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wolveria · 3 years

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Inside Your Wires - Chapter 1

Pairing: Human!Connor x Android!Reader

Summary: Assigned all cases involving android-related crimes, saddled with a prototype that follows him around like a plastic puppy, Detective Connor Anderson knows this must be karma for all the bad shit he’s ever done.

He thought he'd hit rock bottom, that he didn't have much left to lose, but he's proven wrong by the android sent by CyberLife. And Connor learns just how much further he can fall.

Prompt: For the @dbhau-bigbang 2020 challenge!

Series Warnings (18+ only): Eventual smut, slow burn, fantasy bigotry, violence, brief noncon elements, angst with a happy ending

AO3

(Story moodboard by @uh-kitty-got-wet)

November 5th, 2038

Friday 11:21PM

The whiskey was harsh and burned like liquid fire as it slid down his throat. He dropped the shot glass onto the bar top and closed his eyes and savored the bloom of the cheap booze warming his chest. The music from the old jukebox behind him belted out tunes that would have been considered outdated when the place opened.

It was like this most nights. He was alone, exhausted, and well on his way to a pleasant buzz. The one thing Connor had going for him was that he hadn’t started in on his third drink until 11 PM.

That had to be some kind of record. On a Friday night, he was usually shitfaced by 10. Call it the long hours he’d been working, or maybe the fact he felt more self-loathing than usual, he’d somehow managed to hold off on spiraling until nearly midnight.

Definitely a record. And Connor deserved to celebrate.

When he tipped the glass with one finger and caught Jimmy’s eye, he nearly looked away in shame. The bartender had never given him shit before, at least in a verbal sense, but the cool stare he gave Connor now made him want to crawl into a hole and die there.

But Jimmy didn’t say a word, just gave him another dose of poison and turned away, leaving Connor in relative peace to enjoy the game. Denton Carter was kicking ass tonight, so at least there was that.

It was all going beautifully until the door opened and the sound of rain echoed throughout the tiny bar, along with a distinct smell of wet asphalt and dirty concrete. Out of the corner of his eye, Connor saw two of the other regulars shift in their seats to stare at the newcomer.

Not another regular, then. And by how lengthy the stares were and the sudden shift in atmosphere, Connor guessed the barometric pressure had taken a drop due to a pair of long legs and pretty eyes.

Turning his body only far enough to get a glance for himself, Connor was not disappointed, eyeing the stranger from their black dress shoes, up their shapely legs clad in dark jeans, past curvy hips and—

Oh.

Connor turned back in his seat, hunched over and grimacing in disgust, put there by the sight of a blue triangle on a lapel and a glowing armband around one arm. He hadn’t even needed to look higher for the LED to know what the fuck had just waltzed into the joint like it actually belonged there.

He nursed his whiskey, praying the thing would pass him by and leave him the fuck alone. Or better yet, Jimmy would throw it out.

No such luck, of course.

“Detective Anderson,” spoke a smooth, raspy voice to his right. “I’m the YN800 model sent by CyberLife.”

He elected to ignore it. Maybe if he did so for long enough, it would take the hint and go away.

Again, Connor’s luck was not holding out.

“I called your cell phone, but you didn’t answer,” the voice continued, unimpeded. “I then looked for you at the station after checking your home, but you weren’t there either. Your colleagues indicated you tended to frequent the bars in the area, and I was fortunate to find you at the fifth one.”

His eye twitched. This thing had gone to his apartment?

“Well, here I am,” he answered, dry and caustic as he stared straight ahead at the wall of bottles. He calculated how angry Jimmy would be if he took out his service pistol and shot it through the head.

Pretty angry, Connor decided. It would probably leave a stain. Also, he didn’t want to compensate some asshole company for property damage.

“What do you want?” he finally growled, scratching his nail into the bar top already marred with various scuffs and dings.

“You were assigned a case earlier this evening. A homicide.”

Already, a headache was forming between the eyes at the sound of the android’s irritatingly friendly voice.

“Yeah, and?”

“It involved a CyberLife android,” it said in that same smooth inflection. “In accordance with procedure, the company has allocated a specialized model to assist investigators.”

You have to be shitting me.

Connor grit his teeth and clenched his glass tighter, a flush of heat moving through him that had nothing to do with his blood alcohol content. A fucking android was sent to help cops do their job?

Fuck that, and fuck this hunk of junk.

“Good for them,” he answered as he tipped the glass up to his lips. “I couldn’t give less of a shit. Now get the fuck out of my face. We don’t need any help, especially from a plastic pair of tits like you.”

He should have known that wasn’t the end of it. The android spoke again, adopting a tone of what it had probably been programmed as “sympathetic.”

“I understand you may be experiencing reluctance to having an android’s assistance in this matter, but I am—“

“—ruining a perfectly good evening, butting your nose where it doesn’t belong and sure as fuck isn’t welcome.”

Connor put his glass down harder on the bar top than he meant to, nearly spilling his drink.

“I suggest you leave before I void your warranty.”

Connor thought the machine got the message when it finally went silent. He could even see its mood ring spinning yellow out of the corner of his eye before it settled on that annoying placid blue.

He’d just brought the glass halfway to his lips when it said, “I’m sorry, Detective, but I must insist.”

Connor set the glass back down and started to count to ten. He couldn’t lose it now, he’d promised Jimmy he wouldn’t break anything else after the last brawl he’d gotten into.

But the fucking thing just kept on talking.

“My instructions stipulate that I have to accompany you.”

“You know where you can stick your instructions?” Connor growled before downing the glass of whiskey.

It was a good thing he had, because its next words made him choke on spit.

“No. Where?”

Connor set the glass down, and for the first time that evening, fully turned toward the android and stared at it.

The damn thing was staring back, head slightly tilted like a curious puppy. It had large eyes to match the image too, earnest and innocent and entirely too sincere. Its attire at second glance wasn’t the typical android faire. A smooth grey android jacket and a dark, patterned tie marked it as something different. Unique.

And just a little too pretty. Every designed, group-focused imperfection on its face made it that much more appealing. Its hair was neatly coifed, pulled up and pinned behind its head, exposing the smooth curve of its neck.

Hanging down the left side of its face was a strategically-placed lock of hair that Connor immediately want to twirl his finger around. He suspected that was the point.

The further down Connor’s eyes traveled, the more he lost his train of thought. The perfectly sensible tie was lying on the slope of its breasts, something even the jacket couldn’t cover. Why the fuck androids had breasts to begin with, Connor couldn’t begin to fathom, and it seemed even more ludicrous now seeing them on a “specialized model.”

The android hadn’t moved apart from its artificial breathing, another thing about the machines that was uncanny. They weren’t human, and the fact CyberLife kept trying to pass them off as such was a goddamn insult to humanity.

He met the thing’s eye, gave an unimpressed huff, and went back to nursing his drink. If the fucking tin can didn’t understand a dirty innuendo, he certainly wasn’t going to ruin its pristine, virginal programming.

Connor doubted everything that had just gone through his head as those unnecessarily realistic tits were pressed against his elbow, without warning or any sense of decency or a concept of personal space.

“How about this, Detective?”

Connor fumbled, nearly spilling his drink, a massive what the fuck! warning flashing in his head as the machine pressed closer.

“I’ll buy you another drink, on the house. Surely that’s worth a few minutes of your time? And if not, you can send me on my way.”

Connor couldn’t speak with that voice right into his ear like a close confidant, sultry and low and borderline pornographic, so it was a good thing the android didn’t bother waiting for a response.

Instead, it turned to Jimmy and said in a louder, more normal tone, “Bartender, another round for the detective, please.”

Jimmy turned from where he was cleaning glasses on the counter, eyebrows shooting upward as he looked from the machine to Connor. It had backed up a few inches, but there were a lot of reflective bottles on the wall. Connor wondered just how much Jimmy had seen.

Connor gave a little helpless shrug as if to say, Don’t look at me, I don’t know what the fuck it’s doing!

But when the damn thing actually brought out real paper money and set it on the counter, Jimmy got moving. Seemed he wasn’t picky about where his money came from, and Connor almost resented the fact he hadn’t thrown the android out on principle.

Who the hell gave it money in the first place? CyberLife? What, did they hand it a few bucks of allowance before letting it off its leash?

Despite all his reservations, and there were a great many of them, Connor was not about to turn down a free drink. Or two.

“Make it a double,” he grumbled, purposefully avoiding the android’s focused gaze. He could practically feel the thing staring into the side of his head, but at least it remained at a distance and wasn’t pressed against his side like a drunk, horny badge bunny anymore.

“Thanks, Jim.” Connor took the glass and tipped it back, drowning it in one go. The slide of the familiar burn down his throat, spreading throughout his limbs, did quite a lot to help ease the tension in his muscles.

He released a heavy exhale, pushed away from the bar, and got to his feet.

“You want to play plastic cop? Okay, then. Keep up,” he said, tilting his head in its direction without actually looking at it. “Or I’m leaving your ass behind.”

Connor didn’t wait for a response, only raised his hand in parting to Jimmy, and pushed open the door to let the rain-drenched Detroit night swallow him whole. But even through the sound of the rain pinging off the hood of his nearby car he could hear the even footfalls behind him, just a little too close for comfort.

Fucking androids.

Next Chapter

#connor x reader #detroit: become human #human!connor #android!reader #dbh au big bang #my writing #my fanfiction #inside your wires #i make connor suffer but he's gonna be hard about it

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let-the-dream-begin · 4 years

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A Place to Belong Chapter 39: The Man and the Myth

Chapter 38

Read on AO3

They sat silently for a few more moments, before Claire felt Jamie inhale. She lifted her head off of his chest to look up at him, the sight of him taking her breath away again.

“Her name...what did ye name her?”

Claire’s heart strained, and she smiled tearily. “Brianna.”

His eyes closed, and he exhaled with a shudder. “Brianna,” he repeated, savoring each syllable as it rolled off his tongue. Her name…his daughter’s name. “Brianna.”

“For your father, Brian. Remember?” Claire caressed his jaw, eight years of separation not enough to suppress an instinct etched so deeply in the marrow of her bone.

“Aye...aye, I do.” His voice was hoarse with emotion. Claire stretched up to reach him better, pressing their foreheads together.

“Can ye...can ye tell me about her?”

She chuckled through her nose, the breath tickling Jamie’s skin.

“She’s...a hellion, for starters.”

Jamie laughed now, his lips trembling against her chin.

“She’s very smart, and she loves horses, and she’s empathetic, and stubborn and bold and brave…” Claire lost her voice for a moment, blinking away tears. She pulled away enough to look into his eyes. “She’s yours, Jamie. In every way.”

Every line of his face was hard, his eyes red, stagnant tears on his cheeks. “Mine.”

Claire nodded wordlessly, brushing her lips on each of his cheeks, kissing away his tears.

“She’s...she’s beautiful, is she no’...?” he said. “I could hardly see fer lack of air...but she’s...she’s beautiful, Claire.”

Claire nodded, tears slipping out of her own eyes now, and Jamie brushed them away with gentle caresses of his thumbs.

“She is.”

She was unable to resist closing the small distance between them and kissing him soundly, and she almost whimpered in disbelief. How many times had she tried to picture this, and yet his lips had vanished beneath hers every time...?

They stayed there, moved beyond words again, until Claire’s stomach lurched, remembering.

“There’s…there’s one more thing you should know.” Claire broke the silence.

“Her twin?” Jamie said.

“God, no…” Claire chuckled. “No…there’s…been a lasting effect of the difficult birth. It isn’t serious,” she said quickly. “We’ve become fairly good at managing it, all of us. Jenny and Fergus and Ian. And Brianna knows what to do now when she feels it coming on. She’s old enough to understand.”

Jamie nodded silently, urging her to continue.

“Yes…now she…she has something called epilepsy. From a lack of oxygen during her birth. She has seizures occasionally. They’re usually not very bad.”

“Seizures?” Jamie repeated the foreign word. “What does that mean?”

“She…she becomes rigid, stiff. Her eyes roll to the side, like this.” Claire demonstrated briefly. “Her left arm and leg twitch, uh…like this.” She bent her arm at the elbow to show him. “She loses consciousness during it. It isn’t serious,” Claire reassured again, sensing his growing panic. “It was far more dangerous when she was a baby. Could have caused permanent damage back then.”

“So it willnae cause damage any longer?” Jamie said.

“It shouldn’t, unless it’s a very, very long one. So it’s not terribly serious. I just thought you should know. It’s…quite frightening if you’ve never seen one before, especially in a child.” Claire shuddered at the memory. “She was just a month old when she had her first one. It was horrible. But I’m quite used to them now. You just…have to be prepared.”

Jamie nodded, though his brow was still furrowed with concern. “Ye’ll…ye’ll show me how to be prepared?”

“Of course.” Claire cupped his cheeks, resting their foreheads together. “I still can’t believe you’re really alive…”

Jamie wrapped his arms around her. “Sometimes I canna believe it myself either.” He kissed her head. “Can ye…can ye take me inside so I can properly meet my daughter?”

Claire stood up and reached down to help him up. “You’ll have to be…patient. She doesn’t know you at all.”

Jamie nodded sadly. “I ken that.”

“I’m going to have to explain where you’ve been all this time. We told her you died for Scotland. She thinks you’ve been in Heaven all this while.” Jamie nodded. “I thought of telling her that soldiers made a mistake when they brought news of your death. But how do I explain where you’ve been? I…I don’t even know where you’ve been...I haven’t even asked you yet.”

“Ardsmuir prison,” he said flatly.

Claire cringed, squeezing his hands in comfort. “We can talk about it later.” He nodded solemnly. “Perhaps I can tell her that…you were hiding from the bad men, or — ”

“Ye can tell her I was in prison.”

“Jamie, I don’t think — ”

“I committed treason. It’s a fact. I dinna wish to raise her on lies, ye ken,” Jamie said, and Claire frowned. “She canna keep thinking I’m some sort of God. I’m a man, a man wi’ faults, a man who’s committed sin and crime. It’s time she came to know her father as a mortal man rather than this mythical being that ye’ve created for her imagination.”

“Jamie, I didn’t tell her anything that wasn’t true…”

“I ken. But she’s likely been embellishing it in her head wi’out realizing, whether ye intended fer her to do it or no’.” He wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his clasped hands on the small of her back. “After yer parents died, did ye no’ dream of them, even wi’out remembering what they looked like? Did yer wee head create the perfect memories of them since ye had nothing else to hold on to?” Claire’s eyes narrowed in thought. “I ken I did that wi’ my mother. I was a bairn when she passed. To hear everyone speak of her ye’d think she was an angel. And to me she was. No one was telling me anything that wasnae true. But hearing it, over and over, she became an intangible spirit rather than a concrete memory. I think even if she’d magically come back to us I’d never stop seeing her that way.”

Claire nodded in understanding. “I see what you mean,” she said. “I suppose for a while I had an idealized picture of my parents. Though in my case, no one ever talked about them. So it seems a little different.”

“So do ye understand why I want her to know the truth? I canna father a child who thinks I’m a Godly spirit-man.” He paused for a moment. “Now I…I willnae tell ye what to do. She’s yer daughter — ”

“Jamie…she’s your daughter, too.”

“I ken. But ye said yerself. She doesna know me.” Claire’s heart was breaking. “You were there for her…seizures, ye ken how to help her. Ye ken the name of her horse, her favorite color, how to make her laugh, what sorts of sweets she likes…”

“Jamie.” Claire cupped his face in her hands. “You will know those things, too. I know you can’t replace the years you lost with her…there’s no way to get that back. But you will know her just as completely as I do, and eventually in ways that I don’t. It will take time. But you will. I promise.”

Jamie sighed. “Do ye think…do ye think she can learn to love the man more than the myth?”

“Yes. I do.”

“What about you?”

“Me?”

“Ye’ve spent…eight years creating images of me in yer mind. I’m not the same man I was before. Can ye learn to love the man I’ve become?”

Claire kissed him. “Can you learn to love the woman I’ve become?”

He kissed her back. “‘Till our life shall be done,’ Sassenach.”

She sighed contentedly. “I do love you.”

“And I love you.”

“Come on now.” Claire began tugging him toward the house. “Someone is waiting to meet the giant from the faery hill.”

Jamie laughed out loud. “I ken if I hadnae been scared stiff I’d’ve had a good laugh at that.”

“Me too.”

They entered the house and wandered through the parlor, then to the kitchen. Jenny was there, helping Mrs. Crook with supper.

“Are you two quite finished howling at each other?” Jenny said, only briefly glancing up from the chopping.

“You heard that,” Claire said sheepishly.

“All of Lallybroch heard that,” Jenny scoffed. “I almost came out there and clopped yer heads together myself. Lucky ye finally quit just in time.”

“Aye, lucky fer us.” Jamie smirked.

“If yer looking fer Brianna,” Jenny said, rushing a handful of vegetables to the pot over the fireplace. “She’s in her bedroom. Crying to Fergus last I heard.” Claire and Jamie exchanged a guilty look. “She thinks her ‘mummy’ hates her fer riding her horse at a trot.”

Claire smiled despite the guilt bubbling in her chest. “We’ll be going to her, then. We’ll see you at supper, Jenny.”

“Aye.” She didn’t look up from the pot. Claire and Jamie started to leave, but then:

“Brother.” They stopped and turned around expectantly. “Good luck wi’ the bairn. She’ll love ye. I ken it.”

Jamie smiled. “Thank you, Jenny.”

Claire laced her fingers with Jamie’s as she led him up the stairs in the parlor.

“Feels strange to be led around in my own home,” Jamie said wistfully. “I dinna ken where anything is. I dinna even ken who those bairns are.” He indicated Maggie, Kitty, and Janet running about the hall, squealing their wee heads off.

“You’ll catch up,” Claire assured him. Claire paused on the stairs. “See the golden haired one?” Kitty was currently trying to pry wee Janet off of her leg. Jamie nodded. “That’s Katherine.”

Jamie looked gobsmacked at Claire, then quickly back at Kitty, who soon disappeared into the hall with her sisters. “That bonny lass is little Caitríona…?” Claire nodded. “Last I saw her, her wee head fit in the palm of my hand…”

Claire rubbed his shoulder. “That’s how I feel every time I look at Brianna.” She tugged again on his arm. “Come on, she’s waiting.” They continued up the stairs, and Claire gestured to her room. “The guest room is my room now. Well…ours, I suppose.” She smiled sheepishly. “The children are up the next flight.” She led him up and to the door she knew Brianna was behind. “She shares the room with Kitty. Poor Maggie has to share with the youngest daughter, but Kitty and Brianna are inseparable. Maggie had her own room before Janet was out of her cot, and when the time came we tried to have Maggie and Kitty share, and then Brianna with Janet. But the two of them refused to sleep for even a moment, every night, until they were sharing a room.” Claire smiled at the memory, and Jamie softly chuckled in response.

“Ah…Janet?”

“Oh, that was the dark haired one hanging onto Kitty’s leg.” Claire smiled. Jamie nodded, and Claire could tell that he was already overwhelmed. She placed steadying hands on his shoulders. “Your nieces and nephews will love you just fine, Jenny and Ian will catch you up. But right now, you have a daughter that needs you.”

“I…have a daughter,” Jamie whispered reverently, still hardly believing it. Claire kissed him, smiled encouragingly, then turned to knock on the door.

“Hello?” Claire slowly cracked the door open “May I come in?”

She poked her head in to find Fergus and Brianna sitting on the rug in front of the fireplace. Claire almost laughed; they were each holding a doll.

“Come in, Maman,” Fergus said. Brianna did not look up from her doll. “Miss Nettie and Miss Winnie were getting acquainted, right ma petit?” Brianna did not respond; she kept her attention on smoothing Miss Nettie’s dress.

“That’s lovely,” Claire said, leaving the door open a crack and crossing to the fireplace. “Isn’t it kind of Fergus to play dolls with you, Brianna? Even though he’s a big boy now?” Claire sat on the rug beside Brianna. “Would you mind if I took over for him so he can go do whatever it is that big boys do?” Brianna shrugged wordlessly.

“Ah, big boy things are not as fun as Miss Winnie.” Fergus stood up, and Claire noticed how Brianna was fighting the urge to smile. Fergus kissed the top of her head. “See you at supper, ma petit.”

Fergus crossed to the door, and he jumped, not expecting Jamie to be right outside the door.

“Sorry, lad,” Jamie said.

Fergus gaped for a moment. “No, I am sorry, Milord. I did not see you.” Fergus bowed uncomfortably before disappearing down the hall. Though Jamie tried not to dwell on it, he couldn’t help but feel the sting, knowing that Claire was “Maman” and he was still “Milord.” Pushing down that disappointment, Jamie peeked into the room, seeing Claire and Brianna’s backs.

“Brianna,” Claire said, taking Miss Winnie into her arms. “I’m not angry at you.”

Brianna kept her gaze on the doll. “You’re not?”

“No, I’m not.” Brianna finally looked up at her. “Could you tell me where you got such an idea from?”

“You don’t like when I do things like Kitty and Maggie,” she said sheepishly.

“Brianna…” Claire outstretched her arms, and she crawled into her embrace. “You’ve got that entirely backwards. I love when you can do things like the other children. It makes me so happy when you get to feel like a normal little girl. But I can’t help that I worry about you. Because — ”

“Because I’m special. I know, Mummy,” Brianna said. “I don’t want to be special anymore.”

Claire sighed, rocking her back and forth. “Unfortunately, only God can decide things like that. He made you special for a reason. You know that.”

“I know.”

Claire kissed the top of her head. “I love you very much.”

“I love you, Mummy.”

“Is there anything else bothering you?”

“The giant was cross wi’ me, too.” Brianna fiddled with Miss Nettie’s skirts. “He was so mad that he broke Auntie Jenny’s pitcher. Then he was yelling at you. I heard. Before Fergus took me away.”

Claire repositioned Brianna so they were sitting on the rug facing each other. “That wasn’t a giant, Miss Brianna.” She playfully poked her nose with her pointer finger. “He’s just a very tall, mortal man.” Claire held Miss Winnie up straight in front of her, as if she were standing on the floor and talking to Brianna.

“You know, there’s someone that I would really love for Mistresses Nettie and Winnie to meet,” Claire said. “They’re looking quite bonny tonight, don't you think?”

Brianna gave a tiny giggle. “Yes.”

“Then would it be alright if someone joined us?” Brianna nodded. “Such a good girl.” Claire briefly cupped her cheek. “Alright. You have permission to join us now,” Claire said in her faux-regal voice, causing Brianna to giggle again. They both turned their heads as the door creaked open and the six foot, three inch tall “giant” entered the room.

“Good evening, lasses.” Jamie gave a deep bow, and Brianna smiled despite her nervousness at seeing him again.

“Good evening, sir.” Claire gave a small bow with her head. “Care to join us beside the fire?”

“Aye, that would be fine.” Jamie crossed the room to the fireplace and sat down. Despite the warm smile on his face, Claire could tell he was nervous.

“Allow me to introduce Miss Nettie.” Claire extended the doll’s cotton stub of a hand to Jamie, who took the hint, taking it between his thumb and pointer figure and giving it a kiss. Brianna giggled again, even louder than before. “And this is…” Claire turned to Brianna.

“Miss Winnie,” Brianna said, extending the doll’s hand, giggling again when Jamie kissed it.

“Madame Claire Fraser.” Claire held her hand out to Jamie, who took her hand with all the care and reverence in the world, and pressed a tender kiss to it.

“And you are?” Jamie said.

“Mistress Brianna Fraser.” She extended her hand, copying her mother’s elegant manner the best she could.

Jamie blanched, not having expected her to give him her hand. His eyes flashed to Claire for help, and she made a gesture with her eyebrows that told him to go on. Desperately trying to hide their trembling, he took Brianna’s wee hand in both of his enormous ones, closing his eyes as he kissed it. He rubbed the spot over with his thumb before returning her hand to her.

“He hasn’t introduced himself yet,” Brianna said pointedly.

“Brianna…”

“No, no, the lass is right, Where are my manners?” Jamie said, looking into Claire’s eyes for approval. She nodded. “My name is James Alexander Malcom Mackenzie Fraser.”

“James…Fraser,” Brianna said thoughtfully. “Mummy, that’s Da’s name.”

Jamie’s heart leapt into his throat. Da. She calls me Da.

“That’s right darling. Actually, I…we have to tell you something.” Brianna looked back and forth between the two of them silently. “Do you remember what I told you about your Da?”

“He died fighting for Scotland and Clan Fraser because he was a hero,” Brianna said proudly. “You said I have his hair and his eyes and his thick skull.” Jamie swiped at his nose to conceal the grin he broke into. “You said that he lives in Heaven with my sister Faith, and they watch over us together.”

“That’s right, I did say that. And most of it is true, darling,” Claire said, and Brianna began to look confused. “Your father did fight for Scotland and Clan Fraser, and he was a hero. You do have his hair, and his eyes, and his thick skull.” She ruffled her hair. “And you do have a big sister watching over you. But Brianna, your father isn’t in Heaven with Faith.”

“Why not?” There was a twinge of panic to her voice.

“Because he didn’t die when he fought for Scotland and Clan Fraser. There was a mistake.”

“A mistake?”

“The British Army thought your father was dead, so that’s what they told us, me, your Auntie and Uncle. So I told you that as well. But it wasn’t true, because the British Army made a mistake.”

“So Da isn’t in Heaven.”

“That’s right.”

“And he’s a great big Scottish warrior. With my hair and my eyes.” Brianna very deliberately looked at Jamie. “Just like you.” Jamie smiled. “You’re my Da, aren't you? You’re Jamie Fraser?”

“Aye, lass, it’s me,” Jamie whispered. “I’m yer Da.”

Brianna looked at Claire, then back at Jamie, then back at Claire. “It’s him, Mummy…the love of your life.”

Claire couldn’t stop the tears from spilling over. “Yes, darling. The man I’ve told you all about all these years, the man I love, and your father. He’s come back home to us.” Claire instinctually reached for Jamie’s hand, and he expertly laced their fingers together without having to look at her.

“Why did God let you out of Heaven, Da?”

“Da was never in Heaven, Brianna,” Claire said gently. “Remember? He never died. It was a mistake.”

“Then he wasn’t protecting us.”

“Aye, I was,” Jamie spoke up before Claire could answer her. “I prayed fer ye both every single day and night. I prayed to God and to the Saints to keep ye safe. And it worked, did it no’?” Brianna nodded. “So ye had protection from Heaven even wi’out me there myself.”

“What about Faith?” Brianna was becoming visibly upset. “She doesna have a Da in Heaven. Who is taking care of her?”

“Brianna, it’s alright…” Claire said, blinking back her tears. “She’s…she’s with Mother Mary. Where all the orphan angels wait for their parents to join them in Heaven. Mother Mary was a wonderful mother to Jesus, right?” Brianna nodded. “So she is a wonderful mother to Faith, too.”

Brianna’s face had visibly darkened, and she no longer seemed receptive to what they’d been saying. “Brianna, I’m sorry I told you things that weren’t true. I honestly believed them to be true when I told them to you. Do you understand?” Brianna didn’t respond. “If I knew your father was alive all along I never would have told you those things. But I didn’t know, Auntie Jenny didn’t know, Uncle Ian didn’t know. We all thought Da was in Heaven, darling. Nobody knew the truth. Do you understand?”

Brianna kept her eyes downcast, thinking silently for a moment.

“Kitty, and Maggie, and Janet, and Ian, and Jamie, and Michael’s Da is Uncle Ian. Right?”

“That’s right,” Claire answered.

“Uncle Ian lives wi’ his bairns,” Brianna said. “He was never in Heaven or anywhere else.”

Jamie and Claire exchanged a look, silently agreeing Jamie would take this one. “Brianna, I wanted to come home and live wi’ yer mam, and you, my bairn. I wanted to so, verra badly. My heart…” He put his hand over his chest. “My heart was broken every day I was no’ wi’ ye. I wanted to be at Lallybroch. Do…do ye believe me?” She shrugged. “I couldna be, because the British Army captured me. They put me in prison, so I couldnae escape and run home to my lasses.”

“Are you a thief?” Brianna asked. “The boys play jailer and thief.”

“No, I’m no’ a thief. Ye ken how yer mam said I fought fer Scotland and Clan Fraser?” She nodded. “The King of England didnae like that. So he had everyone who fought for Scotland and their clans put in prison.”

“Mummy said you’re a good man.”

“Sometimes good men go to prison.”

“Why?”

“I…I dinna ken.”

Jamie was out of answers. Claire gave his hand a squeeze.

“Brianna, do you trust me?” Claire asked. Brianna nodded. “Do you understand what it means to trust someone?” She nodded, a bit more hesitantly. “Trusting someone is…is when you believe that they are good, and you know that no matter what they would do anything to help you.”

“Of course I trust you, Mummy. When I have seizures you do anything to help me.”

“Yes, that’s right. Very good, darling.” Claire cupped her cheek, resting her hand there. “Now I…I trust this man. I believe that he is good, and I know that he would do anything for me. And he would do anything for you, too. You don’t have to trust him if you don’t want to, Brianna.” Claire squeezed Jamie’s hand as she said it, assuring him that she didn’t mean she wanted it to be that way. “I just want you to know that I trust him.”

“Okay, Mummy.” Brianna said. Claire removed her hand from her cheek.

“Right now,” Jamie began hesitantly. “I’ll settle fer being yer friend. If that’s alright wi’ ye.”

“You’re not my friend.” Claire felt her heart sink into her stomach, and she could feel Jamie’s grip on her hand tighten, almost painful. “You’re my Da.”

Both Jamie and Claire sighed in relief. “Aye, I am.”

“Kitty’s Da taught her about horses. Does that mean Fergus can’t ride with me anymore?”

“No, lass,” Jamie assured her. “Fergus is still yer brother, and ye can do whatever ye please wi’ him. I dinna wish to interfere. I can…I can watch ye ride. Does…does Kitty’s Da watch her ride?”

“Yes.”

“Then I should watch you, too. Right?”

Brianna gave a tiny smile. “Yes.”

“Good.” Jamie beamed, and Claire’s heart was fit to burst. She had never imagined a situation where she could ever be so full of love.

“Kitty gets to ride out all over Lallybroch, and she goes very fast,” Brianna said, her smile disappearing. “Mummy says I have to stay in the corral, and I can only go slow, and Fergus can’t let go.”

“You’ve ridden all over Lallybroch before,” Claire said. “With me.”

“But no’ by myself,” Brianna insisted. “Kitty gets her own horse when she rides wi’ her Da.”

“Yer mam told me you were…special,” Jamie said carefully, using the word that they had used when he was listening from the hall. “I ken it’s hard. Do ye…do ye have fun wi’ Fergus in the corral?”

She hesitated. “Yes. But I’d have more fun out of it.”

“Ah, I’m not so sure about that. The horses feel quite safe in the corral. It’s like they’re sharing their home wi’ ye. They only let verra special people in the corral, ye ken. Have ye ever seen a man thrown from his horse in the corral?” Brianna nodded. “Ah, that’s because they didna trust him. They must trust ye quite a bit, lass.” He playfully poked her nose, and she giggled. “I’d love to watch ye ride.”

She smiled. “Do the horses trust you?”

“Aye, I’d wager they do enough.”

“Then you could come in, too. With Fergus and me.”

Jamie let out a breathy laugh, and Claire could see his eyes glistening. “Only if ye want me to, lass.”

“Well I do.” She nodded curtly, as if agreeing on a business transaction. Claire chuckled. “Da?”

“What is it, lass?”

“Kitty’s Da hugs her and picks her up and kisses her,” Brianna said nervously. “Like Mummy does to me.”

“Brianna, you don’t have to do those things until you’re ready,” Claire said. “He understands that you’ve only just met.” Jamie nodded assuringly, trying to hide his disappointment.

“I am ready, Mummy.” Jamie and Claire looked at each other, realizing they had misunderstood her nervousness. She wasn’t afraid he would do those things; she was afraid that he wouldn’t.

“Do ye…” He cleared his throat, and blinked rapidly. “Do ye want me to hug you, Brianna?”

“Only if you want to.”

Claire thought briefly that she’d never heard Brianna use that particular phrase, and then quickly realized she’d picked it up just now, from Jamie.

He looked at Claire, with an indescribable expression that she’d only seen once before: the first time he’d felt Faith kicking. Claire nodded. “Go on.”

Jamie released her hand and outstretched his arms. Brianna scooted over to him on her knees and hugged him around the chest. Jamie felt like all the air from his lungs had been emptied. His hands hovered over her for a moment before he regained his senses enough to return the embrace. Lord, she was so tiny. He was reminded of how overwhelmed he’d been by Claire’s smallness the first time he’d truly held her close. But Claire was a grown woman. Brianna, his daughter, was nay but a tiny lass.

My daughter.

One of his hands moved to cup the back of her head. Through the thick layer of wild curls, her head, too, was impossibly small. He remembered holding Katherine’s head in his palm all those years ago, then seeing how big she’d become. Then he remembered what Claire had said:

“That’s how I feel every time I look at Brianna.”

He was suddenly struck with the thought of this girl ever being as tiny as baby Katherine had been, and he was overcome at the idea of never having held her when she was that small, never watching Claire nurse her, never seeing her learn to form words in her wee mouth, never watching her swing around her wee fists, learning to take her first steps…

He could not stop himself from weeping.

Claire watched him silently crying, overcome with emotion herself. She covered her mouth to stifle a sob. She reached out to stroke Jamie’s cheek, wiping away the tears that lingered there.

After taking a moment to compose himself, Jamie released Brianna. He knew he could have held her there for hours, rocked her back and forth, kissed her wee head, whispered Gaelic lullabies, but an energy-filled eight year old would not likely welcome that.

“Thank you,” he said, cupping her cheek. “Brianna.”

“You’re welcome,” she replied, chipper as ever, blissfully unaware of the emotional affect she’d had on both her parents. “Can I play now, Mummy?”

“Yes, of course. Why don’t you go find Kitty? And bring Miss Nettie and Miss Winnie.” Claire handed her the dolls.

“Alright.” She scampered for the door.

“I love you,” Claire called after her.

“Love you!” She yelled back from the hallway.

Claire turned back to Jamie, and there were fresh tears on his cheeks. “Jamie…”

“She is…” He breathed shakily. “A gift.”

“She is,” Claire agreed, taking his face in her hands.

“Thank you, fer…” He was overcome, unable to continue. Claire wrapped his arms around him, and he returned the embrace. They both wept on each other for a while, unable to express in any other way how much that had meant to both of them.

After a while, they simply held each other, silently.

“I spent eight years,” Claire began, breaking the silence. “Thanking God for her, for you to father her. I prayed…so fervently, to you. Thanking you for…for leaving a piece of you behind for me. In her.” Jamie kissed the top of her head. “She smiles in her sleep. Like you do.”

Jamie chuckled. “She speaks words of a Scot with the tongue of an Englishwoman,” he said.

“Yes. She learned to speak by listening to me, but also everyone else in your family.” Claire laughed. “It was inevitable that her speech would become somewhat of a hybrid.”

“She speaks French?” He said, remembering how she’d addressed Fergus in the parlor.

“Yes, Fergus helped me teach her.”

“Gaelic?”

“Of course. Jenny wouldn’t raise a child under this roof that didn’t know Gaelic. And certainly not a child of yours that didn’t know Gaelic.”

“She’s bright, then,” Jamie said proudly.

“Oh, yes. Brighter than I was at that age.”

“Oh, I doubt that. Ye ken she gets it from you, after all.”

“I wasn’t reading Spenser at her age,” Claire said. “I told her that there was a character in The Faerie Queene that shared her name, and she insisted on reading it. She snuck into the Laird’s library herself to get it.”

Jamie laughed. “She’s resourceful.”

“Well, that’s one way of putting it,” Claire said dryly. “That she gets from you.”

The door opened, and they sat up straight to see who it was.

“Pardon me,” Jenny said, and Claire didn’t miss the sarcasm. “Supper is ready.”

“We’ll be down shortly,” Jamie said.

Jenny smiled. “Ye ought to hear the lass. She’s going on and on to Kitty about her Da, how he’s gonnae ride horses wi’ her like Ian does wi’ Kitty.” Claire and Jamie exchanged a look. “I dinna ken how or why, what ye did to her wee noggin to make it so,” Jenny said, but they could both see the glint in her eye. “But she’s already crazy about ye.”

Jenny left, and Jamie and Claire beamed at each other. He stood up and stretched his hand down to her.

“Might I request the pleasure of your company for dinner, Madam?”

She beamed, taking his hand and allowing him to help her up. “You may.”

Once she was standing, he pulled her into a passionate kiss. Their lips parted, and arm in arm, they made their way to the dining room to eat with their family.

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mountphoenixrp · 3 years

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We have a new citizen in Mount Phoenix:

Han Sumin, who is known by no other name, a 25 year old daughter of Skuld. She is a stock clerk at Siren’s Song.

FC NAME/GROUP: Park Chaeyoung - Rosé/Blackpink CHARACTER NAME: Han Sumin AGE/DATE OF BIRTH: 09/03/1995 PLACE OF BIRTH: Outskirts of Incheon OCCUPATION: Stock clerk at Siren’s Song HEIGHT: 1.68 cm WEIGHT: 46 kg DEFINING FEATURES: beauty mark near the lower lip

PERSONALITY: She is a messy book, filled with half read sentences, marked up paragraphs, folded corners and empty pages. She doesn’t let people in, only a few have trickled deep within the small gaps between the pages, and somehow the book opens up a little and she gives them a chapter. She feels with a terrible intensity. Too many vowels in her mouth, too many crumpled up pages in her pockets. Her mouth twisted into rivers, pouring into too many oceans at once. At times, she says quite a lot and nothing at all. She always takes too little and gives too much. Reaches for anything, finding joy in the most rare of places. Comes and goes, disappears like mist rising in the sky. Maybe she is a liminal space. An in-between. A gas station on a longer journey. Blurry, dreamlike. A threshold. An exhilarating parenthesis. She is simply someone searching for — a phrase, a light, a fire. The signs along the way

HISTORY:

Han Sumin comes to the world quietly. Her chest does not heave. How long can one live without oxygen? She is declared a stillborn the moment she gets pulled from the womb. It is better that way. Don’t get your hopes up.

Her father used to pray before supper when he was a child. He hasn’t in years, he is a grown man see, he does not truly believe in any deity, but one does not necessarily need to believe to beg the universe for favors.

Miracles don’t just happen.

Miracles, by definition, should not exist at all. and yet, they do.

ii.

Before she can understand the concept of fear, they move to a country house. They have all the necessities of suburban living; picket fence, marble counters, two stories and the whole jazz. During the winter, her father stack the fireplace with finely chopped wood, and light it on fire. He doesn’t allow her to sit near.

When she is four, she finds a white kitty tangled in the rose bushes and brings it inside. her father disapproves, but helps her wash it anyway. In some awful way, it reminds him of Sumin. They decide to keep it. When she is five, the summer before school starts, she does what any child her age would; misbehaves. The cat has grown thicker and bigger, and it no longer wishes to play with her in the same manner as before, but that doesn’t mean she won’t try. She chases it around the yard with a spray bottle full of water, merrily unaware that her actions have consequences. It jumps over the fence in one go. Cats are curious like that.

Memories are like fabric. With time, their color washes away. With even more time, they tear in tiny sections, with holes you can never possibly stitch. She doesn’t remember how she got there. She remembers engine grease and heavy smoke, a big man holding her accountable with an even bigger tone. “You could have died!” Her kitty is hiding in the underbrush. It is not white anymore. When she reaches out to curl her fingers in its soft fur, they come back sticky with red and goo.

Crying she tells her father she saw it coming, mentions the way the image came to her over and over again every time she touched the cat weeks before it happened. Her father does not know what to make of it. They bury the cat on their backyard.

Turns out, cats do not have nine lives. They only have one.

iii.

Her life is a series of newspaper clippings stuck in the tragedy section.

Teenager crashes car, saving her own father from getting run over. Teen gets robbed during late night bus ride. Family miraculously survives devastating fire.

She never tells anyone of the things she sees when her fingers come in contact with skin. Images flash by at breakneck speed always illogical and always true.

“It’s coincidence,” she lies to herself each time a premonition comes true, “Just pure fucking coincidence.”

She sees old lady Park’s death weeks before it even happens. Watches her fall into the lake, calling out for help as the life leaves her body. She knows the boy who helps her father will get arrested for burglary far before he commits his crime. She sees entirely too much and never breathes a word of any of it to anyone anymore, never willing to intervene for when she does it leaves a hole, her colors fade. She’s learned that their fate is their own. Her fate is her own.

Sumin takes odd jobs to help her father, handing out fliers, being the mascot for a local restaurant, birthday and festival gigs, a wealthy man’s lap when she’s desperate. It’s all a means to an end.

She doesn’t say much from behind the window as she watches droplets of rain hit the glass with a ‘tap’ and by now she knows better than to light all the dark rooms in her house. No one ever had to tell her anything, she always managed to catch snippets of what was going to happen, yet the sight of her father crying as he was given his diagnosis was something unfamiliar to her, something she would never forget.

This time, there wasn’t much she could do.

How often do we wear smiles that hurt, smiles that tell us we have endured too long? Sumin feels heavy and the worst thing is, she knows the weather of departure; the humid air, the rain pouring announcing that winter is near.

iv.

Between gigs, she takes a trip to the tarot shop for a reading. It costs her a coffee but she feels vindicated when the first card she touches is death upright.

New beginnings and change, the woman at the helm assures her, and maybe she should be more embarrassed that it takes a woman in a dusty robe and tacky jewelry to make her realize that she is special, that within her lies a gift and a curse. She tells her of a place, where lost souls with unusual gifts, like hers, can live freely.

And so she roams the island, unsure of what she’s looking for, but sure enough that she will find it.

PANTHEON: Norse CHILD OF: Skuld POWERS: Can see fragments of people’s future upon physical contact. If she dare change someone’s fate, she loses parts of her memory if she succeeds in doing so. STRENGTHS: Charming, creative, dedicated, hard-working, open-minded, laid-back. WEAKNESSES: Blunt, uncaring, stubborn, unpredictable, secretive.

#kpop rp #krp #blackpink #park chaeyoung #roseanne park #blackpink rose #mp; welcome

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missmalice202 · 4 years

Text

Designing Your Melody: Chapter 06 - Cherry

Chapter 01 - Chapter 05

“DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE!!!” Marinette screamed into her headset as she tapped the buttons on her controller as fast as her fingers would let her.

“Dang, girl. Leave some for the rest of us.” Alya’s chuckle filtered though her headphones over the sound of gunfire. Her orange mecha that had been built for speed and precision performed a deadly dance as she picked off the few stragglers that Ladybug’s mecha had left behind. “You’re out for blood tonight, aren’t ya? Tough week?”

‘Tough’ didn’t begin to cover how frenzied the last week had been for Marinette. After hemming and embroidering and sewing THOUSANDS OF FREAKING SEQUINS, Jagged Stone’s new ensemble was finally finished. Why she had agreed to undertake such a herculean task at the last minute, she had no idea. Well, that’s not entirely true. She knew exactly why she accepted the job: she loved Jagged Stone and she loved a challenge.

Still, the fact that she was stressed out and sleep deprived remained. However, she was still too jittery from the numerous cups of coffee she’d sucked down over the past few days to go to sleep yet, so she figured she’d meet up with her clanmates and play for a little while until she finally came down from her caffeine high.

“Rena, I haven’t slept in 36 hours, I’ve stabbed myself a dozens of times sewing on all those stupid sequins that I thought would be such a good idea to add to his design, and I’ve had enough coffee over the past week that Papa could probably use my blood to make some of his famous tiramisu, so even though I’m freaking exhausted, there’s no way I can fall asleep just yet. I need something to relax me, so here I am..”

“Seriously, dude,” Nino added, “When you told us what you were doing, I thought you’d finally fallen off the deep end. I mean, you’ve got to be crazy to try to design and sew a photoshoot ready outfit for one of the biggest rock and roll stars in the world in just a week!” His avatar, a bright green design with black goggles covering the cockpit, threw up a translucent energy shield over his clanmates that glowed with an ethereal green light, easily blocking the incoming attack of an enemy captain.

“Hey!” Marinette yelled at her friend as she rushed toward the mini-boss, swords flashing as her cherry red mecha closed the distance and she engaged with the enemy. “You make it sound like you didn’t think I could do it.”

“It’s not that, my lady,” soothed Adrien, aka Chat Noir. “We all had faith that you’d get the job done purrfectly.” His onyx mecha landed next to Ladybug, his staff whirling, performing a perfectly choreographed combo attack with his partner in battle. “Fur real, we were just concerned that purrhaps you had kitten off more than you could chew and ended up burning yourself out.”

She closed her eyes for a moment to collect herself. She could literally hear how smug Chat Noir was through her headphones. “For the sake of what little sanity I have left after this week, please don’t start with the cat puns, Chat.”

“Why, I’m feline a little offended here, bugaboo,” he teased. “I’m just saying that there’s no one else who clawed pull what you did off.”

“That last one was a bit of a stretch, kitty.” She should just ignore him, she knew that. You’d think she would have learned by now that when she responded to his bad jokes and ridiculous puns, he layed it on even thicker, just to annoy her. “Seriously though, I didn’t have much of a choice! You should have seen what the stylist wanted Jagged to wear. It was just,” she shuddered just thinking about it, “terrible.”

Rena asked, “How bad? Come on, girl, gimme some details!”

“Ugh, it makes me sick just thinking about it. Imagine Jagged Stone, wearing a powder blue, see-through lace romper..” Her three friends howled with laughter at the mental image she conjured, so she continued to describe the nightmare she had seen in full detail. “Just picture it: THE Jagged Stone, clad in skintight lace booty shorts, white fishnet stockings, and silver glitter loafers. They wanted to stuff him into a silver speedo underneath that ridiculous romper. That’s all! Nothing but a silver speedo and translucent baby blue lace!” she snorted with laughter as she remembered how utterly uncomfortable the poor singer had been when he showed her what the record label wanted him to wear for his promotional photo shoot. “Oh my god, it was awful! I wish I could unsee that sight, but it’s now burned into my memory to haunt me until the day I die. I couldn’t very well say no to his pleading after I saw that abomination.”

“Ladybug,” Chat Noir tried to calm down enough to talk, but he was obviously having a hard time since he had let his guard down and had been killed in the battle. He used his respawn time to finally compose himself enough to continue. “As a life long Jagged Stone fan, you have my eternal gratitude for sparing the public from that visual crime against humanity.” He dissolved into another fit of giggles, causing a chain reaction among their friends once again and distracting them from the battle currently underway.

“I know.” Marinette took a deep breath. “And here I thought that they couldn’t possibly come up with a worse marketing strategy after that whole “perfume ad album cover” debacle. Yeah, I was wrong. This was much, MUCH worse,” she scoffed.

They all laughed hysterically for a few more minutes before they were able to calm themselves enough to carry on their conversation.

“By the way, milady, are you going to be participating in Fashion Week next month?” Chat asked.

“Yes,” she replied. “I’ve finally garnered enough of a reputation as a legitimate designer for my collection to be allowed to participate in the newcomer designer showcase on the last day. I’ve got my collection finalized, so all I need to do is sit down at my machine and make the pieces.” Her fingers flew over the buttons of her controller, sowing a path of destruction in her avatar’s wake onscreen as a new wave of enemies arrived to back up their leader. “Now that I’m done with the Jagged Stone’s request, I’ve got the time to work on my showcase designs.” With a final flourish, she and Chat Noir defeated the enemy captain, leaving Rena Rouge and Carapace to deal with the reinforcements.

The gathered the mission rewards and traveled back to their base.

“Hey, Ladybug,” Rena began, “have you selected the models you’d like to walk in your show? I’m sure Kitty Noir over here would be more than happy to help you out if you need.”

While Alya understood that Adrien and Marinette would probably only be “just good friends”, once a shipper, always a shipper. Over the years, she still created opportunities for her two friends to be alone together in the hopes that something would spark between them and her OTP ship could set sail. Was it wrong to ship your friends? She didn’t think so. Nino disapproved of her antics at times, but she just couldn’t help it. She wanted her friends to be happy and in her mind, they were made for each other.

Marinette had tried convincing her friend that she was more than happy with the relationship she had with the handsome, blond model. She was more at ease with him now and he could be himself around her, even if that did include his utterly atrocious sense of humor. Seriously, the guy’s obsession with puns was borderline unhealthy.

“I’d love to wear your designs again, My Lady,” he purred.

“Won’t you be busy walking in your father’s show?”

“The Agreste show is on the first day. I’ll have plenty of free time after that. All you’ll have to do is get me some of your dad’s famous macaroons as payment.”

She was ecstatic. Having a famous model like Adrien Agreste would bring people flocking to her show, even if it was to see him, not her designs. But since he’d be the one wearing her clothes, it’d be like killing two birds with one stone. “You have a deal!” she squealed.

His chuckle echoed in her ears. “Honestly, I’m getting the better end of the deal. Don’t underestimate the power your family’s bakery has.”

“Awesome,” Alya cheered. “You’ve got your male model. Do you need a female model too or have you found one already?”

“Actually, I texted Juleka Couffaine and asked her if she’d be interested and she said that she’d do it,” she said. “I haven’t really spoken to her since high school since we kind of lost touch with each other, but I’ve seen some of the ads she’s sone and I think she’d be a good fit for the theme of my collection. She’s out of the country at the moment on a job, but she should be back sometime next week, so until then I can get started on what you’ll be wearing, Kitty.”

“Sounds good, Bugga-boo. I can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with. Your designs are always so pawsome. I can’t wait to wear them for you on the catwalk.”

She shook her head once more at his antics. “I’ll give you the last one, since that’s a legitimate pun.” Alya and Nino’s laughter rang in her ears as they laughed at their friends’ banter.

“You know, we were wondering if you’d be online tonight, Ladybug, since you’ve been MIA all week.” Alya said. “The others were asking about you since they hadn’t heard from you, but I told them you’d be on when you were done with your work.” There was a brief silence before she teased, “Viperion was especially worried about you. He said how you guys had done some grinding the other night wondered where you had disappeared to since you’re usually on every night..”

The idea of Viperion worrying about her caused warmth to blossom in her chest. To be honest, she had missed the calming effect his presence had on her. “Speaking of which, where is he? Did he say he was going to be playing tonight?”

Nino told her that he had spoken to him earlier in the day and that he would probably be on much later, if at all because he would be working late on a project that he had to completely redo.

A little disappointed that she wouldn’t get to play with her online friend, Marinette decided to call it a night and logged out, finally ready to get some much needed sleep.

Chapter 07

*Sorry for the delay on posting. This chapter is just kind of a transition chapter, so unfortunately, not much is going on, but I really wanted cat puns and mental images of hard rockers in blue lace rompers hahaha. Next chapter will pick up and our sweet boi will get some screen time. I might even stop torturing him and throw him a bone ;D Until next time, Lovelies XOXO*

#lukanette #lukanette february #mlvalentines2k20 #luka couffaine #marinette dupain cheng #lukanette fic #ml fanfic

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beatrice-otter · 4 years

Text

Longfic Recs, Part III

The Rich Are Always Respectable: Rosemary (13571 words) by Elizabeth Chapters: 9/9 Fandom: Pride and Prejudice Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Darcy/OFC, Georgiana/OMC, Bingley/Jane Characters: Fitzwilliam Darcy, Georgiana Darcy, OFC, OMC Additional Tags: Angst, Alternate Universe - Canon Series: Part 1 of The Rich Are Always Respectable

Summary:

Without Lady Catherine's interference, a family catastrophe throws Darcy and Elizabeth down wildly different paths.

So We Meet at Last (758 words) by thisbluespirit Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:Miss Marple - Agatha Christie,Dracula & Related Fandoms,Dracula (TV 1968) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Jane Marple, Count Dracula, Abraham Van Helsing, John Seward Additional Tags: Community: fan_flashworks, Crossover, Women Being Awesome, miss marple is awesome, The Author Regrets Nothing, Alternate Universe

Summary: Two genre legends meet. The outcome is inevitable. Someone really should have warned the Count never to trifle with fluffy old ladies. Hearts'-ease, by theficklepickle Henry V, AU, Henry/Montjoy. What infinite hearts'-ease must kings neglect That private men enjoy?

Whispers In Corners, by Esama. Harry Potter/Sherlock, AU, Harry/Mycroft. Everything started with a stumble - his new life in a new world as well as his surprisingly successful career as a medium. Realizations, by wishweaver. Harry Potter AU Harry returns to Privet Drive after 4th year and finds it...empty! What do you do when you can't go to your friends for help? Of Muggles and Magic, by Aurette Harry Potter Regency AU, Hermione/Snape A witch struggles to conform in a society that restricts her. A wizard thinks he has nothing to offer anyone but his duty and, ultimately, his life. Maria, by Judith Brocklehurst Mansfield Park futurefic, But the outstanding question for Mrs. Rushworth's connections was: where could she be placed? What could be done with a woman who, at twenty-two years old, had so disgraced her family, so alienated her friends, that no-one, except her doting Aunt Norris, wanted even to see her, let alone house her? Maria, now divorced, starts a new and independent life. Letters from a Smallville School Nurse, by Russell Saunders Superman, humor, outsider perspective, short All But Name, by Mirror And Image Star Wars, AU, Anakin and Obi-Wan, "You will be a Jedi, Anakin. I promise you. In all but name."

5 Times the Raptors Tried to Kill Miriam, and 1 Time They Didn’t (22937 words) by JulisCaesar Chapters: 6/6 Fandom:Jurassic Park (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Characters: Original Female Character(s), Original Male Character(s) Additional Tags: Blood, Minor Character Death, Science, Like a lot of science, Dinosaurs, Period-Typical Homophobia, AIDS mention, Antisemitism, Asexual Character, medical shenanigans, I beat up the MC a lot ok

Summary: Miriam thought the job working for InGen sounded perfect. Tropical island, good pay, first dibs on publications… At least, she thought so until she found out that she was the only behaviorist on staff. Once the eggs hatched, it became all she could do to keep up–with the dinosaurs, the science, and her health.

Maggie Fitzgerald and the Saltwater Drip (79626 words) by antistar_e Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:The Amazing Spider-Man (Movies - Webb) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Relationships: Peter Parker/Gwen Stacy Characters: Gwen Stacy, Peter Parker, Mary Jane Watson, Flash Thompson, Miles Morales, Harry Osborn Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies

Summary: Google politely tells her there are no poisonous spiders in Manhattan. Judging by her symptoms -- fever, superstrength, newfound desire to shove herself into small dark spaces, and sudden reputation as a masked vigilante -- Gwen would beg to differ. [Spider!Gwen AU.]

Enigma (11297 words) by Yahtzee Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom,X-Men - All Media Types Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death Relationships: Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier Characters: Erik Lehnsherr, Charles Xavier, Logan (X-Men), Mystique, Edie Lehnsherr, Original Female Character, Sebastian Shaw, Emma Frost Additional Tags: Alternate Reality, Fix-It, Kink Meme, World War II

Summary: Written for the following prompt: Erik dies, or finds a reversey-time mutant, or a magical time travelling device, and wakes up in the past. This time, though, it's before he ever met Charles - in fact, it's before his mother died.

He can save his mother that one time (thanks to his mastery over powers carrying back), but what does Erik do after that? Does he stick around, or escape and run to find Charles again (and hope everything doesn't go wrong)?

Je vois ma vie en rose (79404 words) by lilacsigil Chapters: 10/10 Fandom:X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage Relationships: Erika Lehnsherr/Charlotte Xavier, Harriet McCoy/Raven (X-Men) Characters: Erika Lehnsherr, Charlotte Xavier, Harriet McCoy, Raven (X Men), Alex Summers, Amparo Muñoz, Angelo Salvadore, Sabrina Shaw, Emory Frost, Marcus MacTaggert, Azazel (X-Men), Jana Quested, Shannon Cassidy Additional Tags: Genderbending, Alternate Universe - Gender Changes, Big Bang Challenge

Summary: "Je vois la vie en rose" is a full-cast gender change. Canon male characters become female, and canon female characters become male or genderqueer. The only exceptions are real people and background military/government characters.

The CIA's Marcus MacTaggert attempts to recruit Doctor Charlotte Xavier and her sibling Raven to assist in the capture of suspected Communist Sabrina Shaw and her unusual associates. Thrilled at the thought finding of more mutants, Charlotte and Raven agree, but are soon put off by the CIA's misogynist attitude and decide to track down these other mutants by themselves. They do find more mutants, but not the ones they were expecting.

Charlotte starts to build a community of mutants but Raven finds that many of them can't even accept themselves, let alone someone who doesn't belong within familiar definitions of gender. Erika's determination to kill Shaw, Shaw's quest to recruit more mutants, and world-threatening political brinkmanship collide with deadly consequences: Charlotte, Raven and Erika must decide what kind of world it is that they want to create.

Unalienable (65554 words) by Basingstoke Chapters: 38/38 Fandom: Highlander (1986 1991 1994 2000 2007),X-Men (Movies),Highlander: The Series Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Duncan MacLeod/Methos, Jean Grey/Scott Summers, Erik Lehnsherr/Charles Xavier, Jean-Paul Beaubier/Piotr Rasputin, Bobby Drake/Rogue, Remy LeBeau/Rogue Characters: Charles Xavier, Logan (X-Men), Duncan MacLeod, Methos, Scott Summers, Ororo Munroe, Rogue (X-Men), Piotr Rasputin, Tony Stark, Yuriko Oyama, Kenny (Highlander), Kurt Wagner, Jean-Paul Beaubier, Jeanne-Marie Beaubier, Warren Worthington III, Grace Chandel, Arclight, Elektra Natchios, Connor MacLeod, Jubilation Lee, Artie, Joe Dawson, Kitty Pryde, Mirage, Bobby Drake Additional Tags: Crossover, Kid Fic, Decapitation, Medical Trauma Series: Part 26 of Author’s Favorites Summary: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

D'Ancanto (49868 words) by xenokattz Chapters: 8/8 Fandom:X-Men (Movies) Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Characters: Rogue (X-Men), Charlotte Jones, Remy LeBeau, Ororo Munroe, Logan (X-Men), Warren Worthington III Additional Tags: Cast of dozens, Samuel L Jackson-level strong language & also violence, GQBAMF in a line behind me bitches, Old enough to remember Charlotte Jones Series: Part 1 of D'Ancanto

Summary: Drugs. Multi-state gangs. Mutant-killing virus. Civil unrest. Plot to assassinate a racist senator. Just another Tuesday for Marie D'Ancanto, NYPD detective in the country's first Mutant Crimes Task Force.

If We Never Got This Second Chance (50419 words) by Pookaseraph Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:The Losers (2010),Marvel (Movies),Marvel Rating: Mature Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark Characters: Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Jake Jensen, The Losers - Character, The Avengers - Character Additional Tags: Romance, Time Travel, Surprise Family, Father-Son Relationship, Happy Ending, Angst, Internalized Homophobia, Alternate Universe - Canon, Character Death, Many Worlds Time Travel, Terrorism

Summary: When Tony and Steve’s son from the future, Jake Jensen, arrives at Avenger’s Tower, the two of them are forced to confront some hard truths: Tony that he might not actually become a horrible father, and Steve that he might not be able to set aside his discomfort with sharing a child with another man. When they both get a second chance at a first try at fatherhood, it’s up to the two of them to learn from their own future's past.

Freezer Burn (194186 words) by Domenika Marzione Chapters: 28/28 Fandom:The Avengers (2012),The Avengers - All Fandoms,Captain America,Captain America (Comics),Marvel Cinematic Universe,Captain America (Movies),The Avengers (Marvel Movies),The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Characters: Steve Rogers, Nick Fury, Tony Stark, Maria Hill, Bruce Banner, Peggy Carter, Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Thor (Marvel), Pepper Potts, Red Skull, MODOK, Maya Hansen, Hydra Agents, The Wrecking Crew (Marvel) Additional Tags: sorta comicsverse sorta movieverse it's all getting jossed anyway right?, hail HYDRA, Steve Rogers as chorus girl and company-grade officer, Clint and Natasha think they're hilarious, Action/Adventure, Thor is an alien prince and not an idiot, Peggy Carter can still kick your ass, barf cannon, superhero foodies, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony's really not that bad at the business thing, Team, Team Dynamics Series: Part 2 of Freezer Burn

Summary: The adventures of Steve Rogers, defrosted soldier, who is missing time but not really all that lost. He's got a surprisingly broad knowledge of lettuces, a working grasp of modern technology, and may or may not be using both to mess with his teammates and save the world.

Exclusive (30833 words) by copperbadge Chapters: 3/3 Fandom:Marvel,The Avengers (2012) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Pepper Potts/Tony Stark Characters: Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Bruce Banner, Thor (Marvel), Pepper Potts Additional Tags: POV Outsider, News Media, Slice of Life, Interviews, Snipers Series: Part 1 of Magazineverse

Summary: Heroes In Manhattan: From Captain America's Hidden Talents To The Truth About The Hulk, We Debunk The Myths And Expose The Daily Lives Of The Avengers.

I (created from fantasies) exist solely for you (62917 words) by Mizzy Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:The Avengers (2012),Marvel Cinematic Universe Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Steve Rogers/Tony Stark Characters: Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, Don Blake, Thor (Marvel), Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Pepper Potts, Maria Hill, Phil Coulson, Nick Fury, Norman Osborn Additional Tags: Identity Porn, Alternate Universe, marvel-bang, Podfic Available, Comic book office au

Summary: Six years ago, without the Avengers Initiative there to save the day, scientist Dr. Eric Selvig sacrificed himself to save the world, the almighty demi-god Thor was lost to a terrible storm, and vigilante Iron Man – spotted with a nuclear weapon trying to take advantage of the situation – was forever labelled an enemy of SHIELD.

This is a comic book office AU, where Steve is defrosted a year too late, Thor has forgotten who he is, and no one knows Tony is Iron Man.

Also includes: office pranks, inappropriate post-it notes, and superheroes who like pina coladas and getting caught in the rain.

Widow's Weeds (4333 words) by Mhalachai Fandom:The Avengers (2012) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanov, Tony Stark Additional Tags: Steve/Natasha friendship, It happened in a graveyard, Trust Series: Part 1 of A Widow's Tale

Summary: Their secrets have secrets. Steve's starting to figure this out.

Mountains, Molehills (1175 words) by lalaietha Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:Lilo & Stitch (2002) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: David Kawena/Nani Pelekai Characters: Nani Pelekai, Lilo Pelekai, David Kawena, Jumba Jookiba, Pleakley

Summary: Technically, David doesn't live here, but that "technically" is starting to get real thin, and he knows it. Which is why he chokes a bit when Lilo puts her elbows on the table, her chin in her hands, and says, "Are you going to ask my sister to marry you, or what?"

Here, where the world is quiet (6408 words) by busaikko Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Remus Lupin/Severus Snape Characters: Remus Lupin, Severus Snape Additional Tags: Child Death, Character Death, Werewolves, Boarding School, Post-Canon, Zine Chocolate and Asphodel

Summary: After the war, Severus became head of the Scrimgeour Lycanthrope Academy. His mandate was simple: Provide them with Wolfsbane and daily occupation. Teach them as you see fit. Report any violent outbursts. Keep them away from regular people.

Dudley's Memories (11650 words) by Paganaidd Chapters: 5/5 Fandom:Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Harry Potter/Ginny Weasley, Dudley Dursley/Undisclosed Characters: Harry Potter, Ginny Weasley, Lily Luna Potter, James Sirius Potter, Albus Severus Potter, Dudley Dursley, Original Characters Additional Tags: Canon Compliant Series: Part 1 of Memories and Dreams Summary: Minerva needs help delivering another letter to #4 Privet Drive. At forty, Dudley is not at all what Harry expects. A long overdue conversation ensues. DH cannon compliant, but probably not the way you think. Prologue to "Snape's Memories".

You'll Get There in the End (It Just Takes a While) (33437 words) by seperis Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:Star Trek (2009) Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: James T. Kirk/Spock, Spock/Nyota Uhura Characters: James T. Kirk, Spock, Nyota Uhura, Leonard McCoy, Christopher Pike, Spock Prime Additional Tags: First Time, Pon Farr, Telepathy Series: Part 1 of The Reboot Series

Summary: "Spock. Just say 'I don't trust Starfleet not to mess up the only captain in the fleet who I can train up to my expectations and enjoys running into danger wearing a blindfold as much as I do'."

Qui Habitat (133190 words) by domarzione Chapters: 20/? Fandom:Stargate Atlantis,Stargate SG-1 Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Characters: John Sheppard, Elizabeth Weir, Rodney McKay, Cameron Mitchell (SG-1), Jonas Quinn, Teyla Emmagan, Ronon Dex, Steven Caldwell, Radek Zelenka, Evan Lorne, Original Characters Additional Tags: Apocalyptic, Alternate Universe - Dark, Ori, Religious Themes & References, Atlantis Alone, Action/Adventure, Alien Invasion, Colonialism Series: Part 2 of Qui Habitat

Summary: An SGA/SG-1 AU that spins off from the Ori arc that runs through Seasons Nine and Ten of SG-1 by changing one simple thing: the Ori don't lose. Earth is the last significant planet to fall in the Milky Way, but fall it does. Hard.

After Earth's fall, a large resistance movement was active, utilizing the Daedalus, the only surviving SGC carrier, as it's main instrument. Running raids in the Milky Way and bringing refugees and supplies to Atlantis, the Daedalus was the only lifeline between the two galaxies. Eventually her luck ran out and she was nearly destroyed by an Ori armada; after limping back to Atlantis, she is no longer flight-worthy and Atlantis is finally truly alone.

Over in Pegasus, Atlantis was first a long-distance witness and then a rear echelon for the escalating fight with the Ori over the Milky Way galaxy before becoming the final retreat for those who survived. Cut off from Earth and forced to revert to its (Season One) status as isolated outpost responsible for its own needs, Atlantis still has the responsibilities it has assumed in Pegasus -- defeating the Wraith and protecting those who can't help themselves -- while also awaiting the inevitable arrival of the Ori.

Rock Happy (141680 words) by ArwenLune Chapters: 31/31 Fandom: Generation Kill,Stargate Atlantis,Stargate SG-1 Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Brad Colbert, Nate Fick, Laura Cadman, Evan Lorne, Sam Carter, John Sheppard, Teal'c (SG-1), OC: Darren Avery, OC: Dr Fournier, OC: Lee Brittner, OC: Will Meyers, Daniel Jackson, Dusty Mehra, Tony Espera, Timothy Bryan, Ray Person, Mike Wynn, Nathan Christopher, Gabriel Garza Additional Tags: Crossover, Whole lotta fuckin' swearing, You want to recruit me for WHAT?, I wanna be there when they tell Ray about the space vampires, Daily life on Atlantis, original characters of colour, Women Being Awesome, POV Outsider, Brad Colbert has adventures IN SPACE, Team, Marine Corps, Wordcount: Over 50.000, Wordcount: 100.000-150.000, Women in the Military Series: Part 3 of Rock Happy 'verse

Summary: "You want to recruit me for what? You want me to go where?"

Sgt. Brad Colbert has been on a lot of strange missions, but this promises to be his most out there yet: Atlantis

This is not a story about falling in love. This is a story about falling in team.

Out of Season (26987 words) by Elizabeth Culmer Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:Chronicles of Narnia - C. S. Lewis Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Shezan Tolkheera (OFC), Marigold Beaver (OFC), Axartha Tarkaan, Prince Rabadash, Ilgamuth Tarkaan, Hkreegah the Gull (OFC), the Tisroc, Ahoshta Tarkaan, Malindra Takhun (OFC), Peridan (Narnia), Susan Pevensie Additional Tags: Slavery, planned sacrifice of a sentient being (Talking Beast), Religion, Religious Themes & References, Worldbuilding, Canon Character of Color, once you create the rest of the world it has to count as much as your special country Mr. Lewis, POV Outsider, Calormen, Women Being Awesome, Female Protagonist, Narnia Fic Exchange 2011, Fictional Religion & Theology Series: Part 1 of Out of Season

Summary: In the fourteenth year of Rishti Tisroc's reign, a demon in the shape of a beaver is captured and brought to Tashbaan. Shezan Tolkheera, high priestess of the goddess Achadith, is given the responsibility of guarding the demon until its sacrifice at the Spring Festival. Complications ensue.

Carpetbaggers (119268 words) by cofax Chapters: 10/10 Fandom:Chronicles of Narnia - C. S. Lewis Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Peter Pevensie, Lucy Pevensie, Susan Pevensie, Edmund Pevensie, OFC Series: Part 1 of Carpetbaggers

Summary: The day after Aslan left, taking the magic with him, just about everyone else left, too.

After the coronation festivities, the real work begins. During/post "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe".

Play It Again (63206 words) by metisket Chapters: 3/3 Fandom: Teen Wolf (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Stiles Stilinski & Laura Hale, Scott McCall & Stiles Stilinski Characters: Stiles Stilinski, Derek Hale, Scott McCall, Laura Hale, Sheriff Stilinski, Peter Hale, Allison Argent, Lydia Martin, Danny Mahealani, Erica Reyes, Isaac Lahey, Vernon Boyd, Talia Hale, Chris Argent, The Hale Family - Character, The Argent Family - Character, Alan Deaton Additional Tags: Pre-Slash, Magical Stiles Stilinski, derek's mad planning skillz, magical objects and their insufficient warning labels, laura's in charge, making the most of your afterlife, oh look here's a lower place, Alternate Universe, Dimension Travel Series: Part 1 of play it again

Summary: In which Stiles goes along with one of Derek’s plans and ends up in an alternate universe as a result. He should’ve known better. He did know better, actually, and that means he has no one to blame but himself.

“Laura wants to lure the kid in with food and kindness and make a pet of him, like a feral cat. Derek wants to have him arrested for stalking. They’re at an impasse. (And the rest of the family is staying emphatically out of it in a way that suggests bets have been placed.)”

Coming Undone (57618 words) by KouriArashi Chapters: 11/11 Fandom:Teen Wolf (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Stiles Stilinski, Scott McCall, Sheriff Stilinski, Derek Hale, Allison Argent, Chris Argent, Lydia Martin, Gerard Argent Additional Tags: Stilinski feels, Hurt Stiles, Hurt/Comfort, all the feels, Pack Dynamics, PTSD, Plot sneaks in, BAMF Stiles Stilinski, Mystery Series: Part 1 of The Sum of Its Parts

Summary: Stiles deals with the aftermath of being abducted by Peter Hale and left for dead. It's harder than he would have thought to accept his place in the pack when he's convinced that he's the 'weak one' and can't protect himself. Fortunately, Scott and Sheriff Stilinski are there to help, and to nag Derek until he helps, too.

Locked Inside the Facade (60245 words) by Dragonbat Chapters: 8/8 Fandom: Batman (Comics),Nightwing (Comics) ating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Relationships: Barbara Gordon/Dick Grayson Characters: Bruce Wayne, Renee Montoya, Crispus Allen, Jason Todd, Alfred Pennyworth, Dick Grayson, Tim Drake, Barbara Gordon, Thomas Elliot, Roman Sionis, Rachel Green, Romy Chandler, Michael Akins, Jim Gordon, Roy Harper, Grace Choi, Michael Holt, Helena Bertinelli, Connor Hawke, Dinah Lance Additional Tags: Character Death, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Tragedy, Angst Series: Part 1 of Locked-Verse

Summary: A sudden shock in Batman's life leads to his apprehension at the hands of the GCPD.

Victory Bonds (39617 words) by copperbadge Chapters: 6/6 Fandom:DCU Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Clark Kent/Lois Lane Characters: Clark Kent, Superman, Bruce Wayne, Batman, Alan Scott, Green Lantern, Lois Lane, Diana (Wonder Woman), Robin (DCU), Perry White, Lex Luthor Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, 1940s, Alternate Universe - 1940s, PostWar, Nazis, Daily Planet, Spies & Secret Agents

Summary: The year is 1947, and Daily Planet front-pagers Clark Kent and "Louis" Lane are about to get the story of their careers, courtesy of the fledgling Justice League: the enigmatic Superman, the spy-turned-vigilante codenamed Bat, intelligence agent and newly minted Green Lantern Alan Scott, and Ambassador Diana, Princess of Themyscira.

Some Friendlier Sky (124800 words) by Hammie, AMarguerite Chapters: 24/24 Fandom:Les Misérables - All Media Types,Les Misérables - Victor Hugo Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Courfeyrac/Cosette, Cosette/Courfeyrac, Joly/Musichetta Characters: Cosette, Courfeyrac, Valjean, Combeferre, Joly, Bossuet, Enjolras, Jehan, Feuilly, Marius, Toussaint, Bahorel, Bahorel's Laughing Mistress, Javert Additional Tags: Hijinks & Shenanigans, Romanticism, lots of musings on popular Romantic literature

Summary: Courfeyrac falls through the roof of no. 7 Rue de l'Homme Armé, taking down not only the ceiling, but the carefully built walls Valjean has constructed around himself and Cosette. Wacky hijinks ensue. Thanks to Hammie for beta-ing.

Poster Boy (8162 words) by Sarah1281 Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:Les Misérables - All Media Types,Les Misérables - Victor Hugo Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Cosette/Enjolras Characters: Jean Valjean, Enjolras (Les Misérables), Euphrasie "Cosette" Fauchelevant Additional Tags: Crack Pairings, Happy Ending, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence

Summary: Valjean knows that he must confess the truth of his past to his new son-in-law and he thought he had prepared himself for all possible reactions. He was mistaken, however. Enthusiastic condemnations of the old regime and praise for his 'revolutionary spirit' were not something he knew what to do with.

A Deeper Season (117605 words) by lightgetsin ,sahiya Chapters: 19/19 Fandom:Vorkosigan Saga - Bujold Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Gregor Vorbarra/Miles Naismith Vorkosigan Characters: Gregor Vorbarra, Miles Naismith Vorkosigan, Ivan Vorpatril, Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan, Aral Vorkosigan Additional Tags: First Time, Romance, Action/Adventure, a deeper season, Alternate Universe, Don't copy to another site Series: Part 5 of A Deeper Season

Summary: Take one Miles, a hapless cousin, Cetagandan social politics, a galactic conspiracy, a scientific discovery, a lot of firepower, and an unexpected declaration. Mix well and step back quickly.

The Long Road Home (95516 words) by Scribblesinink Chapters: 22/22 Fandom:Lord of the Rings (2001 2002 2003),Lord of the Rings (Novel) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Characters: Faramir, Aragorn, Boromir, OFC, OMC Additional Tags: Adventure, bookverse, movieverse, Future Fic, What-If, Alternate Universe, Boromir!Lives AU Series: Part 1 of Long Road Home (LotR)

Summary: Against all odds, Boromir survives Amon Hen. Ashamed and filled with remorse, he goes on a quest for redemption. Bound by his promise to a sick man, Faramir keeps the secret of his brother's survival. But as secrets are wont to do, the truth comes out eventually and Aragorn journeys north to bring Gondor's prodigal son home.

The Price of Freedom by Erin Lasgalen Lord of the Rings, Eowyn, post-series. AU/Adventure. In the aftermath of the War of the Ring, Eowyn comes to the painful realization that the wounds of the heart she still bears cannot be healed by going back to the cage, however gilded, however loving the master. Four years and hundreds of leagues later, her past is about to catch up with her in more ways than one.

Charmed Life (95300 words) by Fyre Chapters: 85/85 Fandom:Once Upon a Time (TV) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Mr Gold/Mary Margaret Blanchard Characters: Rumpelstiltskin | Mr. Gold, Snow White | Mary Margaret Blanchard, Emma Swan, Evil Queen | Regina Mills, Prince "Charming" James | David Nolan, Abigail | Kathryn Nolan, Henry Mills Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Complete Summary: When Regina toyed with the lives and memories of the people of Storybrooke, she was especially careful with the people who had been her bane in the the Enchanted Forest

Don't You Shake Alone (62189 words) by Dira Sudis Chapters: 1/1 Fandom:Generation Kill Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Brad Colbert/Nate Fick Characters: Brad Colbert, Nate Fick, Ray Person Additional Tags: Kid Fic, Babies, Cuddling & Snuggling, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, First Time

Summary: Nate looked exactly like Brad always pictured him: exhausted in the full life-in-a-combat-zone sense of the word. (Don't forget the sequel)

Performance In a Leading Role (156714 words) by Mad_Lori Chapters: 21/21 Fandom: Sherlock (TV) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Sherlock Holmes/John Watson Characters: Sherlock Holmes, John Watson, Irene Adler, Harry Watson, Greg Lestrade, Sally Donovan, Molly Hooper Additional Tags: AU, Meta, Hollywood, Real Person Cameos, Romance, Show Business, Coming Out, Secret Relationship, Behind the Scenes Series: Part 1 of Performance in a Leading Role

Summary: Sherlock Holmes is an Oscar winner in the midst of a career slump. John Watson is an Everyman actor trapped in the rom-com ghetto. When they are cast as a gay couple in a new independent drama, will they surprise each other? Will their on-screen romance make its way into the real world?

#fanfiction #fanfic #fic rec

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kurtty-drabbles · 4 years

Text

Ocean au (Harven Dent part 2)

N/A: Oh, God this AU is almost over...how many chapters for this arc? Uhm, a few but it will be the last arc so I want to do something cool. This will be merciful short if we´re lucky.

@dannybagpipesarecalling @djinmer4 @bamfoftheundead @everykurt @muninandhugin

The study office is makeshift at best with tons of files lined up in a column and with some old books-with a jaded cover and carefully placed in the highest shelf the eyes can see- as the central piece of this room is taken by a table and chair, and of course, one well-built man writing on his notebook furiously and oblivious for what happens outside the world. And this man is Kurt Ryder, one of the famous reporters and TV hosts ever lived-he doesn´t speak about himself like that, but, in another shelf, there´re many awards he wins in his long career to warrant a smug expression when people interact with Kurt or mention his profession- and tonight, the man is working on a case.

"So, in all things considered..." Kurt read what he wrote and frown at this and shakes his head. "All things consider? No...not bombastic enough, how about, without a shadow of a doubt...oh, much better, without a shadow of a doubt, The Drakes have connections to the case of Margalia Bonbon. Justice or revenge by the riches? Good intentions justify a crime" Kurt nods in approval as he saves his notes and stretches his body.

"Oh, I got spoilers from your next show" a new voice with a fake accent breathes in his ear and Ryder is quick to turn and see Columbina a few inches away from him- she has that smile of hers that no one knows the difference if she´s planning something or if she´s just teasing you- and like all good citizen of New Gotham knows when you see a frak in a mask you don´t aggravate the situation. You act as if is another day...because it is.

Ryder flashes a smile at Columbina. What a coincidence, he was thinking about her. And speaks as if it is no big deal. "Guess you got spoilers, so, what are you up now? Kitty´s apartment is on the other of the hall" Ryder waits for her reaction.

"I killed her!" Columbina has a fake insane grin and Ryder knows a thing or two about acting and insanity.

"Oh really, after or before you make love with her...wait, I thought you had killed her last week..." he trails off and waits to see what Columbina will say. Anticipation is a vice Ryder knows how to keep at the bay and again, Ryder is an excellent actor if he wants to be.

"Fine, I revive her ...but, I´m not here to talk about my relationship with Kitty, by the way, she´s great, you should know that by now" Columbina speaks innocently enough. Ryder only nods and says he´s going out with Kitty. "So, could you stop killing Kitty? I´d not mind the sex thing, but, you know...I don´t like to imagine Kitty hurt in any way" Ryder adds not missing a beat of her expression.

Surprised? Does Columbina truly have an affection for Kitty but is one-side? Did Ryder win against the notorious thief of New Gotham? That´s exciting and it does make his heartbreak slightly for Columbina.

Now, once he rose from his chair and crosses his arm-an imitation of Nightcreeper as Columbina knows him too well, too well if he can say so- and asks. "What my favorite thief is doing in my humble abode?"

Columbina is not impressed. "Humble abode? Right..." and she looks at the so-called humble abode bemused. Yet, she´s not here to speak about fake modesty. "You know, in the past weeks the fanfic community has been going crazy with Kokina" she makes a face after saying this name that makes Ryder grins and Columbina shot him a look. "and in some of the fics, there´s a tag. ''Columbina is a Sacar" and interesting because this is a term only Kokoro knows. I´m not making those fanfictions...and there´s one author who likes to write those strange and insane stories" she looks deadpan at him.

"Me? How...I have no idea what a sacar is!" Kurt pretends, very well, to not know the word and be extremely confused and hurt by the accusation.

"Kitty knows too and she told you...and you write fanfictions to troll people" Columbina narrows her eyes looking completely distressed.

"Well, if Kitty wants me to stop she can say so..." Ryder begins and tries a new approach. "But if it bothers you, I can stop and bother someone else. OK?" and so far, it seems Columbina accepts that. Well, she accepted as she saw Ryder deleting some of his works in the fanfiction community.

"Since you´re here. Why do you like this so-called creeper so much? He´s not real and well...I´m curious" Ryder begins nonchalant and Columbina hummed for a minute.

"He has a really big dick and is a crazy dick" and Ryder´s iron wall broke and he laughs at that. Then, he composed himself and only nods saying if she truly believes this.

And her eyes peering through his own. "You´re handsome, I mean, for this profession you got to be, but...is the first time I ever notice your hair..." Columbina speaks amused. "I like your voice and I like how you went after the truth. I don´t like how you can be an ass sometimes..." she steps away and grins. "Do you like dangerous things?" her tone is sultry is a bit similar to Kitty from that date.

Kurt gulps as in any normal circumstance he would love to flirt or even sleep with a pretty lady-and really, who wouldn´t want to sleep with Columbina?-but the man steps back and speaks in a serious tone. "I used to love it when I was younger, but, now...I think I prefer less dangerous things...if anything I can do something with Kitty and I would enjoy it better" and Ryder´s eyes widen as he was worried Columbina would be upset.

"Was bad at flirting or are you that into Kitty?" this is a question that took him by surprise.

"I think a pretty woman with boob windows like you don´t need the perfect pick up line, but, yes...I´m that into Kitty" and Columbina nods changing the subject.

"Listen, Ryder, I´m not here to flirt with you or to talk about your questionable taste in fanfictions...I want to know more about Harvey Dent´s last cases" and adds. "Can you help me Mr. Noisy Reporter?"

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

On the next day, Ryder tells Kitty-doing his best to ignore the cat who is looking so fixated at him- about Columbina visiting his apartment and how nothing happens. "Look, I know I have this image of ...uhm, manslut, but, nothing happens...I swear"

"I believe in you" she states with a smile. And Ryder is taken back by this. She believes in him? This is a concept totally new and alien to him.

"She went to my house to talk about Harvey Dent´s last cases"

"Of course she would, you´re Mr. Noisy Reporter...right?"

Ryder frown at this for a moment. And asks without missing a beat. "Hey, Kitty, what do you think of Nightcreeper?"

"Big dick, crazy dick"

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Dark Claw is on his computer searching for the last cases of Harvey Dent- KingPin has many enemies and those enemies were persecuted by Harvey Dent- and Sparrow mentioned another case of an enemy of KingPin was murder even in the solitary period in the prison.

"He was supposed to be there for 3 months, however, uhm...he´s pretty much dead...the security footage shows someone entering in the cellar, but, there´s no security guard named Bob" Sparrow summarize what she found out.

"Magneto is still arrested and blabbing about his missing daughter" Dark Claw has mercy for the man even if Magneto committed many crimes. He can understand wanting a family, but, he can´t condemn his past actions. "And while slowly comes to term with reality...is not one to go after KingPin, they have no business and no reason to fight"

"A crooked cop?" Sparrow speaks as if it is the most obvious solution and Dark Claw considers this.

"Could be the case, but, if is a crooked cop...why he would kill other cops who have felonies on their files? Shouldn´t he want to cover for his brothers in blue? No, I think we´re dealing with a vigilant...but, what he wants and who is he..." Dark Claw trails off.

"Better call, Ryder!"

"Oh no!"

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

"Hello, Kitty Cat" an insane voice draws Kitty´s attention to the light pole on her right and she sees Nightcreeper in all his naked glory. Kitty pouts at the nickname but didn´t run away. "Hello, Creepy" she speaks and chuckles as his green face contorted into confusion as his brain is trying to recall the times Columbina called him like that.

"Is dangerous to walk around at the night...what if a lunatic tries to hurt you?" his grin is back on his face.

"Well, I have you to protect, don´t I?"

"You bet it"

And Kitty smiles and then snaps. "Hey, Creepy could you return this to Ryder for me?" she hands him Ryder´s wallet. Nightcreeper is too insane to care. "Columbina took and I want to return his wallet"

On the next day, Ryder goes to his wallet and notices his credit cards and money is there-no single cent was taken from him, yet, his eyes spot a piece of paper - and there´s a piece of paper with one message. "you really thought I would take your money? Ryder, please... Don´t be creepy"

And Kurt Ryder is speechless.

#ocean au #kurt ryder #kitty pryde #kurtty #trolling #Harvey Dent has no power here but is evil and cunning #Dark Claw #Sparrow

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thewritewolf · 5 years

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Inseparable Chapter 1: Miraculouses

Hello and welcome to the first chapter of my Ladynoir July story, Inseparable! It is bittersweet to reach this point since it is the last of the Love Square months, but I can proudly say I’ve been participating fully this year. I hope you’ll read along daily with me as I tell this Ladynoir story!

With powerful akumas becoming a greater threat everyday, Master Fu has decided that the time for keeping Ladybug and Chat Noir at arm's length is over. They will need his guidance if they are going to win the war, but even more importantly, they will need each other. A simple plan to make them better heroes quickly turns into something more as Ladybug and Chat Noir are drawn ever closer to each other.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

@ladynoirjuly2019

Enjoy!

Read on Ao3

The streets were dark and cold when Marinette sailed over them with the use of her yoyo. While she liked the rainy late summer nights just before school started, she much preferred experiencing them while she was indoors. Maybe curled up in a heap of blankets and reading a book by lamplight. But a glance at the abandoned streets made it clear why Master Fu would choose now, of all nights, to finally answer her.

Marinette had been hoping that Master Fu lend her some sort of more lasting help in the fight against Hawkmoth. Temporary power ups and heroes of the day were nice and all, but the intensity they’d been facing recently had meant that those sometimes weren’t an option. Even as she tried to not get her hopes up, she wondered what the old guardian had in store for her. He was good about throwing curve balls at her, of offering aid in unexpected ways.

There was barely a thought spared for the route she was taking. As the only one of the pair allowed to meet with the Guardian, this meant she visited him frequently. Or, at least, as frequently as one met with a reclusive, centuries-old hermit. Her arms and legs had long since committed the paths to memory. Even the extra ones routes, added just to throw off anyone who might be watching her too closely. The loose tiles, the strong hand holds, the best places to swing across. All remembered without needing to bother her brain with the details.

The quaint little shop that Master Fu operated out of was lit like a beacon, calling to her from the rain and fog. With as little noise as possible, she slipped in through the back after being sure no one was watching her. Traditionally it was at this point that, safe and secure inside the master’s home, she would drop her transformation and meet with him without a mask getting between them. This time, however, his message had been very clear about her staying as Ladybug for the duration of the visit.

The reason why became obvious when she opened a sliding door to see Chat Noir sitting by himself at the familiar low table, helping himself to the hot tea and cookies set out for them. Just as quickly as she noticed him, he turned his head to look at her, cheeks puffed out with stolen cookies and eyes wide. He swallowed heavily while maintaining eye contact.

“Please don’t tell Master Fu I ate all his cookies.”

Despite her shock at seeing him here, she couldn’t help but giggle. He was her silly kitty, as always. She settled down next to him and took a sip of the tea in front of her. Chat pushed the nearly-empty cookie basket towards her and she looked up to see him guiltily rubbing the back of his neck.

“If I’d known you were coming, I would have left you more than that.” He flashed her a meek smile. “Sorry.”

She took a bite of her cookie, but before she could ask him why he was here, the door leading deeper into the shop opened. Master Fu entered, with Wayzz floating near his shoulder.

“Greetings, young ones.” He sat opposite to them and inclined his head. “We have much to discuss concerning our fight against Hawkmoth.” If he didn’t have their attention before, he had it now. Both of them watched intently as he stroked his beard. “Our enemy is starting to unlock new depths of power to his miraculous. If we continue as we are, then we will be overwhelmed.”

“What can we do to fight him, Master? We still don’t have any leads.” Marinette bit down on the last of her cookie irritatedly. “All we can do is contain him.”

“And even that is getting harder,” Chat Noir chimmed in. “More akumas with weirder powers almost makes it feel like he’s experimenting with what he can do.” Chat frowned and flexed his claws. “Wish we could do that,” he grumbled.

“That is why I have brought you both here today. Our foe is strong, but alone. He lacks the bond that you two share - both as partners, and as wielders of the Cat and Ladybug miraculouses. While our opponent must learn through trial and error, you can be taught and trained.” Master Fu rubbed a thumb idly over his jade bracelet. “I have long years of experience with being one of the chosen, in addition to my duties as a Guardian.”

“Training…?” Marinette blinked. “That sounds great, but why now? Couldn’t we have used this even earlier?”

Master Fu hung his head sadly. “Yes, that is true. Previously, my desire for secrecy meant that I limited my contact with you two. Over the last few months and frequent visits from you, Ladybug, I have decided that those precautions are no longer necessary.”

Chat Noir perked up. “Does that mean-”

“No. The secret identities must remain in place. We must only part with such things when absolutely necessary. Otherwise, we will unduly expose ourselves.”

Chat’s ears drooped. “Yes, master. So what are we going to be doing?”

“Training sessions - martial and meditative, to make your minds as potent weapons as your bodies. Extra patrols, to deepen the already strong bond between the two of you. That would be the nature of what I ask from you.”

“I… see…” Chat had a faraway look in his eyes, as if doing mental math. He turned to her and leaned in close. “What do you think, bugaboo?”

Pushing him away by the nose, she replied, “First, quit it with the bugaboo.” She glanced towards Fu, then back to her partner. Time and place, Chat. She shrugged. “It might be hard to find the extra time, but I’m willing to try.”

Chat nodded. “Then that’s my answer too.”

“Excellent.” Master Fu rose to his feet. “Once I have devised some sort of schedule, I will let the both of you know immediately. For now, I will let you return home. It is late, and I’m sure the both of you are tired.”

As if on cue, Marinette yawned. “Right. We’ll head straight home, Master Fu.”

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

Later, the two of them were looking out at the rain from their spot in an archway at Notre Dame’s towers. Ladybug was seated opposite him, still smiling softly from the joke he’d cracked on their way here. There was a companionable silence between them, a stillness that they didn’t often get when they had time together. Maybe these extra patrols would be worth the loss of sleep, even if his make up artists would have to put in more time to erase the bags under his eyes.

Ladybug glanced at him out of the corner of her eyes. “I see you staring, Chat. What’s on that kitty brain of yours?”

“What?” He feigned innocence. “Can I not simply admire your beauty?”

“You can, but I would have thought those hundreds of pictures of me that you have on your baton would be enough.” She raised an eyebrow with a smile as a rare blush rushed to his cheeks. That had been an embarrassing afternoon for him. Despite her relentless teasing, she had been surprisingly alright with it. Maybe she wasn’t so innocent of it herself?

“It’s like I told you, that must have been Hawkmoth’s doing. No doubt he was trying to ruin my good name.”

“Oh? So you deleted the pictures then?”

“Of course not. Even if I didn’t put them there, how could I pawsibly remove such gorgeous images from my baton? It’d practically be a crime.”

She giggled. “If you say so, Chat.” Her smile faded a little as she looked into the rain. “Looks like we’ll be seeing a lot more of each other in the future.”

“Looks like it.” He stepped away from the wall and took a seat next to her. “Whatever it takes to beat Hawkmoth, I guess.”

“You don’t sound too thrilled about it, kitty. Already getting tired of me?”

“Never,” he replied instantly. “He wants us to grow closer, to strengthen the bond between us and our miraculous. But he doesn’t want us to do it naturally. There is still a wall that we aren’t allowed to break down.”

“Our masks,” she sighed. This was a battle she was getting tired of fighting. “We’ve been over this, Chat…”

“I know, I know, but Master Fu has practically admitted that secrecy is only hurting us now. And yeah, it is his demand, but we’re the ones out there fighting, risking everything. Don’t we at least deserve this much? And come on,” he nudged her shoulder playfully, a grin on his face as he waggled his eyebrows. “You must have wondered who this handsome partner of yours is?”

It might have just been his imagination, but he could almost swear he saw a bit of red dusting her cheeks around the mask.

“Besides that last part, you’ve got a point.” She stood up, twirling her yoyo. “How about we start small? My favorite color is pink.”

“Blue,” the color of the eyes that haunts my dreams.

“See? Now we’re on our way to knowing everything about each other.” She flashed him a smile and sailed away.

Even though he knew she was just kidding, he felt the truth of her words in his soul. Holding this newfound knowledge close to his heart, he made his way home. Although only a few minutes had passed since she left, he was already looking forward to the next time he would see her.

#Miraculous Ladybug #LadynoirJuly2019 #Ladybug #Chat Noir #Ladynoir #Master Fu #ml fanfiction #my writing #Inseparable

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the-desolated-quill · 5 years

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The Abyss Gazes Also - Watchmen blog

(SPOILER WARNING: The following is an in-depth critical analysis. if you haven’t read this comic yet, you may want to before reading this review)

Rorschach is arguably the most beloved character in the graphic novel.

Now anyone reading these reviews who hasn’t read the graphic novel I imagine must be slightly confused by that statement, considering I haven’t exactly been painting a very glowing picture of him. He’s misogynistic, homophobic, bigoted, violent and sociopathic. Not exactly the traits you’d associate with a ‘beloved’ character. And yet that’s exactly what he is. Out of all the characters in Watchmen, Rorschach is by far the most popular. Of course this isn’t exactly a good thing. A big reason for his popularity is because of people either missing or ignoring the satirical subtext of the character (Ted Cruz reportedly is a big Rorschach fan. Let that sink in for a moment). That’s not to say the character isn’t well written or compelling. I’ve said in the past that Rorschach is my personal favourite character simply because of how interesting I find him.

The Abyss Gazes Also explores the origins of Rorschach and I thought this would be a good opportunity to not only analyse the chapter, but to also question where this romanticised view of Rorschach may have come from.

The Abyss Gazes Also is told from the perspective of Dr. Malcolm Long. A psychiatrist assigned to evaluate and counsel Walter Kovacs, aka Rorschach. I absolutely love this setup and how it plays out. Like with Doctor Manhattan’s origin story in Watchmaker, rather than just giving us a big info dump, we get to explore the backstory through the eyes of a certain character.

Malcolm represents everything Rorschach despises. He’s part of the corrupt establishment, thinks of no one but himself and deludes himself into thinking everything will be fine so as not to upset the apple cart. (also, while not overtly stated, considering Rorschach’s extreme right wing views, I imagine the fact that Malcolm is black probably doesn’t help matters either). From the beginning we know that Malcolm doesn’t really care about helping Rorschach in any meaningful way. He just wants the fame attached with studying the mind of this infamous vigilante. And by the end he does get to fully understand Rorschach better than anyone else, but at a horrifying cost.

As Malcolm learns more about Walter’s transformation into Rorschach, we see his otherwise upbeat personality slowly dissolve as he begins to see the world from Rorschach’s point of view. I love how Alan Moore chooses to represent this. In the beginning, Malcolm’s notes are eloquent, detailed and optimistic, but as the issue goes on, the sentences start to become more broken, much darker and disjointed to the point where it actually begins to resemble Rorschach’s speech pattern. It’s a subtle illustration of Malcolm’s changing psyche. We also see him become more and more aware of the situation between America and Russia, whereas before he was very much focused inward on his career and his wife. As his perception of the world around him changes, the things he used to care about fall away. He neglects his wife and by the end his career is virtually in tatters because in the wake of potential Armageddon, none of these things matter to him anymore. Now on the one hand you could see this as some kind of comeuppance. A selfish man getting what he deserves. But it’s also deeply tragic because the point is no one should have to view the world the way Rorschach does.

Which brings us to the man himself.

The life of Walter Kovacs is... a bit of a bummer, to say the least. His mother was a prostitute who regularly abused him and he had to endure a lot of bullying and torment by sexist pricks labelling him as a ‘whoreson.’ It’s this that has contributed to his view of women (more on that later) as well as his own distorted view of sex. In the extra material, we get to read some of Walter’s psychological profile, which includes a diary entry from a younger Walter describing a nightmare he had where his mother was ‘dancing’ with a man and, upon further inspection, realises the two have been morphed together into a grotesque monster that then chases him. A literal beast with two backs, if you will.

It’s also worth mentioning that the most significant moments in Walter’s life that led to him becoming Rorschach were all sex related and involved women. Obviously there’s his mother. There’s also the job he got at a women’s clothing store, which clearly made him feel extremely uncomfortable, the rape and murder of Kitty Genovese, whose uncollected dress was used to make the Rorschach mask, and of course the murder of Blaire Roche. This I think is what led to Rorschach’s reductive view of women and also serves in some ways as a damning critique of how women are presented in comics. Every woman Walter has ever encountered has either been a helpless victim or a sexualised monster. Even Laurie, the Silk Spectre, contributes to this because of the sexualised image her mother forced onto her. In many comics, the assault or death of a woman often serves as the catalyst of a male hero’s journey, and Rorschach is the same, except it’s presented deliberately as being incredibly distorted. His relationship with women is already fraught thanks to his mother, but his encounters with Kitty Genovese and Blaire Roche serve as a way for him to justify his distorted view of reality. I particularly like the inclusion of the real life case of Kitty Genovese and the myth that over forty witnesses saw her being attacked and did nothing to help. Of course Walter seizes on this and uses it to support his worldview. We’re not even sure if the dress he uses to make the mask was actually intended for Kitty as it could just be a delusion that Walter has concocted to fit his narrative. Whereas other comics might use a woman’s pain as motivation for the male hero, here we see the male ‘hero’ use multiple women’s pain as a means to an end. A way of excusing his behaviour and justifying his actions. It’s a great reversal, exploring the sexism of the refrigerated woman trope.

What I find especially interesting is how despite his childhood, despite his right wing views and despite his reductive view of women, in his early days you could accurately describe Rorschach as a proper superhero. During the period that Walter refers to himself as being ‘soft,’ he teams up with Nite Owl and stops many criminal masterminds such as Big Figure, Jimmy the Gimmick and Underboss. You get the feeling that, had he stuck with Nite Owl, he might have grown to be a somewhat more balanced individual. (which is not to say Dan doesn’t have flaws too, but he’s far better adjusted than Rorschach is, that’s for damn sure). It’s what comes later that sends Rorschach past the point of no return. And no I’m not talking about the murder of Blaire Roche, though that was probably the final straw. I’m talking about Rorschach’s first encounter with the Comedian.

See, I don’t think Rorschach would have become a murderer if he hadn’t met the Comedian first. In his interview with Malcolm, Walter speaks of the Comedian in glowing terms, saying he’s the only one that understood how the world works. If it wasn’t for the Comedian planting the seed of nihilism in Rorschach’s head, he might have reacted slightly differently when he discovered the fate of Blaire Roche. I’m not saying he wouldn’t have reacted violently, but I do honestly think it wouldn’t have been quite so extreme.

I’ve said in a previous review how all the characters of Watchmen are technically nihilists. Rorschach and Comedian are a perfect illustration of two contrasting ways of reacting to nihilism. Namely moral absolutism versus amorality. The Comedian believes that the world has no meaning and that morality is a joke, and so uses that as an excuse to commit heinous acts for his own amusement. Rorschach is also a nihilist. After his encounter with Gerald Grice, he learns that morality and meaning doesn’t exist, but unlike the Comedian, Rorschach takes the opportunity to impose his own morality onto the world. Like ink blots on a blank canvas. The problem is with his own warped sense of reality as well as his motivation. Having discovered that Gerald had killed Blaire Roche, dismembered her and fed her to his dogs, Rorschach no longer has any interest in helping people because, in his mind, people are beyond help. He just wants to hurt and punish those that ruined the world. This isn’t justice. This is revenge. Revenge based on faulty logic. Walter says this was the day he became Rorschach, but it’s also the day he stopped being a superhero as far as I’m concerned. While his motivations and worldview was questionable before, he was at least acting for the common good. Now he’s just an angry man lashing out at the world indiscriminately.

So why do some people have this romanticised view of Rorschach? Well one reason I think is because he’s a man who lives by his own code. Whether we admit to it or not, there is a part of us that wants to see the predators of our society get what they deserve, so even though we recognise that Rorschach is going too far and that his views and beliefs are unsavoury, there’s a little voice in the back of our heads that most of us may not want to acknowledge quietly whispering ‘yes.’ Because if these are truly evil people he’s doing these despicable things to, then it must be okay, right? But then we have to ask ourselves the same question we did about the Comedian back in Absent Friends. Are we saying that the moment someone commits a crime, their life becomes forfeit? That they deserve to die? What does that say about us and our own morality? Which leads to another reason why I believe some people romanticise Rorschach. It’s because it’s easier to romanticise Rorschach rather than to acknowledge what he potentially says about us.

I love Rorschach because, as a character, he forces us to ask some very awkward and uncomfortable questions about our own morality. How far is too far? Where do we draw the line? If the misogyny, psychotic behaviour and extreme violence aren’t deal-breakers, what is? Can we really excuse these poisonous views and beliefs if the person in question is acting, supposedly, for the greater good? This is what makes Rorschach such a fascinating character in my opinion. And I’m sorry to say that if you can’t bring yourself to think about these things, then I’m afraid you just don’t understand Rorschach, or indeed Watchmen, at all.

#the abyss gazes also #watchmen #alan moore #dave gibbons #dc comics #review #spoilers

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secretshinigami · 5 years

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Masterlist of Demegawa-chan’s Special Prompts

A compiled list of everyone’s prompts from the exchange – thank you for letting us post them, and we hope you guys enjoy them! Prompts are organized by their submitter, so be sure to give credit if you use one.

niatsuki

Near and Light kissing

Mikami and Light in the rain sharing an umbrella

Misa in a suit

Domestic Mikalight

Matsuda confronting Near on the theory he brings up at the end of the manga

Nate and Light having an obtuse argument, but with romantic undertones

toygowther

Light wearing a crop top, high waisted jeans and fishnets, and a choker.

L having a nice day out in the park eating ice cream with Maki and Near

Musical!Light smiling

Misa in a cute gothic dress doing a finger heart

L and Light wearing Misa Misa merch at one of her concerts.

AU in which Light is actually a woman. The fic would follow how Misa reacts to it and if she would still want to be her girlfriend.

Role swap au. Light as Misa and Misa as Light.

Light and Misa meeting a different way and actually forming a healthy relationship.

spaceblue

L, Naomi & B shenanigans

Naomi, Wedy and Lidner as Charlie's angels (or L's angels?)

Wammy kids as Pokemon trainers

Matt gets the rest of the Wammy kids to play Smash with him

Naomi and L after the end of LABB, after he says his name is Rue Ryuzaki

Drama!L and drama!Raye Penber bickering

hazblogs

your take on A's gender and sexuality, bonus points if they're not a cis man and straight

Mello and sun imagery

Beyond Birthday and his eyes

Near with Hanahaki disease (pick who it's about if you want a specific ship)

Mello and witchcraft, if possible in the canon universe

Naomi interacting with Beyond (au or canon), if possible talking about L or the Wammy kids

L/Light being soulmates, in canon or in an AU

how Matt started smoking (I am comfortable with heavy drug themes)

polyphenols

L learning to garden, paint, cook, do taxes, care for an animal, or pay for a parking ticket for the first time

All the times L has cursed Right In Front Of The Task Force (poor Soichiro)

L alone, dressed for the cold, in a cathedral during midnight hours, gazing at the altar in silent contemplation

Aiber and Wedy at an evening gala on a mission

L and Alessandro Juliani warmly shaking hands

Young Naomi in a darkened room with red string and case clippings everywhere

What chain of events led to Quillsh Wammy deciding to adopt L and care for him?

Matsuda cant swim and he’s knocked into a body of water on a case, one of the task force has to go after him

The conversation that happened between L and Rem before he walked out onto that rooftop

L traveling somewhere exotic for a case, meets celebrity of your choice and becomes unlikely friends, takes down crime circle together

Naomi and L interact side by side as partners during a seperate case

paralllaxes

16 year old Gevanni (normal day or family banter)

Naomi in modern clothing

the SPK in one of those cheesy family pictures.

Naomi thinking about LABB while in Japan

SPK found family stuff / domesticity

Naomi being with the SPK (with or without Raye is the author's choice)

kiranatrix

Light and L in emo/goth clothes or in an emo band

Light in a crown on a throne

Ryuk doing something funny or playing a prank while invisible

L and Light on a road trip

Misa painting Rem’s looooong nails or giving her a makeover

Death Note characters as birds!

Sayu gets a grumpy parrot and Light doesn’t realize it can talk until after he hears it repeat some Kira plan thing, so he has to adopt it to keep it from spilling on him

L and Light talk about something important that happened to them in their childhood

L has to deal with growing amount of Light’s products in their shared shower and tries some out of curiosity with disasterous results

Light accidentally eats the last piece of cake in Kira HQ and L can’t deal at 4am

Lawlight Apocalypse AU of any variety

Beyond breaks out of prison after LABB, where does he go?

47gaslamps

The task force with portentous umbrellas

Halle, symbolically framed between Near and Mello

Naomi kicking Light's butt after he attempts to use force

Matsuda gives Yamamoto a welcome-aboard to the former Task Force /

AU where the drawer IS forced open

Misa has to shield Light from the paparazzi

translightyagami

Light and L in a crowded apartment, obviously lived in, playing piano next to each other

Light sewing something like his father's suit jacket or a shirt Mikami tore

Indulgent ask for my cryptid AU L and Light sitting in a graveyard having a nice time

Light having a smoke before he has to go tell his parents he's moving in with Misa

Light and Sayu having a difficult conversation where they're both saying they're gay without out loud saying it

Near goes to a Lego building event and meets a nice boy who isn't a Wammy kid

almostsane-things

Wammy's kid(s) of your choice sitting on the roof, watching the sky

Beyond Birthday and Candy Guro

DN characters in a rock band, maybe the shinigami are their mascots

Draw a less appreciated character but try something new with your style/medium. (i.e. use different brushes, incorporate a traditional art/craft like painting or cross-stitch, make a collage piece, go abstract, etc)

L in prison

Misa and Sayu becoming friends/ hanging out

The legend of Kira, how has the story of Kira changed over time in universe? Do people believe it was something supernatural, a government conspiracy, a group of vigilantes, or perhaps it's faded to nothing but a cautionary tale for misbehaving kids

A DN character enjoys that thing you really like/ find interesting to learn about, and shares that interest with someone else. (i.e. Matt plays your favorite video game with someone, Linda teaches someone about gardening, etc)

weneedtotalkaboutdeathnote

A hot double date with BBxDemegawa and LxHiguchi

B meeting L (any context is fine).

Naomi and Raye getting coffee together, having a nice time.

L can see ghosts, but he chooses to ignore them. This becomes increasingly had to do when B’s spirit shows up during the Kira investigation.

An Au where L defeated Kira, grew older, and basically disappeared. Older Mello (mid 20sish, now a detective) follows a lead that takes him to the washed up L.

Non serial killer, "Unprivate Detective" Beyond Birthday works on a case with Naomi Misora.

pensulliwen

Misa making Valentine’s Day chocolate, perhaps while daydreaming about a fantastically unlikely result of giving them to Light.

Rem holding Misa as they fly over the city.

Meme redraws featuring Misa, Light, and L. Just go crazy. Any ridiculous meme image, shove these dorks in there instead.

Misa convincing Rem to take her flying, the feelings they both experience in the air together.

Misa and Mogi on a shopping “date” in which the unlikely pair manage to work together surprisingly well.

Light considers eliminating Misa from the equation many times, but there’s always something that stops him. Explore how he views her and the dissonance between how he views her versus how he views himself, as well as the reasoning for keeping her around longer than intended.

izaori

Demegawa in a hot tub but instead of water its money

Mello playing soccer with the other kids (like Matt for example).

Matsuda playing cookie clicker, because he's obsessed.

Young Demegawa when he first got his job, maybe a few months into the job.

Sayu studying for her big exam coming up so she goes to big bro Light for help.

Ryuk discovers sour green apples rather than just the red ones. Maybe Sidoh discovers dark chocolate/white chocolate at the same time.

mikami

High school age Mikami in a high school uniform.

MikaLight out on a date

anything L/Higuchi

A Sakura TV Documentary about the Kiras.

MikaLight office romance, non-Kira AU.

Write me a fic about Demegawa. Can definitely be comedy, but please take the character somewhat seriously.

ghostoftasslehoff

L and Light playing piano together.

L with a kitty

Sayu and ‘Ryuzaki’ meeting, and hitting it off

Matsuda recieving a present or something from a ‘secret admirer’

A day in the life of Matsuda (away from the task force)

L and B’s first meeting (can be shippy or not, whichever my Shinigami prefers)

L tries to engage in punnery with the task force, but only one person engages (preference for Light, but surprise me!)

Sayu’s (or Sachiko’s) thoughts on Light’s new secretive actions as Kira becomes more and more active

tzigi

(All canon-compliant)

L gets first suspicions about a string of heart attacks which may be a new murder case for him

Light’s first day at To-Oh after L’s death

Light’s first day of work at the NPA

Near tries to pick up L’s investigation

Why did Near go back to L’s original font for the “L” logo between chapter 108 and the C-Kira oneshot?

A non-Lawlight rendering of the first evening of Light being chained to L after everyone else has already gone to sleep (preferably in keeping with the One Day one-shot)

Light begging Ryuk for his life

Light’s funeral

catfishmaster

The main characters (plus B) as DND characters

Older Near (like 25-30) with a bunch of cats he keeps for company

Roger bonding with Near after the Kira case.

Beyond Birthday faked his death in 2004 and now lives alone as a poor and pretty miserable theatre actor with a fake name. Oh, and also it's a Kira wins au.

Years after the Kira case has concluded, L takes on Near as an apprentice.

Matt takes Near on a tour of an afterlife-like world they both wound up in. It's more like a dreamscape than anything else but it serves as an afterlife.

#prompt list #death note #deathnote #Demegawa-chan's Sakura TV Special 2019

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fallen029 · 5 years

Text

Crush.2

Previous Chapter

Some pleasant scent floated about the tidy little apartment and Lisanna was kind of shocked, honestly, that this was Bickslow's place of residence. It was spotless, light, bright, inviting. Not at all like something she'd imagine the seith keeping.

Then she noticed the sword propped up against the wall, beside the coat rack, and knew it all wasn't the masked man's doing.

"Shoes off and all," the seith was grumbling as he struggled to get his own boots off. This as mainly because he was refusing to get down there and actually take them off, rather just trying to kick one off with the other and, well, it wasn't going so well. At all. "I wouldn't care none, but Freed-"

"I think most people actually don't like shoes in their house, Bickslow."

"Well, I wouldn't. If I lived alone. Who cares if a little mud and dirt get caked in? I sure don't! Adds to the piles of it that I would be accumulatin' anyways."

"Why would you be-"

"Ah, Bickslow, I thought I heard you loudly making the same speech you make to every visitor you have over." Freed was coming into front room then, staring curiously over at them. "And...Lisanna. I do not think I have had the pleasure of having you as a guest. I-"

"Yeah and you ain't now either." Bickslow finally was able to kick off one boot, it flying across the room as he himself stumbled a bit, nearly falling flat on his face. Still, even for all this, he managed to get out, "Lisanna is my guest."

"I am merely being courteous," his friend assured him. "Although, I am also curious. Why exactly are the two of you together?"

"Well-" Lisanna tried, but the seith kicked off his other bot with much more ease that time, the loud bang this provided cutting her off effectively.

"Can't have friends now, is that it? Eh? Freed? I'm just such a hopeless, lost in the darkness, down on his luck knight that there's no way that a kind, sweet, nice girl might take pity on me and accompany back to my definitely not dimly lit, dark, dangerous home? Is that what you're saying?"

"I...I'm not even sure what you are saying," Freed admitted.

"And I'm really not liking the implication of it," Lisanna added.

"We're going to be having a super secret meeting, yeah?" Bickslow only looked to Freed. "We can't have any interruptions. At all. I let you have your meetings here."

"You," the rune mage pointed out, "are part of the meetings."

"Yeah, well."

Freed waited. Then, slowly, he asked, "Yeah, well what?"

"What?"

They stared at one another for a long few moments, the pair did, before Bickslow lifted up his visor and squinted.

"I guess," he broke with a slight shrug, "you could help out. Freed. If you wanted. Basically, we're plotting. And scheming. Wheeling and dealing. Me and Lisanna. Outlaws, cast aside by society. Dark knights who-"

"I do, actually," Freed gave in as he turned to walk back the way he came, down a hall and no doubt back to his bedroom, "have some work to be getting back to. Decoding spells and such. So I would enjoy it greatly if you two kept it down. I do not mean to offend you, Lisanna, with this suggestion. Bickslow merely has a habit of getting rather...rowdy, when he has guests."

"Rowdy?" The man dropped his head back and laughed, loudly, much to the amusement of his dolls who began to do the same. "Me? No way!"

"Yeah," Lisanna whispered to the rune mage softly as she took to looking around. "I see what you mean."

But after Freed bowed to them and truly left them alone, Bickslow's cackles stopped and he only moved to pull of his hood, toss his visor to the side and then go fall face first into the couch.

"Uh...Bickslow?"

"Papa's waiting, Lisanna," his babies explained for him as they began to circle about.

For what?"

"Ideas! Ideas, Lisanna," some chanted.

"For plan! For plan, Lisanna!" replied the others.

"I thought," she griped, but at them, "that we were coming over here to come up with one together."

"I gave my part." Bickslow lifted his head then and motioned her over with one hand. Slowly, she came to stand before the couch. "We gotta figure a way so that the boss and your sister, you know, get it on or whatever. Will brighten the boss' day, get me out of the doghouse with him, and your sister, oh man, your sister is in for the shock of her life. Get it? Eh? Why aren't you laughing?"

"It's not really that witty." Slowly, Lisanna went to take as seat in the nearby chair. "I can think of some things though, for us. Yeah. Yeah! Okay, so we need to get Laxus and Mirajane together. And how do you do that? Well, they're both at the bar a lot. Mira has work tomorrow and, do you know what Laxus' schedule is? Surely, you can get him there, even if he's not planning on coming around."

"Don't call me Shirley."

"What?"

"What? It's wit."

"I really don't think you understand- If you throw one more coin at me-"

"Alright," the seith was talking over her because he'd sprung up, so suddenly, to fling the coin he found on the couch cushion her way, but now was just sitting there, eyes expectantly turned to hers. "So the boss and your sister are at the bar. Then what? That happens everyday. My boss, that sly dog, he's real heartsick over her, yeah? Just sits around and watches her. Watches and waits. Knows her schedule. Why, he might even follow her home, he's so smitten."

"Uh," Lisanna began as second thoughts began to surround her head, "that sounds kind of stalkerish."

"What? No."

"Yeah, Bickslow."

"I do that all the time! Peek in a window here, leave love notes full of threats of violence there. A true love story!"

"I'm really regretting coming to this apartment all of a sudden."

"Hey, you know what we need?" Bickslow took no note of her discomfort and only snapped his fingers together. "Code names."

"Code names?"

"Sure, sure, code names, yeah? We're a team, ain't we? Partners in crime."

"Actually, I'm starting to have second thoughts about this whole thing-"

"Come on, Lisanna." And his face changed then, back to the serious look he got when something difficult was taking place down at the hall. "You don't really think I'm insane. Do you?"

"Papa's not crazy," his dolls complained as they flew all about. "Papa's sane!"

Well, she wouldn't go that far, but as she let out a slight breath, she did concede that she was nearly certain most of the things he did were just put on. For show.

"I know he is," she told the dolls steal and the seith only beamed as they cheered. "But just...cool it some, okay, Bickslow?"

He could do that.

Well, he could try.

It was always exciting to him when he got someone knew to play with. That's what all this was, really. Play. Sure, he wanted the boss to be happy and he was nearly certain that Mirajane was what he was pining after, but at the same time, no one said work couldn't be fun.

Other than, like, Freed and Evergreen, who were frequently annoyed when he showed up on a job chipper and jovial. Because that meant he was just going to goof off the whole time. And as Lisanna was finding out on their little mission, he was just going to goof off the whole time.

"How about," he hummed as he walked about the living room eventually, tapping a finger against his lip, "Return to Sender?"

"What? Why would that be my nick-"

"That's what the anima did to ya, huh? Returned ya to your sender? Imagine going to meet your maker, only to be sent back. Wow. What a low blow."

"You know, I don't be here right now."

But she didn't leave.

"Well, you turn into a cat, right?" Eventually, the seith pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and began to smoke. "So something that rhymes with cat. Or kitten. Kitty. Mitty. Tit-"

"Bickslow." That didn't come from Lisanna though. No. It was called from the back. Freed. "Did you just light up a cigarette? We've spoke on this many times-"

"Nah, not me, man," he said around the literal smoking gun as it hung from his lips. "Nope."

"I can smell it."

"Cannot."

"If I came out there right now-"

"Might be Lisanna. The kid. She might be smoking. Not me. And you wouldn't want me to tell a guest no, would ya? Come on now, Freed. The guest is always right."

"The customer," the man complained, still from his room, "is always right."

"She purchased the cigarettes off me. Don't wanna mar her image, yeah? Buyin' 'em? Filthy habit. I tried to caution her, but-"

"Stop," Freed finally just yelled at him, "smoking in the apartment, Bickslow. Take your little...meeting somewhere else if you want to smoke."

"I'm done anyways, thanks."

But not with his cigarette. Walking with it in his mouth to the door, he just motioned to Lisanna to follow and, with a groan, she rushed to slip on her shoes and do so. As she called out farewell to Freed though, Bickslow had a hell of a time stumbling back into his boots and he was complaining, as they left, about the whole process.

"Where are we even going?" she asked him. "To finish planning? We could go to the park or-"

"Plannin'? We're all done plannin'!"

"How do you figure?"

"How do you figure not, kid?" He took a deep drag as he led her out of the apartment building. "We get the boss and Mira both in the same place, force a conversation and bam! They're fuckin' like hounds. The boss is just that smooth. And your sister-"

"I'm really starting to regret ever coming over here."

"Look, what more do you want, eh? That's the plan." He even nodded at her. "Don't you think so, babies?"

"Great plan, papa," they assured the man. "Best plan!"

"But it's not a plan," she told them and him both. "It's an outline. We have to fill it in, for it to be a full-fledged plan. What conversation are we going to strike up between them? And how? We have to think about these things. Plan them out. If we don't-"

"If we do," he countered because he was really just tired of listening to her talk and was hoping to shove her right out of the apartment building door when they got to it, "then it won't feel natural. When they start talking. And the boss, he's a tough one. He'll figure it out, yeah? And he'll realize that I had my sticky fingers all in it. And that's not want I want him to realize far too late that I had my sticky fingers in."

He didn't have to shove her out. Lisanna easily walked out. And, well, all was done for the day.

Now he had to go figure a way around smoking in the apartment….

The next day arrived with some nerves from Lisanna, but resolve regardless. As she and her sister put in their dual shifts up at the hall, she was pleased when she saw Laxus walk in. He wasn't accompanied by Bickslow in the slightest, which meant he'd come ther3e all on his own and now, without the seith to weigh her down, maybe Lisanna could actually do the plan.

Because she had a bad feeling Bickslow arriving would only ruin the plan.

"Oi, boss, I was looking all over for you."

He was going to ruin the plan.

Lisanna had just suggested that Mirajane go over and take Laxus' order (she'd actually been behind the bar while the younger of the pair was walking about, but she only agreed with an easy nod, thinking nothing of the suggestion), but as Lisanna took her older sister's place, she was dismayed to find the seith slank right into a seat across from Laxus.

"And Mirajane, right on time, yeah? I'm glad you took my suggestions into consideration," the man was saying as the head barmaid appeared at the side of their table. "Not interrupting at all today. Wow. A quick one on her feet, this one is, Laxus. Would you like a tip? I have a coin around here some-"

"Bickslow!"

Lisanna, suddenly, had coming running over and was glaring at him, hand poised to toss the coin at her sister. He only shifted direction before hitting Lisanna squarely in the eye instead.

"Hey!"

"There ya are, kid." To Mira, who moved to pat her sister on the shoulder while Laxus only began to seethe, the seith said, "It's a game, yeah? I throw a coin here, the kid gets hit by it there-"

"I am not," she growled at him, "a kid."

"Lisanna, why are you even over here? Was it to speak with Bickslow?" Mira made a face. "I thoguht you wanted me to take Laxus' order."

"How come?" The dragon slayer was glaring at the youngest Strauss then. Something smelt like fish. And well, yeah, Happy was close by sucking on a fish head, watching it all unfold as Lucy, who he was sitting with, was just glad to not be on the receiving end of the slayer's wrath. But there was a strong stench of treachery all about! "Since when are the two of you all buddy buddy? Huh? Bickslow? Lisanna?"

"I think he blinded me," Lisanna complained, "so we're definitely not."

"One in a million shot!" Bickslow declared with a cackle.

"Lisanna and Papa go back," the babies insisted. "Way back."

"We do," the woman in question informed them, "not."

It was more than a bit disheartening to hear.

"W-Well," Mira offered then with a bit of a frown, "if you want to take their orders then, Lisanna, someone should really be behind the-"

"I'm good, thanks." Laxus rose then and Bickslow felt a cold shiver run up his spine. "Suddenly not very thirsty."

And as the slayer left, Mira was still confused, but she went through most of life that way, so she only shrugged and went back to her post as Lisanna, rubbing at her eye, glared with the other at Bickslow.

"Good going, Lisanna," he retorted simply with a shake of his head. "Wow, babies. Didn't Do Not Resuscitate just drop the fucking ball or what?"

"DNR!" The babies were just having so much fun with the woman. She was the best,. "DNR!"

"I'm really close, Bickslow," the youngest Strauss threatened, but as she'd never threatened someone before, she wasn't too certain what she was close to. She just knew she was nearing it. "Really close."

"There are no losses, Lisanna, only chances at redemption." He banged a fist on the table. "We will rebuild! Or regroup, I guess. Say, my place? Same time?"

"N-"

"Perfect."

Next Chapter

#Miraxus #Bixanna #Bickslow #Lisanna Strauss #Lisanna #Fairy Tail #Fanfiction #Laxus Dreyar #Mirajane Strauss #Freed Justine #2 of 5

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adamlynnch · 7 years

Text

Voltron (Klance): Fic Rec List (Updated)

Edit: Added some more fics!

can you tell me by aknightley

28k, Oneshot, T

Keith works in his brother's coffee shop for the summer, expecting a boring break before college. Lance changes all of that.

The boy is still in the front of the group, but he doesn't take off his glasses so Keith can't tell what he's really looking at -- either the menu or Keith. Keith feels a flash of annoyance but smothers it and pins his smile in place.

i'm betting everything by aknightley

23k, Oneshot, T

(a continuation of Can You Tell Me)

A summer of dates between a prince and a boy who works in a coffee shop.

"I wanted to see you." Keith's eyes widen a little, and he ducks his head, but not before Lance sees the smile tugging at his lips. "This is the part where you say 'Me too, Lance,'" Lance prompts him, although he's ridiculously charmed by Keith's awkwardness.

"Of course I wanted to see you," Keith says, rolling his eyes.

*The Quilted Lion by geewillikers

97.5k, Complete, Multi-chapter, T

Keith is stuck in New York City barely making ends meet so he and Pidge can live in a decent part of the city close to her university. They scrape by on the illegal winnings Keith makes in street boxing matches, but his manager, Shiro, decides that it's time Keith gets a side job. He's whisked into The Quilted Lion café owned by the woman Shiro's been fawning over for over a year, only to find that he has more to worry about than his lack of magic and cooking skills- -There's a waiter at The Quilted Lion who is entirely Keith's cup of tea.

Drive It Like You Mean It by Zizzani

94k, Complete, Multi-chapter, M

The Castle of Lions is the venue for the city's most dangerous illegal street races where drivers come to test the cut of their tires. Lance has long defended his title as champion, but when a newcomer shows up and threatens his position things take an interesting turn.

*How to Train Your Voltron by nerdy_cait05

38k, Complete, Multi-chapter, T

When Lance McClain, a Viking Paladin who aspires to hunt dragons, becomes the unlikely friend of a young dragon herself, he learns there may be more to the creatures than previously assumed.

so why don't we fall by aknightley

8k, Oneshot, E

Five times Lance used a pet name for Keith, and one time Keith used one for Lance. Keith has no basis for having a relationship with someone, so he's trying to follow Lance's lead.

The Arch Project by Seliphra

9k, WIP, Multi-chapter, M

When Lance McLain gets promoted to a top secret research project, he is delighted to learn that the old conspiracy theories about something crashing in the desert of New Mexico were right. No one is entirely sure what it is that crashed, but it appears to be a man. A very pretty man who hasn't woken up since the crash. Lance is determined to be the first person on the project in a century to finally crack the case of just what this unconscious being is. Human, alien, or something else entirely? But there are forces out there determined to uncover the truth, and steal it if they must. The Voltron Group, a well known hacker group will apparently stop at nothing to find out what Galra Associated Corperation is hiding. And sooner or later, Lance will have to choose where his loyalties lie.

*What We Make of It by wittyy_name

46k, Oneshot, M

Keith has been training for this for months. So despite feeling like everything else in his life is falling apart and could be summed up with a big, blaring question mark, he finds himself halfway across the world with Shiro and Allura, preparing for his first ironman triathlon. He was expecting some typical touristy activities and a grueling day of physical activity. What he wasn't expecting was to meet a gorgeous boy with bright blue eyes and a smile that made his insides squirm.

Lance has been in a rut, unable to find the happiness that once filled his life. Everything looks gray, and he feels suffocated. And that's how he finds himself halfway across the world, backpacking across a foreign country with his best friend, Hunk, and their new friend, Pidge. That is, until they run out of money and decide to get a job. He's having fun, and colors are leaking past the dam and back into his life. What he wasn't expecting was to meet a beautiful boy with dark eyes and a shy smile that broke those flood gates wide open.

What a Healing Pod Can't Repair by Remember_Me

55k, WIP, T

The compromised wormhole was ripping apart at the seams, sending everyone spiraling away in completely different directions. Lance could feel himself being pulled and bent in ways he was definitely not supposed to be. Stitching the team back together after everyone is separated is difficult, and for one Paladin rescue wouldn't be coming for a very long time.

*Watercast by Fishwrites

83k, WIP, M

Shiro has been a Galra prisoner for over a year; with his flight feathers clipped and unable to fly. Desperate to escape, he jumps overboard while being transported to the capitol on a Galran ship. Lance is a merman who saves him from drowning. Keith thinks Shiro is about to become mermaid dinner. Hunk just wants Lance to stop going to the surface all the time, dammit!

(AU where Avians (winged folk), Galra, humans and merfolk cohabit earth. Shiro and Keith are avian soldiers, Lance is the youngest son of a Queen, Hunk is also a merman and Pidge is still looking for her family.)

Of Lions and House Cats by Ms_Towa

147k, WIP, Multi-chapter, M

Welcome to the City of Monsters.

Crime runs rampant in the streets, and the Voltron Alliance was established to combat the rise of crimes involving superhuman abilities. Revered as upholders of justice and peace, there are measures the Alliance cannot afford to take in order to maintain their public image. All they can do is protect the innocent, defend the law, and keep the peace. The Galra have been dominating both the city and the criminal underworld for too long, however, and what's needed is change.

Change is not meant for heroes. Change is meant for revolutionaries, for rebels.

(Enter Lance.)

tldr; Keith is a superhero who's been pining after the cute boy who works at the music shop across the street from HQ. He also doesn't know that the cute boy is the same vigilante he wants to bring to justice.

*Dancing Lions, Painted Wings by genericfanatic

35k, Complete, Multi-chapter, T

Years after peace has been made between the Galran and Altean kingdoms, The witch Haggar comes for vengeance. The young symbol of peace, the half-galran, half-altean Prince Kalor is lost. His aunt, Princess Allura, and his bodyguard, Shiro, are heartbroken. 10 years later, an orphan named Keith sets out on his own, trying to find the key to his past. All he has to help him is a small figurine with a cryptic message, a friendly engineer, a technician and her friendly robot, and a cocky con man with a mysterious, yet familiar past.

what are you willing to do? by aknightley

3.8k, Oneshot, E

They fuck in the Red Lion. "This is such a bad idea," Lance says, running his hands down Keith's sides and jerking his shirt out of his pants.

show me your kitties by boydivisions

10k, WIP, Multi-chapter, T

Lance just wanted another dog after his corgi, Nutmeg, died. Instead he got a cat and a crush on the cute guy working at the shelter who makes horrible fashion choices for someone with his job.

*Shut Up and Dance With Me by wittyy_name

152.8k, WIP, Multi-chapter, M

Lance and his friends have been regulars at the Altea Dance Studio for years. Not just for classes, but to hang out, practice, and spend time with good people who love dancing. Every year, they audition to be one of the few representing Altea at the regional dance competition. Lance always auditions solo, but this year he misses out on auditions and blows his chance to participate. And so does his self-proclaimed rival, Keith. Luckily, Shiro comes up with a brilliant plan: convince Lance and Keith to audition as a duo. With a little convincing, and a lot of effort, these two might just be able to pull it off and go to regionals... or they might crash and burn.

*Crowd Pleaser by WhatTheBodyGraspsNot

98k, WIP, Multi-chapter, E

Scoring the new bar-tending position at Lady A's strip club is a lucky break for Keith. What's luckier? He gets to work alongside his brother Shiro. Even luckier than that? It's a male strip club, which means Keith's never short of entertainment during working hours - especially when Blue Rider takes the stage. Because Blue's hot - definitely talented - and definitely taking an interest in Keith. The only thing that isn't so lucky? Keith's already got a boyfriend. That, and he's bad at saying no when it comes to attractive boys with magnetic personalities.

and of course;

*Dirty Laundry

85k, Complete, Multi-chapter, M

"Two whole months of free laundry in exchange for two weeks of being my fake boyfriend. Deal?” Keith hesitated for a moment. Was this really worth it? Hardly. Lance was an asshole, and he wasn’t sure what fake dating would entail. But, free laundry was free laundry, right? “Alright, it’s a deal.” Or: Lance makes the mistake of telling his Mom he has a boyfriend coming home with him for Christmas. Keith makes the mistake of agreeing to be Lance's 'fake boyfriend'.

#It was late and I was bored and these are good fics #fic recs #mine #voltron

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flutteringphalanges · 7 years

Text

A Heart of Razor Wire

Summary: An alternate universe in which the X-Men infiltrate the mutant research center, Transigen, and rescue the children within. It is there that Logan is introduced to an infant identified only as X-23. This story follows the plot idea of how life would unfold if Logan raised Laura from infancy and the events that would follow suit. FFN and Ao3

Chapter Four

Despite making his way to Charles's study almost immediately after hearing the announcement—seeing as his first destination had been to take Laura to her crib—Logan is still one of the adults to file in last. The combination of the uncomfortable silence and thick tension brings about a strange feeling of claustrophobia as the mutant moves to stand against the wall. For a moment, he takes in atmosphere around him, taking note of all who too are present by the professor's mandatory "request".

On the opposite side of the room, Jean, along with Storm, have taken to standing against the wall, their eyes unmoved from their fixed gaze on Charles. On the couch, squashed side by side, sit Kitty, Kurt, and Jubilee-the latter seemingly focused on a stain that has made its home on her pants. The remaining chairs are shared between Rogue, Bobby, and finally Colossus, whose seat is bending dangerous close to the point of breaking from his weight alone. Along with Scott and Hank, who have positioned themselves close to the professor, the number of occupants in the room only intensifies Logan's need for more air and personal space.

"This is the third incident in the past few months," Scott's the first to break the silence, his arms folded tightly over his chest. "It's getting worse out there, Charles. Not to sound at all like Magneto, but what happens if and when we witness something here in New York? We have to have some sort of game plan, for the students' sake."

"And what exactly do you suggest," Logan responds somewhat irritably. "Treat this like they did during the Cold War with bomb drills? Practice with the kids to duck and cover whenever there is a hate crime against mutants committed?"

"It's way too early for you to start shit with me, Logan," the other man replies, now beginning to sound pissed.

"You're one to talk."

"Can both of you deal with the presence of one another like adults for once?" Jean cuts in, voice laced with a "if you two don't quit it, I will give you the worst migraine you've ever experienced in your life" tone. "There are more important things at hand than your raging, masculine egos."

"Jean's right," Charles finally speaks, wheeling himself from behind his desk to seat himself closer to the others. "On giving our utmost focus and attention on what has been occurring. First and foremost, we have to take into account the safety of the children. For now, I think it's best we try our hardest in not instilling panic among the students. Perhaps monitoring the media reports on such crimes as to keep the children from seeing them."

"So we're going to keep everything that's happening a secret," Bobby frowns. "And just let them think everything is peachy?"

Charles lets out a long, tired sigh. For the first time since he entered the room, Logan notices how truly worn out the professor looks. His face is drawn, almost pallor that is much further than his usual, lively features. It didn't help any that dark circles had bagged underneath each eye, and Logan couldn't help but wonder if the man had gotten any sleep. Rarely had the mutant seen the professor this concerned, or to the point where he wasn't able to hide it well.

"Charles?" Logan ventures, eyeing the man with concern. "Are you okay?"

"Hm?" The telepath looks at the man seemingly in a daze. The millisecond of confusion quickly dissipates as the professor snaps back into reality. "Oh, yes, of course. I apologize, I've been giving everything that has been going a lot of thought. I suppose it's got me a bit out of mind." He gives a weak attempt at a smile that only makes Logan's frown deepen. "Shall we finish this up? I know you all must have your own matters to attend to."

The urge to further question Charles's well-being begs to leave Logan's mouth, but he holds his tongue knowing that the man would only continue to feign that his current state was completely fine. Once more the room is filled with conversations that jump from one comment to the next, so much so that Logan finds it hard to follow which person's words.

Instead, he takes to pulling his phone from his pocket, unlocking the device with a quick brush of his finger. He plays around with the buttons, still getting used to the damn, upgraded technology he had been "urged" to get by Kitty. If his old, perfectly capable of everything he needed, cell hadn't met its untimely demise-which he was certain was foul play-this thing would've belonged to someone else. Though, he couldn't completely complain, there was one thing that it came in handy for. Tapping on an app, he's greeted by the image of his daughter in her crib, thankfully fast asleep. It made for a good baby monitor, that much he'd give it.

"How is she?"

Logan jumps slightly in surprise at the unexpected question. When, in the past, if someone had startled him, immediately his claws would shoot out ready to face any combat he might've come face to face with. Now, having Laura, his defensive actions weren't as dangerous as before. For her sake, solely due to the fact that he didn't want to accidentally slice his daughter into unidentifiable ribbons.

"Sorry," Storm says with great sincerity when the other mutant whips around to face her. "I didn't mean to catch you off guard."

"You didn't," he lies, taking a moment to crack his fingers. "And she's fine, just sleeping. Guess Cheerios will do that to a person."

She chuckles and for the first time since arriving in Charles's office, Logan offers a small smile. Of the few people he truly got along with at the school, putting it mildly, Ororo was one. She was kind, understanding, and usually never pissed him off-and coming from him, that was quite the compliment. And on top of everything else, she was good with Laura, often taking her off his hands so he could get some much needed sleep. And, though he'd never admit it out loud, he possibly saw her more than just a friend. But again, he was not one to show any emotion when it could easily be avoided.

"I should go," her words causing Logan to snap back into reality. "I don't like leaving an entire school of mutant children unattended too long. It's never fun when you have to put a fire out in a room or figure out how to prevent students from falling from the ceiling because someone decided to smash holes of plasma through it."

"Tell me about it," he breathes. "Had a kid yesterday start a rain forest in the bathroom. I used to be a lumberman and even then I didn't have to cut down that many trees."

"So that explains why there was yellow tape across the entrance. I thought the toilet was clogged or something," she gives a small snort. "Hey, at least we can say that our job is exciting and unpredictable."

"I think you and I have different opinions on whether or not we view that statement as a positive thing."

She gives him a small smirk before nudging him in his shoulder. He offers her a wry smile in return, watching as she turns away from him and heads towards the door. Just as she's about to cross over the threshold, she looks back at him. He meets her expression, curious at her unexpected pause. Storm opens her mouth as if to say something, but decides to merely close it again, lips pressed into a thin line.

His brow furrows in confusion as he's left to wonder what it was that the woman had neglected to say to him. Exhaling, he shakes his head, making his way towards the door leading out of the study. Right as he has one foot out the door, Charles calls out to him, causing him to look back at the man in the wheelchair.

"Logan," the telepath says, in an almost hesitating tone.

"Yeah?"

"...I...I really appreciate your help here at the school," the older mutant responds. "And I trust you of all people to protect the children, perhaps more than I do of the other adults in this facility." There's another pause, Charles's gaze still locked on Logan's. "It helps out me at ease knowing that I can rely on you and the others. I suppose I'm attempting to say is, I hold great faith in you. Thank you."

Logan is taken aback with the odd, random speech given by the old man. What had brought it on, he hadn't a clue, but something about it didn't settle right within him. Almost like something was off. That Charles knows more than he lets on. But he, as before, is very well aware that the telepath would refrain from giving a penny, hell, a million dollars, for his thoughts.

"You don't need to thank me," he finally says. "But sure, no problem, I guess."

"I'll see you later today then," Charles states, his voice sounding a little more relieved as he makes his way back behind his desk. "Give Laura a hug for me."

Logan nods his head, mumbling something incoherent as he steps into the corridor, closing the office door behind him. Thoughts muddle within his head, tidbits of conversations and unanswered questions trying to piece together for some sort of information. But nothing comes to him as he makes his way down the long stretch of hallway.

So he sighs heavily, pushing everything to the back of his mind. He'd give it no further thought, for now. And as the sounds of students going about their day fill his ears, he allows his mind to drift to thoughts of an upcoming football game he plans to watch and how he'll manage to avoid having Charles, or rather, anyone who might nark on him, seeing him sneaking in a few beers. Completely and absolutely unaware of the limited and blissful days he has left before everything goes to hell.

#Logan #Wolverine #X-Men #Laura Kinney #X-23 #A Heart of Razor Wire

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breziarchive · 7 years

Text

The Black Butterfly Crimes, ch. 1.1

crime scene detective buddy cop type AU! Detective Ladybug and P.I. Chat Noir, on the case and...oh boy

[PREVIOUS - Prologue]

wanted to release at least part of the chapter because as usual its turning out longer than i wanted and i want it done NOW so the rest of chapter 1 will be posted later :V

Ladybug and the Heart of Stone (p.1)

rating: R content warnings: murder victim autopsies, emetophobia, physical assault about/summary: a body found at the base of the Eiffel Tower. a former classmate was the last to see her alive, and seemed to actively kidnap her. Marinette reluctantly lets Chat Noir tag along as they begin their investigation, but they’re not expecting it to turn into another crime so soon... trivia: originally the autopsy doctor was named “dana starling” because i ship scully and clarice starling so hard you have no idea, but with the recent passing of miguel ferrer the surname was switched out to rosenfield. except i did it manually so if she’s still called starling in some areas SORRY DISCLAIMER

~~~

Ivan Bruel had been a classmate of hers. Big, brutish-looking, always cast a shadow even when he didn't mean to. More often than not he most certainly didn't mean to, even if he looked menacing to an outsider's eye. Certainly the harsh metal music blasting from his headphones wouldn't help his case if an older adult passed by him, but Marinette had always regarded Ivan as a kind and gentle person, especially with his sweet crush on the smallest girl in class, Mylène. She was timid; he tried to minimize how scary he seemed for her. He was a good kid.

Marinette clutched the stone in her hand and stood up to face Chat Noir. He was a good kid, but she couldn't afford to get caught up in nostalgia lest it get in the way of investigation. Still, she was taken aback, and had to stop herself from gritting her teeth.

“On what evidence do you think Ivan Bruel killed this woman?” she challenged. As Marinette was finishing her sentence Chat Noir's gloved hand smoothly produced a phone from an unknown pocket. This guy was really starting to annoy her with all these theatrics. Nonetheless she released a hot breath as he unlocked the phone and tilted the screen towards her.

Footage began to play. Grainy and unprofessional. For a while all Marinette could make out were bright lights and moving blobs. After she moved the umbrella over the screen and pulled the phone closer to her, she could finally understand that she was looking at a small concert. Probably at some local bar or night club—amateur hour. Chat Noir said nothing and let her watch.

The camera snapped into momentary focus. There at the front of the stage was Ivan Bruel, gripping the microphone. His skin was flushed pink and he had stopped singing without any sign that that was supposed to happen. The band around him slowed and stopped, and the cheers became boos and cries.

“Yo dude, what's going on?” the cameraman attempted to shout over the growing noise to no avail.

From the unstable vantage point from the crowd she could barely make out Ivan stumble as if intoxicated. The crowd, invigorated by a night of drinking and up until then hardcore music, started to throw things onto the stage, then they started to rush. In the chaos the camera seemed determined to stay on Ivan, even as it was being battered and pushed around.

Ivan half-jumped, half-slid off the stage. Plucking a girl dressed in fishnets and colorful extensions, he pulled her into a bear hug and simply walked (stumbled) away. The girl kicked in the air, doing more harm than good as she knocked several others away. Then there was a harsh oof, the camera fell to the ground, and when it got back up again the stage was overrun and Ivan was gone.

“I told you, m'lady, I'm a private investigator, and I do it well, too. Now will you let me help you?”

Marinette bit her lip, “Until the forensic results get back and confirm what our detectives find about the identification of our Jane Doe...Where did you get this footage?”

Chat Noir held up the phone and turned it around, showing the cracked backside, “A friend of my client was there that evening, to support Ivan in the music business. Apparently they went to school together—as did you, if I may be so bold to presume.”

Marinette stared hard at the green eyes behind the black mask. Private investigator or stalker? She frowned.

“Officer Pendrell,” she called, “Confiscate the phone Chat Noir is holding for evidence and make sure he does not step foot in the headquarters without me.”

“So you agree to my help, then?” Chat Noir did not take his eyes off her as he handed the phone to Pendrell. Marinette turned away, looking down at the desiccated butterfly on the rock.

“No,” she said matter-of-factly, “I just don't have any reason not to suspect you as the murderer or accomplice. Report to my office first thing tomorrow morning. Failure to do so will cause a very pretty target on your kitty head. Ciao.”

Before Chat Noir could successfully spin a pun out of her dismissal, she walked away, carefully handing the butterfly to one of the forensics team. The blurry image of the kidnapped girl played over and over in her mind, and Marinette gave one last glance over at the body. Even in the dim light she could tell that her hair had once been a bright, garish color, had it not been for all the blood.

Marinette lifted her head up from her desk. It was no longer undersized like her first years at the precinct, but it still didn't make for a comfortable pillow. Rubbing her face, she pulled out her hair ties, yawning and combing her fingers through her hair. She had gone home that night, she had fallen asleep in an actual bed—but the case had woken her up. It wasn't exactly unheard of, but it didn't usually happen to her. Though she didn't sleep so much like a rock anymore like she did as a teenager (...what a terrible metaphor to use given the case) she could still happily rise at noon if she didn't have any former engagements or promises.

Last night was different.

She hadn't thought about Ivan Bruel since she joined the academy. Hell, the only classmates she occasionally thought about were Alya, her best friend to this day; Nino, Alya's on-again off-again fling who was never awake during the daytime hours; and of course Adrien Agreste, since his face still was plastered on the odd billboard and advertisement around Paris. Nino apparently still saw Adrien somewhat often, but due to conflicting schedules he said it was never more than an hour every other week.

Nino...

It'd normally be aggravating to have to ask Alya for help on an investigation. Ever since Marinette turned Ladybug from an insult to a crown, Alya had been jumping down her throat for details. Though she was a journalist to pay the bills and often reported crime in a professional manner, Alya used her downtime to keep a syndicated blog full of pulp short stories she wrote on the adventures of the Ladybug Detective. Affectionately it was called the Ladyblog. Marinette had skimmed a few stories here and there, but far too often she'd frown at how the story was twisted into something much more fantastical than hers actually was. Alya, you make it sound like I'm sort of superhero or something, she complained once. Alya had, of course, rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair.

Pssh. You know you are a superhero to some people. Get used to it, girl!

At the risk of feeding Alya's eagerness for her blog, Marinette would have to call her up. She was much more familiar with every aspect of Nino's voice than the young detective was, and could give her a second opinion why Marinette kept replaying the concert video and thinking of him rather than Ivan even though he was there on the screen.

“Good morning, Detective!”

Startled out of her thoughts, Marinette looked at the gloved hand slapped onto her desk, following the black leather up to Chat Noir's face. He was grinning just as eagerly as Alya was going to be. Glowering at him, she tried to study what she could see of his face to attempt to get a smattering of a profile.

“First thing in the morning, and here's your cat, all dressed up with places to go!”

She rubbed her forehead and desperately glanced at the coffee cup she knew was already empty.

“Don't cats sleep a lot?”

“Not when there's food to eat!”

“We. Are going. To an autopsy.” Marinette made sure to enunciate each word so there was no way he could misunderstand. He seemed taken aback for a second, attempting to recover quickly.

“Well, at least I have no lunch to lose!”

What is wrong with this man. Marinette let her arms fall on her desk with a satisfying thud, forcibly pulling files from underneath Chat's hand. She stood up, perking her chin up at Chat to let him know where he stood, then turned and started to make her way through the offices.

Down two levels and to the left. The buzz of harsh fluorescent lights guided their way until Marinette opened up the door. A woman slightly older than her stood on the other side of a metal table decorated with what they had recovered from last night. Her arms created an equilateral triangle with the table, and she regarded Marinette with complacent recognition and seemed bored with Chat.

“Dr. Rosenfield,” Marinette greeted cordially, “Hope the body wasn't too all over the place,”

“It wasn't,” the woman sniffed, “The rocks helped to contain a lot of the mess and the rain washed the rest away. Can't say it's too atypical, I will my guess as to why the body isn't in two or more separate pieces on various levels of the Eiffel Tower is due to her thigh high boots and affinity for being tied up.”

Chat Noir coughed, bringing attention to him, “Before you go on, Doctor, I hate being the elephant in the room—especially when I haven't properly introduced myself to a lady. You may call me Chat Noir.”

Dr. Rosenfield remained completely unfazed as Chat Noir reached over the table and gently took her wrist to bring her ungloved hand to his pursed lips. Hairs away from kissing her fingers she opened her mouth and spoke in a deadpan voice.

“Dana Rosenfield. That hand has been in no less than three different bodies in the past 24 hours, the most notable not being your vic but rather the husband who was brought in after his scorned wife shot him two times in the face. Upon dissection I found evidence of no less than three types of STI's, and have recently been informed that she's being charged with first degree murder after finding out that he had held several mistresses and may have gotten her infected as well. Her lawyer's working to get it down to second degree murder. Have you seen an infected pubic area before, sir?”

Chat Noir stopped cold, finally glanced down at the table that Marinette realized he had been avoiding looking at, made a pathetic kissing noise with his lips and let her go much more hastily than a proper gentleman should've.

Marinette crossed her arms across her ribs and tucked the files behind her as she pressed her mouth to the heel of her palm and sarcastically muttered, “An elephant you sure aren't...,”

Snorting a bit and trying to cover it up as adjusting to the difference of the atmosphere, Marinette urged Dr. Rosenfield to go on.

“Well, cause of death should be fairly obvious. She reached a speed of about 169kph by the time she hit the pavement. The aorta and all other blood vessels ripped loose upon impact, nearly every bone was fractured either from hitting the concrete or from being sandwiched in those rocks. I'd wager her original weight was somewhere around 58 kilograms, although the rain took plenty of that away. Terminal velocity wasn't reached, but there's no way she survived the impact. The rocks did nothing much to kill nor keep her alive—honestly I'm not sure they had any physical bearing on the death whatsoever. Whether or not the killer knew that and did it for symbolic reasons or he was a knucklehead and didn't pay attention in physics, that's up to you.”

Chat Noir had long turned to face the wall. Ignoring him and enjoying the lack of his presence, Marinette watched intently as Dr. Rosenfield's fingers pointed to various parts of the reconstructed body. The rocks that had fallen with the girl were already taken to the labs for analysis, but still some shards and remnants of them remained in a dish off to the side.

“Did you see anything related to spray paint or insects?” Marinette asked. Dr. Rosenfield twisted her mouth.

“We'll have to wait for chemical analysis before I can tell you anything about spray paint. I didn't see anything non-human on initial inspection, aside from the higher than normal mineral content. Why do you ask?”

“One of the rocks...It looked like a butterfly that was spray-painted black was attached to it before it fell to the ground.”

“My first suggestion was that she hit the butterfly going down, but I'm not sure literal painted butterflies can fly, much less in the rain.”

Marinette slowly shook her head, looking at the remnants of the girl. An identification had been made earlier that morning, Émilie Lambert, 21 years old. Told her roommate she was going to a concert that night and never returned. Ivan had taken her. Witnesses had called in, saying that he had just up and left and seemed to take a girl with him. She shut her eyes and took a deep breath. From missing person to murder victim in less than 3 hours.

That did not bode well.

“Chat Noir,” She finally said. Buhh was his immediate answer, and she glanced over her shoulder to see that he had braced himself up against the wall. Wanting to be snippy but thinking better of it, she ignored his discomfort and continued, “You said that the person who handed you the video knew Ivan well enough to support him. Do you still have a contact with this person even though he's a friend of your client?”

He gasped, moving a hand to his stomach, and steadied himself. Dr. Rosenfield shook her head and turned her gaze back down to the body.

“Y-yeah. Actually, I did some lookin' around last night...hhh...Long night, y'know. I know where Ivan is.”

“What,” Marinette shouted, “Why didn't you say so when you got here?!”

“B-Because when you said autopsy I figured it'd be good to have information to interrogate the guy with, eh?” He coughed; something shocked him enough to cover his mouth, but he managed to push it back down, whatever it was.

Already at the door and swinging it open, Marinette was about to give Chat Noir a piece of her mind when she paused and looked over at him. A pang of pity hit her, and though she felt slightly annoyed at herself for it, there was no stopping her sympathetic nature.

“Well, where is he, then?”

“The hospital.”

“Hospital? Looks like you might just be an investigator after all, as ridiculous as you look,” Marinette said gratefully and began to move through the door. Chat Noir nodded abnormally, and before Marinette had stepped all the way through he had stripped of all his gentlemanly manners as he shouldered past her, darting down the hallway one hand holding his stomach and the other covering his mouth. Marinette stood still in shock, peering around the door frame to see his trench coat kick up behind him.

Kitty's got a hairball.

“Bathroom's to the left,” Rosenfield supplied with a shrug, “No matter, there's a trashcan at the end of that hall too.”

The floor of the hospital was clean and polished. Had the hospital been empty Marinette would've expected her heels to clack and echo between the walls, followed by the lower-pitched clack of Chat Noir's shoes. But the hustle and bustle of the building drowned other sound out. It didn't seem particularly panicked or busy, but the closer they got to Ivan Bruel's room there seemed to be an air of suspicion.

Her pace slowed as she flipped through the prepared report the nurses had handed her. Ivan had been brought in, unable to stand and complaining of an intense pain in his lymph nodes and other parts of the nervous system. After a long night of watching him vomit and feverishly wail, they were able to sedate and calm him and began treating for intense intoxication. His girlfriend was contacted. Chat Noir knocked in a dignified manner, as if he didn't just spend half an hour guzzling water and quietly retching. Marinette looked up as a barely audible voice welcomed them in. Opening the door, Chat let her go first.

Mylène didn't seem to have changed much. She still dressed in colors, still remained short and stout, and still had much of what they had all thought was baby fat rounding out her face. Her long, crimped hair was tied in a loose bun and there were circles under her eyes. Marinette briefly wondered how many times the girl had undone and redone her hair in worry. The girl stared at her for a moment before her face lit up in shock.

“M-Marinette? Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” she gasped, “A-Are you here to see Ivan?”

Marinette smiled sweetly, though her eyes wavered a bit. Stumbling on her words, not knowing how Mylène would respond, she tried to prepare herself for the situation to become awkward.

“In a way, I suppose yes...,” The detective opened her mouth and closed it several times, trying to find how to word it. Mercifully Chat Noir was quiet as he observed the shorter girls.

Mylène continued to stare at Marinette in awe until it was clear she was starting to calculate how strange this was, her gaze flicking to the man in all black back to her old classmate.

“W-Wait...they told me the police were coming to see him...,”

Marinette's smile twitched in sympathy, and she produced her badge, “Y...Yes, Mylène, we have some ah, evidence, and a growing number of eyewitness reports that suggest that Ivan may have been involved in um...,”

She could see Chat Noir raise his eyebrows in her peripheral vision, “A...murder.”

Mylène's shriek was more akin to the squeak of a terrified mouse as her small hands went up to cover her mouth in horror. Marinette felt a pang stab her in the chest, making her smile fall as she looked at her high school friend in concern.

“M-Murder?! I-Ivan?!” It was clear that she was struggling to protest or say more but her breath kept hitching in panic. Marinette reached out and pulled Mylène's hands into hers, an unusually intimate gesture for an investigation.

“Please, Mylène, since Ivan is out of commission, would it be alright if asked you what happened last night? Any information at all would be helpful, and if it all goes well, it may turn out Ivan is not the killer after all.”

Mylène shook, her eyes glazing over as she stared down at Marinette's hands holding hers. Tears welled up in her eyes. Marinette flicked her gaze over to Chat Noir. Thank god Mylène was out of it, or she might have noticed the hard but knowing stare Chat was giving her. The amount of eyewitness reports that were pouring in were damning, and many of her officers were pulling security camera footage that showed Ivan leave the club with the girl and show up at the Eiffel Tower with the same girl, hiking backpacks strapped to the both of them. Hiking backpacks supposedly full of rocks and ropes. Marinette swallowed, determined to focus on Mylène and Mylène alone for now.

“U-Um...,” Mylène breathed after several minutes, huge tears following the rounded curve of her face, “H-He had a...a gig last night. A-Actually he and his band, they haven't been doing well...but not like, not enough to...to—,”

She choked, and receded from Marinette's hands. The detective debated whether or not to tell Mylène some of the grisly details, knowing that anything might push the poor timid girl over the edge. Chat Noir answered that question for her.

“Hey there, I'm a private investigator working with the police on this investigation,” he introduced himself, kneeling to her level, “And what we know now is—well we can't figure out a motive, so even if you don't think it wasn't enough motive, if you remember any details—,”

“I-I-I don't know!” Mylène burst, causing Chat to jerk back in surprise. Beside them Ivan's vegetable-like form didn't move, didn't even twitch though the heart monitor kept quietly keeping time for them. Marinette held a hand up, signaling for Chat to pause and let her recover. Mylène tore her eyes off of Chat Noir and roved about the room until she rested on Ivan and the beeping heart monitor.

“Nino...,” she mumbled, “Nino encouraged Ivan and his band to show up anyways. Said that they never knew when their breakthrough will come. It took some doing but they all agreed...I...,”

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

“I thought...I thought it was a good idea too...,”

Marinette felt the pang dig deeper in her chest. She spoke softly, after the beeping became unbearable due to what it represented.

“Mylène, no matter what, it's not your fault that this happened. Okay?”

The small girl couldn't even nod in acknowledgment, just kept staring at Ivan.

Marinette righted her shoulders and relaxed them, “So, Nino was at the concert?”

Mylène nodded. She felt a small bit of selfish relief—no need to ask Alya for help after all. For some reason that nugget of information buried itself in her brain to be dealt with later. Now all she could do was how she could ask Nino for his version of what happened that night. That would come next, after she asked the last few questions.

Pulling a photo from her file, she inhaled and turned it so it faced Mylène, “Do you recognize this girl?”

Mylène turned away from Ivan to regard the picture. Her features twitched in concentration, but she shook her head, her gaze drifting back to her boyfriend. Despite how callous it might have been, Marinette pushed the photo closer and raised her voice while trying to keep it calm.

“Her name is Émilie Lambert. She was last seen alive with Ivan shortly after the concert came to an abrupt end. You sure you don't recognize her?”

Mylène's face scrunched up and became tinged with red in disgust and fear, quickly processing Marinette's words even though she was trying desperately to focus on Ivan's mountainous chest slowly rising and falling.

Chat Noir's head poked in, the mask sharpening the point of his nose, “It's alright, you won't be able to recognize her anymore at any rate,”

Ice turned Marinette's fingers to claws as she reached forward and yanked on Chat Noir's silken scarf, seething into his ear as Mylène went from red to just as sickly as he had been in the autopsy room. How dare he whip that out without any consideration?! Private investigator her ass! Unprofessional civilian hack who just wanted in on preconceived notions of drama! Hell, he had asked for her specifically; if he was a fan of the Ladyblog she'd smash his computer and phone herself. (And then give a stern talking to Alya about her real identity's safety.)

“Chat Noir,” she demanded icily, “Why don't you get ahold of Ivan's doctor and do some investigating into what he was intoxicated with.”

“Wh—,”

“That's an order, private investigator—or I'll have you off the case and make sure you won't step into another precinct as an aide ever again. Go.”

Marinette unhooked her fingers one by one, glaring at Chat Noir until he disappeared out into the hallway. Letting out a huge exasperated sigh that she hoped Mylène would take some solace in, she shook her head and tried to ask again.

When she saw how utterly destroyed Mylène had become, Marinette could not go further.

She had worked hard to be here. Worked hard to be respected at the precinct like she had become, worked hard to succeed at the career she had chosen by the time she graduated high school. Most days she could make it through without a hitch. Marinette was damn good at keeping calm and talking through friends and families of the victims or perpetrators as to what the next step would be. It didn't always work; she couldn't always count on people to be kind and cooperative, but she wouldn't have a job if people were always kind and cooperative. For better or for worse, people ended up listening to her when she was Detective Dupain-Cheng, the Ladybug. And she had earned that reputation and would guard it with her life.

But it was times like this she wanted to drop everything and pursue something much less confrontational and draining, like fashion, again. All the bright colors she dressed in couldn't hide how pale and ashen Mylène's face had become.

“Mylène...,”

“Do you think...,” she wavered on each syllable, “Do you think he could've really done it?”

Marinette looked over to the mountain dwarfing the gurney, “I don't know, Mylène. But I will find the truth. I promise you that.”

A soft knock on the door frame caused both girls to turn their heads. A somewhat sheepish Chat Noir ducked inside, trying to awkwardly smirk to gain their favor back.

“I had a talk with the doctor. He said that there was some alcohol in Ivan's system, but not enough for it to overtly affect him to make dumb decisions. Probably could walk in a straight line. The toxic substance they pumped, er...,”

Marinette raised her eyebrows for him to go on.

“They don't know what it is, only that it attacked his lymph nodes and nervous system. I guess they're on watch for um. You know. Nerve damage.”

It was clear the words brain damage were on his lips, but after Marinette's harsh intervention the cat thought twice and chose his words carefully this time around. She ducked her chin in small approval.

“Next, we'll talk to Nino, another high school friend of mine and Ivan's.” Detective Dupain-Cheng announced before Marinette's soft voice comforted, “Mylène, you'll be okay here, I'm sure you'll keep Ivan safe.”

“Marinette...,” Mylène asked as they were headed for the door. Marinette stopped and turned, curious, “I thought you were into fashion design. What...What made you become a detective?”

She pinched her inner lip with her teeth, contemplating. The answer was much more simple than anybody would expect, but it wasn't exactly something she wanted to give away. Not even Alya completely understood, and that was how Marinette kept it.

“People like you,” she finally answered with a final good-bye, shutting the door behind them.

Left alone in the empty room save for the constant beeping of Ivan's heart, Mylène sighed, then lost track of time.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

She supposed a nurse or two came in at some point, check to see if Ivan was the same. He was. The whole ordeal made Mylène shiver, sometimes without warning. Marinette seemed so brave, so unlike the girl she knew in high school. Almost like it was a completely different person. Mylène figured she needed to be like that now; strong, a rock for Ivan and herself to stay grounded and sane.

Beep.

It was so hard, and Mylène was really starting to feel just how much time was passing when she realized that it was already late afternoon. How long ago Marinette and the man in black visited she couldn't even remember.

Silence.

Wait. There was supposed to be...the heart monitor...

A panic shot through her all at once and she looked to the bed. Her boyfriend was sitting up, staring into the air. He must've ripped the monitor off, which, even if Mylène didn't know anything she knew that that shouldn't happen unless the nurse took it off herself.

“Ivan!” Panic was replaced with relief, “Ivan, are you okay?”

Sliding off of the chair, her little legs ran to his bedside, still careful not to throw herself into his arms. At any other point in time Ivan could handle that no problem, but now, who could say. He had been out for hours...

“Ivan, Marinette—do you remember her, from high school? No I mean, the police came by, apparently some bad things happened last night Ivan, do you remember any of it? Because the—h-hey!”

Mylène gasped as Ivan's rough hand engulfed her tiny arm. Shock became pain as she realized he was lifting her off the ground with little thought as to her comfort. This was not the Ivan that spent months, even years, learning how to care for her without frightening her and teaching her how to become less afraid of the world around her.

“I-Ivan! Ivan, that h-hurts!” she squeaked, “Let me go!”

“Go,” his voice rumbled in an intoxicated, unstable manner, like someone had forced wind through his throat. Mylène shrieked, then tried to scream.

Ivan clamped his other hand around her mouth and she was silenced as abruptly as the heart monitor was.

“Go,” he repeated.

He stood up, holding Mylène in the air. Then he turned her upside down, waiting until she passed out.

#miraculous ladybug #ml fanfic #black butterfly crimes #marinette dupain cheng #chat noir #adrien agreste #ivan bruel #mylene haprele #crime scene au #blood tw #gore tw #uehhh #violence tw #??????

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mountphoenixrp · 4 years

Photo

We have a new citizen in Mount Phoenix:

Son Hyejin, who is known by no other name; a 24 year old daughter of Skuld. She is a stock clerk at Siren’s Song.

FC NAME/GROUP: Baek Yerin/soloist CHARACTER NAME: Son Hyejin AGE/DATE OF BIRTH: 24 years. March 16, 1996 PLACE OF BIRTH: Was born in the outskirts of Incheon. OCCUPATION: Stock clerk at Siren’s Song HEIGHT: 5,4 WEIGHT: 45 kg DEFINING FEATURES: Several tattoos along her arms and hands, with one heart tattoo on her left thigh.

HISTORY: Kwon Hyejin comes to the world quietly. Her chest does not heave. How long can one live without oxygen? She is declared a stillborn the moment she gets pulled from the womb. It is better that way. Don’t get your hopes up. Her father used to pray before supper when he was a child. He hasn’t in years, he is a grown man see, he does not truly believe in any deity, but one does not necessarily need to believe to beg the universe for favors. Miracles don’t just happen. Miracles, by definition, should not exist at all. and yet, they do. —— Before she can understand the concept of fear, they move to a country house. They have all the necessities of suburban living; picket fence, marble counters, two stories and the whole jazz. During the winter, her father stack the fireplace with finely chopped wood, and light it on fire. He doesn’t allow her to sit near.

When she is four, she finds a white kitty tangled in the rose bushes and brings it inside. her father disapproves, but helps her wash it anyway. In some awful way, it reminds him of Hyejin. They decide to keep it.

When she is five, the summer before school starts, she does what any child her age would; misbehaves.

The cat has grown thicker and bigger, and it no longer wishes to play with her in the same manner as before, but that doesn’t mean she won’t try. She chases it around the yard with a spray bottle full of water, merrily unaware that her actions have consequences.

It jumps over the fence in one go. Cats are curious like that.

Memories are like fabric. With time, their color washes away. With even more time, they tear in tiny sections, with holes you can never possibly stitch.

She doesn’t remember how she got there. She remembers engine grease and heavy smoke, a big man holding her accountable with an even bigger tone. “You could have died!” Her kitty is hiding in the underbrush. It is not white anymore. When she reaches out to curl her fingers in its soft fur, they come back sticky with red and goo.

Turns out, cats do not have nine lives. They only have one. —— Her life is a series of newspaper clippings stuck in the tragedy section.

Teenager crashes car, saving her own father from getting run over. Teen gets robbed during late night bus ride. Family miraculously survives devastating fire.

She never tells anyone of the things she sees when her fingers come in contact with skin. Images flash by at breakneck speed always illogical and always true.

“It’s coincidence,” she lies to herself each time a premonition comes true, “Just pure fucking coincidence.”

Hyejin takes odd jobs to help her father, handing out fliers, being the mascot for a local restaurant, birthday and festival gigs, a wealthy man’s lap when she’s desperate. It’s all a means to an end.

This time, there wasn’t much she could do.

How often do we wear smiles that hurt, smiles that tell us we have endured too long? Hyejin feels heavy and the worst thing is, she knows the weather of departure; the humid air, the rain pouring announcing that winter is near. —— Between gigs, she takes a trip to the tarot shop for a reading. It costs her a coffee but she feels vindicated when the first card she touches when they begin is death upright.

And so she roams the island, unsure of what she’s looking for, but sure enough that she will find it.

#kpop rp #krp #baek yerin #15&#mp; welcome

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caterinawrites · 7 years

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Colors of the Soul CH 6

Here is chapter 6! Chat Noir meets his lady for the first time, only to discover that she started seeing color long before she met him. A huge thanks to @sorarts for the idea for this AU. Also huge thanks to @deusbex for making me a cover that was super sweet and unexpected! Hope you all enjoy! ^^

FF | AO3

Something in Adrien’s gut told him he would get caught, but in all honesty, he really didn’t care. It was the first time he’d been out of the house on his own without his bodyguard or Nathalie glued to his side, and he was enjoying his freedom…cautiously. As he peaked around the corner to check to see if the coast was clear, his heart pounded a mile a minute in his chest. Maybe if his father could see that he could make it on his own, he’d let him stay. The world wasn’t as scary as his father made it out to be, in fact, Adrien thought it was all rather exciting. The bustle of people rushing to their destinations, children laughing on the park playground, everything was so noisy and animate, and he wanted to be a part of it more than anything. So, taking a deep breath he dashed for the stairs to his new school, his new life, new friends, waiting for him just beyond the-

“Adrien, please reconsider. You know what your father wants,” Nathalie called as one of their many silver cars came to a halt on the curb.

So close.

His pleadings earned him nothing, and across the sidewalk, an old man stumbled forward and began reaching for his cane helplessly. Adrien glanced over and rushed to help him, the first kind deed he’d ever done for a stranger, but karma was not kind of him that day because when he turned around Gorilla and Nathalie stood between him and his shot at freedom. He slumped back over to them obediently and allowed them to usher him into the car. Back to his cell. He glanced back at the school as it faded in the distance before leaning back against his seat with a sigh.

Of course, he expected the reprimand when it came, but it didn’t lessen the blow any. He sulked in his room later, flipping on the TV to pass the time as he often did, fairly certain that he’d be doomed to nothing but passing the time for the rest of his life. The news was buzzing with images of a giant stone monster just as Adrien heard a crash. Curiosity piqued, he hopped up and rushed outside, watching the largest monster he’d ever seen lift a car like it weighed nothing. Okay, maybe his father had been right about the world being dangerous.

Little did he know, his world was about to change forever, and freedom was going to become a reality for him. Upon returning to his room, he noticed a small black box resting on his coffee table. A small black box that would give him the thing he craved the most.

The creature inside was a bit grumpy and rude, but as Adrien eyed the ring in his hands, he recognized the opportunity placed before him. He didn’t know how or why he’d been chosen, but he didn’t care. Leaping from rooftop to rooftop made him feel so alive, and he wasn’t ever going back to his old life. Now he had powers and could leave whenever he wanted! The only thing he wondered was where that partner Plagg had mentioned was and what they would be like. He hoped they could be friends. After all, they were going to be fighting crime together.

In all of his daydreams about meeting his soulmate, becoming a superhero and having her drop on top of him from the sky wasn’t necessarily something he’d ever imagined, and yet there they were, tied together and dangling from his staff between two buildings. The instant his eyes met hers, everything in his world changed. For one, they were the most gorgeous things he’d ever seen, and for two, his world slowly exploded with vibrant hues all around him which only meant one thing.

“Well, hey there,” He grinned. “Nice of you to drop in.”

“Sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose,” She winced apologetically. Her soft soprano voice was the prettiest thing he’d ever heard, and he wanted to show her just how awesome he was at being a superhero, even if he was kind of winging it. It’s the first time he’d gotten to show off a little, and he supposed if she was to be the partner he’d spend the rest of his life with, he wanted her to see the side of him he wanted to be not who he had to be; however, when it was all over he was the one impressed, and she had him completely smitten.

“You were incredible, Miss, uh,” He praised once things reverted back to normal. She met his gaze with a smile that nearly made him melt.

“Call me Ladybug, and you weren’t too bad yourself, Chat Noir,” She shot back as her earrings began to beep. “I should go, don’t wanna give away my identity.”

“Wait, I’ll come with you,” He called after her.

“Uh, I don’t think this red suit is gonna last much longer, sorry, kitty,” She laughed. He eyed her strangely for a moment before she gave him another apologetic wince. “Sorry, I forget sometimes that other people can’t see color yet.”

“I-I can,” His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, and he shook his head. “I just started today actually.”

“Aww, that’s awesome! I’ve seen color since I was a little girl, so I’ve gotten used to them,” She shrugged. “I don’t wanna keep you from your soulmate, so see you next time!”

And just like that she tossed her yoyo and shot off leaving him standing dumbstruck. If she’d been seeing color for years…But they’d only just met today! And he knew for a fact that the circle of people he had met before was exceptionally small, so how? Could it have been a mistake? He glanced up at the sky, the same color as her eyes, and shook his head. It didn’t make sense. He only started seeing color when he looked into her eyes, but she’d been seeing them long before they met. Not to mention she pretended like she didn’t know they were meant to be together. Was she really his soulmate?

His ring beeped frantically, so he vaulted himself out of the stadium and returned home with a contemplative frown. She had to be his soulmate. That’s how it worked right? You could only see color when you looked into the eyes of your soulmate, so why was she able to see them before today? He kept replaying the story of color he’d heard as a kid, and the more he did, the less sense everything made. He needed answers, and the next time disaster struck, he was going to get them.

#ml fanfic #miraculous ladybug fanfiction #colors of the soul #chapter six #ladynoir #let the angst begin #my writing #ml #miraculous ladybug

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