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bruisedboys · 1 year

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ok but like rockstar!eddie with shy reader 🤭

I lovveee this concept tysm soph!! best ask ever fr <3 also I only proofread this once oops

summary: rockstar!eddie is totally soft with shy!you. fluff, established relationship, rockstar au

fem!reader 800 words

Watching Eddie perform was one of your favourite things in the world. However, it came with the unfortunate addition of braving crowds of loud and usually intoxicated people. However fond you were of your boyfriend, you were equally un-fond of the audience at most of his shows.

Tonight, you’d met your fear head-on, and made it through Eddie’s show with minimal damage to your emotions. It was with a big grin, though a tired one, that you navigated your way through the backstage area. Luckily, Eddie had bought you here earlier, when it was completely empty. He thought it’d help if you already knew the way to his band’s room. He was right.

When you finally made it to said room, you instantly heard voices behind the door, the loudest being that of your boyfriend. His boyish laughter at a bandmates joke made you feel giddy. You were just lifting your fist to knock when the door flew open.

“Sweetheart!” It was Eddie, sweaty and disheveled, his eyeliner smudged something awful, but Eddie all the same. “You made it!”

You smiled shyly. “Hi, Eds. You were awesome.”

His grin was blinding. “Thanks, sweet thing,” he doted, tone smooth with fondness. He leaned down to press a chaste kiss to your lips, his own lips sticky with gloss. Your mouth buzzed with electricity as he pulled away. “I saw you in the crowd, you know.”

You were still half-dazed from his kiss, so it took you a little while to answer. “You did?”

Eddie nodded, graciously ignoring your flushed cheeks. “Sure did,” he said jovially. “Couldn’t keep my eyes off you, babe. You look stunning tonight.”

You rolled your eyes at his familiar flirting, though your face was hot as an oven. There was a shout behind Eddie, one of his bandmates calling his name.

Eddie gave a wave to them without looking, and then bent his head so his mouth was next to your ear, his long hair tickling your jaw. “You okay to meet everyone?”

You felt your heart twang, totally softened that he’d thought to ask. You nodded, “Yeah.”

Eddie grinned proudly, tossed an arm over your shoulder and pulled you in through the doorway. He smelled like sweat. You probably should’ve found it gross.

“Everyone! This is my girl, Y/N,” he announced.

The room was full of his bandmates, drinking and laughing and all looking just as stunning as your boyfriend. Well, almost as stunning. Everyone smiled as you entered, offered friendly waves, raising their drinks with a chorus of ‘hi’s and ‘we’ve heard so much about you’s. A girl with choppy pink hair, the band’s bassist, was closest. Eddie addressed her.

“She’s pretty, isn’t she?” He said proudly, giving you a shake. “Prettier than you, Beth.”

Your jaw dropped as Eddie burst into laughter. “Eddie!” You hissed, cheeks burning.

You turned to Beth, ready to apologise profusely but she was just grinning, shaking her head like she was used to it. You supposed she was.

“You’re very pretty,” you told her shyly, a bit breathless. You elbowed a chortling Eddie in the ribs. “Sorry about him.”

Beth shrugged good-naturedly. “Don’t worry about it, dove.” She turned to Eddie and gave him a look. “She’s sweet, Eds. Try not to corrupt her.”

With that she walked off. Eddie tightened his arm around your shoulders, chuckling lowly.

“You hungry, angel?” He asked, apparently unfazed from the conversation with Beth. You, on the other hand, were still hot in the face. Eddie must’ve noticed, because he led you over to a table laden with junk food and soda cans, in the corner of the room where it was quieter.

Once out of earshot he slid his arm from around you and slotted his hand into yours. He turned on his heel to face you, lifting his free hand to brush a strand of hair from your face.

“You doing okay?” He asked quietly, dark eyes boring into yours. “‘Cos we can leave, if you’re not. I don’t mind.”

You shook your head as Eddie cupped your cheek with his jewellery-heavy hand. The metal of his many rings was warm against your face and his skin warmer.

“I’m okay,” you told him honestly. Sure, you were shy and dead tired, but Eddie treating you like this was making you feel the opposite. “We can hang around for a bit longer.”

“Cool,” he beamed, eyes bright. His voice got soft as he added, “Just let me know when you want to go, okay?”

You nodded, feeling like you’d melt any second now. Eddie bought his other hand up to cup your face and held you there, leaning in to kiss you sweetly.

You felt his adoration like wildfire in your chest.

#★ mal writes!#✿ 300 celebration!#ღ eds #eddie munson #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x fem!reader #eddie munson fluff #eddie munson x reader #eddie munson drabble #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson blurb #eddie munson x reader fluff #eddie munson x shy!reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson x shy!reader fluff #rockstar!eddie #rockstar!eddie munson #rockstar!eddie munson x reader #✉️

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gabessquishytum · 5 months

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You know what concept doesn’t get explored enough in Dreamling fic? Dream teaching Hob how to read. Like, I’ve seen one or two off mentions of it in canon adjacent fic, but nothing that really gives focus to that idea, y’know? And while I think it would be fun in canon, I’m gonna go au real quick.

So Hob as one of those kids unfortunately left behind. Probably a combination of living in poverty and his undiagnosed adhd. And he’s definitely way too embarrassed by this to actually ask anyone to teach him. So now he’s an adult who doesn’t know much more than his own name and his numbers. And while that probably wouldn’t be enough for most people to get by, what Hob DOES have are people skills. His ability to charm people and talk around them let’s him get through life well enough.

Then there’s Dream, mister wet cat himself. If he’s not an Author™️ then he’s definitely a voracious reader. But he has a personality of a damp paper bag. Like, even he has to admit his lack of social skills is actively hindering his life and relationships at this point. Probably add some autism for ✨flavor✨

But Dream does have moments where he’s too observant for his own good. Which is how he clocks that Hob avoids reading like the plague. (I’m envisioning Hob as a bartender at the pub Dream goes to to try and learn human behavior. But idk if he could avoid reading with that job.)

So Dream corners Hob and proposes a trade off: Dream will teach him how to read and Hob will teach him some social skills. Once Hob realizes he’s not being threatened (seriously, Dream really sucks at this talking to people thing) he hesitantly agrees. At least it’s less embarrassing if Dream also needs to be taught something? And it would be rather helpful…

Obviously during the course of their lessons they fall in love 🥰

This means so much to me!!!! I love it. The idea of Hob hiding the fact that he can't read is so heartbreaking but actually so real and its way more common than people imagine.

I also love the idea of Hob + Dream = One Normal Functioning Adult. That's my favourite thing, when they're each other's missing puzzle piece <3

I figure that Hob might have picked up a few words from around the environment of the bar. Like, each tap has a label on and he knows exactly which is which and he can technically read "Guiness" and "Wherry" and a few others, but they're not the most useful words. Anyways, Dream gets the idea that he'll keep using things around the pub to teach Hob to read: menus, newspapers, posters for old gigs, crisp packets. It's a good way for Hob to build confidence before Dream presents him with an actual book.

And similarly Hob uses the bar as a place to teach Dream about social skills. He coaches him through identifying body language and expressions, quizzing Dream on how he thought each customer might be feeling. Then he encourages three way conversations between him, Dream and regular customers. He gives Dream topics to focus on and gives him safe ways to get out of an interaction that he's not vibing with.

By the time Hob stumbles his way through his first novel, Dream is able to talk to a stranger about the weather without any issues. And they're both mutually crushing on each other so hard!! It only seems fitting that the pub which has been such a cornerstone for their friendship and some pretty awesome personal milestones, is also the place where they have their first date.

Hob reads love sonnets to Dream in a hushed undertone. And it's like the whole building sighs happily at the sights of them together <3

#acedragontype #the sandman #dreamling

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sparks-olivarpente · 7 months

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the Stranger Fics

(byler fics with unexpected powers or twists)

Turns out a lot of my favorite fics enter this category. Feel free to reblog and add fics you love :)

In the Eye of a Hurricane (It's You and Me) by Julia_Skysong "Jonathan, why…why am I with dad on the security tape????" Lonnie Byers is a royal piece of shit. Will finds out he has powers and understandably has a meltdown about it, and Mike helps him through it.

over a bridge of time by @sevensided Hawkins isn't the same without Will. So Mike goes to visit him in Chicago. Then strange things happen… Second part of the awesome serie THE DARK MIRROR and of course you should read the whole thing :)

I know the end by @cosmobrain00 The worst-case scenario has happened. … and that's all the summary you'll get from me! an ongoing serie that keeps getting better and better (or worse and worse, depending on the point of view). Tags: #Mind Manipulation #Will has powers

them’s the breaks by emelinelou Three years after moving to California, one Will Byers shows up - read: dimension-teleports or something - back in Hawkins. In the corner of Mike's bedroom. In the middle of the night. Turns out this is a bad thing, namely for Mike and Mike's sanity.

captured ghosts by etchedstars ghosts from will's past come back to haunt this. literally or metaphorically is up to audience interpretation. Some favorite tags: #plot relevant cuddles #will gets to be sarcastic #he also commits crime

Come Hell, High Water by naiesu “It’s been months, Mike,” Lucas says, staring at Mike, hard. Mike can’t remember a time he didn’t look at him that way. “Will is a cold case. You need to accept that.” The dream-like parts are amazingly written <3

yesterFriday by nbfutureboy (@futureboy-ao3) Will Byers wakes up as usual one Friday morning - he worries about his family, his History test, and telling the people he loves that he doesn’t Like Girls in that way. Then he does it again. [Groundhog Day AU where Will gets stuck in a time loop.]

a strange education (reach out and touch me) by Total_Serene (@total-serene560) 16 year old Mike Wheeler wakes up in the middle of a highway in Indiana. He can't remember what happened, but he knows three things: He was going somewhere, it was supposed to be night, and he had taken Nancy's car. The mystery in this one…!!!

The Basement by olliecoddle (@souverian-are-we) Will and Mike spend their days in a little run-down house in the Upper Peninsula with dated furniture and peeling wallpaper, two sinking recliners next to each other. But there is a beast in the basement.

A Stranger Things Ghost Story by Junigatsu84 It is the Summer of 1983, before all the horrors that befall Hawkins. The boys are looking for their own mystery to solve and find a haunted house. It’s a shame Will is the only one to see it.

Back to the Future (with Mike Wheeler) by Nymphadoragreenleaf On a list of the top five most unexpected things to happen to Mike Wheeler, traveling 10 years into the future has got to take the top spot. The half-naked man claiming to be his best friend might be number two. Alternatively known as, Mike Wheeler tries to survive a week in the 90's and figures a couple of things out along the way.

You are the Heart by TouchTheSky A fever-dream, mucho-feels, super long, semi-fix-it, version of Season 5. i feel like i know you (but we never met) by @andiwriteordie “Who?” Mike’s voice breaks again, and Joyce chokes back a sob. “Joyce, who… who was he?” Or: The one in which Will Byers doesn't exist… At least not anymore.

with all my heart by mogiah (@morganee) what happens when Birthdaygate and Lettergate meet. or another one in which Will doesn't exist anymore

i've come home, i'm so cold by astrobi (@astrobei) Will's trying his hardest to make it through fall semester in one piece. Unfortunately for his degree, he's being haunted by maybe-feelings for his best friend (metaphorically), and also a maybe-ghost with rather abysmal fashion sense (literally). The fic that made me decide to spend the rest of my life that year reading fics

Blackout by Tea_For_One_Please as if their senior year of high school wasn't complicated enough, the Party find themselves investigating an accidental death, believing it to be connected to a similar event nearly two decades earlier. Just normal teenager stuff, right? This one hasn't been updated for a while but I remember enjoying the plot and mystery a lot

baby, we’re perfect by bookinit (@bookinit02) Senior year in Hawkins. Will and Mike figure some things out. I'm not allowed to say anything else about this fic. To quote the author: "brace yourselves. sorry in advance."

you were bigger than the whole sky by delusionaltogether (@parkitaco) Mike breathes out sharply, sinking to his knees in front of Will without conscious thought. Every bone in his body is turning to jelly, because Will is here, but he's also- not. on march 29th, 1986, will byers vanishes for a second time. 366 days later, he reappears.

This is where it starts by cottonscent While the rest of the party moved on and forgot once the gate closed Will kept exploring, and the connection he formed to the other dimension it actually a lot more complex than what they originally thought.

#edited to add an author's tumblr #i keep telling myself i'm going to move on to some new hobby #this was going to be the Last List of Fics #but i already started 3 new ones #i'm stuck there #happily #byler #byler fic #byler fic recs

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the-24-7-lawlu-library · 4 months

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Hello!

I have a trip in a few days and I need some longfics to help me survive, do you have any recs?

Hello there! I hope we are not too late with answering. Of course we can't leave you alone in this! Here are some recs:

I’d Forgotten How Nice Romance Was, Then You Reminded Me by Living4LifesSake (M)

At forty-four years old, Luffy was content with the way things were. Sure his life hadn't exactly gone like he had originally thought it would, but it was fine. He had a good job, a cute dog, a whole gang of awesome friends, a supportive family; things were great. He was fine with being single. Then, one fateful night, he got sat by a handsome man at a bar. And suddenly, everything changed. A story where Law and Luffy learn that you’re never too old to have a whirlwind romance.

Lead Me Back to Suffering by Purplehairedwonder (M) [non-con, includes Doflamingo/Law]

In the wake of Kaido's fall, Law is kidnapped from the shores of Wano.

Inhuman Potential by Sydneyxface (E) [Blood and Gore]

Dr. Trafalgar Law has seen many wild and surprising things come across his table as a pathologist, but nothing compares to one of his decedents waking from the dead - and thirsty for his blood. And so Law befriends (and beds) a vampire named Luffy and is pulled into the chaos that surrounds him - which involves cracking a case of missing people supposedly being used as slave labor for the elites of the world... the Celestial Dragons. Alternate Universe - Modern day, 2023.

Not a Ball or a Chain by HollowIsTheWorld (T) [AU-Modern]

Trafalgar Law grew up hoping he would be one of the handful of people to never develop a soulmate mark. Now that that hasn't panned out, however, he's willing to settle for just never meeting them. Unfortunately for him, Monkey D. Luffy is a hard person to avoid.

At the End of the Day by Artificial_Starlight (M) [Edit: we corrected the link]

It was such a simple thing to get worked up about, he knew, and maybe it was because he's so removed from normal social interaction that the idea of new friends coming into his life only bothered him. He only needed the three - they gave him enough trouble! They already bugged him enough to hang out, already caused drama that he was dragged into, already teased him about his idiosyncrasies... They already knew about his issues; spent years around his ever changing moods as he tried to be less angry, less scared, less obsessive. They already tried with mixed results to help him sleep, heal, and trust. He didn't need anyone else getting that close. However, as he began to walk away, he couldn't help but believe that not taking Straw-hat's words seriously would be a mistake.

the thing that remains by tciddaemina (M)

He'd had a plan. Destroy the SAD manufacture plant, destroy the SMILE factory... A kidnapping here, a bit of extortion there. Simple, at least by Law's standards. The Straw Hats had been a surprise, but a manageable one. Doflamingo would submit to their demands, sealing his own fate, or they'd destroy the factory and Kaidou would finish the job for them. He'd had a plan. Now Law doesn't know what's going on, but its definitely not the plan.

Boyfriend's Duties by martilla (E)

“Good evening,” Law said calmly. “I am looking for…” he looked down at the medical chart in his hands. “Monkey D. Luffy.” The boy on the bed smiled immediately when he heard his name, a curious and excited look in his eyes. “That’s me!” He shouted out. “Are you the doctor? They said that they were sending a doctor before dinner and I am really hungry, so if you are the doctor this means that I am gonna eat soon!” The two men in the room groaned at that sentence and Law felt taken aback by the enthusiasm of the guy. He was either stupid or not aware of the gravity of his injury, if his only thought was dinner. “Yes, I am the surgeon that will operate on you,” he answered. “My name is Trafalgar Law.” * Law is a surgeon who needs some light in his life. Then Luffy happens.

-Mod Raiya

#Story arc #slow burn #longfic #Vampire au #Modern AU #Trans Luffy #demisexual law #asexual luffy #Soulmates AU #Demiromantic law #trafalgar law #lawlu #lulaw #lawlu fanfic #lawluffy #monkey d luffy

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meadowofdarts · 9 months

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Qᴜᴇsᴛɪᴏɴɪɴɢ CʜɪSᴄᴀʀᴀ [Scaramouche, Tartaglia - Ft. (Name)] [Mᴏᴅᴇʀɴ AU]

i've discovered the "611 anthem" and it's been on my mind nonstop and this is how i ended up writing this... please it's so iconic 💀💀 i still can't believe griffin and patrick did something like this... i thank them for the awesome anthem 🧎‍♀️🧎‍♀️ (I'm also currently waiting for someone to animate it or the community to make more videos of it bcuz........... yes)

...

You were just in the living room, scrolling through your phone as you made yourself comfortable on the couch. You were bopping your head through the music playing from your Spotify.

The clubhouse for your group, the Fatui, was literally the best, probably better than your own home. Your leader, the Tsarita, definitely picked the grandest house for the members' hangout area.

Unfortunately, it was a Sunday, and many members, aka your besties and great friends, were busy today. You only knew that Pierro was hanging out with Capitano and Pulcinella.

And Pantalone, Sandrome, Columbina, and Signoria were out of town for a while. Dottore was busy with his science experiments, and Arlecchino was in another city called Fontaine. You didn't know why, but you didn't question it.

Leaving only you, Tartaglia, and Scaramouche. The two members you both love and had the biggest problem with complex names. Seriously, the two of them have like three or four names. But you love them either way.

You didn't know what they were doing. All you remember before was that you and Scaramouche were hanging out on the couch, watching trailers of the upcoming movies you both were interested in until Childe literally pulled him and dragged him away, ignoring Scaramouche's angry temper.

So here you are, listening nonstop to your music albums and scrolling through your phone, bored. God, what can you do?-

You snap out of your thoughts when you suddenly hear the loudest beats you've ever heard. It made you jump, and you heard it immediately come from the backyard of the clubhouse. You raise an eyebrow as you walk up to the door that leads outside.

As you were about to open it, you witness Scaramouche sitting on one of the pool chairs as he was wearing a gold chain that had an anemo symbol, and shades, and holding his mother's treasure like it was a trophy.

But you jumped when he literally yelled behind the door as the beat continued. "Yo, where you at, Childe!?"

You notice that Childe was wearing almost the same things, and his and Scara's outfits changed, looking like rappers.

"Lift your brims, Scara, I'M RIGHT HERE!" You see Childe coming, and he literally threw a pool ball to Scara, but the purple-haired guy was unbothered.

"HIT' EM WITH THAT FIRST VERSE!" Scaramouche laughed. "I mean, no. You were playable before me?"

"Uh-huh."

"Let's go!"

"Alright! Slay all day!"

You then watch the two going around the pool, singing and rapping about lyrics that involve the memes of their fan groups. They were recording themselves around the pool and literally, it was a strange sight that Scaramouche was dancing and saying the craziest lyrics.

You stifle your laughter behind the backyard door and immediately whipped out your phone to record them. Their voices were loud so the recording managed to get their beats playing and their voices. You wheezed out loud when they said some lines that sound super weird coming from them, most coming from Scaramouche.

You were planning to send this to the other members because this was hilarious to you. This was the new entertainment and music you were craving for.

...

Their song didn't end that long because, after around two minutes, they were finished. And you literally laughed dying at the last lines they had to say to their song as the beat dies down.

"Yo, Scara! That was more than Tartagalicious! That was SCARAMOUCHE-ALICIOUS! I can't even say it!"

"..."

"We should do an emo song next."

"...What?... The ANEMO song... Anemo..."

The moment the beat stops, you burst out laughing as you finish recording, and you decide to be a hysterical hyena, revealing yourself and stepping into the backyard.

Scaramouche and Childe look at you, laughing with your phone whipped out. Childe was surprised but he wasn't mad like Scaramouche who was literally red.

"OMG! WTF WAS THAT...!" You yelled, wheezing. "I'm not surprised Childe to do this, but you... Scara, I didn't think were into this too..!"

"SHUT THE FUCK UP, (NAME)!" Scaramouche fumed.

...

A few days later, the entire house was filled with absolute laughter.

You, who somehow manage to avoid Scaramouche and his evil actions to murder you, showed the recording to the members when all of them came back into the clubhouse.

Dottore, Columbina, Pulcinella, and Pantalone were laughing hysterically with you as the video plays its iconic lyrics and beats.

You even notice the Tsarita, laughing, the lady of the house who rarely expresses emotions, laughing with you. She wasn't as loud as you but her laugh was more than enough for you.

Sandrone and Capitano were giggling, not laughing as hard as most of you were, but still found the video amusing.

Meanwhile, Pierro, Arlecchino, and Signoria were deadpanning at the laughing members, but they mostly looked embarrassed and shameful of the video.

"Bro, literally, wtf?"

"I love it!!"

"Nice singing, Childe! You too, Scara!"

"It's so good!"

"...This is quite amusing."

"Very funny~"

"Quite fun."

"...Why am I even here?"

"...Such Children."

"...This is the most embarrassing thing in fatui history."

Childe was grinning in his seat, enjoying the attention and the music video. He was not bothered at all and loved how the song turned out.

But...

All laughter died down when Scaramouche entered with the scariest glare you've ever seen.

And he. was. staring. at. you.

You yelped and laughed nervously out loud when Scaramouche then chased you with a butter knife.

"SCARA, WAIT! WAIT! WAIT! WAIT!"

"GET BACK HERE, YOU LITTLE BITCH!"

"...I'm surprised he's mad at (Name). I thought he would also be mad at Childe, too."

"Pierro, don't give Scaramouche ideas-"

"OH DON'T WORRY! I'LL MAKE SOMETHING TARTAGALICIOUS OUT OF AJAX!"

"WAIT, SCARAMOUCHE! I'M SORRY! AHHHH- HELP!"

...

Chaos flooded the entire clubhouse.

...

And through it all, the Tsarita smiled. "...What a lovely evening at the clubhouse!"

...

authors: ok, help... what did i create... idk i'm sorry... but i still love it... anyways, unless another iconic thing appears before me, don't worry I'm still working at starlight lmao... now I'm considering add something like this in starlight now...

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ctitan98official · 3 months

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Graduate student Donna Beneviento x professor Y/N part 2

Love this AU! Read the first part here!

It had been a few weeks since Donna started working on your research team. She was brilliant. She had already come up with important conclusive findings and you had come to rely on her.

One day, you walk down the hallway, whistling happily as you make your way to your classroom.

You open the door and see Donna already sitting there. She’s always so punctual. It’s really sweet how focused and prepared she is.

“Good morning!” You say with a grin.

Donna turns and smiles sheepishly at you before you see a little face poke up and look at you from behind her.

“Hi!” A cute little girl greets you excitedly.

Your grin gets wider. “Well, hi there, little bit! I’m Y/N. What’s your name?” You ask as you make your way over to hold out your hand to her.

“I’m Angie!” She says proudly and shakes your hand.

You chuckle at how adorable she is. “The pleasure is all mine.” You say good-naturedly.

You look over to Donna who is blushing like mad. “Old undergrad roommate?” You joke and point your thumb at Angie, who giggles wildly.

“I’m so s-sorry, Y/N.” Donna apologizes. “This is my daughter, Angie. Her school lost power for the day and I couldn’t find a babysitter.” She says, holding her head in shame.

“Hey, no problem here. This is a 9 AM class, it’s nice to see someone so bright-eyed and bushy-tailed.” You laugh. “I’m very happy to meet you, squirt.” You say to Angie, making her squeal joyfully. “In fact, would you like to be my very special helper today, Angie?” You ask her.

Angie’s eyes light up. “Yeah!” She says.

“Great! Could you make sure each desk has one of these sheets of paper on it?” You ask and reach into your bag to hand her a small stack of assignments.

Angie is honored and immediately grabs them before setting about her task.

You turn and look at the lovely dark-haired woman. “She’s beautiful, Donna.” You say with a warm smile.

Donna feels like her heart just melted at how sweet you were with her daughter. Unfortunately, this does nothing to quell the large crush she has on you. “Thank you for being so understanding.” She says nervously.

You grin at her. You could look at Donna’s cute, flushed face all day and never get tired of it.

“Like this, Y/N?” Angie calls and gestures to what she’s done already.

“That’s perfect, thanks!” You say with a thumbs up. “She’s a natural.” You say, pointing at Angie.

Donna can’t help but giggle at your playfulness.

You laugh before going to set up your presentation.

——————————————————————————

Class goes fairly well. Donna is able to keep Angie entertained by letting her play on her phone.

You, on the other hand, are having a difficult time focusing. Donna is such a good mom. You see the way she gently rubs Angie’s back or brushes hair out of her face as she takes notes. It endears her even more to you. You’d be lying if you said you didn’t have a crush on her, but that was just all kinds of inappropriate. You feel guilty even thinking about it. You’re not only her professor, but her project lead.

Eventually, as the hour ends, students begin to rush out to get to their next class.

You know Donna has a few hours in her schedule before she needs to attend another lecture, and you really just want to spend more time with her… So, you do something that you’ll probably regret. “My dynamic duo.” You say, smiling at Donna and Angie. “Are either of you hungry? I skipped breakfast so I am. There’s an awesome sandwich place close to campus. My treat.” You offer.

Donna stammers for a second before Angie begins asking the real questions. “Do they have grilled cheese?!” She asks with a hopeful look in her eyes.

You laugh. “As a matter of fact they do! Grilled cheese is my favorite.” You tell her.

“Mama! Y/N and I have the same favorite food! Can we go, Mama?” She begs, bouncing in her seat.

“Yeah, can we go, Mama?” You plead with big eyes.

Donna’s entire face goes red after hearing you call her that. You’re cheeky. “U-um… Well, if Y/N has time.” She says, looking at you.

You grin. “Absolutely! Let’s roll, gang.” You say, motioning for them to follow you.

It’s a beautiful day, so you three decide to walk the block or so to the little restaurant.

You and Angie are animatedly discussing video games. It’s nice to have someone to talk with who enjoys the same things you do.

Donna has no idea what you two are discussing, but it makes her so ecstatic that you like Angie.

Everything goes fine until some guy runs up and tries to yank Donna’s purse out of her hands.

“Gimme your bag!” He yells and starts wrestling the purse away from her.

The violent assailant makes Angie cower in fear and tears roll down her cheeks.

Something primal awakens in you as you see the panic in Donna and Angie’s eyes. The complete need to protect them spurs you to act. You immediately grab this fucker and throw him to the ground harshly.

He somehow manages to get the purse before he tries to make a break for it.

You run after him and tackle him to the ground.

The punk howls in pain. “You broke my fuckin’ arm!” He shrieks.

“Good! Maybe you’ll learn something from this, ass!” You say.

He manages to hit you a few times before you effectively end the fight.

You punch him right in the face to get him to stop struggling.

A crowd of people begins to form and you yell out for someone to call 911.

The guy is out cold. You must have really hurt him badly.

Some people from the crowd restrain him until the cops can arrive.

You thank them before walking back over to Donna and Angie. “Are you two okay?” You ask, breathing heavily before handing Donna her purse.

Poor Angie is shaken up. She’s bawling as Donna hugs and consoles her.

“Yes, Y/N. Just reeling a bit.” She tells you. “I… Thank you for saving us. That was incredible.” She says, standing up while Angie clings to her leg.

Donna is still in shock from how easily you took the guy down, but she notices a few nasty gashes on your face. “Y/N, you’re hurt.” She says and reaches out to cup your jaw.

The warmth from Donna’s hand is amazing. You fight the urge to let your eyes roll back in pleasure. “I’ve been through worse.” You smile tiredly and give her a wink. You look at Angie and crouch down to her level. “What about you, little bit? Everything okay?” You ask gently.

Seeing how you were able to protect her and her mom makes Angie feel completely safe with you. She bursts into relieved tears as she runs into your arms.

You’re surprised but immediately hug her back.

Angie feels secure in your embrace.

You stand up, still holding Angie, and look to Donna. “They’re probably gonna want to get statements from us about what happened.” You tell her. “I’m going to drive you both home after we finish up. I’ll send your professor an email to excuse you from your other lecture.” You say.

Donna can’t begin to even process how thankful she is for you. It’s rough being a single mom, but ever since you came into her life, you’ve made her feel like she is being taken care of. As much as she had a crush on you before, you just became her savior. You neutralized a potential threat to her beloved daughter. That basically makes you a saint in her book.

She timidly walks closer and places a soft kiss on your cheek. “Thank you, Y/N.” She whispers and puts her arms around you and Angie.

Note: Plot twist at the end there. Let me know what you thought and if you want another part!

Masterlist

#donna beneviento #re8 #re8 village #donna beneviento x reader #donna beneviento x y/n #angie beneviento #resident evil village #resident evil imagines #resident evil 8 #resident evil #re8 shitpost #re8 incorrect quotes

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bellacullenvamp · 6 months

Text

Red Moon ❣️

Genre: angst / au!

Rated: G (clean for all ages)

About: The Cullens have a new family member. The teen girl y/n.

Chapter two. ● Masterlist ●

CHAPTER TWO.

Edward and Bella were making Renesmee breakfast, while she was going through her phone as if she was just a normal teenager. I came close with my backpack on my shoulder.

" You look awesome." Said Bella while putting her thumbs up. I smiled and Edward smiled as well, it's always a bummer to know he reads my mind, wonder how Renes deals with that.

"She hates as much as you do." Stated Edward. Bella punched his shoulder and Renes rolled her eyes.

"Dad shut up!" Kind of easy to forget they are her parents, in sigh they are only 2 years older than her.

"Manners Renesmee. Also, Esme is going to drive you girls to school." Edward educated his daughter to become a princess, and he did not fail. Renesmee walks and talks like royalty, most of the time.

The drive to school was quiet, Esme was as nervous as us, so she just tried to reassure us both with calming words. Renes was calmer, her almost boyfriend Jacob, was human, I mean, human half the time... And almost boyfriend because he is 6 years older than her, again, just in sight, in reality, Renesmee is only 6 years old...

Walking inside the school building, was challenging. Everyone was looking at the both of us. "I think they are already obsessed with the new age Cullens." Renes has her mom's sarcasm for sure.

We got our class map and none of our classes matched. " What a joke! We are students of the same year!" I exclaimed desperately.

"For sure they want us to meet new people," says Renesmee while walking away.

My first class was literature, I tried my best to blend in, but Alice's and Bella's gifts made it a little bit worse... my clothes unfortunately are way too fashionable for this small town.

I decided to sit near a girl whose clothes looked the best, she had green eyes, perfect eyebrows, and an angel face, I'm not segregating but maybe she will judge me less on being too dressed up? That line of thought was of course, wrong! She ignored me the whole class and only talked to some girls who were sitting behind us. Her blood smelled like sugar, but not in a good way, in a way that's suffocating and way too much.

The class was okay. The teacher expected way more of me. Of course, that's also the Cullens's fault. They were graduating for the tenth time and I am only on my first time. Y/n, the first dumb Cullen ever.

The second class was history and I decided to sit alone. However, not for too long, the prettiest boy I had ever seen just sat next to me. His blood smells like vanilla and roses... his eyes are a dark brown, his skin soft and pale, his fit and is wearing a jock jacket, for sure he plays Football, I think... he looks a bit older, but isn't, that his low beard effect... His hair curls was just perfect, really makes me want to pass my fingers through it.

At lunch time I found out Renesmee had way more fun than I did because she made exactly four friends. So I sat with them, grabbed a soda, and said I was just not hungry. Renesmee, touched my arm and let me know she feels sorry and forgot about the fact I just drink blood, that's a great power of hers because it means we can talk without people interacting with our conversations.

At the cafeteria table, the girl near me is called Deborah Koshi, a beautiful Indian girl who moved to Forks last year, her boyfriend, Zion Mohamed has been in Forks since birth, his Muslim dad married an American woman, and they both made a beautiful-looking boy, he was so kind towards Deborah that made a little jealous.

The other girl was sitting near Renesmee and her name was Cynthia Simpson, she had the sweetest face and temper, she was wearing a Rosary on her neck and was talking to Renesmee about her Bible study, Renesmee was listening with her full concentration, while that, Cynthia's boyfriend Cornelius Hitchcock was talking to me," I'm not a person who usually judges but isn't your name an old English man name's?" I said jokingly, fortunately he was a chill person, smiled, and said" My parents are actually English, and my name is also my great grandfather's name." He said laughing. I laughed as well and let him return to talk to Renes and Cynthia.

Suddenly I see the pretty boy from history class with the green-eyed girl from literature class. Of course, they were boyfriend and girlfriend! They were walking hand in hand across the cafeteria. If my stomach held food it would make me vomit right now. I am aware I have known him for only sixth minutes, and we would never be together! But it hurts to see them together, specially because she is such a rude person!

The rest of the day was just okay. I had a class with Cynthia, that made me notice how pretty she is, her brown skin and brown hair were the perfect match, she talked the whole class with me... However, that did not make it less of a boring day, awaiting to be finished.

At home, Edward just read my mind. Usually, he is way more modest and prudent about that, but not today.

"I'm so sorry y/n." He said with a sad tone.

"Sorry for what?" Renesmee asked from the couch, "Nothing! Just the fact I didn't make any friends on my own Renes." She doesn't need to know my first crush went that bad, I said on my mind to Edward. He nodded and left me alone, thankfully.

After that teenager humiliation moment, I went to Carlisle's office, I knocked and he answered.

"Hi," I said shyly.

"Hi," Carlisle's smile is always found when referring to me. He stopped his medical research and paid full attention to what I said.

"I spent the whole day telling people you are my dad." I saw he was waiting for more so I continued," Everybody accepted the lie that I am Rosalie's long-lost sister, crazy how the Cullens are so famous here..." I finished

"Maybe that's my medical services fault..." He laughed kindly, " I'm happy to know it was a good day for you, y/n. I acknowledge your resentments, but I mean good... I always meant good for you ." He said.

"I know. Please, remember our agreement. When I finish high school, you tell me the truth about my past." That's the only reason I am accepting this human theater. He nodded and went back to his studies, I think this means we finished our talk.

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lentendays · 6 months

Text

AO3 Masterlist

A masterlist of my ongoing fics on AO3 (One-shots and abandoned fics not included.)

My Hero Academia

breaking through the storm clouds

Kurogiri time-travel AU. "My name is Tenko." Tom - Tenko, all of five years old, looks up at Oboro with large, clear eyes. "Not Shigaraki Tomura. And you're not Kurogiri either." In which Kurogiri wakes up in the past and promptly decides to raise a young Tenko on his own, and maybe round up the rest of the League while he's at it, because they're really just a group of broken people who need hugs and guidance. Too bad he's still technically a high school student, and All For One isn't going to take kindly to his plans being interrupted.

Rekindling Fire

Dabi & Hawks time-travel AU "What about you, Todoroki? Are you going to follow Endeavor's footsteps when you grow up?" It isn't until he hears Endeavor that Dabi realizes he's being addressed. "Oh, me? No, I'm going to grow up to be a serial killer." His classmates stare. The teacher coughs awkwardly and changes the subject.

Other Fandoms

burns like the cold. [Fandom: Adventure Time / Fionna & Cake]

Fionna’s kiss doesn’t immediately kill the Winter King, the gang spends more time in the winter wonderland, and Simon uncovers one sinister secret after another in the seemingly perfect kingdom. Fionna slams her mug on the table, grinning, and Simon regrets all his life choices. "I have icicles where no icicles should be. Simon, magic is awesome." It's a horrible idea. Simon leans in anyway, meeting the Winter King halfway.

my father didn't tell me how to live. [Fandom: The Boys / Gen V]

Soldier Boy does raise Homelander, for a time. It changes everything and nothing. "You're alive," Homelander says. He doesn't know what he's feeling. What he should be feeling. "You're a fucking disappointment, John," his father says.

And straight on till morning. [Fandom: Once Upon A Time]

Cursed Pan AU. From time to time, Peter Pan visits the Enchanted Forest. It is unfortunate that he does so when the curse hits.

Aetatis. [Fandom: Naruto]

Hashirama & Madara time-travel AU, except Madara is still Kaguya's vessel. When Hashirama wakes up as a child again, he vows to protect his family and form a truce with the Uchiha sooner. When Madara wakes up in the same situation as a girl with a face suspiciously similar to the rabbit goddess who killed him, he wonders why the gods hate him.

Time and time again. [Fandom: Naruto]

Snippets of Aetatis

In the pale moonlight. [Fandom: Detective Conan / Magic Kaito]

Black Org! Kaito AU When Kuroba Toichi's stage explodes, it takes the magician and his wife with it. A young Kuroba Kaito is taken in by his father's remaining student... Sharon Vineyard. Years later, a phantom thief hits the streets of Japan, with an arsenal of black weapons. This changes the game for a certain shrunken detective.

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aziraphales-library · 1 year

Note

Hey folks! One of my fave fics is Or Be Nice by charlottemadison and I especially resonate with Crowly's particular brand of social anxiety in it. I was wondering if you knew of any other fics where Crowly has social anxiety.

Thank you for your help, you're all so awesome for everything you do!

Hello! Not a lot of fics are specifically tagged with social anxiety unfortunately, but here are a few where I would say at least some of Crowley’s anxiety is social...

The Nice and Accurate wedding of Anathema Device, Witch, which went just as expected by Nenchen (G)

Wedding planner Anathema Device is the Number One. She can organize anything for a wedding, flower arrangements, catering, a marching band or an emu. The name Device is a guarantee for a picture perfect wedding - and the perfect pictures will be taken by her top wedding photographer, and best friend, Anthony J. Crowley.

Both of them see weddings mostly as business, until Anathema meets Newt, Love of her life, walking natural disaster extraordinaire, and very much not a person it’s possible to have a perfect wedding with.

Which is perfect since Anathema frankly never wanted one for herself. She just wants a fun party, good food, and all of her friends to attend - including Crowley. For whom this might just as well be the apocalypse because no, he is not allowed to work on her wedding. Strictly invited only as a guest, Crowley finds himself at a loss. What the hell do you do at weddings? Well, if you are Crowley, the answer is some James Bond-like action, some worrying about fly swarms and their sources, having a lot of emotions, drinking some very funny wine, putting your foot in your mouth and just maybe meeting someone to share all of that with. Oh, and there’s always cake, isn’t there?

Pressed Flowers by TheNoctambulist (T)

A romance between two business owners of London's SoHo.

Anthony Crowley, proud owner of Eden (Producer of Fine Flowers and Bouquets since 2008), didn't expect to find love in his life. Ever. He had his plants, and what more could a florist want? But when Aziraphale Fell, a slightly fussy, altogether chaotic bookshop owner wanders into his shop looking for a bouquet, he begins to question what he really wants at all.

Clementine by Mussimm (E)

I love you madly Let my imagination run away with you gladly.

The seaside neighbours AU exactly one person asked for.

Almost Heaven by pilatesandpinot (E)

English literature professor Azra Fell finally decides to go on sabbatical for a semester. If he were smart, he’d probably spend his time in the Mediterranean, go hiking across Europe or America, or perhaps learn the power of prayer and meditation. Instead, he settles into a seaside town called Abel’s Point, also known as “Almost Heaven”, hoping some time away from London will help him rejuvenate and write his memoir. Little does he know that the town will prove more than he bargained for. Not to mention his next door neighbor, Anthony Crowley, who happens to be the most flirtatious yet neurotic man in town.

Rearrangements by sheendav (E)

Aziraphale, a lonely anxious bookseller from Soho, walks in St. James park every Wednesday and Sunday.

For nearly nine months he has had various, wordless, encounters with a very handsome red-haired man with sunglasses.

They have never spoken, but a strange and lovely intimacy has slowly grown between them as they share the same space, and feed the ravenous ducks by the pond.

It's all been rather lovely... and then one day... the red-haired man says 'hello.'

All You Knead Is Love by fumi_faust & Writer_Maxtli (NR)

Anthony Crowley left behind the world of high class dining to open a small bakery in Soho. Aziraphale is a lonely bookshop owner who finds it on accident. Cue rom com levels of romance, baking shenanigans, and everyone being happy. As they say, if you want a hyper specific bakery AU, you gotta do it yourself.

And the one you mentioned...

Or Be Nice by charlottemadison (E)

Crowley and Aziraphale are neighbours. And...it does not go at all well, until it does.

A human AU in which Aziraphale is a bookseller, Crowley is a drummer, and they are both petty disasters in the worst/best way.

+++

“So what’s your deal?” “My-my-my deal?” Aziraphale stammered. “I’m a bookseller, is my deal.” “Oh,” Crowley replied, sounding as uninterested as it was possible to sound. “It’s just, I couldn’t help overhearing, and --” Aziraphale swallowed hard. “You really are an accomplished musician. But I thought -- for after 11PM -- perhaps we could reach some arrangement?” “Arrangement?” Aziraphale felt his his smile turning forced. “Such as, perhaps, playing the drums *before* eleven? Instead of after?” Crowley stared blankly at him. In fact he stared for so long that Aziraphale briefly wondered if he'd lapsed into ancient Greek again, which he was known to do in bad dreams or during panic attacks.

- Mod D

#good omens #ineffable husbands #anxious crowley #adult omens #human au #long fic #mod d

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omormoment · 1 year

Note

Do you have any fanfic recommendations? I'm fine with any. If you have sunflower fanfics recommend that will be awesome

I haven't read anything in a while because I'm in reading slump right now but I can still give some recommendations from the top of my head. I'll try to summarize the fanfic the best I can.

Btw spoilers for OMORI below

Swim Against The Tide by tsukithewolf: Post bad ending. Hero-centric. Main ship is HeroMari but there's background Photobomb and Suntan. Hero goes back in time and is trying his best to figure out the reason Sunny had a fight with Mari and trying to prevent the accident from occuring. While doing so, he decided to spend more time with his friends and understand them. This one is my favorite.

The Bridge by 00cat00: Sunny told everyone the truth and they all need time. But Sunny can't wait that long so he decided to jump from the hospital building. When he wakes up, he realized that he went back in time where Mari is still alive. One of my favorites too. This one got me really emotional especially at the end. Made me cry.

Endless Dreaming: It's in the middle of True Ending. Sunny was about to tell everyone the truth but he suddenly faints. Everytime he's about to tell the truth, he'll pass out. Omori and headspace isn't gone. Omori drags Sunny into headspace to hang out with him. Sorry Idk how to explain more, I don't really remember anything from this fic because it's been a while. But it's a really good read.

Yurushite by @/misty-wisp : Post true ending. But the gang didn't forgive Sunny and he moved away. Sunny started to sleepwalk and wake up in the middle of the night. Later on he found out that Omori is still here and the headspace is decaying. Sunny decided to investigate headspace. (Sorry if this isn't as accurate as possible I don't remember much >~<)

Dreamscape by @/omoriboii: I'll be honest with you here, I haven't read Dreamscape yet. Best I can summarize is this AU takes place in a virtual world in a game. It uses the beginning half of the canon leading up to the 'incident' then completely diverging from then on. (Sorry Omo I didn't do this recommendation justice😔)

Deep Sea Reprieve: Sunny found a baby mermaid. His name is Omori.

Magician in the mirror by @/aria0fgold : A short fic where little Sunny met a new friend who was in the mirror. He calls himself a magician and can grant his wish. Sweet friendship between the two.

Here are some sunflower fanfics I like:

They say, flowers are meant to be sunkissed by whitheredahlia: Basil-centric. Sunny moved away and lost contact with Basil. Four years had passed and Basil managed to recover from being abandoned yet again with the support system that is his childhood friends and years of therapy. Unfortunately for the flower boy, fate seemed to have other plans for him when he's met face to face with the person he's sharing his college dorm with. This is my all time favorite sunflower fanfic.

Bloom Later by witheredahlia: Sequel to 'they say, flowers are meant to be sunkissed'. Focus more about their relationship. From the description: 'Sure, maybe the boy he developed feelings for was also the same boy he committed a crime with, therefore trauma bonding them for life. But no one ever said every relationship starts out perfect, right?'

Flower Language by @/mirror-to-the-past: Basil centric. An AU where Basil never met the group and Mari is still alive. Basically an angsty delinquent Basil story where instead of cowering away when people picks on him, he fights back. Yes, he did meet the gang soon and developing bond with them. This is one of the earliest sunflower fic I found when I was new to OMORI.

Sunflower seeds in the rearview mirror: 'Sunny and Basil decide to go on a road trip before the Summer Everything Changed ends—too bad Sunny has no idea where they're going. The only thing he knows is he feels warm around Basil.' This one is from Sunny's perspective and he's an unreliable narrator. This fic is a fucking poetry, it made me cry. The emotional roller coaster it gave me. Also one of the earliest sunflower fic I found when I was new to OMORI.

#long post #omori fanfic #anon ask

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hankwritten · 5 months

Text

A Tavern Named Keep [5/6]

Demoman-centric Modern AU

[1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

In a small uni-town in New Mexico, DeGroot Keep serves liquor and succor to an eclectic yet loyal group of patrons, and has for many years. The Keep owes its success to its equally colorful owner, who always seems to know what you need—whether that be a stiff beer or a word of advice. But, between setting up his patrons or sifting through his friends’ problems, will Tavish remember to take care of himself?

“Now! If you turn your pathetic civilian eyeballs that have never witnessed the horrors of war to your right, you will see the nesting grounds of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken.”

Those actually paying attention to Jane’s tour as he guides their overlarge hiking group through the wilds of Valles Caldera National Preserve rotate their binoculars as indicated. This group includes Miss Pauling, (her tongue sticking out of her mouth as she scribbles furiously in her newly purchased Billious Hale’s Field Guide to North American Birds, and How To Break the Spine of Every One!) Mikhail, (two wrist straps hack-jobbed together in order to hold his disposable camera in place), and, surprisingly enough, Scout, (practicing how fast she can capture each specimen in her sketchbook before they fly away. Already she has six birds, two burrowing rodents, and one ‘yeti’ (at Ranger Doe’s suggestion.))

“Tympanuchus pallidicinctus is a fearsome foe to meet in its natural habitat,” Jane goes on. Every time he speaks, the various bits and bobs of navigational equipment dangling from his neck jingle; the compass clatters into the magnifying glass, which swings into the pocketknife, which knocks the binoculars, so on and so forth. Hearing even Jane’s famously robust voice over it all is a struggle. “The caldera is their hunting ground. They climb to dizzying altitudes in order to locate prey up to eight times their size, then dispatch them quickly by dropping objects of significant weight. When it reaches terminal velocity, the pathetic maggot-sucker is turned into gibs on impact!”

“Object of significant weight,” Mick, a significant amount of woodsman’s supplies strapped to his back as well, repeats suspiciously. “Like what?”

“A rock! Or perhaps even a coconut!”

“A coconut? What would a bloody coconut be doing in the middle of the bloody desert?”

“This is not a desert, it is an elevated watershed meadowland! And maybe the coconut rolled here!”

This debate never makes it to Pauling, who remarks cheerily as the two squabble on, “this really was a good idea, getting us all out of Teufort for a bit. I pretty much never get to go anywhere with nature. Or fresh air. Or sunlight.”

Before Tavish can comment, Scout is already pouncing like a Lesser Prairie-Chicken on an unfortunate bobcat.

“Yeah yeah, me too,” she says. “Just like, never get out you know. Never any grass where I was growing up except the abandoned square where my brothers and I would play baseball, and now I’m too busy with school but hey! We’re out here now ain’t we? And look, I got a little bird book too. Except I’m drawing in mine instead ‘a writing, I don’t got the way with words you do, but isn’t it cool we match?”

Scout holds up her sketchbook with blithe expectancy.

Such blithe expectancy, there really is no possible way Pauling can respond with anything approaching the same level of zeal. “Yeah, Scout,” she says. “Really cool. Super awesome that we both…own books.”

This lukewarm response does not, in fact, curtail Scout’s enthusiasm. “It is, yeah. Books are great, huh? For like, carrying around, and, uh-”

“Thanks for suggesting this, Tavish,” Pauling says quickly and altogether too loudly. “Now that Helen only has me working forty hours a week, it’s crazy how much free time I have, but I probably would have spent it all glued to your bar if you hadn’t said something.”

“Tavern,” Tavish corrects. “And true, I think everyone here lacks a chance to stretch their legs every now and again. Though I cannae claim this trip was entirely with ulterior motive.”

He glances back.

Lollygagging behind the rest of the pack, Crue and Dell are at it again, bitching something fierce about the way Dell parked his truck. Or maybe they’ve moved on to something different by now: whether it’s pronounced pecan or pecan, is light a wave or a particle, if bears shit in the woods or not. Although Crue has slipped comfortably into the Keep’s social structure for the most part (accepted as long as he’s helping Scout through her transition and he doesn’t have the balls to insult one of Tavish’s drinks again) there’s still one critical rub.

That rub being Dell Conagher.

What the hell is Dell’s problem Tavish can’t figure, and good Lord he’s tried. Usually the man’s about as mellow as a hog in a mud puddle, but something about the pompous stranger just drives him crazy, picking fights that even Jane wouldn’t have thought of, (and picking fights is that man’s personal pastime.) When asked, all Dell would supply is, “hell I don’t know DeGroot. He’s a snake is what he is. It just gets under my skin.” Crue is no better, always jumping at any opening Dell gives him, as though he’s got a pent up backlog of critiques and is just waiting for an outlet. Acutally, now that Tavish thinks about it, that might not even be an exaggeration. He’s certainly less critical of everything than when he first came to Teufort, save for their dear engineer.

Tavish had fallen to his default assumption about these sorts of interpersonal relationships, and (rather optimistically ) contrived a situation where Crue and Dell might be able to work out their differences. A little time out of town to see the more palatable sides of one another.

“At the confessional: was trying to see if I could set Dell and Crue up together,” Tavish says. “Thought they might make up if they made out, bit of fresh air to jog the hormones.”

“What?” Scout gags, whatever she’d been trying to commiserate with Pauling quickly forgotten. “Actually, no, no don’t answer that. I’m out, freaking gross man.”

With a fading mumble of ‘yuck. yuck.’, she swiftly departs, her poorly fastened sleeping bag swaying as she peels to the front of the pack. The vanguard consists of Mick, Ludwig, and Pyro, (who immediately shows their girlfriend the cool bug they just found), but it’s clear that Mundy is the true spearhead of the operation. Despite their residents ranger running commentary on the various flora and fauna of the reserve, (currently informing Mikhail how pre-agricultural societies in the valley used obsidian tools since all their rocket launchers were lost in a volcanic event), Mick has been the one navigating the group down various hiking trails, now leading their post-lunch return to the camp ground.

“You really think you can hook Crue and Dell up?” Pauling asks.

“Nah, that’s a bust. I think they honestly just hate each other.”

But, since the bartender playing cupid is apparently still novel for some people, her question catches Mikhail’s attention. He asks, “DeGroot is now matchmaker?”

“He certainly tries,” Jane barks, annoyance at least in part for the theft of his audience. “But we all need to face the facts that that man is not as smooth operator as he claims to be; he couldn’t pin a tail to a donkey, let alone people who have legitimate unresolved sexual tension together. I told him not every pair of bickering canucks secretly want to swap spit, but he did not listen!”

“Canucks?” Pauling asks, baffled.

“Canadians Miss Pauling! The both of them!”

“I’ll be honest Jane, most of the time I can see where you’re coming from, or at the very least the other side of the canyon you jumped to get there but…Canadians?”

“Yes!” Jane slams a fist into his open hand. “Conagher lacks true American volatility! All attempts to construct complex machinery should spontaneously combust at least six times before bringing them onto the field. Obviously he’s a Canadian spy, sent here to assassinate our president, the man who wields the great American sword the Mayflower which he drew from the Liberty Bell on the morning of his sixteenth birthday!”

“…And Crue?”

“They speak French in Canada, don’t they.”

Despite the fact that he was rather brutally just called on his failures as a Casanova, Tavish can’t help but chuckle. “Ah, that’s a good one.”

“A good one?” Mikhail repeats doubtfully.

“Aye,” Tavish smiles fondly. “Ah, listen to this one. Hey! Jane!”

“What?” Jane snaps, putting down the binoculars.

“I can never keep track o’ American politics. Who is the president, again?”

Jane snorts. “Damn stupid question, private! It’s Lyndon B. Johnson, god rest his soul.”

And thusly, he returns to scouring the meadow. His two closest travelling companions exchange silent grievances, while the third keeps pace merrily.

“…He doesn’t really think Johnson is still president, does he?” Pauling ventures to ask.

“I’m surprised you’re concerned about that, when he’s also fully aware that Johnson is dead,” Tavish says pleasantly.

The bubble of cheer is short lived. While they’ve been debating Canadian-ness and monitoring black-footed ferrets, Mick has been grinding his teeth to near audible degrees, growing increasingly irate as he leads them back to the campground. Each fork in the trail comes with several minutes of indecision, the whole party stalling as he glares furiously at the map in his hands. His breaking point comes in the form of Scout asking, “hey, we getting a move on this century, chucklenuts?”

“We’d already be back by now if he hadn’t ruined my bloody map!”

Mick whirls on Jane with the tensile strength of a slingshot. Jane, ever difficult to read with his hat pulled down, hardly reacts. He cocks his head, and eyes the half-crumpled map being shoved in his direction.

“The brochures they give you down at the front are crap,” he says, not a drop of defensiveness in his voice. “I made some corrections.”

“You vandalized it is what you did,” Mick growls. “Fucking took it out of my pocket while my back was turned, you knew you were sabotaging us you sneaky ratbag.”

“Oi!” Tavish cuts in, stepping toward Mick. “Let’s not have any of that. A vandalized map is one thing, but accusing Jane of trying to sabotage us is another.”

“Exactly!” Jane barks. “You should be thanking me, Bilbo. I put no less than twelve agreeable shortcuts through the preserve, ones that would have us setting up our tents this very minute if you had taken them!”

“It’s scribbles to nowhere! I can’t even see the actual trail anymore under all the markings,” Mick snaps. “Half of it isn’t even a path, just a shitty drawing of a raccoon.”

Before Jane can reply, tight lips dawning on reproach, Dell and Crue finally catch up, no doubt shocked that another argument could dare to overshadow their own.

“What the hell’s gotten into ya’ll?” Dell says, quickly noting the stances Jane and Mick have found themselves in, the rest of the party gathered around like sports spectators.

“That map again no doubt,” Crue says airily. His general demeanor shows he’s just about at the end of his rope and also probably dying for a cigarette. “The bushman is convinced our feral simpleton here has been trying to impair our return to civilization. Personally, I think even that is beyond him.”

Jane’s face hardens. “You have been spreading lies and slander, gossiping about me to the Canadian of all people?”

“Oh don’t get self righteous on me you piker,” Mick spits. “If you didn’t do it on purpose, then you did it because you’re an idiot, which is even worse. To hell with this.” The map lands on the ground with a softer plap than the drama of the situation demands. “I can find my own way back.”

“You are not properly qualified to traverse this valley, not without a guide,” Jane says. “You will get lost, and a lost civilian is not something I cannot allow! It goes against my ranger’s oath.”

“There is no bloody ranger’s oath!” Mick throws up his hands. “And I’ve spent months in the outback with nothing but a rifle, a waterskin, and the clothes on my back. I know how to handle myself in the wilderness, and I’m better off without following your lunacy into a sinkhole.”

“Ridiculous! All the sinkholes are on the north side of the preserve.”

“And the offer goes to the rest of you,” Mick continues. “If you’d rather get back to the road before night falls instead of camping in the middle of the mountains.”

The assembled shook themselves at being addressed, as though having forgotten that they were breathing entities with a stake in this.

“How dare you!” Jane blusters. “I have worked at this park for twenty-four years! No one knows these woods better than I do.”

“And yet one of your ‘shortcuts’ does lead directly into the lake,” Ludwig says thoughtfully, having picked up the discarded map. To Mick, “you’re sure you know the way back from here?”

“Positive,” Mick says without hesitation. “And you’ve heard the bullshit he’s been spouting all day. You can’t trust that he has a better handle on geography than he does on anything else.”

“The bushman has a point,” Crue says, as though the outcome matters not at all, as though Jane’s not gone frozen while the rest of the party debates among themselves. “If there is an expert in surviving barely civilized conditions, it is he.”

“As much as I hate to agree with Crue on this,” Dell says, and Tavish would punch the air in vindication if it were under literally any other circumstances, “it ain’t healthy to sleep in places where any ‘ole critter wandering these parts might stumble across ya. Personally, I’d like to do all that we can to get to the designated camping area.”

One by one, the votes come in, the protests are half hearted at best, and Jane no longer moves. He just stands there, any emotion stripped from him as he calcifies under something worse than humiliation.

Alright. This is terrible. Tavish can still salvage this.

He claps his hands together, all big smiles, and says, “so we’ll be splitting the party then, eh? No worries, we’ll both take our separate ways, and then meet all back at the campsite tonight. Sound good?”

No one agrees at first, wary of the sudden change in tone.

Tavish doesn’t let the awkward silence linger. He pats Jane warmly on the shoulder. “Looks like it’s just you and me, lad.”

Whatever frozen state Jane had found himself in, he breaks out of it, staring wide-eyed at Tavish. “You…?”

“You sure you don’t want to come with us, pally?” Scout asks, in all the tact being Scout will allow. When Pauling elbows her, she mutters, “oof.”

“Nah, I’m good,” Tavish says through false cheer. “No one knows Valles better than Ranger Doe here. I trust him more than anyone.”

The subtle dig is not lost on Mick who, as the two parties split and the far larger one trickles back down the way they came, glances at Jane and mutters something about ‘mental sickness’ under his breath. Tavish is glad he mutters it. If he’d said it aloud, Tavish would have broken his nose on principle.

Another hand comes to touch Tavish’s, but when he glances over, the words Jane obviously wants to say don’t come out.

“Let’s go,” Tavish supplies instead. “The sooner we get a move on, the sooner we meet up with them, aye?”

Jane nods. Jane then takes them on a journey.

Tavish hasn’t been home in years, and either the highlands weren’t as tumultuous as this or he’s gotten severely out of shape in his old age. He soon understands Mick’s anxiety, for while he’d thought night was still several hours away, the light disappears quickly as they hike, sweat on the back of his neck cooling as the shadows stretch.

They keep walking.

It seems they’ll go one direction, then the next, they double back again to the point where they may as well be going in a circle. At first Tavish tries to keep track of where north is, but it's hopeless when they get to the more thickly wooded part of the hills. Yet they keep walking, and Tavish worries about their friends, and Jane takes them on a winding expedition that no man would think to keep imprisoned on a map.

And then they arrive at the campground.

There’s only a few other spots taken, one of which is Mick’s van. None of the pitched tents belong to the Keep’s constituents. The last of the sun’s light disappears down the gap in the trees where the road cleaves them in two.

“…They’re not here,” Jane says.

Tavish can see that perfectly well, but he says, “aye. Must have taken a longer way than we did.”

Jan straightens. “We should go look for them.”

“Ach, they’ll be fine,” Tavish says, waving an errant hand at the woods. “They have the camping equipment. As long as they were canny enough to start setting up when they realized they weren’t getting back in time, they’ll live.”

This statement hangs awhile as crickets chirp in the hearty bluegrass planted by the registration office. In dawning realization, Jane says, “we don’t have the camping equipment.”

“Aye?” Tavish thought that was fairly if A then B.

Jane’s face screws up with something, but whatever it is escapes from his body before forming. “Come on. We can stay at my place for the night.”

There’s no chance to acquiesce, for Jane is off, and Tavish has to power walk to not be left behind. Before true dark comes the desaturation, the draining color from the little off-road passage tucked behind the roaring utility boxes, turning the world grayscale until night is sure of itself. The staff-only road winds up the hills slightly, hidden away so no campers stumble across it, and at the end is the ranger residencies, a handful of stationary trailer homes nestled modestly against the greenery. Long grass caresses against the tin walls of Jane’s home as he unlocks the door.

“The ‘ole cardboard Tetris?” Tavish asks of the abode’s interior. When Jane grunts in confusion, he elaborates, “what’s with all the boxes?”

“Oh. Just reorganizing.”

Jane’s hand lies flat on the fridge door, staring at something pinned there by tiny tequila-shaped magnets. (Jane isn’t the only one with a penchant for themed Smissmas gifts.)

Tavish is still puzzling over the crated possessions when he hears him ask, “why didn’t you go with the others?”

When Tavish glances over his shoulder Jane is staring right back at him. Tavish blinks. “Er…why…would I?”

“If I’d gotten us lost, we would have been stranded out there.”

“I suppose, yeah. But seems unlikely, doesn’t it?”

Jane stares at him a half moment longer before turning away. “You put too much faith in me.”

“Is putting faith in my friends another thing I shouldn’t do now? Along with the cardinal sin of ‘helping people’?” Jane doesn’t respond, and Tavish sighs. “Lad, everyone else ditched because they’re a bunch of easily distracted ninnies who followed the newest piper that came to town; but why on Earth would I leave you?”

Jane swallows silently. It’s hard to tell in the dark, but it looks like he closes his eyes.

Half bitterly, Tavish says, “I know I’m not supposed to ask you if anything’s wrong or whatever, but if something’s happened that makes you think we’re not on the same team, you’d tell me, aye?”

The paper under Jane’s hand comes off the fridge with a clatter, and he stuffs it in his pocket. The only thing he says is, “I’ll get you a spare pillow.”

Tavish lies on the couch that night—the sounds of pure, unadulterated nature outside so different from the pitiful attempts of urbanization of Teufort—and hopes their friends are doing okay out there.

You can put a soldier in the middle of a middling national park, but you can’t take the soldier out of the man. No time is that more apparent than at 5am, when Tavish awakens to the sound of a showerhead turning on. He pulls the loaned pillow over his head and attempts to go back to sleep, but this is comically fruitless, as no more than twenty minutes later the flagpole ceremony commences and a bugle blares through the rangers’ residences. Tavish emerges from the trailer bleary-eyed, and is too numb with sleep to do anything but watch Jane hoist the scrap of color notch by notch above the still unconscious roofs. No doubt the occupied ones have owners that are used to this by now, or at the very least are wise enough to spring for some earplugs.

One of the doors slams open to the clamorous denunciation of, “Doe!”

The man (who by the slightly larger size of his accommodations and the fact he’s taken on the burden of dealing with Jane, is probably the warden), storms across the yard with a pink bathrobe pulled tight around his shoulders.

“Fool!” the hollering, nearly as bad as the bugle itself, continues. “Cease! Cease at once, how many times have I told you to get rid of that screeching contraption from the pits of hell?”

“This month? Eleven.” Jane scratches behind his ear. “And I will tell you the same thing I have told you each of those eleven times: this is our duty as Rangers of the National Park Service! It says right in the handbook to honor the flag every morning.”

“That does not! Include! The trumpet!”

The warden is in the later stages of completely wasting away, his gaunt face losing a year with every minute in Jane’s company. He rubs his incredibly tired eyes with the hand not holding together his robe.

“Fah! This is your last warning, Doe. If I catch you playing that thing one more time, it. Will. Be. Your. Doom!” The warden spins on his (now dust covered) slippers and stalks back into his trailer.

“I will not bow to your threats, wizard!” Jane calls after the slamming door. “You cannot crush true American spirit! Not even with pink slips!”

“Wizard?” Tavish hums, suppressing a yawn.

“Yup,” Jane says. “No proof yet, but as soon as I do the forestry board will have him out of here like that.” He snaps his fingers.

Tavish nods. “One less thing to worry about, then. Ready to go rescue our friends?”

“…The friends who ditched us and followed some urine-drinking civilian to the middle of nowhere?”

Tavish thinks about that for a moment. “Hm. Breakfast first?”

“Yeah. That.”

When they finally catch up with the missing chunk of their party, it is two hours and several rounds of bacon later. All things considered, it could have been much worse; Mick’s navigation might have led them to the other side of the volcanic lip, or down to the wrong stretch of highway. As it is, the group had gotten close, but not close enough, and they’d set up camp only a moderate hike up the Redando trail.

Tavish and Jane arrive to a campsite slowly deflating. That fact that every half-minute, someone shoots Mick a dirty look is unmissable.

“I take it you lot didn’t have a pleasant night,” Tavish asks of the nearest wayward soul.

Mikhail grunts, and sullenly goes back to stuffing his tent in its bag.

Pyro, at least, is happy to see them. They bound up and cheerfully sign, “<this sucked! I’m sorry Jane, I promise to believe you the next time you tell me about Most Shrews.>”

Most Shrews? Tavish mouths silently.

“The venomous and completely shredded cousin to the Least Shrew,” Jane explains. To Pyro, he signs, “<apology accepted, Smokey. We all have to learn by falling on our asses every now and then.>”

“Can say that again,” Tavish remarks, looking around. Nearly every face is drooping and sleep deprived, and they didn’t have their eardrums shattered at five this morning. “Was it really that bad?”

“It was cold,” Pauling says as she walks up, tugging at a fashionable sweater that looks very new and very much like her au courant partner bought it for her. “And after everyone paired up, it was only Crue and Dell left, and they were not happy about it. They were arguing all night. Or at least I think they were. Mick snores really loudly.” If it were possible for her to slouch even more, she would.

“…Now that you mention it, I haven’t seen either of them around.”

Tavish takes another look. There are Ludwig and Mikhail packing up the cooking supplies, Scout spinning in circles trying to scratch a bug bite on her back, Mick shunned to the corner where he’s distinctly Not Looking at the new arrivals; but no Fortier or Conagher.

“I’m going to go check in on them,” Tavish excuses himself.

So it’s only Tavish there when the tent entrance is unzipped, a lone bartender who peaks his head in and sees…There’s really no way around it. He sees the pair of mortal enemies cuddling.

Crue’s teeth are chattering in his sleep, and it’s all clearly intentional because the two sleeping bags have been zipped together so Dell can wrap his arms around the leaner man. Even as Tavish stands there, gawking, the morning chill from the open tent flap blows in and Dell groggily opens his eyes. It takes approximately four seconds for him to become awake, realize he has a shivering Crue pressed to his chest, and notice that Tavish is standing over them both with the most I told you so expression a human face can manage.

“Aw hell,” he swears.

“Sorry to bother you,” Tavish says, putting his hands up in surrender, a motion that does not neutralize all other signs of smugness. “Just delivering the wakeup call.”

“I swear it ain’t what it looks like,” Dell tries, then reconsiders. “Damn it. Shouldn’t even bother. You’re all full of it now, ain’t you?”

“Don’t know what you’re talking about.” Tavish takes a step out of the tent. Now that Crue has begun to stir, he says, “I’ll sooth the other’s worries. But swing by the Keep when we get back to civilization; I have a new drink I’d love you to try. As a way to say congratulations.” He winks, and lets the flap fall closed, ignoring the curses that follow him out as he leaves Dell to deal with whatever Crue’s personality is like in the morning.

#engiespy #practical espionage #tf2 fanfiction

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0perfectimperfections0 · 1 year

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I think it would be interesting if you'd made an au where the dolls see that they have also wronged Lou and should of given him a 2nd chance. So they now try to earn his trust. From styling his hair to how it originally was and giving him more comfortable clothing to trying to talk to him more. But it's very hard to do so because the former leader is now depressed, anxious, and jumpy. He closes himself off and vows to never trust any doll ever again.

And maybe another au where Lou is very smart and manipulative and everything goes his way.

Btw I love your fics, I've searched everywhere to find good Lou angst and you make my day. Thank you for keeping the fandom alive.

Awww, you're so sweet! I'm glad you enjoy the stories! I've also heard you've found my friend @natalie-the-writer 's account. Her stories are absolutely AMAZING! She has such amazing attention to detail and can make any scene feel so real in your imagination. If you haven't already, I HIGHLY recommend reading through all of her stories on her profile. They're awesome!

And since I've gotten an ask similar to the latter portion of your ask, this one will revolve around the former prompt. Brace yourself, this will be longer (for the first time in forever XD).

<><><><><><>

The dolls prided themselves in how fluidly everything seemed to be running at the Institute. It was like Ox had said: they didn't need Lou. From an outside perspective, everything seemed to be going about splendidly. More importantly, everyone was happy.

Moxy hummed a made-up tune to herself as she walked down the winding sidewalks of the villa. Dolls -- with happy smiles, she was pleased to note -- waved and offered their own greetings as they swept by each other. She found her best friend, Mandy, and hopped in front of the doll's path with an enlightened expression. "Hey, Mandy!"

"Hi," the female offered a small smile of her own. "Have you seen Nolan anywhere? I haven't been able to find him."

Nolan. Did she know a Nolan? There were so many dolls that it was difficult to remember all of their names. Mandy must have caught on to her perplexed face because she soon elaborated. "Has the sign around his neck? Brown hair? Green and purple eyes? Kinda tall?"

For such a specific description, Moxy would've thought herself to be quick with a revelation. Unfortunately, that description didn't fit any of the dolls she had grown to be close friends with in the past few months. "Mmm, sorry. I don't think I know a Nolan." She admitted guiltily. "But!" She swung a short leg out to proceed in the direction Mandy had been going in, "I can help you find him!" Then she would know who Nolan was and all would be splendid again.

Mandy accepted the offer silently and walked in what seemed to be an aimless direction. However, she had a specific destination in mind. Nolan had mentioned a few times in conversation about a certain doll that she'd rather not bring up in front of...well, anyone else. So, unbeknownst to Moxy, Mandy had them set toward the old wooden shed near the back of the Institute. Now that she dwelled on it, they hadn't seen Lou in quite some time.

Her theory proved fruitful when she recognized the brunette outside of the abandoned shed. Abandoned to others, not to Lou. Moxy's pace slowed down to a stop even as Mandy proceeded on. "The shed? Why would Nolan be here?" Her question wasn't answered. Mandy didn't really have a sound answer to it either.

Nolan had made his vigil just outside the closed door. He sat on the ground, knees drawn to his chest to rest his head on, and back pressed against the door. There was a plate of food set beside him. Mandy's footsteps caught his attention before he could say anything. Quickly, he put a finger to his mouth to warn her to be quiet. His eyes went to Moxy as she finally walked closer. "What are you guys doing here?" He asked, keeping his voice just above a whisper.

"Looking for you," Mandy answered. "What are you doing here?"

Nolan cast a short glance at the plate of food beside him. It had grown cold, now. "No reason. Maybe I like the peace and quiet." Mandy shook her head and sat down on the other side of the plate. She tapped a piece of bacon experimentally.

"I'm guessing this wasn't for you." Nolan didn't respond. "How many days has it been?"

"Five. Six, if you count today." Nolan sighed.

"What are we counting?" Moxy tilted her head at them.

The Pretty Dolls exchanged glances. Mandy spoke. "How many days it's been since Lou came out of the shed."

"He hasn't been cleaning?" Moxy looked taken aback.

"You haven't noticed he hasn't been around?" Nolan's eyes went a little hard at that. It was the closest to a glare Mandy had seen him pull off. Moxy stuttered out an excuse of some sort, but he brushed it off. "You two can go. He doesn't like having so many people around. It's just been me for the past week."

"How did you know he was locked up in the shed?" Moxy asked. Had she missed a sign or something? Were the other dolls talking about him? She hadn't heard a single mention of the blond since his downfall.

Nolan visibly refrained from rolling his eyes. Instead, he flicked at an imaginary piece of lint on his knee. "Well, he doesn't exactly have the looks to blend into the background. He stands out pretty well on his own." There was an audible bite to his tone that Mandy silently acknowledged and Moxy took no note of. "I came here the first day I noticed he was missing. The door's been locked and he put a tarp over the window to keep from anyone looking inside."

"Maybe he's plotting something," Moxy brought a hand to her chin in thought.

The brunette tried not to bristle at that comment. He closed his eyes, eyebrow raised indignantly. "Like I said, you two can leave. I've managed to get him to unlock the door and I don't need anyone undoing all that progress."

"If the door is unlocked, why don't you just go in?" Mandy blinked up at the potential entryway.

"Because I want him to be the one to open the door. This is the only place he can go without being pushed around by the other dolls -- in case you haven't noticed that either." Nolan sent a look over to Moxy. She shrunk a bit under the tone. "This is his safe place now, and I don't want to intrude on it. If I'm going to make any progress, I need him to be the one to let me in."

Moxy drummed her fingers against her side, eyeing the door that could easily be walked through. "You make it sound like he's scared or something. I'm sure he's just sitting in there pouting and refusing to carry out his punishment." Nolan's jaw clenched, but he kept his mouth shut lest any harsh words are said by him. "Let's just go in there and tell him to get back to work." She stepped up and turned the knob before Nolan or Mandy could stop her.

A concentrated form of light entered the dark room. It revealed the particles of dust floating aimlessly in the air. She waved off a few visible ones and noticed the small figure hunched in the corner of the room near the door. She had been about to say something but stopped short when she realized something was off.

Lou didn't move at all from his position despite her bombarding him. He had been seated similarly to Nolan: legs were drawn up to his chest tightly, feet angled inward, arms wrapped around them, and head resting on his knees. She couldn't see his face with the mess of tangled, blond hair draping over his arm. He seemed to have his head laying to the side, facing away from her.

Before Moxy could take a step toward him, Nolan startled her by appearing in front of her path. "You need to get out. He doesn't want to be around anyone. Especially you."

Moxy was taken aback. "Wh--What did I do?"

"Is that a serious question?" Nolan finally let himself bristle as he glared down at her.

Mandy pulled on the pink doll's arm. "Moxy, let's leave. Nolan can handle it from here."

"Handle what?" A new voice sounded behind them. Ox tilted his head at the group from outside the shed. "What are ya'll doin' here? And where's Lou been? I ain't seen 'im in almost a week."

"Huh," Nolan couldn't help but comment wryly as he looked down at Moxy again, "even Ox noticed." Moxy merely shrunk in more guilt. Perhaps she had been a little too blinded by all the smiles and positivity of the other dolls that she neglected to check in on Lou.

Ox ignored the two and stepped inside, seeing the ex-leader curled up in the corner. "Lou? What's wrong?" Nolan couldn't get a word out to tell him to step back before the bunny was in front of the doll. Ox put a paw on Lou's head to try and brush away the hair, but Lou flinched away. "Lou, talk to me."

"He doesn't want to talk," Nolan clarified sharply. "And you guys are making it worse by invading his space."

"I agree," Mandy tugged harder on Moxy's arm. "So, let's give Lou some space, Moxy." The pink doll finally relented and walked out with the Pretty Doll.

Ox didn't move from his spot. He watched Lou's hands clutch at his pants tighter. Was...he really upsetting Lou just by being here? The thought sent a sharp pain through his chest. Nolan's gaze prompted him to finally stand and part ways. He sent one last look to the doll in the corner before walking out of the shed. Nolan made a step toward the doorway until he heard rhythmic tapping from where Lou was. He paused and listened.

Tap-Tap-Tap...Tap...Tap-Tap...Tap-Tap-Tap-Tap

Nolan abandoned the doorway and kneeled in front of Lou. His hand was leaning against the side of the building, tapping. Lou still didn't look up. Nolan pulled out his phone and hit the record. "One more time, Lou, please?"

Tap-Tap-Tap...Tap...Tap-Tap...Tap-Tap-Tap-Tap

The message was translated on the phone. Nolan had first heard the organized tapping a few days ago when Lou was aware of his vigil. It initially sounded like a song that Lou was tapping to the beat of, but the repetition of the taps didn't follow along to a song. It was morse code. Nolan didn't know how or when Lou had learned the cryptic language, but the translator on his phone helped them communicate. Nolan read the result:

Stay.

Just to be sure. "You want me to stay?"

A second of silence.

Tap-Tap-Tap-Tap...Tap...Tap-Tap-Tap

Nolan knew that one due to their limited "conversations" between the door. It was 'yes'.

"Okay," Nolan kept his voice soft. "Give me a minute to get them to leave." He stood and leaned out of the doorway. The others were waiting for him. "You guys go on. He wants me to stay."

"He talked to you?" Ox's ears perked up in hope.

"Sorta kinda," Nolan teetered his head with a short glance to Lou in the corner. "I'll text when I'm headed back into town. It might be a while, though, so don't wait up on me."

They hesitated to move, especially Ox. It took some coaxing from Mandy to get him to relent and walk away. Nolan didn't move from the doorway until they had walked far enough from the shed. Satisfied, he closed the door and immersed the shed back into an opaque darkness. He silently sat next to Lou in the same position he'd been in outside. No words were spoken.

#this is gonna have to be a series-#oops #uglydolls #lou #fanfiction #writing #ox #moxy #nolan #short story #mandy #ask #part 1

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oigimi · 9 months

Text

. see you then .

. silvio x reader . 2k words . tw: depictions of attempted sxual assault (not from silvio) . college au .

I took a shot of tequila from my liquor cabinet and glanced over at the clock. 7:38. That meant Nokto and the others should’ve been coming at any moment. Awesome.

My first semester of senior year was shaping out to be the worst one yet. Desperately trying to secure an internship in this field was draining every last drop of life out of me. My minimum wage job left me a shell of a human being every single time I had to punch in my employee ID number. Maintaining good grades didn’t even seem to matter at this point - if it weren’t for the fact I needed my scholarship to carry me through this last semester. Goddamn it, Y/N. Just one more year. You’ve got this.

Fortunately for social life but unfortunately for my social battery, I’d been invited to a frat party without my knowledge. Some of my friends had decided I was “too miserable” lately and needed some fun, and so earlier that morning I’d gotten a text from my good friend Nokto informing me of my expected arrival at this congregation of testosterone and alcohol.

I mean, it couldn’t have been all bad. Maybe a night out was good for me. I would be under the protection of my lowkey obsessed friend Rio, and some time out of my messy apartment could prove beneficial.

‘We’re here!!! :D <3’

Thanks, Rio. I grabbed my bag, applied an extra layer of lip gloss for good measure, forced myself to grin in the mirror, and ran outside into Nokto’s car.

“Hey, Y/N! Wow, you look so cute tonight.”

“Thanks, Rio. I didn’t do too much different though.”

“Oh, well. You always look so pretty though so maybe that’s it.”

I chuckled and buckled my seatbelt. “Thanks. You’re too nice to me, I swear.”

“You two need to get a room together. I’m so sick of it.” Nokto started the car and headed down towards the party. “Can’t believe Rio over here is getting to Y/N before me.”

“That’s not what’s going on!”

“It could be!”

“Rio!” I flushed a little bit as Nokto burst out laughing. Rio had a pink dust to his face to accompany my own, but he kept his eye contact with me, which I broke with a swift glance out the window.

Silence hung in the car’s atmosphere for a little while, before Nokto decided to break it with, “You know, word on the street is that Silvio’s gonna be there tonight.”

“What?!” Rio and I both hissed, jerking our heads back forward. “He’s gonna be there?!”

“That’s what I’ve heard anyway. Y/N, didn’t you have a class with him? Or two? I don’t remember.”

I grumbled and leaned back in my seat. Suddenly the fun was over before it could even begin. My fists began to tremble at the very mention of the name of Silvio Ricci, a man whose ugly and annoying inner self eclipsed any possibility of his handsome face making me swoon. “Yes,” I muttered, “he was in a few of my business classes. And I hate him.”

“Damn, I can see that! Oh well. Just ignore him and it’ll be fine.”

“You don’t get it. It’s not about ignoring him. Just his very presence at this party is enough to ruin it.”

“I agree,” Rio growled. “Don’t worry, Y/N! Just stick with me the whole time!”

Unfortunately for my friend I could not reciprocate his enthusiasm; my mind became clouded with storms and gray, and I couldn’t get my thoughts off of Silvio. I imagined him in my classroom, speaking so matter-of-factly about the art of business, the words coming out of his soft-looking pink lips like he didn’t need to even think about it. He shut people down and asserted himself everywhere, and even picked fights with me a few times. Every time I’d propose a theory, he’d speak up and challenge me, and I could see the delight that lit up in his deep sapphire eyes when my brows furrowed. He got a kick out of asserting himself, quick remarks, and always getting what he wanted.

Silvio always wore designer clothes. He put on cherry-flavored chapstick at the start and end of every class, and of course his jewelry rang like bells every time he moved. He wasn’t just a man. He was a statement. Silvio Ricci was a testament to rich college boys who have life handed to them on a silver platter, while common people like me were getting our asses handed to us instead, by the general public, landlords, academia, and every high-power institution that reigned above us.

But goddamn it, did the gorgeous manifestation of the bourgeois have a distinctive cologne and perfectly-sculpted bone structure.

While I stewed in my own bitterness, Nokto parked the car and we made our way out to the house. We were hit with main house lights off, colorful LED lights on in all their mood-making glory, and the most generic of Spotify playlists serenading our night. I was a little taken aback by the amount of people around- men and women. People were already making themselves at home, decently drunk, and enjoying one another’s company the way college students are meant to.

Immediately Rio grabbed my hand and led me to the kitchen for a snack. We’d seen some familiar faces on the way there, they made good conversation partners, and before I knew it I was flooding my system with alcohol of every variety. Anything I could get my hands on I drank, even the peculiar jungle juice someone concocted in a cooler for us to try. What could I say? I loosened up a lot more with every sip, and I was even enjoying myself in a matter of time.

As the warm sting of the drinks began sweeter and sweeter, I stumbled out of the room and into another one for a few moments while Rio was chatting it up with someone else. Slumping on the couch, I stared off into space but found myself quickly jolted out of it by some unknown man who sat next to me.

“Hey.”

I turned my head and slurred something in response.

“What’s your name?”

“Y/N.”

“Cute name.” He smiled and gave me his name in return, but I could hardly make out what he was saying. “You here alone?”

“Noooo. My friends are… Uh…” I looked around for Nokto or Rio, or anyone else I’d been reunited with that night. “I don’t know where they are but they’re not here. But they are here. But they’re not.”

The man only seemed encouraged by my reply. “I see. Can’t believe they’d leave someone like you all alone here. They’re missing out.”

“Eh.” I tried to sit upright, but was gently pushed back down onto the couch. I tried to get a good look at his face, but the LED lights and dim room made it difficult to make out, especially coupled with my ever-blurring vision. “What are you doing?”

“Just be quiet.”

I laid with baited breath as I felt his hand on my side. I wanted to push him off, I wanted to yell for help, I wanted to get out of there as fast as I could but my body felt like a ton and I couldn’t even move my face the way I wanted to. My eyes closed as I braced myself for something I never thought would happen.

“Ay. Do you know this guy?”

“Eh-?!”

A hand yanked the assailant off of me, and pulled him close to the owner’s face. No way. I’d recognize that voice no matter how intoxicated I was.

“Y/N, answer me. Do you know this guy?”

I shifted my gaze to Silvio, who had an uncharacteristically furious expression. The man was pale and trying to get out of his grip, and I could feel the desperation in his face. But I just shook my head.

“I’ve never seen him before.”

“Figures.” Silvio threw the man to the ground and helped me up off the couch, leading me outside to the front porch, where the chilly night air hit my face like a ton of bricks. “Who the hell came with you? They just fuckin’ left you? Are you being serious?”

“It’s not that bad.”

“Not that bad-?!” Silvio turned his head to look at me, and his expression softened ever so slightly. My red face, weak body, and sleepy eyes must have gotten to him, because he just let out a sigh and put his hand around my shoulders. “You need to go home. I’m calling you a car,” he grumbled, taking out his phone.

I narrowed my eyes and crossed my arms. “Well, Mr. Spaghetti Rich-Ass. Why did you do that? And why are you sending me home? You hate my ass.” I leaned a little bit onto him, completely missing the pink dusting his cheeks.

“I wasn’t going to let that waste of space violate you. It just ain’t right. And I don’t hate you.”

“Whaaaat? You don’t hate me? So do you love me?” I teased, snickering a bit. “They’re opposites, you know.”

“Just because I don’t hate you doesn’t mean I love you! My god, you’re annoying. How can you be so damn happy after that just happened to you?”

I shrugged and wiped my face. “I don’t know. I guess… I don’t know.”

Silvio sighed again and wrapped his arm around me. “I’m riding with you and seeing to it you get inside your house. There’s creeps and weirdos all over these streets. Stay with me.”

This time, I couldn’t think of an answer. My thoughts swirled together like a hurricane, and so did my stomach and my chest. Was it the drinks? Was it the exhaustion? Was it being in Silvio’s arms after he’d just saved me from some greasy man at a party? Whatever the reason, I closed my eyes again and sniffled. Something in me began to spill out that I’d been bottling up for months, and it was coming out fast.

“Th-thank you. Thank you! I’m sorry f-for everything!”

“What the-?!” Silvio jumped back a bit, startled by my tears. “What are you cryin’ for? Weren’t you fine a minute ago?”

“No, I wasn’t. I wasn’t okay a minute ago or an hour ago or ever!” I cried a bit harder and this time, leaned over and hugged Silvio. “I want to go home. Please take me home, please, please, please…”

“I am. I will. I promise,” he grunted. Despite his tone, he wrapped his arms around me in a soft embrace, looking out into the black, unbusy street that would carry us into the night’s conclusion.

—

The next morning I woke up with the worst headache I’d ever had in my life, and stomach pains to match. I groaned and forced my tired body out of bed, starting on my routine. I opened my phone to… messages from Silvio?!

Suddenly the events of the previous night flooded my brain, reenacting themselves in vivid detail as I read ‘goodnight’ and ‘glad you got home safe’ messages from my friends. The godawful music, the attempted assault, and most importantly, the man who saved me and got me home safe.

I looked down at my message thread with Silvio, a newly created contact, with only one text from him.

‘Assuming you didn’t decide to leave your house, glad ya got home okay. I’m not letting that stupid shit happen to you ever again. I’m pickin’ you up tonight for dinner so be ready. Your choice, I don’t care.’

And despite how much I’d told myself I despised him, and how he was truly the worst person in the whole world on the inside, I felt my heart flutter at the idea of dinner with Silvio. The feeling of his embrace lingered on my whole body, in concert with that cologne I’d recognized so easily. I sat down at my kitchen table, wanting to express my gratitude, and apologize for being such an unbearable drunk, and give suggestions for dinner, I just sent a few simple words, bottling everything up once again, to be reopened in due time.

‘Got it. See ya then :)’

#ikepri #ikemen prince #ikepri silvio #silvio ricci #ikemen ouji #ikepri x reader #ikepri silvio x reader

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