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thefandomthings · 8 months

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𝐒mall 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐇𝐢𝐦

𝐏𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: The Older Brothers (Separate) x Gn!reader

𝐖𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: A little, like smidge suggestive, smidge of possessiveness

𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬: I apologize if the brothers are Ooc, and for any mistakes

Part 1 Part 2

Do not copy, or repost my work

Lucifer is a busy demon

You never fail to notice the irritation he has when he wakes up and has to make coffee, it takes time off of his schedule for the day.

So, you made a plan to wake up before he did and make him a fresh cup of coffee and go back to bed before he comes into the kitchen

Lucifer was delighted and much happier throughout the day when we wakes up to the strong smell of his coffee

But eventually his curiosity gets the best of him.

Who has been making his coffee for him, and who knows him well enough to make sure there is enough for 3 cups?

He has a strong idea who it is once he realizes you are harder to get up in the morning since the mystery coffee started.

Lucifer decides to catch you in the act, to answer his suspicions and thank you

The Devildom is still dark, clouds blocking out any sunlight from the human and celestial realm. It's around 6 in the morning, your bare feet are cold against the long hallways of the house of lamentation.

The house is getting colder as the seasons pass, your having to wear a sweater or a robe when you wake up in the early mornings. Maybe you should mention to Lucifer that he should think about turning on the heaters at night.

Your rub your eyes triedly when walking into the kitchen. Flipping on the light above the stove, you turned the coffee maker on, the small bulbs lighting up the darker area. You reached above the coffee pot and dug out a paper filter and the ground coffee.

Once you cleaned out the pot, you set it in the maker. You opened the package of filters and put on it along with the ground coffee beans. The smell is strong, almost enough to make your eyes water.

Lucifer likes his coffee black and some water to thin it out. It reminds you of your father, he likes his coffee the same way. You smile fondly of the thought of your dad.

Your body tenses when the coffee makers makes a rumbling sound as it begins the process of making the coffee.

You lean against the counter and watch the steam flow out any open space, the brown liquid pouring into the glass pot. You felt your soul leave you body when the kitchen lights flicked on.

Lucifer, in all his glory, stood at the entrance of the kitchen. Sleep still visible in his tired eyes, his hair slightly sticking up, his silk PJs wrinkled and sticking to his robe. You blush at the sight.

"MC" His voice is groggy and dry, but he had a small, kind smile on his face. "Hi Luci" You make sure to stay quiet, not wanting to wake anyone else up.

"So it has been you? Waking up at such early hours just to please me?" His voice is low and teasing but there is genuine happiness in his voice.

"Yes, I noticed you got irritated and it took a lot of time out of your day to make it" You explained, pressing your palms against the cold, marble countertop.

Lucifer hummed and walked over to you, his slipper gently hitting the hardwood floor. His ruby eyes never leaving you, his smile never fading.

When he got to you he brought you into a hug, his hand in your hair his other around your waist and shoulders. You smiled and wrapped your arms around him, hooking themselves under his arms and resting on his shoulder blades.

Your cheek pressed against his toned chest, your eyes closed as you and him begin to sway. His head rested on yours while he held you close. His chest vibrated as he started humming, it's faint and quiet; only you and him are able to hear it.

Lucifer never has or had someone to care for him in such a little way, but it effects him so deeply he can't help but fall more in love with you.

You have such a kind soul, he had sensed it ever since you arrived. He doesn't know what he did to deserve you, but he is eternally grateful.

I truly believe The Great Mammon, is forgetful af.

He is always leaving something he needs behind.

Like his sunglasses, his favorite necklace, his favorite pair of earrings, even his car keys, or his favorite powdered foundation for modeling sessions.

The list goes on and on.

You noticed his forgetful habit before you even started dating him.

You constantly reminded him, a few or more times before he left the house but he always manages to leave something behind.

While you and the boy's were out at the mall one day, you decided to get him something to keep all of his things in.

A purse was a little to girly and he'd probably be embarrassed to carry it around, tho yk he would try just for you.

A wallet was to small to hold his car keys and foundation.

Plus, he already has a gold wallet he kept with him everywhere he went, even in his sleep.

Then you found it, the perfect thing just for your Mammon.

You just so happen to find it in Bath & Body works. The small black bag was perfect. It was big enough to hold his car keys and anything on the bigger side, but also had smaller pockets for jewelry and extra grim.

You couldn't help but smile, your chest buzzing with joy. You grabbed the bag and stepped in line. The line was long, all the demons are impatient, big or small. Always grumbling under their breath.

You always felt uncomfortable around all of them, especially when you didn't have one of the brothers with you. They despise you for being human, they think it's fun to pick and make fun of you. For literally anything under the dark sky of the Devildom.

You've learned to ignore it, one of the brothers or you handsome boyfriend usually scares the shit out of them anyway, but when it's just yourself your are a little more vigilant.

"Hi, this all for Ya?" The cashier was faux friendly, of course. Her name badge crooked and her hair was unneat and definitely unkept.

"Yes" You handed her the bag and got out the credit card Lucifer and Mammon had made for you an only you.

She gave you the biggest side eyes you've ever received. The card is black and gold, the royal stamp in the middle of it. A sparkly Gold outlining the edges making a pattern towards the marking on the back. The mark of the greedy, you and Mammon's pact mark.

You knew he would know once you mad a purchase. His pact mark stinging as you got greedy when buying something, a courtesy of having the bond with the Avatar of greed. Always craving something more, always wanting and needing it. The items would shine and beckon you in, temptation tugging at you.

You swallowed the thought of buying the whole store and quickly left. You could feel the greed seeping into your soul.

"Oi! MC!" Mammon's voice quickly brought you out of your tempting thoughts. You watched him jog towards you, his limba ring glowing a beautiful gold.

"Hi Mams" You said breathlessly, your own eyes shining a bright yellow. Mammon's face flushed, his pact mark stinging into his skin. But it felt so good when it did, he need it to sting more, to watch you get greedy infront of him or, even better, for him.

"I got you something" You smile so softly, it brings him to his knees.

"O-Of course you got the Great Mammon something, who wouldn't?" He grinned and curiously watched you hand him the white and blue plastic bag.

Mammon's face was bright red, his hands reached into the shopping bag and took out his gift. His eyes shines with happiness, a bright smile engulfing his beautiful face.

"I got it to hold the things your forgetting all the time, you just put it in there so it's all together" You explained holding into his free hand and swinging it back in forth.

Mammon wanted to cry. You are so perfect. So kind, so sweet to him. His perfect human. All to himself.

He brought you into a bone crushing hug, the bag you got him he held tightly in his hands. You giggled and hugged him back, running your fingers along his spine and shoulders.

Mammon made sure to always keep the bag with him, a small picture of you and him tucked away in his wallet and that bag. He also spoiled the shit outta you at the mall that day.

Levi is probably the second most untidy out of his brothers, next to Mammon.

Games all over the floor near his tv, his dirty clothes basket overflowing with clothes, his blankets unwashed.

Its just a mess.

And I picture you as sort of a neat freak some days, you don't mind the mess it's just not and organized mess?

Levi is embarrassed about his room and he does try to make a mental note to keep it cleaner for when your around but he forgets. To engrossed by his games to remember.

You know he trys to remember to clean it but, Levi can't help himself when all of his gaming friends are playing in he's not

He is the Avatar of Envy after all.

So while he games and you are just hanging out in his room, you decide to pick up his cave.

But only behind him so he can't see, Levi doesn't really notice nor does he hear it, his headset on all the way.

He does notice after you are gone how his room feels cleaner, bigger. Maybe it was just your calming presences.

You do this quite often, and you even clean up his games on the floor when he's at a student council meeting.

DO NOT ENTER

The sign on your boyfriends door reads. You are surprised Levi gave you permission to go into his room without him there. It make you smile knowing that he trusts you enough.

It's almost and intimate thing. His room is his safe space, where he can be himself and not be bothered by his brothers. Where he can watch all of his shows without being teased. Where he can cosplay all of his favorite characters and daydream of what they'd be like in person.

You find all of this adorable, it's what makes Levi, Levi.

When you are inside his room, Your are hesitant in cleaning up his gaming space, that is almost sacred. So you decide to leave it be untill you ask his permission. But his room is starting to smell from Levi's dirty clothes that continues to pile up against the wall.

You begin by separating his nice clothes form his everyday clothes, those go to the dry cleaners on Tuesday. The rest go into your laundry basket and down to the laundry room.

You hope the meeting will be and extra bit longer today, so you could be in and out before Levi and the brothers get home. If Lucifer found out you were the one doing his laundry and picking up his room, he'd hang you and Levi off the roof like Mammon.

You have your headphones on, one ear isn't covered so you could hear the loud stomping of the boys when they get home. You start humming with the song that rings into you ears, your head bobbing with the beat.

You carry down a load of Levi's laundry. You get the washer ready and start it, his shirts getting wet as the washer fills with water. You bring the rest of his shirts and his socks and put them into the second washer, that sits underneath the first one. With 8 people living in one house you have to have more than one washer and dryer.

While his clothes are washing, you decide to clean around his bed and dust things off. Henry, you and Levi's adopted son, watches out of his fish tank. You lift things up and dust underneath them but set them right where they once were.

After dusting, you clean up all the trash around his tub and put it in his little Ruri trash can next to his night stand. You check all the wrappers to make sure they don't have anything Levi would like on them before throwing them away.

You fail to notice your headphones slipping onto your uncovered ear. But you continued on with making his Tub the most comfortable it could be. His Ruri pillow directly where he likes it.

Being so occupied in your own little world and the music blasting in you ears, you didn't hear the heard of elephants coming up the stairs and Levi opening his bedroom door.

Levi watched you with a dark blush on his face. How you finished making his tub the way he likes it, the way you folded his clothes and set them neatly in his dresser. And all with a small smile on your face.

"Uh, MC." Levi finally spoke, his hands in his jacket pocket. When you didn't answer he saw you had headphones on. He knows you weren't purposely ignoring him, but he felt envy creeping up on him.

He knew he had to thank you in some way, but his anxiety spikes at the thought, his envy washing away. He decided on the just hugging you from behind, but he didn't want to scare you.

Levi slowly tapped your shoulder, you could feel someone in the room with you but you choose to ignore it. You have a very good idea who it is now. You slip your headphones off and see Levi's pale hand on your shoulder.

"Hi Levi" Your voice was so quiet and calming, you weren't surprised at all. His face was tinted a cute pink, his ears red.

"MC, Can...Can you stay turned that way?" He requested. You nodded and faced away from him.

A few seconds later you felt his slim arms around your waist, his head laying against your neck and shoulders. His breathing was fast, and his heartbeat was quick. You smiled and layed your hands over his.

"Thank you"

You almost missed it, his voice so quiet, his chest rumbled against you as he spoke. You smiled and leaned back against him.

This was Levi's way of saying thank you and showing affection You couldn't be more proud of him. He is slowly getting over his shyness and Tsuendere attitude. But You wouldn't have it any other way.

#obey me belphie #obey me asmodeus #obey me x reader #obey me leviathan #obey me lucifer #obey me #leviathan x reader #leviathan x mc #lucifer x mc #lucifer x reader #mammon x mc #mammon x reader #mammon fluff #lucifer fluff #leviathan fluff #obey me brothers #obey me fluff #obey me headcannons #thefandomthings

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doe-eyed-fool · 2 months

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Guess who’s back!(sorry if you’re sick of me but my squirrel brain has blessed me again!)

Lucifer X Reader whose love language is food, loves eating, cooking, and sharing food. Shows their care for Luci by buying him or cooking food, making sure that every time they’re together that he’s fed. Cuz you can’t tell me that this man doesn’t forget to eat. Reader always asks if he ate today and always insists on making something if he hasn’t. Packs up leftovers for him to enjoy later and almost always knocks at his office door with a plate of food, a snack, or something sweet she baked.

I love this so much, he deserves to be taken care of like the princess he is🥺

Also no way am I sick of you, I like getting requests! Especially cute ones like this

Made With Love

Lucifer x Reader

Being the king of hell came with a lot of responsibilities. Meetings with the other sins and powerful demons, mountains of paperwork, and now he was a full time father again.

It was all time consuming. But whenever he had some time for himself, he would usually pour himself into his, duck focused, creations. He'd be tinkering away for hours, he wouldn't even know that it was the middle of the night until he nearly passed out in the middle of his work.

At that point, he was too tired to feed himself and would just flop down onto the bed. Only to wake up and repeat it all over again.

That is, until you showed up. You and Lucifer had been dating a little while after the hotel was rebuilt. And once you learned of his unhealthy habits, needless to say, you were a little more than upset. But mostly concerned.

"Luci?" You open the door to Lucifer's workshop. Lucifer responds with a light "hm?" as you walked inside. He didn't even look at you, he must be really invested in whatever he was working on. You walked up beside him and look down.

There were noticeable bags under his eyes, and his hair was a bit of a mess. Worst of all, his hands were shaking. "Lucifer? How long have you been at this?" You ask.

"Oh uh, a few..." Lucifer looks up at the clock. His eyes widen slightly. "Hours..."

You frown and cross your arms. "Lucifer." Your tone was stern, but not harsh. Lucifer sighed and set down his tools. "I know. I'm sorry." You place your hand on his shoulder. "Have you had a break at all? Or eaten anything since you started?"

Just as you asked that, there was a rumble that came from Lucifer's stomach. And that was all the answer you needed. "Alright." You say before helping Lucifer up. "Come with me." You walk him out of the room. "B-But my-"

"You can finish it later." You interrupt him. "Right now, you're going to take a break and eat something." You lead Lucifer to the kitchen and sit him down at the table.

You would have started on something new, but you were willing to bet Lucifer hadn't ate since breakfast. So for right now, you decided to heat up last night's leftovers.

"It's not new but, you need to eat something now. I saw you shaking back there." You say as you placed the dish in the microwave. You turn and walk to the table. "Luci, you have to start taking better care of yourself. I'm worried."

Lucifer frowns slightly. "I know. I'm sorry, Y/n, really. It's just...I get so busy and, whenever I get a minute to myself, I usually just go to my workshop. It's a stress reliever, you know? But I understand, I get a little too into it and loose track of time and everything else."

You place your hand on his. "Well, it's a good thing you have me now." You chuckle. "I'll help you out with this, I promise." Lucifer smiled and held your hand. "Thank you, Y/n."

And so, you decided to do something nice for him. Every morning he'd wake up, you'd present him with breakfast, truly fit for a king. You'd also make sure to send lunch with him whenever he had a meeting. And at the end of the day, you'd make dinner for you and him both.

Lucifer was a tad overwhelmed by this, but of course he was appreciative every time you cooked for him. You worked so hard after all. And it was always very delicious.

One day, when he was in his workshop, you walked in with a tray in your hands. "Luci, I brought you something." Lucifer looked up from his work and faced you. On the tray was apple slices with a side of peanut butter and caramel, along with his favorite tea.

"Oh, Y/n you didn't have to." He says with a smile. You sat the tray down on a table next to him. "But I wanted to." You tell him. "You also give me no choice mister." You say teasingly. Yes, Lucifer knew, or finally realized more like it, that he wasn't taking care of himself like he should have been.

He had no idea how much he missed a good home cooked meal before he met you.

"Heh, yeah...Thank you, Y/n. Really, you do so much for me. I have no idea how I could repay you."

You smile softly and hand him the tea cup. "Just try to take better care of yourself, that's thanks enough. Oh, and I was thinking tonight I'd make something really nice. Maybe we can invite Charlie over too?"

Lucifer graciously took the cup and nods. "That sounds nice. It's been a while since Charlie's come over. Maybe she can bring Maggie with her too."

"Vaggie, Lucifer. Vaggie." You laugh. "Oh. Right." Lucifer chuckles lightly. "In any case, I look forwards to it. I'll help you too, if you want."

"Sure, I'd like to see what the big boss can do in the kitchen." You say with a playful grin. "You'd be surprised." Lucifer smirks. "But no magic. You're doing it by hand." You tell him. Lucifer's confidence dropped.

"Oh. Well, shit."

You laugh and pat his shoulder. "You'll do fine. You have me to teach you."

Lucifer's smile returned. "Yeah. You always do make the best food."

#hazbin hotel #lucifer #lucifer x reader #lucifer morningstar x reader #lucifer hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel lucifer #hazbin lucifer x reader

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bethanydelleman · 26 days

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So I asked a while ago about which of our main men would change the most/least of their novels if they went back to the start (and I really loved the answers)…

But how do you think it would work vice versa? If our leading ladies went back to the start who do you think would change the most of their respective novels?

I feel like Marianne and Emma would probably change the most… but most of them would change things quite a bit I think.

Except maybe Fanny not out of lack of want to change things but because she has so much difficulty speaking up. I’ve got to admit I’m swaying back and forth on Lady Susan and Anne though. Bc Lady Susan is just arrogant enough to think that if she knows when/how things are going to go wrong then she can prevent them even when it’s something out of her control or that she doesn’t know the actual cause of. And Anne is quite a lot like Fanny in that she has trouble speaking up and also bc up until Lyme Wentworth is still very angry with her and I’m not sure there’s anything that she could do to mitigate that before then…

Thoughts? 💜

This question is in reference to this question.

I think the person who would change the most is Elizabeth Bennet, she's the only one who has someone she absolutely needs to save. (And Jane Bennet if we are counting her as a heroine.) Fortunately, I think rescuing Lydia would be in their power. Elizabeth would actually flirt with Darcy and she could drop hints about Jane loving Bingley. I think they could prevent Bingley from leaving and through that, prevent Lydia's trip to Brighton (ie take her somewhere else exciting with their wealth, as they take over the care of Kitty in canon). Also, knowing his true nature, they'd likely start some sort of whisper campaign against Wickham.

If only Elinor time travels, she would hopefully be able to inform Colonel Brandon about Willoughby earlier and stop W's romance with Marianne, but I don't think she could stop W&M on her own because she doesn't have any evidence of Willoughby's wrongdoing. She'd at least be prepared for the Lucy reveal and she knows it will turn out okay. I think she'd be intelligent enough to just not touch that and let nature take it's course.

Marianne would go for Colonel Brandon and snub Willoughby, it'd be delightful!. Poor Willoughby would have an ego crisis losing to an "old" man.

Anne Elliot doesn't have trouble speaking up, in my opinion, she just knows it's useless. She's been living with her father and Elizabeth for long enough to know that they won't listen to her. However, she would know the future which would be comforting at least and maybe she could prevent the Lyme fall. I think Wentworth would still wake up to his true feelings even without the fall and Anne is selfless enough to risk it.

Catherine Morland would likely avoid Isabella and her best to keep James from entering into his engagement. She would eagerly look forward to each time she knows that Henry Tilney is coming and would not even accuse General Tilney of being a murderer, not even once!

Fanny Price is actually kind of cruel, because the future would horrify her but I don't think she could do anything to prevent it. Edmund is ineffective, Maria wouldn't listen, and I don't think Fanny would dare approach Sir Thomas. So she'd just be EVEN MORE of a Cassandra and in acute pain the whole time. The fact that she ends up with Edmund would only be a minor consolation, given her personality.

Lady Susan would try again with her better knowledge, she might even succeed 😬 the horror!

Lastly, Emma. She's a tricky one because I don't know what she would do. She knows Elton sucks, she knows Jane and Frank are engaged, she's ashamed of her behaviour... Does she encourage Harriet to accept the first proposal or do the same thing as last time so she can enjoy a year with a friend? I think she would refrain from encouraging Harriet about Elton, and therefore avoid that heartbreak. Could she wiggle out of Elton's proposal? I don't know. It's going to happen eventually. She may discover that without her flirting with Frank, Knightley doesn't discover his feelings, so she's got to stick as close as possible to her original actions to prevent disaster! However, she would avoid the Box Hill debacle and refrain from bringing up Mr. Dixon with Frank.

#question response #emma woodhouse #elizabeth bennet #jane bennet #jane austen #pride and prejudice #mansfield park #fanny price #sense and sensibility #northanger abbey #emma #persuasion #catherine morland #marianne dashwood #elinor dashwood

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rebel-shaw · 12 days

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GUYS HELP I was at work, and I had this scenario pop in my head that made me look like this all day.

I'm not a good writer, so the talented fallout Fandom has my blessing to expand on this idea of mine🙏🙏🙏 but here it goes.

Ok, so what if Janey is frozen in cryo (maybe in vault 31?) The whole 219 years so she haven't aged a day at all, and what if Cooper and Lucy go back to her vault to get more supplies and then Norm tells them about vault 31 and they go look at it. (Maybe it won't be easy, maybe there a fight idk) And when they get there, they find the pods, and then Copper finds Janey.....

He was in shock, frozen. Lucy, notice and go over to look and see her name. (Maybe at this point, she knows his full name and put two and two together) Anyway, they all agree to let her out, but Cooper is nervous. I mean, look at him... He is not the same man Janey knew as her father, but he is too the same or so lucy tells him. (having maybe seen a bit more of his old self by then) She convinced him to see her when she's ready, after all being thawed out, takes a lot out of someone. Janey is asleep for a few days, and once she's wakes up, she needs to get her bearings. In the meantime, Cooper is trying his best to clean up taking many showers. (That's his stinky ass needs after 219 years) Washing his clothes the same cowboy outfit he been wearing since the last time he saw her, but even after all that, he's still afraid. He doesn't want to touch her because no matter what he does, he's so irradiated that he'll taint her, but lucy consoles him by saying she's been exposed to it anyway, giving she was there when the bombs fell. It doesn't do much, but it calms him down enough so that he'll be in the same room as her

Anyway, Lucy goes in first. It has been about a week since Janey has been thawed. Lucy, having been a school teacher, knows how to explain stuff to kids. She slowly tells Janey how long she has been asleep for, how she is safe, how her dad is here. And how he been looking for her all the time, about how. "That him not being in a vault did things to him." About how. "Even though he may look scary, it's still her dad." Janey nods and understands she tells Lucy she's ready to see him, and Lucy goes to get Cooper. (Whether Lucy stayed in the room or not, I don't know.) But Cooper walks in the room, in a cleaner but still worn out blue cowboy uniform not having on the duster coat or vest. There she is.... standing in the room a few feet away from him, his mouth to dry to talk. It's not like he could talk anyway. What would he even say to her?

It felt like time froze, but it also felt like an eternity of silence. Janey was the first to do anything. Walking over to him, Cooper stepped back a bit but stopped. She was right in front of him. She looked him up and down, and she finally spoke to him. "Well.... i guess i can't play. i got your nose with you anymore, huh?"

And with that, Cooper, who was holding his breath this whole time, was able to breathe again. Not caring about anything else but her, he fell to his knees and hugged her for the first time in 219 years and cried.

#but yeah not a fun thought to have at the beginning of a shift #if y'all want make fics and art of this idea i will be thankful 🙏#fallout amazon #fallout tv series #fallout #lucy maclean #cooper howard #janey howard #ghoulcy

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things-arent-what-they-seem66 · 1 month

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I have a fluffy idea for once! No prompts from the list, just brain thoughts:

Adam has been staying in the hotel for a few months, very reluctant to participate at first, but slowly warming up to it. Him and Lucifer had a long conversation about Eden at some point, and since then they've gotten increasingly domestic with each other. While they're not openly in a relationship, they'll sleep in the same bed, have movie nights together, cook together, and be generally affectionate. They try to be subtle about it, but Husk and Angel both picked up on it rather quickly, choosing to keep it between the two of them that they knew.

Cut to the moment: Charlie set up a bonding activity for hotel residents! Ballroom dancing, to build teamwork, trust, and coordination. They switch partners a few times, but of course Luci and Adam end up together eventually. The two of them, having both been important figures in heaven at some point, definitely have ballroom dancing experience, and it shows when they dance with each other. Once the music reaches its end, they're so caught up in each other that they end it with a kiss... in front of everyone. Ensue dramatic reveals, probably some flustered Adam, Charlie being baffled, momentarily angry, and then just really enthusiastic. Them finally getting to be saccharinely domestic with others present :))

Feel free to do with that what you will, I just wanted some domestic fluff <3

Indigo (aroace, lonely, and coping through fictional ships)

AHHHHH I LOVE THIS!!! IT'S SO FLUFFY IM GONNA DIE! LOL

At first Adam was only at the hotel for salvation, to not be murdered a million times over by blood thirsty sinners who wanted revenge.

He tolerated Charlie and her stupid exercises, he was present for them but never really participated. Until one day he said to Hell with it and gave one of them a try. It wasn't bad, but still dumb in his opinion.

At some point he had befriended the porn star Angel Dust and by proxy his boyfriend Husk. Turns out they had a lot more in common than Adam originally thought. They would go out drinking and shoot the shit, it was nice to have friends.

Lucifer was an issue in and of himself. He sold his soul to the guy in exchange for protection and it had been awkward being around him in the beginning.

It's been six months now and Lucifer said he wanted to talk to him. Adam has thought he was in trouble for something he might have done.

But no. The king wanted to talk about Eden. REALLY talk about Eden. He even apologized for his role for the downfall of the garden. They sat on Lucifer's bed talking for hours about Eden, the good and the bad. When he even apologized about taking Lilith, Adam told him not to worry about it. It took him leaving the garden to realize she wasn't his type.

They talked so long they fell asleep. That was the first time they shared a bed and from then on, it felt weird NOT to. So they just shared a bed, it just kind of happened.

Adam remembers the first time they cooked together, it was breakfast with the works. That's kind of how he found out he is shit at cooking. So instead he would hand Lucifer the ingredients and the King would cook the food. He remembers when Lucifer placed his hands on his hips to sneak by and how the touch made Adams heart race.

Adam and Lucifer shared lingering touches that lasted a moment or two too long. How their eyes would lock and they would share gentle smiles when they thought no one was looking.

Angel and Husk saw all of this but didn't say a word. The couple would go public when they were ready.

One thing Adam could make was microwave popcorn. Which him and Lucifer shared as they watched horror movies, snuggled up on the couch, sharing a blanket with their fingers laced together underneath. Adam's head would rest in the crook of Lucifer's shoulder. Sometimes Adam would fall asleep and wake up in their bed.

They weren't exclusive with a defined label, but what they did have was nice.

Today, Charlie wanted to do a new trust exercise. "We'll be doing ballroom dancing! It's a great way to build trust and have fun at the same time. Now, everyone grab a partner. We'll trade off every now and then."

"Piece of cake." Adam said, he had lots of dancing experience from being in heaven. What he didn't expect was to be teamed up with Alastor first. "Keep your fucking hands where I can see them, asshole."

"Trust me, I don't want to touch you any more than you want me touching you." The music started and they began dancing. Adam saw Alastors eyes look over his shoulder, that's when the radio demon brought him in closer. His hand on Adams waist, the fallen angel thought he might be sick. "But if it pisses him off, I suppose I can suck it up."

Adam creased his brow and looked over his shoulder behind him. If looks could kill, Lucifer would have had the deer demon explode into chuck sized pieces. His face softened when he saw Adam looking at him.

"Switch!" Charlie called out.

Now Adam was dancing with Vaggie, much better than that freak. They didn't speak the whole time, which was fine.

"Switch!"

This time, finally Adam was pulled into Lucifer's arms. He smiled at him as they swayed together in perfect harmony, the music moving them. "Hey."

"Hey, did that asshole hurt you?"

Adam snorted. "No, that was just to piss you off." He felt Lucifers arm tighten around his waist bringing him closer. "But if I said yes, would you beat that fucker up?"

"I'd do it just because he touched you." Lucifer meant it, he didn't need a real reason to go deer hunting, but if that fucker laid a hand on Adam he'd kill him.

Adam felt his heart flutter, butterflies danced in his stomach. "I feel so special."

Lucifer twirled Adam outward and pulled him back in. "You are special. To me especially."

They stared into each other's eyes, Adam could get lost there forever. It's like nothing else existed but them. The music stopped but they didn't let go of one another. Adam and Lucifer kept eye contact a few moments more before Adam felt a hand in his hair, with half lidded eyes he looked at Lucifer's lips as he looked at Adam's. The hand in his hair guided him closer until their lips met in a tender kiss.

Adam opened his mouth when Lucifer's tongue licked at his lips asking for entrance and deepening the kiss. Adam sighed softly as the hand in his hair grazed the base of his horns, his own hands clung to Lucifer's shoulders holding him close.

"Dad what the fuck!?"

Adam and Lucifer pulled apart like they had been burned. Oh no! Everyone fucking saw them makeout like a couple of teenagers. They shared looks of shock. They never slipped up like this. They turned to see everyone looking at them with varying degrees of emotions.

"I fucking called it." Angel said looking smug, Husk handed him a twenty.

Adam felt like his face was on fire, embarrassment starting to set in. He was getting uncomfortable with everyone looking at him like a fucking zoo exhibit.

"Charlie I can explain." Lucifer started.

"Explain what? That you've been seeing Adam behind my back and didn't tell me? Cause that was a very passionate kiss."

Adam wanted to die a third time. He put his face in his hands. He was sure all the blood in his body was in his face. "God dammit." He swore under his breath.

"Charlie, dear. Don't be mad, I didn't want to say anything to you until I was sure how I felt."

"How do you feel?" She asked.

Lucifer removed one of Adams hands from his face, Adam looked at him and swore he melted at how gentle that look was. "I, I care a lot about him. Adam makes me happy in a way I haven't felt in a long time."

Adam felt the same way. "So do I." It came out just above a whisper, just for Lucifer to hear. His smile was so wide it hurt his face.

Charlie looked at them and her temper simmered away into nothing. Oh. "I'm glad you're happy dad. I just wish this wasn't how I found out about you guys."

"I'm sorry Char, we kinda, got lost in the moment."

"Like right now?" Angel chimed in. "For the record, you guys dance amazing together. I can only imagine what it looks like when you fu- ow! Husk!"

Husk had pinched him. "No one wants that mental picture."

"Are you mad?" Adam finally asked.

Charlie sighed. "All I want is for my dad to be happy. If that's with you, then so be it. Just don't hurt each other." That would be one hell of a break up.

"Thank you, Charlie." Lucifer said. He pulled Adam back in for another kiss, this one sweet and soft. Adam's heart raced and thrummed with joy.

"Get a room you two!" Angel yelled.

That they could definitely do.

#adamsapple #lucifer x adam #hazbin hotel adam #hazbin hotel lucifer #ask

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furryllamas · 5 months

Text

Can’t Help Falling in Love | A. Walter

+ Alex Walter x OC

+ Summary: Life has been difficult for sisters Jackie and Eden Howard. Obviously regular teenage girl problems, such as boys, school, and friends. Except tragedy that ensues, the death of their parents and older sister. They'll have to navigate a life without their family, just throw in love, the countryside, and a whole lot of boys in one roof.

+ Authors Note: Hey guys I really hope you enjoy this first chapter, I was really inspired after seeing Ashby play Alex and absolutely fell in love 🤍

Chapter 0.0 | Two Time Zones Apart

The sound of LA traffic was not great, but it was definitely quieter than the sound of the streets of New York. It's only been 6 Months since I moved to LA semi-permanently. I still got homesick often but there was no place like California. Ever since the transition from being a model to a singer it was a choice I had to make, with mom and dads approval of course, even if it meant seeing Lucy and Jackie less.

"Oh Gosh. What time is it?" I grumbled as I rubbed my eyes. I looked towards my bedside table and picked up my phone. "10:30 AM" I removed the bed covers and stretched my arms over my head. The smell of my room always gave me some comfort in the mornings. I headed to the restroom and pulled my hair into a bun and turned the faucet on. I started washing my teeth when I heard my phone ringing. I ran back to my room to pick up my phone that was lying on the bed. A video call from Jackie. I quickly pick up the phone as I walk back to the bathroom.

"Juswt whun sewkand-" I attempted to say with the tooth brush still in my mouth. Jackie let out a quick laugh, "take your time Eid." I put my finger up, just one moment, and place the phone in front of the faucet handles, holding it up. I quickly rinse out the toothpaste and splashed my face with water to ensure I would fully wake myself up.

"Hi Jacks! How's it going?" I waved and picked up my phone.

"EDEN! It's going so well! I can't wait for you and Lucy to come home today! I missed you guys so much." Jackie smiled softly.

"Oh my, we haven't been away from you that longgggg" I teased as i sat down on my Vanity. I panned my phone to the stack of luggage by my window.

"Okay I know, BUT, I just missed you guys so much." She sighed. "It's been a month since I've seen you and Lucy. I'm just so excited for you to see my excellent work tonight."

"I know Jacks, My flight is at 2 so I'll probably be there by 7-ish." I start applying my makeup and look away from my phone. " and plus Lucy will be there sooner than me, so you'll get her while you wait for meeee."

She laughs, "Right, what would I do without your wisdom." She stays quiet for a couple of seconds, "How's your new song going?"

I wince, "It's going..." She looks at me confused. "I've just been lacking in inspiration lately. I'm hoping going home will help with that."

"I'm sure you'll get a spark of inspiration once you spend some good old fashioned time at the ballet with me."

"Thanks Jackie, I've missed you guys so much. I can't wait to get there tonight."

I stop to think. "Dinner at The Penrose?"

I look at her smile, "of course Eden! That's our spot."

"All right deal" I look at the time, 11:30AM, "All right sis, I have to head to the airport, see you soon!" I reach over to hang up, "wait! Remember mom and dad will pick you up later tonight so we can all go to dinner together."

"Okay, perfect! Bye Jacks, love you!"

"Bye Eids!" I hung up.

I start getting up and shutting the curtains. It might be a while until I'm back but I'd rather keep my room clean.

Ding Dong.

I head over to the front door that smells strongly of oak. Walking past the pictures I have hanging of Mom, Dad, Lucy, Jackie and I. I open the door and smile as I see the face of my amazing Manager, Lizzie. "Liz! Come to say goodbye to your favorite client." I giggled as she stepped in. "Excuse me! Not just my client, more like my favorite friend!" I hug her and drag her to my room.

"Oh gosh, look at all this baggage..." she exclaims standing in front of my suitcases. She reaches over and picks one up. "Alright Eden! Let's get moving and load these into the car, your driver is waiting."

I look over to her and smile, "You got it boss!" I salute. It was an easy load up and we wasted no time getting in the car. "Are you excited to see your family again?" Lizzie asked. "Yeah I'm a bit nervous though. I haven't seen them in a couple of months, I feel like I've missed out on a lot." It was hard being apart from them and not being able to see them as often as I used to.

Lizzie looks at me and smiles softly, her polished nails and her soft hands reach over to mine. She grabs them and turns to me. "E, you need this. You've been homesick for a while and I think this trip will help you with the new song." I lean my head back against the headrest and turn my face to look out of the window. "I know Liz." I turn back towards her. "Thank you for helping me today. It means a lot. I'll miss you lots."

She just smiles at me and I start feeling tired, car rides always seem to wear me out. I take one last look at the highway we're on and slowly close my eyes. I let sleep take over me and an oddly weird feeling at the pit of my stomach. I hear Liz whisper, "I'll wake you when we get there."

#alex walter x reader #alex walter #mlwtwb #my life with the walter boys

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centralperkchenford · 6 months

Note

prompt + Tim overhears other male officers making comments about lucy and goes feral

I hope you like this one!

Fighting against all odds I know we'll be alright this time

Tim slumps into the locker room after a long shift and sits down on the bench and running his hand through his hair. He wants nothing more than to go home and curl up with Lucy who is probably already in bed.

He hates metro hours sometimes and he hates that he has to crawl into bed and then crawl out of it a few hours later. The only good thing about that is, he’s never alone when he goes to bed or wakes up. Lucy is usually always there.

He slowly gets up and starts changing out, when he hears low voices coming around the corner from where he is.

“She is a hot piece of ass.” One voice says and Tim pauses and frowns as he tosses his shirt into the locker and grabs the shirt he wore into work today.

“Agreed.” Says another voice. Tim doesn’t recognize the voices but they are probably new patrol officers.

“Is she dating anyone or is she single?” The first voice asks. The second voice sighs loudly and Tim pauses again. He wonders who the hell they are talking about, because they shouldn’t be talking about any woman that way.

“I think that Bradford guy. He’s a metro sergeant.” The second voice says. Tim freezes and then pulls his shirt all the way on and inches closer to the two men talking.

Oh. He knows exactly who they are talking about.

“That asshole? She could do so much better than him. Plus isn’t he like a lot older?” The first voice says. “I could show her what it’s really like to—”

“Like to what?” Tim rounds the corner and the two men turn on their heels to face him. Their eyes are wide. The first man’s mouth is hanging open, and the other man is looking anywhere but at Tim.

“Oh sir.” Says the second one nervously. “Um…”

“Do you just stand around in the locker room and degrade female officers?” He snaps. “Is that the cool thing to do now?”

“Look man.” Says the first man. Tim squints at his name tag. Tucker. “We were just saying what a good cop she is.”

Tim steps closer to them. Tucker doesn’t move but his friend shuffles to the side nervously. “You called Officer Chen a hot piece of ass.” Tim growls. “You said nothing about her being a good cop. Which she is and she would kick both of your sorry butts.”

Tucker rolls his eyes at Tim. “Everyone knows she slept with you to get to the top.” He says cooly. “Of course you will say she’s a good cop, you get to tap that every night.”

Tim steps forward and lifts Tucker up slamming him up against the lockers. His friend makes a noise of protest but doesn’t do anything.

Tucker squirms under Tim’s hold, “This is assault.” Tucker chokes out and Tim releases him but doesn’t let him get far.

“Stop being a asshole and stop degrading women.” Tim growls. He turns to the other man who is staring at them with wide eyes. “I would pick better friends if I were you.”

He storms off grabbing his bag from the bench. “See he’s an asshole! Chen will dump him soon. He’s not worth it.” Tim hears Tucker say. Tim has half a mind to go back and show Tucker what he deserves a swift punch to the face would do it but he decides he doesn’t want to be suspended or fired. He stomps through the station ignoring the looks of the other officers and hops in his truck, slamming the door angrily behind him.

He knows he shouldn’t have lost his temper but these two were idiots. They had no idea how long it took for him and Lucy to get to where they were now. And it was worth it. Lucy was worth it.

To hear these two idiots say the things they said: he’s an asshole, too old for her, she slept to the top to get to where she is.

It made him angry, it made him feel like his skin was on fire. He hit the steering wheel once causing the horn to go off.

He sighs as he backs out of the parking lot, the men’s words rolling around in his mind. Asshole. Too old. She will dump him soon. She deserves better.

He pulls in front of Lucy’s apartment building and parks but doesn’t get out.

What if she realizes he’s not worth it? What if she does break up with him? What if he is too old for her?

They never actually discussed their age gap but…

He sighs and grabs his bag out of the car and makes his way upstairs, he’s quiet going in. He knows Tamara is probably asleep and so is Lucy. He slips into Lucy’s room and drops his bag down and then slips off his pants and grabs his pajama pants that are hanging over a chair. He pulls his shirt off and tosses it aside and then slides into bed.

He doesn’t go to sleep though, he just lays there thinking about what happened in the locker room. He wants to sleep but those idiots words keep echoing in his head.

“You are thinking too loud.” Lucy mumbles. She rolls over and cuddles up next to him placing her hand on his heart. “What’s wrong?”

Tim is silent and Lucy is patient as she draw patterns on his bare chest. “Do you think I’m too old for you?” He asks. Lucy sits up and looks at him confusion written all over her face.

“No.” She says. “I don’t think you are too old for me.” Tim blinks at her once and then twice.

“Do you think I’m an asshole?” He asks. Lucy furrows her brows at him and then turns completely so she’s looking at him.

“No. You are not an asshole Tim. Where is this all coming from?” She asks.

Tim blows out a breath and looks away from her. “There were some guys talking about you in the locker room. It was degrading more than anything. And that’s not going to fly so I confronted them and this one—he said I was too old, I was an asshole and you would break up with me.” He says and he feels so stupid saying it out loud.

“And you are worried about all this?” Lucy asks. He doesn’t answer and Lucy smiles and moves so she’s practically on top of him. “First of all you are not too old for me. Age is just a number Tim and I have never even thought about that. Second of all, you are not an asshole.. maybe you were but I know that wasn’t really you. You are a big—”

“Do not say I’m a softy.” He grumbles.

“You are a big softy for me.” Lucy finishes grinning at him. Tim’s lips twitch into a smile. He wants to deny it but he can’t. Lucy just does something to him, and he can’t help but turn a little soft when he’s around her.

He scoffs but Lucy continues. “Third of all, I am not going to break up with you. I can’t think of a world where I would willingly break up with you.” She says and she reaches out to run her fingers across his face. “And you deserve everything good Tim.”

“That’s you.” He mumbles. She smiles at him and gives him a small kiss.

“Those officers don’t know us Tim. We are strong, we know what our relationship is. We are worth the risk remember?”

Tim nods and pulls her down to kiss her. “Yeah.” He says quietly. “They also said you slept to the top.”

Lucy rolls her eyes. “Everyone who knows us, knows that’s not true Tim. Like I said Tim they don’t know us. And our relationship really is no one’s business. Except ours.” He smiles because he knows she’s right.

“You are right.” He says. She grins and pokes at his chest.

“I usually am.” She says teasingly.

“This is the first time.” He shoots back.

“Shut up.”

He rolls his eyes and she rolls off of him and slots her leg in between his and wraps her arms around him and then lays her head on his chest.

“So what did you say to these officers?” She asks.

“I told them you could kick their butts.” He replies and she laugh and nuzzles her nose into his neck.

“Were you just saying that or could I actually take them?”

“Oh you definitely could take them.” He says.

She huffs out a laugh. “Goodnight Tim.” She says and he listens as her breathing evens out.

“Goodnight Lucy.” He replies. And he falls asleep too, feeling luckier than ever to have someone like Lucy by his side.

#chenford #the rookie #tim bradford #tim x lucy #lucy chen #chenford fanfic #chenford fic #anon answered #lucy x tim

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littledollll · 1 year

Note

Hellooooo, before I request anything I just wanted to let you know that your stories are super duper comforting. I get so excited when I see that you've posted, and I especially love re-reading your works when I'm feeling sick, or little or sad or you know...✨️other things✨️

I was reading up on Lucifer (The Sandman's) Wiki page, but the comic version, and I read that Lucifer can choose a soul's destination, and they killed someone by their own will, so that they'd be free from (I think) a demon's service.

Soooo I was wondering if I could request Lucifer x fem reader? They're in love but reader is a mortal, so they beg Luci to kill them so that 1) they can be free from this shitty world but also 2) so that they can be together.

And maybe Luci has to think of the nicest way they can kill their lover? Lots of comfort and angst please hehe. Also I hope this makes sense <333

-🧸 anon

Our forever

Lucifer x human!reader

a/n: random 2am writing motivation I’ve gotten 3 fics DONE ima see what else I can do until I knock tf out☝️

Warning: talk about death, like so much of it, like it’s basically the whole fic. Slight arguing but it’s bc they love eachother awww

✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪✪

“What?” The look on Lucifer’s face was of disbelief, truly they looked at you as if you were insane to even bring up the idea.

“There’s only so much time you can spend in the waking, and I have nothing here Lucifer. No reason to stay. So- kill me, we found a way to be together forever. You wouldn’t have to leave your realm constantly, I wouldn’t miss you so much, we could have so much time.”

Still, Lucifer looked anything but convinced.

“I’m gonna die anyways! I would preferred not having to wait like 80 years just so I can freely be with you.” You were stubborn but so are they. “Then wait. Why, why do you so freely wish to give up your life for Hell. What’s another 80 years if I’ll have an eternity with you by the end of it.”

“Wont I be like super old? You want to be with a super old me? I certainly don’t want to look any older than I am now for the rest of eternity, thank you!” That was a poor argument, you knew that. But you felt as if this was actually becoming an argument and you sure as hell didn’t want that to be the case.

“I can’t do that.” They quietly replied, hands coming up to cup your face. “Fuck the laws, since when are you anything but rebellious!” You were so set on this idea. Lucifer sighed, they almost looked, sad? “I don’t care about the laws. I care about you, much more than anything else, much more than I’d usually feel comfortable admitting. My darling, I can’t kill you.”

Sure you’ve been together for years, you know how you feel about eachother you know they love you more than anything. But hearing that admission, basically a confession- so openly made you pause. What are you even supposed to say after that?

“You die and then what? You just leave your whole life behind, quite literally. You simply move to hell? What comes after? What are your expectations, what do you want from this?” Being alive for so many eons you’d guess it’s impossible to stop thinking about the future, about any and all possibilities.

“Nothing! I just want to be with you. I don’t care what i have to go through or have to get used to once I’m there. I just want to be with you why is that so difficult to understand?” Why don’t 𝙮𝙤𝙪 understand.

“Hell isn’t me. You need to understand that, it’s not a book trope, it’s not a person who softens up to you. It’s a place meant for sin, judgment and punishment. Hell is not fun, it’s freezing, it smells of sulfur and smoke, there is no such thing as peace and quiet there. I can keep you sheltered inside the walls of my castle. Outside of that, it is just hell.”

“Then I’ll stay by your side, inside the castle, and I’ll learn. Id only have so many years to learn how to live there after all.” You’re not letting this go until they give in or the day you naturally die and they know that.

You knew their mind was running through every little detail of how this could work, of how they’d find the strength to actually kill you, how you could be by their side, how hell could actually be your home.

“Is this truly what would please you?” They searched your eyes for any hesitation, for doubt, but they couldn’t find any. “To start Our forever now? More than anything. I have nothing here to will hold me back, I have a home when I’m with you, Lucifer.”

Lucifer sighed, arms wrapping around you once again. “I, I will find a way, if you truly insist. I will ensure your comfort, that you are to die quickly and painlessly, and when you wake it will be in the safety of my arms.”

“I couldn’t dream of anything better!” You were visibly giddy now that you got your way. “Peculiar little being. Nobody has ever been this excited about death or hell.”

You giggled and spoke proudly, “Death is a friend, and the lord of hell is my lover, I wouldn’t expect to be called anything but peculiar.”

Was it a terrifying idea to Lucifer? Definitely. No argument there. But seeing how you practically lit up when Lucifer complied maybe made it all worth it.

#the sandman #🧸 anon #lucifer sandman #death of the endless #sandman lucifer x reader #lucifer morningstar the sandman #gwendoline christie #sandman lucifer morningstar x reader #the sandman lucifer morningstar #the sandman lucifer #lucifer morningstar (the sandman)#lucifer sandman fluff

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escapismqueen · 1 year

Text

A Chenford fic- Sick day

Synopsis: Tim wakes up feeling under the weather, but insists he can still go to work. Lucy has other ideas.

Inc: Lots and lots of fluff, and slight angst.

Warnings: Mentions of grief and Tim's Childhood abuse.

Tim wakes up with a groan, wiping the sleep from his eyes, only when he does, he notices a tension in his body that wasn’t there yesterday. As he gets up to stretch, his head begins to feel heavy, pain rushing through and sealing his eyes closed. His hands reach for his forehead, trying to ease some of the pain. He realises the warmth on his face, it’s definitely not normal temperature; he’s sick. Tim sits at the edge of the bed, and grunts lowly, trying not to wake Lucy in the process.

Lucy wriggles when she hears Tim’s voice, opening her eyes slowly. Adjusting to the lights, she blinks several times before she registers that Tim is hunched over at the edge of the bed. She wonders for a second if he’s just woken up too, but when she feels the cold on his side of the bed, she knows he must’ve been up for at least 10 minutes. “Babe, are you okay?”

Tim lifts his head as high as he can to look towards her. “Mhmm” Lucy’s brows furrow at the definite lie. She shifts closer towards him, hands trailing up his back and down his chest. She notices the heat radiating off him and lifts her hands to check his forehead. “Tim, you’re burning up. You need to take today off”

“No, I’ll be fine. S just a little temperature” Lucy rolls her eyes at his stubbornness, moving off of the bed and stretching her legs to stand in front of him. “Tim, you’re not going to work. And neither am I” his head snaps to hers, wincing from the clear pain it’s caused him.

“Luce, you can’t take the day off work just because I’m sick. And besides, I won’t be here, because I’ll be at work”

At the utterance of his words, she sighs deeply and kneels in front of him, so she can face him at eye level. “Babe, you’re sick. And you’re not going to be any good to anyone at work when you’re like this. And I also know that you’re too stubborn to look after yourself so I am going to look after you. No arguments.” She leans down slightly to give him a small kiss on the cheek, pushing him gently back towards the pillows on the bed.

“Go back to sleep. I’ll call work for both of us and I’m going to make you some soup.” Tim looks at her adoringly, lips curving into a smile with the little energy he has. “You don’t have to do that Luce. I’ll be o-“

“Hush, I’m doing it, now, go to bed.” He knows at this point that’s there’s no use putting up a fight. When Lucy has her mind set on something, she’s going to do it no matter what anyone says. Besides, he finds it incredibly sweet. He’s never been looked after like this before. He was once sick when he was with Ashley, but as soon as she found out, she went home and told him she’d see him when he felt better. He did however get a delivery of warm soup on his doorstep, so that was something at least.

As Lucy leaves the bedroom, Tim rests his head back on his pillow and reaches his left arm out over Lucy’s side of the bed. It doesn’t take long before he’s back to the land of dreams.

Lucy hums whilst in the kitchen, rooting through the cupboards for the ingredients of her famous ‘feel better soup’. That’s what Jackson named it after she made it for him when he had the flu in police academy. The memory makes her smile and clenches her heart with a bittersweet feeling. She misses him, especially on days like this; if Jackson knew she was going to make her famous soup, he’d have ran home during his lunch break and taken some with him. He’d done it once when Lucy made some for Tamara.

Shaking her head of the memory so she doesn’t upset herself, she continues to search through the shelves, eyes scanning what’s there and what’s not. After around 5 minutes,she becomes aware that a trip to the grocery store is needed, so she gets out a small piece of paper and writes Tim a little note just in case he wakes up ‘Tim- needed to go get some more ingredients, be back soon, there’s some aspirin and a glass of water next to the bed xx’ she finishes her note by drawing a small heart below the kisses and leaves it taped to the bedroom door.

20 minutes after Lucy left for the store, Tim wakes up to the sound of his phone vibrating on the beside table. Groaning, he leans over to his side and fumbles for his phone, not even looking to see who’s calling him. “Hello”

“Oh my god, what happened to you?” Tim immediately recognises his sisters voice, not enjoying the teasing behind her tone. They’ve known each other for long enough to know when each other are sick, and Genny knew from the moment Tim answered the phone that he was feeling under the weather. It reminded her of when they were kids, only this memory wasn’t a particularly nostalgic one. She remembered the time that Tim got sick before a football game once; he had the flu really badly, chills, headache, his nose wouldn’t stop running and he just looked out of it. Their Dad forced him to go the game that day, telling Tim that he needed to ‘Man up’; he ended up fainting at the game and Genny never forgot about how weak and ill Tim looked. Their Dad yelled at him for ‘embarrassing’ him.

Genny sighs regretfully at the memory, wishing she could’ve done more to help him at the time. But she was scared of her dad too, so that never ended up happening. Now feeling guilty for teasing him, she softens her tone. “Are you okay ? You’re not going into work are you ?” She worries that he’ll have forced himself to go in, something that he has done every time he’s been ill since the day their Dad tormented him for it.

“I’m fine. Actually, Lucy has taken the day off work to look after me” the overwhelmed appearance of his voice doesn’t go unnoticed by Tim’s sister.

“You’re telling me that Tim Bradford, my stubborn big brother has actually listened to someone and stayed off work?! Wow, Lucy deserves major props for that one” she chuckles in bewilderment, and then a comfortable, thoughtful silence falls; Tim swears he can hear the cogs spinning in Genny’s head. Before he has time to ask what she’s thinking about, she interrupts him.

“You’re going to marry her, aren’t you ?” The smile is evident in her voice, a slight squeal of excitement releasing at the end of her sentence. Tim took a breath, turning his head to his right, eyes focusing in on a picture of him and Lucy that Lucy had framed on the shelf. It was a picture they took together on their second date after their first ‘real’ kiss. Lucy was adamant that they needed to capture the moment, and as Tim stared at the photo, he knew she was right. Every feeling he felt that night had come flooding back to him- the joy, the excitement, the laughter. The photo itself has become his favourite in the world; they’re faces are pressed so tightly together, Lucys arms wrapped around his neck lovingly, their smiles brighter than the sun- he hasn’t told Lucy yet, but he has it in the pocket of his wallet so he can look at it whenever he misses her when they’re not together.

Tim takes no longer than a second to reply to his sister, heart full, mind calm and certain. “Yeah, I am’.

Around 15 minutes after Tim’s call had ended, Lucy’s keys jingled through the door. Flinging herself through the opening in a slight rush, she lost grip of one of the bags and the contents scattered all around her. “And of course it’s drops on the floor!” She utters with a facetious timbre in her voice. As she bends down to pick them up, she spots a pair of legs making their way to her.

“Oh, hey handsome, how are you feeling ?” She looks up at him, her once annoyed expression dissipated and replaced with a warm, affectionate one. “I’m okay, but you’re clearly a little worse for wear” he teases her, joining her on the floor to pick up the shopping. “Timm, its not funny!" she retorts playfully "I just wanted to get back quickly so I could make you the soup. I got a bit held up though because the owner had a break in last night, so I was taking some information for him.” There it is again, he thinks. The empathy she has for other people. She could’ve easily called someone at the station, but she took the time out of her day to help him out herself. God, he loves her.

“Anyway” she snaps him out of his daydream “you’re supposed to be resting ! I can handle all of this.” Lucy stands up, places the ingredients on the kitchen island and wipes the few creases out of her trousers that they have sustained from kneeling on the floor.

“Yeah, I know, but you’ve already done enough for me, I just wanted to help you a little”

Her face softens, head tilting to the side. Tim watches the way her hair falls perfectly passed her shoulders, his trance causing him to miss how slight sadness crosses her features. Done enough ? In Lucy’s book, she’s barely even scratched the surface yet. She’s got a list in her head that grows by the second of ways she plans to take care of him and bring him back to his full health.

“Tim, you- you’ve never been properly looked after before, have you ?” He shrugs his shoulders, lips curling in an uncertain, almost numb line. “I don’t know, I mean, my dad was never affectionate in any sense of the word, and my Mom tended to just stay out of the way so he didn’t take his anger out on her.” Lucy swears she can hear her heart shatter. The thought of Tim being treated so badly has always caused her pain, but hearing even more about it just makes her want to break down into tears- he deserves the world. No words are spoken between the two of them, just knowing glances and sorrowful gazes.

Tim looks away for a second, the reminder of his childhood causing him some anguish. He’s swept away in thought until the warmth and softness of his girlfriends arms encases him in a hug; it reminded him of the one she gave him after he confronted his father; it was the first time he’d felt actually safe in such a close vicinity to him, the first time he felt truly free to be vulnerable around him. And that was because of Lucy Chen- the one who was currently gripping him so tight that he could feel his heartbeat push into her chest.

“I’m so sorry you had to go through that. You deserve love, you deserve vulnerability, you deserve happiness”

Tim’s eyes well up with tears, each one threatening to fall. He’s never heard such beautiful words in his life. And he’d never believed them until this moment. He sniffs slightly, the taste of salt falling into his mouth indicating that the tears did in fact, fall. Lucy wipes each one with a tender swipe of her thumb, giving him a kiss each place that his tears fell.

“You’re gonna get sick if you keep kissing me” he says, his head arching towards his shoulder, hiding the smirk that’s etched onto his face. “I don’t care, it’s worth it’ her words are shortly followed by her cupping his cheeks and planting a soft, adoring kiss to his lips. “Now go back to bed, the soup won’t take me too long.” The request couldn’t have come sooner, as much as he was loving the feel of her lips on his, his body had other plans, and they included another, much needed nap.

Later on

“Tim, are you awake ?”

“Mhmm, yeah” he’d clearly only just woken up, eyes still partially shut and his hair was pointing in all directions, but he already had more colour in his face so that was a good sign. Lucy giggles slightly under her breath, perching herself at Tim’s bedside, resting the tray of soup on his lap.

Tim moans at the delicious smell travelling up to his nose, now more than ever being grateful that is girlfriend is an amazing chef. But when he looks at it, his mind starts running and his body can’t help but freeze. “Oh my god”

“What, does it smell bad ? I didn’t change the recipe!”

“No, no, it smells delicious, it’s just- this, this is the soup” Lucy furrows her brows in confusion, this illness of Tim’s must have really knocked him out. “Yeah, I’ve been telling you all day I was going to make it” Tim chuckles at her response, understanding that his words appeared rather vague to her. “No, I meant, this is the exact soup I had when I was last sick” Tim doesn’t miss the way Lucy’s eyes widen and how her gaze averts away from him.

“Ummm, I don’t know what you mean”

Tim can’t help but grin widely, his brain reconnecting dots that he thought he’d already connected months ago. It wasn’t Ashley that left that soup for him when he was last sick.. it was Lucy. He knows without a doubt; the smell, the consistency, the presentation- it’s exactly how he remembers it. “It was you that left the soup for me when I was last sick. Why didn’t you tell me ? I let Ashley take the credit for it.”

Lucy shrugs her shoulders slightly, a pink flush invading her cheeks. “I just wanted you to focus on getting better. And I told Ashley to take the credit. I bumped into her that day at the store- she told me you were sick and I figured you’d feel a bit better if you thought your girlfriend had made it for you”.

Tim can’t stop staring at her. Every day he thinks he’s gotten to grips with how big his girlfriends heart his, but everyday she just surprises him more. His fingers motion her to come closer to him. She leans forward and rests her hands upon his bare chest. Tim leans closer so their noses touch.

“You. Are. Amazing”

Lucy giggles, burying her head in the crook of his neck. She turns to look deeply into his eyes, the unspoken look of love dancing between them.

“So are you”

#therookie #chenford #therookiechenford #timbradford #lucy chen #lucy x tim #tim x lucy #fanfiction #chenford fanfiction #therookiefanfic

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writtenontheport · 10 months

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Hey, can I request a lockwood x reader where the reader takes him on an impulsive date and they j walk in the rain (with tooth rotting fluff) 🫶

Good Dreams and Good Days

Anthony Lockwood x (gn) Reader

Warnings/Tags: Rather short drabble, Fluff, Waking up sleepy and happy to the love of your life is great, Lockwood in love, silly people bickering affectionately, ‘5 more minutes’, romcom scene really, Do I ever write anything else?, Lots and lots of rain, Reader is gender neutral cause I flipped a coin and it landed on gn, Reader is described as pretty and gorgeous at some point (gn kinda way 🤞)

Notes: Sorry this is a bit short, anon!! I absolutely adore the prompt though, thank you so much for sending it in <3 Sorry if it might not be exactly what you asked for, but I hope you like it either way!! Also!! Very loosely edited!! I only read it over once when I usually read and then reread it over and over but this time… I just went with it!! Tell me if you watch anything off

Summary: Lockwood wakes up and falls right back asleep. You’re just trying your best to take your boyfriend on a date…

Lockwood rarely has good dreams. Most of time his sleep is dreamless; preferable to the nightmares, but he rarely (if ever) has good dreams. In this dream he can feel your hands on the skin of his cheeks and your lips pressed gently to his hairline, motioning out words he can’t quite hear more than he can feel. Your voice pulls him from the heavy blanket of a dreamless sleep and it rolls off of him in gentle waves. It is the sweetest dream ever to know you’re there to wait for him to wake up.

“Anthony,” he hears you whisper finally, your thumbs swiping over the skin of his cheeks in a caress, “Time to wake up now.”

He can feel you smile into his skin and sinks into the drowsy happiness of it, his hands finding their way to yours. It earns a giggle out of you that has his heart beating faster, something warm filling up his chest. A smile wiggles its happy little way onto his lips the more he wakes up, but he keeps his eyes closed. He just wants to be pampered for a little longer, really.

“I know you’re awake,” You laugh, lips against his temple. “Come on now, Anthony. Don’t be difficult, this is important.”

“What’s so important that we can’t just stay here and sleep in on a day off, hmm?” His voice is thick with sleep and deeper than his usual chipper, smile ever present as he feels you pepper his cheek with kisses. “We could just stay here all day like this instead, yeah?”

“I have bigger things planned, you lazybones,” you say laughingly. “Plus, I’ve already let you sleep in. George and Lucy had breakfast ages ago, you know?”

“Breakfast doesn’t have to have a specific time, love. Plus, I thought we weren’t doing anything today but sleep in. Are we headed out anywhere?” He mumbles, shifting his head to press a kiss into your palm. The sheets ruffle all about him, and his head dips down into what he realises is you under him. He peels one eye open.

“Well I can’t tell you or it’d ruin the surprise,” You laugh, gently jostling you both. You’re gorgeous in this angle (in every angle, really) and seeing you like this invokes a sense of comfort that makes him forget all the work and bruises it took to get here. He takes the hand that isn’t holding yours to his lips and slips it under your waist, burrowing his head into you and pretending to fall back asleep. It works a little too well as the drowsiness seeps back in.

“Just five more minutes,” he grumbles. Your reply slowly fades out as the world seems to settle into the sensation of you in his arms and your hand combing his hair. Lockwood may not always have good dreams, but when you’re around he dreams of the best thing there is: having you there when he wakes up.

5 minutes actually meant at least another hour, as by the time you usher him downstairs it’s already nearing noon. You scold him lightly for it as you usher him down, but he presses kisses all over your face and you can’t stay mad at him for long.

“So, where are we headed?” He asks you, watching you slip on your cosiest jacket. He can hear it drizzling out from a nearby open window and takes an umbrella out from the stand. It’s an old, worn one from the days when his parents used to walk around London (if they ever did stay long enough to). Fitting now that he’s using it with you.

“I’ll tell you when we get there.” You give him a secretive smile that fills the cavity of his chest with something peaceful and warm; in the buzz of his cold thoughts, that is a blessing. Lockwood can’t help himself from leaning over to smack a quick kiss on your cheek, and you swat at him playfully. Again, he sinks into the domestic joy that fills him at your smile.

“Have you at least told Lucy and George we’ll be out?” He hums, pulling the front door open to watch the rain fall harder and harder. The sidewalks are absolutely drenched now, and on the road the water is pooling and running along the sides. It’ll keep the ghosts at bay better if you stay out for too long, but he hopes it doesn’t come to that.

“Of course,” You huff from behind him, slipping your arm around his. “George went upstairs to fetch a few books, but promised to come down and lock the door once we’re out. Lucy helped me get ready and said to have fun.”

“All that while I was taking my time getting pretty?” He shakes the umbrella and pops it open outside the door. A quick glance back at you has him enamoured all over again; the essence of you so clear in how you dress he can’t help but feel winded. “You look lovely, darling.”

“And you, Anthony, look dashing,” You whisper to him as you pull the front door closed behind you and you two finally set out. The rain hits the umbrella, harsher and harsher by the minute. “Let’s get walking; I’ll tell you where we’re going on the way.”

Lockwood hums and uses the hand with the elbow wrapped around yours to hold the umbrella up. He watches you purse your lips, and guesses right away that you have absolutely no idea where to go.

You confirm this when you finally say, “…I actually… hoped you might be able to choose?”

The laugh that spills out of him blooms first in his chest; hopelessly endeared by you and your antics. The rain splashes all about you but all he can hear is your beating hearts intertwined like a melody, the weather a fading instrument in the background. You giggle with him, and he falls in love with you all over again.

“Let’s head to the café then, I reckon neither of us have had breakfast, right?” You nod vigorously at the suggestion, beaming up at him in the way that makes his heart tumble and spin.

Rain showers down onto the pathways of gloomy London like a choir of splashes and splats; in the midst of the downpour a sole umbrella hides two people walking along the path. The melody they make is rather extraordinary in that it is not one intended to be anything but the sound of their hearts, laughter, and love meant to be heard by no one but them.

This, by far, is better than a good dream. This is a good day, and this good day has you.

A/N: Took a break from the series (plural) I’m working on to write this little drabble! Was rather enamoured by the idea, I think it’d be lovely to take someone out into the rain on a walk. Anyways! Thank you Anon for your request!! Very lovely <333

#portie writes fanfic #anthony lockwood x you #lockwood and co x reader #lockwood x you #lockwood x reader #anthony lockwood x reader

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fellow-travelers-fic-recs · 4 months

Note

Hi there! Could you recommend a well written fic with a...happier ending? :) Where after a while they make different decisions (especially Hawk) and somehow manage to fix things. Alive. I saw a summary where the author fixes things, but Skippy kind of has the same fate only later and in a different way... and, well... it's ok if it's not all fluff but I would prefer not to cry out my eyes at the end. But if you say it still worth it, I believe you.. :) Thank you!

As you know, happy endings in this fandom (or at least within canon) are hard to come by. But we’ve suffered enough, haven't we? I hope these feel good fics hit the mark and hopefully work towards offsetting the extensive therapy that loving this show undoubtedly requires. Happy reading!

✨ Be sure to show the authors some love and appreciation with kudos and comments on the fics you enjoyed!

#angst with a happy ending ❤️‍🩹 A Joy, Hard Learned by @partialresonance // partialresonance [E, 12K] Tim and Hawk get snowed in together. Later, Tim comes back from the war a changed man.

The dynamics between Tim and Hawk are on another level, which just adds to the heat on this already scorching hot, emotional smut. That said, it’s only one layer of this fic. The building angst with the happy ending that follows, absolutely stellar! Not to mention, the cozy winter atmosphere. What else do you need? Grab yourself a nice cup of cocoa and settle in by the fire with this one!

❤️‍🩹 Anywhere With You by @kayleebye // kayleebye [T, 3K] Hawk shows up at Tim's door with news after breaking-up with him several weeks ago. Tim isn't interested in hearing anything from Hawk, but one sentence changes everything. Will Hawk and Tim finally have a chance at happiness?

This one I haven’t read yet, but it’s got a lot of what you’re looking for… true love, angst and a happy ending fix-it all wrapped up in a snug little 3K word package. Give it a shot!

#fluff ❤️‍🩹 A Package of Sunshine by @bluebellsinburbank // ConsumingLove(Bluebellstar) [T, 1K] Hawk and Tim have a day at the beach.

This should be called A Ray of Sunshine, because that’s exactly what it feels like. It’s so refreshing to have these fluffy moments, a snapshot into a happier time between these two. And delightful banter with Marcus and Frankie in tow… We love to see!

#fix-it, #time travel, #canon divergence ❤️‍🩹 Cheek to Cheek by Iviviendo* [NR, 1K] A special guest arrives unannounced at the Laughlin house on Christmas Day in 1953.

A fluffy little Christmas fix-it, light and cozy. I felt like I was right there at the dinner table, laughing and singing along with the rest of the family. Even Tim’s grandma is pleasant and cheerful, a welcome change from the cranky Grandma Gaffney we see in the book.

❤️‍🩹 Everything, Everything by tinypurpleghost* [E, 4.8K] Hawk wakes up in 1968 and everything is different.

A sprinkle of angst with a heavy dose of heart-warming fluff, along with some wonderfully tender (and super hot) smut. Short and sweet, this time travel fix-it will be the perfect balm to mend your broken heart.

❤️‍🩹 the pawn in every lover's game by hyperfixfic* [G, 8K] Lucy decides to face Hawk after Mr. Laughlin slipped a letter under Hawk’s apartment door instead of ignoring the problems of her marriage. And there are many.

This one is more book-inspired, and Lucy-focused, which is something of a rarity. Love to see it!

❤️‍🩹 Sands of Time (Turn Backwards) by @brouill3r // brouiller [NR, 7K WIP Ch.3/?] 1987 Hawkins Fuller is full of regrets for the life he's lived, though Tim once told him he regrets nothing. Hawk so wishes he could say the same.

In the still night air of a hotel room, clutching a cracked paperweight to his chest like it's carved of the finest gold, Hawk gets his wish.

Or, a time-travel fix-it fic that nobody asked for.

This has me glued to the edge of my seat. The pacing of the first chapter pulls you right in, adding to the tension in with its punctuated rhythm--absolutely perfect for the mindset of Hawk trying to come to grips with what is happening around him.

❤️‍🩹 Again, only better by@madsmeetsmisha // madsmeetsmisha [M, 11K WIP Ch. 4/9] Hawk had no idea what was really going on here. All he knew was that he was back in 1954 and a completely distraught Tim was standing outside his door. And he also knew that he certainly wouldn't make the same mistake twice.

*DING DING DING… Haven’t read this yet, but by the summary and tags, this sounds like it might check all (or most) of your boxes… Tags: fix-it, someone dies from AIDS but not Tim, second changes, all the fluff we need to get over this

❤️‍🩹 Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps It’s Real by drabbleswabbles* [NR, 24K Ch. 9/?] And then it happened. The metallic screech of the gate, the shuffle of men stepping out beyond the prison walls. And suddenly there he was. His hair was shorter than he’d ever seen it. And his glasses were different. But it was him. Their eyes met. Tim stared at him in wide-eyed shock before recognition melted his features into a confused outrage.

Basically a fix-it in which Hawk finds himself back in the early 70s.

I haven’t had the chance to dive into this one, but it’s at the top of my list, along with so many other readers who can’t stop singing its praises. I’m sure you’ll love it just as much as they do.

❤️‍🩹 The Twelfth of Never by ghostandwitness* [M, 973 WIP Ch. 1/?] What if Hawk didn’t prevent Tim from passing the security clearance?

A retelling of Hawk and Tim’s story where their affair is continued through Tim’s employment at State, for those of us who want a different ending (but of course, not without a hard time getting there-After all it's Hawk and Tim).

I feel like this one might be flying under the radar, but it deserves all the fanfare. So far, this one is fantastic, and while it’s still currently a WIP, and can’t guarantee it will be exactly what you’re looking for, I can confidently say it will be enjoyed.

❤️‍🩹 But If You Don’t Dear, Confess by@bluebellsinburbank // ConsumingLove(Bluebellstar) [G, 3K] "Have you ever considered yourself to be in love with another male?"

And that was the question, wasn't it?

Giving gifts, receiving gifts, walking like a gay man - like that could even be quantified; sex and sodomy. Those things were nothing, a mere drop in the ocean compared to that one question.

Had he ever been in love with another man?

For a moment, he almost expected to think of Kenny. That sweet boy who loved beautiful things, who'd followed Hawk into a war none of them had any place being.

But Kenny was the furthest thing from his mind. No, his mind was alive with memories of his Skippy.

Or, Tim Laughlin is a little harder to get out of Hawk's head, and the choice between yes and no isn't as easy to make.

This is part 1 of a series that follows Hawk and Tim as they run away to Italy together, after Hawk fails the polygraph on purpose. Each fic is a standalone, so if you’re uneasy about getting too attached to a WIP, this might be for you!

*Authors: If you have a tumblr (or other socials) you'd like linked, let me know and I'll add it. Also, if anyone doesn't want their socials linked here, please let me know and I'll gladly remove it.

#anon ask #asked and answered #ftficrecs #fellow travelers fic recs #fellow travelers fics #happy endings #feel good fics #fellow travelers #fluff #angst with a happy ending #canon divergent #fix it fic #time travel au #ftficrecs asks #ftfics jan24

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fairytail-whathesays · 7 months

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Could I get some Lucy headcanons? I like her a lot but God do I hate the way she's treated in canon

For Lucy, having her mother die early, being raised by an abusive father, and essentially waking up one day to find that that same father died has essentially rendered her hyper-sensitive to family issues. If she catches a parent being a shit to their kid, she will become a public menace and not even Erza can stop her.

Wizarding was not something she just picked up on a whim; she had to consciously choose to give up a lot of luxuries and strike out on her own at the tender age of 17. She's done remarkably well for herself given no one knew she came from money until she was kidnapped, but every once in a while she experiences some of that crushing weight of capitalism.

Speaking of Erza, she was generously given the prize money from the Miss Fairy Tail contest, since Erza makes her fair share from high-paying missions either way.

This chick is crazy strong and just because she's timid in dangerous situations and isn't fight-happy doesn't mean everyone in the guild doesn't know to stay on her good side. She was casually summoning Aquarius, probably the most powerful celestial spirit short of the King himself, at like 5 years old. Without even any indication it was hard! When she was trying to compel Loke to stay alive, she reflexively summoned her whole host of spirits--nine in total, five of them Golden Zodiac spirits--when it's supposed to use massive amounts of power to summon just two. Everybody knows not to truly piss Lucy off.

Lucy is actually extremely good at codebreaking and script magic. It's shown early on from the part where she figures out the Daybreak translation in less than a day, and she figures out the route to Mavis' grave with just a few context clues, too. Jutsu Shiki users beware.

The reason she chose a whip as her melee weapon is actually because besides dance classes, she also took gymnastics in her youth, and was able to make use of some ribbon training that came along with it and incorporate it into her fighting style. She's also taken some Chinese ribbon dancing classes (with Erza along for the ride) as a hobby. Dancing was one of the things they bonded over.

Lucy has kindness for everyone, even if they're not all that pleasant at a glance. This has gotten her into trouble a few times, but more often than not this instinct actually works well in her favor.

#lucy heartfilia #fairy tail #fairy tail headcanons

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starseneyes · 1 year

Text

Chenford REWIND- Lucy Chen / Tim Bradford - The Rookie - Season 2 Ep 10, 11, & 12

This feels like a lot to put into one Meta. But, since I'm chunking these out and taking requests, it makes sense to me. Yes, "Day of Death" is a defining Chenford episode. But I feel like you need the context of what lead up to it and the fallout on the other side to fully understand its impact and discuss it.

SPOILER ALERT: If you don't want to be spoiled, you don't want to read this. While I do write these as though I'm watching the episodes for the first time and try not to let fore-knowledge come into play, I will be spoiling these episodes in their entirety and everything that came before.

All squared away? Alright, lets dive in.

The Dark Side

"The single men in LA suck. Every time I go out on a date, and they find out that I'm a cop, they just get scared off." ... "Look, those aren't men. Those are boys, okay? Real men are not afraid of strong women."

Heck, yeah, they aren't! Lucy, honey, I get that it's tough out there for you, right now. But someday there will be a single man in LA who doesn't suck and isn't afraid of strong women. You'll see.

But right now, you're looking for anyone who isn't a total dud, and I get that.

"...dating a civilian is a bad idea." "I was told dating cops was a mistake. What am I supposed to do, join a nunnery? Sister Office Lucy Chen?"

I'm so glad I wasn't drinking anything the first time I heard this line because there would have been soda everywhere. My husband heard the line over my shoulder and cracked up, too.

And you might be thinking, "Why is she going into all this? Tim and Lucy are nowhere near ready for romance". Welp, I want to show Lucy's mentality in this episode and will explain once we get to 2x11 how it feeds into the situation and the mis-read from Tim.

"Look, no, I'm saying that right now end of shift means leaving the job behind when you go home. But in success, each one of you is gonna catch cases that kick your ass, that consume your every waking thought. And non-cops won't be able to identify. Worse, they're gonna resent you for caring more about the dead than the living."

It's an interesting thought, and for those of us in Season 5, there's a lot to consider, here. I mean, Lucy was cautioned against dating cops, but Isabel and Tim were Rookies and nobody gave him crap about it, from what we know.

Look, I'm not sorry Lucy and Nolan broke up. But, I do think Lucy should consider dating another cop down the line. *cough* Tim *cough*

"Caleb." "Lucy."

It's a chance meeting at the right time. Lucy is on the hunt for a non-mutant man in Los Angeles, and she ends up at the bar with someone who seems semi-safe.

After the conversation she just had with her friends, we can see she really wants to be with someone.

"I was in college when they found the first victims. It was all anyone talked about. That, and how could a woman be so barbaric." "I worked one of the scenes, fourth victim, Lisa Cruz. Homicide detectives warned me not to look at the body. Should've listened."

I love how they're speaking to one another so openly about the whole thing. There's an ease to how they're walking side-by-side that feels lived-in. Yes, he's still her TO, but this is a glimpse at the other side of him—the one that knows how to have a conversation without screaming or scheming.

"Caleb, from the bar last night... I hope this isn't weird, but you left with your perp before I had a chance to ask for your number."

Tim is giving this guy the side-eye. Look, we are nowhere near romance for this pair, but Tim has come to care about Lucy. He wouldn't call her a friend, yet, but they're definitely on their way.

And Lucy's picking up on Tim's hovering, but I don't think either of them could pick up on the why. My husband swooped in to offer his opinion that Tim picked up bad vibes, but wrote it off because it made him look jealous. I don't think he's far off.

I think Tim was being a little protective. Not necessarily because of romance (everything with Isabelle is very fresh at this point). But, while Lucy is still his "Boot", she is crossing that line more and more towards "friend". Tim cares about what happens with Lucy.

He's trying to watch out for her, but she doesn't want a chaperone. For goodness sake, she's a grown woman, right?

"We don't call them perps." "Right, sorry. Anyway, this is my number. If you ever feel like waiting in vain for a drink, give me a call."

Tim Bradford with the save!! He snatches that tiny piece of paper so fast the camera barely catches it. That's a super hero, my friends.

"You got a last name, Caleb?" "Yes sir. Wright with a W." "What do you do? If you say screenwriter, you're going in a cell."

Lucy's horrified. This might be the worst thing Tim has ever done, in her mind.

Remember, at this point everything with Tim is a test. Everything could be used as subterfuge, and she can't trust what's he's going to do with the information he's gathering.

"I manage a medical supply company downtown." "I'm sorry about him. Things are a little crazy right now." "No problem. It was nice meeting you. Officer."

Tim gives her a "can you believe that guy" look, but she has that same energy directed at him. Tim's surprised by that. He really thought she'd appreciate him looking out for her.

She holds out her hand for her piece of paper, and Tim hands it over as she mouths, "Oh my god".

"Ten bucks that isn't even his dog." "It's been an awful day. Can't I just enjoy a cute puppy?"

Tim's getting a look into how Lucy unwinds and relaxes. All day, she's been sneaking glimpses at Caleb's socials to get a feel for him, and it's helping distract her from the no-good day.

Tim of this era hasn't yet learned how to help Lucy talk through things. But he has learned that Lucy and distractions work well for moderating her panic.

Think of the episode with the nuclear bomb and how they spent the whole episode talking about how to sabotage her ex's wedding. Distraction helps her.

"If I can be wheels up in the next 10 minutes, I might beat the afternoon traffic which means I will be in bed in the next hour."

I love how conversational they're being here. You can already tell the lines of TO and friend are starting to blur.

"That's a mistake." "What? Why?" "Look, after working a hardcore assignment like this, you need to go blow off some steam after shift. You know, give your brain a different focus. It's the only way you have a fighting chance of actually sleeping."

This isn't a Tim Test. He's trying to give her advice. Keep this in mind, my friends. It'll come back.

"As my Training Officer, are you saying that I should go get a drink?" "A strong one. Maybe even with another human."

Tim is really trying to do the right thing, here. He snatched away Caleb's phone number earlier, but Lucy's been cyber-stalking him all day and she looks interested.

"Well, I am here to distract you."

I swear I didn't remember that line when I wrote the part above about Lucy needing a distraction.

And we all know that what started as a distracting night led to a nightmare for Lucy.

Before we move on, I want to talk a little bit about Season 2 Tim and Lucy. I know a lot of people love what DOD does for Chenford in terms of progression. But I argue it doesn't cause the shift, but only expedites it.

Look at Tim in this episode, for example. He's downright conversational and friendly with Lucy. Yes, he tells her to get her head in the game instead of looking at Caleb. Yes, he teases her about her first Decomp, but that's the extent of it.

He talks with her openly and honestly about Rosalind. He tries to protect her from Caleb when he thinks the guy's just an unworthy suitor. He tries to give her advice at the end that isn't attached to any "lesson" but simply sharing what he's learned.

Frankly, I think that's what Lucy expected in a TO—someone to talk her through and give her sage advice. And then she got Tim.

Tim doesn't hand out advice willy-nilly. He's a "show" guy, right? Same thing with how he teaches. He's not much of a "talker" with Lucy when it comes to her training. He's trying to get her to think for herself by putting her through her paces.

But this whole episode, he's talking to her. Heck, he's talking with her. Tim doesn't make friends with his Boots, but Lucy is becoming the exception. They aren't there, yet, but they're on their way.

If we look at this episode separated from DOD (if we can), you can see that Tim and Lucy are already moving towards friends. The events of DOD expedites it, I argue, but they would have eventually gotten there on their own. Tim and Lucy are inevitable.

Day of Death

"My day of death."

The pain of a tattoo. The hangover of whatever drugs he gave her. The inability to move her limbs or fight back. Trying to take note of her surroundings, of anything that might be helpful if she can get away.

And that horrible fear that she won't.

"Sergeant."

It takes Harper two seconds to clock the conversation between the men, and she's the first to jump on it. Why? We'll get to that next episode.

"Lucy did not come home last night. She's not responding to texts or calls." "Did she go out with that guy? The one she met at the bar. Caleb Wright with a W."

He remembers it clearly, but he's trying not to panic. After all, his first date with Rachel was *ahem* memorable. Maybe Lucy moves at that same pace?

"Lucy doesn't do one-night stands." "And she's never late."

Her friends know her well, and Grey's smart enough to run with it. Let's be real, there are scenarios where a Sergeant might not listen, might not take it seriously, might not actually do anything.

This is television, and we're not going to let Lucy Chen go quietly into that good night. But it hits me so hard that there are so many cases where alarm bells are rung and left unanswered.

"Why are you doing this?"

Lucy's trying to keep her head in the game. That's what Tim told her to do last episode, right? Keep your head in the game.

"It's for you. To force you to face the truth of your death. It's the gift of something we rarely get in life—clarity."

Fuck you. I'm sorry. Lucy's thinking it and it needed to be said.

"... we believe Caleb is Rosalind's protege, and he took Officer Chen."

The news slams into Tim. And nobody else in the room sees it or knows why. He doesn't even wait to be dismissed. He rushes out of the room, phone dialing before he makes it through the door.

Because this is too much for him to handle. Tim has tried to handle a lot of things on his own. He's famous for isolating himself and trying to pretend he's fine. But this time he calls his best friend. Because he can't do this alone.

"Lucy's been taken. I need you." "On my way."

"Lucy". Not "Chen". Because in his mind, Lucy is already becoming more than a Boot. No, we're not talking romance, here. We're talking friendship. Kinship. Someone he cares about.

Tim Bradford has a very short list, so the fact that his Rookie is close to making the list is significant. But I'm not one who thinks Tim's romantically interested in her all the way back in Season 2. This thing's grown organically over time, though I'd argue DOD gave it a push, as did certain other episodes covered in Future Metas.

"Look, I know I haven't known Lucy as long as the rest of you, but I do know that she's a fighter."

Hell, yeah, our queen is!

"She's gonna do everything she can to stay alive until we save her."

And she does. She fights like hell and does everything she can to survive. But she's weak. She's lethargic. She's drugged. And she's isolated. Utterly alone.

Imagine that moment of fighting your way out, hoping that there'll be someone to hear your voice, to come to your aid, to get the help you so desperately need... and there's no one.

How much of the fight can you keep alive when you realize how little chance you have of surviving?

"... I can't just sit here."

Here's more of a "show" guy. And there's nobody to show.

"I'm fine. Just blowing off steam."

What he told Lucy to do. What he thought would be safe. What he thought would be relaxing. What he thought would be distracting. What he thought would be fun.

He's not blowing off steam. He's a pressurized gasket ready to explode.

"I get it, but you gotta get your head in the game." "I don't need a pep talk." "Then why'd you call me? Clearly you need to get something off your chest."

Tim forgets the power of words, sometimes. We see it a lot through the season. Maybe it's because he never learned how to use them growing up.

FAST FORWARD: We're a ways away from Season 4 and Tim's backstory episodes that help illuminate just how bad it was for him. Tim's father didn't use words. He used his fists. His mother likely didn't use words, either. They didn't talk about what he went through. He never learned to express himself that way. It takes someone coaxing it out of him, and right now that's his best friend.

"She wanted to go home. Okay? Go to bed. I told her that she should focus on something else. She went out with Caleb because I told her to."

And he's carrying the weight of that guilt. It's too heavy for him to bear. Tim Bradford has carried too many weights, and this one is too much. Did he doom his Rookie to die?

"You couldn't have known."

Angela's whole attitude shifts (how could it not?) because Tim Bradford is expressing emotions with his best friend. And that is huge and this whole thing is horrible.

"But I should have. I'm a cop. I was standing this close to the guy, okay? Right across from him and I never saw him coming. But she did, though. She... Some part of her didn't feel right about this whole thing. She hesitated. And I pushed her right at him."

He's wrong. It has to be said that Lucy might not have gone out with Caleb that night, but it could have been another night. Tim only thinks this because of his own guilt, his own pain, his own frustrations with himself for not being Super Cop.

Lucy wanted to go out with this guy. Maybe she wouldn't have gone out that night without the push. But Caleb was a serial killer, and would've put her on his list sooner or later... and more women would have died in the meantime. It's not Tim's fault any more than it's Lucy's.

He thinks he failed Lucy, but this isn't a situation where you can predict every move. We're not going to victim-blame here. We're not going to point fingers.

Because minus the serial killer plot, this shit happens every day. Around the world, there are people whose drinks are spiked, people who are abducted, people who have their choice and consent ripped from them.

And it's not the victim's fault in any way. And it's not the fault of a friend who suggested they have a fun night out. It's no one's fault but the asshole who perpetrated the crime.

Getting off my soap box, here, now, to get back to the Meta. But watching Tim go through this reminds me of how I still struggle with blaming myself for a friend of mine OD'ing because I didn't reach out to them that night.

What if I'd reached out? What if I hadn't ignored their vague Facebook post thinking that I'd only be adding to their frustrations and that they needed the night to cool off? Would they still be here if I'd commented? Or sent them a message? I'm a state away, so I couldn't reasonably drive... but could I have done something that would have meant they'd still be here?

I know I can't blame myself. But there are some days I still struggle with it. Because she's gone. And I'll never ever know if I could have helped. Cognitively, I know it's not my fault. I couldn't have done anything, but there's that part of you that still thinks... you made the wrong call, and if you'd called it the other way, it might be different, now.

"If I get that away from you, it's going right in your brain."

She kept her head in the game. She's up against life and death, here, and she's at the disadvantage. But she's a fucking fighter. Look, we know that Lucy is tough. This is something else entirely. She's staring down the murderer who wants to hear her scream, who wants to soak up her agony, who wants to get her to crumble.

And Lucy Chen's standing up to that asshole with the ultimate, "Fuck You" by not giving in.

She must want to cry. She must want to scream. But Lucy Chen is a fighter, and she's not going down easy.

Lucy Leaves a Clue

It's a long shot. It's such a bloody long shot. But she has to try. Lucy truly believes that she will be found, long shot as it is.

And that hope can be a powerful thing. Caleb tried to wield it against her, but he's no match for her.

"Any last words?" "Yeah. You're gonna be dead long before I am."

Damn right, Lucy Chen. Damn right.

"Now, I am responsible for a life that is in jeopardy, and I will do whatever I have to to save her."

And he means it. Watch Jackson's surprise to see Tim Bradford slam a guy's head against the horn. Because Tim's unhinged, here. Someone he cares about has been taken, and he doesn't give a damn what happens to him or his career.

He'll let it all fall if it means Lucy survives.

FAST FORWARD: We talk a lot about how Tim makes sacrifices for Lucy where his career is concerned. And while in later seasons it becomes their thing, I think in this case he'd have done it for any of his few friends. We later see him risk it all for Angela when she's kidnapped, too. Tim has a separate code for his friends. And Lucy's falling more under it over time. Again not romantic... yet.

"There can be charges in here that lead us to Caleb."

Did you clock that brief smile? Before Jackson walks up, Tim thinks they're at a dead end. Lucy's lost. She's gone. And he'll never get to atone for his mistake.

Jackson brings a sliver of light and hope, and it's enough that Tim actually briefly grins. It's not over, yet.

"Stars shining bright above you..."

The song. Lucy's song to keep herself calm and regulate her breathing. Yes, not talking would have been better, but she needs this. She needs light and life and love. Something bright to pierce the darkness.

Her oxygen is running low, and she's having more trouble breathing, more trouble seeing a way out. The last thing she's going to give that bastard is the satisfaction of watching her scream.

And Melissa O'Neil is breaking my heart. Acting-wise, she is literally in a barrel. There's no one to react off of. There's no one feeding her lines.

It's just Lucy in a barrel, and it's up to the actress to make us feel. No cool camera angles. No sweeping score. Melissa O'Neil had to carry us through this and she did it masterfully.

Yes, the Writers decided to have her singing this song. The script, or a Director or Editor decided to strip the rest of the sound from the overlapping visuals (there's a lot of playing with sound and its impact in this episode that's jaw-droppingly beautiful).

But Melissa O'Neil is the one who has to make us believe it. And we do.

A Glint of Light

Tim's eyes scan the miles of land, looking for some sign of disturbance to clue him in on Lucy's location. But it's something that doesn't belong that grabs his attention—something that literally catches the light of the sun and draws Tim in. Her ring.

He picks it up, still uncertain, but following the clue. A few kicks and... a thunk.

"I've got her! I've got her!"

Tim starts digging in the ground with his bare hands, the grit getting under his fingernails, the dust getting into his lungs. He registers the others, but only barely. He has to get to Lucy.

The ground gives way enough to reach the lid. Tim's hands are all over it, Nyla on one side and Jackson on the other. When they can finally see her, Tim asks for help as they pull her out. But he hovers, staying close, being certain he is the one to make sure she's alive.

Because if she's dead, it's on him.

Look, we know Tim didn't do anything wrong. But Tim Bradford carries a lot of scars and blames himself for a lot of things he shouldn't. And if he can't get to her in time, if he pulls her out and she's truly gone... he can never atone for this.

She's not breathing. Tim blows into her mouth and starts pumping on her chest. The sound drains from the world... just the discordant notes sounding off and echoing like the dying hope of Lucy surviving.

Lucy gasps, and the sound returns to the world. Each person takes a breath of relief. But then the sound zeroes in only on two people—Lucy and Tim.

"You're so strong," he murmurs, soft enough for her to hear, but no one else. But she doesn't hear anything. It's too much. It's all too fucking much. The sobs she'd held in before finally spill out as Tim pulls her close, holding her tight.

He thought he'd lost her. And, again, there's no romance here. But she matters, damnit. She matters to Tim more than he thought she would when they first met. He presses a hand to her hair, pushing his face next to hers.

It screams "I'm here. I'm here." Because in his mind, he is the one who failed her and it had to be him to save her. He owed it to her. He was responsible for her. He fucked up.

And it almost cost her her life.

Again, I don't think that. But Tim does. He truly believes he's the one who failed her. And when you have very few people in your life who care about you (and Lucy has demonstrated many times that she does care about Tim), you don't want to do anything to lose that.

But Tim believes he almost lost Lucy because he wasn't good enough. It plays so much into his childhood trauma, his trauma with his ex-wife, and everything else. Tim thinks he failed.

She doesn't cling to him, no. Her hands shake and her body convulses from the pain. But she lets him hold her there, back in the air, out of her barrel.

Tim isn't her person, yet. But she cares about him, and she knows deep down that he cares about her. She even told Rachel about his good heart.

But her not holding him is completely appropriate to the moment. It's not about him. This is about her. Her trauma. Her survival. Lucy's breaking in this moment. She spent so much time keeping her head in the game, and now she's finally releasing all the anguish she refused to show Caleb.

And she is safe in Tim's arms to fall apart.

I knew from the Pilot that Eric Winter was a tour-de-force. But in this episode we see so many damn layers. And Tim's relief at holding her in his arms at the end instead of cradling her corpse is palpable.

The way this scene is shot and performed and the sound... it all puts us in the moment. We are right there with them, and it's one of my favorite scenes of the entire series.

Here in the barren waste of sand and silence... there's life.

"Hmm. What are you reading, Teen Rebel?"

She wakes up to see Tim there, waiting. He hasn't slept. He hasn't left. We know that. He's spent the past 24 hours feeling completely responsible for Lucy, and it's not easy to leave the side of the person who you pushed yourself to save.

And the first thing she says to him isn't about what she's survived, or even about him finding her. It's about the damn magazine. And it's perfect.

After what she's survived, Lucy needs something familiar. And Tim is pretty damn familiar in her life.

Before we get too much further... I want to call out the lengths Tim went to save Lucy.

FAST FORWARD: We haven't yet reached, "Some things matter more". But Tim's already showing that in action. He's a "show" guy, remember?

Tim was willing to do whatever it took to save her. He would put it all on the line, and that's because he cares about her. No, they're not ripping one another's clothes off. It's Season 2, she's his Boot, and he doesn't even acknowledge friendship with her, yet.

But she is becoming his friend. She's becoming one of the very few people that Tim Bradford will upend the world for.

"They actually have some really insightful political articles."

Watch how fast that man wheeled his little chair over to her side. It makes me giggle with glee.

"Oh, which BTS member is your soulmate. Gotta be Suga, right?" "Totally. What's a BTS?"

Lucy laughs. Probably her first good laugh in days. And it's with Tim. Hardass, Tim Test, never-lets-up Tim.

"Have you been here all night?" "No. Mmhm. No." "Mmhmm."

Because TO Tim can't show that he cares. Not yet. I mean, he's never felt this friendly toward a Boot, and he can't go soft on her when she still has so far to go before crossing the finish line.

Remember, Tim likes rules and staying within them—whether they're the rules set out for him by a superior or the ones he's created for himself. Counting Lucy a friend is outside the lines. But much as he might try to deny it, he's showing it.

He's used to giving his Rookies what he thinks they need, and with Lucy, it's most often tough love and some manipulative tests. For him to break through his own wall of separating personal life from professional life is too much. So, he lies.

But Lucy can see right through him. Strangely, she's always had that power.

"How did you find me?"

Nolan interrupts the moment. Damnit, Nolan! But we'll all get to that later... next episode.

There's a reason I wanted to do these three together. Look, this show is still basically a Procedural at its heart with some continuous story lines. But these three episodes feel more serial than a lot of the show, and because of that, I think the whole picture is required to ascertain its meaning.

"He is a she and she is going to sleep in my bed since I am clearly never going on a date, again."

We started this whole trilogy with Lucy considering a nunnery. And, again, I think this calls attention to what it's like to be a single woman in the world. Yes, assaults can happen to anyone.

But as a woman, I can tell you I never get anything to drink but water when I'm out with my friends. I never leave my drink unattended. And a male friend always walks me to my car. Theater kids go out a lot to bars (like, after every rehearsal), so there was a season in my life where this was a nightly ritual. Trying to stay safe out there.

So, if Lucy doesn't want to ever date again after her ordeal, I don't bloody blame her, and neither do her best friend, past fling, and future husband.

"You hungry?"

Sometimes I swear this man is part Jewish mother. If you Fast Forward in the series, you see he's always trying to feed this woman.

And, yes, I'm saying this from experience. There was an old saying that if you wanted a lot more food from my Great-Aunt Mary, you said you wanted a little. If you wanted a little, you said you wanted none. And if you wanted none, you hid your plate.

"Yeah. I'm starving. You know what I really wanna eat right now?" "Veggie burger and fries. Extra pickles."

Awwwww! Remember in 2x01 when she sent him food? "You shouldn't have done that." "Well, I wanted to. And eating well is crucial to a fast recovery."

He's using the lessons he learned from her as an act of love. Again, not romantic love. But love, nonetheless.

"You know me so well." "Too well."

Look at those smiles. Alright, y'all, I'll admit those smiles put butterflies in my stomach, too.

And the fact that the director chose to take us off of the wide shot so we only saw Tim and Lucy for these last few lines. Because this is about them.

Tim is caring about Lucy far more than he should. And he's growing aware of that. But the nature of this episode makes it impossible for him to shove it down entirely. He writes it off as concern and guilt, and doesn't realize he's been slowly letting Lucy into his circle of friends.

But if we talk about who really knows Lucy in this scene? It's Tim.

Jackson brought pretty flowers, which are nice, but will die. Nolan brought the most giant, pink bear. She's cute, but eventually she'll disappear from Lucy's life because her next boyfriend's not going to want to share the bed with a pink stuffy (unless he's into that... no judgment).

Tim. Brought. Her. Food. Yes, it'll be gone pretty quickly. But I can tell you after not being allowed to eat for both my deliveries of my three kids, I was famished. Lucy hasn't eaten in days, and she wants something filling and comforting. Tim brought her the exact order she wanted without her having to ask.

As much as he tries to separate professional and personal, Lucy's blurring those lines. To me, the Season 1 finale was really the start of that. And Tim bites back against that as much as he can in Season 2 (even treating Lucy like shit because she didn't report him for suicidal ideation).

But this trilogy of episodes breaks down that wall further. Yes, he's still her TO and he's still not going to think of her as a friend. But S2-3 is where that really comes together. They were already on their way, but with these events, he softens towards her in a way he never anticipated.

We get to see him soft throughout the series with "his people". But at this point, he's not yet ready to admit Lucy is one of them. It's outside his standard operating procedure for Rookies.

But, despite his protests, he's making a friend. The kind of friend that sticks. The kind of friend that doesn't leave. The kind of friend that loves with abandon.

And someday, someday, she might become more than that. But right now, he's not even ready to admit she's a friend... but, damn, our "show" guy really showed it.

I really want to call out the coloration and choices of this episode. When Lucy first wakes up on the table (with no establishing shot, so we're as clueless to how isolated she is, just as she is), everything i s tripped back. Melissa O'Neil's makeup is stripped down and we can see her pores.

The first time I watched that scene I thought, "Wow, they really stripped out all the color". There's something about the harshness of yellows, beiges, and browns on their own that evoke old Westerns. That sense of isolation, famine, and drought.

Lucy's world is often so vibrant that the stark shift helps us feel the anxiety with her. There's nothing bright or beautiful about this world. Only de-saturated hopelessness.

Now and Then

Lucy In The Mirror

Lucy's wounds have healed. Her wrists are free of the tie marks. Her face is free of the cuts and bruises. But the tattoo remains. She can hear the sound of the tattoo gun in her mind.

Yes, Lucy has many tattoos, but those were of her choosing. This was another violation—something inflicted upon her. Lucy tries covering up, but the foundation sticks to her shirt.

And, yes, there are makeups out there that can cover up tattoos. Being the daughter of a makeup artist, I know way too much about it and have seen mother in action covering an entire chest full of tattoos for a shoot. That's not the point.

The point of this scene is to remind us (and Lucy) that this can't be covered up. It's on her. It's permanent unless she has it burned off.

"When can she have it removed?" "Four weeks. Two days. Nine hours."

Her mind is on it all the time. She knows it down to the hour. Doesn't sound like someone who's healed to me. But, duh. That's the whole point of the episode.

"Hey, so what's your plan?" "For what?" "Officer Chen. I'm sure you've got some Alpha strategy to get her back on the horse, so, what is it?"

Let's be real. Tim would be Tim, but he wasn't going to be his harshest self on her first day back. He wouldn't be capable of it. But Nyla doesn't know that.

"So basically get her into as many fights as possible." "I'm gonna remind her that she's a cop, not a victim." "She knows that she's not a victim. Look, Chen doesn't need to fight. She needs to make peace with the voice inside of her head telling her she's never gonna be safe again."

I wish someone had asked Lucy. Looking at this situation, they're both coming at it from the wrong angle for Lucy. Tim's going for how he processes and Nyla's going for how she does. Neither of them asks Lucy what she needs.

Look, these are characters who are going to do what's in-character. For the scene and the arc, this has to go this way. But as a person who has had a lifetime of people thinking they know what I need and making it a thousand times worse, I have a personal response to this.

But in character? Both Tim and Nyla want what's best for Lucy and think they're the one to give it to her.

"Okay, I've been training Rookies a lot longer than you. I know what she needs." "That's ego talking. What happened to Chen is every woman's worst fear." "I'm aware of that." But you have never lived that fear."

That stops Tim. Because she's right. Part of Tim's arc in Season 1 and 2 with Lucy by his side is discovering his subconscious biases. She forces him to think beyond what he thinks he knows.

And here, he's facing that even without Lucy present. Because she's opening up his mind to seeing past his own limited perspective.

"It's clear that you have her best interests at heart. I am just asking you to consider whether she might be better served by someone who has been through what she has been through."

This is a lot for Nyla to offer. A woman's experiences are not owed to anyone. But she chooses to give him this insight into why she really believes she's the best person to help Lucy through.

And Tim's listening. He's really listening to what she's saying.

"And that someone's you." *nods* "Okay. I'll tell Grey to make the switch."

I love Eric Winter's choices on this. He's reacting not only to the information that Nyla just shared, knowing that she doesn't want apologies or empty words from him. He didn't do it. But he's sorry it happened. He's face to face with someone in uniform who, like Lucy, thought they were safe with someone when they weren't.

And he's thinking of Lucy. The last thing he wants to do is hurt her, to make this harder, to set her back.

Lucy At Roll Call

She pauses outside the room. Much as she wants to get back at it, this is a point-of-no-return morning. She doesn't want special treatment. She doesn't want weird glances. She doesn't want whispered words.

She doesn't want the damn applause.

"Congratulations you survived but you're branded by a serial killer and still processing the emotional trauma and we want you know that we are all talking about you, and looking at you, and thinking about you."

Damn it.

"Welcome back, Officer Chen. How're you feeling? Can't wait to get on the streets, sir, just get back to normal." "We're going to mix things up a bit. You're going to be riding with Harper this week."

What. The. Fuck!? Lucy just said that she wants to go back to normal. Riding with Nyla is not normal.

Lucy looks back to Tim for confirmation and he nods. But she's still confused. She's on-edge. She didn't expect to come back to work straight into a Tim Test, and that's what this feels like.

Everything that she wanted for transitioning back to work is going wrong.

"I'm not interested in chasing tame calls today."

Because Tim needs to process his way. Look, he in no way went through what Lucy did. Not at all. But he's still carrying his guilt and frustrating, and he needs to channel that into something he can do.

Tim is a man of action, and since he can't take action to help Lucy through her re-acclimation, he's going to do what he needs to do to distract him from worrying about her—his job.

"So why the switch?" "Tim felt you'd be better served riding with me." "Yeah, right. This has to be some kind of elaborate Tim Test that he roped you into." "Do I strike you as someone who could get roped into anything? Especially by Bradford?"

Note the switch from "Tim" to "Bradford". Nyla was trying to keep it conversational at the beginning, but the second Lucy calls out perceived pliability, Nyla snaps back to put Lucy in her place.

"Fair enough. So, I'll ask you again, why the switch?" "I convinced him that I would have more insight into what you were going through and could therefore be more helpful to your re-integration onto the streets."

Look how Lucy recoils. Much as Lucy loves talking things out, she doesn't want to talk about this. She doesn't want to have to think about what she's been through while she's out here. She wants normal.

"Did you go on a date with a serial killer, too?" "Uh, no." "Well, then I'm not sure how much help you'd be. But it's fine, 'cause I don't need any help. I've already worked through the trauma using both cognitive and exposure therapy combined with mindful breathing and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing. So, it's, it's fine."

Of course, we know Lucy's far from fine. But this isn't what she wanted. She didn't want to have special treatment. She didn't want to be pulled from working with Tim. Frustrating as he is, he's familiar. That's normal.

And Lucy's gone through all the Psychological steps she thinks will help her be fine. It's her blind spot, truly. Because she seems to think there's a point where you're just "fine" and don't need to process anymore.

No, that trauma will come up, again, we know. But right now she doesn't want to face it. She's trying to pretend her way to being fine.

"Need backup for a felony car stop." "You sure?" "Hell, yeah."

Everyone's surprised to hear her voice. But she wants to get back at it. She doesn't want to feel different. It's bad enough what she has to deal with in her head. At the Station, she's a Rookie, yeah, but she's a cop.

And the more I look at this episode the more it feels like Lucy and Tim have traded spots for a day. Normally, Tim's the one who doesn't want to talk and would rather bury himself in the job. And Lucy's usually the one second-guessing.

But Tim second-guessed himself this morning and let Nyla have Lucy. And everyone wants Lucy to talk, but she'd rather get in the action.

"You want me to do the paperwork?" "Oh, nope."

Tim always has Lucy do the paperwork. She wants to do what's familiar, what's natural, what's practiced. "Please let me be normal".

"That was a nice job out there." "Thanks." "So you're just not gonna let me help you at all." "I don't need any help."

Look, we all know that she does, but not like this. Nyla wants so badly to help Lucy, but if Lucy isn't ready, trying to push her like this isn't going to change anything. It's going to push her further inward.

"Did you get the flowers we sent?" "And the basket. Thank you."

Lucy really has some lovely people in her life. And look at her genuine appreciation for Abigail, here. Baskets are one of Lucy's love languages, and she nailed it.

"What the hell is this? I let you run around with Harper for half the day and you start hugging people on duty?" "Don't listen to him. He's all bark."

Tim is being his grumpy-ass self and Lucy's smiling like the sunshine that she is. This is what she thought she'd have today. This rhythm to which she's already grown accustomed.

Yes, Tim gets under her skin and pisses her off. But she knows him. She's used to him. The Tim Tests come when she least expects it, but she knows to expect that.

While there are many mysteries left to this man, he's been her biggest constant during her Rookie year. And it's nice to get to talk to him.

"All bark? She is not buying what you're selling." "Because I don't hold her fate in my hands."

They're teasing. We're to the point in their relationship where they can tease one another, and you can see how comfortable Lucy is in this.

Apart from the action, this is the most comfortable we've seen her all episode.

"Heard you dodged some bullets." "Yeah, a few. What, are you keeping tabs on me?"

The discomfort is back. Because even Tim Fucking Bradford is acting different around her. There's a softness to him that she's never seen before directed at her. Yes, she's seen it... but not with those eyes directed her way.

"Look, if you need anything, you let me know."

Finally, someone asks what she needs. All day, people (including Tim) have been making assumptions about what she needs. But here Tim is truly putting her first and trying to see if there's anything he can really do.

"You got a time machine?" "I wish I did."

Because he'd go back and take back the decision that fed her to the lion. Yes, we all know it's not Tim's fault. But he still feels like it is. And this is what Lucy really wishes she had—not some remedy or quick fix... that it never happened.

"You're not gonna shower?" "Uh, I'm gonna do it a home."

Because she doesn't want the stares. She doesn't want the questions. She doesn't want the reminder.

She's wearing concealer under her shirt because she doesn't want to see the thing. And she's tired of the comments and special treatment. Lucy wants to go back to normal.

Now, we can already see from this episode that "normal" isn't really possible. Relationships have shifted. Lucy is not the same woman she was before. Yes, she'll open up parts of her that shut down over time, but she'll never be who she was before that night of carefree drinks gone wrong.

But that's what Lucy wants in this moment. Normalcy.

"Oh, but you're not going home."

The hell?! She was just abducted and now you won't let her go home? Sorry, but that was my gut reaction watching this.

"We have plans. Girls' Night." "Oh, I get it. You've seen that I'm find on the job, but you're still not convinced." "We just thought it would be fun." ... "It's... you guys have just never asked me out before."

Think of how happy Lucy was that she was getting invited to something normal!? And with these two bad-ass women!

Lucy spends so much of her time in the first two seasons with Jackson and Nolan that we rarely get to see her with the other women of the Station.

She was going to get to have a night out with two women she trusts—something safe. And she had just relaxed into that when they pulled this shit.

Look, I'm salty at these two. I love Nyla and Angela's my number three on the show. But this was a terrible idea. Nyla was critical of Tim throwing her into work, but she's throwing her into the dating pool.

And it's no wonder Lucy was triggered. She isn't ready to date, again. And that's fine. She should be able to get out there when she is ready.

But we all experience the world through out unique lenses and experiences. And a very real mistake we make is assuming because I need it this way, you do, too.

I have twin sons. When they were 9 months old, a friend handed down a toy to us. You throw a ball into the toy and it makes a noise. Ta-da! One child giggled uncontrollable. They other screamed and broke down in sobs.

Different people react differently. They need different coping mechanisms. They need different healing paths. When we try too hard to homogenize treatment, we miss the opportunity for true healing.

And part of the problem here is the utter lack of communication. Nyla has hinted to Tim what she went through, but she hasn't given Lucy any indication.

Now, Nyla doesn't owe Lucy her story. But she has chosen to help Lucy, and it would be a helluva lot easier to get through to Lucy if she communicated with her.

"Hey, Lucy had a bit of a moment last night when we were out."

Tim. Is. Pissed. Angela can tell that's all it took for him to be ready to go into Tim-Mode on someone's ass.

"It's not a big deal. She's fine." "What the hell is Harper doing?" "Helping. Don't get all 'Tim' on me. I just thought you should know." "Lucy's okay?" "She will be." "Alright. Thanks for letting me know."

Angela is the only one who knows about Tim's guilt. She's the only one who knows the weight he's been carrying, blaming himself for what happened to Lucy. She's the only one to know he has a growing soft spot for her.

So she does the right thing and gives him a heads-up.

And note how it's always "Lucy" when he's talking with Angela in these episodes. With Nolan, it's "Chen" because Nolan is not Tim's friend. But Angela's his best friend, and he can let his guard down a little when it comes to her.

Nyla Shares Her Tale

We already said that Nyla doesn't owe anyone her story. But by keeping it from Lucy, Lucy was pushing her away. She truly thought it was another outsider with outside opinions trying to force her to be okay.

Hearing Nyla's story, she is finally able to see her differently. There's a beat right after Lucy says, "I'm so sorry," where Melissa O'Neil shifts her gaze from cynical to sisterly—Lucy sees herself in Nyla.

For the first time since she's gotten out of that barrel, there's someone who isn't an outsider who truly wants to help.

"I shut down. I didn't even tell my husband. I kept telling myself that I would deal with it when I was ready." "But with every passing week it just got worse." "Maybe I pushed you too hard last night. But I know what it is like when you do not face things head-on."

Look how Lucy has shifted. Because Nyla can relate. Lucy was pushing so hard against her from the get-go that she missed the signs on this.

She was so focused on pushing everyone away and keeping everyone out that she missed that Nyla wasn't another outsider looking in with "expert" opinions on something they know nothing about. Nyla really does know.

"You and Chen are close, right?"

"I used to be inside her on the regular, so, yeah." I'm sorry. I had to. It was the first thing that popped into my head when I watched the scene.

"How's she doing? I mean, really doing?"

Because Tim is in his phase of needing to know how Lucy is, but not being the one "in the know". He's still her TO, and going directly to her for information is outside his code. But he can't help worrying. Lucy matters to him.

"She's good. Really. I think she'll be better once she gets that tattoo removed. Can you imagine that? Walking around every day branding by the worst thing that's ever happened to you? " "You think because it's physical, it's worse? Tragedies always leave scars. Only some of them you can see."

Again, this is about perspective. Some people are visual learners. Some are auditory. Some learn by doing.

I have a weird quirk of my brain that a memory is stronger for me if I can see a photo of it. Yes, I have other memories, but I can almost transport back to the moments in my photo albums since I've had decent memory. Visuals are important for me.

To Tim, it doesn't matter if it's visual or not. But Lucy might be different. Seeing that every day might mean more to her than it does to him. He's not considering that.

Seriously, as a former Communications student (two degrees in it), this episode is a masterclass in personal bias and intrapersonal vs interpersonal communication. In the moments of actual connection there's communication that's clear and concise.

Throughout the episode, everyone is making choices that are complicating matters. They're trying to do what's right, but they're doing it without clarity.

Nyla gets through to Lucy best when she talks to the woman in an open and honest manner. Same with Tim, later.

But, I'm skipping ahead...

A Punching Bag

Remember how I said Tim and Lucy have switched places this episode? In the same place where Lucy once offered Tim perspective (on his learning disability) and a gift (the book on tape), Tim will have his moment.

Lucy wipes her face without thinking, and Tim gets a glimpse of the tattoo. It flusters Lucy as she turns. She doesn't want to talk about it.

He's come down here for a reason. After spending all day asking others about her, he needs to see her for himself.

He wants to say something, too, but he's second-guessing. Ever since he pushed her toward a serial killer, he's been second-guessing where she's concerned.

"You got no quit in you, do you, Boot?" "No, sir. I get that from you." "I don't think so. You walked in the door this way. It's what makes you so aggravating."

He's teasing her. This is their rhythm. They've found it and they've earned it, and she's been stripped from it when she really wanted something familiar.

"I'm taking that as a compliment." "It was meant to be. You have a good night." "Yeah, you, too."

Tim turns to go, shoving his hands in his pockets. As he does, his fingers graze the ring... her ring. The ring he's been carrying around because it's tangible. It's something he can hold onto and remind himself that it's true—Lucy lived.

He turns around, no longer second-guessing. He has something to say, and he can only hope she hears him.

"You know, I got half a dozen scars. Bullet wounds, knife wounds, broken bottle. Then there's the ones you can't see, Isabel's addiction, a dad who would tune me up on the regular. And whether I like it or not, they're a part of me."

I can't remember him talking this openly about the trauma of Isabel's addiction before. But, he's in the Lucy role, today. He's talking things out while she's taking it out on a punching bag.

"I know what you're trying to do. And I appreciate it, but this is different. I was tattooed by a sadist who etched my day of death into my skin." "Okay, but you didn't die. Okay? You lived. And now he's the one in the ground."

Lucy sighs, because here's another outsider telling her what to do and how to feel.

"I'm not trying to tell you what to do with it. Okay? Burn it off, keep it, whatever gives you peace."

That's a little better. Lucy starts listening at that. Because, everyone's trying to push her in a direction, and he makes it clear that that's not his intention. He's not trying to push her to do or be anything.

"All I'm trying to do is give you some hard-won perspective."

If this was Pee Wee's Playhouse, we'd all have to scream because "Perspective" is the word of the day. Because each person's perspective has been an obstacle, today. Each person's perspective has been a roadblock.

But Tim's being very clear that he's offering only that—his Perspective. And, remember, Lucy cares very much what Tim thinks of her. She cares how he sees her. She doesn't want to let him down.

"You can choose to see that tattoo as your greatest failure. But I see it as proof that you're a survivor."

"You're so strong," he'd whispered when she started breathing, again. She might have been too overwhelmed at the moment to ever remember that, but we do. He recognized her strength and ability to survive right then.

This isn't lip-service. This is Tim Bradford being completely honest about how he sees Lucy.

"It wasn't your day of death, Officer Chen. It was the first day of the rest of your life. And no one can take that away from you."

There it is. No, this isn't going to "fix" the pain that Lucy's feeling. It's not going to make the trauma disappear. It's not going to erase the memories. But this mind-flip of that tattoo is powerful.

Because Caleb made her say aloud what that tattoo meant. He told her that it was for her, for her perspective, for her to own up to what he said it meant.

And here's Tim Bradford, a man who Lucy respects and trusts, helping her look at it from a different angle.

And isn't that what Tim does so well? Lucy even calls him out on it later in the show... He's the king at coming at things sideways and seeing another angle.

What he's saying is, "YOU, Lucy, get to decide how you look at that tattoo." She's spent so much time looking at it from Caleb's perspective that she didn't consider there was an alternative.

"Thanks." "Yeah. You're welcome."

Tim shoves his hands back in his pocket, and they both let the moment pass, easily. He said what he needed to say, and she heard him. Now, they can move forward.

"You riding with me tomorrow?" "Yes sir." "Good. Get in early. War bags need restocking." "Okay."

Tim pulls the ring from his pocket and tosses it to Lucy before she can register what it is. As she opens her hands, she sees it—her ring.

The ring she tossed off her hand in hopes that someone would find it. And Tim did. He found it. He found her.

"How did you find me?" Lucy asked from her hospital bed. Now, she has the answer.

Lucy looks up at Tim in awe and surprise. He smiles at the ring at her hand, and then back at her. He'd been carrying it around for a while because he didn't yet have Lucy back. Yes, she was at work, but not riding with him.

Tim once talked to Lucy about finding something tangible to focus on instead of the intangibility of nuclear disaster. Yes, he was being figurative, but I don't put it past him to take it literal. Lucy is back, but not back with him, yet.

Tomorrow, she'll be in his Shop. And now he doesn't need something tangible to hold onto to remind him that she is coming back, because she'll be there. By his side.

This is theirs. Tim told no one how he found her. She told no one that she'd dropped the ring. Only Tim and Lucy know this part of her story... of their story.

*phew* this one was emotionally exhausting. It took a week of work. But, I hope you enjoy it. It's heavier than most, but I think it's earned.

I would argue that Tim and Lucy are already on their way to friendship at the beginning of this trilogy, but the events that happen expedite it, and also solidify their trust of one another.

Tim respects the hell out of her. He knows what she's capable of, and now he's seen it for himself. Yes, he's going to be tough on her, again, when he's ready. And, yes, she's going to be pissed at him, when she's ready.

But only Tim and Lucy know who they are in the in-betweens. When the cameras aren't rolling on their chests and nobody else is listening in—like this ending scene. This is theirs.

And as they move forward in their relationship, there are all these touchstones, these pillars that shifted things that they can look back on as guide posts or stepping stones that at the time seemed small, but proved essential to their journey.

And, oh, I can't wait to see where it takes them next.

As always, thanks for reading.

#Chenford #Lucy Chen #Tim Bradford #Melissa O'Neil #Eric Winter #The Rookie #Meta #tw abuse #tw assault #tw rape

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