#they have MULTI-DAY MISSIONS where are their SOCKS
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Trapped Inside My Mind
[Plain text: "Trapped Inside My Mind". End plain text.]
Multi-chapter.
Chapter 1 : The ancient evil trapped in amber.
Chapter summary : You, Finn, and Jake are meditating with Princess Bubblegum in her castle when suddenly she has to check on something very, very important.
Of course things go wrong and now you have a world to save.
It was supposed to be a relaxing day, damnit!
Masterlist
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Fandom : Adventure Time.
CW/TW : none unless you count swearing.
Author's note : I'm so happy I wrote this and I hope you guys enjoy it.
English is not my first language so tell me if I wrote anything wrong.
The reader here is gender neutral and will use they/them pronouns.
Also there is no use of Y/N.
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"Guys, what I am supposed to be meditating about?" Asked a thirteen years old human boy as he whispered.
His name was Finn, he had white skin and blonde hair which was hidden by a white hat that resembled a bear. He was wearing black shoes with white socks, dark blue shorts, a blue shirt with short sleeves, and he was carrying a green backpack.
"Don't know." Surprisingly a yellow dog replied. "I'm thinkng of pillows stuffed with spaghetti."
His name was Jake, he was a magical talking dog who could walk in two legs. He had yellow fur, floppy ears and two cute big eyes.
Finn and Jake were also brothers.
"Pillows stuffed with what?" A third voice asked, wondering if they heard wrong.
That person was you.
You, like Finn, were a human. You were wearing brown boots with black socks, gray jeans, a white shirt with short sleeves, a duffle hooded jacket of your favorite color, and you were carrying a leather satchel.
"With spaghetti." Jake replied again.
You felt a hand on the top of your head before you could say anything else.
"Clear your minds."
"Right! Sorry, Princess." You said while she was doing the same with Finn and Jake.
Her name was Princess Bubblegum, she had pale pink skin and long pink hair, long enough it reached her ankles. She was wearing casual pink yoga pants and shirt, pink shoes, a hot pink cardigan sweater, and a golden crown with a blue gem.
Princess Bubblegum, PB for short, had invited you and the boys to meditated with her in her castle.
Apparently, meditating helped you become stronger in a spiritual way.
While Finn complaining that it was "boring", you and Jake were all for it.
You don't know how Jake feels, but you were a little stressed.
Last week, you, Finn, and Jake, were on a mission to rescue Hot Dog Princess's knights from a maze they got lost in.
The three of you found them easily and were about to get out, but one of the knights said something about a magical creature that granted wishes in the center of the maze.
You weren't interested, but the two boys were, they both seemed to have the same wish.
The ancient psychic tandem war elephant.
In the end you all entered the labyrinth to find those wishes and, to not get lost, Jake has tied his legs to something and start to stretch.
You may wonder, how was that possible? Well, that's because Jake had shapeshifting powers! He could change into anything he wanted… but it seems that even he had limits.
The deeper you went into the maze, the more he stretched and the more he stretched, the smaller he became.
You tried to stop him, but he wasn't listening.
You finally arrived at the center of the maze, where you guys found what seemed to be a mud snake.
You thought one of the knights was going to wish for Jake to be okay... but you forgot they were... slow. One of them wished for a box while the other literally exploded.
Poor Jake was so disoriented that he ended up wishing for a sandwich. That left you and Finn.
You were going to make your wish and save Jake, but it seemed like the snake was enjoying watching him die and said it was Finn's turn, so you couldn't do anything.
You knew how much he wanted to wish for the elephant, you were about to tell him that you can wish the elephant for him, so that he could save his brother, but it seemed that he had other plans.
He wished for the elephant and began to communicate with him telepathically.
And apparently because the elephant was there, he was also granted a wish and ended up wishing for everyone to be healed.
And with that Jake and the knights were okay, then the elephant took all of you home.
You still had a wish, but you didn't use it yet, you just kept it in a jar and hid it in your closet.
The snake had said that there were no do-overs.
You expected today to be a relaxing day.
You took a deep breath and tried to clear your mind, but all that effort went out the window as PB gasped in fear.
"I have to go check on something!"
"Can we go with?" Finn asked.
"Perhaps you are ready to go with." PB answered after a few seconds.
"Are you sure, princess?" You asked. "We can stay here if you want."
"Yes, i'm sure."
"Alright." You said as Finn and Jake bumped their fists.
"Guys, you'll need to put these on." PB said as she took off a pair of earrings from her ears.
After putting each earring, which were apparently also tiaras, on Finn and Jake's heads, she removed a necklace from her neck and put it on yours.
Everything around you turned a transparent blue for a second.
"Neat." You heard Jake say.
Then PB touched the gem on her crown and then a transparent blue bubble surrounded her head.
Oh, so that's what happened a second ago.
"Stay close to me." PB said before clapping her hands.
Then her butler, Peppermint, appeared and blew a very large bubble, big enough for the four of you to get inside and once inside the bubble began to float upwards, up to the tree on the top of the castle.
"At the heart of this tree is an ancient evil, held in a prison of amber…" You gave PB your full attention.
The bubble burst once you reached your destination.
"The Lich."
You gasped at what was before you.
There, trapped in amber, was the Lich.
The first thing you noticed were its horns, they resembled those of a goat, the left one was intact while the right one was broken.
Then you looked at it's face, it had horrific green lights as pupils peering out of its empty eye sockets, and pale undead skin pulled tight against its noseless skull. Its skin is frayed away from its lips revealing a wicked and perpetual grin. Its arms are bare bones with various decayed tissues, showing off its skeletal hands. It was wearing loose robe with multiple layers and a large cape that is severely torn at its end.
You had never seen anything like this, not even in the three years you were in the land of Ooo.
"Jesus christ." You whispered.
And if that wasn't enough, you started hearing things, they sounded like meaningless whispers.
"What's that sound?" Finn asked as you looked around trying to figure out where the sound was coming from.
"He is casting spells… trying to get in your head and control your bob, but these gems are protecting our minds from his influence." PB said making you touch the necklace she gave you. "If we lost the gems, we'd be defenceless, he would have full control over us."
"That's freaking nuts." Finn exclaimed.
You stared at the Lich fow for a few seconds before looking back at PB.
"Beyond Iceberg Lake lies the ruins of the Lich's tower, where he was converting the planet's life-force into unholy power to destroy all of Ooo." PB explained. "But before he could, the Legendary Billy attacked him and pummeled him into the resin of this tree."
Billy, you remember meeting that guy, like, a few months ago.
Your train of thought come to a stop when you heard the sound of something breaking.
"Is it just me or do you guys also hear that?" You asked nervously.
"I thought i was the only one." Jake answered.
"I… what the nuts?!" PB screamed with fear.
You, Finn, and Jake, turned around and gasped in shock.
The Lich has escaped! But how?!
"Dude, be a big sword!" Finn told Jake, who did so without hesisation.
Finn then grabbed Jake and used him to hit the Lich… but it didn't work because he ended up escaping.
PB gasped and shout. "Quickly! To the other secret room!"
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PB had taken the three of you to a room with a closet, a chest, and a window.
"There's only one know weapon that can harm the Lich…" PB said as she opened the closet. "The gauntlet of the hero."
Inside the closet was a large gray gauntlet with one eye, which was closed, on the back of the hand and a blue gem on the back of the wrist.
You've always wondered why Billy didn't have his gauntlet when you met him, it turns out it was here all the time.
PB put the gauntlet on your right hand and said. "You have but one chance. While the Lich isn't at full power, you must smite him with this."
"Cool." You said in amazement after witnessing the glove shrink to your size.
"His only desire is to destroy life." PB whispered while grabbing a crystal ball, the ball showed an underground entrance. "If you fail, he'll kill everyone." Now the ball was showing the Lich with fire in the background.
"No! That will not happen!" Finn declared as you nodded.
"That's right!"
PB smiled, then walked towards the chest and opened it. "Finn, this is for you, The Lich's lair is supposed to be cold. I just don't want you to get sick." She took out a pink sweater and gave it to him. "Take this sweater, I made it myself. I'm not great at knitting, but please wear it… I care about you, Finn."
"I love it." Finn replied after putting it on.
PB then hugged him, you and Jake didn't hesitate to join the hug.
Not a second later, the four of you were startled by the sound of the window opening.
All of you gasped.
"Hey, hey, hey!"
"Mothertrucker! You again?!" It was all you said the moment you realized who it was.
His name was Ice King, he was a crazy and annoying old wizard. He had pale blue skin, a long nose, long white hair and beard. He was wearing a dark blue robe and a golden crown with three red gems.
"So, I've been thinking about this a lot lately and, well… gosh i'm so nervous."
"What the heck do you want?" You asked with annoyance.
He looked at you and asked. "Will you gave me your blessing so i can marry Princess Bubblegum?"
It took you a few seconds to comprehend what you had just heard and when you did it… you were furious.
"Not in a million years! Get out of here you old pig!" You yelled before running towards the window.
"What?! Why are you calling me that?!" He asked angrily.
You didn't even answer him, you just closed the window.
"No! Not the latch!"
"Quickly now, guys." PB said. "Track the Lich by his trail of death."
"Here i go!" Finn exclaimed before he started running.
"Oh no, you don't!" You interrupted and grabbed him by the back of his sweater. "You are going to stay here."
"What?! Why can't i go?!"
"I need you to protect the princess, Finn." You said. "You know how batshoot crazy the Ice King is, you need to stay here and make sure he doesn't kidnap her."
You weren't exaggerating, the Ice King was crazy, he was obsessed with marrying a princess to the point that he even kidnapped them.
And you may wonder, how can Finn, a thirteen years old boy, protect PB from Ice King, a wizard?
Well, that's because kicking the Ice King's ass is easier than one might think.
Yes, even to the point a thirteen years old could kick his ass.
"I guess you are right." Finn said quietly.
"Come one, Jake!" You shouted before running out of the room.
"Here i go!"
"Be safe." You heard PB say.
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The two of you were running through the candy forest following the Lich's trail of death, which was not a difficult thing to do.
"Be honest with me, did you want Finn to protect PB or was that just a excuse so he won't come?" Jake asked.
"Actually is a little bit of both, if Finn is with the princess, he will protect her from the Ice King and he won't get close to the Lich." You answered. "is a win-win scenario!"
You knew Finn very well, you knew he could defend himself.
But if the Lich is as bad as PB says he is, you didn't want to risk the young boy getting hurt or worse.
"Running this fast makes my stomach hurt." Jake commented after you crossed a bridge.
"Come on, Jake!" You looked back at him, still running. "we are getting close to the-"
You couldn't finish what you were saying because you bumped into something.
When you looked up, you realized it wasn't something but someone.
"What the fuck, Ice King?!" You shouted before pushing him out of the way.
"Hey! Wait! I'm serious about Bubblegum."
Neither you nor Jake paid attention to him and kept running.
Suddenly, the Ice King began to float and got in front of you while saying. "Look, i wrote her name all over my arms and legs!"
"Aaaahh!" You and Jake started screaming in horror and disgust.
The Ice King showed the two of you his arms and legs which had written "Princess Bubblegum" all over them.
Forget the Lich, this was the most horrifying thing in the world!
You and Jake started running again, still screaming.
Ice King started following you. "It's not fair! She always hangs out with the three of you!" He looked at you and said. "And it's not like you want to marry her!"
"Of course i don't want to fucking marry her, you pig! She is almost three decades younger than me!" You yelled.
"Why do you keep following us?!" Asked Jake who was already getting tired of this, you shared that feeling.
"I told you already! I want your blessing so i can marry Princess Bubblegum!"
You and Jake just ignored him and kept running, hoping he would get tired of this and leave.
Of course that doesn't happen and now you're stuck inside an ice dome.
"Come on, give me permission to marry her. I'll… i'll-"
You interrupted him. "I have already told you! Not in a million years!"
"Oh, come on! If you bless our wedding, then maybe she'll really love me."
"I told you no, you idiot! Now get out of the way before I punch you!" You warned him.
"I will! When you bless our wedding!"
Without hesitation, you punched him in the face with the gauntlet.
Hey, you did warn him.
"Aaaahh! My nose!" He screamed in pain.
"Jake, get us out of here."
"I'm on it." Jake said as he shapeshifted his fist into a bigger fist and punching the ice walls.
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Soon you and Jake found yourselves on a beach and ran towards the shore.
"Hey! This is the place Finn and I found you frozen!" Jake commented.
Once you were on the shore, Jake pointed to the lake and said. "There! Out over the lake!"
You could see the Lich rise from the water and start floating away from you.
"Jake, turn into a boat!" You told him.
"I'm your dinghy dog!"
You and Jake started following him but then you noticed that you were doing it very slowly.
"Jake, wait! I will see if can use this thing!" You shouted as you put the gauntlet in the water. "Now, how do I use this?" You asked yourself before tapping it with your left hand.
Suddenly, the eye on the gauntlet opened, revealing a green eye and a black triangular pupil, and shot a beam from the palm.
"Aaaahh!" You and Jake started screaming, not expecting that.
At least that helped! You and Jake were going faster now.
"We are getting closer!" Jake shouted.
"On the count of three!" You shouted before pulling the gauntlet out of the water and pointing it at the Lich.
"One… two… three!"
But before you could blast the Lich, the Ice King got in the way! And he had…
"Finn?! Princess?!" You shouted with horror in your eyes before poiting the gauntlet away from them and into the water. "No!"
You and Jake ended up being shooted to the sky.
"Oh, no." Ice King commented before he, PB, and Finn, ended up getting soaked. "Oh gross. This water stinks"
Once you and Jake were on the shore, you yelled so loudly that your throat hurt. "Ice King!!"
"Look! Look what you made me do to them!" He yelled as he showed you PB and Finn, who had their wrists frozen.
"I didn't made you do anything, you stupid son of a-!"
PB interrupted you. "Guys! Don't let the Lich reach his well of power!"
Before you or Jake could say anything, you heard an explosion going off.
"What is that?! "Finn asked alarmed.
"Oh no! He made it!" PB shouted.
"Princess, don't worry! We still got time!" You hoped you were right.
You and Jake started running and ended up finding an underground entrance.
"Hey, where are you guys going? What's going on?" Ice King asked.
You just ignored him and got inside.
Soon you and Jake found yourselves in a…
"A underground subway?" You asked in surprise while looking around and taking note of the skeletons on the ground.
"You were here before?" Jake asked.
"No, but i know what it is. We had these things back in my time… damn, I sound old saying that."
You suddenly heard something akin to someone shushing before the witnessing all of the skeleton getting up.
"Oh, fuck!" You cursed before activating the gauntlet and blasting all of them. "We don't have time for this."
"Then let's go." Jake said before he started running.
Before you could follow him, you felt something grabbing your satchel. You looked down and saw it was a skeleton.
"Oh hell no!" You yelled before stomping on its head, breaking its skull without problem.
You were next to Jake when you two felt the floor shake, you looked down and saw that it wasn't the floor, you were on top of a giant skeleton!
You, without thinking, activated the gauntlet and blasted it, unfortunately you accidentally also made a hole in the floor and the two of you fell down there.
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You and Jake didn't stop screaming or falling but then you saw a pipe.
You grabbed Jake with your left arm and grabbed the pipe with the gauntlet before you two turned into pancakes.
Not far from you was another hole in the floor, you got closer to it and saw…
"The Lich." you whispered.
The Lich was in front of what appeared to be a well filled with… green stuff, for the lack of better word, and then dipped his hands there.
"He's getting his powers back. weird." Jake commented before climbing onto your back.
"Well, not for long." you whispered before blasting him.
Unfortunately, he dodged it.
You keep blasting him, but he keeps dodging.
You jumped down and started falling towards the Lich to blast him in the face.
But he grabbed you by the wrist, the one with the gauntlet.
"Oh, no." You said nervously.
The Lich got his face close to yours and brought his skeletal index finger to his non-existential lips.
He shushed and the gauntlet exploded.
You and Jake were in pure shock.
The Lich then grabbed Jake and threw him across the room.
"Jake!"
You tried to get the Lich to let go, but he grabbed you by the chin and made you look at him.
Your frightened eyes staring back at his empty eye sockets.
After the Lich finished examining you, that's what you think he was doing, he threw you to the other side of the room.
You ended up hitting the back of your head against the wall.
You lost consciousness for a couple of seconds but managed to stay awake.
"Ice King, let us go right now!"
You prayed to God for that not to be Finn, you prayed to God for that not to be Finn.
You looked up and saw Ice King with, yep, PB and Finn.
"You get to be kidding me!" You shouted angrily.
"Jake!" Finn screamed watching his brother dodge a green fireball thrown by the Lich.
Finn then hit the Ice King with his frozen wrists.
"Aaaahh! Why do people keep hitting my nose?!" Ice King screamed in pain and dropped Finn.
Once on the floor, Finn broke the ice on his wrists and ran to his brother.
"Jake, are you okay?!" Finn asked.
"That's it! I'm gonna bark him!" Jake exclaimed before grabbing his brother and using his shapeshifting powers to stretch towards the Lich.
This turned out to be a bad idea because the Lich ended up hitting him in the face with a fireball.
"No!" You and PB shouted.
Jake started falling with Finn under him.
You felt your heart stop at the sound of a gem breaking.
"Finn." You whispered watching the young boy get up… his eyes turning black with green pupils.
Finn clutched his head in pain and screamed. "Stop!"
He stopped after a few seconds and started walking towards… the well.
"No!" You shouted before standing up and running towards him.
You grabbed him by the back of his sweater and dragged him away from the well. Once you were away he tried to fight you, so you did the first thing that came to your mind.
You took out your necklace and put it on him.
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Everything around you… turned black… and so very cold.
You looked around… but could see nothing but absolute darkness.
You felt so cold that you quickly pulled up the zipper of your jacket.
Then you heard an unknown voice calling your name.
You looked around and discovered it was the Lich.
"Aren't you cold?" He asked.
Yes… yes, you were cold.
"Walk into the well."
You tried not to do that, you really did, but you couldn't stop.
You started walking towards the well but then you felt something akin to arms grabbing you around the middle trying to stop you, but you were stronger so you kept walking although with a little difficulty.
Then you felt like you couldn't move anymore, you tried to move your legs but you couldn't.
You looked down but saw nothing.
What's happening?
You looked up and saw the Lich throw fire at you.
You tried to move but couldn't.
But the fire didn't do anything to you, it didn't even touch you.
You took note that the Lich seemed surprised.
Why?
Then the Lich started screaming.
He also started moving weird, from your point of view it seemed as if he was hitting himself against something.
Now he started laughing and laughing, to the point that it was causing you a headache.
Then he disappeared.
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You gasped once everything was clear again and you could see again.
"Finn! Buddy!"
You saw Jake on the other side of the well with Finn on the ground over what seemed to be dust.
"Jake?" Finn asked before exclaiming. "Jake!"
"Finn!" You shouted. "Are you alright?!"
"Yes! I'm alright!" Finn replied with a smile and asked. "Are you alright?!"
"Yes!" You tried to go towards them, but you couldn't move your legs. "What the-"
You looked down and noticed that you were trapped in ice, from your feet to your knees.
"Why are my legs frozen?"
"Finn saved you!" Jake said.
"Finn! You did it!" PB exclaimed with a smile.
"We did?" Ice King asked. "Hey! Yeah, we did!"
That made you raise an eyebrow.
Did he actually do something or is he just talking nonsense?
"You guys! This experience has brought us all so much closer together." Ice King looked at PB and said. "Princess, I'm sorry for all of this. I love you, and I've decided to set you free!"
That made you sigh with relief.
Ice King melted the ice on PB's wrists and let her go. "Go free!"
"Noooooo!!!" You, Finn, and Jake, shouted in horror.
And why is that?
Because he dropped her into the fucking well!
"Whoops! I've got the dropsies!
None of you said anything, you didn't even insulted him.
You all just stared at the well.
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#my posts#my fanfics#adventure time#finn the human#finn mertens#jake the dog#princess bubblegum#bonnie bubblegum#ice king#the lich#the lich king#reader insert#gn reader#gender neutral reader#no use of y/n#timm series
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Saw some posts going around about being homeless and wanted to throw my own two cents in on strategies you can use.
A lot of people think that once you lose your home, your two options are either spend a bunch of money on motels or sleep outside. There are many other options you should exhaust first.
Pack light. Bring a couple changes of clothes, but don't over burden yourself. Fresh underwear and socks are more important than anything. You can swing wearing the same jeans for longer than the same shirt.
Don't break the habit of brushing your teeth often. It's important and a difficult habit to build up again.
Get a good phone charger, and a good portable battery. You can get ones on Amazon that will fully charge your phone up to 10 times on one charge of the battery. If you don't have a place you can accept deliveries, try dollarstores, Walmart, and best buy, or other electronic stores.
High data plans are really cheap right now, so if you're already paying 30-40 for your phone plan, check to see if you can switch to a higher data plan for the same price on your phone provider's website.
Have utensils. You can get packs of portable and easy to wash ones that come with fork, spoon, knife, and straw. Or you can just pack normal ones. It's up to you.
Get a multi-tool. Theyre really handy to have.
If you buy a weapon of any kind to defend yourself, make sure you know how to use it and really have an indepth check in with yourself: if you were in a fight, would you be willing to use it on another person? If you are unsure even a little bit, don't carry it. Knife, gun, any of those specialized self defense items. They're more likely to be taken and used on you. Especially if you hesitate.
Get on welfare, income assistance, food stamps, or whatever other government program you can. These often provide access to resources and if you get a social worker, they will often be familiar with resources and programs you can access.
Be kind and respectful to other homeless people but don't make friends with them. This may sound harsh but people in these situations are desperate and if you drop your guard around some individuals you will get robbed. Plus, it's really easy to get sucked into toxic mindsets where you spiral into self destruction if there are other people to go down with you. You will feed off of each other's bullshit. It's just better for you and them to focus on yourself right now.
Having a baby right now will not save you or fix your situation. If you have sex, use protection. If you get pregnant, highly consider getting an abortion if you're able to. Being pregnant complicates homelessness a lot and your kid will almost definitely be taken from you, which is heartbreaking.
Keep a low profile. Don't get into fights or arguments, don't yell at service workers, don't be a nuisance to retail. Sometimes you will be wronged and it'll feel unfair, but often it's best to swallow your pride and to remain in good standing with the people around you.
Sell or leave any laptops, tablets, and other electronic devices you can't keep on your person. If someone doesn't steal them they will most likely just get broken or damaged.
Look up all the soup kitchens and foodbanks in your area. Most of the time, there will be at least one place open any given day of the week. Churches are the ones that will do this more often than not, and as long as it's not Salvation Army they usually do not care who you are or how you got there. Missions tend to feel more secular than say, Catholic churches, if that matters to you. (but getting a hot meal is often worth sitting through the Lord's Prayer.)
If you're under thirty, look up Youth resources. Usually there will be services tailored specifically for you that won't be as in demand as general population services.
Employment centers, libraries, food banks, etc, should have contact information regarding shelters. If you're a woman running from an abuse situation there are even more options.
Shelters tend to be hit or miss. I've stayed in really awful ones, I've stayed in really good ones. The best you're going to find are the ones where each resident gets their own room. They're hard to come by, but one of the shelters I stayed at the most when I was homeless let you stay up to two months on your first go. Then youre out for two weeks, then you can come back for up to a month at a time. If you're lucky, you'll find a shelter that provides meals as well. This is a great place to have a warm bed to sleep, meals, and showers.
Couch surf. Now's the time to call on your friends for favours. I try not to stay in any one place for longer than five days. Mixing this with staying at a shelter got me through about five years of homelessness.
Group homes, supervised living programs, etc. These tend to be the next step up from shelters. Almost all of them give you your own room and are more long term than shelters. Often, you have to actively be working and/or participating in an education or employment program to stay, but it's way more stable than staying at a shelter.
Do not bother with Facebook marketplace queer housing groups. In a lot of cases you'll be out on your ass again in a couple of months. There's a reason people in these groups can't keep roommates.
When you can, have a set of clothes that make you not "look homeless." You will find situations where you need to blend in. If you have a secure place to store your belongings even better. Dead giveaways for homeless people are often their huge backpacks and a lot of people know this.
Out of the cold shelters open up in the winter. They're more temporary than regular shelters and it's usually sleeping on the floor of a church or community center, but they're okay options in a pinch.
If you have to sleep outside, go off the beaten path if you can. It's easier to do this outside of city centers but this is obviously not always an option. Tents are great but tarps are even more portable. Sleeping bags help maintain body heat far better than blankets. Use your backpack as a pillow, or grab a pillowcase and stuff it with your clothes when it's time to sleep.
This may go without saying but if you have a car, sleep in that. You won't need to bother with shelters or sleeping outside.
Showering at gyms and truck stops is obvious, but if you can find a drop in center, you can shower, get something to eat, and often even do your laundry. Some drop in centers require membership but it's often not difficult to get and it's free. They just want to register you and keep track of who is coming and going. You will often be assigned a case worker that will help you with finding a place to stay or even a job.
Short hair is easier to maintain in these situations. Moreover, I highly recommend against dying your hair at this time, especially bright unnatural colours because the colour will fade fast, and it'll be really difficult to blend in with non homeless people when you have to.
Spend your days in libraries charging your phone, keeping warm, and entertaining yourself. You can stay from open until closed without being disturbed. Look at bulletin boards and pamphlets while you're there and you might find programs you can join or resources you can access.
I personally have never gone dumpster diving. I've never had to. I don't live in a very rich city but there was still always resources I could access before it came to that. Personally, I would exaust all my other options before I start rooting around in trash cans but that's just me.
If you keep food on hand while you're outside, be mindful of animals. Look up methods of keeping your food safe from bears if you are staying in wooded areas. Even places you think are too close to civilization can have bears wandering around. Also, be mindful of "refrigerate after opening" warning labels on food. It's best to get shelf stable items when possible. Condiment packets that are single use are better than bottles because they'll keep longer.
Stealing from grocery stores is easier if you buy some things, too. You can get toothpaste, shampoo, etc from drop in centers and foodbanks but I would personally suggest buying larger items like sandwich meat, and stuffing small items like water flavoring into your pockets when you're wandering down an unoccupied aisle. On that note if you have a hard time drinking plain water, get water flavoring! It's important to stay hydrated.
This might just be the country I live in, but one other place you're very unlikely to be bothered is hospital cafeterias. This is one example, I think, of a place where you don't want to "look" homeless. If it's an especially cold night though, sitting in the corner quietly and being on your phone won't look suspicious. You may need to stay up for the night and then take a nap outside in the day. Or, go to a Library in the morning.
Wear sunglasses and hold your phone or a book in front of you and nap when you're indoors. Especially if you're in a corner by yourself and especially if you're "blending in" with non homeless people, no one will bother you. Best place to do this is libraries.
Food courts are also a decent option. Usually there are so many people that no one is going to bother a random person that's there all day. One of those other instances of its easier if you don't look homeless.
Cycle through places you stay at during the day. It'll look a lot less suspicious if you only spend one day a week at any given place.
Depending on your age, if you live in a university town, you can spend time in university areas. Cafeterias, libraries, computer labs. This one is not something I'm quite as familiar with but I know people that did it. Try to blend in, look like you're busy. Students are easier to blend in with than probably any other population you can think of. You're going to really have to choose your own adventure with this one, but I would aim for places with a large student body that you don't need a key card to get into, and make yourself look busy.
If all else fails, ride around on public transit. Take long lines from start to finish. Catch a nap if you can. This is an especially great option if you have a bus pass, and while it is easier to do if you blend in, depending on the size of your city and how many people are on, you will be mostly undisturbed.
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*my brain, while I’m trying to get back to sleep at 1AM*: Have you considered the state of the clone troopers’ sock situation?
me: ʘل͟ʘ
#the clone wars#these men almost never carry packs what are they DOING#is kix cramming his with everyone's spare socks?#do they have to tuck them into their armor somewhere like contraband twizzlers?#are their blacks footie pajamas that also automatically generate antifungal powder?#they have MULTI-DAY MISSIONS where are their SOCKS#this is a joke post but also I'm not joking#clean and dry socks are important#fungal infections suck
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my fic masterlist
decided to do this for my own sake more than anyone else’s because sometimes I have to make sure the idea I get at 3am isn’t one I’ve already written hehe. anyway, a lot of these are on my ao3, but I’m also going to try and track down some of my TuMbLr-eXcLuSiVe fics, too. I’ll update this as often as I remember (so, uhhh–)
In-Progress: Not On A Consistent Updating Schedule Bc Abi is a Mess ™
midst of the mind – Anakin has always had a pretty good understanding of his feelings, even if he's not particularly disciplined in acting on them. But things surrounding the Chancellor seem to be off and Anakin's determined to get to the bottom of it. With a little help from his friends.(or: fix-it ROTS fic where Ani, Obi, and Padmé take down the Chancellor one fake smile and late-night tea party at a time)
evermore – "dreamscapes and tragedies and epic tales of love lost and found" within the lives of our favourite space fam. (or: TAYLOR SWIFT LITERALLY OWNS MY SOUL, OKAY?) (unrelated one-shots based on taylor swift songs ha)
filling the gaps – after the horror of Naboo, Obi-Wan has flipped from Padawan to having a Padawan in a matter of hours and he's not sure how much longer he can pretend like he's okay. thankfully, this one spunky youngling who keeps popping up in the corners of his life seems to know what to do. (or: baby!Soka unknowingly helps new Knight!Kenobi figure things out and braids his hair along the way)
Obi-Wan & Ahsoka: Best Father-Daughter Duo In The Galaxy According To Me (because let’s be honest...that’s why I’m here) (tagged: #obi & soka)
filling the gaps – *in-progress multi-chapter* after the horror of Naboo, Obi-Wan has flipped from Padawan to having a Padawan in a matter of hours and he's not sure how much longer he can pretend like he's okay. thankfully, this one spunky youngling who keeps popping up in the corners of his life seems to know what to do. (or: baby!Soka unknowingly helps new Knight!Kenobi figure things out and braids his hair along the way)
playing catch – Ahsoka finds an old friend on Tatooine and has lots of questions. they cry a lot. obi-wan tells some white lies. they get the hugs they need. (Obi-Wan & Ahsoka reunite on Tatooine)
all too young – during a bout of insomnia while on Onderon, Ahsoka gets some advice and insight about her Master. (or Obi-Wan hears Ahsoka laugh for the first time and they get to have a snuggle and he absolutely spends the entire next day training the rebels trying not to cry thinking about it every dang time he sees her.)
hologram heart-to-hearts – we see Obi-Wan and Ahsoka have a conversation via hologram in the final season of tcw, but what if there had been...more?(three-parter) (basically Obi and Soka keep in touch after she leaves the Order and there’s...a lot of emotions involved)
little love – a sort of follow-up to hologram heart-to hearts; Ahsoka sticks her nose into the wrong Alliance meeting and discovers a certain Jedi is alive and on Tatooine of all places, so she places a long-distance call.
bad days – Ahsoka tries to squeeze out of her Grand Master exactly what happened on Mortis. and, as always, Obi-Wan is powerless to deny her anything, no matter how painful that truth may be.
sleeping with monsters – Ahsoka is having a hard time sleeping after her time on Felucia, so Obi-Wan offers a solution.
chance meeting – Obi-Wan is up late researching for his Master in the archives when a certain sneeze–and pair of big blue eyes–catch his attention.
‘drooping eyelids’ prompt fill – Ahsoka and Obi-Wan have a conversation about attachment while Anakin’s missing. they (plus Anakin) get some platonic cuddles.
‘dancing’ prompt fill – they attend a senatorial gala without Anakin because he’s feeling grumpy grump after deception arc fall-out. Obi realises that there are still things to be thankful for.
sorrow – Ahsoka feels the full weight of loss as she clutches her Grand Master’s dead body. (deception arc FEELS!!!!)
‘I do not pretend to set people right, but I do see they are often wrong’ prompt fill – *trigger warning: death of children; Obi comforts Ahsoka after they witness an atrocity of the highest order.
the silence between — Ahsoka gets assigned to the 212th as her Master recovers. Unwanted quality time with her Grand Master doesn’t go as planned.
untitled ‘Obi & Ani role reversal au’ ficlet — Padawan Obi-Wan pays a visit to his best pal Ahsoka in the crèche.
‘falling asleep on each other’s shoulder’ prompt fill – the summary says it all. fluff!
'I don’t wanna die’ – Obi-Wan comforts Ahsoka in her pain. *tw: implied major character death
‘I made tea’ – Anakin is off-world so it’s up to Obi-Wan to take care of his sick grand-padawan.
sorry for the soup – post-deception arc. Ahsoka stops by Obi-Wan’s quarters to check-in.
Obi-Wan & Anakin: The Early Years (tagged: #obi & ani)
figuring it out – Anakin learns waking Obi-Wan up can sometimes be a good thing and Obi-Wan learns that maybe everything's going to be okay. (padawan!ani & new dad knight!kenobi)
if I loved you less, I might be able to talk about it more – Anakin overhears a conversation he wasn’t meant to hear and lashes out in response. lots of hurt is uncovered and Obi-Wan hears some hard truths from his Padawan. angst, angst, angst...but with a hug.
reading lessons – the team takes a trip to the archives to find some reading material. Anakin is adorably insecure.
cold – Obi-Wan and Anakin have their first solo mission, but in typical Kenobi & Skywalker fashion, it does not go as planned. Exasperated Obi-Wan and Won't-Shut-Up Anakin are put to the test by deep space and a completely out-of-fuel ship. (or some more fluff where padawan!ani and new knight!kenobi get to try and figure out how the heck this master-padawan thing WORKS. hint: it's not easy!)
playing hooky – angel baby Anakin breaks Obi-Wan's heart and it's not for the last time...womp wooooomp.
like you – sweet, angel baby Ani gives himself a haircut and Obi-Wan deals with the aftermath. (I’m copying and pasting most of these summaries directly from ao3 and cracking up because I called Anakin a sweet angel baby in two in a ROW hahah)
fun? – the Jedi Council gives Obi-Wan his newest orders as a young Jedi Knight and he struggles to understand them. he was instructed to take his new Padawan and...have...fun?
go away/please stay – Obi-Wan has been disappearing for solo missions more and more often and Anakin's starting to wonder if it's more than just on request of the Council. (or: can you say TEEN ANGST!)
‘forehead kisses’ prompt fill – Anakin stumbles upon his Master having quite the nightmare, so he handles it the way his mom always handled his own nightmares. with patience and affection.
unnamed NAP TIME fic – Obi-Wan gets home from a solo mission early to find his bed occupied.
‘sweets’ prompt fill – Anakin gets a little ambitious with his choco-ball indulgence.
‘fuzzy socks’ prompt fill – years after arriving at the Temple, Anakin still hasn’t quite adjusted to the cold. Obi-Wan gets him a gift to help. (really just an excuse for some obi ani banter)
‘snowball fight’ prompt fill – Anakin takes his boredom to the next level, much to his Master’s chagrin.
untitled Anakin sickfic bc I’m not feeling very creative right now – the team goes on a mission but Anakin gets sick. Obi-Wan is ultimate mother hen and Anakin makes an observation.
got germs – sickficlet where both of our best boys are sick.
you’re okay – just some classic protective parent!Obi-Wan and teenaged son!Anakin post disaster.
‘you lied to me’ – angstpril day 13. Anakin really wants to go to Ilum and make his lightsaber...but is met with disappointment.
random sickfic – because we all know Anakin is the most annoying sick person in the world.
don’t struggle – the ship is crashing, as usual. but this time, Anakin’s seatbelt is stuck. *tw: implied major character deaths
relic – sith!Obi au. *tw: major character death
aspectabund – Anakin’s eyes betray him and his Master.
Obi-Wan & Anakin: Brotp But Also Idiots Who Don’t Know How To Communicate (still tagged #obi & ani)
define ‘attachment’ – while the dads esteemed Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker wait for Ahsoka to wake up, they talk about attachment, worry, and that time Ani caused an accidental security breech at the Temple.
favourites – Obi-Wan has been tasked with telling Anakin of his special assignment to keep an eye on the Chancellor, but he gets sappy and sentimental in the process because these conversations are hard.
after all these years – Obi-Wan tries to talk to Anakin, but it doesn't go well. does this sound familiar OR WHAT? (post-decpetion arc angst)
brilliant – Anakin is having a difficult time adjusting to his new mechno-arm for one very specific reason. (the boys communicate properly in this one and even get a hug as a treat!)
sober words said aloud – Anakin's meeting with the Council is interrupted by his highly intoxicated–and wildly affectionate–Master. (crack fic turned fluff)
‘you’ve been crying, I can tell’ prompt fill – Anakin makes the mistake of checking in on his Master after a particularly grueling mission. it doesn’t go well. (or: Obi-Wan loses his sh!t)
going somewhere? – Obi-Wan catches Anakin on his way out for a midnight rendezvous with a certain Senator. Anakin makes a quick decision and chooses Obi-Wan. sweet words are exchanged on a sentimental walk.
shaking hands – in the immediate wake of Ahsoka’s departure form the order, Anakin...isn’t okay. Obi-Wan tries to do something about it. (post S5 angst)
untitled platonic tired cuddles/back scratching fic – Anakin resorts to an old tactic to make his Master rest.
sun shine on – Obi-Wan and Anakin take a little trip to Tatooine to visit Shmi’s grave. (post-ROTS fix-it au of sorts)
pushing it too far — Obi-Wan calls Anakin for some help when he takes ‘intel’ too seriously and ends up drunk on a street in lower-level Coruscant.
whump prompt fill – Obi-Wan looks after Anakin after a near-miss. They talk.
‘was it another premonition?’ – Obi-Wan dreams of Luke. He wakes up to Anakin.
post-mortis angst – Anakin remembers. *tw: implied suicidal thoughts
angstpril: ‘you have to let me go’ – Anakin and Obi-Wan are stuck in a pit. only one of them can make it out alive. *tw: implied major character death
role model – post-deception angst. Obi and Ani talk. it doesn’t go well.
here either way – conversations about mental health. *tw: panic attack
hiraeth – Obi-Wan walks alone. *post ROTS
Anakin & Ahsoka: Dream Team Sharing One Single Brain Cell (tagged: #snips & skyguy or (for the really angsty) #its crying about snips & skyguy hours)
that one person – (my first fic!) Anakin gets assigned to lecture a class of younglings, but he's not the only one who doesn't want to be there.or Ahsoka Tano is done with Jedi sh!t and tries to leave, but this time it's just a classroom and not the entire Order and there's a lot less tears and pain.
define ‘attachment’ – while the dads esteemed Jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi and Anakin Skywalker wait for Ahsoka to wake up, they talk about attachment, worry, and that time Ani caused an accidental security breech at the Temple.
here and now – the Force has tried to swallow Ahsoka Tano three times. it's hard to be the last one standing. (or Ahsoka feels the death of three important men in her life and is tired of being left behind) *tw: major character deaths (canon compliant and not depicted, only mentioned)
whumptober: crying – Anakin comforts a distraught Ahsoka after her disaster mission over Ryloth.
reaching out – Anakin is always there...until he’s not. Ahsoka reflects on how different it is fighting and living without Anakin at her side. (angst)
help would come – Anakin and Ahsoka get stuck on an ice planet and things get dire. I chalked this full of parallels to the final conversation between Ani and Luke bc I love pain, I guess?
whump: ‘i’ve got you’ – Anakin pulls Ahsoka from a nightmare.
zen!Anakin ficlet — Ahsoka visits Anakin in his new job as Galaxy’s #1 Dad (well Plo Koon still exists so maybe #1.5?).
right as rain – Ahsoka insists she is fine when she is distinctly not.
snoozeville – Anakin and a few boys of the 501st find their Commander catching some extra z’s.
stitching up – Ahsoka performs some in-the-moment surgery for Anakin and he tries not to scream. *tw: field surgery
‘platonic spooning’ prompt fill – do I need a summary after that?
sad hours: dancing – Anakin and Ahsoka dance in the aftermath of tragedy.
rainy ending given to a perfect day – Anakin and Ahsoka take a trip into downtown Coruscant.
Anakin and Padmé: Abi Tries and fails To Write Romance (tagged: #anidala)
not enough – Anakin has a hard time with the Mortis fall-out. Padmé doesn’t know how to help someone who doesn’t want it. some painful connections between Ahsoka and Shmi are made. (angst, no happy ending, trouble in paradise)
I will not have this baby in a jail cell – some fluff, some crack, some Anakin-being-so-proud-of-his-badass-wife.
marcid – domestic fluff in which Padmé almost shoots him. ha. oops!
rubatosis – angsty anidala hours. Anakin can’t go to sleep.
Obi-Wan and Satine: Abi Tries and fails some more To Write Romance (tagged #obitine)
don’t go – Obi-Wan makes a choice. *year on the run timeline
that’s mine – some happiness AU obitine. waking up next to each other. laughing. all the sappy stuff.
accidental keldabe kiss – all the ridiculous tropes I love with our favourite pining idiots. it’s the ‘kiss me so they don’t see us!’ trope!!!! *year on the run timeline
you’re shaking – Satine knows Obi-Wan more than he’d like. *year on the run
Anakin, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Rex, Padmé: Space Found Family In Whatever Form It Comes
here and now – the Force has tried to swallow Ahsoka Tano three times. it's hard to be the last one standing. (or Ahsoka feels the death of three important men in her life and is tired of being left behind) *tw: major character deaths (canon compliant and not depicted, only mentioned)
i want your midnights – the gang attends a New Year's banquet (read: party) and Padmé surprises them all with her midnight kiss.
evermore – "dreamscapes and tragedies and epic tales of love lost and found" within the lives of our favourite space fam. (or: TAYLOR SWIFT LITERALLY OWNS MY SOUL, OKAY?) (unrelated one-shots based on taylor swift songs ha)
flair for dramatics – when the gang gets their ship stranded on a desert planet, Anakin and Ahsoka get creative as they try to keep spirits up and minds off the sweltering heat. Obi-Wan questions his sanity. (crack fic turned fluff)
nothing a cup of tea can’t fix – when Anakin shows up to Obi-Wan's quarters in the middle of the night, the Jedi Master knows something has gone awry. answering Anakin's desperate cry for help, Obi-Wan is reminded of how very, very prone to dramatics his former Padawan and Grand Padawan are. (or: Ahsoka gets sick and Anakin flips his shit.) (sickfic)
in the sandstorm – when Tatooine's weather takes a turn for the worst, Ben Kenobi finds a young boy in need of shelter and some lessons on how wonderful his dad had been. (luke and obi-wan hurt/comfort)
remembering hurts – Rex and Ahsoka strive to survive on the snowy moon in the days after Order 66. tensions are high and emotions are volatile.
balter – disaster trio dances at a senatorial ball.
reunion – au where Anakin doesn’t completely turn to the dark side but everything up to and including Mustafar (except for the last like...five minutes) happens. Padmé has the twins, Obi-Wan is overwhelmed, Anakin is a mess. they’re happy...or at least, they will be soon.
‘cookies’ prompt fill – disaster trio makes cookies for the crechelings for Life Day. (just fluff and banter)
first ever codywan! – Cody does some bedside vigil for a hurt Obi-Wan. :’)
transponster – disaster trio is tired and delusional. Rex and Cody want Jedi to have some kriffing self-preservation.
one final salute — Obi-Wan and Cody get trapped. Obi-Wan’s luck is running out. (angst? angst.)
codywan whump – Cody saves Obi-Wan’s life. again. (more fluff than whump)
girls’ night – Ahsoka hangs out with her mom pal Padmé.
driving lessons – Obi-Wan and Anakin teach Ahsoka to drive. ha.
affectionate obi – the kids get Obi-Wan a puppy. fluff!
sorry I don’t speak idiot – Rex and Fives deal with a drunk Echo :’)
post deception disaster trio sadness – Ahsoka tries to keep Obi-Wan company in the aftermath of Rako Hardeen...but Anakin isn’t playing nice.
verklempt – Ahsoka and Yoda talk about being chosen. and Ahsoka finds out maybe she hasn’t been left behind afterall. *pre-TCW
apricity – disaster trio have a picnic at the temple! just pure fluff.
pyrrhic – codywan but make it angsty. some battles are won at too great a cost.
disaster trio sickfic – two Jedi dads and their (sick) daughter :’)
‘you’ve been here this whole time?’ – newlyweds anidala (but shh, Obi-Wan doesn’t know that! yes he does, everyone does.) are there when Obi-Wan wakes up and he ownders just what he did to get so lucky.
Febuwhump 2021: A Foray into Hurting the Characters I Love the Most
mind control – Anakin’s narrative as he fights Ahsoka on Mortis. sad boy hours. a lot of insecurity happening here.
‘I can’t take this anymore’ – during the Obitine (plus third-wheel Qui-Gon) year on the run, Satine gets tired of Obi-Wan trying to die for her. a bit hurt/comfort, a lot sappy.
imprisonment – on their first mission together, Obi & Ani get captured. Anakin learns how Obi-Wan feels about tight spaces.
coma – post deception arc. Obi-Wan goes into a coma after a particularly intense conversation with Anakin. Anakin tells Obi’s unconscious body how he’s feeling. angst, angst, angst. there’s your warning.
‘take me instead’ – Anakin escorts Padmé on a diplomatic mission but things get dicey and quick decisions must be made. Anakin isn’t the only one in this relationship willing to be an idiot for the sake of *love.* (or: another attempt to write Anidala in a convincing way because they give me a tough! time! so this time make it...dangerous)
insomnia – Anakin overhears a late night holo-call and learns that his Master has a...friend that is a girl???? and is pretty???? but also that his Master may need some fixing and he thinks he may just be the nine-year-old for the job.
poisoning – Ahsoka gets drugged and Anakin gets...er...angry. (read: dark)
‘hey, hey, this is no time to sleep’ – as Ahsoka and Anakin wait for help, Anakin tells a story. an ancient monster in the heart of Tatooine...waiting for it's day of reckoning. (or: Ahsoka gets dehydrated and Anakin can't deny his hurting sister/padawan anything so he talks a little bit about home.)
buried alive – Anakin reflects on some things as his Padawan tries to rescue him from the rubble. angst!!!!!!!!!
‘I’m sorry, I didn’t know’ – the Council loses a planet and Obi & Ani get tasked with finding it, but after nine hyperspace jumps and a painful discovery, Obi-Wan teaches his former Padawan one more lesson. (or: the boys talk about failure and feelings when Obi-Wan finds out Anakin's mechno-arm has been causing pain for a couple years)
hallucinations – Ahsoka tries to fix things. it doesn’t work. (post-order 66) angst
‘who are you?’ – Anakin and Ahsoka rescue Obi-Wan, but things aren’t okay and Obi-Wan doesn’t recognise Anakin. (or: Obi is tortured for information about the fall of the Republic before it happens and goes a bit mad bc of it)
‘I didn’t mean it’ – Obi-Wan learns how cold and unfeeling his young Padawan thinks he is and has a rough day. angst
burned – Anakin mourns the loss of his Padawan in a tactile way. Obi-Wan watches. (or: Anakin throws Ahsoka’s Padawan beads into a fire)
‘I wish I have never given you a chance’ – Obi-Wan is reminded of his own incompetence through a vision form his old master.
you have to let me go – Ahsoka has one heirloom: a hologram of her old master as a padawan. but it’s time to let the past go and step into the future, with help from an old friend.
#my fic#maybe I'll go give creative names to some of these prompt request fills someday but#probably not#anyway I definitely should have been doing things other than making this tonight but HERE WE ARE#:)#also at the time of me typing this I have 49 fics listed on here#which is so crazy to me#bc I just started writing in september and if you had told me I would have 50 fics in five months I would have laughed at you#and its so fun and cringey to look back at some of these#its only been a few months but my writing has CHANGED#(hopefully for the better?)#anyway yay! an organised archive!#sw fanfiction
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Danger Days Chapter 1: Summertime
Summary: You think you've settled in pretty well to Jackson, your best friend Maria was leading the community with her husband Tommy. Things were going rather fine until a turbine went south. While at the power plant, you came across two visitors. Joel needs his brother to complete a mission but you stepped in, dredging up your past with FEDRA, with the Fireflies. Shit can't hit the fan twice right?
Word Count: 1,399
Read on AO3 here
Warnings: none, just a bit of backstory
Notes: this is a Joel x Reader/OFC multi-chap series, absolutely no use of y/n or other descriptors as long as I can try. Reader is about 30-35 in this timeline.
You put on the worn-in boots, trying to ignore the phantom pains shooting in your left hand. The skin around the nub where your pinky used to be was swollen and throbbing. It frustrated the hell out of you. After all these years, memories and ghosts haunted you whenever the nerves flared up in your palm. Doing your best to ignore it, you laced up the last shoe and grabbed your black sherpa denim jacket, tossing it over your shoulders to keep the late summer chill away.
“Oh shit,” you whispered to yourself as you took a step outside your home, immediately being blasted by the cold.
Tonight was one of the weekly adult get-togethers at Seth’s, something most of the Jackson residents looked forward to. Usually, you’d never bother with attending but your best friend and her husband managed to convince you to come out and relax for once. Admittedly, it was rare for you to have a night off since you often volunteered to walk the perimeter of the safe zone, keeping an eye out for any activity.
Your feet shuffled along until you came to the bar, the music wafting through the air and you made your way inside.
The pub was lively tonight, you could spot a few couples having a blast dancing to the music playing from the jukebox. It seemed like tonight the adults were throwing it back and reminiscing with some old 1980s music. You called over the man himself, Seth, and he grabbed you a beer.
Thank the stars the greenhouse had a steady growth of hops, you couldn’t imagine trying to do any of this sober. You leaned against an unoccupied area of the bar table, idly watching as people danced and sipped at the bottle.
After doing this little routine, the drink was getting a little warm from the heat of your palm but that was alright, you were living in the moment. Your best friend and her husband always told you to let your hair down every once in a while, so to speak. It was near impossible to always be on edge, waiting for the next fight. For half your life this is how it’s been, it’s hard to shake off that feeling even after a couple years of relative safety.
You looked up from your drink, your eyes finding the couple on your mind. You sat watching as Maria and Tommy were in the dead center of the dance floor looking at each other like there was not a damn worry in the world. It was something you envied of the woman, if you could admit it to yourself. Not everybody finds love and some semblance of peace in the goddamn apocalypse. Good for her, good for them .
Gustavo, an elderly Hispanic man, walked up and stood next to you. “Mija, why don’t you go dancing? You’re too pretty to be standing here alone,” he says, his subtle accent eliciting a soft smile from you.
“Because you know I’d sooner bite their heads off if they tried, tio.” Gustavo wasn’t related to you but you loved the blacksmith like family, so much that you called him your uncle.
The elder man gave a hearty laugh, his calloused hand gave your cheek a small pat. “I want to see you dance with somebody before I die,” he says as he turns to leave.
You give him an incredulous look, “Don’t keel over too soon, tio, or I’ll bring you back myself and make you wait even longer!”
His laughter still rings in your ears long after he walks away. Your eyes steal a few more glances at the dancefloor as you turn around and abandon you nearly empty glass of beer on the countertop and resume watching how everybody sang along and moving ungraciously together. Feeling alive, living in the moment. Carpe diem or some shit , you think.
It doesn’t take much for Maria’s perpetual scowl to mark across her face, that woman was always pissed off about something. So, when the power went out in the pub, you could only imagine the blonde woman immediately furrowing her brows, grumbling something explicit wanting to find out what cut her date night short. Being the leader of the community rarely had nights off.
The crowd inside Seth’s was slightly alarmed, power hardly ever went out in Jackson. It usually signalled the worse. You gently shoved your way to where you last saw Tommy and Maria and found her leather clad arm, “Think it’s bandits?”
“I hope not,” came from Tommy to your right, his voice low and weary.
“Alright everybody, go home. We will figure out what’s going on and we will all be back to our normal routines. Got it?” Maria’s voice was short and authoritative, something you sure scared the shit out of some of the younger kids.
Slowly, the patrons all filed out, using whatever the moon illuminated as their only guide to getting outside safely. You could hear a few curses and muttering every time it sounded like somebody walked into a stool or table, it was kind of funny.
Tommy was the first to pipe up, “Let’s head to the fence, make sure everybody is okay.”
The three of you filed out and headed straight for the perimeter, there were no sounds of shouting or gunshots which was good to note. The closer each of you got to the fence, the eerie silence met with you.
“The electric fence is down,” Maria grumbled.
You looked at her, “Think the power plant is out?”
“Probably,” she sighs, “We can leave at first light.”
After you leave them, you head straight for your home as they continued to circle the perimeter and talk with whoever was on guard duty tonight.Your home was a walk away, further out from the other homes. It’s not much outside of a small studio loft but you loved it. It’s cozy and has everything you need within a couple dozen steps.
The room is dark, naturally, but you manage to walk to the little kitchenette off to the left of your room to find your solar lantern. One of the best damn discoveries you managed to find since the pandemic hit. It turned on easily, creating a dim glow around your room. You went to your desk and started to get your backpack ready for the trip to the dam. Stuffing it of some snacks, your spare knives, and some extra bullets, each a hotter commodity than the next.
It had been rainy recently so you decided to pack a couple extra jackets and flannels, making sure you had plenty of socks to go too.
By the time you finish packing your backpack for the excursion, a soft knock arrives at your door. You opened it to find Gustavo standing there, looking bright eyed. “Mija, I heard you were headed out to the dam.”
You nodded, “Wanna come in, tio?”
“Ah, no, Antonia is waiting for me,” at the mention of his wife, the lovely woman, you wonder where she was hiding at Seth’s. The two of them hardly go far without the other. “I just wanted to come by and bring you this.” Gustavo puts a semi-large wrapped gift in your hands and you take it, shifting it this way and that.
You open it, removing the ornate paper and it opens to a brown rectangular box. You slip the lid off and find an incredible hunting knife with a leather holster. “Gustavo,” you say. Your eyes wide in adoration, looking at the handcrafted knife.
His chest puffs out in pride, “Just don’t let Tovar see it, pendejo has been trying to take it.” The two of you chuckle at the expense of his young apprentice. He was a bit of a handful and full-time idiot, you admit.
Putting the knife down at the small table by your front door, you give Gustavo a warm hug and your thanks. He left shortly after that but not without giving the old man a kiss on the cheek and a promise to not hurt yourself with his gift, and another for keeping it away from Tovar.
You shut the door and turned back to your loft, standing in the dim light. Leaning against the door, you take a moment and close your eyes. Tomorrow’s excursion was going to be long.
#pedro pascal#joel miller#joel (the last of us)#joel the last of us#the last of us#the last of us fanfiction#the last of us 2#joel miller x reader#joel miller x you#joel tlou#joel tlou x reader insert#asher's writing#danger days fic
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(Hold me Closer) Tiny Dancer
Chapter 4
Pairing: Jack ‘Whiskey’ Daniels/Reader
Word Count: 1,742
Fic Warnings: Non-sexual age regression, split perspective, classification AU, canon-typical violence
Chapter Warnings: age regression, mentions of medication, depressive thoughts, one tantrum
Taglist: None for this fic. If you want to be added, just ask, but I know this is an odd topic and therefore will not tag anyone unless they ask
Jack’s not exactly the most stable human being on the planet, but when he tests as a Caregiver, all hell breaks loose as someone who was just his work partner suddenly becomes so much more.
Multi-chapter story. Chapter 4 of ? Read Chapter 1 Here
-Mojito-
You woke up with a splitting headache. The doorbell had rung, and Whiskey, in his pyjamas, was answering the door.
“You’re up,” he noted, putting the box he’d picked up off the porch down on the kitchen counter. “Want breakfast?”
“Since when can you cook?” You grumbled, sitting up and rubbing your head. “And holy shit, what did we drink last night? I’m hungover as hell.”
“No you’re not,” Whiskey countered, handing you a plate of eggs.
You raised an eyebrow, immediately beginning to scarf down the eggs. “Are you really telling me I’m not hungover?”
“Yes I am.” Whiskey handed you half of a pill bottle cap. “That’s yours.”
Immediately, the memories of yesterday came rushing back, and you practically tossed the cap across the room. “Please tell me Ginger was able to get me more pills.”
Whiskey sighed, scooting closer to you on the couch. “Unfortunately, no. We’re roughin’ it for the next week or so ‘til she can get you a refill.”
You shook, fear turning your blood to ice in your veins. “Can I go to my room?” You asked, voice barely above a whisper.
Even from where you were sitting, you could tell Whiskey wanted to say no. But he nodded. “Come out for lunch, okay?”
You managed a tiny nod before racing off to your room, shaking the entire time. You crawled into bed, pulling the covers over your head and whimpering. Whiskey knew. He knew. He knew.
The depressive mantra lulled you to sleep, tears wetting the pillow beneath you as you drifted out of consciousness.
-Whiskey-
Mojito wasn’t out for lunch.
Jack’s stomach turned in knots, monitoring the pot of pasta on the stove. He really was worried about Mojito. Not only as his partner in the mission, but also as his friend.
He turned, examining the Little’s items Ginger had sent over. It truly was the basics. A cute table setting, three onesies, some thick socks, two pacifiers, a bottle, some formula powder, a sippy cup, diapers and the respective cleaning products, and some toys. Jack had already cleaned everything he could, laying it all to dry as he did the breakfast dishes.
“Mojito.” He finally worked up the courage to go bother them, knocking lightly on their door. “Mojito, darlin’, it’s lunchtime.”
No response.
Jack knocked again, repeating his call for lunch. When he still received nothing, he carefully tried the doorknob.
Unlocked.
Jack pushed into the room slowly, not wanting to intrude too harshly. All he was met with was Mojito, sleepily rubbing their bleary red eyes and sitting up in bed.
“Aw,” Jack cooed softly, settling on the edge of the bed. “Did someone have a good nap?”
Mojito huffed, curling into the pillows, away from him. They eyed him warily, as if trying to gauge whether he was safe or not.
“Darlin’ it’s just me,” Jack promised. “You can trust your old friend Whiskey, can’t ya?”
Mojito huffed again. But they scooted closer, face lighting up with recognition. “Wi’key?”
“Yeah!” Jack said with a soft eagerness. “That’s me, sugar. Whiskey’ll take good care of you, don’t you worry.”
Immediately, Mojito snuggled deep into Jack’s arms, practically falling asleep again as he readjusted until he was able to pick them up.
“Alrighty kiddo,” Jack said, setting Mojito down at the kitchen table. “Who wants lunch?”
Mojito cooed, watching Jack prepare a plate of box mac and cheese. It wasn’t in any way nutritious, but it was soft enough that Mojito shouldn’t choke on any of the noodles. They simply stared when Jack put the plate down in front of them though.
“What?” Jack asked, sitting at the table with them. “Is it not what you wanted?”
Mojito simply blinked. Suddenly, a thought occurred to Jack. How old was Mojito? Could they even eat solids?
“Mojito, darlin’, how old are you?”
Jack had expected an answer of three, maybe four. That was the average for Littles. He did not expect for Mojito to hold out a wobbly one finger.
“You’re twelve months old?”
Mojito whined, holding their hands out, and Jack immediately scooped them up. A toddler was one thing. A full blown baby was a whole different ball game.
As he held Mojito, thinking wildly about what the hell he was going to do, Jack tried desperately to remember what the other Caregivers at Statesman had said about caring for their Littles. Something about instincts? That wasn’t about to work for Jack. Every single instinct he had was telling him to call Ginger and beg her to bring them home. To send a qualified Caregiver out for Mojito. To make Mojito stop crying.
Jack stopped thinking, looking down at Mojito. In his whirlwind of anxiety, he hadn’t realized that they’d started to sob.
“Oh darlin’,” Jack cooed, rocking back and forth, feeling Mojito bury their face into the crook of his neck. “Darlin’ are you hungry?”
Mojito sniffled, grabbing tightly at Jack’s sleep shirt.
“Okay.” Jack one-handedly grabbed the bottle from off the countertop in the kitchen and did his best to fill it without getting an excess of milk or formula all over the place. When he was happy with the results, Jack put the bottle in the microwave and waited, rocking Mojito slowly while he watched the green microwave numbers count down to zero.
When it finally beeped, Jack took the bottle and Mojito to the couch. Laying Mojito down so that their head was nestled against his upper arm, Jack positioned the bottle on their lips and let out a relieved sigh when they actually started to drink.
Just like that, the cabin was silent. It was a tiny bit scary how quiet the space could be when Jack and Mojito weren’t talking.
Once Mojito was finished, Jack carried them and some of the clothes Ginger had sent into Mojito’s bedroom. Laying them both on the bed, Jack stared down at the half-asleep Mojito, confused and concerned. How in the hell was he supposed to dress Mojito? He could barely dress himself most days.
He managed to separate a cute onesie that would keep Mojito warm, with long legs and mint leaves printed on the soft white cotton.
“‘Jito?” Jack held the onesie out, faltering when he saw Mojito basically asleep, their thumb in their mouth. “Oh. Okay. What do I do?”
At this point, he was thinking out loud, talking to himself as Mojito slipped deeper and deeper into sleep.
“Ginger!” Jack quickly called Ginger, transferring her to his glasses and praying she wasn’t too busy.
“Jack?” Ginger mercifully answered, her tiny image appearing in the corner of his right lens. “Did something go wrong?”
Jack winced. “I need help taking care of Mojito,” he admitted nervously. “I don’t know what I’m doing with any of it.”
Ginger sighed. “Oh you are so lucky I’m not actively working right now Daniels,” she grumbled. “Out of all the Caregivers Statesman has, I’d expect you to be the best. You were the only one with an actual kid on the way. Didn’t you take any parenting classes?”
“She died before we could do it.” Jack’s tone turned bitter, waking Mojito and making them squirm. “Sorry ‘Jito.”
Mojito chirped, causing Ginger to smile. “Jack, give them a pacifier. Their fingers are dirty and could cause an illness. Plus, it’s bad for their teeth.”
“Okay.” Jack gave Mojito a pat on the stomach, causing them to giggle. “Let me grab you something better than your fingers darlin’. Be right back.”
The reassurance was not enough to keep Mojito from crying as soon as Jack was out of their sight.
“Object permanence,” Ginger reminded him as he rushed back into Mojito’s room with a white pacifier. “Babies typically think that when something is gone, it’s gone forever.”
“Thanks for the warnin’!” Jack snapped, causing Mojito to wail harder. “Oh darlin’ it’s okay.” He sat on the bed, pulling Mojito into his lap and holding the pacifier to their lips. They latched on immediately, and Jack sighed out a thanks as he wiped away their tears with the edge of his shirt. “Ginge, what now?”
Ginger shrugged. “Have they eaten?”
“Gave them a bottle about ten minutes ago.”
Nodding, Ginger gestured to the onesie still laying on the bed. “They probably need to nap. Get them changed. And I’d use a diaper, unless you want to be cleaning the bed sheets, the clothes, and the dirty Little all at once.”
Jack paused. “Can you walk me through it?”
Ginger laughed. “Ah, the great Jack Daniels, asking me for help changing a diaper. Yeah, I got you. But you owe me double now.”
“That fine,” Jack promised. “I’ll put in a word with Champ, see if I can’t get you promoted.”
“Nah,” Ginger shook her head. “You can make it up to me by taking Galahad up on his offer to train you in England. I’ll pull some strings, make sure Mojito can go too. But that is what you owe me.”
Jack almost told her no. But he looked down at Mojito, who was sleeping peacefully in his lap, and remembered something about Kingsman having an excellent Little’s program. “Okay,” he breathed. “Let’s do this.”
Of all the times for Mojito to wake and get fussy, now was not the right time. But that’s what they did, squirming and crying as Jack stumbled his way through the diaper and the onesie. Eventually, he picked them up, poking their nose and smiling. “Well would’ya look at that ‘Jito. We did it.”
Mojito yawned, and Jack took the opportunity to give them back their pacifier. “Alrighty. Say good-bye to Ginger, It’s nap time.”
Mojito hummed, waving loosely and letting their head fall against Whiskey’s chest. Ginger hung up, allowing Jack to take his glasses and hat off. He sighed, looking down at Mojito, all snuggled up in his arms.
“Alrighty darlin’,” Jack murmured, carrying Mojito to their bed. “Nap time.”
But as soon as Jack set Mojito down, they woke, fussing and reaching out. Jack took a deep breath. Maybe he could use a nap too. Crawling into the bed, Jack let Mojito wiggle into his arms, waiting until they were asleep yet again to finally relax properly.
Jack let his head hit the headboard behind him, closing his eyes, promising himself he’d only sleep for a minute or two.
Which wasn’t the case, but neither agents seemed to mind it either way.
#kingsman the golden circle#kingsman#agent whiskey#agent whiskey x reader#agent whiskey x you#Pedro Pascal#My writing
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{Hungry hearts} XI. Chowder and fortune cookies
A/N: Hungry Hearts is back! This is my loose interpretation of the March prompt at @hanleiachallenge: luck. It’s set during the EU novel Razor's Edge by Martha Wells, one of my favourites. I’ve always wanted to write something set in this little getaway. I'm thinking there might be one more chapter set on Hoth before ESB, then we'd move to the trip to Bespin very briefly and then jump to post RotJ, but I'm open to suggestions!
also on Ao3 // FFN
***
From the main hold, Chewie growled that there was food now but there wouldn't be for much longer so everyone better hurried up. Han rolled his eyes at the threat as he wiped the worst of the grime off his hands and face before taking a quick detour to the 'fresher. Like the big fuzzball would ever let the princess starve.
He ran into Her Worship herself on his way out of the cabin as she waited for her turn to wash her hands, Threepio tottering behind her. Thankfully, the usually oblivious droid marched on.
'Excited to see what he brought this time?' Han asked, dawdling by the open hatch.
'So far, yes,' Leia said from the 'fresher, 'although I'm a bit concerned he might start to push it soon, you know? Raise the stakes?'
'Oh yeah, I hear ya. That's definitely a concern.'
She raised an eyebrow as she joined him back in the corridor. 'Thanks, that makes me feel better.'
'Well, hey, he's never fed me anything I couldn't keep down,' he reassured her.
'Has anyone ever told you you're possibly the worst motivational speaker in the galaxy?'
The smell that greeted them as they gathered around the Dejarik table told them that, once again, Chewie had hit the mark.
They had taken a short time away from the hustle and bustle of the Rebel Alliance's fleet, hoping that the crew of the Aegis —a gunship of surviving Alderaanians who had turned to piracy after the planet's destruction—would rendezvous with them to join the cause. Two days ago, the Millennium Falcon had landed on a small trading port in Wroona, one of the Alliance's message drop points, and waited.
Han was very much okay with that. After the craziness of their last mission—nearly blown to space dust by Imperials, fighting a killer mining droid, being captured by a sadistic Lorddian pirate, nearly blown to space dust by the Imps again , all in the span of a couple days—he thought a vacation was long overdue. They couldn't go out sightseeing, or motosurfing, but he was happy to just spend some time not being shot at. Leia had probably figured that out when she'd asked him and Chewie to come with her. That, and the fact that they didn't have any duties lined up, since they were not part of the Alliance.
Chewie had taken out three round styrofoam containers out of a bag and set them on the small checkered table.
'[I hope you like Wroonian seafood chowder,]' he told them as Han and Leia slid onto the bench. '[You can go get food yourselves next time if you don't.]'
The creamy broth had chunks of frella fish and shucked nyorks with diced vegetables, and it was so delicious that nobody was in any hurry to relieve the Wookiee of his food-picking duties.
'Gotta love sea ports,' Han commented between mouthfuls. 'It could be the poorest, murkiest place, but they'll know their seafood.'
'[Oh yeah? Here I thought you would never forget about Venonduri,]' Chewie said with a titter, making Han moan with chagrin.
'What happened?' Leia asked, looking between the two friends.
'Not a story you wanna hear at lunch, Princess, trust me.'
Leia made a face. 'Oh. Got it.'
'But Princess Leia, perhaps it would be useful to know more about Venonduri!' Threepio chimed in. 'What if we visit it in the future?'
'We'll just refrain from ordering any seafood, Threepio,' Leia told him seriously, making Han and Chewie laugh.
Leia seemed to be in good spirits so far, but Han wondered how much that would last if the Aegis failed to show up today again. He knew she would act like it was no big deal in front of everyone else, but it'd be eating at her inside that she had personally failed to sway them over to her cause. Han was good at being the subject of Leia's disappointment in that department.
At least they had come to an unspoken truce after their trip to Odona, although that was another thing Han didn't know for how long it would hold. That mission, just the two of them scouting the planet's unpredictable polar continent as a potential new base, had also been kind of a mess. Not only had that one featured multi-eyed monsters and old acquaintances with a grudge, but Odona had turned out to be non-viable for the base. Also, he and Leia had snapped at each other most of the time. That wasn't anything new; they had been snapping at each other since the moment they had met—but then, for a while, they hadn't, or not as seriously and constantly, at least, and it had been nice. Then they started doing it again, but things were different from what it had been like in the beginning, and their fights took longer to digest, and while they did, they corroded Han's insides a bit, like acid. It wasn't like he set out to fight with her, either, but that's where they seemed to land anyway.
Han knew where this ended if they chose the alternative to fighting. He'd been there a couple of times, and sworn he never would again.
'We certainly don't get much fresh fish these days,' Leia said with a sigh then, dabbing her mouth with a paper napkin.
'We can get some before we go,' Han offered. 'It'll keep for one meal at least, for when we get back.'
'Oh, I could ask but I don't think they will clear an expense like that. Fresh fish for the whole fleet… that's not going to be cheap.'
Han frowned. Who said anything about fish for the fleet?
'Right. I wasn't—never mind. Fish ain't that expensive here, Princess, especially if you buy in bulk. Wouldn't hurt to ask.'
After lunch, Leia went back to her work followed by Threepio, Chewie to his tinkering (he always found something to "improve" on the Falcon ), and Han decided it was a good time to delete outdated and damaged files in the ship's navicomputer, a task he always thought he should do one day but never really wanted to. An hour later, he was bored out of his mind.
Getting up from his chair, he stretched his arms up with a groan. He took the long way back to the main hold, peeking into the crew quarters as he passed by. No sign of Leia there. She was not working in the communal area, either, but he did find C-3PO uttering suggestions nobody had asked for. That was weird: Leia had brought him along to help her with work and kept the droid with her at all times. Even though Han knew she grew tired of his constant chatter sometimes, she had promised him and Chewbacca that Threepio wouldn't get in their way.
As Han walked in, he caught the droid jumping back as Chewie roared in annoyance from inside a maintenance hatch.
'Oh dear, there is no need to get so worked up, Chewbacca,' Threepio said. 'I was merely saying—'
'Goldenrod,' Han interrupted, 'd'you know where's Leia?'
'Why, yes. The Princess said she was going out to get some fresh air.'
Alarms set off in Han's brain. 'Outside?'
'That is correct. She said not to worry, she would stay quite close to the freighter.'
'Yeah, alright. Better go check on her anyway.' Thinking it would be better for all if he kept his friend from tearing off the droid's arms during this trip, Han said, 'Are you any good with computers, Goldenrod?'
He didn't have to worry: Leia was sitting on the dock just outside the Falcon , the pant legs of her jumpsuit rolled up as she dipped her feet in the water. She was leaning back on her elbows, basking in the sun, and when Han walked closer, he realized she had her eyes shut and a peaceful look on her face. Despite himself, his stomach felt as if he'd skipped a step, and for a moment he just stood there, staring at Leia.
She rarely looked that relaxed and content, seemingly free of worries, of pain. Anyone who walked by could have mistaken her for a regular crew member, catching a bit of sunlight before rocketing back to the stars and to the next port. Not a princess. Not a survivor, an enemy of the Empire, a rebel leader. Just a young woman enjoying the sea.
She deserves this , Han thought, even though he generally didn't think much about who deserved what because he knew the galaxy didn't work that way. What he could do was grant her the solitude she had sought out, though, so he stepped back. He didn't think a single board had creaked under his boots, but it wasn't the first time Leia's hearing appeared to be better than most humans. She opened her eyes and turned her head to look at him.
'Is everything okay?' she asked, sitting up straight. Han knew what she was hoping to hear.
'Yeah. Sorry, didn't mean to get in your way.'
'You're not,' Leia told him. Her shoulders sagged a little before she leaned back and closed her eyes again. 'Come here and take your boots off, the water is so lovely.'
'Uh, if you're sure.'
Boots and socks were ditched, and Han joined Leia on the dock, pulling up his trousers. The coolness of the water felt wonderful on his bare feet; it was no wonder it had been enough to make Leia at ease.
'Oh hey, Chewie got us these,' he said, suddenly remembering. From one of his vest pockets, he took out two crisp-looking cookies and handed one to Leia. She gave the treat a small, delighted smile.
'Fortune cookies. I haven't had one of these in years.' She took the wrapper off the folded wafer and tucked it in her pocket, then looked expectantly at Han. 'Go on, let's crack it together.'
Han held the cookie between his thumb and index fingers and broke it, catching the crumbs in his other hand. He pulled out a thin strip of flimsi from the wreckage. As he cleared his throat, Leia cried, 'Wait, wait!' and covered his fortune with her hand.
'I'll read yours and you read mine,' she said at his confused look. Han had never heard of people doing it that way, but he swapped with her. Leia nodded for him to go on.
'"You will take a pleasant journey to a place far away",' Han read. He looked at the view around them, then raised his eyebrows at Leia. 'I think this prediction came a little late.'
'Maybe it's talking about my upcoming expedition to Hoth.'
'Oh no. Please tell me you're jokin', Princess,' Han begged.
'Better start airing those warm layers, flyboy. Okay, now yours.' Leia cleared her throat and squared her shoulders, looking at him for a few seconds with a pretend air of wisdom. '"You may want to run, but you should stay and fight."'
There was a pause.
'What?' Han watched her face, and caught her tell: a subtle flaring of her nostrils that meant she was bluffing. He narrowed his eyes at her. 'That what it says, huh?'
He dove to wrest the strip of flimsi out of Leia's hand; she shrieked and pushed a hand against his chest, and they struggled for several seconds until Leia gave it up. She laughed, her cheeks red from the effort. The last time she had blushed that badly, they had been crammed in the Aegis ' refresher, the only place that had been private enough for them to discuss sensitive information. He hadn't been very relaxed, either, as the warmth of their bodies had made the tiny hiding place suffocating. In spite of the uncertainty and danger of their situation, it had been near impossible not to follow the trail of a drop of perspiration down her collar, the movement of her lips as she talked, the curve of her falling braid as it fell on her shoulder. He had been nearly jumping out of his skin with the increasing need to kiss her, to touch her.
Realizing he had been staring at her for too long, he looked away as Leia brushed some wisps of hair behind her ear, and read his fortune aloud.
'"Enjoy yourself while you can".' Han frowned and looked at Leia again. 'That sounds like a threat.'
She shrugged, popping a piece of cookie into her mouth.
'Should have stuck with mine.'
'Yeah, you'd like that, wouldn't ya?' Han muttered. He picked apart his wafer, the tiny printed messages still clutched in one hand. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as Leia finished the rest of hers, swinging her feet in the clear water.
It had been three years since a farmboy and an old wizard had hired him for discrete passage to Alderaan. Where would he be now if he hadn't taken that gig? Dead, if he hadn't managed to get anything else to pay off his debt. Even if he had, Jabba would have dropped him anyway, as he was not in the way of giving second chances. Then he would have looked for jobs somewhere else, gone back to his old haunts. Made new friends that he wouldn't trust as far as he could throw them. Found someone to warm his bed at night, someone who wouldn't care that he didn't care one way or another to overthrow the Empire. He could have kept doing what he had been doing for the rest of his life.
But he had met Luke, and he had met Leia, and no matter how hard he'd tried—although, if he was honest with himself, which he wasn't, he had not even tried that hard to forget about them and leave them behind. And he didn't exactly hate the Rebellion—the pay was basically nothing, there were people who didn't like him much, and as the latest mission had proved, it wasn't free of backstabbers—but he had to admit it felt good to stick it to the Empire. It gave him a purpose like he hadn't had in a long time.
Mothma had offered him a colonelship some time ago. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to quit the games and take it. He'd have to ask Chewie before he made any decisions, but he knew how that conversation would go.
It would be one hell of a peace treaty, for him and Leia. It would be one more gamble.
For now, Han lay back on the dock and closed his eyes, soaking in the sun's warmth. He would enjoy himself, while he could.
#han x leia#hanleia#hanleiachallenge#han solo#leia organa#han and leia#star wars fanfiction#verse: hungry hearts#2020#period: pre esb#rated T#series#one-shot
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Puffballs (Bucky x Black!Stark!Reader)
A/N: This was inspired by my little sister because I had to do her hair while my mom and step dad were out and she said “I wish my hair was thinner” and it honestly made me a little sad because in a world where black girls have a hard time accepting parts of themselves that society judges, it’s important to instill the value that beauty isn’t just pin straight hair or light skin. So enjoy.
Summary: You and Bucky’s daughter starts to have some self identity and self-image issues at a young age. Bucky lets his daughter know there is nothing wrong with what she was given.
Pairings: Bucky x Black!Stark!Reader, Bucky x Black!Daughter (parental of course)
WC: 4.6K
Warnings: Uh, a little angsty, self image issues, I think that’s it. Then fluff!
REQUESTS AND TAGS ARE OPEN!!!!
Please leave feedback! Comments, reblogs and likes mean so much <3
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Bucky sat in the common area of the compound with you guys’ daughter, Annalise, with the rest of the team. You were away on a solo mission and Annalise had begged Bucky to see her aunts and uncles at the compound, he couldn’t deny the six year old’s puppy eyes.
They all sat there watching Paw Patrol as she, Tony, Sam, Steve and Natasha sang the theme song. She had everyone wrapped around her finger, but those four the most. Especially Tony, he loved his granddaughter to death.
“Papa, can I play with your hair while I watch Paw Patrol, please?,” she sung sweetly.
Bucky slid in the floor in front of her and leaned himself back on the couch, “Of course, honeybee”
“Yay!,” she squealed.
She took out her barrettes, hair scrunchies, brushes and combs ready to play hairdresser. She reveled in the way she could comb and brush straight through her papa’s without having to add some stuff to it like mama does to hers. She loved the way he could sleep on it without needing a headscarf and bonnet.
“Can I give you puffballs like mine?” she asked. She got her scrunchies ready to place them in his hair along with butterfly clips.
“You sure can,” he smiled up at her. She giggled back at him and went back to multi-tasking between watching Paw Patrol and doing her papa’s hair.
“Uncle Sammy reminds me of Skye,” she blurts out.
On the screen she watched as the puppy named Skye spread out her wings and started flying around to help the community of Adventure Bay.
“Why is that, Anna?,” Sam asks.
“Uh, ‘cause she flies around like you, duh. Her gimmick is just cuter,” she stuck her tongue out at him.
“How do you even know what ‘gimmick’ means?,” Sam laughed at the little you.
“Poppop Tony says it a lot. He says, “everyone has a damn gimmick nowadays and I’m sick of it’“ she mocked Tony perfectly.
Tony widened his eyes, he was not expecting the child to repeat him.
“Language,” Bucky glared at her and she pouted.
“You sound like uncle Stevie” she rolled her eyes.
“Watch it,” Steve warned playfully.
She gigged and turned back to her client to finish.
She put his hair in two identical pigtails and did her best to make it puff up like hers. She brushed it up as much as she could but it just wouldn’t stay. She did her best to keep from getting frustrated with herself. She did what her mama always told her in cases of her fast impending frustration, take a few minutes and breathe before finishing.
Once Annalise felt like she had calmed down enough, she went back and tried again but nothing was working! She felt tears well up in her eyes and just sat there staring at the back of her dad’s head not knowing what to do.
She looked around the room and saw everyone was really engrossed into Paw Patrol. She eyed everyone to see whose hair would work better to make look like hers, but everyone in the room had hair like her papa. Uncle Sammy and Rhodey wouldn’t even work, they had no hair.
She reached up to touch her hair and then reached out with her other hand to touch Bucky’s. The textures far from each other, everyone had hair like him, she wanted hair like him. It was easy to work with, all the little cartoon characters on TV even seemed to have hair like his too. Why not her?
She sighed and put her hair stuff away. Annalise felt her face growing hot and her face scrunching up as she started to cry. She removed herself from the couch and rushed out of the common area.
“Anna?,” Bucky called out but that just sped up her pace.
Everyone looked around in confusion as Annalise never stormed off like that.
He went after her and found her in her playhouse in her playroom. She had her back to the door but he could still see her little form through the window.
“Honeybee, what happened?,”
“Go away!,” she called out, “You and mama said when I’m in a mood to step away and take some time and space for myself. You’re keeping that from happening.”
Bucky was at a loss for words. He hated seeing his daughter upset like this. This normally only happened when her mama wouldn’t take her to the park then to get ice cream, or the time Y/N wouldn’t get Anna a dog, or the time she found out she could only lift heavy stuff like him but not turn into a snake like her Uncle Loki. All the other times this happened, you were there to calm him down and keep him away until she came to you guys ready to talk.
But you weren’t here and Bucky felt the heat and tingles of anxiousness run down his body as he didn’t know what to do. Without you there to pull him away, he didn’t know what to do, he wanted to comfort his little honeybee.
“Baby-,”
“Papa, go!!,” she hit the fake window and he saw the sadness in her big brown eyes, “Just go,” she whimpered.
Bucky didn’t want to go, he wanted to sit right here and wait until Anna came out the door and crawled into his arms. But he heard your voice in his head, give her time.
He huffed and reluctantly got up to leave, he stood in the doorway and heard her sniffle and hiccup. He closed his eyes and shook his head as he left. He knew she would come to him, she always does but he hated waiting.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“She okay?,” Wanda asked.
“She’s bawling her eyes out and won’t tell me why,” He hung his head, the pigtails swinging with his head. The image would have been funny if he wasn’t so bothered.
“Crying?” everyone says in unison.
”Why would she be crying?,” Tony stood up quickly, ready to comfort his granddaughter.
“If I knew I wouldn’t be here freaking out,” Bucky’s tone was clipped and he didn’t mean for it to be, he just took his daughter and her feelings seriously.
“Y/N has this rule where if Annalise gets frustrated or upset then she needs to take some time to herself to calm down so she doesn’t lash out on anyone. To come to us when she’s ready,” Bucky shook his head and sat back in the chair staring at his hands in his lap
“Usually Y/N is here to keep me from hovering over Anna while she’s calming down but she’s not and my daughter is bawling and I’ve never been alone with her breaking down like this and I feel like I’m failing her. I know she’s just doing what she was taught and will come to me later like she always does but I want to be comforting my daughter now. I want to know what’s wrong now, so I can fix it. I’ve never been alone when this happens, I feel lost,” He huffs as he finishes his rant and Tony claps a hand on his shoulder before sitting down beside him.
“You’re not alone, Bucky. We’re here to help you. Y/N did the same thing when she was younger, it helped her harness and channel her emotions. That’s all she wants for Anna,” Tony reassured him.
“Everything is going to be okay, Buck” Steve smiled at his bestfriend.
“I just don't understand why she’d run off crying. We were having a good time,”
“That is weird. She never gets upset unless provoked.” Bruce points out.
“Which one of you did it?” Nat and Thor said at the same time, eyeing everyone around the room ready to sock it to whoever dare hurt their dear Anna.
“Here’s the little one of the hour,” Vision’s voice catches everyone’s attention.
Annalise comes in with her stuffed bee and crawls on the chair and watches the TV as if nothing happened.
She felt her family staring at her before turning and questioning them, “Why are y’all staring at me?,”
“Why were you so upset, honey? You lashed out on me for a second and I was worried,”
“Hormones,” she shrugged.
Everyone looked at the six year old with scrunched up faces. Hormones?
“Sweetheart, I don’t think you can use that excuse yet,” Wanda arched a brow at the smart little girl.
“Why not? I hear you, mama, aunt Nat and nana Pepper use it all the time,” She looks at Wanda with furrowed brows.
“That’s because we’re different. We’re a lot bigger,” Natasha explains.
“Well...,” Annalise thinks of another excuse to make, “I’m just a kid. We cry all the time.” her words were hurried yet unsure.
“I know that’s not what’s wrong. Can you please talk to me.” Bucky felt like he was gonna explode. He hated the idea of not being there for his daughter. He felt like she didn’t trust him enough to tell him.
“Papa... I will tell you when I’m ready. Please let it go,” she huffed and played with her stuffed bee’s antennas.
Bucky looked at Tony sorrowfully. Tony just told Bucky not to think about it too much, that she will come to him when she’s ready, but now is not that time.
He hated waiting, he wanted to fix the problem now. He wanted to help his honeybee. He would call Y/N, but her talking time was limited due to the mission.
“Okay, I understand”
----------------
Bucky was getting Annalise ready for bed. He sat with his back against the headboard with her sitting between his legs, her attention on the TV as she watched a documentary on dinosaurs.
He sat with a spray bottle, curl crème and a wide tooth as he did three strand twists in his daughter’s hair. He adored her curls. The way the perfect spirals were shiny and springy, he just wanted to play with it all day like she did with his. He loved doing her hair, something she obviously got from you and he could not get enough of it. You and Bucky always took turns styling your daughter’s hair and most times he argued with you because he saw this cute kid’s hair style while shopping in the beauty store and wanted to do it.
With you being away, he had free reign and wouldn’t have to worry about trying to argue with you about it.
While detangling a section of her hair, he caught a knot that had Anna whimpering in pain, “Ow, papa!,”
“Sorry, honeybee,” He sprayed more of his water and leave in conditioner mixture in her and worked the knot out.
“I wish my hair was thinner,” she mumbled quckly.
For Bucky’s senses to be enhanced, he actually didn’t quite catch what she said but he could hear her distasteful tone.
“What was that?,” He leaned to the side to see her face better.
“Nothing, papa. Just tired. How much more do we have to go?,”
Her question caught Bucky off guard. Anna never questions how long until her hair is finished. She sits there as calm as the night sea, just letting her parents do her hair.
“Uh, not too much. Then we’ll get you in bed, okay?,”
“Okay,” she answered. her shoulders sagged as he finished his current twist. Ten more and he’s done. With his daughter all washed up and ready for bed, he puts her bonnet on and switches the light off.
“Goodnight, honeybee,” He kissed her forehead and held her tight against him as she hummed a goodnight. It took him a while to get to sleep, he was worried about his daughter. But your voice of reason was always there in the back of his mind to calm him down.
-----------------
When Annalise made sure her papa was good and well asleep, she slipped out of his arms and found herself treading to the common area. It was quiet throughout the compound, except for the TVs heard from the others’ rooms.
She sat on the couch and looked around the area and sighed.
“FRIDAY?,” She called out.
“Hi little Stark,” the woman’s voice low since it was night time.
“It’s Stark-Barnes, FRIDAY,” the six year old giggled.
“I know. But your grandpa wanted me to address you as the little Stark. He said little Stark-Barnes didn’t have the right ring to it,”
“Anything can have the right ring to it if you don't overthink it,”
“Try telling him that,” the AI laughed, “What can I do for you, Annalise?,”
“I have a question,” She whispered.
“Go ahead,”
“Is papa really my papa?,” the little girl finally asked.
FRIDAY took a minute to answer. Why would she ask such a thing?
“Of course he is. Records prove it. Why that question?,”
“If he’s really my papa then why don’t I have his hair? And if pop pop is really my pop pop why doesn’t mama have hair like him?,” such a curious little bean, but there was nothing wrong with it.
“Because your mommy’s mom’s, your other nana’s, genes were more dominant than your pop pop’s. Same thing with you. Your mommy’s genes were more dominant than your daddy’s. Everyone has certain characteristics that come from one parent and other characteristics that come from the other. That’s what makes you who you are. That’s what makes you unique, Anna,”
“Papa’s hair is better than mine,” she cried.
“Don’t cry, Anna. Not it’s not,”
“Yes it is. It doesn’t get tangles in it like mine. It doesn’t take forever to do like mine, it doesn’t get poufy when it gets wet like mine. I wish I had his hair. Everyone else here has hair like him,” she tried to reason.
“Annalise, listen to me,” FRIDAY gently spoke, “Just because everyone else has a certain hair type doesn’t make them better than you. Your hair fits you. It’s beautiful on you. There’s nothing wrong with your hair. Look at your mommy for example,”
Annalise took in FRIDAY’s words and nodded her head,
“Thank you for talking to me FRIDAY. I would have talked to papa but I feel like he’d be mad at me,” she got a blanket and curled up on the couch.
“He could never be mad at you,”
“Can you read me a story, please?,” she wrapped the blanket around self ad pulled a pillow under her little head.
“I sure can,” FRIDAY replied lightly
Annalise went to sleep that night hearing a beautiful story about a young black girl who fell in love with her hair. She knows this story, her mama has read it to her before.
-----------------
Bucky woke up the next morning and his arms were empty, Annalise rarely ever wakes up before him and when she does she stays cuddled up to him until he wakes up.
“Honeybee?,” he called out, but got no response back.
“He checked the bathroom and found nothing there. He ran down the hallway calling out for his honeybee but she was nowhere to be found.
“Annalise?!,” He ran into the kitchen, No one was there and he started to freak out. He checked the playroom, it was left the same as yesterday, all tidy and empty.
“Fuck,” he swore to himself. He ran into the living room and his heart almost burst out of his chest. He found her lying there sound asleep with her stuffed bee.
“Oh my God,” he cried.
He picked her up as she stirred awake and held her tight.
“You scared the hell out of me, Anna,” He kissed her face repeatedly and wiped his tears, “What are you doing out here?,”
“I dunno, I think I sleepwalked,” she muttered into his neck as she hugged him back.
“Anna, you don’t sleep walk,”
“I got thirsty. When I got my water I didn't wanna wake you up so I stayed out here,” she said.
“You don’t have to be afraid to wake me up, honeybee. As long as I know where you are so you don’t give me another heart attack,”
“I’m sorry, papa,”
“It’s okay. Mama comes back today.” he rocked his daughter back and forth.
“Good. She’s been gone for a long time,” Annalise yawned
It’s really only been like four days, but any time without her mother is a long time to her.
“Let’s get you ready for the day and then I’ll make you breakfast, yeah?,” he softly patted her bum and walked with her to the bathroom. He brushed her teeth and gently washed her face with a clean, warm rag. He got her dressed a cute set of yellow overalls with a black long sleeve turtleneck underneath. He called her back in the bathroom and took her bonnet off. He lightly oiled her scalp and decided to leave the twists in for another day before taking them out that way her curls would be more defined. But he did a half up, half down look on her that way the front wouldn’t be in her face.
She smiled at him and went into the kitchen, sitting in her favorite spot, her mama’s spot when she’s not here.
“Want an omelet?,” He walked into the kitchen and got pans ready.
“Yes please. With the egg stuff mommy uses, and the vegan butter.” she smiled sweetly at him and he smiled right back. He adored that little girl, his little family was the best thing to happen to him. He was blessed, he woke up everyday thanking the highest Heavens for you two.
“Anything in it?,”
“Mushrooms, green peppers, spinach, no onions, I’m allergic,”
“I’m your papa, I know what you’re allergic to, honeybee,”
“And mama’s dairy-free cheese,” she fiddled with her stuffed bee.
“Can hardly call it cheese if it’s dairy-free,” he mumbled to himself and shook his head.
“I heard thaaaat,” Anna sang, “Mama said I can make the decision to not eat animal products like her if I want. When I found out that chicken nuggets are actual chickens I didn’t want to anymore. They’re too cute. My doctor said I’m still healthy without all of it,”
Bucky just smiled as he oiled the pan with your vegan butter and poured the egg substitute into the pans with the stove heat on low.
“Juice or your oat milk?,” Bucky pulled his hair up easily in a bun and Anna was watching him.
“Oat milk, please,” even with what FRIDAY said to her last night, she was still a little sad that she can’t easily wear a style like that in her hair.
She sat quietly as she waited for her breakfast to be cooked. Bucky cooked himself a hearty breakfast in the process.
He handed Anna her favorite cup with her oat milk and her plate with apple slices, her little omelet and a little bowl of apple cinnamon oatmeal. He sat down with his own plate of bacon, an omelet with real eggs and cheese, tomatoes and green peppers with a side of toast and a cup of black coffee.
Annalise ate carefully and quietly.
“What do you wanna do when mama comes home?,” He took a bite of his toast.
“Maybe the park?, then we can go roller skating. We haven’t gone in a while. Me and mama think it’s funny that you’re a superhero but can’t skate to save your life,”
Bucky choked laughing at her insult.
“Mama is a superhero and can’t cartwheel correctly!,” he defended
“Cheap blow, Barnes!,” You showed up in the entrance, “I can cartwheel just fine,”
“Hardly,”
“MAMA!!!,” Annalise ran to you and you lifted her up in the air kissing all over her face.
“How’s my honeybee?,”
“I’m well. I missed you so much. Papa made me a good breakfast, come eat with us!,”
“I already ate but I’ll still sit with you guys,”
You walked over to Bucky and gave him a long, much needed kiss, Annalise gagging in your arms.
You sat down in her seat and she continued eating in your lap while you talked to your husband.
“How was the assignment?,” Bucky asked as he cut a piece of his omelet, shoveling it into his mouth.
“Boring. Less fighting than I thought, my shadow traveling has gotten better so no close calls or anything. I could have been home last night but I forgot a piece of data so I had to hurry and retrieve it and delete the software before they realized we got em,” you took a sip of Anna’s oat milk and played with her hair.
“Your hair is cute, baby. Who did it? Pop pop?,”
Anna laughed and shook her head, “Pop pop can’t even put my hair into my puffballs, papa did this,” she shook her head and you watched them swing back and forth.
“Good job, babe,”
“I should have been a hair dresser,” Bucky boasts
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Anna beat you to it.
“Your papa texted me yesterday saying you were upset. Have you talked it out yet?,” You asked her, massaging her scalp.
Annalise visibly tensed, “Don’t want to talk about it right now, mama,”
Now you didn’t know what do. She never shut you guys out like this. Bucky sighed and dusted off his hands as he sat back in his chair.
“Why not?,” He asked
“Because I don’t want to,” she shrugged, “I already talked it out, it’s fine,”
You and Bucky both furrowed your brows.
“Talked it out with who? and I don’t think it’s fine because when I brought it up you immediately tensed up. We’re your parents, baby. Don’t be afraid to come to us,” you rubbed her back but she just kept eating.
“With FRIDAY. When papa went to sleep I came out in the living room to talk to her, I ended up falling asleep on the couch and it is fine, mama,”
“You told me you got thirsty and didn’t want to wake me up when you came back,” Bucky leaned on the table and eyed your daughter suspiciously.
“Well I did. I can do both,”
“Annalise Lillian Stark-Barnes now is not the time to sass me,” Bucky gave her a stern look.
“He’s right Anna, if something is bothering you, you don’t lie. You come to us. Don’t keep it to yourself,”
“Well it’s a me problem so I’ll work it out on my own,”
“But you don't have to, Annalise. Listen to me,”
You turned her around in your lap and held her small face in your hands.
“There is nothing that we can’t help you through, do you hear me? Your feelings are valid. Talk to us,”
With Bucky sitting beside you, you both saw her eyes well up with tears.
“FRIDAY said papa is really my papa and pop pop is really my pop pop,” she said looking down.
You and Bucky looked at each other completely lost.
“Of course we are, baby. Is that bad?,” Bucky was scared to hear her answer. Kids were unapologetically blunt.
“I was playing with your hair yesterday. You said I could put your hair in puffballs like mine but you lied to me. I couldn’t get your hair to puff up like mine. I tried to see who else’s hair I could get to do it but everyone had hair like yours so I figured your hair was better. When you did my hair last night I said I wished it was thin like yours. I asked FRIDAY if I’m really yours and if mama is really pop pop’s then how come we don’t have pretty hair like yours,” she sobbed and didn’t look either of you in the eyes.
Your eyes welled at your daughter’s words. You didn’t expect her to have self image problems this early on and you didn’t know what to do. You struggled with this mindset before, but not this young.
Bucky took her from your lap and placed her in his.
“Annalise... Look at me, please,”
With red eyes she did as he said.
“Your hair is absolutely beautiful okay?,” he held her hands.
“Your hair is your crown and no one has the same crown because we all wear it differently. You don’t need hair like mine for it to be considered pretty. You already have my smile, my laugh, my attitude and my inhuman strength. Your hair is yours. Your beauty is yours and no one can take that from you,”
“But you don’t have tangles and kinks like I do,”
“You without your hair kinks and tangles is like a leopard without spots.” he rebuttals.
She just stared at him with her lip quivering
“All hair is pretty hair. All hair is good hair. You don’t have to have mine for it to be considered good, honeybee,”
She nodded her head but you weren’t quite sure she understood.
“What your Honeybee Scouts slogan?,” Bucky asks her.
“Remove the kinks from your mind-”
“- Not your hair,” He finishes with her.
You watched this moment. It was good that it wasn't just you instilling these values in her, you took comfort in knowing her father, though who looked different than her, took her self-image problems seriously and didn’t just leave them for you to handle. She had both of you.
“Your hair isn’t strictly who you are, baby. It’s a part of you and it’s one of the many puzzle pieces that help make the bigger, beautiful picture. You,” you booped her nose and smiled at her. She seemed to understand after you guys’ thoughtful words and she wiped her tears.
“I didn’t want you guys to be mad at me for feeling like that,” she admitted.
“Sweetheart,” you took her chin in between your thumb and index finger, “We could never be mad at you for having your own feelings. Like we said, your feelings are valid and you don’t have to hide them from us. We’re your parents for a reason,”
“Uncle Sammy and pop pop said it’s because you guys had coitus like rabbits. Pop pop said papa just had to come to you for a ‘horizontal refreshment’, I’m not sure what that means but they said it,”
You and Bucky’s eyes pop out of your heads at the words that come out of your daughter’s mouth. You were gonna have a few words for those two.
“Anyway,” Bucky coughs, “When we found out we were having you, we knew we would do our best to have a healthy, secure relationship with you. We want you to pull back, take time for yourself then come to us so we can have these talks. So you don’t grow up questioning yourself or your feelings. You understand?,”
She nodded and squeezed his hands, “I understand,”
You and Bucky both kissed both of her cheeks and you guys sat there in a group hug for a few minutes before the rest family comes in and sees you and you hear a chorus of “Y/N!” and “Awh!,”
You look for the two men of the hour and eye them.
“I will have a talk with you two later about the terms you use around my sweet cherub,”
Sam made a ‘yikes’ face and Tony just rolled his eyes. Nothing he ever says around his granddaughter is correct enough.
“But for now,” you turned to your daughter and smiled at her, “Let’s get you straightened up and me cleaned up and we can go skating to laugh at papa, how’s that sound?,”
Bucky threw his head back and laughed at your comment.
Annalise shook in excitement and smiled wide.
“Yes!!,” she clapped, “Sorry papa but watching you bust your butt is funny,”
“It’s okay because after that we’re gonna go to the park and have a cartwheel competition with mama,”
“Oouuu,” your daughter teased.
“You’re supposed to be on my side, Anna!!!”
Bucky scooped her up and ran away, “Hardly!,” he called over his shoulder.
You shook your head at this family of yours.
Not perfect, but close enough.
*The End*
-------------------
Thinking about making a papa Bucky series. Let me know what you think!
Please leave comments, reblog and like. Y’all’s feedback is greatly appreciated. <3
Up next is Nat! Once this gets to at least 100 notes, I’ll upload it!
Tags- @sideeffectsofyou @chonisberonica
#bucky barnes x reader#bucky barnes x black!reader#bucky barnes x poc#bucky barnes x poc!reader#bucky barnes imagine#bucky barnes fanfiction#black reader#black!reader#poc reader#poc!reader#marvel one shot#marvel imagine#marvel x black!reader#marvel x reader#AVENGERS ANGST#black mcu imagines#avengers x reader#avengers x black!reader#avengers x poc#mcu imagines#mcu imagine#mcu x reader#mcu x black!reader#marvel fanfiction#avengers fanfiction#winter soldier x reader#winter soldier fanfiction#winter soldier x black!reader
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fic: as spring became the summer
or, five times wanda gave vision flowers | fluff
1.
“You wanna try any of these fancy teas?” Natasha asks, pulling Wanda out of her thoughts and into the aisle, the display of multi-coloured boxes in front of them. “We’ve got so many mugs, may as well use them to sample every flavour you can.”
“Um-” She stares up at the boxes, all the bright colours, all the choice. “Maybe...the apple?”
“I know you’re faithful to Earl Grey, but you may as well try new things on SHIELD coin,” Natasha says with a wink. “Come on. I promised Sam his precious ingredients by six so he can treat us all to mac and cheese tonight.”
Obediently following the team leader towards the checkouts, Wanda finds her eyes caught by the tier of buckets displaying flowers. Her eyes flicker over the bright, bountiful bouquets reaching out towards consumer hands, landing on a tiny bunch of white buds. There’s a yellow sticker proclaiming them on sale, and she runs her fingers over the browning at the edges of the petals. She must be become soft-hearted amongst the Avengers, but she feels a pang at the thought of leaving these flowers behind to be thrown out at the end of the day.
She takes them up to the checkout, and Natasha mercifully doesn’t ask questions. Cradles the slim bundle in its crackling cellophane as Natasha drives back to the compound, only moving to flash her face at the guard at the door, and while Natasha is calling for Sam to help her she slips away from the group. Her room is already teeming with decoration, with the photographs and the art and the old guitar Sam gave her in pride of place.
When she knocks on Vision’s door, he opens it immediately, glancing down at her. “Good evening, Ms. Maximoff,” he says, and she bites back the instinct to tell him to stop being so formal. He’ll stop in his own time. “Is there something I can do for you? Would you like assistance in the training room again?”
“No, I...” She trails off, searching for the right words to explain to him what she wants. How to make him understand when he’s still learning, has been ever since they moved into the compound. “I bought these flowers at the store and I...there isn’t room for them in my room. I thought maybe you’d like them? Because your room is pretty empty except for books, and I...you should decorate.” She holds the bouquet out lamely, suddenly conscious of how the flowers are past their best, drooping slightly, and bites at the inside of her cheek in fear that he’ll push her away.
“Oh, I...” He takes the bouquet gently from her hands, the gear in his eyes swirling at he stares at them, and she watches his throat bob as he swallows. “Thank you, Ms. Maximoff. They’re beautiful.”
“You’re welcome,” she says softly, and tries not to wonder too much over the soft golden glow diffusing in his cheeks. Only allowing herself one chance to look back as she walks towards the drawling of Sam and Rhodey arguing in the kitchen, to look at the wonder in Vision’s expression as he traces his fingertips delicately over the velvet edge of a petal.
2.
The room is spinning as Wanda almost falls into her chair after Steve is done twirling her energetically around the floor, fanning her flushed face with a discarded menu. Vision is still dancing with Pepper, and for a second her gaze lingers appreciatively on the cut of his suit to his shoulders before Sam’s voice breaks through the fog of champagne. “Hey...hey Wanda...Wanda!”
She glances across the table at him, sprawled with his feet in Natasha’s abandoned chair, mischief gleaming in his eyes. “I don’t wanna dance anymore,” she says, easing her aching feet out of her heels, hiding her chipped nail polish under the hem of her dress.
“I dare you to steal the centrepiece,” Sam says with a sly grin, and Wanda stares at it. The swirling flowers blooming out of the crystal vase in a vast display of extravagance, marking the Stark Industries Christmas Gala as a place of excess. Just as she’s indulged in such an excess of champagne stealing the flowers sounds like a good idea.
“Why me?” she asks, blinking at him as he slants suddenly into two. “Why not someone else?”
“Steve and Nat have been too busy showing off, and Rhodey told me I was being immature,” he says with a frown. “And you’re the drunkest and the most likely to listen to my wisdom unquestioningly.”
“Why would I steal the flowers?” she asks, propping her chin on her hand and narrowing her eyes at Sam.
“To keep a memory of this magical, wonderful night,” Sam says brightly. “You got to slow dance with your crush. You should remember it.”
“We’re not sixteen,” she snaps, willing herself not to blush. Just because she’s had a champagne glass too many doesn’t mean she’s about to turn around to just anybody and talk about her feelings for Vision. “I’m not taking the flowers.”
“But they’ll brighten up a certain red someone’s room,” he says slyly, and she can feel the flush heat the back of her neck. “Take them. Take them take them take them take them take them-”
A lash of her fingers sends a spoon flying sharply into Sam’s nose, clattering to the floor, and silencing him. But it doesn’t stop her from sneaking back into the room under the guise of having forgotten a bracelet to take the flowers, hiding them under her coat in the car ride back.
She skids on ice getting out of the car, and Vision is there to steady her, their breath rising frosted silver in the air as he guides her back up to the compound, her feet aching enough that she limps the last few steps. “You should have a glass of water before bed,” he says, and she smiles up at him, tired enough to not care how besotted she looks.
“Can I give you something?” she asks, and he nods, distracted turning his back to her to fill water glasses and butter bread. She admires the cut of his suit again before he turns around and she produces the richly-red roses from beneath her coat, holding them out to him proudly. “Merry Christmas, Vizh.”
“Where did you find those, Ms. Maximoff?” he asks, and she shakes her head fondly at his insistence on using her full name.
“I just found them,” she says sweetly. “They’re for you.” She trades the roses for a glass of water, and watches the pleasure warm his smile while she drinks.
When Tony calls in the morning to long-sufferingly ask who stole a centrepiece, she grins into her tea at Vision’s betrayed expression.
3.
Rain is tumbling from the swollen clouds, and Wanda ducks through the nearest open doorway, frowning in irritation at the feeling of her wet socks inside her boots. Her umbrella has at least protected her hair, but she can feel the dampness seeping into her backpack, hoping that everything within is dry enough that she won’t need to spend the night trying to dry clothes in a tiny hostel room instead of being with Vision.
“Morning!” comes a chirp, and she glances up at the bright-eyed cashier. She’s managed to duck into a florist, surrounded by petals and leaves, and the young man is beaming at her. “Are you just ducking out of the rain, or would you like to look around?”
She’s about to lamely apologise, then she looks around and changes her mind. “I’ll have a look,” she says, and he smiles.
“Flowers for anyone in particular?” he asks, so casually. She supposes she should at least be grateful that it’s a sign that her newly-dyed hair is enough to keep anyone from recognising her. “Or for yourself? No shame in treating yourself to something as lovely as flowers!”
“My boyfriend,” she says. Even though they don’t use that word. She can’t explain to a stranger than it’s her best friend who she might be falling in love with coming to visit for the first time in two months because she’s on the run and he has to sneak out to see her under the guise of official government-sanctioned missions. “He likes flowers.”
“That’s sweet, ma’am,” the cashier says, and she smiles slightly. “I’ll let you browse. You must know him best.”
When she eventually braves the downpour again for the walk to the train station, waiting by herself on the platform while a broken gutter stubbornly drips water onto her, she’s cradling flowers under her arm to keep them dry. And when she sees Vision step off the train, the familiar blonde hair and the soft grey sweater he always seems to travel in, she smiles without needing to try.
He’s across the platform and kissing her before she’s even opened her mouth to greet him, and she smiles against his lips, melting into the kiss. “I missed you,” he says softly when they part, and she smiles into his eyes and draws him into another kiss, her fingers settling in the thick hair at the back of his neck.
“I got you something,” she says, and produces the flowers from behind her back. A beautiful bouquet of yellow and white, and Vision beams, taking them as gently as he did the first time she gave him flowers.
“They’re lovely, darling,” he says, and his eyes are shining. “I got you something too.”
When he pulls a box from his pocket, there’s a heartstopping whirlwind moment when some part of her thinks he’s going to propose. But there’s a necklace inside, not a ring, the pretty vintage one she saw in a shop window during his last visit and coveted for the entire week they were together. She takes the box from him, helplessly grinning, and looks up to arch an eyebrow and say, “You just can’t help but outdo me, can you?”
“Flowers are as wonderful as jewellery,” he says, and kisses her forehead. “Every gift from you is wonderful.”
She forgets to make sure she isn’t crushing the flowers when she lifts on her tiptoes to kiss him.
4.
Shuri’s labs are stark white, and the doors swish open so quietly when Wanda walks through them. She doesn’t meet any of the guards’ eyes, unable to stand the sympathy they gaze at her with, and descends another level to the room with only one bed. Where Vision is sitting alone, colour restored to the grey he was when they first woke him, staring at the wall. Silent, only the rise and fall of his shoulders with his breathing to show he’s there at all.
“I’m back,” she says weakly, and he turns his head slightly to look at her. There’s still no spark of recognition in his eyes, despite the work Shuri says she’s been putting on, despite her constant trying with the incomplete back-up she had, pulling and prodding at it to draw out his memories. “How are you, Vizh?”
“I remembered something,” he says, and she glances up suddenly from arranging her bag, feeling hope blossom warm in her chest. “I remembered Edinburgh.”
“We were there,” she says encouragingly, and he shifts on the bed. She wants to sit next to him, to comfort him, but it seems impossible to touch him when he doesn’t remember her, to think of being so close without kissing him,
“We were attacked,” he says, and she nods again. “I told you to go.” He looks at her, the same eyes she remembers so well from misty early mornings in hotel rooms, and asks, “Why didn’t you?”
“I couldn’t leave you,” she says, and moves slightly closer. He holds a hand out to her, as if it’s muscle memory, and she links their fingers tentatively together. “Everything I do is to protect you. To make the world safe for you again. So you can choose the life you want.”
“I remember what I asked you,” he says, and she flushes slightly. “I asked you to stay with me. You never answered.”
“Circumstances didn’t let me,” she says. She eyes the windowsill, the empty vase Shuri left just as she asked, and pulls flowers from her bag to set them in the vase, a little colour in the stark room. Her back to Vision, she takes a deep breath and says, “I would’ve said yes.”
“You would?” he asks, and she turns back to him. Staring at her like he’s seeing her for the first time. And when she nods, the slightest hint of a smile flickers at the corners of his mouth. “Wanda, may I...would you object if I wanted to come with you? Walk with you when you visit?”
“I’d like that,” she says softly, and then he really does smile. When she moves back towards him, the flowers seeming to glow faintly behind her under the harsh lights, he laces their fingers together again and brushes a soft kiss over the back of her hand.
5.
Staring at herself in the mirror, sliding hair pins tighter into the swept-up style to hold her shimmering veil in place, Wanda smiles slowly. No one else is in the room with her, Sam having been tasked with helping Clint entertain his kids while Laura guides people to their seats. She can take this moment alone, to look at herself as a bride, to take up her bouquet and adjust her necklace against her collarbones. To look at herself one last time before she chooses to share her name with the man she loves.
Opening the door at footsteps outside, expecting a harried Sam back, she stalls and smiles when she sees Vision. He’s wearing white too, a stunning contrast against his crimson skin, a yellow tie lying perfectly smooth across his chest, and he starts violently when he sees her. “Wanda, we’re not supposed to see each other before the ceremony!” he says frantically, and she smiles, sliding out from behind her door to languidly drape an arm around his neck.
“I don’t believe in that superstition,” she says softly, and kisses him. “We couldn’t have any more bad luck, babe. I already saw you die twice.”
“I...thought you wouldn’t want me to see your dress,” he says, and she smiles at his gaze flickering over her. “You look so beautiful.”
“You look amazing,” she says, and he smiles. Pulling a single rose from her bouquet, she tucks it neatly into his buttonhole and leans up to kiss his cheek. “I’ll see you at the altar. I’ll be the one in white.”
“In an hour you’ll be my wife,” he says. So softly, awestuck, fingers tracing over the silken edge of the rose petals, and she beams at him, light with love.
“You’ll be my husband,” she breathes, and leans up to kiss him, feeling his fingers warm against her skin through the thin material of her dress. Moving over her waist to cradle her, and she pulls back and smirks as she says, “And if you don’t stop that I’m going to consummate the marriage before it’s official.”
He blushes, cheeks glowing gold, and she gives him one last kiss before she forces herself away. Tucking her fingers around her flowers and allowing herself one last look at him. Staring at the rose she gave him with his eyes bright. The man she’s about to promise herself to forever.
Until the stars burn out.
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Not A Ghost - part 22
A/N - Multi-part fic. Colossus x OC where OC has come home after being wrongfully imprisoned in the Icebox. Warnings for whole fic - references and flashbacks to harsh prison environment, including various types of abuse. Takes place shortly after events in Deadpool 2. Whole thing will end up on my AO3 eventually.
Taglist: @emma-frxst @ra-ra-rasputiin @holamor @empressme-bitch @marvel-is-perfection @hazilyimagine @marvelhead17 @rovvboat @angstybadboytrash @whitewitchdown @master-sass-blast @mori-fandom @mooleche @dandyqueen @emberbent . Wanna be added or removed? Holla at me.
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A thin crust of dried blood cracked and flaked off as Rhonda flexed and pointed her toes. She meant to unwind in her practice room, but she had stepped on a stray shard of glass from dropping a light bulb a few days ago. It was a minor nick, and not even particularly painful once she got the shard out, but she didn’t want to make a mess on the floor by continuing to dance. So, grabbing one of the socks she’d peeled off and pressed to her foot to absorb the blood, Rhonda stretched on the floor. She breathed deeply, relaxing into the lengthening muscle, gently testing her range of motion. A lot of it had returned. With more time, she might even get back to her near-contortionist level of flexibility.
System of a Down alternated with Linkin Park and Marilyn Manson on a playlist of 90s and 00s rock. The familiar rhythms of high energy, angry songs were soothing, even if Rhonda was only stretching instead of dancing. She mulled over the day. Did Piotr and Ororo judge her for quitting X-Men? What was that stern faced stranger after? Was he DMC? Did Ellie and Yukio know what they were risking by being part of X-Men? If the DMC was looking for her, was she endangering her loved ones by being close to them?
With an extra stretch, Rhonda reached past her extended legs and grabbed her hoodie. The business card Michelle had given her was still in the pocket. Bending the corners with her fingernails, she figured a therapist might help her manage her guilt and anxiety and grief, but what if there was real danger?
Her concentration shattered when someone knocked on the door frame. Snapping her head toward the sound, she saw Ellie leaning her shoulder against it. Fidgeting with her little chain bracelets, Ellie said, “Colossus said I should give you space, but...I wanted to see you.”
Rhonda leaned back until she was flat on the floor, and slunk a few inches to reach her phone to turn the music lower, and slip the card back in her hoodie pocket. “Come sit,” she said with a warm smile as she swept her legs to pull herself into a sitting position as well. Marilyn Manson started growling and rasping about something disturbing as Ellie kicked off her boots to join Rhonda. “What’s up, spikey-butt?”
“Ha, I haven’t been called that in forever,” Ellie gave a short laugh. She leaned back on her palms and absently flexed and pointed her toes, just the way Rhonda had taught her as a child. “Well, we missed you for coffee and I hadn’t seen you since lunch. Things got...kinda tense.”
Rhonda nodded apologetically, “I really needed some time dancing that wasn’t in the middle of the night.”
“No, for sure,” Ellie agreed, “I just wanted to see you.” Her eyebrows lifted in hesitation.
“Here,” Rhonda held out her hand and straddled her legs. Ellie straddled her legs as well and allowed her feet to rest against Rhonda’s ankles. They joined hands and started slowly pulling each other back and forth -- a buddy stretch for hips and inner thighs. Ellie could only lean forward a few inches, but Rhonda could get almost flush to the ground.
“When were you sure you wanted to marry Colossus?” Ellie blurted between songs.
A surprised smile warmed Rhonda’s face. Without breaking her rhythm, she held their stretches a moment longer before answering, “I think deep down, I was probably always sure.”
Ellie pursed her lips and glanced around the room as they shifted so they could stretch their hamstrings. She clarified, “But did something...happen? Something that made you feel, like, extra sure or felt like fireworks?”
Rhonda’s teeth flashed in a big grin, not quite giggling at the question. “Love doesn’t always work like that, but let me think a minute.” Folding herself over an outstretched leg, Rhonda rested her face against her knee. After a few breaths, she sat up again, “It was a bunch of little things. Things that were consistent. I liked who I was when I was with Piotr, and he proved every day that he cared for me, even when we were having a bad day. And by the time he proposed, we had already felt married for a while.” Ellie frowned thoughtfully and Rhonda asked, “Is that an underwhelming answer?”
“I mean...kind of.” Ellie’s cheeks puffed out in a big sigh. She hesitated, then said, “I...really love Yukio.” She pulled her knees up a bit, resting her elbows on her thighs and hooking her fingers together. Her outfit was mostly shades of black and charcoal grey -- except for the hot pink socks as she absently wiggled her toes. “I think I wanna marry her, but...how do you know you’re sure?”
The question and the sentiment tugged at Rhonda’s heart so much she had to look away for a minute. She started working through a few stretches for her shoulders. “Pretty early in our relationship,” she said, “Things just felt...natural. Neither of us had dated that many people before, but being with him felt like home.” Rhonda smiled, “We bring out the best in each other, and when missions called for us both, that’s when we made our best decisions.” After a pause, she reached and thumbed Ellie’s cheek, “Hey...what’s it like for you?”
Ellie smiled, even blushed a little, and lifted her shoulders to her ears before fidgeting and slapping at her thighs. “I feel like I can handle anything if she’s around. Anything,” she chuffed a little sound, “Next time the house blows up, or Deadpool drags us into some bullshit, or if you...I know I’ll be okay, I’ll get through it, if Yukio’s there.”
For the first time, Ellie noticed fine crow’s feet framing Rhonda’s dark eyes as she smiled. It made her look older than Ellie had always thought of her, and it might have made her sad if her unofficial-adoptive-mom didn’t also look like some kind of forest trickster. “If you love her that much,” Rhonda grinned so hard she was squinting, “and you’ve found each other so young, you’re extremely lucky.”
Ellie narrowed her eyes in suspicion, “You don’t think we’re too young to get married?”
Slipping her socks back onto her feet, Rhonda stood and started absently moving through a few steps and turns. “I’m not saying you should go get married tomorrow,” she said, “but whatever age -- marriage is about choosing each other every day. It’s a mindset.” Her toes left lines in the thin film of dust on the floor. “If you two already know a good relationship is about choosing to be supportive and kind every day, then I think you’ll be fine. Married or not. Just make sure to leave room for each other to grow.” She winced a little when her ankle popped during a turn and grunted. “Time will change you both a lot, but you can keep choosing each other. Every day.”
“Like you and Colossus,” Ellie said.
Rhonda’s arms, arced overhead, fell to her sides like leaves on a breeze. “Huh,” she mused, “You should probably be talking to him about this instead.”
Wrinkling her nose in a nervous groan, Ellie said, “Nah, I figured he would just say I’m too young.”
“Ha!” Rhonda took a minute to grab her hoodie while she laughed heartily. “I think he’ll surprise you.” Feeling the therapist’s business card in the pocket reminded her of her previous train of thought. A jarring guitar solo by System of a Down cut off in silence as Rhonda turned off the music, picking up her phone and speaker. Drumming her fingers on the speaker, Rhonda asked, “Ellie...are you happy in the X-Men?”
Ellie was stumbling with putting one boot back on. “I mean…” she twitched her eyebrows together as she shifted to get her other boot, “Yeah.”
Edging for the door, Rhonda chewed her lip. “What would you do if you weren’t on the team?”
“I…” Ellie shrugged, “I dunno.”
“You’ve never considered what you’d be doing if you weren’t part of X-Men?” Rhonda eyed her warily.
Ellie hedged, “I mean, engineering school sounds neat, I guess, but you know the good schools still aren’t letting mutants in, not if they can help it.” She chewed a fingernail and twisted her feet like she was putting out a cigarette. “The best a mutant can do is make a life of helping people or--” she caught herself and looked at Rhonda.
“Or?”
“Or get thrown somewhere like the Icebox.”
To Ellie’s surprise, Rhonda let out a grim laugh muffled in the back of her throat. “Or you get both.”
“I thought you would’ve wanted me on the team,” Ellie’s gaze shifted up and down, “We used to talk about how you’d mentor me.”
Rhonda held her things tightly to her chest. “Maybe time changed how I feel about that.”
Ellie crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. “Time or getting tortured in prison?”
Rhonda’s gaze turned cold. “Pick one.”
--
After months of being home, Rhonda finally stood in front of the doors to Charles Xavier’s office. He was her leader, her boss, and in a lot of ways, her father figure since she was eleven years old. She couldn’t make herself face him before now. Questions burned in her skull that she wasn’t sure she could bear the answers to, and she wasn’t sure she could bring herself to answer the questions he would ask.
She knocked. The door opened. Her feet didn’t make a sound on the plush antique rugs. Rhonda heard a quiet, mechanical whirring as Professor Charles Xavier turned his chair to face her.
“Rhonda, my dear,” he said with the warmest, kindest smile, “I knew you would come to me when you were ready.” He hardly looked any different from when she had last seen him, except his few wrinkles might be a little deeper now.
The furnishings were new, but a good replica of Xavier’s more traditional tastes - lots of oiled wood and supple leather. Maybe his office had been destroyed within the last few years, requiring extensive remodeling. Adding a pinch of guilt to her stack of feelings, Rhonda faltered, “I’m sorry I didn’t come sooner.”
Xavier raised his palms, like a shrug but more dignified. “You weren’t ready,” he said simply. “Would you care to sit?” He gestured to a burgundy leather couch. The upholstery squeaked under Rhonda as she shifted nervously. “Well, let’s have it,” he said, as kindly and directly as ever.
Rhonda had to consciously unclench her jaw in order to say, “Charles, what the fuck?” It came out sharper than she meant, so she took a breath and tried again, “Why has everyone told me you couldn’t find me?”
Nodding, taking a slow breath, he answered, “Because I could not, despite Cerebro and my abilities. And it will forever be one of my many regrets.”
Rhonda propped an elbow on the arm of the sofa, rubbing her forehead. Xavier continued, “Ever since I heard you were in the Icebox, I have had my suspicions. I have operatives in the process of uncovering information that would prove them.” As he watched her, he could still see the frightened girl he’d met years ago. The sadness and worry in her expression was achingly familiar. “But that’s not all, is it?” he asked.
“I can’t believe you let Ellie onto the team,” Rhonda blurted, “With all the risks, all the…” words failed her and she covered her mouth with one hand. She shook her head, “We have to find a way to kick her out or make her quit. Yukio too.”
“Ellie is well aware of the dangers of field duty,” Xavier was firm, “Just as you were. She knows she is risking her life, as every member of this team does.”
“No,” Rhonda said sharply, pointing a stern finger, “we knew we were risking our deaths. It’s why Piotr and I decided not to have children - neither of us wanted to quit X-Men, but we couldn’t risk leaving another mutant orphan behind.”
Xavier replied quietly, “At least half of the residents in this house remember those arguments.”
Her voice came out in broken croaks, “The real risk...what I actually lost -- what I -- surviving...sometimes I think I should have died.”
Xavier frowned with concern, his voice hardly above a whisper, “May I see?”
Rhonda squeezed her eyes shut. When she nodded, Xavier lightly rested his fingertips against her temple. While she felt the sticky-fingered sensation of a telepath combing her mind, Xavier was flooded with flashes of everything Rhonda could remember of her imprisonment. The stench of human stink and bleach; the sensation of being covered in blood up to the elbows; the dull, echoing noise that never stopped; the same tasteless food over and over until going a day without food just to avoid eating it again becomes normal; the primal ferocity, the hot rage being the only warm thing; the hopelessness, the betrayal; feeling cut off from her identity; worst of all -- the body count Rhonda had stacked with her own hands.
Xavier pulled away from her, heart heavy. They sat a quiet moment before Xavier slowly said, “Oh, Rhonda, I’m so sorry.”
She brought her feet up onto the couch, tucking them underneath herself.
“How much does Piotr know?” he asked.
“Bits and pieces,” Rhonda rasped with a tight throat. “He thinks he wants to know all of it, but...I just can’t tell him everything.” Idly, as if to prove to herself she could still do it, Rhonda threaded lightning over her fingers, past her hands, and around her forearms, watching the green and blue threads lace across her skin.
“As difficult as the last six years have been,” Xavier said, “you survived, and now you are home. I understand your wish not to resume your duties with the X-Men, but you cannot expect me to force anyone to quit.”
Rhonda dropped the lightning and furrowed her brows, “I just spent a good couple hours proving my existence in court today. I’m officially back on the grid, and the DMC is still out there. They could be looking for me, or worse -- what happened to me could happen to Ellie or Yukio, Ororo, Piotr -- anyone. They can do this to anyone, with no consequences, and they’ll keep doing it until they’re stopped. If you won’t kick her out, you need to bring down the DMC.”
Xavier kept his voice level, reserved, “The DMC is a powerful and complicated government agency. One with which we have a very tenuous working relationship.”
Knuckles tight, blood freezing, jaw clenched, sparks dancing around her, Rhonda forced out, “And you saw what they’re willing to do to someone they’re not even charging with a crime.” She sucked in a breath. “You cannot be telling me you won’t take action.”
He made a placating gesture, palms up, patting the air. “We will take action, Rhonda, but we must tread carefully.” Xavier slowly extended a hand toward one of his many foster children, and waited for her to drop the sparks before touching her shoulder. “If they are as dangerous as you say, we must work as subtly as possible. And start diplomatically.”
“Diplomatically,” Rhonda scoffed bitterly, hot tears burning her eyes. “Every one of those officers ought to be charged with war crimes. The DMC is just another fucking tool in the anti-mutant war.”
“Breathe, my dear,” Xavier soothed. He gently squeezed her shoulder before releasing it. “It’s clear that you’re driven not by vengeance for yourself, but by your love for others. If you wish to retire from X-Men, you’ve more than earned it; however, I must ask that you don’t interfere with another member’s status. It means as much to Ellie as it did to you at her age.”
The words hit Rhonda like a shiv between some ribs. There would be no persuading Ellie or Yukio to quit X-Men on their own, and if there was no chance of kicking them off the team...as long as the DMC operated with impunity, everyone Rhonda loved was in terrible danger. Her stomach turned.
She abruptly stood and headed for the door. As she opened it, Xavier called her name and she looked over her shoulder.
“Through everything,” he said, “your heart has always been in the right place. Don’t forget that about yourself." He added with a knowing-too-much glance, "You will always have a home with us, no matter what happens."
For how awful she felt, she didn’t want to believe him. Yet, he wasn’t the type to tell a kind lie, especially after reading someone’s mind. With the slightest nod, she left his office and let the door close behind her.
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Thanks to all the mods putting this Holiday prompt page together! Thank you for all your hard work and contributions to the Tumblr everlark family now and in the past.
A/N: This is part one of a hasty, four-day attempt to multi-part a drabble set for @everlarkchristmasgifts ‘s prompts. It may not get done on time, but they say it’s good to believe in miracles at Christmas, lol.
This part rated G
Thanks to @alliswell21 for giving it a beta read on quick notice.
And… *deep inhale, because why on earth am I trying to butcher one of my favorite stand alone drabbles with a sequel???**… this follows on the events of Pasty White Raisin.
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“Shopping…”
It was twelve days to Christmas. They’d missed Christmas last year. It could’ve been their first Christmas, but Peeta had been too stubborn to let a woman “waste her life” on a washed-up baker twelve years older than her.
She’d won, by the end of the Winter thaw. He’d already been in love, but he’d finally let himself love, and everything that had seemed to mean to him.
Well, everything within the parameters of being a gentleman.
He’d insisted on her making him work for her good favor, and at first it had been a funny game, his insistence that he court her, a delicious, slow romance of soft kisses and interwoven fingers and getting to know each other over conversations, dinners, or during walks. But the game had given him time to reconsider what he might be getting in to.
Which was robbing her of a future she deserved.
So ultimately, he’d come to use the game as a way to buy time to fortify the barriers so strongly she’d be forced to admit she should cut her losses.
And when she’d still refused, he’d cut her losses for her, before the summer heat had waned, with an “I’m sorry, Katniss, this isn’t working for me,” followed instantly by firing her from doing the bakery’s books, which she’d been doing part-time for the low cost wage of a half-dozen cheese buns a week, and refusing to respond to her texts or voicemails.
At Thanksgiving, she’d shown up at his door, asking if they could spend the evening together, talk. Consider reconsidering.
He’d shaken his head and closed the door on her, but not before his face had presented a few moments of unmasked regret and longing.
She’d almost gone to a hardware store for an ax to chop his door off its hinges.
When she’d called her uncle Haymitch in tears from her car, still sitting in the bakery’s parking lot, he’d agreed chopping down Peeta’s door was an acceptable strategy, except there wouldn’t be a hardware store open on Thanksgiving Day.
So this Christmas season— the Christmas that could have been their second Christmas, or at least their first— just a year after she’d chosen him, the rejection had left its mark on her. She couldn’t face flying out west to spend Christmas with her sister and mother. Would not be able to muster the emotional energy necessary to pretend she was okay for a whole evening spent with her friends, despite their invites.
No, she and Haymitch were going to spend it getting drunk on vodka, eating crock-pot roast and microwaved mashed potatoes, and watching either a marathon of The Profit, or Rocky, depending on which one of them won the coin toss.
So with twelve days to Christmas, Katniss Everdeen decided it was time to say goodbye once and for all.
Well, twelve times, for all.
Twelve ways to say she loved him.
Twelve ways to say goodbye.
Twelve ways to say both at the same time.
Twelve days, twelve gifts.
And it was going to start with a Thursday, lunch hour shopping trip.
“Kat, where you going?”
Odair was the afternoon manager for the restaurant side of the brewery operation where she was a bookeeper. He’d stepped so quickly in her way she almost couldn’t stop before walking into him.
His hands here clasped behind his back and he was grinning. His up-to-something look.
“Lunch,” she said, guarded.
“Right. It’s treason to buy lunch from somewhere other than here. And anyway, you eat lunch from a brown bag. Every day. You’re so frugal, you probably even reuse the same bag until it’s toast. No, Katniss Everdeen looks like a woman on a mission.”
She narrowed her eyes.
“Then it would make sense to get out of my way.”
He studied her as though he could read her secrets if he looked hard enough.
“You off to see that baker guy of yours? Because I would love one of his everything bagels, and Annie likes the peanut butter chip cookies.”
Katniss swallowed and fought off a wave of pain.
“No, I’m going to the mall to do some Christmas shopping.”
“Oh, perfect then,” like magic, his hand was suddenly in front of her face, waving a hundred dollar bill, as though he already knew where she was heading and was just enjoying teasing her about the other, “I need something pretty for Annie. I was thinking a necklace.”
Katniss felt an urge to punch him, but started to step around him instead. He stepped in her way again, grin back on his face.
“Come on, help a guy out. The last time I picked out jewelry for her, it was a total flop, and you remember it.”
“Finnick, the only reason it flopped, was because you thought it’d be funny to give her a used pendant with someone else’s initials on it.”
“I wasn’t trying to be funny. That thing was an antique. And it was beautiful, and I knew the emeralds would set off her eyes. And anyway, the first initial matched.”
Katniss just shook her head; his problems were his, thankfully.
“Have to go, bye.”
He snagged her hand, yanking her momentum to a stop and then slapping the bill into her palm.
“Just in case something jumps out at you.”
“You realize how terrible it is to ask another woman to shop for your girlfriend.”
Finnick shrugged. “You’re not another woman, you’re basically family. And anyway, I already have her other gifts bought. I just want a wildcard.”
Katniss scowled.
“Fine, but I’m taking two hours for lunch, without losing the extra hour of pay, and you have to cover in case someone needs a bank run.”
Odair winked, then walked off with a, “Thanks, Katniss. You’re the second-best.”
Katniss shoved the bill into her jean’s pocket, so it could help her debit card burn a hole into the denim.
___
She knew what the first gift for Peeta would be, so she parked near the entrance closest to the woolen shop. Unfortunately, that entrance was the least used, and its parking more like the back forty. With Winter being stubborn about providing snow for Christmas, and the mall neglecting to plow that section, by the time she was inside, her feet were wet and freezing from slogging through patches of standing slush. There was a small hunting shop just inside the entrance, one of her favorite stores, and the moment she saw a pair of boots she’d been drooling over for six months on sale for forty percent off, she decided that if she was going to loosen up on the financial reigns enough that week to buy herself a sense of closure about Peeta, she might as well give herself that one treat.
Fifteen minutes later, she was stalking to the sweater shop in knee-high, front lace brown leather boots with reinforced heels and toes, all weather tread, and Gortex lined. And to make it better, her toes were swaddled in thick, high-tech, sweat-wicking winter socks.
She was even smiling by the time she got to her intended destination.
But then as soon as she was inside, her heart sank.
Peeta’s first present was a sweater she’d been eying for him for almost a month, folded on a center display table just inside the entrance. Imported from Ireland, it was a heavy, rough-finish wool sweater, that had a faded quality to its blue. The first time she’d seen it, she’d wanted him in it. Wanted to see how it contrasted with his light hair, complimented his blue eyes, hugged his shoulders, and layered over the waist of his jeans. Back then, she had still be holding hope he’d snap out of it, that maybe Christmas morning they’d be opening presents together and she’d get to see him in it, run her hands along down his arms to sense the feel of it, rest her palms against the scratchy texture of the wool, but feel the warmth and firmness of his shoulders and chest beneath.
But now, she wouldn’t get that pleasure. He would have the sweater. Hopefully, he would wear it. But regardless, she’d never get to see it.
If things went according to plan, someone else would.
She looked through the stack, finding his size and then laying it out, unfolded, over the rest. Her fingers stroked along the back and inside of the collar, where a beautiful, muted orange line of silky fabric had been sewn in to help prevent the roughness of the wool from rubbing against the sensitive flesh of his neck. It was even almost Peeta’s favorite shade of orange.
A friendly young clerk came up, asking if she could be of help. Her bubbling mood was a knife-stab to Katniss’ heart, so Katniss told her she had other shopping to do and was in a hurry. The girl agreed to wrap it and have it waiting for Katniss to pay for and pick up on her way back out of the mall.
The next stop was Eddie Bauer, where she had a clerk box a wheat-colored Henley on a bed of black tissue, hand it over long enough for Katniss to finger press a dog ear into the collar where the top button would normally be, and then finish with the full-on Christmas wrapping treatment. Her first hour was almost up.
Neiman Marcus covered two more gifts, six depending on how one counted, and fortune favored her in a special find that saved her a side trip to Hot Topic. Plus, the clerks there were fast wrappers. She had thirty minutes left for this trip, and, for this trip, only two more items to go.
The most expensive.
A boutique, ultra-high end men’s store cost her savings account exactly eight hundred, forty-seven dollars and sixteen cents. The gift wrapping took absolutely forever. But everything about the work, from the paper, to the simple ribbon, to the ridiculously expensive, and large, carry out bag, was immaculate. It almost made her cry.
It did make her cry, actually. Because signing her name to a payment slip that size made it crystal clear just what she had committed herself to do, and that she would not be the one to see the end result.
But she made a quick stop at Zales, saw what she instantly knew was the right call. It was just shy of two hundred and fifty after tax, but today was her day to spend on others, and Annie and Finnick were good friends, so she pocketed the hundred for her piggy bank, and paid for it out of her checking.
_____
“You’re late. Nice boots.”
“What?”
Finnick rooted around in the Zales bag she handed him for the necklace box.
“You’re late. You said two hours. It’s been a hundred and twenty-seven minutes. Did you stop at the bakery and bring us the bagels?”
“I didn’t have time.” Thankfully.
“Then I’m docking you the seven minutes,” he said without missing a beat, and when he finally got the red velvet box open, his teasing fell away into a look of confusion, and then a threat of real emotion. “Katniss, how did you…” He shook his head and the red headed prankster looked like he might actually hug her.
“Call it fate,” she said, and then started walking back to her office. “And if you dock me those seven minutes, our next limited run is going to be called Odair Pale, ‘cause that’ll be the vat you’d drown in.”
_____
Katniss was out the brewery doors at 5:00pm sharp. She managed to stop by the barber shop and the youth initiative before they closed by six, and that left only one purchase to go.
First, a stop at the bank.
Then, her final stop at the pawn shop.
The old man who owned the shop had held the item for her, and all that remained was for her to bring in the cash for it.
He was sitting at the counter like he was waiting for her— a sale like that, she was probably the one single person he was waiting for that day— and produced the item immediately, including the silky box that went with it, dull and stained by time. She carefully counted out the money, and he carefully wrote her out a receipt in his shaky handwriting.
Pawn shops didn’t gift wrap, but since it was raining, he found a used plastic bag from the back and gave her that to carry it away in.
It felt heavy, the plastic in her fingers as she walked back to her car.
Heavy like an ending.
Heavy like time moving on without her.
_____
By seven, the drizzle was threatening to turn to sleet with the evening’s cooling temperature. Katniss shivered a little, trying to shrink further into her jacket, and was even more glad for her new boots, because the slush in the alley behind the bakery was even worse than it had been at the mall. The windows above her, on the bakery’s second floor were lit; Peeta was at home, no surprise. He’d be watching television, maybe. Or even finishing dinner. Within an hour, he’d start thinking about bed.
For the six or seven months he’d let her into his life, she’d learned his habits fast. They’d never shared a bed and never spent a night together, because he wouldn’t allow it— because he was going to ‘do things right’— but they’d spent plenty of time together. By the Summer, they’d been seeing each other every day. And she’d found so much joy in the not rushing it. It had given them time to fully appreciate the excitement of almost innocent kisses and the silly, mutual attempts to find opportunities for them to be less than strictly innocent, the almost stolen thrill of sitting just close enough knees might touch, or arms might press. The silences and times where they were just around each other, without having to feel pressure that being out on a date, or on a walk, or going to the bookstore together was somehow really only posturing for a race they were supposed to complete by end of the day.
She knew his hours.
Knew not to text him after seven thirty.
Knew he didn’t actually like texting at all, and preferred a phone call, if a personal visit wasn’t possible.
Knew which corner of his couch he liked to lean into when watching television. Knew where his mugs were, and his glasses. Knew which drawer had the silverware, which hall closet had the extra hand towels for the bathroom. Knew he recycled cans, but often forgot to recycle plastic. Knew which episodes of Big Bang Theory were his favorites.
Each step up the steel-grate steps up to Peeta’s second-floor entry, brought another ‘knew’ to her mind, digging the knife a little deeper.
But she kept going, careful to duck a little near the top in case he happened to be at the kitchen sink window, and then leaning the box with the wool sweater against his door, with a note taped to it.
—Don’t open until six on Christmas Eve—
Just as carefully, she crept back down and then took up a position in the blackness behind the dumpster. A pocketful of little garden stones served as her ammunition, and she chucked three at his door with perfect aim.
From the shadows, she watched Peeta’s face appear at the window, and then a moment later, light came flooding out from his doorway. He saw the present right away, but looked around first to see who was there.
He called her name out and for a second she thought maybe he was able to see her after all, but after a few seconds of him leaning out over the rail and looking both ways down the alley, it was clear he didn’t. He came back to the present, gave it a look over, and then went back inside.
She didn’t know whether to feel honored or sad that after a gift appeared for him, the only person he thought to call out in question to was her.
#everlark#everlarkchristmasgifts#day one: christmas shopping#by dandeliononfire#fan fic#2018#submission
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Coming Home For Christmas
Prompt; Christmas Shopping
Pairing; Steve Rogers X Reader
Wordcount; 1,214
A/N; Written for @kittenofdoomage Canon Christmas Writing Challenge. Sorry this was so late, on a plus side I will be writing a part 2 to this in December.
You wrote the list for the fourth time. You and Steve were meant to be going together but since he was away on a mission you wanted to take some of the stress off of him. There was so much left to do. You had not even begun to purchase any Christmas presents yet for any of the Avengers. Luckily you’d taken advantage of Steve being away and already gone and brought most of Steve’s. It was hiding them that always a challenge. Whilst Steve was viewed as a strong and mature leader to the world and amongst the Avengers. There was something about Christmas that brought out a very childish and youthful glow around him. One thing he liked to do was to attempt to locate where you had hidden his Christmas presents.
Smiling you checked over the list, your phone began to vibrate all over the table. Glancing down at the caller ID, you grinned Cap. He always managed to call you whenever you were thinking about him. You didn’t realize the Super Soldier Serum also allowed him to read your thoughts.
“Hey”
“Hey, beautiful, I was just checking in to see how you were doing” A smile illuminated your face.
“I’m okay, just sitting here rewriting the shopping list for the umpteenth time. I know how you like everything to be organized...I don’t want to out and forget something only to rush to try and get whatever I missed. It wouldn’t be fair on you.” You could hear Steve sigh probably running his hand over his beard. A simple vocalization provided you with what you first suspected, the mission that Steve was currently on was draining him not only physically and mentally.
“About that, I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind waiting until I got home...I was thinking since we haven’t been able to spend a lot of time together recently. We’re on the jet now on our way home I’ll be no more than a couple of hours, the stores will be open still.” It was that moment you realized how bad the mission had been. He’d officially gone into overdrive and whilst most people would try and reason with him on the phone because it simply wouldn’t work.
“Okay, I’ll make sure there is a fresh set of clothes out for you.” Steve rested against one of the many panels of the Quinjet, he was counting down the seconds until he returned home to you.
“What have I ever done deserve you?” Bashfully you dipped head down, even now he still managed to make you blush. Sometimes you wondered how you got a man so loving.
“Being you handsome, that’s all I ever ask.” Steve laughed receiving odd glances from Sam and Natasha whilst Bucky grinned, he knew exactly who Steve was talking to, he didn’t need to view the caller ID or listen to the voice on the end of the phone. It was the way Steve held this specific grin that only you could cause, the way Steve’s shoulders relaxed into a more comfortable natural position.
“Lucky for you beautiful I don’t know how to be anyone else...Alright, beautiful I’m going to go...I love you to the furthest galaxy and back.”
“And I love you to the furthest solar system and back” Ending the call, all you had to do was now was wait until your favorite Captain returned home to you...
Just as expected when Steve returned home to you, he was exhausted the mission left him drained, worrisome after being away for so long. Of course, he attempted to persuade you to still to Christmas shopping that very day but you put your foot down the moment he suggested it.
“Beautiful we can still go. I’m okay, the stores will still be open, we can get everything we need and then it's done.” Running your hands through his blonde hair he couldn’t prevent the groan that escaped his lips.
“We could but you have just come back from a three-week mission so you need at least tonight to eat something and get a good nights sleep. We can go tomorrow. Now go ahead and get into the shower, I’ll go and make you something to eat.”
“Yes, Ma’am...before though there’s been something I want to do.” Running his large hand through your hair, he brought your head closer towards his own. Nudging his nose against yours softly, the two of instinctively turn your heads in opposite directions, as your lips coming together as if they were made for each other. Steve kisses were always loving and tender. He wanted to express every unsaid word. Pulling away, Steve was quick to press a kiss to your forehead before getting up and heading towards the shower.
“You could always join me? And afterward, why don’t we order a pizza and snuggle up on the couch together and watch a couple of movies off of the list. ” Steve leaned against the doorway.
“I like the way you think Captain.” Steve held his hand out for you to take, crossing over the room you and Steve headed into the bathroom.
The next morning you and Steve were up at the crack of dawn, Steve had even foregone his morning run to spend the day with you. Whilst his phone was on, he wasn’t going on any missions trying to save the world. He just wanted this one day with you and nothing was going to ruin it.
Thus far everything was going well. You and Steve had already been to the car twice to drop everything off. Yet one person was being particularly difficult...Tony Stark. What do you buy for a man who has everything a man could possibly want?
“Socks are an option.” Cocking your eyebrow up at Steve. Socks? Of all things to purchase Tony Stark, the multi-billionaire, playboy, philanthropist who loves nothing more than to jest at people was socks the best gift idea?
“Don’t look at me like that everyone needs socks. They’re the perfect gift for everyone.” Stopping by the socks, you began to place several packets into the cart. Turning around, pressing a soft kiss onto Steve’s cheek, you were satisfied when a red tint dusted them both.
“The socks are for you, I knew I was forgetting to pick something up. But you best get thinking Captain because we can’t give Tony another reason to ridicule you.”
“Yes Ma’am”
The two of you were officially exhausted, the entire day the two of you had been going from store to store making sure everything was checked off and then gone over twice. Steve being the perfect gentleman that he is had gone off the list and brought more than first agreed on.
The two of you agreed to stop in a little cafe on the way home before you had to work out to get everything up in the tower without anyone noticing.
“Giving you the heads up, I thought we could start a new tradition this year by exchanging a gift on Christmas Eve.” Your mind began to think of the possibilities of what Steve’s Christmas Eve present could possibly be. Also what on earth could you possibly get him?
Guess you were just gonna have to wait and find out...
#kittenscanonchristmaschallenge#marvel oneshot#marvel one shot#marvel imagines#marvel imagine#avengers imagines#avengers one shot#avengers imagine#avengers oneshot#steve rogers imagines#Steve Rogers imagine#Steve Rogers oneshot#Steve Roger one shot
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Christmas With You
Merry Christmas @1698CreamPuffCutie!!! It’s your Secret Santa here!
I’ll be honest, this isn’t the fic I originally started for your Secret Santa gift. I’ve always wanted to write domestic Hollstein with kids and my mind kind of went wild with the idea. That fic is still in progress… I still wanted to give you something a little more fluffy today, so hope you like it!
https://archiveofourown.org/works/17160365
Summary
Christmas at the Hollis house has always been a big deal. Laura is out on location at Styria with her family finishing up her latest journalist piece. She is looking forward to bringing her wife and kids back home to experience a traditional Hollis Christmas. When their employer requests them to stay longer and their flight home is postponed, Laura is heartbroken. Carmilla makes it her mission to give her family a memorable first Christmas away from home.
Christmas Eve
Carmilla woke up to the sound of muffled voices. She could barely hear what they were saying, but she knew something wasn’t right. She sighed looking over at the two tiny humans sleeping next to her. She watched as their chests rose and fell softly and one of her rare genuine smiles started to sneak up on her. They certainly were a lot better when they weren’t running around causing havoc. Moments like this made her grateful given a second chance at life.
The older child, Clara, was like a miniature version of Carmilla’s wife, Laura. She was also tiny in stature, a mess of honey golden curls, framing the soft features of her face. She was her ray of sunshine. Carmilla noticed the little girl twitch a little from a stray strand tickling the tip of her nose. She reached down to tuck her daughter's hair behind her ears and let her fingertips linger on her cheek. She was starting to lose her baby face and her own features were starting to come through.
The younger child, Jean-Paul, had raven-hair like his mother Carmilla. JP was their little miracle. Carmilla had never thought she would have a chance at carrying a child. She never thought anything would come from her trying. He was a couple of years younger than her sister. It would take some time to see what other physical traits he inherited from his mother. He definitely was already started showing elements of his mother’s personality.
The voices outside the room rose once more starting the youngest child. His face started to turn sour as he cried out, threatening to wake up any minute. A few seconds later, he settled back down having adjusted his position to be comfortable on the bed.
Carmilla breathed a sigh of relief. She kissed them both on the forehead before leaving the bed and steeling herself. She immediately switched from her mother mode. She had a reputation to withhold after all. She went back to her signature grumpy cat face as she exited their bedroom. She closed the door behind her making sure not to slam it.
“Hey… would guys keep it down?" Carmilla grumbled. "Sleeping children in here.” She allowed her eyes to crack open to see Laura having a heated discussion with Mel and Kirsch.
“What happened?” she asked, scanning the room. Laura looked like she was about to break down in tears.
Kirsch looked on Laura with sympathy, but it was Mel who started to explain the situation. “The station wants us to stay here until after the new year,” she sighed. “I guess there is more to the story and they want us on location if any news breaks.”
“But it’s Christmas tomorrow!” Laura cried. “And we’re stuck in Styria again!”
“We should probably stop coming here,” Kirsch whispered after coming to the realization.
It’s true. The last time they were in Styria, they saved the world from the near-apocalypse. One would think they would do anything to prevent them from stepping foot on Austrian soil again. Carmilla tried to persuade Laura to give up on investigating stories elsewhere. Unfortunately, her wife’s sense of justice and the pursuit of truth was unwavering. They had no choice but to follow her. It was courage that helped her become one of the world’s best investigative journalists.
Mel pursed her lips in response, “Hey, I’m not happy about it either, but there's nothing we can do about it now. They've already changed our tickets. Even if we wanted to, we’d never find a flight back in time.”
Carmilla was still half asleep. The reality of the situation didn't hit her until she started to see the tears roll down her wife’s cheeks. She rushed over to take her into her arms. “Hey, Laura, it’s okay,” she soothed, rubbing her arms as a form of comfort. “We’ll just have to have our own Christmas here. We’ll work it out. We have before. Why is this year such a big deal?”
Laura shook her head, disagreeing, her emotions starting to increase, “It’s just... It would have been their first Christmas and I wanted them to experience the kind I’ve always had with my dad.”
Suddenly, they heard the baby’s cry from the bedroom. Then shortly after Clara’s voice crying softly, “Mom… Mommy!”
“I’ll get them,” Laura sighed and made her way to their bedroom. The brunette’s voice went from sulking to her chipper mom voice. In a split second, she greeted her children with the biggest smile on her face and closed the door behind her.
“Poor Laura. I don’t blame her…" Kirsch said, mouth full with food, that he managed to find from somewhere in this empty kitchen. "Your kids are missing out on a lot. Things must have been easier for you back then.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know. Christmas in the olden days?
Then the idea hit her and a mischievous smile crept on her face. “C’mon frat boy, you’re coming with me, I’m going to need your help...”
Christmas Eve was pretty uneventful. Carmilla and Kirsch offered to go into town and get take out. They returned a couple of hours later with food from their favorite Indian place. They had also brought home groceries for breakfast in the next morning.
Carmilla tried to act indifferent about it. She claimed she only bought pancake mix because she knew they would be hungry tomorrow. But Laura smiled knowing the exact reason. Her wife would make sure that at the very least she would have her pancake breakfast on Christmas day.
Laura broke the news to their children early in the day.
“No Christmas?!” their little girl exclaimed and pouted for a good minute. Then she forgot about it once when her Aunt Mel started to play with her. The little boy had no clue what was going on and stared back at his mother. For a short while, the brunette pretended she could sense his disappointment. In the end, Laura had to admit she was more disappointed that anyone and went back to sulking.
Christmas Day
Laura took a deep breath before opening her eyes. She was trying to prepare herself for the not so special feeling of this year’s Christmas morning. Before she could move a muscle, she heard the high pitch squeal of her daughter. The young mother immediately jumped out of bed. She looked over and realized the bed was empty. Sheets tucked up on Carmilla’s side and not a child in sight.
The door flew open and the little girl ran to hide behind Laura. “Mommy!!! Uncle Kirsch is trying to get me!” She peeked from behind her mother to see if he was still there.
Kirsch roared in response and she screamed again. She immediately saw an opening ran back between his legs and back into the living room. “Merry Christmas, Laura hottie!!!” he smiled before turning to chase after Clara again.
“Merry Christmas,” the brunette smiled. At least, she was still surrounded by people she loved. Who needs presents? And BBC period specials? And gingerbread… She frowned. Laura did. She lowered her head as she sulked out of the bedroom.
The sweet smell cinnamon from her favorite Christmas pancakes wafted in the air. She inhaled deeply and let out a satisfied sigh. When she opened looked up to greet her wife good morning and thank her for breakfast she stopped in her tracks. She wasn't expecting their house to look so wonderful. It was like living in a picture of one of those cottages nestled at the foot of a mountain. It was elegant in the simplest of ways.
“What is all this?” Laura choked when she was able to breathe again.
“Christmas,” Carmilla winked at her. “For someone who calls herself a Christmas aficionado, I’m a little disappointed.”
“But how… what… where did this all come from?” the brunette continued to stare in disbelief.
The younger woman scanned the room one last time just to make sure it was all real. Their entire living room was covered in decorations. These decorations were not the typical plastic she had grown accustomed back home. These were real fresh pine branches fashioned into wreaths. Each one with clusters of pine cones and bows tied around them. They had socks hanging by the fireplace for their stockings.
There was small spruce still potted and displayed as the table centerpiece. The tree was decorated with handmade ornaments class ornaments of red and silver. Candles were strategically placed throughout the room. They gave off a soft glow and providing a specific kind of ambiance. These simple candles outshine the traditional multi-colored, Christmas lights strung across the room. The tree was not stuffed with presents underneath. Instead, there were a few wooden toys unwrapped under the tree. A set of blocks, carved wooden animals, and Each with handwritten tags with each of the children’s names.
“Well, for some reason, you keep forgetting I’ve lived in eastern Europe for a better part of three centuries. A girl has her ways,” she smiled, flipping one of the pancakes and beckoning Laura to join her by the stove. “I figured if we can’t have a Hollis Christmas this year, I’d show you my version of Christmas.”
“I can’t believe you did all this,” the brunette could feel the tears threatening to come back full force.
Carmilla flashed her half smile, “Laura… You know I never cared for Christmas.”
“--I know, you think it's stupid, useless and sentimental,” the brunette rolled her eyes.
“But--” the dark-haired woman interjected and put a finger to the brunette’s lips to silence her. “That’s never stopped you before. And I don’t know… Maybe I’ve started to like it too. I never had anyone to share it with like I can with you. If it’s important to you, then I want it to be important to us too.” She stared into Laura’s eyes searching when the brunette was speechless.
“I know it’s not exactly like having Christmas at your dad's" Carmilla continued. She suddenly felt vulnerable and unsure. "But I hope you like it.” She smirked tilting her head to the side. “Maybe it’s a good thing you know? We have the opportunity to create our own traditions as well.”
They smiled and instead of talking, they started inching closer to each other. The attraction taking over them until they were close enough for their foreheads to be touching. Their hands intertwined with one another and they brought their lips together.
“Merry Christmas, Laura,” Carmilla breathed after the first kiss and came in for another.
“Merry Christmas, Carm,” Laura sighed in return looking deep into her eyes. She reached her hands up into her raven hair and pulled her closer.
They broke apart again when Carmilla felt a smile form on Laura's face. "What?" she asked bewildered.
Laura bit her lip. “Well,” she said with a mischievous chuckle. “You know... You didn’t have to do all this for me…"
The dark-haired woman groaned in anticipation. She knew where this was going but she didn't know how she'd stop it. Instead, she waited.
"I mean, after all, all I want for Christmas is you,” Laura laughed singing the last part.
Carmilla cringed in response, “Okay… Christmas songs. Too far.” She held up her hands to shield herself and shook her head. The brunette doubled over with laughter. Her wife continued to glare at her and the dark-haired woman muttered, “You’re killin’ Hollis....”
Laura had to admit, they didn't have the perfect Hollis Christmas she had been expecting. But as long as she was with Carmilla, she’d always feel at home and maybe it was time to start their own traditions.
#carmilla secret santa#carmilla#hollstein#Carmilla Karnstein#laura hollis#hollstein forever#hollstein children#christmas#2018#holidays
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Hawks: Day Off (Part 2)
A/N: I got a couple of requests to do a second part to this and so I tried my best to come up with something! Sorry if it's not great, I wasn't planning on turning this into a multi-part story but hopefully you enjoy! :)
PART 1 MASTERLIST
It had been a couple weeks since that shitty day in the office, you weren’t all that mad because you got paid overtime, but still, it wasn’t exactly how you wanted to spend your day off.
Everything had calmed down a little in your work life, nothing too interesting had been happening in the land of Heroes, just small crimes and a ton of paperwork. The big mission you had been working on with Endeavor and Hawks had come to an end last week, it all went smoothly, and you’d managed to take down a huge part of a current crime syndicate that was trying to illegally sell power enhancing gadgets.
Obviously, the end of that mission would mean the disbandment of the team, or rather meant that Hawks should go back to spending time at his own agency rather than annoying Endeavor on a somewhat daily basis, but that didn’t appear to have happened. You assumed that the pair had become friends after working with each other for so long, but the look on your boss’s face every time Hawks entered the building seemed to debunk that theory.
Every time Hawks came to visit he always made an effort to swing by your desk and wish you a good morning or afternoon, which ultimately ended up turning into a lengthy conversation about anything and everything, one time you spent a solid hour debating whether or not Die Hard was a Christmas movie and during another visit you discussed how winter was a way better season than summer – he disagreed but that’s beside the point.
Hawks might have been a complete idiot at times but dammit he was the cutest idiot you’d ever seen, he always brought a smile to your face with his stupid theories on different films or tv shows and he told some of the corniest jokes, that was his charm, and oh boy was he charming your socks off. Just seeing his adorable little smile when he walked into a room seemed to make your day so much better, he was, quite literally, an angel.
You’d both seemingly fallen head over heels for each other, but you were both so caught up in your own feelings and anxieties over what to do that you hadn’t realised how each other felt. It was cute, or at least your co-workers thought so. Other people were fascinated by what was occurring between the two of you, it was like a love story unfolding before their very eyes, the two clueless superheroes that had met on mission and had developed feelings for each other without realising were now subconsciously trying to spend loads of time together, it was great, they’d even started a betting system on how long it would take for one of you to ask the other out, most people betting that Hawks would finally live up to his flirtatious actions and actually just ask you to dinner.
You had been a rather busy with some personal stuff lately, you’d only just managed to find a dress for your cousin's wedding and now you were having to deal with all your relatives breathing down your neck over the fact that you hadn’t said you were bringing a plus one to her wedding. It wasn’t exactly your fault – you were so busy with work that the concept of dating was somewhat side-tracked in your life path right now. You weren’t against dating someone, a lot of high profile Heroes swore of dating due to thinking their line of work was too dangerous and it would put their partner in danger, you, on the other hand, didn’t consider yourself high enough profile to warrant any form of arch nemesis, you’d arrested a fair few small scaled criminals but nothing compared to the likes of All Might, Endeavor, or even Hawks.
While you did like the idea of having a significant other, the concept of weddings was a little much. Your cousin was going all out, a big, grand display of her and her partner’s love for the world (Well a select group of friends and family) to see. You thought the whole little was over the top and having to deal with your family going on and on about how you could be the next one to walk down the aisle wasn’t fun, maybe one day you would, but that wasn’t going to be any time soon.
You woke up on an average Monday morning and went into work, it was a nice day out, not too hot and not too cold, the few clouds that were out made some beautiful sky art and the sunshine made it warm enough to where you wouldn’t need a jacket. You spent the first half of the day on patrol with some of the other sidekicks currently working under Endeavor, but nothing too interesting went down so you and a couple others returned to the headquarters in order to get some in-house work done. The whole office space was currently getting a revamp and so your desk was very messy as you were trying to get all the documents out of the draws for when your new equipment came in. You had paperwork and all sorts of personal items everywhere and you were desperately trying to get it all into piles so you could have some form of organisational system in place.
As you were shredding a bunch of old documents you saw someone pick something off your desk out of the corner of your eye. Turning to fully look at them you saw the cute little angel boy himself holding a small A5 card, you weren’t sure what it was at first, to be honest, you were a little messy and probably had stuff from your first day still lying around. You sent him and smile as a form of greeting and he returned the gesture.
“Wedding huh?” The messy haired blond said. “I always loved weddings, they’re fun – dancing, drinking, the overall theme of love, it’s great”
“Well if you love them so much why don’t you go? I’m dreading this damn thing and dress shopping has been a pain in my ass” You replied sitting back in your seat, relaxing a little seeing it was just the local red feathered chicken man.
He laughed a little at your statement, he always enjoyed your company, you were honest and always really light-hearted about everything, so it made falling for you easy so it made befriending you easy. “Is that an invite to be your plus one or are you saying I’d look good in your dress?”
You snapped your head up to look at him, he’d made some silly little comments here and there but this one was very direct and personal. You were a blushing mess, you didn’t mean to accidentally somewhat ask the number 2 Hero to go to a wedding with you, yet here you were. You also weren’t sure if he meant it, I mean what did he expect you to say? ‘Oh yeah, I've actually been meaning to ask you to come to this wedding as my date so all my relatives can poke and prod into our lives and get a couple year head start on planning our wedding’ how were you supposed to joke it off either? ‘hahaha yeah funny one Hawks, us going on a date is so out of the blue and hilarious, I would never want to actually go to any kind of personal event with you ahahahaha’.
“I- um, I gue- I erm” You were in a weird state of confusion and embarrassment. You were a complete mess while with the one person you really wished would never have to see you like this.
“Well I mean, I am known to be great company, kids and grandmas love me so I’m sure I’d fit in just fine” His internal thoughts seemed to be going 100mph for the same reasons as yours. What was he doing? What was happening here? Why was he going along with this little joke that was very quickly turning into a serious proposition? In his mind he was a wreck but, on the surface, this was his moment, he was putting on the smile and making sure he seemed somewhat unbothered by the whole situation, you said yes? Cool, he’s excited about the cake, you say no? That’s cool he can go down to the local market and buy his own damn cake and not have to share with anyone. Everything was fine, apart from the small fact that he was low-key asking out the love of his life in a very odd way, and you were probably going to say no because he was an idiot and should have asked you to something normal like a coffee. Why was he like this?
“I genuinely can’t tell if you’re being serious or not right now” You finally said. You were very confused, this was supposed to be a normal, if not slightly boring, day at work and yet it had very quickly turned into a day you were sure you wouldn’t forget.
“I just noticed that you hadn’t ticked the ‘plus one’ box on the invite and if you’re ‘dreading this damn thing’ then maybe I could make it a little more interesting” The red feathered man had now turned up the flirting to a full 10, there was no backing down now, he was too deep into this.
You were shocked, it was a good kind of shocked, you loved Hawks’ playful little comments, but you never thought that there were actual feelings behind them. Asking to tag along to a wedding with you was definitely not a playful little comment, that was a serious situation, who does that? Who willingly wants to go to a wedding? You had to admit that you liked the idea of going together though, Hawks was so carefree, bubbly and social, so having him with you at this wedding would definitely make the whole ordeal a lot more fun. Oh God were you seriously considering letting this guy come to a family event with you? What would your family think? Just imaging all of the looks and questions about the pair of you being together made you a little more nervous. But what if this was your chance? What if this was the one chance to get a date with a genuinely lovely guy? I mean he’s basically already said he would like to go so all you have to do is say yes.
All you have to do is just say yes.
Just say yes.
“Yes!” Hawks eyes shot up in your direction, he’d subconsciously been fiddling with the small piece of card in his hands while waiting for you to respond with something, your silence breaking his heart as each second passed. But now? His heart was all over the place for a whole other reason. “I would like that, I mean if you’re being serious, because if you’re not then this is really awkward and nowimnotreallysurewhattodobecau-“
“Awesome! March 9th right? I’ll pick you up at 12 and we can make our way there together!” Your cute little ramble just made his heart all the more giddy, while his nerves were hidden by his confident smile yours seemed to be less subtle and that made him extremely happy. The cute girl he’d been low-key obsessed with? He just bagged a date with her and he couldn’t contain the huge smile that made his way onto his lips. All this time he’d been anxious about asking you out? He doesn’t remember it because all he knows is that he has a date, with a cute girl, who just so happens to be you. All the teasing looks he was currently receiving from your co-workers (who were currently cashing in their bets)? They’re looking at the number 2 hero who just bagged a date with the love of his life. Today was the day that Hawks finally asked you out and the only regret he had was that he wished he’d done it sooner.
#hawks#bnha hawks#mha hawks#bnha#mha#boku no hero academia#my hero academia#hawks x reader#hawks imagine#hawks oneshot#hawks story#bnha x reader#mha x reader
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Randy Kraft
Randy Stephen Kraft was born on March 19, 1945 in Long Beach, California. Apart from being particularly accident prone, Kraft seems to have had a relatively normal and conventional childhood. His family having moved to Westminster, Orange County, in 1948, Kraft developed into an active and intelligent adolescent, known for holding the conservative views typical of the area in which he was living. He graduated from Westminster High School in 1963, his academic performance putting him in the top 10 of his class, and he went on to study economics at the prestigious Claremont Men’s college.
So far, so good. It was between the ages of 18 and 20, however, that Kraft’s personality seemed to enter a confusing stage. At first he appeared resolutely conservative in his political and social outlook, joining the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), and throwing himself into the presidential campaign of right-wing candidate Barry Goldwater.
He was also vocal in his support for U.S. military involvement in Vietnam. Yet in 1964 he changed sides, becoming left wing in political orientation, backed by growing long hair. Furthermore, it was around this time that his sexuality went through significant transformation. By the time he was 18 he had realized that he was homosexual, and there were many campus rumours about his predilection for bondage. He began frequenting gay bars, and in 1966 he was also arrested for having offered himself sex to an undercover vice officer, he was released with a caution.
In 1968 Kraft joined the U.S. Air Force. He was only in service for a year before he was discharged on “medical grounds” in 1969, incidentally the same year that he told his family he was gay. His revelation alienated him from his conservative parents, and from now on Randy Kraft seemed to go off the rails.
Timeline of a Murder
1: December 31, 1975. Twenty-Two-year-old Mark Hall is enjoying a New Year’s Eve party in San Juan Capistrano. At some point during the evening, he meets Randy Kraft, and leaves the party with him. Hall had been drinking alcohol and his body was later found to contain traces of Diazepam and Valium.
2: Kraft and Hall travel out to the Cleveland National Forest, heading to the east end of Santiago Canyon in the Saddleback mountains. This location is about 30 miles (48km) south of San Juan Capistrano.
3: What occurred is largely based upon forensic evidence derived from Hall’s body. It appeared that Hall had been stripped and tied to a tree sapling. He was then sodomized and tortured horribly. Parts of his body were burnt with a cigarette lighter or cut with a sharp knife. His genitals were removed, and stuffed into his rectum. It is also likely that Kraft was forcibly administered more alcohol, and pushed earth and leaves into both Hall’s mouth and anus. He died at the scene of his wounds and strangulation.
4: Hall’s body was discovered on January 3, 1976. A bottle was found at the scene which had Kraft’s fingerprints on it. This was later used by prosecutors to connect Kraft with the murder.
First Victims
From the early 1970s, Kraft’s lifestyle was focused on a combination of frequent sex with various highways and beaches of southern California. Moreover, it was apparent that the manner of killing was becoming increasingly depraved. The first body, of an unknown male, was discovered on February 6, 1973 beside a freeway in Wilmington, Los Angeles, again with one of his socks pushed up his anus. The next body (another unknown male), however, had it’s genitals removed, leading to the possibility that the man simply bled to death from the mutilation, although there were also signs of strangulation. Another victim found shortly afterward had his head thrown on to Long Beach, while his torso, one leg and both arms were found in the next county on Sunset Beach. Clearly California’s gay men were being hunted by someone with monstrous appetites.
Catching a Monster
It is ironic that even as Randy Kraft was slaughtering men on a regular basis throughout California, he was actually in a semi steady with one Jeff Seelig. In 1982 he even went for counselling to try and help their relationship improve. He also had a serious relationship with Jeff Graves, a former classmate. Furthermore, Kraft found steady, respectable employment in 1975, he began working as a computer programer for Pacific Computing Systems. Balanced against this normality, however, were crimes of almost unbelievable brutality. Some serial killers focus on delivering an efficient killing without using consciously designed tortures. Randy Kraft was not one of them. Typical injuries inflicted upon his victims include castration, a variety of objects inserted into the penis or anus (of the latter, some were large as substantial tree branches several feet long), decapitations, burns from a cigarette lighter and bites to genitals and nipples.
In January 1975, a multi county police task force was formed to pursue the serial killer. Because of the nature of the crimes, police and FBI psychologists were brought in to create profiles of the potential killer. Bodies were turning up every few weeks or months, and the pressure was on to find the man responsible. Kraft did in fact briefly pass through police hands in June 1975, after he was arrested for lewd behaviour in Cherry Park. He spent five days in jail before being released, after which he resumed killing where he left off.
Despite the number of bodies, the police were still struggling to get close to the killer. Kraft was not, in fact the only serial killer operating in California during these years. In 1977, for example, Patrick Kearney was arrested and confessed to the murder of 28 young men. Such killers made investigating Kraft’s murders that much more complicated, and his killing spree would continue for another five years. In fact, it could be argued that the sheer volume of his murders made the job of the police that much harder, by producing a vast multiplicity of false leads investigating dead ends.
The ultimate break came on May 14, 1983, when officers of the California Highway Patrol pulled over someone driving erratically on the San Diego freeway. The driver was Randy Kraft and having stepped out of the car and performed badly during a sobriety test, he was arrested for drunk driving. Yet a far more serious offence related to the dead man, 25-year-old Marine Terry Gambrel, who lay in the passenger seat of the car. He had been strangled, but also had near-lethal amounts of drink and drugs in his system. Now treating the suspect with utmost caution, the police searched his car and further found a pack of polaroid photos showing dozens of apparently lifeless men, and also a sheet of paper containing what appeared to be a coded list of men murdered by Kraft. A later search of Kraft’s home produced mass of further forensic evidence, including more photographs of murder victims plus personal effects of many of the dead.
After a lengthy trial, Randy Kraft was convicted of 16 counts of murder on November 29, 1989, and he was sentenced to death. In a curious act of futile bravado, in 1922 Kraft attempted to launch a massive lawsuit against an author who painted his character in a less than favourable light. Not surprisingly, the lawsuit was rejected, and in August 2000 his death sentence was again confirmed by the Supreme Court.
Timeline of a Murderer-Known Victims of Randy Kraft
Date Victim Age Details
September 24, 1971 Wayne Joseph Dukette 30 Possibly Kraft’s oldest victim
December 24, 1972 Edward Daniel Moore 20 U.S Marine serving at Camp Pendleton; body found dumped near the 7th street exit of the 605 freeway; one sock was inserted into his anus.
February 1973 Unidentified male 18-20 Found on the Terminal Island Freeway on February 6, 1973; strangled to death.
April 1973 Unidentified male ? Found in Huntington Beach
April 1973 Unidentified male ? Body was refrigerated prior to being dumped
c. July 30, Ronnie Gene Wiebe ? Last seen at the Sportsman Bar in Los Alamitos.
December 23, 1973 Vicente Cruz Mestas 23 Discovered by hikers in the San Bernardino foothills.
June 2,1974 Malcolm Eugene Little 20 Truck driver from selma, Alabama, visiting his brother in Long Beach; murdered after being picked up while hitchhiking.
June 22, 1974 Roger E. Dickerson 20 U.S Marine; disappeared after accepting a lift to Los Angeles.
c. August 2, 1974 Thomas Paxton Lee 25 Waiter in San Pedro; body dumped in a Long Beach oil field.
August 12, 1974 Gary Wayne Cordova 23 Body found on highway in Orange County.
Late November 1974 James Reeves 19 Last seen alive leaving a gay church in Costa Mesa after Thanksgiving.
c. January 3, 1975 John W. Leras 17 Body found on Sunset Beach on January 3, 1975.
January 17, 1975 Craig Victor Jonaitis 21 Body found at Long Beach Motel on Pacific Coast Highway.
c. March 26, 1975 Keith Daven Crotwell 19 Victims head discovered on May 8 off Long Beach and other remains found the following october.
January 3, 1976 Mark H. Hall. 22 (see “Timeline of a Murder)
c. April 1978 Scott Michael Hughes 18 Murdered in Orange County.
June 10/11 1978 Roland Gerald Young 23 Thrown from a moving vehicle when dead; genitals severed and stabbed to death.
June 19, 1978 Richard Allen Keith 20 Body found in Laguna Hills in June 1978; strangled to death.
July 6, 1978 Keith Arthur Klingbeil 23 Body found on the northbound lanes of Interstate 5, near Mission Viejo, in Orange County.
November 18, 1978 Michael Joseph Inderbieten 21 Burned with a cigarette lighter and his genitals severed.
June 16, 1979 Donnie Harold Crisel 20
September 3, 1980 Robert Wyatt Loggins 19 Photos of Loggins body matched Kraft’s blood type.
January 27, 1983 Eric Herbert Church 21 Semen found on body matched Kraft’s blood type.
February 12, 1983 Geoffrey Alan Nelson 18 Body discovered in Garden Grove.
May 14, 1983 Terry Lee Gambrel 25 Body discovered in Kraft’s car when he was pulled over for driving while intoxicated.
#my serial killer addiction#Randy Kraft#serial killer#murder#murderer#tcc blog#tcc account#tcc community#tcc love#tcc murder#tcc crime#tcc family#tcc writer#death#homosexual killer#true crime#real crime#real murder#reblog#real killers#real killer
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The 12 Days of Christmas Giveaways: Stocking Stuffers
Welcome to AoM’s 12 Days of Christmas! We’ve partnered with Huckberry to bring you 12 straight days of awesome gift guides and giveaways. Each day will feature a different Huckberry shop with 10 gift ideas, as well as a giveaway. The giveaways will run until 12pm CT the next day, and the winner will get to choose an item of their choice from that day’s featured shop. Stocking stuffers are arguably the most fun part of Christmas. The 10 ideas below from Huckberry’s Stocking Stuffer Shop run the gamut of what one hopes to find in their yuletide sock, ranging from the practical to the delightful. Be sure to browse the whole shop for a bunch more can’t-miss items. The 12 Days of Christmas: Stocking Stuffers 1. Keysmart. The ring is an outdated method of organizing our keys, leaving them noisily jangling in pockets and briefcases. The Keysmart upgrades the old model, providing a sleek way to organize your keys. 2. Columbiaknit Cap. When the weather outside is frightful, you need a warm but handsome cap to keep the cold at bay. This one from Columbiaknit keeps your noggin toasty, while its textured cotton fabric makes for a better-looking hat than the sleek, athletic-style nylon and polyester variety. 3. Field Notes 3-Pack. Every man should carry a pocket notebook. Whether it’s a grocery list, a journal entry, or a million-dollar idea, a physical notebook in your back pocket lends some physicality to an ethereal world. The legendary notebooks from Field Notes are even Made in the USA. 4. O’Douds Grooming Package. Quality, well-sourced grooming products to keep you looking — and feeling — your best. Includes shampoo, conditioner, shave cream, and aftershave. Even the roughest fellas need some love for the hair and skin now and then. 5. CHUP Hogan Socks. Durable Japanese socks with a seamless, ultra-comfortable interior. Each design is a limited edition with an intricate pattern inspired by the natural world and folk art. 6. J. L. Lawson Event Horizon Spin Coin. The original fidget spinner, in the form of a coin. Designed to be like a miniature black hole, it sucks you in with a calming, relaxing gravity. Can keep going for minutes on a single spin. 7. Full Windsor Multi-Tool Utensil. Full Windsor took the spork, an item already built to maximize utility, and packed it to the brim with 10 additional functions — can/bottle opener, fire flint, peeler, box cutter knife, and more — so you’ll have what you need at hand no matter the situation. 8. Higonokami Brass Folder. A traditional style of Japanese pocket knife. Crafted at Nagao Kanekoma Factory, which has been manufacturing knives since 1894, the Higonokami Folder’s blue paper steel blade is strengthened with alloys for durability. This is a knife that really maintains its edge. 9. Leatherman Keychain Pocket Tool. It’s like Leatherman’s classic and legendary multitool, but miniaturized. Perfect not only for a keychain, but also to tuck away in a tackle box, glove compartment, or any other place where its tools will come in handy. 10. Bullet Space Pen. Writes smoothly, evenly, and dependably, upside down, underwater, over grease, and in extreme temperatures. Thanks to a pressurized ink cartridge with specially developed ink, it can even write in zero gravity, hence the name and its inclusion on every manned NASA space mission since 1968. This version sports the classic Fisher “Bullet” design originally developed in 1948. Giveaway The Prize Any item available in Huckberry’s Stocking Stuffers Shop. Enter the Giveaway If you are an email subscriber, do not reply to this email to make your entry. You must click on the title of this post, which will take you to the post on our web page where you can make your entry. Use the form below to enter. Don’t forget! You have multiple ways to enter! The more of them you do, the better your chances are! The 12 Days of Christmas: Stocking Stuffers Deadline to enter is 12pm tomorrow (Central Time), December 4th, 2018. The post The 12 Days of Christmas Giveaways: Stocking Stuffers appeared first on The Art of Manliness. http://dlvr.it/QskcGn
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