#nothing else on it outside and we went upstairs and it was like a rly small but rly. cosy? interesting? book shop and there was this guy w | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

theres-an-impulstor-among-us · 3 years

Note

Heyo, reporting back to request a continuation of a continuation of a continuation, if you wouldn't mind! Aka, please more 3rd Life Villainpulse angst, I'm so invested (and very curious as to whether his latest murder attempt was an actual success, or if he really should have stuck around to verify the death...)

i genuinely rly love this! i’ve got such plans for it now that i think i’ll make it into an actual proper fic.

i’ve also now posted it on AO3, titled Stand For Nothing! link here

…

Impulse is getting concerned. It’s been over five minutes and no death message in chat. It should’ve happened by now. He had been worried about being found near the scene of a death — it’d already been about five minutes since the meeting and someone would’ve gone to find Skizz, so his items would almost certainly be found — but now he’s starting to think he should have stuck around anyway and made sure the job was finished.

He had been intending to stay here at his villager trading centre until the death notification came up and then he would run back to Dogwarts and play the distressed best friend.

But no death message. So his plan has to change.

When he makes it back to Dogwarts, he finds Ren standing outside the Renchanting building, his face pale. When he spots Impulse, he quickly beckons him. “Impulse! For the love of god, where’ve you been?!”

Impulse blinks. With no death message in chat, what can Ren be so worked up about? “W-What? What’s happened…?”

“Skizzle’s been attacked! We heard an explosion outside our walls and when we went to check, we found him out there, passed out. He’s in a critical condition but Martyn’s with him now and hopefully he’ll recover.”

Impulse can only stare at Ren with an open mouth and a pit in his stomach. Somehow, in all the possible outcomes he pictured for this scenario, he never imagined Dogwarts would actually find Skizz alive. After three perfect murders, it seems he got careless.

“O-Oh my god,” he manages to choke out. “C-Can I see him?”

“Not yet, but Martyn will tell us when we can.”

Ren takes him down into the living area under Renchanting. There, Etho is pacing back and forth in front of a closed door, clearly deep in thought, but he glances up as Ren comes in. “Ren, you found him.”

Ren nods, even though it wasn’t really a question. “Any word?”

“Not yet. Martyn has three healing potions in there with him though, so I’d say Skizz’s chances are really good.”

Impulse has to strain to keep his expression steady at that. “G-Good. That’s good.”

Something changes almost imperceptibly in Etho’s expression, but Ren, clearly not noticing, rubs Impulse’s back reassuringly. “He’ll be okay, Impulse. Don’t worry.”

All Impulse can do is nod, not trusting himself to speak.

Finally, after what feels like hours, the door opens and Martyn appears, his body blocking the view inside the room. “He’s awake,” he reports, a very serious look on his face. “Ren.”

Ren quickly ducks into the room, but when Impulse starts to follow, Martyn blocks him. “Not you,” he says coldly. “Etho, stay with him, please.”

Impulse’s heart freezes. There’s only one reason Martyn would stop him from seeing his injured best friend.

Skizz has told him everything.

He takes a step back and bumps into something behind him, causing him to jump.

“What’s going on, Impulse?” asks Etho casually, an only-just-discernible undertone of danger in his voice. “You seem a little tense.”

“My best friend almost died,” Impulse replies coldly, but even he can tell his words are unconvincing.

“Indeed. I wonder how that happened?”

“I don’t like what you’re implying, Etho. Why would you have any reason to suspect me?”

Etho just folds his arms and says nothing, infuriating Impulse. “You said I was the only person on this server you really trust!”

“That was before I joined these guys. I’ve had a weird feeling in my stomach about you for a while, Impulse. Something hasn’t felt right since this whole thing started, but I assumed it was just me trying to apply rationality to this irrational world. But one thing never changes, Impulse. No matter how much you try to change it.”

Impulse falls silent, scowling at the ground. He’s already given away too much in his tone and expression.

He glances sideways at Etho, who has his eyes fixed on the door Ren and Martyn went through. Realisation dawns on him: Etho isn’t expecting him to put up a fight. Etho thinks he has nowhere to go.

Now is the time, then. He can’t afford to wait any longer; when Ren and Martyn come back out here, it’s over. Impulse knows he can’t take on three people at once. This is his last chance to escape alive.

So when Etho shifts position a few seconds later, Impulse strikes. Before he can react, Impulse sweeps Etho’s legs out from under him and shoves him into the wall as he’s falling. Without waiting around to see the result of his attack, Impulse takes off running.

He makes it out of Renchanting and is just about to run down the hill towards the crastle when an arrow whizzes by him, nicking the sleeve of his t-shirt and causing him to lose his balance. Suppressing a scream, Impulse topples down the hill and lands in the shallow river at the bottom. He tries to continue onward but has to stop as he puts weight on his left foot and realises he must have twisted his ankle during his fall.

Gritting his teeth through the throbbing pain, he looks up in time to be able to dodge another arrow fired at him by the figure on top of Dogwarts’s wall.

He has to keep going.

Every step on his left foot is agony but he pushes himself on, half-galloping down the hill on the other side, the crastle in his sights.

“Bdubs!” he shrieks as he draws near, his heart racing. The Red Army is likely right behind him. “BDUBS!”

The person he’s calling rushes out of the castle over the drawbridge just in time to catch Impulse as he finally loses his balance and pitches forward.

“Impulse! You’re soaking wet!? What the-?!”

“Th- They’re coming for me,” he croaks. His eyes flicker up and he spots two faces in the windows on the second floor. It’s time for the performance of his life. “Dogwarts turned on me! They think I killed Tango and Cleo a-a-and made you kill Joel!”

“What?!” gasps Bdubs. “That’s ridiculous! Why would they think that?!”

“I-I don’t know but th- They’re gonna kill me, Bdubs…!”

“Not on my watch!”

Bdubs quickly ushers Impulse inside the crastle and into the waiting arms of Jimmy. Together, the two guide Impulse upstairs and lay him down in the bed Grian has placed in a position safely away from the slit windows.

“What happened, Impulse?” Bdubs asks softly. “How did they turn on you?”

Impulse takes a shaky breath. “Something happened to Skizz. He… He got attacked. Then he told everyone it was me and that I’d killed Tango and Cleo and manipulated you into killing Joel.”

“First of all, that’s utterly ridiculous,” Bdubs snaps. “I killed Joel because he was about to kill you. And second, why on earth would you want to kill Tango or Cleo?”

“I-I think you might’ve been right, Bdubs. I th-think Etho was responsible for Cleo’s death. And now he’s got Dogwarts trying to make me a scapegoat.”

Bdubs’s gaze darkens. “Despicable little-.”

“BDOUBLEO!”

“Stay there,” says Bdubs.

He strides to the window, flanked by Grian and Scott, armed with his crossbow. “What do you want, Ren?”

Down on the ground, having left Skizz in the care of BigB, stand Ren, Martyn, and Etho, staring up at the castle. The latter two hold bows, while Ren is armed with a sword and shield.

“We know Impulse is hiding out in there,” Ren announces, with the regal but dangerous air of a king. “Hand him over to us, Bdubs.”

“No way in hell,” Bdubs snaps back. “He told me everything!”

“We can guarantee you he did not,” responds Martyn steadily. “Not the truth, anyway. He’s using you, Bdubs.”

“YOU’re the ones using HIM! As a scapegoat!”

“Impulse isn’t the angel you think he is, Bdubs,” Etho says darkly. “You’re protecting the person who killed Cleo.”

“No, YOU killed Cleo,” snarls Bdubs. “And I bet you killed Tango too and tried to blame it on me! You’re just trying to frame anyone you can so you can get away with it!”

Despite the pain and stress he’s experiencing, Impulse can’t help feeling proud of himself. The seeds of doubt and suspicion he’s sown between Bdubs and Etho are paying off now.

“Bdubs.” Ren’s voice drops slightly as emotion creeps into his tone. “He attacked his best friend and left him to die. If we hadn’t found him in time, Skizz would have succumbed to his injuries alone and terrified in the middle of nowhere, murdered by his own best friend.”

“What exactly is Impulse’s motive supposed to be, here?” Scott asks suddenly. “You say he killed Tango and Cleo, orchestrated Joel’s death, and tried to murder Skizzle. Why exactly would he want to do that?”

“Skizz claims Impulse said it was because Tango “knew too much” about something,” Martyn says. “Some kind of secret that Impulse is keeping. And that Cleo’s and Joel’s deaths were “necessary to push the war forward”. That’s his motive, Scott. Impulse wants war, and he doesn’t care who he hurts to get it.”

“We ARE talking about the same Impulse, right?” demands Bdubs. “Our Impulse? The sweetheart who wouldn’t hurt a fly? Are we sure Skizz didn’t just misremember? He's a little unreliable like that. Maybe he said it was someone else who-.”

“Don’t you dare!” Martyn bursts out suddenly, his voice filled with the most venom anyone had ever heard it. “Don’t you DARE say that! You weren’t there, Bdubs! You didn’t have to fix his broken ribs and his fractured neck and his shattered arm! You weren’t there when he finally woke up after several minutes of crying out and panicked breathing like he was having a nightmare! You didn’t hear the way he cried, how terrified he was when he told me what happened, the raw agony in his voice! That’s not the demeanor of someone who MISREMEMBERED! Skizz has gone through hell today and it’s all Impulse’s fault! So I’m not leaving here without his head, in one form or another!”

“YEAH!” Ren yells in agreement, hitting his sword against his shield. “No more arguments. No more wasting time. If you don’t give us Impulse right NOW, we will declare war on you and take him by force.”

Inside the crastle, Impulse’s heart skips a beat. This is it: the moment of truth. Either everything he’s been working towards will finally come to fruition… or Bdubs will hand him over and he will die.

Bdubs straightens up, a steely look of determination appearing in his eyes.

“Then consider us at war.”

#3rdlifesmp #3rd life smp #impulsesv #bdubs #rendog #skizzleman #etho #vaunna’s requests

48 notes · View notes

cherry-ber · 4 years

Text

Too drunk to fuck pt.9

Previous | Part one

Whatever that text was supposed to mean, you didn't care. You purposely ignored and avoided Mark the whole week, and after a few ignored messages, he gave up, and seemed to understand what you were probably thinking, every day Jaemin walked you home -because then you'd spend more time together than if he drove, he said- after a day in school with your new friends, and every day promised to be better than the last one. Friday came sooner than expected, and you got up earlier to dress extra special, tonight's dinner with Jaemin and your parents, although excited, made you incredibly anxious. So many things could go wrong.

When the classes were over, Jaemin was waiting for you outside of your classroom, holding your hand and giving you a sweet kiss as soon as he saw you. He carried your bag as you walked to his car, before you were home for dinner, he figured it would be nice to have a real first date, not a risky late night trip or an awkward meeting with your parents. He'd never done that, dating had never been important for him, he was too busy, and too invested with his deals and his friends, no time for girls and feelings at all, but he did a great job at planning, though. He took you to a museum, fair enough, you had to go as an assignment from Art class, but when you asked him to be your museum date, he was absolutely into it, then he took you to an ice cream parlor, a cute one, with the prettiest walls and decorations, and the best ice cream you've ever had. He took you flower picking, and to a park with lots of dogs being walked, and finally back home, just in time for you to be earlier than your parents. He greeted them politely, and your father was happy to see him again. Jaemin looked as handsome as he always did, but putting on his good boy persona, he looked softer and nicer than he usually did. His hair was pushed back, and he was wearing a light, baby blue sweater, that matched your baby blue, princess dress, your mom wasted no time mentioning how cute it was that you wore matching outfits, although it was actually a big casualty you did.

They had many, too many, questions for him. How you two met, how long you'd been friends, what classes you had together, what did the rest of your friends do, what did he want to do for a leaving, what were his plans after school. Jaemin handled every single question and gave an answer to every question that astonished your parents.

Jaemin's phone received a bunch of calls, he never picked up, arguing that if it were truly important, no one would really call him, but when your parents stood up the table for a couple minutes, and he finally had time to check his phone, all the calls were Mark's, but he left no message, and your date assumed it was, probably, not important at all. Usually, at least some months ago, on Fridays they'd be going to the abandoned warehouse, get drunk and have a race, or maybe they'd be shoplifting, attending their clients and playing dumb when they got caught, and although Jaemin, and the rest of his friends, knew it was bad, a tiny particle in his mind is telling him that he should be doing that right know. There's a part of them that has accepted the path they started walking so long ago, and it's a shame that they did, since the could be doing so much better.

After the food, and the awkward, intrusive, questions were out of the table, Jaemin suggested you went to Jeno's place again, and because you had no interest in staying home, you agreed, asked your parents permission to be home, and reluctantly they said yes, although you knew they agreed basically because Jaemin is too convincing, and too likeable.

He drove with the windows down, which made the chilly air play with his hair, giving him this absolutely attractive, messy hairstyle, and then all you wanted to do was to make him stop and kiss him while you ran your fingers through his hair. The annoying ringtone of your phone got your mind back to where you were sitting, and looking at the notification bar, you notice how many texts from Mark you got all day long, last one being received in thus exact moment.

“Friday, 7:15 a.m, Mark ♡:

hey”

“can we meet today?”

“Friday, 8:30 a.m, Mark ♡:

are you free after this period?”

“Friday, 9:48 a.m, Mark♡:

are you okay?”

“Y/N”

“???”

“Friday, 2:45 p.m, Mark♡:

are you at home”

“did I do something wrong?”

“Friday, 4:04 p.m, Mark ♡:

I think you hate me?”

“wait”

“you're with jaemin right?”

“Friday, 6:36 p.m, Mark ♡:

So i saw jaemin driving”

“And i was about to get close”

“and then i see you on the passenger side”

“you couldve replied, yk”

“Friday, 7:19 p.m, Mark ♡:

Ans know im fucking drunkk”

“fuck yOu”

“actually no”

“Friday, 8:58 p.m, Mark ♡:

hu sorry im liken really rly drunk”

“im at jenooossssss'”

“ypu should comeb too”

By the time you finished reading, it was too late, Jaemin had already parked, and when the men inside noticed, all of them, except Mark, came out to greet him, and when they saw you, they couldn't look happier. They urged you inside, but before you could get to the living room with them, Jeno stopped you and Jaemin.

“So, look, Mark is... Kinda sensitive right now” he looks into his direction, Mark sitting on the floor, with his head head resting on Renjun's lap, he's laughing and smiling and rubbing his hands on the carpet “I don't know what he had, he's drunk but, I think he might be high too”

Jaemin makes an effort to keep his annoyance unseen, remembering that every time Mark drinks, it's a mistake, a mistake that he's gonna have to solve.

“Just” Jeno knows, Jeno can read Jaemin like a book, and although he agrees that they shouldn't be the ones caring after his oldest friend, he can't let him alone whenever he needs them “don't mind him, he's saying weird shit, he's harmless”

Jeno sits in the couch next to Renjun, trying to block Mark's view of you, but when you walk in, holding Jaemin's hand, he loses it. His laugh is insanely loud, and it's almost scary, making Jaemin squeeze your hand harder between his, and he grabs someone's drink and takes it in a single sip, you can tell it was strong, because of the face he's making. Suddenly, everyone in the room is uncomfortable, waiting for someone to make the next move.

After minutes of staring at the wall in front of him, Mark stands up, tumbling when he does, and walks closer to you, stopping when you are just a few centimeters away from him. Jaemin reacts immediately, pushing Mark away from you, and putting himself between you two. Mark giggles, he looks innocent, and when you're about to apologize to him, that sweet look disappears.

“Are you really gonna let her get between us?” he asks jaemin, arrogance in his tone, and absolutely spiteful when he looks at you.

“You're drunk, go home” all eyes are on them both, but no one really dares to interfere.

“Is that all you're going to say?” he walks closer to Jaemin, and although he wishes that Mark doesn't do anything else, he's ready for whatever he tries “is that it, huh? I give you a home when you need it, a job, money, my time” he grabs Jaemin by the collar of his shirt “I let you into my life” Renjun rushes to you, dragging you out of the room, meanwhile Jeno and Donghyuck try to get Mark and Jaemin away from each other.

Everything happened too fast, and you can't even complain when Renjun walks you upstairs to Jeno's room and locks the door. You can hear the screaming from downstairs and there's nothing you can do to help. Your mom couldn't have possibly chosen a worst time to call, lying, you tell her that as soon as the movie you're watching is over, Jaemin will drive you back home.

Jisung and Chenle are leaving, after Renjun insisted that they shouldn't be there, although they are worried, they know there's not much they can do, and promise to be ready if something else happens, they say you goodbye from the porch, and offer to walk you home, but you know you can't leave just yet.

Jeno was successful in calming Jaemin down, but Mark wasn't going to stop until he got what he wanted, Donghyuck and Renjun getting tired of dealing with him, but doing it anyway because the idea of what could come next was too scary. Jaemin unlocks the door, and brings you back down, with Jeno and himself protecting you from whatever Mark could try, going outside and into his car. Jeno apologizes to the both of you, and runs back inside.

Jaemin doesn't speak in the whole way back home, when he stops, he opens the door for you, walks you to the door, and says sorry when you open the door. You can only shake your head and give him a kind smile, hoping that he understands what you are trying to say. He drives away, but instead of going home, as you wished he did, he takes the way back to the mess, you watch him drive off, and you can only hope that things don't end up too bad.

“Saturday, 1:26 a.m, unknown number:

Don't panic, but Mark's in the hospital”

next♡

🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤🖤

A.N: well that escalated quickly 😳

HeyyYYYyYy I'm finally bringing this back, after, well, i got notes from the whole series again. I hope you're having a good time guys, be healthy, be safe.

31 notes · View notes

fullmetalscullyy · 5 years

Note

can you write a fic where riza isn't feeling well but she's too stubborn to go home and it unintentionally jeopardizes the mission she's on with roy? and hes like rly concerned for her? btw I love all of your royai fics ahhh

aaaahhh thank you anon!! i hope this one is ok and u enjoy it! thanks for the prompt! 💞

The Colonel gave Riza a sideways look, brow furrowing, accompanied with a concerned look on his face. “Are you all right?”

“Of course, sir. Why?”

Another pause and scrutinising look. “I thought –” He shook his head. “Nothing. Let’s go.” Riza nodded, shouldering her rifle and ignoring the pain in her leg as she stepped forward. It took an extreme amount of control, but she managed to walk without a limp.

It was a stupid mistake. They’d been hunting these criminals for months and she’d been charged with searching a warehouse for evidence. One of the men was there and had gotten the drop on her, wielding a knife. It was a messy struggle, but she’d come out on top. Unfortunately, she ended up gaining a wound – a large gash on her leg. Superficial, but stung like nothing else and every time she took a step, Riza thought she could feel every muscle around the wound straining. She was alone and had no time to wait, so her leg received a quick patch job and when she had a minute, Riza slipped away from the soldiers securing the assailant and changed her trousers to hide the rip and the blood. Everyone was none the wiser.

The drive to the next warehouse – where their main suspect was holed up according to the assailant Riza had captured – was quiet but terse. Tensions were high. A lot was riding on this – it was Havoc’s first mission back in the field after gaining his ability to walk back, it was the Colonel’s first field mission since gaining his sight back. If all went well, they’d both be signed off.

Riza would make sure that happened. She was fine, and this wound wouldn’t stop her from the majority of the team reuniting.

The Colonel glanced at her from the driver’s seat, which Riza promptly ignored. He thought there was something wrong with her, but she was fine. There was nothing to worry about. She ignored the sweat that had broken out over her skin.

* * *

Gun levelled, Riza eyed the doorway she was watching. No one had come and gone in the last five minutes – the time the Colonel, Fuery, and Breda entered the warehouse. Havoc was in the building next to her, but placed higher to get a better vantage point of the only other entrance to the warehouse.

Movement from the left caught her eye. Two masked figures approached the warehouse from behind a shipping container, guns drawn. Riza trained her rifle on them, however they sprinted and ducked behind another container before she could even aim properly. If she let off a shot wildly and missed, it would alert the men and those inside that they were here.

Shit! She needed to get down there and help them.

Leaving the sniper, she grabbed her white jacket and ran for the stairs. Taking two or three at a time, she winced every time she landed, eventually having to stop and grit her teeth against the pain. Although numbness had set in before, her leg was now on fire. Pushing off the wall, she continued her hurried descent at a more manageable pace. Sweat poured off her at an alarming rate.

Riza was limping as she ran as fast as she could across the street. Havoc could no doubt see her by now, but there wasn’t much else she could do about that. Time was of the essence. She needed to get in there and provide back up. The Colonel had no idea what was sneaking up on him, and it was her priority to protect him.

The door barely let out a squeak as she opened it. Struggling, she made her way quietly into the building, maintaining cover behind wooden boxes and metal shelving. The initial hallway led to a catwalk, on which Riza could oversee the entire main room.

“Colonel Mustang,” a voice called into the room, tone cold and disgusted. Peering over the boxes, Riza scanned the area below to try and find them. There! To her right on the opposite side of the building she spotted Breda down below. There was no way she’d be able to gain his attention without drawing attention to herself as well. If the men looked up, they’d spot her. “We know you’re here. Come out now, and we won’t kill you.” Riza scoffed. What a great line. Not.

Silence was his answer and Riza crept further along the catwalk. She was entirely hidden by wooden panels that ran the length of the railings. It meant she had to crouch walk which was hell on her leg, but she pushed forward. The panelling stopped just above her team mates. Peering down, she saw the tops of their heads. Mustang was signalling to Breda and Fuery something, but she couldn’t make out what.

Movement around the corner of the catwalk caught her eye. A man stood up silently, training a weapon on Mustang’s head.

Riza’s heart rose into her throat.

The man wasn’t hidden, but there was no way they’d be able to see him from this angle.

Riza rolled out from behind her hiding place and rose into a sprint, her leg screaming in protest. It felt like her blood was boiling underneath the skin. She charged at the man, the metal of the catwalk signalling her presence as her boots hit it heavily. Riza tackled the man right before a gunshot sounded. It pinged off something metal somewhere, but Riza didn’t care. It didn’t hit the Colonel or her team mates, and that's all that mattered.

There was a burst of movement below her as Riza struggled with her assailant. "Hawkeye!" The Colonel called, then there was nothing more but shouts. Riza was too focussed to make out anything else.

The man managed to land a kick to her injured leg before landing another to her stomach. She cried out but it was cut off as an arm snaked around her neck.

"We have your woman!" the man yelled loudly in her ear, tightening his grip on her neck. Riza gasped, clawing at his arm to try and shift it, but it was no use. Her breaths came out choked as not enough oxygen was reaching her lungs. Despite the lack of oxygen, Riza felt she might pass out from the pain in her leg. It was agony.

Another well placed kick to her injured leg and she was done for. The man had hit it to try and force her to the ground, but that was enough. She was gone. Riza blacked out, feeling the heat of flames and hearing someone screaming her name.

* * *

Roy Mustang had never felt fury like this before. He saw his Lieutenant crumple to the ground in that bastard's arms and he lost it. His flames took no prisoners as he effortlessly blazed his way through the criminals. Screams erupted throughout the warehouse. The fire wouldn't kill them. Yet. Just enough to stop them and pay for what they'd done to her.

"Boss!" Breda yelled, roughly grabbing his shoulder and turning Roy to face him. "Stop!" Roy's head jerked up, meeting the eyes of the man who was trying to stop him from hurting the people who had ki -

He couldn't even think the rest of that sentence. That wasn't true. It couldn't be.

"Get upstairs. Get to her!" Breda yelled at him, lifting his weapon as he let go of Roy's shoulder to apprehend the criminals.

Riza.

Right.

Roy took the stairs up to the catwalk two at a time, blood pumping in his ears and his heart in his throat.

Please. Please. Please.

She was lying on her side on the metal floor. Her short hair was wet with sweat at the ends. Her fringe was plastered to her forehead, which was pale and clammy. Her face was pure white, looking ill. Really ill. Turning her gently, Roy's hands shook as he lifted her chin to see if she was breathing still. His own had stopped as he waited for confirmation.

It was there. Air tickled his cheek.

Roy let out a sigh of relief, feeling his body shake with it. He felt weak, to the point where he couldn't even remain upright. He landed awkwardly, but ended up sitting on the floor.

"Sir! Status?" Fuery's strained voice called up to him.

"Alive." Alive. He thought she'd died. Her body fell and Roy felt his whole world fall with her. "But needs medical attention." Checking her body over, he noticed nothing out of the ordinary, but it didn't explain her pale complexion or the excessive sweat. As his hands swept over her leg, there was a crumpling sound. Lifting the trouser leg, Roy paled when he saw the bandage that had blood seeping through it. There's so much. "Now."

"Get her outside. We've got in here handled," Breda reassured him. Roy scooped Riza into his arms and ran out the door. The military police had their weapons raised to fire as soon as he exited, but Havoc barked at them to lower their guns.

"The men are apprehended inside," Roy barked and the MPs didn't waste another second. They descended on the warehouse, leaving Roy outside with Havoc and the paramedics.

"I saw her limping across the street," Havoc explained as they hurried over to the medics. I didn't think it was this bad." He looked as shocked and as grim as Roy felt.

"She never mentioned it," Roy told him after handing Riza over. She was bundled into the back of an ambulance, the doors closing. Roy winced at the sound, hoping the finality he felt wasn't an indication of what was to come. He couldn't… He couldn't deal with that happening. He'd already had to face that reality on the Promised Day. He wasn't strong enough to do it again.

Roy thought there was something off with her before they came here. He was sure he'd seen her limp, but then she reassured him she was fine, and there was no hint of it before they parted. He should have known she would hide it. Now look what has happened, Riza.

* * *

Sepsis.

The blade she'd been struck with had been dirty and her wound had been infected. The doctor had told her she was lucky that she didn't lose her leg.

Her stupidity and stubbornness had almost cost her not only her leg, but her goals and her job. If she had lost it, she wouldn't be able to follow him to the top. Automail took years to recuperate from. Roy would already be there by then.

Idiot.

"Why didn't you say anything?" The Colonel's voice was quiet in the dim hospital room. The bedside lamp was on and nothing else. Moonlight filtered through the window, casting a silver glow on the floor before it was swallowed by the artificial orange glow.

"We had a job to do."

Silence.

Roy sighed, straightening in his chair as Riza looked away and moved her gaze towards the window.

"That stubbornness almost got you killed."

Riza swallowed. She knew that.

"I know," she whispered. "I'm sorry."

She really was. She hadn't meant to worry him like that. Not only had she caused herself further harm, she'd jeopardised the mission. She felt like such a fool. Like an amateur.

Riza jumped when Roy's fingers snaked into hers, gripping them tightly.

"This mission was important, yes, but not more important than your life. Never more important than that. I'm sorry if I pushed the priority of this too much."

Riza shook her head. He had pushed it, but she was an adult and had still made this decision herself. She put herself in danger so that the mission would run smoothly. Only it hadn't. It had almost ended in disaster. "You didn't. I had a lot of hopes on this too. This was all on me."

Roy squeezed her hand. "Just… Promise me you'll think of yourself more often. I've almost watched you die twice now." His voice broke. "Please don't make me do it again."

Riza blinked away her tears and nodded. "Sorry."

Rising from his chair, Roy kissed her forehead before pressing his gently against hers. "Sorry for sounding extremely selfish."

Riza chuckled. "It's okay," she whispered. "I was just being stubborn."

Roy snorted gently. "That sounds about right." He pulled away and kissed her forehead again. "I should go," he told her regretfully. "I'm way past visiting time and there's only so much the nurse will take of Havoc's terrible flirting as a distraction."

Riza smiled at his attempt to ease the tension between them. "All right, sir. You better go and save her." He smiled softly at her, but after stealing a third kiss. "And they say chivalry is dead."

When the door closed, Riza took a deep breath and closed her eyes.

You stubborn fool.

33 notes · View notes

secretary--hamilton · 6 years

Text

My Hamilton canon/memories

(I’m Alexander, saying it so the post makes more sense)

TW: storms/water, a couple mentions of getting drunk (nothing bad, all very pure), war, getting shot, guns, adoption/orphan, someone stabbing themselves, suicide, death

BODY MEMS

- I had slight freckles

- I had a little bit of a stutter

- brown hair

- bright blue/green eyes

- big forehead, receding hairline

- my lips got chapped a lot fuc k cold wea t h e r (plus I licked them a lot too but shh I’m blaming cold weather)

- I was around 5'6 to 5'7 and was about 125 pounds? But I had a lil bit of stomach and thigh chub. I was so tiny compared to everybody else (George is a. Giant)

- for the time I had my hair up in a ponytail, I used like a string thing? I remember the strings dangling down, throwback to 1700s when circle elastic hairties weren’t a thing so I used ribbons/string

PERSONAL/THINGS I DID MEMS

- I was afraid of storms/raging water because it reminded me of the hurricane/the storms I witnessed while on the ship to the colonies

- when I went off to war, I used Eliza's blue ribbon to tie up my hair

- I was always writing and I always had a notebook with me

- the booklet I had that had all my lists and writing on it was pieces of parchment with 3 holes in the side, with strings through the holes

- i loved (more like.. needed to) keep lists on things and be organized, I had a list of all the people I had to write letters to, etc. I had lists about everything. People’s birthdates, their names, so I would never forget them

- if I ever lost a certain piece of paper with like all the lists and information on it I would freak out

- I had extreme anxiety, my mind was constantly racing and it felt like I could focus on 20 different things at once, which kind of helped me write so much and finish so many essays.

-my canon was definitely NOT modern- we didn't have electricity or pens or technology- just pure 1700s things

EARLY LIFE MEMS

- i have a memory of walking along the beach in the carribean on an extremely rainy day, I was looking at towards a ship on the water when the water started rushing towards me and I heard thunder and that's when I realized it wasn't just a normal storm

- I vividly remember walking up the board to the ship i immigrated on, and what it smelled like (really just sea water and old wood) , carrying my small belongings which were just a few books, and a pen and paper

- I got set up in this little cot in the ship that had a hard mattress on the floor, a small chair in the corner, and a lantern

OOF okay so,, this memory is of when I was still in the Caribbean, shortly after my mom died. Me and my brother were put in custody of my older cousin(?), and he killed himself by stabbing himself with a kitchen knife. I was the first one to notice him, the layout of the house was that the bedrooms were upstairs and the kitchen and living room were downstairs. On the right side of the house upstairs, was my cousins (peter) bedroom, and me and my brother (James) were sharing this open room on the left side of the upstairs with mattresses on the floor for us, a window on the wall/roof (it was like a slanted roof, like an attic) So from left to right, our open room (like no door, just a space), a tiny hallway that lead to the stairs, and then peters room. ANYWay but I remember I just finished reading and I was going to talk to peter about something, so I opened his door and I just see blood **everywhere** So I run downstairs and outside into the streets asking for help. I was only 13 when this happened

- I was born in 1757, and the hurricane happened in 1774

WASHINGTON MEMS

- I loved George Washington so much, he was such a good friend/boss- I’m forever grateful to him for giving me the chance to rise up

-I also liked organizing things a lot, I once organized gwash's entire office and he walked in and was like "what the fuck"

- George was brushing my hair and putting it up in a ponytail for me- this was in the tent during the war, before we went off to battle. He did it another time in his office before a cabinet meeting

- me and wash always helped calm eachother down- if either of us were having anxiety, just the others presence would help

- I loved George in a way that's hard to describe- he was like a father to me, he was there for me and protected me and helped me feel less lost

- the only people I would really listen to were George and Eliza- if those two looked at me and said "Alex, it's not worth it" I would stop in an instant, because I trusted them

- I have a memory of the war, and it was raining and slippery and I was climbing up rocky hills following george lead the command, and I was behind him and we were all heading to our next spot

GENERAL REV SQUAD MEMS

- I once got so drunk with the rev boys that I kissed them all on the cheeks while drunkenly singing

- I was the shortest of the group, Mulligan was the tallest, Lafayette was the second tallest, and laurens was a little closer to my height but still taller

- whenever we went out to drink, I always got the drunkest since I was the shortest- and plus I couldn't handle my alcohol at all. They always took care of me when I was super drunk, I would lean on their shoulders, they would tuck me in with blankets, etc.

MULLIGAN MEMS

- Mulligan was super good with his alcohol, it's probably because he was so big and tough, he only got a little bit loopy but was still fine

- my Mulligan had vitiligo

- one time Mulligan had to carry me home because I was so drunk

LAURENS MEMS

- my Laurens was definitely asexual

- the two people I had weird crushes on were Laurens, and Jefferson- they weren't full on 100% crushes (probably due to the fact that I was confused about them) but they were more "holy fuck these guys are hot and great", I don't know if anybody could notice, even though I acted a bit more lovey towards laurens

- he was always so giggly and happy god I love him his smile could light up the room ngl, and his laugh was so,, good

- his freckles got /a lot/ more prominent if he was out in the sun all day, freckle boy

- he loved space so much, he was always out watching the stars and learning about them- he had this book about astronomy that was p cool

LAFAYETTE MEMS

- when laf immigrated to the colonies, he snuck on the ship as a pregnant woman so he wouldn't get stopped by anyone

- when he came to the colonies he spoke like only a few words of English, when he met me I helped him translate! I was fluent in French so it helped

- he had a birthmark/mole on his cheek near his eye- it was just a small dot

BURR MEMS

- my burr got shot in the leg during the war, and he had a bit of a limp the rest of his life. I remember when he got shot, I was near by so I had to help carry him to a medical tent and then go back to fighting

KING GEORGE MEMS

-i called king George king douche, and he called me a lapdog since I followed Gwash around a lot

- I once called KG just "George" and he was all sassy like "that's KING George to you"

- one time KG talked to the rev boys and I like got all angry and protective, he talked to Lafayette and I was behind Laf trying to but into the conversation to call George out- it was during the war so we were on a field in our war outfits

- his eyes were bluey-purple

JEFFERSON MEMS

- I hated Jefferson but I also had a weird hate crush on him,, I didn't tell anyone tho, let's just say I wanted to beat up the man but also fuc the man. The crush died down after a while though

- my Jefferson would always say lewd jokes to me and humiliate me just to see a reaction, because I was a flustered boy,, one time I got so flustered that I just, LEFT the room, and Jefferson was like “WHY DONT YOU SLAM MY BEDROOM DOOR LIKE THAT” upon me storming out

- during one of the cabinet battles jefferson was sassy clapping at me, he,, sassy clapped a lot

- when jeff was like “daddys calling” I got so angry but also flustered so I stormed out, funnily enough I stormed out to follow george. I fuckin loved George and followed him everywhere

- I once got a 🅱️oner because of some lewd joke Jefferson said oof

- after the second cabinet meeting, we got into a fight. Jefferson wanted us to defend France so I snapped back and interrupted him with “You cant sacrifice our country because you're scared Lafayette’s going to die like your wife.” and Jefferson got livid and yelled back “I am NOT going to be intimidated by you and your washed up bullshit” or something along those lines

RENOYLDS AFFAIR MEMS

- oof I remember yelling in marias face when James sent the letter

- after Eliza found out about the affair, she forced me to stay in my office for 6 months. I only left for food and a short aimless walk I think. My office was in a different building

- the renoylds affair definitely happened. God it was such a bad/weird time, i was so exaushted and sleep deprived and getting constant headaches but I needed to stay awake and work, I heard a knock at my office door so I opened it and it was Maria, it was raining outside so her hair was all wet so I let her in, after her sharing her story I gave her some money and walked her back to her place, but she insisted on staying. I believed her, but once James sent the letter I accused her of being a con artist, and I still don't know the truth of what's what.

- I have a reallyyyy clear memory of me rambling on about how I need to get work done and how my wife needs me and all this stuff and then Maria whispered in my ear "shhhh, you don't need to worry about all that, no one will know" before we got. Down And Dirty TM. And usually I would deny stuff like that but I was so tired

- I have aNOTHer rly clear memory of me kneeling down to Maria and straight up screaming at her "HOW COULD I DO THIS, I AM HELPLESS" or something like that

FAMILY MEMS

- my friends took care of my kids for me while I was busy working, mostly Laurens because I was the closest to him! Philip loved Laurens so much it was adorable

- Burr was really good at math and often taught Philip math

- I always got in arguments with a lot of people, but I'm glad I had people like Eliza to calm me down, I remember she said "Alexander, it's not worth it" and I chilled out instantly

- I married Eliza right after the war ended

- All of our children were adopted except for Angie, Alex Jr., and Eliza

- I think my Philip had a slight tooth gap and rly curly hair, and either a slight lisp or a slight stutter

- I would brush philip's hair and put it up, or braid it. He would sit in between my legs when I was sitting on a chair and brush through his wet hair- Philip was my ultimate pride and joy

- dinner time was my favourite time of day, it was always so warm and happy- Eliza would make us dinner and I would come down from working and eat with Eliza and our children

- I have a memory of me, Eliza, and young/toddler Philip having a picnic in a field with daisies all around us, and we were making daisy chains and eating food and it was rly rly nice and sunny and warm yet slightly breezy and it smelled like jasmine

- I remember the first time Eliza found out about my fear of storms, we were having dinner and i heard thunder and I just like. Froze. And she tried talking to me and I was just like "I need to go" but she calmed me down, asked me to sit down at the table, and got me to explain to her eventually, this was before Philip, so it was just us.

- but once we got Philip, and he was maybe 3 or 4, it was another stormy day and I froze again and Philip said "what's wrong papa?" And I bent down to his level and reassured him that I was okay, after that he sat on my lap and distracted me from the storm outside, I was really focused on this one curl in his hair that was out of place lol

- before Philip, Eliza kept having miscarriages, so we decided to adopt Philip. Our first successful pregnancy was Angie, I was SO protective over Eliza when she was pregnant, if she got up in the middle of the night I would ask her if she needed anything, and when she was walking I would walk behind her with my hands on her hips incase she fell bc she was waddling

- Angie had slight autism all her life, and when Philip died she just lost it and went insane. She was delusional and never grew up a day past 17. she would constantly ask if Philip was coming home and was living in a world as if Philip was still alive, she constantly lived in a world between 7 years old and 17 years old, even when she physically grew older. I would walk with her and play with her, and when i was with her i started to go into her world of Philip still being here. We took care of her. One day, someone suggested we put her in a hospital, and i slammed my fork into my food and quietly but surely said “i will NOT lock my daughter away.”, and the room fell silent. Later on, Eliza and I were walking near the ocean, and she brought up the topic again. I said “They locked away my mother. She nearly starved to death and i will not let my daughter go through that” and Eliza reassured me- “Hon.. your mother was jailed for adultery, not mental wellness. Im not in any way saying we should put our daughter somewhere, all i am suggesting is that she be checked out by a doctor.”

- I remember a few of Angie’s breakdowns. She would pull her hair out and slam her head against walls

-Once Eliza got too old to take care of her (late 70/80′s′s), She put her in a hospital where she stayed for her entire life. she was cared for extremely well there.

DEATH/LATER LIFE MEMS

- I have this like,,, really weird memory of Eliza saying “when you have a problem you come home, you don’t go off and make matters worse on your own” to me a couple different times, one was when Lauren’s shot Charles Lee and I got sent home, another one was when I got into a fight with burr after he ran for senate. The reason why it’s a weird memory is because those are in the heights lyrics???

- I remember the day before I got shot, I stayed up all night writing my goodbye letter to Eliza, there was crumpled papers all over my desk since I kept rewriting them until I was satisfied

- the morning of the duel, it was extremely quiet, like I was literally in a ghost town. Same at the dueling grounds, nobody wanted to talk. I remember I was freaking out trying to focus on one thing but my brain kept going to everything I've ever done in my life, kind of like a life flashed before my eyes kind of moment. I thought of Eliza, and how upset she would be. I thought of Philip, and what was going through his head when he died and how I wish I could apologize to him. Burr's gaze felt like literal knives, so I couldn't bare to look at him. Once I shot up, my mind suddenly calmed and I had this strange factor of "this is my legacy". On the way back across the Hudson I just wanted to keep talking but my doctor said to relax. My Burr tried to run over to talk to me after he shot me, but he wasn't allowed to. He also tried to come to my funeral but wasn't allowed either, he might have watched from afar. but he visited my grave a few times

#hamilton #alexander hamilton #hamilton kin #fictionkin #hamilkin #kin memories #kin calling #me #before you follow #byf #kin tag

2 notes · View notes

sibillascribbles08 · 7 years

Text

Somewhere Else

Lmao okay here’s part two of this junk because I’m weak and I had an idea.

But honestly I’m really proud of this? Like some of the descriptions turned out rly well and I got emotional like four times.

Side note: What happened to Overwatch in spirit!AU is a bit different from what I theorize happened in canon but it’s my AU and I’ll do what I want.

It took almost a month for Gabriel to figure out how to do that dream jump. It was partially because of how hectic things were, the UN moving them around for PR business. Gabriel swore if he had to get on another plane anytime soon he was going to puke. The other part was just the fact that Marigold was a little shit and kept trying to make him beg for it.

“You’re the ones who wanted us to do this. Just show me how. Dios mío, Marí.”

“Fine,” He could hear the smirk in her voice. “I suppose I’ve teased you long enough.

She flew out onto the water, trailing her wing in circles on its surface. The ripples spun around, faster and faster as the glass morphed into a whirlpool. Gabriel felt dizzy looking at it.

“You aren’t telling me I have to jump in there.”

“It is not like you can drown.” She hovered over it.

“That’s not reassuring.”

“Honestly, I know you are not afraid of water.”

“No, but I have been trapped under a wave before. It’s not pleasant.”

“Just jump.” Her calm voice muted out the rushing water. “You will be fine.”

Sometimes he hated it, how it seemed like the hill should slowly descend into the water but instead it just vanished. He could sometimes tell when he stared at it that it was endlessly deep. Some days he considered swimming in it but was simply to afraid of what he’d find.

A few times he swore he could see a pair of eyes watching him from below.

Finally he took a deep breath before he made a running leap into the water. It was fast, so fast. One moment he could feel it rushing past him, tossing him around before it simply stopped.

Grass.

He could feel grass under his fingers, under his cheek. He pushed himself up, trying to see where he was but it was still nothing but grass. He had to stand to see past it, all of it reaching past his waist. He froze for a moment when he saw how far it went, forever. The blades swung about in the breeze, like waves on the water. The horizon was dark, dusk perhaps. He followed the gradient of colors up to see a full moon in the sky, bigger than he’d ever seen.

It wasn’t quite what he expected. A field, certainly, but he thought it’d be some kind of farm with how Jack described his home. He turned around, wondering if there was even anything else here. His gaze met a mountain range, snow covering the tops and the stars over them flashing like snowflakes. They seemed huge, impossibly far and yet so close at the same time. He followed the hills around until he saw the barn, surrounded by a fence. The building seemed well intact, but even from here he could see a couple of missing roof pieces and wooden planks out of place.

Where was Jack?

It was strange, standing there, looking at how vast it all was. It’s not that his mind wasn’t much the same, but the clutter of buildings made it seem smaller. He had his island or his boat keeping it contained to something manageable, but this? Gabriel felt like if he wandered in the wrong direction he’d never find his way back.

The longer he stood there the harder it was to breath. Even with how open it was he felt some kind of pressure on his shoulders. And it was quiet, it was so damn quiet. Even with the breeze there were no birds, no honking cars, it felt so...

Empty.

The pressure was reaching his throat now and he ran towards the barn. Jack had to be there, right? Where else would he be. The grass brushed against his legs as he moved, a rhythmic sound that would have been soothing if not for his oncoming panic. Where was it even coming from?

“Jack?” His voice cracked when he called out, leaping clean over the fence. “Jackie?”

His boyfriend’s familiar face popped up from the huge window on the second floor. He looked surprised before he grinned and waved.

“Gabe, hey. You actually made it. Just wait right there.”

The clattering in the barn kept him grounded, the sound of boots against wood as he assumed Jack returned to ground level. He could hear some kind of latch clicking on the huge barn door before Jack pushed it open. His grin was still there as he ran out, tackling Gabriel into a hug.

“Well? What do you think? I know it’s not much but-” That grin finally fell, his eyes going wide. “Gabe? What’s wrong?”

Gabriel was about to ask what he was talking about until he was suddenly aware of the dampness on his face. He was crying? How long had that been happening? When he tried to wipe them away he realized how much there actually was.

“I think the pup is just a bit overwhelmed.”

He spun around, not recognizing the deep voice. At first all he could see was white fur. He had to tilt his head back to see the face of the wolf, Jack’s wolf.

“Holy shit,” He almost shouted and stumbled backwards into his boyfriend. “Holy shit, Jackie, why didn’t you tell me he was this huge?”

“I thought I did?”

Whitefang laughed, a wheezy sound from his throat as he showed his teeth. “I may be young but not that young.”

“What do you mean overwhelmed?” Jack changed the subject, gripping Gabriel’s shoulders.

“This place is nothing more than a visual representation of you mind.” The wolf leaned down to be more eye level. “I suppose what you feel when you see it and what he feels are rather different. Sometimes it’s jarring. He’ll be fine.”

Jack turned Gabriel around, concern still lining his features. “What do you feel?”

“Shit, I don’t know.” He wiped away tears again. “I guess it’s just so different. Mine is a lot more crowded, sort of, you know? This,” He waved at the fields. “This just feels so...”

“Open?”

“Empty.”

Jack’s vacant stare left him feeling more anxious by the second. Then his boyfriend gave him a soft smile and tugged him toward the barn. “Come on, I think this will fix that.”

The barn seemed warmer, somehow, even if it wasn’t actually cold outside. He almost expected it to be dusty but that didn’t make any sense. Instead, the walls were covered in photos and trinkets. A few shelves in the back were lined with books. Boxes and chests were pressed up against the walls, filled with other things he assumed. It wasn’t much different from the boat in his mind.

“There’s even more upstairs.” Jack kept tugging. “Come on you have to see this.”

The ladder up to the loft was tiny but held firm as both of them climbed up. The floor was rather clear, particles of dust drifting in the stream of light coming from the window. There was actually hay there, pushed out to the sides like some kind of nest. There wasn’t as much stuff, but Gabriel took note of the stack of comic books and one stuffed bear with a pilot’s helmet.

“Come here.” Jack plopped down onto the hay and patted it. “You really have to see this.”

Gabriel questioned what there was to see when he sat down, leaning against the frame of the window. The air was nice and the view would be too if there was anything to look at besides grass.

Jack closed one eye, holding out his hand with his thumb up. Gabriel couldn’t possibly figure out what he was doing, following his line of sight to the giant moon in the sky.

Then suddenly it moved, practically flew up and over their heads taking the night sky with it. The black and purple gave way to pale blues and a shade of pink. Gabriel’s jaw went slack when he saw that touch of orange peaking out of the horizon, lighting everything up. The grass seemed to shine, the shadows of the waves clearer than ever before.

“You said you wanted to see the sunrise. It’s not exact, but it’s pretty close.”

Gabriel had seen sunrises before, but something about this looked different, felt different. Like time had started moving again, slowly, and he was actually ready to face the world ahead of him.

“Doesn’t feel quite as empty, right?”

He looked over at Jack and his amazement became overwhelming. That dot of orange made his blue eyes glitter, made the strands of his hair light up. The shadows outlined his face, showing the dips and curves and Gabriel wanted nothing more than to feel them under his finger tips.

So he did.

Jack leaned into the touch, eyes falling shut. Gabriel didn’t hesitate to pull him closer, kissing the line of his jaw, wondering if he could taste the sun’s rays on his skin. The scent of morning dew hit his nose as the breeze brushed past them. For a moment he imagined they were somewhere else, waking up at dawn with a gentle rain outside. The open window letting in the cool air. Nowhere they needed to be, all the time in the world to enjoy the quiet moments.

“Gabe?”

The hand against his face made him realize he was crying again.

“You sure you’re okay?” Jack was trying not to laugh as he brushed the tears away.

“Yeah, I don’t know what’s going on.”

“What were you thinking about?”

Gabriel pressed their foreheads together. The light from the rising sun was so bright but it didn’t hurt at all. “Thinking about us, somewhere else. No more worrying about missions or PR or pretending we’re only comrades and not... I always hoped we could get there when this was over.”

Suddenly that pressure returned again. Gabriel couldn’t place at all where it was coming from but he tried to chase it away with a deep breath.

“We’ll get there Gabe.” Jack placed a gentle kiss on his cheek.

“When?”

“I don’t know, but we’ll get there.” He stood without letting go, tugging Gabriel up with him. “Come on, there’s plenty more to show you.”

The pair made their way back down the ladder. Whitefang was curled up in the corner now, enjoying a nap. Gabriel resisted the urge to flop on top of the wolf, not at all sure how the creature would react.

Jack started taking him through photo after photo, showing him family members, events, Gabriel was almost amazed by how much there was. A part of him envied Jack for having that many stories about his family, but he imagined Jack felt the same. He often talked about how much he wished he could have gone on as many adventures as Gabriel did. It seemed like he didn’t travel very far from his home.

“Aw look,” Gabriel was grinned as he shifted through one box of pictures. “There’s Mr. Brace Face.”

Jack spun around, eyes wide. He made a scramble for the picture but Gabriel darted out of his reach.

“Look at you. What was this, freshman year? You’re so damn tiny. And are those freckles? What happened to those?”

“Grew out of them.”

“Shame, we should try and get them back. Put you on the beach for a few days.”

“Whenever the UN actually gives us a vacation.”

Gabriel snorted, finally handing the photo over. “You’re telling me. Even when this PR stuff is done it won’t be over. Not with you appointed as Strike Commander.”

Suddenly everything froze.

Both literally and figuratively.

The wind stopped, the air stopped. Jack went rigid where he stood, eyes wide as the photo fell out of his fingers. A light crack was the only sound Gabriel could hear and when he turned to search it out he saw all the snow outside. When the hell had that gotten there? Ice crawled in from the doorway, snapping and groaning as it covered the wood of the barn.

“Jack?” Gabriel said, but his boyfriend didn’t respond. “Jack? What’s going on? Hey!”

He reached towards him but the motion was cut off by a sudden blast of cold wind. He flinched, feeling ice and snow hit his skin. The swirl of it all made the barn fade out into nothing but white. He tried reaching out once more but Jack was gone.

He was gone. The barn was gone. The only thing around him was ice and snow. He felt panic setting in for a moment before he shook his head and shouted.

“Whitefang?”

The wolf was there in a second, yellow eyes glowing in the fog.

“What the hell happened? Where’s Jack?”

“Nightmare,” The wolf crouched down. “He fell into a nightmare. I need to get you out of here.”

“Whoa whoa, no way. We have to snap him out of it.”

“Child of the sun, if you get lost in here you may get trapped.”

“I can’t just wake up and leave him like this.”

The wolf’s gaze was so intimidating, cold and serious. Finally he snapped his head to the side. “Climb on.”

“Huh?”

“Climb on my back and hold on tight. We must find him.”

Gabriel didn’t hesitate to do as he was told. The wolf’s fur was cold to the touch, tiny threads of ice under his fingers. He ignored the sensation and gripped the fur on his neck, praying it would be enough.

Whitefang straightened up, sniffing the air for a few beats before he took off. The motion almost sent Gabriel flying. Ice scraped across his cheeks with the harsh wind. He struggled to keep his eyes open, wondering how he could find Jack in this mess.

The wolf must have found something, letting out a bark and a growl as he turned. His pace slowed down as he lowered his head, nosing through the snow. He dug his paws in, tossing the snow behind him before gripping something below it.

With a few sharp tugs he pulled Jack to the surface by the sleeve of his shirt.

“Jack?” Gabriel called out as he slid off the spirit’s back. Jack’s eyes were shut, his skin turning an awful shade of blue.

He didn’t hesitate to reach out.

“Gabriel.”

The use of his name startled him. He turned back to look at the wolf, those glowing yellow eyes fixed on him.

“Listen to me. If you touch him now you must not let go. Do you understand?”

“Why not?”

“Not only could it harm you but he would vanish again. Regardless of what you see or hear you must not let go.”

“If it’s that risky why are you letting me do this?”

“Because, you are the only one who could solve this.”

“Solve what?”

The wolf said nothing. He only nodded his gaze toward Jack.

Gabriel knelt down, cold snow pressed under his knees. He tried to ignite his palms, but it failed. Must not work here.

Didn’t matter. He grabbed Jack’s shoulders and pulled him closer.

“Jackie? Hey. Come on, tell me you can hear me.”

Suddenly the space around him glitched. There was no other way to describe it. Parts of the ground changed color. The howling wind distorted and froze, before changing into another sound.

“Congratulations, my friend.”

“Good work Jack.”

“You’ll do a wonderful job.”

Gabriel recognized the voices, but more and more of them swirled around. Space kept distorting, colors shifting before it flashed.

He tightened his grip.

Don’t let go.

A wall, he was staring at a wall. No, looking up it was a desk. Faces shrouded in shadows stared down at him.

“This is a great opportunity.” They spoke in unison.

That same pressure from earlier reappeared. Bit by bit it pressed down on his chest and shoulders.

Don’t let go.

“I can’t,” He could hear Jack’s voice but he couldn’t see him. “Wouldn’t someone else be better suited?”

Wait, was this about the promotion? Why was this a nightmare?

“Reyes has been assigned his own task. He insisted we ask you.”

That was a lie. He didn’t know about this at all until Jack brought it up. Did those bastards lie to him? To make him take the job?

The pressure got worse by the second. Gabriel was having trouble breathing but he kept hanging on.

Don’t let go.

“I’m not a leader.” Jack said. The wall of shadowed faces faded out. “Hey! No! I’m not-”

Everything was dark. A low growl cut through the silence and Gabriel could feel fear rising up his spine. He tried to call out but his chest hurt. His muscles could barely move under the gravity around him.

“You’re no leader.” A voice taunted. “You’re a dog. You follow. You obey. You’re incapable on your own.”

Gabriel wished he could tell them to shut the hell up. He wished, but his lungs weren’t even working now. Any more of this and he swore his legs would break.

“Everything special about you came from someone else.”

It felt like the voice was talking to him now.

“You can’t carry that weight.”

“You’ll just let them down.”

His chest burned from the lack of air. He wondered if his vision was going spotty but there was still nothing but black.

Then he saw something, two red dots fading in. A line of sharp white teeth followed, shaped into a snarl.

Don’t let go.

He wouldn’t. He didn’t dare. Not now. Not ever.

The image in front of him was going hazy. He swore he felt his ribs cracking.

“Gabriel.” Whitefang’s voice was distant, muffled. “Gabriel!”

The creature in front of him lunged.

The second after his eyes flew open he gasped for air. He sat up so fast that his vision turned into nothing but spots. The pressure vanished but his muscles still echoed the pain. He kept on breathing, begging the dizziness to pass.

No. Jack.

Gabriel swore as he turned to his partner. Jack was still asleep, eyebrows pressed together and showing his fangs.

Gabriel knew one wrong move could result in those sinking into his arm.

Didn’t matter. He gently touched Jack’s face, feeling him flinch.

“Wake up, mi luna. It’s a dream. I’m right here.”

Soothing words had little effect. A whimper escaped Jack’s throat.

“Jack.” He called louder. This time the fire in his palms worked and he ran his thumb over Jack’s cheek.

Finally Jack opened his eyes, startled. Gabriel gave him a moment to glance around, not moving his hands.

“You’re safe, mi luna.”

“Gabe?” Jack sputtered. “The hell happened?”

“Nightmare dragged you in.”

Jack’s breathing slowed down but only so much. He ran a hand over his face, flinching when he touched fangs.

“Were you dreaming about your promotion?”

Jack went cold under his fingers. “How did you know?”

“I saw it.”

“Shit, shit, I’m sorry Gabe.”

“Jack.”

“I didn’t mean for you to get wrapped into that.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Jack blinked and finally looked at him. “What?”

“That pressure Jack. I thought it was just me, that being in your head was messing with me, but it was you.” He paused, running over the rest of the events that occurred. “Is that what I was feeling when I got there?”

“Gabe.”

“Was your wolf covering for you?”

Jack cringed and looked away.

He resumed the soothing motions of his thumb. “Jackie please, talk to me. What’s going on?”

It was a long, painful silence. Jack’s eyes stayed fixed on the hotel nightstand. With everything so quiet, Gabriel realized it was raining outside.

“They should have chosen someone else to be strike commander.” Jack’s eyes looked so lost.

“Huh? Come on Jack, you know that’s not true.”

A cold, icy glare was the response to that. Jack shot up, forcing Gabriel to let go.

“Isn’t it? I can’t begin to think of a good reason for them to choose me. You know it’s probably PR or something. You would do far better. Ana would.”

“Hey,” Gabriel grabbed his shoulders. “Jack, you earned this.”

“That’s a lie.”

“No it’s not.”

“Yes it is,” The fangs were back. “I’ve been riding your coat tail since day one. All the plans, strategies, final decisions, they were all yours. You’re the one who put an end to this. Why wouldn’t they choose you?”

“Because I didn’t do it alone. I couldn’t have done it alone. You won’t have to either.”

“That’s a lie.”

Gabriel pressed his anger back. “The hell? Ana’s here. Torb’s here. Reinhardt’s here.”

“But you won’t be.”

He froze. The sparks under his skin sputtered out. “What?”

“Blackwatch HQ is set to be in another country, Gabe.” Jack rolled his shoulders but stopped when he realized that Gabriel wasn’t going to let go. “You’ll be there. Somewhere else.”

“We have phones you know.”

His sarcastic remark was met with a glare. “But you won’t be here. You won’t be watching my back.”

Gabriel though about that lonely and empty sensation from earlier. So this is where it was coming from.

“Besides, Blackwatch? Why would they put you there of all places.”

“Huh?”

“You’re a healer, Gabe.” Jack reached up and took both of his hands. “You’re meant to be saving lives.”

“And you’re not?”

He didn’t like the silence that followed that question.

“You’re not just some attack dog, Jack.”

His partner’s gaze shot up, wide and fearful.

“You’re not. And if anyone says otherwise bring them to me.”

“I’m not a leader, Gabe.”

“That’s a lie.” He used Jack’s words.

“No it’s not. I can’t make those big decisions. I don’t know how they expect me to make them for everyone else.”

Pressure. Yet again, Jack was trying to carry it all on his shoulders, as if he had to.

Gabriel took a deep breath, pulling his hands back before shoving Jack onto the bed. Before his partner could get up he pinned him down, hands on his cheeks.

“Jack, listen to me, okay?”

He seemed taken aback by something when he nodded.

“You earned this. I know you might not think so because you’re looking at everything from the wrong angle, but you did. Plans? Tactics? Strategies? It’s all good to have, but that’s shit you can learn, shit you’ve been learning. You know what I can’t teach? I can’t teach a man how to calm down a group of frightened kids with one joke. I can’t teach a man to be so selfless he charges out on a slim chance he could save someone. Shit, Jack, I learned that from you.”

“That was reckless and stupid.” Jack tried to look away, but Gabriel shook his head.

“Yes, yes it was, but it doesn’t matter when it manages to save that many lives. ‘Stick to the plan’ is great in theory, but bad in practice. Plans go to shit left and right. Nothing wrong with breaking the rules and making new ones in order to save someone.”

“But Gabe–”

“But what? I’m not done. Your instincts are sharper than you realize. Wolf or not you always made sure people on the team were safe. Not once was I ever stressed about back-up when you were around. You always had my back, and Ana’s, and Reinhardt’s despite how much he’d go on and on about shielding us.”

“Come on, anyone would do that for their teammates.”

“Yeah, but you’d do it for anyone Jack. You’re the one who first said we should cease firing on the omnics after the god program was dead. You’re the one who pointed out they were non-hostiles. Sure, I may have stopped the omnic crisis, but you’re the one who turned the whole thing on its head.”

Jack was blushing now, that shade of pink running from his cheeks to the tips of his ears.

“I put you as second in command because I knew what you were capable of Jackie. I saw what you could do in SEP. I knew you’d be more than capable. You keep saying you can’t do this without me but I couldn’t have done it without you either. Maybe I had the plans, but you’re the one who put fire into everyone’s souls. I’ve never been good at speeches, but you? I could leave you alone with a group of jet lagged soldiers and suddenly they’d be rioting to get out there and get to work. You inspire people Jack. That’s why I figured they chose you. That’s why I knew they chose right because that’s what the world needs now. They don’t just need a tactician, they need inspiration.”

Jack’s eyes shown with tears before he blinked them away. That blush had crawled down his neck all the way to his shoulders and god damn Gabriel loved it.

“I don’t know if I can do this.” His voice cracked.

“You can.”

“I’m scared.”

“That’s okay.” Gabriel pressed their foreheads together and pulled him close enough that he could feel Jack’s eyelashes brush over his skin. “But are you going to face that head on? Or run away.”

Jack chuckled, a hand running over the back of Gabriel’s neck. “If I’m honest, I thought about it once. I thought about just you and me, getting out of here, finding a place of our own. Letting someone else take over. Then I realized how selfish that sounded.”

“Mi luna, you’re only human. It’s about time you stopped trying to make yourself so much bigger than you really are. That kind of pressure’s going to kill you.”

“I know,” His smile widened. “You’ve told me a hundred times.”

“Then listen,” Gabriel bumped their heads together before they both started laughing. He enjoyed the sound, enjoyed it mixing in with the soft rain outside, but something was missing.

“What time is it?” He asked as he sat up.

Jack seemed to pout from the lack of contact but looked over at the clock. “Twelve after two.”

“Guess we should sleep more.” Gabriel stood up and wandered over to the hotel window. He thought about throwing the drapes open but knew that the media would have a field day if they caught them both in here. Instead he nudged it to the side as he messed with the window latch. The window only opened so far and he let out a frustrated growl as he considered just breaking it.

Still, it was enough, he could smell the rain by now as the cool air blew in. He rested his head against it for a moment, feeling the cold glass as he shut his eyes. He imagined they were somewhere else.

“Gabe?”

Jack was sitting up now, frowning. His eyes were doing that glowing thing again. It might be creepy if Gabriel wasn’t so used to it by now.

He couldn’t help his smile, crossing the room in a heartbeat. The moment he could reach Jack he pulled him into a kiss, feeling that late night stubble scratch against his skin. He smiled, unable to stop his giggling which made it much harder to give Jack a proper kiss. Soon his partner was laughing as well, rubbing their noses together instead as the pair of them collapsed back onto the bed.

“Te amo, Jackie. Mi luna. Mi amor.”

“Love you too, Gabi.” He chimed out the nickname. “Sunshine. Light of my life.”

“You’re so freaking gay.”

“Excuse me,” Jack’s laughter became louder. “But I’m the bisexual. You’re the gay one.”

“After what you just said? Are you sure?”

“That’s rich coming from the guy who literally wrote an entire song about my eyes.”

“You make blue look good, okay?”

“Gay.”

Gabriel grabbed his pillow and lightly smacked Jack in the face. His partner didn’t hesitate to retaliate with a much harder hit. The fight was on, Gabe already tossing the sheets over Jack’s face to block his vision. Gabriel smacked him again, but didn’t see the hit coming in on his left. He grinned when he tackled Jack, trying to pin him down, but both of them hit the nightstand instead. The lamp on it wobbled for a moment before Gabriel’s arm shot out to catch it.

For a moment everything froze. Gabriel’s other hand held Jack up and away from falling onto the floor. His partner finally pulled the blanket off his face, studying what had just happened.

When their gazes met the laughter returned. Jack wrapped his arms around Gabriel’s neck, pulling himself back onto the bed.

“I hate thinking that we won’t be able to do this anymore.” His partner mumbled and tightened his grip.

“I know,” Gabriel had considered it too, but he refused to think it’d be the last chance they had. They’d get another one, someday, maybe something more permanent. “Do you really want to know what I was thinking about, watching that sunrise?”

“What?”

“This,” He pressed his face into Jack’s shoulder. “Us, somewhere else, no PR or anything. Sometime in the early morning, but it’s raining out. Window’s open, smells like dew and rainwater. Maybe I’m humming a song while you read or maybe we’re dozing off again, I don’t know. Doesn’t really matter what we do. We’ve got nowhere to be.”

“Gabe.”

“Hm?”

He felt something sharp brush against his neck. “I kind of... don’t want to sleep now.”

“Whoa,” His whole face went hot. “Slow down there. Gotta get some towels first. I am not explaining to the hotel staff why there’s god damn blood all over their pillows.”

“Better be quick,” Jack very lightly bit down on his skin. “You don’t get to say something that poetic and run off.”

“Fine, but you have to get off me first.”

Jack just hummed before he bit down a bit harder, running his tongue over it. Gabriel couldn’t stop the noise that escaped his throat and frowned when he felt Jack laughing against his skin.

“Jackass.”

“Asshole.”

#overwatch #reaper76 #Spirit!AU #scribbly fics #this is like the gayest thing I've ever written #and that's saying a lot

32 notes · View notes