#teased him with mysteries that were really just bait- but at least back then he was aware of that he was working alongside them | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

prairiesongserial · 9 months

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20.29

“What do you mean?” Cody asked, breaking the silence.

Friday didn’t want to look at him. She should have told him–all of them–before now.

“The captain and crew are either co-conspirators or hostages,” Friday said. “The captain wasn’t clear about that when I spoke to him after Clovis Girard’s murder. But he told me…it doesn’t take this long to reach Quebec. Several days have passed since then, so I assume we are well on our way to this ship’s real destination?”

She met eyes with Sacha.

“Do you remember what you said?” she asked.

Sacha stayed as he was, leaning up against the wall.

“I said it takes eight days to cross the Atlantic,” he said calmly. “I’d forgotten you hadn’t told me you knew the ship had been hijacked. My mistake.”

“But you knew that I knew?” asked Friday.

“When we still hadn’t arrived in Quebec three days after leaving Newfoundland, I assumed you had put it together, yes,” Sacha said.

Friday released a slow breath. “Why kill all these people? Why two sets of victims? Why is killing the valets quietly so important?”

“Oh, come on, you’re so close,” Sacha said. “You can get there.”

He stood up from the wall and wrote ‘Casimir’ and ‘d’Orléans’ under the ‘Suspects’ column–then ‘Jolie.’ He waited with his pen in the air for Friday to supply another name.

Friday didn’t enjoy being led by the nose by a killer.

“Next is Mr. Conti,” Friday said. “He attacked John Graves tonight, tied him up, and threw him in the pool.”

The crowd of passengers seemed almost pleased–John and Cody being soaked to the skin had been an unresolved little mystery.

“Very good,” Sacha said, and jotted Conti’s name under the list of suspects as well. “What else?”

That was a good question. According to Sacha, Friday had all she needed to put together this five-pronged killer’s motivation.

“What about the cufflink?” Sacha teased. “Did you ever find who it belonged to?”

“Probably to Casimir, but it’s irrelevant,” Friday said. “It’s likely to have been planted in Clovis’s cabin as a distraction. Or as bait to get me interested. Like the letter and the note left with the Dumonts, it was…”

Friday felt her color rising. “It was another game. Clovis, the Dumonts, and Ghislaine were only the set-up.” She paused as she put the next few pieces together. “You were playing detective, dragging me along to each crime scene and prodding me toward clues that you’d planted. And this, what’s happening right now, is part of the game. I’m supposed to put it all together and make an accusation.”

“I tried to warn you,” d’Orléans said gleefully.

“She’s doing exceptionally well,” Conti encouraged. “Most of the assistant detectives never get to the parlor room bit–their name comes up in the order and then poor Sacha bemoans their death and solves the mystery himself.”

“You really are doing very well,” Sacha said. “No one had any expectations that you would figure out what was going on underneath the game. You could have impressed me just by presenting evidence to accuse Casimir.”

“I’m not trying to impress you,” Friday snapped. “Why Casimir?”

Friday found a piece of paper pressed into her hand. Cody took a few steps back, still holding the bowl of names.

“I think…” Cody began. “I think the game determined the victims, but also the killer. Was that Casimir’s card?”

Friday turned it over. The name was scrawled in handwriting that she was now familiar with as Sacha’s. On the reverse of the card had been written a black ‘X.’

“I think that’s why you were in the game room the morning the Dumonts were killed,” Cody said, looking pointedly at Casimir. “You left your card behind, and Friday wasn’t supposed to link the murders back to you so soon. You had to go back for it.”

The corner of Casimir’s lip twitched up in a humorless smile.

“Casimir, really, that’s very sloppy,” Sacha said. “And that’s at least three murders that you foisted off on someone else. d’Orléans killed the Dumonts for you, and now I hear Conti went after Mr. Graves…Wait, four out of five, since you put Jolie up to killing Ghislaine. It’s not in the spirit of things. Of course Friday was going to put together that it was a group effort.”

Friday stuttered over this handful of revelations, tossed out as if they were meaningless. It should have been impossible for d’Orléans to have killed the Dumonts–but then she remembered that Conti had been the one to tell her the Dumonts hadn’t shown up for a 9 o’clock breakfast date. Perhaps that breakfast date had instead been set for 10 o’clock. d’Orléans would have been free to kill the Dumonts between nine-thirty and ten without Friday suspecting the Dumonts had been killed after Conti had so publicly waited for the Dumonts in the dining room.

But none of that mattered. They were all complicit, and the who-killed-who was all part of making the distraction run smoothly. Friday would be wasting her time trying to unravel all the moving parts.

“Are you always the detective?” Friday asked Sacha.

Sacha raised his eyebrows, his lips curling up in a delighted smile.

“Are you implying that I am not the real Sacha Fortune, world-famous detective?”

“The killer changes every time you make this trip, but you always play the detective,” Friday said, not so much announcing to the room as thinking to herself. “Interesting. What about the valets? They were killed invisibly. There are no bodies, no definite times of death to pin down.” She bit her lip as she thought. “Why is killing the valets useful to you?”

“She’s never going to guess,” d’Orléans complained. “My God, Sacha, let’s just kill her.”

Sacha waved d’Orléans’s complaint away.

“Hush–she has all the information. She’ll get it.”

Friday rubbed idly at her throat as she thought, giving away to the room what her line of thinking must be. There was a reason, after all, that she had made Val stand up in front of all these people and reveal the wounds on his neck and wrist.

There had been a red dot on Conti’s shirt the night Ms. Écuyer had disappeared, too, hadn’t there? Friday had thought it was wine.

In normal circumstances, she would never have made so bizarre a claim without more evidence, but things being as they were, she would have to take the leap.

“You’re eating them, aren’t you?” she said. “I think you’re…I mean, there’s a big gap between feral mutants and ordinary people with mutations. I think you’re in the middle–you’re like a pack of feral mutants that knows how to talk and organize.”

The room stared at her expectantly.

“There’s the biting,” Friday said, slowly, “But there’s also…What made me think of it, is…”

“Conti,” John said. Mercifully, all eyes went to him. “I was locked in the bathroom. He opened the bathroom window from the outside and climbed in. He climbed down the wall.”

A shudder ran through the room. The passengers not actively being accused of murder had huddled closer together, crammed hip-to-hip into the farthest corner of the lounge. They all understood what that meant: somehow, Conti had climbed along the smooth hull of the ship. The bathroom windows couldn’t be reached via the balconies.

“Feral mutants come in different kinds,” Friday continued. “They’ve evolved to be fast, or to swim, or to have sensitive hearing–but they can’t communicate with us, or God, maybe they just choose not to. But you–the five of you–I guess that you need to eat human flesh to live, and that makes it hard to travel. You invented the murder mystery game as a way to maintain control of an enclosed ship. You set the rules for the murders and the investigation, pretending to be a world-famous detective to calm everyone down and stop a panic. You can’t let us all die in a riot, or you won’t have enough food to make the eight day journey. And you could be killed or imprisoned if a passenger stepped up to lead the investigation.” Friday had a spark of realization. “So you find those people and make them your assistants. Even a real investigator would think twice before insisting that they knew better than a world-famous detective–and would the other passengers believe them if they did?”

The room was still.

Finally, Sacha spoke.

“You are almost entirely correct,” he said. “You only missed the smallest details–Helene and Saïda round our numbers out to seven, but they very effectively iced you out, so you hardly could have suspected them. And second–” He smiled brilliantly, his canines much longer than they should have been. “--It’s much easier to call us vampires, isn’t it? There’s really not much grace or sense of history in being a feral mutant.”

Friday found herself unable to see Sacha. Her entire field of vision was suddenly limited to Val’s back. She heard a number of footsteps.

“We’ve never had anybody win before. What should we do with them?” Conti asked. “Excuse me, that’s very gallant, but we were talking with Mrs. Lecter.”

Friday held her breath as Val was removed from in front of her, tossed back into the crowd of passengers like he weighed nothing.

“He’s attached,” Casimir said with a barely audible sigh.

“Don’t speak for me,” Sacha said. “I’m thinking.”

His eyes roamed up and down Friday in a way that gave her goosebumps.

“I think we had better let the Dauphin decide when we land,” he said at last.

A groan rose up from the vampires. They began talking over each other, which turned into talking over each other in French. Friday backed away from the center of the room, feeling blindly behind her until she had Val’s arm in her hand. She held his forearm tightly.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “Are you okay?”

“You did a good job,” he murmured back.

It was decided that the final three days at sea would be spent in a stand-off. Several passengers argued that they should be the exception, that they shouldn’t have to form part of a common mob in defense of the lounge door and should instead be allowed to retire to their cabins and rest after their harrowing ordeal.

John very helpfully informed them that he would kill anyone who exited the lounge, no matter who. Those whom John had tossed bodily into the lounge earlier did a good job of persuading the rest that he probably really would.

Val, Friday, and Cody were given a pass. Cody would go to the barricaded valet quarters and let them know what was going on. Friday left without giving any reason, which seemed to be understood. And Val left with Friday on the assumption that John probably wouldn’t kill him.

“Let’s bring a change of clothes back for John,” Friday said. Val nodded.

They didn’t say anything else on the walk back to their cabin. Val unlocked the door and they entered, both of them shedding their stuffy, formal costumes before the door was entirely closed behind them. Val unwound the bandages pressing his mutant arms against his stomach. Neither of them had to say it; they dug their own clothes out from the back of the wardrobe and dressed. It was the clothing they’d worn the day of the Hemisphere blockade, clean from the ship’s laundry. The incredibly wealthy had their ways of getting bloodstains out, Friday supposed.

They dressed, facing away from each other. Friday let her hair down, scattering bobby pins across the cabin floor. She felt herself nearing the edge of breaking down–her body thought the threat had passed, even though it hadn’t, even though she still had to stay vigilant. She heard Val behind her, a quiet little gasp of pain.

Friday pictured vampires crawling in the windows as she whirled around. Instead she found Val with his hands in his pockets, staring at her in horror.

“What?”

Inside his pocket, Val’s hand turned to a fist. He yanked sharply, and Friday heard threads snapping. Friday held her breath as Val produced his closed fist. He opened it to show her. The expressionless mask was starting to break; his eyes, the shape of his mouth, the way he breathed, it was like Val had just woken up. They both stared at the ring nestled in his palm.

“I told him no,” Val said. “So he sewed it into my clothes. Who does that?”

“Oh,” Friday said. Val jammed the ring onto his finger, blinking rapidly. Friday hadn’t realized it had been like that. In hindsight, of course it had been. She swallowed the lump in her throat. “I’m so sorry.”

Val sat down hard on the edge of the bed, facing away from her.

When Cody came looking for them half an hour later, Val was curled up in bed, having cried himself out. Friday sat upright on the other side of the bed, running her hands through his hair–greasy from not having been washed in a few days. Val didn’t respond when Cody came in, or when Cody and Friday talked in hushed voices, or when Cody left again to get a change of clothes for John.

20.28 || epilogue 20

#story

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hpimaginesandblurbs · 3 years

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wait draco fucking his arranged marriage wife on a couch after she admitted to still seeing her ex (not knowing he has feelings for her obviously) and he’s like oh? can he fuck you like this tho?

pairing: draco malfoy x reader

warning(s): 18+, adultery, arranged marriage, slight degradation

word count: 3.0k

a/n: this was not supposed to be this long but it ran away from me as i started writing. this is the longest thing i’ve written on tumblr so far and i hope you all enjoy it! one of my own person favorites.

Another day felt like another day wasted in the walls in the stuffy Manor you called home. Except it wasn’t home. And it wasn’t another day.

No. After weeks of trying to get your husband to open up to you, you had had enough. It was an arranged marriage, and although you were no fool and had no pretenses of pretending to love him, you’d at least like to get to know the person you called your husband.

Back in school you had always thought the infamous Draco Malfoy was rather handsome, anyone would be a fool to deny it. He was confident and popular, great at Quidditch, and seemed like the perfect gentleman - everything you could want in a husband. Turns out it was the opposite. All the feelings you thought you might develop for him were unrequited, and he ignored you at every turn.

So you took it into your own hands to get what you were so desperately craving: physical affection. It didn’t take much, truly. All you did was send an owl to your ex boyfriend from your school days and one thing led to another until you were in his bed, wrapped in his arms, and rocked to your core with pleasure.

But now you were back in your ‘home’, wasting away within the walls of the Manor with your husband nowhere to be found.

It wasn’t until hours later, when you were getting ready to push yourself up from the couch to head to bed, did the fireplace flash green, signaling his arrival home.

“Hello. How was your day?” You asked politely, hoping just this once he might fall into a normal conversation with you.

“Fine,” he replied shortly, not even bothering to look at you as he emptied his pockets and put down his very important briefcase that was a mystery to you.

A blaze of frustration ran through your body, desperate to get more out of this man than just one word. A crazy thought came into your head, to tell him about your day, but you pushed it aside. No, Malfoy’s wouldn’t think highly of a girl who committed adultery within weeks of marriage. But…

“My day was great,” you told him, rather impulsively.

At first he seemed shocked that you even said anything, the conversation usually reached its end by now. But he recovered quickly, politely asking “And what was so great about your day?”

Naturally, you could lie. Tell him you met up with your female friends for lunch. Tell him you read a good book. Tell him anything but the truth. But…

“I reacquainted myself with my ex boyfriend from school,” you told him, daring to look him in the eye as you spoke.

“Reacquainted? How?” He asked, a series of emotions flashing over his face that you had never seen before. It sent a thrill through you to see him showing any emotions at all.

Again, you could lie. Tell him you met him for lunch. Tell him that you ran into each other in Diagon Alley. Tell him anything but the truth. But…

You knew even if the truth did come out, he would have to keep it a secret. He wouldn’t dare be seen as a spineless cuckold as his wife went around sleeping with whomever she pleased.

“I owled him a few days ago, asking to meet him,” you began, watching as his face contorted into something akin to anger. “I went to his home, for lunch, and it didn’t end with lunch.”

You left the end of your short story rather ambiguous, wanting to see what he’d do with the information you presented him. He had barely moved from his place by the fireplace, but the look he was giving you could set you up in flames if he wanted it to.

“So, what? You fucked him?” He asked, the politeness in his voice giving way to the anger he was feeling.

In a sick way, it pleased you to see him angry. Gave you a sense of pride that you, the wife he had seen fit to ignore, could get such a rise out of him.

“Yes, seeing as you haven’t even touched me,” was your spiteful reply, foolishly placing the blame all on him despite your own actions.

“You stupid, silly little girl,” he said under his breath as he stalked over towards you, menacing in just how much bigger he was than you. “You don’t fucking understand a thing about me, do you?” He asked, hovering over you, his hands braced on the back of the couch that you were still seated on, your faces inches apart.

“You don’t let me. You never speak to me,” you argued, ready to turn this into a fight filled with low blows if he really wanted it to go that way.

“You think this is a fucking walk in the park for me? Having some girl I’ve barely met in my house looking terrified of me every time I come near her? Suffering through your daily attempts to talk to me, but knowing how unbearably uncomfortable you are in being here? You think I wanted this? For either of us?” He asked seamlessly, almost in a rush to get all of his thoughts out before he thought better of it. A look of hesitation passed his face for a brief moment before he continued on, more quietly now. “You think I wanted the girl I couldn’t take my eyes off for a single day after fifth year hating being in my presence? Going behind my back to fuck someone else because I’ve held myself back in case she was uncomfortable doing anything more than just acting like my wife?”

He didn’t meet your eye at first, but when he did you saw the weight of his emotions. He was hurt, by himself and by you. He was jealous of the man you had chosen to spend your day with. He was terrified of your reaction to his words. He was furious he even had to have this conversation, in this way, in this situation. He was relieved he finally got it all out.

“Wh- What are you saying?” You asked cautiously, not wanting to twist his words to meet your own fantasy of having a loving husband.

He took a deep breath before he answered, but made no moves to rid himself of his proximity to you. “Y/N, I’ve been head over heels for you since the moment we met. But having an arranged marriage, I couldn’t do much more but assume you didn’t share the same feelings as me.”

“Oh,” was all you could even say back, too overwhelmed to think of anything else. You searched his eyes for the lie, but they held nothing but the raw truth. He must have seen something in your eyes as well, because his tone shifted into something else entirely before he spoke again.

“Now, Y/N, I think we got off on the wrong foot and I didn’t make my intentions clear with you. I intend to be a good husband, a loving husband. And yet despite my best efforts to be the perfect gentleman so far, you went behind my back to sleep with some other man. And what does that say about you?” He asked, his eyes boring into yours as he spoke.

You were sure he could hear your heart rate from how close he was, your pulse racing at his words. “I- I don’t know,” you stuttered, willing to let him take this wherever he saw fit.

“I’m not going to place the blame all on you, because I know I haven’t been perfect. But one might say that you’re a dumb little whore, and I might be inclined to agree. A stupid, little girl trapped in her big, posh Manor. Going out to let any guy fuck her, not even knowing that her husband can fuck her better than anyone else could.”

“And you could fuck me better than someone I know can?” You asked incredulously, shocked at the words spilling from his mouth. But even if you tried, you couldn’t deny the way he was so sure of himself, so sure he could please you better than any man, aroused you to no end.

He let out a dark chuckle and looked at you, amused. “Of course I could, darling. That is, if you give me the chance,” he told you in a teasing tone, before pushing himself off of the couch to walk away.

“Wait,” you started, once again acting on impulse. You might regret your next words, but damn it if you weren’t curious. And he was your husband after all. “Prove it.”

“Prove it?” He asked, turning on his heel to face you again, a victorious grin written across his face. When you nodded, he only lifted a brow before he continued. “Now? Haven’t you had a long day of, oh how did you put it, ‘getting reacquainted with your ex’?”

“You talk a big game, Draco. Now I’m asking you to prove it. Scared?” You asked, baiting him.

In a split second and a flurry of movement later, he had you laying down against the couch, pressed into the expensive fabric, with his weight on top of you, pinning you down.

“I’ll give you one last chance to back out of this. Tell me now, otherwise I’m going to fuck you through this couch,” he said through gritted teeth, clearly fed up with your antics.

Without even thinking, your lips crashed onto his in a heated kiss. Lips you hadn’t felt since your wedding day. You hadn’t even remembered what they felt like until his tongue was darting along your bottom lip, hastily requesting entry.

As your kiss remained heated, he was expertly shedding you both of your clothing until you were almost bare. He had only left you in your small, lace thong in the aftermath of his destruction.

His hands traveled your body possessively, as if trying to memorize every curve and edge of your skin. The moment your bra came off, your breasts were in his hands, easily rolling your nipples until you were gasping for air. He swallowed all your noises greedily, as if you were feeding them to a starved man.

It wasn’t until he pulled away, his hands resting on the waistband on your underwear, did you have a moment for a coherent thought.

“One last time, are you sure Y/N?” He asked as if it was painful for him. As if it was the case that you said no, it would be immensely difficult for him to pull himself away. As if it was the case that you said no, he’d die a painful death at your feet.

“I’m sure,” you said softly, not wanting him to think for a second that you had any hesitant thoughts about this moment.

As he slowly pulled down your final layer of clothing, it gave you a chance to finally look at him.

And he was beautiful.

He looked like an ancient Greek statue, perfectly carved and crafted out of marble come to life. His perfectly defined lines, his impossible definition, his muscles in all the right places. Your eyes eventually traveled down to his cock, and your breath hitched when you finally saw how large he was. If you had known this all along, perhaps you wouldn’t have sought out another man for your pleasure.

He seemed to be taking you in just the same. His eye trailing down your body with such reverence that you felt like an ancient Greek goddess yourself, if only for a moment.

“You’re gorgeous,” he said softly, almost as if he didn’t mean for you to hear the words.

“You’re not so bad yourself,” you replied, giving him a shy smile when his eyes met yours again.

“I’ve been waiting to do this for a long time,” he told you, still in the soft tone that he had. He gracefully let his body fall back over yours, bracing himself on one forearm while his other hand traveled the length of your body.

When he caught your lips again, it didn’t hold the same heat as before, but there was something new there. Something good. Something that could only be translated through your lips in that very moment. Something akin to adoration, worship, even love.

His hand stopped its travels at the apex of your thighs, expertly running his fingers over your clit and down your slit, feeling for himself just how wet you were. He groaned at the feeling of how wet and warm you were, and you felt his cock twitch against your stomach in anticipation.

He slowly opened you up for him with his fingers. First with one, then two, even venturing to three before he was content that you wouldn’t be uncomfortable. He didn’t rush the process, kept a slow, steady, predictable pace as he worked your body. And every time you got close to the edge, he’d gently bring you back down, leaving you a whining, writhing mess by the time he was aligning his cock with you.

“Draco, please,” you begged shamelessly, more than ready for him.

“Did you beg for him earlier?” He asked almost nonchalantly, teasing you with the tip of his cock.

He must have seen the shock on your face, shocked that he would bring it up in this moment, because he only chuckled before pushing inside of you, a gasp easily pulled from your lips at the intense stretch.

He didn’t fuck you gently, immediately starting with a breakneck pace that left you seeing stars from the first moment he bottomed out. You were easily rewarding him with your moans, letting him know just how good it felt without words. You couldn’t speak even if you tried.

But he talked. Oh, yes. He ran that pretty mouth of his as if he wasn’t thrusting so deep inside of you the couch was rocking.

“I was right, wasn’t I? You’ve never been fucked like this, have you?” He asked, right as you were beginning to climb that peak into a pleasurable abyss.

You gave him a feeble nod in return, not trusting your own mouth to properly respond.

“Did he fuck you like this?” He asked, biting the question out through clenched teeth as if he was dreading the answer. “Tell me, Y/N, did he?” He asked, fucking you even harder now in his frustration.

“No,” you cried out, breaking free of your moans for a second to answer him. “He can’t fuck me like this,” you added, if only to stroke Draco’s ego, but nevertheless it was true. No one could fuck you like this.

“Cum for me, let me feel you,” Draco said, lowering his head into the crook of your neck to ground himself, trying to fight off his orgasm until you got yours.

It didn’t take much longer after that. He had worked you up so much beforehand that your orgasm came to you easily and came with such a force you were left breathless in its wake. Your nails carved down Draco’s muscular back, sure to leave delightful scratch marks that you could study later, as you cried out in bliss.

The moment he felt your walls contract around him, he let himself go with a low groan. The sound was music to your ears, and only intensified the feelings you were experiencing. To have him so close, sharing in the same ecstasy you were, it was like magic.

When you both came down from your highs, he swiftly rearranged the both of you until you wrapped in his arms, both lying on the couch. It was a strange feeling, being in his arms for the first time like this. If someone had told you this would be happening only a few hours before, you would have laughed in their face. But now here you both were, sweaty and satiated, basking in the bliss of finally consummating your marriage.

The thought made you giggle, and when he shot you a perplexed look, you couldn’t help but explain.

“We finally consummated our marriage,” you explained, still giggling. “And don’t worry, by the way, I’m on the potion,” you thought to add, just in case kids weren’t looming in the future for him.

“Good to know you won’t be birthing any bastard children,” was his sullen response, clearly still hurt by the events of the day.

You shifted your body until you were looking directly at him, but he made no moves to pull his arms away from you. If anything, he held you tighter when he felt you move, unwilling to give up the moment.

“Look, I’m sorry about what I did today. It wasn’t right and it wasn’t fair to you. And if I had known even a fraction how you felt about me, I wouldn’t have done it, because I feel the same about you. I was just feeling incredibly stuck in what I thought was a hopeless marriage, and I was lonely, so I sought out someone else. But now I understand that that isn’t the case, and I can promise you, from the bottom of my heart, that it will never happen again,” you told him, putting everything out there for him.

“You feel the same?” He asked timidly, after a moment of deliberation. There was a look of hope on his face, and never in your wildest dreams would you shut down such a rare display of emotion from him. Then again, you may be expecting more of his emotions from here on out.

“Yes. I’ve always been attracted to you, and the little bits of you that I do know, I like. I want this to work, Draco. I want this to be a real marriage. All I wanted was a shot.” you said, just praying he wanted the same.

“‘I’ll admit, I wasn’t a good husband to you by any means, and I probably unknowingly pushed you into doing what you did. But now that our intentions are out there, I’d like nothing more than to give this a real shot,” he responded, that newly familiar look of hope in his eyes present once more.

In that moment, you could both feel it. The beginning of something great.

#Draco Malfoy #Harry Potter #draco malfoy smut #Draco Malfoy Headcanon #draco malfoy imagine #draco malfoy blurb

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foli-vora · 3 years

Text

more than words - pt.1

A/N: I’ve had this in my head for forever and a half so it feels good to finally sort my thoughts and random notes out. Hope you enjoy!

Summary: The one person who you thought would be happy for you finally getting with someone decent was your best friend. After all, he had set you both up. Who would’ve thought he’d be the reason it all falls apart?

Pairing: best friend!Benny Miller/f!reader, Frankie ‘Catfish’ Morales/f!reader

Word count: 1.6k

Warnings: alcohol consumption, swearing, mentions of sexual acts/sexual refences (no smut yet but it’s coming so this is strictly 18+)

pt.2 / pt.3 / pt.4 / pt.5 / pt.6

+++

Wednesday nights were pizza nights. A rule established in the early stages of your friendship with Benjamin Miller – a loud mouth, golden hearted ex-spec ops mess of a human being. A chance meeting one stormy day on the freeway, led to something you weren’t expecting – a friendship, and a solid one at that.

“– she damn near tried to suck the life out of me!”

“Jesus Ben, there are kids a table over.”

“So? They shouldn’t be eavesdroppin’ on conversations that don’t concern them.” He grins lopsidedly at your scowl of disapproval, ripping off a mouthful of pizza and humming as he chews it, head swaying to the faint music playing behind the bar. “You’re payin’, by the way.”

You snort quietly, “Don’t I always?”

He recoils, blinking in playful surprise. “Excuse you? I paid last…” he trails off, eyes rolling to the wall as he thinks but a frown soon pinches his brows. “It doesn’t matter. What matters is that I love you and I appreciate you.”

You laugh quietly, shaking your head as you signal for another round. “Anyways, reverting to our previous topic before you got carried away with your blowjob story.”

He makes a noise, snapping his fingers as he tries to rush chewing and swallowing his mouthful. “So,” he starts, “I’ve got a friend…”

You groan immediately, letting your head lull back. “Ben –”

This wasn’t anything new. Benny took it as his own personal mission to fix you up with anyone he thought could give you a good time and treat you well. Friends, colleagues, Hell – even his brother at one point. Will was lovely, by all means, but not your type. Both you and Will had agreed you were not a match in the slightest early in the evening, enjoyed a night of beer and pool, and then went your separate ways.

Although, now that you thought about it, Ben hadn’t mentioned setting you up with anyone for a long while. Not since before his mysterious trip.

You still didn’t know anything about it, other than he and some old work friends went on an apparent ‘vacation’. It was more than that – you knew it, and he knew you knew it, but you didn’t push the topic. Instead of interrogating him, forcing question after question on him, you let it go, sensing it was something he really didn’t want to talk about.

He had returned from that trip a few months ago, heavy with exhaustion and usually bright eyes dull and weary. You tucked him into your bed, and left him. He slept for hours. It wasn’t until much later that evening that you crept in to see how he was doing, and found him thrashing silently in the sheets, sweaty and incoherently mumbling, face pinched and puckered in pain. You didn’t wake him. Instead, you knelt beside the bed, softly stroking along his forehead until his erratic movements and breathing calmed. You didn’t bring it up.

“I know, I know,” he threw his hands up in defence with a small grin, “but I think you’ll like this one.”

“That’s what you always say.”

“No, I mean it this time. He’s a real good guy – one of my closest. I think you guys would really hit it off. I haven’t tried to set you up before because he was with the chick but she upped and left him alone with the baby and –”

“Sorry, what?”

“What?”

“He has a baby? Like a… like a child?”

Benny frowns defensively, “You’ve always said you want kids!”

“It’s still a huge commitment, Ben.”

“Jesus, I’m not walking you down the aisle! Just meet him and see where it goes. If it ends in some good sex, you say ‘thank you Ben’ and we move on. And if it ends in something more, you guys take it slow and buy me wings as a thank you.” He shrugs, looking thoroughly impressed with himself, and reaches for his beer, polishing it off in one swig.

“And what if it ends in bad sex?” You challenge, crossing your arms on the table and leaning forward to eye him critically.

He scoffs, “Woman please. I know my brothers. You’ll be in good hands.”

You take a moment to thank the waitress as she stops at your table with your beers. She lingers just a little on passing Ben his, an act he didn’t miss as he shoots her a wink and a honeyed, thanks sugar. She smiles, cheeks flooding with colour before she turns and waltzes off towards other customers, swinging her hips as she goes.

You’re expressionless when he finally turns back to you, “Sugar?”

“Shut your mouth.”

Façade cracking, a snicker falls past your lip and you chuckle. “Alright,” you concede, “you’ve got my interest. What’s his name?”

“Fish.”

… what?

“Come again?”

“Francisco – we call him Fish. Catfish, actually.”

“Your age?”

“Bit older.”

You sigh deeply, rolling your head on your shoulders in thought. You were curious, no doubt about it. Despite never being able to make anything last long-term out of the list of men Benny had set you up with, none of them were bad guys. They were all kind, funny and incredibly respectful. One great thing about Benjamin Miller was that he had an impeccable taste in character.

“I don’t know, Ben –”

He slips his phone from his pocket and swipes away at his screen before wordlessly handing you the device. It was a photo, taken from one of Benny’s many weekend trips into the wilderness. Your eyes are dragged from the incredible background of snow peaked mountains and lush green forests to the man standing beside Benny, tucked under his arm. Average build and height, a well-loved trucker cap hiding dark hair. Warm brown eyes, crinkled from a large dimpled grin between dark patched facial hair.

Benny, seeing the sudden spark of interest, grins around his beer bottle. “So, I’ll slip him your number?”

You tighten your jaw and hand his phone back, sniffing impassively as you reach for your beer. “If it means you’ll leave me alone, then fine.” You mutter coolly, ignoring his quiet chuckle.

“Wait, wait – you have a best friend and it’s not one of us? I’m cut, Benny. Cut real deep.” Santiago Garcia was curious, to say the least. For years, he had known the youngest Miller and he had never mentioned anyone beyond their little circle or their families. “She cute?”

Benny huffs a chuckle, leaning across the pool table and lining up the final ball. “Hell yeah, she’s cute.”

“Where you been hiding her?”

“She moved away – only came back late last year.”

Santi hums, “Ironhead – she cute?”

Will half smiles, dragging his attention away from the pool table to shrug. “She’s alright.”

His bait works. Benny snaps it up – hook, line and sinker. He stands abruptly from his shot, cue just skimming the white ball, and points an angry finger in his brother’s direction, “I won’t take that shit. She’s a damn angel and you know it.”

Will chuckles to himself before returning his attention to Santi. “Yeah, she’s cute. Show ‘em.”

Benny briefly steps away from the pool table, opens his phone and brings up your Instagram profile, throwing it to Pope and letting him scroll through your feed.

“How come you’ve met her and we haven’t?” Pope aims his question at the older Miller brother, currently bent over the table and pocketing the black ball.

He half shrugs, straightening. “He set us up. It didn’t work out.”

Santi’s face puckers into a teasing glower, and he pouts at the younger Miller. “So, what? You set everyone else up and just leave me to die alone? What’s that about, Benjamin?”

Benny holds his arms out in obvious exaggeration, gesturing deliberately to himself. “You’ve got me.”

Frankie quietly sips his beer and watches in fond amusement, content to stay in the background and away from the bickering. Like Santi, his interest had been piqued but he was somewhat nervous about the situation. He already had feelings of apprehension returning to the dating scene after the shit show of a year he’d had, and those feelings tripled when it came to potentially dating someone close to one of his longest friends. He hadn’t dated in years. He was rusty. What if he disappointed you and Benny ended up kicking his ass? It could get messy real quick.

“I don’t know, man.” He finally pipes up, crossing his arms comfortably across his torso and reclining in the bar stool after peaking over Santi’s shoulder and at the screen he was lazily scrolling through. Ha. Way out of his league. “This kinda shit never works.”

“You sayin’ she’s not good enough for you?”

Frankie shakes his head, rolling his eyes. “You know I’m not.”

“Sounds like you are.”

“Quite the opposite.”

“I’ll take his spot. Give me her number.” Santi holds a hold out, clicking his fingers impatiently when Benny merely rolls his eyes. Pope grins, settling back into his seat and elbowing Frankie softly. “I think you should go for it, man. She seems great, and you need to get back out there.”

“I can’t, I’ve got Mena –”

“And Mena’s got her tío. Go for it. You’re just looking for excuses – no seas cobarde.”

Frankie chews on his lip as he gives it a bit of thought, wondering what’s the worst possible case scenario that could come from it. A busted lip? His self-image in ruins? Scared off from dating for the rest of his life? All things he could live with.

“… alright.”

Immediately, Benny perks up from setting the pool table with a large grin. “Yeah?”

Fish sighs, long and drawn out as Pope playfully pokes his side. “Yeah. Give me her number, I’ll message her now.” Before he freaks and changes his mind.

Maybe he was just thinking too much. What’s the worst that could happen?

Tags: @anu-simps

#francisco morales x reader #frankie morales x reader #francisco morales x you #frankie morales x you #francisco morales x f!reader #frankie morales x f!reader #frankie morales #francisco morales #benny miller x reader #benny miller #triple frontier #pedro pascal x reader

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thelastspeecher · 3 years

Text

Stan Falls in Love With a Frog

We started talking about a new Scenario in the Discord, and it’s been making me very happy, especially since the Scenario takes place in a Mystery Trio-style AU, and I’m a big fan of the Mystery Trio AU. So, I whipped this up earlier. Enjoy.

——————————————————————————————

Stan sat on the edge of the dock, looking out over the water of Lake Gravity Falls. In the fading light, mist curled above the lake surface. He sighed and reeled his fishing line back in.

Dammit. I shoulda got here earlier if I wanted to catch anything. Stan wasn’t opposed to night fishing in general, but he was opposed to it in Gravity Falls. He had seen in person some of the weird things that came out when it got dark. Something surfaced in the lake, breaking the thin layer of fog. Speaking of… Stan idly watched it swim. Wonder what kinda spookum this one is. The creature pulled itself out of the lake and onto a large rock. Stan’s jaw dropped. That’s a chick!

It was rapidly getting darker, so he couldn’t make out many fine details. But the creature looked eerily like a human woman. With the exception of elongated, webbed feet and ears, what looked like a pair of antennae, and mottled skin. She pushed back her short hair with hands that also seemed to be webbed.

What the hell is that? Stan leaned, squinting, trying to get a better look. The movement knocked his tacklebox into the lake.

“Shit!” he swore. The woman looked over. Her eyes, glowing a soft blue, widened. She dove back into the lake. Stan sighed. “Great.” He got to his feet and trudged back to the Stanleymobile. Before he got in, he glanced back at the lake. The water was as smooth as glass.

It was like the woman had never been there.

-----

Stan returned to Lake Gravity Falls the next morning at the break of dawn. Normally, he wouldn’t wake up so early just to go fishing, but Ford and Fiddlenerd had a full day of traipsing around in the forest planned. If he wanted to actually have enough time to catch something, he needed to fish before, not after.

If Fiddlenerd’s weird little sister wasn’t visiting, this wouldn’t be a problem. Stan sat down at the edge of the dock and opened the tacklebox he’d “borrowed” from Fiddlenerd. But Fiddlenerd wants someone with actual muscles to be there to protect her from whatever’s in the woods today. There was a loud thunk to his left. Stan looked over. He gaped. The tacklebox he’d dropped in the lake yesterday sat next to him.

“What the hell?” Stan opened the tacklebox to inspect its contents. It was soaked through, which made sense, given it had been at the bottom of the lake the night before. But other than his fresh bait, nothing was missing. “How did-” There was a soft splash. Stan looked up. A creature was in front of him.

It’s that one lady from yesterday. She was mostly submerged, with only her eyes and the crown of her head above the water. Her hair was a black that, like her light green skin, blended in with the lake. She looks sorta like a frog.

“You brought me my tacklebox,” Stan said. The frog woman nodded. “Why?” She hesitated, then sunk underwater. Stan waited for a few minutes to see if she would come back up. When she didn’t return, he sighed and began to set things up to fish.

The missing bait makes sense now. Of course a frog would eat all my worms.

-----

“It’s about time!”

“Yeah, yeah, nice to see you too,” Stan groused, pushing past Ford and into the house. He’d spent more time than he meant to fishing. Naturally, the moment he came back home, Ford got on his case.

“We were supposed to leave an hour ago! Today’s plans are completely ruined!” Ford said. Stan rolled his eyes.

“Walking around in the woods isn’t something that takes all day, Poindexter.”

“The specific location Fiddleford and I were going to take his sister to is quite some distance away.”

“It’s fine, Stanford,” said the aforementioned sister of Fiddlenerd. She was laying on the living room couch, reading a guidebook on amphibians of the Pacific Northwest. “I was hopin’ to check out some of the cute places in town, anyways.” She smiled at Ford. “The forest can wait fer tomorrow.”

“I- but-” Ford started.

“Before you short-circuit, Sixer, I’ve got a question,” Stan interrupted. Ford glared at him. “So, I saw this frog-lady at the lake-”

“Frog-lady?” Ford scoffed. Out of the corner of his eye, Stan saw Fiddlenerd’s sister still. “Are you mocking me?”

“What? No! I thought you liked weird shit. I mean, you came up here to study it and dragged me along to be your muscle.”

“I like magical creatures, Stanley,” Ford said, crossing his arms. “Not regular humans who have features you might think resemble an amphibian.”

“She wasn’t a regular human!”

“There are no humanoid amphibious creatures around here,” Ford said firmly. “There is, however, a woman in town who was born with webbing between her fingers and couldn’t afford the surgery to get it removed. I think it’s rather cruel of you to make fun of her.”

“No, I wasn’t-” Stan sighed. “Whatever.”

“Go upstairs and change,” Ford instructed. “You smell of fish.”

“Like you’re one to talk, Mr. Doesn’t Shower For a Week,” Stan muttered. Fiddlenerd’s sister snickered softly. He began to walk upstairs. “At least someone around here’s got a sense of humor.”

-----

Though he had returned to the lake at dusk that day, Stan hadn’t seen the frog-lady. He came back the next morning at dawn, hoping to spot her again. As he sat at the end of the dock, he found himself dozing off, lulled into sleep by the early hour and peaceful surroundings. He was jolted back to wakefulness by a splash nearby.

“You came back,” a voice said. Stan looked up. It was the frog-lady. Her head was now fully emerged from the water. She looked at him with intelligent blue eyes. Though her face was one shade of pale green, the rest of her head was mottled with darker greens. Her nose was thin and flat, evidently nonhuman.

“Well, yeah,” Stan said with a shrug. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest. “I’ve gotta thank you for giving me back my stuff.”

“It’s yours. Why would I keep it?” the frog-lady asked. Her voice was lilting and musical, sounding almost like raindrops hitting leaves. And yet, there was something about it that seemed familiar. Like he’d heard her talk before.

“I dunno. ‘Cause you could?”

“Heh.” The frog-lady smiled. “I don’t really have a need for human things.”

“What are you?” Stan blurted out. The frog-lady froze. “Wait, shit, was that racist of me or something?” The frog-lady nodded silently. “I take it back.” He cleared his throat. “My name’s Stan. What’s yours?”

I don’t wanna scare her off. She might be a frog, but she’s pretty cute.

“…Rana,” the frog-lady said after a moment.

“That’s pretty.”

“Thanks.” Rana chewed on her lip for a moment. “Why do you want to talk to me?”

“What do you mean?”

“I know what your brother does.�� Rana’s eyes bored into Stan. “I know he likes to study critters like me, with or without their consent. Are you collecting data for him?”

“Please.” Stan waved a hand airily. “Even if he and Fiddlenerd were both in full-body casts, he wouldn’t want me to collect data for him.” Rana managed a small smile. “He’d probably hire some weirdo from town to do it instead.” Rana snickered softly. Like her voice, it sounded familiar. A car engine roared to life, the sound echoing across the lake. Stan looked over. Someone had pulled into the parking lot. He looked back at Rana.

She was gone, only a few ripples remaining on the surface where she’d been.

-----

Stan paced in the living room. It had been a week since he learned Rana’s name, and many more meetings with her at dawn. And to his shock, he was beginning to fall for her.

Sure, she’s not human. Sure, she hasn’t come out of the water all the way yet. But she’s nice and funny and teases me when I say something racist against frogs. Stan smiled fondly, remembering how he had brought her worms yesterday, only for her to throw them at him. I like a lady who doesn’t take any shit. He frowned. She doesn’t like worms…what does she like? I’ve gotta impress her if I’m gonna make a move on her. She gets spooked so easily.

“Stanley,” Fiddlenerd said wearily. Stan stopped. He looked over at the card table in the corner, where Fiddlenerd was working on some sort of machine. “Yer goin’ to wear a hole in the wood if ya don’t stop pacin’!”

“Nah, let him keep goin’,” Fiddlenerd’s sister said. Once again, she was on the couch reading a book about amphibians. “Maybe he’ll pick up the pace and start a fire.” She smirked at Stan, who merely rolled his eyes in response.

“What are you still doing here?” he asked. Fiddlenerd’s sister shrugged.

“I like it here. I’ll stay until Fidds kicks me out.”

“So, you’re never gonna leave,” Stan said flatly. Fiddlenerd’s sister snorted in amusement. Stan sighed. He looked back at Fiddlenerd. “Do you know anything about frogs?” Bringing up frogs to Ford only resulted in him scolding Stan, no matter how Stan phrased his questions. Fiddlenerd shook his head.

“No. But Angie does.”

“Who’s Angie?”

“Wh-” Fiddlenerd set down his wrench, staring at Stan. “My sister!” Stan looked at Fiddlenerd’s sister, apparently named Angie. She waved at him cheerfully. “She’s been here fer over a week and ya haven’t even learned her name yet?”

“It didn’t come up,” Stan said with a shrug. Ignoring Fiddlenerd’s sputtering, he sat down next to Angie. “So. Your name is Angie.”

“Yes. It is.”

“It’s a lot more normal than Fiddlenerd’s name,” Stan remarked. Fiddlenerd let out a squawk of protest. Angie sighed.

“Spit it out. What do ya want?”

“Do you know about frogs?”

“I certainly hope I do, since my doctorate is in herpetology,” Angie said tartly. Stan frowned at her. “The study of reptiles and amphibians.”

“Ah. Okay.” Stan scooted a bit closer. His nose picked up on a faint pondwater smell coming from Angie. She eyed him warily. “What do frogs like?”

“What do-” Angie stared at him. “What?”

“You heard me. What do frogs like?”

“I mean, it depends on the frog.” Angie rubbed the back of her neck. “What do ya need to know this for?”

“There’s this frog-lady that I met-”

“Oh, pish posh,” Angie scoffed. “I’ve heard ‘bout yer frog-lady from Stanford. He says that she don’t exist.”

“And you’re just gonna believe him?”

“I ain’t an expert in the wildlife ‘round here. Stanford is. I don’t really have a choice but to take him at his word.”

“Where’s that famous herpetology skepticism?” Stan asked. Angie rolled her eyes and got up, setting her book on the nearby end table.

“I’m goin’ fer a walk,” she said. “If I see any frog-ladies, I’ll let ya know.”

Great. She was my best shot at advice for Rana. I mean, she knows frogs and she’s a woman! Stan’s eyes landed on Angie’s book. Hmm… He picked it up. There was a bookmark. He thumbed to the bookmarked page. It was the beginning of a chapter on a specific genus called Rana. Huh.

“That’s weird,” Stan muttered out loud.

“What?” Fiddlenerd asked.

“None of your business,” Stan shot at him. Fiddlenerd rolled his eyes and went back to working on his machine.

My frog-lady has the same name as a kind of frog. Makes sense. Stan looked over at Angie, who was putting her shoes on by the front door. But why was Angie looking up that kind of frog?

-----

Rana giggled at Stan’s latest terrible joke. Stan beamed.

“Glad you’ve got a sense of humor,” he said. Rana smiled. Car tires crunched on gravel. Stan didn’t have to look to know that it was the arrival of the early fishermen. After two weeks talking to Rana, he’d developed a routine. He would sit at the edge of the dock and wait for her to emerge, then the two would chat until the first fishermen showed up. Stan sighed. “Same time tomorrow?” he asked Rana. Rana nodded. She dipped underwater.

Stan got up and made his way down the dock, ignoring the fishermen who clearly thought he was insane to be at the lake so early for no apparent reason. He walked over to where he normally parked the Stanleymobile, only to remember he’d parked by the edge of the forest that day.

“Great decision-making, past Stan,” he mumbled idly. “Parking where the gnomes could bite through your brake lines again.” He went to the Stanleymobile. Before he opened the door, however, he heard a large splash and leaves rustling nearby. A voice swore softly.

That sounded like Rana. Stan tucked his car keys back into his pocket and went into the woods, following the sound of Rana’s voice. He arrived at a small clearing at the edge of the lake. Rana had pulled herself onto shore. Stan stared at her. It was the first time he was seeing below her neck up close; he’d only seen her full body once before, back when he knocked his tacklebox into the lake. Her front was the same pale green as her face, with darker greens mottling around her sides and back. The texture of her skin looked soft and slimy. Despite her hourglass figure, she was fairly flat-chested.

I mean. She is a frog. Why would she have boobs? Rana pulled herself up into a seated position, leaning against a tree trunk. Stan stared at her long, flipper-like feet. No wonder she swims so fast. Suddenly, her feet began to shrink. Stan’s eyes widened, watching Rana’s flippers change to pale, human feet. His eyes widened further as he realized that her feet weren’t the only thing changing. Before his eyes, Rana was transforming from a frog-lady into a naked human woman. One that Stan recognized.

Rana got up and grabbed a pile of clothing from behind the tree, mumbling to herself. A twig snapped under Stan’s foot. Rana’s head shot up. She stared at Stan in horror.

“Stan?!” she squeaked. Stan swallowed.

Damn, her nose gets flat when she’s a frog.

“Hey, Angie.”

#I based Stan's frog-lady off of the nixies from the Spiderwick Chronicles #so if you want a frame of reference I would google image search that. they are v cool looking #anyways this Scenario is fun and I love it v v v much #Mystery Trio AU #Stanley Pines #Stanford Pines #Fiddleford McGucket #Angie McGucket #ficlet #my writing #my stuff #speecher speaks #Nixie AU

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life-rewritten · 3 years

Text

GIANTS OF BL 2021 AKA SHOWS LINED UP FOR GMMTV THAT WE WON’T STOP SCREAMING ABOUT!

Is there a way I can get over the addiction of BLS? Apparently not because GMMTV came and slapped me across the face for ever thinking I could. Like what even was that conference? I came in like yeah I've heard the rumours. 6 BLs! LOL, you're kidding, like nothing I'd want would even happen. But I still made a list of everything I wanted from them and held that checklist in my mind and boy was I shocked! I ended up just on the floor, brain exploded, mind shut down and can you believe I was crying? Like why on earth was I crying for GMMTV BLs? Crazy right? I am absolutely left floored, I'm going to be crying as I write this by the way just so you know, I've got my heart full ready to burst, talking about the change we've seen in BLs this year, the journey, the growth; there's still some work to do, but GMMTV said they were also part of that, they were going to change and make us stay, wanting more. They did that in a 3-hour conference. My brain is ready, my mind is prepared, my heart is available for all these shows, and I can't wait to see what 2021 unfolds. Let's begin screaming:

Ratings: From 1 to 5 (1 being least excited to watch, 5 being most,) how excited am I to delve into these shows?

THE NICE SURPRISES

BAKERY BOYS

Genre/Themes: Thriller, Bromance, Mystery, Psychological, Drama, Friendship, BL? (The manga is), Baking

Verdict: You know I love Antique when immediately I see that Foie's hands shaking as he has to be one of the waiters in the cafe, reminds me back to another favourite bodyguard of mine doing so. I was in shock; One because Antique was one of my first Korean 'BL' movies I saw, with all my favourite actors, an unusual and intriguing plotline and I ate it up; all of it. I didn't like how censored it was and the weird open ending for the relationship in the show. But I couldn't care less, something about it made me happy. I just loved the characters I think, and I enjoyed seeing our 4 bakers become friends and find a weird found family with each other. Add in a mystery to why Joon’s character wanted to kill himself and hated cakes? And I was sold. Now GMMTV is making a remake for it, and SINGTO is playing my favourite gay baker. Like I am so happy with this. Do I expect this to blow my mind? No. Do I expect more BL? A little? I'm not sure like GMMTV could make Antique a BL if they want to, Korea hinted to it, Japan ignored it in anime and others, but Thailand could change that. I'm not holding hopes for it, but I love this cast just as much as I love the Korean Cast like Lee Thanawat is perfect for this role, Singto is greater (I just love him so much) and we even have Pleum and Foei?? Are you kidding me? Greatness. It's going to be fun to see what they do with the mystery—something I greatly liked in the movie. Let's hope it's more fleshed out in the tv show. So excited!

Ratings: 3.5/5 I mean it's not really a BL so it'll feel queer baity for me and I may end up being annoyed it, but I really do have fond memories of the Korean movie, so I want to be excited, and the cast is everything so we'll see.

FISH UPON THE SKY

Genre: Unrequited Love, Comedy, Romance, Rivalry, Haters to Lovers,

Verdict:

DID SOMEONE SAY JITTIRAIN: THEORY OF LOVE? 2GETHER??? Sorry for screaming but like what else am I meant to do. Theory of love is my ultimate BL show, one of it anyway, one of the reasons will be discussed even more later with another show, but this is not about them. Also, 2gether is like one of the biggest BLs ever right now. Jittirain is genius, she has this ability to make you feel for her characters, root for their love stories whilst throwing plot twists everywhere. I also like that she always has a focus; theory of love, we had film theory, 2gether we had music, and now we have Fish Upon the Sky, and we have?

Medicine? Love rivalry? Honestly, I don't know, the title even makes me feel even weird; what the hell does Fish upon a sky mean? But who cares it's a Jittirain classic, comedy, pain, longiiiing, and unrequited love, and scheming to get unrequited loves requited, more side couples and secretive characters. This time we have PHUWIN (had to emphasise that because he's impressive people stop sleeping on him!), one of my favourite youngins, showing up and becoming our main Pi and we have Pond a newbie, who has charisma for days, and he plays Mork, and they are love rivals. Wait what? A love story between two people who fall for each other after chasing after one guy? I'm ready for this, the haters to lovers, the pain of unrequited longing, but hold on it seems like a plot twist! Seems like we have another oblivious protagonist on our hand aside from Tine in 2gether, Pi can't even see that Mork isn't chasing after the same person as him, but for he's chasing after him! Sarawat scheming activated! I'm expecting giggles, chemistry and a great story. And it's going to be great because it's Jittirain.

Ratings: 4.5/5 It's not anything new but do I need to repeat my self? Theory of love pining and longing and emotions mixed with 2gether's secrecy, scheming and obliviousness? It's going to be great. The cast is also excellent, I have total faith in this show, better be a good director though (oh no nightmares from the last half of 2gether has returned).

FINDING ENCHANTE

Genre: Romance, Comedy, Angst, Drama, Friends to Lovers, Haters to Lovers, Harem, Mystery,

Verdicts:

Enchante that means nice to meet you aww. Wow, now I know French. Yay now where do I sign up to be like Theo and have 5 men chasing after me? Actually, that sounds like a nightmare, and I don't have time for that. He does apparently. Guess what guys! I knew I had a feeling in my gut when I watched this drama, I felt the memories, the intuition, the clues, hitting my brain, and I realised why. This show is also written by My gear and your gown's writer. YES! You mean more mystery and subtext filled storytelling, a show where I can analyse the character dynamics, and find clues to piecing the story together??? Perfection. As much as My gear and your gown wasn't everything to me, it was everything to me when I analysed it, I have fun with this writer's works when directed properly her works have great potential to be one of the best. I love GMMTV giving new actors the time to shine, and choosing stories that make my mind start working again. Thank you.

With this show we're having a love Simon flashbacks with our Simon being sent secret messages through a book by Enchante, he's sweet, caring and totally all about making our lead comfortable. Who could he be?

The best friend who's totally pining from afar and playing off his feelings like its nothing? My gut is already saying that Tine definitely wants it to be him (so again requited but they don't know trope? you've got me!)

Is it the playboy guitar extraordinaire played by GAWIN you heard me right GAWIN my Mork in Dark Blue Kiss!! Like what? Where've you been boy? He looks so great in this, by the way, he's a tease, likes to play our lead's feelings, and has chemistry because they're haters to lovers.

Or is it FLUKE PUSIT?? What even is this cast how is it both my favourite actors are here? Anyways Fluke is an artist, he wants our lead to let him in so he can draw him, our lead is his muse apparently, and again chemistry that makes your head hurt because like who is this damn Enchante?? Who will Theo choose?

Anyways we then have two people who I don't know that well sorry, Boom is the football captain that likes our lead and is always protecting him, and the other is a genius/nerd? Who helps Theo with his studies? Like wow, it must be great to be Theo, guys from different lifestyles and aesthetics have found him, they want him, they need him and one of them he wants and needs. I wonder who it is.

Ps people already thinking it's the best friend, not me, I think bestie is obviously endgame Tine is definitely also secretly wanting him to be with that pining and longing (I'm sure it's why he wants to find enchante desperately). I can't wait to see why these two refuse to let each other know how it feels. All I beg for is, please don't let New direct this. Guess what it's produced by X (Theory of Love! Hold on while I cry again) and Film! (Also theory of love!) Oh, this is going to be brilliant!

Ratings: 4.5/5 This drama is probably going to be the most underrated because people have other things to care about I don't blame you, but I think for me, this would be a same favourite way I loved MGYG and I'm ready for new faces, Gawin and Fluke and a requited but they don't know it angsty love story plus I know the directing is going to be amazing!. Ps, I actually hate harems, but the excitement is in figuring out who on earth is Enchante and why this is happening!

THE BIG BOYS

GMMTV decided to not let me rest next year. How is it that I already felt happy by seeing Phuwin, Gawin, Fluke etc... I was content you know, I was like great we have a great line up I'm excited now I don't think there's anything else I secretly want that will happen. I'm being a clown, BUT NO. EVERYTHING I ASKED FOR: EVERYONE I WANTED TO SEE, EVERY TROPE I WANTED, THE DIRECTOR, THE PLOTS, EVERYTHING WAS MANIFESTED BY THESE THREE TRAILERS. That's why I ended up crying. Because even till this day I can't believe this is real. I don't know when I'll finally think they will be real in 2021. Crying again!

NOT ME

Genre: Gang, Mafia, Crime, Romance, Drama, Stolen Identity, Twins, Angst

Not me? Not you? Not us? See how my mind scrambles when it comes to this show. Because I was determined to not be a clown and believe in this even when I saw OFF GUN hold onto each other on the motorbike I was like HA, nope they're just guest stars, when I saw them as gang members I was like HA; interesting probably not BL. When I saw two Guns, I was like HA, nice Gifted character flashback but still not BL. I won't fall for it, this is a BAIT! You get me? BAIT!! Don't fall for it and then GMMTV was like shut up here's a kiss. And then I broke down and cried. Because it was a journey.

Remember when I said Theory of Love was my favourite? It's because of these two; OffGun is everything, my favourite BL couple on screen, my favourite fanservice couple, everything. I thought that the end of theory of love meant I won't be seeing them for a while, they'd be in other series separate, they'd not want to be typecasted. Gun would go for serious roles, Off will choose more het romantic comedies, don't blame them. Still, I didn't think I'd see them again, and I wasn't sure I wanted to see them in another university setting. I set my mind on only seeing them in fan meetings and side projects, I'd made up my mind to miss them. And then NOT ME happened, and now I'm crying just at the thought;

This isn't a cringy, comedic, cheesy BL.

This isn't set in University.

This isn't' unrequited pining from Gun to Off.

Gun is Dark! I repeat Gun went Dark he became a gang leader determined to break the law, called Black and Off; OFF went serious and he's Gun's right-hand man called Sean, and I'm just like wait is this real?? We're getting dark, gritty OFF GUN??? Are you serious?? See?? still can't believe it, and it's BL??? What is this? Christmas?? Like how did we get this, who came up with this idea THANK YOU SO MUCH.

I thought nothing could beat theory of love for me and now OffGun came back and said HA you thought. I have a lot of feels about this, I will never stop screaming, I've rewatched that youtube trailer now for about more than 20 times, I'm not even kidding you, every day it's on repeat, I'm just ready, ready to write, to scream, to talk about this in so much detail. Let's get a plot that's deep, thrilling and mysterious, let's get a romance that is interesting, angsty but also sweet, let's get acting that is full of range, that will break my heart but fix it together again, let's get chemistry that would make me forget everything else. I'm ready for this. I've never been more ready!

Ratings: 5/5 What were you expecting? I can't even rate this anything else, nothing about this is worrying; even the director I trust she's also worked with Gun before in another movie of his, she respects LGBTQ, and she wants to make a great BL. I just can't believe this is real. 2021 come faster, I beg you.

BAD BUDDY

Genre: Forbidden romance, Haters to Lovers, Romance, Comedy, Opposites attract, Angst, Friends to Lovers,

Verdict:

You thought my screaming would be over. But no. GMMTV wasn't done with me yet. It's like it knew I was mourning from my lack of Ohm Pawat after rewatching He's coming to me (review here) and it knew I had just finished watching Gifted Graduation and felt slighted to see my opportunity at seeing Nanon as a BL character being taken from me with that finale. GMMTV knew I was empty without them and decided to mock me, and put me back together by making OHM NANON in a series together,.

Again the same process as Not me; I started laughing when I saw the trailer like a mad person. I was like this is clearly a queer bait bromance, HA, not falling for it GMMTV almost got me this time, but then there were the stares, the Romeo and Juliet energy, the sneaking into each other's rooms, the becoming secret friends despite being haters to lovers, the skinship, the intimacy, and then the jealousy, the pining, the longing, the are we just friends scene??? WAIT, WHAT IS THIS?? Why is AOF directing this (same director of ALL my favourite BLS), what is this GMMTV?

Nanon wouldn't be in a BL we know this, we've been clowns, but we accepted this with defeat, why is he now saying he's doing one because of the cast? THIS IS A BL? NOT BAIT? NOT A TRICK? BY AOF? WHATTTTTTT???? see my mind exploded.

Since then it hasn't still comprehended this. This is insane, do you know how good, how genius, how amazing Nanon and Ohm Pawat is?? Do you see the power this holds? The fact it's directed by Aof who's like one of the best directors ever in GMMTV??? Do you even know what this means? For this GENRE??? Sorry, I have to scream. I still can't believe this! This is something someone would say, and we'd laugh it of as a joke like yeah right, in your dreams, but it's real, and it looks absolutely amazing, is it a university setting YES, so what? This is everything, with haters to lovers but not really, to Romeo and Juliet pining and longing, to the chemistry that takes your breath away. To just Ohm and Nanon in a screen together being in love. Yep, you guessed it my mind is never goanna be whole again after this breakdown. Guess what I'm okay with it.

Ratings: 5/5 OhmNanon, Aof that's it. That's the post.

A TALE OF A THOUSAND STARS

Genre/Themes: Military, Romance, Comedy, Drama, Heart Transplant, Unrequited Love, Fish out of water,

Verdict:

And we come to this big one here. You see it? It screams 2021 show of the year to me, it screams incredible plot and romance to me, it screams unique and exciting BL to me. Guess what? It's also by Aof. Ha. It took me a year to accept this is happening because when the trailer came out, I knew that with this cursed genre that this was too good that there'd probably be some kind of issue with it. But did it matter? No! Because this was real. Earth and Mix were in a BL together, and it looks so amazing, so great, and it's coming in less than 3 months. I'm going to cry. And it means everything; because there's a hint of character dynamics, angst and also haters to lovers. I see the chemistry, the production, the plot, the actors, and I just feel so ready for this show that I have no other words to say except I love it, I love it, I love it!.

Ratings: 5/5 It's taken years, but I'm ready for this, I just want the trailer now, I want the show now, I want 2021 to start now. This is definitely a giant for sure, it's everything, and I can't wait for it.

After screaming at everything; 2021 starting with ATOTS is already a sign, we're in for a great year with so many incredible changes in this genre. GMMTV isn't messing around, with subs in their event to show international fans are no longer forgotten and are heard and respected, with actors that have made their way into my heart and refuse to leave, and I'm just so happy. It may seem so extreme to be this excited for a BL series to be good, but I love this genre, I love seeing what it represents to so many people, I love the interesting storylines, the discussions you can have for days because of it, the tears, angst, and happiness you feel. But most of all I love how BL has brought out writing from me, I'm happy when I analyse this genre, I'm delighted discussing real-life links and conversations derived from it, I'm so glad learning and humbling my self and opening my mind to new things. BL has been a source of excitement, shock and happiness this year. I can't for next year to be even more splendid, and with this line-up, it's going to be even more than that. It's going to break the world. Can't wait.

#thai bl #gmmtv 2021 #gmmtv #bl series #bl drama #antique bakery #baker boys #singto prachaya #fish upon the sky #phuwin tangsakyuen #enchante #not me #off gun #offgun #bad buddy #ohmnanon #ohmnon #fvete #2021

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dreamieofu · 3 years

Text

not so lonely christmas

Written for the Taste of Winter Collab hosted by @dearyongs and @pastelsicheng. ♡

pairing: mark x gender neutral!reader word count: 2.04k genre: bestfriends!au, christmas!au, fluff x2 summary: these days you’re mostly by yourself and with mark being so far and so busy, you have no choice but to spend christmas alone. or so you think. warning(s): none - lower case intended. also, i guess i kinda left it open ended.

a/n: merry christmas everyone!! i hope you will enjoy this christmas present.♡ it’s finally coming to the end of 2020, i hope your end of year is filled with much love and happiness. i hope you’re not alone, and if so, don’t be scared to msg me. you’re never alone bc i’m here!! c: taglist: @puppywritings @neonun-au @dearyongs @yutacrush @notnctu @neo-shitty @luvlala@ahgase55g7 [i can’t seem to tag u angel :(((! ]

days during the holiday season had its perks. the warm feeling of christmas tickling at your nose, the bajillion lights that were strung across the city, the warmth of family and friends. it never failed to make you feel somewhat home, at least you’d think. having spent years with twinkling excitement at the idea of ending the long year wrapped up with a christmas bow. this year’s christmas seemed to be different though, maybe it was the way the night welcomed you, with an extra lightness in your steps. maybe it was the way the cool air swept harshly against your face as you walk your way home. this christmas you would be spending, alone.

you miss times with your younger self. holding merry traditions with your best friend, mark. each christmas you’d make each other stockings filled with your favourite things. you’d pick a movie; usually ‘the grinch’ and decorate a festive gingerbread house together. it’s been a few weeks since you’ve properly been in contact with mark and you’ve accepted by now, maybe he’s too busy with his schedules. so naturally you’ve learnt to let it go. all of your other friends were busy, so that left you only wishing on christmas stars, that maybe this christmas you wouldn’t feel so lonely.

hugging yourself closer, with the winter air nipping at the tip of your nose, you realise you’ve arrived home. your trembling hands inserting the key into the lock of your door, with a jingle, opening the front door. finally being welcomed home to darkness and the warmth of your small cozy apartment. but as your eyes adjusted to the low lights, you don’t fail noticing a pair of worn out converse placed on the side, near the rest of your shoes. your index finger hooks behind the ankle of your shoe to flick it off, panic and confusion settling between your eyebrows. after locking the door, you take cautious steps, silently tiptoeing towards your open living room. your grip tightening around the end of your shirt as you peep past the entry of your living room. the sound of cackling fire wood, and sparkling lights from a small christmas tree reflect on the ground as you see the back of someone’s head. warmth spreading across your face as you bite back a smile.

“mark?” you whisper in disbelief. a quick wave of realisation also settles in the corners of your mind, when you remember: mark, is the only other person who has the key to your place. mark’s head swings to the sound of your voice, a smirk already plastering on his face. he’s fast on his feet, reaching you in a beat, arms out embracing you. as much as he didn’t want to admit, waiting around for you was agony.

you sink your weight further into his broad chest, the feeling of his body warmth wrapping you whole; his scent familiar and his natural musk glazes your eyes. with small tears, you fist the material of his shirt, tightening your hold on him. “what are you doing here? why are you in the dark?” your voice is muffled against his chest as he chuckles. you feel the gentle weight of his hand stroke the back of your head, rocking you both side to side momentarily. you guess santa must have judged you nice, as your wish portrays as granted. mark being the best gift of all.

“i know i’m always busy with schedules. but i made sure to be here for you, on our favourite day,” mark’s voice holds heavy with sadness and you feel it. understanding he’s stressed and busy, you offer him a reassuring smile. the darkness that drags below his under eyes don’t lessen the glint of sparkle found in his eyes as he listens to you. “you didn’t have to.” confessing with a tinge of falsehood, instantly grateful he’s really here. this made you hold onto him tighter, rubbing a big ‘no’ against the width of his chest. “i mean... how are you? how’d you get here? when?” you speed through questions, mumbling against his shirt. mark just chuckles at your words.

“dude, why do you sound so sad?” he escapes away from your embrace, laughing, pulling at your ears gently. his fingers are warm, heating up the tips of your frost kissed ears. he takes time to look at you, taking your appearance whole and imprinting it in his tiny box of memories he holds for you. a small smile mirrors between you both as you sigh, rubbing your forehead against his chest, holding him close once again. “okay dude stop pouting! look what i got~” excitement tickling his toes as he guides you both, walking backwards blindly. you shadow his figure, your body draping along the wooden floor as you follow his steps. once he bends down backwards, you’re released; watching him open his luggage. he must have just arrived from korea today. much to your curiosity and amusement (due to his bent figure) your eyes linger at the object he beholds in front of you. it’s a stocking. your name still barely stitched onto the heel at the foot of the stocking. you bite back the biggest grin, almost letting out a squeal, looking at his large toothy grin, and your heart swells.

you finally absorb your surroundings. mark has put up a small christmas tree and he’s hung up lights. you close your eyes in disbelief, why did he have to go above and beyond with such little things. it made you almost feel guilty for not doing anything to the same degree for him. near the bottom of the tree was a small cardboard box filled with ornaments. he was so thoughtful.

you gasp, remembering and rapid with your feet as you head towards your bedroom. leaving mark bewildered, alone in the living room. your eyes quickly scan under your bed. even though mark is busy promoting and working in korea, without fail, both of you always fill up a stocking for each other. either to send overseas or to give when you visit each other after christmas. finally grabbing hold of it, you tighten your grip onto the stocking. you bolt down the hallway with the same lightness in your steps as you float back to mark.

you find him there standing with his back facing towards you as he holds the box of ornaments, in waiting. he’s already placed your stocking below the faux christmas tree.

“i have yours.” you giggle, placing mark’s stocking rightfully by the stocking he’s given you under the tree. he laughs at your panting self, handing you the box of ornaments, to pat your head rather endearingly.

you can’t help the way you wistfully watch the way mark carefully hangs some of the ornaments. he looks tired, but altogether happy. he radiates a soft glow, and it’s not just because the lights of the christmas tree that make him appear so. you look down at the box in hand and sigh, “you didn’t have to come all the way here you know?” it’s barely a whisper above the low christmas playlist he’s put on while you left him. mark stops what he does to look at your sunken figure. the side of his body nudges your shoulder out of trance. “don’t be silly.” he reassures you with one of the most happiest smiles you’ve seen all winter. you smile at his playful self, deciding not to push him further about it, and just be grateful he’s even there to begin with.

you spent the rest of the night with ‘the grinch’ playing in the background as you laugh together. you caught up with each other, asking him stories about his promotions and work. he reciprocates the questions. when you exchange your stockings and open the small presents, you can’t help being reminded of why you love christmas as much as you do. seeing mark’s smiling face only shows how much he feels the same way. and by the end you’re both breathless and light headed from all the laughing and giddy feelings you were getting. he’s home. you even decorated a store bought gingerbread house together. finishing the movie, you sit back against the couch, still in disbelief mark’s made this journey all the way to you.

“thank you for coming,” you finally confess, and he sits up at your words. mark strokes your ear in between his middle and index figure with a swift movement, a smile on his lips. the ambiance is light, and your feel like everything about christmas makes sense when you’re celebrating it with mark.

“i’ve missed you.”

mark’s words are frosted with truth and you fall into a daze as he continues to watch your bashful self.

“and i’ve missed you.”

“i know.”

there’s silence as the movie dies out. the only sound filling the room was the small crackle of firewood heating the room and your heartbeat hammering in your chest. the atmosphere suddenly feels heavier. he knits his eyebrows together at your empty words which fail to pass through your parted lips. you’re lost for words as he shuffles closer to you. “i-“

he stops his movements, softening his expressions as you find words. somehow, from your earlier endless ramblings, you’re finally all out of words. mark raises his eyebrows. “i have one more surprise.” you finally manage to say.

mark’s eyes widen at your statement, feeling excited at the mystery surprise.

“what is it?”

“follow me.” you bait, jogging slightly towards your bedroom. he follows you with an airy laugh as you reach the doorway of your bedroom.

you show him a teasing finger, pointing up towards the mistletoe that hung at the top of your bedroom door. he shares a laugh with you, being reminded of the teenage years where you’d pretend to be so love-struck and mocking of the ‘mistletoe kiss’. you’re leaning towards his cheek, about to give him your traditional version of the mistletoe kiss.

but mark thought he was going to give you the kiss.

his lips press against the outer corner of your lips. the curves of your lips just barely touch one another before you step back in shock.

his skin was warm, and you both stare at each other with wide eyes because of the sudden contact. mark’s cheeks turn rosy because of your reaction. the butterflies finding purpose in your tummy making you feel shy. you both try your hardest to fight back a laugh, feeling childish. mark loved the way you’d always find ways to make him feel happy, effortlessly giving him reasons to laugh. he’s really glad he decided to come home to you for christmas. he really missed you, despite his busy world. the fact that you’re really there in front of him after so long, gave him a push.

with a surge of confidence, the pads of his fingertips linger at the base of your neck. effortlessly you feel magnetic to him, your body lures into his aura as a faint smile graces his cupids bow. without spoken words, you know what’s coming. the ghost of his top lip gently pulls in your bottom lip as mark’s mind screams. he just had to. he had to kiss you, there wasn’t anything else in that moment, only a kiss came to mind; finding himself able to show you how he’s been feeling. he connects your lips together like tape meeting the wrapping paper. stuck together and enclosed for a fleeting moment, before it rips open with the way you kiss back, opening his heart. he feels like he’s falling and your kiss is bringing him back to gravity to land in a deep pillow of snow. your hands cold, holding the frame of his face lightly as he brushes his lips against yours again.

mark pulls back, like the feeling of pulling on the ribbon to unwrap your christmas present. he whispers, nose brushing against yours, a sweet “merry christmas.”

#mark lee scenarios #nctnetwrite #mark lee fluff #nct scenarios #nct imagines #nct dream scenarios #mark lee imagines #nct127 fluff #mark lee x reader #mark lee oneshot

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star-trekkin-across-theuniverse · 3 years

Text

Worthy (pt6)

A/N: once again - just keep poking me until I start tagging you if you want tagged. @rampant-salamander, @bolontiku

...

I looked from Tony to Thor and back to Tony.

“I don’t understand your question,” I responded, and threw back the drink. To hell with being moderate. I was pretty sure I was about to lose my dream job on my second day, I may as well go out with a bang.

“Ella, there has to be something special about you to allow you to lift that hammer,” Tony spoke slowly. That was probably a bad thing. I suspected slow speech meant a really active brain. I was now a mystery that needed to be solved.

“There is nothing special about me at all,” I argued.

“You can lift Mjolnir. That is special.” Thor was like a sage who spoke in riddles.

“But being able to lift Mjolnir isn’t what makes me special enough to lift it. That’s a redundancy.” I, like Tony, was slipping into scientific method in order to try to sort things out.

“Do you have Aesir blood, Ella?” Thor asked.

“My family is from Washington. By way of Wisconsin,” I replied. Tony snorted and Thor shot him a dirty look.

“Before this Wisconsin?” He pressed. The way he said Wisconsin made it sound unfamiliar and strange.

“Norway and England.”

“Norway. That is where the Northmen resided.” Thor looked thoughtful. “In the time of the Vikings, the Aesir traveled on Midgard much more frequently than they do now.”

“Are you suggesting that some ancestor of mine got knocked up by a god?” I could feel my eyebrow rising. Tony smothered a smirk behind his hand. My tone was lost on Thor.

“We are not gods, Ella,” Thor corrected. “And I am unfamiliar with knocked up. What I suggest is that your ancestor was impregnated by an Aesir.”

“But in order to lift your hammer, wouldn’t it have to be you that got this mystery ancestor pregnant? I’d have to be your descendent?” I could feel the blood draining from my face. It would be just my luck that the hottest guy I’d ever seen would be related to me. Thor’s smile was mischievous.

“Not necessarily. I would have discovered offspring of mine on Midgard by now, and I know left none. But I think it reasonable to consider you may have Aesir blood in your veins,” he explained. “Which makes you very special indeed.”

“Can everyone in Asgard lift your hammer?” I asked. Thor shook his head.

“None but I.”

“Then I don’t buy it. I keep telling people, I’m nothing special.” I was getting frustrated with the scrutiny. I never thought I would be desperate for a cute guy to stop paying attention to me, but in that moment, I would have given anything to be able to just go hide in obscurity in the lab, building my washing machine.

“But that’s where you’re wrong, Ella,” Tony interrupted. I’d nearly forgotten he was there, Thor had such powerful bearing. I didn’t think it was possible to lose track of Tony Stark, but I guess in the presence of not-actually-gods… “You are something special. That’s why Pepper and I lept on your application like we did. How did you make it through university with such a bad self image?”

“I don’t have a bad self image. I know I’m a fucking amazing engineer. I just fail to see a correlation between my ability to understand math and build things and my purported mystical ability to lift a magic hammer,” I snapped. I turned back to Thor. “You’re sure no one else can lift it?” Thor glanced at Tony, almost as though he was looking for approval. Tony gave a slight nod.

“I believe that Captain Rogers would be able to lift it, should he have the opportunity. But that remains untested,” Thor admitted. I sighed.

“Of course. He’s a legit hero. Full of righteousness and honour and nobility.” My tone was more sarcastic than I’d intended.

“Yes, intangible and arbitrary measures of worthiness. Who is to say you don’t meet the parameters in some way?” Thor shot back. I looked into my empty glass, wishing it were still full.

“Did you not see me level that d-bag in the elevator?”

“Tis nothing I would not have done myself, and yet I am still worthy,” Thor shrugged. Pepper had walked in at some point during the conversation, and Tony turned to her expectantly. She sighed and blinked slowly.

“We’ve had a discussion about appropriate professional behaviour. He is aware that if there are any further incidents he will lose his internship.” Pepper reached out for the glass of wine Tony was offering her.

“It’s a bit of a PR nightmare if we lose a second intern in as many days, Pep,” Tony commented.

“It’s a worse nightmare if, right as we’re rolling out a gender equality program and girl’s STEM mentorship program, the media gets ahold of information about how we’re allowing someone guilty of sexual harassment to remain in a prestigious and competitive internship,” she retorted. He pursed his lips and paused. After a moment he nodded in agreement.

“What do I know? You’re the boss.” His acquiescence was met with laughter from Pepper.

“What do you know, Tony? How many times did you attend the SHIELD seminar again?” She choked on her wine. “Trust me. I want to give him the benefit of the doubt. He’s a smart guy, and I’d like to think he’ll be respectful from now on.” Tony responded with some other comment and I slumped back into my seat, watching the show. If you didn’t know they were stupidly in love with one another, you might assume they were on the verge of war. But I think Tony liked to goad Pepper, and she rose to the bait. Not because she was gullible though. At least, I didn’t think it was because she was easily duped. I think she rose to the bait because it was how they clicked together. I looked away from them and over to Thor, who was sitting back on the couch, completely relaxed. The hammer was propped up beside him, handle leaning against the bolster. It was uncanny how powerful he looked, even in jeans and a t-shirt. I relaxed a little and just enjoyed looking at him, taking in the contours of his biceps, and the definition of the veins in his hands. There was a lot of him to look at, and it was all very pleasing to the eye. At least, everything I’d seen thus far.

I didn’t realize how overt I was being until he smirked. He turned to look at me, and nodded.

“Is it not considered poor manners on Midgard to stare at others?” There was a teasing tone to his voice, but I blinked and looked away, feeling my cheeks colour.

There was really no way for me to deny that I was staring at him. The only blank wall in the entire place was right behind him. I couldn’t even beg being distracted by some of the weird art that seemed to be all over the building.

“I, uh, well,” I stammered. “I was looking at the hammer?” It sounded like bullshit, even to me. I heard a stifled laugh from Tony and shot him a filthy look. I pushed myself to my feet and glanced at Pepper. “If you don’t need me, Pepper, I’m going to try to catch up with Angela. I have some things I need to pick up for my suite.”

“You can order anything you need from distribution,” Tony offered.

“Except, apparently, towels bigger than a postage stamp,” I retorted. My ears were burning and I was having a really hard time not looking over to see if Thor was following the conversation. He probably was as there was no one else for him to pay attention to.

“You are aware there’s varying sizes of towel?” Tony’s tone was sarcastic. I rolled my eyes.

“Not that this is really a conversation I feel I want to have with my boss, but I grabbed the biggest one. It still barely covered me.” I was ready to pray for a hole to open in the floor and swallow me.

“Well, you’re not exactly supposed to be lounging around in your tow –“

“I wasn’t!” I interrupted. “I was just getting out of the shower when Thor showed up and I didn’t have time to be getting fully dressed before I answered the door, and then the towel slipped and oh my god I cannot believe I’m telling you all this.” I took a deep breath and looked back to Pepper. “Can I go? Please?”

“Let me walk you to the elevator,” she offered and led the way. As we walked away, I heard Tony clear his throat.

“You’ve seen her naked already, you sly dog?”

“That is enough, Stark. How you have lived so many years on this realm and not noticed how modest some of your women are, I have no idea. But you embarrassed her. Like many Midgardians, she lacks comfort with the physical form.” Thor’s words were a chastisement, and I somehow felt even more embarrassed about him having seen me naked. Because now, not only was I naked in front of the freaking Norse god of thunder, but also he took more notice of what a prude I am than that I was naked. I leaned against the wall and banged my head against it.

“That’s not how you call the elevator,” Pepper teased. “I know we all collectively keep telling you to relax, but, yeah. Relax. If Tony is already giving you a hard time, he’s assimilating you into his world as a permanent fixture. This will be something you laugh about in future years.” Her eyes were warm with empathy and it was so reassuring.

“You seriously need to do something about the towel situation, Pepper.” I stepped onto the elevator and pushed the button for my floor. Once the doors shut, I texted Angela to see how far she’d got without me. I didn’t have to wait long. I was swiping my passcard to get into my room when she stepped off the elevator.

“So, towels? Maybe a beer?” She followed me into my apartment.

“Yes. To both.”

XXX

For whatever reason, I expected getting beer with Angela would be more Sex-in-the-City than it was. She pulled me into a quiet bar after we’d found appropriate towels, and we ordered wings from the kitchen and beer.

“So I did some research today while you were meeting with Markus,” she volunteered over a heap of wing bones. I made a noise that was easily interpretable as curiosity and she continued. “I might have hacked some of Tony’s files about that hammer. Thor wasn’t kidding around when he said you shouldn’t be able to lift it. It was apparently forged in the heart of a dying star, of some crazy space-metal. And the Odin enchanted it so only Thor could lift it. Which is clearly a broken enchantment because apparently you can lift it too.”

“It says right on it that if you’re worthy, you can lift it,” I corrected her with my mouth full.

“Obviously it doesn’t take table manners into consideration!” She laughed. I hung my head in mock-shame, but made sure my mouth was clear before I spoke again.

“I don’t know how it determines worthiness. Honestly, isn’t that a little creepy? Is the hammer sentient? Does it consider the merits of each individual that touches it in that split second between grabbing it and trying to lift it? Or does Odin have some sort of approval system for worthiness, and he gets interrupted from whatever it is he’s doing to approve people in that same fraction of an instant?” I pondered.

“Way to ruin magic with science,” she groaned.

“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. That’s Clarke’s Third Law. The other two are pretty good too,” I shrugged.

“Oh, that was a kill shot! Come on, let me have some sort of fantasy about the mystical powers of the damn hammer, Ella!” Angela threw her hands up in frustration. I smiled and nodded.

“Of course. The hammer is mystical and powerful and absolutely should not be questioned,” I acceded. Angela swatted at me and flagged the waitress over for another round. I felt myself relaxing and forgetting about the overwhelming stress of the past couple of days as we decompressed over a second beer. When Angela dropped me back at the tower, I realized she may very well live on-site as well, but I was tired and had a bit of a beer buzz and forgot to ask before stumbling through my door and crashing on the sofa.

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artxyra · 4 years

Note

I have another request. Mari and Damian go to the same school. Suddenly a gas enters the school. Girls become a cat for 3 days. Boys are tasked with taking care of the cats and Damian gets Mari. 1st day they bond. (He calls her Angel) 2nd day she makes a robin costume (her logo has angel wings) and secretly goes with Robin on patrol. He gets attacked, she saves him, they love her. 3rd day when fam is out she makes Damian a cake. She turns to normal they become really close. Btw I love your work!

Note: I literally had nothing planned going into this, but once I started writing the story took in the direction that I never had intended but I do like.

Damian Wayne was already on edge that day. He came to the school with an aura that was dark than the usual don’t mess with me. One dared to go near him, though a series of classmates wanted the school’s sunshine to ease the mess, she was nowhere in sight. In fact, the school is pretty sure they will never meet seeing as she’s been here for over a couple of months and never once had she met a person named Damian.

For Damian, he was on edge because of the night before. Batman and Robin had a run-in with this mysterious new villain and that has everyone on edge. There was no record of this villain and at first, they thought it was Selina, but she was out of the states and no one has heard from her in a while. The only clue they have is that the villain was also enthralled by cats.

So, when a mysterious yellow gas, Damian’s mood went beyond anyone could imagine. The gas spreads through the windows and into the classroom. Panic rose as the gas begins to cover only the females of the school. One-by-one they all shrink to an unbelievable size. Cat’s meow echoes from the gas and as the males swipe away the lingering gas remnants, they are faced with an unbelievable sight.

In the placements of every female in the room are cats wearing the school’s infamous uniform that apparently also shrinks to fit the cat’s bodies. A series of meows to hissing breaks the shock faces of the males.

Immediately, the school heads started to investigate. Using the cats as a base they found out that the girls could stay in this form for at least three days, if not more. After contacting the proper guardians/parents, it came down to those who couldn’t be able to return home due to strict reasons, such as living alone, or strict landlord rules about pets. Those that couldn’t go to their families were immediately assigned a caretaker regardless of status.

Damian at first was conflicted. Yes, he loves animals, but at the same time, there was a risk, his family’s secret. What happens if whoever he gets remembers their time as a cat? Was it that big of a risk? The appropriate answer is yes, but the animal lover in him said no.

“Here you, Marinette, meet your temporary caretaker.” The attendance persons say to the cat dressed in a pink vet with blue trim and the school’s logo on the pouch. He hands the cat version of Marinette to Damian, who was unsure of how to hold her. It’s not this cat is a normal cat, like Alfred.

Marinette squirms in Damian’s arms, he quickly readjusts her before opting to set her down. She flicks her tail across his legs and nods her head. Damian sighs, but not before the attendance person gives him a reassuring smile.

‘C’mon Marionette.” He grumbles walking towards the entrance of the school. Examining his peers, he can tell that some are way too happy about this predicament while others are completely nervous. Marinette, once again, meows gaining Damian’s attention. He looks down to see her playing with his pant legs. Unsure what she means, he picks her up and cradles her to his chest.

“Young Master,” He hears Alfred greets to him. Turning to give the family’s butler attention he tightens his hold on Marinette, who hisses in response. “The school has informed us of our newest visitor, I take it that you have a plan against your brothers.” The look on Damian’s usually stoic face says it all.

Upon entering the Wayne manor, Damian is grateful that his older brothers, aside from Tim, live outside of the manor. He knows that he couldn’t handle the constant amount of teasing that would ensure once word got out.

“Alfred tells me we have a visitor.” Damian sets Marinette down so that he could face his father. Bruce eyes the dark-haired cat before turning his attention back to his son. “Are you sure that is a good idea?”

Damian huffs, absently petting Marinette’s fur. “Of course, it is father. Why wouldn’t I bring her home? She needed a place to stay and after a long hard thought I decided that this was the best fit.”

Bruce curtly nods. “Just keep her away from the family’s hangout.” Damian acceptingly nods.

“C’mon Marionette, I’ll show you where you’ll be staying at. Be warned, that you are not the only cat here. Alfred can be very territorial.” Damian gestures for Marinette to follow. She meows and tots over to Damian.

They walk in silence. Damian was unsure what to say to a person he barely knows, and Marinette just eyes her surroundings.

That night, Damian went out as Robin once he triples checked that Marinette was sleep, but when he came back, he was greeted with Marinette yowling at him to go to sleep. He glares at the female cat as he swears, he heard Alfred the cat laughing at her commands.

The first day with cat Marinette was eventful. Damian was woken up by the lack of air as Alfred the cat was resting on his head. Once he had pried the black and white cat off of him, he is then greeted by Marinette’s sass. She flicks her tail and pries open the door before disappearing down the halls. Damian calls out to her, but it fades with the meowing from Alfred.

Once he made it downstairs, he sees Marinette sitting outside of the kitchen, she is eyeing the sleep-deprived nature of Timothy Drake. Tim was only seconds away from passing out with the steaming cup of coffee in hand.

Marinette jumps onto the table before anyone could scold her and push against Tim’s hand. He absently pets her thinking that it was probably Alfred annoying him. Marinette takes this moment to use her paws to push the coffee mug away from Tim. She looks around the room before jumping off the table and trots over to a cabinet.

Alfred, the human, appears behind Damian humming, he is intrigued. “It seems that Miss Marinette is on a mission. What would you like for breakfast young master?”

Damian murmurs his answer before he is quick at awe with how Marinette was mixing ingredients into a cup. With her nose, she nudges the cup over to Alfred, who picks up but not without petting her head. Handing the newly tainted cup to Tim, they wait patiently with baited breaths. Tim takes a long sip. Light snores then escape his lips as his head fits the table.

Damian stares at Marinette amazed. She lets out a meow and walks over to Damian, who picks her up and exits the kitchen area. Taking a seat on the couch, he begins to play with Marinette. Tapping her paws as she swats at him. Alfred, the human, quickly snags a couple of photos before proceeding with breakfast.

“How did you do that? Getting Drake to sleep?” Damian mentally slaps himself the moment the words left his lips. Marinette meows in response and snuggles closer to Wayne heir. “Maybe you’re not so bad as they say, Marionette.”

Marinette hisses at the male, her eyes becoming slits as she playful claws at him. Damian winces upon the nails attaching to his skin.

“Sorry, Angel.” He freezes in his spot. Never once had a nickname came out so capturing. Sure, he had called people by their last names, rarely their first, but nothing as meaningful as Angel.

He didn’t know how long he kept Marinette in his arms reading a book; however, what he does know it lasted enough time for Alfred to finish breakfast and call everybody down. Marinette’s purrs quickly turn into yowl as she felt her body move from its comfortable state.

Damian pats her head before entering the kitchen.

“Damian!” Bruce shouted upon exiting the dining room. In front of him is Marinette chasing Alfred the cat at high speed. She was jumping and dodging as Alfred was sliding and jumping past the future. Damian had to hold in his laugh when he saw the two cats running amuck. He could hear Marinette’s hissing, which made him wonder what Alfred did to upset the poor cat girl.

“An—Marionette,” He calls out ignoring his father’s Bruce Wayne version of the bat glare. Marinette meows, coming to a stop before jumping into Damian’s arms. She purrs as he slides his hand down her fur.

“Damian, please keep your friends under control.” Bruce then disappears down the hall probably to one of the many secret entrances to the cave. Damian doesn’t speak until he knows he is alone.

“Angel, what did Alfred do to you?” He asks the cat in his arms. Marinette looks to him and meows. “You want to do outside?” Unsure what she wanted, but the head gesture towards the window stated otherwise.

Marinette purrs in delight the moment her paws touch the ground outside the manor. Damian stares at her, curious as to what she’ll do. This was supposed to be the sunshine of their school anyway. Marinette trots off over to a bed of flowers. She sniffs them before letting out a sneeze. Damian holds in his breath, hoping that it would keep him from smiling or awing over the adorable sneeze. Maybe it was the fact that she’s a cat that making him feel this way?

Together they stay outside the manor until it was near lunchtime. Marinette teases him with her tail every chance she got meanwhile Damian was holding in the urge to yell or awe at her. It was becoming a dance of emotions.

“Young Master, your father is in need of your help.” Alfred calls out to him. Damian knowing what that meant, hands Marinette over to Alfred] before dashing off to become Robin. “He’ll be back Miss Dupain-Cheng would you like something to eat?” Marinette nods as Alfred hums his way to the kitchen.

Still sleeping in the same chair as earlier was Tim and right beside him with claws out is Alfred, the cat with a devious look in his eyes. Marinette squirms in Alfred’s, the human, arms. Tim moves just enough to avoid the incoming claw. Marinette hisses at the black and white cat, waking up Tim in the process.

“Uh, how long was I out for?” Tim looks around, wiping the sleep from his eyes. “Uh, who’s the cat?”

“Master Timothy, you’ve been asleep all morning, now would you like anything to eat or join your father and brother?” Alfred asks hoping the third oldest male would choose food over crime-fighting. Tim’s stomach growls in response sealing his fate.

When Damian had returned that night after hours of crime-fighting, he was greeted with the sight of Marinette sleeping on his bed with Alfred, the cat, on the opposite side. Little did he know was that Marinette had wondered around the manor as Alfred, the human, began cleaning.

That night Damian swears he heard voices as he slept.

“Alfred, no~” It was feminine something that the unusual in the manor unless his sister or Selina came by. What follows quickly afterward is a series of meows.

Slightly awoken by the noise he darts upward; a daze looks in his eyes. In front of him are a pair of dark cat ears and long dark hair. Thinking that it was Marinette, he goes back to sleep for the night.

At the start of the second day, Damian was woken up by Marinette purring rather than Alfred smothering him.

“Morning Angel.” He greets the smaller of the two dark-haired cats. Marinette meows sliding her tail against his arm. It was then that he had noticed the change in the outfit the female cat was wearing. No longer was it her school uniform but an updated version of it with a pink ruffle skirt around her waist. Confused, Damian wasn’t sure whether he should question the new information or integrate the cat. Choosing to ignore the outfit change, he begins to get ready for the day.

Marinette sneaks out of the bedroom and down the halls.

When Damian sees Marinette later that morning, all he could do was groan at the sight before him. It had to be Dick that had entered the manor for the day. Didn’t the oldest Wayne had a job?

“Grayson, what are you doing here?” He asks glaring at the fact that Dick had Marinette in his arms.

“Baby bird, why didn’t you tell me that you had gotten a new pet. I’m sure B wasn’t too happy.” Marinette meows loudly in his arms.

“Tt, she’s a guest, for the time being, Grayson, now put An-her down. She doesn’t like to be held by strangers.” Damian was quick to catch himself saying her nickname. Dick pouts and reluctantly puts the cat down.

“She’s already better than Alfred, the cat. Which reminds me, Alfred the butler says that breakfast is done if you want any. Timmy already ate and ended up disappearing.” Dick’s reply instantly causes Marinette to run in the direction of the kitchen. Damian narrows his eyes feeling a slight sense of betrayal.

Dick turns to Damian and wraps his arm around the younger’s shoulder and laughs, “C’mon, baby bird.”

That night as Damian was getting ready for patrol, he doesn’t realize the makeshift smaller version of the Robin uniform being pulled out by the teeth of Marinette’s mouth. She tugs against the uniform and slowly puts it on. Trotting over to the mirror, she checks herself out and sneakily follows Damian to the Bat cave.

For a cave full the world’s greatest detective, them not noticing a small cat wearing a cape that has the Robin emblem with addition to having angel wings was the most face-palming feat they have ever done.

Marinette snuggles her way into a hidden compartment on Robin’s motorbike. She waits until she could feel was rumbling of the engine. The engine soon cuts off, popping her head out of the hidden compartment, she looks around. Nothing felt out of place for her. Though she could feel the pulsating effects of the magic with her.

She could still hear Damian checking out the buildings. There is nothing to report on, something she knows the feeling all to well with her time being Ladybug. Late-night patrols were her worst nightmare.

Staying put, Marinette knew she couldn’t move, not just yet. There needs to be the ultimate reason for her to reveal herself. That lasted until the growing sounds of someone grunting and punching filled her sensitive ears.

“Oh, how the little birdy is struggling against someone like little old me.” A voice says off in distance.

Turning her head, she finally sees Robin in the midst of what looks like hand-to-hand combat with this new cat-obsessed villain. She could also see that Damian was struggling to maintain the upper power over the villain.

The villain places Robin and locking hold.

Marinette jumps out of the hidden spot instantly transferring into the catgirl form. Her ears perk at the sound of grunts, she moves quickly to the fighting scene. Incepting the hold, she frees Robin who falls backward.

“It seems my magic has evolved or you’re just a magical being.” The villain murmurs but she was able to pick up.

“It was you that turned the school into cats.” Marinette accuses as she felt her emotions go into over-drive. With heighten senses she engaged in combat with the villain.

The villain taunts her as Robin struggles to readjust himself. The paralyzing effects of whatever the villain holds over him fading away. He could barely hear the sounds of his family over the earpiece as he watches in shock seeing the Angel, he had been taking care of fighting the villain that turned females into cats.

She could feel the magic he was wielding pushing against her own, telling her to revert into her cat form. Pushing against the call, Marinette holds herself firm against the incoming blows.

“Augh, I got no time for this.” The villain waves his device. Marinette hisses feeling the shrinking feeling taking over again.

With a mighty blow narrowly defeats the villain just as the magic turns her back into a cat. Licking her paw, she trots over to Robin and brush against his legs. He is too in shock to do anything.

The next thing the pair knew, Red Robin was cuffing the cat villain as Nightwing and Batman make their way over to Robin, trying to get him to speak. Robin was unsure how to answer any of the questions, he simply just gestured to Marinette.

Marinette’s eyes twinkle as Nightwing takes her into his arms gushing about how great of a cat she is; however, the same couldn’t be said for Batman.

“She saved me, father if it wasn’t for her who would have known what the Cat-caller would have done to me.” Damian finally speaks placing his foot down against his father’s better judgment. Batman tried to up the fact that she knows their family secret, but even he couldn’t deny the possibilities.

Finally patting her fur, everyone knew that she had won over the famous Batman and Bruce Wayne’s appreciation.

When Damian and Marinette had returned to the manor, he couldn’t help but be at odds with her. He didn’t know what to say, to ask even. This cat had saved him, knows his family's biggest secret, and could fight. This was not something he normally deals with within a single day. He watches her as she slept in her little area, wondering what to say to her when she becomes human once again.

Damian falls asleep never noticing the sincere look one eye open of Marinette.

Today was supposed to be the last day for all the females in their school to be human. The girls were excused from the classes however the males were not. It was Tim that left the manor first, then it was Damian and Bruce followed not long after. Alfred, the human, needed to run some errands living the animals alone in the manor.

Marinette could feel the magic effects of the gas waning off. She chased Alfred, the cat, around the manor because he ended disrupting her relaxing time only to be followed by Titus soon after. She had barely spent any time with the other animals over the course of the two days.

Waking up after a quick catnap, Marinette began to realize that she was no longer in her cat form, but in her catgirl form instead. Her ears perk up with an idea. Maybe she should Damian a thank you cake for everything he has done for her. Yup, that is exactly what she is going to do.

Calling for the animals to follow her, she makes her way into the kitchen. Quickly locating the ingredients, she immediately got to work but not before believing she is on a cooking show giving instructions to her audience, the animals.

They all watch Marinette, intrigued by what she’ll make. Titus had nudged her hand a few times reminding her that Damian was a vegetarian allowing her to make the changes quickly before mixing them together.

As the cake baked in the oven, she began mixing a vanilla vegan frosting, a recipe she remembers her parents making when the customer was strictly a vegan. The buttercream came out nice and silky. It wasn’t long before the cake was done and put in the chiller for cooling. Marinette knew that she only made hours before anyone would return to the manor. Hopefully, by then she would have fully reverted to a human.

The cake was done and fully decorated before Alfred had returned with Damian behind him. Marinette, now fully human, smiles at the two with a joy that could defeat all darkness.

“I made you a cake as thanks for handling me as a cat. You didn’t have to, but you did.” Marinette place a quick peck on the youngest Wayne’s cheek before cutting him a slice.

“Uh...” Damian was speechless. Little did he know was that Alfred was filming the encounter with a knowing smirk. Maybe this would be the person that thaw out the ice prince’s cold heart.

“Don’t it’s vegetarian safe, you can thank Titus for reminding me and thank Alfred, the cat, for not attempting to sabotage it while I was baking,” Marinette adds when she saw the look in Damian’s eyes and the way his body language spoke upon being handed the slice of cake.

Together, against all odds, they sat in silence eating their own slice of cake. Alfred even takes one and appraises the young woman about her craftwork. She then explains that her parents owned a bakery growing up and that she’s been baking ever since she could remember.

Properly meet the rest was of the Wayne family was at dinner, when Damian begged her to stay the night to which she turned down on the basis that she needed a change of clothes and that she should go, check out her dorm apartment and make sure everything was okay.

In the weeks that follow, everyone at their school was in shock seeing the ice prince and sunshine incarnated hanging out with one another. No was surprised when the two began dating a couple of months after the cat situation. They were a match made in heaven.

Tag List: *View my Tagging System guidelines for how to to be properly tagged or removed.

#daminette #maribat #damimari #cat marinette #ml x dc #mlb x dc #marinette x damian

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writingsbychlo · 4 years

Text

more ways than one (01)

word count; 4951

summary; your first meeting with the stranger you rescued doesn’t go as smoothy as you’d hoped.

notes; I remind y’all that Stiles was possessed, but it veers off and it goes away, it’s not really mentions how, but the nogitsune never splits from Stiles. Allison is still alive, and Malia and Stiles are not a couple. Oh, and Derek is away travelling with Cora. That’s about it.

warnings; violence, choking, aggression.

You chewed on the straw in your mouth absentmindedly, your gaze trailing off into the distance as the girls talked constantly around you. You were vaguely following the conversation as they spoke, the girls chatting loudly about everything you had all been through lately, as though the supernatural was public information and they didn’t care about the opinions of those tables around you all who could easily eavesdrop if they bothered to listen closely.

Your eyes were squinted a little, the sun shining down and giving a warm feeling over the day, despite the storm that was due to set in later on in the day, and Lydia had texted you all this morning and told you to be ready to go for a late lunch while it was warm. She claimed that after everything that had happened with Stiles’ brief run-in with possession, and the year of supernatural crap that had gone down during your sophomore year, that you were all well overdue a lunch date to chat. That, and she was taking the opportunity to introduce Malia to the world of once again being bi-pedal and human.

Said strawberry-blonde snapped her fingers in front of your face, calling your attention to her and your thoughts snapped away from the nightmare you had somehow landed yourself in, your eyes focusing in on her as you pulled your milkshake away from your mouth, smiling as casually as you could as you looked at her. Her eyes were narrowed, lips pursed as she studied you carefully, before her lips were twisting up in a smirk.

“What’cha thinking about so hard there, girly?”

You cleared your throat, shaking your head and smiling casually as you lifted one of your fries to your mouth, chewing on the soft potato as you shrugged at her, trying your best to play it cool, but the four sets of eyes on you were throwing you through a loop. “Nothing.” You watched them carefully, swallowing the milkshake before taking a long sip of your milkshake, the chocolate flavour filling your mouth and she merely hummed, Allison was snickering as she turned to whisper to Kira, and Malia simply watched the interactions, taking the last bite of her double-cheeseburger and licking the sauce from the edge of her mouth, humming happily around the food.

“So, you’re not thinking about a pale and male-covered boy with brown hair and bright eyes?” You practically choked on your drink as Allison questioned you, your eyes wide as you wondered whether they’d found out about the lookalike you’d stashed at Derek’s loft, and you sputtered for an explanation, your cheeks heating up with a red flush, Kira cracking up and slapping the huntress on the arm as the two curled into each other in a fit of giggles.

“She’s totally thinking about Stiles, look at her blushing!”

You felt relief seep into your body as the tension slipped away, your body slumping in the seat as you rolled your eyes, your racing heart calming as your secret remained safe, for now. “Wait, am I missing something? Why would I be thinking about Stiles?”

Lydia picked at her acrylic nails, not even bothering to look up at you as she spoke. “Maybe because you’re totally into each other?”

“What?”

“Oh, come on. You know the two of you have gotten super close, lately!” Allison insisted, and your brows rose as you glanced around the other girls, and Lydia mumbled her agreement as she sipped at her water, a half-eaten salad sitting in front of her.

“When I first met you guys, I thought you were together,” Kira added, and you rolled your eyes, nibbling on your lower lip as embarrassment flooded through your system, the copy-cat male you’d hidden away yesterday slipping from your mind as thoughts of the original filled your thoughts. You loved your best friend, you truly did, and you couldn't deny how much closer you’d gotten to him lately, but it was only because he’d come to you when he started to feel the effects of his possession, confiding in you long before anyone else had. “I think you’d be cute together.”

“Are they not together?” Malia muttered, looking intently at the uneaten food on your plate, and you giggled as you offered it up to her, a bright smile taking over his face as she accepted the plate ad placed it down on top of her own empty one, quickly tucking into your leftover food.

“C’mon girls, he’s totally in love with Lyds, since like third grade. You know this, he’s not exactly subtle.” You teased, knowing it was true. The boy spoke about her all the time, and while he hadn't quite been as vocal about it, you knew he was still pining for the red-head girl.

“Everyone’s a little bit in love with me, but not everyone holds hands with their best friend.” You snorted unattractively, giving her a side-eye and leaning back, your legs crossing proudly as you thought about it.

“When have I ever held hands with Stiles?”

“Uh, like six times over the past three months?” Kira objected, the others all making various sounds of agreement as you watched Malia finish your meal too, a proud smile on her face as she leaned back in her chair, legs parted and hands sitting on her stomach as she groaned happily at the feeling of having a full stomach.

“Three of those times he was unconscious, one of those times he was going into a bathtub full of ice and one of those times he was checking into a nuthouse.” You pointed out, and the banshee counted them off on her fingers, wiggling a finger at you as she smiled.

“That makes five, what about the sixth time?”

You shrugged, deciding to bait them a little, a sigh falling from your lips. “You’re right, me and Stiles are totally and madly in love. You caught us out.” Their jaws dropped as they leaned forwards, a collection of squeals sounding as you tried to keep a straight face, eventually cracking up, and one by one they caught on as they scowled at you, Allison flicking you in the arm and Lydia pinching the other one, and you jumped away from both of them, rubbing your arms as you all but cackled at having fooled them.

The conversation moved on as they began to focus on other things, and you pulled your phone from your pocket, two messages flashing up on the screen and you clicked on the first, rolling your eyes as you opened the message from Stiles.

[batman 🦇💛] bring me ur leftover pizza back from lunch?

can’t, malia ate it, whoops x

[batman 🦇💛] >:( I can’t believe this, does 12yrs of friendship mean nothing to u?!

You grinned, rolling your eyes and tuning out the taunts and whistles you got from the group around you as they realised you were texting your best friend, your fingers flying over the screen as you typed out your reply, checking the time before you did.

according to the girls, it means we r in love x

[batman 🦇💛] ha. funny. ive seen u eat sand. couldnt kiss u now.

shut up, dumbass. I was 6 and u dared me x

[batman 🦇💛] kinda sad to kno the girl i'm in love w/ thinks i love u but that's my luck.

You cooed, rolling your eyes and promising that you’d text him later as you swiped out to the other text, your stomach churning as you realised it was from Derek. Admittedly, he was only asking about his loft, and whether you’d been over to check everything was okay, but it still made guilt twist at your guts before you sent a half-true reply, choosing instead to cover up the real facts.

Instead, you chose to tell him that you had definitely been over to check and that everything was tip-top okay, neglecting to tell him that you were stashing a supernatural double of your best friend only two weeks after he was mysteriously possessed and released, and that he was cut up and injured and arrived from a weird storm. Minor details.

Clearing your throat, you pulled out a handful of notes from your purse, placing them down in the amount that you owed as you excused yourself from the table, balancing the strap of your bag on your shoulder and smiling at the complaints of your friends as they encouraged you to stay, but it was already nearing the late afternoon and early evening, and you needed to grow the courage to return to the scene of your crime.

The pharmacy was only a quick walk around the corner, and you’d made sure to park your car outside of it so that none of them would see you leaving and entering the building with a suspicious amount of medical supplies, and you pulled the crumpled paper with your list pulled on out of your pocket. Smoothing the crumpled item out in the palm of your hand, the bell above the door jingled, the air conditioning washing over you immediately and you shivered at the sudden temperature drop upon entering the shop.

Peering at your own writing, you smiled uneasily at the cashier who was watching you, a kid who’d graduated just a year or two earlier, and her eyes narrowed on you as you moved through the shelves. Plucking one of the plastic shopping baskets from the side, you held it carefully in your arms, avoiding their scrutinising gaze.

Paper Stitches.

Your eyes scanned over the shelf, a surprising number of options displayed before you, and even the first option was already showing you the impact that this little shop was going to have on your bank account, and you simply prayed it would be worth it. Taking the largest size and strongest strength in your hand, you shrugged to yourself, dropping it into the basket and scanning the other ones. You could always pick up another size of you needed them, but you were definitely going to need at least two boxes of these ones for now.

You couldn't help the scowl on your face as the sum total began to add up in your mind, moving along the aisle to the wrapping sand covers,

Bandages. Gauze.

There were far too many options of bandages and covers, a jumble between compression wraps, light and thick material covers and thick and padded gauze. You could barely tell the difference between any of the options, and you began to think that maybe you should have paid a little more attention to the quick google search you’d done earlier as to what you actually needed.

First up, a collection of thick, cotton wool paddings to place over the large gashes the man had obtained, followed by gauze and bandages, a hand rubbing over your forehead as the collection began to gather up in the bottom of the basket. Your fingers brushed over the rolls of medical tape, and you dropped a roll of that in too, knowing you’d need something to fasten the material to his torso with.

You skirted around the corner to the next set of shelves, your cheeks flaring in a blush as you caught the suspicious gaze she was giving you, and you cleared your throat, holding your head high as you ignored the judgement hanging on her sights.

Antiseptic Wash. Hand Sanitizer. Cotton Balls.

100 cotton balls in a bag for three dollars felt like a good enough offer for you, and you dropped it into the basket, humming to the tune playing over the radio above your head as you swiped a large bottle of antiseptic wash from its place, and finally, a few of the small bottles of hand sanitizer, because you’d been needing some more of that anyway.

You hadn't quite been ready for the odd glare the ex-peer had given you when you placed the basket on the counter, and her eyes moved slowly between the items and your eyes, a sarcastic smile on her lips as she slowly began to ring them up, placing them all in a paper bag for you and ensuring they would all fit.

In a bid to avoid the wight of her stare fixed on you, you let your eyes scan over the ‘last-minute-purchase’ options on the counter, adding a packet of strawberry bubblegum to the collection and she scanned it through, reading your total to you and you jammed the card into the reader, wincing at the price that was displayed on the small screen. Your fingers punched into the buttons as you bit your tongue, taking the card and the bag as soon as you could and you darted from the shop, barely pausing to take your receipt from her as you fled.

Placing the stuffed paper bag on the shotgun seat, you rounded the car, letting out a deep sigh as you strapped into the seat and stuck your keys into the ignition. Digging into the bag beside you, you fished out the bubblegum, taking a stick from the packet and unwrapping it, popping it into your mouth and letting the chewing motion and sweet flavour soothe you as you started up the car and began the well-ingrained journey to the loft, anxiety riddling your body.

The radio played quietly in the background as you made your way along, the only sounds filling the car being that of the quiet hum of the latest chart-toppers, and the occasional pop of the bubblegum in your mouth. You weren’t really too sure why you were still keeping this secret from everyone, you had the perfect chance at lunch to tell the girls about what had happened, to get help and confide in someone.

Stiles.

Deep down, it was about protecting Stiles. The ripples on the surface of the water had only just smoothed back down, and you weren’t willing to throw the next stone in a situation that you were absolutely certain you could handle yourself. How dangerous could someone who was 147 pounds and unconscious be?

That was the only thought that was strong enough to force you up and out of the car, your feet carrying you forwards as you unlocked the main door, clicking it shut behind you as you made your way toward the stairs, choosing to walk all the way up to the top instead of taking the rickety elevator. You could use the time to calm yourself down, work out what you were going to do if the stranger you were harbouring was now awake.

Your hands were shaking so much that the keys were jingling as you walked, and you clenched them in a fist, taking a deep breath as you reached the final level and pausing before the silver metal door. With a deep sigh, you unlocked it carefully, sliding it out of the way and looking inside carefully. Natural light was flooding in through the huge bay windows at the other end, the concrete room lit up with warm light that almost made the monochrome grey space look welcoming, and your eyes zeroed in on the space that had once occupied that man you had rescued.

Nothing seemed out of place, the room wasn’t trashed and rummaged through, and everything was still and calm as you took a first cautious step inside. By the second step, you were sliding the door shut behind you, your brows furrowing. By the third step, a cold hand was sealed tightly around your throat, pinning you up to the wall as the tips of your toes brushed the ground.

The bag in your arms fell away, the items within it scattering across the floor as you squeaked, coming up to grab at the wrist holding you so tightly to the wall as you struggled to drag in any breath at all, your gaze meeting the furious one of the face you knew so well on the person you didn’t know at all. Those familiar honey-brown eyes were scanning over you interrogatively, and the long fingers wrapped around your throat flexed, tightening for a second before you were released, and you fell to your knees, eyes watering as you took in burning breaths, rubbing soothingly at the skin on your throat as the man merely stood and watched you for a second, before spinning on his heel and walking away.

You watched him go, shaking your head as he stormed away, and once your breathing had finally calmed and your heart had stopped racing so had on your chest that you thought it may burst out, you began to slowly gather up the items you had dropped, stuffing them all haphazardly back into the now torn paper bag and standing it up. Sitting on your knees, you took a moment to gather yourself, your eyes locking with the narrowed brown ones watching you, goosebumps rising over your body and you tried to seem strong, not to let him know quite how terrified you really were, as you took the back, standing on unsteady legs and holding your head high as you stared him down.

Making your way over to him, you placed the bag down in front of him, raising your brows as you moved slowly, the warning growl in his throat being acknowledged as you held up your hands, palms out to him to show you meant no hard, despite the fact that he'd attacked you only moments prior. Instead, you slowly tipped the bag upside down, allowing all the contents to spill out across Derek’s plain black coffee table, the man’s eyes scanning over it all, his face twisted in confusion as he looked at each item.

You stood with him in silence for a moment, letting him look at all the items, before he was stepping away from you, a snarl on his lips as he moved as far back as he could while still being able to watch your movements, track what you were doing. With a heavy sigh, you backed away yourself, never taking your eyes off of him out of fear of what he might do once you did, and for each step backwards you took, he moved forward one, and you slowly guided him toward the kitchen.

He lingered in the doorway as you moved around, never taking your eyes off of him for more than a split second as you searched through his drawers and cupboards, a small sound of victory leaving you once you found something you could work with, and you slipped two packets of the instant-noodles from the collection, dropping them on the counter as you continued your hunt on your meal-making task.

He flinched each time a pot or pan clashed, his eyes once again narrowing menacingly, and you had to suppress a chuckle because it was no longer focused on you, but instead on the source of the loud sounds, as he glared at a frying pan that had shifted and fallen loudly on another one. Selecting a pan big enough for the job, you quickly filled it with water from the tap, deciding that using the hob was definitely the safest bet, as you worked with this. Tearing open each packet, you held it up to show him as you watched on curiously, and you dropped the solid blocks of noodles into the water, waiting for it to begin to bubble over the flame.

There was nothing in the fridge that you could use, he’d gotten rid of everything perishable before going away, and you made a mental note to buy food, your heart once again sinking at the savings-draining task you had taken on. Maybe if you told Lydia, she’d give you her card and allow you to pay using her platinum, but you highly doubted you’d get away with telling her now without having to endure a long sit down talk and a lot of disappointed looks, which you weren’t ready to deal with. Lydia Martin could be scary when she wanted to be.

The silence hung heavily in the room between the two of you, and you tried to school your face into a stoic expression, despite the stormy scowl that was being directed at you, his body shuffling as you looked at him, his shoulders rolling from the discomfort of his injuries and he looked like he was going to try and dash at any moment. Taking two dishes from the lower cupboard beside your legs, you placed them out on the table gently, a fork beside each one and you stirred the noodles, the pasta soft and flimsy as it circled around, the savoury smell filling the air and you quickly dished up the food after switching off the hob, placing a fork in one bowl and pushing it across the countertop toward him.

He stepped forward as you took a seat on one of the stools, and you watched as he lifted up the instrument, pushing the pasta around the dish, a growl leaving him as he dropped the fork back into the bowl with a clatter, and you raised your eyebrows as you ate your own food, fixing him with a judgemental look and shaking your head. He used a single, skinny finger to push the bowl toward you roughly, some of the soup sloshing over the side and you let out a sigh, continuing to eat your food as he glared at you.

You had never felt quite so intimidated while in the presence of a bowl of noodles, and had you been anywhere else, in any other situation, you might have found this situation funny, perhaps even laughed at it, but right now, you worried you may actually choke on the noodles from stress. When you finally finished, and he was still twitching from foot to foot in front of you, his nervous shuffling giving you anxiety, too.

“What? You don’t eat, then?” He merely snarled at you, despite the rumbling in his stomach as the delicious smell drifted through the air and you raised a brow at him, shrugging and taking the bowl, his eyes watching as you snatched the food from in front of him. You made sure to make a show of tipping it into the garbage disposal, his eyes watching as the food slipped away into the drain and his jaw tightened, twitching as he ground his teeth together, his body jerking in shock as you slammed your hand down on the button on the wall and the loud grating filled the room, before you finished it, a smug look on your face as you cleared the dishes into the sink to clean later.

He stalked from the room as you did, his nostrils flaring at your actions and you wanted to stomp your foot on the ground and groan, but instead, you merely clenched your fists by your sides, following after him as he whipped his head around to see you following him, choosing to make his way over to the couch and poke through the items spilt out on the coffee table.

He picked up the bag of cotton wool balls, looking at them curiously before dropping them and you cleared your throat, his hard gaze directed back to you as you crossed your arms over your chest self-consciously. “Those wounds on your back are bad, you should let me take a look at you.”

He blinked at you, twice, eyes wide and his face didn’t move, giving you no indication that he was actually understanding a thing you were saying and you took cautious and slow steps toward him, his body tensing up as you did and you plucked the item from his hands, meeting little resistance as you held it up.

“These are for cleaning the wounds. On your shoulders?”

You placed the item down, motioning to your own shoulders as you tried to make him understand, and he twitched at the motion, his features falling from their hard glare a little his eyes softening and he swallowed thickly, his gaze dropping from yours for just a moment as he adjusted his arms. A wince was clear on his face as he moved his arms back, his lips parting and a quiet groan left him.

Your own shoulders slumped as you watched him, and you picked up another couple of items, deciding to offer him a small smile as you held it up, jiggling the packages before him, and the crinkling caught his attention. “These are for wrapping and padding the cuts, because those are really bad, and they’ll get infected.”

He pursed his lips, but for once they weren’t fixed in a heavy scowl and you felt as though perhaps you were making some kind of progress with him. Placing them down, you moved through the rest of the items, lifting each one slowly and telling him what it would be used for, only receiving the same blank looks and lonely silence as he stood before you, his gaze flicking over both you and the room multiple times. Despite the lack of verbal confirmation, you were choosing to believe that he understood you, because his posture had loosened, his body slumping forward a little and he seemed a little less like he was preparing to fight for his life at every turn of events.

It wasn’t until you’d finished talking to him and moved toward him that his defensive stance returned to him. He jerked aggressively away from you as you took a step toward him, and you lifted your hands, reaching out to him carefully as you motioned towards his back. “Let me take a look at your injuries!”

He stepped back again, his legs hitting the edge of the couch and he went rigid as you closed in on him, a low growl sounding from his throat, the noise rumbling from his chest in a warning and his eyes were practically burning with rage, his anger having built in seconds and your jaw dropped.

“We just talked about your injuries! I told you what I need to do!”

You tried one final time, reaching for him carefully and he took your wrist in his hand squeezing so tightly that your knees buckled as you released a cry, and he growled once again, this time predatory, as if to tell you to back off or it would get worse. Then, he was using his grip on you to push you back as you stumbled over your own feet, just about stopping yourself from tripping up and falling on your ass.

“Fine!” You snapped, your arms flying out to your sides as you shouted at him, and his eyebrows raised at your increase in volume, his eyes wide as he watched you, your own jaw clenching and you pointed at him angrily. “Go ahead, die of fuckin’ osteomyelitis for all I care!”

Your cheeks were flushed, and you fixed him with the harshest glare you could, before letting out a deep sound of anger, a groan that rippled through your body as you threw your head back, eyes squeezed shut as you tried to calm yourself down. Taking a series of deep breaths, you calmed your racing heart and the heat that was curling up your cheeks died down.

You mumbled curses under your breath, turning back to him to find him staring at you intently still, and you ran a hand through your head, grimacing as the tension in the air hung thickly. “Look, I’m going to go and get some warm water, we really need to sort out those gashes or you’re going to get really sick.”

You nodded at him, hoping that he understood before you were rubbing your hands together and turning on your heel, making your way into the kitchen. Fishing out a fresh bowl, you turned on the tap, running the water over the inside of your wrist to test the temperature, and when it became too hot for the skin there, you knew it was the perfect temperature. Gathering enough in the bowl, you placed it on the side, searching through the drawers for some clean rags.

When you first heard the metal of the door sliding, your brows furrowed, and it took a second before the realisation of what that particular grinding of metal meant, your eyes widening and you squeaked, dropping the material on your hands as you dashed from the kitchen, your eyes scanning over the empty loft area and your heart raced, bile rising in your throat as you guts twisted. “Shit!”

Your eyes focused on the open loft door, and you ran towards it, your feet moving quickly down the stairs as your tried not to fall, your blood pounding in your ears and you let out a panicked and frustrated yell as you noticed the main door now hanging open too, his taller stature and head-start ensuring you wouldn’t catch up to him even with his injuries, the area surrounding the loft still and empty, as though he had just disappeared.

Your legs buckled under you as the consequences began to run through your mind. Worry, fear and anger flooded your system as you kicked at a rock on the ground, tears lacing your eyes from the overwhelming floods of emotion bubbling over inside of you as you tried to work out what the fuck you were going to do now.

The sun was almost setting, dark clouds moving in over the sky and threatening to break at any time as the sun sank lower and lower on the horizon.

“I’m so fucking screwed.”

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aiden-png · 3 years

Text

Inhibitions

I was thinking about FSA tolerance headcanons again sooo XD I love Blue being a lightweight and Red being ridiculously good at holding his liquor.. putting Green in the middle and Vio closer to Red, or at least having Vio be good at hiding how drunk he is. but that got me thinking about Vio and Green drinking alone together, not having to worry about keeping up facades or staying alert for threats... anddddd now have a fluffy Vio/Green ficlet! (obv warning for legal drinking/drunkenness but it’s totally sfw!)

“Rough day?”

Green looked up from his lap, blinking the fog from his eyes to find Vio standing in the entryway. Vio gave him a look, equal measures knowing and tired, and Green only chuckled as he turned back to the sword in his lap. He’d zoned out sharpening it some time ago it seemed, the house now quiet, crickets chirping beyond the windowpanes. He sighed, sliding the blade into its sheath as Vio approached.

“Not any rougher than the rest,” Green relented, and Vio scoffed, tone full of humor.

“No use worrying about it now. It’s late, you should relax for once,” Vio hummed, and when Green looked up again he noticed the bottle in Vio’s hand. The taller man lifted it, a glimmer in his eye. “What do you say?”

Green smiled, and Vio settled onto the couch beside him with poised ease. The bottle was dark glass, expensive liquor from the tavern in town. Green couldn’t remember the last time he went--nor the last time either of them drank. Vio wasn’t usually the type, preferring to keep his wits about him and tease Blue as he quickly became drunk. Green didn’t drink with the others either, not really, even when Red pleaded and Blue tried to bait him with drinking contests. He was always on edge when they were out, too tense not to keep an eye out for any evil lurking in the shadows.

Vio handed him the bottle, the cap mysteriously missing. At least when they were home, Green didn’t have to keep on the defensive. He took a swig, wincing at the burning taste of it until it radiated warmth in his chest. Vio laughed softly as Green handed the bottle back, taking a drink of his own, face a perfect mask of calm at the taste.

“Not bad,” Vio murmured as he pulled back. He handed the bottle over again and smiled, settling in. “So, tell me about your day.”

Green lost track of time as the night wore on, the warmth in his body smoothing away any lingering worries from the day. The next thing he knew, he was crackling up over something Vio had said--something so deadpan and innocuous that when he sat back up, the world tilted dangerously, and Green realized how plastered he must be.

Vio didn’t seem to notice, or at least he didn’t comment, taking his turn drinking from the bottle. There was a light dusting of pink on his cheeks, his eyes just a bit more lidded than usual, but otherwise he appeared much the same as before. When the bottle returned to his hand he tilted it back and forth, trying to judge just how full it was. At least half, though the glass was heavy and dark, so maybe more? He took another drink and some spilled down his chin, making him yelp as Vio chuckled beside him. He wiped his mouth, cheeks heating as he grinned.

“I’m drunk.”

“So it seems,” Vio took the bottle again, inspecting it much the same. The sharp, analytical edge was still there, but... “Guess I can handle my liquor better than you, too.”

There was a haziness in Vio’s eyes, and Green smirked as he began to drink again. “Makes sense. You’ve got the most practice, after all.”

Vio nearly choked, and when he pulled back a startled laugh fell from his lips. “And what is that supposed to mean?”

“Do you really expect me to believe you and Shadow were drinking ‘evil rootbeer’, Vio? We’re not kids anymore,” Green stifled his laughter behind a hand as Vio rolled his eyes. “That lie wasn’t good back then, even for you.”

“Alright, fine, you caught me,” Vio huffed, but he was grinning as he shoved the bottle back at Green. “Shadow and I may have drunk some things we should not have. What can I say, I was trying to play the part.”

“Yeah, but you liked it,” Green grinned, giggling when Vio’s cheeks flushed darker. “Did you let yourself go back then? You must’ve if you and Shadow became so close--”

“Oh-- Give me that,” Vio huffed, pulling the bottle away again. He took a long drink, and when he pulled back his face was definitely red. “‘m not drunk enough for this conversation.”

“Are you now?” Green waggled his eyebrows.

Vio took another swig and Green doubled over with laughter.

“Alright, okay,” Vio mumbled, shoving the bottle back into Green’s hands as he rubbed at his face. “You need to drink more of that-- Goddesses help me if I say something embarrassing and you remember it.”

Green could barely stop laughing long enough to drink again, the liquor tasting more like apple juice than fire the drunker he got. He was warm and heavy and pleasantly relaxed now, but with Vio so flustered he couldn’t resist his curiosity now.

“So, you’re an honest drunk then?” Green smirked, and Vio eyed him with amusement. “Gonna tell me some secrets then?”

“Shut up,” Vio groaned, hiding a smile behind his hand. “Goddesses, I had no idea you were a flirty drunk. I never would’ve agreed to this--”

“What? Vi, I’m offended!” Green swooned back on the couch, grinning wide. “Me? A flirt? You’re a married man, I could never!”

Like music to Green’s ears, Vio began to laugh. It wasn’t the subdued, shy laughter or sarcastic chuckling either--but real, snorting laughter, absolutely honest and unflattering as Vio tried to stifle the sound. His eyes glistened with tears as he shook his head, absolutely beaming as Green stared, transfixed by the sight.

“I-- I’m not married, I’m not even dating--” Vio managed as he caught his breath. The flush on his cheeks and the unfiltered joy that sparkled in his eyes was too much for Green’s poor heart, and he hastily took another drink to calm its racing. “Shadow and I messed around, but that was years ago, Goddesses Green, it was all hormones and alcohol and lowered inhibitions...”

Vio sighed, shaking his head. When he looked back up, there was a fond, lopsided smile on his face, and Green felt his breath catch in his throat.

“Lowered inhibitions?” Green murmured.

When had Vio gotten that close? Their legs were pressed together now, sometime between Vio’s laughing fit and Green’s inevitable plunge off the deep end. Vio laughed, plucking the bottle from Green’s hands and taking another swig. He frowned as he pulled back, swirling the glass--it was empty.

“Yeah, y’know, like,” Vio waved his free hand around aimlessly, struggling with words for the first time Green could remember. The small pout on Vio’s lips when he failed to concentrate, his face scrunching up in drunken annoyance--so cute. “Oh, whatever, you know what I mean.”

“Nope,” Green shifted forward. He could smell the booze on Vio, mixing with his strong scent of lavender. His head spun, it was intoxicating. “Dunno that word. Give me an example?”

Vio huffed, eyes roaming just a bit too slow over Green. “Alcohol makes you feel funny things, doesn’t it? Like attraction.”

Green swallowed, bobbed his head. He wasn’t sure what he was agreeing with, but Vio laughed, so it must’ve been right. He couldn’t take his eyes off Vio’s perfect, thin lips, watching them move without paying attention to the words that came out.

A hand slipped into his hair, a bit clumsy, and Green finally looked back up. Oh, Vio was close now, their faces just inches away. Green’s breath shuddered out as Vio’s hand cupped the back of his neck, tangling in his hair.

“I still don’t understand,” Green murmured, tongue feeling heavy in his mouth. “Show me?”

Vio sighed, smiling as he pressed their foreheads together. “You better not regret this in the morn--”

Green slipped forward, and their lips finally connected.

---

Green woke the next morning to a pounding headache, a sore back, and with his head resting on Vio’s chest. He shifted, grunting in discomfort until an arm held him back against Vio’s side. The couch was barely big enough, their legs tangled and half falling off the side, but... Green sighed, settling down once more. It was barely dawn yet, and he wasn’t ready to forget the night just yet.

#four swords #fsa #green link #vio link #green/vio #aiden writes #unedited sorry all XD if I crosspost to AO3 later I'll clean it up

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agrestebug · 4 years

Text

Marichat May 2020

Hey everyone! I’m so glad that you guys have been enjoying these one shots from my Marichat 2020 collection, so here’s another one! If you like the ones I've posted so far, you can always find the full collection on FFN. I’m still cross-posting other stories to Ao3, so it’s not there just yet. I’m still AgresteBug on FFN so it shouldn’t be too hard to find! And please, don’t repost my stories without permission! Other than that, I hope you enjoy!

Day 27 - Secrets

Marinette let out yet another annoyed sigh, and Chat couldn’t help but ask as he wrapped his arms around her from behind, "All right, that's the third one. What's wrong purrincess?"

A softer sigh escaped her, "It's just," she turned around to face him, "I'm sick of Lila, Kitty. It's been nearly a month since you let everyone know you were dating someone, and Lila has been dropping hints for days that it's her."

He tried to smile, "Ignore her mon coeur."

"I can't!" She said frustratedly, "She is driving me crazy! I swear she is purposely doing it when I'm around, like she KNOWS something."

"Hey," he whispered lovingly, putting his hands on either side of her face, "we have been nothing but careful. There is no way she knows the truth. We went five months without saying anything, and no one was the wiser. Let her spout her lies,"

"But everyone believes her." She said, pulling his hands from her face, "You can see it in everyone's faces that they know what she is implying, and you should hear the things she says about you."

He rubbed the back of his neck, thinking back to all the things he had heard Lila saying. If truth be told, he was getting sick of it too. He wanted to try and be the bigger person, and just leave Lila to her lies, but seeing how upset his purrincess was, maybe it wasn't the right route to take anymore.

"I can only imagine." He relented, pulling her back into his arms and staring down into her beautiful bluebell eyes, "So, what do you want to do? I'm game for a little of this, or a little of that." He wiggled his eyebrows at her and she giggled, "Oh I'm sure if I set my Kitty after the rat, you'd have far too much fun."

"I do quite enjoy a game of chat and mouse." He said with a smirk, "but you're my favorite mouse to catch." He squeezed her closer and a light blush dusted her cheeks much to his delight.

She completely ignored the comment and told him, "Unless we flat out reveal our relationship, I really don't know what to do. She is a master manipulator, and she'll turn anything I say in her favor. I say anything, and by the time she's done, she'll even have ME convinced that you are dating her."

"Hmm," Chat mused, his eyes suddenly sparkling in mischief that instantly made her suspicious. She stared at him hard as a wide grin spread on his face, "I think I have an idea. It might be a bit risky, but we won't have to tell anyone anything."

She knew this probably wasn't a good idea, but asked anyways, "What's your plan?"

…

'They should be on their way to the bakery from Alya's any minute now. Have fun Kitty ;)' Marinette's text read, making him grin.

He stretched out of his comfortable position on the rooftop, getting to his feet and checking to make sure the small package was securely in his pocket. With the bait in hand, he started vaulting quickly across the rooftops.

Most people were going about their day, but he was glad that a few people noticed him. This was the one time he wanted eyes on him. This way, there were a few witnesses at least.

He found Alya's cinnamon scent, along with Nino's musky herb scent. They were close. He smiled wider, spotting them just across the street. He couldn't have asked for a better set up. He vaulted straight across their path, letting the small package drop directly in front of them.

Alya let out a small gasp in shock, instantly looking around. He jumped down instantly, feigning relief, "Oh thank god it didn't fall far." He picked up the small box and saw Alya's eyes widen in joy, "Chat Noir! This is yours?"

"Yeah, sorry about that." He said sheepishly.

Alya was already pulling her phone out of her pocket, Nino shaking his head, "No sweat man. It must be important."

Chat nodded, smiling down at the little box, "It is."

Alya had her phone pointed right at him, "What is it? A gift for your mystery girl?"

He smiles into the camera, "We can't hide anything from the great Ladyblogger, can we? Yes, it's an anniversary gift for my girlfriend. I would have hated to have lost it."

Alya's face lit up with the joy of the scoop, "Anniversary huh? One month? Three, a year?"

Chat smirked, "Now, now Ladyblogger, you know the rules. You don't get any details. I told you the truth about having a girlfriend, but that's all you get."

Nino chuckled at Alya's obvious disappointment, "You did promise you wouldn't pry Als."

"What's the harm in knowing how long they've been together?" Alya tried, but Chat shook a finger at her, "Tisk, tisk, fur shame Ladyblogger. No details means no details," he added it for good measure, "or Ladybug would have my tail."

Alya asked again the same thing she had the first time, "And, Ladybug is NOT your girlfriend?"

He sighed, "No, m'lady is the best, dearest friend I could ever ask for. I do love her, that will never, ever change, but she is NOT my girlfriend."

Alya looked just as disappointed as she had the first time, "Right. Ruin my LadyNoir ship why don't you."

He saw the smirk on her face and knew what was coming, "Since you won't give me details about her, maybe you'll give us a peek of her gift? I'm dying to know what it is."

Jackpot.

He held the small box protectively, "I don't think that's a good idea."

"What are the odds that I know her Chat Noir? There are thousands of people, of girls, in this city. Odds are, I'll never see, whatever it is, ever again." Alya tried, knowing that she would actually see whatever it was on Lila at school soon enough. Lila would be tickled to know that she had run into Chat Noir and knew what the gift was before her.

Chat looked at the box with a frown before looking up at her, "No recording."

Alya beamed, putting her phone away. He told them the second the phone is in her pocket, "You have to swear you won't say anything about this to anyone, at least until Monday morning. I want it to be a surprise."

Nino and Alya instantly agree to keep their silence, and he reluctantly opened the small box.

It's a ring, a white gold band that looks like a tiara. The middle of the tiara is heart shaped, and the small diamonds lining it don't overcrowd it. It was a simple design, but absolutely beautiful.

"Wow, that's legit dude." Nino told him, impressed, seeing the usually suave and confident black cat looking nervous, "You think so? You think she'll like it?"

"Without a doubt man." Nino said without a hint of hesitation.

Alya nodded, thinking that it was a little simple for Lila's usual style, but knew it was true anyways, "It's absolutely adorable. She is going to love it."

Chat gave them a bright smile, "Thanks." He lifted the ring out of the box, showing them the inside, "I even had it engraved for her."

There, etched into the white gold, was an elegant script that read 'My Purrincess'.

"Do you really call her that?" Alya asked, teasing.

Chat put the ring back in the box and nodded not the least bit embarrassed, "Every opurr-tunity I get." He told them again, "And you won't say anything right?"

They nodded again, "Not a word." "We'll keep your secret dude."

Chat gave them a quick, two-fingered salute before vaulting back up to the rooftops and disappearing as he headed for home. He landed in his room and pulled out his baton, texting her happily, 'The secret's been planted purrincess.'

It didn’t take long for her response to come through, 'Good job Kitty, now will you PLEASE tell me what the secret is?'

He laughed to himself, proud of all the secrets he was juggling at the moment, 'Tomorrow mon coeur. I promise.'

…

Monday morning, Adrien walked into school with a pep in his step. Not only had he managed to surprise his purrincess with the ring for their sixth month anniversary, but she had finally relented and asked to know who he was under the mask.

She had cried when she saw that it was him, which he'd panicked about initially before she explained that they were happy tears. They knew it was going to be a dangerous road going forward, but it was working out for the best. Adrien wasn't allowed to have a girlfriend at the moment, but there was nothing stopping Chat Noir from continuing to date her.

Marinette hadn't batted an eye when he told her that as Adrien, his father didn't want him to date anyone right now because of the brand. To his mild surprise, she actually thought their dating in secret would be for the better anyways. This way, they could date out of the spotlight, and not paint a bigger target on their backs for being together.

Lila’s too sweet voice immediately broke through his thoughts, "You sure you are okay Alya?"

He only looked around for a few seconds before seeing Lila walking towards the stairs with Alya who was frowning, "Yeah, everything is fine. You are sure you didn't see anyone special this weekend?"

Lila giggled, making him roll his eyes, "You know I can't tell you if I did or didn't."

He followed behind them at a safe distance, keeping his smirk to himself. He knew what Alya's problem was. There was no ring on Lila's finger.

"H-Hey Adrien. Good morning."

He turned instantly, smiling brightly as she walked up to him slowly, "Good morning Marinette."

They smiled secret smiles at each other before Marinette held out a small box to him, "Oh, I brought these for you."

He took the box as he told her softly, a slight blush on his cheeks, "You didn't have to do that." He opened the box and saw the small array of goodies. There were chocolate covered croissants, a couple of cheese danishes that he was sure weren't going to make it past the first hour if a certain kwami got a hold of them, and his favorite passionfruit macarons.

She said it somewhat teasing, "Well if you don't want them, I'm sure someone else,"

"NO!" He told her, holding the box to his chest, "I want them."

She giggled and leaned up, pressing a gentle kiss to his cheek before whispering it, "I thought so Kitty."

He whispered back with a grin, "Careful purrincess, or someone might see."

She tapped his nose with a wink, "I know how to keep a secret. Trust me."

They laugh before heading upstairs together to class. As they took their seats, with Lila nowhere in sight, Alya told Marinette instantly, "Someone looks extremely happy this morning."

Nino snickered as Adrien pulled out a chocolate croissant, "Here too."

Adrien took a bite and melted against his seat, "Don't judge me Nino." Nino laughed anyways and turned to Marinette, "Where's the treats for everyone else?"

Marinette's response was instant, "You ate them all this weekend when you and Alya came over. Adrien didn't get any since he had that photoshoot."

Adrien nodded instantly, "Exactly! I missed out and deserve these."

The girls giggled, Marinette's right hand going to cover her mouth. The tiara ring twinkled beautifully in the light, and Adrien made his move as he saw Alya eyeing it in shock, "Hey, that's new, isn't it?"

Marinette blushed instantly, looking at the ring on her middle finger, "Oh, uh, yeah."

"Can I see?" He asked innocently. She held her hand out to him, Alya and Nino both leaning closer to get a better look. Adrien thumbed the ring lightly, the shocked exchange of looks between Nino and Alya didn't go unnoticed.

"Wh-Where'd you get that dudette?" Nino asked, trying not to sound nervous.

Lila walked into the room at that exact moment as Marinette answered, "Oh, someone special gave it to me last night as a surprise. It's pretty, don't you think?"

All three of them nodded, and Lila of course, stopped to add her opinion, "Wow, that is such a cute ring Marinette. It's simple, but perfect for you." She said it with a slight flair in her tone, "MY special kitten gave me a ring when we first started dating. I can't wear it out of course, it's so big I'm sure someone would try to steal it."

Adrien saw the slight scowls on Nino and Alya's faces, knowing that they knew now that Lila was lying. He asked them concerned, "Are you guys okay?"

They both instantly smiled, trying to act like nothing was wrong. He smiled at them, before turning back to Marinette, "Do you mind if I take a closer look at the ring?"

Marinette pulled it off and held it out to him. He started commenting on it out loud, making sure to keep Lila's face in his peripheral, "The band is white gold, not silver or a gold-plated overlay either. You can see the Maker's mark for 20 karat gold, which is the highest quality of white gold out there."

He smiled to himself, seeing Lila's face harden, "And the design is simple, sure, but elegant. The tiara is beautifully crafted and the way the heart is integrated into the design is genius."

He held it up to the light, the diamonds catching and sending small prisms everywhere, "The diamonds themselves are flawless and colorless, easily D quality, not one has a bit of cloud or yellow tinge. Based on how many there are, despite them being smaller, there is at least a carat and a half worth of diamonds here."

Lila looked like she was practically seething in jealousy now, and he brought the ring closer, adding it innocently, "Whoever gave this to you must love you immensely. Even the inside engraving of 'My Purrincess' is flawlessly done."

She took the ring back from him, putting it back on her finger quickly as she said it hushed, "You weren't supposed to see that."

He glanced at the others, seeing the surprise on their faces before he faked it himself, lowering his voice, "Purr-incess, that sounds a lot like, are you the one dating Chat Noir Marinette?"

Marinette blushed heavily but didn't say anything to confirm or deny it. Lila stormed off towards her seat without another word, Alya asking her again, "Are you?"

Marinette smiled at her, saying it calmly, "My boyfriend just has a thing for cat puns, that's all."

Adrien grinned at her comment, giving her a small wink as Nino and Alya held knowing stares.

Marinette grinned happily, knowing that his plan had worked, and glad that their secrets were working out after all.

#marichat #miraculous ladybug and chat noir #oneshot #marichatmay2020 #i will love them forever!#itsagrestebug

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abraxos-is-toothless · 4 years

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Undercover- Throne of Glass AU (6)

Uh so, I do really like this one and I really hope you like it too:)

Warnings: Blood, self harm, talks of suicide and a teeny bit of violence.

Undercover Masterlist.

Full Masterlist.

Have the best gif I could find.

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It had been several days since the phone call from Arobynn, since they’d gone and collected his ‘present’, and Rowan still didn’t have a fucking clue what was going on. Manon didn’t speak to anyone other than Dorian; she wouldn’t even leave her room. Aelin always seemed to be torn between going to comfort her, and giving her the space she was obviously asking for. Rowan and Lorcan had tried to piece things together, but still they were left in the dark.

They all filed into the apartment one by one, walking down a small hallway, where everyone stopped short at the sight they were met with in the living room. There was a body in the middle of the room, wrists cuffed and attached to the ceiling by a chain, feet just scraping the floor and a bag over the person’s head. By the looks of the small, barely there twitches, whoever it was, was still alive. “Havilliard, Salvaterre, go and check the rest of the rooms. No one touches the body until I say so.” The boys nodded and did as Aelin- Rowan would get the answers on that name, whether she liked it or not –told them. There was a faint moan, and he, Manon and Aelin turned towards the body, their hands going towards their weapons. Manon checked the windows and the doors to the balcony before shaking her head. All locked and untouched.

“The rest of the place is all clear, boss.” Lorcan said as he and Dorian entered the room. Aelin slowly walked to the body, grasping the bag in one hand before yanking it off. Each of them flinched at the unexpected cry of pain and shock, but it did not come from who they could now see was a woman, hanging from the ceiling. It was Manon who’d let out the noise, hand reaching for something as she collapsed onto her knees. Dorian was there in the blink of an eye, asking her what was wrong as she started shouting;

“Get her down! Get her down now!” Both Rowan and Lorcan rushed forward, taking the weight from the woman’s arms while Aelin started picking the locks to the cuffs. It barely took her a minute before the mystery woman’s hands were free, allowing him and Lorcan to lower her to the ground. Manon crawled from where she was, pushing them out of the way to cradle a blonde haired head in her lap, mumbling as she sobbed. “A-asterin, Asterin wake up. Wake up, wake up, wake up.”

Dorian let out a choked sound, while Aelin’s eyes had widened, staring at the two women on the floor. “Whitehorn, Lorcan, get her up and down to the car. We have to get her back to the house now.” They moved to do just that, when a phone started ringing, setting them all on edge. Aelin pulled it from her pocket, glaring at the screen before she answered. “You sick fucking bastard, I’ll kill you for this.” That same laughter from earlier in the evening rang out through the room, and Manon growled.

“This is me showing you I am willing to compromise, dearest one. Come home Aelin, come home to me and this all ends here.” Rowan felt his shoulders go stiff, ignoring the way Lorcan eyed him, and moved to lift Manon’s friend into his arms. Aelin was sneering again and the gods help him, but he wanted to go over and comfort her, make her smile the way she had back in the garden. Lorcan was still watching him and he made his face settle into the same blank expression he usually had around everyone.

“Rot in hell, you prick.” And she hung up, ushering them all out of the door and down to the car.

He came out of his memories when he heard the slide of a door, looking up from his place on the swing to see Gavriel come out of the house, Vaughan just behind him. Lorcan was standing to the side of Rowan, arms crossed as he assessed the way the twins were sparring on the grass. They stopped when Rowan looked up to ask Gavriel, “How’s your patient?”

“In and out of consciousness. Manon came out of her room once earlier, telling me that I was to check on her friend every hour, before she disappeared again.” Gavriel sighed, rubbing his forehead.

“Has anyone actually been told anything about that yet? Ro, Lor, you were both there, do we seriously have nothing on this?” Fenrys said, laughing as he dodged Connall’s right hook. Rowan opened his mouth in order to reply but Lorcan beat him to it.

“Don’t look at me, we weren’t told anything. Well actually, if anyone were to be told something, it would be Whitehorn.” Fenrys and Connall stopped what they were doing, joining Gavriel and Vaughan as they all stared at him in confusion.

Rowan stood slowly, turning to his second, neither of them willing to back down as Rowan said through gritted teeth, “And just what, is that supposed to mean?”

“I’m not blind you know, I’ve seen the looks you and the bitch have been giving each other when you think no one is watching. I saw the way you acted at what Hamel said that night to her on the phone.”

Fuck it, he had no idea he was being so obvious, but he sure as hell didn’t let anything show now. “This mission is to get in, get close to them, get all of the intel we could and then take them down. So I got in close. What you are seeing, Salvaterre, is me doing my job.” Lorcan only scoffed at him and shook his head, telling the twins to gather their shit so they could all go inside because the bastard was hungry. As they were walking back through the doors, knowing they couldn’t say much, Connall still took the time to tease Lorcan, baiting him for some sort of response.

“He says these things, but what about Lochan? The sexual tension could be cut with a goddamn machete when you two are in the same room, ever since your little fight.” Rowan watched as Lorcan pointedly ignored him for a few minutes as they walked into the kitchen, seemingly trying to put something together that wouldn’t seem weird if they were overhead.

“Oh Please, she’s a looker for sure, but I would not put my cock in that. I would like to keep it attached.” At that moment a throat was cleared from the doorway, causing them to turn suddenly, where the woman in question was now standing. Lorcan’s eyes went wide when he realised she’d probably overheard, and the twins were trying not to laugh at him. Vaughan just looked between the two, shifting on his feet as Elide made her way into the room, walking over to the fridge and grabbing a bottle of water. Gavriel was sitting at the bar, reading the paper, or so it looked as his eyes kept popping up over the top, waiting for the silence to break. Lorcan’s mouth opened and closed several times and Rowan thought Elide was about to cut off whatever bullshit was building, before there was a scream and the sound of something crashing. They were all running towards the sound immediately, coming into the living room to find Ren with Lysandra and Yrene tucked behind him, his gun pointed at a very confused Asterin, who was armed with a knife.

“Where the fuck am I? Who are you people?” She growled, her voice a little scratchy from disuse. Ren didn’t falter, just moved his gun so it pointed at the woman’s head.

“Put that down and we can tell you everything you want to know, but so help me, you come near these women again, I’ll put a fucking bullet between your eyes.” It was at that moment that Manon appeared at the other door, hands shaking as she gestured for Ren to lower his gun. Asterin turned to her, knife clattering to the floor as she flung herself at the other woman, both of them breaking out into sobs at the hug.

Rowan watched on in confusion as Manon breathed out, “You’re alive. How are you alive? There was no way you could have survived that.” Asterin laughed lightly, squeezing tighter before pulling away.

“That is a very, very long story.”

“Then you sit, I’ll grab you something to eat and then we can talk.” Asterin nodded and moved to the sofa, easing herself down into the soft cushions, flinching as Gavriel moved to kneel in front of her with a medical bag. Rowan hadn’t even seen him move to get it.

“Easy, it’s alright, I just want to check your bandages. I’m the one that’s been changing them and helping to get you better, I’m Gavriel, but you can call me Gav if you like.” The woman only nodded and held out her hands, watching him with weary eyes as he peeled the gauze off of her wrists. After the first one was done, Manon walked back in with a plate of food, followed by Dorian, Chaol, Aedion and Aelin.

Once everyone was situated, Asterin started talking and didn’t stop until her voice was hoarse. From what he’d gathered, Manon’s grandmother had sold Manon, Asterin and the rest of their friends into some kind of prostitution ring. They were all stuck in one room of this house hidden somewhere in London, where men would come in and take their pick of them, and the price was higher if you wanted extra time. She had said there was one night where Sorrel, another girl, had come back in with the keys to their door. All of them had made a break for it until they had been cornered. Asterin had seen her chance to push Manon through a door that led to a hallway, and eventually to the front door. Apparently there were candles in the room because it was one of the rooms where some of the men liked to take their time and have a sort of mood set. Asterin, Sorrel and Vesta, another out of their Thirteen, had grabbed some of them and threw them to the floor, setting a fire to block all of the exits and making sure Manon couldn’t get back to them. Apparently each of the girls had laughed before attacking; making sure the scumbags would go down with them. Asterin had told them she was on the verge of passing out when she vaguely remembered being lifted and carried out. When she had woken up, she was in a new place, but was stuck doing the same thing for Arobynn’s men.

By the time Asterin had gotten it all out, Manon had thrown up at least twice, shaking in Dorian’s arms. Asterin was a pillar of steel where she sat, eyes full of fire, even when Manon asked shakily, “Was anyone else saved?” Asterin turned her head to stare out of the window, hands clenched into fists.

“Vesta was there too. Someone, who I remember they all called Cortland, used to take her away. One time she came back with a dagger she had stolen,” Asterin let out her first unsteady breath, turning back to Manon with tears in her eyes, “she asked me to end it, because she’d had enough. She died in my arms and I almost turned the blade onto myself after, but a guard walked in before I could. I swore then that I’d hold on, long enough to make those men pay, long enough to take out your grandmother. Only then when there was nothing left for me, would I have joined you all in that better world.”

Manon was crying again, almost hyperventilating. “But you had saved me, I still would have been out there. You wouldn’t have tried to find me?”

“They had told me that the ‘one with the pretty gold eyes’ didn’t get very far before they got to you. I was told you were dead, alongside everyone that we loved.” The last words were interrupted by a choked off sound and the two women were in each other's arms once more. Rowan blinked, feeling something wet fall down his cheeks, and lifted a hand to wipe the tears away. When he looked around, everyone was sniffling, faces full of sorrow. Everyone but Aelin, who stood from her seat, body rigid with anger. She drifted past Rowan, fingers grazing the back of his hand as she did so, before kneeling down in front of Asterin. Rowan ignored the tingling feeling her touch had left, watching her remove a small blade from her boot, raising her left hand and displaying her palm, where a faint scar lay. She sliced into her palm, following that old scar, looking directly at the two embracing women as she said;

“I’ll make you the same promise I made to Manon: With the spilling of my own blood, I swear to you that your time for revenge and justice will come. I’ll hand you those who have wronged you on a silver fucking platter, for you to do as you please. If I break this promise to you,” Aelin took her bleeding hand and linked it with Asterin’s left, pressing their palms together, “my blood is on your hands. Free for you to take from me if you deem it, in return for the justice I could not provide.”

It was in that moment, Rowan felt as though his whole world shifted. When this mission was over he’d lose her in each scenario. Either by his own hand, or someone else’s. But this was the mission he was given. He would do what was asked of him, would do what was necessary, even if it broke him in the process.

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How do we feel about this one? I may have cried writing it. I was also listening to In This Shirt by The Irrepressibles and To Build a Home by The Cinematic Orchestra so that might not have helped the feelings. If you want a tag then just give me a shout!

Tags: @bryaxisthefaceofnightmares @fancyclodpaintercookie @empress-sei @acourtofterrasenandvelaris @tswaney17 @queen-of-glass @thesirenwashere @awkward-avocado-s @b00kworm @http-itsrebecca @eatmysandwiches @poisonous00 @flowersinvegas @julemmaes @mu-si-ca-l @spyofthenightcourt @sis-it-dont-add-up @mad-madeline-ace @df3ndyr @jesstargaryenqueen @notyournymphetish @carbconnoisseur @aelinfeyreeleven945tbln @superspiritfestival @alyx801 @dayanna-hatter

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doomonfilm · 3 years

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Thoughts : WandaVision [Disney+, Episodes 7 and 8] (2021)

Wow... just wow. The last two episodes of WandaVision have been pure brilliance. The MCU has shown that their long game formula (in regard to information dispensing) works just as well in an episodic format as it does over the course of multiple movies, and with one episode remaining, the majority of the questions have been given explanations. Speaking of expectations, mine have been more than met for two of the final three episodes, so I am anticipating sheer epicness for the finale. With that in mind, I give you my thoughts on the last two episodes leading up to the conclusion of the WandaVision tale.

Editor’s note : If episodes 07 and 08 are any indication of what the finale holds in store, I am anticipating it needing its own entry that covers both that episode and the impact of the series as a whole. Therefore, I will only be covering episodes 07 and 08 at this time.

THE STORY THUS FAR

Episode 07 : Breaking the Fourth Wall Wanda (Elizabeth Olsen) wakes up the morning after aggressively expanding the borders of The Hex as a response to outside intervention from Agent Hayward (Josh Stamberg) during Vision’s (Paul Bettany) attempt to circumvent the boundary. Frazzled and full of existential dread, Wanda lets down her guard in front of Tommy (Jett Klyne) and Billy (Julian Hilliard) to reveal that she no longer understands or cares what is going on. Agnes (Kathryn Hahn) pops in, offering to babysit the twins, which Wanda passively agrees to. Meanwhile, Vision wakes up to discover Darcy (Kat Dennings) is now present inside of The Hex, and employs her assistance to return to Wanda. As the pair attempts to make their way back to the house, Darcy fills Vision in on his two deaths, as well as Wanda’s role in them, which rocks Vision to his core while simultaneously reinforcing the love he feels for Wanda. Outside of The Hex, Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris) and Jimmy Woo (Randall Park) rendezvous with Rambeau’s associates and attempt to enter the boundary, but after a specialized vehicle is unable to pierce the wall, Monica steps in of her own volition, which unlocks abilities and alterations that Darcy previously warned her about. Charged with a mission, Monica attempts to inform Wanda of the costs connected to her actions, but Wanda rejects Monica’s warnings. Before the pair lock horns, Agnes steps in and ushers Wanda into her home, and after Wanda calms down, she realizes Tommy and Billy are nowhere to be found. Wanda investigates the basement per the instructions of Agnes, only to discover that she has been trapped by Agatha Harkness, the true identity of Agnes, who is a powerful witch in her own right.

Episode 08 : Previously On Caught in the web that Agatha Harkness has laid out for her, Wanda is interrogated by Agatha to reveal the source of her incredible powers. Partly due to fear, and partly due to post-traumatic stress, Wanda stays tight-lipped, but after a bit of forceful persuasion, Agatha takes Wanda on a journey through her past. Wanda is forced to face the loss of her parents via a large munition from Stark Industries, the experimentation performed on her in HYDRA captivity, the roots of her intimacy with Vision in the Avengers compound, her encounter with Hayward at S.W.O.R.D. headquarters in her attempt to reclaim Vision’s body, and finally, her creation of The Hex in Westview (and an alternate version of Vision). In the wake of this journey through her traumatic past, Wanda confronts Agatha, who is restraining Tommy and Billy, and Agatha drops a bomb on Wanda : the root of her unparalleled powers can be attributed to Chaos Magic, which in turn, makes Wanda a Scarlet Witch.

THOUGHTS ON THE SHOW This series has gone from being a unique take on the MCU lore to being a monumental pivot for some trajectories, and an introduction for others that will have long-lasting impacts. While shows like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Netflix Defenders universe were placed outside of the events of the round of MCU phases (with Marvel’s Agent Carter being the sole exception to the rule), a direct line can be drawn in both directions between the events of WandaVision and the events of some of the most iconic MCU films, including Avengers : Infinity War, Avengers : End Game, Avengers : Age of Ultron, Thor : The Dark World, the Ant-Man films and several more.

The public at large has also gone from the position of hesitant spectators to full on purveyors of speculation, with many outright attempting to will appearances from Mephisto, Reed Richards, Professor X and even Magneto based on the sheer bizarreness of Quicksilver crossing over from the X-Men universe. I was definitely a member of the Reed Richards camp that had to take the L when that potential tease did not pay off, but my joy (and my faith in correct speculation) was restored when Hayward wheeled out his grey version of Vision. I’d also be remiss to not mention everyone’s favorite character in terms of validated speculation, the mysterious Agatha Harkness. With all of this in mind, I personally cannot wait to see how these characters continue to factor into the stories we will be presented with.

Monica Rambeau has really and truly gone through the most epic journey of any character short of Wanda, and our experience as collective passenger during her transformation into an enhanced of herself has been a highly entertaining watch. Introducing the real world into WandaVision via Monica’s return from The Blip not only immediately injected empathy into us as viewers, but it firmly set the events of the show at a specific spot within the greater MCU timeline. With Photon, Spectrum and even Captain Marvel on the table as her possible superhero iterations, all of us will patiently wait to see which mantle she takes up in the finale (and moving forward), but her sheer determination in tandem with the constant reminders of her past via Captain Marvel soundbites has helped shape her into a major fan favorite.

Agatha Harkness may have popped up onto the scene as Agnes, but keen viewers who were anticipating an MCU stylized take on House of M saw her reveal coming from week one. Her reveal was wonderfully hilarious, but the gravity of her presence and the potential of her powers presented in Previously On has positioned her as a formidable foe (or possibly an aggressive teacher) for Wanda, whom she has now appointed as Scarlet Witch based on her use of Chaos Magic. Is she simply using Tommy and Billy as bargaining chips for her own game, or is there a bigger player in the game that has yet to be revealed, with Agatha using a multilayered bait to pull Wanda in?

Now that Darcy has clued in Vision on his multiple deaths and their impact on Wanda, what will be the result? It’s become clear that this version of Vision is a construct created by Wanda, so does he have independent will, or is he merely a tool in Wanda’s possession? If something were to happen to The Hex, what would happen to Vision? Would he cease to exist, or is this version here to stay?

Vision may be present due to Wanda’s Chaos Magic (or at least a form of him), but now that Hayward has seemingly achieved his goal of weaponizing the body of Vision from the Avengers, what is in store for anyone on the receiving end of his wrath? Does Grey Vision have any ability to govern and operate himself, or is he under the control of Hayward and S.W.O.R.D.? Can Grey Vision exist in the same realm as Wanda’s Vision, or will his presence have an impact on Wanda that in turn has an impact on her version of Vision?

THE QUESTIONS

- Based on some of what Vision states in Breaking the Fourth Wall, Wanda’s incredible formation of Vision within The Hex, and the reveal of Hayward’s weaponized Grey Vision, are there multiple versions of Vision? Can Wanda’s approximation of Vision exist outside of The Hex?

- If Quicksilver is Fietro (fake Pietro, per a hilarious one-line from Agatha Harkness), then where did he come from? Agatha didn’t take credit for his creation, and we know that Wanda is capable of creating people (plus we know she’s a fiend for DVDs), so is Quicksilver a stress-induced approximation of the Pietro Maximoff she knows, with a bit of adjustment courtesy of the multiverse? Is he here to stay, or will he fade away?

- How did the Mind Stone cause Wanda’s formation into Scarlet Witch? Wanda seems to be either ignorant of the source of her Chaos Magic powers, or she’s playing her cards close to the chest, but either way, it seems as if she has a complete knowledge of witchcraft that may have been laying dormant in her all along, waiting to be unlocked. If a real witch is visibly shook by Wanda’s potential, what happens when Wanda gains an understanding of (and mastery over) her Chaos Magic abilities?

- Is Agatha Harkness housing The Nexus of All Realities in her basement?

- We have been given almost all of the answers we need in regard to the sitcom formatting and commercial inclusion with Agatha’s trauma-infused journey down Wanda’s memory lane, so I am definitely looking forward to revisiting all of the currently available episodes to tie up any loose ends I may be overlooking.

#ChiefDoomsday #DOOMonFILM #Disney+#WandaVision

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characteroulette · 3 years

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so I know I haven’t posted just writing in a while, but here’s some SouYo that I finished a single chapter of and then haven’t found time for continuing yet. (this is going on AO3 once I get more chapters finished, also). Just a weird little “what if Souji and Narukami, but one of them is shadow”

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[The True Self]

From the moment they'd med (and Yosuke meant really met. When the guy had pulled him out of the trash can, not when Chie had kicked him in the balls holy shit both of those were so lame, Yosuke was such a loser), Yosuke had sensed a certain kinship with the transfer student. They were both city kids plopped into the small middle of nowhere town of Yaso-Inaba, therefore Yosuke had to help the guy out.

Unfortunately, it was hard to really tell how to do that with this guy. When the guy had helped Yosuke out of the trash, he'd smiled so brightly and introduced himself as Seta that Yosuke wasn't sure there'd be anything to help out with. His voice was so gentle and radiated a kindness that Yosuke had instinctively wanted to protect this guy immediately.

(Which was weird. Protect from what?)

In lieu of anything that didn't make sense or make Yosuke sound like even more of a loser, he'd just casually slid the offer to go out for the specialty in this small town (nothing big, just fried steak, god this town was such a podunk boring shithole) onto the table. Seta had been polite, a little embarrassed, but that small smile was ecstatic as he agreed.

Then, after class, Yosuke wanted to gently remind Seta, but the guy seemed completely different all of a sudden. That gentleness had become a strange mischievous smirk, though it quickly became one of disgust once Yosuke mentioned the plan. Although, really, Yosuke was sure Seta was disgusted the moment he had realised Yosuke was talking to him.

Politely, harshly this time, Seta complied, but Chie had luckily overheard (and there was something Yosuke had never known he'd be grateful for, Chie's freeloading) and asked to come with. Then Seta was much more agreeable.

Another thing of note, Chie called the guy 'Narukami', not Seta. Which, again, was weird.

(Who the fuck was this guy?)

Yosuke took them to Junes, not the place with fried steak (because he wasn't made of money, he reminded Chie amidst her loud complaining) and the guy (fine, Narukami for now) continued to be a mystery. The way Narukami casually flirted with Chie really rubbed Yosuke the wrong way. Even when Yosuke left to talk with Saki-senpai a moment, Narukami leaned over to Chie and gave a pointed murmur of, "No way a guy like him has a girl like that, right?"

But, okay. Yosuke couldn't let it bother him too much. He'd lived in cities, too, he knew the drill of guys acting cooler in front of girls. He'd been shoved around like this, made the butt of the joke, just so his 'friends' could score some points with the girls they liked. Prince of Disappointment and all.

And, really, it just had to be that this guy was realising what a bore this place was compared to a bigger city. After a few days, the stir craziness had set in and he was probably doing this purposely to get a rise out of them. Maybe. Either way, Yosuke could still relate, could still understand.

Then Saki-senpai blew Yosuke off to go see the transfer guy, too. And warned him about how annoying and nosy Yosuke could be. That stung. Yosuke tried not to flinch, but Narukami replied with a teasing, "Yeah, tell me about it."

It was a bit much and Yosuke was not proud of the way he had to grip his hands into such tight fists to keep himself from showing how much it affected him. There was a mysterious glint in Narukami's eyes, though. Something more genuine than the taunting bravado he was putting on. Chie and Saki-senpai laughed in agreement, but then he continued.

"But I kinda like that about him. Makes things interesting."

Narukami turned his gaze straight at Yosuke, meeting his eyes with all the smugness of a goddamned self-important cat. The girls' laughter died out after that. Then Saki-senpai returned to work and Chie launched into some stupid rumour about something called the Midnight Channel. Yosuke barely listened, too busy watching this Narukami, trying to find some clue explaining what the hell all that was even about.

Narukami continued flirting with Chie until they had to head home, going so far as to offer to walk with her. This guy had to be some kind of pro, as she agreed easily, all blushy and stuttery and cute. And that just made Yosuke want to punch the fucking smirk off Narukami's face.

The next morning, Yosuke was hesitant to approach the guy. Which face would he end up seeing this time? Before he could make a decision one way or another, the guy noticed him and waited for him to catch up.

Smiling out of politeness and concern, the guy said, "Ah, I wanted to apologise for the other day, Hanamura-san. My brother tends to not agree with those I like to talk to."

Yosuke frowned. "Your brother?"

"Yes, Narukami."

The guy (Yosuke was sure it was Seta this time, maybe) nodded, as if that explained things perfectly. Had Seta swapped with Narukami sometime yesterday during class and Yosuke hadn't noticed? Had anyone noticed? They had to be identical twins, as Narukami looked exactly like Seta (except for the harsher expressions), but how did they get away with this?

Admittedly, Yosuke hadn't paid too much attention yesterday during class. Nor had he paid much attention to when Seta (and Narukami, maybe?) had been introduced, as he'd been in too much agony over crashing his bike and breaking Chie's precious Kung-Fu DVD. It was possible that there were two of them and Yosuke just hadn't noticed.

Oh, but that meant Yosuke had made the mistake of taking out Narukami instead of Seta. Well, shit. Yosuke was the asshole here, as usual.

"I also had. A strange experience last night. Concerning the Midnight Channel." Seta pressed on, before Yosuke had the time to apologise.

That distracted Yosuke instantly. The stupid rumour thing Chie had strong armed them into checking out, right. Yosuke grew a bit hesitant as his own experience flashed through his mind (Saki-senpai, looking in pain and calling out for help though there was no sound to it) and gave a prompting, "Oh. Yeah? Who'd you see?"

Seta's frown twisted in confusion. "Well. It's less about what I saw, but." His shoulders drooped as he deflated. "It was a girl, but that was all I could tell. She seemed to be in pain."

Yosuke's stomach dropped. Could it be that they saw the same thing? The same person? If that were true, then Saki-senpai might be in trouble. Then again, that was quite a leap of logic. But if this Midnight Channel really worked like how Chie had said, then how could it be possible for Saki-senpai to be both of their soulmates?

Back when the rumour got started. Weren't a ton of the students talking about how they saw that newscaster, Yamano? And then she'd ended up dead.

A shudder rolled down Yosuke's sides and he had to shake that dread off. It was too early to be making these types of hasty conclusions.

They walked the rest of the way to school in silence, Yosuke too lost in his own thoughts to think of replying properly. Seta looked like he had more to say, but nervously kept his mouth shut. He took his seat in the spot right in front of Yosuke once they arrived at class and Yosuke stared out towards the windows until King Moron shouted at all of them for being lazy asswipes. (Not in those words exactly, but the sentiment was definitely there.)

Embarrassingly, Yosuke spent most of the day staring at the back of Seta's head instead of paying attention to the lessons. It was just so mysterious. A transfer student with a twin whom they swapped places with during the day? It went against all logic, really. Yosuke wanted to find out when exactly Seta and Narukami made the switch. Was it lunch? Before they arrived in their classes? Shit, that would mean Narukami was all ready seated in front of Yosuke, possibly. But how had no one else noticed this? How did Yasogami allow it?

Seta did leave during lunch, no doubt to eat in private, but did return for the rest of classes. Well, Yosuke thought it was still Seta. He needed to figure out a way to tell the two apart, because there had to be at least one tell. There had to be at least one visual cue to tell them apart besides their mannerisms.

After classes were finished for the day, Yosuke took a deep breath and went to test the waters. He stood by Seta's desk and grinned his usual friendly grin. "S'up, dude?"

The guy smirked, mischievous and harsher once more. That was Narukami. "Are you checking in with me again, Hanamura-san? That's rather sweet of you, I guess I have to say 'thank you' now."

Yosuke's eye twitched. Yup, no mistaking it. He laughed a bit half-heartedly with an uneasy, "That's a little..."

"It's no wonder Souji-chan likes you."

Narukami's smirk turned into a glare. A surprisingly sinister glare at that. Yosuke's hands gripped into fists and he had to, once again, hold himself back from punching this guy's smug face. Why was his immediate instinct to defend Seta? To stand up for someone he barely even knew? Unable to fully curb that aggravation, Yosuke muttered a heated, "No need to be an ass about it, Narukami-san."

There was nothing wrong with either of their statements. Except for the clear hostility they radiated. Still, Chie butted in with an oblivious and eager, "Hey, guys! Did you watch it? Who'd you see?"

Narukami sat back, rolling his eyes (grey, Yosuke noticed, just like his and Seta's hair), then smiled charmingly up at Chie. "It was fuzzy, but definitely a girl. Boyish and cute, too, from what I could tell."

Narukami looked like a smug cat. How was it even possible to be that bold and smooth at the same time? Shockingly, Chie took the bait and blushed, all coy and girly. "Oh, really?" She (thankfully) snapped out of it quick enough and grew serious. "But - But I saw a girl, too. So that means my soulmates a girl as well."

She gave a defeated exhale while Narukami frowned in thought. The most neutral expression Yosuke had seen on either brother yet. If all three of them had seen a girl. Possibly the same girl. Yosuke's earlier apprehension slammed back into him. This couldn't be a coincidence. There was no way this Midnight Channel was showing anyone's soulmates.

But why Saki-senpai? Why that Yamano lady? Was it even really Saki-senpai? Something still seemed a bit too far-fetched here, there was some piece Yosuke was missing to really understand what the hell was going on here.

Narukami, still oddly neutral for once, said, "After seeing the Midnight Channel last night, my TV tried to eat me."

Chie and Yosuke both snapped their heads towards him, incredulous. Narukami didn't seem to even notice as he continued, parsing out something on his own.

"The only reason it couldn't was because the screen was too small and my shoulder stuck. Perhaps this could have something to do with the fact that we all saw a girl?"

"All? Wait." Chie sputtered (very undignified) and whirled on Yosuke. "You saw a girl, too?"

"You don't have to act like it's some big shock." Yosuke huffed at her, putting up the affronted airs though he had no energy to really meet her challenge. "Honestly. It looked like someone I knew. And she was in a lot of distress."

He rubbed a hand through the back of his head, through the hair there (it was getting a bit too long, probably, and he'd need to dye it again soon since the roots were coming through just a bit), too concerned to not let it show through for the moment. Chie looked at him in sympathy, in confusion, but Narukami chose that moment to stand and shock them both out of the moment. "It's decided then." He said, grabbing one of Chie's hands in a way too familiar, way too gentlemanly manner. "Let's go look for a bigger TV and find the truth."

"Wha-What does that even mean? Hey, Narukami-san!"

Chie's shrill voice continued as Narukami directed her out of the room. Yosuke should probably go along, especially if they were headed towards Junes. Which, of course they would be. Where else could anyone find a TV large enough to jump through in this small little town?

#P4 #Persona 4 #Yosuke Hanamura #Souji Seta #Yu Narukami #brotagonist #Chie Satonaka #Momo writes stuff #Yosuke being IT's lead thinker #let the boy be smart #this is my curse #writing the first chapter to something #and then never coming back to it #ugh

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