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moondancediner · 3 years

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Be My Escape

Chapter One: Home

summary: penny's forced to return to her hometown of beacon hills

warnings: Language, mentions of death, Slow-burn (Is that a warning?)

pairing: Stiles Stilinski x OC (eventual)

word count: 7k

a/n: Hello and welcome! This is my Teen Wolf rewrite with my original character Penny. I plan on doing a full rewrite of the whole series (and maybe the movie eventually) with this new character.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy!

Also shout out to everyone who inspired me to keep writing this, your writings give me fuel on the bad days.

edited 9/17/2022

xoxo

masterlist || ch.2

---

Melissa was sure it was the middle of the night when her phone started ringing. She was also sure that whoever was on the other end of said phone was not going to like her very much after this call. The red glowing lights next to her confirmed her suspicions. She had only been asleep for 2 hours, having just gotten home from work and she didn’t bother to check the caller ID, mainly because her eyes weren’t fully open yet, and partly because she thought it would be the hospital, calling once again to try and drag her out of her warm bed for some unforeseen emergency that couldn’t wait until her next shift.

“Hello?” She answered, rubbing some sleep out of her eyes. She heard a sniffle on the other end, before a voice that washed over her like an ocean wave, shockingly cold and alarming to her system, dragging her to the depths of a place she never thought she would see again.

“Aunt Mel?” The little voice asked, hoping she still had the right number, trying to compose herself and calm her beating heart. Melissa sat straight up at the sound, panic coursing through her body before some of her training kicked in.

“Penelope? Are you okay? What’s wrong? Where are you? Where’s your mom?” She knows she asked too many questions but she couldn’t stop herself.

“She’s gone.” Penelope whispered, unable to say anything more, the tracks that started to dry on her cheeks wetting once again. Melissa tried to take a deep breath, tried to push down some anger and hurt for her niece, but the small whisper made her want to scream.

“What do you mean she’s gone sweetheart?” She sighed, slipping out of bed and getting herself ready for either a long drive or a long night. Melissa was met with sniffles on the other end, and a little sob and her heart broke a little more. “Hey, it’s okay just tell me what happened, Pen.”

“I don’t really know, she left again like she always does, but-but it was different this time, she was so scattered -and she-she kept saying someone was coming to get her and then some man just came to the apartment and told me I had to leave. I grabbed as much stuff as I could and got in my car and left - and, and, oh god I don’t even know where I am.” Penelope’s voice broke again as she sat in her car and cried for what felt like the 100th time tonight, head falling forward onto the steering wheel, phone clutched tight in her hand like a life-line.

Melissa took a deep breath, knowing her brother's daughter was at least safe, where she was though, was a whole other challenge.

“It’s okay sweetheart, do you want me to come get you? I need you to look for some road signs to tell me where you are.” Melissa turned on her bedside lamp and slid on her slippers, ready to run out the door.

Penelope gathered herself, cleared her throat and wiped her face for the upteenth time this evening - or rather, morning. “Um, well I’m definitely in California, I think I’m near Sacramento.” She gave a breathy laugh, knowing what her dad would be saying right now if he could see her. Girl got lost in her own driveway, what was she thinking driving across states in the middle of the night?

Melissa let out a sigh of slight relief, at least she was in the same state, a very large state, but still not too far away. “Okay... are you okay to drive? I can come get you, or send someone?” Melissa listened to more sniffles and a few deep breaths before Penelope answered.

“No, no I think I’m okay, I just need to get on route 5 right? And go south?” Melissa heard her car start, which made her heart jump a little, just realizing she was probably pulled over on the side of some road where anyone could get her, all alone.

“Yes, look for Beacon Hills signs and then call me when you’re close-actually call me every thirty minutes, okay?” Melissa went full mom mode, fully intending to not lose another member of her family. She heard a grimm little chuckle on the other end of the phone.

“Okay aunt Mel, I promise I will.” After a pause, Melissa heard a very small, breathy thank you before the line went dead. She let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding and laid back on her bed for a few seconds, gathering herself, before standing up and heading downstairs to make herself some coffee, glad she was working the night shift tomorrow - or rather, today - because there was no way she was going back to sleep now. Once downstairs, she made herself a pot of coffee and settled on the couch, turning on whatever was on TV at 2 am.

---

It was almost 8AM by the time Penelope managed to find her way to Beacon Hills. Between missing her exits, stopping for bathroom breaks, and just getting straight-up lost, this was one of the only times she wished she had a newer car with a GPS. Or was smart enough to bring a phone charger that would work in her ancient car. After she hung up with her aunt, her phone had lasted just long enough to get her to route 5 before it tragically died, leaving her to do things the old fashioned way. She studied road signs and looked for familiar town names, and knew that pulling over to ask for directions was just asking for more trouble than she could handle.

Once she was in Beacon Hills it was easy to remember where to go, the town wasn’t huge and she’d spent enough of her life here to remember the street her aunt and cousin lived on almost her whole life. A few neighbors gave Penny strange looks as her loud car rolled down their quiet, quaint little neighborhood, and she begrudgingly had to turn down the Motley Crüe blaring through her radio to deter some not so friendly neighbors.

She stopped in front of the McCall household, pushed her hunk of junk into park, and looked over the familiar surroundings. It looked exactly like she always remembered. Same color, same bushes and flowers, same sheer white curtains billowing in the morning breeze.

It took all of five seconds before her aunt was out the front door, still in her pajamas, covered by her robe, her arms crossed in front of her chest but wearing a relieved expression on her face.

Penny grabbed her stuffed duffel bag, and headed out. She was met with open arms and the smell of home almost immediately, and while she tried, she couldn’t stop the tears from hitting her aunt's shoulder. The flood gates opened once again from a well Penny thought was bone dry. Her body shook with her cries, and though she tried to control them, her tired body continued to shake. Penny squeezed her anchor tighter, holding on like her life depended on it.

Melissa let out a sigh of relief, finally having her niece safe and in her arms. She gave her Penny an extra tight squeeze when she heard the first sniffle, and let herself get a little teary eyed as well. Melissa pulled back after a minute, but kept her hands on Penelope’s upper arms, rubbing them a few times. Melissa looked her over, and though she looked like the same old Penny - long dark hair, big brown eyes, impossibly long eyelashes, the slight crook in her nose from when she broke it all those years ago - the little sparkle that resided in her eyes was completely washed out. “Come on, let’s get you inside.”

Penny followed her inside, into an actual home, so not like the many apartments she bounced around in through the past six years. She wiped at her eyes with the back of her flannel covered hand and looked around, it looked exactly the same - sans Scott - but she figured he left for school already.

“Scott left for school already,” bingo, “he had practice this morning, but I didn’t tell him you were coming, so… fun surprise for him.” Melissa laughed a little and Penny smiled at her sense of humor. “You can put your stuff up in your usual room next to Scott’s, you’ll have to share a bathroom with him,” she made a face that said sorry about that, “but he doesn’t smell too bad, do you want some coffee, or breakfast?”

“Oh, no I’m okay I stopped by Dunkin’ on my way here… well I stopped at pretty much every coffee place with a drive thru on my way here.” They shared a smile, and Penny dropped her duffel on the floor next to the kitchen table. Melissa eyed it while she stirred her next cup of coffee, a million questions behind her eyes, but she didn’t want to bombard her after the night she just went through.

“Well why don’t you go shower and change, I know you probably want to nap but we have to stop by and see a friend of mine before we go to the school and get you signed up.” Penny stopped in her spot, a slightly confused expression taking over her features, she wasn’t sure what to say if she was being honest. Part of Penelope thought she was just staying for a little while, until they found her mom, and then she could get on with her life, but Penny sensed that her aunt had other plans.

“What do you mean? What friend?”

“Sweetheart, why don’t you sit down.” Penny obliged, if only because her world was slowly crumbling around her. “I called Sheriff Stilinski this morning before you got here, you remember Stiles right?” Stiles. Of course, how could she forget him? Not only was he Scott’s best friend, but when Penny lived in Beacon Hills he was hers too. At Penny’s head nod, Melissa continued, putting her hand on her niece’s arm, a sign of comfort that was not missed. “His dad is the Sheriff, and he thinks it’s in your best interest, and I agree with him, that you stay here with me until we can get this all settled with your mom. Which means the court is going to issue me temporary custody over you.” Melissa let the words sink in, seeing the shock and hurt written all over the young face next to her. Slowly, Penny started nodding, not trusting her words, and trying to accept what would become her new life.

“What if we don’t find my mom?” Her voice was thick with tears and it shattered her aunt's heart. It was a grimm question, and Penny knew that but she had a bad feeling about her mom leaving this time. She was usually gone for a day, maybe three tops, and Penny never had any doubts that she would walk right back through their front door like nothing had happened, but some nagging voice in the back of her mind kept taunting her. You’ll never see your mommy again.

“If you want, I can get permanent custody and you can stay here until you’re 18… or we can find other family if you want to live with them,” Yeah right Penny thought, what other family?

“I’m gonna go take that shower now.” Penelope stood suddenly, almost knocking the chair over and grabbed her duffle bag, which was overflowing with all the crap she doesn’t even remember throwing into it, and headed up the stairs, letting her feet take her in a direction they knew how to go all by themselves.

Throwing open the door to her old room - her new possibly permanent room - she tossed her bag somewhere on the floor before moving to the bathroom door. Her brain processed nothing about the room as she walked through it, flung the door open until it hit with a bang against the wall to her right, hand automatically found the light switch while her body turned to the left and into the shower. She stepped in over the edge and turned the water on before sliding against the back tile until her body hit the bottom. Her breathing was shallow and quick and she was fully aware of the panic attack that was taking her over but was completely hopeless to stop it.

The cold water beating against her clothed body brought her some comfort, shocking her body into relaxing, and turning off her fight or flight instinct, but it did nothing to stop the full body sobs that were coming out of her. She didn’t try to be quiet, she just hoped her aunt, her sweet, loving, perfect motherly aunt, wouldn’t try to come in and stop her.

----

It took about 20 minutes before she calmed down enough to actually take a shower, but even that was short lived, because after she peeled - literally peeled - her clothes off her body she realized she was in Scott’s shower and there was only one bottle in the whole tiled monstrosity. Seriously, what kind of psychopath uses three in one. She used it anyway, just on her body, and felt her skin cringe back in disgust. She was going to have to stop and get some real shampoo and conditioner before her next shower, since the psycho who came into her house this morning - uninvited - didn’t give her enough time to go into her bathroom and grab even a toothbrush. Bitch.

She tried to quell the anger that rose in her. Her mother was no walk in the park to deal with on a daily basis, and she made some questionable choices when the cards were down but she never put her daughter in danger like that. Not even on her worst days.

Penny stepped out of the shower, and grabbed a towel she hoped wasn’t used and dried off, walking into her room to grab her duffle. She unzipped and lazily dumped the contents onto the lilac sheet covered queen. Assessing her very limited options, she opted for ripped at the knee medium wash high rise jeans, a white plain slightly fitted tee, and her black denim jacket that she threw off and left on the couch downstairs when she walked in the door. Shoes were kind of a problem, seeing as she only brought one pair and they were soaked, hanging by their strings over the bathtub.

She didn’t have many options, and seeing as she couldn’t wash her hair, so a braid was going to have to do while it dried. She never wore much makeup, unless she had a particularly nasty breakout, so mascara was all she needed to feel like a human being again and not a drowned puppy.

Heading downstairs she found her aunt on the couch, watching Keeping Up With The Kardashians. “Great show,” Penny joked, joining her aunt on the familiar cushions. It seemed crazy that after six years her aunt hadn’t gotten a new couch, especially considering all the spills and stains that Penny remembered both causing and witnessing throughout her life.

“It’s my guilty pleasure, don’t tell anyone,” Melissa lolled her head to the side, and gave Penny eyes that said or else. Penny laughed, a sweet little sound Melissa missed dearly, “You ready to go?”

“As I’ll ever be,” came Penelope’s response as they worked themselves up off the well worn couch. “Hey, do you have an extra pair of shoes? Mine got kinda wet…” Her sentence trailed off and she gave a smile that said I kinda fucked up. Melissa laughed but handed her a pair of flip flops out of the closet.

“These are all I really have, unless you want to wear my clunky nurse sneakers.”

“I’ll stick to the flip flops, thanks.” Penny slid them on, and grabbed her jacket, now charged phone - thank you aunt Mel -, sunglasses, and wallet before following Melissa out the front door, remembering to lock it on her way out. Old habits die hard, she thought while shutting the piece of dark wood behind her.

“You should take your car and follow me, I have to go to work after this and I don’t want to leave you stranded.” Penny nodded and headed over to her car, putting her sunglasses over her eyes to block out the Cali sun. She started her dad’s old lemon, and turned up the volume as one of her favorite tracks came on before putting her in gear and following Melissa to the Sheriff’s station.

--------

It took way longer than Penny anticipated, Mr. S had already gotten the approval from the court but they still had to wait around for the judge to come and sign all the right papers, and Penny had to file a police report for her file, all so they could print out one paper - ONE - for them to bring to school so she could be enrolled. Sheriff Stilinski was as nice as Penny remembered him being from when she was a kid, which made giving all the dirty details a little easier, though, sharing details about your mother’s mental stability isn’t easy in any circumstance.

“Well ladies, I think I have everything I need, here’s your paperwork for the school... and welcome back to Beacon Hills kid.” Noah smiled at Penny, and it was such a dad smile she almost teared up.

“Thank you Noah, I really appreciate all your help.” Melissa stood from her seat in front of the Sheriff’s desk and walked around to give him a quick hug.

“Anytime Melissa. Good luck kiddo, it was good to see you again.”

“Thanks Mr. S, it was good to see you too.” Noah waved her off and with that the two women made their way out of the Sheriff's department.

“Okay, next stop, Beacon Hills High School.” Penny smiled at her aunt's words as they made their way to their respective cars, Penny however didn’t wait for Melissa this time, already knowing the way to the High School.

It was a short drive and as she pulled into the parking lot there were a few kids outside the building, lingering slowly to their next class. She got lucky and parked in the front next to a grey Porsche, which she admired for a second before walking to the front of the school. A few heads turned, if not for her louder than average car, then for the sight of fresh meat on campus. She kept her sunglasses on but smiled at the onlookers, before deciding to lean on one of the railings outside the front door to wait out her aunt, who’s poor car couldn’t really keep up. Her dad’s car might have been an old hunk of metal, but the rebuilt engine still purred like a kitten all these years later.

It only took a few more seconds for Melissa to arrive, and she found a spot easily, walking up to her niece with a scolding face. “Do we need to have a talk about speed limits?” Arms crossed, head down, looking through the top of her sunglasses at her niece, Penelope at least had the decency to look sorry.

“Sorry,” came her sheepish reply. Melissa just shook her head and tried not to smile.

“Let’s go, trouble.”

“Oh, old nicknames resurfacing already?” Penny joked, following her aunt into the high school, which apparently just let out of one of their classes because the halls were packed.. Penny was a little grateful, less people will notice the new girl walking in with her Aunt when there’s other things and people to focus on.

Penelope felt a chill rush down her spine as she made her way through the halls, a cold breeze pushed down her back like she was standing in a night-cast field stark naked - exposed, vulnerable, completely alone. She turned her head around, quickly looking around for the source of the cold air and found nothing but average high school teenagers. She tried to push the feeling out of her mind, knowing the last time she felt like this some strange man broke into her apartment and kicked her out, and instead looked to her other side, down one of the hallways they were passing where she noticed a mop of hair and crooked jaw standing by the stairs.

“Hey, McCall!” She yelled, getting more than a few looks her way. She didn’t really care though, and pulled her sunglasses off her face before running down the hallway to her cousin, who looked up as soon as his name was called. A smile replaced the confusion between his eyes when Scott realized who it was running toward him in the middle of the school hallways.

“Penny!?” They embraced in a hug that almost knocked Scott on the ground, and Penny - who wasn’t used to her cousin being taller than her - let out a yelp and a laugh when her feet left the ground.

“Hey, Scotty.” They hugged for a second longer, before Scott pulled back, dropped her back to the ground but kept his hands on her arms.

“Man, when did you get tall?” Penny asked, sizing up her once shorter than her cousin.

“More like when did you shrink?” Scott joked back. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Long story, but I’m your new roommate for the foreseeable future,” Penny shrugged and smiled, still not noticing the very pretty brunette standing next to Scott.

“Oh man,” Scott exclaimed, but suddenly remembered who he was talking to moments prior. “Oh! Penny this is Allison, Allison this is my cousin, Penny.” He gestured between the two girls, who were now smiling at each other. Allison looked much more relieved now that she learned her almost-boyfriend’s new roommate was just his cousin.

“Hi! It’s so nice to meet you,” Penny waved in her direction, not really sure if a handshake would be too awkward, but knowing full well that if she broke out the ‘I’m a hugger’ on the first day it might cost her some awkward encounters later on. Penny sized her up, assuming that Allison was doing the same. She was pretty, like, way out of Scott’s league pretty, but she could almost feel their connection - it felt like the sun was shining on only them and Penny felt lucky to experience the warmth between them.

“It’s nice to meet you too, uh Scott I have to run to French class, but I wanted you to know that I’m coming to see you play tomorrow.”

“You are?” He seemed very surprised and Penny tried to push her smile away.

“And we’re all going out afterwards - you, me, Lydia, Jackson… It’s gonna be great. Tell Stiles to come too - Oh, and you too Penny.” Penelope smiled at the invitation, nodding her head yes - nothing like making friends before school even starts. “Uh, save me a seat at lunch. I gotta go!” Scott watched her leave, probably staring a little too long. Penny cleared her throat to regain his attention. His head snapped back, confirming that he totally forgot she was there.

“Well, me and your mom have to go talk to the principal but I’ll see you at home later, we apparently have a lot to talk about.” Penny squeezed his arm, and wagged her eyebrows up suggestively at Scott. He smiled sheepishly, head ducking down until his chin almost touched his chest and Penny walked off, waving goodbye to him behind her back.

“Yeah, see you later Pen.” Scott said in amusement at his cousin, he knew something had to be seriously wrong for her to be here, but he also knew not to push her to talk - she would open up when she was ready. They grew up like siblings, practically twins, and Scott swore they could read each other’s minds sometimes.

Penny met back up with her aunt, who respectively watched the two reunite from a distance after she saw who Scott was talking to. Melissa waved her hello/goodbye to her son and the pair made their way over to the Principal’s office where Penelope settled in for another long wait.

——

It surprised Penny when it didn’t actually take very long at all. The principal was a nice British guy and though Penny found that fact extremely strange, the man got everything situated as quickly as possible - Penny thought he noticed the I haven’t slept in 24 hours look she was sporting- but nonetheless, she was grateful.

“Ms. Delgado, here is your schedule, you have the same homeroom as your cousin, so hopefully that makes it a little bit easier on your first day.” She nodded her thanks at his words, taking her folder full of papers for her first day next week.

“Thank you, again, I really appreciate your help in all this.” Melissa said, standing from her chair next to Penny.

“Anytime, and please don’t hesitate to come by if you have any questions,” The principal stood, matching Melissa, and shook both girls' hands before they headed out of the building.

“Well that was painless… and I have to run to work,” she sighed, looking down at her watched wrist. “I'm covering someone tonight so I can have off for Scott’s game tomorrow.”

“What sport does he play?” Penny asked, scrunching her eyes at the question and walking next to her aunt on their way out of the school's front door and down the steps to the parking lot. Scott was never athletically inclined, and the idea of him playing any school sport made Penny want to laugh a little.

“Lacrosse, it’s like football in this school,” Melissa explained. “You remember how to get back to the house from here?”

“Yes,” Penny dragged out, “I’ll try not to get lost. Again.” They both laughed at her statement, but Melissa was internally grateful that phones were smart enough now for GPS’s because that poor girl didn’t have a directional bone in her body.

“Alright, here’s the key to the front door, I’ll have another copy made for you soon, school should be done soon and then Scott will be home, don’t let him get in too much trouble, alight?” Such a mom, Penny thought, smiling gratefully at her.

“You got it aunt Mel.” Melissa gave her niece’s arm a little squeeze and walked off to her car. Penny followed suit and got in her baby, started her up, and headed out.

-------

After a trip to the local Target to get all the essentials she could think of, it was a short drive back to the McCall household, and once she was back in the comfortable setting she headed upstairs to make herself at home. She grabbed some bed sheets, pillows and a comforter for herself while shopping - sponsored by the wallet of the man who broke into her apartment. Penny didn’t want to seem ungrateful for all the things her aunt has already given her, but it gave her a sense of peace to have things she could call her own.

After wrestling with the light gray bed sheets, getting them exactly how she liked them, Penny started to tackle the pile of crap on the floor from earlier. What little clothes she had were quickly folded and put away in the dresser - the only storage area in the whole room. She placed her makeup bag on top of the white dresser for easy grabs, and then grabbed her mom's tarot cards that she took while running out the door of her apartment. She wasn’t totally sure why she grabbed them, she had never actually used them before, but when she passed them in their altered space under the windowsill, it was almost like her mom was whispering in her ear to take them with her. So, Penny wrapped them up in the cloth they were sitting on and shoved them in her duffle. The cards were placed on their cloth - something her mom taught her, they should never touch a hard surface - on top of the white wood, out of direct sunlight so they wouldn’t get worn.

Once those were placed, Penny turned around and looked to see everything cleaned up. It was a little depressing how little she now owned, but her pity party was cut short at the noise of her cousin slamming the front door and stomping up the stairs. He must have forgot she was there because he went straight into his bedroom and slammed that door too. Penny chuckled a little at his antics, and at the fact that he didn’t realize both of their bathroom doors were open and she could see him huff and puff. He settled at his desk and opened his laptop, probably to get some homework done, so Penny walked through their shared bathroom and leaned on the opening of Scott’s door.

“Rough day?” Scott jumped in his seat at his cousin's question, part of him a little worried about the fact that he wasn’t able to hear her coming.

And that he forgot she was here to begin with.

Penny laughed at him and made herself at home in his room. Plopping down on his bed and lying on her back to stare at the ceiling.

“Yeah, you could say that.” Scott finally replied.

“You seemed pretty happy when I saw you at school earlier,” Penny rolled herself onto her stomach and propped her head up on her hands. She watched Scott’s right cheek raised in a smile at the memory of Allison telling him she was coming to see him play tomorrow, but it quickly faded when he remembered the rest of the day's events.

“Yeah, but then…” Scott trailed off not really knowing how to explain the situation without explaining the situation. He wanted to tell her everything that’s happened the past week but he didn’t know how long she was staying and if he wanted to even get anyone else involved in this mess. So he decided to deflect. “Hey, are you gonna tell me what happened, why are you here?”

“Well one, thank you for the warm welcome, it’s very appreciated,” Sarcasm laced her tone, something Scott was very familiar with, “two, nice deflection, we’ll circle back to your problems later, and three,” Penny sighed, not really knowing where to start since she herself didn’t fully understand what happened. “I don’t even know what happened Scotty… things were good for once, mom wasn’t disappearing all the time, we moved into a nice apartment, she got a steady job, and things were just… I don’t know, normal for once.”

Penny hadn’t realized she was crying until Scott got up from his spot and kneeled in front of the foot of his bed to wipe the tears off her face. “How long has it been since her last…” Scott trailed off, not really knowing what to call what his aunt went through.

“Episode?” Penny filled in. “I don’t know, maybe six months? It’s the longest she’s ever gone since -“ she cut herself off, not able to actually say the words.

“Hey, it’s alright, you don’t have to explain it to me.”

Penny smiled at her cousin, thankful that someone knew enough about her that she didn’t need to explain any part of it.

“So what happened before she left?” Scott sat cross-legged on the floor in front of her, looking up at his younger cousin.

“It was weird, it wasn’t like the other times where she starts hearing voices slowly, it was like it hit her all at once. One day she was fine, taking her meds, and the next she was screaming about how they were coming to get her, and that we needed to get out of there. And then the day she left… Scott it was like nothing I’ve ever seen before. I mean, she was acting like there were real people in our apartment, moving around them, not sitting in certain spots because she said there were other people sitting there already, yelling at me not to go in the bathroom because someone was in there already.” Penny laughed a little at that one. She was trying to get ready for school and her mom all but barricaded the door. “And when I came back from school, she was gone. No note, no cryptic messages for me to solve, just gone… and then a few days later a random man showed up, pounding on my door, telling me I need to leave now. None of it makes sense Scott.”

“What part?” He questioned. Sure, none of it made sense to Scott, but this wasn’t his life, this wasn’t something that he had to deal with on a daily basis.

“She’s never seen things, only ever heard voices telling her not to go somewhere or talk to someone important or tell someone they’re going to die soon.” Penny huffed in annoyance at her situation and picked at the skin around her fingers.

Scott chucked a little at the last comment. He remembered when her mom was first diagnosed with schizophrenia and they still lived in Beacon Hills, the four of them were out to lunch and his aunt Kelly leaned over to the next table and told the man he was going to die in the next year.

They left the restaurant after that.

Penny rolled her eyes but smiled, remembering the same memory as Scott. She could still smell the banana pancakes and the greasy bacon, could still see Scott sitting across from her, putting toothpicks under his lips to try and make her smile. They left Beacon Hills pretty soon after that. Her mom always said it made her worse to be in this town, but Penny always just thought it was because it was where her dad died. Now, she wasn’t so sure.

“She also kept saying ‘I won’t go back, I won’t go back’ over and over.”

“Go back where?” Scott questioned.

“Who knows,” Penny huffed, “we’ve moved so many times it could be anywhere at this point.” Penny flopped her head down dramatically, face smushed down into Scott’s comforter and let out a little grunt-scream that pretty much summed up how she felt in this moment. Scott ruffled her hair before standing up off the floor.

Penny’s mom went into full flight mode after her husband died. They never stayed in one place for too long, because every time they started getting comfortable, Kelly would come up with some reason to move again and Penny tried not to blame her for all of it, tried to push down the hurt that bubbled to the surface every time she thought about it because she knew her mom was just trying her best.

“We’ll figure it out, Pen, don’t worry.” Scott looked down at his cousin, his almost twin, and smarter half with sadness, he just wanted to help her but he had absolutely no idea where to start.

Scott heard a muffled ‘promise?’ Come from the brunette on his bed before her hand shot out, pinky finger up. He smiled, reached his hand down and connected their pinky’s. It was an old tradition of theirs. Sure everyone did pinky promises, that was nothing new, but whenever they did pinky promises it meant something more. They used to sit across from each other, pinky’s locked, and spill all their guts. The other person wasn’t allowed to talk, or laugh, or ask questions. Just sit and listen.

After a little squeeze, they both let go and Scott got back to the homework he was trying to do before Penny came into his room. He sent his text to Stiles about what he found earlier at Derek’s house after school and awaited his response. After a few minutes of silence, he turned to ask Penny a question about her schedule only to find her softly snoring.

Scott smiled and got up to pull a blanket over her, hoping she was getting some good rest after everything she just went through.

——

Scott heard the door slam, and pounding feet barreling through the house and up the stairs. He got worried, knowing that Stiles would most likely slam his body into every surface until he reached Scott. He really should’ve hoped for something else though, because Stiles all but knocked his door off the wall when he finally reached it.

“What did you find? How did you find it? Where did you find it? And yes I’ve had a lot of Adderall, so-“

“Dude, shut up!” Scott whisper-yelled pointing at his cousin, still asleep on his bed and Stiles turns, arms flailing trying to find his balance.

“Is that Penny?” Stiles asks, brows furrowed in confusion. Dark, chocolate brown hair sprawled out behind her, arms tucked under her face like a pillow, wearing a plain white t-shirt that brought out her Puerto Rican - identical to Scott’s - skin tone. Pink lush lips slightly opened, Stiles could see her long eyelashes spread out over her high cheekbones, and closed eyelids hid her eyes from him. She was absolutely gorgeous and Stiles had to catch his breath and try to compose himself.

Stiles always had a little crush on Scott’s younger cousin who he’s known since they were all in diapers. How could he not? She’s drop dead gorgeous, and seeing her again - even sleeping - instantly brought those feelings crashing back to the surface.

“Stiles.” Scott urged, quietly of course, “I found something at Derek Hale’s.” Snapping back to reality, Stiles tries to focus on what’s important right now.

“Are you kidding? What?”

“There’s something buried out there, I could smell blood.” Scott whispered the last part, hoping his cousin would just stay asleep for this.

“That’s awesome!” The look Scott gave him said otherwise so Stiles backtracked as quickly as his Adderall filled brain could, “I mean, that’s terrible. Whose blood?” Scott stood up, finally finished re-tying the net of his lacrosse stick.

“I don’t know… but when we do, your dad nails Derek for the murder. And then, you help me figure out how to play lacrosse without changing, because there’s no way I’m not playing that game.”

----------

When Penny woke up it was dark and the room she was in was quiet. She glanced around the dark room, before the memories of the past day's events came back to her.

She was at Aunt Mel’s house with Scott.

Her mom was missing.

And some creepy dude kicked her out of her apartment.

She was rolling over, stretching out her tired limbs, when she felt something on her forehead. Pulling it off she found a blue sticky note pressed there.

Me and Stiles went for a drive

Won’t be long

Scott

Ps Stiles says hi

Penny smiled, the little doodle of a stick figure waving an oblong arm hello in the corner.

She stared at the white ceiling for a minute, thinking about how fucked up her life had gotten in such a short amount of time. She went from her normal life to one she didn’t recognize in less than 24 hours. She loved what little family she had left, treasured them in ways nobody could understand, but did that mean she wanted to live with them? Should she just sit back and expect others to find her runaway mom? Or should she start looking herself?

Nobody knew Kelly the way Penny did. Nobody’s been there through the shit storms and the rainbows the way she has. Her mom’s family was completely absent from her life, Penny couldn’t even tell you her grandparent’s names or where they lived. Melissa and Scott tried the best they could but Kelly was too flighty, nobody but Penny could keep track of her and tell when she was getting close to fleeing again.

Maybe that’s what made this time so different. There were no warning signs, no way for Penny to tell that her mom was ready to take flight before she just took off. Normally Penny had time to plan, figure out where her mom wanted to move, and start packing up valuables, but this time she was just as blindsided as everyone else in her life.

Penny’s stomach gurgled a loud protest of its hunger that stopped her train of thought from going any further, so she decided to make her way downstairs to find food before she passed out. Low blood sugar and all that jazz. She first decided to change into something more comfortable. She peeled out of her jeans, which now left marks on her legs and stomach from sleeping in them, and changed into some soft black shorts and one of her dad's old sweatshirts that covered her shorts and nearly reached her knees.

Once downstairs, she found some cereal, plopped down on the couch and tried to find something good to watch, and quickly found reruns of supernatural on CW and settled in for a good night.

She was two bowls of cereal down and working on her third when Scott and Stiles came through the front door, covered in dirt.

“Rough night boys?” Penny asked, glancing at the clock to see it was almost 10pm. “Hey Stilinski,” She nodded and smiled at the skinnier of the two boys. He was sporting his usual buzz cut, jeans that were probably ruined because of whatever dirt pile they fell into, and a green flannel that made her question his fashion choices.

“Hey Pen, long time no see.” Penny got up off the couch and Stiles tried - like he really tried - not to look at her legs.

It didn’t work.

Penny got close enough and threw her arms around his shoulders, having to stand on her tiptoes a little because damn, when did everyone get so much taller than her? Stiles reciprocated the hug of course, wrapping his arms around her middle and putting his face in the crook of her shoulder. It was familiar. It felt like home.

Scott smiled from a distance, shaking his head, already knowing.

They broke off after a few seconds and pulled away, not too far though because Stiles almost felt cold as soon as she stepped away, like stepping out of the sun and into the shade. He wasn’t a fan of being out of the sun.

“Geez, did you both hit growth spurts after I left?” Penny joked, turning to walk back to the couch and get back in her comfy spot. And finish her cereal before it got soggy and inedible. There was truly nothing worse than soggy cereal.

“No, you just never grew,” Stiles joked right back, shoved his hands in his pockets and stayed glued to his spot by the front door. He had to get home before his dad noticed how late he was but she laughed, a sound that could make him fall to his knees and he never wanted her out of his sight again.

“Ouch, Stilinski, I’ll have you know I grew five inches in the last six years.” Penny gave him a ‘thank you smart ass’ look and Stiles couldn’t help the laugh that came out of him.

“Yeah, whatever you say Delgado. Hey, Scott I gotta get home before my dad makes me the next murder victim in this town, but I’ll see you tomorrow before the game.” Scott was neck deep in the refrigerator but waved goodbye anyway, muttering something incoherent with all the food in his mouth. Stiles waved goodbye to Penny, taking an extra second to admire how cute she looked in that giant sweatshirt, no makeup, and hair tied up in a messy bun on top of her head. She waved back, mouth full of cereal, but a big smile still on her face.

This might be a good year after all.

---

thnxs for reading, i love you a whole lot

of you liked this, please consider reblogging

#be my escape #stiles stilinski #stiles x OC #stiles stilinski x OC #very nervous about posting this #stiles fanfiction #stiles stilinski fanfiction #dylan o'brien #scott mccall #soulmates #slow burn #friends to lovers #psychic #teen wolf #teen wolf rewrite #series rewrite #stiles x reader

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raiseyourcups · 3 years

Text

Sorry that I lost our love

Pairing: Din Djarin x Ex-Mandalorian Reader Warnings: Not so vague allusions to sex, Star Wars cursing, actual cursing, violence (more than canon-typical imo), angst peppered throughout, angst ending Word Count: 4.2k (because I can’t write short things to save my life) Notes: If you think I should add anything else as a warning, let me know. I wrote this in an inspired rush and it was 3:30am by the time I finished this. Also please let me know if there’s any stray she/her’s that refer to the reader or anything that describes reader in any way. Thank you!

Summary: A Mandalorian lands on Tatooine and you would like nothing more than to dig a hole and hide in it until he leaves. Too bad you work for Peli Motto and have no choice in the matter. Thankfully he leaves for a bounty but of course that’s when things go sideways.

Sequel with less angst

The armor was new, all silver beskar but you would recognize that stance anywhere. You had grown up learning everything about him and vice-versa. There was a time when the two of you knew every inch of the other’s body, fumbling around in the dark together, twin blindfolds covering their eyes just in case the lights turned on. Yes, you used to know Din Djarin like the back of your hand. But then he had gone against Guild Code and they came after the Covert. Someone had pulled off your helmet before you could get them off of you and that was the end of that.

The Armorer had been understanding but everyone knew the Creed, your helmet had been removed by someone other than your family. Not that you had any family. Once upon a time you had wished for it to be Din but now…

You had been able to get passage on a ship, got as far as Tatooine which still wasn’t far enough for you but you hadn’t been able to catch another ride yet. Rather than wallow in your sorrow, you found somewhere to work despite being utterly useless at everything outside of fighting. Peli Motto was a beacon of hope, had taken one look at you and taken you in as an employee. At first it was small things, cleaning up after the droids but eventually she began to trust you with a spanner.

And now back to the present.

You didn’t know how much time had passed since that bounty hunter had damned you, when a familiar ship limped its way to the spaceport you had started to call home. You made yourself as scarce as you could as Peli went out to speak with the owner of the ship. You were close enough to hear what was being said but hid behind a piece of junk that even Peli couldn’t fix.

“No droids.”

“It’ll cost ya more but fine,” Peli said before turning her head in the direction she had last seen you. “Starbird, get over here!”

Peli had given you the nickname when you told her you didn’t want to reveal your name to her, not because you couldn’t trust her but because you hadn’t heard someone say it in so long. Well...hadn’t heard someone other than Din but that would never happen again now. You had taken to wearing a scarf, covering your hair even though it wouldn’t matter, and you adjusted it as you walked over. It made you feel more secure, like you weren’t dar’manda even if you knew the truth. He wouldn’t recognize you, had never seen you without your helmet and those nights didn’t count with the pitch black of the room. As long as you didn’t speak around him, you could help Peli fix his ship and he would be gone again.

“Mando here doesn’t like droids so it’s just you and me fixing this rust bucket, got it?”

You nodded silently, ignoring the confused look your silence got you from Peli. The Mandalorian, the one you thought you had known so well, tilted his head and you could almost feel his gaze on you. You and Peli move towards the ship to take note of the obvious damage and you can’t help but cringe when you finally see how bad of a shape it is.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were in a shootout and you have a fuel leak!” Peli kept muttering to herself as she found more and more things wrong with the Razor Crest. You pointed out a few more things to her, still keeping your mouth shut. “This ship is a mess, the fact you were even able to land it! This is gonna set you back.”

“All I have is 500 Imperial credits.” The Mandalorian held the credits out and Peli wasted no time snatching them away from him. “That’s all you got? What do you think, Birdie?”

You shrugged and held a hand out, palm facing the ground as you tilted it from side to side. It was going to take a hell of a lot more credits to fix up the Crest, the fact that it was pre-Imperial making it even harder to find spare parts.

“Well then, this should at least cover the hangar.”

“I’ll get you your money,” The Mandalorian said bluntly, but you could just about hear the desperation beneath the vocoder in his helmet. You were taken aback, had never heard him sound like that before.

“Hmm, we’ve heard that before.”

“Just remember…”

“Yeah, no droids. I heard ya, you don’t have to say it twice.” Peli watched as the Mandalorian walked away before letting out a scoff. “Womp rat.”

Peli sat with the droids, starting up a card game with them, dealing you in without asking. You let out a sigh because she knew how kriffing bad you were at every card game.

“What was that?” You asked, staring at the gangway of the Crest as a loud shriek echoed from the Crest.

“Oh so you are gonna speak today?”

“Sorry, I just-”

Peli cut you off, “Nope, I said I wouldn’t ask questions when I hired you and I meant it.”

You were about to thank Peli for being so understanding when you both hear a cry coming from inside the ship. Peli turned to the droids, “Shh, quick, grab my blaster rifle.”

“Peli, I don’t think you’ll need it.”

“Better safe than sorry, who knows what he has on that rustbucket.” The two of you inched closer to the Crest slowly, Peli with a trigger finger ready to go. “I’d stay in that ship if I were you!”

The tiniest creature you had ever seen started walking down the gangway, smoke and dust getting in its eyes. You let out a gasp, bringing up a hand to cover your mouth when it dropped open. Peli looked at you confused but lowered the blaster rifle, there was no way this...thing was a threat. The little thing let out a coo and looked at you both with its sad eyes. You couldn’t help but move forward to pick it up when it raised his hands in the air.

“Oh honey, did he leave you all alone on the ship?” You asked it, cradling it in your arms before looking up at an equally confused Peli. You gave her a shrug, unsure what else to do. She moved closer and looked into the child’s big eyes and was stumped.

“Would you like some food? Are you hungry?” The child seemed to like that idea, letting out a loud coo as his little stomach growled. Peli turned to the closest droid. “Fetch us something to eat, quick!”

“Maybe something with bones in it,” you added when you caught sight of his little teeth. The droid took off in search of food. “Okay, so here’s the plan, little one. I’m gonna look after you until the Mandalorian gets back.”

“And then I’m gonna charge him extra for watching you, see how that works?” Peli added before heading off to do some repairs, a new pep in her step at the thought of a bigger pay day.

You couldn’t put the child down, just stunned. Was this why he had broken Guild Code? Was this tiny little thing the reason you could never go back home? If it was then more of the anger you had let fester inside of you dissipated, you couldn’t blame Din. As more time passed, the more sleepy both you and the child seemed to get which led to you telling Peli that we were going to give the child a nap. She waved you off saying that she probably would take one too, it wasn’t like you two could do anything for the ship without more credits.

You didn’t even notice when you fell asleep but a loud shout scared both you and the child awake. You let out a quiet shriek and the combination made the child start crying. “Hey, hey, hey, it’s okay. I”m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“Where is it?” You heard the Mandalorian growl to one of the droids and you walked as fast as you could to where he was.

“He’s right here, now keep your voice down. He was taking a nap,” You tried to keep your voice steady, not only to calm the child down but also to still your beating heart. You bounced the kid in your arms a few times, staying light on your feet in order to sway a little as you tried to shush him. The Mandalorian tilted his helmet at the sound of your voice but then he realized that you were still holding the child.

“Give him to me.” He pointed at you threateningly, or at least you supposed he was trying to be threatening. It wasn’t going to work since you were so annoyed with him right now.

“No. You can’t just leave a child alone on a ship like that!” You didn’t mean to raise your voice but you did as you pointed your own finger at him. “I can’t believe someone would trust you enough to have a child with you.”

“You don’t know me.”

“Oh I know more than you think I do,” You said, glaring up at him and hoping that you were making eye contact so he knew how serious you were.

“What’s going on out here?” Peli asked, rubbing sleep from her eyes but alert nonetheless.

“Mando’s back. And he woke up the baby.” You said your last words with a glare towards that kriffing rustbucket.

“Oh well, while you were gone, I started the repair on the fuel leak while Birdie here watched the kid.” Peli gestured towards you but you paid her no mind as you made sure the kid was okay. “There were a couple of setbacks that I want to talk to you about.”

Peli kept going on about the repairs, how they took longer without the droids or your help since you were preoccupied with the child he hadn’t warned you two about. He walked into the ship and you moved back over to Peli, unsure what he was doing. He came back down with a bag and looked at you both.

“We figured you were good for it since you have an extra mouth to feed,” you said, no longer worried about speaking in front of him. He once again tilted his head at the sound of your voice.

“Thank you.” He said before walking away. You were, once again, stunned at how rude he was being. First he leaves a child alone on his ship, threatens you when he realizes you’re holding the kid, and now he’s just going to leave again. You shot a look towards Peli before you followed after him, kid still in your arms.

“You know it takes a lot for Peli to keep those droids powered up, right?”

“Hey, Mando, what do you think? Not too shabby, huh?” A new voice spoke once they were out of the spaceport. You rolled your eyes at the sound. Calican.

The Mandalorian gave the speeder bike a once over, looking over Calican in a way that made it obvious he wasn’t impressed. “What? This isn’t Corellia. Hey, Birdie, still looking good.”

You rolled your eyes at him before turning around to head back inside of Peli’s shop. Those brief seconds of speaking to Toro Calican were more than enough for you. You heard the speeders take off and knew they probably wouldn’t be back until later.

“Well now that we’re all awake, let’s get some more repairs done,” Peli said, already getting ready to do so. You joined her, placing the child on one hip in order to pass her any tools she may need. The suns went down and there was still no sign of the Mandalorian or Toro so you and Peli just kept working. There was nothing else to do. But even repairs couldn’t take forever and soon enough it was just you and your thoughts.

With no sight of either bounty hunters everyone decided to head in for the night, you kept the child with you since you knew Peli already had her hands full with the droids that were like her own children. Morning came quicker than you were prepared for knowing that the Mandalorian and Toro would probably be back soon.

Part of you knew you couldn't wait for the Mandalorian to leave the planet but another part of you, the younger and dumber part of you wished that he would recognize you before he left. You didn’t know what that would do for you, it wasn’t like he could do anything. You were dar’manda now, you could never be together again, no matter how much you missed him.

“Hey, Birdie, I’m gonna head out to the cantina for a bit. Wanna come?” Peli came out of her room, having changed into a slightly cleaner jumpsuit.

You looked down at the child in your arms before looking back up at Peli. “I’m not taking a baby to a cantina.”

“Suit yourself, and if that Mandalorian comes back while I’m gone, make sure he pays before he leaves.”

“Got it, have fun and don’t drink too much.”

“What are you, my mother?” Peli replied shortly but with a smile on her face as she left. You shook your head, a smile on your own face as you looked down at the child.

“Looks like it’s just you and me, kid.”

“Hey, Birdie.” You flinched at the sound of Toro’s voice from behind you and spun on your heel to face him. Your brow furrowed when you noticed that he was alone.

“Toro? Where’s D-- Mando?”

“About that, put that thing on the ground before I shoot you.” He was aiming his blaster at you before you could even blink.

“Excuse me?”

“You heard me. I really don’t wanna shoot you, you’re too pretty to die.”

You weighed your options and knew that it would best to listen to him and put the child down before making your move. So you did, placing him on one of the empty fuel drums that you and Peli used as a table.

“I said the ground, are you stupid?” Tora asked as he moved towards the child which is when you moved. Faster than he could react, you rushed forward and hit him with your shoulder, knocking him off balance. He didn’t lose his grip on his blaster, unfortunately, since you hadn’t been able to hit him on that side but you took advantage of his being off balance. You rolled forward and grabbed a spanner as you got back up on your feet and rushed towards Toro again. You pushed him against the Crest, hitting him with the spanner several times before he finally grabbed your arm and held it out to the side, letting you throw a punch with your other fist. You dropped the spanner without meaning to but you had another idea.

You grabbed his blaster, spinning away from him in an attempt to get him to let go of it, even throwing your head back to headbutt him. He wrapped his arms around you and picked you up, dropping you onto another fuel drum. You groaned out in pain, wishing you still had your armor, but you didn’t let go of the blaster even as he picked you back up and you two fell to the ground. You forced him up, grip still hard on the blaster as you tried to break it on a piece of metal. Kriffing Toro and spending all his credits on high end bantha shit. You heard something pop and took the chance to punch him again, followed by a quick elbow to keep him down just a little while longer while you looked for another weapon.

Where was Peli? Or Din? Was Din even still alive?

You didn’t have time to ask yourself anymore questions as Toro grabbed you by the arm, dragging you to your feet, and throwing a punch at your face. Using your arm as leverage he tossed you into the side of the Crest and you turned just in time to block another punch with your arm before bringing your knee up into his side. You put your arms around his neck and flipped both of your bodies over and onto the ground. It was getting harder to catch your breath and you had no idea Toro had that much stamina when fighting. It had been too long since you fought anyone.

You tried to get to your feet before Toro but he beat you to it, throwing several punches your way. You got up, kicking out at him just for him to grab your leg again. But it left you open to punch him yourself, one to the face and another to the stomach. He grabbed your arm, bringing up his own knee to your wrist causing you to let out a shout of pain. He put a hand around your throat but you brought your knee up to his crotch making him fall to the ground. He wasn’t unconscious though so you went for another kick, this one to the face, but he grabbed your leg and flipped you onto your back again.

Even if you wanted to, you couldn’t get back up and you felt so weak all of a sudden. Maybe it was the blood gushing from your nose or the fact that you had now been dropped onto your back twice or the ringing in your ears. Either way, Toro had won. You could hear the child crying from where you had left him, it was amazing that you two hadn’t slammed into it during the fight.

“Didn’t think you had that in you, Birdie.” Toro said as he forced you up. “That was stupid though, I was going to let you go but now...now you get to be my hostage.”

He pulled your hands behind your back, wrapping a cord around them tightly. You could feel it digging into your skin but there wasn’t anything you could do now. You willed yourself to not let him see you cry, cursing yourself for being so Maker damned emotional. “Why are you doing this, Toro?”

“Because that thing has the highest bounty I’ve heard of and Mando...well he’s worth even more with that armor.” The unspoken meaning behind his words hit you like a flash of lightning.

“No!” You thrashed in his grasp, he couldn’t. No, he couldn’t take Din’s armor, he couldn’t be like you. He couldn’t.

“Stay still or I’ll shoot you right now,” Toro growled out. You did as he said because you couldn’t help Din if you died before he made it back. He dragged you along as he went over to where you had placed the child and you winced as he picked him up roughly. As the hours passed, you grew more and more worried for Din. Toro was just getting angrier and you were scared he’d shoot first and ask questions never. You hoped Peli stayed at the cantina a little while longer.

The suns had already gone down by the time he showed up and your breathing had gotten a little more labored. You were also sure that your back was bruised to haran and back. Toro stood a little straighter, pushed you forward a step before speaking. “Took you long enough, Mando. You missed a hell of a fight.”

He shoved his blaster into the middle of your back and you walked down the gangway and into the moonlight to see Din pointing a blaster at you. Really it was on Toro but you were in the way. He took half a step back and his helmet twitched to the side when he caught sight of your face. You were sure you looked a mess, Toro hadn’t even bothered cleaning the blood off your face.

“I’m the one calling the shots now. Drop the blaster and raise ‘em.”

Din did as he was told and placed his hands behind his head. Toro pushed his blaster into your back again before undoing the cord around your wrists. “Cuff him and don’t try anything.”

You let out a quiet growl of anger but ripped the cuffs away from Toro and moved over to where Din was.

“You’re a Guild traitor, Mando.” Toro said, before pointing a gun towards the child. Your hands tightened on the cuffs. “I’m willing to bet this is the target you helped escape.”

You moved to place the cuffs on Din’s wrists when a light clink caught your attention. You looked up and saw your potential saving grace. “Oh you smart man.” You couldn’t help but whisper, only loud enough for him to hear.

“Fennec was right, bringing you in won’t just make me a member of the Guild, it’ll make me legendary.” Toro said. You pretended to shut the cuffs on Din’s wrists, shuffling them behind you as you walked out from behind Din to stand next to him. “Say, Birdie, one last thing before I shoot you.”

“What?”

“What is your real name?”

You didn’t have to answer, you could give Din a signal to set off the flash charger but you couldn’t stop yourself. “...Y/N.” You answered.

A delayed second later and Din pressed down on the flash charger and you shut your eyes before dropping to the ground and rolling behind a fuel drum. You would just get in the way now. You watched as Toro blindly shot at nothing while Din moved behind the crates to the left, popping back out in time to shoot Toro just as he turned. You rushed forward as Toro fell off the gangway, he had still been holding the child.

“Stay back.” Din’s voice was a weird mix of stoic and emotional, the vocoder in his helmet making it sound off.

“He had the child,” you said as Din leaned down to move Toro onto his back. There was no child. “Where did he go?”

You didn’t mean to cling onto Din’s arm as you both looked in every direction. A quiet babble caught your attention as the child game out from behind a couple of baskets. Your heart slowed down from its rapid pace as soon as you saw him. “Oh hun, there you are,” you said as you picked him up.

“You’re okay now,” you bounced the child a few times as Din grabbed something off Toro’s body. He came over to where you were and you pretended to be very interested in the child.

“Y/N.”

“Yes.”

“What happened?” He asked you and you weren’t sure if he meant the wounds on your face, as he reached out to oh so lightly stroke your cheek, or if he meant the fact that you had broken the Creed you both took.

“I tried to fight back, I lost.” It was true of both occasions. Din stared down at you as the child continued to babble. You still couldn’t look up from looking at the child.

“Come with me.” That got your attention, head snapping up to look at Din like he had lost his mind. You knew he could be dumb sometimes, breaking Guild Code an obvious example, but this took the uj cake.

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Din, you know why I can’t go with you.” The fact that he could see you, really see you should have made it clear why you couldn’t go with him.

“I don’t care.”

“You say that now but what about tomorrow, or next week, in two weeks? I’m dar’manda.”

“And it’s my fault, cyar’ika.” Din said as he moved forward, bringing his helmet down to gently rest against your forehead.

“Don’t call me that, not anymore.”

“Y/N…”

You let out a shuddery breath, blinking away the tears that threatened to rise. “Please don’t make this harder than it needs to be, you need to find somewhere safe for the child, and I cannot go with you.”

Din stared at you for one more long moment before reaching out to take the child, silently passing you the pouch he had taken from Toro. You opened it and let out a gasp, looking back up at Din in shock. He started to reach out again but stopped himself, nodded once, and turned to get back on the Crest. And you just watched him. Kept watching as the Crest took off, leaving you behind once again.

You wished you could go back to the beginning, when you had first met Din as kids with scraped knees and elbows from trying to do all the fight moves the adults could do. Growing up with each other, feelings changing until that first kiss in the pitch dark of someone’s room, you couldn’t remember whose it was. The first time you two snuck out of the covert to rent a room, tying blindfolds around your eyes in order to show how deep your love went for each other.

But you couldn’t. You never could.

#din djarin #din djarin x reader #din djarin imagine #the mandalorian x reader #the mandalorian imagine #the mandalorian x y/n #my writing

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sarahjtv · 3 years

Text

BNHA Chapter 310 Spoiler Thoughts: “The First and Second Holders”

Some fan translations are out and it’s time to flex some thoughts out again! I couldn’t do them last night because I didn’t have all the scan images with me and I didn’t want to jump the gun with only text descriptions. Anyway, this was mainly an exposition chapter that properly introduces us to the second and third OFA Holders, especially the 2nd and what his relationship to the 1st is. This might not be as long as others “Spoiler Thoughts” I’ve written, but let’s see:

First off, we have a colored cover page by Horikoshi-sensei himself! It’s a solo page featuring Vigilante Deku and he looks badass! Deku looks ready to kick ass and take names. And, his Mid-Gauntlet is colored red like a lot of us thought and it adds to the theory that Melissa Shield did create it like she did with Deku’s Full-Gauntlet back in Two Heroes.

The chapter starts in a dark and rainy night. A large woman (she’s like maybe 10ft tall; she’s taller than All Might who I think is 7ft) with a mutant-type quirk who’s getting attacked by some civilians because they think she’s a villain. Deku jumps in to stop the attacks and the woman explains that she was just trying to go to one of the evacuation centers at a hero school. Deku is kind enough to give her her umbrella back and reassure her that things will be ok.

I gotta say that this whole situation is scarily close to real life right now. I don’t like getting too political, but we live in a scary world where discrimination is, unfortunately, alive and well... If you are a POC, you can be attacked from anywhere with the only reason being that “you’re a danger because of the skin you were born with”. It’s horrific, it’s disgusting, and it’s been around for a long time. Even in the BNHA universe, there used to be cults solely dedicated to discriminating against mutant-type people (we learned this back in the My Villain Academia Arc). So, like in the real world, this problem has risen again. Thankfully, there are people like Deku and All Might who are more than willing to help someone in need regardless of who they are. BNHA hits too close to home sometimes.

Anyway, going back to the BNHA story. Before All Might leaves to help the woman in his Batmobile, he hands Deku some Pork Katsu in a cute bento box wrapped in a bunny cloth! Deku is visibly happy and thanks All Might for the meal. This is so cute! I’m so glad to see that All Might is making sure that Deku is being properly taken care of. Boy needs to eat if he’s going to save the world. I’m also glad that Deku can still show signs of happiness despite, well, everything. I swear, if All Might doesn’t legally adopt Deku as his son by the time this series is over, I’m going to jump into this manga and force him to sign those documents myself.

The next panel shows Deku standing on what looks like Tokyo’s famous Sky Tree (or Sky Egg if we’re going off what Vigilantes showed us). He’s back to talking to the OFA Holders like they’re angels on his shoulders. Banjo talks about how it’s like the world’s reverted back in time when things were worse and Deku responds that if he doesn’t use all of OFA’s power, he’ll never be able to defeat Shigaraki and AFO. I know we’re in the final act, so Deku’s gotta get to 100% fast if he wants to win this war. Last we checked, he was at 45%, but he might be at a higher percentage now since he’s unlocked En’s Smokescreen. Also, Deku’s looking more and more like Batman each chapter and I gotta say that it really suits him.

Back to the Vestige Dream back when Deku was still in a coma after the war. The 1st Holder begs the 2nd and 3rd to corporate with him so that they can provide their power to Deku. The 1st calls the 2nd and 3rd “My Heroes” which causes some awkward silence lol. Neither one is responding, so Banjo breaks the silence by suggesting that Deku learn everyone’s Quirks so that he’ll get used to them once he starts using them. We learn why the 2nd and 3rd are the 1st’s heroes soon, but it’s actually a good idea for Deku to learn about all these different Quirks while he’s sleeping so that he’ll get a good idea on how to execute them when he wakes up. It’s kind of a way of training for Deku just without actually using the Quirks themselves.

The 3rd Holder (the one with the spiky ponytail and headband) starts to talk. He says that the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd came from the “Harshest era of history”. It was a time where AFO ruled all and peaked in power and control. He was going to take over the whole world if the first 3 Holders didn’t step in to stop him. My guess is that after AFO was defeated for the first time, society started to calm down and become more or less the world we knew before the War Arc. So, things weren’t as bad during the 4th Holder’s era and so forth. This would explain why Shinomori was able to hide in the forest for so long without being detected.

And now the big part of the chapter: the 2nd Holder. Who does in fact look A LOT like Bakugo. Big difference is that he has a massive scar across his face. I am aware of the whole “time travel” theory that people have going on with Bakugo and this dude, but I’m not on that train. Instead, I think that the 2nd Holder is one of Bakugo’s ancestors. Like, a really, really-great-grandfather. Horikoshi doesn’t just design his characters for no reason. The fact that the 2nd user looks so much like Bakugo, has a costume similar to Bakugo’s, and that future panels in this chapter straight up parallel that iconic scene with young Bakugo and Deku in the river only add fuel to this fire. Unless Horikoshi says otherwise, this is the theory I’m sticking to: this “Ancestor” theory.

And we know of the 1st user’s real name now too, which is Yoichi! If Horikoshi is keeping up with the “numbers in names” theme, then I’m positive that Yochi has the kanji for “One” somewhere in it. And, if we’re going to believe AFO at all, then that means that the 1st user’s full name is Yoichi Shigaraki. We don’t know AFO’s full name yet. But, again, AFO could be lying with his last name, so I’m taking this one with a grain of salt.

Back to the 2nd Holder, he tells Yoichi that a lot of lives were sacrificed in order to stop AFO back then. He believes that there is only victory or defeat in battle; that there’s no hope of saving their archenemy. He has doubt about putting his faith in Deku because of this. Given how the 3rd Holder still has his back turned too, I’m lead to believe that he also thinks Deku is crazy for wanting to save Shigaraki. I don’t exactly blame them. Really, none of us know if Deku will be successful in saving Shigaraki. He might have to kill him in the end. I think they should offer Deku help, but I don’t blame them for being at least a little skeptical.

But, Yoichi reminds the 2nd and 3rd users that they saved Yoichi back when AFO locked him up to die. They found Yoichi with the intention to kill him it seems, but the 2nd Holder showed sympathy for Yoichi and lent him a helping hand despite Yoichi being AFO’s little brother. This is the parallel panel I was talking about. Yoichi is kneeling down on the floor and the 2nd user is standing up extending his hand to help Yoichi. I don’t even need to look back in the manga to know what inspired this. Hell, I don’t even need to tell you! We all know what Horikoshi was doing when he drew and wrote this.

Yoichi convinces him that he should believe in Deku as Yoichi does think Deku will save the day. If the 2nd user didn’t extend his hand to help Yoichi, OFA wouldn’t have begun. I think that the trust between these two is ultimately the reason why the 2nd user finally agreed to help Deku; the same with the 3rd user too. And, kind of a tangent, but I really like how Horikoshi draws Yoichi and the 2nd user’s hands as they’re reaching for each other. Horikoshi has always been really good with drawing hands like they’re facial expressions (something my ass could never do 😭) and this one shows kindness and empathy. It’s almost like what would’ve happened if Bakugo accepted Deku’s hand for help when they were young instead of letting his pride and ego get in the way. Oh, the parallels!

Finally, the 2nd user speaks in present day telling Deku that they’re going full speed ahead now. My guess is that Deku’s going to have to improve on OFA and the rest of his Quirks quickly in order to find and beat the LoV. We are in the Final Act after all. The chapter ends at a good place if we want to switch to the UA kids, which is honestly what I’m hoping for. Again, I love Deku and his Vigilante adventures, but I miss the rest of the kids. The new BNHA Exhibition in Japan apparently has a giant drawing of the main class, All Might, Aizawa, and Shinso in his new hero costume! Which tells me that 1. Shinso probably took Deku’s place in the class for the time being, and 2. We’re definitely going to see the other kids again. I’m hoping soon. But, I wouldn’t be surprised if Horikoshi decided to continue focusing on Deku’s Vigilanteism and have him practice with he 2nd and 3rd Holder’s Quirks now that they’re working with him. We’ll just have to see.

So, that’s it! Solid chapter overall. I’m glad we finally got to see the 3rd and 2nd Holder’s faces. I think the “Kirishima is the 3rd Holder” theroy has been debunked at this point, but I’m still on the “2nd Holder is Bakugo’s ancestor” train. The similarities and parallels are too strong for me to deny it. Horikoshi-sensei, please confirm or deny soon 🙏. We are getting break next week for Golden Week BTW! All of Shonen Jump is actually, so no One Piece or JJK either (I’m not sure about Jump+, so we might still be getting some Spy X Family for example). So, basically all our favorite mangakas are getting a well-deserved break as they should! I hope they enjoy their vacation! Waiting’s going to suck tho, I’m ngl about that... Oh well, I’m willing to take the sacrifice if it means having healthy mangka. Thankfully, we still have the anime and the new exhibition to tide us over until then.

Edit: OR NOT SINCE THE EXHIBITION IS TEMPORARILY CLOSED BECAUSE OF A CERTAIN PANDEMIC GOING NUTS IN JAPAN AFTER ONLY BEING OPEN FOR 2 DAYS 😭

Edit: I went back to re-read the chapter and I completely missed the date for the next chapter (chapter 311) which is set to release on May 9th! So, we’re actually getting a 2 week break instead. Damn... Sucks for us, but it’s good for mangaka to get breaks when they can especially considering their absolutely insane schedule.

Me reading this chapter:

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ajbwasntwriting · 3 years

Text

Daughter!Reader x Negan, Reader x Daryl: Chapter 5. Secrets hurt

First | Previous | Next

Listen I don’t know why I decided to give each chapter an artsy title I just did. Also as anyone following this may have noticed this story isn’t gonna be regularly updated but rather updated when I have something I’m proud enough to post though I am determined to finish this series, just school comes first. I hope you understand.

I’ll only post more chapters if previous chapters get a good reaction so if you enjoy this please heart it, reblog it, and/or reply to it. Interaction inspires.

if you wish to be added to the tag list please dm me. All chapters can be found under the tag AJ’s Negan’s Daughter AU

The winter continued like that. He’d bring you food and you’d give him goods, even visiting multiple times a week. Sometimes he’d tell you about the stuff, holding up a jar of applesauce ‘from The Kingdom. The guy who runs it used to own a tiger’ or loaf of bread ‘the hilltop grows the grain, but Alexandria makes it.’ You would hum and nod along, knowing he was just trying to convince you to come back. Mainly because he’d ask if you wanted to come back with him and you would be ‘grateful but happy where you are’

You had asked him to start making lists so you knew what to find and you always tried your best to deliver. Cloths, blankets, kitchen utensils, baby bottles-

“Baby bottles?” you asked, pointing at the item on the list. He nodded.

“John and his wife are pregnant and we don’t have enough to go around.” He explained from the comfort of your couch, feet up on the table.

“But you have some?” you continued, not believing what you were hearing “You have...children? As in...babies?”

“Yea. I keep telling you we’re building a society.” he laughed at your bewilderment. “You’d fit in gr-” your mind ran as what you knew was coming ‘Here it comes again. No never works with these people. How do I get him to shut up?’

“Would you like to stay for dinner?” you cut him off, smiling. You turned to your kitchen unit, pulling out a large bot, a can of vegetable soup, and salted beef that Daryl had brought that day. “You’ve brought me so much it’ll probably go bad before I can eat it all.”

In that time he had stood up and walked over to the kitchen, now leaning on the counter. His sudden appearance made you hold your breath “When did ‘get out’ become ‘stay for dinner’?” he asked, seemingly amused.

“When you stopped understanding what ‘I don’t wanna be part of your group’ meant.” You retorted, cutting up the salted beef with a dedicated kitchen knife. “Are you staying or not?” you turned to him, stopping your cuts for the moment. He nodded with a shallow ‘yeah’, making you smile then go back to cutting. You poured the meat and soup into the pot, placing the lid on top. “Some snow on top to water it down and we’ll be sleeping with full stomachs tonight.”

You had him carry some bowls and a ladle up to the roof. Within an hour the fire outside was lit and the food was cooked atop four bricks you were lucky enough to be able to upgrade your cooking fire with, the old lamp now repurposed into a weapon. There was no conversation but you didn’t feel like you needed it. The wind was calm, letting Daryl look out over the city. “Do you know where the museum is?” He asked while you were stirring the soup.

“A couple of blocks down,” you called back. “Why?”

“Me and a few others are planning on raiding it in the summer” he answered, not turning back to you.

That’s when you realised something. You had heard about all these friends. Carol, Michone, Saddiq, Rosita, Eugene, Henry, Ezekiel, Lauren. He’d mentioned them in passing, saying how they made something he brought you or appreciated something you brought him. Yet he always came alone. It would’ve made more sense if Rick was doing these deliveries, you’d met him before the winter. Sure you stitched up his leg.

The two of you were sitting in front of the fire as it fizzled out when curiosity got the better of you. You swallowed the food in your mouth.

“Why are you always here alone?” you asked, he looked up at you from the other side of the fire. “It makes more sense to have people watching your back but for the past month or so you’ve been visiting me on your own. Why?”

“That’s how it is” he scoffed between mouthfuls.

“That’s how what is?” you snapped.

“You’re allowed to be all secretive but I’m meant to have my cards on the table.” he cut back. You thought it over a second, then went back to eating. You both finished up as the fire mellowed, taking your leave back inside. You carried the pot while he held the bowls. Back in your unit, you piled the dishes into the sink.

“I should get going,” he said, going to pick up his back.

“Y/N!” you nearly yelled. “My name is Y/N,” He looked back at you incredulously. A tense silence fell over you both “Before this,” you waved your hand to motion to the apartment “I was with a few people...including my father. We managed to secure a building, kept the walkers out but after some time new people arrived and a few of them got...Protective, I guess. Including my old man.” You crossed your arms and leant against the sink, the floor now far more interesting than the man in your apartment. “People died keeping me safe when they didn’t need to, all ‘cause my old man refused to let me help, but we were still bringing in new people but not everyone was helping, either cause they weren’t allowed to or didn’t want to. That caused anger to boil in the group and then...more people died.” Thinking back on the Sanctuary tears began to flow, but your voice didn’t shake and your body stayed firm. “I ran away and I’ve been hiding ever since ‘cause I know they’ll kill me if I’m found.” You finally looked back at Daryl who had been hanging on to your every word. You wiped away your tears. “You said I can’t be secretive, well there it is.”

“I didn’t mean-”

“You don’t wanna go home” you cut him off. “You don’t like where you rest your head, that’s why you’ve been spending more and more time out here with me. I get it.” you pushed off the sink, leaning under it to pick up a jug of water to do the dishes with. “You can leave or you can stay the night. I don’t mind.”

You turned your back on him to focus on the dishes. He picked up his things and left without another word. ‘That’s it’ you thought as you scrubbed the pot, now getting more aggressive with it, ‘you fucked up Y/N.’

The following morning you woke up, opened your bedroom door, and saw a familiar red-neck on your couch. You couldn’t stop the smile that plastered your face, but you did grab some clothes from your closet then went back to your room to dress. This time when you left he was up. “‘Morning” he croaked as he stretched. “This couch was a lot comfier the first time.”

Your relationship continued like that for the next while. He’d visit you more regularly, stay for dinner, and usually, he’d stay for the night. You got tired of the complaints about the couch and cleared out the second bedroom. You liked having him visit and were willing to facilitate it. He’d even begun leaving a few things there. Functional stuff like arrows for his bow and fuel for his bike. You found him some clothes and extra blankets, and a bigger bag to carry stuff home.

You didn’t ask why he didn’t want to be with his people. After keeping everything a secret for so long it didn’t feel right, but you could guess. Between your family and your time in the army, you had developed a skill in reading people, a skill you noticed he also had. Maybe that’s why every second didn’t need to be filled with conversation. Though you wish it was so you could know more. He was kind, there was no question of that with everything he did for you without even knowing your name. Though when he came to your apartment he was tense, and he was never happy to leave. This made you think he was going somewhere he didn’t want to be, but he had to be. He always talked so highly of the settlements, trying to get you back there. He must be going someplace else.

The winter passed, your garden began to flourish again, and the walkers thawed. You thought after the winter Daryl would stop visiting but he still showed up. He didn’t come as often for a time, saying he wasn’t gonna make the trip unless he had enough to offer you. You frowned at this “Do come out” you ordered him. “You’ve got people relying on you. Children and everything and I’m able to find stuff in the city you need.”

“I don’t wanna leave you short. Our deal ya know-”

“Screw the deal, Daryl.” you huffed “You’re my friend and I wanna help you”

“Oh we’re friends?” he commented, with a cheeky smirk “Didn’t you try to kill Rick.”

‘So Tara told them’ you thought. “Yes,” you said “In a friendly way.” normally he wouldn’t find that funny, but these past few weeks escaping away to your hide-out had given him a chance to get close to you. “Come and visit me when you can, please? I got nobody else to steal my food.” That afternoon you both search for some last pieces for Daryl, having to go deeper and deeper into the city. You talked about his group’s plan to go to the museum and raid it for seeds and old machinery. You saw first-hand what a crack-shot he was with his crossbow, you whistled as another went down “Not bad bow-boy. How’d you get so good with that?”

“Before all this” you started, walking ahead to pull the arrow out of the dead one. “Me and my brother, Merle, used to move around a lot. We used to hunt sometimes for sport, sometimes for food, but he’d always make it a competition. Decided to learn a quieter weapon so I could beat that son of a bitch.” Another two walkers approached as he spoke. He shot a bolt through one of them while you took the other down with your knife. “After that, he never helped hunting again”

“Sounds like a sore loser” you commented, pulling the arrow out of the walker's head and handing it back to Daryl. He took it and reloaded the bow.

“You have any brothers or sisters?”

“Nah” you shook your head, keeping a lookout while he reloaded. “My old man said I was a miracle baby. Mom was always sick. They thought they’d never have any. I used to hate it but after hearing how Merle left you in a cell while he ran off with your girl, I’m glad.”

“Ahh, he wasn't all that bad,” he commented, walking alongside you.

“No one is as bad as they seem when you know them. At least that’s what my superior officer said”

That evening he couldn’t stay, but he left with a heavy bag and that made you happy. As the evening descended you went back to your unit. The following week would be quiet since Daryl had his big raid coming up. Though you didn’t realise how quiet until you were in the midst of it.

You had scavenged a few things. At this stage, the apartment building had been picked dry but you had a few children’s cloths and some old bandages from first-aid kits that had seen better days. As usual, you had piled everything in Daryl’s room. As usual, you were reading another book. As usual, it failed to entertain you since you’d read it about three times now. As usual, you fell asleep on the couch, not completely though because you heard the front door open.

You sat up sharply. “Dary-”

Thwack

~ Tag List ~

@softsebastian

#twd daryl #daryl x reader #the walking dead daryl #The Walking Dead #the walking dead fanfiction #the walking dead fanfic #twd #twd fanfiction #twd fanfic #twd reader #twd x reader #twd reader insert #daughter reader #negan x daughter reader #AJ's Negan's Daughter AU

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dragonrajafanfiction · 3 years

Text

Genji Heavy Industries (Part 1) Preparations

The MC doesn’t play a major role here, because there’s not much role to play. But she has a lot to say and lots of THOUGHTS.

The book is funny and I’ve kept the humor of the original novel. I also like that the MC here has a genuine sense of humor that makes her likeable and relatable to the rest of the boys.

ENJOY

There are several luxurious private rooms on the third floor of the Takamagahara for private party guests, and the spending amount is, of course, much higher than the card seats on the first floor. A guest can't go to the third floor without throwing a few million yen a night.

The music inside the room where Chu Zihang and Caesar were hosting was deafening. You knock loudly to be heard.

"Little Sister, is that you? Don't come in!" Lu Mingfei yelled from inside. He sounds breathless, panting. In fact, when you press your ear to the door, all you hear is his heavy breathing and grunting from physical exertion. Your heart beats faster and your cheeks flush as your imagination runs wild with what must be happening. You back away from the door. You've been up to your ears in man-meat for hours so it wasn't a stretch to conjure images of Chu Zihang and Lu Mingfei embracing passionately. Poor Nono. Surely Caesar wouldn't be unfaithful to her, right? You bring your fist to your lips and your heart squeezes in sympathy.

The door swings open and Caesar appears. He's stripped down to his underwear. Your eyes snap to the gentle curve of Caesar’s crotch, which, in your alcohol-addled mind, seemed to bulge out to enormous proportions!

He grabs your arm and drags you inside, slamming the door behind you.

Women were lying side by side on the floor, their dresses in disarray. Lu Mingfei and Chu Zihang are breaking a sweat to drag all the bodies around.

“What do you need me to do?” You stammer and glance away. Were you going to end up on the floor too?

“Just wait until we’re finished. How was your time downstairs? You seem a little tipsy. How much did you drink?” Caesar picked up a woman and settled her gently back on the couch.

“I’m not sure. I think someone kept refilling my cup.” You twine your fingers. You can't turn around and look at him in his skivvies. Nono would probably laugh at you and the rest of the girls in the Student Union might resort to mob violence!

Lu Mingfei hissed. “What? That’s awful! Someone should do something about that! Those brutes didn’t do anything to you, did they?”

You shake your head. The room tilts and you try to hide it and the fact that youre suddenly breathless. “No, nothing like that. They were just… um… Are those women drugged?” You change the subject as the memories of the physical proximity of Diamond's and Chance's lips to yours, Calypso’s unopened rose and Armani’s lustful glare spring back to mind and combine with Caesar's sudden full frontal to create a sexual kaleidoscope you couldn’t handle.

"Strong sleeping pills plus strong alcohol. They have to sleep at least until tomorrow morning." Caesar shook a small pill bottle.

“Isn’t that a little dangerous? Sounds like a great way to make them sleep forever!” You recalled heroin and vodka was strictly forbidden because combined someone could easily commit suicide.

“I made sure it was alright.” Chu Zihang said, straightening a girl’s skirt. "We have about eight hours between now and tomorrow morning, enough time to get to and from Genji Heavy Industries. We ordered enough champagne before we came in so that no waiter would come in to check on us during that time. And these women were so drunk before they arrived, they won't remember what happened tonight."

He straightened his back and moved to the next. “By the way, did you give out any Star-flower tickets? I would have watched but, as you can see, I had to work.”

“No… no tickets.”

“Little Sister’s purity is as strong as Fort Knox! I’m so happy!” Lu Mingfei sighed with relief. “Don't worry, we’ll be out of here before anything happens!”

“That’s a good strategy in any case. You don’t want to show your favor to anyone in the first episode…” Chu Zihang gave a sage nod and moved to the next lady.

Lu Mingfei bristled. “What kind of lewd advice are you giving, Senior Brother?”

“So what’s the plan for the Genji Building?” You ask. You calm down and feel tired and tense, but seeing them working so hard despite having one of the busiest nights at Takamagahara was inspiring. The couches looked soft and inviting but you wouldn’t look weak in front of them so you continue to stand and try to look energetic.

"Uncover the skeletons in Hydra’s closet. And while we’re there, blow shit up." Caesar lit a cigar, the firelight illuminating the colored makeup on his face.

"There are 15 pounds of C4 explosives in the equipment box, is that enough?" Chu Zihang took out a packet of Play-Doh-like stuff from the box.

You recognize the packets. They’re dark green and can be arbitrarily pinched into any shape. They are easy to carry and easy to use. As the world's worst terrorists, according to Hydra, C4 plastic explosives would fit your needs.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey! What are you doing with explosives out? We are turning into the kind of people on the wanted list step by step!" Lu Mingfei exclaimed.

"We are wanted by the police department for smuggling nuclear fuel, terrorist attacks and raping young girls. As long as we don't do that last thing, we're not on the wanted list yet." Caesar fastened the leather sheath of the Dictator on the outside of his thigh, the Desert Eagle in the holsters on both ribs, and the eight magazines filled with Frigga bullets on the side of his waist, "It won’t be that bad. Chu and I are just going to blow up Kaguya's storage core. Kaguya is the first line of defense for the Hydra Clan. We blow it up and Hydra will go blind. Norma can take advantage of the opportunity to regain control of the network within Japan."

“Caesar?” You ask.

“Yes, hun?”

“Am I also wanted for raping girls?” You give a dry smile.

He shoots you a genuine grin and snorts.

"Do not rush to change clothes, we have to leave some evidence." Chu Zihang said.

"Almost forgot." Caesar took off his weapons and re-dressed in the slim purple suit, "Good thing I didn't take off my makeup."

Chu Zihang fished out a cell phone from a guest's bag and handed it to you. “Here, take our picture.”

“Got it.” You say.

Caesar sat down on the sofa, dragged a woman to his side and pressed her to his body. He stuffed a microphone in her hand, and took a microphone himself, as if he was singing.

Then Chu Zihang sat in the middle of the guests wearing a conical hat singing birthday songs, and Lu Mingfei pretended to accompany guests drinking and playing craps. Chu Zihang and Caesar pantomimed topless arm wrestling.

For each photo, Chu Zihang and Caesar adjust the phone time, so that the guests will wake up and, after checking their phones, they’ll think they spent an unforgettable night with the beautiful boys! But, unfortunately, they can't remember any details because they drank too much and can only imagine. Looking at the phones, you’re filled with a sad sort of regret that the boys actually didn’t have fun like this.

Lu Mingfei is full of panic, "If these photos leak out our reputation is finished! But we didn't do anything at all!"

"MC, help me check the fuses on this C4.”

You scurry over without hesitation. Caesar leans in close to you. “You know about this too, huh? First shooting, now explosives…?” He says with a grin.

“I can hotwire a car… or I used to be able to. Not sure if I can do it with the newer models. I can’t fly a plane though.” You look up at him. “I’ll be the cutest little terrorist right?”

“Are you hearing anything I’m saying?!” Mingfei whines.

“Are you sad because you didn’t do anything, but you now have a bad reputation?" Caesar looks bored. "Then do you want me and Chu Zihang to go out and wait for you for a while, so you can earn your bad rep?"

"Bullshit! From now on I'm going to fight alongside you guys every step of the way! You guys aren’t going to leave me to take the blame alone!"

Caesar hands you a bundle of clothing. “Here. Put these on and get ready to go.”

You take them and quickly duck behind the couches, pulling your dress over your head and slipping out of your heels. You unfold a skintight black bodysuit that fits you near perfectly and a trench coat with the splendid Ukiyo-E on the lining, made to look like they are from the Japanese Executive Department.

“Here. Don’t use them all at once.” Caesar draped a belt with a pistol holster and pouches of ammunition over the couch. Your heart warms at the side of this deadly weaponry more than the rose of Calypso. You were finally being trusted with a gun.

When you step back around, you're fully equipped. Your tired haze is gone and your mind is only on the mission again.

Chu Zihang put his sword on his back, slipped into a black trench coat and screwed a black baseball cap on his head. Caesar is also in a black trench coat and was covering his face in dark makeup to conceal his fair skin.

"Isn’t it a little too risky? We can barely speak Japanese. How are we going to impersonate the Executive Board? People just have to ask us something complicated and we'll be exposed!" Lu Mingfei said.

“I know it’s hard but you could try keeping your mouth shut…” You grumble, screwing on the belt. Just putting on these dangerous weapons brought you away from the Takamagahara summer of love to the cold winter of Siberia.

"MC, be nice…” Caesar chided.

“Of course we can't break in. Genji Heavy Industries is a heavily fortified building, as tight as the Japanese Self Defense Force headquarters. Caesar and I spent a few days researching. It is a general office building from the first floor to the twentieth floor, and above the twentieth floor is the office area used by the Hydra. Access is by access card, and there are security guards patrolling. Those security guards are all armed. Even wearing the clothes of the Executive Board, an unfamiliar face may be questioned. Not to mention, that without the help of Norma, I cannot make access cards." Chu Zihang spread out a hand-drawn map, "The only possibility is to sneak in from the sewers and enter the so-called 'inner district'. There is no access control system in the inner district."

You remembered that they had taken the elevator down below ground when you visited the Genji Heavy Industries and you saw the huge sewer system in Tokyo. The submarine dock of the Iwarui Institute was located in a giant twelve-meter diameter pipe.

“Shouldn't the inner district have a tighter security network than outside?" Lu Mingfei looked completely unsure.

You’re not confident either. Looking at the map, with only one way in and one way out, you get the sense that the moment something goes wrong, you’re going to be trapped inside with the enemy. The pipe was deep and led to the ocean. Given the volcanic activity down there, if you had an opportunity to use your soul skill you might be able to open an alternate tunnel like a lava tube to escape or even block this pipe with lava on the way out. The problem is your Soul Skill is not instantaneous.

"No one knows what the security system in the inner zone is, but at least we can avoid the people coming and going by going through the inner zone passage." The map Chu Zihang drew by hand was a map of the sewer system in Shinjuku district. His finger moved along the spider web of sewer pipes, "There's a sewer right below Takamagahara. We'll follow it east, bypass under the Shinjuku subway station, and shortly after entering the main channel, we'll see Genji Heavy Industries. Total length is two kilometers."

"It’s like we’re just going to wing it right? But come on, This isn’t some My Little Pony Ride. Genji Heavy Industries is like a rushing river, we'll be up a creek if we make one misstep."

"How can we know if we don't try? If we get caught, we’ll kill our way out." Caesar said gently.

"Hey! Of course you two Robocops can easily kill out! Have you considered that there are still civilized and weak students in the team?”

“Mingfei,” You say softly. He looks over at you, genuinely frightened. "You think I'm weak? Who has the biggest body count for this mission?"

“Little Sister, how can you smile in such a situation. Have you lost your mind? You of all people should be on my side…”

“Don’t you remember what I did in the streets of Chizuru?”

Mingfei frowned, recalling how you killed over and over. “But it’s not right for you to be doing things like that.”

Chu Zihang confirms your assumption. “Her Soul Skill is the first one that I’ve witnessed that is truly S-Grade.” Chu Zihang rolled up the map. “Her control of it is impressive. Her ability to misshape the earth will help us find a way out by creating a new tunnel underground if necessary, and we have scouted several promising escape routes. Not only that, Royal Fire could take down the Internet Cafe’s wooden structure, but it wouldn’t be able to shift the Genji Heavy Industries building. But her ability is likely to do it. Right, MC?”

You nod gravely.

“If it comes to that, we can threaten the entire building. They were extra proud of that building and probably wouldn't want to lose it in a tragic earthquake..” Caesar smirks.

“I still don’t like it.”

"Then you'd better stay and take care of the girls. Watching over a dozen unclothed and sleeping women alone in a room late at night is a job for a frail scholar, right?" Caesar shrugged.

"Am I such an unkind and unrighteous person? Can I watch you two go into the dragon's den and wait here by myself? Don't answer that. Just give me a gun!" Lu Mingfei was once again bold and firm, though he gave an owlish glance at the women.

"Very well! We in the Student Council never back down from a fight!" Caesar drew out a heavy Beretta 92FS and threw it to Lu Mingfei, "I”ve been waiting to give this to you. Thirteen-round magazine, the first nine rounds are Frigga anesthesia ammunition. The back four rounds are specially designed to deal with dragons. Mercury core, blunt armor-piercing ammunition. Don't use that kind of bullets against humans or hybrids. Although mercury is not that deadly to humans, it’s troublesome after contamination, and the armor-breaking warheads will leave penetrating wounds on ordinary bodies.”

"Will there be any dragons in the Genji Heavy Industry?" Lu Mingfei thrust his gun into his back waist, "I say just load them all up with Frigga tranquilizer rounds."

“MC was the last witness to Lenin's last voyage when a dragon embryo was sunk in a Japanese trench. They tried to kill her once before to hide what happened that day. The Japanese Hydra leader speaks with the same Russian Accent as the MC and then turns on the Academy as soon as he thinks we’re dead at the bottom of the sea? And then tries their hardest to capture us in Chizuru? And now tries to pin us down in Japan…”

Caesar looks down at you. “MC… you were invited on this mission for a reason. I intend to find out why. I think they’re after you… more than they are after us.”

#Dragon Raja

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komotionlessqueenmm · 4 years

Text

Imagine # 687

1,834 - Words

Gif NOT mine. (Found on Pinterest.)

If this gif is yours please let me know, so I can give you credit.

Gif credit goes to - Unknown.

Year posted - 2020

Warnings - A little swearing.

Notes - None

----

"I'm telling you Charlie you're going to love her." Phil gushed for the millionth time. "So you say." Charlie muttered still doodling in his sketch book, within the prisons art room. "She's a brilliant artist, a local celebrity really." Phil smiled to himself, before his eyes shot to the opening door of the room. "Phil." (Y/n) smiled at the man awaiting her at the bottom of the stairs, her heels clicking noisily as she descended said stairs. "(Y/n) its so lovely to see you." Phil chirped while pulling her into a friendly hug. "I was looking over those drawings you sent me." (Y/n) grinned from ear to ear. "I can't wait to meet the man behind the pen." She added before handing the drawings back to Phil. "Of course of course, he's right here. Charlie mate this is (Y/n)." Phil ushered Charlie over who was sitting quietly observing the two. "We've been waiting here for a little while now, eager for your arrival." Phil added as Charlie approached. "So you're Charlie Bronson? I've heard so much about you, I must say you are a man of reputation." (Y/n) mused while shaking his hand. "Yeah that's me." Charlie sighed under his breath, sounding almost bored. "I've looked over some of your work, and its quite charming really." (Y/n) said as she pointed to the drawings in Phil's hands. "Your style actually reminds me of an uncle of mine, from my father's side. Ironically enough he also spent some time in prison years ago." She continued, her complements fueling Charlie's ego. "Every year I come here in search of an apprentice, sometimes they remain my apprentice for a few years, like my last apprentice did. Sadly however he got on the wrong side of a local here, and got himself killed." (Y/n) wet her lips allowing Charlie a moment to process her words. "Phil here suggested that I take you under my wing, if you're interested of course." She smiled softly. "I don't think the Gov will allow me the privilege." Charlie pointed out, knowing the man hatted him. "Well just between us, he's had quite the crush on me since I started doing this whole apprenticeship thing. I'm confident I can convince him by simply batting my lashes at him." (Y/n) winked with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. "Is that so?" Charlie smirked a little, finding her rather amusing. "But only if you're interested of course, I'd rather avoid the man if I can. Makes my skin crawl that one." She frowned a little in disgust at the thought of the man. "Alright, what dose this internship entail?" Charlie asked while leaning against the table to his right. "Well first off, I'll be teaching you how to hone your skills as an artist, and help you to find your true potential, to the best of my abilities. I would be visiting you daily, for however long I see fit. Maybe even if you get yourself in trouble, seeings how the old creep can't seem to say no to me." She shrugged a little at the last comment. "Alright I'm in." Charlie nodded his head once, before going back to his original seat. "Okay I'll go see what I can do about the Governor." (Y/n) waved goodbye to Phil before leaving the room. "See I knew you'd like her." Phil smiled while Charlie simply grunted at him.

----

The following day Charlie sat across from the Governor, in his little office. "I don't know how, but you've caught the interest of Miss (Y/n) (Y/l/n), and she wishes to take you as her new apprentice. I have granted her permission to due so, but I'm warning you now Charlie, if you so much as hurt a hair on her head, I'll have you locked in solitary for the rest of your stay here." The older man hissed, his threat only making Charlie smile. "What kind ov a man do you think I am, eh?" Charlie taunted, making the Governor roll his eyes. "I know exactly what kind of a man you are Charlie." The Governor sighed before waving him off. "She'll be here later today, and every day after until you mess up." He added as Charlie was being escorted out of his office.

----

(Y/n) did in fact come back, just a few hours later. Meeting with Charlie in his cell of all places. "Right let's get to it yeah?" She shrugged her bag off of her shoulder and placed it on the foot of his bed, where she rummaged through it a moment later. "Ah here we are." She smiled as she pulled out the new materials she had brought with her. "These are for you." She handed them to Charlie, who slowly looked over everything she gave him. "I'd like to watch you draw if that's alright, I want to observe your process, and techniques." (Y/n) explained, smiling when Charlie sat at his desk. "You can watch, just try not to talk to much. Phil gets real annoying after awhile." Charlie glanced up at her as he began settling everything up. "Of course." She bowed her head a little, respecting his wishes.

As Charlie drew (Y/n) peered over his shoulder, fascinated by his technique, and rather pleased with his natural skills. "How's that?" Charlie leaned back in his chair, looking up at (Y/n), who grinned at him. "It's fantastic, tell me what does this mean to you?" She asked while leaning in a little closer observing the finer details, unknowingly pressing her breasts against Charlie's shoulder. "What?" He exhaled through his nose noisily, almost stunned by the sudden contact. "What does this all mean to you? If anything at all." (Y/n) asked while pulling away so she could properly look at his face. "It's just some of the things I felt while at the asylum." He cleared his throat, having calmed his nerves when she pulled away from him. "Interesting." (Y/n) hummed before going back to her bag. "I want you to try something for me Charlie." She muttered as she unfolded the large piece of canvas paper, she had pulled from her bag. "I want you to try copying this drawing, but in your own style." She explained before using her chewing gum to stick the paper to the wall above his desk. "What is it exactly?" He asked eyeing the strange looking drawing before him. "I'm not entirely sure yet, I drew this yesterday after I left here, I got some inspiration." She tilted her head a little, looking at her work. "Get some inspiration from me did ya?" Charlie teased. "I did actually, while I drew this I replayed our conversation together, remembering the way you held yourself, your facial expressions, mood, all of it really... And this is the product of that." (Y/n) explained, once again fueling Charlie's ego. "Is it a good thing or a bad thing?" He asked while looking from her to the drawing, finding it almost hypnotizing. "Personally I believe it's a good thing, but I guess like most art, it is what you make of it as the viewer." She looked back to Charlie, who seemed pretty pleased with her answer. "Right, well this might take a little while." He stated while scooting his chair in. "Take however long you need." (Y/n) hummed softly while clasping her hands behind her back. "You're welcome to sit on the bed if ya like." Charlie added before picking up his pencil. "Thank you Charlie." (Y/n) smiled before delicately setting on the edge of the mattress, trying to avoid making to much noise.

----

For a little over two months now, (Y/n) has been working with Charlie. And it wasn't until today that he acted out, and got himself into trouble. But as she promised she convinced the Governor to allow her to still visit him. While Charlie sat in his cell, blood oozing a little from the gash on his head, he counted the seconds it took for (Y/n) to reach his cell. Her heels giving her away the second she stepped into his cellblock, clicking away as she approached. "I don't know why you bother." The guard opening Charlie's cell hissed at (Y/n), who in turn held her head up a little higher while glaring at the overweight man. "That's none of your concern." She spat back as the door opened, making Charlie smile the best he could with the muzzle they put on him.

"Christ." She muttered under her breath in surprise, completely stunned at the sight of him all bloody and bound. "Aye love." Charlie murmured the best he could, both blood and drool running down his chin. "What did they do to you?" She frowned before softly sitting on her knees across from him on the floor. "You'll dirty your dress." He almost frowned at the sight of his blood on the floor, as it began seeping into the soft fabric of her skirt. "I don't give a damn about the dress." She waved his comment off, more worried about him. "Besides you're more important to me than some old dress." She leaned forward dropping her voice so only Charlie could hear her. "I'm going to remove these wretched things, but you must remain quiet, otherwise we'll both be in trouble." She waited for Charlie to nod his head in agreement before reaching for the strap on the muzzle. "There." She sighed softly as she pulled the muzzle away from his face. "Alright could you turn for me?" She asked planning on removing the straight jacket. "Nah leave it I'm alright, besides if someone decides to barge in 'ere, you won't get in as much trouble for removing just the muzzle." Charlie pointed out making (Y/n) bite her lip softly. "Good point." She nodded her head agreeing with him.

"So tell me Charlie, what happened?" (Y/n) asked as she removed a handkerchief from her handbag, slowly wiping away some of the blood from his face. "One of the guards took away that drawing you hung on my wall, the one you gave me the first day we worked together, cunt tore it up while talking ill about you. I wasn't gonna stand for it, so I beat the fucker bloody." Charlie observed her face, watching her closely as she frowned at his words. "Those bastards can't just let things be can they, always gotta rattle the cage, and punish those that bite back." She murmured while cleaning the last of the blood away the best she could. "Don't worry. You ever get outta here, I'll give you as many drawings as you'd like, then no one can ever take them from you again." (Y/n) smiled softly at Charlie, who began mulling over her words. Did he want to get out? Or did he still wish to stay?

#imagine #gif imagine #Extended #charles bronson #Charles bronson imagine #Charles bronson x reader #charlie bronson #bronson (2008)#bronson #bronson imagine #bronson x reader #Tom Hardy #tom hardy imagine #tom hardy x reader

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doing-all-write · 4 years

Text

don’t be a baby

Pairing: Billy x Reader

Summary: Reader is a nurse who’s brother falls into the Sky Walker crowd. After he gets injured, Billy takes it upon himself to look after Reader’s brother and calm Reader’s nerves as they get ready for their next job. But when the job goes awry and Reader can’t keep Billy safe, how does she cope?

Word Count: 11K

Warnings: Smut (only 18+ interact please!), swearing, blood and softness bc we love two idiots pining over each other but refusing to acknowledge their feelings for each other!!

A/N: I wrote this in a caffeine fueled burst of inspiration after talking to @mrhoemazzello about how much of a baby Billy would be when he gets injured and you have to patch him up and it made me so soft and shoutout to @itsabenthing for helping me flesh out this idea and for always being such a great cheerleader 💖but this bad boy is DEFINITELY going to be a two parter so keep an eye out part two coming soon!

Also the first part of this story takes place before the events of 6Underground and the job they’re planning and go on is the one in the movie just to give everyone some context.

💖💖As always likes, comments and reblogs are always appreciated 💖💖

There was a thump at the window.

She ignored it. It was close to midnight and the idea that someone could be knocking on her (three stories high) window at this time seemed ludicrous. She groaned, shifting in the chair she had curled up in hours ago, reaching out for the sweet release of unconsciousness to claim her before her anxiety kept her up.

She knew Billy was most likely gone. She didn't want to admit it to herself but the relentless loop in her head was a broken record of he's gone he's gone he's gone he's gone.

There was still a part of her that hoped Billy had gotten away unscathed. She had seen him in action, she knew what he was capable of and she sent out a wish that Billy would come running into her apartment like the day he came running into the hospital.

~~~

She had been working in the Emergency Room, taking over a fellow nurses night rotations in exchange for a few extra days off, when a man had limped in, blue eyes frantic, blonde hair damp and smashed to his forehead, carrying what looked like a dummy in a hoodie, both of them covered in dried blood.

She raced around the desk to them, looping the arm of the prone man around her shoulders as she helped steer them to the nearest room. The blonde kept babbling on about how the man between them had hurt himself while they wrestled the man into a bed. Once the unconscious man was laying down, she pulled back the hood obscuring his face and felt her soul leave her body.

Her brother's face was the one staring back at her.

Now is not the time. Pull it together. You know what to do. Her Nurse Brain kicked in and she shoved the blonde to the side as she hastily started taking care of her brother. Once he had been stabilized and diagnosed with nothing more than a nasty bump on the head, a broken ankle and a badly bloodied nose, she had shoved the shadow who had been following her around into the hallway, crowding him into the supply closet and demanding answers.

"Who the fuck are you?"

"Oh, careful there, love. You keep talking dirty to me like that and I'll fall in love with you."

"Why the fuck were you with my brother?"

"Taking him out on a date because he spoke to me with the same dirty mouth you both share apparently."

He was obstinate, shifting between smart ass answers and flirting as she tried to get any scrap of information from him. She finally hit her limit and spat out, "He's my fucking brother and if you don't tell me what happened, I'll assume it was you and have you thrown in jail. I don't give a fuck about you," She had jabbed a finger into his chest and he winced, "but I do give a fuck about my family."

Her Nurse Brain activated again when she saw him wince. Eyes zipping over him, assessing, she took in his bloodied face and hands. "Unzip your hoodie."

"Interesting. I'd always heard that angry sex was the best. Can't believe I'm gonna find out if that's true in this supply closet."

Rolling her eyes, she'd batted his hands away as he tried to prevent her from unzipping his hoodie. Fixing him with her if you don't let me do my fucking job I'll kill you and make it look like an accident stare, he had held his hands up in surrender.

Metallic ticks were the only noise as she pulled the zipper down, revealing the red tank top underneath.

"Wait, was this originally white?"

A huff of breath was the only answer she received before she pulled him back into the room with her brother, patching him up while she kept up a running commentary of grumbling about how he had endangered not only her own brother but also himself.

"I mean, what kind of stupid, reckless, idiot would do something like that! Jesus, you see one too many Marvel movies and think, 'hmm, that looks easy. I can do that too!' I mean honestly."

Her monologue was interrupted by the feel of a rough palm grasping her forearm. It seemed like trying to get the next words out were more painful than sustaining the injuries he had already taken that night, "I was protecting him. He works with our crew well and I told him not to come with us but he insisted. Said he needed these jobs so he could help his little sister pay off her student loans."

That had shut her up.

~~~

He didn't remember falling asleep but he stirred as he felt his arm being moved.

"It's okay, it's just me."

"I'm sorry, I don't know a 'me'. I only know the hard ass nurse who I had incredible sexual chemistry with." He heard her huff out a breath, could almost hear her eyes rolling as well. Her fingers were gentle as she made sure the IV drip in his arm was still firmly in place. She saw his lips quirk and rolled her eyes, again, "Go back to sleep. I like you more when you're unconscious."

"Great bedside manner you have there, sweetheart. You got a name?"

There was silence, then, "It's (Y/N)."

He sighed, "Well, (Y/N), it's nice to meet you. I'm Billy, and that guy in the opposite bed? That's Mark. Though I'm assuming you two already know each other since you're related and all."

"If you weren't in a hospital bed, I'd smack you."

"There's that bedside manner that keeps the patients coming back."

~~~

Billy didn't remember when he drifted off again but when he came to, the light on the other side of his eyelids was the dull yellow of the beginning rays of sunlight welcoming another morning. Eyelids fluttering open, Billy had seen her, curled up in a hospital chair right by Mark's bed, hand cupping her brother's as their chests rose and fell in tandem. Feeling like he was encroaching on a private moment, he closed his eyes again, praying that the tear he felt running down his cheek would dry before either of them would wake up.

~~~

"Hey. (Y/N). Wake up. C'mon. I've got him from here, go home and shower. Grab some food."

Her eyelids flickered open and a groan came flying out of her mouth as she slowly started rolling her neck around. As she did so, she couldn't help her eyes from straying to the bed across the room. But it was empty.

~~~

Her brother had been discharged the next day and she'd been keeping a close eye on him since. A few days later, she kicked open the door of his apartment, yelling out a greeting as she tried to balance the two large tote bags of food, games and movies she had brought over to help keep him entertained and fed as he healed up.

"I know you're a purist when it comes to Star Trek but I brought over the reboots because one, Chris Pine is very easy on the eyes and two, Star Trek is Star Trek I mean, as long as someone says 'live long and prosper' you're good, right?"

Her voice trailed off as she padded into his living room only to be met with four pairs of eyes staring back at her. Everyone, including her brother, was wearing black athletic clothes making them look a bit like a goth gymnastics team, she felt like a toddler amongst them in her over-sized sweater and leggings.

Her eyes sought out her brother's in hopes he would explain. Mark's eyes pleaded with her to be understanding and it wasn't until she heard someone clear their throat that she realized she recognized the blue eyes staring back at her,

"I'll, uh, I'll just come help you unpack those bags. Okay, love?" The steel cutting along the edge of his words gave her no time to argue as she felt Billy's large hand pressing into her lower back as he shoved her into the kitchen.

Tripping over her feet, she flung the Star Trek DVD back onto the counter as she rounded on Billy.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" the words were pulverized through her clenched teeth. Her hands curled into fists to prevent them from shaking. She was terrified that these people were back in her brother's life, and only a few days after he had left the hospital because of their recklessness.

"It's so lovely to see you too! I missed you and your warm bedside manner so much darling." He snarled back as she crossed her arms over her chest.

"Now is not the time. Last time you showed up in my life you almost got my brother killed. You better explain yourself now or I'm grabbing the broom and beating everyone in that room out the door and then breaking the broom over your head personally."

Blue eyes widened till she could see the whites all the way around them, "How are you allowed to take care of people? You should be locked up by the pigs not me." He swiveled around, grabbing a beer from the fridge and popping the top off by putting the lid of the bottle against the rim of the counter and hitting it with the heel of his hand.

Peering out of the corner of his eye he saw her eyes widen, a flush building in her cheeks. She hated how that simple action had sent a flash of warmth through her.

Smirking, he turned back to her, bringing the bottle to his lips, taking a long sip as she shook herself from thinking about what other things Billy could do with his hands.

So maybe she had noticed how handsome he was after he had fallen asleep in the hospital. She was only human.

"While I'm so glad you're enjoying my brothers hospitality, maybe you could dignify me with an answer?" She knew the sarcasm dripping from every word was poisonous but she couldn't help herself. Just because she had seen dried tear tracks on Billy's face when she had woken up to check on him in the cool dawn morning and, alright, maybe she had checked the medical records in the hospital for information on him ("It's like Facebook stalking!" her voice rising as she quickly tried to close his records after her co-worker called her out on it.) and maybe her heart had twisted in on itself when she woke up the next morning and he was gone and maybe she had spent a few thousand hours thinking about him and wondering if she would ever see him again didn't mean she wanted him in her life.

Right?

Sighing, Billy leaned back against the counter, crossing his arms as the bottle dangled between two long fingers, "We're planning another job and we asked your brother to do surveillance. All he'll be doing is sitting on that couch," he closed one eye, pointing towards the sofa Mark was currently residing at, "watching security cameras and making sure none of us get caught and warning us of any potential baddies around the corner. It's easy, it's harmless and you could even be sitting next to him babysitting if you're really that concerned about my safety."

Rolling her eyes, she stepped forward to start unpacking the bags, needing something to do with her hands and eyes. Looking right at Billy was like staring at the sun. She feared looking at him for too long would result in permanent damage from his eyes boring into hers, or that the fluttering in her stomach would get stronger the more she talked to him.

She'd be lying if she said she hadn't seen the group Billy ran with around the city. Walking along, earbuds in, minding her own business, she'd hear a thud, look up and instead of squirrels scampering along the telephone wires, it would be people. Executing flips, yelling, jeering, she'd watch in awe while Nurse Brain would be calculating what kind of injuries they'd sustain and how bad said injuries would be if they fell, but they never did.

They looked more comfortable walking in the sky than on the ground. They were flying. Confident. So sure that there would be something there to catch them. She had started calling them "Sky Walkers."

Every time she saw them from then on, she always had an ache in her heart for the rest of the day. She craved the security and confidence they had. She'd looked down at her feet encased in Nike's, cursing them for staying ground to the tiled floor of the hospital.

"All I know is, last time my brother got mixed up with you guys, he showed up at my hospital, bloody and unconscious." Her shoulders hunched forward as anger drained from her body thinking about how frightened she had been. "Can you blame me for being scared?"

This last sentence was almost missed by Billy. But seeing her look so defeated, Billy's heartstrings tugged. Mark talked about his sister a lot. It was clear they took care of each other. He had always wondered what it would have been like to have that consistency.

Placing Tupperware on the kitchen table, the silence stretched out as Billy sized her up. Finally, her eyes rose, meeting his underneath the harsh fluorescent light. The eyes staring into hers were calculating but not cold. They weren't the eyes of a doctor, sizing up a patient and only seeing a maze of veins, arteries and organs that with the right snip or stitch could be fixed. His was a gaze that peeled back the layers of skin and bone, seeing right into the most vulnerable parts of yourself.

"You've noticed that your loans are almost entirely paid off. Haven't you." It wasn't a question. It was a statement. Billy had been the one to walk Mark through the steps to help pay off her loans without it being suspicious. He had heard her on the other end of the line when she called to tell Mark how much her loans had gone down. The voice on the other end high-pitched, tinny, but the love between them so palpable he had to leave the room.

Her eyes darted down as she busied herself carrying Tupperware over to the fridge, her hair a curtain over her profile as she leaned down to place it in the fridge. "He loves you, you know. A lot. That's the only reason he took the gig." He took a sip of beer, watching her frame, way too still to not be listening, peering into the fridge but not seeing anything. "He's friends with Jean, the mastermind, out there and when he complained about how unfair it was of you to have so many loans, Jean offered him a cut of the benefits if he helped us with the job."

She didn't feel the coolness of the fridge air wafting over her, she felt nothing but enormous guilt. She was the reason he had been injured. That he was mixed up in this crowd. She was the reason he was putting himself in harms way and if he died? It would be all her fault.

Billy, chuckled to himself as she was gripped in the throes of an existential crisis, "Jean's a good guy but I think he mainly knew having a nurse in our good graces would be immeasurably helpful."

His eyes widened as she turned to face him, flecks of mascara caught in the tears moving down her face but she didn't seem to notice them streaking down. It seemed like she barely noticed him, "You have to keep an eye on him. Please. If anything happens to him-because of me-I-I don't..." her voice trailed off.

Billy crouched down, cupping her shoulders as he pressed his forehead into hers, "Hey. Hey, love. Love? Look at me, focus on my voice, okay?" He pulled back so he could look into both of her eyes. With enormous effort she pulled herself back to this moment, in her brothers kitchen, crouched on the floor with a Sky Walker. "I'll keep an eye on him. He's one of us now. We look after our own, got it? We always do." She nodded, searching his eyes for any sign of lying but there was none. Just warm, blue skies, promising her that from then on out, everything would be fine.

After their rendezvous in the kitchen, Billy had gone back to the living room to plan while she had splashed cold water on her face and pulled herself together. By the time she slunk out of the kitchen, arms wrapped around herself, everyone was leaving and Billy had his arm around a brunette girl who reeked of sexual experience and danger.

She was pretty sure she reeked of "Christmas Cookie" hand sanitizer and sexual frustration.

Billy caught her eye as he strolled out of the room, winking at her as he walked past.

Her heart caught in her throat at the action but remembered how his girlfriend was someone who flew through the air with enormous ease and she was someone who was locked on the ground.

Patching her brother up came easy to her. She wished it had been the first time she had fixed him up but that would be a lie. She went over to his apartment a few times a week. Sometimes the other Sky Walker's would be there, sometimes not. Most of the time if they were over, they spent their time planning the next big heist. Maps and blueprints covered every available surface and surveillance footage became a comforting background noise as she would prep dinner or check Mark's ankle and help him do physical therapy.

Sometimes it would just be Jean hanging out, playing video games with Mark. The first dinner he joined them for, she found she could barely look at him. The resentment towards him still a solid rock in her stomach.

A few meals later, Jean gently tugged her into the living room after she had gotten Mark set up in bed, "Alright. I know why you won't look at me. Let me have it."

He had sat on the couch for over an hour, hands folded in his lap, nodding as she ripped him a new one, getting out all of her fear and anger. Once she had run out of steam and was standing in front of him, he had taken her hands in his, making the same promise Billy had. That Mark was one of their own now. He would do everything he could to take care of him. The eyes peering back up at her were full of nothing but sincerity.

Glancing down, she sniffled, peering at their hands intertwined, "You have questionable tattoos." Jean barked out a laugh, "You think mine are bad? You should see some of Billy's."

From then on, she looked forward to having the Sky Walker's around. Whenever she entered Mark's apartment in the weeks leading up to the mission, her heart would speed up in anticipation.

Sometimes it would come crashing to the ground when she saw no sign of Billy. Other times, she was positive individuals could see her heart beating through her shirt when her eyes caught his from across the room.

The only downer was, if Billy was there, that usually meant his girlfriend, Cassandra, was there as well.

She had tried, a valiant effort in her opinion, to make nice with her. Most of the time, they were the only girls around. Working to find common ground with Cassandra was proving to be a difficult task, mainly because Cassandra would fix her with a blank stare until she slunk back into the kitchen to restock Mark's fridge.

The last straw for her had been when she had walked into Mark's apartment, yelling hello only to look up and see Cassandra fixing her with a blank stare and sharpening a knife

She quickly found that anyone who carried their own knife sharpening kit was someone she didn't particularly trust. It made her nervous then, that Billy did so much.

But she didn't want to interfere. She didn't want to think about all the lethal ways Cassandra could injure her with that blade if she found out she had meddled in her relationship.

When Billy was there, she could hardly stop the grin that threatened to split her face as she busied herself in the kitchen making food for everyone, jumping every time someone came into the kitchen, waiting for Billy to come in under the guise of getting a beverage but always stopping to chat with her.

Those stolen minutes in the kitchen with Billy were quickly becoming her favorite times.

She hadn't meant to develop a crush on Billy, but, how could she not? Other than the physical reasons, (she had once seen him take his shirt off to try on a new one and she almost dropped a whole bowl of soup into Mark's lap) he was genuine. Ever since he had looked into her eyes and promised to take care of her brother, he had kept that promise.

When plans would change, he'd come into the kitchen and update her. He'd tell her all the different contingency plans they had. And while she knew her brother wasn't going on this mission, she still felt a sense of peace wash over her as he walked her through the plan.

There was one night she asked him, "How did you even get into the Sky Walker stuff?" Coughing on the sip of beer he'd just downed, he made a choking noise, "The what stuff?"

Blushing, she realized she had let slip the private name she had called them ever since she first saw them leaping through the sky, "Umm, Sky Walkers? It's dumb, I know, but I saw you guys months ago leaping over buildings and wires and to me, from the ground, it was like you were walking on the sky, like you had mastered the force and the elements and I've called you that ever since..." her voice trailed off as Billy sat down next to her.

Laying his arms on the table, a smirk played across his lips, "Well, now that I know you're a huge Star Wars nerd, you're even cuter." his eyes dancing with mirth.

Her heart sank at that. She knew Billy didn't feel the same way about her (why would he when he had Cassandra slinking around out there waiting out for him to join her in the sky) but her heart still leaped at the knowledge that he thought she was cute.

His eyes fixed on an unseen spot as he mulled the name over, "I gotta say, I like the name Sky Walkers. Might bring that up to the whole team. Give you full credit and trademark rights of course." He winked and she giggled as she pulled her mug of tea closer.

"Why don't you join us in the living room? You're always welcome. And I have insider intel that when Jean's over, you two hang out like you're best friends. So why don't you want to hang out with me?" He made an exaggerated pouty face at her as she struggled to not lean over and bite his exposed bottom lip.

"Because you annoy me" she said primly as she lifted her mug to her mouth, then before she could stop herself, "and I don't think your girlfriend likes me very much."

The tea was scalding but she forced herself to take a long sip so she wouldn't have to look at Billy's face.

Billy sat there, studying her, she seemed so out of place with the dark clothes that were rotating in and out of Mark's place. They'd all be caught up in planning, then she'd come bursting into the apartment and it was like she was bringing sunshine in with her.

She painted her nails with pink sparkles, she watched romantic comedies, she told him about the little kids she played with in the hospital on her rounds, she laughed easily, she engaged with the other members of the crew, pulling them into her warmth, her goodness. She had patched all of them up at one time or another. The more she got to know the whole crew, the more she relaxed and the more she relaxed, the more Billy found sunshine spilling through her cracks and coaxing him towards her warmth.

But then, Cassandra would lazily lift an eyebrow at him, nod her head and he'd leave with her. He'd known Cassandra since he joined the Sky Walkers. They'd just recently started...well...he wouldn't call it "dating" so much as he and Cassandra would do a job together and then have mind blowing sex after when adrenaline made them both want to explode out of their skins.

He was starting to realize though that he and Cassandra didn't...talk. Not like how Billy talked to (Y/N).

He laid out his hands on the table, looking at his fingers. They were calloused, rough, covered in tattoos. Her hands were soft despite having to wash them a million times a day. ("I use lotion every day, multiple times a day, how do you not own lotion Billy?" He had walked into Mark's apartment the next day only to be met with a bottle of Bath and Body Works hand lotion being thrown at him by Mark. His heart had squeezed in his chest, making it hard for him to breathe.) and her nails were adorned with pink sparkles. His own nails were busted and, he was pretty sure, had dried blood under them.

He had no business thinking the butterflies that erupted in his stomach every time she smiled at him meant anything more than she was cute and he liked cute women. Never mind that if she said Cassandra didn't like her he was on the verge of saying he'd dump her.

"Yeah, well. Cassandra doesn't like too many people. I wouldn't worry about it too much." He slapped his hands on the table pushing himself up. Lifting her eyes from her mug she watched him retreat back into the living room, the muscles of his back moving and shifting as he made his way back to the Sky Walkers, slipping easily onto the arm of the chair Cassandra was lazing in.

She really hated how good they looked next to each other.

She finished her tea, listening to them finalizing plans and making arrangements for the job, which would happen the day after next.

She had been hoping she'd have a shift scheduled at the hospital but no such luck.

Sighing, she stood up to rinse her mug out. In less than 48 hours she would be back here, sitting with Mark, trying to keep herself occupied and to not care too much that Billy was out there and she couldn't do anything to keep him safe.

~~~

The job went awry so quickly.

She didn't know what to make of it. One minute she had been sitting on Mark's sofa, curled up with a book as Mark sat at his desk, surrounded by monitors. Listening to him call out commands, chuckle softly at jokes, the sharp tap of keys as he disconnected security cameras or diverted them away from where the Sky Walkers were prowling.

For a while, she had been standing behind him, watching all of this happen as the group slipped through the halls of a lavish hotel. Tapping Mark's shoulder, in an over exaggerated whisper, she told him to tell the team that she said good luck and that if any of them got injured she "wouldn't patch them up because then they wouldn't learn anything."

Mark rolled his eyes and obliged, reaching a hand down to squeeze (Y/N)'s in a reassuring gesture.

Through Mark's headset, she heard the team giving their thanks, promising her that this job would do away with the rest of her loans and they'd be back to her before she knew it. Billy had looked dead set into the nearest security camera and winked as he promised he'd come back in one piece.

A gasp flew form her parted lips as her brother cleared his throat, reminding Billy to get his ass moving and to stop flirting with his sister.

Then, shit hit the fan.

It started with her hearing Billy's roughly accented voice piercing through Mark's headphones, yelling about the jewels being fakes.

Mark talked him through it, as Jean yelled back at Billy which is when Mark started yelling.

That's when she had heard gunshots.

Everything was a blur after that. She ran to the monitors and thought she was looking at a video game. There were so many men with guns running towards where the Sky Walkers were she assumed it was an army of some sort. She saw the flash of guns discharging and people she knew, people she had come to love, fall to the ground where she hoped like hell they would get back up again.

Part of her wanted to call her hospital, pull some strings and help as many of them as she could but Mark had pulled her into his chest, telling her it was no use.

In the confusion and mayhem she thought she had seen Billy, necklace clamped firmly between his teeth, jumping through a window but she couldn't be sure.

So, she and Mark had to sit and wait. Till Jean came back.

Just Jean.

He explained what had happened as he and Mark sat at the kitchen table, nursing a bottle of whiskey. She had stayed for one drink but the grief didn't feel like one she could share in.

She finally left, as she walked away, each step thudded to the ground while the only refrain that carried her home was billybillybillybillybillybillybilly. It wasn't until she found herself standing outside of her front door that she realized her body had carried her home while her thoughts had been in the sky.

Her body felt heavier, though she knew that a part of her heart had died in Mark's apartment that night and she wasn't sure if it would ever be whole again.

Her body was on autopilot as she stepped into the shower but each drop of water hitting her back felt like a knife.

She knew Cassandra and the rest of the team were there to help him. No matter how she felt about Cassandra personally, she knew she was part of the team. They were there for back up but so many people were in the fray.

So many people gone.

The water had gone cold by the time she stepped out of the shower. Not that she could feel it anyway.

Braiding her hair, she settled down on the chair by her window. It overlooked the fire escape she would lounge on with a glass of wine on nice summer nights.

Tonight it was empty, utilitarian. Only reminding her of how many Billy had fallen through as he tried to get away.

She leaned her head against the window, feeling the glass pushing back against her skull. Easing the dull ache that throbbed within as she closed her eyes.

~~~

That's where she had been when she heard the first thump.

Sleep had been within her grasp when she heard the second thump.

Groggily reaching into her sweatpants pocket, she pulled her phone out and saw it was 3:14 am.

There were no texts or calls from Mark.

She sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose, wondering if it was her neighbors making that noise.

The third thump rattled her window causing her to jolt out of her chair.

Slowly, she reached her hand forward, nudging the blinds back, letting her eyes adjust to the nighttime as the lights from street lamps below worked to permeate the darkness that covered the world. That's when she saw the dark lump of something on her fire escape.

Squinting her eyes, her first thought was, why would someone throw their garbage bag onto my fire escape?

Flicking on the lamp she had by the window, it cast an uneven glow over the lump revealing dark clothes and athletics shoes spattered with blood.

The figure raised its head and time slowed down in those moments. The wan light drifting up from below barely illuminated the eyes staring back at her but she'd know the color anywhere. Those blue eyes, the color of her sky, was the only way she knew it was Billy.

The rest of him resembled a man who had scrabbled his way back from hell. His face was covered in scraps and tears. His visage and hands covered with dried blood. There was a wound on his neck that was slowly leaking blood but had started to congeal into a nasty mess.

His hair was matted to his head. His right eye was ringed in the blues and blacks of the beginnings of a nasty black eye. Sweat shined on his face as he blearily took in her face. He did his best to fight the smile breaking over his lips but he was so grateful to see her he barely noticed when his lips cracked even more.

As she opened the window she heard someone panting "thank god thank god thank god" and it took her a minute to realize that the prayer was falling from her lips. She bundled Billy into her apartment, setting him down on the chair by the window, still warm from her body.

She locked the window, drawing her curtains closed and rushed over to the front door, double checking it had been locked as well. For extra security she pushed one of her kitchen chairs underneath the door knob.

Hearing a snort she turned, "You watch too many bad gangster movies as a kid?"

Fighting against the lump in her throat, her voice came out thick as she tried to match his snark, "Yeah, well. You'll thank me later when the bad guys are stopped by my Ikea chair."

He heaved out a sigh that she supposed was as close as he could get to a laugh in his state. Sinking deeper into the chair, hissing as he finally allowed his body to relax. Nurse Brain kicked in as she took stock of his body, where he was holding tension, where he was avoiding putting pressure, assessing how old the cuts were. After a quick run down, she raced to her freezer.

Filling her arms with every bag of frozen veggies she had, she quickly wrapped them in paper towels, briskly walking back over to Billy's form. She watched the rise and fall of his chest, listened to the rattle of every intake, so grateful for each shuttery breath.

The grateful feeling was quickly overcome by anger. This asshole.

This was the second time he had shown up to throw himself at her mercy in a horrific state. She almost wished he were dead. She felt her knees shake, betraying how grateful she was that he was alive and in her apartment.

Instead of telling him all that though, she slapped a bag of frozen peas on his eye.

Yelping, his body curled inward as his hand reached up to catch the bag, pressing the peas back into place, "What the fuck? These are bloody freezing. I barely make it out alive and you're trying to kill me with frost bite from," he pulled the bag back squinting at it, "frozen peas?"

"Oh I'm so sorry that the frozen veggies I slapped on your busted face so you don't swell up like a fucking balloon aren't to your liking. My sincerest apologizes your majesty." She hissed out as she slapped another bag on his side as he let out a grunt.

He pressed a hand to the bag against his side as she mumbled, her fingers dancing over his form as she poked and prodded, trying to feel what the damage was, what she could do for him here and if he needed to get to a hospital.

"Couldn't make this experience a little more pleasant could ya?" He didn't mean to be a dick but in his defense, he had had a hell of a day. The job didn't go at all like they planned, he'd lost friends, Cassandra turned out to be a backstabbing thief, he didn't get the necklace, he'd fallen from the top of a building and then, to really just make the day fucking wild, when he'd come too, some weirdo had offered him the strangest proposition he'd ever heard after pretending he was going to kill Billy.

So, yeah. He was a little grumpy.

"You're lucky I even let your sorry ass into my apartment. How do you even know where I live anyway?"

"I've been having you followed by my top men."

"You asked Mark didn't you."

"Fuck."

Her lips quirked up for a second as she finished rotating his foot around checking for any swelling or broken bones. Standing up she declared, "You don't have anything seriously wrong or broken on you which is a fucking miracle. Just some bad scraps that I can take care of here." She made her way to the hall closet where she kept a first aid kit and other medical accessories. Ever since Mark sliced his hand open one Thanksgiving which had been dubbed the "Bloodiest Thanksgiving Since The Pilgrims Landed" she figured she'd better be stocked.

Billy sank lower into the chair. Leaning his head back he let out a sigh, hearing (Y/N) mumbling to herself, rattling around, he could almost pretend that he had come over under normal circumstances.

Hearing the soft thud of her footfalls, he cracked an eye open as she pulled a stool closer to his face. Looking up at him through her eyelashes, she started pouring something on a cotton ball, "If you thought the frozen peas were bad you're really gonna hate this."

"What could be worse than-" his sentence was cut off by a strangled cry as she pressed the cotton ball onto the scrap by his eye. Slamming his fists on the arms of the chair, he felt his body seize up as he fought to keep control, "Fucking hell (Y/N). Seriously, they should revoke your nurses license."

"You keep disrespecting me like that and I'm just going to dump this whole bottle on you." She snapped at him. Billy pried his eyes open as he took deep breaths. He turned his head to face her, opening his mouth to fire off another comment when he glanced down at her hands and stopped.

She was getting more of the disinfectant on the floor and her legs than she was getting on the cotton ball held in her hand. Her voice managed to be strong and sure but her hands told a different story. One of anxiety, one of worry, one of relief.

"Were you worried about me baby?" His voice was so soft that for a second she wondered if someone else had entered her apartment. Locking eyes with him, she thought about how just hours before, she had been certain she would never see his face again.

Never joke with him again, talk to him, share a quiet moment with him, never learn everything about him, never sit with him at their own kitchen table one day.

She wanted that. She wanted hours and days and months and years of kitchen table talks with Billy. Feeling the relief at having him back with her, she didn't even think about her next actions.

She leaned forward and kissed him...only to pull back immediately, "Oh my god I'm such an idiot. Your lip is so busted, I'm so sorry I shouldn't have done that, that was so dumb and what if I had hurt you even more? That would have been terrible-"

Billy's hand reached up, cupping the back of her head and pulling her into him. Her lips were soft and he bet a hundred bucks that she used chapstick every day. He knew his lips were chapped, cracked and probably coated in dried blood but he didn't care. Feeling her pressed against him helped take away the fear he had been trying to tamp down ever since the maniac in the garage had pretended to kill him.

Finally pulling back he let out a shaky laugh, "Were you really that worried I wouldn't come back to you, love?"

"No, I was worried that you wouldn't help me pay off my loans. Fuck your safety, I needed money." She was trying to get them back to their usual banter but the big gulps of air she was taking betrayed how she was really feeling.

"You were worried about me. You wanted me to be safe and come back to you in one piece. Don't deny it." The smugness of his voice made her smile as she pressed a kiss to his cheek and whispered in his ear, "You ever tell anyone I said this and I'll deny it but, yes."

She pulled away, placing the cotton balls and bottle on the floor, giving herself some time to collect herself as Billy reached his hands toward her, grabbing her own and rubbing his thumbs over the backs of her hands, sending sparks up her arms right into her heart.

Her heart ached for both of them. They both had lost so much today but they were lucky enough to be able to come back to each other. Billy heaved a sigh and looked up at her, "You were right."

"I usually am but what specifically was I right about in this instance?"

"You're a giant pain in my ass. About Cassandra. She wasn't trustworthy. Left me hanging off the edge of a building, stole the necklace and left the rest of the team behind," he brushed a piece of her hair out of the way, letting his fingers linger on her cheek, "should have listened to you."

Blushing, she leaned her cheek into Billy's palm, "Hmm, I could get used to hearing you tell me that." Billy chuckled as she straightened up and fixed him with a glare, "You just have to keep promising me you're going to come back to me in one piece."

Billy's eyes darkened, shifting in the chair as he remembered the deal the man in the room had proposed to him. Being able to go completely off the grid. Everything wiped clean. He would be a ghost.

But being in (Y/N)'s apartment, holding her hands in his, having her smile, kiss and hold him...he wondered if he had made the right decision.

"I'll do my best, darling." He muttered, purposefully not saying promise because he knew, some day soon, he would break that promise and he didn't know if he'd be able to live with himself knowing he had broken her trust.

Placing a soft kiss on his lips, she stroked the side of his face with her thumb. Sniffing she shook her head slightly, "Alright. Quit distracting me, I need to finish patching you up."

He chuckled, "Would it kill you to be nice to me? I mean, we just had an incredibly tender moment and I did have a pretty rough day..." his voice trailed off as he widened his eyes in an attempt to gain sympathy. She scoffed as she grabbed the cotton balls and disinfectant again.

"I suppose falling from the top of a building would kind of ruin your day. Now hold still. And don't be a baby." She dabbed the soaked cotton ball on the scrap on his neck, intertwining her fingers with his as he hissed out a breath. Squeezing his fingers, she murmured apologizes and encouragement, "I'm sorry my love, it's okay. Breathe. You're doing great."

After slapping some band-aids on the worst of the cuts ("What, no Spiderman Band-Aids?") she helped him to the shower, leaving him to wash off the day as she went to her room to find some sweats for him. Luckily, she had nicked plenty of Mark's sweatpants over the years so she laid those and a shirt out for Billy to find when he came into the room from his shower.

Hearing the door open, she looked up only to be met by a shirtless Billy, hair slicked back, chest damp, towel riding low on his hips. She didn't mean for the sharp intake of breath to be so audible but it was worth it when it earned her a smirk from Billy as he crossed over to her.

"Even beat up all to hell, still not a terrible sight, huh?"

Swallowing thickly she just nodded her head in agreement. Not trusting herself to speak she quickly turned and grabbed the clothes she laid out, shoved them into his arms and left, the sound of Billy chuckling following her out into the living room.

Settling onto her couch she fiddled with the end of her braid, contemplating why she had seen anguish flash through Billy's eyes when she made him promise to come back to her in one piece. She had definitely noticed the lack of the word "promise" when Billy answered her request.

The timeline of what happened since he fell didn't make much sense either. If Billy had fallen from the building, then where had he been for so long? There was no way somebody would have ignored a body laying unconscious in the street, especially with cops swarming the building.

"Baby? Hey. I can sleep on the couch. I don't mind."

Jolting out of her thoughts, she blinked as she came back to the present moment, Billy standing over her, "No! You shouldn't be sleeping on a couch. You can sleep in my bed."

"I've been waiting for an invitation to your bed for a long time baby." She flushed as she pushed herself off the couch. Grabbing Billy's hand, they walked back to her bedroom. Settling themselves under the covers she was gripped by a sudden wave of anxiety, should she try to cuddle with him? Would he want space now? Did she want to give him space? He was the one sharing her bed.

The anxiety melted away when she heard a voice in her ear, "Come here, love. I won't bite. Unless you're into that." She giggled she turned her body to face his, nuzzling her face into his chest, breathing in the smell of him as he wrapped his arms around her, pressing a kiss onto the top of her head.

Stroking her back, they drifted off to sleep. Their breathe synching up as they finally felt safe from the world as they created their own little one in each others arms.

The light streaming into her apartment caused her to stir. Stretching her body out she almost forgot that she had shared a bed with Billy last night. When she remembered, she was gripped with panic when she realized he was no longer there. Leaping from the bed, she raced into her living room, making sure that the door hadn't been busted down and Billy had been taken while she'd been sleeping. She knew it was illogical or she'd have to be the most sound sleeper on the planet but she still exhaled a breath when she saw her door was still locked and the chair underneath it still in place.

"Gotta say, I did sleep better knowing that we were protected by your highly sophisticated security system." She turned at the sound of his deep voice, he was standing at her stove, cooking eggs as he smiled at her, "Did you really think I'd leave you like I did the first time we met?"

Shaking her head she went to him, wrapping her arms around his waist, exhaling as he wrapped one arm around her shoulders, using his other arm to keep stirring the eggs. "Don't scare me like that. I thought you got taken and I'm not Liam Neeson. I have no skills to use to find you." His chest rumbled with laughter, "Well, Liam Neeson isn't as pretty as you but you're crafty. I'd trust you to find me."

Placing a kiss onto his chest, she giggled, "Do you want coffee?" he nodded, "Also, how are you feeling today?"

"Sore. Like I fell from the top of a building and landed on concrete."

"Huh. Interesting. Did you do anything out of the ordinary yesterday?" Faux innocence lacing her voice as she measured out coffee grounds.

"Yeah. I fell from the top of a building and landed on concrete." Was Billy's deadpan response which had her cracking up which made Billy laugh at how hard she was laughing.

They finally pulled themselves together and stared at each other, him smiling, her hiccuping as she wiped at her eyes, "We're some pretty sick fucks for laughing at something like that, huh?"

He shrugged, "Probably. But it feels good to laugh. Especially with you."

After breakfast had been cleared away, Billy had stretched out on the couch, more bags of frozen peas on his various injuries. She came out of the kitchen, taking a moment to enjoy the peace before she broached the inevitable, "So, we should probably see Mark and Jean at some point. They're going to want to know you're okay."

Billy grunted in agreement, tipping his head back to look at her, "Yeah. That's not a bad idea. They're going to be pissed I came to you first before them though."

"I don't think so. I think they're just going to be relieved that you're alive. Plus, I am a nurse. It'd make sense to come to me and not those two chuckle fucks." She padded over to the couch, standing over him. "If you had gone to them first they would have just brought you to me anyway."

"That's true." He gazed up at her before grabbing her hands and tugging her down. Resisting, she giggled, "I don't want to fall on top of you and hurt you more, but I'll lie down next to you if you want."

He nodded eagerly, shifting his body over on the couch to make room for her, she curled up against him. Their legs intertwining as she splayed a hand over his chest, the rise and fall of his chest a balm to her anxiety and helping root her to him.

Inhaling deeply, then instantly regretting it at how it caused his ribcage to feel like it might crack, Billy felt more content here than he ever had in his entire life. He wanted to capture this feeling, bottle it, find a way to make it permanent. Make it stick so he wouldn't have to do what he knew was coming.

Sighing, (Y/N) snuggled closer, and his heart broke at how cruel he was being, how selfish. But he couldn't help it. He had asked for 24 hours and by god if he wouldn't make the most of them.

"Hey." he murmured into her hair, she made a noise in the back of her throat that made his heart skip a beat. He brought two fingers to her chin, tilting her head back so she'd be forced to look at him. A slow grin traveled across her lips as he drank in her face, memorizing every part of it so he'd never forget. He had done it so many times in Mark's apartment in shitty lighting that in good lighting, it was like seeing your favorite painting in person instead of through a computer screen.

Leaning down, he brought his lips to hers. Cupping his cheek with her hand, she kissed him back, relishing in how good it felt to be able to do this instead of just imagining it. Pulling back she smiled, resting her forehead against his.

"What is it, baby?"

"It just...you have no idea how long I've wanted this. And to finally be able to do it...I don't know. It feels really good to have you here, with me. Like this." Widening her eyes she pulled back, "Not like, you being injured but like being with you in this, way." Her voice trailing off when she became bashful at how vulnerable she had just been.

The wave of love, adoration and warmth he felt for her crested over him, causing his eyes to fall closed to keep the tears at bay. He didn't deserve this, he didn't deserve her. But, fuck, he would make the most of this time with her and make sure she knew how much he loved her.

Tilting his head back down, he locked their lips together. She moved her lips against his, memorizing their curves, their slopes, how they fit together. Her hand cupped his cheek, being mindful of his black eye and the various scraps covering the planes of it.

Feeling her hands caress his face with care, Billy became overcome. He was upset, guilt-ridden and worried he had made the wrong decision. Fighting to keep himself in the moment, he deepened the kiss, gripping her waist with an intensity that startled her. She jolted forward, causing Billy to groan when her heat made contact with the bulge that was growing larger by the second.

"Damn baby, we've only been kissing for a minute, quit trying to get into my pants already."

"You wish I was trying to get into your pants." her lips brushed against his with every other word and she could feel him smiling. He nipped at her bottom lip, causing her to gasp which allowed him ample time to connect their lips, exploring her mouth with his tongue. Their hands drifting up and down their sides, exploring as they got more comfortable with each others forms.

Dancing her fingers down his arms, she felt the muscles clenching and unclenching as his hand found her hip and squeezed causing her to moan involuntarily. Smirking, he ran his hand up and over the rise of her hip, trailing his fingers down into the dip of her waist. She snuggled closer to Billy, breathing in coffee, disinfectant and the unmistakable scent that was Billy.

Draping his arm over her waist, he pulled her even closer to him. Feeling his hardening length in his sweatpants she tested the waters by circling her hips against him. Causing a moan to erupt from his mouth and throw his head back in ecstasy.

"Baby, what's the professional nurses opinion of having sex when someone's injured? Asking for myself because if I don't have sex with you tonight I just may toss myself off another building."

Giggling, she ran her fingers through his hair, pushing it back from his forehead so she could look in his eyes, "In a nurses opinion? Probably not. But in (Y/N)'s personal opinion? Who gives a shit I've wanted to fuck you since the first day I saw you."

Locking his eyes onto hers, her breath hitched in her throat at the intensity of his gaze. His normally sky blue eyes were the color before a storm and his hand was locked onto her hip with a strength that she couldn't wait to explore later.

"Then get up here, baby, and fuck me how you've always wanted to."

Swinging her leg over, she found herself straddling Billy, placing her hands on his chest, she felt the large planes of his chest expanding as he took a shaky breath in, his eyes glassy. Flicking her hair back she leaned forward to kiss him deeply, "What baby?"

Shaking his head he cleared his throat, "Nothing. Just, dammit baby. You look like a goddess."

Blushing she bent down to nip at his throat, causing him to buck his hips up, causing his hard length to rub against her clothed cunt causing them both to dissolve into moans. Pushing herself up, she started rocking her hips teasingly along his cock.

Whining in the back of his throat he begged, "Please, love, I don't care, just fuck me. Please."

Shocked at the control she had over this man, she ripped the t shirt she had been wearing over her head, exposing her tits and black underwear she had been wearing. Billy keened and grasped her tits, causing her to push her chest forward, the feel of his calloused palms teasing her nipples caused her eyes to roll into the back of her head.

Billy reached his hands down, shimmying his sweatpants and underwear down far enough so his cock sprang up between them, her mouth watering at how thick it was. Stroking her center through her panties with two fingers he cocked an eyebrow at her, "I can't exactly fuck you through these so they'll have to go. I don't care how sexy they are."

Laughing, she stood up on the couch, resting one hand on the wall as she shimmied the panties down her legs, kneeling back over Billy's exposed length when Billy stopped her, "Wait, hold on a second baby." He teased one finger, then another into her dripping core, pumping in and out slowly as she rocked her hips forward trying to get more of him into her.

Billy slowly dragged them out, popping his fingers into his mouth and holding eye contact with (Y/N) as he sucked his fingers clean, relishing the sweet taste of her, "Okay, baby. I think you're wet enough."

"Damn right I am." She murmured as she sank down onto his hard cock, taking his full length, resting her hands on Billy's strong chest pushing her tits together in the most delicious way Billy had ever seen. His hands found purchase on her hips as she started rocking back and forth, working his length. Feeling his cock stretching her walls in the most amazing way, she tilted her pelvis in that way she knew would have his cock nudging her g-spot, getting her closer to where she wanted to be, which was total ecstasy with Billy.

Billy's eyes screwed closed as she found her rhythm and worked his cock, trying to reach her orgasm. His whole body felt like an exposed fuse, bursting with energy and if she touched him in the right way he would combust.

"Billy, please, rub my clit..." she panted as she rocked her hips faster, Billy could feel her walls clenching as she went faster and he reached down, rubbing the sensitive nub with his calloused fingers, causing her eyes to roll into the back of her head as she chased her high, "Is that what you want baby? Yeah? You wanna come all over this cock?" Billy mumbled as she stared up at the angel fucking herself over on his cock. He almost came seeing how blissed out she was but then he rubbed a little harder on her clit and it pushed her right over the edge. She came with a strangled cry of "Billy!" and her walls clamped down as she fell forward into his chest.

"There's a girl, such a good girl. My best girl. My only girl. Oh my love, taking me so well..." Billy mumbled as he stroked her hair, "Now, let me take over." She nodded as Billy grasped her hips and started slamming his hips against hers, causing her to moan out, feeling her pussy tighten again as he brought a hand down to her ass, the sound of the sharp slap reverberating through her apartment.

Distantly, in the back of her mind, she wondered if this was good for him in his current injured state but being so close to a second orgasm left her with one thought but to cum around his cock again.

Finding a rhythm, their hips met as she pressed her lips to his, catching his moans and hoping to mute her own as they fucked each other into oblivion. All too soon, she felt the familiar catch in her stomach as her second orgasm came around, "Billy..I..I'm so close."

"I know darling, me too. Can you wait? Can you cum with me? Please baby." She nodded as Billy fucked her harder, she rocked her hips faster and then suddenly, Billy let loose a string of expletives and she chanted billy billy billy oh god over and over again like a prayer as she felt him fill her pussy with his warm cum.

After a few minutes, she pulled away from his sweaty chest, pushing her hair behind her ears as she grinned down at him. Grinning back up at her, he tickled her waist, "Normally I can last longer but that sex has been building up for several months."

Throwing her head back she let out a laugh, "Don't worry. I don't plan on stopping having sex with you anytime soon. We have all the time in the world to build up a tolerance to each other."

A dark look washed over Billy's face as he contemplated how little time they had but instead of answering, he pulled her down into another kiss, "Let's just focus on today, love."

~~~

They spent the rest of the day entwined on the couch, mixing it up between lazy make out sessions, sex and her standing up to get the door when the delivery person rang the door to drop off food and beer.

She had asked if Billy wanted her to text Mark and Jean but he just told her he would deal with it soon. So she didn't push it. She knew she was being selfish but she wanted to keep living in this world that consisted of her, Billy and the pizza they ordered alive for as long as she could.

Unfortunately, it ended all too soon as all good things are wont to do. Soon enough, Billy was pulling on his shoes, as it grew dark out, she had been getting comfortable when he knelt down next to the bed. "Listen, love. I need to drop off something to Mark and Jean. Don't wait up for me." He leaned down to press a kiss to her forehead as she lifted her head up to meet him halfway.

"It's late babe, are you sure they'll still be up?" He fixed her with an incredulous look, "It's Mark and Jean. Of course they're still awake." She shrugged as she considered who they were talking about and conceded defeat. "Just come back to me in one piece okay? If you want," she hastily added as she realized he may want to go back to his own home "It's an open invitation. I'm sure you want to go home."

He smiled at her with melancholy in his eyes as he pressed a kiss to one cheek, "With you?" then a second kiss to her other cheek "I'm always home" Biting her lip to contain the smile threatening to break her face in two, Billy decided he had never seen a more beautiful woman and wanted to alway think of her like this.

~~~

She woke the next morning to 25 missed calls from Mark and 33 from Jean. Blearily, she called Mark. Once he picked up and started rambling, she hung up and stared straight up at the ceiling.

It wasn't until Mark came to get her after not hearing from her for hours did she register how damp her cheeks had become. She was numb. Time didn't mean anything, nothing meant anything anymore.

Billy was dead.

He had broken his promise.

~~~

Standing at the edge of a gaping hole in the world, she contemplated throwing herself into it along with the empty casket they'd be burying. She barely registered the low rumbles of a priest talking but not really hearing anything. Billy had gone to Mark and Jean, told them he needed to run a quick errand and gone back to the hotel they had just robbed from. He had been running along the roof, where it overlooked the rocky ledge of the ocean. He had jumped, thinking there was a platform there but there hadn't been. There was Billy, the air and the jagged rocks along the coast the only thing to greet him.

The coast guard searched for hours but had found no body. Just the black rubber bracelet he always wore around his wrist.

Twirling the bracelet between her fingers now, she decided that since the casket was empty, there was no point.

She had been numb since she got the news. Not moving from her couch unless Mark or Jean came to propel her into the shower, make her eat some food. but she really didn't see a point in doing anything anymore.

He had promised.

And now he was gone. So what did it matter what she did? People left, they broke promises, and words and promises didn't mean anything to anyone she guessed. She may as well do anything she wanted.

Lifting her head she saw Mark, Jean and two women who had introduced themselves as Billy's mother and sister. Mark had introduced her as Billy's girlfriend and they murmured how much Billy talked about her but it was all too little too late.

She didn't want to know anyone else other than Billy but that had been ripped from her. Standing at the edge of his grave she felt Mark and Jean grasping her shoulders, telling her they were going to give her some space. So it was just the three of them and as his sister looked at her, she smiled a thin smile, "You're just as pretty as he said you were."

She fell to her knees. It was all too much, She couldn't support herself without Billy. What did it matter? All her skills, all her knowledge about keeping people safe when she couldn't even save the person that mattered most.

~~~

"Oof, there are three certified hotties just weeping over your grave dude. How doe that feel?"

Billy's stomach clenched as he saw (Y/N) fall to her knees at his grave, watching his mother and sister race around to help her. It wasn't until One clapped a hand on his shoulder did he register that he had involuntarily moved forward to help her.

"Nuh-uh bro. Not anymore. Don't even think about doing a Christmas Carol Ghosts of Christmas Past bullshit. I spent way too much money for you to blow this whole operation."

Billy nodded mutely. Keeping an eye on the women around his grave he swallowed around the lump that had been stuck in his throat since he had left (Y/N)'s apartment.

What One had suggested to him had been too good to pass up. And when One had promised, in writing, that (Y/N) would always be kept safe and comfortable, it was a no brainer. And he knew, in his heart of hearts, that she deserved someone better, more stable than him. Not some Sky Walker who always had his head in the clouds.

Who one day may not come back to her.

Taking a deep breath he turned his back on the trio that were surrounding his grave. Sending up a prayer, he hoped she would be safe and would get over him soon. Because he knew he would never get over her for the rest of his short, harrowing life.

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rochiomaru · 3 years

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Writing a story inspired by the song My Demons by Starset. It's basically a string of head cannons that I think about when listening to that particular song.... I think Doffy is cruel, but had a lot of layers underneath that fuel his actions. Just wanted to share.

MY DEMONS

I can’t see anything because the villagers are too cowardly to look us in the eyes. They blindfolded us when they took us from the shack we have been staying in. I can’t see them, but I can hear the violent and hateful words they scream at us.

I can feel the heat of the fire from the villagers burning my skin. The rough stone is digging into my back as I hang against it for, god knows, how many hours now. My arms hurt so much from the ropes that are cutting into flesh. I’m bleeding and aching from countless cuts and bruises all over my body.

Why are they doing this? Why are they so mad at us? We haven’t done anything to any of them. I can hear them yelling about things they said we did, but it’s not true!

I’m crying. Crying for so many things. For the things I lost. My home, my security, my status, my mother… MOTHER!

I can hear my baby brother crying and I want to reach out and save him so much, but I can’t even save myself. I’m so tired of the pain. My stomach hurts from hunger, my body hurts from too many beatings to remember anymore, my heart hurts from missing my moth… I don’t want to think of her anymore.

My head hurts from the emotions and thoughts that constantly swirl and tell me to do things. To get back at them. I was born better than the scum that is doing this to us. Do they not know their place? We were born as gods and they are mere humans! I hate them! I hate my father for doing this to us! He is the one that brought us here. He is the reason my moth… He is the reason she is not here!

I don’t want to hurt anymore…

Suddenly I feel a burning sensation in my stomach, but it is not bad. It almost feels alive. The sound of the vermin is fading into the background as I can hear an electric humming in my ears and I concentrate on the sensation growing within me.

Then a sound breaks through. My brother screams as one of their arrows pierces him. I can no longer control myself and I begin to scream at the filthy garbage. I will kill them all!!! I will paint the walls with their blood and dance on their graves! The feeling within my stomach consumes me and overflows.

I now understand it is power. I can feel it lash out at the villagers, and their angry shouts become screams of terror and pain. It feels so good and I love it!! I delight in their horror. I begin to laugh while the night becomes filled with the smell of blood and sound of death.

************************************************

The next thing I know I can see again, but where am I? Where’s Rosi??? Is he ok? Where are the villagers? I can’t breathe!! All of the pain is gone except for the pain in my chest. I keep gasping for air and just can’t seem to calm myself. I look around and realize that I am in my study, and have been dreaming. I must have dozed off while reading again.

I am covered in sweat and still can’t breathe. I rub my eyes with the palm of my hand and after a couple of seconds realize my glasses are gone! Oh, god! Where are they? No one can see me without them! They’ll know if they see me!

I begin to frantically search for my sunglasses. I knock everything off of the desk and tip over the chair looking for them. No one can know! The thoughts continue to attack my mind until I finally find the glasses where they had fallen under the chase lounge I keep for guests.. I place them back on my face, and only then do I feel as though I can begin to breathe.

I feel my heart begin to slow back to a normal pace and the pain in my chest slowly eases. My head is still filled with the sounds from my dream and I can feel the rage building in my soul again. I realize that I am drowning in my own madness, but I don’t know how to stop the descent.

There are days that I step into my role of god and king that I was born to be. I can close my eyes and remember Mariejois. I have heard the words of “family” members like Trebol and Vergo over the years. I was born better than everyone else. I am destined to be king and am divine.

Though, there are other times as I listen to them and it’s just a facade. I know that my family benefits from me, and I just adore having them close to me. It is these times I have to wonder who is truly pulling the strings among us?

I know that I have imperfections, and should a god be allowed to have any? When I was younger, I would ask Trebol about this and he would tell me not to worry. I know that if he saw my eyes, he would see that I am a monster. Would he still claim I’m divine? Or would he know, as I do, that they are proof of how ugly and imperfect I really am? They are part of why I was cast down from heaven.

The other reason I was thrown into the utter darkness with the vermin of earth is that man I once called my father. I still hate him. Trebol gave me the power to claim vengeance for this betrayal, for the atrocities committed to Roci and me, for my moth…

I still cannot fully bring myself to think of her, or say the word even in my own head…

Once I took my revenge, my beloved brother left me too. I could see the hatred for me in his eyes. Could he not see that I did it for our family? He left me because I killed that man for causing us so much pain. He caused my brother to get hurt and he needed to die! Why couldn’t Rosi understand? Why did Rosi love him more than me? Why didn't Rosi love me?

I blinked a couple of times because the dust in my eyes, I'm sure it's just dust, is making them burn.

It is days like today I think of this and the insanity threatens to swallow me whole. The voices scream in my head for blood and violence and death. However, I know that there are vultures circling and waiting for me to slip. To abandon my true self, so they can pick at the carrion of my soul. They want me to lose my colors, so they can crush me forever and finish the work the villagers started. I know in my heart, if I fully break and lose control, I will die or be killed.

I just want a family. I don’t want to hurt anymore. I want the dreams to stop. I want to be safe, but there is no safety for a monster. I must be a monster, or else why would I be so alone? My “family” says I am divine, but I know the truth.

I pause at that thought, and look at my reflection in the window behind my desk. Only the reflection of the sunglasses look back. Slowly the last of these troubling thoughts fade away until they are locked back into the darkness. I silently hope the dreams stay away, so they can remain sealed forever.

A cruel smile finds its way onto my face as my mind falls into place. I can feel that power rolling in my core again and I turn from the window with my rose colored glasses in place. I take my feathered coat and place it on my royal shoulders before heading out of the study to meet with the executives to discuss business for the day.

I am no longer a Celestial Dragon, nor a broken child. I am now a Heavenly Demon here to bring sweet destruction to the world. I will stand atop of everything and rule with an iron fist, as I was born to do. No one will ever hurt me, or those I love again. If they try, I promise to rain such torment and chaos that the world will be consumed in flames, and I will simply laugh in the pyre.

I am Donquixote Doflamingo, and I am god.

#donquixote doflamingo #my Demons #drabbles #song fic

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benetnvsch · 4 years

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Happy

Pairings: Tsukkiyama (but also not rlly??), past mentioned kurotsuki, past mention oiyama, and kuroken (but also mentioned but for literally like five words)

Word Count: 1068

Warnings: none but it is angsty,,,sorry :(

A/N: h y p er ventilates,,,uhhh,,,this was originally written for my oc’s and I changed it to match tsukkiyama cause I thought it would work with them ajfgsakf,,,sorry if this is ooc,,,also not beta read because i do not know ppl who’d be willing to beta read my stuff rip asjhfgjfs

Also on Ao3: (hereeee)

“Tsukki, I like you,” Yamaguchi says one cold evening. It’s completely out of the blue. He and Tsukishima are sitting on Tsukishima’s bed together, Tsukishima is laying over Yamaguchi’s legs. He has a fantasy book about dragons and kingdoms between his fingers and Yamaguchi’s eyes are glued to his phone and he’s wearing his earbuds and swaying his head to the beat of whatever he’s listening to as if he had never spoken.

I like you.

It was innocent enough but still manages to send chills down Tsukishima’s spine and he can feel the atmosphere grow heavy and the tips of his fingers grow cold. The grey skies outside darken, dimming the room and the rain patters on their dorm room window wildly.

“Oh,” is the beginning of Tsukishima’s ever eloquent response. “Like me as in a friend-like way or like me in a romantic sense?”

Yamaguchi pauses. Thinks. He pauses whatever music is playing on his phone and takes one of his earbuds out. “Um, I like you in a friend-like way for the most part?” He takes out his other earbud and sets down his phone. He straightens up, causing the bed under Tsukishima to slightly dip. “Like I'm pretty sure that it's just platonic but if you asked me on a date I would not say no.” Yamaguchi furrows his eyebrows and his face is tight with concentration, as if he’s debating on what to say next. “And if you kissed me right now, I would probably kiss you back,” he adds. Then, satisfied with all that he said, he nods. “Yeah. That’s all.”

“Oh,” Tsukishima doesn't know quite what to say in response. That was definitely not the answer he expected. Not at all. How would that even work anyway? Would he ever want to go on a date with Yamaguchi? The idea doesn’t sound bad to him but he doesn’t exactly have romantic feelings for him and isn’t that required to date someone? Would he just date Yamaguchi as a friend and hope the romantic feelings would come later? Is that even something he could do?

He looks at the younger boy. Yamaguchi is looking back at him, copper eyes soft yet tired. His face is soft and he radiates patience and safety in a way Tsukishima greatly appreciates. He comes to his conclusion.

“If circumstances were a bit different, I probably could have loved you,” it wasn’t a straight answer, and it definitely wasn’t the answer Yamaguchi probably needed to hear yet hearing himself say it out loud makes Tsukishima’s heart calm down a little because it really is true.

Yamaguchi laughs, loud and sad. The rain still drums at the window.

“Ah, if I were a bit taller, way smarter, and had messier black hair maybe you could have loved me then?” He asks, meaning if we lived in a universe where I was more like Kuroo?

Tsukishima shakes his head. “No,” he replies because he honestly is over Kuroo.

What Tsukishima means is if we lived in a universe where people were more accepting of two boys in love; If we were both a bit more confident and a lot more prideful and if you were a bit more stronger and I was a bit more softer; If we both had more friends outside of volleyball and didn’t spend so much time pining after shitty high school captains and pretty boys with messy hair then maybe I could have loved you.

He means is if we lived in a universe where I didn’t latch onto the first senior who showed my some type of pity over my circumstances instead of just brushing off my attitude and telling me to simply 'do better' and if you didn’t give your entire heart to an ever too prideful captain of a rival school simply because you thought he was everything you weren't then maybe, just maybe, I could have loved you.

Yamaguchi nods sagely as he understands everything Tsukishima is thinking. Maybe he does. Yamaguchi could always see straight through him. “Ah.”

It's silent for a while. Tsukishima listens to the rain. It seems to have gotten quieter too

Then Yamaguchi speaks, “Do you think in some alternate universe we’re dating?”

Tsukishima shrugs. Personally he doesn't believe in alternate universes. This was it. You got one chance and one life to live the way you wanted to and you better not fuck it up. Too late for that he supposes. Just to humor Yamaguchi though, “ Yea, I think so. I’d like to think so.”

Yamaguchi gives a breathily chuckle the same time the rain starts to pour harder again. The sound drums around them. “Do you think we’re happy there?” Yamaguchi asks him.

Tsukishima stills.

Happy ?

Happy’s a big word. And it could have so many meanings. Happy together, or just happy in general?

Tsukishima could have sworn he was happy with Kuroo but then they broke up and Tsukishima realized just how sad he'd been. Tsukishima was broken. Tsukishima was miserable. Kuroo was miserable too, he thinks (Kuroo’s less miserable now, Tsukishima had noticed, ever since that one long haired setter confessed to him). But misery truly does love company and together, they both fueled each other's misery; pushing each other to their limit until one day they snapped.

I guess that one saying is true; hurt people really do hurt people.

But...that's not fully true is it? Yamaguchi struggles too. For the years he's stayed by the other boy's side Tsukishima knows that Yamaguchi is not always happy. He struggles with confidence, he struggles with pride, he struggles with a lot. However, when Tsukishima is with Yamaguchi, no matter how much he is struggling, Yamaguchi is always looking for a way to help out and support Tsukishima. He pushes them both to always do better. Yamaguchi's soft smiles and words of encouragement perfectly balances Tsukishima's sharp edges and snarky tongue.

Kuroo and I...we were two miserable people who hurt each other in an attempt to feel loved but Yamaguchi... When I'm with him I'm not content with just complaining and being hurt. I don’t want to be pitied. I want to be better. He inspires me to be better. We may be hurt but we are hurt together and we are helping each other heal.

Tsukishima nods and smiles. He knows his answer, “Yeah. I think we are happy.”

#tsukkiyama #haikyuu #haikyuu fanfic #angst #i'm sorry #uhhhhhhh #kite writes #that's my personal writing tag #and!!! It rhymes so i like it ^-^#ajsfhkahsjdk #idk how to write properly when doing tags and stuff #which is funny cus like #i can write stories//fanfics relatively well but when just talking to people afgka #0 language skills u feel???

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ecoamerica · 23 days

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youtube

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!

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independentartistbuzz · 3 years

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Good News, Good Music 1.0

Here we are at the end of 2020. We don’t need to tell you that this has been a very hard year. We are feeling beaten down by the bad news and music is the one thing that lifted our spirits again and again and saw us through. We have partnered with our friends at Cyber PR Music to bring you a series of GOOD News from artists who carried on making music in spite of all of the insanity that was happening and continues to grip us. We have cried listening to some of the tracks, felt deeply inspired and yes we laughed as well. What we have seen is the Cyber PR artist community is rich and varied - there are artists from all across the USA included as well as Jamaica, Australia, South Africa, France, Sweden, The UK, Germany and Scotland.

So - we bring you part 1 of our 4 part series GOOD NEWS, GOOD MUSIC.

Please Follow the Spotify Playlist below to hear all of these amazing tracks.

Thanks to all of the artists who shared their music AND their good news.

JVMIE & Lionel Cohen | “We Will Rise Again”

Started A Collaboration From A Quarantine Hotel Room and Got Nominated For A Major Award

We had a crazy year but some great things came out of it! I was forced to leave LA and head back to Australia until things ‘calmed down’ but started a remote collaboration with LA based film composer Lionel Cohen - we received a grant from HOTA (Home Of The Arts Gold Coast) to create an album and we were just nominated for a HMMA Hollywood Music In Media Award :) The whole process of collaborating and talking every day was what helped me keep my sanity throughout this crazy year!

Perle Vybz | “Electric Dancefloor”

Almost Lost Her Partner To COVID And Took The Leap Of Faith To Release Music

My debut single 'Electric Dancefloor' was released on Dec 8th, against the odds. A few months ago , my partner almost lost his life (to COVID). He was hooked up on a ventilator and had a really rough time. At the same time, I lost my main source of income and so, during the pandemic lockdown I had more time on my hands to focus on my music. So I'm glad that in spite of what was happening around me I was able to take that leap of faith and get my music out there.

Arielle Silver | “What Really Matters”

Became Music Connection's Hot 100 Live Unsigned Artists and Bands and Top Prospects 2020 lists in their year-end issue

As COVID shut everything down in April, I leaned into my commitment to authentic connection and inspiring creative expression with the creation of two weekly livestreams: Tomes & Tunes, a weekly show where I interview songwriters about books, and Arielle's Acoustic Happy Hour, both of which are going strong. In June, I released a new album, A THOUSAND TINY TORCHES, along with two official music videos (one shot entirely during quarantine), which have been featured in American Songwriter, Music Connection, and more.And in September, in the wake of closing studios, my sweetheart and I launched a new online yoga studio, Bhavana Flow Yoga, with online classes, workshops, and retail.

Alongside my own sorrow at the pandemic, I have been living a year of creative expansion, and was recently featured in Music Connection's year-end issue on both their Hot 100 Live Unsigned Artists and Bands and Top Prospects 2020 lists.

Hannah Judson | “Deep Sea Diver”

Launched The Backwards Record Release Concept And It Worked!

The 2020 lockdown was an exploration of new ways of doing and connecting. Everything became an experiment as new processes were developed to replace the no longer actionable old ones. I launched the Backwards Record Release for "Stingray," a rock/folk collection of songs. The 8 week campaign started with a socially distanced concert in a chateau courtyard, was fueled by my new podcast the Hannah Judson Beat, conversations with women in music, and concluded with a capstone edition of MUSEfest Online, a music festival I normally produce in major cities that promotes women in music, film, art and culture. I stayed connected with colleagues and fans, envisioned future projects, and maintained momentum and enthusiasm for creative projects, present and future.

Evan Mazunik | “Comfort and Joy”

Funded, Recorded & Released A New Holiday Album

I’m grateful that I was able to successfully fund, record, release, and sell my new holiday album this year.

Eli Lev | “Anywhere We Can Go”

Released A Touching Global Fan Driven Music Video

youtube

I had a powerful experience this year when my music community from all across the world helped me create the music video for 'Anywhere We Can Go.' I was in happy tears editing it and seeing all these wonderful faces come together and make something truly special. Here it is and I hope it brings some joy to folks.

Jeff Oster | “Five Great Mountains”

Found Solace (And Music) In Mother Nature

youtube

I was lucky to spend three months in the fall of 2020 up in Vermont. In the midst of all of the turmoil, Mother Nature just kept on shining. I was able to create this video on my iPhone, in an attempt to capture her beauty.

Beca Dreams | “Calm Before the Storm”

Had A Creative Burst That Resulted In Ad Campaigns & New Singles

It’s been a very challenging year, and yet I’ve somehow managed to have some awesome wins I am super grateful for.

Partnered with Bounty to write/perform Quicker Picker Upper, currently streaming on all major platforms and has gotten over 7M views on Tik Tok and 150K streams on Spotify so far. Composed/performed song for an ad campaign for fashion designer Asher Levine on launching his new groundbreaking LED outerwear line (who’s recently worked with Doja Cat, Lil Nas, Lady Gaga). I also released 2 singles “Calm Before The Storm” and “Taking Time For Myself” and most recently was featured on “Dance Party In The Living Room” by UK producer Fritz von Runte, about making the most of the quarantine.

I feel so lucky to be making music and doing what I love, which has been a huge silver lining during these dark times.

AfriCali | “The Struggle”

Turned An Eviction Into A Special Retreat & Healing Place

Our landlord lost her pilates practice and couldn’t afford her Oakland home so

Our family of four with a baby due any month now had to figure it out and find the humanity in moving out before the lease was up. In the magic of mother earth and without knowing we were blessed with a beautiful place to be away and seven thousand feet above the mountains where we could have this beautiful bundle of joy. Which would turn into a special retreat healing place after our departure this past October.

Akira AK | “Pearl”

Completed His New Release Remotely Over Zoom

My "good news, good music" story is simply how I was able to release 2 major projects this year despite everything that is going on: putting out my second EP and my first music video. The EP in particular had been in the works for 3 years and was SO CLOSE to being done when everything started to shut down, so with the work of my engineer, we set up remote sessions via zoom that helped put the last song over the line and get the release out there! From there I was able to promote it with it's adjacent merch.

As far as my first music video is concerned; I was able to safely show up in person in NYC and film it with the help of a great videographer. The conceptualizing of the video is very special and I think speaks to the experiences some of us have had about going to that special place inside your head where you feel most powerful/comfortable/fierce to deal with whatever is going on externally. The promo for the video was also a success in terms of being able to schedule it on time and put it out there to hype the video itself. And once it was out it was really (unexpectedly) well received!

Those are just my personal success stories and I'm excited to see others' as well!

Monsterboy | “Ain’t Worth the Dime”

Played 60 Livestreams That Reached 7,000 Households

When my husband and I found ourselves without gigs and our small business closed, we decided to go live with our music and stay in touch with our fans. We cobbled together equipment from our home studio and gigging rig, going live in that first week. We really didn't know what to expect. The messages we got from people were so heartwarming, we built a little community for them night after night, reconnecting with existing fans and finding new. In total, we did over 60 live streams during the shutdown and reached over 7k households on some streams. Entertaining and interacting with people was our way to do our part for our community. A podcast found us via the streams and started hiring us to produce music for their shows from it.

Artist: Crotona P., Producer: Pablo Brownbeats | “Silk”

Forged An International Collaboration South Africa and the USA via A Chance Facebook Meeting

I'm Pablo Brownbeats, a producer who has been producing since my youth and creating music for the last 12 years. I just released my new Ep with Crotona P from Rochester New York featuring Street Da Villain, Dj Shawn Touch, KING Flamez all from Rochester New York and SOLO MAJITA from Free State South Africa. The African Ep is available on digital stores and Bandcamp. I enjoyed making this project and it will be an honor to share the leading single Titled Silk.

This project was recorded during the early days of Covid19. Me and Crotona met over Facebook and exchanged some few words and he agreed to do the single (silk) then African EP was born.

Scott Whitfield | “A Bi-Coastal Christmas, Vol. 1, by Scott Whitfield & Friends”

Released A Christmas Album That Features Artists Who Have Passed That Started Recording in 2004.

Despite the challenges, I was able to release a Christmas album on Bandcamp! It's available as a digital download OR a physical CD. This is the culmination of MANY years of work (some tracks date back to 2004, and, sadly, a few of the artists who played on them are no longer with us).

John Maksym | “Drinkin’ & Thinkin’”

Worked With 22 Collaborators Spanning 7 Countries and 16 Cities

I kicked off this year as a solo recording artist for the first time in my life and had an ambitious goal of releasing music every 5 weeks. When the pandemic struck, I had just started recording my 4th single in the studio and everything got shut down. Within a couple of weeks I was able to pivot and invest money into building my own little home studio, to continue to create. With every musician in the world stuck at home, I was able to connect with a dream team of collaborators who helped me finish the song that I had started and go on to record 8 more songs through remote session recording from their own home studios. All in all I worked with 22 collaborators, spanning 7 countries and 16 cities, which I would never have thought of doing had the world not been in lockdown. It also allowed me time to revise my original release plan and build a more robust plan to release a number of singles and eventually an album throughout 2021.

Stay tuned ...There’s more Good News Coming!

#2020 #2021 #independent artist buzz #indie music #music blog #spotify #spotify playlist #positive vibes #good vibes #cyberpr #cyberprmusic

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scav-eng-er · 4 years

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“If Nothing Else, We Have This.” TROS Alternate Ending Part 2/?

okay..so I’m very tired and literally re-wrote the beginning so many times and I’m very tired lol (it’s almost 1 am) But here is the second part of my Alternate TROS Ending! I have an outline for part 3 already and MY REYLO HEART IS SCREAMING. Please be aware that I tried to give Leia the best of the best, so if there is something you guys think I could edit, please let me know. I really hope you guys like this and I am sending hugs and kisses to @reylo-trash-4ever and @mojona1999 because you two are my sweet reylomates and beans and ily <3.

Update: Im so sorry i forgot the first part if anyone needs the link lol sorry im a wreck.

Part 1: https://scav-eng-er.tumblr.com/post/190171393259/if-nothing-else-we-have-this-tros-alternate

“Any news from Poe and his team?”

“Nothing yet General.”

A wave of worry flushed over General Organa as she watched the makeshift screen blink rapidly. Tiny dots, indicating Poe’s X-wing and the rest of his ships, hovered around the grid, pinpointing their locations out in the battle. Occasionally, a red dot would disappear and across the base, another screen with the profile of the pilot would burn red with large letters titled: Connection failed. The chaos ensued back at the main base and was just as hectic as the actual battlefield. Commands were announced or yelled through holo-coms and com-links while groups from the skies and land asked what the next plan of attack was. More pilots ran around the princess, prepping their fuel tanks and testing their blasters, oblivious to see the exhaustion in her eyes. Technicians gave last minute check-ups on weapons and hurried back and forth along the forest floor. Lieutenant Connix continued to give orders, her brows furrowed, her eyes flickering back and forth between the many screens. Leia sensed it, both sides were tired. The resistance were on their knees, using their last push of hope to try and defeat Palpatine. But she also sensed doubt in the First Order. In Ben.

He was confused, hurt and torn. Pulled in different directions. This unknowing in him had already impacted the First Order and their so-called impenetrable power. When she felt him begin to question everything, just a few hours ago, she had finally felt more hope spark in her heart. She felt the heat of his saber as it impaled her son, Rey didn’t miss. Her heart soared when the refreshing feeling of Rey’s life force healed Ben’s wound. Yes, there was still hope. But was it enough?

Would this be enough to finally end it all?

A sudden pain erupted from Leia’s chest. Sucking in a gasp, she quietly sat on a boulder, hiding her pain from scurrying pilots as they prepped for another take-off, soon to assist wounded comrades at Exegol. Her body was cold, and she felt weak, defeated…dead. Something had happened to Ben, her Ben. Her hand shook as she covered her mouth to prevent the whimpers of her sobs escape. Blinking back tears, and with the last reasonable idea she could think of, she reached out. Out to the one person she knew could help.

“Luke.” She whispered.

He appeared to her, glowing brighter in the sun. His transparency, in no way hid his happiness to see his sister, aged with time from living her life. Even after all these years, Luke could see how youthful Leia was, her smile was timeless and her strength spanned generations. It inspired those who were now part of the resistance. He had told himself a million times how he wished she had continued her studies. Perhaps the galaxy would’ve turned out different, less pain, less hate. She would’ve saved Ben before Palpatine had even tried to touch him, preventing the world from becoming what it was now.

Yet, here they were, on the precipice of an ending war. The battle happening galaxies away that would determine the outcome of their family, resting on the shoulders of his nephew, her son.

“It’s time.” Leia stated, her voice calm and strong despite the streaks of tears down her rosy cheeks. She was prepared, ready for this day. Luke sensed it too. He knew just how far a mother would go to save her son. He said nothing, but kneeled down and like so many times before, placed a sweet kiss on his sister’s forehead. Leia closed her eyes, not seeing the few tears making their way down Luke’s cheeks.

And just as quiet as he arrived, he was gone.

For the first time, in a very long time, Leia felt at peace. She stood up, no pain in her heart, no worries on her mind. The princess gazed at the base around her. Everything moved in slow motion. The sounds of people and engines droned out. Leia took a step into the sun. It was warm against her skin, as she remembered her life.

Han, her loving, brave, handsome, and annoyingly-arrogant husband. He had filled her life with laughs, tears and love as they stuck together. He was at peace, she knew that. He had never been upset with Ben, he just missed his son. Their son.

Ben. Her only child who was caught in something so much greater than him. He was used and played with, torn and pulled apart until there was nothing left. Leia knew deep down, her baby Ben was there, waiting. The same Ben who wanted to be a Jedi, who wanted to come with her to meetings and visit as many galaxies as he could. The biggest thing Leia missed was how much he needed her. Ben would never admit to how many times he crawled into her bed after a nightmare, or how he pretended to not miss her when she was away. As a teenager, she saw him pull away, trying to be tough, and hide how scared he was, or that he needed help. She could never forgive herself for ignoring how he practically begged for her in his eyes, as the cold, grimy hands of the Dark Side gripped him by the shoulders. But now, Leia felt like she could still save her son, from everything. She could prove to him how much she loved him.

She loved how much Ben needed his mother as a child, and now he needed her more than ever. The general’s world went black as she collapsed to the forest floor.

~~~~

Rey played with the hem of Ben’s shirt, the fabric wet with sweat, dirt and blood. He smelled like earth, and Rey realized she had never been this close to know that he smelled so..intoxicating. Every breath she took was so soothing, she couldn’t help but lean in closer. Ben’s eyes never left her, and Rey’s cheeks reddened at how beautiful he made her feel. The comfort in his arms was new, yet felt so familiar that she never wanted to leave. His thumb circled her arm as he held her, and goosebumps scattered down her body.

“So..long..” Rey mumbled, annoyed by how long they had tried to cover it up, or deny just how powerful their feelings for each other really were. This..connection was created before either of them were even born. This attachment and need to be near each other, to be together finally had an explanation behind it. Rey believed this would be the one and only thing she could actually thank their grandparents for. The two mens intertwined fates had curled and twisted. Hate, deceit, years of pain and darkness came to an end with her and Ben, here and now. So yes, she could thank them, for giving her Ben.

Ben hummed in agreement, “Who knew we could be so..” he trailed off.

“Dumb?” Rey stated.

“I was going to say stubborn!” Ben couldn’t help but laugh, before engulfing her lips once again. Every time Ben kissed her, Rey felt like a bad memory was wiped away. Bit by bit, she was losing more details about her life of Jakku. She already couldn’t remember some scars she got as a child, or the names of rival scavengers who occasionally tried to gang up on her. It felt like he was taking away her pain and grief, replacing it with passionate kisses and featherlight touches she hoped she would never forget.

They held each other for a few more moments in sweet, silent bliss before Rey interrupted with the lingering statement.

“We have to go back.”

Ben sighed, “Or we could go…just…leave.”

There was nothing more Ben wanted to then to just be with Rey. They could anything or nothing and he would be happy. If she wanted to boss him around on the falcon? He would do it without hesitation. If she wanted to settle in the greenest galaxy and continue her training? He would make her stronger than him.

But the resistance? He would not just be away from Rey, but behind bars, in chains, with every other soul on the planet, maybe the galaxy, wanting him dead.

“Ben,” She sounded serious, though her voice was quiet. “We’ll figure something out.” She continued to play with his hair. The black, damp curls twisted in her finger and she wondered what he would look like with braids.

“Leia will help us, reduce your sentence. Banishment to another planet is better than life imprisonment right?”

Hearing his mother’s name made his heart sink. Could she even look him in the eye? Would she cry? Scream at him? Forgive him? Ben had hurt her so much, he would understand however she reacted. He undoubtedly deserved it. Even so, he wanted to see her, to hear her voice. He pulled Rey’s hand to his lips, giving a heartfelt kiss before nodding.

Her heart beat rapidly in hope. Ben was going home. He was going to see his mother, going to see Chewie…but he would also see the resistance, including Finn, Poe and Rose. Rey didn’t care. She would do anything to prove just how alive Ben Solo was, with the pieces of Kylo Ren dying long ago.

“Just..no matter what happens, you’ll come back to me right?” He mumbled into her fingers, almost afraid to let go.

Rey smiled so hard, she could almost laugh. She stood up and pulled him with her, her hands never letting go. Even as he towered over her, he looked worried, his eyes trailing up and down her body, making sure she was still alright, still alive. Rey pulled his attention to her warm eyes.

“Nothing could keep me away. Not even death.” She declared. Standing on her toes, Rey wrapped her arms around Ben as she pulled him to her lips. He felt comfort in her embrace, like she would truly never leave him. Even when he would eventually be pulled from her grasp and thrown in a cell, he knew she would fight for him as hard as she could. They would be separated, of course, by distance, guards, and maybe even Leia. But he could wait, he had been waiting for her his whole life anyway. So many had passed through his life in fleeting increments, he could hardly remember any faces, knowing they would all be there one moment, and gone the next. Rey was solid, sturdy, and there for him, with him. At the end of all this, Ben finally felt like he could belong somewhere, in her arms.

The two pulled apart when the noise of battle erupted the from the skies and shook the ground beneath their feet. They ran back to the surface, forgetting the pain they had just endured, ready to take on the next adventure together.

Rey burst through the stars in the X-wing, Ben seated behind her. They danced among the falling debris as it crashed back onto Exegol. He watched as Palpatines undead fleet fell, returning to their graves. Feeling his darkness fall with them, a small smile grew as he said goodbye to the shadows that had trapped him in. Feeling light as a feather, Ben settled into his seat. His eyelids were heavy, and he suddenly felt so tired that he just couldn’t stay awake. As he felt himself drift to sleep, he could vaguely hear the voices and shouts from Rey’s helmet comlink, screams of victory as everyone announced the First Order had officially fallen.

#reylo #ben solo #rey #kylo ren #rey x ben solo #rey x kylo ren #reylo fanfic #tros #scavenger writes #I actually am not proud of this #but im so tired im sorry :(

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sourwolf-sterek32 · 5 years

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Sky ( Daryl Dixon One-shot )

Summary: Daryl and the reader were expecting their first child. After being stuck behind the walls of Alexandria for months, the reader manages to convince Daryl and Rick to let her join them on a supply run. But when things turn south something happens that will change their lives forever.

Pairings: Daryl Dixon x Reader

Word Count: 4k

Warnings: language, blood, angst, just usual twd warnings

A/N: This one-shot is inspired by a scene in Norman Reedus' movie Sky. If you have seen this movie then you can probably pick what scene I'm referring to, but if you haven't then slight spoilers for that movie so read at your own risk.

You had been with the group from the very start, ever since the quarry back in Atlanta. You used to be a medic in the military, you knew how to take care of yourself and the others around you, but this new world still managed to challenge you in ways you never thought was possible.

You had been the one to fix Daryl when he came back from the woods after looking for Sophia with a bullet and arrow wound. You had helped Hershel when Rick amputated his leg to save him. When the flu spread around the prison you were right there beside Hershel trying to keep everyone alive and more recently when Carl got shot in the eye it had been you who had to saved him with the help of Denise.

This new world was challenging to say the least, but you wouldn't change it for the world. You would have never met the group of people that you now considered family and you sure as hell wouldn't have met Daryl Dixon. The two of you had been inseparable since the farm and finally got together some time during the prison days.

Now you were at Alexandria, it was the safest place your group had been since the prison and although you've had to deal with the Wolves attacking and a herd of walkers that broke in. You had built up the community, made it better and stronger than before and now it was a heaven for the living. Walls, shelter, food, running water, solar electricity, it was perfect.

"Wait up, I'm joining you guys on this supply run." You called out, walking towards the front gate of Alexandria where Rick was using a jerry can to fill the van up with fuel while Daryl finished putting bags in the back for any supplies you might come across.

"Like hell ya are." Daryl responded, turning away from the van to look at you as he shook his head and you rolled your eyes. Ever since you told him that you were pregnant, he turned into this over protective boyfriend, not even letting you go on watch duties because it might be dangerous. Not that Daryl wasn't protective over you before, but now it was like another level of protectiveness. You loved that he worried about you and wanted to keep you safe, but you could take care of yourself and you were only six months pregnant, it wasn't like your baby bump was the size of a basketball and couldn't move quickly and protect yourself.

"You've had me stuck behind these walls for months and it's not that I don't appreciate you trying to protect me, but if I stay behind these walls for another day I'm gonna go insane. Rick, help me out here." You replied, glancing over at Rick before focusing back on Daryl as you reached his side.

"I am not getting in the middle of this. I'll be in the car." Rick responded shaking his head with a hint of a smile before he climbed into the drivers side seat, leaving you and Daryl standing by the back of the van.

"It's a simple run, I can take care of myself. Plus, I'll have you and Rick to watch my back right?" You asked, reaching for Daryl's hand as he sighed pulling you closer to him, his free hand resting over your baby bump as he kissed the top of your head.

"I ain't lettin' ya out my sight." He muttered, pulling away from you slightly so he could see your face as you smiled and pressed a gentle kiss to lips.

"You guys thought of any baby names yet?" Rick asked, looking over at you in the passenger seat before glancing over his shoulder towards Daryl who was sitting on the floor in the back of the van, since Abraham had taken out the back seats so there was more room for supplies.

"Not really, although someone is persistent that it's going to be a boy." You replied, turning around in your chair slightly so you could look at Daryl who glanced over at you with a hint of a smile on his lips.

"You can't possibly know that. It could be a girl." Rick replied, but Daryl shook his head.

"Nah, I do. It's gonna be a boy." Daryl insisted causing you to roll your eyes, but you wouldn't have it any other way. When Daryl had first found out about the baby he had completely freaked out, worrying that he was going to be a bad father and turn out like his old man. But you eventually managed to calm him down, reassuring him that he was nothing like his father, that he was going to be a damn good father. Reminding him that he was good with Judith and if it wasn't for him then that little girl wouldn't have made it a day after she was born. It took a while, but eventually Daryl's worry slowly turned into excitement and now he spent almost every morning working on the nursey in your house.

"What are you going to do if it's a girl?" You asked curiously, your eyes never leaving his crystal blue ones.

"Same thing I'm gonna do if it's a boy. Let her be a kid and raise her right. Teach her how to ride, how to hunt, how to protect herself. Teach her how to survive." Daryl simply answered, like it was the most obvious thing in the world and you felt your heart swell with pride at what he just said.

"Alright, love birds. We're here." Rick declared, not giving you a chance to respond as you turned back around in your seat to find that you were now parked in front of some old warehouse. "Can't see any walkers, but that doesn't mean there isn't any inside."

"Well, let's go find out." You replied, pulling out your Glock 19 handgun from your thigh holster as you climbed out the van, followed by Rick who had his signature Colt Python pistol out and Daryl with his crossbow trained on the front door to the warehouse.

Everything was going well. You had found pallets, after pallets, after pallets full of various foods and house supplies. The warehouse was a jackpot and you knew Rick was already planning on bringing another two vehicles here to load everything up.

You hadn't loaded anything into the van yet, the three of you were too busy checking out all the pallets along the aisles of pallet shelving's that lined the warehouse. You had found a single pallet stacked with boxes of tooth brushes and tooth pastes. Michonne and Carl were going to be thrilled.

You were busy checking out the different boxes, trying to see what flavour tooth pastes were inside, knowing Michonne loved the spearmint ones. You were so focused on the damn toothpaste that you didn't even hear or see the two strangers sneaking into the warehouse, until it was too late.

"Drop your weapon or he dies!" An unfamiliar voice shouted from the other end of the warehouse as you quickly dropped the toothpaste and pulled out your handgun. Rick and Daryl were on the other side of the warehouse, checking out the canned food last you saw and that was exactly where the strangers voice came from.

"Alright, alright. Just take it easy, nobody has to get hurt." Rick's voice replied as you slowly snuck around the pallets and aisles in their direction.

You could hear Rick trying to negotiate with the strange man as you ducked and weaved between pallets before you spotted them near the front door, standing in the open space away from the pallets. The stranger had his back to you with his arm wrapped around Daryl, holding your boyfriend in front of him with a gun to his head. Rick was standing on the other side, facing the two of them, another man with a gun standing a few metres away from Rick, his gun aimed at the former Sheriff while Ricks handgun laid on the ground a few metres in front of him. Shit, this wasn't good.

Your heart was beating out your chest as you stood behind the pallet, peaking out over the top of it as you surveyed the situation. All your training and years in the military coming back as you tried to figure out the best course of action that would result in you guys getting home alive. The man holding Daryl at gunpoint had his back to you, it was an easy shot, but the only thing you were worried about was the other man who was aiming at Rick. If you shot, then Rick would be as good as dead, so you waited.

"Where's the girl?" The man holding Daryl questioned and you frowned. How did they know you were here? You had stayed hidden.

"What girl? It's just the two of us." Rick replied, his eyes glancing over at you before he quickly turned back to the man in front of him, not wanting to give your position away.

"No, we saw you guys pull up in that van. There was a woman with you. You give us the woman and all these supplies and we'll let the two of you walk free, you can even keep your van." The man offered, causing Daryl to tense at the mention of you, but he didn't move, not with the barrel of a gun against his head.

"Ya touch her and you're dead." Daryl growled, anger seeping through his tone as Rick sent him a look that you knew meant 'calm the fuck down', knowing if Daryl lost his temper then their chance of escaping was gone.

"No, you'll be dead. Tom, pick up that man's pistol on the ground. I want to try it out on the redneck here." The man ordered and you glanced over at the other man, Tom, as he began walking over to Rick's pistol on the ground. They were going to kill Daryl, he was going to shoot Daryl with Rick's gun. Shit.

Moving on pure instinct, you quickly cocked your gun, happy that Tom didn't have his gun trained on Rick anymore as you walked out from behind the pallet, aiming your sights at the back of the other mans head and pulled the trigger.

It was like time had slowed down as you watched the man holding Daryl fall to the ground, dead before his body even hit the concrete floor. Daryl stumbled a bit but managed to keep his feet as he turned around in confusion, his eyes glancing down at the man on the ground before he spotted you standing a few metres behind him as you lowered your gun.

"No!" Tom suddenly screamed, taking your attention away from Daryl as you spotted Tom pulling out his own handgun again. You barely had any time register what the man was doing before he aimed the gun towards you, it was all happening so fast, yet so slow at the same time.

You saw it all happening in slow motion, yet you had no time to raise your gun before he pulled the trigger and you closed your eyes, waiting for it for it to come.

You expected to feel pain, expected to feel the bullet tear through your body, but when you opened your eyes you found Daryl standing in front of you. His back was to you, but you could see that he was holding his stomach as blood slowly trickled to the floor.

"No!" You screamed, as he began to stumble backwards from the gunshot. You quickly wrapped his arm around your shoulders, your arm wrapped around his waist to keep him up right as your free hand kept pressure on the wound on his stomach. His thick warm blood seeping through the gaps of your fingers and you knew it was bad. It was very bad.

You were so focused on Daryl you didn't even realise that Rick had killed Tom until he stood in front of you, his eyes wide with panic when he saw how much blood Daryl was losing.

"Get the van!" You yelled as Rick sprinted out the warehouse to get the vehicle as you put more pressure on the wound causing Daryl to groan in pain. "I know, I'm sorry. Come on, we need to go." You said calmly, but you were anything but calm on the inside as you slowly began walking towards the door, supporting most of Daryl's weight as you did so. Being a military medic, you've had to drag more people than you could count into safety while they were unconscious or injured, so you could treat them without being shot yourself. But this was different, this was Daryl. This shouldn't be happening.

Within minutes, Rick had helped you get Daryl into the back of the van before he climbed into the driver's seat and sped off back to Alexandria. You had Daryl lying on his back as you sat on your knees beside him. Your fingers were trembling as you tried to undo the buttons on his sleeveless shirt, but you couldn't. God damnit, Y/N. You have done this a million times in the old days, you had to get yourself together, you had to push aside your emotions and get the job done, it was the only chance Daryl had.

You took a deep breath, glancing over to Daryl's face to find him already looking at you. His jaw was clenched in pain, but he somehow had a calm look in his eyes as he nodded his head slightly and you got to work.

You quickly undid the buttons on his shirt, pushing the blood-soaked material out the way as you took in just how bad the wound was. The bullet hole was directly in the centre of his stomach and by the blood that was still pooling out of it, you knew it had hit the renal artery. Shit. Shit. Shit.

Without hesitation you swiftly pulled your flannel shirt off, leaving you in a light grey tank top as you tied it around his stomach. Trying to ignore his pained groans, you focused on slowing the blood, but deep down you knew it was no use. The bullet pierced an artery and the logical side of your brain was telling you that he'll die of blood loss before you got back to Alexandria, but you refused to believe that, you couldn't believe it.

"Rick, driver faster!" You yelled, glancing up at Rick through the revision mirror, his panicked, teary eyes staring at you for a second before he nodded, pressing his foot down on the gas even further. You knew Rick was pushing it, he was driving the thin line between dangerous and just fucking stupid, but you didn't have a choice. If he didn't hurry up then Daryl was as good as dead, however if he drove too fast and crashed then all of you were as good as dead.

"How's he looking?" Rick questioned, as you glanced back down at Daryl in front of you. His eyes still staring at you as you kept your trembling hands over the make shift bandage around his stomach.

"The bullet hit an artery. He's losing a lot of blood, just get us back home." You replied, not taking your eyes off Daryl as he tried to move, but you quickly grabbed his shoulder, stopping him from aggravating the wound further.

"L-Let me sit up." Daryl tried to say, his voice weak and rough as he continued to try sit himself up, wincing at the pain it was causing.

"Stop, let me help." You quickly said, moving behind him as you helped sit his body up, his back half resting against the side of the van, the other half leaning against your body as he rested his head against your chest. Your arm wrapped around his shoulders, holding his trembling body tightly.

"You're going to okay, alright? You're going to be fine. We're going to get you back to Alexandria and I'm going to fix you up like I always do when you get your dumbass in trouble. Everything is going to be fine." You rambled, but you weren't sure if you were trying to convince him or yourself more. He grabbed your hand that was pressed against the wound, moving it away from the blood as he laced his shaky fingers with yours. "No, I need to keep pressure-" You began to say before Daryl cut you off.

"It's okay, it doesn't hurt. It doesn't hurt anymore... I love ya, I love ya more than anythin'." Daryl said, his voice a mere whisper, but you heard it and your heart shattered into a million pieces as you looked down at him. He lifted his head from your chest, his glazed over eyes staring up at you and that was all it took for the tears -you had been so focused on keeping back- to finally fall from your eyes.

You looked away from him, not wanting him to see you cry as his free hand suddenly cupped your cheek, forcing you to look back down at him as he gently wiped your tears away with his thumb. He was the one that was bleeding out, you should be comforting him.

"Don't say that, it sounds like you're saying goodbye. You're going to be fine, I'm not letting you die." You replied, your voice wavy as you fought to keep yourself calm, but Daryl just chuckled softly shaking his head as he began to cough up blood.

"Ya don't have a choice." His voice croaked once the coughing stopped and you shook your head frantically, tears blurring your vision as Daryl moved his hand away from your cheek and rested it on your baby bump over your now blood-stained tank top. "Tell our baby that I love him, alright?" Daryl asked, his shaky hand gently stroking your swollen stomach as you let out a small sob.

"T-tell him that." Daryl repeated, glancing up at you, his head still resting against your chest and you nodded, not trusting your voice at the moment as you brushed his hair out of his face so you could see him properly.

His crystal blue eyes locked with yours as you pulled him into a tight hug. Neither of you said anything after that as you held him against your chest. He hugged you back weakly, his hand still wrapped around your baby bump as tears silently fell down your cheeks.

You could feel his rasping breath against your skin as he struggled to get air into his lungs. His body trembling uncontrollably from pain and blood loss when suddenly it all stopped. His body stilled as his last breath left his lips and everything stopped.

"No. No. No. Please, Daryl. Don't leave me... don't leave us." Your voice broke at the end as you held him tightly, unable to stop the tears falling down your cheeks as you sobbed into his lifeless body.

*6 Years Later*

"Daryl?" You called, walking down the hallway as you adjusted your knife sheath on your belt. "Daryl, are you awake?" You called again as you walked into his bedroom, but he was no where to be seen. Where the hell did he go?

Frowning in confusion you walked through the living area trying to find him before you walked out the front door. Squinting at the sudden brightness, you blinked a few times until your eyes adjusted to the morning sunlight, spotting Michonne across the road sitting on her porch.

"Hey, have you seen Daryl?" You shouted to Michonne in slight panic. The other woman looked up from her book where she sat on the porch with Judith and Carl. Both kids smiled brightly at you, although Carl was nearly an adult now which you knew scared the shit out of his father.

"He's waiting for you around the back, he wanted to surprise you." Rick's voice suddenly replied and you glanced down the road to find the man you considered a brother walking towards you.

"Thank you." You sighed with relief and Rick nodded before you made your way down the street towards the back of the community. "Daryl?" You called out as you walked down the dirt path that lead to the small cemetery in Alexandria.

"Back here. Nothing's wrong, I know you only call me Daryl when you're worried or when I'm in trouble." Dj's voice responded as you walked around the corner to find your son standing in front of his father's grave. "I know it's been six years since he died... You're always so sad on this day, so I wanted to make you happy. Uncle Rick helped me." Your son explained as he pointed to your boyfriends grave and you gasped in shock, your hands instantly covering your mouth as you stared at the new small grave stone that sat at the head of Daryl's grave.

"H-how?" Was all you could manage to say, glancing down at your son beside you as he grabbed your hand, giving you a warm smile.

"Uncle Rick and Carl helped me make it out of cement. We mixed it with water and used a plastic tray as a mould so it could set in the right shape. It's not perfect, but Uncle Rick said you would like it." Dj explained and you couldn't help the tears that formed in your eyes as you read the gravestone.

'In memory of Daryl Dixon.

06/01/1969 – Summer of 2014

Loving Partner of Y/N Y/L/N

Beloved Father of Daryl 'Dj' Dixon

Always remembered.'

"We don't know the exact date anymore, but Aunt Michonne guessed that it was around summer time in 2014. Are you sad?" Dj asked, glancing up at you and you didn't even realising you had tears falling down your cheeks as you shook your head.

"No, baby. These are happy tears... I can't believe you did this, thank you." You replied kneeling down in front of Daryl's grave as you turned towards your son, holding your arms out as he jumped into your embrace, hugging you tightly. "Your father loved you so much."

"I wish I could have met him." Dj admitted as he pulled away from you slightly, his small fingers brushing the tears from your cheeks as you smiled.

"He would have been so proud of you." You replied causing Dj's face to breakout in a smile as you stood up, adjusting Daryl's angel winged vest over your shoulders as you held your hand out for your son as he took it. His bright blue eyes staring up you behind his dark sandy hair, reminding you so much of Daryl from the beginning, when his hair was shorter and lighter. Daryl would have been damn proud of Dj, he would have been proud of both of you.

*END*

Link in my bio for my Daryl Dixon Masterlist!

A/N- I watched Norman's movie Sky ages ago and it absolutely destroyed me. I hadn't watched it since until @duchessdeer and I started fangirling about it, talking about how great Norman's acting was and how hot he is in a cowboy hat (I live for Norman in cowboy hats) and it bought up all those old feelings I felt and I ended up rewatching the movie and I loved it but cried like a baby. So, how do I deal with my emotions about fictional characters? I write one-shots inspired by them.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this one-shot. If you guys liked this please let me know in the comments, I love hearing all your thoughts and seeing that like/reblog/kudos notification, it means so much knowing that people actually like my fics and it inspires me to keep writing.

Until next time, stay safe guys and have a great day xx

#Daryl Dixon #Daryl Dixon x Reader #The Walking Dead #daryl dixon imagine #daryl dixon fanfiction #daryl x reader #twd #twd fanfiction #twd masterlist #Norman Reedus #sky #Diego Sheen

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gingerwritess · 5 years

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I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus

Summary: (Loki x reader) Loki is the greatest husband...and an even better father. A little mischief-maker to join in on his fun? Sign him up. Christmas Eve arrives, bringing with it a stressed out you, so of course, Loki helps you calm down. That naturally calls for spiked eggnog, a nice little makeout session, and one (1) slightly cringe-worthy situation.

Warnings: Fluff, fluff, and more fluff. With a little fluff, some making out, fluff, have some INNUENDOS, wash it down with fluff. And fluff for dessert.

A/N: Day 11 of the 12 days of Christmas!!! Thank you so much for all the support and love through this, it’s been so much fun just cranking out more content for you all. If you’ve read anything I’ve written, reblogged, or left a comment or ask or anything, thank you thank you from the bottom of my cold dead heart!!!!!!!

This fic is my absolute favourite. More than Broken Beds tbh. I’m a slut for dad!loki so I had to dedicate an entire fic to just family fluff and husband!loki and just wow now I’m tearing up. I hope you enjoy this as much as I enjoyed writing it for you!!

Please please please drop me a comment or ask! Your feedback is the lifeblood that fuels my dreams and inspiration!!!!

look at that little smile i cRY

A burst of laughter rang out from the living room as you hung your damp coat on the rack by the door. The snow outside brought an icy gust of wind in the door that quickly dissipated from the warmth of your Christmas-ready home: a four-pointed star twinkled magically atop of a luscious pine tree (your husband had brought the star from Asgard, finding a way to incorporate his home into this new and foreign tradition he was creating with you), the smell of pine and fresh powdery snow and peppermint wafted around the house, and a catchy Christmas carol played softly from the living room.

“I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus

Underneath the mistletoe last night…”

The holiday melody floated through the air and brought a smile to your face. You followed the laughter and music into the room, where you found the cutest scene in the whole world laid out in front of you.

Loki had his legs stretched out on the couch, his back propped up against the arm. Your four year old son, Elliot, was sitting on your husband’s stomach, laughing hysterically. You stopped and leaned against the doorway, a content smile growing on your face at your happy little family.

Much to your surprise, Loki seemed to be singing along to the Christmas carol. His voice was quiet and playful, only singing to keep the adorable laughter on his son’s face.

“Then I saw mommy tickle Santa Claus…” Loki gently tickled the side of Elliot’s neck, bringing out another fit of giggles. “Underneath his beard so snowy white…”

Elliot’s childish laughter filled the room and was soon joined by Loki’s deep, rolling chuckles as he continued tickling his son. Your heart swelled at the sound: the two people you love most in the world, the two who made up your entire universe, happy smiles wide on their faces and shaking with laughter.

Loki tapped his fingers lightly to the beat on Elliot’s head, bringing another giggle from the little boy. “Oh what a laugh it would have been, if daddy had only seen,” he sang, pointing at himself and grinning at his son. “Mommy kissing Santa Claus last night!”

“EWWW!! No kisses, no kisses!” Elliot shouted, covering Loki’s mouth with both his tiny hands. “Kisses are gross.”

“Is that so?” Loki pried the chubby hands off his mouth. “So you wouldn’t like it if I… did this?!” He grabbed the little boy in his arms and started forcing dramatically loud kisses all over his face while Elliot laughed and screeched and tried to squirm out of his father’s arms.

The chaotic embrace brought a laugh to your lips as well, the sound alerting them of your being home.

“MOMMY!!” Elliot yelled, finally escaping Loki’s attacks and running to you with his arms wide open. You bent down and picked him up to hug him tightly, swinging him around with a laugh.

“How’s my little troublemaker, hm?” You kissed his pudgy cheek with a loud mwah, making him scrunch up his face.

“Ew, no! Stop mommy, stop!” He quickly rubbed your kiss away.

Loki swung his legs off the couch and strode over to the two of you with the biggest smile you’d seen on him in a long time. “Don’t forget about your other troublemaker, darling.”

He wrapped an arm around your waist and pulled you flush against him, making you squeak in surprise. He lifted a hand to cover Elliot’s eyes, making the little boy laugh again, then locked his lips on yours in a passionate kiss.

Your eyes fluttered shut and if you weren’t holding your son in your arms, you would have completely lost yourself in that kiss. Loki kept his hand up covering Elliot’s eyes, kissing you with everything he had and making your heart skip a beat.

“Mommy? Are you kissing daddy?” Elliot’s voice interrupted the moment, and you broke the kiss breathlessly.

“She most certainly was. Sorry, little one.” Loki chuckled and ruffled his son’s hair, keeping an arm around your waist. Elliot turned up his nose again and covered Loki’s mouth with one hand and yours with the other. “Gross. No more kissing!”

You promptly kissed the palm of his hand that was covering your mouth, causing him to let out a shriek of laughter and wipe it on his shirt. “Why no more kissing, Elliot?”

The little boy shook his head wildly, still with a hand clapped over Loki’s mouth. “Kisses are gross. And bad! Daddy’s gonna hurt your mouth.”

Loki raised his eyebrows and made a muffled attempt to speak, but Elliot giggled and pressed both hands over his mouth.

“But it’s ok for daddy to kiss me,” you explained with a laugh. “Can you let him go, sweetie? I think he wants to say something.”

Your son reluctantly removed his hands from Loki’s face, but as soon as he did, you threw an arm around Loki’s neck to pull him into another kiss. Elliot shrieked and started hitting his little fists on Loki’s chest, yelling at him to stop.

Loki pulled away laughing as Elliot scowled adorably at him, pointing an accusing finger at you. “That wasn’t me! She kissed me that time!”

“Gross.”

“It is not gross.”

“Yeah it is.”

“No, it’s not.”

“Yeah it is!!”

They bickered back and forth until you shut Loki up with another quick kiss while Elliot protested and tried to pull your faces apart. “Come on, kiddo,” you laughed and carried him to the kitchen. “We’ll stop. Let’s get some dinner.”

Shortly after, the three of you sat around the small table eating. It was leftovers night, nothing special, but you and Loki couldn’t have been happier as you sat together laughing with your son.

The little boy absolutely loved to talk, always asking questions and telling you stories about the new things he discovered every day. Taking after his father, he was already trying to learn to read. One of his favourite things to do was to pick a random book off one of the many full shelves, then bring it to Loki and climb onto his lap, waiting expectantly for him to start reading aloud. And Loki could never resist; he would read any book the boy brought him, his silky voice creating a beautiful, eloquent melody until Elliot would curl up on his chest, fast asleep. Loki would refuse any help you offered, not wanting to move a muscle for fear of waking the precious child sleeping peacefully over his heart.

Tonight was no different from the rest, Elliot’s imaginative stories spoken through mouthfuls of half-chewed food. Tonight, he couldn’t stop talking about Christmas and Santa Claus and just how excited he was for tomorrow.

“Mommy,” Elliot began, poking a finger at the pile of mashed potatoes on his plate. “Is Santa really gonna come in our house? I don’t want reindeers in my room!”

You opened your mouth to respond but Loki beat you to it. He had loved the idea of Santa Claus when you explained it to him and wanted to play right along with the story your son believed. “The reindeer don’t come inside! Only Santa does, to give you presents. But… that’s only if you’ve been good.” He raised his eyebrows at Elliot, making him giggle and nod his head.

You reached over and scooped up a bite of potatoes, holding it to Elliot’s mouth. “And good kids eat their dinner. If they don’t, they get coal!”

His eyes widened and he quickly scarfed down the rest of his potatoes. “I been good,” he said thickly through a mouthful of food. “I been really good. And I eated all my dinner.”

Loki lightly ruffled his hair with a grin. “That’s my boy. If you can go to bed without any tricks tonight, I bet Santa will reward you.”

Elliot nodded seriously, then tapped your hand. “Have you been good, mommy? Are you gonna get presents?”

Hearing the kid’s question, Loki choked on his water and quickly answered for you. “No. No, mommy has been very bad, very bad indeed. Quite a… naughty girl.”

You rolled your eyes at him while Elliot gasped in shock. “No, mommy can’t get coal for Christmas!”

“Don’t worry, little one. She’ll get other presents.” Loki shot you a sly smirk.

“Loki! That’s enough,” you laughed, heart fluttering at the suggestive look on his face. Satisfied with his father’s answers but unaware of the adult shift in the conversation, Elliot started off onto a new rant about what presents he hoped to get the next morning. Loki started taking the dirty plates to the sink to wash, leaving you to get the little chatterbox ready for bed.

Picking Elliot up to take him to his room, you walked behind Loki at the sink and couldn’t resist giving him a playful smack on the ass, throwing him a wink as he yelped in surprise.

“Oh, I wouldn’t do that,” he growled as you laughed and hurried out of his reach. “The things I might do will guarantee you’ll be on the naughty list for the rest of your life.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

“Why are you encouraging this?!” You groaned as Loki ran around the room chasing after Elliot. Your kid had wiggled out of your grasp while you were putting his pajama shirt on and now was running around with the shirt bunched around his neck like a scarf. His hyper giggles and screeching had made Loki come to see what was the matter and as soon as he appeared in the doorway, Elliot had hit him on the leg and sprinted away screaming “Daddy’s it! Daddy’s it!”

Now you sat on the edge of Elliot’s bed rubbing your aching temples while your husband chased after Elliot, jumping over the bed and yelling and laughing just as loud.

“Who gave this man a child?” You muttered to yourself as Loki crashed into a wall with a shout, knocking a handful of toys off a shelf near his head. He caught a hysterical Elliot around the waist, picking him up and throwing him on the bed. “You did, my love,” he laughed and started tickling Elliot’s little round tummy, drawing shrieks of laughter from his son.

A happy smile tugged at your lips as you watched them wrestle around the bed. No matter how exhausted you were, moments like this couldn’t be missed.

Loki glanced over at your tired eyes and gave you a knowing wink. He bounced Elliot on the bed one last time before pulling the blankets up to his chin, tucking the squirming boy under the covers. “Shhhh, shh.” He brought a finger to his lips and Elliot immediately mimicked the motion, thankfully following his father’s instruction and calming down, still giggling softly. You moved to sit beside Loki as he slowly pointed upwards, drawing Elliot’s gaze to the ceiling above his bed. With a small twitch of his fingers, a light dusting of snow began to float down from the ceiling, disappearing into thin air before it hit the mattress.

Elliot’s eyes widened as he watched the snow fall magically around him, and you smiled at his amazement, leaning your head on Loki’s shoulder. A peaceful moment passed, until Elliot suddenly jumped out of bed and threw his arms around the two of you. You hugged him back tightly, catching Loki’s eye and positively melting at the adoration shining on his face before tucking your son back into bed and bending down to kiss him goodnight.

“Ew,” Elliot giggled sleepily, finally out of energy. “Daddy, don’t let mommy kiss Santa too.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

With a groan, you flopped down face first on the couch. “Go spike some eggnog please.” You waved a hand haphazardly to get Loki’s attention.

“Rough day?” He moved your legs over a bit so he could sit next to your stretched out form. You nodded with your head in your arms, and immediately Loki’s skilled fingers found the knots in your neck and shoulders, gently kneading the stress away. “If you wish to talk about it, I’m listening.”

“Nah…” you sighed contentedly, letting your eyes drift shut. “I’m exhausted and work was stressful, more than usual. But it’s Christmas Eve and I’ve got you, so I’d really just like to forget about it…”

You felt Loki’s cool breath brush over your ear as he bent over you, whispering lowly, “Elliot is asleep, you don’t have work tomorrow, we have the whole night to ourselves… I think I can make you forget about it.”

“Hmm… I don’t know. I’m still waiting for that drink I mentioned,” you hummed back, not opening your eyes.

“So needy…” he sighed and swatted you lightly on the back before standing, couch creaking as he moved.

A moment later you heard him rummaging around in the kitchen, humming quietly. He came back out with two mugs in hand, setting them on the coffee table with exaggerated and completely unnecessary force. “A drink for her majesty,” he said, dipping into a mocking bow.

You kicked a leg out trying to hit him, but he jumped out of the way with a laugh. “Oh, shut up. You’re the royalty here, king,” you reminded him.

He shoved your legs off the couch and dropped down next to you, tightly wrapping his arms around you and pressing a kiss to your temple. “But where would a king be without his queen?”

“Probably dead. Or still on Asgard. Without the cutest kid in the universe as your son.”

Loki chuckled, handing you a mug. “Fair enough. Now drink up, you’ll feel better, trust me.”

You took a sip and eyed him suspiciously over the brim of the mug. It was eggnog, definitely eggnog, but mixed with something much stronger. “Yikes,” you cringed, taking another slightly bigger gulp. “This isn’t going to take long.”

“I added something special,” he winked, sipping his own drink. “It’s similar to that Midgardian rum you like, but made for beings much more powerful. Like myself.”

You rolled your eyes. “Right, just like you… well, if this can actually get you drunk too, I already love it.”

Yikes was right. This was some seriously strong stuff, and it didn’t take long until you had finished your drink, your mind pleasantly a little fuzzier than before. It was starting to get to Loki too, you realised, as his words began to drag and things became a whole lot funnier to him than usual.

You were curled up in a blanket with your head on his shoulder, fighting to keep your eyes open, when he set down his empty cup. He reached over to the coffee table, making the loose shirt he wore ride up to expose a sliver of his stomach.

Thanks to your tipsy brain, you decided you just had to touch him, so you quickly poked him in the side with a proud smirk. He yelped at the contact and jolted away from you, making you burst into a loud fit of giggles.

“SHHH!” he hissed at you, suddenly lunging back over you and clapping a hand over your mouth. “You’ll wake the baby!!”

You stuck your tongue out, licking the palm of his hand as it was covering your mouth. He gasped and yanked his hand away as you laughed, whispering loudly, “Elliot’s not a baby anymore, doofus.”

Loki’s tipsy smile dropped. You reached up to cradle his face in your hands, noticing his sudden mood change. “Hey, what’s wrong? Don’t go getting all sad on me, it’s Christmas Eve.”

“Am I… am I a good father?”

“Oh, Loki.” You latched an arm around his neck and pulled him into your arms, hugging him tightly. “My love, you are a wonderful father. Elliot absolutely adores you.” He tucked his head under your chin, nuzzling his face into your neck as you gently stroked your fingers through his hair. “And I absolutely adore you. Have I mentioned that?”

You could feel him shift against your skin, thankfully smiling once again. He mumbled a few incoherent words, not moving from his spot in the crook of your neck.

“Come again?”

Loki lifted his head with a grin. “I said ‘prove it.’”

“Uh-uh, not until you put me on the naughty list,” you purred, inching closer to his face. “You said you would, so I’m gonna hold you to that.” You pushed him back into the cushions and crawled over him, straddling his waist with your hands on either side of his head.

He looked up at you with a devious glint in his eye. “You won’t be disappointed.”

You bent down to meet his lips, settling on top of his hips. Mmm… He tasted like cinnamon and peppermint and the rich, creamy taste of eggnog, topped with the hints of alcohol still gracing his delicious lips.

“You taste like Christmas…and rum,” you said breathlessly, then pulled him into another kiss, tongue delving back into his mouth before he could respond. Loki pushed himself up to a sitting position, lips never leaving yours, grabbing your waist to tug you closer on his lap.

“My turn,” he panted between kisses, roughly pushing your shoulders and leaning over you so that now it was your back against the couch. You eagerly accepted the change of position, allowing him to crawl over you and start ravaging your neck. Resting between your knees, he worked his way expertly over your body, one hand pushing your shirt up as he nipped at the sensitive skin in the curve of your neck. Drawing your skin between his teeth, he bit down just a little harder than usual, the addicting hint of perfect pain bringing something of a whimper and a cry out from your throat, which he quickly muffled by covering your mouth with his once again.

“You have to stay quiet,” he chuckled against your mouth. “Don’t make me shut you up myself-”

“Mommy? Are you ok?”

The two of you froze.

This was NOT a good position to be caught in. Loki’s hand was lost up your shirt, lips attacking yours, laying on top of you between your legs, while you had a leg hooked around his waist and hands clutching his back to keep him there. Already wincing, you slowly turned your head towards the little voice. Though your vision was a bit fuzzy from the alcohol, there was no mistaking your son standing in the doorway.

Loki seemed to be hoping that if he didn’t move, Elliot wouldn’t be able to see him. You sighed and made to push him off of you to go put Elliot back to bed, but Loki shook his head and held you still under him, a slightly worrisome grin growing on his face. “I have an idea,” he whispered.

Ok, very worrisome.

There was a flash of green light and suddenly you found yourself lying under… Santa Claus?!

Shocked, you stared up at Loki in a drunken stupor, his face shifted into a completely different one; round, old, and rosy-cheeked, no longer the youthful, chiseled face you so loved. And he had a beard!! Snowy white and huge, tickling you as it scratched against your cheek.

“I-I don’t like this at all,” you stuttered under your breath, “I want Loki back.”

An awkward moment of silence passed. Then…

“AAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!”

Elliot screamed at the top of his lungs and bolted back down the hallway into his room, slamming the door shut behind him.

There was another green glow around the room and Loki, your Loki, with that beautiful jawline and chiseled cheekbones not obstructed by a huge white beard, was back staring down at you with wide eyes. You blinked once, twice… then burst out laughing.

Soon Loki joined you, laughing hysterically and hugging you close, trying to stifle his laughter in the crook of your neck. “From now on,” you snorted, wiping tears of laughter from your eyes, “we only drink when Elliot isn’t here. We’re not taking any more chances.”

“And—ehehe—and we only do this,” Loki added with a snicker, gesturing between the two of you, “we only do this in the bedroom. With the door locked.”

That just made you laugh even harder, shoving your face into his neck to muffle your drunken laughter until Loki flicked a hand and you fell backwards onto your soft mattress, the pair of you magically back in your room.

“I love your magic. So convenient,” you giggled, out of breath from all that had just happened. You sat up on the edge of the bed and tugged on the waistband of his pants, pulling him between your knees and into a kiss. “But help me out here. I’m a ‘lil bit tipsy and you’ve kept me waiting long enough.”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The next morning, the world was bouncing.

Wait, what?

Prying open your groggy eyes, a tiny flurry of dark hair and “The Mighty Thor” pajamas zipped past you.

“UP, UP!!! Meeeerry Christmas!”

Elliot was jumping on your bed, shouting and hitting you with a pillow. Loki rolled over groaning loudly and wrapped his arm around your waist, burying his face against your back. Which, you realised with a start, was still unclothed.

You grabbed the blanket and quickly pulled it over your heads, hissing at your husband, “how’d he get in here? I thought you locked the door! We’re not wearing anything!”

“My kid, my abilities…” He mumbled, pressing a drowsy kiss to the back of your neck.

“SANTA GAVE ME PRESENTS! GET UP!!!” Elliot shouted, throwing himself down heavily, knocking the air out of your lungs.

“Oof… well then, your kid, your responsibility.” You playfully smacked Loki’s hand that was wandering lower and lower on your bare stomach. He chuckled and kissed your neck again, then peeked out from under the blankets, making sure your bodies were still covered.

“Good morning, Elliot. Could you possibly be any louder?” he teased, poking him gently in the side.

Elliot giggled and nodded earnestly, taking a deep breath, preparing to yell.

“No no no!! You don’t have to show me!” Loki quickly backtracked. “Can you give mommy and I a moment? Go count your presents again, you may have missed one.”

The little boy squealed excitedly at that and dashed out the door back to the Christmas tree. Loki waved a hand at the door, slamming it shut, and you both breathed a sigh of relief.

You rolled over to face your husband, meeting his tired but twinkling eyes and placing a chaste kiss on his bare chest. “Merry Christmas, Loki.”

“Merry Christmas, Y/N.” He responded, lifting your face up to kiss you. He lingered against your lips for a moment, melting into you and moving his hand to your waist to guide you until you were on top of him, running his hands lazily over your back.

Trailing kisses down his neck, you snuggled up on Loki's chest, absentmindedly stroking a hand through his hair. “I don’t want to get up,” you murmured. “I could stay like this forever.”

Sunlight was streaming through your window, glinting off the snow outside and casting a warm golden glow over your entangled bodies in the bed. It was a complete and utter dream, cuddled up on your drowsy husband on Christmas day.

A loud crash followed by an immediate “I’m okay!” came from the living room and brought you back to reality. Loki just chuckled, not even opening his eyes all the way at the ruckus. “Thank you for giving me such a wonderful son.”

You giggled. “I couldn’t have done it without you.”

“Believe me, it was my absolute pleasure to help out.” He pressed a kiss on your forehead, hugging you closer to him. “Well, as much as we wish for it, we can’t keep him waiting forever. We should check what that was.”

“You’re right, you’re right…” you groaned, “let me just hop in the shower real quick before we go out.”

Sighing, you climbed off him and stretched, then strode across the room to the bathroom, turning back around when you reached the doorway. Loki was already looking, watching you walk away with entranced eyes and a lazy smile resting on his face.

You rolled your eyes and waved him over. “When you’re done staring, get in here and help me.”

After a quick and rather enjoyable shower, you found yourself sitting on the couch with your head on Loki’s shoulder, watching Elliot excitedly rip open his presents. He had just gotten to a large box that had a tag saying “from Santa” on it when he paused, a worried look crossing his chubby face.

“Daddy, I have a secret to tell you first. C’mere.” He set aside the gift and climbed onto Loki’s lap, motioning for him to come down to his level.

“Oh-okay,” Loki looked at you confused, but you just shrugged.

Elliot tugged Loki’s head towards him and began whispering in his ear as best he could, which, coming from a four year old, meant you could still make out every word he said.

“Last night, I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus. Just like that song! And I thought… I thought she could only kiss you.”

You and Loki locked eyes, silently telling each other to respond first while you tried to stifle your laughter.

“Uh… did you now?” Loki answered, biting back his laughter. “Well, thank you for telling me. What do you propose we should we do with her then?” He picked up his son, the two of them turning to look at you. Loki had a growing smirk on his face as he thought back to the wildly odd night you had had, until Elliot clapped his hands together excitedly.

“I know! I think, I think she should say I’m sorry. Then she should get in trouble so she doesn’t do it again, like I get time outs! Disk-uh-pline, right?”

Your jaw dropped at his words, knowing exactly how Loki would take your son’s perfectly innocent suggestion, and sure enough, Loki’s smirk only grew even bigger. “You’re absolutely right,” he grinned. “That’s a wonderful idea, Elliot.”

Loki grabbed your chin between two fingers and pulled you into a kiss, ignoring Elliot’s disgusted protests and efforts to pull you apart.

“You’re in deep, deep trouble now, Y/N,” Loki grinned, his voice practically a purr as he set Elliot back on the ground. The little boy eagerly went back to unwrapping presents, ignoring the two of you completely and giving Loki the chance to reclaim his seat beside you. His arm snaked around your waist and you eyed him suspiciously, a grin playing at your lips.

“Pay attention. Your son is opening his presents,” you scolded, playfully patting his cheek. Loki just chuckled darkly and nipped at your fingers as you pulled your hand away.

He bent his head down to rest against your ear, trailing his lips lightly over it down to the fresh mark that he had put on the curve of your neck last night. “Kissing Santa Claus,” he hummed in a whisper so Elliot couldn’t hear, icy breath sending a shiver crawling across your skin. “You should know better…whatever shall I do with you?”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Loki/Everything Taglists:

@agarwaeneth @adaliamalfoy @lisalisa007 @himitoshi @drakesfiance @destiel1597 @dangertoozmanykids101 @archy3001 @jcalpha1

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