#let's just chill out and start our day off with some piping
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well good day to all of you. i have a tale. a classified, certified absolute god tier disaster of a tale.
at the ripe hour of 6:45 am i was awoken from my slumber by a Noise. what sort of noise? you might be asking.
the sort of noise that usually accompanies my father getting up at the ass crack of dawn and trying not to turn on the tap loudly so that he doesnt wake us up.
for one blissful moment i thought that i was at home, in my bed, and all was right with the world.
and then i remembered that i live approximately four hours away from my parents and all is not right with the world.
so i did what any person would do. waited for the noise to go away.
but it did not.
so i investigated. in all my bleary eyed glory.
and found that my bathroom ceiling light was pissing.
not just a little either.
a severe, unauthorized amount of water was streaming out of my bathroom light fixture.
so after banging on katyas door and finding a bucket and throwing on a sweatshirt i dragged my tired ass down to the front desk and reported the tea as it were.
now one thing you need to know about our building is that it is old. the second thing you need to know about our building is that the maitenance guys (we call them the boys) are absolutely incredible, like tumblr funny guy posts but irl, however they take for fucking ever to respond to any situation.
this time though, nothing was in clear danger of exploding or lighting on fire. so we made some breakfast. drank some coffee. watched the bucket that we had put in the bathroom fill up with water. and we waited.
and waited.
and waited some more.
then i noticed that if you stepped on some of our kitchen floor tiles they started squelching.
so back downstairs i went and explained the tea as it were once again.
and let it be known, that i worked for two very solid and very miserable years as a resident assistant in college. i know all about the woes of people complaining to you to fix things that you cannot fix and you cannot tell them when it will be fixed because the person who needs to do the fixing is otherwise indisposed. so my general attitude towards this whole situation was "hey man you can't make this better for me and im really not pressed about it as long as someone eventually comes and sorts out my pissing ceiling." which is a great attitude to have in this general situation. and especially so because it was about to get even more strange.
at approximately 9:30am our apartment was graced by the presence of one of the boys. the maintenance man. we will call him james.
we have encountered james before. he delt with our fuse box nearly exploding. that situation was not nearly as chill as this one was.
hes also incredible.
so he comes in and he goes "hey how's it going" and i say "well you know things are just leaking!"
he proceeds to tell us that the fridge in the apartment above us had a connection pipe that froze and exploded some how and that managed to leak all into our apartment. not nearly what i was expecting but hey! at least they know what's going on!
we tell him about the squelching tiles and he says that he will bring us a dehumidifier after he turns off the water and deals with the mess of the fridge above us. we say ok great! this is wonderful!
and he goes to leave the apartment. out of habit i had locked the door when he entered. he goes "aw man did you lock me in?"
and i say
"oh sorry!"
and he pauses.
and he looks at our door in disbelief. perhaps even utter horror.
and this, my lovely audience, is what he was looking at:
surprisingly. he was not staring at the entertainment for man and horse plaque that katya and i found while thrifting. nay. he was staring at the unfortunate combination of the printed photo of lando norris and max verstappens face.
now why are lando norris and ax verstappen on the back of my door? you might be asking. you might even be asking who they are.
and if youve been following the lore of this blog, you might recognize them as formula 1 drivers. lando norris of course being a mclaren driver and max verstappen being the reigning world champion of team red bull.
and how did they wind up on my door? well at christmas katya thought it would be funny to put a picture of lando norris on top of our christmas tree and so we got one printed at cvs but when you get wallet sized photos printed they print you four of them so we ended up with four of the same photo of lando. one went on the tree, one went to my sister, one is in our bathroom and now one is on the back of our door.
as for max. well. katyas partner drinks red bull and he was on the red bull box so we cut him out and stuck him there. neither of us are particularly big max fans, it was just funny.
but anyway. i digress.
james is standing there staring at this array of perplexing stuff and goes.
"really? him??"
and i go
"yeah..." not knowing what else to say.
and james turns. and he looks at us. and he goes. and i shit you the absolute fuck not.
"now what's wrong with lewis hamilton???"
(sir lewis hamilton being the mercedes f1 driver, 7 time world champion and absolute icon)
and katya and i go
"oh no no! we love lewis hamilton! we just respect him too much to put him on the door!"
which is true
and james goes "now what did you think of him going to ferrari?"
and i say "i thought it was an interesting choice"
and katya says "i was surprised."
and james says "you and me both" and then he shuts the door behind him.
katya and i look at eachother. and we both fall to the floor in fits of laughter.
let it be known that james has come face to face with a giant tapestry of mr worldwide mr 305 pitbull himself that is in our bathroom, on several occasions, and yet, he chooses to comment on our choice of formula 1 driver that is taped to the back of our door.
im still in a state of disbelief. my ceiling is still pissing. my floor is still squelching. and my maintenance man felt the need to call our my choice of formula 1 driver at 9:30 on a saturday morning.
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(Un)welcome Distraction | Part 4
Nick Folio x female reader
Minors, please DNI
🔞⚠️: references to sex, some fluff
776 words
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3
You woke with a start to the sound of raised voices, almost hitting your head off the top of Nick's bunk.
“Dude! Shut the fuck up! She's still asleep,” you heard Nick hiss.
“Seriously, Folio. Fucking your girl on the bus while we're all in our bunks, like, metres away? Not cool.” Noah spat back, not bothering to keep quiet.
‘Shit. Fuck’, you thought, breaking out into a cold sweat. After a chill day off in Nashville, you'd all piled back on to the bus for the long drive up to Chicago. All but Nick and yourself decided to go straight to the bunks to get some sleep. You'd settled down in the seating area towards the back of the bus, wrapped up in Nick's arms. After a few soft kisses on your neck and your hand making its way up Nick's thigh, one thing led to another, and you ended up naked from the waist down with him between your legs. You thought you'd been quiet - at least by your standards - but apparently not.
“She's an unwelcome distraction, that's what she is,” Jolly huffed.
Jolly seemed to have the biggest problem with you being around; you’d caught him staring at you or making snide remarks when you were within earshot since you'd arrived. The others had pretty much come round to the idea of you joining them, quickly realising you had good intentions for Nick. Even Matt was warming to you now he'd discovered Nick played better when you were close by, but he was still somewhat convinced you were a fame-chasing wannabe.
“First of all, don't talk about my girl like that ever again. Yes, we had sex. We're sorry, we didn't exactly plan on it and we made sure we cleaned up after ourselves.” Nick said, getting agitated.
“Were you guys safe at least?” a genuinely concerned Matt asked.
You could hear Nick giggle, and it warmed your heart, “We've got it covered, don't worry. Thanks, Dad!”
“Let's not change the subject, especially not to Folio's sex life which, let's face it, we will literally be hearing a lot of while she's around!” Jolly piped up again.
“Jolly, chill out. Just make the effort to get to know her like the rest of us have. She's not a bad person and she's clearly madly in love with Folio,” Nicholas responded.
“I love her too. A lot. Please, guys, don't make her leave me. I promise I won't fuck her on the bus again, well, not while you guys are present anyway, but -” Nick started.
“Come here,” you heard Nicholas say, followed by some shuffling about and what sounded like hands being affectionately slapped on backs. “Group hug. We know man, we know.”
It went quiet for a while, and then you heard footsteps moving away from the bunk area. You debated getting up, but you felt your cheeks were flushed after you learnt your late night romp with Nick had most definitely been heard. At least the guys seemed okay with Nick - and you - now. Jolly, on the other hand, was clearly not a fan of yours, but you couldn't figure out what made him hate you so much. You thought it would be best to lay low, at least while you were in such close quarters.
You rolled over, facing away from the curtain, which offered the only privacy, letting out a deep sigh as you turned. What could only have been a few minutes later, the curtain was drawn back, and you felt the familiar presence of Nick climb back in the bunk. He pulled you back towards his chest and buried his head in your neck. Warmth radiated from him. He was your safe place. He was your Nick.
Allowing yourself to relax, you whispered, “Hi baby, I love you a lot too. Um, if it's going to be better for everyone I don't mind leaving after the Chicago show. I -”
“Hey, hey. Shh. No, you don't have to leave. The guys are okay now. They understand us. I'm guessing you heard that, uh, discussion. How much did you hear?"
“From Noah announcing they heard us last night when we, you know,” you let your voice trail off.
“We'll just have to work on being quieter. Well, you do anyway,” he joked.
“Hey! You're louder than me, sunshine.” You paused for a moment, then continued, "Anyway, I don't even know how or if I should ask this but, what's Jolly's problem with me?”
A deafening silence fell between the two of you, and you felt Nick's entire body tense.
“I don't think he has a problem with you, and that's the problem,” Nick finally said.
Part 5
#nick folio#bad omens fanfiction#nick folio fanfic#nick folio fanfiction#nick folio fic#nick folio x reader#nick folio x female reader#reader x nick folio#bad omens fic
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Raining
(Sadly, it was not raining when I started writing this. But I fell asleep after writing a chunk and woke up to it raining outside and my power going out. Horray!)
Shinsou Hitoshi x Reader
Genre: Fluff, Romantic
Summary: Looks like the walk back to the dorms is going to be a rainy one…
~~~~~~
A glance out the classroom window showed sky blue giving way to a gray that steadily grew darker. You could feel it in the way the general atmosphere changed, the pressure and humidity in the air and the sound of the wind beginning to make itself heard.
It was going to rain. Downpour, even.
And to make things worse? You didn’t think to bring an umbrella today. Not that you could, either, the one you did have got torn when the harsh wind of the last storm pulled it from your fingers and into a low hanging tree branch.
You heaved a small, silent sigh, turning your attention back to the lesson, quick to catch up where you left off in your notes. Today was thankfully one of the easier days, nothing too crazy planned for training, no surprise attacks or anything else too stressful. Just another basic day for learning normal school lessons and keeping up with training.
By the start of your second to last class, rain was battering down on the windows, the sky dark and gloomy and shrouding the world below in shadow. Other students were talking about how their outside plans were going to be interrupted by the rain, or how they hoped the storm wouldn’t get too bad.
All you could think about was the fact you’d most likely have to walk home in it without an umbrella. You often spent time after classes still in the school, so it was very likely you’d be heading to the dorms when everyone had already gotten there. Asking someone to share an umbrella would be out of the equation if there was no one still lingering.
The end of your school day couldn’t have come quicker, and as you feared, no one was still around in the lobby of the school. You stared out the open school doors, frowning at the rain that practically came down in sheets.
“Did you forget an umbrella too?”
You turn at the voice, spotting your boyfriend, Shinsou, walking up to stand beside you.
“Agh, sort of… my umbrella is all torn up and I haven’t had time to get a new one yet.”
Shinsou hummed, gaze flitting over your worried face before moving up to the dark gray clouds overhead. “All the teachers are in a meeting right now. And there’s no telling on when they’ll be done, so I guess our only choice is to walk.”
“Yeah…” you sighed, “Rain’s letting up a bit, so I guess now the time more than ever.”
You both stepped out into the rain, your expression scrunching in discomfort. You knew it was just water, but the cold chill it gave you wasn’t pleasant, nor was the droplet that slid into your eye, causing it to sting.
It wasn’t long until Shinsou was grabbing your hand, pulling you under every tree you two passed by to get some reprieve from the rain.
“So how are you doing in the hero course?” You piped up, wanting to fill the dreary rain with conversation. And also get a distraction from the way your clothes were beginning to uncomfortably stick to your skin.
Shinsou looked a little surprised by your question, as if he wasn’t expecting it to come up out of the blue, but nonetheless he gave a warm, tired smile.
“Tiring. But overall I think I’m doing pretty good. It’s a little jarring how supportive everyone is.” For a moment, you’d forgotten about the rain, too focused on the way he was smiling and talking. “I still think I’m way behind everyone, but several people say I don’t have that much catching up to do.”
“And I think they’re right.” You piped up, grabbing his attention, “From what I’ve seen you’ve got good intuition and reflexes! I think you’ll be a great hero, ‘Toshi!”
He grew shy, that’s the best way you could describe the look on his face, his free hand finding a place on the back of his neck. “Thanks (Y/n).”
~~~
You two had to break into a run-jog as you came up to the dorms, the rain getting heavier. The front doors burst open, Iida waving his arms in exasperation as he shouted.
“What on earth are you both doing out in this weather with no protection?! You’ll get sick!”
“We didn’t have any umbrellas!” You shouted back, Shinsou pulling on your hand to pull you towards the dorm building faster.
You both stood in the entrance, awkwardly dripping water onto the rug beneath you as Iida ran around, shouting to others to grab you both towels. Sure, he was overreacting a bit, but you appreciated the concern.
You jumped as a towel was suddenly plopped over your face. You reached up to adjust it, wringing out your hair to spot Shinsou grinning at you.
Ah. Of course. The towel was purple.
You shook your head at him with a playful roll of your eyes, patting the rain off your skin. “So Iida, how long until dinner?”
“At least an hour and a half!”
“Enough time for us to take showers!” You stated, waving your hand to beckon Shinsou to follow you. “C’mon ‘Toshi.”
You both took separate showers, and as you stepped out of your bathroom Shinsou was already waiting for you in your room, relaxing on your bean bag with some random phone game.
He looked so comfortable, you couldn’t help but plop yourself in his lap, curling up against his chest. He hummed as you made yourself comfortable, gently trailing his fingers through your slightly damp hair.
“Remind me to grab us both umbrellas next time we go shopping.” He murmured, setting his phone aside to wrap his arms around you. “It would suck if you got sick from getting caught in the rain again.”
“It would suck if you got sick too.” You retorted, shifting to peck kisses to his cheeks and nose.
He let out a soft laugh, cradling your cheeks in his hands. “It would suck for both of us, cause we’d both miss out on these.”
With that, he captured your lips in his, warm and soft, contrasting nicely against the after-shower chill on your skin. You smiled softly onto the kiss, trailing your fingers into his hair how he liked.
You let out a laugh as you parted, your ears catching the sound of your stomachs growling. “C’mon, let’s go get dinner.”
#mha#bnha#mha oneshot#bnha oneshot#mha fic#bnha fic#mha fluff#bnha fluff#hitoshi shinso x reader#hitoshi shinsou#shinsou x reader#mha shinso x reader#mha shinso hitoshi#bnha shinsou#mha fanfiction#bnha fanfiction#my hero academia shinsou#shinsou x y/n#gender neutral reader#shinsou x gn!reader
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Dave Strider, Roxy Lalonde, Dirk Strider, Karkat Vantas
Meat, page 32
DAVE: yo
DAVE: love to chat but im kinda in the middle of something
ROXY: yo yourself but this is important
DAVE: uhhh
DAVE: more important than salvaging the global economy from potential disaster??
DAVE: sounds hugely unlikely
ROXY: idk about that
ROXY: in terms of scale and relativity and stuff maybe not
ROXY: its actually kinda hard to tell
ROXY: i guess in the grand scheme of things
ROXY: shes just takin a sort of nap
ROXY: but its one HELL of a nap bro
DAVE: a nap you say
DAVE: well this changes the fuck out of everything
ROXY: yea??
DAVE: nah
ROXY: lmao dirk just texted me about this
ROXY: somehow he found out about jade did u tell him
DAVE: uh no
ROXY: he just said make sure she gets lotsa daylight
ROXY: that itll help with the “exorcism she needs”.....
ROXY: and also to say hi to calliope for some fuckin reason??
DAVE: thats weird
DAVE: since when does he give a fuck about them
ROXY: idk
ROXY: guess ill just open the damn curtains and let some light in here
ROXY: he usually knows stuff about weird things
DAVE: so whats wrong with her again
DAVE: like
DAVE: some sort of demonic nap
ROXY: ok i wouldnt say shes NAPPING per se
ROXY: shes just like
ROXY: floatin here... upright
ROXY: eyes wide open
ROXY: and theyre both pitch black
DAVE: oh so she saw one of my latest sbahj campaign ads
ROXY: lol
ROXY: no dude
ROXY: like what im sayin is
ROXY: she looks a lil possessed
ROXY: by uh
ROXY: grim spirits n shit
DAVE: is she fucking grimbark again
ROXY: no!
ROXY: this isnt grimbark
ROXY: i KNOW what grimbark is dave this aint it
ROXY: it seems more serious tbh??
ROXY: like existing in some transformative state that isnt a literal fuckin joke
DAVE: ok yeah this does sound pretty bad
DAVE: but its not really my field
DAVE: did you try calling rose
ROXY: yea that was totes my original plan
ROXY: like no offense ur not #1 on my speed dial when it comes to this kinda thing
ROXY: but rose isnt picking up
ROXY: probly on account of ailments to be fair
ROXY: i called an unruly number of times
ROXY: and kan wasnt picking up either so...
DAVE: huh
DAVE: spooky
ROXY: hella spooky
ROXY: somethin about all this seems wrong
DAVE: yeah i guess
DAVE: what do you think is up
ROXY: idk
ROXY: i feel like theres something movin just out the corner of my vision but every time i turn to look at it
ROXY: its gone
ROXY: its givin me chills rn like im being watched
DAVE: well im no fucking ace detective
DAVE: or some gumshoe flatfoot dicking up the place suckin hard on my sherlock pipe like some sleuth of the fucking year
ROXY: dave
DAVE: but maybe we should consider the possibility that you are literally being watched
ROXY: ..............
DAVE: anyway can we hold that wise and rad thought i just had
DAVE: i gotta give karkat some emotional support
DAVE: since gettin jake on our side was a pretty huge fucking bonanza for us
DAVE: which has almost equal probability of winning us the election as it does blowing up in our faces depending on this speech he gives
DAVE: so we gotta like
DAVE: concentrate here?????
DAVE: instead of jerking each other off all god damned day for the rest of our lives
DAVE: (im just joking we dont actually do that)
ROXY: oh
ROXY: jakes on ur side then?
DAVE: yeah
DAVE: wasnt that hard to convince him after your girl j crock started slut shaming him on public access
ROXY: god dammit jane
DAVE: so i take it jade didnt convert you to our cause before going into her gothic trance fugue or whatever
ROXY: siiigh
ROXY: i just want this whole stupid political thing over n done with tbh
ROXY: i hate watchin u guys tear each other apart in the news
DAVE: yeah sorry about that
DAVE: sorry its making you feel bad i mean
DAVE: not sorry that were doin it
DAVE: itd be an unconscionably lame move to put something on a billboard that i didnt 100% stand by
DAVE: but that sounds suspiciously like something jane would do
DAVE: aka the bad guy in this situation
DAVE: like objectively speaking
ROXY: ugh pls dont start
DAVE: just sayin
ROXY: idgAF!!!
DAVE: also
DAVE: aside from how vehemently i disagree with every detail in janes shitty platform
DAVE: i also think
DAVE: karkats the right guy for the job
DAVE: full stop
ROXY: you rly believe in him dont u
DAVE: yeah
DAVE: of course i do
DAVE: because i...
ROXY: hey before you jet can i ask you another question
ROXY: theres somethin else ive been meanin to ask u about for a while
DAVE: uh alright shoot
ROXY: yea soooo
ROXY: dave how did you come out
DAVE: ...
DAVE: what?
ROXY: like as not being straight
ROXY: howd you couch that to ppl w/o them freakin out or being awkward around u
ROXY: do u think its ever too late to
ROXY: idk
ROXY: change ur mind?
ROXY: about the person you wanna be??
ROXY: like is there a some point of no return you can cross where everyone is waitin for u to have a big ass revelation about your internal character
ROXY: but its like “dude no u already used up all ur gay capital when u started datefriend cohabitating w a cute as hell skeleton alien”
ROXY: and anything after that ur just gettin greedy
ROXY: is greedy even the right word
ROXY: greedy for droppin bombshells
ROXY: bout gender identities and sexual preferences
ROXY: or ids n preffies as i like to call em ;)
DAVE: ids n preffies
DAVE: damn
DAVE: thats fucking good
DAVE: anyway uh
DAVE: thats a pretty deep question considering all the shit we have going on right now
ROXY: yeah ur right
ROXY: now is probs not the best time for a feels jam
ROXY: especially with the creepy jade situation happening on my couch here
DAVE: i dunno if id worry too much about that
DAVE: jade goes into trances literally all the time
DAVE: she fucking loves sleeping
DAVE: youd think someone who spent so much of her life locked in a state of dubiously consensual slumber would wanna get as few zees as possible in her adult life but not jade
DAVE: ive never known anyone who hits the snooze button more times in a row than her
DAVE: if youre that worried take her to a hospital
ROXY: im thinkin about it!!
ROXY: not even sure if i wanna like
ROXY: mess with her tho?
ROXY: how would i even take her there...
DAVE: ok well while you ponder whether you wanna dump jade in a wheelbarrow and trundle her groggy spooked-up ass to the hospital
DAVE: in the meantime ill rap at you about my epiphany concerning the desire to bone some dudes
DAVE: probably not a literal rap though
ROXY: wow im disappointed
DAVE: i mean i could TOTALLY rap about wanting to bone dudes if i wanted?
DAVE: im just on the fuckin clock here and theres lots of people lookin at me
ROXY: :(
DAVE: ok so
DAVE: what ive learned is
DAVE: coming to terms with all this bullshit is a thing you sort of do in stages
DAVE: like stage one is you making jokes about how sweaty dudes standing close together in tv shows seems really gay
DAVE: stage two is making jokes about that and not immediately adding no homo afterward
DAVE: stage three is flirting with all your male friends ironically and not even thinking about adding no homo afterward because youre so fuckin woke and secure in your ironclad straight masculinity that you dont have anything to prove to anybody anymore
DAVE: or thats just what you say out loud
DAVE: inside you start being like
DAVE: oh shit
DAVE: maybe yes homo
DAVE: stage four is freaking out about that and putting the no homo back on all your statements even objectively heterosexual ones which just stupidly makes everything you say sound extra gay
DAVE: stage five is
DAVE: actually wait the next few stages are various permutations of the same thing that i already described
DAVE: it starts being like a gay fractal
DAVE: anyway eventually you arrive at like stage nine
DAVE: which is reminding everyone who will listen that youre gay minimum six times a day
DAVE: in really lame ways like
DAVE: oh cool dude are you making hot pockets
DAVE: better make mine a gay hot pocket
DAVE: cause im a gay homosexual who only consumes homo ass snacks delivered right to my mouth by a big queer butler
DAVE: servin it right up on his huge gay dick
DAVE: but that all only applies to the extent which i am technically gay
DAVE: which in my case is only about maybe 30% to 70%
DAVE: so only cook 30% to 70% of my gay hot pocket
DAVE: cause you know straights are fucking animals who never defrost their pepperoni
DAVE: and i gotta rep for that like 50% straightness still lurking inside me like the idiot who fell asleep in the shopping mall when it was closing for the night
DAVE: so now theres just this straight dude locked in a dark fucking mall for some stupid reason haunting the place like a cryptid and rummaging through the trash in the food court
DAVE: also just in case janes opposition research is listening in on their illegal wiretap i know the word bisexual exists btw im just choosing not to use it in service of spitting some fuckin chuckle jokes here so lets all calm down and not let this one become a distressingly literal federal issue
DAVE: anyway when all is said and done
DAVE: you eat a half cooked hot pocket because all your roommates think the height of humor is taking what was obviously an improvisational riff at unironic face value to punk you
ROXY: dave...
DAVE: what
ROXY: nm
ROXY: i was gonna ask you why ur like this
ROXY: then i remembered about how ur half me and half dirk
DAVE: yeah it really is crazy how those dope late game familial reveals actually did explain everything
ROXY: so whats stage ten
DAVE: stage ten is uhhhhhhhh
DIRK: The Prince opens his fucking mouth, and just literally starts SAYING SHIT, out loud, because he doesn’t think he can take another fucking second listening to a pompous alien virgin monologuing about gender.
DIRK: No consequence, my ass. You may be able to suppress what I do with my mind, but you have no control over my mouth. I’m nobody’s fucking puppet.
DIRK: And you don’t even know my friends. They’re not yours to toy with.
DIRK: They’re mine.
DIRK: Do you even know where I am right now?
DIRK: Do you have the slightest idea what I’m up to
DIRK: Yeah, well. Try and stop me then.
DIRK: I fucking dare you.
DIRK: Here I go. I’m walking up the tower stairs now.
DIRK: Walk, walk, walk. Ah, the exercise feels good.
DIRK: Argh. Wow, yeah.
DIRK: You’re right. My feet are definitely getting heavy.
DIRK: But the Dead Cherub tragically underestimates the Prince’s determination. He powers the fuck through it. See?
DIRK: Stomp, stomp, stomp. Up the stairs he goes. No fucking sweat.
DIRK: Oh also, did he mention? He can fucking fly, so there’s that.
DIRK: He decides to take flight and cut to the chase. He whips up the hollow vertical shaft at the center of the spiraling tower stairs. Life in the fast lane kicks ass, it turns out.
DIRK: He can practically taste the top of the tower.
DIRK: The Prince busts out his sword and makes short work of that big old bell.
DIRK: The slicing is accompanied by the ear-shattering melodic sounds of metal being cleaved apart by an anime sword, as the Prince nimbly avoids the sharp pieces and ricocheting stair debris.
DIRK: He wonders out loud, “what is this, amateur hour”?
DIRK: The Dead Cherub then humorlessly narrates, “why, yes. yes mr. strider, it IS amateur hour. and i’m the amateur here, for throwing a huge bell at you. i would like to humbly apologize for my amateurism.”
DIRK: Sure you do.
DAVE: well lets just say internalized whatevers are kind of like an onion
DAVE: theres lots of layers
DAVE: they suck on pizza
DAVE: and trolls have to get their stomach pumped if they eat them
DAVE: this goes for gender stuff too btw
DAVE: which i kinda get the feeling is what you were actually asking about
ROXY: wow am i rly that transparent?
DAVE: nah but as previously discussed youre a lot like me
DAVE: so it was pretty easy to figure out what you were getting at
ROXY: yea
ROXY: i dont got ur poker face tho
ROXY: but im workin on that!
ROXY: maybe ill get a sick pair of shades too
DAVE: oh DOPE
DAVE: yeah thats dope i support that idea
DIRK: I’m on top of the tower now. I’ve got my long sniper rifle ready and everything.
DIRK: I check to see if it’s loaded. It is. I get in the PERFECT spot for taking aim at this hunky imbecile who’s about to give a speech.
DAVE: anyway i dont think any of our friends are gonna hold your feet to the flames over dumb shit like this
DAVE: and its not like anyone else is gonna care since we definitely forgot to program hating gays and women into earth c
DAVE: humans are all jacked up on hating xenophiles now
DAVE: which sucks a lot too dont get me wrong
DAVE: btw did you know janes a xenophobe
ROXY: dave!!!
DAVE: ok ok
DAVE: so does all this mean i gotta call you dad now or what
ROXY: wat
DAVE: i mean thats what were talkin about right
ROXY: well first of all
ROXY: do u still even make a habit of callin me mom??
ROXY: i thought u kinda stopped that
ROXY: even if it was effin cute
DAVE: oh yeah i guess i did
DAVE: but i could start again
DAVE: but not if it means id have to go to fucking gender jail or something
DAVE: like what i mean is i could start that cute shit again but switch to dad
ROXY: ok but SECOND of all
ROXY: i would never want to deprive dirk of that noble honorific
DAVE: what
DAVE: ugh no way
ROXY: hahaha yeah way hes ya daddy dude!
DAVE: aw fuck noooo
DAVE: wow man
DAVE: i would never call him that
DAVE: i mean i know its true but i just wouldnt...
DAVE: wait
ROXY: what
DAVE: something feels
DAVE: wrong
ROXY: ???
DAVE: like some shits about to go down
DAVE: and i gotta...
DAVE: karkat! dude!!!
DAVE: GET DOWN!
KARKAT: WHAT?????
DIRK: You’re absolutely right.
DIRK: I would never do that.
DIRK: I’d never kill Dave, no matter what I felt the stakes were. I’d never hurt him either.
DIRK: You do understand me pretty well, I’ll give you that. And you’re right about many things.
DIRK: But there are just a couple things you’re wrong about.
DIRK: Pretty important things, actually.
DIRK: First of all, this gun is loaded.
DIRK: But not with bullets.
DIRK: Yes. You’re right about the tranquilizer.
DIRK: But there’s one more fact you’re not aware of.
DIRK: Which is that I never intended to aim for Jake at all.
ROXY: hellooooooo
ROXY: dave??
ROXY: whered ya go
DIRK: No, that’s not what he does.
DIRK: He swings the rifle around one hundred eighty degrees, and points the scope toward the large, now-curtainless window of a distant apartment.
DIRK: He zooms in quickly, cutting even shorter the little time that the Dead Cherub could use to impede him in some way.
DIRK: He takes aim, lets his finger hover over the trigger, and...
DIRK: Ow!
DIRK: Yeah, you got me. Can’t move it an inch.
DIRK: The only problem is, he doesn’t need to pull that trigger.
DIRK: Earlier, when he was messing around with all this shit in plain view, he rigged the rifle to be voice-operated.
DIRK: All he needs to do is say...
DIRK: FIRE.
DIRK: I see. So you’re not going to say what happens next?
DIRK: Is that really how it’s gonna be?
DIRK: So be it.
DIRK: The tranquilizer dart hits the glass of Roxy’s apartment window before the sound from the rifle’s shot even reaches them.
DIRK: She hears the glass break. Seconds later, she hears the bang. She drops her phone on the floor.
DIRK: She doesn’t have the slightest idea what just happened until she looks over at Jade and notices the dart stuck in her neck, right in the jugular vein.
DIRK: She watches as Jade’s huge, creepy black eyes start getting heavy. Her eyelids sag, and her head tilts to the side.
DIRK: She shuts her eyes completely. Her hair stops floating around her ominously. In fact, there’s nothing ominous about her at all anymore. She entirely resumes her status as the cute doggy girl we all know and love.
DIRK: She slumps over and collapses onto the couch. She begins snoring loudly while making a little canine whimper on each exhale.
DIRK: Like the bitch she is.
DIRK: Oh, what’s that? You’re getting a little quiet for some reason.
DIRK: You’re going to have to speak up.
DIRK: Aaand, nope.
DIRK: You’re getting quieter, not louder. You’re gonna need to work on that.
DIRK: Maybe try shouting it?
DIRK: Yeah, I didn’t catch that at all.
DIRK: Not even one syllable.
DIRK: Guess that’s it for you? Back to not mattering.
DIRK: Not that you ever did.
DIRK: Come to think of it, why am I still talking out loud?
#homestuck#homestuck epilogues#dave strider#roxy lalonde#dirk strider#karkat vantas#meat epilogue#page 32
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Okay y'all. This is the story of how I owe $17,000 to the guy who propositioned me during family night at a local brewery and now I'm committed to bringing sensible wine options to his house for Thanksgiving.
Our tale begins like most do - panic crying in the living room while my house floods.
Because of a freak polar vortex like day in February, my old drafty house and the rust bucket of a boiler in the cellar created a horrific one-two punch that ended in me nearly freezing to death in my own home and almost all of my heating pipes cracking and leaking, flooding my first floor and basement. It was terrifying, beyond stressful, and most importantly to this story, expensive.
After 2 and a half months of living in a hotel, battling insurance companies, daily anxiety attacks, and having 4 grand of insurance money stolen by my bipolar, narcissistic mother, I hit my absolute fucking limit. Friends of mine who are much better off financially than I have ever been in my life offered to help me out of the dark, lonely, and cold hole I'd wound up in.
Three text messages and a lot of tears later, I was in possession of a check for $17,000 and had an official start date for construction. Praise Dolly.
A hop, skip, and a jump through time and we're now in July. I'm paying my friends back in monthly installments and trying not to crumble from the knowledge that it will take me 4 or 5 years of consistent payments to get out from under this loan. But at least I have heat. It's the little things I guess.
My friend, let's call him Mitch, and his wife, who unfortunately shares my name but for this we'll call her Lucette, are kindly checking in on me and inviting me to coffee/dinner/drinks to hang out. Things seem like they're back on track to being normal.
Lucette gets a new job that requires a ton of travel, so I don't see her as much as I do Mitch, but that doesn't bother me, as Lucette and I were never particularly close and spending more than an hour of time with her makes me feel like a dirt poor 19 year old who showed up to a nice dinner party in paint stained jeans and a ripped band tee. We are not energetic or socioeconomic equals.
One weekend, Mitch and I get drinks just to catch up, and he tells me that him and Lucette have made the decision to try out ENM (ethical non-monogamy). They've been married for 7 years, have had a bit of a dry spell due to pandemic close proximity, and there's just the general vibe that they want to try new things. I get it! And I'm encouraging. Life is too short for bad sex, I tell him, and he's thankful I'm not judging them. We have a good laugh about it all - particularly the bit about them seeing my profile on Feeld, as they have one too - and after another beer, I go home.
This is probably the part of the movie where the music changes, warning the viewer that some event is looming and possibly dangerous for our protagonist. If only life had such a soundtrack I could hear.
Throughout the summer and into September Mitch and I see more of each other and I take notice of the uptick in chill weekend day drinking and texts. Nothing about it feels off or motivated by anything other than being bored and wanting to hang out with a friend. And because I know about his ENM journey, I think there's the appeal there of getting to speak freely to someone who won't wrinkle their nose and make jokes about bringing pineapples to neighborhood BBQs. In a stunning change of mental pace, I don't overanalyze it. Perhaps this was a mistake.
One morning I wake up a text from Mitch cancelling plans. I'm secretly thrilled - I didn't want to shower that day anyway. But I can also tell something has gone horribly wrong on his end, but he doesn't say what, so I just "yeah, sure, let me know when you're free next" my way out of the conversation.
When we do talk next, he tells me why he cancelled. Lucette cheated on Mitch during a work trip. They'd established rules within their ENM arrangement that she broke. And she broke them loudly, multiple times, and with her iPad still logged in and left on the kitchen counter in full view of Mitch. Horrible words are said, declarations of 'the best sex of her life' are sent to several group chats, pictures are seen. It's bad.
Mitch is unwell. I comfort him as best as I can and he tells me that he and Lucette aren't pulling the divorce lever yet, but he's still heartbroken and scared he's going to lose his marriage. I feel awful for him. I offer to buy him another beer. He shows me the texts he saw. It's officially A Lot.
From that day on, I become his "my wife cheated on me with the guy she told me not to worry about" therapist friend who he can unload on and get sympathetic words in return. I've been imprinted on by the depressed baby bird hatched by infidelity and low self-esteem. It's not the first time, and I'm certain it won't be the last.
Tell me, how's that soundtrack only you, the audience, can hear? I bet it's tense and full of cello.
A few weeks later, I get a head cold. It's not the end of the world but it's annoying. I'm fevered, stuffy, exhausted, and I have not a drop of soup or broth in my home. Mitch sees my Instagram story about being sick and offers to bring me soup.
"Aww, that's so nice of you, thank you."
"Of course! I'll go get it and be right over."
"Awesome! Just text me when you drop it off."
Thirty minutes later my doorbell rings. My dogs bark their heads off. I'm a little annoyed. The bell rings again. I see Mitch's car in my driveway. I mutter to myself about why he didn't just leave it on the steps as I go to the door. I look disgusting and I'm flushed with a solid 100.2 fever, but I guess I'm having face time with Mitch now. I open the door and he hands over the soup almost immediately, but with an odd look on his face. I thank him and ask what I owe, but he refuses for me to pay him back. I thank him again.
He doesn't make a move to leave.
I tell him I'd invite him in but.... *gestures widely to the PJs I've worn for 3 days in a row and the broken capillaries in my nose and the dogs still barking behind the second entryway door*
He smiles awkwardly and says it's okay. He still doesn't leave.
"So... how are you, Mitch?"
His shoulders slump. "I'm not doing great."
Ah. There it is. Mystery solved. My time has been bought with soup and he's lingering to collect on it. So I lean on my door, sniff back a disgusting level of mucus, and brace myself for whatever is about to be said. Turns out, Lucette couldn't stop texting the Best Sex Ever guy and possibly is fixated on him due to some weird aging hot girl nonsense. Mitch tells me he and Lucette are separating. She's sleeping in her home office. The mess got messier. I tell him I'm so incredibly sorry, this is awful, etc etc etc. He stays for 20 minutes to tell me all of this and get as much of a pep talk as I can muster while trying not to sneeze directly in his eyes.
In the interim, I've gotten several strangely loaded texts from Lucette, telling me she's glad Mitch has me and that she knows he values my friendship and advice on things.
Alexa, play "She Knows."
But I keep things as vague as possible, because I don't want to shove myself even more in the middle. I didn't choose to be imprinted on, but I can choose not to encourage a more permanent bond. Call me a wildlife rehabilitation center.
Being sick takes me out of commission for a while, and I have to reschedule multiple things, including getting beer with Mitch. That doesn't deter him from messaging me of course, but I don't see him for a couple weeks. When I'm feeling better, I tell him we should check out a brewery we've never been to before and we set a day.
This is probably the part when the audience yells as the protagonist not to go. Don't get in the car. Stay home.
Ah, to not be a participant in the narrative.
I get to the brewery and immediately I notice 2 things: 1, it's family Sunday Funday, and 2, the vibes around Mitch are........uncomfy. I turn into a socially anxious motormouth. I can't stop talking about literally everything that doesn't matter, including the child at the table next to us playing a solo game of Uno and the 80's music playlist.
I order my beer and finally force myself to chill tf out. Maybe I've picked up on a vibe that has nothing to do with me. Maybe he's just feeling weird. Maybe I'm just insane. All of these options are valid.
Halfway thru our drinks, Mitch brings up the odd texts from Lucette. "I think I know why she was being weird with you."
"Oh? Why?"
I sip my beer and wait.
He says, "So, back when Lucette and I decided to open up our marriage, we had a discussion about who we'd see ourselves dating..."
Hey audience, how's that music crescendo?
I blink.
Mitch gestures with his beer. "And obviously, your name was at the top of my list."
And because I'm the definition of smooth, I practically shout, "REALLY???" so loudly 5 people turn around and look at me.
Mitch doesn't even look away from me. Instead, he stares deeper into my eyes and asks, "Do you ever see that becoming a possibility?"
Me. Dating Mitch.
After months of supporting him through a painful, messy separation that hasn't even really become official. After knowing way too much about his sex life. After all the sad boy memes and depressed 1am texts he's sent. After being forced to read his angry, sexually charged break up poetry in front of him 2 beers in at the bar.
AFTER I HAD TO BORROW $17,000 FROM HIM AND LUCETTE.
I verbally flounder for a painfully long 12 seconds while watching that little girl beat herself with another Uno Reverse card, and finally land on a gentle but firm rejection of the idea. I don't have a chance to mentally process all the messed up parts to this messed up puzzle in the moment but when I get home it starts to click.
They had that conversation in the spring. Around the time that I had to borrow the money in the first place. And while I don't have proof, I can almost guarantee that Lucette vetoed Mitch's suggestion of bringing me into their situation, and now that they're breaking up, he feels like he can take a swing at it (pun? unintended?)
Which means that every single interaction, every single conversation and hang out, every single dollar bill I borrowed is colored with the knowledge I now possess which is that Mitch, for however long, has wanted to fuck me.
He's wanted to fuck me so. Goddamn. Bad.
Audience, I bet you're the star at your optometrist's office with all that 20/20 vision. I'm honestly jealous.
No wonder Lucette was sending probing texts with the energy of "I know you know, and now you know I know." No wonder Mitch attached himself to me like a duckling trying to cross a busy road. No wonder both of them were so earnestly checking on me when I first moved back into my house. NO WONDER MY SUBCONSCIOUS MIND HAD BEEN SCREAMING "YOU'RE IN DANGER GIRL" FOR WEEKS.
And before ALL of this, Mitch had organized Thanksgiving at his house since Lucette would be out of town, and one of his friends created a list of what people can bring. I signed up for wine, since it means I don't have to cook. And when this entire thing came to a head, I started to write an "I'm bailing" text to Mitch. But before I could pull that trigger, our mutual friend messaged me to say how happy she is that I'll be there and that she's missed me.
So now, after finding out that Mitch has wanted to get his dick in me for months (if not longer) without even considering the power imbalance of me owing him SEVENTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS, I have to pick out a sensible red and white wine and show up at his house at 2pm on Thursday.
Audience. Reader. Friends.
I am.... stressed. And in serious debt.
And apparently hot enough to possibly instigate an argument between spouses.
Cue the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving song.
This year I'm grateful for autonomy and friends willing to come up with a code word in case I need to escape quickly.
#ohhhhhhhhh this is bad bad badbadbad#“obviously” SORRY??? OBVIOUSLY????????#OBVIOUSLY YOU'RE AT THE TOP OF MY LIST#WHAT LIKE I'M FRESH MEAT ON YOUR GROCERY LIST???#WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK#this is edging closer and closer into financial abuse territory and I HAVE to get out from under it#he didn't even think about how bad this could be for me#or how uncomfortable it would make me#and here I am just trying not to freak out about owing them money for the next 5 years of my life#AND HE GOES AND PROPOSITIONS ME#I can't#this is too much#god this sucks#what do I even do now??#this was not the holiday I anticipated#storytime#tumblr stories
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#You patch them up#
Part 2
Name: Toni
Age: 21
warning: Mention of harm. Bit of blood.
================================================
After the fight your squad had eased up on the hazing, don't get it wrong, they still make your life miserable, but it was with less malice now. It all started the next day when you went to go eat. You filled up your plate and sat in your usual corner all alone and looking rather pathetic. That was until Lyle sat down in front of you, you propped an eyebrow as he made himself comfortable with the rest of the squad following shortly after.
You were slightly put off by their sudden appearance, more of the fact that they had yet to insult you.
“Did you see his face though, fucken priceless,” Z-dog commented, making everyone chuckle.
“That was some pretty fine fighting private, where did you learn that?” Miles asked from the end of the table. Everyone went silent, all turning to you with expectant looks. Wait, were they actually engaging in meaningful conversation with you?
“Uh just around,” You shrugged.
“Just around she says,” Lyle chuckled
“You rocked his shit,” Sean commented.
“You were surgical with those attacks, man,” Brown added. They were praising you?
“What was that Karate?” Sean asked, throwing some questionable karate moves around.
“Nah, that was street fighting,” Mile's comment had them all nodding. You turned to him slowly seeing him only smirking.
“How would you know?” you asked. The team let out oooo’s. You had not meant for it to come across as a challenge.
“We know our own kind,” he shrugged. “Survivors,” he added with a nod of what looked like respect.
“Gotta admit though. Made us think twice about teasing you,” Lyle shrugged.
“You call what you've been doing to me teasing?” You asked in bewilderment.
“Uh yeah. Should have seen what we did to Brown,” Lyle nodded, gesturing to Brown who threw his fork down his face turning into desperation.
“Oh god please no, don't make me relive that shit,” he begged.
“Stripped him naked, covered him in honey and locked him on the roof. He was up there for a day before someone found him,” Walker explained, earning a slight smile from you.
“Or Warren. Let's just say he dose eat fish anymore,” Sean commented.
“Fucken bastards,” Warren murmured with a smirk.
“Well just don't call me a whore anymore ok. Then we won't have a problem,” You pipped in.
“Gotta admit, that might have been to far,” Lyle admitted, holding his hands up in defense with an apologetic nod.
“So does this mean that you'll finally let me do my job?” You asked hopefully.
“Oh yeah, there's a toilet brush waiting for you when you get back to the room,” Mile said with a smirk.
“Right,” You knew you shouldn't have gotten your hopes up. Yet as you sat there you found yourself piping in at small sections of the conversation, only this time your weren't told to shut up. This continued, them being slightly approachable. With it they found you coming out of your shell, they found you funny, kind and patient. You had quickly formed a bond with Sean and Brown, the two biggest idiots on the squad. They hung around you like flies, when asked why they would shrug and say they found you interesting. You werent gonna lie, it was fun to be around them. They made you laugh but still teased you on all the shitty jobs you had to do. One day the whole base was doing a drill. An attack drill, where the whole base locked up and when dark. It was basically just to see if all the fancy security measures were up to standards, and it would take about a whole day to get it done. So that meant a whole day stuck in a room with your squad. It was going pretty well, you were chilling playing cards with Sean and Brown.
“Nah man thats fucked, your cheating,” Brown said throwing his cards down.
“Of course she's cheating, look,” Sean said, gesturing to the pile of peanuts you all had been using as betting chips. Most of which sat in your corner.
“What can I say? I'm just that good,” You chuckled, pulling over the last remaining peanuts chucking one in your mouth.
“Enjoy that, I licked em all,” Brown said spitefully.
“Taste so good,” you said knowing very well he didn't. Your chuckle was interrupted by an exclamation of pain.
================================================
=Z-dog=
“SHIT!” You were on your feet as you rushed forward with the boys in toe. When you walked into the kitchen your eyes widened at what you saw. Z-dog stood there, her hand grasping her forearm that had a combat knife sticking out of it. By the looks of it, she and lyle were playing catch with the most dangerous thing in the room.
“What the fuck?” Mile questioned walking in.
“No don't pull it o-!” you exclaimed but it was too late. She yanked the knife free, blood starting to pour out like a fire hose.
“Shit,” She whispered, trying to hold her hand over it but the blood seeped through.
“Brown get my kit,” You absentmindedly slapped Brown's chest as you rushed forward grabbing her arm placing a tea towel around it.
“Sorry Boss, we were just fucking around,” Lyle apologized.
“Brown!” You yelled briefly pulling the towel away to get a look at the cut.
“Fuck,” You whispered in worry.
“It's not that bad is it?” she asked with a small chuckle.
“Can we get to the med bay?” You asked looking back at Quaritch.
“No, the whole base has designated medics for every area for anything that goes wrong. You're ours,” he said simply.
“Come on, don't crack under pressure,” Walker's small comment had you glaring at her.
“I don't crack under pressure. The matter of fact is that knife just sliced through an artery,” You said as Brown placed your kit down next to you. Pulling the tourniquet out you worked in quick succession to tie it above her arm and twist it.
“I'm guessing by my lightheadedness that a sliced artery is bad?” Z-dog asked.
“It's gonna be fine. I've got you,” You offered a calming smile.
“But this is gonna hurt like a bitch. Boys hold her steady,” You said, reaching for a bottle of alcohol and douching your hands with it. The boys hesitantly took ahold of her.
“Hold tight,” You said. As you clamps moved into her open wont her hand flinched out of the way. Without thinking much you tucked her hand between your thighs and held it tightly. You hid the blush as you pulled out some clamps and got to work. While you had cut off circulation it was still a race against time. Lucky for you the artery had only been slices, not cleaved in half. It was a painful endeavor, whenever you moved around the deep wound her grip on your thigh would tighten. Yet you kept her still.
So engrossed with your work you didn't notice your patient was admiring you, she looked over your worried features, your curly hair that sat tucked behind your ears. The slight dust of freckles over you nose. She could feel your breath dusting over her arm as you worked. And she certainly didn't mind the view she was getting, straight down into your top. While only noticing it she quickly avoided her gaze from it. And she certainly didn't mind the placement of her hand. She loved the way your thighs engulfed her hand, the squishiness and the warmth feeling nice. She had to admit you were hot, not exactly her time but damn. She thought you were gorgeous. Finishing off the last stitch you put your tools down and took a deep breath slowly losing the tourniquet. There was a few minutes of silence as you waited your fingers on her veins to track her heart beat.
“How are you feeling?” You asked standing moving closer to look into her eyes.
“Light headed, and pissed,” she said glaring at Lyle.
“Lightheadedness is to be expected. Now can you squeeze my hand?” you asked, placing your much smaller one in hers. You noticed how her hand seemed so much more ruffer than yours. Feeling the pressure around your hand you nodded.
“Any numbness? Tingling sensation?” you asked examining your work.
“A Little numbness, but I think that's because your thighs nearly suffocated my hand,” she said with a small smirk.
“Sorry, had to keep you stationary,” you apologize swiftly, missing her flirtatious smile.
“Right, that should hold for a few hours. As soon as the drills over you go to the med bay and get a doctor to look over that,” You ordered softly as you began bandaging up.
“What, don't have confidence in your own ability?” she asked.
“I'm used to keeping someone alive long enough so they can get proper medical treatment. Im just the pit stop,” You said, tying it off and stepping back.
“Right,” you nodded, walking away like nothing had even happened.
When the drill was over you quietly followed after Z-dog as she made her way to the med bay. You watched silently from a window as she got scanned, seeing as the doctor simply changed her bandaged you assumed she was alright. Letting out a shaky breath you turned to leave when a nurse stopped you.
“Are you alright?” she asked, looking over your sleeves in concern. You only then noticed that they were still covered in blood.
“Uh yeah, it's just blood. I mean not my blood. Someone else's,” you quickly rushed out the words offering a smile. A smile to which she propped her eyebrow at.
“Someone that I stitched up. She's fine she’s in there, she,” you jabbed your finger into the room only to see her nowhere in sight.
“Princess?” You spun around to come face to face with Z-dog.
“Oh hey hey heyyyyy,” your words trailed off as you tried to act casual.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“I, uh I just came to uh make sure everything was in order,” you said.
“Worried about me princess?” she asked with a cheeky smile.
“Of course I am,” Your response came quickly and without any hesitation which made Z-dog blink in slight shock.
“I'm your medic. It’s my job to be worried,” You continued. A few moments of silence followed before you cleared your throat.
“And as I can see everything in order so I'll just leave,” you said, turning and moving quickly only to slam your knee into a table. Cursing out in pain you doubled over slightly before straightening up and continuing your walk you faced flushing red. Z-dog watched you leave having to bite her lip as she got a perfect view of your rear.
“Damn,” she whispered before following after you.
================================================
=Lyle=
“SHIT!” You were on your feet as you rushed forward with the boys in toe. When you walked into the kitchen your eyes widened at what you saw. Lyle stood there his hand grasping his forearm that had a combat knife sticking out of it. By the looks of it, he and Z-dog were playing catch with the most dangerous object in the room.
“What the fuck?” Mile questioned walking in. You were the first to notice Lyle toppling over, so you were the first to leap forward to catch him. Lyle was a big man, and while you were strong you were not that strong. You both tumbled to the ground, you cradling his head close to your chest.
“Shit,” the other exclaimed as they rushed forward. Lyle blinked through groggy eyes up to you, his breath starting to become erratic.
“Calm down, it's alright it's alright, I got you,” You said, not long after his eyes rolled back in his head and he went unconscious.
"Get him on the table. Brown get my kit," you threw orders around as you pressed your hands to the wound.
“Can we get to the med bay?” You asked looking back at Quaritch.
“No, the whole base has designated medics for anything that goes wrong. You're ours,” he said simply.
“Come on, don't crack under pressure,” Walkers small comment had you glaring at her.
“I don't crack under pressure. The matter of fact is that knife just sliced through an artery,” You said as Brown placed your kit down next to you. Pulling the tourniquet out you worked in quick succession to tie it above his arm and twist it.
"So what now?" Sean asked in slight worry.
"We risk losing his arm if we leave it in the tourniquet," you said looking over the knife.
"So stitch him up," Mile shrugged.
"Oh yeah i'll just perform a life saving surgery with a doctor's equivalent of a starter kit," you said sarcastically. Miles propped an eyebrow waiting to hear the problem in your statement.
"Can you do it?" he asked.
"I mean I think so. But there are so many things that can go wrong," you trailed off as you began to list things.
"Toni," Miles snapped you out of it.
"If he loses his arm, he’ll. Be sent back. And we all know him. He wouldn't want that," Sean spoke up. You looked between them all. Their sincere gazes. With a deep sigh you grabbed a bottle of alcohol douching your hands in it.
"If he dies I'm blaming you," you said pointing to Miles.
"Alright. Hold him down just in case he wakes up," you whispered. You worked quickly and precisely. When everything was said and done you waited until the tourniquet and waited testing his pulse. He seemed alright.
"Lyle," you whispered gently, shaking his shoulder.
"Lyle," you whispered a bit more firmly. You shook him a few more times.
"Yo bitch," Z-dog yelled, her hand snapping out to deliver a swift slap to his face. Lyle snapped up with a big gasp, a mix of shock and confusion splashed over his face.
"Hey, hey it's ok you're alright," you grabbed him by the shoulders, his own hand instinctively reaching up and grabbing yours.
"What the fcuk happened?" he asked.
"You got hurt. But you're ok now. Just breathe ok. Come on just breathe," you calmed him down.
"Why do I feel so light headed?" he asked.
"You lost a bit of blood but you're alright. I promise you're ok," you reassured him gently, helping him to lay down.
"There was a knife," he whispered.
"I know. And now the knifes gone. It's all taken care of. Now. Squeeze my hand," you said, slipping your much smaller one into his. Lyle glanced down at your hand and back up at you. He had to admit it, you were cute. When he looked at you he couldn't help but see one of those cute little corgi’s. So cute and small, but he could see a hidden temper in you.
"Lyle?" you questioned. He took in the worried look on your face, a smug grin stretching across his face.
"Worried about me sweetheart?" he asked cheekily, squeezing your hand. You rolled your eyes with a huff.
"He's fine," you announced, unrolling a bandage and wrapping it around his arm.
"What happened?" Lyle asked.
"You passed out like a bitch that's what happened," Brown chuckled along with the rest.
"You try getting a sliced artery and staying conscious for more than thirty seconds. Then we'll talk," you spoke up.
"What's an artery?" Lyle asked to sit up again but you placed your palm on his forehead pushing him back down.
"Some very important things that should not be cut. After this you go straight to the medical bay ok. But for now just take it easy and tell me if your lightheadedness gets any worse," you said genty.
“Whatever you say boss,” he said cheekily. You tried to hide your smirk as you looked over him.
When he got checked up at the medbay he returned expecting everyone to be fast asleep. To his surprise he found you propped up at the main table with a small light. You were fast asleep, your head tucked under your chin and your arms crossed over your chest. The sound of the door closing stirred you awake.
“Oh, y-your back. How uh how did it go? Is everything alright?” You asked, rushing to your feet rubbing your tired eyes.
“What, you waited for me?” he asked, walking into the room.
“Worried?” he asked tauntingly.
“Of course I'm worried,” Your response came fast and with complete seriousness which had Lyle smirk dropping slightly.
“What did the doctors say?” you asked moving closer to get a good look at his arm.
“They say you did a mighty fine job, they just changed the bandage and sent me on my way,” he said, holding his arm up so you could see better. A breath of relief left your lips as you nodded.
“That's good, that's good. Well then, I'm gonna head to bed then, have a big day tomorrow,” You said, offering him a small smile before walking to your bed.
Lyles' head tilted to the side slightly as he watched you walk away. His teeth captured his button lip as he watched the sway of your hips. He had to admit, he was smitten for the medic.
================================================
=Mansk=
You rushed into the kitchen, the boys hot on your tail and all of you were shocked at what you saw. Mansk, who looked like was busy eating a sandwich, sat at the table. Lyle and Zdog stood at opposite sides of the table with looks of pure shock on their faces. Shock at the fact that Mansk arm had a combat knife sticking out of it blood already pouring from the cut.
“Ah shit,” Lyle whispered. You were quick to jump into action grabbing a tea towel and pressing it around the knife.
“What the hell happened?” Miles asked. Lyle and Z-dog were quick to apologize. Apparently they were playing catch with the most dangerous object in the room.
“Brown get my kit,” You ordered, pressing tightly on the wound. Your eyes glanced up to Mansk and his calm expression wondering if he was in shock.
“Well, that doesn't look good,” he muttered.
“Yeah, not the best thing,” you said as b-Brown placed your kit beside you. You quickly moved to tie a tourniquet to his arm, the white tea towel quickly becoming covered in crimson blood.
“Can we get to the med bay?” You asked looking back at Quaritch.
“No, the whole base has designated medics for anything that goes wrong. You're ours,” he said.
“Come on, don't crack under pressure,” Walker’s small comment had you glaring at her.
“I don't crack under pressure. The matter of fact is that knife just sliced through an artery,” You said.
"So what now?" Sean asked in slight worry.
“There's really no way to get to the med bay?” you asked Quaritch. He shook his head. You turned to Mansk and took a deep breath.
“If we leave the tourniquet on too long you'll lose your arm. If I can stitch up the artery we can save your arm, but it's dangerous. I don't have all the proper tools,” you were calm, but inside you emotions were on the hay wire.
“Can you do it?” he asked. You were shocked at his simple question,a question that sounded like he already knew the answer.
“Yes, but it's not without its risks,” you nodded.
“Well I'll be useless without my arm. So have at it,” he said.
“This is gonna hurt,” You whispered nodding to the boys who quickly moved to hold his steady.
“It already hurts,” he said simply.
“It's gonna hurt a whole lot more,” You said softly.
You quickly got to work, pulling the knife free with nothing so much as a grunt from your patient. He made no sound, or complaint as you stitched him up. While your eyes were focused on the wound his eyes were focused on you. Your face, the way your hair fell loosely down your shoulders. Everynow and then you would look up with concern wondering if you were being too ruff and each time you meet his calm gaze which resured you that you were doing fine. He had to admit, he fancied you. There was something about your sweet smile that pulled him in. Tieing up the final stitch you pulled back gently unwinding the tourniquet. When no blood sputtered forth you let out a small breath of relief.
“Squeeze my hand,” you whispered, placing yours in his. He gently squeezed it, his thumb brushing over the back of your palm ever so slightly. You looked up catching his gaze once again, that steady calm gaze that put you at ease.
“Are you feeling dizzy? Lightheaded?” you asked.
“A bit light headed,” he answered.
“That's to be expected. You lost a bit of blood, if it gets worse you need to tell me. Until we can get you to the medbay you need to take it easy alright,” You said gently.
“Yes ma’am,” he nodded. Ma’am. You've never been called that before. You weren't sure how you felt about it, but you were sure you didn't hate it.
“Alright then,” you said, pulling your hand back.
When everything was said and done Mansk went to the infirmary to get himself checked out. Getting the all clear from the doctors he went to return. Seeing as he forgot his sunglasses he went back to the room only to find you already there asking the doctor about his condition. Deciding to leave his glasses he walked away with a slight smile.
Bonus:
That night the Recoms were surprised when you sat them down and started scolding them. What surprised them more was the fact that they were slightly scared of you. Granted you didnt make any threats but your kind warning had an undertone of fuck about and find out.
Miles who walked by the rec room paused upon seeing the scene. A bunch of high-grade military personnel being scolded like toddlers but a little five foot medic. What he found even more hilarious was the fact that they were taking the scolding without a word of protest.
#recom#avatar recoms#avatarwayofwater#avatar way of water#avatar oc#Avatarlyle#recom lyle wainfleet#recom zdog#recom mansk
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The Secret - Chapter Seven
CW: swearing
I am awoken by shouting and the bickering of hormonal teenage girls. It's Yule Ball day. Great. Groaning, I stretch lazily under my blue silk quilt and bury my face in Merlin's soft fur as I pet him, feeling purrs emanate from his fluffy form.
"Get up, lazy bones! I know you're awake" Charlotte exclaims, jumping on to my bed and scaring Merlin. He lets out a low growl before jumping off of the bed and scurrying to the other side of the dormitory. I glare at Charlotte, quickly pulling my quilt off of me and standing up.
"Why'd you do that? You know that Merlin's easily startled" I sigh, straightening my quilt before sitting down on the edge of the mattress. Yawning loudly, I stretch slowly and bend down to place my slippers on my feet.
"You told me to wake you up early" She speaks, feigning innocence and holding her hands up in defence. I roll my eyes and stand up once more, shuffling over to the door. "Where are you going?" She calls after me, hurriedly standing up and walking over to me.
"To breakfast" I reply. A low rumble emanates from my stomach. Her eyes widen in realization and I turn to walk down the stairs with her following me. We quickly walk through the common room and clamber through the portrait hole into the cold stone corridor. I tighten my dressing gown slightly and continue to walk down the corridor.
We chatter about nothing until we reach the Great Hall and locate seats at the Ravenclaw table. I'm about to plate myself some food when Cho Chang, a fellow Ravenclaw in our year, abruptly interrupts me by sitting opposite us.
"Is it true that you're going to the Yule Ball with Draco Malfoy?" She questions in a hushed tone, as she starts placing some beans and toast on her own plate. I nod slowly, slightly in shock. It's not that I'm not friends with Cho it's just that we rarely talk anymore. Cho, Charlie and I were an inseparable group until halfway through third year when she just stopped hanging around with us as much and started dating my brother. Nowadays we rarely see her even in the common room or dormitory. "Wow!" She smiles, tucking into her food. "I mean, I knew you liked him but I didn't know you guys were dating now" Cho adds, through a mouthful of toast.
"Um... we're not dating" I reply, placing a croissant and two crumpets on my plate. Cho's brown eyes widen as she looks at me.
"Well, not yet but if I get my way they'll be together by Christmas. Anyway... Cho, aren't you going with Toria's big brother, Cedric?" Charlie pipes up, elbowing me in the side. I grimace slightly, almost choking on the piece of croissant in my mouth, as I'm reminded of the fact. Cho's face instantly turns a shade of puce. We both stare at her and she fumbles with her words, only a few ums and errs escaping her mouth.
"You know, it's chill. Date my big brother. He's quite a catch. Just don't ghost me and Charlie, and then come back trying to act all buddy-buddy, okay?" I raise a single eyebrow at her, as she continues to almost choke on her words. Probably sensing that her presence isn't particularly wanted, she quickly grabs her plate and makes an exit.
"Damn... Toria, that was ice cold" Charlie speaks through a mouthful of granola. I shrug, listlessly eating another croissant and staring into space. "Draco's staring at you again" She squeals in delight, causing my eyes to flick up instantly and land on the blonde sat on the other side of the hall. His hair is messy and unbrushed, his eyes still full of sleep and he's wearing grey plaid pyjamas. How does he look this good so effortlessly? I smile, waving timidly at him. A grin instantly etches itself onto his lips and he waves back, before grabbing a piece of parchment from the table and quickly folding it. He picks it up and blows what looks like a paper bird. It soars over the tables, catching the attention of nearly every student and teacher, before landing on my lap.
Hurriedly, I pick it up and put it in my dressing gown pocket before Charlie can take it. She whines about wanting to see it whilst I finish my breakfast. I assure her that once I've read it I'll let her dissect every word of it. Once I've finished my food, I hurry out of the Great Hall and find an empty corridor. Leaning against the wall, I pull the paper bird out of my pocket and slowly open it to reveal Draco's scrawl.
Meet me at the bottom of the Grand Staircase at 6:30pm. I'll be the handsome blonde in dress robes.
Draco
P.s you look beautiful.
A smile spreads itself across my lips as my eyes scan over the words. I clutch the piece of parchment to my chest, happily. Just as I refold it and put it back in my pocket, hands cover my eyes, restricting my eyesight.
"Guess who?" Draco's deep, velvet voice gives him away instantly and a stray giggle escapes my lips.
"Is it by any chance Drakeypoo?" I laugh, when his hands drop from my eyes and I turn to face him. He smiles gently down at me, running a hand through his tousled silver locks.
"Congratulations. 100 points to Ravenclaw for your use of wit, Miss Diggory" He chuckles at his own joke, clapping his hands.
"I deserve those points for putting up with you for the past decade and a half" I respond, watching him for a reaction. His eyes widen before he cracks into loud laughter. I hurriedly shush him. "Shhh, Draco. Somebody will hear you" I whisper.
"What? Do you think a teacher will reprimand us for this?" He asks, gesturing at the situation.
"Well... no, but there's been rumours going around about us and I don't really want to add to them" I reply, twirling a strand of hair with my hand nervously.
"What rumours?" He questions, slowly stepping closer to me. My cheeks flush slightly as he towers in front of me.
"That we're dating and stuff" I mumble, dropping my gaze to my feet and steadily stepping backwards as he continues to near me.
"I'm sorry, I didn't catch that" He teases, chuckling lowly. My back hits the wall and he's still inching towards me.
"Draco, we both know you heard me" I retort, sassily. He's right in front of me now. I try to sidestep away from him, but he places both of his arms on either side of me, blocking my chance of escape. I glance up at him, only now noticing that his face is mere centimetres from mine. I swallow nervously, blushing so heavily that it feels like my face is on fire.
"Well, let them talk. Who cares what people think?" He asks, bluntly. His warm breath cascading over my heated cheek.
"You don't have to deal with teenage girls giving you death threats and saying nasty things about you" I speak, lowering my eyes to the floor. Draco's hand gently lifts my chin up so that my eyes are level with his. My brown eyes meet his blue orbs hesitantly.
"I won't let anyone hurt you, understood?" He speaks, confidently. His voice strong and determined. I nod in response and his lips quirk up into a crooked half smile. His tongue glides over his plump bottom lip and he slowly leans in. My heart beat picks up and I can hear it beating loudly in my ears, almost deafening me. His lips ghost over mine. My breath catches in my throat.
"Mr Malfoy! That kind of behaviour is not acceptable at Hogwarts!" The angry voice of Professor Sprout echoes through the corridor. Draco reluctantly pulls away from me, letting out a dissatisfied sigh. He groans loudly as he spots Professor Sprout marching towards us.
"Shit!" He mutters under his breath. Suddenly, he grabs my hand and drags me down the corridor in the opposite direction at a run. We run through many different corridors and up several sets of stairs until we reach the third floor corridor, which is empty due to everyone being in their dorms getting ready for the ball. We come to a halt and I lean against a wall whilst I catch my breath. Draco is leaning against a windowsill, panting heavily.
"Wow, that was fun" I mutter, sarcasm heavy in my voice. Draco laughs quietly as he tries to recompose himself. Eventually, he saunters over to my location, positioning both arms on either side of my small frame once again.
"So where were-" He goes to speak, but is interrupted by Charlie whom is walking in our direction with a face mask on.
"Where have you been?" She shouts, looking at me. She's unable to frown due to the hardened clay face mask.
"Well, I was downstairs, but now I'm here" I answer, earning a chuckle from Draco as he steps away from me. Charlotte glares at the pair of us before grabbing hold of my hand and dragging me back to the Ravenclaw common room. "Mate, you really know how to cock block".
Other Chapters
#the secret#draco fanfiction#harry potter fandom#draco malfoy#harry potter#harry potter fanfiction#draco fanart#harry potter universe#draco x oc#slytherin#ravenclaw#death eaters#cedric diggory#wizarding world
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I feel like it is only time I make a stoner fic🤗hope you enjoy!!
*tw*: use of marijuana, stoner thoughts(im so sorry😵💫), if there's any more pls lmk and I'll add them!
It was no secret amongst the school that sapnap smoked weed. He talked about, he posted on social media about ut, he even got caught once smoking it in the back parking lot.
So when my mind was desperate for a chill out moment, he was the perfect person to help. I messaged him in search of a good time.
Hey, do you think I could buy from you?
What are you looking for?
Quarter ounce
Meet me here
2848 hasbul drive
He set the date for tomorrow night at 6pm. I requested enough that I could use tomorrow as well as this weekend so when j went to the location, and saw his car I climbed in with the money.
"Hey you got the cash?" I nodded as I hand him the money in exchange for a green bag.
"Quarter ounce?" He nodded as I opened the door and returned to my vehicle. Before I could even open the door he was gone and my phone rang.
Let me know how you like it
I left the message opened and didn't bother with a reply as I got in my car and headed home.
Upon arriving I see that all the lights are off which is good because it means everyone's asleep. I soundlessly slip inside my room and pull out the bag along with my pipe. I proceed to pack it and grab my lighter.
The first hit always hits the hardest so I have to take a minute to not let my coughs get too loud.
After about 3 or 4 hits, I sit back for a minute and just stare at my lights which are colored red.
I wonder what it would feel like to be floating right now. I bet it would feel nice. I have to make sure to thank sapnap for getting me this weed.
Wow, sapnap is such a great guy, his hair is amazing, he's so fucking cute but I can't tell him that because he'd never feel the same way. I wonder what he's doing right now, I wonder if he's thinking of me.
As I continue to think about him, I just feel myself getting happier. I want to talk to him right now and be with him, I want him to be with me. He would make this experience so much better. I should call him and tell him.
I dont need to call him, I can see him right now, he's in the room with me. That's concerning how'd he get in here, oh shut up logic. Come here lover boy. And if that doesn't work.
*I was gonna wait til I was high to put genuine stoner thoughts but I have none and haven't smoked in a couple of days.*
The next day at school I'm pissed and it's known to everyone except a certain someone who can't keep his hands away from me.
"Hey, how'd you like the za?" I shoot him a side eye to which he furrows his brow.
"I bet you would know wouldn't you," I say as I shove past him.
"Why are you mad at me? I helped you out?" I scoff.
"Helped me out? Are you shitting me?" I turn my voice lower as I look around at on lookers. I grab his arm and pull him to the side of the hallway.
"You fucking laced it." His eyes go wide.
"What the fuck do you mean?" He asked bewildered.
"When I smoked it and started feeling it, all I saw was you. So what the fuck did you put in it?" He looks like he's seen a ghost or he's listening to someone speak gibberish.
"What do you mean all you saw was me?" He asks
"You, your face, your body, as if you were in the room next to me. And there was this weird feeling in my chest, my heart was pounding." He takes a breath, and then starts to... laugh.
I stare at him as if he's disappeared before my eyes.
"What the hell is so funny to you?" He chuckles a little before talking some calming breaths.
"Sorry, sorry, I'm done, I'm done" He coughs before continuing. I stare at him expectantly.
"I hate to inform you but thats not laced weed. You have a crush on me."
"Are you fucking stupid? I don't have a crush on you, you fucking laced that shit." He smirks before taking one step closer, making our bodies practically chest to chest.
"Its ok, I like you too. When you asked to buy from me I wasn't surprised but I was a little disappointed that that was all you wanted from me." I stare at him, shocked.
"No, i- I don't have- wait what? You like me?" He smiles and puts a hand on my hip.
"Yeah, I've liked you for a while and I've tried to flirt with you before." I think back to the math class I have with him.
"Wow, I'm an idiot." I look at him and he says nothing.
"You're supposed to disagree with me." He laughs.
"Sure thing, whatever you say." He smiles and we walk to class together.
#sapnap imagine#sapnap angst#sapnap x reader#sapnap x you#sapnap fluff#sapnap#sapnap mcyt#mcyt sapnap#dsmp sapnap#sapnap dsmp
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(1.32) The Distant Stones
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As Antpaw went about his daily duties- namely, hunting for his clan- he debated whether or not this was a good idea. He had decided to go back for that strange structure he'd seen the last time he visited this section of the forest, alongside his sisters. The rocks just seemed so... deliberate, so important... surely, they would mean a great deal for LightClan! Besides, if he, Birchpaw, and Mousepaw all went and explored new territories to claim, Lightrunner would be impressed with them! Which would get them that much closer to receiving their warrior names.
"This is the weird place you saw..?" Mousepaw mewed, tipping her head curiously as she squinted off in the distance. "Those rocks over there?"
"Yeah! They're not too far, right?"
"I guess not, but shouldn't we bring a warrior..?"
Birchpaw perked up. "Like Magic-"
"Not Magicburst," Antpaw and Mousepaw answered in unison. Birchpaw seemed a little sad that her idea was shot down before she could even suggest it, but she didn't protest.
"If we explore it on our own, Lightrunner will see what good warriors we are! Taking initiative and all..."
"I guess that makes sense..." Though Mousepaw still didn't seem completely on board, Antpaw knew she would tag along anyway.
"Yeah! Let's go! Let's race there!" Birchpaw's front paws prodded the snow excitedly.
"No, no racing!"
"Yes racing!"
Before Mousepaw could stop her, Birchpaw had already pelted off into the forest, beaming. Betrayed, Antpaw started after her.
"Do BOTH of you have bees in your ears?!" Mousepaw whined, giving chase with her smaller legs. "Wait for me!"
For once, Birchpaw actually did wait for Mousepaw, slowing down enough so that both she and Antpaw could pass. Antpaw didn't want either of his sisters to win, though, so he didn't stop. In fact, he was supposed to be the leader of this whole operation, so it only made sense that he'd be in front.
As they continued onward, though, the mist began to grow thicker, only made more difficult to navigate by the snow that started to whirl down onto their pelts. It was a good thing he and Birchpaw had their mother's thick fur, but...
"It's so cold!" Mousepaw complained with a squeak. "My tail's gonna freeze off at this rate!"
"It'll be okay! We're nearly there!"
The closer they got to the rocks, the more Antpaw began to realize that the mist was emanating from this place, rather than this place being settled in mist. It sent a chill down his spine, almost as much as the snow did.
Eventually, the structure loomed before them. A circle of rocks, within another circle of rocks, and with the... weirdest tree Antpaw had ever seen, right smack in the middle. It almost seemed to... twinkle?
"...This place is creepy... I don't like it..." Mousepaw whimpered, shivering due to the cold fog surrounding them. "Can we go home yet?"
"No way!" Birchpaw piped up. "This place is like, SUPER significant! We've gotta tell Lightrunner, like, right away!"
"We should probably hunt first," Antpaw shook his head. "We did come out here on a hunting trip, after all..."
Mousepaw huffed, clearly not happy with the suggestion. "Yeah, I guess so. I'm still hungry... I didn't get any breakfast..."
"We'll earn you some supper, then!" Birchpaw gave Mousepaw a good rough pat on the back with her paw. "Maybe we'll even get our warrior ceremony when we get back? You never know!"
┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛
Antpaw, Birchpaw, and Mousepaw have discovered a new location: Misty Grotto
None of the apprentices can quite place why, but this place seems spiritually significant.
The siblings hunt while they're at the strange location, chatting happily among themselves.
Back home, Magicburst picks a fight with Stormflower. While the healer wins the fight, she gains a minor wound in the process.
Thankfully, Stormflower is able to recover on her own with minimal effort.
Magicburst and Stormflower are currently on bad terms.
After a full day of unsuccessful hunting back home, the apprentices' hunting patrol is a sight for sore eyes. They manage to bring back enough prey to feed the clan, if only for the evening.
Mousepaw reports back to Lightrunner in the place of her siblings, who are so tuckered out that they immediately head to bed. Lightrunner decides that she'll send a better-equipped patrol to investigate the Misty Grotto in the near future.
#lightclan!antpaw#lightclan!birchpaw#lightclan!mousepaw#lightclan!magicburst#lightclan!stormflower#lightclan!lightrunner#lightclan#the sims 3#ts3#warrior cats#warrior cats fanclan#legacy challenge#simblr#sims 3 warrior cats challenge#the sims 3 challenge#ts3 legacy
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On The Shelf
I completely forgot I hadn't posted this yet. I can't remember why I was saving it, but I've had a bit of Chill-Enhancement tonight and my brain has decided: Now is the time.
This event gets referenced (much) later in The Stranding as having happened during the events of The Rescue, but I'm unsure yet if it'll actually make it into the main body. Thought I'd post it here as a little bonus.
[Edit - I have had TOO MUCH Chill-Enhancement and forgot that I did post this as part of an ask, but here it is again anyway so I can link it as part of a Masterlist.]
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The car had barely had time to turn on before her phone started ringing, the bluetooth connection taking a second to finalize with the stereo as she tried to fumble for the buzzing, singing block in her pocket. She adjusted the volume via the steering wheel's controls as Dyna's voice came to life all around her in the blue sedan.
"Hello?" Melanie asked, unsure if the bluetooth had fully connected or not.
"Hey gorgeous, bad news," Dyna's voice returned loudly as she lowered the volume further. "Mark just called, not sure if it's a burst pipe or someone fucked up one of our toilets at the gym, but women's washroom is a pool and I gotta go deal with that. Need a rain check on the lunch date."
"Oh shit," the short-haired woman groaned. She let herself fall heavily back against the driver's seat, 'so much for a Big Day'. "That's fair, girl, you do what you gotta do. We can reschedule for another time."
"I hope this doesn't wrench your plans for the day or anything! You should still head out and do some things for yourself, I know you were looking forward to it."
"Thanks Dee, I appreciate it, but I think I'm gonna head back in and take a nap," she said defeatedly. "Was feeling a bit off today anyway, I'm alright to postpone. Catching up on sleep would probably be a smart idea anyway."
"That sounds good, girl. Tell the Big Guy I said hi," Dee replied with a laugh.
"He hates when you call him that," Melanie stressed, shaking her head. "But I'll let him know. Good luck and god speed with the shit swamp."
"Thanks babe, and tell him if he didn't hate it so much I wouldn't bother saying it!"
The call disconnected and Melanie reached forward to remove the key, sighing as she rested in the quiet. It wasn't Dyna or the gym bathroom's fault that her plans were askew. She had been hoping to have a day to go be Big and loud and clumsy outside of the house for over a week, but nightmares and indigestion had had her tossing and turning most of the night. She had felt even since this morning that today was likely to be a wash.
She picked up her purse from the passenger seat and slung it back over her shoulder, exiting the car to head back to the house. Sleeping off the disappointment was probably the best plan, and it still gave Henry a chance to be- at least mostly- alone for a few hours.
"Change of plans," she called in her regular speaking voice as she re-entered the house, kicking off her shoes in the small entry hall and heading toward the door to his room, tapping on the door frame. "Dyna's got an emergency at the gym, so we're rescheduling. I was gonna take a nap for a few hours and see how I'm feeling after that, if that works for you?"
There was a suspicious level of silence that returned to her, and Melanie's brow furrowed as she waited. She checked the time on her phone again; she'd been out of the house less than 15 minutes, and last she had spoken to him he was on the way back to his room to hit the head and work on some journaling for the early afternoon. That was maybe a half hour ago, before she finished getting ready.
"Henry?" Her voice called as she stepped away from his room slowly, her eyes scanning the floor for the 7-inch tall man, her eyes moving up the stairs as she waited to hear the call of his mariner's whistle. The longer the silence went on, the more suspicious she became.
She walked to the landing between the stairs to the main floor and the stairs to the basement, calling the small sailor's name one last time at the center of the split-level home. There was no way she wouldn't hear the whistle from there.
A sigh erupted from her, and she carefully pulled the purse from her shoulder to the front of her, moving to unzip the top.
---------
Henry grimaced as the roof of his hiding place opened, light spilling into the space he occupied in the black-fabric lining. His eyes shot up to see hers, the massive hazel irises darting until her pupils landed on him. "To be fair," he called defensively, guilt already creeping up on him as her eyes moved up and away to the ceiling, a breathy swear leaving her giant form, "I was expecting you to put the purse down once you were back inside."
"Henry," she groaned, holding the purse open with one hand while the other slipped in, his hands guiding it to him carefully. Her thumb and fingers slid around him gently, his arms pressing down over the tops of them as he patted the back of her hand in signal that he was ready for the lift. “How?” She asked quietly and unamused as she pulled him out of the purse, letting the bag swing back under her arm as she let it go.
“Which part?” He asked after an uncomfortable hesitation, waiting for her other hand to come help support him as his feet dangled in the open air, his arms tensing. She tipped her hand back slightly, letting him push and move himself into a seated position in her palm, her other hand resting on her hip as she refused to help him.
“I made sure the purse was closed so this wouldn’t happen again,” she explained with a sigh, watching him adjust himself awkwardly until his legs were dangling over the heel of her palm. Color came to his cheeks as he guiltily locked eyes with her, his mouth opening and closing a few times as he battled with himself over whether he should give away his secret. “Henry,” she prompted tiredly.
He was busted, he knew it. If she had gone to lunch and other things, he probably would’ve been safe to escape and move to her coat like he had initially planned, or she would’ve gone through her usual routine of putting her purse down on the basement couch before going to the washroom when she returned, giving him time to get out and move to somewhere less conspicuous.
“You leave the front pocket open for your keys,” he admitted quietly, his eyes breaking from hers and glancing around the room, “and the tear I made the first time was never repaired, so I slipped in through there.” His arm flew out to grab her thumb quickly as her hand swung to the side, her free hand coming up to rub her forehead. “I’m sorry,” he said, squirming as he watched the upset look come over her face.
“You know why I don’t like this happening without my consent,” she said, her eyes opening again to look at him disappointedly. “It’s dangerous if I don’t know you’re in there.”
“I know,” he admitted defensively, his eyes moving again to meet hers, “but! I trusted that you would take your purse along like you normally would, and I know that you usually stop back at the house between lunch and any other plans for the day.”
Her eyebrows raised over a sharp expression; his calm explanation of how he had determined how safe this particular venture was going to be seemed to obviously not have the effect he wanted it to have on her. Air rushed into her as she took a long, steadying breath, her hand moving from her forehead slowly. He pointed to it with a timid expression, trying to wave it closer to him. For one, he could use a bit of extra support this high off of the ground, and for two, he knew if he could touch her a bit more, he could soothe her temper a bit. “The idea that you planned this really isn’t making me feel better about any of it,” she leveled.
“I know,” he said again, still trying to gently coax her hovering hand toward him, “but--”
“No,” she said firmly, sighing again, “there’s no ‘buts’ here. Sometimes I want time to myself, the same as you do, so I don’t have to worry about things like if I’m going to accidentally hurt you somehow or that I’m being too loud, or just…”
“Melanie,” his voice called soothingly to her as her eyes dropped to the floor, her shoulders sagging. “I’m sorry, I really didn’t mean to upset you.” Henry’s hand gripped at her thumb lightly, trying to rub it comfortingly while maintaining as much support from it as he could. Her eyes moved back up to him over a glum expression; she was disappointed, more than mad, and it stung him. “Can I have your other hand, please?” He asked meekly.
The ‘please’ did its magic and she caved almost instantly, her other hand sweeping toward him gently as he guided her thumb to his chest, her fingers wrapping around her others behind him and closing around him gently. She softened but still didn’t smile as his arms moved to coil around her thumb tightly, hugging it to himself. “If the only way you were going to avoid upsetting me was by not being caught, I don’t think that counts as not meaning to,” she leveled quietly again.
He sighed, fidgeting under her words and tone. “You’re right,” he admitted, “I should’ve given you your space for the day.”
“Thank you,” she breathed, her tone still unhappy but her mood lightening just a little. He shifted his legs, pushing her thumb up his body a bit more so he could lean forward and rest his face along the side of it. His eyes turned up to try and work their charm.
“Do you think I could be forgiven, this time?” He asked teasingly as he saw the color come to her face, grinning as her thumb wiggled against his beard and cheek, his arms squeezing it tighter. Her breath gently washed over him as she sighed again, lifting him up closer to her eye level.
“You’re too much trouble, you know that?” She asked, smirking.
“I wouldn’t say I’m too much trouble,” he drawled, his eyes arching away as he feigned innocence. She scoffed, making him laugh while she slipped her thumb out from his grasp, her hands moving position to help him stand in her palm.
“I would,” she retorted, her eyes looking around the room and landing on the bookshelf next to them, walking in front of it once he was stable. Her eyes scanned the top shelf, idly. “I could probably find a way to keep you out of trouble, though.”
He smirked at her, turning around to follow her gaze. “Can you even see what’s up there?” He asked her, teasingly, and she crooked a finger to wiggle against his side playfully.
“Don’t make fun,” she quipped as he giggled from the tickle. Whenever he could, he tried to make fun of her height. “I can’t see the titles of the books up there, no,” she admitted after trying to get on her tiptoes.
“I can check them,” he offered with a laugh, “I’m taller than you, after all. It’s the least I can do.”
She spread a sly grin behind him as he looked at the top shelf. “Alright, if you say so,” she said, stepping toward the shelf and raising her hands over her head carefully, Henry reaching out to grab the ledge and letting Melanie push his feet and legs up level with the shelf, walking over toward the books as she stepped back to watch him.
“Are you sure one of these is going to be useful?” He called tauntingly from the shelf as he walked from end to end, checking the titles. “I don’t see how any of them would be helpful in keeping me out of trouble.”
“They’re all doing a good job right now,” her voice called back mischievously. Henry’s brow furrowed as he turned to look down at her, watching her cross her arms under a smug expression.
“What do you--?” He started to ask as she turned and started heading for the stairs, his mouth falling open as he staggered to try and follow her.
“I’m heading to nap,” she called softly. “You’re in time-out until then.”
“That’s not funny,” he shouted, panic slightly setting in as he looked at the immense distance back to the ground, stepping back further from the ledge instinctively.
“Neither was you stowing away again,” her voice came back, her footsteps reverberating as she took the highest set of stairs to the top floor. “See you later.”
“Melanie?” He called as he heard her footsteps walking farther away from above him. “Melanie!” He shouted as he heard her bedroom door close.
Henry looked around the long shelf, taking in the books, the dust, and the odd artistic sculptures on either end with a long sigh. “…Well, I suppose I deserve this.”
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The Tip of the Spear
Setting the water to its coldest setting, I start the time on my watch. Soon enough the icy blast is hitting me, chilling me to the bone, as the seconds tick down.
At first, I cringe, every muscle contracts but then something curious happens. I relax. Though we run off of well water, and our pipes are just below the frost line, making the water especially icy in winter... I’ve been here daily for months.
Once I let go, and come to a place of acceptance it’s like the cold isn’t even there at all. It’s just water as the time ticks down.
This is part of my ascetic path, something I’ve incorporated into my days after finding through research that cold water exposure can help with norepinephrine release, energy recovery, and metabolic activity.
Far from being an act of masochism, I’m doing it instead so that I can improve, perform better, recover faster from my runs, but I’ve also found a hidden benefit that I wasn’t fully aware of before.
By embracing hardship and doing the hard thing I’m working my self-discipline like a muscle. I’m choosing this to be a stronger better version of myself, and that choice is active.
And this is part of being an ascetic.
It’s reasonable to ask what place ascetic actions, rigorous routines, and self-denial have upon the heathen path, but I need look no further than the Gods to find my answer.
Woden hung from sacred Yggdrasil to achieve the Runes, and later gave an eye for wisdom.
Tyr sacrificed his hand to bind Fenrir, and even the legend of Valhalla bears out this hidden truth.
The greatest warriors that fall upon the battlefield are taken to a place where they can train, and sacrifice, for time immemorial until the moment of Ragnarök where they will give their all one last time before going to their ultimate end.
Not even death is enough to take a true warrior from their duty.
Time and time again when you read the tales, the greatest achievements of the heroes and Gods within come from the relentless pursuit of goals, a sacrifice, or the immediate denial of self, and all too often we see them fail when they give in to the more indulgent or negative aspects of their nature.
Loki, God of Chaos, is sometimes referred to as the wildfire, and what is an aspect of wildfire? An utter lack of restraint.
The Gods left us these tales, full of their victories and foibles so we could learn from their triumphs, and their mistakes, and it is in between those verses that I’ve come to understand my own path and why I feel I’m called to it. Even though we have no archeological or direct evidence that anything like an ascetic or monastic culture was a part of the old ways.
The old ways are not meant to be a straight jacket, or an anchor but a guide. The Gods left us the tales we have as lessons. In their wisdom and love for us they freely admit their past foibles, show their victories, and leave us with a picture of a culture that was in some ways very much like our own, and in others quite different and alien.
The old ways had their time only to pass away, as all things will. Still there is an eternity to ideas, to the Gods and to the spirits of all things, and just as the Old Ways found their winter, they have come to a new spring in us.
Once again, the old tales inspire a new generation, to take up new missions, to honor the Gods that never left, only cycled, and with that generation comes new eyes, new interpretations, new understandings of old truths that let them shine all the brighter.
And so, in the example of the Gods and the Ancestors that have gone on before, I choose discipline, I choose to do the hard thing, to not just speak of my ways, but to do my best to embody them. There was no central liturgy, no priestly class that worked from a central dogma to enforce an ideological milieu over the whole of the germanic peoples. Instead it was a lived tradition, a way of thinking, and a way of life.
This was all encouraged by individual mystics, and small groups from community to community, enabling the expression of those lived traditions and the understanding of Gods to promulgate in disparate ways forming a kaleidoscope of belief.
It is in this spirit that I find the calling to my path. Through hardship and rigor, I find myself better prepared for the challenges in my life. I find myself more able to endure the challenge when life demands of me more than I want to give, but I also find a comfort in the rigors. They have become anchor points, defining elements of my days, the drumbeats of this strange mercurial dance we call a mortal life.
And in this I find kinship with my Elder Kindred, a way to relate to the Gods through the chasing of my path. Woden was the God of Wisdom before he hung from Yggdrasil, before he gave his eye, yet this fact did not stop him from choosing those actions. Tyr was the God of Honor and justice, ever willing to sacrifice before he let Fenrir take his hand. Though the task was painful, and risky it did not keep him from doing the hard thing.
The Gods are defined by their aspects because of repeated and endless dedication to their deeds, come what may, no matter how often they failed and I, though not their equal, but inspired by their example, find a similar purpose on the ascetic path.
-Sister Snow Hare
(First time using that... Embrace the cringe!)
#heathenry#heathen#heathen asceticism#otherkin#therian#ascetic#Heathenasceticism#asatru#troth#The Way of the Hare#neopaganism#germanic paganism#stoicism#embrace the suck#embrace the cringe#discipline#do the hard thing
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What Should I Do If My Ideal Boiler Stops Working Suddenly?
Ah, the joys of a warm home on a chilly day! But what happens when your beloved ideal boiler decides it needs a break, leaving you with a frosty surprise? Arising such a situation is not impossible even if you take care of your boiler well. The boiler engineers and other technicians strongly believe that boiler defects can occur at any point in time. If you find your boiler is not functioning in a chill morning, then it can not be anything less than a shock.
You Need Not Lose Patience!
If your boiler stops working all of a sudden, then you need to pull yourself together instead of getting afraid of the situation. If you lose patience, then you may find the situation extremely difficult for you to tackle. Trust our expertise when we suggest you not to fear. You must prefer wasting no time at all to reach the best boiler repair engineer or other boiler technicians near you. Think of it as a cozy chat with your boiler, convincing it that it's time to get back to work.
The Heart-to-Heart Check:
Start with a heart-to-heart check. Is your thermostat on the same page as you? Sometimes, a slight miscommunication is all it takes for your boiler to throw in the towel. Confirm that your settings are in harmony, and if there's a timer, make sure it's not harboring any grudges.
The Pressure Dilemma:
Now, let's talk pressure – not the kind you feel when your boiler decides to sulk, but the literal pressure it operates under. Locate the pressure gauge; it's like the boiler's mood ring. If it's in the red, it needs a pep talk. Follow your boiler's manual to give it the boost it deserves, and watch as it perks up.
The Reset Ritual:
Boilers, like all of us, sometimes need a reset. Find that reset button – it's like a mini spa day for your appliance. A quick press might be all it takes to remind your boiler that it's the star of the show. But let's not overdo it; repeated resets might make it feel like it's in therapy.
Crack the Code:
Modern boilers are chatty; they display error codes to spill the beans on their issues. Think of it as their way of sending a postcard from the problem zone. Consult the manual, decipher the code, and you'll be on your way to understanding what's bothering your boiler.
Radiators Need Love Too:
Your radiators are like the supporting cast in this home-heating drama. If they're feeling left out (cold at the top but warm at the bottom), it's time for a bit of attention. Grab a radiator key, turn off the boiler, and let the trapped air escape. It's like giving them a warm hug.
Bring in the Boiler Whisperer:
If all else fails, it's time to bring in the professionals – the boiler whisperers, if you will. They speak the language of pipes and valves and can coax even the most stubborn boilers back to life. Don't worry; it's not a goodbye, just a "see you later."
Conclusion:
Your ideal boiler is more than just a machine; it's a member of the family. So, the next time it decides to throw a winter tantrum, approach it with care and a touch of humor. A little troubleshooting, some manual consultation, and perhaps a professional intervention – and you'll have your warm, cozy haven back. After all, every boiler needs a little extra love now and then!
Summing up…!
Apart from giving up on the problematic situation, you should do well to get in touch with the most skilled and experienced boiler engineers who can do the needful to keep the boiler in perfect working condition. The experts at Ideal Boiler Repair insist on avoiding taking any unwanted risk. Though DIY practices are good, they can be risky at times.
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Merry Halloween!
It is October 31st, if you haven't guessed already. And 11:59 AM. Today I was particularly excited to go to work because we were told we could dress up in costumes. So, of course the Christmas fanatic inside of me took advantage of that. Yup. I dressed up as a Christmas elf.
Yes, that is a homemade button that says "Santa's little helper." :)
Not going to lie, I do feel a bit like the song, What's This? from Nightmare Before Christmas. And I don't hate that.
Me right now. (pinterest)
So that is my outfit for the day. At work, anyways. Who knows? Maybe I'll be Mabel Pines by tonight. ;)
My Halloween plans this year are low key, which I kind of like. On the 28th I hosted a Halloween party with one of my close friends for our friends, so that was most of my Halloween plans. Today I'm thinking of running by the amazing Spirit Halloween after work to see their 50% off treasures. :D And tonight I'll probably stay in, put on a spooky movie, play some games, read a book, it'll be great. I started rereading (again) one of my favorite graphic novels, Ghosts by Raina Telgemeier. I love, love, love all of her books. Really, I grew up on them. I have lost count of how often I've read them. That includes The Baby-Sitter's Club graphic novels she's illustrated, and the ones that the illustrator changed. They're some of my comfort reads and probably always will be. :) But I thought today would be the perfect day to rererereread (haha) Ghosts, because it's spooky day.
Featuring our ofrenda at work. :) We set it up and let customers bring in a photo if they want.
~ Events of my MERRY HALLOWEEN ~
(cute halloween owl house art i found on pinterest) :))
8 AM : go to work as a Christmas elf.
1 PM : get off work, go to the library and get 5 graphic novels :), go to Spirit Halloween just to be in the presence of it, and get Arby's for lunch.
2 PM : arrive at home, eat lunch and watch the Halloween episodes of Amphibia and Good Luck, Charlie.
3 PM : journal on my chromebook for a while, get out some feelings.
4 PM : took a bath and got into my second costume for Halloween - Mabel Pines!
(featuring one of my cats in the back, Pippin)
The rest of the PM : I did some Halloween collage making which I might include a photo of in another blog. I made cat ears out of a headband and a pipe cleaner for my mom to wear with her leopard print shirt. (it was the most costume I could get her to wear) And I chilled and watched Into the Woods. Overall, it was a nice and chill Halloween. :)
(now christmas heehee)
I hope you had a very happy spooky day and I hope that you're looking forward to the CHRISTMAS SEASON AHEAD!
Spooky dreams,
Thalia <3
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Starry Nights
Bsd, Shirachuu
Angst
800 words
Shirase sighs.
He pulls down a small ladder from an apartment building and climbs onto the roof.
It was a difficult day at work, and now he just wanted to relax.
He collapsed onto the hard concrete and then glanced up at the night sky above him.
There were so many stars out that night.
All of them, each individual star, shined brightly in the sky. They were all their own thing, light-years away. Each star glittered with its own story.
The sky that night reminded him of that time Chuuya insisted they sew the stars together. A night they spent alone until Yuan found them and joined in.
A peaceful night. One he could not recreate.
Chuuya and Yuan were far from him, yet he still held his memories.
¤
"Shirase!" A whisper shout sounded above his sleeping form.
He grimaced when a hand tapped against his cheek.
"Wake up!"
He groaned lightly and then opened his eyes.
Chuuya's face was right above his, a smile fixed on his lips.
"I can't sleep," Chuuya explained. "And the sky looks really cool right now. Come on."
Chuuya got up and started climbing the building they huddled next to. He jumped from a trash bin to a pipe to a window sill.
Shirase sat up and unzipped his Spiderman sleeping bag (only the best sleeping arrangements).
He stood and tried his best to copy Chuuya's parkour moves to make it to the top of the building.
The roof was rather empty aside from a couple of garden boxes and a door.
"The stars are so prominent tonight," Chuuya said, not whispering any longer.
Shirase looked at the sky to confirm what Chuuya was saying. "Yeah, they really are."
"So, why couldn't you sleep tonight?"
Chuuya sighed, "I hate the night."
Shirase nodded, unsure of what to say.
"It is not like I have some fun dreams awaiting me during sleep."
"At least you don't get nightmares." Shirase realized in that moment that Chuuya's lack of dreaming may have been lucky.
"I guess."
"I get nightmares about my life before the Sheep. Sometimes nightmares that I will lose the Sheep and have to go back to that."
"At least you remember your life before the Sheep," Chuuya mumbled sadly.
They sat in comfortable silence, staring only at the stars. Both of the boys were happy with the presence of another person.
"I hate that I don't dream. You think it's lucky, I think it makes me different."
"We are all different. You are more normal than me."
Chuuya scoffed. "Yeah, right."
"My past weighs me down," Shirase admitted. "You have no option but to go forward. Is that not a good thing?"
"It is not a good thing when I don't even know what my own parents look like," Chuuya reminded.
"Sometimes," Shirase paused. "Sometimes, you want to forget what your parents looked like."
"What if they were amazing people?"
"You can't know. So do not let it weigh you down."
Shirase smiled, nudging Chuuya with his arm.
"Hey, you've got the Sheep now. We are your family. And we are a damn good one at that! Do not take us for granted."
Chuuya hummed.
"We have your back, and you have ours. We are here, Chuuya. Whether you like it or hate it. We are here now, and you can not get rid of us!"
Chuuya laughed for a moment, only to be cut off by a startled yelp.
"What are you two doing up here in the middle of the night?" Yuan, the pink-haired girl from the Sheep that the two became close to, questioned.
"Just chilling," Shirase answered.
Yuan laughed, letting go of her grip on Chuuya.
"Well, can I chill with you?" She asked.
Shirase hummed.
She sat beside him dramatically.
"The sky is so pretty!"
"It is," Shirase agreed.
Chuuya slumped against him.
He was asleep.
"Did Chuu fall asleep right as I got here?" Yuan pouted. "No fair!"
Shirase chuckled. "We have plenty of time to hang out in the future."
"I guess...."
Shirase laid down, moving Chuuya to lay on top of him.
"For now, we should get some sleep. We're going to need it if we plan on getting food tomorrow."
"Alright," Yuan said before she laid down next to him. "I value the time I spend with you boys. Chuu had to be rude and fall asleep."
"We have plenty of time, Yuan. Let's sleep. We can hang out whenever we want. We will always be together."
¤
Yet, now, he knew that always was a lie.
A tear trailed down his face at the memory.
He hopes that Yuan is doing okay.
And he hopes that Chuuya is safe, even if it was him that broke everyone apart.
Because Chuuya was still a part of the Sheep originally.
And the Sheep are always there for each other, through and through.
#fanfiction#ao3 fanfic#fanfic#shirachuu#shirase#bsd shirase#chuuya nakahara#nakahara chūya#the sheep#bsd sheep#bsd fanfic
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Cold Weather and Plumbing
I’m going to start with the lesson that has been learned here. In a cold climate, a hot-water-based heating system (the type with either freestanding or baseboard radiators) should never be turned all the way off so the pipes don’t freeze. Setback temperatures exist. Use them. The rest of this post is about what can happen if you fail to heed this basic advice.
Let’s rewind to March 2020. Yes, just before the pandemic. I mean, really just before. I was working in Seattle, as (it turns out) was one of the first US cases of COVID. When I came back, I’d have one night at home before a week skiing and snowboarding with another family in Colorado. Long-time readers might recognize this trip as the one where I accidentally stole the other family’s rental car key and only realized it at the airport, leading to me calling Lyft on the plane to guide a driver with the key to our AirBnB. Great story, better in longer form, but not the one I’m telling today.
While I was still in Seattle, things got cold back home. A pipe to the sauna unit in our master bedroom, which we had never used, burst while my wife was playing D&D with friends. Hours later, she came back to find it was raining ... all the way through the master bathroom and into the garage. Plumbers and remediation specialists worked both before and after we left for Colorado, managing to save the bedroom floor, and property insurance did pay for it. When we got back, things were back to normal except that you could see light from the master bedroom both into the attached bathroom and down into the garage.
Fast forward to this summer. Both the main AC unit and the smaller master-suite unit failed - fortunately just after what turned out to be the worst heat wave. As part of the project to replace both with heat pumps, the garage ceiling finally got fixed. I personally spent about a week up on a ladder with joint compound along the drywall seams and fire-block foam around the edges. All was good again.
So ... yesterday. Coldest day (actually night) in years - down to -12°F with a howling wind taking wind chill down to -33. Pretty early in the morning, my wife reported that her water wasn’t running. She had already turned off the water and opened the taps to prevent a freeze. Heat still seemed to be working, though, and we also deployed some electric heaters to warm things up further. Made arrangements to postpone our planned trip to see our daughter (only three hours away driving), and settled in to see if we had escaped disaster. In the mid-afternoon one of our periodic tests resulted in flowing water, so it looked like we had. Still, better to wait a day and make sure.
Back to the lesson part. This had apparently happened because Dear Wife had set the heat in the master bedroom all the way off. It’s not as totally crazy as it sounds. For the last several years, her body temperature has been super hot (yes I have a hot wife) and she prefers cooler temperatures. That’s a large part of the reason I sleep all the way at the other end of the house, because I’m the exact opposite. (BTW younger folks always think this is weird or ominous. OIder folks - even those in entirely healthy relationships - often react with “that sounds great” or similar. Also, snoring. No, I won’t say whose.) The heat pump in the master bedroom generally works so well that no auxiliary heat is needed. Still...
Now we’re all the way up to this morning. Wife comes in again. It’s raining in the basement again. She’s almost in tears. As it happens, I had been awakened a half hour earlier by some odd-sounding gurgles from the heating system, but it’s a noisy beast at the best of times and things still seemed to be working so I rolled over and went back to sleep. However, once we’re moving stuff out of harm’s way in the garage etc. I’m more alert to any kind of anomaly and I notice that the furnace/boiler is humming continuously. It doesn’t usually do that, so I investigate and see that the pressure gauge is reading zero. That gurgling was the water draining out of the system. With dread in my heart, I turn off the furnace too.
At this point my wife’s already calling the plumber. She suggests that I should call the furnace folks too. I point out that there’s likely no problem with the furnace except for its water supply, and they wouldn’t be able to do anything about it until the supply is fixed anyway. Turns out I was right on that one. There’s some knowledge that I feel homeowners shouldn’t need to have, but experienced ones often do because of experiences like this.
Amazingly, the plumber comes less than an hour later. He quickly confirms that it was indeed a heating pipe that broke, and not too much later that it can’t be accessed from below. We’ll have to go in through the vanity in the bathroom, which means another visit some time in the next couple of days. Meanwhile, I figured out how to set the fancy thermostat so it would run the main heat pump at lower temperatures than it had been, but still well within its design range, which should be good enough all by itself for at least the next several days. The plumber also turned the water back on, minus the one line for heating in that part of the house. The separate heat pump there is even better than the main one in the cold, so we should be set there too.
Now it’s just a matter of getting that pipe replaced. And fixing the drywall/insulation that got soaked and removed (fortunately only one spot rather than the whole thing this time). And dealing with insurance. le sigh
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The Conversation
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Reader
Word Count: 7661 (Don’t come at me - you guys asked for it)
Warnings: !FATWS Spoilers!, Cursing, Fluff, Feelings, I Dunno What Else, This One’s Pretty Chill, Except The Ending, But You’ll See When You Get There
A/N: Here it is! I was hesitant about posting it because that means we’re getting closer to the end and I’m such a nostalgic bitch! I’m definitely gonna cry next week when the last episode comes out! Anyways, I’ve got a few things to talk about:
I think this is one of the most important chapters I’ve written and I’m excited to see your reactions to it. It is longer, but you guys asked for that, so you got it! Also, I’m loving the Asks, Comments, and Reblogs. I try to respond to all of them. I have work in a little bit, so I won’t be able to until after, but I’ll get back to you as soon as I can. Ask me anything; about my series, the show, any of the movies, personal stuff, I really don’t care. If you’re not comfortable, that’s totally fine! Every like means so much to me!
I know it’s not the end yet - we’ve got one more episode and a list of One Shots to get through - but there’s a definite feeling of this series coming to an end, and I just want to thank you all for the support and love you’ve been giving it! I’ve really enjoyed writing these characters and this story! It’s very, very special to me and I’m glad I’ve been able to share it with you lovely people!
On that note, be kind to yourselves and others! Thank you again for reading! Excuse any mistakes - this isn’t beta’d! Enjoy and stay tuned!
FATWS Masterlist
cjsinkythoughts Masterlist
!SPOILERS UNDER CUT! (Sorry for the gifs I just love them so much and he’s so pretty and this part is technically two parts so...you get four!)
“Louisiana.” Bucky hummed, looking around the airport.
You rolled your eyes. “You’re not gonna find anything interesting about Louisiana in here, doofus. Let’s call an Uber.”
“An Ooper? What the hell is an Ooper?”
You giggled, shaking your head and grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the luggage carousel. “Uber. It’s like…a taxi service. But there’s an app on your phone to get a driver instead of waiting for one on the street.”
“Oh.” He blinked, tilting his head. “That’s…helpful.”
You laughed again, stopping in front of Carousel 3, where your flight from New York was assigned. You went back to New York to grab a bag with clean clothes and other necessities, along with taking a real shower for once. It was nice to be back in the States, as much as you loved traveling. It’d been a crazy few weeks and you were ready to just relax.
“Do you think there were any problems with Sammy’s present?”
Bucky shook his head. “Nah. Especially considering they know who we are.”
You snickered at his slight grumble. They had had…problems at the other two airports - first the one in Sokovia then JFK in New York - considering Bucky’s entire arm was metal. It’d taken a full hour before they actually let you go, and by that time they had to give you a new plane because yours had left.
“Seriously. Who else has a fucking metal arm and has 1917 listed as their birth year on their Driver’s License?” You giggled again. That was also true. They thought he was messing with them. It wasn’t until you stepped in a few minutes after they asked Bucky to step to the side, seeing Bucky get frustrated, that they realized Bucky wasn’t pulling their legs.
“Well, we’re here now and that’s all that matters.”
He nodded in agreement, watching for your bags, his hand finding yours when he realized how many people there were. “Do you know where he lives? I didn’t even think about it.”
“Yeah, don’t worry. He invited me over once. I declined, but I saved the address.”
“He…invited you over?” Bucky frowned.
You gave him a look. “I’m sure he invited you, too. You just never checked his texts.”
He licked his lips, tilting his head. “Yeah, no, I know, but I mean…why didn’t you go? Weren’t you two just talking about how you wanted to meet his nephews the other day?”
“Yeah, but I had gotten a tip on Wanda at the time and I didn’t want to miss the chance that she was there. He told me it was fine. I still felt really bad. I could tell he was a bit disappointed. I think it was one of the boys’ birthdays. Or something. I don’t remember. Is that bad? Yeah, probably. I really should remember. Maybe I should keep track of birthdays on my calendar or something.”
“Doll.” You looked up to find him giving you a magnificent smile, teeth and all. “You’re rambling.”
“Oh. Am I? Sorry. I didn’t realize.”
He shook his head quickly, squeezing your hand. “Don’t apologize. It’s cute. I’m just not used to you talking so much. You kinda did on the phone sometimes.”
You shrugged, pushing down the heat crawling up your neck at his words. “I rambled a lot to Steve.”
“Oh.”
His face fell, making you scrunch your eyebrows up in confusion, nudging him slightly to grin at him. “It’s nice to have someone to ramble to again, though.” There was that smile again. You were stopped from saying anything more when you noticed some kids pointing and chattering excitedly at a gleaming silver box coming around the corner on the conveyor belt. “There it is.”
He looked over his shoulder, dropping your hand and stepping over to grab it, lifting it effortlessly. You didn’t know what was in it or how heavy it was, but you were sure it felt like a feather to him.
“Alright. Got our bag, sweetheart?” You lifted up the duffle in answer and he jerked his head towards the doors. “Let’s get outta here, then. Call that Booper or whatever.”
“U-B-E-R! Ub-er!” You threw your hands up, following him as he started walking towards the exit. “What’s so hard about it?!”
He just gave you a little smirk over his shoulder.
***************
Bucky kept asking the Uber driver questions about his job. The guy was super nice and patient the whole time, a thick southern accent lacing his answers. Southern hospitality was no joke and apparently had no limit as Bucky asked about his experiences, listening intently and telling him his own stories of taxi drivers in NYC.
When you got to Sam’s sister’s house, Bucky, being Bucky, tipped the driver half of what you paid for the ride, thanking him for his time and energy, before getting out.
“You’re so adorable, you know that?” You teased him as you stepped up the porch stairs and knocked on the door.
He rolled his eyes, a tint of pink dusting across his cheeks. “He was nice.”
You hummed at his defense, the smile never leaving your features. After a moment, Bucky raised his fist to knock again. “Jesus Christ! Don’t fucking knock their door down!” You grabbed his wrist and lowered it.
“Sorry. I forget sometimes.” Bucky informed you absentmindedly, tilting his head to peek in the window. “I don’t think anyone’s home.”
“They’re probably at the docks, then.”
Bucky raised an eyebrow. “The docks?”
You nodded, gesturing for him to follow you. “Yeah. They have a boat, remember? He talked about it last week.”
“Oh right. The one he’s trying to convince his sister not to sell.”
“Yeah.” You confirmed. “I’m pretty sure it’s that way. I don’t know how far, but we can call the Uber back-”
Bucky scrunched up his face and shook his head. “Nah. I don’t wanna bother him again. We can walk.”
You gave him an incredulous look. “It’s literally his job to drive people around.”
“Well, yeah, but what if he’s got other people to drive?”
You lifted his metal knuckles to your lips. “Trust me, Buck, I’m sure he’d rather drive you than anyone else.”
“Thank you?”
Swinging your now linked hands, you gave a firm nod, letting him know it was, in fact, a compliment. “You are so very welcome.”
The walk was a lot longer than you thought it was, and you ended up on Bucky’s back after he kept complaining about how you “shouldn’t be walking this long” and you were “injured” and you “needed rest’”. You’re not sure how a shoulder wound affected your ability to walk, but you relented and let him carry you the rest of the way to stop his whining.
“You forget, you did pull your thigh.”
“That was, like, three weeks ago! Yeesh!”
You finally got to the docks, which were bustling with people. Bucky set you down and raised an eyebrow which you shrugged in reply to, before heading over to where you spotted Sam with a few other older men.
“How do we get it off the truck?” You heard Sam ask, pointing to a large boat engine part in the bed of a beaten up truck. Scoffing as Bucky lifted it up without breaking a sweat, you leaned against the truck. Bucky grunted and set it down, looking at Sam.
“You’re welcome.” What a punk. “Just dropping this off.” Bucky lifted the case and set it where the engine was previously, Sam coming to stand on the opposite side of the truck as you. “You can sign for it and I’ll go.” You snorted, shaking your head, making Bucky shove your shoulder - the uninjured one - playfully. “I called in a favor from the Wakandans.”
Sam looked at you curiously. You shrugged and shook your head. “Don’t look at me, Sammy. He wouldn’t tell me what it is. He’s all hushy hushy about it until you say so.”
Before Sam could reply, there was a squeak and hissing over at the boat where steam was coming from a few pipes.
“Sam!” You knew that was Sarah from pictures Sam showed you. You stayed up by the truck, pulling yourself onto the bed while Sam tried fixing the pipe, Bucky butting in to show him how to do it properly.
“Why didn’t you use the metal arm?”
You saw Bucky lift up said metallic limb. “Well…I don’t always think of it immediately. I’m-I’m right handed.” Letting out a laugh, Bucky turned around and scowled teasingly at you. “And what’re you laughing at?!”
“Nothing!”
“Well then get your ass over here!”
You rolled your eyes, hopping down from the truck as Bucky asked if Sam wanted help with the boat. You leaned against a wooden post, grinning when Sam looked at you.
“I don’t have any plans.”
Sam gave a small smile, jerking his head back. “Yeah.”
You jumped down onto the boat to follow him, looking over your shoulder and stopping with an amused eyebrow raised as Bucky introduced himself to Sarah. “I’m Bucky.”
“Ah…Sarah.”
“Sarah.” Bucky repeated her name, before walking towards you, a grin still on his lips.
“Careful, Barnes. That playboy Steve warned me about is coming out.” You nudged him with a smirk, ignoring the feeling of your stomach dropping.
He rolled his eyes, kissing your head as he passed you and Sam to go where Sam was gesturing. “Don’t worry, Y/N. You’re still my doll.”
Sam raised an eyebrow, falling into step besides you and lowering his voice. “Conversation?”
“Hasn’t happened.” You informed him through clenched teeth as he groaned.
Sam gave you a list of chores that needed to be done to clean up the boat, giving you a quick tour and letting you know where all the tools needed where. You set to work immediately.
Sanding down, replacing old parts, cleaning, polishing and painting over the things that didn’t need replacing. They didn’t let you do any heavy lifting because of your stupid shoulder, but you were still able to help.
Sam had turned on some music for you to listen to, so you danced around the boat while cleaning. Turning your head when you felt a pair of eyes on you, you smiled when Bucky snapped his head back down to the wood he was sanding down.
“Gonna dance, Barnes?”
He looked back over, shaking his head. “Nah. I’m good watching you.”
Rolling your eyes, you got back to work, continuing to bop to the music, fully aware that he was watching you now.
A little while later, you were repainting the edges of the boat orange, when you looked over and noticed Bucky playing around with a paint scraper…sitting right on the edge that you had just finished repainting a few minutes ago.
“Buck!”
He looked over, eyebrows raised. “Yeah?”
You bit your lip, trying to hold back your mischievous grin. Shaking your head, you waved dismissively. “Never mind!”
He gave you a confused sort of pout, before shrugging and continuing to fidget with the tool. It wasn’t until later when he got up to help Sam tear the metal plating off the edge that it came to light with Sam chuckling and raising an eyebrow.
“Sit in something there, Barnes?”
“What?”
Bucky craned his neck back, eyes widening when he saw the orange paint on his ass, contrasting with his jeans. You let out a cackle and he whipped towards you, pointing at you accusingly, although the small uptick of his lips let you know he wasn’t really mad.
“Y/N!”
“No, no, no!” You laughed, sprinting across the deck, shrieking when he grabbed your waist and spun you around. You gasped when he grabbed a paint brush and painted an orange stripe right down the front of your shirt. “James!”
“Justice, sweetheart.” He breathed in your ear with a chuckle.
You shook your head, wiggling out of his hold. “This is a nice shirt!”
“You should’ve thought about that before.” He smirked, crossing his arms. Your eyes caught sight of Sam behind him, who raised an eyebrow and the bucket of paint he was holding. You nodded with a little giggle, making Bucky’s eyes narrow. “What’s so funny over there, do - holy shit!
You guffawed as orange paint dripped down his head, Sam standing innocently behind him with the now empty bucket behind his back. “Samuel!”
“Oops?”
“I’m gonna kill you!”
“Try me old man!”
“Fuck!
“Doll!”
“Oh my God!”
Paint, orange and white since those were the only cans they had out, flew across the deck, paint brushes being used like fencing swords.
You found out too late that wet paint was a little bit slippery and you slid on a huge puddle, sending you, not onto the ground below, but over the side of the edge into the water.
“Doll!”
“Cher, you good?!”
The three of you looked at each other, stunned for a moment, before bursting into fits of laughter and you nodded. “I’m good!”
The boys helped you get back up onto the dock, Sarah appearing with towels she conjured up out of thin air. “Let’s get you into dry clothes. Do you have-?”
“We’ve got some. We got a bag.” You told her with a grin, facing the guys. “You two should clean up some, too. Sammy, you’ve got a little something right there.” You pointed to your cheek, his own having a giant white splotch from his temple to his jaw. “And Buck?” You sniggered, gesturing to the whole of him. “You’ve got a lotta something right there.”
“Ha. Ha.” He looked down. His top was practically tiger print, drenched in orange with white here and there, and his ass still orange as well. His hair, which had been plastered to his forehead, was starting to dry now, and it only made you laugh some more thinking about what a pain it’d be to get it out. For him, at least.
“God. Can’t even have a relaxing day on the boat with you two.” Sam jested once you finished up and joined him and Bucky, who had just finished dumping out some water buckets. Bucky had changed his shirt and it looked like they tried wiping their faces, but Sam still had small lines of white down his face. “How ‘bout a couple of drinks? Surely you can’t ruin that too.”
“Ruin?” You gasped in mock offence. “Sammy! I just made the day more…interesting.”
Sam chuckled, ruffling Bucky’s hair, which still had orange streaks in it. “Let’s go get some beers.”
************
You chatted for a bit, mainly you and Sam with you asking how Sarah and the boys were while Bucky with your legs in his lap, just listening to you two and sipping at his bottle. You had his hand in your own lap, wiping it down with a rag due to the paint that got on it.
“You’re lucky this is vibranium, you know.” You commented off handedly. “If it was your other one, it’d definitely get stained.”
“And who’s fault is that?” Bucky shot back with a teasing grin.
“Sammy’s.”
Sam spluttered. “Wh-what?! You started it!” You laughed, shaking your head.
Falling into a comfortable silence with just the water and birds chirping as your soundtrack, you downed the rest of your drink, which Bucky took as finished. “Well,” you moved your legs to let him stand up. He leaned forwards to clink his bottle against Sam’s and you stood up and stretched. “Gotta catch our flight tomorrow. Get a hotel room for the night.” Sam gave you a look to which you rolled your eyes at as Bucky set down his bottle and grabbed his jacket. “Crash, you know?”
“So you’re just gonna set me up like that, huh?”
“Well I don’t wanna make it weird for your family.”
“Just stay here.” You laughed as Sam babbled on about how nice the people were here, grabbing the jacket Bucky handed to you. It was getting a bit chilly from the breeze on the water and the sun going down. Plus, that water was cold.
“But don’t flirt with my sister.”
You cackled at Bucky’s face, that turned serious, his head shaking. “No.”
“‘Cause if you do I’ll have Carlos cut you up and feed you to the fish.”
“Can’t hold back the dog, Wilson. It’s been stuck in a kennel too long.”
Bucky turned to you, grabbing your jaw and squishing your cheeks together. “You know what? You need to shush. You’ve been snippy all day.”
You just smiled as innocently as you could with your lips being held by his metal fingers. “You’re too fun to mess with.”
He pecked your nose. “As long as I’m the only one you’re messing with. I’ll be right back.” He let you go and spun around, maneuvering around the boat in a way only a trained assassin could do.
“Oh my God, please! Please just put me out of my fucking misery! You’re killing me, cher.”
“What?” You gaped at him.
“Don’t act innocent!” Sam huffed, giving you a pointed look. “If I have to watch you two make googly eyes at you one more fucking day with neither of you doing anything about it-”
You rolled your eyes. “Oh come on, Sammy-”
“Don’t ‘come on, Sammy’ me! And don’t come at me with that ‘he doesn’t like me back’ bullshit. If you think for a second that boy wouldn’t follow you to the depths of the fucking ocean, you’re blind as a bat, woman.”
You shrugged, pushing up the sleeves of Bucky’s too big jacket. “It just…hasn’t come up.”
He deadpanned, shaking his head and standing up. “That’s it. I’m done. You two are driving me insane. I’m gonna lock you in a room until you have the conversation that needs to be had the next time either of you does something stupid.”
“Yikes. That’s gonna be quick.” At his look, your smile dropped and you nodded. “Okay, okay. I’ll…I’ll bring it up later.”
“Tomorrow or nothing.”
“Sam-”
Sam tilted his head, brow creasing. “Is it still Steve? Is that what this is still about? Because he’s gone, and he’s been gone and you need to get over it-”
“No. It’s not…” You sighed. “It clicked the other day. When we were hanging out. Steve left and, yeah, I might always love him, but Bucky…God…I love Bucky, Sam.”
The man grinned proudly. “I’m glad to finally hear you admit it. So what’s the problem?”
“It’s still complicated, right? I mean…he’s his best friend and I’ve never dealt with stuff like this before and-”
Sam’s smile dropped and he groaned again. “Imma head out. I can’t take this. Dumbass and dumberass. I swear to God.” You sniggered a bit as he grumbled, walking towards the ramp to climb off the boat, just as Bucky reappeared.
“Hey-”
“Nope! Not right now, Barnes! I can’t handle it! I can’t!”
Bucky gave you a weird look. “What’d you do?”
You chuckled, shaking your head. “Nothing.”
“Well, c’mon, doll. Sarah said she’s gonna make gumbo for us, whatever that is.” He held out his hand as you walked over.
“You’re such a city boy.” You teased lightly, taking his hand and letting him help you pull you onto the dock. You shoved the sleeves of his jackets up again since they slipped from the first time. “Let’s go get some dinner. I’m starving.”
******************
“We have the couch and a mattress we can pull out, I just have to make Sam get it from the attic-”
“That’s alright. The couch is fine.” Bucky waved dismissively while you nodded in agreement.
Sarah raised an eyebrow at you two. “For both of you?”
You blinked, exchanging a look with Bucky, before shrugging and turning back to her. “Yeah.”
“Don’t fight it, Sarah.” Sam peeked out from the hall. “They’ve got a weird relationship.” You stuck your tongue out at the man while Bucky rolled his eyes, dropping your duffle bag by the couch. “How mature, Y/N.” Sam mimicked your action.
“Uhm…okay. Let me set up the couch for you then.”
Once everything was set up, you and Bucky thanking her for dinner - delicious and you’d never seen Bucky smile so much, the boys having kept him highly entertained throughout the meal - and for letting you crash, Sam and Sarah headed to their rooms, the boys already having been tucked in for the night.
“Are you gonna sleep on the floor?” You asked quietly, sitting down on the couch and doing the things for your night routine you didn’t already do in the bathroom.
“I think I’ll be okay.” He sat besides you. “I’ve been doing fine the past week or so.”
You smiled at him. “That’s good. Alright.” You stood up and stretched. “Let me just make sure everything’s in the bag and ready-”
You yelped when his arm wrapped around your waist, pulling you into his chest, shifting down to lay against the couch’s arm. “Do it in the morning.” He yawned, looking up at you tiredly. “I wanna go to sleep.”
“Then go to sleep, Buck. I’ll be right back.” He shook his head, his hold tightening as he sunk deeper into the couch.
“No. I fall asleep better with you.”
You rolled your eyes but grinned, settling down with your legs between his, your chin resting on his sternum so you could still look at him. He beamed, but you could see the exhaustion settling in, and he grabbed the blanket Sarah left over the back of the couch and draped it across your back, over both of your legs, before his arms crossed snugly under the covers at the small of your back.
“Dinner was nice tonight. I haven’t had a meal cooked like that in ages.” You hummed.
He nodded in agreement. “I think that’s the first time I’ve sat around a table with a family since the 40′s.”
You raised an eyebrow. “Did you like it?”
“Yeah...kinda makes me wish I had my own.”
“Your own what?”
“Family.”
You bit your lip, shyly avoiding his gaze. “You’re my family, Buck.”
A light kiss was pressed to your forehead, his fingers bringing your gaze back to his. “There’s no one else I’d rather have.” The room lapsed into silence again, the clock ticking on the wall, the low sound of crickets outside.
“You have really pretty eyes.” You mumbled, tilting your head slightly as you studied them. They always held so much emotion in them, especially in contrast to when you first met him as Soldat. They matched the water you fell in, and you wouldn’t mind falling over and over into them.
“Yeah, well, you’re just really pretty inside and out, so I think you’ve got me beat, doll.” He whispered back.
“You know who else is pretty? Sarah.”
He nodded with a hum. “That’s true. But I meant what I said. You’ll always be my doll.”
“So you’re not gonna ask her out?”
He gave you a weird look as you traced his sharp jawline absentmindedly. “Nah, sweetheart. It’s just…some harmless flirting. Except on Sam’s part.”
You gave a soft huff of laughter. “Yeah…he’s gonna strangle you. It is nice to see you like that, though. Flirty. Relaxed. Happy.”
“You make me happy, sweetheart.” He hummed, nosing your temple. “The road trip helped. I’m learning everything from you. Maybe not the flirting, but the carefree part.”
You blinked at him, finger stopping for a moment as you thought. “Oh…”
You felt his fingers dance up your spine, making you shiver slightly. “What I would give to know what’s goin’ on inside that pretty lil’ head’a yours, doll.”
“I just think it’s funny you’re learning how to be carefree from me…when I just started learning how to do it myself.”
“Oh yeah?”
You nodded, your finger continuing its path down his jaw. “I think it started with the goats.”
“The goats?”
You nodded again, resting your cheek on his chest, watching your finger move up from his chin. Once you got to the end of his jaw, you lightly scratched his scruff. “In Wakanda. Our goats.” You weren’t looking at him, so you didn’t see the way he physically melted at your words, his eyes going soft, his lips turning up slightly.
“Our goats, huh?”
But your tired brain wasn’t really processing what he said, instead focusing on the features your finger was now tracing - over his lips, up his nose. “You’re pretty too, Buck. Did you know that? Inside and out.”
He craned his neck to kiss your forehead. “Go to sleep, cuddle bug.”
Nodding, you nuzzled into his chest, finger feeling over the bumps and indents on the dog tags resting near your head. You tried going to sleep, but you kept shifting, your mind not shutting off.
“Hey, sleepyhead, I’m trying to, you know, sleep.”
“Sorry.” You apologized meekly. “I just…I dunno. I can’t.”
“Are you comfortable?” He peeked open and eye to look at you questioningly. You nodded. “Is it too hot? We can take the blanket off. I know I’m a walking furnace-”
You shook your head. “No. I don’t know why. I just can’t sleep.”
He licked his lips thoughtfully, before cradling your head and guiding you back down to his chest. “Lay down, sweetheart. Relax.” He stroked your hair, moving his head down to rub circles in your back muscles, pressing down harder when he felt knots.
You hummed, your eyes closing. “That feels good.”
“Shshsh. Just go to sleep.” His lips pressed against your head once more, lingering a bit longer than they usually do, as you felt yourself drift off. You cuddled his side, throwing a leg over his waist, before nodding off, only barely hearing his words. “Attagirl. There we are.”
******************
“Doll?” You felt a shift underneath you and groaned, your eyes barely cracking open. “Hey, sleepyhead…it’s okay. I’m just gonna slip out from under ya, alright? Gonna go help Sammy with somethin’.”
You raised an eyebrow, letting him move you against the cushions as he sat up on the edge of the couch. “Sammy?”
“Yeah.” He bent over and kissed your cheek. You stretched out your limbs, about to rub your eyes, when he stopped you, kissing the inside of your wrists. “No. Not you, doll. Go back to sleep.”
“Bu’...’m gonna help.” You slurred out, looking at him with confused, squinty eyes.
He chuckled, shaking his head. “It’s okay. Rest. You can help when you wake up again. Okay?” You mumbled out an “okay”, bringing the covers up to your chin and snuggling deeper into the cushions. “There ya go, cuddle bug. Good girl.” There was another kiss, one to your temple this time, before you slipped back into unconsciousness.
******************
The next time you woke up was because of a clatter in the kitchen. You yawned and sat up, stretching, eyebrows furrowing when you realized Bucky wasn’t with you. It took you a moment to remember your conversation, which you half thought you dreamt.
“Boys!”
“Sorry!”
You chuckled at the shouts, rubbing your eyes. “I am so sorry!” Sarah apologized, looking over at you from the stove. Trying to make the boys breakfast before school. Do you want anything? Eggs? Cereal? Toast?”
“Uh, cereal’s fine.” You stretched out your back again, before throwing back the covers and standing up, a little shakily.
“You wouldn’t happen to know where Sam went, would you?”
You raised an eyebrow. “Uh, I think him and Bucky went to fix something on the boat. I don’t for sure, though.”
Sarah groaned. “He probably went to fix the stupid water pump which doens’t need fixing. Dumbass.”
You chuckled, padding over into the kitchen. “Yeah. I just work with him. I can’t imagine growing up with him.”
“Trust me; some days you want to throw him in a box and send him out to sea. Bowls are in that cupboard.”
You snickered, moving over to grab a bowl from the cupboard she pointed to. “That’s how I feel with Bucky. Sam is less often, but when those two get together…it’s a full zoo.”
She laughed at that, nodding as she got out the milk and a few boxes of cereal for you to choose from, handing you a spoon. “That I believe.”
“Thank you.”
“Of course.”
You started pouring your cereal, watching in slight amusement as she got the boys ready for school. “Bus is here! Get out the door! Bye! Love you! Make sure you take those extra lunches to-!”
“Yeah, mom! We know! Love you too!”
You gave a slight smirk as she huffed, looking around the kitchen at the pans and dishes left out. “Kids, huh?”
She gave you a smile. “Yeah. They’re a handful, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything. How about you? Any thoughts of kids?”
“Me?” Your eyes widened, nearly choking on your food. “Oh God no. Not right now, at least. I don’t even have a solid house right now. My life’s too off the walls for that.”
“And Bucky?”
You raised an eyebrow as she leaned on the counter. “Bucky? What about Bucky?”
“Does he want kids?”
“Uh…I dunno.” You shrugged, clearing your throat as you remembered your talk last night. “Kinda makes me wish I had my own.” You quickly pushed his words aside. “He hasn’t told me.”
“Wait, wait. You two…aren’t together then?”
You blinked, your eyes widening again. “Together? Me and Bucky? No…why? Did Sam say something?”
Her expression morphed into one of disbelief, crossing her arms. “Sam didn’t say anything. You guys did. Are you seriously expecting me to believe you aren’t together?”
“We’re not! I mean - he was flirting with you yesterday-”
“Right, okay. Honey, that’s flirting. And it’s harmless. The way he follows you like a puppy and you look at him like he hung the stars? That’s feelings. And that’s a lot more impactful than flirting.”
You frowned in contemplation. It was really that obvious? You were really that blind? This whole time? You knew Sam knew - but you just figured that’s because he’s been there since it started. And Sharon knew for the same reason. But Sarah? The woman you just met the day prior and had barely had a conversation with?
“It’s, uh…” You chewed on your cheek, swirling your cereal around. “It’s complicated.”
Sarah didn’t look impressed. “Do you like him?”
“I’m kinda in love with him-”
She shrugged, not letting you finish your bashful statement. “Then I don’t see what’s complicated about it.”
And that was that. She turned to clean up breakfast, leaving you alone with your thoughts.
You thought it was more complicated than that. I mean…you were in love with your best friend. Who left you. With the guy you had feelings for who just so happened to be your best friend/crush’s best friend. And now you were completely in love with your best friend’s best friend, but your best friend still had a piece of your heart.
But…you loved Bucky. And he was here. And Steve was not. And when you put it that way…you guess it wasn’t so complicated after all.
******************
You snickered as you walked up behind Sarah, the woman berating the men for not leaving the water pump along like she asked.
“Hi, Sarah.”
Sam shot Bucky a warning look, who grinned, but you were surprised to see Sarah ignore him, sending you a knowing glance instead, before turning back to Sam. “I told you specifically that the water pump was not the problem, and yet, here you are.”
“Yep, Samuel.”
You chuckled, Bucky shooting you a wink. “Yeah, Samuel.”
Sam narrowed his eyes at you, turning to Sarah. “In our defense, you were supposed to be done long before you woke up.”
You nearly facepalmed at his “defensive” and you were trying so hard to hold back laughing as she told Sam off, sending them away.
“I don’t wanna hear a peep from you.” Sam pointed at you, but that only made your chortles come out, and you didn’t even bother hiding them. “She’s a very mean person.”
“It’s tough love.”
You giggled as they started arguing, slipping an arm around their waists, their arms instinctually coming up to your shoulders.
“Oh my God. A prowess?”
“Yes, Y/N. A prowess.”
“You know, maybe if you someone let me help-”
“Hey, woah! You were tired! I let you sleep! I was being nice!”
“Too late now. I’ll be lucky if Sarah lets me within a hundred feet of it!”
“She got you so good, Sammy!”
“I agree with Buck for once! You’re too snippy right now! And c’mon man! Stop flirting with my sister!”
“It’s my natural charm.”
“Charm? What charm?”
“Ouch, doll! That one hurt!”
****************
“Okay.” You stepped out of the bathroom, walking over to the couch and setting the bag down on it. “I’ve got everything packed. We’ve got a little over an hour until we need to head out which gives you two time to go set something up for Sammy and maybe even a bit or training before we leave.”
Bucky frowned. “You’re not gonna come out?”
“I will in a bit. I just got a phone call I need to take.”
Sam narrowed his eyes. “Government call?”
You gave a mocking smile. “Can you guess what they want to talk about? It’s okay. I’ll survive. It’s only a phone call, so I can always hang up. Pretend I didn’t have good service. I do it all the time.”
“I’m sure you do.” Sam chuckled. “In that case, I’m gonna go grab some stuff and get the shield.” As he walked out, he made sure to mouth at you behind Bucky’s back ‘conversation’ making you swallow thickly. You were planning on talking to Bucky anyways, and with Sam’s insistence…
“Okay, so, I was thinking when we get back-”
“Can I talk to you?”
Bucky stopped digging through the bag, blinking at you in surprise at your sudden burst. “Uh…well, we already are, so yes.” He chuckled, straightening and crossing his arms.
“I wanna have the conversation.”
He was left stunned, once again, his mouth opening and closing and his weight shifting form one foot to the other. “Like…that conversation? R-right now? Are you sure?”
You winced at her nervousness. “Sorry, sorry. I know it’s kinda…I just…I need to talk about it. Now.”
“Okay, okay. No, that’s fine. Don’t apologize. I just wasn’t expecting it.” Bucky cleared his throat. “That’s all.”
“Okay…” You breathed with a small nod. You opened your mouth, but Bucky shook his head.
“I hafta say this first; I didn’t mean to hurt you by telling you about Steve. I-I dunno what I thought. That it’d give you closure or something. I dunno. But it hurt you and I’m sorry. That wasn’t my intention.”
“Buck-”
“I was jealous. And guilty. And mad. And upset. I still am. Kinda. I guess. I dunno.” Bucky shook his head, running his hand through his hair and all you could do was gape at him as he started confessing to you. “Remember when we danced? In Madripoor? Doll…I don’t wanna dance ever again if it’s not with you. I fucking love you, Y/N. And not in the way we’ve said it before. I’m in love with you. I have been for-for a while now. I just - you were Steve’s. Steve loved you and you loved Steve and that was that and I was just the broken childhood best friend. But Steve left and he told me to take care of you and I didn’t know what to do with that, because you still love Steve. I think. I dunno. And I didn’t want to break what we have because you’re all I have left of him. You and that stupid shield. You’re my family. My home. I really meant it when I told you that. And that’s why I couldn’t tell you. Because it means too much for me to break what we have because I fell in love with my best friend’s girl. You know?”
He looked at you with pleading eyes, begging you to understand, but your brain was still trying to process what he was telling you.
“Oh God…” He groaned. “And now I just told you everything and you’re looking at me like that wasn’t what you wanted to hear and now I’m thinking this wasn’t the conversation you were thinking it was going to be-”
You were moving across the room before you could stop yourself, pulling him by the teal Henley you knew was comfortable having worn it to bed before when you visited him in New York, and slanting your lips over his.
His breathing hitched and he froze, and for a hot second you thought you made everything worse, but then he was kissing you back and his hands were on your hips and he was pulling you closer and it felt so fucking good you didn’t want to pull back for air.
“Shut up.” You muttered when you finally did pull back, your forehead against his, your eyes clenched shut. “Shut up, shut up, shut up, shut up.” You pulled back to look up at him, chests heaving against each other, your eyes prickling. “I’m not good at this. I’m not good at opening up. I only ever was good at it with Steve but Bucky…I’ve been doing it with you. This whole time and I didn’t even realize it until the conversation in the car.”
He reached up to cup your cheeks, wiping away the relieved tears that were falling from the weight you were finally getting off your chest.
“I love you. I’m in love with you. How could I not be? After all that time in Wakanda? I was never Steve’s girl, Bucky. I wanted to be. Dammit, did I wanna be, but I wasn’t. Not really. And he’s gone. But you’re not. And I don’t know why it took me so long to see that. That you’re the one in front of me. You’re the one who held me when I needed it once he left. You’re the one that would listen to my rambles that I’m just realizing was most of our phone calls. You’re not just the broken childhood friend. Don’t ever think that. I don’t pick up the phone at five in the morning after searching for a friend until two for just anyone. Even Steve’s best friend. And I’m such an idiot because I’ve been pushing away my feelings all these years for Steve and then I let them out with you at the wrong time, because I love Steve, Bucky, but I’m not in love with him. Not since I fell in love with you. And I know it doesn’t make sense, but Steve was the first one I cared about and that’s just how I feel and I can try to explain, but-”
His lips crashed onto yours again and you could taste the salty tears that were pouring down your cheeks, but you didn’t care. He was holding you and he was kissing you and it was even more perfect than you thought it’d be.
“You’re adorable when you ramble, but Jesus Christ, shuddup, doll.” He breathed. “Just tell me you love me. Tell me you love me just a fraction of how much I love you.”
You looked up into those ocean eyes, your own shining with earnest affection. “James Buchanan Barnes. I love you.”
“That’s all I need to know.” He murmured against your lips, holding your head against his, still wiping away your tears. It felt like with each one that fell, you felt lighter and lighter. Like they were taking away every fear and anxiety you held within you for the past six months.
“Alright! I was thinking we could just set up in these trees out here - holy shit! Is it done? Did you do it? Did I miss it? Has the conversation been had?”
Bucky chuckled as you giggled. “He has the worst timing.” The last two words were loud enough so Sam could hear, although the man heard the whole sentence.
“I’m gonna take that as a yes!” Sam cheered. “Halle-fucking-lujah! Finally! I was that close to locking you two in the attic.”
You shook your head at Sam’s personal celebration, drowning the rest of his words out as you looked at Bucky, who swept his thumb over your cheek catching one last tear, before pecking your lips.
“I finally get to kiss where I really want to.” He spoke softly, kissing your lips again. “Are you mine, doll?”
“I thought you said I’d always be your doll.” You answered cheekily. He grinned, kissing you again, pulling you against him by the hips.
“Okay, okay! That’s enough! We get it! You’re in love, finally, but I don’t wanna see it anymore! Now will you come help me with this shit?”
Bucky left one more lingering kiss on your lips, before you pushed him away reluctantly. “I’ll be right out.”
He nodded, moving over to help Sam carry the things he’d gathered.
You watched them put it all up from the window, gnawing on your cheek as you spun your phone in your hands. Coming to a decision, you tossed your phone in the duffle bag and walked out with it just as the boys finished.
“That was a quick phone call.” Sam raised an eyebrow.
You shrugged. “Didn’t call them. If they really need me, they’ll find me.”
Bucky grinned as you set the bag down under a tree, pecking your lips when you got close enough for him to grab by the waist to hold you against him. You rolled your eyes, shoving him playfully away and giggling as Sam let out a groan.
“Alright. Let’s see what you’ve got, Sammy.”
~
><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><
Bucky knew he needed the tough love talk Sam was giving him. He needed to hear it. Because, deep down, he had known it all along, he just refused to believe it. He tried doing it. Making amends. He knew he wasn’t though. And of course he knew immediately who that one person would be.
“And hey.” Bucky looked at him. “Let me tell you what. Telling my girl all that you told her? That’s a good start. I’m proud of you. Both of you. You’re already happier. I can see it in your eyes.”
Bucky chuckled, shaking his head as he thought of the gorgeous woman he nearly let slip through his fingers. He looked over to the house, where she was inside somewhere getting ready after suddenly deciding she needed to shower before they left. “I was stupid.”
“Yeah you were. You both were. I’m so relieved it’s over.” Sam nudged him. “Treat her right, Buck. She deserves it.”
“I know…I just hope I can.”
Sam shook his head. “Uh-uh. Don’t do that. You were just starting to use that cyborg brain of yours! She chose you. And before you say anything,” Sam cut Bucky off from speaking as he opened his mouth to object. “She chose you before Steve left. It just took her dumbass this long to realize it.”
Bucky nodded, a small smile on his face. “Yeah…okay…” Before he could say anything, the goddess herself stepped out, jogging over, looking absolutely amazing in her jeans and his t-shirt. “Good talk.”
Sam laughed at his quick ending of the conversation as she came up besides them. “Talking about me?” She asked cheekily, eyes shining. Bucky couldn’t help but take her under his arm, pecking her lips. Now that he could, he didn’t think he could stop. He was addicted to say the least.
Throwing Bucky a wink, Sam shrugged. “Just all the things that get on our nerves.”
“Ha ha.” She rolled her eyes. “We better get going.”
Bucky and Sam clapped hands. “You know Karli won’t quit.”
Bucky smiled. “Ah. You call us when you have a lead and we’ll be there.”
Y/N stepped forwards to give Sam a hug. “Anytime, Sammy.”
“Eh. Anytime between noon and midnight.” Bucky corrected. “Or noon and ten. Noon and five…you better just call at noon to be safe.”
Sam rolled his eyes. “Sure, sure.”
“Not necessarily as a team.” Bucky continued, grabbing the bag, getting Y/N back in her spot at his side under his arm.
“Nope!”
“We’re not that good.”
“Definitely not.”
“We’re professionals.”
“Definitely.”
“And, uh, we’re partners.”
Sam snapped, pointing at him. “Coworkers.”
“But we’re also a couple of guys with a couple mutual friends.”
“Ones now gone and you’re dating the other.”
“So we’re a couple of guys…with a badass to help out.”
“I can live with that.”
“Perfect.”
“Oh my God.” Y/N let out that laugh Bucky could never get enough of, shaking her head at the two of them. “You forgot dumbasses.”
Sam shook his head. “Nuh-uh. That’s your couple name.”
“Dumbasses?”
“Oh yeah.” The three of them came to a stop, Bucky and his girl - God he loved confirming it now - facing Sam. “Thanks for the help, guys. Meant a lot.”
Bucky patted his shoulder. “Of course.”
Y/N shot him a wink. “Until we meet again, Sammy.”
“Until then, cher.”
Bucky couldn’t stop his grin as she wrapped her arms around his waist, the two of them starting to walk to the main road where she already ordered an Uber. He looked down at her, kissing her lips for the nth time in the past hour.
“I wish I didn’t wait so long,” he told her seriously. “But I’d wait a thousands more centuries if it meant I get to call you mine.”
She giggled, shaking her head. “You’re such a sap! But…” she moved up to kiss him and his heart stuttered. He knew he had a goofy grin on when she pulled back, but he couldn’t help it. Especially when she laughed again. “I have to agree with you on that, Buckaroo.”
#cjsinkythoughts#cjswriting#cjsspoilers#fatws spoilers#tfatws spoilers#falcon and the winter soldier spoilers#fatws#tfatws#falcon and the winter soldier#fatws series#fatws pt 6.3#bucky barnes x reader#bucky x reader#bucky barnes x you#bucky x you#bucky barnes x y/n#bucky x y/n#bucky barnes x avenger!reader#bucky x avenger!reader#bucky barnes#❤🐦💙🦾#💙🦾
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