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riathedreamer · 3 years

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Zero is Null

A discussion of Zero’s love-hate-relationship with RvB and struggling independence; including a hotdog too big for the bun, tragic backstories, a single bow-chicka-bow-wow, and a cookie at the very end.

Welcome to what will be a lot of text. Basically, it will explore why Zero fails as an RvB (with emphasis on RvB) season. I will not be the first one to bring forth some of the points, and I promise to be fair and civil and fun. This isn’t supposed to be a piece of hate – in fact, I’m writing this because I love Red vs. Blue.

Okay, first of all, to increase your fun – take a guess on just how much of Zero is spent on fight scenes. You see, I’ve calculated the exact amount, and I will reveal it later, but for now, take a guess and remember the number. Maybe you are the winner!

Alright, time to share my thoughts. Wait! Since I suffer from anxiety and have this one annoying voice pretending to be all those critical statements my opinion could be met with, let’s give it an actual voice and address the points throughout this review.

“Why would I care about your opinion, Ria?” – I don’t know, you’re the one who clicked Read More.

“Your opinion doesn’t matter!” – Of course, it doesn’t! Geez. Do you think your opinion matters, though? Listen, we’re on Tumblr, the actual equivalent of screaming into the void. And it’s fun, too!

“If you don’t like it, don’t watch!” - *activates Uno Reverse Card* “You can’t talk about something you haven’t watched!”

“You’re just a Hater” – Actually, this is a point I’ll come back to. Like a cliffhanger. Also, at the end of this, there’ll be a cookie. But this will also include me talking about the stuff I like, because, surprise, Zero is not without talent!

“You just don’t like it because the Reds and Blues aren’t in it!” – Actually, that’s a good point, so instead, this review will start with a sole focus on Zero and discuss the problem that lies within that story. Then we can address why the lack of OG cast is understandable and problematic and weird.

But first! Backstory.

When the first 5 second teaser dropped back in spring (you know, when we were young and innocent and the world didn’t feel like an apocalyptic movie yet), I held onto that one image of what I thought (hoped) to be Grif and Simmons in the sunset, hopefully addressing Grif’s hateglue arc, but boy was I wrong because a) that’s not Simmons, that’s Sarge, and b) the image was from a PSA since the Reds are not in Zero.

Actual face-reveal of me below:

Admittedly, when I heard that the Reds and Blues were not going to be the main characters (or even show up), it felt like a gut punch. However, I actually found myself getting excited due to the creators’ hype. I want to praise them for this. It’s been a while since an RvB season was talked so much ABOUT before its release; it had advertisements, it had creators and voice-actors talking about it. Please. More of that in the future. Their passion rubbed off on me, and that deserves recognition. So it pains me that this was clearly a passion-project, and then when I gave it a try, I didn’t want to touch it again for weeks.

Here’s the thing. I cannot whole-heartedly say that Zero is bad. It’s not gonna melt your eyes. It’s not even so-bad-it’s-good. For me, it’s meh. It’s a Saturday-morning-cartoon aimed for a younger audience with a rushed plot and clichéd characters. The problem is that it calls itself RvB, and with that title comes something to live up to – but more importantly, something to continue.

My main issue is that Zero forces its story into existence by ignoring established content rather than adjusting to it. Let’s call this for the hotdog-too-big-for-the-bun syndrome solely for the sake of the bow-chicka-bow-wow that’s coming now. Bow-chicka-bow-wow. Many of the separate issues I will dive into all add to this hotdog-issue, so I will scream “Hotdog!” whenever this is the case so we can all keep track of my argument.

You can continue the story of Red vs. Blue without the Reds and Blues. While that would personally crush my heart, it can be done. There’s a story of Red vs. Blue that can be continued. The world can be expanded, the previous actions of the Reds and Blues can be explored from another angle.

So.

How does Zero do this? It doesn’t.

I just want to make it clear that new elements can definitely be added when it comes to worldbuilding. That’s literally the point of sequels. But Zero’s settings are presented with so little grace and with no connection to previously established worldbuilding. We get Alliance of Defense and GLASS thrown in our face as very big important organizations – yet we’ve never heard of them before. A big central plot point of RvB is the UNSC and Project Freelancers, and those were introduced naturally with the plot. We already have big established intergalactic organizations. What is AOD’s connection with those? We aren’t told. We are just told they exist and expected to accept it, no questions asked. If this was a whole new world and story – fine. But when you need to build on an already established worldbuilding, you need more grace than this. Chorus was a whole new setting, but it was explained, and it was connected to the previous plot. Same with Iris. Same with Desert Gulch. In Zero, it feels lazy. It feels forced. These organizations are just there because the story is built around them (HOTDOG).

This vagueness when it comes to wordbuilding is also reflected in the settings - we have a desert, a training base, a lab, temples, Tucker’s workplace, and we do not know if all those are set place on the same planet. If that is the case, what is this planet’s relationship with Chorus? Is it Earth? And most importantly, what is the deal with the temples? Why are they connected to Tucker’s sword if it isn’t the same planet. Are they made by the same aliens? Are people okay with this? Why haven’t these temples been explored before? Chorus makes sure to establish this, while Zero doesn’t, adding to a growing amount of confusion.

Okay, so no connection with previous worldbuilding. What about characters? I mean, we got Wash and Carolina and Tucker! So we have RvB characters, it gotta be RvB! Technically – yeah. But it feels dirty. These three characters are not here to be characters. They are here to be props to the new cast. They are not given any development. Their presence isn’t even that important, and if this was a whole new show, they could easily have been replaced with an unknown face. Worst of all, they feel miswritten.

Carolina and Wash are working at a new military organization? Leaving the Reds and Blues behind? To help people? First of all, fucking bad idea, Carolina, the last time you left the Reds and Blues alone, they changed the timeline. But most importantly – Carolina and Wash just joined this new super elite military organization? After being mistreated and manipulated by such an organization in the past?

Carolina is there to introduce the characters. That’s it. We are force-fed their personality by having her literally read out loud their personality. There is no gentle introduction to the new cast. We are not allowed to get to know them naturally. Why show when you can tell, huh? That’s Carolina’s role. That’s why she is there. To introduce the cast and explain their story. That’s it. (HOTDOG).

How about Wash? He is there to get beat up and be a damsel in distress so that the new cast has a reason to explore the plot. Oh, and that brain damage that was the consequence of previous seasons – gone now. The guy who literally has trauma from having an AI explode inside his head is fine with having a computer inserted into it instead. Because that’s needed. To explore his brain damage wouldn’t work now when his role is to be a prop to lure the new cast for one episode and then be put onto the bench for the rest of the runtime (HOTDOG).

And Tucker – he is there to die for a second and have his sword taken from him. That’s literally it. And for the few moments he is there, he feels like old super flirty Tucker, which erases the character development he went through in previous seasons. Okay, so Tucker dies, and then not dies, and then he is put on the bench with Wash where they can sit and talk or whatever (‘cause holy shit, the new cast is not allowed to that), because he isn’t important. The sword is. Tucker is just a prop, even more than his sword is (HOTDOG).

Damn. Wash gets beat up. Tucker gets beat up. Dies. Gets his sword taken away. Almost seems like a Red’s wet dream. Sorry not sorry, Blues, you were done dirty.

So there are miswritten old characters. Even worse is the retconning. The plot needs a “normal” Wash, so, bam, magic computer solution. Never mind Wash’s trauma and character traits. Never mind the logic of the new worldbuilding which also includes a character suffering for years to heal an illness. But the brain damage that was such a big consequence that it became the main part of the plot of the last two seasons – gone. I mean, a gunshot to the head can be healed by CPR. That’s canon. But no one gave Wash CPR so it’s a big thing, okay. It was canonically a big thing, and Zero erased that. This is not me saying that a Cerebral Enhancer couldn’t work in the RvB universe. Imagine it being done right. Wash struggling with the choice of getting used to his disability or accepting the possibility of help - at the cost of reliving his trauma. The struggle between what to choose - what should he choose when he wants to help as many as possible, the sacrifices he thinks he has to make, the way it could have been used as a part of his character growth. But in Zero, the enhancer isn’t a part of Wash’s character. It’s there so the story can work without having to deal with the previous plot’s consequence (HOTDOG).

Same with the sword thing. They sorta explain it by having Tucker flatline, but it’s weak. Honestly, I find it sorta offensive. What about Locus’ sword as well? It’s twisting previous lore to make the new plot work (HOTDOG). (Also, are we not gonna talk about the ultimate power being Spencer Porkensenson’s helmet? Have the writers forgotten Spencer Porkensenson? Have we as a community forgotten Spencer Porkensenson?)

If you have Red vs. Blue in your title, you cannot ignore what you inherit from it. You need to respect the worldbuilding, the established characters, and the previous plot. Zero does not do this.

Let’s talk about the Triplets. No, really, let’s do it. I don’t think I’ve ever talked about them before, because season 14 was a mixed bag for me (that I have now learned to appreciate. Thank you, Zero.) because I have heart at the size of the Grinch and can only love a few characters at a time, and that did not include the Triplets. Can’t even remember their names. Well, I can, but I can’t for the love of me remember which state is which, and my tongue is twisted every time I try to say Ohio, Iowa, and Idaho, and I know it’s on purpose. I know it is. And it got me good. That being said, the fandom actually embraced them really, really well! Seriously, I’ve seen more content for the Triplets than for Zero as a whole.

Why talk about the Triplets? (Was Iowa the lesbian? Or was it Ohio? Fuck.) Because like Zero, they introduced new characters with a story of their own. The Reds and Blues didn’t play a role. But here’s what I feel like the Triplets got right. They didn’t change the settings to force their narrative. They used stuff already established (Project Freelancer), added their own story as a continuation of that. They even included old characters in the beginning (Wash and some other Freelancers) but it felt natural and it didn’t feel like it happened at the expense of the old characters. Wash’s writing felt natural, and his presence wasn’t needed to tell these new character’s stories. He wasn’t a prop to them. He was there to establish the setting and to establish the relationship with these new characters, and then he and the other familiar faces (helmets??) left, and we as the viewers were left with these new characters. And the new characters told their own story by themselves. It felt like, hey, here’s something you know – remember Mother of Invention, and remember Wash’ lower rank, but now, try to imagine being even lower rank than him, aren’t you curious about those fates? Now let’s hear their story! It was new, it was something else, but it didn’t wreck what came before it, and it stayed true to the classic vibes of RvB.

As I said before, the hotdog-issue is my biggest problem with Zero. It infuriates me. I will return to this. But there are more issues, even if we try to look past the title-related problems.

If we try to imagine Zero as its own story and universe (as it should be, in my opinion), it still earns the meh review from me.

These isolated issues include awkwardness, the writing, lack of self-awareness, and pacing. First of all, holy shit, this is a tell, don’t show. Nothing is subtle, nothing is allowed to develop. It’s like the show thinks you are six years old with an attention span of a goldfish. You are not just led by the hand – they have literally pulled off your arm by the end of the show. We are force-fed every bit of information, every bit of personality from these new characters.

The voice-acting is a mixed bag for me. Sometimes it’s pretty good, sometimes it’s not. Some of the problems can definitely be blamed on the dialogue that you can only do so much with. It’s not good. I can’t remember any good jokes (the one joke I really appreciate was the cast on armor, and that was freaking visual humor. That was so RvB. Kudos to that. It was fun. More of that, please.), and RvB is known for having memorably good lines. This is a show built on good, clever, funny dialogue. Zero does not deliver. You have to sit through clichéd lines – “You’re not my dad”, “I trusted you”, “Come with me”, “It can’t be!”, “She’s way too powerful”, and “We have to do this together” – performed unironically. I cringed more than I laughed. Worst thing is that Zero could be a good parody. Sometimes, it feels like it is. One-dimensional characters, a villain wanting ‘the ultimate power’, very overpowered characters, bad one-liners, etc. But Zero takes itself seriously, and I was one of the people rooting for Jax to show up at the end and yell “Cut”. That would have been a funny-as-fuck twist. A spin-off parody. If I can’t have “Sarge the Movie”, I would have taken that and loved it. I would have forgiven everything. “We put so much info into finding that power, but we had no idea what it was” is really a line in the finale, and I cannot believe this is real in a show that somehow still tries to present itself as serious. What a plot.

We have to talk about pacing. God, first of all it should be stated that RvB is a mess when it comes to pacing. I honestly get what they were going for. Sometimes, RvB has come across as a bit boring when you get three episodes stretched over three weeks without much going on. I know season 11 did not have the warmest welcome because it was seen as boring until the finale. But when you see season 11 as a whole, as a movie, as a part of a trilogy, it works so well. Zero is more focused on being episodic. They want something to happen all the time so we will stay tuned. The thing that will happen – a fight. Oh god. The fight scenes.

I have done the math. I have run the numbers. I deserve a freaking cookie for this. Are you ready?

If you put all the episodes together, you have a runtime of 106 minutes. HOWEVER, with the introduction of credits in every episode, you gotta account for this. Removing the credits, this gives us 94 minutes of actual runtime. Out of that, 45 minutes are dedicated to fight scenes. That means 48% of the show is fight scenes.

If I wanted that many fight scenes, I’d watch Death Battle. Except the actual RvB Death Battle episode has a runtime of 20 minutes, and out of that, 5 minutes is dedicated to the actual battle. For the people who hate math – that’s 25% of the actual runtime.

RvB Zero has more fight scenes than a show called Death Battle. Take that in.

The pace suffers from this. Where’s the time to explore the characters? Where’s the time for good dialogue? All I can think of is this:

I get that RvB is a show that’s literally making fun of itself by acknowledging all their characters do is stand around and talk. I get that you want characters to do more than that. But for the love of Church, would it kill the new characters to stand around and talk? For just a minute? Stop fighting, I am begging you, stop fighting! Am I a pacifist now? Am I purple? Have I joined Doc’s team? What has Zero done to me?!

The good thing though is that fight scenes are very good. They’re entertaining. However, they seem to deconstruct themselves when we need to get a fight scene in every episode. Usually, the few fight scenes in an RvB season were in some of the most climatic episodes. In Zero, I can hardly keep up with the pace because they won’t stop moving. Fight scenes aren’t plot. They aren’t character development. You need more than just fight scenes. They entertain, but there’s a limit to that.

Noël Wiggins, the co-writer, stated the inspiration was a Saturday-morning cartoon. They nailed that vibe. If that was their goal, hurray, they have accomplished something! Because of the poor plot and constant fight scenes, it feels like you could just switch on the TV and drop in at any moment and let yourself be entertained by the cool and colorful soldiers punching and kicking each other. I will admit that the fight scenes entertained me. But they don’t make it a good season.

If I were the six-year-old with the attention span of a goldfish that the show believes I am, I honestly would enjoy it. The stiff dialogue and the constant tell-don’t-show makes you feel like an audience that’s not supposed to do anything else but admire the flashy fight scenes. I miss the cleverness of RvB. I miss the characters I get to connect with as I see them grow.

I miss the tone of RvB. Because this isn’t RvB to me.

It’s not that RvB hasn’t changed its tone before. Holy shit, I sorta do want to experience the absolute shock the RvB fandom went through when s6 aired and they were given new characters and serious plot. I would have loved to experience that, but I was too busy being ten years old. The Freelancers seasons also introduced a new tone and more fight scenes with very talented fighters compared to the Blood Gulch gang, but a balance was kept by having half of the season still revolving around the Reds and Blues. But Zero – Zero is so much change. And it’s on purpose. At least this has been made very clear from the beginning.

They constantly seem to appeal to new fans, rather than be directed towards older fans of the show. If you want an entirely new audience with a season with a new cast, new worldbuilding, and new tone, I’m confused as to why they don’t just make a new show. The hotdog-problem begs for this solution. This story and environment and characters feel so out of touch with the original RvB, that with a few rewrites and lack of Halo-armor, it could just be a new show. Problem solved.

If not this, then present it as a spin-off. In all ways, it feels like a spin-off (again, see everything marked HOTDOG). But the creators refuse to do this, and I don’t understand why. I could forgive many of these issues, had they officially separated themselves from canon.

Ah, what’s the idiom? You can’t both swallow and blow? (You can hear the Bow-chicka-bow-wow in the distance). Something about eating cake and having it. Forgive me, English isn’t my native language. POINT IS why are you calling yourself RvB while actively fighting against the core essence of RvB? In my humble opinion, you can’t be both. Marketing it as a spin-off would have granted it some defense when changing, well, literally everything, and I just, would someone please properly describe why it isn’t a spin-off? Isn’t this season marked by its association with the plot of RvB rather than a continuation of it? Zero presenting itself as not a spinoff feels like a toddler clinging to the hem of its mother’s dress while forcefully running away from her, ripping the dress in the process.

When they do connect with the original RvB, it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth. When they let Carolina, Wash, and Tucker appear for a moment, it feels like luring viewers in with the RvB title. Look at me. Look at me! I’m not saying this is the case. I say that it gives me the annoying vibes of being lured, rather than letting the characters be a part of the show for their own development, rather than having RvB in the title to continue its story. I should not be getting these vibes at all. But I am.

If you want to use RvB in the title, something from the core of RvB needs to be embraced. Things can be changed. They should. Something new should be brought in. But there’s a limit to how much you can change and replace and twist until it would have been better with an original show. As a season of RvB, it should tell the story of Red vs. Blue.

From my perspective, Zero fails to do so.

It pains me that the old cast has been replaced, but as stated earlier, a season could have worked without them. However, I do not like the take that one should be excited about all the new characters. That it isn’t a big thing that the OG cast got replaced. That we should just deal with it. Just, try to imagine another show suddenly replacing the main characters with characters we’ve never met before. Imagine RWBY suddenly only focusing on a new team of huntresses with the previous main characters reduced to an Easter Egg presence, or Camp Camp suddenly being about a new team of campers, no warning given. Can you imagine the outcry? So maybe let’s agree that a replacement of the main cast is a big thing and should be addressed and it’s valid to be upset about this change.

Could Zero have worked? It’s hard to answer this. How can I accept something as RvB if the season actively pushes away the core of RvB aside for an isolated story that could have been told in any other media? As a spinoff, I could have ignored it. To enjoy Zero, I have to fully separate it from RvB in my mind, and then it’s alright. S’not good. But it’s not bad. It’s entertaining enough. I really ended up liking Raymond and Tiny, and there were a few good jokes, and the fight scenes were admirable (but too much) and I love the creators’ passion. But it’s not RvB. I also wish that the new characters had been attached to previous worldbuilding, for example soldiers on Chorus or agents from Project Freelancer. That way we could build on familiar lore which would have decreased the confusion and added a much needed connection with the previous seasons of RvB.

God, the anxious voice is back (by the way, it sounds like Tutter from “Bear in the Blue House”).

“You’re racist” – I hope not. Literally, I do not want to be. Tell me if I’ve ever crossed some lines, because I swear, that is not my intention, I will apologize and most of all, change and do better. I included this because I’ve seen this take thrown around in the big ugly mess that is the fandom clashes regarding Zero. And racism is problem within RT community (this includes AH and RvB, sorry, I just use RT as an umbrella term for the latter), and I’m not saying it hasn’t been a problem with this season. Writers should never be harassed, and never-fucking-ever because of their skin color, and voice actors shouldn’t be treated like they are responsible for the choices of the show. But I was legit nervous to post this review, and I hope it’s been factual without feeling like personal attacks on the creators because that has never been my intention. I was delighted to hear about the diversity behind this project, and Torrian’s passion legit blew me away because it’s been a while since I’ve seen that for an RvB project. I’d hoped for it to be good, and when I feel disappointed, it’s for the reasons stated in this analysis. That said, Zero is made by a diverse cast and it’s made with love, and both of those things are so, so great, but it does not mean that Zero cannot be criticized. It can, and it should. It’s a product, just like all the other seasons, and fans are allowed to discuss it – both what they loved, and both what they found troublesome. And to repeat previous points, and be respectful, always, fuck racists, and never-fucking-ever harass the staff behind a season, what the fuck is wrong with you if you do this.

“Don’t you get it, it’s different because it’s trying something new!” – Hey, remember the philosophical question: if you replace all the parts of a ship one-by-one, is it still the same ship when you’re done? If it doesn’t include the Reds and Blues, if it ignores previous plot, if the old characters feel miswritten, if it values animation over dialogue, if it values fight scenes over comedy, if it wants to be Fast and Furious instead of Red vs. Blue – is it still Red vs. Blue? Because it doesn’t feel like it to me.

“It's been 17 seasons, it’s time to let the Reds and Blues go so someone else can shine!” – I simply do not understand us having been with the Reds and Blues for 17 seasons should be an argument to let them go, rather than be an argument as to why their absence hurt like hell.

“The Reds and Blues ran out of things to do!” – Did- did they, though? I mean, if we were discussing pretty much any other show, I’d probably agree that they were running out of content. But for the Reds and Blues… I think the PSAs nailed it this year! I’m not kidding, I had more fun watching the Reds and Blues discuss how to do laundry than watching Zero. You could literally give me an hour of the Reds and Blues trying to bake a cake or clear a gutter or simply settling down with an ordinary life, and I would trust them to make it worth the watch.

“The flaws were due to the fact it’s only 8 episodes long!” – Look, I can only judge a product the way it’s presented to me. I cannot come up with excuses for it. If they had 8 episodes to work with, they need to come up with a plot that works with this runtime. Seriously, this excuse cannot work when 48% of the season is spent on fight scenes. They could have used more runtime, sure, but the show needs to be able to pace itself and be planned accordingly.

“The OG cast couldn’t be a part of this year, hence Zero!” – That might be true. But. Would one year without RvB kill it? Is Zero necessary? Again, I just can’t judge excuses for the show. But trouble with the cast has been an issue before. Season 15 solves Geoff’s sabbatical by actually making Grif’s absence a part of the plot. Zero’s lack of Reds and Blues just feels like this excuse to tell a story that needn’t be a part of RvB.

Am I a hater? I guess? I greatly dislike Zero for the critique stated above. I do, however, not harass the creators and no one should ever do that. However, I have to admit that I feel there’s been this weird rejection of any critique of Zero where everything’s been brushed off as haters gonna hate, including the critique stated above. And I think that’s a problem because critique, as hard as it can be to hear (and I know this. I’m an author of original works. Weird flex, I know), is valid and necessary and shouldn’t just be shrugged away. As always, both sides of the fandom should always be respectful, but my own opinion is that addressing the flaws of Zero should not be controversial.

Does this super long rant/critique/whatever mean you cannot enjoy Zero? Gods no! I almost envy you if you enjoy this season, but holy shit, feel free to love it and tell the creators that you love it! Me pointing out the issues I have with the season shouldn’t be stopping you. I loved (and still love) s15 when it came out, and it was majorly rejected by the fandom. There were many, many critical posts, people were going on about how RvB should have ended with s13, and it evolved into the writer receiving death threats (me, once again: never ever harass the creators, assholes). But I didn’t tell people to stop being negative. I actually agreed with many of the flaws that were pointed out, and I enjoyed the season despite this, because that is possible. We, as RvB fans, should agree that RvB, is... I mean, it’s not the greatest, most flawless of shows, but we love it nonetheless. So go ahead and love Zero. This is not a stop sign. This is my opinion that you chose to read.

Wait, I promised you a cookie, didn’t I? Well, you’re not getting one. Why? Because I’m a Red and this is my chance to piss off a Blue. As Caboose wisely said: “Well, at least I don't go around... knocking on people's non-doors... and promising them cookies... and then NOT. GIVING. THEM. COOKIES!”

Blue Team sucks.

End speech.

#rvb zero #rvb #rvb zero critical #rvb critical #rvb0 #my rvb stuff #pls dont hate me for this #this is my honest opinion that people apparantly wanted to hear #as a standalone story zero isnt totally bad #as an rvb season it is

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omgrachwrites · 3 years

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Upcoming Works:

Hey guys! Hope you’re all okay, I’m really excited about my upcoming works, so I thought I’d make a mini masterlist for you all! P.S, I’m really emo about Loki, but I have yet to watch the show so there’ll be no spoilers! Please let me know if you want to be tagged in anything, I love you all! xxx

Loki Laufeyson: both set before Marvel’s Thor

Love Never Dies- One shot - When the Young God falls in love for the first time, it’s with a mere mortal. When you fall in love for the first time, it’s with a mighty God. Loki soon learns that eons may pass but his love is eternal.

The Castle on The Hill - Series - You’re doomed to spend a life in a loveless marriage, with your childhood best friend but that doesn’t soften the blow. When a handsome but aloof wanderer crosses your path one snowy night, you fall head over heels. The heavens have brought you together but will they tear you apart?

Sirius Black:

Enough for You (Sequel to Happier) One Shot - When Lily invites you to Harry’s graduation party, you reconnect with your old classmates and an old flame. How the night ends is all up to you.

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newtonsheffield · 3 years

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Hold up ….

what do you mean only 2 more chapters of ASSD

Ummm Okay.

So there's going to be a chapter where they go on their first date, and then an epilogue set four years later!

I know you guys don't want it to ever end and maybe there'll be a sequel but for now this is it. I might have to break up the next chapter depending how long it is but maximum 3 more chapters

#a slamming screen door #kathony #anthony x kate #anthony bridgerton #kate sheffield #kate sharma #molly's asks and answers

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flamehairedwritings · 3 years

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Happiest Season Of All

Characters: Chief Jim Hopper x Female Reader

Rating: M, 18+ ONLY

A/N: Happy Holidays! Phew, it’s been a while. Here is a kind of drabble, and also kind of a sequel to Pain In My Heart? Set the year before S1, there’s no mentions of family, no use of Y/N, and it’s just a gentle, kind of angsty little story.

This story contains broken hearts, swearing, alcohol and embarrassment.

I hope you enjoy and have a lovely week!

Summary: Broken up with just before Christmas? Fantastic. The only thing that can help is returning to your home town, old friends... and an old love.

Masterlist

Please don’t copy, steal or repost my work; credit does not count.

—

23rd December 1982

‘... There'll be parties for hosting, marshmallows for toasting, and carolling out in the snow...’

You quietly hum along absent-mindedly to the cassette someone’s playing from a boombox, gazing out of the window. Usually, you’d have been annoyed but, hey, it’s the holidays.

Besides, you haven’t had much of a chance to get into the festive spirit or mood recently. With the classic Christmas song playing, the train rumbling gently and the twinkling lights in the darkness slowly growing brighter, you’re finally starting to feel it. Inhaling a breath, you lean your temple against the cold glass, your fingers lacing together in your lap as you gaze at the lights.

Hawkins, Indiana. Your hometown.

It’s been a few years since you were here for longer than a weekend but, oh, boy, this year you just need to be here. You’re retreating, you’re not too proud to admit, coming home to lick your wounds and be surrounded by all things familiar, cosy and boring.

You almost laugh. You’d left this place because it was so damn boring and now here you are, craving it. If teenage you could see you now. She’d be giving ‘that’ look which you’re told you still give to this day.

Ah, well. Time’s a bitch, baby.

The train slows as it pulls into the station and you start to gather your things while a few others around you stand and pull their bags down from the overhead racks. You pull your suitcases down as the train comes to a stop, all three of them, with their different colours and patterns. Pulling on your scarf, coat and rucksack, you haul the suitcases down the aisle as best as you can single-file, muttering under your breath as they catch every few steps against chairs.

The wheels clatter onto the concrete of the cold platform when you step down, one suitcase twisting onto its front and tangling with the others as it nearly falls from your hand. Muttering under your breath again, you right it and continue walking down the platform, two small groups of people reuniting having to part for you. Making eye contact with a grateful smile, you’re relieved you don’t recognise any of them; you’re really not in the mood for your own reunion right now.

“There she is!”

Well, just the one.

A smile spreads across your face as Karen Wheeler trots down the platform in her heeled boots, grinning and her arms open wide. The suitcases drop from your hands as you throw your arms around one another, rocking from side to side slightly.

“Oooh, hello, sweetheart,” Karen murmurs, pressing a big, wet kiss to your cheek.

“Hey, Karrie.”

Your smile lingers, and it’s the first genuine one you’ve had in a while. Karen has worn the same perfume since high school and it puts you at ease instantly. God, you just love her. You talk on the phone every other week and have done since you moved out of Hawkins; she’s been the most consistent friend in your life and you love her with all your damn heart.

“C’mon, give me those, let’s get out of here, it’s freezing...” Pulling back, she takes two of the suitcases from you before you can protest and starts striding down the platform.

You have to do a quick little jog to catch up with her, marvelling, not for the first or even fortieth time, how she can go so quickly in those heels. It’s a short walk to the exit, made shorter by Karen’s pace, and she’s parked right outside. Wonderful. Opening the trunk, you both bundle your suitcases in, tossing your rucksack on top of it, and then do a speedy little walk to the doors, yanking them open.

“Oof, coldest winter we’ve had in years,” Karen shivers dramatically in her seat as she rubs her gloved hands together before buckling her seatbelt.

Buckling your own as she eases out onto the road, you blow out a breath. “Yeah, definitely feels that way.”

“So, how was the journey?”

“Oh, the usual, long but fine. It was a lot emptier than I expected.”

“Well, we keep hearing there’s gonna be a blizzard, so some folks have come home a little earlier.”

“Well, that’s smart.”

“Yeah. Means I keep bumping into people at the store that I wish I could avoid, though, and on the street.” She snorts as she glances at you. “Ugh, I bumped into Peggy Dawnes the other day, remember her? She would not stop talking about her perfect life on her perfect farm with her perfect husband and her perfect kids and her perfect lawn. Well, there were ten bottles of wine in her cart and I know for a fact her mother doesn’t drink and her perfect husband only likes neat whisky, so, there.”

“Oh.”

You cringe internally at your short reply, but you really can’t think of what else to say. Karen glances at you again, pausing. You look over at her and find the sympathy you’ve only been able to hear during the last few weeks. She reaches over and pats your knee gently before returning her hand to the wheel.

“Oh, sweetheart... How are you doing?”

You release a breath, raising your eyebrows slightly. “Better for being here, already. But, y’know...”

She gives you a sympathetic smile as she pats your knee again. “Don’t worry, toots, like I said you can stay as long as you want, it’s no trouble at all.”

You return her smile, relieved that you find you don’t have to force it. “Thank you.”

“No worries.” Her smile widens as she tilts her head. "The kids are looking forward to having you with us, you know how much they love you. It’ll do us all some good.”

You don’t ask about Ted because you know not to.

“I can’t wait to see them, too. How have they been?”

You gaze out of the windshield as she tells you how Nancy and Mike are doing at school and how many words Holly can say now, your eyes flitting from house to house. Decorations are out in full force, as they should be, they’ve probably been up since the 1st of the month, and it makes you smile to see them, remembering how you and Karen would go from house to house when you were younger and rate them out of 10 candy canes.

Ah, the simple life.

She’s still chatting about Mike and his friends when she turns down onto their long drive. It’s lined with various Christmas lawn ornaments, most lit up. Lights line the inside of some of the many windows of the house, too, making it look gorgeous and cosy and warm. A curtain is yanked back suddenly and Mike’s face appears, grinning. He waves frantically and you smile instantly, waving back with your eyebrows raised.

My favourite, funny little kid.

He’s already at the wide open door when Karen parks, still grinning. Unbuckling your seatbelt, you open the door and step out only to have him nearly slam into you before you can straighten, hugging you tightly.

“You’re here!”

You laugh, wrapping your arms around him just as fiercely. “Hey, buddy. You okay?”

“Yeah. C’mon, I wanna show you this book I got...” He’s already out of your arms and waving you towards the door, which Karen is muttering about the heat being let out of.

Chuckling to yourself, you help her with your suitcases and rucksack, feeling vastly different to how you did ten minutes ago; they never fail to raise your spirits. Nancy greets you as you enter, smiling widely and also ready for a hug. You give it gladly and just as fiercely as you had with Mike, asking her how she is. She shrugs and just says “Fine,” with a smile as you remove your shoes and coat, and you marvel at how she’d once been as talkative as Mike when she was younger. You hear the boy himself calling from the basement, telling you he can’t currently find the book but it’s around here someone and you’re gonna love it! You follow Karen up the stairs to the guest room with a wide smile, calling back your thanks to him.

Passing walls lined with family photographs, it’s a short walk down the hall to the room you’ll be staying in for... well, who knows. Karen opens the door with a trilled, “Ta-da!” and you laugh as you take in the sight before you. It’s completely decked out in Christmas decorations; tinsel on every bit of furniture, snow-globes on the window sill, a polar bear stuffed toy on the bed, fairy-lights around the headboard. You’d roll your eyes at the excessiveness of it if it wasn’t so damn sweet.

“Wow, it’s like Santa’s Grotto in here...”

“Eh, close enough, I wanted fake snow on the ground but Ted vetoed that idea pretty quick.”

You snort, hauling the suitcase you’re carrying onto the bench at the end of the bed and dropping your rucksack onto it before sitting on the bed, your fingers running over the blanket Karen’s mother had crocheted. Nancy lingers in the doorway, and after leaning your other suitcases against a chest of drawers, Karen turns to her, making a shooing gesture.

“All right, go on, Nance, us hot young things need to get ready.”

“Ugh, Mom...” Nancy just about manages to stop herself from rolling her eyes as she turns away and heads back down the hall while you stare at Karen.

“Uh... Ready for what? Bed?”

“No,” Karen laughs, and you suddenly notice she’s going through your suitcase on the bench, rifling through and pulling various items out. “We’re going out, to the bar.”

“The bar?”

“Yes, the bar.”

You’re still staring at her. “Where everyone we know goes?”

Karen shrugs, looking at you like it’s the most obvious thing in the world. “Yeah, ‘cause it’s still the only good bar in Hawkins.”

“I thought you wanted to avoid everyone.”

“Eh, yeah, but... y’know, only good bar in Hawkins. And...” Oh, no, she’s looking sheepish, her head bowing slightly as she glances from you to some of your clothes she’s pulled out. “... Uh, we’re kinda having a party here tomorrow, anyway, so...”

“What?”

Her eyebrows shoot up, her hands raising. “It just kinda happened. It’s been years since we’ve had one and Ted and I were talking about it and then I saw Mary-Lou at Mike’s school and I just happened to mention it and she got so excited and then I got excited and it just, it suddenly happened.”

Your lips press together as you exhale a short breath. “Well, they were fun...”

“Yeah, they were, weren’t they?” Karen sits beside you with a nostalgic sigh, shaking her head. “We had some of the best times of our lives at ‘em.”

“Yeah... I remember the one after you gave birth to Nancy, I thought I was gonna have to take you to the hospital.”

“Ha! Thank God my Mom came over to look after her. What about the one where you set fire to the tree?”

“Oh, please don’t remind me, and that wasn’t actually my fault, you know,”

“Ha, yeah, sure, that was great...”

You both sigh together, a smile finding its way onto your lips at all the memories that come flooding back. They had been fun. You hadn’t been able to attend every one over the years but the ones you had had been so great they’d almost made you want to stay in Hawkins. Maybe... Maybe a return to a beloved tradition is exactly what you need.

Turning your head to her, you arch an eyebrow. “You didn’t think to tell me it was happening, though?”

Karen shrugs as she smiles. “I didn’t want you to talk yourself out of enjoying it before it had even happened. Same as tonight.”

“Oh, Karrie...” You huff out a breath. “... You know me too well, it’s so annoying. Ugh, I was so looking forward to just curling up on the couch, drinking and watching some of the classics.”

“I know.” She pats your knee, nudging her shoulder against yours. “And we’re gonna do that the day after Christmas, and every day that you want to while you’re here. But tonight, we’re gonna get fancy and go out and get a little bit drunk. It’s Christmas, c’moooon.”

You just can’t help but smile. “All right. All right! Fine. How long have I got?”

“An hour.”

“What—”

She’s already on her feet, pointing at you as she heads to the door. “Take a shower while I cook us and the kids something up, and then we’ll get ready. okay?”

You know you have absolutely no choice in the matter. “Okay, fine.”

“Great!” she beams, reaching for the door handle to close it behind herself. She pauses, though, resting her weight on one foot as she clears her throat. “Oh, and uh... he’s probably gonna be there.”

You don’t have to ask who she’s referring to.

Staring at her, you manage to keep your features expressionless. “Oh. Really?”

“Yeah.” She’s watching you carefully, teeth grazing over her lower lip. “He is nearly every night, apparently, according to Marian.”

Raising your eyebrows slightly, you smile. “Well... maybe he won’t be.”

“Yeah, maybe he won’t be...” She’s still watching you, a gentle smile pulling at her lips. “Shower, toots.”

“Okay, okay...” You wave your hand as she pulls the door closed, hearing her move down the hallway.

The moment you hear her heading down the stairs, you release a long breath, lying back on the bed.

Oh, shit...

Well.

You stare at the ceiling as the realisation suddenly dawns on you.

I might see Jim Hopper tonight.

James Hopper. Jim. Hopper. Hop. Chief, also now, not that you’ve ever been around to call him that.

You’d been friends since you were kids, best friends actually, at one point closer than you and Karen had been, and then feelings had developed when you'd become teenagers and then you’d taken the leap and had started dating and then...

You’d broken up.

And you’d been the one to initiate it.

And you’d done that because, well... It was because of a lot of little things. Mainly, though, you hadn’t known what route you wanted to take, college or work, you hadn’t even known what you wanted to do, but you knew you wanted to get out of Hawkins. And Hop... hadn’t known what the hell he wanted to do either, but he hadn’t even thought about it. He’d spoken once or twice about joining the military, or just starting a job, too. College hadn’t even crossed his mind. The conversation had come up and, well, it hadn’t ended well.

In fact, when it ended, that has been the last time you’ve spoken to him. As you’ve returned home over the years you’ve heard he did join the military, fought in Vietnam, came home, married, and lived in New York the same time you had. You’d been heartbroken to hear from Karen that his daughter had died, and he’d divorced and moved back home.

Now, he’s Chief of Hawkins Police and, well, you’d love to avoid seeing him at all costs. There can come a time when, having not seen someone in decades, you can’t even have a casual conversation because all both parties are doing is screaming in their heads.

Well. Like you’d said yourself. He might not be there.

Hey, as Chief of Police this is probably a very busy time of year and he’ll be off doing something.

It’s gonna be fine.

Absolutely fine.

After showering, you throw on some clean, comfy clothes and head downstairs to eat with Karen and the kids.

Holly sits at the table in her highchair, silent as ever, well, being two years old she only knows a handful of words, but she just stares at you as she has done since she was a baby. Mike talks non-stop about school and his friends while Nancy chimes in every now and then to talk about her own friends, saying names of people in her class that you take a moment or two to remember, and to mutter insults at him while he mutters them back.

Karen half-heartedly tells them to stop in between telling you what she might wear, and you somehow manage to keep up with all conversations. Frankly, it’s also quite nice after being surrounded by mostly silence for the last few weeks.

Whipping your plate away from you seconds after you finish, Karen is up and striding to the kitchen, calling over her shoulder.

“C’mon! Let’s get sexy!”

Your lips twitch as Mike and Nancy groan, the only thing they can agree on right now being that their Mom is a complete and utter embarrassment.

She practically shoves you up the stairs, trying to get you to move faster, and from then on the next 30 minutes feels like a whirlwind. She tries on six outfits before settling on her usual favourite, and changes in your room while you rifle through what you’ve brought. Luckily, even though you can’t really remember packing, you’ve brought some of your own favourites, and, after scrambling to find some shoes to go with them, she helps you decide on an old classic.

Gazing at you, her hands on her hips, she beams with delight.

“Well, look at you, huh! Fancy lady!”

You give a twirl as she whoops, and then her arm is looping through yours and she’s practically dragging you towards the door.

“Bye, guys, we’ll be back late!” she calls out, though no one answers, too busy doing their own thing.

You haven’t seen any sign of Ted and, once again, you know not to ask.

“Late? How late is late?” you ask with an arched eyebrow as she hurries you down the stairs.

“Oh, come on, not that late, we’re not gonna get wasted, we’re not teenagers anymore.”

—

“... God, I hate it...”

The stall door slams against the cubicle wall as you pull it open a little more forcefully than you had intended. Holding it for a moment, you exhale a short breath before moving towards the sinks, only swaying a little. Washing your hands, you glance up at Karen, watching her try to reapply her lipstick as neatly as possible.

“And did you hear Julian is engaged? And Andrea has a new boyfriend? Is it me or is everybody getting into a relationship?”

She snorts, rubbing her lips together. “It’s that time of year, folks hate being lonely at Christmas.”

You scoff, turning the tap off and drying your hands. “Just sleep with people, then, doesn’t mean you have to get into a relationship and hog someone all to yourself.”

She laughs, slipping her lipstick back into her bag before turning to you, a hand on her hip. “Oh, babe... C’mon, let’s find you someone to have meaningless sex with it.”

“Okay.”

The bar has been heaving from the moment you’d arrived. It usually is, but tonight the place is rammed, perhaps because of the time of year, but maybe more because, it turns out, there’s an offer on drinks, it being the holiday season and all, and happy hour has lasted more than one hour. More than two. It’s nearing three now.

Each sip has helped you relax, even as Karen gasps and points out old high school classmates, filling you in on every detail of their lives she’s learned. So far, incredibly gladly, she’s not pointed out a certain Chief.

Returning to your table, which a guy you don’t recognise has been guarding for you, as in literally guarding, he has his hands behind his back and is saying, “Nah, move along, this ain’t free...” to anyone who looks like they’re going to swoop in. At spotting you both, he grins and holds his arms out wide, gesturing at the table.

“All free for you, m’ladies.”

You’re unable to stop a smile because there’s something so weirdly charming about this absolute goofball of a man. He takes a seat beside Karen as you sit, the two of them having been exchanging small talk that verged on flirting. Heck, it was flirting. Sipping from your drink as you watch them, you feel a small, familiar twist in your stomach.

Karen is more like her teenage self when she’s with you, but when you see her with Ted, no longer Teddy as he had been in high school, and the kids, she’s Karen the mom, like she’s caged her personality in and doesn’t quite know how to bring the two parts of herself together. When she’d come to visit you once last year, you’d gone out to a bar and you’d watched her flirt with a couple of the men there. You’d thought it was harmless at first, just a bit of fun for her, she’s a charismatic lady, but then something had changed and, as a guy had held her hand, stroking it, and she hadn’t pulled away, you’d felt a twist in your stomach.

She’s gonna have an affair one day.

The thought had come to you so suddenly and so sharply that you’d shoved it away with all your might, horrified with yourself. No, Karen wouldn’t do that... Would she? Since then, you’d become more and more unsure. You’ve stopped asking about Ted when you talk because she’d just sigh heavily and spend the next ten minutes pointing out every flaw he has, how the romance has gone, how she’s tried and nothing happens. You know she’s unhappy, but you just can’t see her doing it. You hope not, anyway.

Looking away from them, you watch a few people dancing, Christmas music flowing out of the speakers above.

Karen laughs at something the guy says, and in the corner of your eye you see her place a hand on his arm.

“Oh, that’s too funny! You’re really funny... Sorry, what’s your name again?”

The man is unfazed, still grinning. “Callahan. Phil Callahan.”

He says it with such an atrocious Sean Connery accent, making Karen burst out laughing again, and it makes you smile, too.

“Oh, big James Bond fan, huh?” she says, her elbow on the table, chin in her hand.

“Oh, yeah, it’s why I became a cop.”

Your gaze darts to him. “You’re a cop?”

He raises his hands as he laughs. “Yeah, but, hey, you go on and drink as much as you want, I’m off duty now.”

Karen laughs and you make yourself join in, but your heart has started to beat a little faster.

Oh, stop it, he’s not here.

You take a quick sip of your drink again to cover the fact you aren’t laughing anymore, and then Callahan looks up, his grin widening somehow as he waves his hand frantically.

“Hey, boss, over here!”

Boss?

Boss.

The entire room seems to slow down as you turn your head and see a man, who’s stopped for a moment to shake hands with someone, with brown hair and a neatly clipped beard, wearing a brown leather jacket, plaid shirt and jeans, his eyebrows raised—

Oh, God.

Oh, shit.

Oh fucking Lord in the manger.

Callahan is slapping his hand against the vacant seat at the table, that happens to be close to you, practically shouting, “Hop’, here, saved ya a seat!”

You swiftly turn back around, staring at Karen. She’s frozen, staring at you, and for the next three seconds you somehow communicate an entire conversation with just your eyebrows and eyes.

Both of you seem to agree on fuuuuuuck.

You can’t just get up and leave, that would be the most obvious thing in the entire world. What if he doesn’t recognise you? Yeah, maybe you’ll be so incredibly fucking lucky and it’ll be a Christmas miracle and you’ll somehow have just disappeared from his memory.

Swallowing hard as you hear him move past a group behind you with an “Excuse me,” you rest your hands on the table, gripping them together.

“Hey, Callahan, where’s everybody else?”

Oh, his voice has changed. It’s deeper, rougher.

“Oh, well, Powell said he and his wife are gonna come later when he finishes his shift, and Jones, Davids and Williamson are over there, they’ve been waitin’ to get a drink for ages.” Callahan laughs delightedly, and Karen joins in, giving a slightly nervous one.

It draws Hopper’s attention and you don’t dare look up to see his expression but there’s a note of surprise in his tone.

“Karen, hey, you doin’ okay?”

“Yes, thank you.” And then she panics. “We’re just having a night out.” And then she panics more when she realises what she’s said, and that she’s gestured at you, her eyes as wide as her now somewhat manic smile.

Oh. God.

Lifting your head, you automatically smile, your features frozen.

“Hi.”

Hi.

He looks from Karen to you, and you’re suddenly subject to the full force of Jim Hopper’s gaze for the first time in decades.

Oh. God.

You can’t help it; the memories of the last time you saw him flood your mind.

“Hop’, are you even listening to me?”

He swiftly puts down the ball of rubberbands he’d been picking at on your desk, his eyebrows raised as he looks to you.

“Yeah, yeah, course I am.”

Your own eyebrows rise even higher, your hands lifted. “What, then?”

He tilts his head slightly, grazing his teeth over his lower lip. “’What’, what?”

“You weren’t fucking listening—”

“No, I was,” he quickly says at your weary sigh, leaning forward in the chair and resting his elbows on his knees, an easy smile pulling at his lips. “C’mon, just repeat the last part.”

You’d once found this all charming and endearing.

Your hands going to your waist, you exhale another breath before folding your arms, managing to calm yourself.

“What are you gonna do after school?”

Hop’ shrugs, leaning back again. “I don’t know. What are you gonna do?”

It was just the answer you’d feared, and expected. Licking your lips, you glance down at the carpet before steeling yourself and meeting his gaze again.

You can do this.

“I’m thinking of moving.”

He nods, his smile returning. “Okay, where?”

“I don’t know. New York, maybe. There’s jobs there and I have a friend there, I could stay with her for a bit.”

“Or we could get a place together.”

You stare at him, feeling your stomach twist.

“So... you’re, you’re just gonna follow me where I go.”

“Yeah.” His brow dips slightly, the smile still there, though it’s hesitant. “Aren’t girlfriends supposed to be happy when their boyfriends say that?”

“Yeah, but... What do you want to do?”

Hop’ shrugs again. “I don’t know. I know I wanna be with you, though.”

You’d once have quietly swooned at that and given him a fond smile. Now, though... You want more.

“Hop’, I don’t... I don’t wanna be one of those high school couples that just sticks together because they’re together. I want you to actually want this.”

He’s frowning again, confusion starting to set in. “I do.”

You say it quietly. “I don’t think you do.”

He stares at you, all traces of his smile gone. Then, he scoffs, leaning back in his chair a little more as he folds his arms.

“So now you’re tellin’ me what I do and don’t feel?”

“No, I just, I want you to have some drive, some ambition, not just go along with what I say and do.”

“I go along with it because it’s what I want.”

You can feel tears stinging at your eyes but your mind has also been made up.

“I don’t think it is, I just think it’s easy and safe for you.”

“Stop tellin’ me what I’m feelin’!”

His voice raising makes yours, too.

“Am I wrong?”

He looks at you like he has no idea who you are, and for some reason that really pisses you off because you don’t really recognise him anymore, either.

“Why are you pushing me away?!”

“I’m not, I—”

“Where has all this come from, then?!”

“I don’t know if I want this!”

Silence falls.

You swallow thickly as he stares at you, your voice cracking slightly.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, but... y’know, Karrie and Teddy, they... I look at them and at Joyce and Lonnie and they’re so happy, they know what they want, and they can’t wait to get married and settled down, here, but...”

“You don’t want that,” he finishes for you, quietly.

You speak after a moment, your tone matching his. “I don’t.”

“You don’t want me.”

That sends a knife through your heart because honestly? You have no idea.

Shaking your head, you close your eyes for a moment. “No, yes, I... I don’t know. I care so much about you, but... I just think we’re on different paths.”

His gaze drops as your words linger in the air. Clearing his throat, he glances up at you again.

“What if we just take a break, for a bit. Or I can come up and visit you, in New York.”

He’s just a boy, you suddenly think, your heart breaking.

Biting at your lower lip to stop it from trembling, you give a small shrug. “I think that wouldn’t be fair on us both.”

He nods slowly, his jaw moving, and you’ve never seen him this distant. Raising his eyebrows slightly, he stands.

“Seems you already had this all figured out.”

“No, no, I didn’t, I just don’t want to be unfair to you—”

“Could I have said anything that would have changed your mind?” His quiet words silence you, and you have to stifle a sob.

“... No.”

Hop gazes at you, and after several moments he nods. “Good luck with everything.”

You’d burst into tears the moment he’d left your room. The front door had slammed shut and as you’d sat on your bed and cried and cried you’d heard his car door slam, too. You’d cried for days, going between telling yourself you’d made a huge mistake, and then that you’d done what was best, that he didn’t appreciate you like he used to and it wasn’t your job to fix him and coach him through life and that... yeah, you’d fallen out of love with him.

You hadn’t just lost a boyfriend that day, though, you’d also lost your best friend.

You loved Karen but there was just something different about Hop’, something that made you feel safe and like you could tell him anything and he wouldn’t judge. As you’d moved away and the months had gone on, several triumphs and bad days had happened, and all you’d wanted to do was just pick up the phone to call him and tell him. You’d stopped yourself every time.

Then, at some unremarkable point, you’d just stopped getting that urge, and life had moved on.

Oh, it certainly had moved on.

You stare at him, trying to look without looking. You can still see the face of the teenager you once knew, though with the beard and the lines at the corners of his eyes he’s very much a man now.

God, is he a man.

He was tall when you’d known him, but is he taller now, somehow? Had he had another growth spurt in his twenties? His hands are huge, too, and he’d been confident back then but it had come from cockiness whereas now he just seems quietly so, more sure of himself.

And you have absolutely no idea what he’s thinking. He’s staring at you so expressionlessly that you believe for a moment or two he actually has forgotten you.

Then, he speaks

“Hey. Been a long time.”

Hey. Been. A. Long. Time.

Said like you didn’t once whisper “I love you” to each other and share every single secret you’d ever had.

Then again, all you’d been able to muster up was a ‘Hi’.

You’re still smiling and you don’t know how to stop.

“Yeah, it has.”

“How are you?”

“Fine, thank you, you?”

“Yeah, good. You home for the holidays?”

“Yep.”

He runs his fingers over his mouth as he nods, and oh my God, he’s attractive. Is he, or is it the alcohol?

Wanting to banish the thoughts from your mind and distract yourself, you quickly continue.

“I’m staying with Karen.”

“That’s nice.” It’s said absolutely expressionlessly. “Just ‘till the new year?”

“Uhm, indefinitely. I’m, I’m working, uh, going through, uh, I’m moving, at the moment.”

“Okay. Well, I hope it goes okay.”

Oh my God, he’s winding down the conversation. He’s gonna go.

And you’re still smiling.

“Thank you.”

Nodding, he glances at Callahan. “I’m gonna go and check in with the others, see how they are.”

Callahan just nods once, his gaze flicking from you to Hopper and back again with utter confusion.

Rising, Hopper glances from Karen to you.

“See you around.”

“Yeah, bye, happy holidays,” you answer, Karen possibly unable to speak.

His lips move slightly, possibly into a faint smile. “Yeah, to you, too.”

And then he walks away, heading for the bar. Staring at where he’d just been sat, a slightly strangled sound releases from the back of your throat.

“Oh my God, oh my God...”

Looking to Karen, a whole range of emotions are flashing across her face as she tries to find the most comforting one. She fails.

“Oh, babe, oh God, that was horrible.”

“I know, I just, I forgot how to have a conversation, my voice got so high.”

“It did, I don’t know why you did that.”

“Neither do I, oh my God...” Putting your head in your hands, you then quickly lift it after a moment, pressing your lips together as you raise your hands. “Whatever. It’s fine. Let’s just, please, move past it. It’s over, I got it out the way, it was civilised, it’s done.”

“You’re right, you’re so right, please let’s forget it. Let’s drink.”

“Yes, please.”

You tap your glass against Karen’s as she raises it, and both take a long drink.

Oh, God.

That had been... so uneventful you don’t quite know what to do with yourself. In all the times you’d thought about how this exact moment might go, you’d never thought it would be uneventful. You’d imagined yelling, or crying, sometimes even laughing, but this...

Well. It was really like it had meant nothing at all.

You don’t know why it’s getting to you so much. You broke up with him. Of course he’d have moved on and left it all behind, God, you have as well. You’ve both lived your lives, gone through so many things and come out the other side and... A break up when you were teenagers kind of pales in comparison.

Yeah. It’s all fine. In fact, you know what, you’re relieved. It’s mature. It’s done. That’s it. You don’t have to be best friends with him again, for fuck’s sake.

Lowering your drink, you don’t realise your internal monologue has played out on your face, eyes widening and narrowing. Looking up, you find Karen and Callahan staring at you.

Licking your lips, you shrug. “It’s fine. It’s fine. Who wants another drink?”

You’re out of your seat and heading to the bar before they can respond. Karen sits back in her chair as she blinks, watching you stride away.

“Can someone just please tell me what’s going on?” Callahan bursts out, his hands raised.

“Oh, God, sweetie...” Karen sighs, reaching for her drink again. “... I have no fucking clue.”

—————————————————————————————————

24th December 1982

“Ughhh... Oh, God...”

It’s not your own groaning that wakes you, but that of someone else.

Cracking open an eye, you stare up at the ceiling as the groaning continues.

Uh, my mouth is so dry...

Licking your lips, you turn your head and find Karen on the other side of the bed, her hair bedraggled and spilling across the pillow, mascara halfway down her face, lipstick smeared. Turning her own head, she looks at you and groans again.

“Am I alive?”

“I think so,” you rasp, and she groans mournfully.

“Ughhhh... I don’t even remember how we got home...”

Closing your eyes, you scratch at your forehead, trying to remember yourself.

You’d gone to the bar, drank, drank a lot, maybe danced a little, spoken with your old classmate, Jessica? Justine? and then... Oh, what was his name again...

“Callahan,” you murmur, your throat aching. “Callahan brought us home.”

“Oh, yeah... Didn’t we ask him to turn on his lights?”

Your lips twitch as you recall how you’d both screamed with joy and whooped and cheered as he’d turned on the lights, waving your arms from side to side.

You snort and she glances at you. A laugh escapes you as you think about the absurdity of it all, and then she’s laughing, too, her cackle loud and delighted.

“Oh my God... Ugh, that was fun...” she sighs, her smile lingering.

“Yeah...” you murmur, stretching your legs out.

“We’ll have fun tonight, too.” She pats your hand, exhaling a breath. “If we just... If we just sleep ‘till noon, and then we can start preparing the house... Maybe even two, it won’t take long...”

You hum, closing your eyes, and, yeah, sleeping a little longer does sound like a good idea... Besides, when you’re unconscious, you don’t have to think about a certain embarrassing event that happened...

Perfect.

You focus on the softness of the bed as Karen snores lightly beside you, already fast asleep... Yeah... the joy of unconsciousness...

—

“... Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock... Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring... Snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun... Now the jingle hop has begun...”

Adjusting a plate on the table, you straighten and blow out a breath, trying to stifle a yawn.

I really can’t handle a night out anymore.

Brushing your hands together, you turn, surveying the party that’s in full-swing. It’s only a couple of hours in but it’s already a success. People are talking, laughing, dancing, singing, eating, drinking, having a merry old time in general really. You feel more proud than you would have thought as your gaze drifts across the room.

You’d had to shake Karen awake at half one, both of you practically dehydrated and feeling not so fresh. After drinking copious amounts of water, showering, changing and finally eating, realising you were both starving, you’d flown around the house together, tidying, cleaning, cooking up food, putting drinks out and decorating. It had been another whirlwind but a wonderful whirlwind. You’d had so much fun, and hadn’t thought once about The Incident. An hour before the party was due to start, you and Karen had gotten ready, selecting slightly more festive outfits than the ones you’d worn last night.

Now, she’s in the kitchen, laughing at something a neighbour is saying, while Mike and Nancy talk in separate corners with some of their friends who have turned up, and Ted, who’d you’d finally bumped in to and greeted, was sat in his armchair, talking with a guy who looked slightly desperate to get away.

The doorbell chimes and you catch Karen’s eye, waving your hand and mouthing, “I’ll get it,”, as you’ve done so for the last few chimes.

You have to carefully push your way past people on the way to the foyer, which is surprisingly empty. Moving to the door, you grip the handle and pull it open, a smile already on your lips.

“Hey—”

You cut yourself off, pausing as you stare up at the man.

Hopper stares back at you, shoulders slightly hunched from the cold, hands in his pockets.

"Hi,” he says, glancing behind you briefly.

"Hey,” you repeat, your heart pounding.

... Whaaaaaat is he doing here?

As if he’s somehow heard your thought, he clears his throat and raises his eyebrows a little. “Uh, Callahan said we were invited.”

Oh, fuck, yes, you’d forgotten Karen had insisted he come, and you, jokingly, had said, ‘Hey, why not invite Hopper, too?’

Haha. Ha. What a hilarious joke. What a hilarious little joke that Callahan clearly hadn’t taken as a joke so it is now real.

Just as you realise you haven’t answered him, he clears his throat again. “Should I—”

“Oh, no, God, sorry, come in.” Holding the door open, you step back, gesturing with your other hand into the foyer.

He steps in, glancing at the party beyond before he turns to you as you close the door, looking up at him.

You’re staring again.

Swallowing, you point at the stairs. “Uh, coats are up here, I’ll show you.”

Before he can answer, you stride to the steps and ascend, gripping the bannister.

Ooh... Ooh, what’s happening... What am I doing...

You’ve shown the last few people up to where the coats are being kept, just in case you can’t see them out, but this is... This is rather intimate.

You hear him behind you, following you up, and you make yourself exhale a long breath to try and calm your heart.

Be an adult.

The coats are being kept where they usually would at a Wheeler party; the guest room, AKA your room. It’s one of the reasons you’ve been basically escorting people up to it, not wanting them to linger in there or have a stranger possibly go through your things.

Pushing the door open, you step in to the dimly lit room and gesture at the bed that’s piled high with coats, scarves and jackets.

“Just here, leave it anywhere.”

He stands in the doorway, hands back in his pockets.

“I’m actually not stayin’ long, I’ve got a shift soon.”

Your hands drop. “Oh. Okay...” You can’t stop a slight frown from crossing your features. “Why did you come up, then?”

Hopper meets your gaze, his jaw moving minutely. “‘cause I want to talk to you.”

“Oh.”

Oh.

You’re sweating, your fingers flexing by your side.

Okay, here we go, he’s gonna yell at me and tell me everything he’s been holding back, here we go...

Shifting his stance, he leans against the doorframe, his gaze holding yours. “Listen, last night, I... I’m sorry I left so abruptly. That wasn’t, uh... polite of me.”

... Well, that’s not what you’d expected.

Your lips parted, you gaze at him. “Uh, no, no, no, it’s fine, I, I completely get it. It’s, uhm...” You pause, swallowing. Then, you smile faintly, and just say it, your voice dropping slightly. “... It’s weird, isn’t it.”

“Yeah. Fuck, yeah, it is.” He lets out a laugh, and for some reason the sound of it warms you. “I was a little taken aback when I saw you, I was totally unprepared.”

“Oh, me, too.” You exhale a laugh, your smile easing. “I wanted to say so many things but my brain wasn’t quite connected to my mouth.” You laugh again, though it’s more nervous this time, because you know if you don’t say it now, you never will. Your tongue gliding across your lips, you raise your hands a little. “Look, Hop, I...” Fuck, it feels strange saying his name again. “... I’m sorry for how things ended between us.”

Hopper’s already shaking his head before you’ve finished, a slight dip to his brow. “Don’t be. I think it was the kick up the ass I needed, and I knew you were right. Took me a little while to admit that, but, yeah.”

“Still, I could have given us a chance—”

“We were kids,” he cuts you off gently with a light smile, shrugging. “Neither of us knew what we were doin’ or how to handle somethin’ like that.”

You snort. “I still don’t.”

A corner of his mouth lifts a little higher. “Yeah, me, too.” Grazing his teeth over his lower lip, you watch him as he seems to consider something, your cheeks heating slightly at his intense gaze. “... Stop me if I’m, uh, treadin’ where I shouldn’t, but, and I’m just connectin’ the dots here, you said you’re stayin’ in Hawkins indefinitely, is that because something similar has happened?”

You give a faint smile, pointing a finger at him as you raise your eyebrows. “Yeah, you got me. I, uhm...” Here we go... “... I broke up with my fiancé. Or, he broke up with me, actually.” Your smile widens a little more. “Good connecting, you must be a great Chief.”

“Well, I do my best.” He looks sympathetic in a way that is mercifully not pitying. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Thanks. I feel like shit every day, but, it was for the best. He was an asshole. I just didn’t want to see it.”

“How come he did the breaking up, then?”

You fold your arms, exhaling a breath. “He met someone else. Didn’t even bother to hide it or save my feelings. Just told me.”

“That sucks.”

“Yeah, it really did.”

“Still,” he nods his head at you, “you seem much better off.”

You feel a little proud at that, because, actually, you feel like a mess. “Thanks. Karen’s letting me stay here until I figure out what I wanna do. I don’t even know if I like my job anymore or if it’s just everything that’s going on making me feel like I hate it, or maybe I have hated it for a while and I just don’t want to admit that to myself either.” You catch yourself from continuing, releasing a sheepish laugh. “I’m sorry, I’m just rambling on now, you can go back down—”

“Nah, it’s okay, I like listenin’ to you.”

He says it so sincerely, holding your gaze, that you don’t quite know what to do. Biting at your lower lip briefly, you look away for a few moments, your fingers twisting together.

“Well... Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

You can hear the smile in his tone, so you look up, and God...

You’ve missed that smile.

His expression is so soft, too, so gentle and...

No, no, no, no... No, it’s just because you’re sad and it’s Christmas and—

Clearing his throat, he leans an arm against the chest of drawers beside the door.

“Y’know, I... I’ve thought about you over the years, thought about reachin’ out. I heard from someone years ago that you were in New York and I... I told myself I was gonna look you up but... I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. Didn’t know if you’d even want to see me.”

A smile pulls at your lips, your chest aching slightly. “I think I would have.” Biting at your lower lip again, you take a breath. “... I’ve thought about you, too. Sometimes I think about if I made the biggest mistake of my life in leaving you.”

He blinks, before quickly smiling, shaking his head. “Like I said, we were just kids. We didn’t know any better.”

“I know.”

You’re gazing at each other again, quietly.

Don’t.

Clearing your throat, you make yourself smile. “I’m so sorry, I should have offered you a drink, I—”

“Would you like to go out for a drink?” he asks, so swiftly that it’s as if he’d been waiting to. “So we can catch up properly?”

Staring at him, you feel something quietly ignite within you. He looks somewhat nervous, and for some reason it calms you instantly.

A softer smile returning to your lips, you nod. “I’d like that.”

One corner of his mouth lifts a little higher than the other as he straightens, his hands falling to his sides. “Good. Okay. I’ll call. I gotta head out now, sorry, I just wanted to drop by before my shift.”

He wanted to drop by... to see me.

Trying to contain your smile, you move towards him, heading for the door. “It’s okay, I’ll walk you out.”

“Thanks.”

You head down the hallway and stairs in silence, your heart fluttering wildly. You’re suddenly very aware of your body, and of his right behind you, and oh my God, when was the last time I felt this way?

Pulling the door open, you hold it for him as you smile.

“Well, I hope your shift goes okay.”

“Thanks.”

He’s stood before you, a hand in his pocket, and he doesn’t move.

Then, his other hand moves to rest on your arm gently as he lowers his head and presses a soft kiss to your cheek.

Oh, fuck.

His lips brushing against your skin makes your heart stop and every inch of your skin warm. It’s brief, far too brief, and when he pulls his head back to look at you, you desperately hope you don’t look as flustered as you feel.

Giving a slightly breathless smile, you hold his gaze. “Merry Christmas, Hop’.”

The smile he gives in return has you feeling a way you know you haven’t in years.

“Merry Christmas, sweetheart.”

—————————————————————————————————

Reblogs and comments make my day in a way I can’t describe.

Let me know if you’d like to be tagged or removed in my future work!

Masterlist

Tagged: @herb-welch, @punkpascal @davidkharboursex, @jobean12-blog, @warmbeardsandredwine, @mademoiselle-black, @scrunchinn, @flames-bring-a-ton-of-ash, @divadinag, @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan, @deepsouth, @neganslittlebae, @ashphoenix105, @alahmorah, @daughterofthebrowncoats, @letsby, @tbkc, @kiwiphroot, @ashmely, @sistasarah-sallysaidso, @unicornsandgliiitter, @lucifer-in-leather, @heyjudeinthesky, @sleepylunarwolf, @ambeazyyy, @countryfire22, @sithlordslut, @mondsafari, @norcula, @earinafae, @beltzboys2015-blog, @jinxiejenna, @justsimplevicky, @hellosupernaturaldoctor, @ginasellsbooks, @dwarvenbunnyears, @vale0413, @mrslydiaholden, @kimberliinabox, @thoughtsmeander2tumblingblindly, @allylupin, @cant-shake-this-feeling-off, @the-bitch-gotham-deserves, @warriorqueen1991, @thesurestthing, @zuni21798, @quietlovelovely, @maddieisaboredable, @windinyoursnail, @happy-hopper, @yedi16, @negansdirtygirl22, @slipperywhenwetsstuff, @my-rosegold-soul @madkskillz, @im-not-great-at-making-up-names, @sergeantangel, @bitchinsinclair, @dewy-biitch, @focusonspn, @wearethebrokenones, @sarcasm-is-my-native-tounge, @thatprettymvthafvcka, @pulplorrd, @gifsbysimplysonia, @opalsandlacemain @geordiequeen, @gothackedalready, @ayatimascd, @missaudreyhorney, @chiefharbour, @l0ve-0f-my-life, @saltandroot

Apologies to those Tumblr won’t let me tag!

#jim hopper x reader #jim hopper x you #hopper x reader #chief jim hopper x reader #stranger things fic #hopper x you #my writing #flamehairedwritings #pheeewwww #just a lil something to ease back in

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the-enby-bird · 3 years

Text

Official Dorks

So I saw this idea on someone’s blog and was like oh -heck- yeah I gotta draw this but I totally don’t have the energy to do that so just have a written story instead.

I think I saw the original post on @thosegoodbois blog?

It was something about an office au where everyone fights over the cups I can’t find the original post to reblog-

(I wrote this at like five in the morning before I had even had breakfast or anything so it’s pretty bad) (Also I started writing this and realized I have no idea how offices work-)

~~~

“Ink, mah broseph, you’re late to work. Again.” Fresh sounded tired. Ink was always late to work, but he always stayed late to make up for it. The funny thing is, if you change his working hours, he’s still late. Nightmare thinks he does it just to spite them, and Fresh honestly can’t disagree.

“Yeah sorry.” Ink stated simply, throwing his bag on his chair and starting off towards the breakroom. “Didn’t have time for coffee this morning, I hope you didn’t let the addicts drink it all.” He called back behind him.

“Loverbirds both took the day off for their anniversary and Sci called in sick. Guess it’s your lucky day.” Error shouted from his cubicle next to Ink’s.

“Why does Ink even need coffee? He's like a huge lump of energy.”

“That’s after I have coffee, fools!” Ink shouted before bouncing off towards the coffee machine.

“...There was only one cup last I was in there and I’m pretty sure Red just followed Ink.”

“Hehe, I’ll go get the camera.” Blue chuckled.

“Give me the -funk-ing cup Ink, I need it way more than you!”

“What? This is probably like your third today, I haven’t had any!”

“That’s your fault for being late! Gimme!”

“I was here first!”

“Well I touched the cup first!”

“Why the -funk- does that matter?”

Red, apparently fed up with Ink, just grabbed the coffee pot and walked out.

“Hey hey wait, that's office property!”

“Says the person who steals printer toner.”

“W- Hay, quit making false accusations!”

“Uh huh, false.” Classic muttered before snatching up the styrofoam cup, abandoned on the counter, and held it out for Red to pour coffee in.

“Hey that was mine!”

“If you liked it then you shoulda put a ring on it~” Red sang.

“Oh -funk- you, I’m going to Starbucks.”

“No you aren’t, all of you are going to actually work.” Nightmare’s deep and menacing voice seemed to fill the room.

“Uh- O-okay, s-sorry boss!” Red stuttered. He gave a tiny bow before rushing back out to the front desk.

“He stole the coffee pot.” Blue observed from his spot right behind Nightmare.

“Yes, could you go retrieve that for me?”

“Sure, sweetart.” Nightmare sighed at the nickname and pecked a tiny kiss to his boyfriend’s head before leaving, back to do whatever he does in his office. Ink waited until both of them were gone before discreetly flipping off the goopy skeleton.

~~~

This is short, but there’ll probably be a sequel

#nightberry #ink sans #office au #undertale #undertale au #underfell sans #underswap sans #undertale multiverse #nightmare sans #sans #Error sans #fresh sans #mentioned afterdeath #Poor blue never got the coffee pot back #kustard #toasty writes

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tsuki-chibi · 3 years

Text

Adrien AUG-reste Day 8 - Ignited

This story is part 5 of a series: a sequel to my Marinette March, Adrinette April, Marichat May, Ladrien June, and Ladynoir July stories; I highly recommend reading those first.

You can also read this story on AO3: Petrichor

---

“Alya made her blog post,” Marinette said after they had sat in silence for a couple of minutes. “I looked it over, but she actually did a really good job on it. It was very factual and made very little reference to you, Ladybug, or to Chat Noir.”

“I half-expected a blog post that was just several paragraphs of swearing,” Adrien admitted, and Marinette laughed a little.

“I thought the same thing considering how mad she was, but Alya was actually very restrained. I’m proud of her. Did you want to read it?”

Adrien did, but there was one thing he wanted to know more. “Did you tell her who you are?”

“I did,” Marinette said with a nod. “Well, she had kind of already figured it out because I sent her that text. So it was more like me just confirming that she had come to the right conclusion. She was pretty mad that she hadn’t figured it out sooner, actually.” She smiled slyly.

He smiled too. “Even though the miraculous magic prevented her from doing so?”

“I told her that, but you know what Alya is like. She was mad at herself anyway. She said her journalistic senses should have led her to the right conclusion.” Marinette rolled her eyes as she spoke.

“I mean, technically they did. She just needed a lot of help getting there,” Adrien said. Alya probably didn’t know it, but she’d been at a disadvantage: she had only met Marinette the day before Marinette became Ladybug. So she had nothing to measure Marinette’s post-Ladybug behavior against.

“Right? Anyway, she’ll get over it.” Marinette reached into her pocket and took out her phone. She opened up the Ladyblog and passed it over to Adrien.

He skimmed the article quickly, knowing he’d come back and re-read it alone later. Marinette was right: Alya had stuck mostly to the facts. He was relieved to notice that there was no mentions of his mother anywhere. Only Gabriel and Nathalie had been called out as Hawkmoth and Mayura. At the end of the post, Alya closed by saying that the two of them were in police custody thanks to the hard work of Ladybug and Chat Noir.

“She should’ve mentioned Rena Rouge too,” Adrien said. It was a little tempting to scroll down and look at the comments – there were over two thousand – but he decided against it for the time being. He imagined that Alya’s post had ignited quite the reaction from the city of Paris.

“I told her that too, but she said that Rena Rouge didn’t really do anything and that all of the hard work was done by you and me,” Marinette replied. “I hope that you’re okay with what she wrote. I didn’t want to wake you up to check.”

“It’s fine,” Adrien said, passing the phone back. “Thanks, Mari.”

“It’s no problem,” Marinette said. “So… what now?”

That was the million-dollar question, wasn’t it?

The problem was, Adrien didn’t know how to answer it. For so long, their only goal had been to take down Hawkmoth. He had never really put too much thought into what would happen after that – beyond hopefully knowing Ladybug’s identity, of course. But he already knew that, and Ladybug had turned out to be the best possible person.

He looked over at Marinette.

The only person he could have wanted to be Ladybug.

“I guess there’ll probably be a court case of some kind,” he said finally. “But that won’t happen for a little while. They’ll have to gather evidence and all that stuff.”

“It will, but I was talking more about these.” Marinette dug into her pocket again and produced two little jewelry bags. The alternate universe Ladybug and Black Cat miraculouses were inside.

“Oh, right. We have to take them back, don’t we?” Adrien realized.

Marinette nodded. “I promised that I would return the Ladybug, and I’m sure that you promised you’d return the Black Cat. Plus, the longer we keep them here, the more dangerous it is.”

“Yeah.” Adrien frowned. He didn’t know how he felt about seeing the alternate universe versions of his parents again, knowing what he now knew about them.

“You don’t have to come if you don’t want to,” Marinette said gently. “I can use these to find my way back to those worlds.” She lightly shook the bags for emphasis. “Fluff and Kaalki told me they’ll act like magnets, because they want to go back to the world they came from. It won’t be hard.”

Tempting though it was to accept, Adrien shook his head. “No. I’ll go with you,” he said. They were partners, and it wasn’t right to leave Marinette to do this alone.

“Okay,” Marinette said, seemingly have anticipated that response. “Do you want to go now?”

“We might as well,” Adrien said, and got up.

#miraculous ladybug #adrien agreste #marinette dupain-cheng #adrienaugust #storm verse #petrichor

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sehnsuchts-trunken · 2 years

Text

it’s christmas!!! well, almost

so i have decided on a present to give to all of you and myself, too~

i’m opening requests until the 20th december!!

which means: you can request

oneshots preferences matchups what if’s a-z’s would include’s and even second parts to stuff you found interesting (yes, i’m looking at you guys who were demanding a sequel to my darkling oneshot)

for characters from all the fandoms i write for (list here)

and not only that, but there’ll be a special event, too!

and on christmas eve, if you’re lucky, your oneshot will be posted as my final masterpiece!

a little something to remember

i’m a full-time student, so i have no regular updating schedule, and in no way can i guarantee any quick reply. if your request inspires me enough, and finds its way to great length, then you can expect it to be the one posted on christmas eve and you’ll have to wait quite a bit depending on when you send your ask. the earlier, the bigger the chance i’ll have time to write and it’ll become longer. so if you ask too late, it probably won’t be posted on the 24th. matchups and preferences are the most likely to be answered quickly, oneshots will take the longest, then again depending on my time schedule and inspiration.

some do’s and don'ts

I. i will completely ignore any requests that you send in dm’s. if you want to request, use the “ask me something” section please.

II. you can always request anonymously.

III. i don’t write nsfw.

IV. you can request for fandoms not on my list - but there’s a good chance i’m simply not in that fandom, or that i don’t like writing for it, so you’ll be less likely to have your request answered.

V. you can request more than once!!!

VI. please name your preferred pronouns/the gender i should use for your request. if you don’t, that means i’ll keep it gender neutral, with they/them pronouns

VII. if you don’t (want to) put your sexuality in the matchup-requests, that’s totally okay! it just means that it’s possible i’ll ship you with any character of any gender. so if you have your preferences, please name them!

i realise i have some explaining to do, so here we go

some definitions and personal specifications, so read though even if you know the terms!

preferences are usually fandom-centred, and basically they’re a few sentences about how certain (or all) characters would react to the requested situation

matchup means you send me a little text about yourself and name one to three fandoms, and based on that I’ll ship you with characters from those fandoms

a what if is quite similar to a matchup - you type some things about yourself, name a fandom, and i’ll respond with a list of things, some more detailed, some less, that i imagine would occur if you lived in that universe

in an a-z you can request up to ten letters about a certain character, and i’ll give you words that start with those letters plus corresponding situations

a would include is a little ‘list’ about a character and - usually - their relationship with the reader (or any other requested situation) about what that scene would include

if you want to, you can of course ask me for a surprise gift! name a character, name a fandom, name a situation or a song - any small thing that gives me some indication of what you’re looking for, and then you’ll have a nice surprise when it’s posted!!

secret santa is a little event i came up with at like 3am, which i found quite cute, though i don’t know if anyone else will see it that way. until the 10th you can request all of the things that are listed above for someone else! you can send the ask anonymously or not, but either way you can write a little letter for the person you want to give a present to, and i’ll post it at the end of your finished request. add the person’s @ so i can tag them if you ask for someone on tumblr! you can also request more than once, as long as you do it for different people. if you send an ask for secret santa, please make sure you actually put “secret santa” somewhere in your first sentence though, so that i don’t get that mixed up, which will definitely happen otherwise. all secret santa’s will be posted on the 11th, some time between when i wake up and when i go to sleep again. requests on or after the 11th won’t be answered!

have fun playing secret santa-

and happy december-ing everyone!!

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doitwritenow · 4 years

Text

IronStrange Starter Kit - Master Fic Rec List for all Y’all Because You’ve been Asking and I’ve been Avoiding

Hi! All you anons and askers, I made a list!!! Hopefully some of these are what you’ve been after. :D

(Please reblog this, lol, I spent too much time on it...)

General rules: These are complete unless indicated otherwise, and end happily unless indicated otherwise. There’s a variety of ratings, as I have no qualms against smut, but I don’t usually read it outside of a larger plot. So I don’t think there’ll be many explicit stories on here. Word counts vary; I indicate general length but don’t go into specifics. What else, uh... Bold stuff is the headers and general subjects. I link the titles. Block quotes are author summaries. Enjoy!!

Okay so first off, there are a couple of Fandom Staples who just have leagues worth of good short stories, and if you haven’t read them, then definitely treat yourself to the array:

A Thousand Futures of Me and You - VisionaryGalaxy (Vishanti, what a legend, ily so much). This is a series of unconnected one-shots, each their own and covering a variety of tropes and moments and themes and AUs. They’re so fun (and/or painful and/or thought-provoking and/or tense and/or sexy)! In-character and amazing, consistantly.

Prompt Collection - amethyst-noir (Arbonne). (Also a legendary human). This is exactly what it sounds like: a series of prompt fills in all sorts of tones. You’ll almost certainly find something here that feels like it was just made for you!

Alright, onto the individual stories and series!

Long fics/series:

The of overqualified hands and pi figures series - lantia4ever. (This was my first Ironstrange story, and it is no less magical now.)

A series of one-shots, all set in the same alternate verse in which Tony and Stephen first meet following the events of the first Avengers and then continue to meet after that throughout the canon up until Infinity War and eventually beyond it. Becoming friends - and more along the way.

Time After Time - fancylances. (I love love LOVE this one. Highly recommended.)

Tony Stark is unstuck in time. Stephen Strange might just be the only person in the universe qualified enough to help.

Citizen Erased - Imagined. (This author. Just... such a wonderful, talented, stunning person who makes wonderful, talented, stunning works. This story is masterful.)

What do you do when no one in the world ever manages to remember you?

Anyone who sees Tony Stark promptly forgets he ever existed after mere seconds. When everyone he has ever cared about has lost their memories of him, he goes to Stephen Strange, possibly the only one who can help him lift the curse. But a terrifying danger is coming, and saving the world isn’t an easy job to do when no one can remember who you are.

if only the gods had mercy on us and it’s sequel a soul too deep - orphan_account. (Vishanti, this series... It’s so beautiful and emotional and heart-breaking and heart-warming. And it has so few views for so many words! One of my absolute favorites, VERY highly recommended.)

Tony Stark loved Stephen Strange. He loved him more than anyone could ever imagine. But then a terrorist group attacked the convoy. Then there was a car accident. In the middle of it all, there is tired, battered love. (And, maybe, a little bit of genius)

From the Top - lucifersfavoritechild. (Everyone reads this fic. Written by the blogger Monarch Of The Ironstrange Ship, it’s an MCU rewrite around the relationship. Very fun.)

“Stephen, if you’re . . . there somewhere . . . when I drift off, I’ll be with you again. I can’t wait.”

|| Personally, I think the MCU would be much better as a love story between Stephen Strange and Tony Stark. Don't you?

Starting from Iron Man, and going all the way to Endgame, with all the appropriate stops in between. Let's take it from the top.

UNFINISHED: Skin Deep - Mystical_Magician. (Super cool premise, and super interesting to read! The dynamic here is very fun.)

A battle that should have finally killed Stephen instead launches him into a parallel universe. Exhausted from centuries as Sorcerer Supreme, he chooses instead to explore this new world in any animal form except human. Having hoped for peace at last, he can't stand to be looked up to, to be responsible for others, to have the world on his shoulders.

If he'd hoped to avoid excitement, however, he really should have stayed away when he noticed an enormous explosion and a falling metal suit of armor as he passed through Afghanistan.

UNFINISHED: The End of Infinity - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Self rec. Very long, very slow-burn. Canon-compliant Endgame fix-it. I’m trying so hard, lol.)

In 2023, the battle for the universe has been won. At a cost no one can forget, the fight is over—for all but one. Stephen Strange has an idea. An impossible idea spanning dimensions and timelines, life and death, and the lines of good and evil. But he's played impossible odds before—perhaps he never stopped.

All that Loki wanted was to fight, one last time, for the fate of his universe. So when he finds himself fighting for another, crashing into the past, he has a few intended words for the wizard that forced him there. But not before he finds a boy. Or, more accurately, before the boy finds him.

Peter Parker had been waiting for the next mission. He just doesn't expect it to come from the future, armed with a ridiculous story demanding a ridiculous quest. And he doesn't expect not to be able to tell Mr. Stark.

Tony Stark is trying to rebuild from the Civil War, knowing that someday, something will come that he needs to be ready for. And he doesn't know it yet, but two universes are trying to rebuild around him, and that something is already here.

Seven Stones. Five dead. Two universes. And one impossible quest to tie it all back together.

UNFINISHED: Sunrise in Exile - Ragdoll (Keshka). (Another fandom favorite! And for good reason. This is really really good!)

Tony does the math and realizes their best chance to save the universe is by... not confronting Thanos on his own turf.

So he steals a wizard and a spider and a space ship. And he runs.

(Three humans and an A.I in space, the alien friendships they make along the way, and discovering how science and magic might coexist in a universe where they can be one and the same.)

Shorter plotty ones:

Out of Suffering - Mystical_Magician. (So this author??? THIS AUTHOR??? Very very good, much yes, very good.)

Stephen Strange does not like people, but 14,000,605 lifetimes of fighting and dying alongside this small group have worn down his walls. He likes them, gods help him. He might even consider them friends. It’s really for the best that they all go their separate ways once Thanos has been defeated. In their eyes, he’s barely even an acquaintance.

Now if only Tony and Peter would stop surprising him.

moros - spookykingdomstarlight. (Almost got a spot in the angst section. Very good).

There were fourteen million universes Stephen had birthed into existence and let die and, in far more than he cared to count, the visitor standing before him had become something… dear.

Shaking is Caring - mariadperiad20. (This is just STUNNING. Highly loved.)

5 times Stephen's hands would shake, +1 time they didn't.

It's Kinda Chalky - DestielsDestiny. (This one’s pretty short, but definitely worth it.)

You can live an entire lifetime by looking into someone’s eyes. His sister used to say that all the time. Stephen never gave it much thought back then. These days, he can think of little else.

Something Magic - Imagined. (Beautiful!)

There is only ever one rule that matters:

do not fall in love with the enemy.

An Idiotic Theory - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Self rec! I tried to be funny.)

His wizard has been cursed, again, and Tony's already used up his luck for the day.

(Stephen says it's not a curse. He says Tony's whole daily-allotted karma-based luck theory has minimal merit, citing the fact that Tony had come up with it while he was drunk.)

Tony really should have saved his miracle.

Love Through Time - babywarg (morphaileffect). (I love this one. It sticks with you.)

Tony discovers an old drawing of, and finally remembers, his invisible friend Stephen from when he was a child.

Alternates - doobler. (Super cool!)

After being punked by a lowbrow magician, Stephen finds himself falling through doors to otherwordly dimensions. How will he ever get home?

132 - 28ghosts. (Soulmate AU! Very fun, incorporates Stephen’s time-loop with Dormammu.)

Ninety-nine point eight percent of humans have a soulmate mark that tells them the age their soulmate will be when they meet them. Tony Stark has a mark. It's just that his is...different than most people's.

(Or: six people who aren't Tony Stark's soulmate, and one who is.)

and when the world falls (I will fall with it) - HeavenChild. (Another multichap soulmate AU. Absolutely lovely.)

Tony will give anything to those he loves.

People will take everything he gives before leaving him in shambles.

Rhodhey, Pepper and Vision have had enough.

Or the five times Tony had his heart broken and the one time he didn't.

i saw the end of the world - JumpToConclusions. (Why has no one read this fic??? It’s so good!!! Stephen knows the future since he saw it on Titan, and things grow more complex from there.)

Tony and Strange are trying to make this work, this being remaking The Avengers. ...And maybe they'll stumble into something else along the way.

Tiresome heart, forever living and dying - Mystical_Magician. (R e a d t h i s p l e a s e. The mythology is so cool and the symbolism is so beautiful and the prose is so satisfying. One of my absolute faves.)

As a fledgling crane, Stephen was too curious for his own good, and it was this curiosity that led to Eugene Strange finding and stealing away his feather robe. Trapped in human form, cruelly forged into the perfect son, not even his father's death freed him when his robe was so well hidden. He only managed to break his father's mold after breaking completely in the aftermath of his accident, and slowly gluing those broken pieces back together at Kamar-Taj, but not even magic could find what had been hidden. Enter Tony, after the defeat of Thanos.

Fluffy ones:

From The Outside - Live. (Hilarious.)

Being a sentient life-form surrounded by humanity can be hard. Especially when said humans just can't admit their feelings for each other.

Sleeping Iron Man - Golden_Asp. (Another fun one. Perfect balance of ridiculousness with a touch of angst to make it interesting.)

Stephen Strange stared at the Avengers on his doorstep, Tony Stark flung over Steve Rogers' shoulder like a sack of potatoes. "He touched something, didn't he?" "Yuup." or The one where Tony touches Sleeping Beauty's spindle, is put into an enchanted sleep, and everyone, even Rocket Raccoon, take their turn kissing him. But Tony only has one prince charming.

Doctor Ob(li)vious - lantia4ever. (One of my very favorites. So cute.)

Stephen starts getting some weird looks from the Avengers, spanning across disturbed, confused and even scared all the way to curious. He dismisses it at first until weird turns into knowing.

And knowing turns into realizing...even if the scheming teenagers had to all but paint it on the walls for him to do so. Oh wait...

Applied Combinatorics in Two-Player Games - 28ghosts. (Short and fun and full of snark.)

After a battle, Tony Stark and Stephen Strange argue about games.

“Chess is not a solved problem.”

“Has been since ‘97, Kasparov versus Deep Blue. Kasparov, 1; Deep Blue, 2; three draws.”

“Chess is a game, not a problem.”

The Courtship of Peter Parker's Father (Figures) - flyingonfeatherlesswings. (Peter plays matchmaker! Adorable.)

Peter couldn't stand to sit by while Tony and Stephen danced around each other any longer. Something had to be done.

Speaking Eyes - Vrishchika. (Not Steve Friendly. Tony is amazing in this. And Stephen is so fantastically dramatic.)

Tony has always had expressive eyes.

The Signs of Sleep Deprivation - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Another self-rec. <3)

"Tony said to put the potato in the dishwasher, so that's what I did."

Sometimes, Avengers just show up to say hi. Sometimes, they all show up at once, and Tony makes an party out of it. Sometimes, he invites the snarky, oblivious, somewhat insecure wizard because, and Peter quotes: "everyone else is coming".

Sometimes, something needs to be done.

Show Me Your Scars (And I'll Show You Mine) - Imagined. (Adorable. Lovely. Imagined does it again.)

The worst part is that Stephen keeps tucking his hands away, just as Tony wants to hold them. He keeps hiding them, surreptitiously, no matter what they’re doing. It’s only when Tony kisses Stephen, or hugs him, that he feels the hands settle on his back, uncertain, ready to pull back within seconds.

It only makes him want to cuddle up to Stephen even more, but he backs away, not sure if it’d be welcome.

Promise? Promise. - sharonscarters. (AU, kidfic, absolutely adorable.)

A four year old Tony Stark runs away from home and finds his Guardian Angel.

What The Doctor Ordered - wakandan_wardog. (Post CW. Kind of not Rogues friendly? So fun, makes me smile. I re-read this one a lot.)

The Rogue Avengers are called back to New York because the heavy hitters are going to be needed against Thanos. Of course, there are some truths that Steve Rogers will need to accept sooner rather than later. Tony Stark has moved on and Stephen Strange will not suffer fools lightly.

Hurt/Comforty ones:

Among The Chaos of The Stars (You're My Safe Harbour) - ShootMeDead. (Oh my vishanti. OH MY VISHANTI. So so so so SO good.)

Stephen has always been able to hear the stars. Tony is the only one who can silence them.

each night like a white noise frequency - Phierie. (I ADORE THIS FIC. OKAY. I LOVE IT. READ IT.)

Stephen is no stranger to making hard choices. He doesn’t regret his actions on Titan, but months later they weigh on his mind heavier than ever; the cracks begin to show.

Just An Accident - CucumbersInGold. (I really like fics with Stephen’s hands and the difficulties thereabout. Idk, just one of my favorite things. This is beautiful).

Stephen's hands act up.

Learning, Unlearning - Caaaaaaas. (More character study than anything else. Really good.)

Whatever Stephen wanted with life, life just didn’t seem to know what to do with him.

In which Stephen learns and unlearns some very important lessons.

your eyes have their silence - doctortwelfth. (Oh look it’s another scars fic. I told you I liked them.)

Tony is gentle with Stephen’s hands even when Stephen forgets to be.

Burning Lines Into The Snow - petroltogo. (Not very Steve friendly. Short and sweet.)

Post CW: It's not just the team that's so broken they are barely able to comprehend how many parts they're missing now, how many have been ripped and twisted and torn. It's Tony as well, right down to the core, the damage so far-reaching even he doesn't know how to fix it.

And then there's Strange, who has his own way of covering the cracks.

Old Bones - CJtheWeeb. (Owch. Dumb geniuses trying to be invulnerable.)

Sometimes Stephen Strange has great days, where he was nearly pain free and his hands still enough to where he could pick up a cup of water and barely spill a drop.

Today was not one of those days.

something taken, something new - meowrails. (So in-character. The premise was a little off to me, but I’m so glad I decided to read this one. I really really like this fic.)

The ChronicConnection implement and app allows a person that lives with chronic or illness-induced pain to transfer their burden temporarily to a willing loved one.

Tony and Stephen sign up as beta testers.

Angsty ones (happy ending unless otherwise mentioned):

day one - days4daisy. (THIS IS SO GOOD OKAY IF YOU READ NOTHING ELSE ON THIS LIST READ THIS).

Three days in Stark Tower. Stephen must be in bad shape if he just agreed to this.

His Merlin - babywarg (morphaileffect). (This author keeps showing up on this list because they are A LEGEND. A LEGEND I TELL YOU.)

As a child, Tony imagined himself a Knight of the Round Table. Little did he know he would grow up to be a king. And that he would have a wizard by his side to lead him to either glory or destruction.

there is no heart for me like yours - turtle_abyss. (Soulmate AU! Wonderful. <3)

Being able to feel your soulmate - a phantom touch, a bone-deep awareness - is a divine torture. To know, but not see. To seek, but not find. To feel someone holding your hand and not be able to hold theirs.

Grace - StrangeMischief. (*cries in beautiful fic* Happy ending!)

“Pain’s an old friend.”

Us...Me - StrangeMischief. (This will hurt you. So melancholy. Pepper and Tony live their life, and Tony remembers. Not a happy ending.)

“I don’t believe in happily ever after.”

One-Thousand Cranes - FriendlyNeighborhoodFangirls. (Self rec, sorry. Hopeful ending.)

After it all, a man with shaking hands makes a wish.

courtesy - deathofglitter. (Dealing with the fourteen-million futures. So good.)

Stark looked at him like he looked at the amulet that rested on his chest like a steady promise - dutiful, a bit burdened, and trying to hold a profound lack of personal emotion whatsoever, still personal enough to protect as anyone would a precious object.

La Douleur Exquise - BananasofThorns, StrangeMischief. (More pain. Pepper and Tony, and Stephen watching and trying not to wish. Very good, no happy ending.)

The before was easy. There were fewer boxes in their minds and no chains around their hearts. There was no hurt. No tears. No dreams.

But those days were long gone.

Stigmata - babywarg (morphaileffect). (AU! Soulmates again. Very interesting, beautifully done.)

Since Stephen was little, mysterious wounds have appeared and disappeared on his body, leaving mysterious scars. His mother says it's because he's one of a Pair, and he's absorbing pain meant for someone else.

*wipes brow* PHEW! That gotta a little more in-depth than I first intended... Have fun, my MysticIron friends. Happy quarantine.

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nonokoko13 · 3 years

Text

Some questions I have about characters

Hi! These are some questions I posted on Reddit. While I don't have many hopes Yanderedev would see it and reply, I'll post them here too. Let me know what do you think!

1. In a future video talking about the 1980s mode , you think there'll be some type of revelation about new characters of that time and their role in the story? And if it yes what do you expect?

2. The delinquents would have been bullied by the bullies or by someone else? Any thought of why they were "selected" by their bullies? It would be interesting to know more about the delinquents and their personal problems or reasons why each one were bullied during Osoro's arc.

3. Since there's a small chance of Ryoba having siblings, do you think any of their "senpais" would be a character related to the story mode of 1980s or the current time? For example, if Ryoba had a sister who falls for the Yakuza, she could be another way to establish contact with him if the player decides not to help the yakuza's young brother. Another idea that I have could be this: we know that Megami's aunt was in her last year of high school when Ryoba was in her first, and they never came across, either Ryoba or her senpai.

But what if a hypothetical big sibling was in the same year as her and offered his/her help to find Megami's sister after befriending her with the second intention of bonding and conquering her? In this case it wouldn't be able to interact with this sibling since in the time of 1980s mode takes place they would have already graduated and ran away together, but it could be possibility during Megami's week. Why? Well, we have the theory that Megami's aunt's sister is Fun Girl due the tapes and what she has told us; probably in the story the only way to interact with paranormal beings who live in the demon world is making a sacrifice in a place like the occult club. Maybe, after all those years of search, Ryoba's sibling has came to the conclusion that their lover's sister must be in another reality. If we eliminate Oka or many members this would end in the closing of the club and we wouldn't be able to talk with Fun Girl to know more about the complete plot of the story... unless there's another way or person who guide us. I let this here to your imagination.

Plus, Dev said he contemplated the idea of a sequel of yandere simulator with Ayano's cousin as the MC in the future. Let's be honest, it would be damn awesome if the cousin apart from eliminating rivals had a connection with the Saikou Corp. or the yakuza as plot-related to the story mode more than a aged up Senpai 2.0 as father; and if Ayano's uncle/aunt appear in yanderesim he could serve as a instructor to teach you ways to eliminate your rivals, train physically with or provide help. Not necessarily have an important or powerful character in yanderesim as parent, but a minor character or a cameo to say both stories took place in the same reality would be cool.

4. Talking about the yakuza or Megami's aunt, any names for them? There are characters without names like Ichirou's wife, and her relevance it's unknown because there's no clue if she's gonna be important in the story so it's okay, but those who are more likely to be important should have a name right?

5. There will be any possibility to join the bullies? Yeah they are mean and could have negative points if you join them but happens the same with the delinquents and you can join to any club except the bullies.

6. Any idea of how Senpai's child with each rival would be? Like the appearance, lifestyle or personality, just curious.

7. What student do you think is yakuza's young brother? Analyzing the video where it's explained yakuza's story is clear it would have been one of the old delinquents, however these were replaced. By similarities I would say Hayanari because both have grey eyes but I'm not 100% sure. Hayanari, Umeji, Dairoku, Hokuto, Gaku or someone else? Only time will tell

#yandere simulator #yandere sim #the delinquents #umeji kizuguchi #hokuto furukizu #gaku hikitsuri #hayanari tsumeato #dairoku surikizu #the bullies #megami's aunt #the yakuza #ryoba aishi #1980s mode #senpai #Saikou corp #ayano aishi #questions #yandere simulator delinquents

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chelseamount · 4 years

Text

Carpool Karaoke - Tom Holland x Reader

BEFORE YOU READ IMPORTANT

when there are songs

cursive is you

BOLD is James

and This is both of you

this story was requested by @tomsirishgirlx

---

"Thank you so much for helping me to work today the traffic is crazy" James

"yeah no problem," I say

"you wanna listen to some music?"

"let's do it"

"Are we gonna have a problem?

You got a bone to pick?

You've come so far why now are you pulling on my dick?

I'd normally slap your face off And everyone here could watch But I'm feeling nice Here's some advice Listen up beeyotch"

"I like"

Lookin' hot

Buying stuff They can not

"I like"

"Drinking hard Maxing dad's credit card"

I like

Skippin' gym Scarin' her Screwin' him

I like

Killer clothes

Kickin' nerds in the nose

If you lack the balls You can go play dolls Let your mommy fix you a snack(whoa)Or you could come smoke Pound some rum and coke In my Porsche with the quarterback (whoa, whoa, whoa)

Honey, what you waitin' for? Welcome to my candy store Time for you to prove you're not a loser Anymore And step into my candy store

Guys fall At your feet Pay the check Help you cheat

All you Have to do

Say goodbye

To Shamu

That freak's Not your friend I can tell In the endIf she Had your shot

She would leave You to rot

Course if you don't care Fine, go braid her hair Maybe Sesame Street is on(whoa)

Or forget that creep And get in my jeep

Let's go tear up Someone's lawn (whoa, whoa, whoa)

Honey, what you waitin' for? Welcome to my candy store You just gotta prove You're not a pussy Anymore And step into my candy store

You can join the team

Or you can bitch and moan

You can live the dream

Or you can die alone

You can fly with eagles

Or if you prefer

Keep on testing me

And end up like her

Honey, what you waitin' for?

Shut up, Heather! Step into my candy store

Time for you to prove You're not a lame-ass Anymore And step into my candy store

It's my candy store It's my candy It's my candy store It's my candy It's my candy store It's my candy store

"I think I just got chills there," James says as we laugh "so Y/n it's so great to have you here"

"it's so great to be here it's like a dream come true" I smile

"y/n you are a Broadway singer and actress"

(all of these musicals and movies don't really make sense with the years they were made in but just imagine that they fit the age the reader is if that makes sense"

"yes that's correct"

"so what was your first role like ever"

"ever was Jan in grease"

"really" James looks at me

"yeah I was so happy"

"that's amazing and you were how old"

"fourteen"

"wow and what was your first broadway musical"

"that was heathers as the role of heather chandler as we just heard"

"I love the heathers songs and you are still in contact with some of your co-workers right"

"right I am really close with Barret who played Veronica but we don't get to see each other too much but when we do it's amazing"

"but you two played in mean girls too right"

"right I played Regina George and she played Janis, and that was probably one of my favourite musicals I have been in because obviously mean girls was like my favourite movie when i was younger"

"yeah so what was your favourite song from mean girls"

"oh totally world burn I think it's amazing"

"My name is Regina George And I am a massive deal I will grind you to sand Beneath my Louboutin heel This is what I get for helping Helping someone lame fit in Cady Heron, enjoy your temporary win" I sing "My name is Regina George "Regina is a fugly cow." Hey Cady, how ya like me now? I wanna watch the world burn I got the gasoline I wanna watch the world burn And everyone get mean I wanna watch the world burn I got the gasoline I wanna watch the world burn And everyone get mean Cady, time to watch your back Cady, time to turn and cough Because you took me down But you didn't finish me off My name is Regina George And in case you're keeping score Cady may have won the battle But I will win the war, for I wanna watch the world burn Trang Pak is a grotsky bi-otch! I got the gasoline Ms Norbury is a drug pusher! I wanna make the world burn Janis is a space dyke! Regina is a fugly cow Regina is a fugly cow And you can quote this Ohh. Woah-oh-oh! Who wrote this? Who wrote this? Who wrote this? I wanna watch the world burn I got the gasoline! I wanna watch the world burn And everyone turn Mean So mean! Mean So mean! Mean! I wanna watch the world burn Who wrote this? Who wrote this? I wanna make the world turn So mean! I wanna watch the world burn!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"y/n you were in les misérables too"

"yes I played fantine which was amazing but it hit hard you know it was very much touching

There was a time when men were kind When their voices were soft And their words inviting There was a time when love was blind And the world was a song And the song was exciting There was a time

Then it all went wrong

I dreamed a dream in times gone by When hope was high and a life worth living I dreamed, that love would never die I dreamed that Go

d would be forgiving Then I was young and unafraid And dreams were made and used and wasted There was no ransom to be paid No song unsung, no wine untasted

But the tigers come at night With their voices soft as thunder As they tear your hope apart As they turn your dream to shame He slept a summer by my side He filled my days with endless wonder He took my childhood in his stride But he was gone when autumn came And still, I dream he'll come to me That we will live the years together But there are dreams that cannot be And there are storms we cannot weather I had a dream my life would be So different from this hell I'm living So different now from what it seemed Now life has killed the dream I dreamed

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"that literally just made me get tears in my eyes," James says as he points to his eyes

we laugh and talk for some time when the thing I have dreaded the most comes up

"so y/n I have to ask you this because everyone wants to know encluding me"

"oh no gosh I know what it is already"

"are you dating tom holland"

"oh god Tom and I are just good friends"

"really because your two have been spotted a lot of times holding hands"

"friends do that"

"sure"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Regina George is the queen bee

She's always dressed up She always wins Spring Fling Queen We're just drones that work for her And then die"James says as he turns on the radio

"My name is Regina George

And I am a massive deal Fear me, love me Stand and stare at me And these, these are real I've got money and looks I am, like, drunk with power This whole school Humps my leg like a chihuahua the prettiest poison you've ever seen I never weigh more than one-fifteen My name is Regina George And I am a massive deal I don't care who you are I don't care how you feel"

-------------------------------------------------------------------

"so y/n, let's get a little serious"

"yes" I say

"in this song, you sing 'i never weigh more than 115' but you said something in a video that Regina doesn't have to be that and that you aren't and i found that amazing"

"thank you I really don't think that she has to be that and I am not and will never be near that and I'm proud of that you should be proud of how you look"

"I love that. you're also in a musical right now hamilton"

"yes I am in England"

"so any plans for what you are going to do after hamilton"

"yes but it's a secret for now

"Okay but you play one of the Schuyler sisters"

"yes I play Eliza"

"and you're amazing in it I saw it some time ago and I love it as I wrote to you"

"it still warms my heart"

"but my biggest dream is being in hamilton but as one of the Schuyler sisters"

"mmm-hmm" I laugh

"I wanna be angelica"

"you can be James"

There's nothing rich folks love more Than going downtown and slumming it with the poor They pull up in their carriages and gawk at the students in the common Just to watch 'em talk

Take Philip Schuyler, the man is loaded Uh oh, but little does he know that His daughters, Peggy, Angelica, Eliza Sneak into the city just to watch all the guys at

Work, work

Angelica!

Work, work

Eliza!

And Peggy!

Work, work

The Schuyler sisters

Angelica!

Peggy!

Eliza!

Work!

Daddy said to be home by sundown

Daddy doesn't need to know

Daddy said not to go downtown

Like I said, you're free to go

But—look around, look around The revolution's happening in New York

New York

Angelica

Work!

It's bad enough Daddy wants to go to war

People shouting in the square

It's bad enough there'll be violence on our shore

New ideas in the air

Look around, look around

Angelica, remind me what we're looking for

She's looking for me!

Eliza, I'm looking for a mind at work (work, work) I'm looking for a mind at work (work, work) [x2] Woa-oah

Woa-oah

Work!

Ooh, there's nothing like summer in the city Someone in a rush next to someone lookin' pretty Excuse me, miss, I know it's not funny But your perfume smells like your daddy's got money Why you slummin' in the city in your fancy heels? You searchin' for an urchin who can give you ideals?

Burr, you disgust me

Ahh, so you've discussed me I'm a trust fund, baby, you can trust me

I've been reading Common Sense by Thomas Paine So men say that I'm intense or I'm insane You want a revolution? I want a revelation So listen to my declaration:

"We hold these truths to be self-evident That all men are created equal"

And when I meet Thomas Jefferson (unh!) I'mma compel him to include women in the sequel

Work!

Look around, look around at how Lucky we are to be alive right now Look around, look around at how Lucky we are to be alive right now

History is happening in Manhattan and we

Just happen to be in the greatest city in the world In the greatest city in the world!

---------------------------------

"All my dreams just came true," James says as I laugh at his comment "okay now time for something a little different"

"oh gosh," I say "what is it"

"we're going to take a lie detector test"

"nooo"

after some time I'm all strapped up while a man is on a computer checking whether I speak the truth or not

"okay let's start out by some to test if it works"

"okay"

"is your name Y/n"

"yes"

"true"

"are you currently in hamilton"

"yes"

"true"

"did you play Regina George"

"yes"

"she's telling the truth"

"Great let's start easy so...Y/n"

"yes"

"Which one of your castmates is your favourite"

"Barrett"

"true"

"great, y/n am I your favourite host"

"oh absolutely"

"true"

"yes you had to get that right, okay this one is the best one are you dating tom holland"

shit

"no"

"lie"

"YES I KNEW IT I KNEW IT OMG YES" he smiles

"no that's the truth," I say

"you can't lie on accident"

"well fuck me then"

"how long"

"not long"

"lie"

"okay five years almost"

"WHAT," James says in shock

"I'm sorry we just didn't want our relationship the get ruined by hate"

"five years"

"yeah"

"When were you going to tell everyone when you had seven kids"

"haha no I don't know when but I guess it's out now"

"well some people are going to get heartbroken, someone gets hurt"

-----------------------------

Ice queen, that's what you see It's what they all expect from me But it's all show Face it, you used me You saw the sexy clothes My supermodel pose But did you know?Was I a game to you? Was I way to be cool? I truly cared Was I the fool? It's fine for you It's fine to flirt It's fine 'Till someone gets hurt 'Till someone gets hurt

----------------------------------

"Y/n it was amazing to have you here"

"it was amazing to be here James, even tho I now have to go home to Tom and tell him the news, gosh this is so fucked"

"wait you guys live together too"

"bye James" I run out the door

--------------------------------

"Baby I'm home" I smile

"hi love," Tom says as he walks over to me and kisses me, gosh I missed him

"I missed you," I say

"I missed you"

"you love me right"

"more than anything my - wait what did you do"

"well"

228 notes · View notes

starstruckkittensweets · 4 years

Text

“The Cave” *Game of Thrones AU* (Levi x Reader)

Okay, literally no one asked for this little one-shot, but it’s been stuck in my head for at least three days now, and it wouldn’t leave my mind until I wrote it out. This feeds into my current Attack on Titan/Game of Thrones phase, since I’m rewatching GoT while simultaneously writing for AoT. It was bound to happen at some point, now that I think about it.

To be honest, I’m rather pleased with how this turned out. I don’t know if there’ll be a sequel, but I’m more than willing to write one if you want! (I may have two of them already lined up but we’ll see how this one does first.) You can blame my secret desire of seeing Levi Ackerman as Jon Snow for creating this little piece in the first place. His relationship with Ygritte is my absolute favorite in the show (it’s one of the few wholesome pairings to begin with), so I thought of a little AU where Levi and Reader act as Jon and Ygritte. I hope you enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: Some lines are taken directly from “Kissed by Fire” (3x05 of Game of Thrones). I do not own these lines, nor do I own any Game of Thrones-esque terms used throughout the story. I just thought it would be fun to include them!

Fandom: Attack on Titan Pairing: Levi x Reader Words: 7.3k~

Warnings: explicit smut, NSFW content, oral sex (both male and female receiving), strong profanity, etc. Probably some of the most romantic smut I’ve ever written...

You were drawn to him, even from the very first moment you met. For some reason you couldn’t pinpoint, you couldn’t take your eyes off of him. You didn’t know why—you had seen your fair share of Crows in your lifetime. Still…there was something about this one that told you he wasn’t like the rest.

Maybe he was attractive, you supposed, in a certain light. He wasn’t as bad-looking as some of the others—that was for sure. He had a youthful face and shadowed gray eyes. When the sun hit them just right, they shone a bright color that reminded you of the magnificent steel swords the knights used to carry south of the Wall—the same ones your father used to tell you stories about when you were younger. In fact, they matched the one he carried at his waist, with the end of the hilt styled into a fancy white wolf.

But he tended to keep to himself; honestly, you didn’t expect much more from a Crow like him. He was surrounded by free folk, people who wanted to slit his throat in the dead of night. It didn’t matter to them that he had killed one of his own and insisted on joining their ranks. While Shadis seemed to give the lad the benefit of the doubt, you knew many others would gladly put his head on a pike.

You jumped at the sound of your name, whipping your head to the side. Petra gave you a smirk, motioning to the arrow in your hands. The two of you had been fletching arrows for the past hour—but the redhead seated beside you in the snow had completed a much more significant amount than you had. Perhaps you had the mysterious black-haired Crow to thank for your distracted state.

“You’re staring at him again,” she teased, her lip curling in a playful smile. “Don’t make it so obvious.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You turned your attention back to the arrow in your hands, trying your best to ignore the faint warmth on your cheeks.

But she was persistent. She wasn’t going to let you get away that easily. On one hand, it was something you loved about her. She was a good shot with a bow, and even better with a knife. But her rampant determination was also a constant thorn in your side. More than once you had been on the receiving end of her insistent nagging—especially when it came to the men within your ranks.

“Stop being so obvious, or the others will start to notice. You look as though you’ve never seen a boy before.”

“He’s not a boy,” you replied before you could stop yourself. “He’s a man.”

“Aye, a man of the Night’s Watch.” Her voice was cool, her amber eyes twinkling in the snowy sun. “A Crow.”

“Not anymore.”

Your mouth ran dry. Why were you defending him all of a sudden? What was wrong with you? It wasn’t as though you had said more than a handful of sentences to the man—he wasn’t the talkative type to begin with. Other than your first interaction with him in the snowy fields just a few miles north of the Wall (or south, in your case), you both had done your best to ignore each other.

What did it matter to you whether or not the other warriors trusted him? He wasn’t your responsibility. You had your own problems to worry about. You couldn’t put everything on hold and watch over a baby Crow in your spare time.

But then…why were you so insistent on his loyalty to the free folk?

Petra knew you better than anyone else in your clan. She had been your best friend since practically birth—your mothers had raised you together and watched you chase each other around in the field outside your little snowy village. When you were old enough, the two of you learned how to hunt and fight, eventually earning reputations as the most efficient hunters in your village. And as Shadis sought to unite the different clans of free folk for the long winter, you two were quickly sorted with the warriors. They would need your sharp eyes and speed to take out enemies from a far distance.

You shared everything with each other, and you loved each other with all your hearts. If there was anyone who could read you and tell what you were thinking, it was Petra.

“Just stay safe,” she finally sighed, her eyes darting back down to the arrow in her lap. “You know I only want what’s best for you. I don’t want to see you get hurt.”

What was that supposed to mean? You were just as capable of defending yourself as any other man in your village. Of course you wouldn’t get hurt.

But the nervous twinge you felt deep inside told you she meant something else entirely—and it had to do with the Crow seated a few feet away from you, sharpening the blade of his sword.

The free folk were on the move again. However, when you reached the edge of your clan’s territory, he split up, taking a majority of his forces with him. He insisted on recruiting more and more clans for their eventual attack on the Crows. He was determined to wipe them out once and for all this time.

The plan was simple. A small group of warriors would act as a diversion and surround the castle from the south, catching the Crows off guard. While their attention was directed at the south, the rest of the forces would attack from the north, slipping through the underground tunnels and attacking the Crows from within the castle. It was a risky plan, but it definitely had a better chance of succeeding than the ones in the past had. Shadis had made sure of that.

But attacking them from the south meant climbing the Wall. Shadis insisted on having Mike lead the attack, taking roughly fifteen soldiers with him. Among these chosen soldiers were you and the baby Crow—whom you had learned his name was Levi not too long ago. As you departed from the rest of the forces, you caught Petra giving you a soft wave and a cheeky smile. You simply rolled your eyes, praying for the soft winter wind to cool your burning face.

The trek across the icy fields wasn’t so bad. The snow had been light today, falling from the sky in fat white flakes. The wind was more merciful than it had been earlier in the week. Another blizzard was on its way, but it would be a little while before it hit the lands north of the Wall. By then, you would be safe and sound on the other side.

Talk was scarce among the traveling soldiers, but it wasn’t nonexistent. You trailed at the far back of the group, keeping an eye on any possible enemies that could advance on your forces from behind. The only one who had taken up the job alongside you was Levi, who kept a hand on the hilt of his sword throughout the entire trek.

You weren’t scared of him, not in the slightest. You could easily end his life with one stroke of the dagger resting at your waist. You preferred small blades much more over those silly longswords the knights and Crows carried around with them; daggers were easier to handle in close quarters. With your speed and strength, you knew you had nothing to fear.

Still, you felt uneasy around him. Petra’s words rang in your ears, bringing another faint blush to your face. What had she been getting at when she told you to be careful? Sure, she enjoyed teasing you about the way you always glanced at the black-haired Crow from a distance, but that was all there was to it. Simple stolen looks, nothing more and nothing less. But despite all of that, she had made it sound as if you were interested in him in a romantic sense.

Ugh, what was wrong with you?! You had never gone all starry-eyed over a boy like this. Fighting and hunting were your main concerns, and right now, all you had time to worry about was putting an end to the Crows that lived on the other side of the Wall. You were determined to destroy each and every one of the men who had slaughtered your brothers and sisters, your fellow soldiers on the battlefield. You were determined to avenge them and prove that they did not die in vain. If anything, you were determined to make sure their sacrifices meant something in this hellish world.

You didn’t have time for a man, especially not a former Crow of the Night’s Watch.

But you couldn’t ignore the pang of warmth that hit your chest every time you gazed at the man beside you. Perhaps it was the sweet memory of your first meeting—stranded out in the snow, desperately trying to keep warm as the night fell around you—or maybe it was something else entirely. Whatever it was, you wanted to know what it was—and maybe even keep feeling it.

“Stop being so jumpy.” You bit back a laugh at how fast his head swerved to the side, his gray eyes burning into your own. “No one’s going to attack us from behind.”

“You don’t know that.” His voice was surprisingly deep for a man with such a fresh and youthful face. “And shut up. I’m not jumpy.”

You rolled your eyes, slinging your quiver of arrows further over your shoulder. “Yes, you are. You haven’t let go of that sword since we left Shadis and the others. Relax for a bit. It’ll do you good.”

He didn’t answer with words. Instead, he only made a tch sound with his lips, rolling his eyes and shaking his head at you. His hand never left the hilt of the sword, and if anything, his shoulders tensed up even more.

Keep acting like that, and you’ll give your neck a mighty ache.

“No one’s coming after us from behind,” you pressed on, turning your body and walking backwards. He watched you with cold gray eyes as you thumbed the string of your bow, sending little vibrations along the thread. “And if they do, I’ll put an arrow right through their pretty little eyes.”

He remained silent at that. When you shifted your eyes back to him, you noticed how his shoulders had lowered just a fraction of an inch. It wasn’t much, but it was a start.

“What’s with you?” You quirked an eyebrow at him, still walking backwards. You weren’t worried about falling over; you had done this plenty of times before with Petra, especially when you were younger. “You’re always so quiet… And you’re practically shaking in your boots right now. Are you scared of me, Levi?”

You tasted his name, and you were pleasantly surprised at how well it rolled off your tongue. Names given to those south of the Wall were deemed inadequate and unnecessarily fancy, especially those belonging to high-ranking lords and ladies in the far south. But Levi’s was different. It was short, easy to say in a rush, and not too fancy at all. In fact, you were inclined to say it suited him rather nicely.

But you weren’t going to admit something like that out loud.

He scoffed at your assumption, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword. “I’m not scared of you, idiot. I could cut you in half right now.”

“You might find that hard to do with a blade in your throat.”

You had no doubt who would win this little match between you two. You were much faster than he was—you had proven it when you had outrun him a few days ago, right after he had captured you with the rest of his Crow friends. You could end him once and for all right now, without any hesitation on your part.

But it was too much fun to tease him, you couldn’t deny that. And watching him squirm beneath your eyes and huff at every word you spoke was quickly becoming the highlight of your day.

“Come on, we’re all friends here now! We’re fighting on the same side, aren’t we? The least we could do is try to get to know each other. And it’s hard to be friends with someone who looks so grumpy and miserable all the time.”

Truthfully, you were just sick of the silence that enveloped the rest of the group, who were a few feet ahead of the two of you. But conversing with Levi didn’t strike you as a horrible idea, so you decided to play along with it and see where it led you.

“I know your name, you know my name. But where are you from? Where did you live, before you came to the Night’s Watch?”

Your knowledge of the Crows was limited, but you managed to gather a few things about them while fighting them over the years. Only criminals and bastards with nowhere else to go joined up there, destined to live out the rest of their lives in solitude and agony. They weren’t allowed to start families of their own, nor lay with a woman for the night. It sounded like a horrible fate to you; honestly, a quick and clean death was preferable to a lifetime of misery. Who would want to sign themselves up for such a fate in the first place?

“None of your business, brat. Now leave me alone.”

Your eyebrows creased into a frown. Did he just call me a brat? That was a name saved for annoying children—and you were not a child. You were a grown woman, raised in the ways of the free folk from beyond the Wall. You weren’t going to sit here and take these kinds of insults from a Crow, of all people.

“What’s wrong? Don’t want to share your secrets with me? Come on, you can trust me. I won’t tell anyone, I promise.”

He was ignoring you again, and you were starting to get pissed. All you were trying to do was be nice to him, and look where that got you! The bastard couldn’t even be bothered to give you a proper answer.

“What, are you a bastard, Levi?”

His hand was wrapped around the front of your fur coat in a flash, yanking you close to his face. At the same moment, you ripped your blade from its holster and pressed it against his throat. You were grateful the rest of the group had marched on; there was no telling what they would do if they found Levi in such a position with one of their best fighters.

“It was just a question,” you hissed, pushing the blade further into his neck. Already you could see the skin around the blade flushing with a pinkish color. One clean swipe, and his blood would spill into the snow below. “No need to get all riled up.”

His eyes were dark, even with the snowy sun’s faint rays shining against them. He didn’t seem bothered in the slightest at the fact you held his life in your hands. Perhaps he was still foolish enough to believe he could gain the upper hand. Maybe that’s why he wasn’t backing down.

“My life is none of your business, wildling.” You frowned at the name; while it wasn’t exactly a slur or an insult, your kind preferred to be called free folk. That’s what you were, at the end of the day. You weren’t wild, you were simply free. Then again, you were certain he would prefer being called a man of the Night’s Watch rather than a traitorous Crow. “Now leave me alone.”

His throat bobbed against the silver blade. How easy it would be, to end it all right here and now. But you weren’t in the mood to get blood on your fur coat—it was always a bitch to wash out, and it always attracted wild animals to the rest of your ranks. It wasn’t worth the mess.

Besides, you weren’t willing to say goodbye to this mysterious man just yet. As much as it irked you, you had to admit he intrigued you.

“Fine,” you whispered, making no effort to remove your blade. “Be that way, Levi. I won’t ask you about that anymore.” You could tell it was a touchy subject, even for someone as cold and stubborn as him.

Perhaps he was a bastard. The people on the other side of the Wall were a confusing bunch… They were taught that it was shameful to be born to parents who weren’t properly wed. Considered immoral, or something along those lines—and you could never really understand why. The free folk never bothered with marriage. All that mattered was knowing your partner loved you as much as you loved them. You didn’t need a fancy ceremony to pledge your love in front of the gods. It was a private matter, but it was respected within the village. Other clans did it differently, but at the end of the day, that was one of the few things all of them agreed on.

Why shame a child if his parents weren’t properly married? All that mattered was whether or not his parents loved each other, and whether or not they loved him. Why make it all the more confusing with extravagant terms and lush gatherings? It all seemed a bit too much for your liking.

“But it’s not nice to attack your fellow free folk,” you continued, finally loosening your grip on the blade. “You’re one of us now, and we don’t take kindly to those who attack their own.”

You could see it in his eyes, how he desperately wanted to scream at you that he was a Crow, not a wildling. You weren’t an idiot; this man stuck out like a sore thumb among your ranks. Even without the constant rumors floating around the clans, it was easy to tell he still saw himself as a Crow.

He may have joined your ranks. He may have killed a fellow Crow of his to prove his allegiance to the free folk. He may have given Shadis valuable information on the men hidden within the walls of the main castle. But he was still as much of a Crow as he was the day he captured you in the snow.

Finally, his fingers loosened their hold on the front of your fur coat. You had to admit, you liked being so close to him. It was mighty cold out here, even with the thick layers of fur covering your body, and feeling the warmth of his body was more than welcome at the moment.

“You’re not a wildling yet, boy,” you whispered, sheathing your blade and stepping away from him, “but you will be.” It’s only a matter of time.

Levi could only stare after you as you turned away and headed for the rest of the group. You hid a smile as you heard him following you, his heavy boots crunching in the snow.

It was nearly sunset when the warriors decided to camp for the night, at the end of a snowy ravine. Sunsets could vanish in the blink of an eye here, and nights could last for hours on end. It was dangerous to be out here in the cold, if you didn’t have the right men with you.

Luckily, Mike knew what he was doing. He had led plenty of expeditions across the land beyond the Wall, so he was quite capable of making sure his soldiers were safe. While some men were assigned to keep watch at the edge of the camp, others were tasked with collecting firewood. You were part of this group—but as you started to leave, Mike pulled you aside and told you to take the Crow with you.

“Keep an eye on him. He seems to like you,” he added with a twitch of his lips. “Perhaps he’ll listen to you.”

You doubted that greatly, but there was a bit of truth to Mike’s decision. He trusted you to end him quickly if he posed a threat to you and your forces. If anyone could take him out in a matter of seconds, it was you.

“As you wish.” You motioned for Levi to follow you, and surprisingly, he complied without so much as a huff.

It was close to nightfall by the time you came back, your arms stacked with firewood. There was enough to start two separate fires, but you would need some more in case worse came to worse. With another nod at Mike, you headed for the edge of the ravine, closer to the forest.

But you weren’t planning on getting more firewood. The men back at camp had plenty to last them a while. Surely it wouldn’t hurt if you stole a few minutes for yourself, right?

As fast as you could, you reached over and grabbed the hilt of the sword resting at Levi’s waist. He jolted as you held it against your chest, your other hand clutching the torch you had taken from the camp.

Here it was—the final judgement. You didn’t trust him enough to let him live. It would be easier to kill him rather than trust him. Your wildling friends came first—how could you hold him, a Crow, over the lives and well-beings of your own kind?

He braced himself for the cold slice of steel against his skin. He could only hope you would be merciful enough to give him a quick and clean death, just as he almost gave you that day you met in the snow.

But it never came.

He opened one eye, just in time to see your retreating form. Rather than attacking him with it, you had ran for the far end of the ravine, still holding the sword against your chest. With a huff, he began to chase after you, peeling his eyes back against the gentle gust of winter wind. He was determined not to lose sight of you.

You held back a laugh as you slipped around the edge of the cliff, right into a small cave. It was big enough for a person to fit through—if they lowered their head before entering, of course. You tightened your grip on the sword, and holding the torch out in front of you, you pressed onward and walked further into the cave. There was a scuffle of boots behind you, and then a gentle hiss of your name.

“Come back here!”

You shook your head and climbed even deeper. The air was becoming musky and warm as you continued on your way. With a smile, you recognized the sound of rushing water in the distance. It was a hot springs cave, with a small waterfall in the back. No wonder it was so warm in here.

There was a small pool at the end of the gentle waterfall. You placed the sword and torch on a rock at the edge, just as Levi came into view. The soft flames flickered against his gray eyes, almost tinting them to a silver color.

He’s kind of handsome, in a certain light.

You tried your best to ignore your heart beating furiously in your chest. You were nervous, sure, but you were also excited. What you had planned for the two of you, you had never done it with anyone before. It would be your first time.

Silently, you wondered if it would be his first time, as well.

“It’s time you proved yourself, Levi.” You slid your heavy fur gloves off your hands, dropping them onto the rocks below. Your boots were the next to go, and you propped them against the side of the rock. “Are you still a Crow? Or are you a free man?”

His eyes were no more than silver slits, his eyebrow inching up slightly as he watched you pull at the flaps of your fur coat. But when you finally pulled them apart and shrugged yourself out of it, it seemed to click for him. His lips parted and his eyes went wide.

He spoke your name so tenderly you nearly melted. Not yet. You had to stay calm, for both your sakes.

“You swore some vows.” Your hands grasped the hem of your wool shirt. “I want you to break them.”

You pulled your shirt up and over your head, the heat from the hot springs pooling over your skin. Tossing the shirt to the side, you turned to the bindings around your breasts. They weren’t elaborate, but they definitely helped when it came to fighting and running. But they were thrown to the side as well, leaving your chest bare before the black-haired man.

He said your name again, this time in a much firmer tone. “We shouldn’t. I shouldn’t—”

“Why?” You opened your pants, keeping your eyes on his. “You scared your fellow Crows will find out and come after you?”

You slid them down to your ankles before stepping out of them completely. He swallowed tightly as his eyes trailed over your soft, naked form. You bit back a small smile at the way he chewed on his bottom lip. He was acting as though he had never seen a woman nude before.

Perhaps he hasn’t. Maybe it’s his first time after all.

He didn’t move an inch, even as you stepped toward him. Within moments, your chest was against the front flaps of his fur coat, his breath clouding over your face. You leaned in closer, the skin of your forehead brushing against his own.

“No one’s coming after us, Levi. It’s just you and me right now.”

His eyes were gorgeous in the torchlight. Now that you were so close to him, you could make out a faint shadow of blue around his pupils, almost darkened completely by the gray. You had never seen eyes like those before, not even in the faces of the Crows you had killed. He was the only one.

You inched closer to his face, touching his nose with your own. But at the faintest touch of his lips against yours, he twisted his head away, creasing his handsome face into a frown.

“We shouldn’t,” he tried again, speaking your name softly. But you pressed on, curling your hands around his shoulders.

“But we should.”

He met you halfway for a kiss, his breath hot and insistent against your mouth. His lips were chapped slightly from the wind, but you didn’t mind at all. They were soft, strong, beautiful…and they suited the man in front of you so damn well. You had to taste more of him.

He shifted himself in your arms, flinging off the fur gloves and throwing them to the ground. The rough pads of his fingers sent shivers down your spine, despite the warm air around you. You moaned into his mouth, your tongue sliding against his own, as you grabbed fistfuls of his black hair and pulled him closer.

Suddenly, his lips were on your neck—then on your chest, your breasts, your stomach, and finally your naval. You were a bit annoyed at how he was still dressed; it was starting to get hot in this cave. Surely he would want to be more comfortable.

Besides, you wanted him to show you everything he had to offer, just as you had done with him. It was only fair, right?

You sucked in a sharp breath as his lips fluttered over your inner thighs, parting your legs slightly. Your hands remained embedded in his hair as he licked the soft skin, humming with every stroke of his tongue. Already you felt a rush of warmth flood your body, pooling in between your thighs. You almost had half a mind to be ashamed—he hadn’t even touched you yet, and you were already slick with arousal.

“Levi—ah!”

You squeezed your eyes shut as he trailed his tongue over your soaked folds. A whimper left your lips as he drew himself back, only to repeat the action again. You were gasping wildly at this newfound sensation, your blood pounding through your veins.

Not once had you ever heard of a man pleasuring his woman with his tongue. If such a thing existed among the free folk, surely you would have heard of it by now—the women back at your village liked to talk about that stuff, after all. But this was a first for you, and you would be lying if you said you didn’t enjoy it.

Must be another thing they do south of the Wall. You nearly laughed at the thought. Those southerners were a strange bunch, but you had to admit, they knew their way around a woman.

Surely this wasn’t his first time. With the way he was licking at you, sucking on you clit and nearly bringing you to tears, he seemed far too experienced to not know what he was doing. And if this was his first time, he was a miracle sent by the gods themselves.

He pulled his head away from your thighs, just enough to shrug his coat and shirt off. But instead of throwing them to the side, he placed them down on the ground, creating a makeshift bed for you. With a smile, you took your place on the bundle of furs, lying on your back and spreading your legs just a bit further. His starving silver eyes never left yours as he pulled off his boots and pants.

Your eyes went wide when you saw his cock for the first time. You weren’t a stranger to seeing them at this point, especially in the summer when it was hot enough to go swimming in the nearby lakes. But he was bigger than any other man you had seen before—much bigger. For some reason, you ached to feel it in your mouth.

You were sitting up at once, shifting yourself onto your knees and gazing up at him with large eyes. “Let me.”

He looked skeptical at first, but he made no move to push you away. Taking that as a sign to continue, you wrapped your hand around his shaft and began to stroke him. He was hot and heavy in your hand, with the tip of his cock already leaking with a light silvery fluid. He groaned deep in his chest as you smeared it around the head with your thumb, putting a bit more effort into your strokes.

“Fuck,” he growled, your name echoing slightly in the cave. At least you were far enough away from the rest of the group; you didn’t want anyone to interrupt this beautiful moment between you. For some reason, you had the feeling that he didn’t let his guard down like this for just anybody.

His breath came out in heavy pants as you slid your mouth over him, wrapping your fingers around the rest of his length. It took you a moment to adjust to his generous size—this was your first time being with a man, after all. But once you had steeled yourself, you began to bob your head, humming and moaning around his thick cock.

His fingers raked through your hair, tugging you closer to his hips. He gave a gentle buck into your mouth, which only spurred you on to go faster. But then, just as you felt him twitch in your mouth, he pushed you away and yanked your chin up. The shadow of blue in his eyes had been practically swallowed by the shade of dark gray.

“You’re good,” he whispered, pushing you onto your back against the furs, “but if we’re going to do this, I want to feel you—all of you.”

You had no objections to that idea. With a soft smile, you wrapped your hands around his neck and pulled him down for another desperate kiss.

He placed one hand on the furs beside your head, his other sneaking down between your bodies to rub your clit. You hissed into his mouth as he pressed down hard on the sensitive bundle of nerves, your vision going white for a split second. When he did it again, you found yourself moaning his name.

He remained silent, but you could tell by the smirk on his face that he was pleased with your reaction. He slid his fingers further down, circling around your wet entrance. You whimpered again, arching your back and pushing yourself into his hand. But he shook his head and leaned down to your ear, his breath nearly burning your skin.

“Be patient. You’ll get your fill soon enough.”

You could only hope he would stay true to his word.

A moan slipped through your mouth as he dipped two fingers into your throbbing pussy, still pressing his thumb against your clit. You whimpered with each stroke of his fingers, driving them into you at a gentle rhythm. But it wasn’t long before he decided to pick up the pace. With every thrust of his hand, he curled his fingers upward, drawing out another beautiful squeal from your lips.

“Levi!” With everything he was doing to you, you were surprised you had enough energy to say his name. “Levi, please—please, take me…”

You wondered if any of your fellow free folk would be ashamed at how needy you were acting. You had never been with a man before in your life, always too preoccupied with looking after yourself and the rest of your village to find a lover. But now you were no more than a moaning, writhing mess on the bundle of furs, with the baby Crow towering over you.

No, not a Crow. He’s more than that, but at the same time, he’s not a free man. Not yet, anyway.

“Levi,” you whined again as he slid his dripping fingers from your heat, “please… I want you.”

For the first time since you had met him, you saw his gray eyes soften. “I want you, too.”

He lowered his hand once more, wrapping his fingers around his hardened red cock. As he dragged it along your folds, coating it in your essence, you threw your head back onto the furs below. When you tilted your head, you found him staring at you, the flames from the torch flickering in his dark gray hues.

“Ready?”

How sweet of him to ask. “Yeah, I am. You?”

He gave you a nod, humming his approval. Finally, with a deep breath, he pushed himself into your tight heat.

Your arms curled around his back instantly, pulling him in as close as you could. Tears pricked your eyes, but you blinked them away before they could fall. You would be damned if you were caught crying in front of him like this. It was just a bit of pain; surely you could deal with it and move on. After all, you had suffered much worse wounds in your lifetime.

He groaned into the crook of your neck, his hips stuttering against yours. He stayed there for a moment, allowing you to adjust to his size. Now you were certain this wasn’t his first time with a woman.

Who was his first, then? Was it a highborn lady south of the Wall? Or was it a commoner? Was it one of those women who sells their bodies for gold?

Whatever. You would have plenty of time to ask him about it once this was over. Something told you that, after tonight, things would be different between you two—but for better rather than worse.

Your name flew from his lips in a gentle whisper as he buried his face into your skin. When you gave him a comforting squeeze to his shoulder, he reeled back his hips and pushed himself inside you again. With each soft and careful thrust, the pain in your lower half started to ebb away.

When it was no more than a dull ache in your abdomen, you began to buck your hips into his. He seemed to get the hint; almost at once, he started to pick up the pace. You wrapped your legs around his waist, and your nails dug into his muscular back. You nearly sobbed with each harsh thrust, wave after wave of pleasure flooding through your body.

“Levi,” you moaned into his ear, “I’m…oh, fuck, Levi—”

You could barely speak. Through your blissful state, you felt his lips pull up into a smirk against the skin of your neck. The bastard—he was enjoying this a little too much.

You started to tremble beneath him. The waves of pleasure coursing through your veins were becoming more pronounced with each thrust. You threw your head back, chanting his name as though it was the only word you knew.

He was getting close, too. He snapped his hips into yours at a brutal pace, eliciting squeal after squeal from your lips. When he finally lifted his head from your neck, he silenced you with a harsh kiss, his tongue tracing over your own.

You screamed into his mouth as you came, your walls clamping down hard on his cock. Pure ecstasy washed over your body, leaving every inch of your skin tingling. Your eyes fluttered shut, your arms tightening around his shoulders.

Through your lustful haze, you barely registered Levi breaking away from your kiss, curling his arms around your back and lifting you off the makeshift bed of furs. He pulled you against him, burying his face in your neck as he felt himself reach his peak. It only took one, two, three more thrusts before he groaned into the crook of your neck, his hot seed spilling into your pulsing sex.

Your chests heaved against one another, your heavy breaths mingling together. As slowly as he could, he raised his head from the crook of your neck and met your eyes with the tiniest smile he could muster. You let out a breathless laugh before pulling him down for a quick but gentle kiss.

You were still a bit sore, even after he pulled out of you and slid next to you on the furs. The two of you lay side by side, staring up at the rocky roof of the cave. The crashing of the waterfall filled the air between you, giving you a strange sense of peace.

You didn’t have any regrets about what had just transpired between the two of you. If anything, you felt pleased with yourself—satisfied, almost elated. You knew you were far from being in love with the man beside you, but perhaps with time, the two of you could fix that. You just needed to get used to each other a bit more.

But something was nagging at you, in the very back of your mind. With a huff, you propped yourself on your elbows, turning your head to face him.

“That thing you did…with your mouth…” You trailed off, unsure of how to continue. “…Is that what lords do to their ladies in the south?”

Another rare smile made its way to his face. Before you knew it, his arms were around you, and he was pulling you on top of his chest. He traced a finger over the side of your face, finally stopping at your jawline and massaging the skin there.

“I don’t know,” he answered truthfully. “I just wanted to kiss you there, that’s all.”

Your face grew warm at his words. Such a proper lad, this one. I’ll have to keep him around for as long as I can. With a sigh, you leaned down and tucked your head under his chin. He kept his arms around you, shifting his head only to press a kiss to your hair.

“You were my first, Levi.”

You swallowed hard as the words hung in the air above you, heavy and ominous. Would he be pleased at this information? It was uncommon for girls of your age to still be virgins. How would he react when he heard he had been the one to deflower you just moments prior? It was a risk, but it was one you couldn’t help taking.

His chest rumbled beneath your ear. You blinked in confusion. Was he chuckling?

“You were mine, as well.”

Your head shot up from his chest, your eyes wide and your jaw slack. “But…but you seemed so… I don’t know… You seemed to know a lot!”

“So did you,” he replied coolly, tucking a strand of hair behind your ear. “I thought you’d already been with a man before, but I was wrong. I guess that makes us even then, doesn’t it?”

Yeah, maybe it does.

With your lips strung up in a cheeky smile, you threw your leg over his waist and straddled him, pressing your hands to his chest. As much as you wanted to treasure his body again, you knew you would only pass out halfway through. Besides, there would be other nights like this, you were sure of it.

“Let’s go get cleaned up.”

The shadow of blue in his eyes shone brighter than ever before. “At least you have priorities.”

You rolled your eyes playfully, pushing yourself off him. On shaky legs, you walked over to the shallow pool at the end of the waterfall. You jumped inside, the warm water lapping at every inch of your body. You let out a sigh as you felt your muscles relax and the sweat from your earlier activities slide off your body.

There was another splash in the water, right beside you. You turned your head in time to see Levi wading toward you, his eyes burning into yours. When he reached you, he cupped your cheek with one hand, pulling you close to his face.

You covered his hand with your own, pressing your forehead against his. That satisfied feeling from earlier was still as strong as ever, wrapping around your body like a pair of friendly arms. For a moment, you forgot all about the rest of the free folk, and the impending attack on the Crows. Nothing mattered except you and Levi, isolated from the rest of this hellish world.

“Let’s not go back.” The words were out of your mouth before you could stop them. “Let’s stay here for a little while longer.”

His eyes flashed, but he didn’t object to your suggestion. Instead, he leaned in and brushed his lips against yours in a gentle kiss, his other hand cupping the back of your neck. You returned the kiss, resting your hand on the side of his neck.

When you pulled away, your lips hovered over his mouth. “I don’t ever want to leave this cave, Levi.”

He didn’t answer with words; he simply pulled you in again, pressing his mouth to yours. From the way his lips caressed your own, you began to believe he felt the same way.

You knew it was only a matter of time before you had to leave. You would both go back out into the real world, ready to fight and risk your lives for the wars your ancestors had started. Hell, you knew either of you could die at any moment. Once you stepped outside this cave, there was a good chance neither of you would be able to live to see the next full moon.

But for now, you didn’t care about any of that. The rest of the world could burn, for all you cared. For now, it was just you and Levi, wrapped up in each other’s arms in the little shallow pool at the end of the waterfall. And as long as you had him, you knew you would be okay.

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