇͛ͥą̒̔̊̌t͙̙ͨͪͮ͗ ̖̮̦̝̙̐̓͆́qͭ̓̋̔ͯͮu̺ͨͮ̏ͬ̉ͅě͓̘̱̰͈̼s̻̭̹͗̊t͆̆ͣ̐͛̾͛̕ ̳̗̩̓̓̌ͫf̭͔͔̼̟̗̞ͭ̃̃̽̒̕o̢̭̲̙̻̻̣ͯͦ̔̏͐r͙̉ͯ͛̒͠ ̖̌ͤl̻̻͖ͯ̂ͮ̊̔̚ȏ͍̟̅̓͗͟v̸̠̹̾̇e͇͕̠̝̦͌̈́͆͊͑̽ a̘͈̭͖̣̰n̥͓̳̱̳͓̝d̖̯͈ ̲̼n̺̯̦o̠. ̜̗Iț͙̙̫´̗̦s͍̘̹͇ ̗͓̪͕n͕o̬͓t͇̥̳̫ͅ ̪b̼̞e̟̳̞̺͎̥c͇͙̥̱̻̬͎aṵ̥͕͎se̦̺̘ ̤̬̮͚͙̞M͕̯͉͚̙̤̩i͈̜̞z̲͉̱̖̝͇͎a̤r͓͔̜̬̗̟̞ a̟͍͖͎̫͈n̺̤͉͔̪d͔͍̟̜̗̭͚ ̖̻I̟̪ a̮r̳̞ͅe͕̳͚ ̹̲̭̩͖͍͖a̪̖̞͔̥͖ͅl̙͍r̭e̝̼͈̥a̙̝͉͈ḍ̩y̭̭̺͎̯̖ ̱̦̮̣͚͎̟d̪̼̻̼a̞̥̫̞̙̳͎t̙̼̲i͕̩̲̼̗̻̳n̦̗͚̥̹g̮͉̬͎͙ ͈̩͔in͓̯ ̫͎̤f͔ͅac͍̝̗̺͇ṭ̩̠̟ ̼͎̭̰̞I´͔m͈̝̜̘̦̬̻ ̱̫n̮͙͔̘̺̖͚o͍͎͕͓̪t̰͚̣̯̠ ͚̮̜̩̖e͙v̩̣̝ͅe̘̺̰n̪̣̭ ̩͎̣͕i͚͈̖n̲̹̘t̜̖͙̜ͅͅͅer͓̭̪͙͈̱͎e̜s͚̠̻t̻̯͇͈̘e̦̖̫d͕̥ i̮̥̮ͅn̤̣̲̦̲̬̺-”

The child cut him off before he could finish his sentence

“pffft I know that! As if you and Mizar could ever be a real couple. It’s so obviously not happening, I don’t even get why people bother to ship you two in the first place.”

Well that was DEFINITELY not what Dipper had expected. Just a few moments before he’d been ready to just leave and get out of there as fast as possible, but he was now curious, perhaps this child did have something worthy of his time to offer after all (and even if not, just spending some time with his brother would be nice)

“Okay ̴th̀en,̡ t͜e͢ll̴ m̕e ̕Eͮ͊X̅͊ͯͪ͗̓A̔͂̐̿̋Ċ̛̓̓T̨ͣ̀̏̓L̀ͧ͌Y̅͋͑ͩͭ wh̨at y͞o̡u w̢ant.̵” ̂ͥ̆̿̚Dipper demanded, adjusting his position in the air so that he was floating cross-legged above the circle.

“Easy,“ the child said with a confident and knowing expression on their face “I know who you really love. And I´m guessing you haven’t confessed to him yet because you’re too shy. So, I´m offering to help coach you, trust me I’m great at encouraging people, and in return you could… uh, I dunno, make sure the fandom knows you love him I guess? And put an end to Micor ones and for all, what do you say?” the child took a step forward and reached out their hand to Dipper, seemingly ready to shake on it. Dipper had to admit that their offer was tempting, he´d love to see Micor shippers finally realize that it wasn’t cannon and leave him alone, however there was one detail in what the child had said that was bothering him

“And̕ ͠w͝h͢o, i̴f҉ ̴I ͝mąy̵ aşk, ͜is ̨i͝t t̷hat ͠you ̷thìnk̢ ҉I͏ ͞l̸o͠ve̴?”

The child grinned at him

“The Woodsman of course!” they exclaimed and nooooooo, nope not doing this, Dipper was so DONE with this!

“u̷͘m̨m͏͞ ̵̸y͢͏e͘͏a̵h͏̢,͟ ̴̨t̛h͘͠a̷͠͝t̡̀̕´̸s̛͟..͡.̡̛ ̛͜N͏̀͡o̡҉͏t̡̕͠ ̶̀h̨͠͞a͘҉̡p̡̧p̀͝é́n̵̡i͞n͞g̵̕.͘ ̷͏S̷o̧r҉r̕͜y͏̷̨ ̢́k͟i̛͠d͏̴͘!̧” “But wait!” the child cried out in shock, but Dippers form was already getting blurry, and before they could say more, he vanished.

Well so much for spending time with his brother. Oh well, there´d be more chances, hopefully Henry’s next incarnation wouldn’t be as weird as this one.

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

Timothy stared in disbelief at the circle where Alcor had been floating just moments earlier. Why had he left? Did Timothy say something wrong? He probably got overwhelmed by happiness when Timothy understood his feelings, and got so confused he had to leave and gather his thoughts. Or maybe just being summoned like this finally gave him the courage to confess his love, and he left to do it immediately! That had to be it, totally!

Timothy smiled proudly to themselves, knowing that they had been able to help Alcor with his love problems. And now all that was left to do was wait for the demon to make his affair public, in the meantime though, Timothy had more fanfics to write, and this summoning had given them the perfect fic idea. It would require some really good writing skills to get it perfect though. Oh well, good thing Timothy was such a good writer…

… In their own opinion!

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

zalgo transcriptions for those who need it:

"why have you summoned me?" "I do not need your help, I am not involved in any great quest for love, and no it's not because Mizar and I are already dating in fact I'm not even interested in-" "okay, then tell me EXACTLY what you want" "and who, if I may ask, is it that you think I love?" "umm yeah that's... not happening. Sorry kid"

#gravity falls #transcendence au #gravity falls transcendence au #dipper pines #henry pines #My writing #fanfic

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thefloorisbalaclava · 7 years

Text

Rancher!McCree AU - Chapter 1 - Jesse McCree x Fem!Reader

A/N: I received this request a while ago and it took me some time to get up the courage to write and post it. This became sort of self-indulgent. The reader is a woman of color (mixed race) but I still want everyone to be able to enjoy it. This is my first time trying something like this...

This first chapter is just an introduction to the characters and their personalities. I’m expecting this fic to be quite long with lots of pining, stolen glances, etc... Its set in the late 1800s, some time after the Civil War.

No title yet but maybe I’ll think of something or one of you will be able to help me lol.

Chapter 2 - Chapter 3 - Chapter 4 - Chapter 5 - Chapter 6

Words: 2,702 Warnings: racist terms, mention of prostitution

Before your mother died, you had promised her that you would never let anyone own you. You told her that you would never be someone’s slave. She wanted you to be strong, but you could never be as strong as her.

Opportunities for a woman around here were few and far between, especially for a woman of your color. The worst part was, you were hardly accepted by the people you most resembled. See, you are what the people here consider a mulatto, a mutt, or what some people called a house negro. You didn’t ask to be born this way, you just were. You blamed the white man that had his way with your mother for all your hardships. You swore you would never work for a white man and you wouldn’t let one take advantage of you.

Yet, here you were, on the train making your way to some man’s ranch, ready to work. You were sure your mother would understand your predicament. Your only other option was to become a whore and there was no way you were going to let a bunch of filthy railroad men lay on top of you every night.

The train began to slow down and grabbed your one little bag, standing up nervously. People had been giving you looks the entire ride but there wasn’t much they could do now that you’ve reached your destination. Some people stared at you almost in disgust others, mostly men, leered at you, no doubt assuming that you were a new whore for the railroad men. You ignored the stares as people filed off the train into the dry heat of the west.

You stood out of the way, using your hand to shield the sun and immediately regret wearing the dress you chose. You had no idea who you were looking for. What exactly did a rancher dress like? A cowboy? The pictures you saw in the papers were all you had to go by, but there were so many men dressed the same, which one was this Mr. McCree you were looking for?

“I believe yer lookin’ for me,” someone drawls behind you. You turn quickly and come face to face with a horse. Its rider pats its neck and you look up at him. He certainly stood out with his red serape blowing in the wind. It was a bit dramatic to you, but what did you know. “This here’s Sunset and I’m McCree. Jesse McCree.” He looked at you strangely so you looked at him until he cleared his throat and looked away.

Your mama would have lost it if she saw how you had lost your manners. You correct yourself immediately and bow your head, “Mr. McCree.” You tell him your name and say hello to Sunset who nuzzles your hand.

“I got another horse for ya right over there.” He points over to a beautiful, white horse waiting patiently. “You can give me your stuff…”

“No, I can manage,” you say, “Thank you, sir.”

“All right, ma’am.” He watched you with interest as you skillfully tied your things onto the saddle and got yourself onto the horse without any problems although you were wearing a dress. You made yourself as comfortable as could be on a horse and looked at him.

“Is something wrong, sir?”

“No, ma’am, not at all.” He gives you an awkward smile and maneuvers his horse around yours to lead the way. You make sure to stay to the side of him and a little further back. You weren’t sure what people would think if they saw you two riding together. “So, tell me ‘bout yourself,” he says turning his head slightly to talk to you.

“What would you like to know, sir?”

He stops his horse suddenly making you stop yours. “I’m gonna need you to stop callin’ me sir. I ain’t no sir.”

“Well, you’re a man, ain’t ya?”

“Well, yeah, but that don’t mean you gotta call me sir. I’m sure you’ve done enough of that in your life.” Your head drops and he quickly corrects himself, “I only meant that I ain’t your…master or nothin’. We’re equals.”

“There are plenty of people here that would hang you if they heard you say something like that. We ain’t equal, we never will be.” You look at him and he seems annoyed so you decide to lighten the mood. “What would you like to know about me, s- Mr. McCree?”

He clicks his tongue to get his horse moving again and you follow. “Where you from?” he asks.

“New Orleans, born and raised.” You weren’t sure if he wanted to hear more so you just waited for him to ask another question.

“Family? Mother? Father?” he asks and you sigh.

“I don’t got any family left. My mama took good care of me when she was here though. My father, well, he don’t care about me. As far as I’m concerned, he’s dead.” That was all you wanted to say on the subject but Mr. McCree had other plans.

“How do you know he don’t care ‘bout you?”

“No white man is gonna care about a baby he sired with a slave woman.” You could see McCree’s entire body tense up as the words left your mouth.

“I’m sorry I asked. I’m sorry that happened to your mother…and to you.” He was sincere. You couldn’t see his face, but the way he spoke said it all.

“No reason to be sorry, Mr. McCree.” You looked around and realized you were leaving town. Ahead, you only saw a few houses here and there, some appeared to be abandoned. “So, why did you decide to come out here instead of stayin’ in town? You could work for the railroad.”

“I have my reasons. Let’s just say I ain’t much of a people person.”

“No family? Wife and kids?” you ask.

“No. Just me, my horses and a few other animals, and my land…and now you.” Before you can ask him another question he calls back to you, “Almost there!”

You were relieved to hear that. Your legs were starting to hurt you and it wouldn’t feel good tomorrow. Straight ahead you saw a beautiful ranch house with a few horses grazing in a fenced area.

“It’s beautiful,” you tell McCree and he beams at you.

“Built it with my own two hands.” His smile fades for a moment then he looks ahead again. He stops his horse to jump down and help you off yours, only using his right arm. “Uh, lemme show you where you’ll be stayin’.” He towards the house and up the stairs but you stay where you are. He turns to make sure you’re following but you haven’t moved from your spot. “You comin’?”

You hold the handle of your bag with both hands in front of you nervously, “I’ll be staying in there? W-with you?”

He laughs, “Well, yeah, where else would you be stayin’? Out here in the pasture with the horses?”

“I just never…I usually didn’t stay in the same place as my…”

“I already told you I ain’t your master,” he says slightly annoyed, putting his hands on his hips. You’re both rooted to your spots and he lights a cigarillo while waiting for your response.

“Then what exactly are you, Mr. McCree?”

“I’m a rancher.”

“Yes, I know that. I mean…what are you to me?” You looked at him expectantly. He removed his hat and slapped it against his leg. Had you annoyed him that much already?

“I’m your boss but you are free to come and go as you please. I don’t own you. You are a free woman as far as I’m concerned.” He starts to walk into the house and you feel a little better following this time. “And I’ll be payin’ you fairly, don’t you worry.”

But that wasn’t what you were worried about. Your mother worked in her master’s house and…well, you were the result of what occurred there.

“Are you expecting me to lay with you, Mr. McCree?”

He sputters and chokes on some smoke from his cigarillo before looking at you in shock. He walks back down the stairs towards you making you back away a little, “I dunno what you think of me but I hired you to help me around the house, nothin’ more. And would you please stop callin’ me mister – it’s just McCree or Jesse.” He walks back up the stairs and waits for you, “You comin’?” You nod and follow.

You gasp audibly when you walk through the door. You could see why he needed you around here, the place was in a state. “Oh my,” you whisper.

“I know, it can use some work,” McCree admits. Work? This place needed an entire makeover. “All right, maybe a lil more than that.” He leads you further into the house and into a room at the end of the hall, “Here you are.” He opens the door for you and lets you walk into the room first. What a big difference between the cleanliness of this room compared to the rest of the house. It certainly looked as though someone had taken care of this room before.

“I never had my own room before!” you say excitedly and he smiles. “Thank you, Mister- I mean, McCree.”

“My pleasure.” He continues to look at you, his eyes trailing up and down making you feel slightly uncomfortable. “We gotta get you more suitable clothing for workin’ out here. Dresses ain’t gonna cut it.”

“I don’t have money for new clothes.” You look away sheepishly, “I spent the money I had to get here.”

“Don’t worry ‘bout that.” He walks towards to the door then turns to you, “I’ll give you some time to settle in. I’m gonna go see to the horses and other animals.”

“Thank you again, McCree,” you say before he leaves. He places his hat on his head and tips it, closing the door behind him. You begin to unpack your meager belongings, the most important thing being a picture of your mother.

When you finish unpacking, you head to the front room again and try to decide where you should start. You would probably be using the kitchen the most so you start there. Grabbing a bucket, you head out the door to find the water pump.

“Mr. McCree!” you call since he was nowhere to be found. “McCree!” You walk around to the back of the house where you find him on his horse. You avert your eyes when you see that he was on wearing his serape. What happened to his shirt? He was speaking quietly to the horse when he spotted you and came over.

“Everything okay?” he asks.

“I, uh, yes sir. I was looking for the water pump.” You still couldn’t look at him directly so you kept your eyes on his hat.

“It’s right over there. What do you need water for?”

“I need to clean the kitchen,” you tell him and he shakes his head while jumping down from his horse. “Is there a problem?”

“You ain’t gonna be cleanin’ on your first day here.” He holds his right hand out for the bucket but you turn your body away so that he can’t get to it.

“The kitchen needs to be cleaned, McCree. I can’t do a thing in there the way it is now.” You start to walk past him and he looks at you in disbelief.

“Have you always been this stubborn?” He walks beside you but you keep your eyes straight ahead.

“Yes, sir. Gotta be.” You make it to the water pump without any more protesting from him.

He’s still standing in the same place when you finish, “You gonna at least let me carry the bucket for ya?” Reluctantly, you hand the bucket to him and let him carry it to the house for you. Immediately, you grab a rag and start scrubbing away at things.

“You gonna stand there and watch me?” you ask without looking at him. He chuckles and you smile to yourself.

“I got a few more things to do out here. Shouldn’t take long.”

“You ain’t gotta tell me that, Mr. McCree. You take care of your business and I’ll take care of mine.” You continue to clean, blowing a stray curl out of your face.

“Yes ma’am.” He laughs and shakes his head as he walks out the door.

McCree told you that he wouldn’t be long but by the time he came back into the house, it was dark out and most of the kitchen had been cleaned. You even had time to make supper.

“What is that smell?” McCree asks, bursting through the door like madman.

“You hungry?” you ask, pointing to the table and the plate you had waiting for him.

“Starvin’…but how?” He starts walking to the kitchen but you stop him and tell him to remove his boots. He wasn’t going to track dirt in here, not after you spent so long making it nearly spotless.

“Clean your hands, too,” you say before he takes another step. “You had some things in your larder that weren’t rotten surprisingly…so I made supper with what I had.” He sits down in front of his plate excitedly and is about to eat when he looks up at you then at the table.

“Where’s your plate?” he asks.

“I’ll eat when you’re done, sir. ‘Sides I got more cleanin’ to do.” You smile at him and luckily, he had put his shirt back on so it wasn’t so hard to look at him anymore.

“I can’t believe…” He stands up, grabs another plate and starts piling food onto it. You notice that he puts the plate down to spoon the food on with his right hand instead of holding it. He places the plate in front of the chair across from him. “Sit and eat,” he says but you hesitate, “Now.” You weren’t used to this, but you weren’t about to disobey him.

“Thank you, sir.”

“What did I tell you ‘bout that?” His words came out a little funny because of the food in his mouth.

“Thank you, McCree.” You begin to eat timidly, expecting him to jump up at any minute and tell you to get out.

“This is the most delicious dinner I’ve had in ages. Thank you,” he says sincerely. You nod at him since you were still chewing then you wipe your mouth.

“You’re quite welcome.” You look at him and he looks at you, a smile appearing. Looking away, you stand quickly and he stands right after, a sign of respect. A man had never done that for you before and you sure weren’t expecting it from him. “I-I’m done. How ‘bout you?” He nods and you take his plate, cleaning it off and avoiding his gaze.

“I’ll probably be up and out early tomorrow so don’t get too worried if you don’t see me,” he says, holding his hat against his thigh.

“I’ll try to get breakfast ready for ya.” You look at him quickly with a small smile.

“You ain’t gotta…”

“I want to,” you say and that stops him from saying any more on the matter.

“Guess I’ll say good night now.” He walks to the door of his room.

“Goodnight, Mr. McCree.”

He says goodnight again before entering his room and closing the door. You finish cleaning the plates and walk to your room. As you pass McCree’s room, you hear whistling and you stand there for a moment to listen. He finally settles in and the whistling stops so you continue to your room.

He had to be one of the strangest men you had ever met but…you liked him. You were sure you only thought he was strange because of the way he acted towards you. He treated you nicely and as his equal which wasn’t usual in this time and place.

You undress and get into your bed – your bed. You smile to yourself and roll over, closing your eyes and feeling safe for the first time in a very long time.

#Jesse McCree #McCree #McCree x Reader #Overwatch #headcanon

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