#when whatever is wrong with you goes on for longer than they can handle
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Not Now (PT. 2)
[Platonic! Yandere! Neglectful Batfam × Gender Neutral! Sibling Reader]
[Warnings: Mentions of Neglect, Mild General Yandere(ish) Behavior, Arguing, Awkward Tension(?), No One is Having a Good Time, Angst, Implied Past Injuries (To Reader)]
(When I say arguing I do mean it this time. Might be a bit more OOC? Dick is living up to his nickname. This is longer than the first part, just fyi - and by a good 4k or so words. Again, take your time and remember to take breaks!)
Didn't tag anyone on this post since both this part and the first are posted back to back :] Regardless, enjoy!
Chapter 1. Chapter 2. Chapter 3 (PT. 1). [Series Masterlist]
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"I… I just don't think it's a good idea. It doesn't feel right, and- and I…" You couldn't think of much else to say. All the reasons you had felt too personal, and you didn't feel comfortable telling Dick any of them. Not out here, and certainly not while he was in the suit. Though even if he wasn't, you weren't sure that it'd make you any more willing to tell him anything.
After all, you wouldn't even share the date of your birthday if he asked now, with or without the suit.
"Yeah, but why? It doesn't make sense to not go to either place just because you have a ‘bad feeling’ or anything. Even then, you'll be safe, and that's what really matters." That didn't feel like it was the case. Your safety doesn't feel like a priority over him just being able to keep an eye on you, and being able to pull anything he wants to without any prying eyes.
Though it was with that thought, did you wonder when you began to see Dick as someone so untrustworthy that you considered him to be on the same level as a thug out on the streets. Just far more dangerous and capable.
"Look, I just-" You sigh harshly, looking back at Dick as the fire in your chest rose, building up as it poked at your ribs and flesh. Begging for more air, more room to grow. "I'm going to the park. If you're not coming then that's fine by me, and if you're not okay with that, then there's nothing I can do about it." You state, looking forward as you pick up your pace.
Dick fumbles over his words before he hurriedly matches your pace, "Wait! Let's try and think this over-"
"Why? Even if we're out in the open, you're still a vigilante. If you can defend and look after an entire city, then surely you can protect one person, right? Not to mention that I can take care of myself." You huff, still keeping your eyes forward even as they narrow. You add, "Besides, again- not many people are out tonight. And if anything- seem to be rushing home, because of whatever is going on. We'll be fine."
"Sure. Yeah. I can handle it- but wouldn't it be smarter to just be inside anyway? That way it's less likely for anything to happen. You have to think rationally-" You swiftly cut Dick off again, really trying to put your foot down and stand your ground here.
"I am thinking rationally. You're a skilled vigilante that's been trained under Batman, and have only improved in skill and technique over the years. If anything goes wrong, and I can't handle it, you can. Not to mention that you have a way to contact the others if things really do go sideways, and you're in the suit. I didn't think I needed to say anything else." You sigh, lightly scratching the cup in your hands with your nail.
"Also, if you haven't noticed, even criminals and thugs are running home. It's like some kind of quarantine or lock down is going on. Some random person eavesdropping on us doesn't seem like it'll be a problem. Let alone with all of the noises that seem to be 'persuading' people to go home."
Dick could only sigh himself before saying, "Alright- okay. Fine. But like you said, I'm still in the suit."
"And?"
"And someone could see, and think that you're a close tie to me or something. You could be put in more danger."
"Are you actually worried about that now? You've been walking beside me this entire time when you didn't have to, and it's only now that you're worried about me being seen with you in the suit?"
"How else are we supposed to have this conversation? And I'm sorry for being worried about your safety, and well-being in the future for being seen with me." You could practically hear the eye-roll in Dick's voice despite knowing that he didn't actually do it. When did he get so sarcastic?
"That's not the issue, and you know that. We could've figured out some other way to have this talk, and you didn't have to walk beside me this entire time." You shot him a glance, causing Dick to sigh again.
"What if something happened while I was up top, and I couldn't react fast enough because I wasn't next to you? Someone could've tried something if I wasn't there, especially because you'd appear to be by yourself."
"So… remind me again, who's the paranoid one?"
"Y/n, I'm being serious." Dick states.
"I know. I'm being serious too, and I'm just saying that it's kind of ridiculous to be worrying about that now when it's already been a few minutes." You huff, "And I don't know what you expect me to do about it. I'm not the one in the suit, y'know. Why don't you just go and change somewhere?"
Dick rubs his nose bridge, getting annoyed but not trying to show it as he says, "Fine. I can do that, but at least come with me." He looks at you expectantly as his hand drops from his face. You couldn't help but raise a brow at his words.
"Why?"
"So that I can keep an eye on you…? And if anything happens while I'm changing- I'll be able to jump in and help much faster?" Dick said, confused. Talking as if he was stating the obvious, and maybe he was in a way, but you didn't see why he's so adamant about being close to you enough where he could easily protect you or reach you if needed.
"But wouldn't that kind of go against the point of you changing…?"
"What do you mean?"
"If I wait somewhere and Nightwing walks off, only for you-know-who to pop up after a little while, and we walk off together, wouldn't that be weird? Or at least hint at a certain something?" You point out, a little confused and surprised that you even had to explain this to Dick.
"C'mon, I won't be that obvious. And even then, no one will be able to figure it out."
"You say that like every other villain or wannabe in Gotham isn't some genius or anything. They're criminals and all that, but they aren't entirely stupid."
Dick sighs, though it came out more frustrated than he would’ve liked as he ran a hand through his hair once again, "Still, I'd just like for you to at least be close by. I don't want anything to happen to you, and I want to be able to help out as soon and as quickly as I can if anything does." He explains, getting a little closer to you.
"Please, Y/n. Just come with me."
You shake your head, your shoulders feeling far too heavy, and the flame in your chest was much too hot for you to even think about it. You knew Dick wasn't happy about it when he gave you a little room, but still kept close. As if hoping you'd change your mind, despite already knowing the answer.
"I'll just head to the park, and wait a few minutes. I'm not defenseless and can handle myself for a while, and it's not my fault that I could be in more potential danger because someone thought it was a good idea to come see me, and follow me around while in their suit. You can figure it out, and live without me for a few minutes." You huff harshly, adding, "If you aren't there after that time? I'm leaving. That's all." Once again, you pick up your pace, only to be stopped by Dick as he rushes in front of you.
"Wait- hold on. Are you sure about this? I don't think it's a good idea- and how long exactly will you be waiting? Where are you going if you leave? Are you going back to the apartment? Are you going home?" You don't like how hopeful Dick looked when he asked you that last question, but you push your discomfort to the side, and stand your ground.
"I'm an adult, and I'm a L/n. I'm sure about this. You can think whatever you want, and like I said- I'll be waiting a few minutes. If you're not there by then, I'm going to leave." You narrow your eyes at Dick, piercing him with your gaze as you said, "I've made my choice and I'm sticking to it. If you're not happy about it, or don't agree, then you can leave and I'll go on with my night. I'll wait at the park, and that's that." You state one final time before making your way around Dick, and continuing to walk forward. Luckily, he didn't try to stop you again, and if anything — seemed to stop following you entirely.
All you heard was a low scoff from behind you, and the rush of wind.
When you glance back, Dick was gone, and it was only then did you realize how heavy the air felt. Releasing the breath you didn't know you had been holding, you clutch your chest. Your heart aches, and yet you manage to push on.
Tonight wasn't exactly going well for you, but that almost tipped you over the edge.
You were beginning to hate many things about tonight, along with Dick. It almost made you think that maybe you were lucky back when he hardly ever noticed or talked to you. It made things easier, after all, and of course now that you've had your longest conversation with him — things were only getting harder.
Every word he said made him seem bigger, or pushed you down as an attempt to make you smaller. His reasoning could go from making complete sense, to being outright idiotic and paranoid. With each action of his being either too small or way too much.
Dick, in that way, was too much.
You could chalk up some of your discomfort and nervousness to your lack of experience with Dick, and being around him. Of course some of his antics and habits would seem strange to you — since you were never able to see much of them, and those that you did notice were from a far, and never up close. You weren't able to experience them yourself, not until now. Though that almost made you grateful for all the times he turned you down or ignored you, seeing as now you could only see how much of a handful he is to deal with.
Maybe that could've changed if you were more familiar with him, but it was too late for that now. Even if you did wonder how this whole thing would've gone if you did know him. If you were more familiar with how Dick acted, and had actually managed to spend time with him. If Dick was more familiar with you, and how that'd change this whole situation… but, again, it was much too late for that. If he really wanted to know you, he would've taken one of the chances you gave him over the years, and yet he didn't. No one did. No one except for Alfred…
You hope he's okay, at least.
Shaking your head, you push your thoughts to the side. There was no use thinking about 'what if's, not when such thoughts and possibilities kept you in the manor for so long. Not when your mind used them against you, and had you keep that pathetic hope you once desperately clung onto. You promised yourself you wouldn't do that anymore, and so you took a breath, and tried to stop them from coming in. They always slip by, but you try to ignore them. Especially since they caused you so much trouble that could have easily been avoided in the past.
You took a small sip of your coffee, only to pull it away and look at the cup strangely.
It was… bitter. More so than you remember, and it immediately struck you as odd. Since, Jessica always managed to make your coffee the exact same way every time, and even if she did make some mistakes here and there, the change was never this significant or noticeable. Not like it was now, with the taste lingering on your tongue, almost trying to further stain your taste buds and remain there for as long as possible. As if trying to permanently ingrain itself in your mouth.
You couldn't help but cringe a bit. Maybe getting coffee really was a bad idea after all…
Sighing, you just continue on and brush the weird occurrence to the side. Whatever, you have enough things to deal with and worry about now. There wasn't much you could do about the coffee, and if anything, maybe that just went to further show how horrible your night is going thanks to Dick.
Though, you wouldn't push it that far, even if your opinion of him was definitely souring by the minute, but the thought was pretty funny to think about, at least.
The night felt calm for once, and it’s only now, with you by yourself, do you realize how much you needed this.
Sure, Gotham was potentially going to hell, and you might see Dick again in a few minutes, but you don't have to worry about that right now. Just here, in the streets, did you have… normal problems. Problems unrelated to a family you no longer wanted to involve yourself with, that also just so happened to be made up of vigilantes. Problems that didn't involve your musical career, and how your rise to fame was becoming both an inconvenience, and a bit of an issue. Problems that… just about everyone has dealt with one way or another.
Your coffee didn't taste quite right, you felt exhausted despite having only walked a bit, and your social battery was just about to hit its limit. The air was just a tad too cold for the clothes you were wearing, you had a strong desire to crawl into bed and sleep like you had nothing else to worry about, and really — besides yourself and making a few dumb mistakes, the only thing you really had to worry about here was getting mugged. Maybe even jumped, at a push.
Yet, such things got a light, airy laugh out of you. You felt so at ease by yourself, and during the most dangerous hours of the night, no less. Despite everything, you couldn't help but find a bit of humor in it, and such a little thing even made you feel better. That uncomfortable heat in your chest dying down, and almost going away entirely as you cooled off.
As funny as it was, you felt safer and so much more at ease without the person that was so adamant about wanting to do all of these things, to protect you. How could you not laugh at the irony?
Suddenly, the bitter taste on your tongue didn't feel so bad anymore.
Walking along Gotham streets when it was so quiet still made you feel a bit uneasy, but for the time being you were able to find some small peace with it. After all, who knew when you'd get another breather like this? Especially with whatever business Dick had with you. Vigilante and hero work wasn't exactly known to be light and easy, after all.
So, you took this moment as it is. Finding odd little details in the night that helped you relax as much as you could before things continued.
Honestly, you didn't think you were ready for whatever Dick was about to talk about or mention, but you doubt any of it could surprise you. After all, in a city where a villain breaking out of the local prison or asylum every now and again during the week was normal, it was hard to be surprised by things related to such occurrences. Since, it even felt like someone was trying to blow up the place at least twice a month, and robberies were so common that it was a wonder that anyone had any fortune left to protect at all.
Though it did still make you curious about what’s going on.
Obviously, it couldn't be any good, but it just seems too… quiet to be anyone that Gotham had already seen before. Seeing as the usual villains and whatnot always made some kind of mess, or made things as extravagant and entertaining as possible. Almost like a certain clown that loved to try and run circles around a certain bat.
Regardless of that, however, you were still more curious about why Dick — or any of the others, really — had bothered to seek you out at all. Sure, the first thing that came to mind was that they need you for something, rather that be for help or something else entirely, but that's only because it made the most sense to you. Why else would they try to find out where you live? You couldn't think of another reason. Though, again, maybe that was because they had ignored you for so long? Even then, you can't think of anything else.
Besides help and such, nothing else made any logical sense to you. There is no other reason. There couldn't be, and if there is — you couldn't think of it. They couldn't just be here for you. They almost weren't capable of it. You're sure, since they have made it very clear a long time ago. You were just too naive and blind to see it at first, but now you did, and you don't plan on becoming blind to that again…
Nevertheless, you continue on your little path.
Now that Dick wasn't with you, your journey to the park was short, and much more peaceful and quiet. It was almost calm in an odd way, but you appreciated it all the same.
The park held that strange feeling of abandonment and emptiness that most of Gotham seemed to have tonight — thanks to whatever was going on — but you manage to ignore it for the most part. Making your way around the park, your pace was slower and your breath was a bit heavier. You felt like you were prolonging the inevitable, and such a feeling spawned so much dread that you almost choked on it. However, you manage, and instead try to find a good place to sit and wait for the time being.
Sure, it would be easy to leave and just go on with your night, but you did want to stay true to your word even if only a little. It's the least you could do, since this would be the last thing you'd ever do for any of them, anyway.
Besides, you were better than them in that way — following through with what you said, instead of saying a ‘maybe’ that'll never come, or a ‘next time’ that'll never arrive. Always stuck to a tomorrow that was always just out of reach.
Your words held meaning, unlike theirs.
Moving on, you eventually found a good spot. It was closer to the center of the park, and the moon could be seen as clearly as it could be with all of the clouds passing by, and building up. The air had an odd moist and damp feeling to it, and it made you think that it might rain after all, seeing as you remember hearing something about it earlier in the day. Yet, that just gave you all the more reason to hope that this whole thing would be wrapped up soon. Though whether that happened with Dick not showing up, or him making good time and keeping things short and simple, you didn't care.
Even if you did hope that he just wouldn't show. For both his sake, and your own.
Settling down on a park bench off to the side of the path, you took a big breath, before letting it all out. You still don't have a good feeling about this, but you'd take all the little victories you could. Since, you managed to avoid going to the manor and clock tower by some miracle, and even got Dick to leave you alone for a little while. Even if a small part of yourself did wish that you had pissed him off enough for him to leave you alone, you wouldn't count on it. He seemed oddly stubborn about sticking around, or to at least keep you around him, and though it made you feel uncomfortable, it unfortunately meant that there was a chance that he'd actually show up again.
You'd pray if you had any faith left, but you don't. Not at the moment, and certainly not with that possibility hanging over your head, just waiting to drop and crush you under its weight. Though for now, you'd try to not think about it as you look around, taking in the dark scenery instead.
The darkness of the night shaded over the park in an ominous, beautiful way. With the trees looming over you, and their leaves providing more shade than necessary. As if trying to protect you from the moon's stare as much as they could. The clouds slowly crawled over the sky, waiting for the perfect opportunity to drop all they were carrying — and leave the burden for Gotham to hold. They covered what could be made out of the blank, pitch black void that was the night sky, with the moon trying its hardest to shine through. To take a glimpse of the chaos below, and judge you in its silence.
A loose breeze drifts by, causing you to shiver thanks to its added chill over the night's natural coolness. The sounds of nature were hardly audible, as if even the insects have been silenced by whatever is going on, and the only thing you could hear was that constant, sickening snapping and cracking of broken bones, and that popping from joints getting dislocated. Even if such noises were much fainter now, thanks to the spot you've chosen, they still managed to reach you here, and dominate all other noises that tried to make themselves known, with its echo.
You could only sympathize with their desperation to be heard, to be noticed — only for the violence to cover all of their efforts. Maybe you'd even pity them, but you already felt foolish over your emotions, and feeling sympathy over noises was silly enough. You have already made enough humorous and dumb choices tonight, so you'd at least try to not make another. Even if you bothering to actually wait here, instead of leaving right away, is dumb enough.
You don't know if it was hilarious or sad how many stupid choices you’re making in one night, and all because of the people you are trying to leave behind. People you were so sure would never bother to look for you or even give you a single thought, and yet here you are now. Waiting for one of them to show up – only because suddenly he couldn't leave you alone. Almost like he couldn't afford to, and now you couldn't help but debate over the humor and sadness of that.
Of course it had to be now, it had to be tonight, that one of them showed up - but you don't know what exactly you're expecting. After all, if one of them were to try and show their face to you despite everything, it would be at the worst time possible. It felt fitting in an odd way, so maybe it was only right that things went down like this. That life throw one of the biggest ‘fuck you's it could at you, during a time where you are trying to recover. To heal. To get better.
Of course he just had to show his face when you were done with him — with them, and their whole family. It had to be now, when you're trying to move on, did an effort have to be made. It couldn't be while you were in the manor - when you were trying to do the same.
… Maybe you should've let him bust open the door to your apartment after all, and just ran away while you still had the chance.
Yet, as if knowing you were thinking of walking away while he still wasn't around, Dick finally appeared and made himself known with a little whistle.
You turn your head and face him, his appearance almost making you laugh, but you didn't have it in you to do so. Much too exhausted and fatigued to even try, and your feelings were too mixed up to even consider the thought. Though you did have to admit, he did look a little funny.
Dick almost looked out of breath, but he still manages a smile when you turn to look at him. The clothes he wore looked strangely baggy, and you could've sworn that you saw the smallest glimpses of various price tags that were tucked away sloppily. Which made it look like he really was in a rush, and… well, you didn't know how to feel about that. Yet, in that same moment, you caught the tiniest bit of his suit right under the shirt he wore. Further ‘hinting’ at the fact that Dick had been in such a hurry that he didn't actually bother to change, and instead opted to cover up his suit.
His mask was off, at least, and for a moment you wondered where he put it until you noticed him subtly stuffing something in his pocket. Which is funny as it is concerning.
Dick wore an oversized coat that he left open, with a collar shirt underneath that had two of the buttons unbuttoned, along with sweatpants and shoes that didn't quite look his size. All in all, he looked like a mess, but Wayne's look good in everything for a reason, you suppose.
“Made it just in time! I told you I would, didn't I?” Dick chuckles, still holding onto the coffee you had given him earlier with one hand. The smile on his face quickly grew into a playful smirk, and you didn't know if you should find it weird or oddly scary how much closer he seems to be to the side of him you've only seen at a distance before. The side you have seen at galas or with his family, occasionally. A side you didn't have any personal experience with until now, and the dread you felt from before only grew at that.
“Um, no, you didn't-” You try to point out, only for him to cut you off.
“Well, it probably just slipped my mind, but I'm here now!” He muses, and you can’t help but find his tone off putting considering how things ended off a few minutes ago. He both looks and sounds way too happy for someone who was so annoyed with you before.
“I didn't keep you waiting, did I?” Dick steps closer, making his way over to you casually. Not a single trace of his previous demeanor could be found.
You can't help but move a little further away, and bite your tongue. You hoped he would've, that he did, but unfortunately he did make good time. Since, from the moment you sat down, Dick appeared only a minute after, and had it not been for his messy outfit, you would've thought that he had planned this whole thing out — down to the very last second.
“No…” You drag on, looking away once again, trying to hide the disappointment in your voice.
Yet, despite the implications of it, Dick couldn't help but find it… cute, in an odd way. Causing him to exhale softly, his smirk dying back down into a smile. Blue hues shining as they look down at you.
He moves to sit down on the bench — noticing a spot next to you, but deciding to sit beside you instead. Still remaining close, but not getting in your space entirely, since he felt like you both weren't at that point just yet. There was an armrest between the both of you, and he felt as if that'd be enough for now. Even if he did want to move closer, he decides that this was the least he could do for having been ignoring your discomfort and clear nervousness thus far.
While he still couldn’t fully bring himself to acknowledge or accept it — since he still doesn't want to think about it — he at least wants to try and do this small thing for you.
Though, the space between you and him would never be big enough for you to be comfortable. Since just knowing he was around, and that you were in his space, already made you feel a certain way, but he didn't have to know that. Not that you would tell him, anyway.
Dick took this little opportunity to take a slow, long sip of his coffee. The drink not quite to his liking, but he wouldn't complain since you seem to like that little diner, and the last thing he wants is for your opinion of him to get worse, so he kept his mouth shut. Besides, it wasn't even that bad anyway, especially knowing that it came from a place that you enjoy going to.
Silence was quick to fall over the both of you again. Yet, this time, Dick didn't exactly have a problem with it.
Even if you weren't looking at him, he could still see that little twinkle in your eyes that the faint bits of moonlight were able to show and make clear. How your hair matched you just right, and the way you did it and took care of it completed your look even more. Along with how even the little things on your person said so much, yet so little, about who you are now. About who you have become after all this time.
A sense of endearment and sentimentality suddenly washes over Dick, and he can't help but feel as if it were just yesterday that you were introduced to the whole family. Though he still couldn't quite describe the look in your eyes then, as there was an unmistakable hint of excitement and unfounded joy that lingered when you first met them all. When you first met him.
You were such a little thing back then, and you have grown so much since. Dick still can't help but think about it even as he finally pulls the cup away from his lips, and sighs, content.
You were so small, and little. Your face round and youthful, hands soft and delicate - just like everything about you at the time. The world and the people in it were still so new to you, and you looked just about ready to explore it all. To see every little thing you could, and learn about everything that you found. ‘Wonder’ was the first word he thought of when he saw you that day, and looked at your expression. It was full of that child wonderment.
Yet… look at you now. Grown, and significantly taller than you were before. Face matured and settled, but still did have a youthful look to it. He notes how your hands did seem to be a bit rougher, and instead of delicacy, he found a gentleness that was always there — but is more prominent now. That look of wonder gone, and now replaced with something more. Something complicated and complex in nature, and yet simple all the same. There's a sense of turmoil but… he couldn't look much deeper than that. He can't bring himself to.
Point is, you have clearly changed.
Sure, he noted how you looked different and everything before, but now that same conclusion felt different in a strange way. Though maybe that was because he wasn't only looking at you now, but seeing you as well.
Dick doesn't just see the change in your clothes, and how your voice has changed its tempo and volume, but some other things as well. Maybe that's because he's able to connect some things he's learned about you over the course of the entire day, back to you and how you showed yourself now. How those details presented themselves in your appearance and mannerisms.
It’s a lot to take in, sure, but in this moment of silence - Dick found himself slowly absorbing all of this information, taking it all in and finding ways to love you through it. Even if the changes made a particular fact all the more clear — despite the time he has missed, he did genuinely love the person you have become. He does now, at least.
Despite everything he has done to you, or lack thereof, you have managed so much on your own. Despite him and the family not being around when they could've, when they should've, you managed to pave your own path and face all the challenges it brought by yourself - from what Dick could tell anyway. Even if he wasn't fully aware of all you have gone through in his absence, and he knew that as well – you’re still here. You're sitting beside him, looking at the scenery of the park, coffee cup in hand, and just… living in this moment with him.
Dick didn't know when such small things made him feel so happy or content, but in this moment, with you, it's like all he could feel was happy and put together, in a weird way. He doesn't know how to describe it, but now that he's here with you, in your space and presence, he feels… whole. Complete. Like all the missing pieces he didn't even notice were gone, all fell into place when you were around. With you here with him, he feels the happiest he's been in a long while, and he couldn't even begin to explain why.
He's only really known you for a day, but it already felt like he's spent a lifetime with you.
“Hey… Y/n?” He spoke up, breaking the silence between the both of you, looking back at the coffee cup in his hands. “I just want to say that… I'm happy you're here, and that you let me see you.” He begins, slowly looking back at you, an easy but pleasant smile on his face. It was easily the most natural one he's shown you tonight, and his clear unannounced happiness, no matter how light, made the pit in your stomach grow deeper and wider.
Why is he looking at you like that? And why did it hurt to see it now? Why did it relight the fire in your chest, and make it burn - the flames barely tickling your chest from the inside? Why did you feel like this? What did you do to cause him to wear such a smile?
Why now? What was going on?
“I know we haven't talked much, or really hung out, but this… this is nice for what it's worth, and I'm happy that I get the chance to spend this time with you despite everything.” The small bits of moonlight shined in his eyes, almost making Dick appear better than he was. More friendly, charming, and brighter than you saw him as. You couldn't stand the sight. Your dread growing much too big for you to keep looking at him.
So, you look away. Hoping that Dick would get whatever kind of message you were trying to send - and yet, even if he saw it, he didn't bother to decipher it. Words tumbling out of his mouth before he could think them over, too deep in his own feelings to see yours. Though he doesn't seem to mind as he said the words that began to fill his heart, and let them out into the open air. The wind whisking them away, and shoving them into your ears.
“You… mean a lot to me, and I know that, again, we haven’t really done much together, or really spent the most time together either, but- you matter to me. You’re important to me, and I’m sorry that was never made clear before.” He blurts out, heart aching and swelling at his own words, but Dick just couldn’t help himself. He feels like he needs to say something, to say this, and he doesn't want to have to wait any longer to say it. Even if you don’t like him or saw him a certain way, he wants to at least say this. To tell you his truth - his new truth. A truth that is becoming more clear to him as the seconds pass. Seconds he spent with you. “I know that I’ve messed up- a lot, and I know that it isn’t just me that made things turn out like this, but I at least want to let you know that I do care about you. I just…” Dick ran a hand through his hair, pausing for a moment as countless words he wanted to say float around in his head, but he just didn't know how to say them. Or even say them in a way that would get you to understand, or at least hear him out.
He looks away for a moment before looking back at you. Hand dropping and folding around his cup once again. “I’m sorry, for everything. For missing your concerts and performances, and just- everything. I should’ve been there, and even if I was busy, that isn’t an excuse. I should’ve made time for you, I could’ve, and yet it just always slipped my mind and… I should’ve never done that to you. You didn’t- you don’t deserve to go through that, you didn’t have to, and yet you did, and I’m just.. so sorry that now is the time that I’m realizing this. You… you deserve so much more than what we gave you, and I’m sorry if that made you feel any less than what you are- because you are amazing, and wonderful, and bright-!”
“You’re.. you’re a lot of things, and I really couldn’t list them all since I’m still slowly seeing it all for myself. Though even then, we’d be here for a while… wouldn’t we?” Dick chuckles lightly, a tinge of endearment in his tone, with a hint of a softness that was slowly becoming more and more apparent as he went on. His expression softened even more, and yet all you could feel was dread and anger that grew with each sentence that fell out of his mouth.
Was he messing with you? Was Dick trying to make himself feel better about everything, or just mess you up even more? Maybe both?
Why was he saying all of this now? Why tonight? Why now of all times? His words… they couldn’t be true. They can’t be. If they were, if they are – then why did he wait so long? How come he didn’t realize anything sooner? Why couldn’t he realize it sooner? Why now? Why right this minute, when you were almost ready to let go?
Why is he trying to give you hope over a future, a dream, a wish you never thought would come true? That they, indirectly or not, made you believe would never be made into a reality? No matter how much you did, and sacrificed for them behind the scenes? Was he trying to trick you? Did he really believe that you’d allow yourself to become blind again? That you could actually take the little words that he’s saying to you at face value, after all this time? After all of your wasted effort?
Did he really think that he could salvage what little remained of your nonexistent relationship with him, with just a few words and soft smiles? That you would just suddenly be willing to let him back into your life, after you spent the last year or so just trying to make it so that once you left, you’d never have to turn back? After everything he and the others put you through?
You understood that they were busy. That protecting Gotham and Bludhaven were more important to them than you’d ever be. That they care more about their work and their own lives than they never will about anything you’d try to say to them - you understood that well. It was almost impossible not too with how long you’ve had to deal with it, and come to terms with everything over the few months you’ve given yourself to truly soak everything in and reflect. The one time you gave yourself a breather to process all that's happened over the years you wasted on them, and think about how you are going to move forward in your life. How you’re going to deal with the family moving forward, or if you’d ever bother to deal with them at all. Though, you're still in that process, and had yet to really think about what you’d do moving forward.
Yet, Dick just had to show up while you were in that process. He just had to show his face after so long, and do this to you. Torment you with his words, and cause further conflict inside of you that you don’t need. Causing more heartache and pain that you didn’t want, and yet he just had to keep going, he had to keep talking. He couldn’t just walk away again like he had all of those other times when you were fighting to spend time with him, to just mean something to him. Dick just had to show up, and lie to your face about this. He just had to finally notice you, and hurt you more.
“I’m… I’m just really glad I got to see you is all I’m trying to say, I guess. And that I missed you too, in all honesty.”
So he keeps going, it seems. He just has to say that, like you’d believe him. Like you’d truly think that he cared about you more than the criminals in Gotham did. Like he wasn’t just lying to your face in an attempt to try and hurt you more. To crush what little part of your heart you still had given to them, and destroy it entirely.
Honestly, now it was like he's trying to get you to hate him. To rid of the memories where you used to look up to him, and really tried to see him as your older brother until the reality of it all crushed you. Until reality forced your eyes open, and made you realize the little you had, and the little he cared.
Your own anger was beginning to blind you, and your hatred grew within you - though you hardly found a part of yourself that cared anymore.
Even if Dick’s words are true to him, they aren't to you, and that’s all you cared about. Since, as far as you know, they were never true until he suddenly felt bad, and this whole thing started.
However, you still try to remain civil. Just taking in a breath, and sighing before looking back at Dick. Exhaustion becoming more evident, anger and hatred beginning to bloom – but you manage to tuck it away for now. No matter how frustrated Dick makes you, you could keep your composer. You could keep yourself together, and by God would you try no matter how much you want to just get up and leave. No matter how much you want to think that he wasn’t worth the time or energy. At least, not anymore.
“Dick, just tell me why you’re here.” You say, getting straight to the point and seemingly completely ignoring what he said before. Not taking his words to heart, no matter how much they sting and add fuel to the flame growing in your chest.
Dick looks at you confused, a little taken aback by your response, but just pushes it to the side. Only raising a brow, managing to keep up his smile, “What do you mean? I told you already, silly.” He chuckles a bit, his words already pinching at your skin.
“I’m here to see you.”
‘Bullshit.’ You immediately thought, but don’t say out loud. Not yet, anyway.
“It’s obvious that something’s going on, I mean- do you hear the sounds echoing throughout Gotham? Or, hell, how quiet it is besides said noises?” You ask, tone shifting with every word that spilled out of your mouth, undertone unclear, but Dick didn’t like it. “You don’t have to explain what’s going on, but please, just tell me how or if I can help so that we can both go on with our nights? I know you don’t have time for this. Both of us don’t.”
Dick can only furrow his brows in response, his confusion growing the more you spoke, but also worried about the tone you’re using with him. A tone that was growing increasingly harsh.
“What are you talking about? I never said I needed your help with anything, and didn’t I already mention that the others are handling the situation?” Dick said, genuinely confused, and yet that only seems to make the flame in your chest burn brighter.
“Then what are you doing here? Why are we even talking right now if you don’t need anything from me?” You ask, voice rising in volume a bit before you bring it back down. The little stings Dick’s words left on your skin turning into a grip around your heart.
“I’ve already told you, Y/n…. I just wanted to see you.” Dick said again, growing a little more worried now.
“Yes, but why? What made you want to see me so badly that you even went out of your way to find out where I live?” You couldn’t help but ask, frustration growing but so did your desperation. Over what, you don’t know, but all you knew was that you want this to be over. You want to go home. You want to be away from Dick. From them.
Even if your home probably wouldn’t feel as safe anymore now that they knew where it is, and you knew that too, but couldn't find it in yourself to care. Anywhere that wasn't in the immediate vicinity of Dick felt better than being here, with him at arm's length.
“I need a reason to see my younger sibling now? I can’t just come visit them?” Dick asks, still worried and confused, yes, but an odd tone of sarcasm seemed to develop under his tongue.
“After months of no contact? After all that’s happened?” You say as a meaningless, humorless laugh escapes you before your voice drops and cements itself, “Yes. Yes you do, because you’ve never visited me before. You’ve never gone out of your way like this, not even to see me in my own room. So why now? Why tonight? Why come see me?”
Your words stung Dick, and you can tell with how he flinches a bit at your words, if only for a brief moment. He even cringes a little, as if they have physically hurt him, but you didn’t react much. You want to know why, because it made no sense to you, and by God did you deserve an answer.
There is no reason why he should’ve come to see you, none. You aren’t related to him, and even if you are by law, he’s never treated you like family in the past - just someone else who lives in the manor, but over time you began to believe that he started to forget that too, with how he’d grow increasingly surprised by seeing you in person when he'd occasionally visit.
You meant nothing to him, last you checked. So what was so important that he and the others needed to find out where you live, and seek you out like this? What was going on?
From how you look at Dick, he can tell you wanted to know. That you want a ‘real’ answer, one that you’d accept, anyway. Along with the fact that you aren’t going to take your words back, finding them to be nothing less than true, and even if they are, they don’t hurt any less. Especially considering how far he’s come today. How much he’s seen, and how his view is beginning to change. How you were growing on him without even knowing it, making him realize that some of it isn’t even you to begin with. Though there wasn’t much he could do about that, not right now. Not with you getting worked up like this, and not with how he's beginning to hurt too.
The truth hurt, it almost always did. Never sparing anyone, and almost acting as a sword rather than weight. A dagger than another page, but paper cuts did exist for a reason – he supposes.
“I.. I know that it might seem hard to believe, considering everything, but that really is all there is to it.” Dick says, trying to explain as he clutches onto the coffee cup in his hands, “I just want to see you because I was worried, and I… I just wanted to make sure you were okay. That’s all.”
“Then what about the others? Why find out where I live? What’s with all the noise?” Your desperation was becoming a little clearer as you spoke quickly, the questions falling out of your mouth as your heart began to squeeze tightly. The smoke that the fire in your chest was creating, started to reach and fill your lungs little by little with each passing second.
“The others are busy taking care of the city, and how else am I supposed to see you? You weren’t answering any of my or Tim’s calls or texts. We…” Dick drags on a little before just sighing, looking dejected, “I was worried about you- I am worried about you. I thought something happened, and I had to know if something did. Is that so wrong? Can I not check on my younger siblings anymore?”
“That's not what I meant, and you know that.” You point out straight away, but did falter the slightest bit when he mentions how you were ignoring them trying to contact you earlier. However, you didn't back down. “And both of you just started contacting me today. I didn't have any time to answer either of you before you showed up at my door.”
“Really? You had absolutely no time at all to pick up the phone? Not even send a quick message, or even read our texts?”
“I was busy? And was doing something else, so I couldn't get to the phone right away.”
“For several hours? Y/n, you've got to be kidding me.” Dick chuckles out, obviously not believing you, which ticks you off even more.
“What, so I can't do other things? I have to be at your every beck and call, now?” You scoff, rolling your eyes. “None of you have ever contacted me first, so I'm sorry that I didn't have any time to respond to whatever you both had to say. I have my own life to deal with, you do know that, right?”
“That's not what I-” Dick cuts himself off, just letting out a sigh before speaking again after thinking over how to reword what he wants to say, “Look, just- what was so important that made it so you couldn't answer the phone?” He asks instead, searching your expression for something, and furrowing his brows when he couldn't find it.
“... That's none of your business.” You answer instead, narrowing your eyes at him a little. Whatever you did in your life, he didn't have to know. He doesn't have the right to know, not anymore. You may have been willing to offer him this one chance to ask something from you to help with whatever is going on, but that was all, and where your generosity ended. It wasn't a chance to reconnect, or to rebuild what never was, and still isn't.
If there's anything that this whole situation has told you, it's that you shouldn't have tried in the first place - and that maybe, just maybe, you should've left sooner. That was clear to you now.
“...” It's like Dick could tell things were getting worse this way. He didn't know what was causing it or how, but he could feel it. Especially with how you were growing increasingly upset, and how he was as well.
So, he tried to settle down a little and just took a breath. At this rate, he could only dread how things would get, and so he at least tried to change the direction of things a bit. Yet, he still couldn't help himself either. Maybe he didn't deserve to know, but he did want to ask.
“Look, just-” he tries to find the words to say, to not make this whole thing worse than it already is, and settles on a simpler question. One he figures you can handle, one he hopes does what he wants it to do. “Can you at least tell me why you keep ignoring me when I say that I'm here to see you? Or at least why you just… brush it off?” Dick manages to say, eyes never once leaving you, but for a different reason this time.
He just wants you to open up, but how could you do that when he kept you out for so long? When he locked that door so long ago, and forgot where he left the key? Leaving him to never know of the chair you left right under the handle.
“... What do you-”
“You know what I'm talking about, Y/n, just… please.” Dick almost pleads, which makes you uncomfortable. Causing you to press your lips into a thin line once again, “I don't want this to…” he doesn't want to say it outloud. He couldn't bring himself to. Especially when he doesn't want it to be true. To be made into reality.
“I just want to know, Y/n. So please, just tell me? Because I don't understand why you keep avoiding it, or just don't acknowledge it at all.” Dick says instead, which causes you to grow quiet in the process.
“...”
You couldn't think of anything to say, just being able to look at him before glancing away and taking in a breath of your own. You couldn't bring yourself to answer the question because - what were you supposed to say? What are you supposed to say? The truth? Or make up a lie? Though even if you picked one or the other, would it be for yourself? Or for Dick?
You didn't know, and a special kind of uncertainty came with that, jabbing your gut and making the flame within you crackle harshly. You hate this. You hate this more than what their inaction did to you, and almost as much as the realization that it's because of them that you're in this position to begin with.
“Why do you think?” You begin, emotions and thoughts swarming in your head and squeezing your heart. You want to not care, to brush it all off as you have before, but only find yourself hurting despite everything. Why does your chest hurt so much? Why did it feel like something was pressing against it, threatening to pierce it? “Why do you think that I'm ‘ignoring’ it or just… dismiss it?”
Dick hates how you look away, and the swirl of emotion he saw in your eyes when you looked at him before. Which only made his own emotions grow like a heavy weight, threatening to fall on him. To crush him, and only leave the tiniest parts of himself behind. Parts that still hung onto that false hope he made himself.
He knew, or at least had an idea, but he ignored it. Dick wants to hear it from you, even if he doesn't know what he's hoping for with that. He knows of his faults, and yet not the entirety of them - at least, that was the impression he was getting from all of this.
He isn't blind, but there are only so many things he could let himself see before the ugliness of it all rears its head at him, and snarls. Before the quiet part that he refuses to glance at, becomes loud.
“I… I don't know,” Dick manages to say after a moment, still looking at you as he searches for something, anything that will point things in a different direction. Something that will give the little hope he has anything to cling on to.
Something he doesn't find.
He takes in another breath, “Can you please just… tell me? I do want to know, I really do- so just, please. Tell me why you keep ignoring what I'm saying?”
“I'm not-” You cut yourself off, speaking before you could come up with a response, the words tumbling out of your mouth quickly before you caught yourself and take in a slow, uneven breath. “I'm not ignoring what you're saying. I'm not, but- just…” You drag on before finally letting out a sigh. Some of the tension freeing itself from your body, but not enough for it to let you truly calm down or relax.
“What do you expect me to do? To say?” You finally manage to voice it outloud, to ask as you look back at Dick briefly. With the moon trying its hardest to peek through the clouds as they begin to fill and crowd the sky. “You haven't checked up on me in all the years I was in the manor, and, hell, I doubt you even know where my room is-”
“I know where it is.”
“- and even if you do, that doesn't change what happened. Or, really, what didn't.” You narrow your eyes at Dick's sudden words, but don't comment on them as you continue, voice wavering slightly, “You've… never checked up on me before, or even asked me if I was okay- we barely even greeted each other, and I didn't see you around all that often. I didn't get to. So I'm sorry if it's hard for me to believe that you just suddenly care, or want to check up on me after all this time.” You say, still biting your tongue and holding yourself back from sharing more than you should. From giving more than you already have.
“...” Dick's lips press into a thin line before he goes to speak again, “I understand that, but… why can't that change now? Why can't I care about you now?”
“It isn't about what you can and can't do, Dick. Nor what can be changed now or not, it's…” A quick, small groan escapes you as you try to gather the words you want to say, and finally let them out when you do, “it's what I'm used to, Dick. That's just how it is.”
Finally, dread made its way into Dick’s heart as well, “So… that's it? You're just ‘used to it’? And I can't change that?”
“I don’t know, can you?” You asked sarcastically in a dead tone, already tired of all of this, and yet the fire in your chest continues to burn ever so brightly. “You haven’t really done a good job of that thus far, if that's what you’re trying to do. I’ll say that much.” Your words hurt, you could tell right away. The way he looked at you said everything, but you didn’t try to look deeper than what presented itself on the surface.
“This isn’t some kind of…. ‘reconnecting session’, stuff like that doesn’t really matter. I thought something serious- something important was going on, or had happened, that’s why I bothered with… all of this.” You point out and explain, only watching as the expression on Dick’s face morphed into something else. Something you couldn’t decipher, but didn’t like looking at. A face that made your stomach twist, with dread pouring out of every crevasse it could manage.
“And why would you think that? I don’t remember saying anything that would hint at that, and even then I would’ve said it outright.”
“You suddenly appeared at my door in the suit, and at some point was banging on it. How could I not think something was going on? Or that you didn’t need something from me? That something serious wasn’t happening? Especially when I don’t remember telling any of you where I live-”
“Okay, okay. I… I get it,” He didn’t, at least maybe not to the extent one would hope he would, but he didn’t want to argue. Not here, and not with you. Especially not when he was really beginning to see you. “But still… I want to change that. I want to make it up to you and fix things. Is that so bad?”
“...” You had no response to that, but even if you did, what could you say? You had imagined countless instances like this, but those situations weren’t real — this one was. In those scenarios, you always had something to say, rather it be good or bad, and you always knew what to do. Yet here, now that it was actually happening, you had nothing. You didn’t know what to do or say, and even if you did have some things you wanted to just let spill out, you kept them in. You didn’t want things to get worse either, but the more Dick talked, the harder that became.
Why couldn’t he just be the person from your thoughts and dreams? The person you always saw him as until now?
“I just…” Dick tries to gather his thoughts, not exactly liking your silence but trying to push on anyway. He finally had a chance, and he’d be damned to not take it. “I want to make things right, and yeah, maybe it's late- really, um, late, but I still want to try.” He manages to say, taking a small, quick breath before he continues, an easy smile trying to settle on his face.
“You deserve better, and I want to be better for you. Things may not be the same, and sure, it might be a bit awkward-” He chuckles slightly in between his words, “-but I think that we can… work it out if you just give it a try. Give me a chance-”
“But I did.” You manage to say, cutting Dick off. He has to fight for his smile to not falter immediately, unaware of how your heart pounded harshly in your chest, the fire it held growing and clawing at the bars of its cage that was your ribs and flesh. Scorching your lungs, and the smoke causing your throat to close, making it harder to breathe.
“... What?” Dick said, partially confused but still trying to at least seem optimistic. A weight of its own beginning to press down on him.
“... What do you think I did all of this time?” You ask, looking away for a moment, glancing up at the covered moon before looking back at Dick, “What do you think I did all of those years I spent at the manor? Before I decided to move out, and be on my own?”
“...” Dick didn’t have an answer, not one he said right away, anyway. Not one that wouldn’t make him look bad, but he didn’t know what was worse. Staying quiet when he knew a part of it, or saying the part he knew and risk being wrong, revealing how he still didn’t know the full picture despite everything. Despite getting a glance into a life he knew he wasn’t involved in, and feeling more guilty all the while.
However, you decide that his small bit of silence was enough of an answer, and just as Dick opened his mouth to say something, you spoke again. “Most of my time in the manor I’ve spent trying to give you chances- to give the others a chance. Trying to give opportunities to just do something, try anything, and… well,” You look away fully this time, caressing the coffee cup in your hand, it’s dying warm doing little to help you, causing you to draw your attention to the shaded greenery of the park instead.
“We both know how that turned out.”
If your words didn’t hurt him before, they definitely did now. Even as Dick fought to keep that smile of his up, it was pointless. You were right, and he knew that. Even if he didn’t know the true extent of your words, he was at least aware of the times where you’d try to get them to see you perform, to hear your songs and listen to your music that had gotten you this far. He knew that much, and yet he still couldn’t help but try. He wants to mean more to you, to do what he hasn’t done up until this point, to truly be your older brother, to be your family - despite how long he’s been unable to do that.
“I… I know, and I’m sorry.” Dick could only say that much, even if it did little in the long run, and a part of himself could tell that his words only made whatever you were feeling worse as you inched away from him, the sight of the small action breaking his heart even more.
“Maybe that doesn’t mean much, but it’s true. I’m just… sorry that things turned out this way. That we- that I never noticed how hard you were trying until now, and even if it is late, I want to be honest and say that I’m sorry.” He adds, finally managing to look away as well as he looked down at the cup in his hands, thoughts swarming and eating away at his heart. Even if they were going too fast for him to process them all, they hurt him all the same and caused his worry to grow. “I’m sorry for everything, for never noticing what was going on or the extent of it, or appreciating the effort you tried to put in for our attention, for just not… being around. You deserve better- and I want to give that. I want to give you want you deserve and finally be-”
“Stop.” You said under your breath, voice wavering as you take in a shaky breath. Yet, even as it falls upon deaf ears, and Dick couldn’t make out exactly what you said, he still pauses for a moment before speaking again.
“... I just want to fix things, Y/n.” Dick says instead, but it doesn’t make you feel any better, nothing does.
“You mean a lot to me.” You just want him to stop.
“And maybe that’s… weird to hear with everything that’s happened. But it is true, and I’m sorry I never made that clear before.” You want him to stop lying to you, to stop trying to make you feel better. You’ve been doing fine on your own without him, without them, and so the only thing you wanted now was for Dick to stop and leave. To act like he had before, and go back to ignoring you.
“So… let’s change that, okay? I… I want to spend more time with you.” You want him to shut up. You want it so bad that it hurts to hear him talk as he goes on and on. His voice ringing in your ears to a point you’re convinced that they’ll bleed if this continues on for any longer. If he continues to talk for any longer.
“I’m being honest, I really want to try and be your-”
“Stop… please, just- just stop.” You manage to say, voice small and wavering as you try to take in another breath. You want to be unbothered, unhurt, painless, and numb, but you can’t and you don’t know why. You thought you had gotten used to this, and you had, but to hear that - to hear the words you’ve wanted to hear for so many years - that hurt more than anything else. The pain was indescribable, and its result only made that fire grow, the flames scratching at your chest even harder, and your heart bleeding as a result.
Suddenly, all the progress you’ve made over all the months you’ve been away feel useless now. Reduced to nothing in Dick’s presence as his words stripped down your walls in the most violent, volatile ways possible.
Once upon a time, you fought to have a single conversation with him that lasted more than just a few short exchanges, and now you’d do anything to have that back. For him to go back to the Dick you grew up with, the one you fought to even have to look at you for more than a few seconds.
“You can’t do this to me.” You said without thinking, voice weak and shaky as you scramble to keep yourself together, to hold back tears that you refuse to spill – refusing to shed any more over them. Refusing to let all of your progress go to waste just like that.
You were happy, you have been happy these past few months, and you refuse for that to be taken away from you.
“What? Y/n, what do you mean-” Dick tries to speak, but you don’t give him the luxury, not after this. Not after what he’s been doing to you.
“You can’t do this to me,” You repeat, trying to breathe and fight past the smoke building in your lungs, nearly gasping for air as your teeth begin to grind, “you can’t- you just can’t. So stop… please just..” You try to take in another breath, no matter how small it is or strangled it feels.
“Just. Stop.”
“...” It’s like no matter what Dick tries to do, things end up becoming worse, and he hates that he doesn’t know why. He can't understand why.
Clearly he’s hurting you, he could see that no matter how much he doesn’t want to, but he doesn’t know what he’s saying that’s hurting you. He doesn’t know what he’s doing that’s causing you to become so upset.
After all, don’t you want this? Don’t you want him to try? For your efforts to be reciprocated? Don’t you want to be family too? For him to try and be what he’s supposed to have been all of this time? Don’t you want him to try and be your big brother?
You couldn’t have given up yet, right? There was no way you could have. You couldn’t have given up after all you have done, after all the awards and such he saw that you’ve earned over the years – awards that were still in your room. You couldn’t have given up. That's impossible, there’s no way. No one would throw all of that away, right? No one would do all that you have, only to just put it all behind them - not anyone that Dick could think of at the moment.
… He hated how he thought of it anyway. How the thought creeped into his mind, and remained there. Letting his dread and worry grow as reality began to sneak its way into his brain.
Dick doesn’t want to think about it – let along consider the idea, but this isn’t about him. This isn’t about what he thinks or feels.
This is about you, and despite his words, he hates that he had forgotten that already.
“Y/n,” He calls out to you softly, really trying this time, and you hate that detail with all of your heart, “can you just please tell me what’s wrong?” Dick’s words make you physically pause, even causing your rushing thoughts to come to a halt. They repeat in your head once more, and you can only think one thing.
Is he seriously asking you that?
“I know that you’re upset, but I want to work through this with you. So, just tell me so I can help, okay-?”
“Stop- God, just please stop, Dick.” You manage to say, already getting slightly choked up before you manage to shakily exhale, trying your hardest to keep it together as your heart squeezes and your chest tightens. You can’t bring yourself to look at Dick, but your teeth grind as you scramble to keep the flames eating up your body from the inside, trapped and hidden away.
“You can’t do this to me,” You say more desperately than you wanted to, a few tears developing that you fight back violently to keep them from spilling, your own teeth getting crushed and feel as if they were beginning to chip and break with how hard they’re grinding against each other. “You can’t- you can’t-” You struggle to get the words out, nearly gasping for air as that sickening, thick smoke threatens to escape your lungs.
“You can’t do this to me, you can’t give me hope.” You finally say, voice straining as your breath trembles. When you finally do look at Dick, neither of your expressions are good ones. Both filled with mixes of emotions, but his was more deep and almost controlled, while yours was frantic and ever changing.
“... What?”
“After all of this time, after everything- everything I’ve been put through. Everything I’ve been trying to move on from-” You struggle to breathe momentarily, but manage to get yet another gasp of air before continuing, “you can’t just try and give me hope like that. You can’t. You just- can’t.”
Now it’s Dick’s turn to pause as he processes what you said, each word making the weight in his chest sink deeper and deeper until it reaches his stomach. The very thing he seems to dread is becoming more real with every minute that passes and he hates that more than anything. He wants to ignore it, to push past it, but how can he do that when it’s right in front of him? How can he do that when something worse could be laying underneath everything?
He doesn’t want to think about it, and so he doesn’t and tries to tuck it away as he goes on to say, “But… why? Why can’t I give that to you? Why can’t I try to help you?”
“Dick, please, for the love of god just-” You want to say it, you really do, but manage to hold yourself back with the little self control you have, and simply just take in the biggest breath you can manage, and sigh just as deeply. “Nevermind, and just- you know what? We’re… we’re done here.” You say instead. Placing your coffee cup on the bench, not even caring that you barely finished the drink, and move to stand up.
“What? Wait- what?” Dick asks, sitting up and tensing when you stand, but not making a move just yet, even if it was clear that he’d do something. What, you don’t know, but you didn’t notice anyway as you were too focused on yourself and getting out of this situation.
“We’re done here, what else do I have to say?” You don’t look back at Dick, instead continue to try and steady your breath. Trying to calm yourself down, and finally do something to quell the burning flames inside your chest, “This isn’t going anywhere, and we aren’t discussing anything important, so… let’s call it here. I’m leaving.” You say outright, being blunt this time as you make a move to step away-
Only to be stopped when Dick suddenly grabs your wrist, his grasp a touch too tight.
“Hold on- who said you get to decide that?” Dick asks, having sprung up to grab you as swiftly and quickly as he did, a flash of panic showing on his face before he pushed it aside and swallowed his nerves. He tries to manage another smile, even if it doesn’t reach his eyes yet again, “Let’s just talk about this, okay? There’s no need to overreact.”
“Overreact…?” You glance back at him, physically feeling as all of your previous progress to calm yourself was quickly diminishing, the fire only roaring to life at Dick’s words, and it’s like he could feel it too with how his smile faltered the smallest bit before he tried to pick it up again.
“Okay- maybe not overreact, but we can still talk about this… can’t we?” He says instead, as if realizing his mistake once you point it out. Scrambling for something, anything.
You don’t say anything right away, your chest only hurting even more, “And talk about what, exactly?” You ask, just barely being able to hear the clouds overhead groan in displeasure, “What is there to talk about? We have nothing to discuss, and so we should just end things here.”
An airy laugh escapes Dick, almost as he can’t believe what you’re saying, and yet he continues to stare at you. All he does is raise a brow, his heart pounding as that weight in his stomach drops further, “About… everything?” He says, as if a little unsure of how to word it, but keeps going anyway, “About the family, about us, about you- everything! What isn’t there to talk about?” He counters, furrowing his brows a little.
He knows you want to leave, but he can’t bring himself to let you go. Not when he doesn’t know when he’ll have this chance again. Not when he’s so close – but to what, he doesn’t know anymore. All he knows is that it deals with you, and that’s enough for him.
“... But there isn’t anything important to talk about.” You point out as if it was obvious, raising a brow of your own as you look back at Dick, ignoring how the longer Dick held onto your wrist, the heavier your dread became. Nearly making it impossible to breathe despite how you were trying to act now, “Again, I even bothered to do any of this because I thought something was going on or that you needed something from me, and I turned out to be wrong, so there’s no other reason for me to be here.” You try to be logical, or seem that way, anyway. You try to give whatever bullshit reason you can, saying anything that you hope would just get Dick away from you and just let you go.
“...” Dick hated your words with a burning passion he didn’t even know he was capable of feeling, and the breathy laugh of disbelief that escaped him only furthered his own change of heart, “So I’m not important to you? Our family isn’t important to you? Because of everything that’s happened? So our effort to change everything isn’t important to you? It matters that little to you now that you’ve lived on your own for… what, a few months?”
“What are you talking about? You’re asking me that as if you know me, and- news flash, you don’t. So get a hold of yourself- and let me go already!” You yank your wrist away from Dick’s grasp, pulling it back towards you harshly.
The moment your wrist leaves his grasp, his hand twitches, but he manages to hold himself back and just let his hand fold into a fist as it falls back to his side. His eyes pinned on you once again, never leaving you, “Why can’t I get to know you now? Why can’t that change, Y/n?” He asks, his own tone changing without him noticing, making it sharper than he meant it to be, “Why can’t you just let me in?”
The visceral hatred those words spawn in you is hotter than words can describe, and felt as if it was burning right through your chest, melting your muscles and organs down to nothing. You not only struggled to breathe, but it hurt to even take in the smallest breath. “‘Why’…? You’re asking me, ‘why’?” A small, airy, pathetic laugh escapes you, a look of disbelief clear on your face.
“Oh, I don’t know, maybe it’s because of the years that have passed? That every attempt I’ve made to do what you’re asking me right now- was ignored until I didn’t try anymore? Until I go off and try to actually live my life, that you ask for me to let you in? For things to change?” You almost spat out, barely managing to take in a steady breath, “I don’t know, Dick. I don’t know what you want me to say.”
Dick could barely pull himself together. Everything was falling apart, and even if he could see that, he could barely get a grasp on his own emotions that he was failing to calm down. He wants you to understand, and he wants to understand you too, but god was everything making it so hard. He just couldn’t understand why you were being so stubborn about this, and why you wouldn’t just hear him out.
So, in the midst of his own frustration, he tsked and spoke without thinking.
“I haven’t done anything to you! Why are you acting like this?” The moment those words left Dick, his eyes widened and he scrambled to recover, “Wait, I didn’t mean-”
“Isn’t that the point?” You cut Dick off, the smoke finally escaping your lungs as you furrowed your brows, chest tightening as more unwanted tears began to build, “That you did nothing? That you- and everyone else didn’t do a goddamn thing?”
“You try to act like I owe you something. Like I owe you this. Like I owe you my time, but you know what? You really don’t, because back then? I clearly didn’t deserve yours. I wasn’t worth your time, and now, years later, you think that I owe you mine? That you can just say whatever the hell you want to my face, because I dared to try and be respectful and civil and do all of this shit for you?” There was no holding back anymore, not when Dick dared to say something like that to your face when you’ve been trying so hard to act calm and civil around him. To give him a chance to say his piece and leave.
The one time you tried to do something for them, for him, after months of being away from all of them, and he dared to say something like that to you?
“Then think again. Because unlike before, I have some god damn self respect and won’t stand for your bullshit anymore.” You spat out as the sky above growled even louder, “You don’t get to say that to me, Grayson.”
Yet, despite your words, a single measly tear manages to slip past your defenses and slowly, painstakingly roll down your cheek. The clouds above seem to have taken that as some sort of sign, as a few small drops of water fell from the sky and hit the pavement under your feet.
Dick pauses after that, if only for a moment as he looks over your expression before sighing. “Okay- fine, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to say that… but,” he took a short breath before saying, “that still doesn’t answer my question, Y/n.”
“...” All you could do was stare at him. Another pathetic, airy laugh escaping you all the while. He really was unbelievable.
“Which one? The one where you asked why things can’t change? Why I won’t ‘let you in’? Or why I’m ‘acting like this’?” Dick clenches his hands into fists, squeezing them before he lets go.
“Why can’t things change, why can’t the relationship between us change?” You hate the tone he used and how the look he gave you expressed and showed more than words could describe. A certain desperation in his eyes that you wish didn’t exist, that you didn’t notice.
“You never showed me that it could change. That it would always stay the same as it has for the past few years-”
“But why does back then matter? Why can’t we focus on now? On this?” He gestured between the two of you, “Can’t we just- I don’t know… move on from that?” You didn’t know if you wanted to laugh, or actually allow yourself to cry, especially when a few more raindrops fell from the sky. He couldn’t be serious, could he? Did Dick actually just say that, and to you of all people?
“Move on?” You say, a few more tears spilling despite your efforts to stop them, their touch burning your skin and sinking into it like acid, “You want me to move on from that? Move on from the years of my life that you weren’t a part of? To just forget all that’s happened?”
“You don’t have to forget… maybe just, push it aside so that we can work on this! On us…” Dick says, dragging on a little before he takes in another quick breath, “Is that so bad? Don’t you want to be family-?”
“You don’t get to say that to me.” You immediately cut him off the moment Dick even tries to mention family again, “You don’t get to say what I want or what I have to do- after everything I’ve done for you! For the others-! You don’t get to say that to me anymore!”
“Y/n, please, just calm down-”
“No! You don’t get to do this to me! To say all of this shit to my face-” You struggle to speak, your words catching in your throat and nearly choking you, but you manage to continue. To continue to say your part, and finally say the words your heart has been longing to say, to give yourself this much, to finally feel this out, “Do you even know how much I’ve done for you- all of you? How much time I spent doing all of these things I thought you guys liked just so that I had a chance to hold a conversation with any of you? To just mean something? To actually be part of the family, only for no one to show up-?”
“No one asked you to do those things! No one asked you to do anything!” Dick snaps, but immediately tries to reel it back, “I understand that things didn’t work out before, but I’m here now, aren’t I?”
Your brows furrow even more, and your teeth grind so hard that it feels like they’re chipping away, “No one had to ask! Hell- none of you ended up caring anyway! It was a waste!” You shout, voice raising the more you talked, tears mixing with the drizzling rain, “It was for you- I did everything I could think of to just talk to you, and now you want me to do more for you? After everything I’ve already done? After all the effort that was put to waste because of you?” At this rate, you knew you weren’t talking to just Dick anymore. Instead, he acted as an extension, in your mind. An extension to something bigger, something greater than himself. Something more than he was.
Dick falters, but just sighs again, “No one told you to do all of that,Y/n]. You didn’t have to do anything but just try to-”
“Try to what, Grayson? Try to what?” You cut him off, eyes swirling with untold emotion as your gaze pierces into him, “Go on, tell me what else I had to do. What I should’ve done.”
“...” Dick looks at you for a moment before speaking again with a small huff, “You could’ve tried a different approach, or maybe, talked to us?”
“...” You don’t know what you want to do more; try to strangle Dick, cry harder, or leave again after trying to kill him. “You did not just say that.” You manage to laugh out, but it’s broken and far from genuine. The humor in it long gone, and all that was left was a sickening, uncomfortable emptiness where it once remained.
“Well, I’m just saying-”
“You did not just say that shit to me when you’ve been the one shooting down every conversation I’ve tried to have with you. You- the person who’s supposed to be the ‘family man’, and we’ve barely even talked. And let me tell you now, I’m not the one who hasn’t been trying to talk or avoiding it.” A pained smile crept up your face as you laughed breathlessly in between your words once more. Not even caring anymore as you let the fire burst from your chest, and have its ashes and smoke spill out of you.
Dick narrows his eyes and furrows his brows a bit, “‘Avoiding it’? What the hell are you talking about? I haven’t been avoiding you-”
“Then please explain where the hell you’ve been all of my life until now? Why you could never follow through with what you’d always tell me? Why you come to me now, when I gave you years to do or say anything?”
“I… I was busy, okay? You know that,” He tried to lighten his tone with a chuckle but it did little to help, and only showed his own strain, “I don’t always have time to come to Gotham-”
“But you make the time to do it anyway. You make time to visit, especially when it comes to Damian.” When Dick falls silent again for a moment, you take in a shaky breath and sniffle slightly, feeling awful in every sense of the word, “I guess I just wasn’t worth it, right? I wasn’t worthy of your oh so precious time, but everyone else was. Something else was.” Your expression darkens slightly as your strained smile drops completely.
“There’s always something else, right? Something else to do, someone else to see. You could make time, alright, but just couldn’t for me.”
“That’s not what I’m saying, Y/n.”
“Then please, enlighten me, what are you saying, Grayson?” Dick hates every time you say that, every time you refer to him by his last name. It feels like there's a deeper meaning to it that he refuses to see, and just hearing you call him that instead of anything else only forces him to remember that. To remind him of his own faults, both past and present.
Maybe he'd wonder how he keeps messing things up or why he keeps saying everything besides what he actually wants to say, but he's too deep in his own feelings to even think about that. Even if the answer laid within the action itself.
“Saving the city- having to look after Bludhaven and Gotham sometimes, and even the world on occasion- doesn't really give anyone a lot of time to do certain things. You know I'm not over all the time, and that I'm not always… y'know.”
“Dick Grayson?”
“Yeah! And just…” he took a breath before sighing once again, “All I'm saying is that a different approach could've been taken.” You hate how every word he said only seemed to validate concerns you had in the past. Thoughts that still liked to linger every now and then when you caught yourself still thinking about what could've been, and if certain things happened, would that really change anything?
It's funny that only now were you truly beginning to think otherwise.
“So… what?” You say in a dry voice, “Are you saying that I should’ve been just like you? Just like the others- and give up my dream, what I wanted to do- give up my passion, because at least then I would be able to talk to you? Because I would have a higher chance of even seeing you?”
“That's not what I mean, Y/n, and you know that-”
“No. No I don't. I don't know that, and honestly? I have no idea what the hell you’re even trying to tell me right now besides that I should’ve tried harder. That I didn't do enough, because clearly- spending all of my time trying to do things for you, to accommodate for the whole fucking family that couldn't even stand for me to be in their presence for even a few seconds-” You took a shaky breath, more tears spilling out and escaping you, more falling than you would've liked, “that's not enough. Wasting my life away and trying to do everything I could to the point where it put my health at risk- that wasn't enough. I should’ve just dropped everything and followed everyone else instead of trying to find an alternative, because there was no alternative, right? Is that what you're trying to say?”
For once, Dick was speechless and had nothing to say, and his silence only made you hurt more. It's like you were waiting for what felt like the inevitable.
“What else am I supposed to do, huh? What else haven't I done? Is nothing else good enough for you? Is that really the only way I could've been with you? To see you, to actually talk with you and all the others? To be part of the family? Is that what it would've taken?” You're nearly gasping for air at this rate, with every word you say only carving deeper into your heart, and getting harder to say as you struggle to voice them aloud. Nearly choking on both your words and tears, and yet you push on.
“Did I really have to give up on my passion- my dreams to have a better chance to be something to you?”
“Y/n, that's not what I mean. Doing it wouldn't have gotten in the way-”
“You know that's bullshit! You act like the line of work you do doesn't take over your life! Like you don't think about it everyday- like you aren't constantly in danger!” At this point you're shouting and you barely even realize it, tears flowing freely now as they burn into your cheeks and crash down on the pavement below, “Is it so bad that I don't want that? That I don't want to put my life at risk? That I don't want to live your life?!”
“Maybe you enjoy that. Maybe you like that chaos and constantly putting your life on the line- but some people don't! Maybe you're made for that kind of life, but I'm not! I want to live my own life without having to be even more worried about my own well-being and safety!”
“Y/n, please- calm down! I don't want to fight, I-” Dick took a quick breath, his own heart squeezing as he tries to remain stable, to remain calm. Even if it felt like he was watching his whole world crumble before him, each tear you shed stabbing into him, and every word that spilled out just twisted the knives as they dug deeper into his chest and body. “I understand what you mean, but you have to realize-”
“Realize what? That everything I did was for nothing?” Thinking it was one thing, but saying it out loud was another. The words weighed heavy on your tongue, and the more you tried to say them the more choked up you became. “That all of my effort was in vain, and I should’ve given up while I was ahead? Because that's the impression I'm getting right now-”
“That's not what I meant, Y/n. I… I didn't mean it like that.”
“But how else could you have possibly meant it? How else am I supposed to interpret that?” You laughed again, but it was just as sad and pathetic as the last, “You can't expect me to just know these things, Grayson, especially considering everything and just-” You felt like you were going to tear your hair out, like you were going to collapse and truly break. Yet you managed to stand, and speak again no matter how weak your voice is.
“You were never there for me, none of you were.” Your hands are shaking and your face burns, voice cracking in every way possible, and you hate this feeling. Yet above all else, you hate how he made you feel like this, “I could show up at the manor, bloodied and bruised, and no one- no one would notice or bat an eye. I could be wearing a cast and have crutches, and yet not a single person besides Alfred would see it or comment on it. I could be at the hospital and no one would show up, not one of you-”
“Wait… what-?” Dick tried to speak, but you wouldn’t let him, you couldn’t.
“You were never there when I needed you. You never checked up on me, you barely even noticed me-” again, you suck in another breath, barely able to take it in, “do you know what I’ve had to deal with on my own? How much it cost me? How much it hurt me-?”
“Wait, wait- hold on! You’ve been hurt?” Dick managed to cut you off, “I… I never heard about this.”
“Of course you haven't!” You couldn't help but laugh, more tears spilling and leaving scars on your face with how badly they burned into your skin, “You hardly even noticed, how can you expect to hear about it?”
“You didn't tell me- you didn't tell anyone! How- how am I supposed to know about these things when you won't even tell anyone? When you won't tell me?” Dick can feel himself begin to tear up, but he keeps it all down. He was frustrated, and even if it wasn't directed towards you, he couldn't keep his big mouth shut. Even if by the looks of things - you couldn't either, even if that was for a different reason.
Maybe you both were one in the same, but different in some ways. Dick would feel stupid if he noticed it, but of course he couldn't — not at the moment. Not with how things are going.
If only he noticed that sooner. If only he had done a lot of things sooner – then both of you wouldn't be in this position. You wouldn't be in this position.
Yet, he couldn't help himself. Both of you couldn't, in a way.
“I can't read your mind, Y/n! I'm not even at the manor half the time- how am I supposed to notice? You can't just expect me to suddenly know-”
“But you visit enough for the others? For any one of them you'd come rushing over, especially if it was for Damian-”
“At least he tells me when he gets hurt!”
“Are we talking about the same kid right now? God, and here I thought that he was your favorite.”
“‘Favorite’?” Dick chuckled out humorlessly, feeling something in him break at your words. “I don't have any favorites-”
“That is such bullshit, Grayson, and you fucking know that.” You couldn't help but sneer, everything you tried to keep inside finally rearing its ugly head as the lid you tried to put on your emotions flew off, leaving you feeling nothing but unapologetic rage. “You play favorites all the time, but I wouldn't know that, would I? I'm probably your least-”
“Don't say that. You're not. You never were.”
“Right! Yeah, you're right. After all, I'm not even on the list, am I? How can I be the least when you barely even acknowledge me-?”
“I didn't-” Dick just cuts himself off, sighing before he continues, not being able to stop the scoff that slips past, “I didn't mean it like that. You're important to me, Y/n, how many times do I have to say that? It's like you're trying to put words in my mouth at this rate.”
“Well, excuse me for not believing you considering that, oh, I don't know, I've been ignored by you for years? That-”
“‘Ignored’? I haven’t been ignoring you, no one has-”
“Really? Are you really trying to say that now-?”
“I understand that you're frustrated, okay? That you have all the reason to be mad- but no one has ignored you. I haven't ignored you-”
“BULLSHIT! That is bull-SHIT!” You scream before you even notice the words had left your mouth in the first place, “You would have said that before it that was the case! And even then- how the hell do you explain this entire shit show? How do you even dare to try and explain where the fuck ANY of you have been?! Because people can only be so ignorant and stupid until others begin to think it's intentional and you're doing it on god-damn purpose-!” Broken, harsh chuckles escape you - slipping in between your piercing words, ones so rough and dry that it scratches your throat just to let them out. The disbelief was heavy in each and every one of them, utterly devoid of any humor, and yet they were so unbelievably empty simultaneously.
You could feel your heart breaking even more, but you weren't the only one. Not that it mattered, as with each piece that was chipped off, you could only register the little sounds of you coming apart. Everything else was muffled, and almost completely blocked out. With your only focus being on him, on them.
“Just because something looks a certain way, doesn't mean that it's really like that. I told you, it isn't that easy. Like I said before- I haven't been avoiding you, let alone ignoring you! I wasn't trying to do anything like that-”
“It doesn't matter what you tried! What you're trying to do! Don't you see? What matters is what it felt like to me-”
“But you won’t let me change that! You won't let me try and change things- it’s like you want it to remain the same-!”
“YOU DON'T GET TO SAY WHAT I WANT! NOT AFTER THIS- NOT AFTER EVERYTHING! You don’t get to say shit like that- you don't know me! You don't know what I've been through-! So stop talking like you understand me!”
“But you won't let me in! You won't give me the chance to understand! How can I expect to know anything when you're giving me nothing to work with?!”
“How about you take a fucking hint, Grayson. Can't you read the room?! You're a cop for crying out loud! And was trained by the best detective the world has to offer- so it's not my fault you're acting like you're stupid!”
“You're not another case, Y/n! You're family, you’re my sibling! Not something that needs to be solved! Is it really so hard to just tell me anything and not push me away when I'm right here?!”
Your words catch in your throat momentarily, but you try to push past that and force something out, not caring if it was made of broken glass or venom. Yet, just as you go to speak, and the first letter escapes your lips – Dick finally breaks too.
“SHUT UP! Just Shut. Up. And ACTUALLY listen to me for one second! Please! For the love of-” Dick can't help but scoff, running a hand down his face, and covering his mouth with it. Looking away as he does so, brows furrowing.
He wants to say something, think of anything that he wants you to hear and understand clearly - but nothing comes to mind. Nothing you'd truly hear him out on, anyway. Nothing he's already mentioned to you. Nothing that would make this better. Even as he goes to try and say something, all that comes out is a mess of half finished words that he can't make comprehensible, especially not in a way that'll have you listen to him where you won't try to bite at him again.
So, he falls silent. You both do.
Your eyes widening at the sudden shout, before your gaze hardens and you glare at Dick through your tears and agony. His silence makes you angrier, but his loud response does shut you up momentarily.
“Well– fine, if you want me to be quiet so badly, then I'm leaving.” You manage to say after a moment, voice wavering and becoming weaker — now spent thanks to how you've been using it up until this point.
Still, your words immediately snap Dick out of whatever trance he was in, and cause his head to snap back in your direction, with his eyes locking onto you once again – though they widen a little before he tries to calm down, and take in one last breath. He scrambles to say anything, especially as he sees you turn to leave, and see your words through.
“W-wait, hold on, I-” he presses his lips into a thin line, thinking briefly before continuing, “Can I at least walk you home? It isn't safe-”
You pause in your movements, “No. Just-” you don't look back, you can't bring yourself to, but you do just barely glance over your shoulder – though not enough to actually see him again. Dick can't see your eyes anymore, but he can still see the tears streaming down your face. “Just leave me alone. All of you.”
Dick tries to reach out, to stop you one last time – but he hesitates, and just lets his hand fall back to his side. Instead, opting to watch you leave while he stands there, left hurt and alone. His eyes eventually find and land on the coffee you had left behind on the bench, and he finds himself staring at that once you're out of sight.
He has to hold back from running after you, and following - if only to just make sure that you'd reach your apartment in one piece - but he manages. It's the least he could do, after all, and besides, he doubts he'd be able to do that without making you hate him even more. He's gathered as much from all of this, and really - from the looks of things, he had a lot more to consider than he had originally thought. All of them did.
… It's only as you walk away and the distance between you and Dick grows bigger, with both of your words beginning to settle - that you both notice the clouds once light cries have turned into ugly sobs, with each tear being shed heavier than the last, thunder roaring and echoing in the distance, lightning striking the earth with a deafening clap. It was only then that both of you even noticed that the light drizzle from before had turned into pouring rain, and that there was more than just the two of you in the world. Something that felt heavier than it should’ve, but felt appropriate at the same time.
Regardless, you continue to walk away, and once again, never look back as you commit to your decision no matter what may happen afterwards, or the consequences that may follow. Just like that one day back in the manor, you move on and go on with your choice, just knowing what you want in that moment and seeing no reason to deny yourself — especially when you want the same thing you wanted that night, when you just want to get away. You don’t know what happened tonight, but all you knew is that you didn’t want to be a part of it anymore, so you just left, and maybe you would’ve felt a little grateful that Dick let you go if you had noticed to begin with – since your mind was more focused on just putting as much distance between you and him as possible.
Your phone vibrates in your pocket, and it’s only then that you remember that you still had it on you – not that you knew why you’d leave it anywhere or forget it, but it’s something you noticed nonetheless. You fish it out of your pocket as you walk, and wipe some of your tears away with the back of your hand, sniffling lightly as you check the notification. Jessica had left you a voicemail – several, actually. You couldn’t imagine why, but you didn’t try very hard to think of a reason, and instead just opened your phone to listen to it.
[“Hey, hun’, it’s been a while, you okay? If you don’t call in the next twelve hours or so then I’m calling the police- even if most of them are useless as hell, I know more of them will look, since they know who you are and all that. But I swear if that asshole did anything to you then he’s got another thing coming, and I know you don’t like to fight, but please, for the love of god, just sucker punch that creep in the face if you have to. He looks like he could use one, and an extra hard one at that.” She takes a moment to sigh, clearly frustrated - which her tone made very clear - but you could sense a little worry, “But, seriously. Just get back to me when you can, and you better be safe, alright? Listen to my other voice message if you haven’t already, talk to you soon, bye.”]
Just hearing Jessica’s voice made you feel a bit better, and some of what she said got a little laugh out of you. She always tried to look after you, and with what just happened – you couldn’t be more grateful for it.
So, you did as told, and listened to the other voice message she had left you, curious as to what she had wanted you to know about.
[“Hey, it’s Jess, darlin’. I hope you’re not still with that guy, but if you are then just remember what I told you, okay? Well, anyway, Cece came by, and is waiting for you in the diner, and barely awake at that. So just come by and pick them up, since- well, I’d send ‘em home on their own but honestly I doubt they’d be able to make it there themselves. I’m a little surprised they were even able to reach this place- but you get the jist. Come by, but if you’re still with that guy? I can wait, just hurry up because a girl’s gotta get her beauty sleep. See you, bye.”]
… Oh, well, guess you had to make a stop on your way home, then. You wanted nothing more than to curl up in your bed and just sleep, but it’s not like the walk to the diner was long anyway, and besides, it was on the way back to your apartment, so you couldn’t really complain.
With that, you made a turn and headed towards the diner. Still processing and taking in everything as you do so — but when you feel more tears begin to well up, you push it to the side, and tell yourself that you’ll handle it later. No matter how short or long that interaction was, it drained you, and you desperately needed rest. Maybe it wasn’t the most healthy decision to make, but you couldn’t handle doing anything else right now, so it’d have to wait. Besides, with how tonight went, you definitely didn’t want to think about Dick and the others at the moment – they didn’t deserve it, anyway.
Thankfully, you reached the diner in no time, and it’s only when Jessica stops you at the door do you even realize that your soaked… which makes sense but you feel a little embarrassed when she points it out nonetheless, and says how she loves you but doesn’t want to have to clean the floor again when her shift has been over for about a half hour. Cece was sitting at the counter, and perks up when you enter, giving a sleepy smile before standing up and making their way over to you. Both of you thank Jessica as you take your leave – but not before you wish her a good night and say your usual goodbyes, even if she does make a point about how you and her will talk later. Hell, she even sneaks in how you almost looked like her after her breakup with Michael which… ouch, you can only imagine how awful you really look if that was the case – but it also only fully confirmed that you were talking to her about what happened no matter what.
Still, you were grateful that she left it at that, and didn’t pry anymore as she finally let you and Cece go home. The walk to the apartment – or, rather, the short run there – since you and Cece ended up sharing their jacket as cover from the rain, and they had a funny idea as you both held it over your heads, and… well, one thing led to another – and it's safe to say it turned out to be rather eventful. Ending with you and Cece laughing in front of your apartment building once you reached it, huddled in front of the small entrance – Cece ending up being partially soaked despite their best efforts, and of course, you’re beyond drenched.
Once you reach your shared home, Cece, despite barely being awake, basically shoves you into the shower once you're both a little more settled, and you just do as told – more than a little tired yourself in numerous ways, and definitely not in the mood to argue. When you’re clean and in a new set of clothes, you and Cece talk a little. They try to ask why you had been out, but you just say you ran into someone – though it wasn’t anyone important, and that it wasn’t something to worry about — with them just accepting that answer, much to your relief.
The rest of the evening becomes a bit of a blur after that, with you and Cece just talking some more here and there, sharing a few laughs that really helped brighten your mood and made you forget all about what had happened. The pain becomes dull, and that bright fire in your chest finally dies out - leaving behind a warmth that wasn’t burning or suffocating, but instead comforting and painless. One you welcomed graciously and with open arms as you felt yourself relax more and more.
Eventually, Cece turned in for the night, and as they headed back into their room, you did one last check of the apartment — making sure all the windows were not only locked, but that the curtains were closed. Going as far as to check the front door a few times just to make sure that it was really locked. Even if none of what you did would really stop any of them from getting in - it put your mind at ease a little, and really, that’s all you could hope for.
With that, you finally settled into bed, and fell asleep faster than you had in years.
For once, you hoped you’d never wake up as your worries and fears felt so far away, and reality was out of reach – even if it laid just beyond your closed eyelids. As much as you hoped for a better morning, more than anything, you hoped that you’d just sleep the week away if you could help it. God knows you needed the rest, or at least it felt like you did.
—----------
Dick had no such luxury.
The night became a blur after you had left, and he barely remembers even meeting up with the rest of the family once everything was said and done. He couldn’t tell how long he had been standing in that park all by himself, thinking of everything you had told him and looking at the little pieces of your existence that still remained behind.
All he knows is one thing led to another, and now he’s here – sitting on top of a roof with everyone else both simultaneously chastising him and trying to discuss what they should do now. Though Dick couldn’t bring himself to pay attention, since the events that had unfolded moments prior replayed in his mind like a broken record, torturing him slowly as his brain reminded him of all of the mistakes he’s made tonight. He can’t understand why he said half of what he did, especially because he didn’t mean it. He didn’t mean to blow up like he did – especially in front of you, and when you were clearly hurting and frustrated on top of that. The only thing Dick wanted to do in that moment was stop both of you from arguing, and it seems that his mouth ran off to do just that before he could think of a better way to do it. Now leaving him like this, and things worse off than they were before.
Point is, Dick felt like shit, and he knew he deserved it. Though the rest of the family definitely weren’t helping him out in that regard.
“How the hell did you even fuck this up, Dick?” Jason asks, his tone so heated it sounds like it could’ve come from the depths of hell itself – and all just to burn his older brother.
“I knew I should’ve gone instead, this would’ve never happened-” Tim can’t help but mumble to himself, arms crossed as he sighs, frustrated – but not completely at Dick. If there was a moment for him to really believe he should’ve kept your address and apartment number to himself, it was definitely now.
“Wait- so… what do we do now?” Stephanie asks, concerned over what happened, and that Dick hasn’t really said anything about it to them – even if all of them can tell it went poorly.
Damian just sighs, his arms crossed as well as he looks at Dick before looking to the others, “Take matters into our own hands, obviously.”
“While I agree that something should be done, is it really a good idea to act now?” Barbara pitches in, not entirely sure of what Damian was talking about, but not liking the implications of it all the same. Something about it just didn’t feel right to her, nor did the look he gave her.
“Of course. Now that they’re presumably heading to their apartment, we can just-” before Damian can finish what he was going to say, Cassandra covers his mouth, cutting him off swiftly which annoys the little Robin enough to shove her hand away and give her a scrutinizing look, “what?”
Cassandra just shakes her head, and instead begins to sign something, basically saying how they don’t know if you're even at your apartment, and by the time they find out where you actually are, it’ll probably be morning. Even mentioning how since you know that they know where you live, you probably wouldn’t even be there anymore. Which just causes Damian to huff in response. She had a point, and he knew it, but he wasn’t going to admit it out loud.
Still, despite that Jason spoke up again, “Actually, I agree with the little twerp. Now’s a good a time as any to get them home.”
“... You can't be serious, right?” Barbara asks, now getting a little concerned over what Jason meant as well, and the half-shrug he gave did little to reassure her or calm her nerves that were slowly beginning to rise.
“Why not? They’re still out there doing god knows what- who knows where in the dead of night,” he points out, giving Barbara a little glance, “it anything, I just see more of a reason to get them before anything else happens.”
“Jason, do you even hear yourself right now.”
“What? Is it a crime to be worried for my god damn family now?”
“Jason.” Bruce’s voice pierces through the air, cutting through the tension before anyone else can speak up or give their two cents. Almost as if just his voice alone was enough of a barrier between those who wanted to get you home, those that didn’t, and the few who didn’t know where they stood at the moment.
Regardless, it’s enough for Jason to stand down, if only temporarily as Bruce turns to Dick – who’s still out of it, and staring at the ground just before his feet.
“Dick,” Bruce calls out, which only gets him a subtle glance, with Dick not even bothering to pick up his head – or maybe he just couldn’t, no one could tell except for the one person among them who was much too fluent in body language. “What do you think?” He asks simply, narrowing his eyes a little when his eldest son grows quieter somehow.
Dick fidgets with the coffee cup in his hands, its warmth long gone, and yet he still runs a finger or two along the side as if it was still there. He doesn’t know why he grabbed it, but now he almost couldn’t find it in himself to let it go. It was yours, after all, if only for a brief moment – and even if all it did was serve as a reminder of his faults, it reminded him of you, and right now? That’s all he could ask for. Dick can’t explain it, but it’s like by holding the cup and having it with him, he had a small part of you with him. Since, sure, while you had left it during your… ‘dispute’ with him, it had come from a place you liked and he could only assume that it was just how you liked your coffee. It was silly, but holding it made him feel close to you, and that’s all he wanted at the moment. To be close.
… It takes him a beat or two before he responds, and even then he seems unsure of himself – but remembering what had transpired minutes ago is enough to set his mind straight.
“I think… we should give them some time, and… a bit of space too for a while.” Dick manages to say hesitantly, tapping the cup lightly as he still holds onto it.
That seemed to quiet everyone down for a moment, until Stephanie eventually asks the question on everyone’s mind.
“Just how badly did things go, Dick?”
He couldn’t answer that, he didn’t want to, so he remained silent. However, Cassandra could tell, and found herself just as divided as she felt the moment she first saw him. She didn’t know what she wanted to do more – throw Dick off the roof, or go looking for you herself. Maybe she’d try to do both if Bruce wasn’t right there.
“So, what? Do they hate us now or something?” Jason says sarcastically, but with how Dick tenses a little his tone turns harsher, “... You can’t be serious.”
“Dick- please tell me you didn’t screw things up that badly. Please tell me that you didn’t make things worse!” Tim almost begs, desperate to be wrong and hoping that his eldest brother hadn’t made things worse – that there was still a small chance.
Sure, they didn’t expect things to go great, but none of them really believed that they would go so horribly!
“Look, just-” Dick takes a short breath, looking at the cup in his hands in quiet defeat before glancing away, “I think we should give them some time to themself is all.”
Jason can only scoff as he crosses his arms, “I knew I should’ve gone instead, they would’ve been home right now.”
“I believe me and father would’ve handled the situation much better,” Damian states, as if it would lead to the only positive outcome should he and Bruce had gone instead.
“I knew I should’ve kept my mouth shut and just gone over by myself- stupid! Stupid! Stupid!” Tim curses under his breath, looking away as he continues to mumble to himself – expression growing increasingly darker and the air around him shifting into… something indescribable.
Cassandra seemed just about ready to rip something apart, and Stephanie was getting nervous from how the others seemed to be reacting, only able to stutter out a small, “G- guys? Maybe we shouldn’t be talking about this right now-”
“I agree…” Barbara chips in, her own concerns only growing as she looks at the family, but tries to help Stephanie out nonetheless, “What’s done is done, and we should be trying to figure out what to do from here on out.”
Damian scoffs, “Right, like that will be easy with brother being silent about everything.” Dick could only look away in response, taking a small sip of the coffee in his hands, finding a little bit of comfort in its taste. It was cold, and wasn’t how he usually got his done – but it’s how you liked it, and that was enough from him to like it too.
A small argument seemed to spawn from that alone, with some now going back and forth yet again on what to do – Cassandra, Jason, and Damian pretty adamant about wanting to bring you home, with Barbara, Stephanie, and Dick more keen on waiting and giving you space — even if Dick was definitely more quiet about his stance, still thinking about… whatever was on his mind. Tim didn’t seem to engage much in the arguing either, and instead seemed to be dealing with his own thing as he kept mumbling to himself, leaving Bruce to be stuck listening to all of the nonsense until he finally got fed up with it.
“Quiet down, all of you.” He states firmly, voice cold and harsh as he shuts everyone up without even moving an inch. His eyes seemed to judge all of them as he looked at everything before sighing, and making the decision for everyone.
“We’ll give them time, and stand down for now.” He says, his tone alone indicating that there would be no arguing on this. What he said was final, and everyone would be smart to follow along with it, no matter where they stood. Still, he turned to look down at the city, and caught the faintest glimpse of your apartment building in the not-so-far distance. “but if anything happens, then we’ll act accordingly.”
#yandere batfam#platonic yandere batfam#gn reader#yandere dc#platonic yandere#yandere x gn reader#yandere batfam x reader#yandere dc x reader#yandere dick grayson#yandere dick grayson x gn reader#it's finally here in full!#total wc is around 37.5k words#so the 1st part is around 16.5K~ words#and this part is around 20K-21k~ words respectfully#ngl i lost a bit more of my sanity writing this chapter#i was so naive when i called chapter 2 my longest post...#not series
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I'm not a good person - Pat 'The Bunny' Schneeweis // Letters to Felice - Franz Kafka // Alone in a crowd - Dennis Wells // I'm broke, most friendless and I've wasted my whole life - Heather Havrilesky // Jealousy, jealousy - Olivia Rodrigo // unknown // Talking to myself - Yohji Yamamoto // Last one up - Paul Oxborough // A self-portrait in letters - Anne Sexton // Henrikaau
#vent posting? on my sideblog? it's more likely than you think#anyway things have not been great lately (again)#as you could probably glean from this#where's the post that talks about how people will eventually become sick of you#when whatever is wrong with you goes on for longer than they can handle#because that's the flavor of the day#not that i blame them#i am exhausting to be around and i'm well aware of it#i know this episode will pass and i'll go back to feeling like i do most of the time#web weaving#quotes#literature#aesthetic#on self loathing and inadequacy#art#excerpts#fragments#dark academia
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Cola- John Price NSFW
Based on a request:
Ma’am, hello & how are you? I hope I’m not bombarding you with a lot of requests. I was listening to Older by Isabel LaRosa and I have imagination of Fem!Reader x Price (PeePaw)
Reader (early twenties), fresh graduate and a newbie in TF141 handling weapons stocks (or whatever you call it, lol). Met Price for the first time and her daddy issues vibrating.
Both taken a liking of each other (im sucker for love at first sight)…..
I leave the rest up to your imagination and creativity ☺���. Please ignore this request if goes against your FAQ. Thank you 🫶🏼
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F!Reader, smut, 18+, MDNI, oral!sex, age!gap
----
A/N: short...I know and also a bit shit...
When you met him, it was like something clicked. The smiles you both flashed towards each other were something rather sweet. Your heart flutters, cheeks reddened and you became nervous. Your mind scrambles, trying to find an excuse to approach him and for him, it was the same. His mouth dries, eyes not being able to look away from you. What is it about you that makes him feel like a teen once more? Would you two have the chance to even talk?
You are new to base and the team your mentor, Laswell, listed you in. You became an armourer for the team and being your first day, you needed to have a meeting with the captain of the team. Fuck, I hope it's him, you think. Your eyes are on his body. Why must you be into men much older than you? It's a curse but a blessing.
Once in his office, he sighs and nods you to sit down. "You must be Y/N?" He sits down and lights up his cigar as he sizes you up. A smirk plays on his lips. Fuck, I can't think of her this way, he thinks.
....
The meeting is long, a rundown of what the team does, the values it holds and what you'll be doing later in the day. He smiles but tries to fight it off. He asks you to talk about yourself, a mediocre excuse to listen to your voice for longer. It's like he needs to know you for more than just being in the same team. As John leans back into his seat, he lets the smoke fill the room. Between laughter and comments, he and you can feel the attraction arise.
He smiles, and leans in, "You said men your age don't treat you write?" Oh what a comment this could lead to. As you explain why, he smirks. Maybe a man like himself can fix the little issues you have. John begins to take notes about you, the way you talk and how you smile at fond memories that you mention casually.
....
With days, he calls you back to his office, this happens over and over. From light conversations to the ones that make you tear up that lead to him playing the role of the man you truly need. "C'mere doll," he says and pats his leg. With teary eyes you sit on his lap and nuzzle your face on his neck, his strong arms wrapping around you. One of his hands cups your face and wipes your tears away.
Is it wrong he wants this so much more when you cry and depend on him? Can you be his little secret? You'll understand when he asks that your sweet lips lay on his, right? or how by now, his breath is close to your lips.
"Kiss me, yeah?" he asks with a whisper.
You lean in, letting him take control of this moment now. Your body wrapped around his and now he cups your face, needing you closer than before.
Fuck does he need your mouth wrapped around something else. He shakes his head and pulls away, "On your knees, doll," he commands and you obey so perfectly.
He unzips his jeans and pulls your hand onto his cock, your lovely hands playing with his balls. Slowly, he pulls his cock out and he groans as you slowly lick his tip, your pretty eyes on him. "Oh fuck..." he whispers and pushes your head in. His hand gripping your hair, guiding you to his own need. You gag, eyes teary as you suck him off. Your sweet lips make him more aggressive, he curses you and his grip tightens on your neck when he feels his cock bulge inside of you.
His balls tighten, his head thrown back and then he bucks his hips. "Fuck....oh fuck you're so good," he groans and just as drool falls from your mouth, he cums in your pretty throat. "Oh the things you make me do, Y/N. I promise next time, I'll show you why men like me are so good for pretty things like you." His lips meet your forehead before they kiss your swollen lips.
A/N: This was rushed..sorry pookie
Tags:
@liyanahelena @goldenmclaren @ghostslillady @moonsua1 @frizzseaberries @frazie99 @idklols @katybaby00 @saoirse06 @vampsquerade @alxexhearts @baldwinhearts @Juneonhoth @tiredmetalenthusiast @jinxxangel13 @strangepuppynightmare @enarien @Simonssweetgirl @luvecarson @nellsbobells @coralwitchdreamland @ikohniik @nobodys-coffee @strawberrychita @sae1kie @queen-ilmaree @Llelannie @Macnches2 @anonymuslydumb @avidreadee123 @talooolaaloolla @skelletonwitch @bittermajesties @1234beeandpuppycat @sparky--bunny @honestlyhiswife @who-can-appease-me @ghostwifeyy @konigssultwithghost @pinkblossomsworld @lovelyvqer @the_royal_bee @beansproutmafia @soapybutt17 @asianbutnotjapanese @a-goose-with-a-knife @foxface013 @born4biriyani @thegreyjoyed @mychemichalimalance @marshiely @iruzias @sleepyycatt @noodlezz-bedo @trinthealternate
#cod mw2#cod#cod x reader#mwii#call of duty#cod smut#price call of duty#john price#price x reader#price cod#price mw2#price x you#cod fic#captain john price smut#captain johnathan price#cod price x reader#cod price#captain price#john price cod#captain john price#captain price smut#price smut#john price smut#cod john price#cod mwii#john price call of duty
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Heyyy!! Can u do like a bittersweet one abt Mingyu forgetting abt ur date cuz he went out with the other members
(NOT A) DATE NIGHT — kim mingyu x reader
summary: sometimes it was hard dating an idol because of their busy schedules. after missing a date and being mia, mingyu tries to make it up to you.
note: nooo this is such a sad request!! however, I couldn't handle leaving it on a sad note so it ends really happy!
join my taglist!
It was hard scheduling dates with Mingyu. Between his hectic schedule and your work schedule that never seemed to line up with his, it was difficult going out with each other.
Of course, that didn't deter either of you from at least trying. You've been together for about three years now, and some of these dates consisted of having to Facetime him when you just woke up while he was just going to sleep.
But this was the first time since you guys got together that he hasn't shown up or even texted he was going to be late for your date. So there you stood, dressed up, sat on the couch, feeling sad for yourself.
You tried calling Mingyu a couple of times, texting him to see if he was on his way, but there was no answer. With no way to get to him, you dialed the number of the next best person to reach out to.
"Wonwoo, is dance practice going on?"
"Dance practice ended about an hour ago," he told you.
You pursed your lips and automatically assumed that he forgot, since if you were to think about it any longer you were going to spiral and think of a worse reason, which is not what you wanted to do.
Sighing, you said, "Okay, thanks anyways," and was about to hang up.
"What's wrong?" Wonwoo asked.
"It's just, Mingyu and I were supposed to go on a date but he never ended up coming home, so..." You trailed off, the insinuation clear.
From the other side, you heard Wonwoo curse, presumably at Mingyu even if he wasn't there.
"He must've gone with the others to go to eat. They were talking about it during practice. I'll call one of the members right now—"
"No, it's alright. I'll just talk to him later,"
"You sure? Cheol's always got his phone on so I can probably call him so he can get Mingyu—"
"It's alright," you repeated.
Wonwoo sighed from the other line, and you could tell he wanted to say something, but he stopped himself and instead said, "Let me know how it goes,"
You didn't bother with a response and just hung up. And with a heavy heart, you decided to go to your bedroom and get ready for bed.
Trying to sleep with the thought that your boyfriend missed your date was difficult. The most you could do was stare at the ceiling until you fell asleep out of pure exhaustion and not because you wanted to.
This, however, was quickly interrupted by the sound of the front door opening, which made you sit up. At the sound of Mingyu's footsteps approaching the bedroom, you grabbed your phone and pretended you were occupied by whatever was on the screen.
He walked in, and part of you hated to see how relaxed he looked. He could've pretended to look at least a tiny bit guilty. "Hey," you offhandedly greeted, your phone seemingly more important than him.
"Hey, baby," Mingyu said, giving you a sweet smile that almost melted all the anger you felt for him away. But you had to stay strong, so you didn't say anything.
From the corner of your eye, you could see that he was confused at your lack of reaction; whenever he would come home, you'd practically jump at him and ask him questions and kiss him all over his face even if he came from dance practice.
"How was dance practice?" You asked.
"It was good but tiring like always. But I went out with a couple of the members for food afterward, and that's always fun," Mingyu recalled.
"I tried calling you but you didn't answer," you told him, and a look of realization showed on his face.
"Oh, I turned off my phone in order to focus on practice and I forgot to turn it on. Sorry babe," he apologized.
You hummed in response then said, "It's fine, just get ready for bed so we can sleep,"
Mingyu nodded, still visibly confused about how you were acting, but went into the bathroom in order to get ready for bed.
However, he must've turned his phone back on, since you heard him curse and then ran out of the bathroom. You guessed that he must've seen your texts about reminding him for the date or Wonwoo scolding him for forgetting about the date.
"Baby, I am so sorry—" he started, rushing to your side of the bed and kneeling down so you guys made eye contact.
"Gyu, it's fine," you cut him off, even if you were lying through your teeth.
"No, it's not fine. I should've remembered and you shouldn't have to remind me. I could've set a billion reminders about the date and even asked some of my members to remind me—" Mingyu started rambling.
"Gyu, don't worry about it. However, this can't happen again, okay? If you're going to be late or just can't come, then text me. I don't wanna have to worry unnecessarily about where you are," you told him.
He stayed quiet for a bit, before saying, "...Are you sure it's fine?"
You nodded and he kissed you on the forehead.
"Of course, it's not fine! When has it ever been fine to miss out on a date and not answer your girlfriend's texts?!" Wonwoo scolded Mingyu.
Mingyu pouted and tried to defend himself by saying, "She said it was fine! Why would she say it's fine if it really wasn't?"
Wonwoo sighed and massaged his temples as if he had a headache (he probably did from dealing with his best friend). "Mingyu, if someone says they're fine, more often than not it means it isn't fine," he said.
"Then what should I do?"
"She's your girlfriend, you should be answering that,"
"I've already messed up enough as it is," Mingyu sighed.
"Look, your dates started out as a way to spend time with each other despite your busy schedules, right?"
"Right,"
"And for the most part, she's been the one arranging all of the dates you guys have, right?"
"Yeah, unfortunately," Mingyu guiltily said. This fact always made him feel bad because made him feel like if he didn't put more effort in, you'd find someone who could.
"Then, do something that shows you're going to become better,"
Mingyu contemplated Wonwoo's words before he knew what he was going to do.
Unlocking the door, you walked through and were surprised to see Mingyu sitting on the couch. "Babe, what are you doing here? You were supposed to be at work," you said.
Mingyu stood up and walked until he was stopped in front of you. Gently grabbing your forearms, he said, "Let's go on a date,"
Raising your eyebrows, you questioned, "You? Arranged a date?"
Nodding his head, Mingyu then said, "I know I haven't been the best boyfriend. With missing our date, turning off my phone, and not even letting you know that I was going to come home late, I'm just glad you're still here,"
You nodded, "Of course, I'm still here. I love you, but like I said last night, it can't happen again."
"And it won't. But, I have a surprise for you,"
Mingyu led you to your bedroom door, which was closed. He placed you in front of it and he opened it, and then you saw that your bedroom curtains were closed but your room was lit up by candles that were scattered around.
On your bed, were plates of some of your favorite foods that Mingyu cooked whenever he had the time. And on the TV, was your favorite movie already loaded in and paused.
Smiling at the cute sight, you turned to Mingyu, who looked nervous for your reaction. "You did this all for me?" you asked, touched.
"You've been working hard on your own job and trying to navigate dating me, so I wanted to do something that showed my appreciation for you," he told you.
"This is so sweet! I don't know what to say,"
"You don't have to say anything right now, since I have about a week in order to make up for everything,"
"What do you mean?"
"I know that you were planning to take your planned break from your job, so I asked to take a week off too," MIngyu informed you.
"But, Gyu, a week is a lot of time you're going to miss. How about the comeback?" you worriedly asked him.
"I've got it all figured out. Wonwoo's going to send me videos of the dance practices so I can learn them from home and I already learned and recorded my lines with Woozi," he told you.
"That's a lot to do from home," you commented.
"As long as I'm with you, I'm fine," he reassured you.
"So, a whole week?"
"A whole week. The members aren't allowed to contact me if it's work-related," Mingyu said.
"Did Wonwoo scold you for forgetting?"
"I almost thought he was going to strangle me for how dumb I was being,"
taglist (if your name is not underlined, it means I was unable to tag you): @belladaises @winterpaos @wonhuiful @minhui896 @baekhyunimochibbh @x-alightinthedark @whywontyousetfree @minghaossv @coffeesandrains @slaveofmydreams @bmkgemz @dandycharmer @outrologist @stagefrjghts @dahliatopia @exo-saranghajaaa @uhlatcha @watermelon-sugars-things @miniminimingi @venzline @kokorit0 @withloveyjh @mikopikotobiko @lockburn-castle @mrs-kamisato @userjunhuii @mypsychicpizzaworld @againwithwonu @violetvoo @maevadobreva @hyperhanie @soonyoungblr @miesieu @baekhyunstruly @ryusol @xuenihao @itsrachelsplace @thatcuteandquietgirl @yoonzinoooo @swinterr @xyncthiaaa @dearxia
#seventeen fluff#mingyu fluff#kim mingyu fluff#seventeen imagines#seventeen x reader#mingyu x reader#kim mingyu x reader#seventeen scenarios#svt x reader#mingyu fic#mingyu scenario#mingyu imagines#seventeen mingyu#seventeen reactions
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being extremely flirty headcanons
featuring…! tetcho suehiro
content: no manga spoilers, just mentions of the 5th hunting dog without their name, fluff
navigation | bsd masterlist
constantly flirting with tetcho… i hate to say it, but you’d probably regret it. this man will usually not take the hint and misunderstands what you’re trying to say, or takes it too seriously 😭
“you scraped your knees because you fell for me?” tetcho repeated. he gently grabbed your wrist, “let’s get that cleaned up, then.”
cue you both being annoyed, but also in awe of how kind he was. then it hits you that he’s truly an idiot because you were in uniform, and your pants weren’t messed up at all.
he sincerely wants to understand what you say most of the time, so he’ll go to someone else that’s around. a personal hc, but he often goes to jouno
jouno, being who he is, tells tetcho to figure it out himself. it’s for his entertainment, really. he gets to watch tetcho try to figure it out and you agonize over the fact that he can’t understand that you’re hitting on him
the fact that he does this amuses teruko greatly, as well as fukuchi but not as much. our final hunting dog? well, they sort of pity you because how tetcho doesn’t understand
if you’re the type to flirt more physically, tetcho literally lets you because he just thinks you’re like that… and it also doesn’t really bother him
if you let your fingers linger on his arms longer or sit closer to him than anyone else would, he’d assume that you liked physical touch with anyone more than anything
“so,” you gripped tetcho’s arm with your hands, fingers trailing down his well-defined biceps, “want to go out for lunch? i know a place you’d love.”
you guys had just finished training, the smell of sweat lingering inside of the room. you wanted to grab the opportunity to ask tetcho before you guys headed for the showers.
“i don’t mind,” he replied. he patted your head, “i’ll be sure to ask the others too for you.”
he was about to walk away when you grabbed his arm. you told tetcho that you wanted it to just be the two of you, but he thought that if you knew a place with good food, you might as well just bring everyone along to try.
“just- yeah, whatever,” you exhaled to prevent yourself from getting even more frustrated. “tell me if they’re coming when you finish.”
you knew it was coming, but all the frustration finally came to light one day. even if it was for a day, you laid off in trying to flirt with tetcho. he took notice and immediately knew something was wrong
he’d ask anyone nearby if they noticed that you were off today, but they would say they didn’t. after all, you were only acting differently around tetcho
you should hope that tetcho doesn’t go ask teruko for help in this situation. i can imagine her taking advantage of it and setting him up to turn things around between the two of you. it’s fun for her to mess with people, so don’t be surprised
you’re walking the halls of military headquarters when you suddenly sense an incoming presence. before you could even grip the handle of your blade, a hand holds your wrist back. long, slim fingers slide down slightly, loosening its grip against you.
turning around, you are met with tetcho. his hat was off, so his hair appeared a bit more scattered than it usually did. you liked it like that, nothing resting on top of his head.
“tetcho?” you asked. “what’s wro-“
you’re taken aback by his sudden movement. tetcho let your wrist go before he caged you between his body and the wall. you could only look between his arms in shock.
‘a-am i dreaming?’
“if you want to confess your love for me, just say it normally. there’s no shame in that,” you joke. although you’ve definitely thought of this scenario before, you weren’t expecting it now.
his head, which was facing down, goes up to face you. he looks at you with eyes so serious that your heart skips a beat. you didn’t know what he would say, and a small part of you feared that it wouldn’t be good.
“what’s wrong with you?” tetcho asked.
you could only look at him confused, “what’s wrong with me? what’s wrong with you? grabbing my wrist like that- then there’s this… you’re the one acting odder than usual.”
“i’m acting odd? i’m just asking you,” he retorted, equally confused. you could tell by the innocent tilt of his head.
“then why did you have to ask in such a dramatic way…?”
“oh, teruko-san told me to do this. she said it was the best way to get you to answer. i won’t let you go until you do, y/n-san.”
“and what will you do if i don’t answer?” you gave him attitude. “what, you’ll kiss me?”
he inched closer to you, “if that’s what it takes, yes.”
in the end, both of you happen to get what you want 🤭
note: i’m not sure what format you wanted this in, so i decided to do headcanons and drabbles 🙏🏻 but thank you sm for requesting! i love tetcho and think we need more work about him. request is here
reblogs are appreciated <3
#bsd x reader#bungo stray dogs x reader#bungou stray dogs x reader#tecchou x reader#tetcho x reader#tetchou x reader#bsd tecchou#suehiro tecchou#bungou sd#bungo stray dogs#bungou stray dogs#bsd headcanons#bungo stray dogs headcanons#bsd fluff#aqwriting
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Be Somebody to Someone 4/4
You've lived your entire life in Forks, Washington without anyone paying too close attention to you. Then you befriend the new girl and suddenly you find yourself friends with the unexpected. And maybe even something more if a certain shapeshifter stops denying the Fates.
PART ONE | PART TWO | PART THREE | PART FOUR
Words: 6.6K
Author's Note: AU where the pack doesn't split and Sam is the only alpha. We're about to talk some sense into these giant doggos. Hopefully lol.
If the pack didn't know something was up when finding Paul fast asleep at the edge of the bed you were sleeping in, then they definitely knew the first time they all shifted and they saw the conversation Emily had with Sam, and then Sam with Paul. The boys all tiptoed around you, speaking quietly when you were in the room, but it was Leah who attempted to treat you the same as to not annoy you.
And for that you were grateful because you and Paul felt guilty enough over the incident, so it was a breath of fresh air for Leah to be her usual bitchy self.
It was a pain to explain to your parents how you got the bruise on your face, and an even bigger pain to explain why you didn't press charges, but eventually everyone got over it. Paul, however, seemed to wanna stick close.
With Paul no longer fighting the bond, it seemed like you can breathe a little easier. That odd little ache in your chest disappeared and he no longer snapped at his pack brothers. And just when you and Paul find peace with one another, Jacob decides to go off the rails.
With the apparent love of his life marrying a bloodsucker, Jacob can't handle it. He tries to rile up the pack, mentioning that Bella was going to be turned as soon as she married the leech and that it was their duty to attack the leeches before it came to that. So, when the pack became uneasy with the possibility of the Cullens breaking the treaty, you put your nose into their business.
"I just don't understand why you can't leave that family be. They're not harming anyone."
All around you, the pack goes quiet. Jacob breaks that silence by scoffing. "You're joking, right? They're going to kill Bella!"
You shrug. "Not against her will."
"Are you serious right now? You're supposed to be on our side!"
"I am! But you need to see if from their side as well," you tell him. You soften your voice as you deliver your next words. "She's his mate, Jacob. Whether you want to believe it or not, she is. And just like the shifters, the vampires have rules they must follow. As a human mate, Bella only has so many years before Edward has to turn her or the Volturi will swoop in and kill her. Permanently."
"That's why she shouldn't have gotten involved with him in the first place."
Sighing, you shake your head at him. "Keeping them apart is like keeping Sam and Emily apart. Or me and Paul. It's not fair to the Cullen family to condemn them all to death just because you're in love with a woman who doesn't love you back."
Jacob stands, pushing his chair with such force that it topples over. Sam shouts after him as he disappears out the back door and you sit back in your seat, crossing your arms over your chest.
"That was a little harsh," Quil says.
"Oh whatever. It's the truth," Leah says. The pack looks at her in surprise and she rolls her eyes. "Don't get me wrong, I hate the bloodsuckers as much as anyone else, but the Cullens? They're different. And if Bella really is the leech's mate, then who are we to tell them he can't turn her? It's cruel to keep mated pairs apart, and I figured at least Sam and Paul would understand that."
Leah takes her leave from the table then, a lot calmer than Jacob previously had, and everyone stares at Sam.
The alpha sighs, rubbing a hand down the length of his face. "I need to speak with the Elders. We need to make a few amendments to the treaty if we want to keep peace with the Cullens."
Sam takes his leave as well, but not before pressing a kiss to Emily's forehead, and then all eyes turn to you.
"What?" You feign innocence.
Seth is the only one smiling at you and Paul caves a moment later. He huffs a laugh, resting his arm along the back of your chair. "Jacob's never gonna forgive you if you get the Elders to okay the Cullens turning your friend."
"He'll understand one day when he imprints."
When Sam returns hours later, he doesn't tell anyone how the talk with the Elders went. You only have an inkling of their decision when Jacob runs away yet again, making his pack brothers track him down. You apologize to Sam for speaking up and causing tension within his pack, and he accepts your apology. He's not a fan of the leeches turning a human either, but he realized you raised a valid point and doesn't mind the outcome as much as he thought he would.
The day of Bella's wedding catches you off guard and you find yourself in a rush to get ready for it. You had showered and then dressed in a robe so you could eat some lunch beforehand, only to be surprised with a visitor as you're heading back up the stairs.
Your dad answers the door and Paul's voice makes you freeze. Whirling around, you find Paul introducing himself to your dad and your dad doing the same. Just as Paul's gaze darts up and lands on you, he smirks as your dad turns around. "Oh sweetheart, your date is here."
"He's not my date," you immediately reply.
"No?" Your dad glances back at Paul. "And why not? Is my daughter not beautiful enough for you?"
"Dad!" Paul's eyes widen and you bite back a smirk. "Paul, ignore him."
"N-No, sir. I'm just not a fan of the Cullens and vice versa."
"Oh good. Another individual who doesn't like that weird family. Get on in here, son. Make yourself at home."
Huffing, you roll your eyes and step down a few stairs. "Dad, when are you going to stop hating that family?"
"When your mother stops swooning when she sees Doctor Cullen out in public."
"You're being overdramatic." Then looking at Paul, you gesture for him to follow. "Come on. You can hang out up here while I finish getting ready."
"Oh I see how it is," your dad says as you and Paul make your way upstairs. "It wasn't them pale Cullens I had to worry about with you, it was them reservation boys."
"Dad! Can you not?"
Paul snorts as your dad shouts after you, "You never brought any boys home while you were in high school. Let me have this!"
"No!"
You show Paul to your bedroom, shutting the door behind the two of you. "I like your dad."
"Don't even start."
Paul chuckles and takes the time to glance around your room as you sit at your vanity to get started on your makeup. "So what brings you here? I thought you couldn't come to Forks?"
"We couldn't before," he says. "But after Sam talked to the Elders and apparently met with the Cullens, some changes were made. We don't attack them for changing their mate and they let me visit my imprint. As well as anyone else who might imprint on someone off the reservation."
"Cool. So what's up? You change your mind about going to the wedding?"
"Hell no." In the mirror's reflection, you watch him make himself comfortable on your bed. "Just wanted to see you."
"Aww." You coo. "Don't I feel special."
You fall silent, but it's comfortable. You can see Paul watching as you contour and highlight, and he continues to watch when you braid your hair before wrapping it around the back of your head to make a crown. Then pulling on a few tendrils of hair to frame your face, you stand up to grab your dress from inside of your closet.
"Alright, step out or turn around. I need to drop the robe."
"Then drop it."
It takes a second for you to comprehend his words and your head snaps in his direction. You catch him smirking and looking you up and down. Instantly, a blush blossoms. Never has he been so bold with you, especially since the two of you were strictly friends. At least that's what the two of you were trying out for now.
"Creep," you end up saying, laughing him off. "Just turn around."
Paul jokingly grumbles while pulling a pillow over his face and you grin while hiding behind your closet door. You quickly drop the robe and then step into your dress. You grab a pair of heels before making your way back to the vanity, telling Paul he can look now.
You manage to put on your heels and some jewelry without Paul making a peep, and when you stand to smooth down the skirt of your dress, you glance up at him to find him already staring at you.
"You look beautiful."
You can feel the blush come back yet again and you smile at him. "Thanks." You fiddle with the rings on your fingers as you nervously chuckle. "So are you second guessing not going with me now?"
"Actually, I kind of am."
You roll your eyes before grabbing your clutch purse and gesturing to the door. "Come on. I really have to get going and I doubt you want to stay here with my dad."
"I don't know. He seems kind of amusing."
As Paul follows you back downstairs, you introduce him to your mom who is all too happy to meet him. Your mom isn't nearly as embarrassing as your dad is, but still pretty embarrassing nonetheless, and you can see that Paul genuinely likes them. And before he can get too comfortable, you usher him towards the front door while telling your parents you'll be home late.
Outside, Sam's truck is parked by the curb and you shake your head at Paul. It seemed everyone used either Sam or Emily's vehicle when they needed to go somewhere.
"Are you coming to Em's tonight?" He asks.
"Maybe. If it's not too late by the time I leave," you tell him.
"Well in case I don't see you later.." Paul steps closer and surprises you by pulling you into a hug.
You melt into his embrace, letting him hold on for as long as he needs. Then when it seems like it's been a little too long, you start to pull back. "Okay, okay. I really need to go now. I'll see you later."
Paul steps back and you don't pay any attention to the expression left on his face. Had you been looking, you would've seen the dawning realization that he actually liked you. And not in a platonic way either.
You take off after Paul climbs into Sam's truck, driving to the Cullen household since that's where the wedding is to take place. You hadn't seen Alice's final vision yet and were anxious to see what she came up with.
And when you step foot into their backyard, you're absolutely floored. The backyard and surrounding wooded area have been absolutely transformed into the most beautiful wedding venue you've ever seen, and you're in absolute awe.
Angela finds you first, followed by Jessica and Mike. You stand around with the three of them before everyone's seated, snorting with laughter when Mike and Jessica spoke in hushed tones about the gorgeous Cullen cousins who were visiting from Alaska.
Then all too soon everyone is seated and the wedding begins with Edward taking his place under the arch at the top of the altar. Carlisle walks Esme down the aisle until they get to their seats, as does Phil and Renee. Emmett and Rosalie take their turn down the aisle, and then Alice and Jasper. Then when it's time for Charlie to escort Bella, everyone stands.
The wedding ceremony is short and sweet, and then the reception is absolutely awkward. If Emmett and Charlie's speech wasn't awkward enough, then Renee's singing definitely was. The food and music is absolutely amazing, and you even share a dance with Seth when he approaches you after accompanying Billy Black.
Everything is fine and dandy until Jacob shows, causing tension with the bride and groom all over again. Seth had urged you to do something, but the most you could do was urge Jacob to go back to La Push if he wasn't there to give the happy couple well wishes.
And of course, Bella makes everything worse when she lets it slip that she was to be turned on her honeymoon. Jacob left after throwing a tantrum and you excused yourself from the wedding reception to go deal with the fallout.
What had started off as a wonderful day ended with a screaming match between you and Jacob, and reminding him that one day he would have his own imprint and that Bella would be a thing of the past. That apparently wasn't such a good thing to say and Jacob took off. Again.
Over the next couple of days, you stay clear of Emily's. She understands your reasoning- you and Jacob still not seeing eye to eye, and you didn't want to cause any more tension with the pack. But Paul wasn't having any of that and took to visiting you down in Forks.
Your parents absolutely adore Paul and it greatly amuses you that he's quite taken with them too. You didn't think he was the type to get along with parents, but he proved you wrong. Especially when your parents fed him and didn't bother to beat around the bush when inviting him to stay the night. You had to keep reminding them that Paul was just a friend, but apparently they didn't believe you. And Paul never corrected them.
The friendship line between you and Paul starts to blur more than ever, but you figured that would have eventually happened. It's just weird because there are moments where it seems like Paul wants to kiss you, but both of you refuse to make the first move.
Fortunately, well unfortunately really, things between you and Paul are put on the backburner when Alice calls you and asks for you to get to their house as soon as possible. You drive to the Cullen household, surprised to see the newly wedded couple back from their honeymoon so soon.
But what's even more surprising is the tension and how the family seems divided.
"Whoa. What'd I miss?" You ask.
Rosalie, who's never been a fan of Bella, is standing protectively over her shoulder while Edward is standing by the back wall of windows, staring out into the forest. Esme is seated on a stool off to one side of the room with Carlisle standing at her side, Alice and Jasper are seated on a second couch with Jasper's arm wrapped around her shoulders, and Emmett is on the same couch as them looking pretty peeved about something.
"Show her." It's Edward who speaks and Bella turns to frown over her shoulder.
"Show me what?" You hesitantly ask.
Bella, who you now notice looks a little paler than usual and has really dark circles under her eyes, glances back at you. "I need you to keep an open mind. Can you do that for me?"
"Uh yeah. I'm kind of standing in a room full of vampires, so.." you trail off, chuckling. Carlisle's the one to crack a grin and then Rosalie's helping Bella to her feet. The blankets fall away from Bella and your gaze is immediately drawn to her abdomen. Her very swollen abdomen. "Are you-"
"Yeah."
Your eyes widen as your eyes dart to her face. "How?!"
"We don't know," she tells you, self consciously covering back up.
Now the tension makes sense. A majority of the room is clearly against whatever is growing inside Bella, but Bella and Rosalie are already protective over it.
"It's killing her," Edward says.
As you meet his gaze, you gulp. "Not that I don't appreciate being in the know, but why tell me?"
"We were hoping you could talk to the pack," Carlisle says. You glance over at the coven leader. "You were such a big help with getting them to amend the treaty so we could turn Bella, but we have a feeling Jacob will try to rile up the pack yet again when Bella tells him about the pregnancy later today."
"I don't know." You frown. "I stirred up some trouble the night of the wedding. I'm trying to-"
"YN, please," Bella pleads. "He's one of my best friends and I need to tell him, but I need the pack to understand before Jacob runs to them."
You don't like that you're being dragged into the middle and Edward offers you an apologetic expression from behind Bella, but eventually you sigh. "Yeah. Whatever. I'll head over right now and send over Jacob before breaking the news."
"Thank you."
You move to embrace your friend, staring down at her belly afterwards. "Jesus. You really are pregnant."
"Yeah." She smiles and you know she's already wrapped around this baby's little finger.
You continue to stare at her belly in awe before you ask the uncomfortable question on your mind. "I don't mean to start any drama, but are you guys sure this.. is actually a baby?"
Rosalie hisses and Carlisle quickly admonishes her. "Stop it. It's a valid question."
"We're not sure what it is," Alice says.
"Baby. It's just a little baby," Rosalie urges.
"And if it's not?" You wince. "After all, Edward is a vampire."
"If worse comes to worse, we are prepared to handle the situation." Carlisle smiles apologetically at Bella when she lightly gasps. "I'm sorry, but we can't afford the Volturi making another visit and condemning us all to death."
"Well alright. I'll go talk to Sam, but I can't promise a good outcome."
"As long as you try." Carlisle smiles reassuringly.
You take your leave then, driving straight to La Push. Emily is the only one home and immediately she knows something is up. You assure her you're fine, but that you have something to tell the pack. Jacob can't know, not yet, and it's her turn to become a little uneasy.
You pass the time with Emily, mixing batter for some of her infamous muffins. Then when the pack arrives, you take a deep breath and try to center yourself as much as you can.
You distractedly press a kiss to Paul's cheek in greeting and smile at the rest of the pack. "Hey, uh, Bella's back," you tell Jacob. He freezes mid-sit. "I was visiting with her earlier and she said to tell you she was back."
Leah scoffs and Jacob glares at her before looking back at you. "Is she-"
"She's still human," you tell him. That's all he needs to hear before he's rushing out of the house.
Most of the pack groans, but it's Leah who asks, "Why would you tell him that?"
"Because I needed him out of the house." The pack quiets down and you gulp, glancing at Sam. "They needed me to talk to you before Bella spoke with Jacob."
"Why?"
"Because something quite impossible happened on their honeymoon and I'm pretty sure Jacob's going to throw an epic tantrum upon his return."
Jared huffs a laugh. "What? Did the undead leech knock up the bride?" The pack all snicker with the exception of Emily who is watching you very carefully.
You seem to pale at his words and the pack's amusement slowly fades.
"Please tell me you're joking," Sam says.
"I wish I could." You cross your arms over your chest and sigh. "Look, being in the middle is the last place I want to be, but they're desperate. They know how this looks, but it seems Bella is willing to go through with this pregnancy. The whole family is divided on what they want to do."
"Is it- is it even human?" Emily shakily asks.
You shrug. "No one knows. It hasn't even been two weeks, but she looks as if she's seven months pregnant already."
"Jesus," Sam swears.
"Bella's made her choice," you tell them, "and Rosalie's protecting her. The rest of the family is just worried about the Volturi."
"Why?"
"Because if this baby or whatever it is comes out with an uncontrollable thirst for blood and the Cullens don't do anything about it, the Volturi will swoop in and eliminate the entire coven."
"And if it doesn't? If it comes out normal?"
"Then they raise a hybrid baby. I'm not too sure about vampire politics, but I'm assuming they still won't be happy with this baby and there will be consequences."
"I don't want you going over there anymore." You glance at Paul, heart thumping at his stern expression.
"That's fine. It's not a fun place to be right now anyway," you tell him. Then glancing back at Sam, you say, "Carlisle is prepared to eliminate the threat if that's what it is, but only after Bella's given birth. They just wanted me to let you know so Jacob doesn't rile you guys up and recruit you into attacking the family for something even they didn't think was possible."
"By the sounds of things, it won't be long until she gives birth," Sam says.
"Yeah. I'm pretty sure-"
A long, sorrowful howl pierces the air and the kitchen falls quiet. Sam sighs and stands, and the pack follows suit.
As the kitchen empties, Emily steps up to your side and slings an arm around your shoulders. "Well, at least there's never a dull day around here."
You snort and lightly elbow her. "This is so messed up."
As expected, Jacob spills the beans to the pack. He's scared and angry, something which the pack all feel, but Sam is on the fence about what to do. On one hand, Bella could be birthing a threat, but on the other the baby could be completely innocent.
The pack and coven then come to a compromise, Carlisle and Edward giving the pack permission to sit outside the house when the baby comes into the world. Should things go haywire, the pack can be there to eliminate the threat.
For the next couple of weeks, everyone is tense. Paul wants you nowhere near the vampires, especially since it seems they're going to have to turn Bella as soon as the baby is out of her. And surprisingly, you don't fight him on it. He even takes the time to visit you at your house, dozing on your bed in between his patrols.
Jacob is with Bella when she goes into labor. You were with Emily when he alerted the pack and it's no surprise it's a traumatizing delivery that ends with Bella taking her last breath. What is a surprise is that the baby comes out looking completely normal, even drinking regular baby formula when she shouldn't be able to.
But the biggest surprise of all is that Jacob imprints on the baby.
He stays with Cullen family and his imprint while Bella completes her vampire transition.
One day you're sitting in Emily's kitchen when you suddenly snort. "So you guys know how Jacob was obsessed with Bella and how he's now claiming he was only obsessed with her because it was Fate preparing him for Renesmee?"
"Yeah?" Embry frowns.
"Do you think he was secretly obsessed with Edward too?" As you glance around the table, the pack frowns at you. "Think about it." Your lips twitch in amusement. "He's basically saying he was obsessed with Bella because of an egg in her fallopian tube. Can't the same be said for the shockingly alive sperm in Edward nutsack?"
Leah immediately splutters on her orange juice, laughing, and the rest of the pack groans in disgust. Your giggling sets off Emily's giggling, then Leah's, and soon enough the entire room is laughing.
Paul tucks you under his arm, kissing your temple while also telling you that you have a sick sense of humor.
Renesmee ends up growing too fast, leaving Jacob uneasy. And with Jacob uneasy, the whole pack is uneasy at the thought that he might lose his imprint months after her being born.
For a while, Jacob makes the most of his time with her, acting as a big brother to her. But then one day another vampire sees Renesmee out and about, and Alice has a vision about the Volturi coming. And a possible fight.
"Are we ever going to have a relaxing month?" You ask Paul, leaning into his side on Emily's sofa.
"Doubtful."
"Figures that when you and I find ourselves in a good place, the vampires had to go and mess it up."
Paul chuckles and squeezes you to him a little tighter. "This is what you get for befriending them."
"Shut up. It's all Jacob's fault for imprinting on one."
Sam enters the room then, and you and Paul sit up straight. "We need to prepare," he says. "The Cullens won't ask us to fight, but they have asked us to witness."
"Witness?" You frown.
"They want us to stand with them and let the Volturi know of what we've seen. That Bella gave birth as a human, that Renesmee's diet consists of human food and animal blood, and that she's growing. They've all gone to find some friends of theirs, telling them the story of Renesmee in hopes that they'll stand as witnesses as well."
"Great," Paul groans. "So Forks is going to be crawling with leeches then?"
"Yes, which is why we need to prepare. With that many leeches close by, more of us are going to shift."
You quietly sigh and nudge Paul. "I should get going. You boys are going to be busy."
But before you can get far, Paul's speaking up. "I don't feel comfortable with you being in Forks with so many leeches coming in."
"Forks is my home. And even if I stayed here in La Push, my parents are in Forks. I don't want to leave them unprotected."
"Carlisle's warning off all the red-eyed leeches from feeding in Forks or La Push. Your parents should be fine."
"Then fine." You sigh. "I'll pack a bag and stay here if Em will have me."
"Uh, actually," Paul rubs the back of his neck. "I was hoping you'd stay with me."
"Oh." You're surprised at the offer, and you narrow your eyes at Sam who can't be bothered to hide his amusement as he glances between you and Paul. "Y-Yeah. That's fine."
Your parents didn't bat an eye when they caught you packing and found out you were going to be staying at Paul's for about a week. They did tease you, however, and made it a point to tease Paul as well when he visited on Christmas Eve since you were celebrating Christmas day with the pack.
Christmas came and went, and when Sam got the call with the precise day of when the Volturi would arrive, the entire pack- with its new additions- congregated at Emily's. The only one who wasn't present was Jacob who couldn't find it in him to leave Renesmee's side.
The night before the pack is to leave, Sam holds a bonfire right in Emily's backyard. Someone had wanted to have the fire on the beach, but it was too cold for the regular humans so they used the yard.
All the imprinted pairs paired off, huddling for warmth as the others sat around as if the cold didn't bother them. Seth even had a guitar in his lap, strumming a few chords and just playing around.
"Do you know an actual song or are you learning?" You ask him. You're sitting between Paul's thighs on the ground, his arms wrapped along your collar bones to keep you warm.
"Uh, still learning," Seth nervously chuckles. "Do you know how to play?"
"It's been a while."
Seth's eyes light up as he immediately gets up to hand you the guitar. "Play something! We need some good entertainment."
Tapping Paul's knee so he'll let you up, you stand and take the guitar. Pulling the strap over your head, the pack quiets down until only the crackling of the firewood can be heard. "Uh, I don't know what to play." You put your hands into position, playing a few chords to make sure it was tuned just right. It is.
"Anything. And if you can sing, that'll be a bonus," Jared muses.
You step aside so you're not standing directly in front of Paul and take a moment to think. And just as Embry opens his mouth to no doubt tease you, you start.
"It's a little fast paced," you tell them over the music. "Don't judge me. And remember, you asked for this."
The pack all chuckle and settle in, waiting to see whether you'll sink or swim.
"I don't wanna die or fade away. I just wanna be someone. I just wanna be someone."
"Oh my god," you hear Seth utter. "You can sing!"
"Dive and disappear without a trace. I just wanna be someone. Well, doesn't everyone?"
You can feel the excitement of the pack, but you keep your eyes on your fingers moving over the strings.
"And if you feel the great dividing, I wanna be the one you're guiding 'cause I believe that you could lead the way. I just wanna be somebody to someone, oh. I wanna be somebody to someone, oh. I never had nobody and no road home. I wanna be somebody to someone."
You continue the rest of the song, laughing when Emily immediately applauds. The pack all whoop and holler, and you pass the guitar back to Seth.
"Aw. That's it?"
"I don't know what else to sing." You laugh. "And besides, I'm really cold."
You reclaim your seat with Paul, pressing your back as close as you can to his chest and pull his arms around you. Your head tilts to the side as he nudges you with his chin, mouth hovering near your ear. "I didn't know you played."
"You don't know a lot of things, Lahote. I think it's time you play catch up."
"Oh I will. As soon as the leeches vacate Forks, you and I are gonna take a much needed vacation."
You chuckle but don't deny the idea. Some alone time with Paul sounds nice, especially if it'll clear up things between the two of you.
For the rest of the night, the pack reminisce about simpler times and talk about their plans for the future. Then when it's time to go to bed, Emily offers you and Paul her spare bedroom since you'll be staying with her when the pack leaves.
Sharing a bed with Paul is something you just recently started doing, but he never did anything more than pull you to his chest so he could cuddle you. And for now, that was more than fine.
"Are you nervous? About tomorrow?" You ask in the quiet of the dark room.
Paul lets the silence linger for a moment before pulling you closer, lifting his head so his chin is on your shoulder. "A little."
"Well I'm scared and I'm not even the one going to be out there."
"It's going to be fine. According to the veggie bloodsuckers, they're going to do everything to prevent a fight from breaking out."
"Yeah well the vampire royalty sound like a bunch of dicks." Paul snorts. "I wouldn't put it past them to find some fault with the Cullens to start a fight."
"Don't even worry about it." His lips press to the back of your shoulder and you momentarily tense before squirming in Paul's hold. "We're going to come back unscathed, and then you and I are gonna hole up in my house and forget about the outside world for a little while."
"That sounds nice, duckie," you murmur. "I'll be super mad if something happens to you."
"Duckie?"
"Mhm," you hum, sleep starting to overcome you. "Because you imprinted like a goddamn duck."
Paul chuckles at your back. "Whatever you say, YN. Now get some sleep."
"Okay."
The following morning when you wake up, you're alone in bed. You reluctantly get up and wash up, and head out towards the front of the house.
"Hey, sleepyhead," Emily muses.
"Hi." You take a seat at the table, fighting the urge to cross your arms and lay your head back down. "How long have they been gone?"
"About an hour or so. They wanted to speak with the vampires and have a plan set into place in case it did evolve into a fight."
You grimace. "I hate this."
"I know, sweetie. Me too." Emily mixes something up on the stove, cooking away until she brings a plate of pancakes and scrambled eggs over to the table. "We need to eat. Come on."
Sighing, you pull together a plate for yourself and eat what you can.
"So how are you and Paul?" The words make you freeze and when you glance up, Emily's smiling knowingly at you.
"Weird," you tell her. "Good weird though."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah." You slowly smile, but quickly scowl when she chuckles. "It's no secret that Paul is a good looking dude, so it was only a matter of time before I developed a crush on him."
"Well with the way he's been looking at you lately, I would hope you returned some of his feelings. Sam and I are so relieved he stopped fighting the bond."
"Me too." Slowly, you let yourself smile again. "He wants to hole up in his house when this is all over," you then admit. "We're still only categorizing ourselves as friends right now, so it'll be interesting to see what happens after today."
"I'll be sure to tell Sam to give him a bit of time off so the two of you can figure things out."
"Thanks, but if you think that might cause issues, then don't worry about it. We'll figure something out."
You help Emily practically clean her house from top to bottom, even quickly driving over to Paul's house to pick up your laundry so you can wash a load at Emily's. You go to the grocery store on the reservation, picking up a few things, and then head back to wait for any word about what's going on.
You and Emily eat a late lunch, the both of you starting to feel anxious as the time slowly ticks by. Eventually you settle down in front of the tv, laying out on her sofa while Emily flips through the channels.
You don't know when you nodded off, but the next time you're being woken it's because someone is shaking your shoulder. Paul looming over you makes you instantly alert and you sit up, making yourself dizzy.
"Easy," he chuckles. "Everything's okay."
"Is it over? Is everyone fine?"
"Everyone's fine," Paul assures you, squatting down in front of you. "There was no fight, though it did come pretty close. That leech that can see the future came through in the end. Found another hybrid hiding in some jungle to prove that Jacob's imprint won't cause any issues."
"Yeah?" You exhale with relief. "So Renesmee is going to be okay?"
"Should be. The other one was over a hundred years old."
"Thank god." You grasp Paul's face in your hands, leaning forward to rest your forehead against his. You give yourself a moment to just breathe him in, before releasing his face to hug him. "Where is everyone?" You mumble.
"Sam sent them home. We patrolled for a little bit over an hour to make sure the leeches truly left Forks before coming back to the res. We can go back to mine if you want."
"Yeah. That's fine."
Paul stands and pulls you to your feet, and you glance around at the too quiet house. "Sam took Emily to bed already. That's why it's so quiet."
"Oh. Okay." You follow Paul towards the door before breaking off and heading towards the laundry room. You collect your bag of clean laundry and then head back towards Paul, slipping into your shoes. "You drive," you say around a yawn, plucking your Jeep keeps from their place hanging on the wall. "I'm still sleepy."
Paul drives back to his house- a place you were surprised he lived in by himself. Apparently, after he became a legal adult and graduated high school, his father had packed up and left. Fortunately, Sam ran a small construction business so the adult members of the pack could make some cash to maintain their living situations, and Paul was doing pretty good for himself.
Arriving at his house, Paul grabs your bag of clothes before you can. You follow him to his front door, kicking off your shoes and readily making your way towards the bedroom.
"I'm gonna shower."
"Okay."
You crawl into bed while Paul collects some clothes for himself, chuckling at you as you burrow under his covers. His shower isn't as long as you expected, but still long enough for you to doze off.
Your eyes flutter open when you feel the bed dip and Paul lays his arm out so you can cuddle up to him. You scoot over, your cheek pressed over his heart as his arm wraps around your back. "It's finally over," he says.
"Don't jinx it."
"I'm not. In a few years, we'll be leech free. Your friends can't stick around too long given how fast Jacob's imprint is growing."
"How is that going to work? Jacob can't exactly leave, can he?"
"He can if he splits off from Sam's pack and forms his own. Jacob was always meant to be alpha, but Sam shifted first so the role automatically went to him."
"Do you think anyone will leave with him?"
Paul lightly sighs. "Leah's the only one I see switching packs. She'll do anything to break the mind link with Sam."
"And if Leah goes, Seth goes."
"Maybe. Maybe not," Paul tells you. "But that's not our issue. You and me? We're good here. It's about time we focus on ourselves."
"Speaking of, what exactly are we doing here?"
"What do you mean?"
"What I mean," you say, lifting your head so you can look him in the eye, "is that we agreed to be friends, but lately things between us don't feel like they fall in the friends category."
"Finally picked up on that, did you?"
You scoff and pinch the skin near his ribs. "Be serious."
"I am." He chuckles. "I didn't think I had to spell it out for you, but if you want me to clear things up.." He nudges you a little so you lean up and then leans up himself to press his lips to yours. You gasp, but he does nothing to deepen the kiss. He just keeps it chaste so as to not spook you off. "I'm tired of fighting the bond. It clearly wasn't meant to be platonic and I was just waiting until you figured out what you wanted."
"You." You murmur, hoping he can't hear how hard your heart is pounding. "I just want you."
"I just want you too," he smiles. "So now that that's settled, let's grab some sleep. I had to wake up super early this morning and the patrols beforehand took a lot out of us."
"Sure thing, duckie."
Paul groans at the nickname. "You remembered that nickname? I thought you would have forgotten it."
"Not a chance." You lay your head back down, letting your body relax against his. "I can't wait until the pack hears it."
"You're a brat."
"Whatever. I'm your brat now. Get used to it."
As Paul lets his body relax, he can't believe how lucky he is. He also can't believe he almost ruined his only chance at happiness, but he's very grateful you gave him a second chance.
Even if it came with a stupid and embarrassing nickname.
#paul x reader#paul lahote x reader#paul lahote imagine#twilight imagine#paul lahote#bella swan#jacob black#twilight#new moon#eclipse#breaking dawn
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Can you write a Vi x reader where they’re together and they have like, a safe word for arguments. Like, if one of them goes too far the other person can say the safe word and they’ll just take a moment to calm down and do fluffy stuff. But this time, when Y/N says the safe word, Vi just goes “to hell with the safe word Y/N!” and just continues the argument. A really angsty ending please (maybe a second part where they make up?)
i absolutely adored this prompt, and we will have a fluffy make up part 💗 i hope you enjoy it, anon!
violent. i
i chose 'pineapple' because it symbolizes hospitality. idk, it just spoke to me lol.
"vi, please, can we not do this right now?" you were tired and injured and feeling everything a little too deeply to handle an argument. even after trying your damndest to fight, you had... well, you'd lost the gemstone. more than that, you weren't able to fight to get it back.
"no. no, i am not gonna let this slide any longer! i helped you so much and this is how you repay me? you've essentially doomed the lanes. what the fuck is wrong with you?! god, you're just- you can't do anything right anymore. what happened to the days when you could hold your goddamn own?"
even though you knew she was just angry, just yelling to let off steam and not caring about the words she said, they still cut like a knife. wrapping your arms tight around yourself, you hated the feeling of tears rising to your eyes again. that just seemed to piss her off more.
"don't you fucking dare start crying right now, [y/n]. you have no right." vi spoke as much with her bandaged hands as with her voice, both trembling from the sheer anger she was feeling. those eyes- that gaze could've withered any lesser being, and yet somehow you were still standing. that was certainly worse.
"pineapple. vi, please." you managed, fighting back a sob.
instead of her tyrade stopping, instead of vi coming to the realization that she was hurting you, that ferocity remained. and, again, it managed to deepen.
"fuck the safe word, damnit!" vi cackled. it was a cold and utterly humorless sound. "i'm not done being mad at you. you're stronger than that! you're stronger than... this!" she gestured at you, as if to say that, whatever you were right now, it was weak and pitiful. that made you scowl. your own rage bubbled up in your chest. "you could've handled it back there. you took one fall, had one bit of shock and now all of a sudden you're a fucking crybaby? jesus christ, i thought you were strong."
you could barely hear her anymore. this woman who had always backed you up, always called you strong, was calling you pathetic. this woman who you had loved for god knows how long was insulting you like you were shit on the side of the road.
"get the fuck out of my apartment," you spat back, words filled with venom. instead of hugging yourself, your arms were now crossed tight over your chest. maybe you were angry, but those pesky tears did not stop.
"excuse me?"
"you heard me, god damnit." your voice broke. you took a deep breath through your nose, not letting your resolve melt for her. even if your voice wavered, you didn't stop speaking. "get the fuck out of my apartment, and i never wanna see your face again. that mission? it takes two, y'know. it was a failure on your part as well.
"now get. out."
there was the surprise and the reel-back. but it came a few moments too late. "c-cupcake, i-"
"shut up! don't call me that! you yell at me like i ruined the entire world, you betray my trust and the agreement- the promise we made to each other, and now you wanna apologize to me like nothing happened? that hurt, y'know! i damn near took a bullet for you. actually, sorry! i damn near took bullets for you. and now you're coming at me with this 'i have no right to cry' bullshit like you're so high and mighty! this is it. we are over, violet. now, i'm gonna say it one more time." you pointed at the door, glaring at her, unblinking, scowling. it was chilling to see you so pained.
"get. out." you dragged out the words like vi was a disobedient puppy. your voice, though weak, was hoarse and final, and filled with such broken animosity it made both of you shudder. vi was the only one who truly reacted.
there was no arguing with you anymore. you said it yourself; this was it.
everything about vi was conflicted. her expression was caught betwen angry and apologetic; wanting to continue to yell at you and wanting to say sorry until everything was fixed. she let out a breath, deciding that she didn't want to hurt you any more than she already had.
vi nodded slightly, biting her lip to keep herself from saying anything. without a goodbye- you would've been angrier if you heard it, honestly- she left just as you demanded, not even slamming the door behind her.
for a few seconds, you stood still as a statue right where you had been, surrounded by a suffocating silence. you pressed your hand to your mouth, feeling the hot tears stream fast down your cheeks like little waterfalls.
you sank to the ground, allowing yourself to sob into your hands. it was the only sound which accompanied you.
maybe somewhere vi was crying with you. but she wasn't your problem anymore.
#vi arcane#arcane netflix#arcane#arcane x gn reader#arcane x reader#arcane x female reader#arcane x y/n#arcane x you#vi x y/n#vi x gn reader#vi x reader#vi x gender neutral reader#vi x you#vi x male reader#vi x fem reader#vi x female reader#angst fic#arcane angst#scheduled post
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Random Hashira Post #6
Massive shoutout to the big brain, @grungeeuvu for this idea! All credit goes to him/her/them/other!
This’ll be set in the Kimetsu Academy world to make my and everybody else’s lives so much easier!
Sleepover with the Hashira
Tokito Muichiro
A sleepover? Please tell him that he got everything— … All his bags are back at his house
Muichiro is probably asleep almost instantly. The Hashira can wake him up but he’s sleeping so peacefully
Muichiro is the type to wear a hoodie with his PJs. Keeps him warm and is comfortable
Muichiro needs to be reminded by Shinobu regularly on how to play the games Mitsuri and Kyojuro set up
Oh, wait. Did Muichiro do his maths homework?
Iguro Obanai
Never had a sleepover in his life so he’s a bit nervous. Especially that it’s being hosted at Mitsuri’s house
Obanai packed a lot of stuff and has to cram his bags in the corner to make space
Of course, Obanai brought Kaburamaru to join in. Gyomei has to fault Obanai for cheating when Kaburamaru presses a button to increase his money in Monopoly
Obanai is actually pretty good at the sleepover games provided. Not the winner but definitely up there
Please don’t let him touch a stove. He’ll burn down the whole kitchen, just let him serve the snacks
Rengoku Kyojuro
Kyojuro loves sleepovers, just like Mitsuri
Kyojuro is totally the type to sleep for days straight so he can stay awake as long as possible for the sleepover
He takes pictures with the Hashira at random times to remember this exciting night and all of the memories tagging along
Kyojuro absolutely was the one who brought a number of the non-provided games the Hashira play
Kyojuro is also the type to let his fellow Hashira win in any activity. It’s not about victory, it’s about having fun!
Shinazugawa Sanemi
Move aside. Sanemi is also doing all the “cursed games” like Bloody Mary and walks out annoyed
Sanemi is one of the two chefs of the Hashira. He makes them all kinds of food for the night then pancakes for the morning
His sleeping bag may or may not be a gift from Genya
Like Kyojuro and Obanai, Sanemi’s quite a night owl so he stays up a bit longer than most of the Hashira
Sanemi is very competitive in the games to the point he gets into arguments
Kocho Shinobu
She knows sleepovers well. Thanks to all of her sisters and her ladies in her home
Shinobu regularly corrects the Hashira on things they do wrong with her smart-assey ways. “Shinazugawa, you put your sleeping bag down wrong. Tokito, you’re not suppose to do that in Twister”
Talks a lot to either Mitsuri or Giyuu about random stuff going on in her life. She doesn’t care if they’re listening or not
Shinobu, like she usually does, enjoys messing with her fellow Hashira by smacking controllers out of their hands
Shinobu is babysitting Muichiro for most of the night and keeping her eyes on him so he won’t wonder off
Himejima Gyomei
Keeps track of the time a lot. Not so he can go to sleep or whatever, but so everybody can know when they ask
Gyomei views sleepovers as a bonding exercise so he was one of the first at Mitsuri’s place. He trusts in Mitsuri’s ability to make the night fun
Gyomei is always the one to take charge(even if he isn’t the host) so he helps move all of the Hashira’s stuff to a safer place
Gyomei is ballsy, he’ll do any dare with no hesitation. It’s not that embarrassing to him since it’s not that important
When it gets too chaotic, he just chants prays under his breath to give everybody here luck to handle the mess
Uzui Tengen
The chaos bringer right here. He has brought along a bag full of dynamite and a DJ set to wake up the neighbours with loud dubstep
Tengen does whatever he wants. He’ll start boxing matches with his fellow to make the night more interesting. He’s a wildcard
Tengen does calm down after having some of the nice non-alcoholic drinks Mitsuri made and getting comfortable on his sleeping bag
But always prepare for a prank. He’ll set them up and start a mini war with Iguro or Shinazugawa
Tengen’s sleeping bag was made by his wives so he values it intently. Nobody can use it but him!
Kanroji Mitsuri
So excited, she can barely keep herself from expressing it. A sleepover with her best friends! This is a dream come true!
Mitsuri overworked herself to prepare for the Hashira coming over. Cleaned her house to a extreme, over-prepared snacks/drinks and organised her room to make enough space. She wants this night to be perfect
Mitsuri is the one who starts the hour-long pillow fight and nearly wins with how hard she swings
You can find her braiding Shinobu or Kyojuro’s hair throughout the night as it calms down
Mitsuri doesn’t want to fall asleep, she wants this to last forever but she does end up conking out a little later after Muichiro
Tomioka Giyuu
Nothing changes with Giyuu. He is there because he has to be but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t think the sleepover is fun
Giyuu is the type to double check on his worklife whilst at the sleepover so suspect to see him to be looking over his class notes
He joins in on the games so little and keeps himself cuddled in his sleeping bag, most of the time, that it annoys some of the Hashira
Giyuu is also totally the type to listen to music on his headphones when waiting for Mitsuri’s word
Giyuu is surprisingly competitive, not as bad as Sanemi, but he’ll actually work to try win
Help. I’m ruining out of good Hashira pictures
#kimetsu no yaiba#demon slayer#anime and manga#kny hashira#kny imagines#headcanons#obanai iguro#iguro obanai#kanroji mitsuri#mitsuri kanroji#himejima gyomei#gyomei himejima#tomioka giyuu#giyuu tomioka#kocho shinobu#shinobu kocho#tokito muichiro#muichiro tokito#shinazugawa sanemi#sanemi shinazugawa#uzui tengen#tengen uzui#rengoku kyojuro#kyojuro rengoku
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Chess Masters
Summary: Tucker and Sam are tired of looking for answers in regards to what's going on with Danny.
Vlad is happy to provide them.
...
Tucker is very ready to understand what’s going on with Danny, and it doesn’t seem like it’s going to happen anytime soon.
He knows he’s not alone in this opinion— he and Sam talk about it all the time. That for all they’ve learned, there’s clearly something Danny’s not telling them. Something they need to know if they’re going to help him.
In all fairness, that’s not new. They’ve both suspected Danny’s been keeping something from them for a while now. What’s new, actually, is the fact that whatever secret he has is hurting him.
Before, he’d seemed fine. Maybe a little stressed, but that’s Danny for you. And there were a couple times Tucker had even thought that Danny had seemed almost… happier? No, wrong word. Satisfied? Proud of himself? Something.
All of that something is gone now. And Tucker needs Danny to tell him what’s going on, so they can talk about it. So he can help.
“It’s just…” Tucker gestures wildly with his hands. “You know?”
“Yeah, I do,” Sam says, turning to face him from where she’s sprawled herself out on his bed. “You know I do.”
They’ve gathered at his house to have something like a war meeting in regards to Danny, just after school when Danny’s special permission to come over hasn’t activated yet. Tucker feels a little guilty using Danny’s grounding as an advantage against him, but he’s not sure he can take this much longer. He has to do something.
“I don’t know what else to try,” he says to Sam, rubbing his arms under his sleeves. The room is weirdly cold. “I straight up told him to stop lying to me, and he just goes, ‘No.’ Like, what am I supposed to do with that Sam? Obviously asking him directly is off the table. Am I supposed to spy on him?”
“Maybe,” Sam says with a shrug, looking way more serious than she should.
“I was kidding, Sam,” Tucker says with a sigh. “I’m not going to invade his privacy like that.”
“He’s not telling us anything,” Sam snaps, glaring at Tucker. “He’s not giving us a ton of other options.”
Tucker taps absentmindedly on his PDA screen. “He’s allowed to have secrets, Sam,” he says quietly. “That’s not the part I’m worried about.”
“That’s not the part you’re worried about?” Sam asks, turning to him in bafflement. “Tucker, we don’t do secrets between us. Or we didn’t used to. And now suddenly he’s acting weird and not telling us things and clearly trying to handle things he shouldn’t on his own. He wouldn’t tell us when he got kidnapped, Tucker.”
Tucker sighs. She has a point there. There has to be a point when keeping the secret is more harmful than telling it, whatever it is. And they’ve clearly reached that point, and Danny still isn’t telling them. Still, he doesn’t want to force Danny to do something he doesn’t want to. Especially not now, after he’s quite literally just been kidnapped.
“Well maybe… maybe he doesn’t have to tell us,” Tucker says. “Maybe we can just ask if he’s talking to someone.”
“Uh, no,” Sam says, and Tucker glanced over at her in surprise.
“Huh?”
“Bullshit. I’m tired of him hiding things from me. He doesn’t do that. And he needs help, and I want to help him. I want to prove to him that I can.”
Tucker looks down at his PDA and doesn’t say anything. He opens a game he can tap at mindlessly while they talk.
“Come on, you do too,” Sam says, giving him a look. “I know you do.”
Tucker nods. “Yeah,” he agrees, though he doesn’t say that he’s pretty sure there’s a difference between wanting to help and actually being helpful.
“Great,” Sam says. “So you’re gonna help me then, right?”
Tucker looks up at Sam. It would have been easy to miss the worry and fear underneath her grim determination if he wasn’t looking for it.
He nods. “Okay,” he says quietly. “But if he catches us we stop.”
Sam rolls her eyes. “Well yeah.”
Tucker sighs. “How do you want to start?”
…
Apparently, despite not really wanting to do this, Tucker is the one who’s going to bear the brunt of the responsibility, because the first thing they notice in the classes they share is that Danny has a habit of asking to go to the bathroom at seemingly random times and then not actually going to the bathroom.
Sam can’t follow Danny into the boys bathroom too many times without looking suspicious, meaning that’s going to leave this up to Tucker.
So he ignores the guilt pinching his chest, and asks to follow Danny next time, after he leaves the room.
He doesn’t actually get a chance to try and find Danny, though. What he does find is Invis-o-bill chasing down a ghost through the hallway— a weird green octopus-looking ghost, that just so happens to be coming right for him.
Tucker yelps and tries to duck, and he hears Invis-o-bill give some kind of surprised cry a second later too. He opens his eyes, not sure what that’s about, and sees Invis-o-bill leap onto the ghost and go intangible, just in time for them to both pass harmlessly through Tucker.
Tucker shivers, likely an aftereffect to having two ghosts leap right through you, then turns after him just in time to see them vanish through the other wall. He blinks after them for a second just before the ghost alarm goes off, meaning there’s no way he’s finding Danny in this mess.
People start pouring out into the hallway a second later, and start making their way out the doors and towards the football stadium. Tucker starts looking for Danny once they’re there, but the only person he manages to find is Sam. Or more accurately, Sam finds him, by grabbing his shoulder from behind and spinning him around. Tucker yelps, calming down when he sees it’s just her.
“Did you find Danny?” she asks.
Tucker presses a hand to his chest, shaking his head as he takes (slightly exaggerated) deep breaths. “I don’t see him here either,” he manages after a second.
“Me either,” Sam says, crossing her arms in annoyance and obvious worry she won’t be admitting to. “Where the hell did he go?”
“I’m sure he’ll turn up,” Tucker says. “Out of all of us, Danny’s probably the most adept at ghost fighting. He taught you how to use that, remember?” He gestures at the wrist ray that’s now pretty constantly strapped to Sam’s wrist.
Sam nods, even as she starts fidgeting with the strap, the way she’s started to do when she’s nervous. Tucker’s pretty sure she thinks he hasn’t noticed.
Danny does turn up, though it’s after the ghost is gone. He shows up panting at the edge of the field, and tells Lancer he got caught in the bathroom with the ghost and was too scared to leave until the ghost kid showed up and took care of him.
That does not calm Sam’s fidgeting in the slightest.
“Invis-o-bill caught you? Did he hurt you?” she asks, grabbing Danny’s arms and looking him over, probably for injuries.
“No, I’m fine, Sam,” Danny says, pulling back and looking away. “He was only interested in the ghost. He didn’t seem to notice I was there.”
Sam breathes out a sigh of relief and pulls Danny back towards her and into a hug. “Thank god,” she says, and Danny hesitantly wraps his arms around her. Tucker breathes his own sigh of relief, albeit an internal one. Danny must have been in the bathroom after all, then, and Invis-o-bill must have chased the ghost away just before he showed up.
Tucker still isn’t sure where he stands on the ghost and all of his conflicting actions, but he was there when Sam almost died and he didn’t help. Whether there was something else going on or not, Danny being alone with Invis-o-bill right now sounds like about the least helpful thing he could imagine.
A second later Mr. Lancer announces they all need to head back inside, and they all start making their way back over towards the school. But as they start moving, Danny jerks away from them suddenly.
Tucker turns to him in surprise. “Danny?”
“Sorry,” Danny says. “Uh, gotta say, something. To Jazz.” He points at the Jazz in question, who seems to already be starting over for them.
Danny moves away from them fairly quickly, but just before he’s out of earshot Tucker catches what sounds like “confusing” and “Plasma.”
He shakes it off and turns back to Sam, who looks very unsatisfied with the situation, and gives Tucker a look of obvious irritation, though Tucker doubts it’s really directed at him.
Yeah, that could have gone better. At least Danny’s okay.
…
They discover in the following days that Danny seems to have a real knack for asking to leave the classroom right before a ghost attack.
Tucker isn’t sure how he and Sam never noticed it before. It’s near constant. Danny leaves, Tucker tries to follow him, doesn’t find him, and then the ghost alarm goes off. And then, usually, Invis-o-bill shows up, which doesn’t help Sam’s nerves or anger about the whole situation. Really, the only times that chain of events doesn’t seem to happen is when a ghost shows up in the middle of the hallway in between classes, but Danny still finds a way to vanish then too.
Granted, Danny has always been hard to find during ghost attacks, but Tucker had always assumed it had something to do with him knowing his way around the business thanks to his parents, and knowing good places to hide or ways to react. But this is too… consistent, to be a coincidence. It’s becoming both suspicious and annoying.
Honestly, if he’s going to have to feel guilty about spying on his best friend, could Danny at least be a little easier to spy on?
They’re meeting to talk about it without Danny at Sam’s house this time, and Tucker’s trying not to feel guilty about that, either.
Sam is sitting on her bed, wrapped under a blanket and fidgeting with the strap on her wrist ray. Tucker is sitting at her desk in her swivel chair, and he almost wants to ask for a spare blanket. It’s unusually cold in the room.
“So clearly something more than we thought is going on,” Sam says.
“Yeah,” Tucker says, trying to pretend the squirming in his chest is just worry for Danny.
Which, well, yeah. It is that too. Danny may not be getting hurt as far as they know, but having more that’s going on that they don’t know anything about sure isn’t helping.
“I’m not sure what else we can do,” Tucker says, leaning back in the chair. “Talking to him isn’t working, and spying on him apparently just brings more questions.”
“I don’t know,” Sam says, doing a really bad job at keeping the worry out of her voice. “Maybe we could ask his parents? Or Jazz?”
“No,” Tucker says immediately. “Danny’s gonna find out.” His parents and Jazz are way too likely to tell Danny if he and Sam ask them questions about him. Especially Jazz.
Sam sighs. “Yeah,” she admits. “You’re probably right. But then what are we going to do?”
Tucker doesn’t say anything, and instead the two of them look at each other. It’s obvious on Sam’s face that she feels as lost as he does.
Finally, Tucker sighs, turning to sit backwards on the chair so he can face Sam more directly. “Maybe we just have to wait until something changes.”
Sam immediately gives him a look of distaste. “I don’t want to do that. He’s clearly hurting about something, and that murderous asshole Invis-o-bill seems like he runs into him all the time for some reason, I don’t want to just leave him to deal with all of that on his own.”
“I don’t either, but we’re kind of out options here, Sam,” Tucker says.
“Well,” says a sudden deep voice, and Tucker jerks around, but doesn’t see anything. “Let’s see if we can’t change that a bit.”
And before Tucker can figure out what the fuck that was, everything goes dark.
…
“Tucker, seriously,” a voice hisses in his ear. “Wake up.”
Tucker shifts with a groan, then shakes his head a couple times, trying to get rid of the fogginess in it. “Sam?” he asks. “Is that you?”
“Be quiet,” Sam whispers. “I think he’s right outside the door.”
Tucker opens his eyes, not quite sure why he’s expecting a headache, but surprised when he doesn’t have one. They seem to be in a large warehouse of sorts, clearly abandoned with a high ceiling and scattered debris, mostly cardboard and screws. There’s a couple flickering lights up by the ceiling, but that doesn’t exactly make it easy to see.
Tucker blinks a couple times, then processes Sam’s last statement and turns to her uneasily. “He?”
“Oh excellent,” comes a familiar voice, and then out of nowhere, something appears in the room, almost as if it phased through the wall.
Instantly, Sam leaps to her feet and gets in front of Tucker, pointing her wrist ray at the figure. The figure laughs.
“Oh, that’s adorable,” it says. “You have a child’s toy of a ghost weapon. Go ahead, give me your best shot.”
Sam doesn’t waste any time, shooting a green beam of energy at the figure, only for the figure to effortlessly pull up a pink glowing shield that absorbs the wrist ray’s attack like it’s not even there.
Ghost. This is a ghost.
Tucker peeks his head around Sam just enough to get a good look. The figure is wearing a long white cape lined in red, along with pale blue skin and red eyes, and hair that looks like two horns poking up from his head.
Sam catches him looking and pushes him back behind her with her free arm, the one lacking the wrist ray. “Tucker, stay back,” she says, despite her voice shaking in obvious fear.
The ghost laughs. “Oh child, please,” he says. “Don’t embarrass yourself.”
Tucker pushes himself to his feet and gently grabs Sam’s arm, mostly in an attempt to reassure her he has her back, though that doesn’t seem like it’ll help much in this situation.
But even still, Sam just pushes him further behind her and holds out her arm with the wrist ray again, though they both know it’s not going to do anything.
The ghost sighs. “Oh, this is getting tiresome,” he says, and before either of them can say anything back, he shoots a beam of energy towards Sam. Sam cries out in pain as she’s knocked back into Tucker, and they both land hard on the ground.
“Sam!” Tucker says, leaning around where she’s landed on top of him to check on her. “Are you okay?”
“Well if she is, she sure won’t be after this,” the ghost says with a grin, and flies down and scoops up Sam, who gives a surprised cry, starting to struggle in his grip. The ghost keeps an effortless hold on her, then flies up to the ceiling far above them and drops her.
Sam screams, and Tucker runs forward, trying to position himself right under her.
The next second, however, a door bangs open, and Tucker jerks around to see what looks like an old man rush towards Sam, and get underneath her just in time to catch her and set her down.
“Are you alright?” he asks her, and Sam gapes at him.
“Sam!” Tucker cries, and runs forward the few feet it takes to throw his arms around her. Sam hugs him back, and Tucker can feel her shaking in his grip.
“Now as for you,” the stranger says, and he points something up at the ceiling. It lets off some kind of energy that sucks the ghost into it, while the ghost shouts a loud “Noooo!” that’s a little overdramatic in Tucker’s opinion.
As soon as the ghost is inside the thing, the man puts a lid on top of— is that a thermos?
The man turns to face them before Tucker can really get a good look. “Are you alright, children?” he asks, moving towards them with a look of concern on his face.
“What? No. Fine. Who are you?” Sam snaps, moving in front of Tucker and holding her wrist ray out again.
“I’m just here to help,” the man says, holding his hands up. “I promise.”
Sam looks uncertainly at him for a couple seconds, but it’s kind of hard to argue with that when he just saved her life and is making no sudden moves towards them.
Finally, Sam lowers the wrist ray. “Who are you?” she asks again.
“And uh, if I can ask a follow up question, what the heck was all of that?” Tucker asks, gesturing up to where the ghost was just a couple of seconds ago.
“I’m sure you have a million questions,” the man says. “And I can explain, but we might want to get out of here first. I have important things to tell you.”
Tucker exchanges a glance with Sam. He isn’t exactly in the habit of following strange men who randomly show up and ask him to come with them. Then again, this one did just rescue them from a murderous ghost.
“This secondary location better not be your house,” Sam says dangerously.
“Of course not,” the man says, waving his hand. “I live in Wisconsin, that would be quite a drive.”
“Wh- you live in Wisconsin?” Tucker asks in bafflement as they all start for the door of the warehouse. “Okay, seriously, who are you and why are you here?”
“Yes, I suppose introductions are in order,” the man says. He opens the door to the warehouse, and they all step out into what looks like thick dark woods, with limited visibility in the moonlight. It’s clearly very late. There’s a very fancy car sitting a bit in front of them on an old dirt road, that the man starts walking towards.
“I’m not sure if you’ve heard of me or not, but I am an old college friend of Maddie and Jack Fenton,” the man says as he moves towards the car. “My name is Vlad Masters.”
Both of them stare at him blankly, and Vlad sighs.
“No, I suppose Daniel wouldn’t have mentioned me, would he? Did he ever mention a college reunion?”
“Uh, maybe?” Tucker says, glancing at Sam to find her shrugging. “I think I remember something like that once, maybe a couple months ago?”
“That sounds right,” Vlad says with a nod. “That was held at my castle in Wisconsin, and that’s when I first started suspecting something was going on.”
“Something?” Sam asks hesitantly.
“With Daniel,” Vlad says, and Tucker’s blood runs cold.
“With Danny?” Sam asks, sounding just as scared as he’s suddenly feeling. “Is he okay? Do you know what’s happening to him?”
Vlad nods. “Unfortunately, yes, though it’s not going to be easy to hear.”
Tucker looks at Sam in a panic. Just how much trouble is Danny in?
They reach the car, and Vlad pulls the door open. Tucker climbs in the back seat and Sam goes along with him, which he’s glad for. He doesn’t really want her out of arm’s reach just yet.
Vlad climbs into the front seat and starts the car, then sets the strange thermos thing on the middle console and turns to face them. “Alright, I’ll take you both to the police station in just a second, but I think some explanations are in order first.”
“Yes please,” Tucker says, very ready to know what’s going on.
“Well, first of all,” Vlad says. He gestures down at the thermos. “I think you should know that the ghost I just fought was working for someone, who I’m sure you’ve heard of. Another ghost named Danny Phantom.”
Tucker looks at Sam in confusion. “Do you know who that is?”
Sam shakes her head.
“Really?” Vlad asks, sounding surprised. “He seems to show up around here pretty often, from what I’ve heard. Claims to be some kind of ghost fighting superhero?”
“Wait,” Sam says, her voice dropping into obvious anger. “Are you talking about Invis-o-bill?”
Vlad coughs a couple of times, seeming surprised and, if Tucker didn’t know any better, he’d say he’s trying to muffle laughter.
A second later, however, he draws himself back up, seeming very serious. “That’s not the name he’s told me, but I suppose that's what people here call him,” he says. “Yes, that is who I’m referring to.”
Sam gives a frustrated scream and buries her hands in her hair. “Great, now that asshole is trying to get other people to kill for him!”
“Other ghosts,” Tucker mumbles hesitantly.
“Whatever!” Sam snaps, jerking back upright. “Same thing!”
“It actually isn’t the same thing,” Vlad says, seeming almost sorrowful. “Ghosts can’t be prosecuted or apprehended the way people are. He’s trying to get out of this with no consequences to himself. Or worse than that, actually, since he’s sending other ghosts to do it for him.”
“But— why us?” Sam asks. “Why come after me and Tucker?”
“Yeah, it’s not like we’re super adept in ghost fighting,” Tucker says.
Vlad sighs. “Children, ghosts are twisted representations of everything they were in life. They haunt places they used to love, and often terrorize people they used to love as well.”
Tucker looks at Sam, hoping she understands what Vlad’s saying.
“Uh, sorry,” Sam says, turning back to face him. “But I have no idea what you’re saying. What does that have to do with Invis-o-bill— or, Danny Phantom, whatever. What does that have to do with him hunting us? Actually, on that note, what does any of this have to do with actual Danny?”
Vlad’s gaze turns somber. “Oh, child,” he says softly. “Haven’t you guessed? Daniel is Danny Phantom.”
All the air rushes out of Tucker’s lungs.
He shakes his head. “No,” he says. “No he— he isn’t. You’re lying.”
Vlad shakes his head. “I wish I was,” he says. “But I began to suspect this when I saw him at the reunion, and confirmed it just recently. Of course as soon as I realized, I rushed here, and not a moment too soon, as I learned you two were in danger.”
Tucker shakes his head again, not sure what else to do. “No,” he says again. “Danny wouldn’t do that. He— you’re wrong.”
“Child,” Vlad says again, shaking his head. “I truly wish I was.”
“But Danny’s not a ghost,” Tucker says weakly.
“Not entirely,” Vlad agrees, and Tucker stares at him.
“What— what does that even mean?” he asks.
“Well, this part is going to be a little confusing if you don’t understand ghost science as well as I do,” Vlad says. “But I can show you the lab footage another time.”
“Lab footage?” Tucker asks, feeling rather lightheaded.
“Do you remember the ghost portal incident from a couple of months ago?” Vlad asks. He explains that apparently Danny had gone back down after he and Sam had left that day, and turning on the portal had… killed him. Sort of.
And now, apparently, he’s a very dangerous ghost.
Vlad doesn’t say anything for a second after he finishes explaining, and Tucker doesn’t have a clue how to help fill the silence.
“I’ll give you a minute while we head back towards Amity Park,” Vlad says finally, and he turns around and puts the car in gear.
Tucker looks over at Sam. She’s scratching at her wrist right underneath the strap of the wrist ray, and staring down at the floor of the car.
“Sam,” Tucker says weakly, reaching for her. Sam smacks his arm away and goes back to scratching.
Tucker looks away, technically landing his gaze outside of the window, but certainly not processing anything he sees. He feels a little sick.
…It makes sense.
Danny disappearing during every ghost attack, saying Invis-o-bill shows up so often, keeping obvious secrets, refusing to tell them anything that’s going on.
“Hey, you know I’d never want to hurt you guys, right?”
Tucker squeezes his eyes shut. What is he supposed to make of that now?
It feels like barely any time has passed when Vlad stops the car again. Tucker turns to look out the front window. They’re definitely back in Amity Park, and he thinks this is fairly close to the police station, but Vlad’s pulled down a side street.
“I’m sorry to have to put so much on you,” Vlad says, turning to face them. “But it wouldn’t be safe for any of us if Daniel finds out I helped you. You’re going to have to walk from here.”
Tucker bites his lip and nods. Sam doesn’t say anything.
“When you’ve had a little bit of time to process,” Vlad says. “I have an offer for you.”
Tucker swallows. “An offer?”
Vlad smiles ruefully. “I have a little bit of experience helping people become ghost hunters,” he says. “If you want to help, well.” He passes something back to Tucker, and Tucker takes it. It looks like a business card with an address and phone number on it, but no name.
“That’s where I’ll be operating from in Amity Park,” he says. “I’m going to be sticking around until things are solved.”
Tucker doesn’t say anything. Then, after a second, he feels Sam grab his arm, and turns to her in surprise.
“Thank you,” she says, her voice firm. “We’ll be in touch.”
Tucker’s eyes widen. “I’m sorry, what?”
“Come on Tucker,” Sam says, opening the door and pulling him out after her. “Let’s go.”
She shuts the door and starts pulling Tucker up the street after her, towards the police station. Vlad starts the car again and drives away.
“Woah, Sam!” Tucker calls, as they reach the edge of the alleyway. “Slow down! We need to talk about—”
“Talk about what?” Sam snaps, dropping Tucker’s arm and whirling around to face him. “What is there to talk about, Tucker? Danny tried to kill us.”
“I— Sam,” Tucker says, panic crawling up his throat. “There has to be another explanation.”
“Yeah, Tucker, there is,” Sam snaps. “Whatever the hell happened with that portal Vlad mentioned turned him into some kind of monster. That’s your explanation.”
“But he— it’s Danny,” Tucker says weakly.
“Yeah, and he’s been acting weird,” Sam says. “We both agree on that. We couldn’t figure out what was wrong, well, this is it. And we need to figure out some sort of way to take the fight back to him before he tries to kill anyone again.”
“I,” Tucker says. He shakes his head, trying to force some sense of clarity back into his thoughts. He feels less sure about everything than he felt earlier today, and he already wasn’t sure about anything earlier today.
“I’m not going to hurt Danny,” he whispers.
Sam sets her jaw. “Well,” she says. “I’m not going to let him hurt anyone else.” She raises an eyebrow. “So are you with me or not?”
Tucker looks up at her. She’s still scratching her wrist under the space where the wrist ray sits. At this point, even the skin around it looks red and raw, and Tucker’s pretty sure part of it is bleeding.
Sam’s gaze flicks down to what he’s looking at, and she scoffs. She pulls the strap off and throws the wrist ray at the opposite wall of the alley. It’s not that far away, so it bounces off the wall without breaking and lands in a patch of grass growing up between the concrete.
Sam turns back to Tucker with a glare. “Are you with me or not?” she snaps.
Her wrist is bleeding. Not badly, but noticeably.
“Okay,” Tucker whispers, and tension rushes out of Sam’s shoulders.
She takes a couple steps forward and wraps her arms around Tucker, squeezing him tightly. Tucker hugs her back. Neither of them say anything.
A second later, Sam pulls back, with a shaky broken smile on her face. “Let me do the talking,” she says, with a nod back to the police station around the corner.
“What are you going to say?” Tucker manages.
“That we got kidnapped by a ghost but managed to fight our way out and get away from it.”
Tucker nods, and Sam turns and starts towards the police station, clearly expecting him to follow her.
Tucker casts a glance over at the wrist ray lying on the ground. He walks over, picks it up with shaking hands, and slips it into his pocket.
Then he turns and follows Sam up the alleyway.
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Chapter Twenty - Interlude I. Love
Summary: Tomura Shigaraki was her dad's boss's son. He was the creep that stole girls' underwear and tried to grope her in his room. But it's not like he could get her Dad fired just because she wouldn't sleep with him, right? ...right?
CW: Quirkless!AU, Explicit Smut, Dub-Con, Coercion, Blackmail, Cheating, Sexual Guilt, Humiliation, Unhealthy Relationships, Virginity Kink, Groping, Power Play, Hate to Love, Emotional Manipulation, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Self-Harm, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Implied/Referenced Animal Death, Slow Burn, Misogyny
Read Full Chapter on AO3
[excerpt]
She was at a breaking point. No seriously. She didn’t know how much more of this she could handle.
“The relationship between polar coordinates and the standard rectangular coordinates x comma y is represented in the four equations x equals r cosine-theta, y equals r sine-theta, r-squared equals…” she mumbled through her notes.
She was pretty sure that she wasn’t even processing the words she was saying anymore, she’d been studying so long. But honestly, what other choice did she have right now?
With swim practice canceled this week for finals, her friends preoccupied with their own study frenzies, and Shigaraki in Kyushu for the week, she had no distractions, no excuses to fill her freetime with anything other than studying. And with not only finals this week, but entrance exams following close around the corner, she was determined to take full advantage of that time.
…Maybe too full of advantage. She dropped her head on the desk, mind completely swarmed with static. She was pretty sure that if she tried to stuff one more vocabulary word or equation into that brain of hers that it’d actually explode. She could practically smell the smoke coming from her own ears.
She peered up as her phone buzzed up a storm next to her. At last, a respite from her own brain. It was probably just spam, but even making dumb smalltalk with the robot asking her about her car’s extended warranty sounded like a great break at the moment.
But then she saw who was actually on the caller ID, and was instantly filled with confusion and a light garnish of dread.
Mirio Togata.
Why was he calling her? Wasn’t he supposed to be at work right now?
Against the nagging feeling in her gut, she answered the phone.
“Hey, babe!” he chirped on the other end, supposedly full of his normal enthusiasm, there was something kind of off about his voice, although she couldn’t quite put her finger on what.
“Hey…” she said cautiously, “What’s up?”
“Not much! The weather’s awesome today, isn’t it?! Makes me wish I didn’t have to work! How about you?”
“Um… I guess, maybe?” she answered, pushing open her blinds slightly to reveal a definitively gray sky, “I haven’t really been outside either…”
“Studying hard, or hardly studying?” he joked.
“Uh, well I…” she sighed, a little annoyed and wanting to just get to the point, “Is something wrong? You don’t usually call when you’re at work.”
There was a pause on the other end, Mirio caught off guard by being confronted directly. He’d obviously hoped to have some weird segue into whatever he was calling about.
“Mirio—?”
“Haha, yeah, I guess you caught me there, huh?” he laughed, clearly forced, “I guess I just—! Well, um…”
Her brows furrowed, Mirio was at a loss for words. That was really not like him. Now she was getting worried.
“...Yeah?”
“Well, there’s something I want to ask you and I really don’t think it can wait any longer.”
“Okay…”
“So um, yeah here it goes!” he laughed nervously, “Were you with Shigaraki last week?”
Wait, that was it?
The way Mirio had been ramping up and beating around the bush so much, she’d assumed that this was going to be about something way bigger, maybe something involving the swim dinner or before. About an incident with Shigaraki that he didn’t know about. But asking about last week? What was the problem exactly?
“Yeah,” she answered, audibly confused, “I told you that we were gonna study and game at his place.”
“You said it was you two and another friend.”
“It was,” she insisted.
“Okay, so why did I hear from Shindo that you two were having dinner alone together?”
She blinked.
“Huh?”
Not too long ago that would have sparked an immediate “oh crap” reaction from her, a panic that she was caught up shit creek without a paddle. But today? When she had nothing to hide? She was just confused.
“Well, we were hungry so we went out for a bite…”
“Just the two of you though?”
“Yeah, Spinner had work and—” she cut herself off before she got too worked up with excuses, not sure why she needed to explain this, “What’s the problem here? You were the one who encouraged me to keep hanging out with Shigaraki.”
“Sure, but I thought you guys were just like, hanging out at his house or the library or something...”
She scoffed, rising to pace her room as irritation coursed heavier through her tendons, “What’s the difference? If you trust me alone at his house, why don’t you trust me when I’m getting dinner with him?”
“Babe, I trust you no matter where you are. Just…” he sighed, trying to figure out how to word this, “I mean you gotta think about the implications. You two having dinner alone together looks like a date.”
“But it wasn’t a date.”
“ I know that,” he assured her, “But that’s not what our classmates are gonna think.”
She stopped in her tracks.
Oh.
Ohhh.
So that’s why he was upset. She should’ve fucking known.
“Is that really all you care about?” she demanded, “Not whether or not I’m on a date with another guy, but whether or not it looks like I’m on a date?”
“Come on babe, you know that’s not what I meant—”
“Do I?!” she snapped, “Who cares what our classmates think? We know the truth, so what’s the problem?!”
Mirio sighed, “Babe, I didn’t call to pick a fight. I’m just asking you to have a little more self-awareness, alright?”
She laughed in disbelief, “You know, that’s real rich coming from you, Peaches.”
Finally, Mirio too let his frustration get the better of him, “Oh my God— when did you become so mean ?!”
“I don’t know, probably around the same time you became such a judgemental asshole !” she shouted, before slamming her thumb into the end call icon and throwing the stupid thing onto her bed.
She stood there, chest heaving in rage, trying to calm herself down. It took her a couple of minutes to realize that her Dad was standing outside her open door, wide-eyed and fist raised mid-knock.
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#TOMURA SHIRAGAKI#TOMURA SHIGARAKI X READER#tomura shigaraki x oc#SHIGARAKI#TOMURA SHIGARAKI#BNHA SHIGARAKI#MHA SHIGARKI#SHIGARAKI FANFIC#READER INSERT#LONG FIC#SMUT#SHIGARAKI SMUT#TW DUBCON#QUIRKLESS AU#SPICE WRITES#mha#bnha#mha smut#bnha smut#play nice fic
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Out of Body, Out of Mind: Chapter 1 (A Silvaze Fanfic)
"Next time you two visit, it better not be to stop another Eggman attack!" The crushing bearhug of one Amy Rose served to emphasise a point that she had already made a half dozen times today, "Or an ancient monster emerging or aliens invading... or a wizard's mind control, or evil doppelgangers, or a ghost tornado, or-
"Amy, I think they get the point. Squeeze them any longer and they won't live to leave, let alone return," Sonic piped up from somewhere out of view.
"I'm just making sure they understand, darling," A singsong tone entered the pink hedgehog's voice, "To see my blue blur turned green with envy; if you wanted a hug that badly you only had to ask."
Blaze stumbled as she was released, straightening her jacket as she steadied herself. Her companion within the hammer-wielder's vice-like grip wasn't quite so prepared, only just psychically catching himself before he could tumble to the ground. The cat couldn't help but smirk as he wobbled to right himself and land beside her; this past week had certainly been one to remember.
What had begun with her and Silver crossing space and time to fend off a surprise attack from an empowered Metal Sonic had stretched into a two week long stay with their friends. While the initial days had been focused on recuperating following the battle, soon the pair of them had been dragged into hijinks ranging from movie nights to visits to Twinkle Park and museums. From sharing Amy's pull out couch to overnight stays in hotels, these past days had brought with them a certain undeniable freedom. It'd all ended with a final campout up on Angel Island. She was glad that she'd allowed herself to relax, even if it had taken a few dozen pleading looks from the time traveller to her right.
"Hey, Knuckles! Stop letting Rouge distract you, we need to get them home before there's some sort of multidimensional fallout or something!" Sonic called as he raced past, Amy still in pursuit.
"I really don't think that's likely," Tails piped up to strike down Sonic's teasing, "As long as Blaze keeps-
"She's not distracting me; she's trying to steal the Master Emerald and none of you are helping!" The echidna roared.
"Aww, come on Big Red, don't be like that," Blaze turned to find the bat hovering, elbows atop the great green gem as she stared down at the flustered guardian, "I just love watching you work, that's all."
"Get off, I'm trying to perform a ritual!" Knuckles insisted from his cross legged position before the Master Emerald, "If I mess this up, anything could happen; to them or us."
"If something goes wrong, we'll be able to handle it," The psychic hedgehog reached out a hand and Sonic came to a sudden halt, only to be immediately leapt upon by Amy.
"Yes, we're more than prepared to face whatever comes our way," Seizing the moment of stillness Silver's juvenile choice had induced, the cat raised her voice, "Thank you for the time you have afforded us to recuperate. I swear that when we next return it will be under less troubling circumstances."
"That's a pretty stiff way to say you'll visit sometime the world isn't ending," Sonic snorted, now swept up in Amy's arms, "But a promise is a promise; we'll take it."
"Or maybe we could visit your world instead," That idea seemed to put a sparkle in Amy's eyes, "We could have a beach day, or go sailing!"
"I will see what I can arrange," Blaze swallowed, trying not to think about the great social barrier which was her royal status.
"I'd love to visit the future sometime and see all the new technology," Tails proposed.
"Oh, um, sure, maybe at some point," Silver not so subtly floundered, plainly trying not to remind the young fox of the various apocalypses he endlessly faced in his time, "Knuckles, are you ready for us?"
"I think I am," He called down, "Come on up, push away batgirl if you can."
"Fine Knuckie, I know when I'm not wanted," The bat rolled her eyes, taking to the sky.
"Whatever," He grumped, "Have a nice flight."
"Try not to miss me too badly," She blew a kiss his way as she took off higher, "I'll be back before you know it."
The grumbling of the red echidna continued, even after she was out of view and the pair of them had scaled the altar. Despite his bashfulness, the guardian lowered his head and reached out toward the great stone with open palms. His muttering had turned from the topic of Rouge to that of prayer like chanting, calling upon the great gem's power. A green tint began to fill the cat's vision, she saw sparks crack to crease the air and felt weightlessness spread across her body. The moment was almost upon them.
"Guys! That's us going, I think!" Silver called down toward the giggling hedgehog pair and fox tinkering with his tablet, "Try to stay safe, keep an eye out for the next attack!"
Blaze elbowed the hedgehog's side, subtly really wasn't one of his strong suits, "Until we meet again, I-
"Knuckles, you need to stop!" Rouge's shout cut the cat off.
"What is it now Rouge, I'm almost-
Blaze's ears spiked high but energy had already encased her, both she and Silver were floating against their own wills. The cat tried to turn but found herself unable to do more than peer over her shoulder as Sonic, Tails and Amy began to run up the altar toward them. Blaze only managed to see what happened out of the corner of her eye. Rouge grabbed Knuckles by the shoulders and flew, forcing him away from his work just as a shadow cast over the master emerald.
The once green energy around them flared a blinding white as their transportation was interrupted. A giant metal mass, like a grasping yellow and red claw, crashed onto the massive emerald and reduced it to shards which flew straight past them. The last thing Blaze saw was an orange Eggman insignia before her vision became a blur of white and blue. The cat felt herself falling; endlessly tumbling head over tail in a swirling void like intangible foamy seawater!
She held onto her breath for fear it would be her last. Fingers desperately clawed out into the space around her, hoping to grasp onto anything! This sight wasn't uncommon, she'd been tossed like this when travelling dimensions before, but usually it lasted mere moments. This was more, how long has passed already!?
Something touched her hand; she couldn't see through this endless swirl but something had brushed her right hand! The guardian flailed out in the hope that it was her partner, reaching and stretching with all her might in an attempt to latch onto something. Fingers met her wrist and hers coiled onto another in kind. She knew that feeling, calloused fingertips and a chunky metal bracelet. It was him, she had-
No, he wasn't holding her right hand, he was holding her left. Was she just so imbalanced in this tumbling space that she'd lost track of right and left? Regardless, she had him- they had each other. This couldn't go on forever, they'd arrive somewhere, they had to land somewhere!
She tried to focus on the Sol Emeralds, tried to harness her inherent connection to them, but her head started to ache. Everything felt wrong, from her left to her right to her tongue in her mouth and the weight across her body. This was all going wrong and her lungs were burning, she had to take a breath but there was no hope of air.
As she gasped the world around her began to darken. First the white faded from amongst the sky blue it was mixed with, then that blue faded indigo. Whether it was her body now failing her or the end of their travels she had no idea; but she held tighter onto Silver as that indigo faded to black.
Then, with no more than a blink, Blaze saw white again. Her whole body felt heavy and her mouth felt dry, it took a few more moments of just lying there and blinking to recognise that the white above her was no void. It was a cloudy sky. There was grass to her back. A cool wind was blowing.
She shut her eyes, her shoulders and back were aching, had the fall agitated the wounds from the fight those weeks ago? Blaze was certain she'd fully healed, that she was ready to face whatever came next. Well, regardless of her state, they had to get back and help their friends. That surprise attack could easily have been the next calamity set to destroy their world.
Blaze clenched her left hand and did still feel that she was holding her partner's right. No matter where they both were, whether they were still in Silver's past or they had made it to her dimension, they were still together. They could get out of this. They could fix this.
Wait, no. Something was wrong. Silver's fingers weren't as slender as the set she was feeling now. There was no thick metal band at the wrist of this hand. She felt a psychic static as their palms creased over each other's but something felt different, something felt wrong. Regardless of who she was lying next to, they weren't moving. Something had to be-
Blaze rose from her lying position, sitting up and turning, only to find herself staring down at a white furred muzzle on an otherwise purple furred face. A red gemstone was centred on the form's forehead and their hair was in a tall raised ponytail. The lying figure wore a purple long coat, white tights and heeled shoes. That form was her own body; Blaze was looking down at herself.
A hand was holding hers; a hand attached to a white furred forearm, itself wearing a great golden cuff. Silver's hand. A hand she had just raised before her face, the one she was seeing out of right now, and looked to find it was attached to her body. Something had gone terribly wrong, but she had to know the full story, she had to confirm it all.
Leaning over, feeling stiffness in her shoulders, Blaze pushed a hand to the neck of her prior body and felt a pulse plainly beating. Amber eyes flickered open as she leaned over, a daze marred that form's face followed by a rather uncouth bellowing yawn. By that alone Blaze had her suspicions but she had to confirm it; it wasn't safe. Her hands came down heavy and hard against her own body's shoulders, jolting the recently unconscious form into a more awake state.
"Silver, is that you?" She barked down.
"I'm Silver, yes... but you're..." Realisation seemed to grip the individual, panic entered their eyes, "Who are you? What are you doing-
"No, that's not enough. Eggman attacked as we were leaving, I need to be certain that you are you," Anything could have happened while they were falling between dimensions, whether that was part of the doctor's plans or otherwise.
"Blaze?" The imposter blinked, perhaps putting this together as she had, "Okay, yes, I am Silver... how do I prove I'm Silver? How do you prove you're Blaze?"
"We have time together we can draw upon that no one else should recall, there would be no records of it. If we use that, then I will have every confidence that you are Silver in my body," The form beneath her still looked unsure, so Blaze opted to open, "Ask me a question from that time, one which only I would know the answer to."
This had in itself actually been a ploy, an effort to get some extra affirmation through not letting this potential imposter use her question to scramble for one in turn.
"How did you explain the Chaos Emeralds to me when we first found one?" The form beneath her asked.
"I told you they were good luck charms," That question was sufficient, a clear moment with an obvious answer... but Blaze had to be sure, "Where did I find you after we were first sent to the past, when Mephiles separated us?"
"By a dock in Soleanna, on some stairs near the water," Blunt regret entered her prior body's eyes as the tale continued, "There were boats there, I was looking out over the water. It was after I'd tried to kill Sonic for the first time. Amy had stopped me..."
Blaze slackened her grip as relief flooded through her, "I'm glad it's you in there Silver... but I don't know what we're going to do."
"Where are," His speech came to a sudden stop, his brows furrowed, "Ow..."
"What happened, are you okay?" Panic for both her partner and her body swept through Blaze as she scanned for the source of the pain.
"I'm fine, I just bit my tongue," He grumbled, "Your teeth really are sharp..."
As he raised a hand to his cheek, a flash of orange and fresh terror swept over the now hedgehog. Flames were dancing along feline fingers as a cheek was rubbed- the very power Blaze had spent so many years learning to control and hone were now in the hands of a total novice. Ever so quickly the monarch pushed the cat's hand from his face and pinned it into the grass next to him, mirroring that manoeuvre on the other side. Remembering what Silver himself had done in times before, she concentrated on the burning hand only to watch as a cyan pulse blew the flames away. Had it always been that easy for him?
"We need to get you somewhere safe," She insisted, eyes now flickering to her surroundings, "Then we can figure this out. I'm certain we can find a way to fix this."
Blaze quickly recognised just where they were; great twisting shaped topiaries were to their left and a large glass greenhouse to their right. They were in the middle of the royal gardens, they had made it to the right space... but had they made it to the right time? The only way to find that out would-
"Oi, mates, you're back!" Blaze looked over her shoulder only to get an eyeful of quill, she had to really turn to see Marine approaching, "And closer than ever I can see, not back for a moment and you're already all over each other, strewth. What, were Sonic and Amy's eyes on you the whole time? Need to make up for missed snoggin'?"
"Marine, it is imperative that you listen to me," Blaze quickly rose from atop her partner, stomping in boots that felt overly heavy, "When did we leave here last, why did we leave?"
"Oh um," The raccoon looked even smaller than usual, her current unfamiliar shadow cast over her, "About two weeks ago? To help save Sonic's world?"
"Be more specific than that, to save it from what?" The pyrokinetic turn psychokinetic insisted.
"Umm... was it the ghost tornado?" Blaze's eyes widened for a moment, "No, no, that was last time," The raccoon started to bounce her leg, deep in thought, "Don't tell me mate... Metal Sonic, it was an upgraded Metal Sonic, final answer!"
Relief swept through the guardian. They were in the right place at the right time, just in the wrong bodies. It wasn't as though they were completely-
"Um, help?!" Blaze turned to find that Silver had risen to his feet but was wobbling, struggling for balance with burning hands flailing at his sides.
Blaze raced over, zooming around behind the cat to catch him by the wrists. It was strange to look over a shoulder that was hers, let alone to find herself taller than her own body. Gently, the hedgehog allowed her psychic power to leak and sooth over his burning hands. It was a strange sensation, like water running off of her palm and into the air; yet she still felt all that the output energy touched. She was the breeze coiling around his wrists and snuffing those flames.
"Easy, take deep breaths, you can control this," Blaze whispered into his ear, gently bringing his arms to his sides as she allowed their fingers to interlock, "We need to fix this as quickly as possible..."
"Sorry, I got excited to see Marine and it just... it feels like I'm overflowing, is this really what every day is like for you?" He was hot to the touch, burning up in a way Blaze couldn't remember physically feeling while in her own body.
"What's goin' on? You two are acting real weird," The youngster rubbed her chin, "I mean, weirder than usual."
"Blaze got sick in the other dimension. It's impacting her sense of balance, which in turn is affecting her control over her pyrokinesis," Blaze said, hoping Silver's inability to lie was a personality trait rather than a physiological one, "We need to move her to the palace courtyard; that way she won't risk burning anything or anyone."
The feline in her grasp stiffened but didn't speak up, clearly trying to go along with the plan.
"Oh strewth, sounds serious," Marine panicked as the lie worked, "Well hurry up then, sweep her off her feet and cart her to safety mate. If you fly her there you'll save the roses, and have a chance to smooch among the clouds."
Right, flying. This was going to be difficult. Silver's look of recognition, worn so plainly exaggerated on her own face, confirmed that worry. Lying had seemed like the right idea, both to keep Silver safe but also to prevent panic throughout the kingdom. If word spread that the guardian and her closest ally were both out of commission then uproar or even an invasion could occur.
Releasing the feline's hands, she allowed the heavy grasp of her new body to drift across her old one. Her right arm wrapped around Silver's shoulders while her left slipped beneath his knee to lift him off the ground. As it always had, the cat's form slotted flush against the hedgehog's chest- his head was against her shoulder. Was she really this light... or was Silver stronger than she'd been giving him credit? She had been noticing this body's shoulders in her peripheral vision a lot more than she had her own...
"Wait, this... feels weird," Did she look like that when she usually blushed? She hoped she wasn't usually so beet red, let alone volcanic to hold.
"Try not to think about it, that's what I usually do," She muttered under her breath, "How do I fly?"
"Oh, um," Silver leaned up, whispering into her ear, "You want to let the energy flow over your whole body and then just sort of... think in the direction? The harder you think, the more significant the force. Try to be gentle with your thoughts, too much and things will get dangerous. Maybe try to just hover first?"
Blaze closed her eyes and felt the coolness of psychic energy wash over and encase her body. That was the easy part, she'd managed that much already. What on earth did he mean to think in a direction? Silver didn't always look where he was casting his power, so it wasn't as though he meant to focus on a point in front of them. Did he mean to imagine an arrow? She didn't think he was constantly doing that in the heat of battle. What-
Something smacked Blaze's knees and made her eyes open wide; she looked down toward the ground and very almost plummeted directly into it! With so little thought, so little effort, the new psychic found herself rocketing through the garden; battering her way through bushes at a breakneck pace and barely feeling them smash against the psychic shell around her.
She commanded her body to stop and came to a neck wrenching halt, still hovering around half a metre off the ground. A glance backwards showed that a not so insignificant portion of the garden had been torn apart in the wake of her movement; it was lucky they hadn't been facing the greenhouse. Much further though and they would have hit the palace wall...
"Maybe try to think less?" She looked down to find her own face cringing up at her, "Gentle thoughts, light thoughts, try not to push too hard."
"I understand that now," She grumbled, throwing one more glance back to a rapidly approaching Marine before looking to the top of the palace wall, "There really is no chance we'll fall, is there?"
"No," Silver shook his head, "If you start to feel tired or lightheaded we should land as quickly as possible, but I know my body, I can handle way more than what you just did," Blaze felt his arm on her back, right where she had held him so many times, "I trust you."
"I don't like hearing that in my voice," Blaze harrumphed, turning her gaze skyward, "Let's get this-
Before she could even finish that sentence they were far higher than they had any right to be. By the time they finally made it to the courtyard the new hedgehog was both lightheaded and tired. This was going to be long and arduous, but they could make it work. Couldn't they?
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Arondir Headcanons
Arondir x human!Reader
Rated: Explicit
I’m still very much in love with Arondir, so here are some headcanons for him!
Arondir fanfic // MASTERLIST
Arondir is protective af. He knows you can handle your own life, however he’s ready to intervene if anything goes wrong. In bed, he’s super attentive and caring, and loves feeling you close against him.
Related to the point before, he doesn’t want to hurt you. Even if it’s consensual and for fun, he will not spank you or degrade you in any way. You have to talk to him a lot and convince him you also like when he’s being rough before he even thinks about indulging you like this.
Elves in general are more open when it comes to sexuality than humans, they don’t view it as “bad” or “immoral”. Arondir is no exception, so he’s really open to trying new things in bed if you want.
Elves have a culture that’s a bit more egalitarian, so Arondir doesn’t hold the same stereotypes about women than the human men. He doesn’t think less of you because you’re not a man, or because you had previous partners, or because you enjoy sex.
Arondir clearly has sacrificial tendencies, so he will prioritize the pleasure and comfort of his partner before his own. It can be fun, but at the same time, it took some time for him to understand you’re also enjoying giving him pleasure.
Speaking of pleasure, having sex with an elf is more intense than with any human (look it up, it’s canon). Each time, you’re left with a deep feeling of joy and serenity, your body totally relaxed - truth be told, you feel a bit high, and you’re not complaining.
Most elves are pansexual, and Arondir too. I won’t take any comments at this point.
Arondir is a ranger and a soldier, so I’m pretty sure he’s into whatever the elvish version of shibari is. He likes displaying his skills by tying you up in intricate and beautiful design with silk-made ropes. If you praise him for it, he will be the happiest.
Elvish stamina is quite high compared to humans, so he can go on longer than any man. He will gladly overwhelm you and pleasure you until you can’t think any longer if that’s a thing you’re into.
Arondir has a beautiful and toned body. He’s very proud of the effect he has on you when he gets naked in front of you. He can be a little smug about it.
His ears are particularly sensitive, and he likes it when you touch them. It’s all the more symbolic since this is the most visible thing that distinguishes elves from humans, and since it’s a feature usually despised by humans.
Elves don’t blink and usually sleep with their eyes open, so when Arondir closes his eyes to revel in your touch, it means a lot for both of you.
#arondir x reader#arondir imagine#arondir headcanons#rings of power fanfic#rings of power fanfiction#lord of the rings#arondir
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hello! can i ask for silver and marius von hagen? it can be up to you on how it flows!
SILVER 》 modernity, technology, sophistication
◇ His voice echoes from your cellphone, yet it feels as if he's by your side.
COLORS OF ROMANCE EVENT
Marius Von Hagen x Female! Reader
Word Count: 871 words
Trigger/Content Warning: slight suicidal joke
You whined softly as the alarm rang in your ears. You didn't feel like waking up and your muscles ached with fatigue.
You revealed your arms from under the bed in an attempt to stretch them, but they instead hit the headboard you forgot existed with a loud bump. The only thing that stretched out was your long wince of pain, and the string of curses you muttered under your breath.
But your mouth stopped working and your arms numbed when you realized this ringing wasn't your alarm. It was familiar, but your sleepy mind couldn't process what it was. You looked over to your bedside, and your clock, silent and unalarming, read 3:34 A.M.
You realized the ringing was your phone's ringtone. Your special ringtone, for a very special somebody. You sat up and stretched your arms above your without hitting anything, before reaching over to your bedside, and picking up the phone. On the screen was a name you could utter for ages and never get tired of: MARIUS, with a heart emoji beside it for good measure.
"Marius, why are you calling so early?"
"Early? Wait—hold on, what time is it at yours?"
"3:30 in the morning!"
"Ahhhh, shit, I got my timezones mixed up again…"
"Why are you calling anyways?"
"It's around lunchtime here, so I was just gonna call to say hello and completely forgot that we weren't in the same country. Sorry 'bout that, hehe," he chuckled awkwardly.
"I appreciate you caring about me, but sometimes I wish you paid more attention to detail, Marius," you laughed back drowsily.
"Anyways, aren't you gonna go back to sleep now? You sound tired."
"Nevermind that. You called to ask how I was, right? and I don't think you'd have any other free time, since, y'know, you're busy as hell."
Marius was away on a business trip, and this was the fourth day you were separated. He wouldn't be home for a week after that, and although it could always have been worse, you missed him deeply, and he seemed to feel the same.
"Aww, Missy, I know you love me so much that you can't resist listening to my beautiful voice, but are you sure you don't want to go back to sleep?" he teased.
"Now that you've said that, I might just sleep again. I wish I never wake up."
"MISSY! Don't make jokes like that!"
"You're just so ridiculous, Marius. Makes me want to die!"
The both of you laughed into the phone. Despite the fact that it was the dead of night and most of Stellis was still asleep, you felt more alive than ever.
"Why didn't you call me yesterday?" you asked, feeling more energetic than the time called for.
"Well, I was busy handling some things, which I actually planned on telling you right now."
"Oh? And what could that be?"
"I'll be back…by the end of the month. Sorry."
"Whaaaaat? But I thought you said—"
"I said I'd be back next week, yes, but something went wrong with the contract and it's going to take a lot longer than expected." he sighed.
"Is it a legal problem? Can I help you in any way?" you asked desperately in an attempt to see him sooner.
"Don't worry about it, [Name], it'll be alright. I promise I'll tell you everything that goes on."
Your lips curved downward and you took a deep breath. It was a bummer, sure, but you asked for one thing:
"Can you still call me?"
"Well, due to the timezones, I'm not sure if—"
"I don't care if i have to wake up at three in the morning. I want to talk to you somehow. Please," you begged.
"Hmmm, if you're sure you're alright with it, then fine…"
"Thank you, Marius!"
"Yeah, but that means you have to sleep early so you won't feel tired. Don't work too hard in the evenings!"
"Mmm, whatever you say…"
You kept bantering about his trip, the cases you were up to recently, everything going on in your lives; it was soothing but exciting, since you hadn't talked like this to him in a while.
"Oh, by the way, [Name], I didn't talk to you yesterday also because I was busy sending over something to your mailbox. Can you check if it's arrived?"
"It's three in the morning, Marius, why would they deliver it that early?"
"Mind you, Missy, it is now six in the morning."
"SIX?!?!?!"
It was six in the morning, alright, and the sun started to rise through the windows. You rushed to your mailbox in pajamas, and found a relatively thick letter.
"What's this?"
"Just open it."
You opened the envelope inside of your room to find a painting. His self portrait; done in simple watercolor, but stunning nevertheless. You thought to yourself, it was so of marius to send you a painting of himself.
"It's so you can be with me even if I'm away!"
"You really gifted me a picture of yourself, huh? Self-centered much?"
"Hey! I put effort into that piece of art, and it's for you anyways. Don't you just love how my talent conveyed the handsomeness of my face perfectly? i even got my jawline right."
"...I'll burn it."
"MISSY!"
All works belong to @iceysghost on Tumblr. Reblogs and shares are allowed. Do not repost on other social media platforms without permission. Do not reproduce or plagiarize any part of my works in any shape or form.
#tears of themis#tears of themis x reader#tears of themis fanfic#tears of themis fanfiction#tot fluff#marius von hagen#tot marius#tears of themis marius#marius von hagen x reader#marius x reader#marius x mc#marius x rosa#marius von hagen x rosa#lu jinghe#lu jinghe x reader#anon request#tears of themis requests#iceysghost colors of romance
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Kabby: “i wasn't sure how much longer i could have taken this..."
Post-s2 grayspace / y'all know the deal here. PG-ish and also on ao3.
Abby would never describe herself as patient, but this whole… situation is challenging her self-perception in a way she doesn’t know how to handle.
The fact that her breaking point includes someone she’s spent most of her life trying to outsmart and outdo at every turn is the easy part. She’s suspected Marcus would be her undoing in some form since she was old enough to understand what that concept meant. She just… expected for a very long time that said breaking point would involve attempted murder on her side, not…
She doesn’t even know how to describe it. Great sign right there.
Point is, the fact that her subconscious went from wanting to strangle that man to wanting to curl up around him – and the fact that she has, for completely justifiable reasons, done that second thing on several occasions – is a little destabilizing, and-
“You’re planning something.”
What she is actively doing, at the moment, is having this daydream slash existential crisis on the couch in their shared office, a piece of furniture she seems to spend too much of her life on both awake and asleep and at least she is awake right now and-
“Oh? What makes it so obvious?” Immediate defense mode, and how terrible of a person is she if she admits in her heart that sparring with him is fun, especially these past few months where they’re more aware how much they need each other and that means no threats just petty personality clashes and the things two people do when they practically live on top of each other and oh that’s a mental image she doesn’t need right now and-
“Usually the lack of eye contact means-“
“Do you know how distracting you are?”
Surprisingly, that shuts him up.
There was a time – fine, there were a lot of times – when trying to make him speechless was a very fun game. Never seemed to last long but still worth her time to try, just to make him squirm a little, just to-
If this whole love or lust or whatever she’s dealing with goes anywhere, she may need to calm down, and she’s not sure how she feels about that either. Dammit.
“Distracting?” he repeats after the longest pause she’s ever gotten out of him in twenty-odd years of trying whenever the mood hits, and the word sounds just slightly wrong in his voice, and-
“Distracting. And I’m not sure what I want to do with it, and-“
“Can I ask what kind of distracting?”
Part of her – the part of her that likes to set things on fire for the pleasure of it, the uninhibited part that she’s never quite tamed – is very, very tempted to go into a few more explicit daydreams, but-
“You’ve changed. In every way a person could. And I’m not sure how to… deal with that.”
“Do you have to?”
Abby laughs, and if he wants eye contact she’s more than happy to playfully glare at him, and-
Screw this, she thinks as she gets to her feet and moves towards him in what is not as fluid of a set of motions as it probably should be, and she means to kiss him properly but misses and gets his jaw instead and-
“I wasn’t sure how much longer I could’ve taken this,” she breathes. Breaking point found, apparently.
“You…”
“We are not talking about this,” she murmurs. “I’m just tired of-“
“Understood.”
They will, she is well aware, end up talking about it. Just… not now.
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Fic: Alive, Part 23
Summary: Aidan traced the thin chain around his neck, rubbing the infinity pendant between his fingers. No longer a symbol of their everlasting love, it was something he touched in anger when he thought of Sage. It was the only thing of hers that still remained with him after eight years, the last possession which still connected them together. When he 4did find Sage again, and he would no matter how long it took, he planned to destroy the pendant - and her.
Taking place across two timelines, Alive tells the story of Aidan and Sage, high school sweethearts driven apart by who they are and where they come from. Once enemies then lovers, their relationship runs full circle when they meet again in the present, now prepared to destroy each other.
My Masterlist (contains links to previous parts)
Now...
Later that evening after putting Ziyah to bed, Sage poured herself a glass of wine and headed into the den. Usually this was her time to relax but that was the farthest thing from her mind tonight. David was watching a movie and she took the seat beside him, offering a small smile when he reached for her glass. After an unsuccessful attempt at watching the movie, she finally gave up. "I don't think Aidan's leaving."
David took a sip of the wine. "What changed your mind? The other night you were so convinced he'd be jetting out of here."
"I was wrong."
"You mentioned he showed up at your office?"
"Yup. To tell me he bought the penthouse suite in this building. So now I have to worry about running into him everywhere."
"Jackass doesn't do things halfway, does he?"
"Nope."
"What exactly did he say?"
"That he's not going anywhere and he's willing to do things my way to make it easier on Ziyah. Blah, blah, blah."
"If I say something will you swear not to bite my head off?" David asked.
"No."
"I'm going to say it anyway."
"It's your head."
"Fighting with him is obviously taking a toll on you. You're stressed out, pissed off. Is it really worth it?"
"What should I do then? Just hand him my daughter?"
"That's not what I meant," David griped. "He said he's willing to do things your way, right?"
"Yeah."
"Then use that to your advantage! Give him a chance to get to know Ziyah but you be the one to dictate the terms."
"I don't want him near us."
"Yeah well, he's not going anywhere until he meets Ziyah. So you can either compromise with him and gain some control over the situation or let him ruin what you've worked so hard to protect. You have every reason to hate him and his family. I get that. After everything that happened, who can blame you for wanting to protect Ziyah from them?" David wrapped his arm around her shoulder. "Maybe the key to getting what you want isn't to keep fighting but to give him just enough rope to hang himself. He wants to play daddy, right? Let him. Show him all the work that goes into it, how hard the whole thing is, and maybe that'll be enough for him to give up on that idea. Once he sees how difficult it is, he'll go back to L.A and do whatever the fuck he does, and you'll never have to worry about him again."
"And how do you think Ziyah will feel about that, huh? Do you think it's easy for a kid to be rejected by a parent?” Her mind raced, her heart pulsed. "Unless... I don't have to tell her he's her dad, I could just say he's a friend or something. And that way when he leaves, she won't be attached to him."
"There you go!" He squeezed her shoulder as a sign of encouragement.
She took back the wine glass from David's hand and chugged the rest of the drink. Although still hating the idea of Aidan being around Ziyah, she realised David was right. When things became too difficult or too much for Aidan to handle, he had a tendency to run back to the familiar – as proven by how easily he'd abandoned her and returned to Cat once Sage refused to bend to his will. So all she had to do was be patient, and wait for Aidan's destructive habits to kick in when parenting proved more difficult than whatever fantasy he had created in his head. And then, hopefully sooner than later, he would finally leave and she and Ziyah could return to their normal routine.
Finding some semblance of peace now that she had a plan, Sage leaned back against the couch. "I'm going to miss you when you leave."
"I'm not gone yet."
"I wish you could stay longer."
"Me too."
"Have you talked to Patrick?" His hesitation didn't escape her notice. "David, what's going on?"
"Nothing."
"You sure? I'm here if you need to talk."
He replied with a half-hearted smile before falling back on the couch, snuggling against her. "Shut up and let me watch the movie."
"Fine," she muttered, resting her head on his shoulder. Tomorrow she would search for Aidan's contact information and set up a meeting, inviting the chaos that he always brought with him; tonight, however, when everything was still peaceful, she just wanted to cling to the comfortable life she had built for herself and Ziyah.
*****
Sage entered the Shangri-la hotel and headed towards the bar where she was supposed to meet Aidan. Spotting a bathroom along the way, she made a quick stop to check her reflection in the mirror. Her stomach was coiled into knots, she felt nervous and sweaty – but her reflection appeared normal, composed even. She smoothed down the fabric of her suit, checked to make sure the hem of her skirt was even. A little voice in her head pointed out she never worried this much about her appearance, not even when doing showings for prospective clients, but Sage ignored it.
The bar, conveniently named The Bar, was tucked away in the northwest corner of the lobby floor. Upon entering the premise, she scanned the area and found Aidan at the bar. Surprise, surprise, he was talking to the very attractive bartender and, from the looks of it, she was flirting back. Not that Sage could blame the woman. Wearing jeans, a teal blue sweater, and a charming smile on his face, he looked good. Really good. Asshole. Feeling more tense now, Sage approached him. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
He turned towards her, the easy smile on his face now replaced with something a lot less warm. His languid gaze swept down her body, cold and judgmental. "Aren't you always?"
"Says the man who barged into my life and now refuses to leave."
"Touché." He grinned, standing up. "Let's get a table."
"This isn't a fucking date," she snapped.
He quirked his eyebrow. "Don't flatter yourself. I'm hungry. I haven't eaten in hours."
"Why? To maintain your girlish figure?"
"Ah, you noticed." Aidan smirked. "Been checking me out?"
She resisted the smile that was threatening to break out. "Now who's flattering themselves?"
"Someone has to. You obviously won't."
He gestured to the hostess to seat them and soon they were sitting at a booth, big enough so that it didn't feel intimate – which was the last thing she needed to worry about. After he ordered a steak, a bottle of wine and some appetizers, they were alone once again. Awkwardness set in like a thick fog over them. It occurred to her there was a time when she used to fantasize about going out to dinner with Aidan at a public place, like a normal couple, without having to worry about Cat or anyone else bullying or insulting them, but Sage told herself to stop being ridiculous and get over it.
"If you play nice, I may give you a small piece of my steak," he said, bringing her out of her reverie.
She met his gaze. Aidan's eyes were a darker shade tonight, contrasting against the colour of his sweater. His handsome face stared back at her, his lips curved into a small, flirtatious smile. It was so easy to be swept away by him when he played up the charm, and just as difficult to get over the heartbreak when he was done and no longer cared. Although it had been years it still felt like it was just yesterday he had rejected her, thrown her aside for her sister, and she remembered the deep anguish all too well. "I don't want you anywhere around my daughter."
His smile dissolved. "Our daughter. I know you like to think you conceived her all on your own but you didn't. Do I need to go over the birds and the bees thing with you?"
"Fuck you. I've raised her on my own, I've given her a safe and loving home-"
"No one fucking asked you to do it by yourself!" His voice was heavy with anger and fully directed at her. "I could have helped! I could have been a part of her life from the very beginning but you took me out of the equation. You had no right to do that!"
"So what is it that you want? Is this about ownership for you, about possession? She has your genes so now you feel like you have to claim her, maybe dominate over her?"
"No!" he griped, disgusted. "I want to..." He exhaled a resigned sigh, reaching for his glass of wine. "I want to get to know her. That's all. Why is that so hard to understand?"
His sincerity was almost enough to weaken her resolve – until she remembered the danger that surrounded him. "I don't trust you, and the thought of you being around Ziyah scares the crap out of me."
Pain flooded over his features, as if she had physically hurt him.
"But I also know how much of a stubborn jackass you are and you're not going to give up anytime soon."
"You're making me blush," he deadpanned.
"I don't want to spend my time arguing or worrying about you. It's not good for me and it's definitely not good for Ziyah. She might be a kid but she can sense when things aren't right."
"What do you have in mind?"
"I have conditions. And before you start bitching at me about them, you need to know this isn't for me as much as it is for Ziyah. I have to protect her no matter what. I'm her mom. That's my job."
He gave her a small smile. "Okay."
"She can't know you're her dad, at least not yet."
"Why?"
"Because how do I know you're not going to get bored and take off next week or next month? I don't. And when that happens, I'm going to be left with a daughter who'll be heartbroken. I can't bear that. I remembered what being rejected by a parent felt like. I don't want her to experience something that horrible."
Suddenly Aidan leaned in closer, his gaze boring into her. "I'm not going to leave. You have my word."
"Your word doesn't mean anything to me," she replied, hating that her voice trembled with emotion. "Until I can trust that you're in her life for good, she can't know you're her dad. It's as simple as that."
He watched her for a long time, almost daring her to break eye contact, but she refused to look weak in front of him and held his gaze.
"Fine," he finally relented. "How are you going to explain my being around all of a sudden?"
"I'll just tell her we're friends. She's a kid. She'll buy it."
"Friends, huh? Is that what we are now?"
"No, but we don't need to be. We just can't be at each other's throats in front of Ziyah. That's not a good environment for a child to be in."
The food arrived then, just in time to distract from the hostile energy that had taken over between them. Shortly after she was nibbling on some deep-fried spring rolls and watching him wolf down his steak. He wasn't kidding when he'd mentioned being hungry. By the looks of it, he was positively famished. "What were you so busy doing that you didn't even have time to eat today?"
"That's none of your business, is it?"
"Is this how you're planning to talk to me in front of Ziyah?"
"Do you really think I would do that?" he fired back. "You're not the only one with a shitty parent. I had one too, and I remember what it was like growing up in a house and being terrified of him. I hated how he spoke to my mother and me, like we were fucking things that he owned and not actual human beings." He wiped his mouth with a napkin and took a swig of his drink. "Whatever is happening between us, you and me, I'm not going to bitch you out or disrespect you in front of her. And before you list this as one of your conditions, I don't intend to go against any decisions you've made for her either. As far as Ziyah is concerned, you and I are a united front."
His words stunned her, mostly because she hadn't expected that level of understanding from him.
"What else? What other conditions do you have?"
She took a breath before speaking. "Ziyah can't have any contact with Cat, Theo. Any of them. And your mom."
"Are you fucking kidding me?"
She braced herself for a fight. "I don't want my kid being called names, or being treated like shit. No one should have to live with being bullied, and your friends and family? They're bullies. They're horrible people, they're disgusting, and I won't let my daughter be exposed to them. I don't give a fuck that they matter to you or they're important to you. What I care about is Ziyah and I'll die before I let any of them near her."
"Don't hold back. Tell me how you really feel," he said flippantly.
"I'm not budging on this."
"They're not just my family, they're hers too. Sooner or later, she'll have to meet them."
"Not if I can help it."
"Is this really about Ziyah? Or you?"
Sage shook her head. "Of course you don't get it. I don't know why I expected any different from you." Taking out her wallet, she threw some bills on the table. "Forget this. Forget I even came here," she muttered, refusing to look at him as she gathered her things together.
"Yeah, keep running. That's what you do best, right?"
Not bothering to respond to his condescending tone, she stormed out.
*****
Then...
The morning had started off like any other: a sparring match with Cat at home and then dealing with the constant buzz of malicious gossip about herself at school. Although Sage had perfected the art of acting impervious, it was hard to keep up the charade when a nastier-than-usual rumor reached her ears. Yesterday's gossip blast was all about how she'd fucked three guys, one after the other, in the men's bathroom to get her hands on some molly; today, there was something new to fuel people's interests.
"What's going on?" David asked, joining her as they followed the crowd of people in the hallway.
"Locker check or something."
"Why are the cops here?"
"They received a tip someone was selling drugs in Belleville," someone replied from a few feet away.
"Why don't they just question Marcus? Everyone knows he's the one you call when you need a hit of something," David griped. "Wait a sec. If they find porn in our lockers they can't arrest us for that, can they?"
"They'd have to arrest all the guys in Belleville then," Sage replied. "I doubt that's going to happen."
"I hope so."
They watched as a police officer and his dog walked the hallway, occasionally stopping in front of lockers to check them. Soon they were near Sage's section when the dog started sniffing her locker. Even though there was nothing suspicious contained within, her stomach still turned with anxiety.
"Ms. Alvi, can you please open your locker for us?"
Sage shot a worried look at David before doing as requested. Nervousness turned into a sick feeling of dread as she stepped aside and allowed the officer to search through her things. A second later, he pulled out a variety of bags from the back of her locker.
"Those aren't mine!" Sage insisted.
"Ms. Alvi, I need you to come with us."
It didn't matter how much she protested; her pleas fell on deaf ears as they led her away from the gathering crowd.
*****
After spending the last few hours in the police station being interrogated by the cops and then lectured by Thomas and his lawyer, she was finally back in the poolhouse. The events of the past few hours flashed through her mind. Someone had put drugs in her locker, enough to make sure she would be charged with possession for sale. And with her recent bout of troubles at Belleville, they were all too eager to believe she was capable of that. The cynical part of her wondered if the authorities would be more lenient if she had been white. Unfortunately, despite having a father who was, she wasn't afforded the benefits of the privileged.
Closing the door behind her, she stared blankly at her surroundings. She was tired, of this place, her father and his family, of continuously fighting with everyone. Her mind was exhausted, her heart broken. For a while there she had been happy, deliriously so, when she and Aidan had been together but now the thought of him just filled her with shame. He'd used her and she had allowed herself to be used, letting herself believe he cared about her, even loved her. With everything falling apart, he'd been a lifeline she had desperately clung to – but it had been an illusion, nothing more than lies.
In the end, with Layal gone, she was alone. Always alone. And that was never going to change.
She walked to the bed, took a seat. College had been the light at the end of the tunnel, the one thing getting her through this hellhole, but now, because of these trumped up charges, even that dream was quickly dissipating. Everything was dark, her future bleak, and there was no escaping it.
*****
The knock on the door woke her up. She glanced at the clock. It was a little after 8am, only a few hours had passed since she'd returned from the police station. About to get up to answer the door, she stilled upon hearing the jiggle of keys. A second later, Cat stepped inside. Dressed impeccably like she always was, Cat greeted her with a smug smile on her face, positively preening.
"Damn. You're still here."
"What do you want, Cat?"
"You. Gone. For good."
Cat strutted across the room, stopping halfway between the door and the bed, carefully scrutinizing the area. "We're going to have to steam your stench out of this place when you finally leave."
Sage forced herself to remain calm. "It was you, wasn't it? You put the drugs in my locker."
Cat met her gaze, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction. "Maybe. Then again, you've pissed off so many people it could be just about anybody. Tish. Marcus. Aidan."
Sage wondered if this level of despair would haunt her forever. There seemed to be no end in sight, no matter where she turned.
"Nothing to say?" Cat jeered.
Despite how she felt, Sage refused to break down in front of Cat. "Leave now, Cat, or you'll be needing a plastic surgeon to fix your face once I'm done with you."
"And you wonder why people hate you. You're trash, Sage. And instead of being grateful that we let someone like you around us, you act all superior. No wonder Madeline hates you so much."
From the slight inflection in Cat's voice, Sage knew right away who was responsible for setting her up. Madeline. Aidan's mom. And she obviously did it with Cat's help.
Swallowing an audible breath, Sage stood up. "I'm going to count to five, and you know what'll happen once I reach the end." Before she made it to three, Cat scurried out of the room. Taking a deep breath, she pondered the bombshell her sister had dropped. Madeline was the one responsible for these charges but Sage couldn't figure out why. It's not like she and Aidan were still together so why was his mother out to get her now?
As much as Sage hated the idea of contacting Aidan, she had no choice. He was the only one who could explain Madeline's motivations because, frankly, Sage had no clue. She picked up the phone, dialed his number, growing increasingly tense as the phone rang for several seconds. Finally, he picked up after the third ring.
"Sage?"
The way he whispered her name with such longing made her insides churn. It was hard for her to breathe, let alone speak.
"Sage?"
"Forget it. This was a mistake."
"No, don't hang up. Please."
Every instinct in her body told her to end the call but her heart... her heart leapt up in her chest, surging with emotions.
"I don't know why you called but I'm glad you did. I miss you, Sage."
She remained silent, unable to respond.
"I know you're pissed at me, you have every right to be. But I swear I'll change, I'll be better, I'll never hurt you again. Just please give me another chance."
"That's not why I'm calling!" she replied quickly, before his words were able to break through her barriers. "I'm in trouble."
"What's wrong?" he asked, sounding panicked.
"I was arrested today. The cops searched my locker and found drugs in there."
"Marcus." Aidan's terse words were laced with anger. "He must have planted them there. When I get back-"
"It wasn't Marcus. Or at least he didn't work alone. It was your mom who set it up."
There were several beats of silence before he finally answered. "Sage, come on. Why would she do that?"
"That's what I'm calling you to find out. You and I are done; we're not together anymore and she doesn't need to worry about me. So why is she out to get me?"
"Don't you think you're being a little paranoid right now?"
Of course he didn't believe her. It was foolish of her to assume that he would. After all, Aidan was one of them. "I don't know why I thought you'd help me."
"And I don't know why you're so determined to blame my mom for this. What makes you think it wasn't Tish or Marcus that put that shit in there?" His voice softened, almost as if to lull her into a false sense of security. "I'm at my grandparent's right now. I'll be back in LA soon. Just hang tight for a few days until I'm home and then we can work through this together."
"Yeah, sure," she scoffed.
"Sage, I know things seem hopeless right now but you're not alone. I'll be there as soon as I can. Just wait for me. Please."
He sounded insincere, every word out of his mouth a ridiculous lie. How could she have trusted him in the past? Loved him? Cat's words from earlier rung in her ear. There was a very good possibility that it was Aidan who had planned this. She knew all too well what he was capable of when angry; thanks to his parents, he was an expert on manipulating people and doling out extreme punishment when he felt slighted – and yet there was a part of her that still refused to believe he would hurt her to that extent. Then again, it didn't matter. Even if Madeline was the one responsible, his refusal to believe the truth made him just as culpable in Sage's eyes.
"Say something," he urged, voice infused with fake desperation.
She hung up and turned off the phone.
With no one on her side she had to figure out a way out of this mess on her own – which meant she had to confront Madeline.
To be continued...
@tiki-tequila @bustlingcrowdsxorxsilentsleepers @idaofinfinity
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Text
Febuwhump Day 3: Muzzled
Fandom: Final Fantasy XIV
Characters/Ship: Sanson Smyth/Guydelot Thildonnet
Triggers/Content warnings: Stalking, kidnapping
He's being followed. He's sure of it now, after three days of catching glimpses of the same three men out of the corner of his eye - there and gone when Guydelot turns to look, but less than a quarter-bell later, he senses them again. He hasn't yet brought it to Sanson's attention: Sanson's got too much on his plate as it is, and the last thing either of them need is to start jumping at shadows.
Whatever these fellows are about, Guydelot tells himself, it's nothing he can't handle on his own.
Still, it's with an unfamiliar whisper of unease that he sets out that evening for his favorite haunt, the East Shroud. He glances over his shoulder as the ferry leaves the dock, watching the lights of Gridania recede - Sanson won't be trailing behind him tonight, not with a lengthy strategy meeting to drag himself though. Escaping that meeting is half of why Guydelot's making himself scarce in the first place... but gods, what he wouldn't do to know the only thing tracing his steps through the dark is the man he loves, and the only danger therein the chance that they might stay out too late, lose track of time, and give themselves a rough morning in the bargain.
He lingers on the landing dock longer than usual, squinting back in the direction of the city. Is the ferry returning... perhaps with three strangers in tow, prepared to follow him through the Shroud?
He waits. Waits. Nothing.
Guydelot heaves a frustrated sigh, shaking his head in self-disgust. Really, now. He's got his bow, he's got his harp, and he knows these parts like the back of his hand - what trouble's he gonna get himself into this close to the Hawthornes? There's Wood Wailers out here, too; the area's well-patrolled. He's just out for an evening stroll. Same as always. Nothing to fear.
He'll tell Sanson about his admirers tonight, he decides, setting off. Even if there's not much to tell, even if it feels foolish to mention it at all, it'll be good to get it of his chest - and they've not faced a problem yet that they can't tackle together.
Sanson. The thought makes him smile, easing some of his anxiety. Sanson'll scold him for not saying something sooner, he thinks, winding his way among the trees, following the path. Normally he'd rather slip off into wilder territory... but his nerves keep him well in check, keeping him on the well-trodden trail that leads to the Hawthorne Hut, and beyond to Little Solace. Sanson'd be pleased by his caution, at least... though he'll probably still be exasperated with Guydelot for setting out at all tonight.
What if something happened to you, he'll demand, his brows pinching into that frustrated, grumpy little frown; the one that combines fury and affection all at once. What if someone followed you?
"Well, nothing happened," he replies aloud, his steps more assured now, more relaxed. "Nothing but me, the trees, and the chigoes." He passes the Hawthorne Hut, nodding cordially to the Wailers standing guard - there, see, he says, to the frowning Sanson in his mind's eye, See? I made sure the men on watch saw me and everything.
Emboldened, he decides to take the long way back to the docks. He turns for the Bramble Patch, whistling quietly to himself as he goes.
And that's when everything starts to go wrong.
It's quiet: that's the first sign something's amiss. No insects singing as the stars come out; no small creatures scrabbling through the thorns. Even the boars appear to have cleared out, leaving the patch curiously empty, the air strangely tense.
Guydelot readies his bow, nocking an arrow.
Sanson's going to kill me.
Movement. He fires his arrow in that direction, rewarded by a muffled swear - but before he can count his victory, something slams into the backs of his legs, knocking him forward. He hits the ground, rolls, doesn't drop his bow. All those drills with the Quiver were good for something. He rises, already reaching for another arrow -
Three of them - no, four, four men and a hunting hound; the hound must've been what hit him. Thank the damn Twelve I didn't stay down, then. The men are all elezen, Guydelot has time to realize. Three lancers and an archer. Bad odds.
If he wasn't a bard.
The song comes to him readily, as always - some of his fellow bards said it felt awkward at first, singing during battle; Guydelot can't relate. Comes easy as breathing. Why shouldn't every battle be set to song? What good is a fight without the power of music to carry it? So he sings, and each note gives his arrows extra punch - with no comrades to sing for and only the thought of Sanson waiting for him to come home to sustain him, he sings for himself, and for the promise of safety at the battle's end.
One man, the archer, falls swiftly. Guydelot's careful not to kill him. Sanson'll want to ask questions. He takes one of the lancers next - the slowest of the bunch, but there's power behind his strikes; Guydelot has no interest in being speared with that much force. That leaves only two. Better odds. He can handle this; he can-
Can-
His song cuts off mid-verse, choked, as the aether around him twists and binds, constricting. Can't sing. Can't move. Can barely breathe - but he musters enough breath to swear aloud, writhing in his unseen bonds.
Hells. Hells. He's felt this before - but not since...
Not since saving Sanson's life. Not since Nourval.
Enough with that detestable noise!
And it'd taken Eve to bust him out of it last time, all while his lungs grew tighter and tighter-
Panic surges.
One of the remaining lancers steps forward, watching him with an eerily familiar smile - aye, and Guydelot knows those eyes, too, and the smarmy self-satisfaction in them. This man's hair has gone grey at the temples, but in the twilight, Guydelot'd swear it's the same nut-brown shade. A cold finger of raw terror runs down the length of Guydelot's spine.
"Ah," the stranger says, his smile growing. "You've pieced a thing or two together, I believe." The man makes a small gesture with one hand, and the invisible bonds holding Guydelot in place force him to his knees, irresistible and crushing. "This technique was first developed by the Ala Mhigans, did you know?" He curls a fist, and sense of suffocation grows, until Guydelot gasps for breath. "Barbaric, is it not? It was meant to combat Gridania's singing archers, the first of the bards."
He frowns, then, at his own fist, easing the pressure ever-so-slightly. Guydelot swallows air, stars dancing before his eyes. "Such is the nature of the beasts you and yours have liberated from their Garlean masters," the man continues. "Such is the nature of those you would see raised to stand beside men and women of the Alliance-" he hisses the word. "Of Gridania."
"You," Guydelot gasps. "You're Nourval's-"
"A sniveling weakling, in the end," the man says, shrugging one shoulder. "But he was my sister's son, and swore Vainchelon's blood threw true. Too true, perhaps. Had Vainchelon been a harder man, prepared to do what must be done, perhaps he might not have stepped so guilelessly into the trap which sealed his fate."
He looks to the other lancer. "We will not rely overmuch on the tools of our enemies," he says. "Muzzle him. We must move quickly, before his absence is noticed."
Muzzle?
Guydelot has only a moment's baffled horror to spare before the other man descends on him, carrying a contraption of leather and metal. He seizes Guydelot's jaw, forcing it open despite the bard's struggles - and in his mouth, he forces a sturdy tab of metal, which presses firmly on Guydelot's tongue, preventing him from speaking, let alone singing. It makes him gag, retching, but the man is relentless, fastening the leather straps of the hellish device around Guydelot's face, lashing them in place.
Last but far from least, he binds Guydelot's hands. He tosses the bard's bow and harp to Nourval's uncle. The aetheric pressure locking Guydelot in place evaporates... but it brings no relief, bound and silenced as he is, shivering in futile terror.
"My nephew suffered from a surfeit of mercy," the man says, drawing a wicked knife from his belt. In one quick motion, he cuts the strings of Guydelot's harp.
The bard manages a small, stifled, strangled sound, choked behind the muzzle.
The man smiles, cold. "You will find," he says, "I do not suffer the same affliction."
To be continued...
#guydelot thildonnet#my writing#febuwhump#febuwhumpday3#febuwhump2023#/just swings a bat at guydelot all month long#i believe this will be the three-parter (at least) for this year#just looking at the prompt list#i've got plans#/rubs hands together
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