#( JUST... fucking let him ramble about something. what things he's seen. the weather. the creatures. )

[sopxhiea]

Scarce

Alfie Solomons X Reader

Summary: Alfie and the reader spend cozy days in Margate while Alfie remains his grumpy self.

Requested by @vieuwer <3

“Are you shivering?”

Winter had always been harsh. 

The calendar that rested against the cold surface of the oak wall showed that the seasons were in fact changing and it would soon feel like the cold would be unbearable. The front door was locked while the seagulls cried out a familiar song, the rooms were warm due to the fireplaces in two ends of the house. 

Margate was quiet, the only sound being the slow music of the seagulls and the sea. Most people were tucked inside the warmth of their homes, no kid was allowed to go outside and play in this weather. 

It had been a while.

Although it had been just over two years since you had moved to Margate, it felt like you’d been there for longer than that. You had been seeing Alfie for about four years prior and even though there was no golden band around your finger, it felt as though you were married to the bear of a man.

There was no noise as you walked through the empty corridors. The house was usually like this, quiet and warm and that became the case in winter as well. Cyril was upstairs in the bedroom making noise as he chased something around the house but that was all the noise in the house.

Certain things had changed over the years.

Alfie had been shot and somehow survived it. He hadn’t let you see him for a couple months but he cracked quick. He couldn’t do it without you, this thing called life. He appeared in the shadows first, watching over you and decided that if you were to hate him because of all that had happened, he would be fine with it but he needed one last hug, a kiss goodbye and he’d be content.

But you hadn’t done that.

He was a silly man, your Alfie. It had taken you a long time to convince him that you loved him the way he was. He didn’t like the way he looked now, with the scar covering one side of his face. He realised though, after months of you reassuring him, that you didn’t care. If anything, it had given him a tougher look and that worked out for you.

“Alfie!” your voice was soft against the air around as you called for him. Maybe he was asleep somewhere in the house but due to the large size of it, it would take you a while to find him if he didn’t answer.

“In here!” he shouted. You shook your head with a smile, in where?

You felt yourself shiver a little while making your way towards the other end of the house where his study was. You didn’t go in there often, he was easily distracted and it was hard fucking against the cold wooden table. You knocked once, softly and didn’t wait for a proper answer before entering.

Unlike Alfie, you weren’t a very warm creature. He was your blanket during winters when you’d wear layers on top of other layers and still be cold. It was a problem with your blood, Alfie had said but your mother was the same way so you didn’t ponder on it. He would keep you warm anyway.

Walking in with the thick robe and the satin nightgown you had on, you smiled at him as he looked up from the book in his hands.Your slippers made soft sounds against the wooden flooring as you made your way towards him. He wasn’t working so you were allowed bother the grump bear.

“Hi.” you said, almost cooing as he opened his arms after putting the book back on his desk. He knew you were coming to sit on his lap and you were more than welcome in his eyes. He was obsessed with you doing that and you liked his warmth.

“‘ello, dove.” he spoke, voice gruff as he spoke.

You lifted one leg to straddle his thighs and sat down immediately. It was easy to ignore the way his eyes caught your bare legs under the nightgown but Alfie was always in the mood when it came to you. He brushed the thought away while you held onto his arms and sat down on his lap. The man was almost thrice your size but you made it work.

Feeling your cold fingertips against his inked arms, he grabbed them and brought them against his lips. He had disappeared after breakfast and you weren’t complaining but you needed your source of warmth during the colder months. 

“Pet..” he spoke before his hands engulfed your much smaller ones. You blinked at him while feeling his warmth spread through your body. “Are you shivering?”

You shook your head immediately but your nails were slowly turning purple. The cold had never been good to you but you were content with the way things were at the given moment.

“It’s cold, you know.” you spoke, as a matter of factly. He smiled at the silly response before moving one of his hands to touch your neck. You were warm everywhere except your feet and hands.  “It’s fine, Alfie.” you said and leaned in for a kiss but he wasn’t having it.

He stood up slowly, removing you from his lap but never letting go of your hand. If it was left to Alfie, he’d have you sleep, eat and basically do everything else against the fireplace, hence why there were multiple of them around the house. You knew he was taking you to the living room to make sure you were warm again and a sigh left your lips.

You started speaking as he led you through the long corridors of the house. “It’s okay, I can ju-”

“I don’t want ya’ to get sick.” he said, a cold hard fact before making you sit down in front of the fire place. He grabbed the blanket on one of the sofas and draped it over your shoulders before sitting on the comfy chair next to you. It was one of the moving chairs and it was Alfie’s except when cyril would get on it to rest for a while.

You stared at Alfie’s fingers that were holding yours, the gold on his fingers glistened as he stared at the fire place. He was a brazen gangster when you had met him. He didn’t flinch when faced with death or the barrel of a gun but he had become your very own teddy bear soon after.

He had changed in some ways. He was not so young anymore but just as full of life. There was a river of wisdom in his eyes, he was still as sharp and good looking but he was much calmer. He had invited you to live with him in the small mansion you were currently sitting in and you hadn’t thought about it twice before nodding frantically.

You’d be where he was.

Feeling you warm up against the fire, his hand came to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear. You smiled at the touch but your eyes remained  glued to the fire and not his blue orbs. He wanted to sit next to you but his back wasn’t always feeling so good, especially during the colder months.

Sometimes, he thought, he wanted to die for you.

He had come close a couple times but they all been with the purpose of business or honour. He didn’t care that much for that stuff at all, not since when he’d met you. Women were sacred to him, they had always been but the only encounter he had with the fascinating beings had been in a brothel, up until he had met you.

You were young, far too innocent for him and he knew he had done some very bad things but maybe he’d saved someone important in his god’s eyes and he was given you as his reward. He wished to be the young brazen man he once was but he wasn’t sure if you’d fall for him back then, he was too reckless.

And that hadn’t changed.

“I’m warm now. Can I go?” you asked in a sweet voice but you had no intention of leaving him. You’s stay as long as he would.

He nodded once and smiled at you, but you didn’t move.

“It’s very cold.” you spoke, earning a nod from yourself as you drifted away and Alfie watched you in a daze before he spoke up, the conversation flowing easily between the two of you.

“Yer always fuckin’ freezin, luv.” he said, not letting go of your hand even though you were more than warm now. The fire place was cozy and it always made you want to sleep after sitting in front of it for an hour or so. There had been many times where you’d ended up on top of Alfie, curled around his body and taken a long mid-day nap. He didn’t mind, he’d usually join you.

“Yeah but that’s why you’re here.” you spoke with a childish smile on your lips. You were still a kid, especially compared to him and Alfie knew but you were his best girl too.

“Yer own fuckin’ fire place, eh?” he said, amusement dripping from his words and you caressed his hand with your thumb as much as you could, his hand was twice as big as yours. “That why you kept me around for this long, hm?” he asked and you giggled, he was being grumpy again but in the good sense.

“No.” you said, you knew he was joking but you didn’t want to take that one percent chance of him being serious somewhere along the line.

“Why then?” he asked, taking the serious route since you had just started it. You looked at him then

There were many reasons why.

You were much younger than the man, everyone around knew that and even if they didn’t, one glance at the both of you and it was easy to figure. That had meant different things for you, it meant maturity and the kind of love of someone who knew what they wanted from life and had it in their palms, unlike the lousy young men your parents seemed to find for you.

He had rescued you, as you saw it. You were going to school when you met him, to get a higher education so you didn’t end up becoming someone’s desk buddy like the other high school graduates you knew. He had seen you around Camden a few times when you’d visit the flower shop and the next thing you knew, he was leaving gifts and jewels for you.

But it wasn’t all that easy.

He’d chased you, through his dreams and many months until one day, he was confident enough to take you out. It had been a lovely dinner and a museum, you didn’t care much for pictures and it was mostly Alfie talking anyway. He rambled when he was nervous and that was all he had done for the first four dates. 

Then, he’d taken you to his home, that one day where it was pouring rain and you had just gotten out of dinner with him. He had dried you and gave you a spare change of clothes. You’d kissed him passionately but he’d stopped you, you were in the daze of things, he knew that so he told you to wait until the morning and see if you’d still want him.

It was silly.

Because you did. You woke up and asked for the same thing you’d asked the day before and he willingly gave it to you. He was hooked after that, flowers and dates, countless phone calls that annoyed the hell out of your flatmate were made.

And he was shot soon after.

It was rocky then, it had taken him a few months to heal and a few more on top of that to open up to you. You had gone without seeing him for 6 months and when you couldn’t take it anymore, he realised he couldn’t either. So what if his face was a little different now? That wouldn’t change the love you had for him.

You kept him around because he was your first love.

“Alfie..” you said, in that soft tone you knew made him feel weak inside. “You know why.

He smiled at your words. Of course he knew, but he had wanted you to say it.

It was easy to love him, you thought but you had never been good at vocalising your feelings. It was said in the quiet mornings or the dreaded moments, you didn’t just tell him out of the blue but you knew it would be good if you did.

“I do, yeah.” he spoke and smiled fondly. He knew.

He took a good look at you as you rested your head against the side of the chair he was sitting on. You were glowing to him, you just always were. His finger caressed your cheek as your face rested facing the fire place, eyes closed because you knew you’d miss this someday.

With a final yet long sigh from you, you got rid of the robe and the blanket on top and remained only with the nightgown you had on. Standing up slowly, you let his eyes reek over your body as they usually did, he was a man after all. He didn’t understand what you were doing but at that moment, he thought it didn’t really matter as your hands gripped his arms like they had done in his office when he was sitting on his chair and you laid on top of him in one swift motion.

His chin rested on top of your head as he started speaking. He was saying something about the deals he was making and not too long after he jumped into something else, speaking about the way his mom used to scold him when he came home late. He chuckled as he talked the day away, the vibrations on his chest making their way to your ear and you sighed, happily this time.

“Luv..” he spoke, thinking you were asleep after a while and truth be told, the idea was tempting but just like how he would watch you fall asleep every night to savour the memories, you were keen on keeping your eyes open as well.

“Hm?” you said, hiding your face in his chest and a childish smile found Alfie’s lips.

“You wanna sleep?” he said, knowing the answer before he even thought of asking you the question.

You smiled and faced him this time, hands caressing his fuzzy cheeks as he looked at you, expectedly. 

You nodded.

You didn’t know if Alfie would be letting you get any sleep since you were in a mere nightgown. He had marked the one you were wearing as ‘distracting’ a couple days before but it was the comfiest one you owned. He also wouldn’t let you go anywhere away from where he was sleeping since he knew you needed the warmth so he’d wrap himself around you to the point where your heartbeats would be against each other.

You watched as he got up after you did, too. A couple grunts here and there as you both made your way to the upstairs bedroom. It was usually kept warm during the winter time, by you or by him. Since the weather was freezing and there was no work today, you didn’t see a point of making the day productive. Spending time with Alfie was the most productive you could be anyway.

An hour later, you were laying on your side and facing Alfie as he told you a story about this kid he knew in grade school. You joked and said that it was miracle he remembered since it was a long time ago but he’d brushed it off with a hasty kiss and kept on telling the story. He’d watch you fall asleep that night much like he did on the other nights to make sure you didn’t have any trouble doing that. And he’d know that there was work to be done but he couldn’t get out of the warm bed covers with your hands hugging him the way they were.

You came first.

-----

Tagging: @clairecrive  @parkbearum @sourirez  @vetseras​ @mollybegger-blog @babylooneytoonz @peakascum 

a/n: I hope you liked it!!! This is a very cute and chill imagine so it was very fun to write it and i hope it wasn’t too late <3

#alfie solomons #alfie solomons smut #alfie scenario #alfie solomons scenario #alfie solomons imagine #alfie solomons fluff #alfie solomons series #alfie solomons fanfic #alfie solomons fic #alfie solomons x reader #peaky blinders #alfie solomons peaky blinders #peaky blinder imagine #peaky blinders smut #peaky blinders imagine #peaky blinders fanfic #peaky blinders fluff #peaky blinders x reader #tom hardy imagine #tom hardy alfie #alfie solomons tom hardy #tom hardy peaky blinders #tom hardy x reader

[goldpilot22]

Ayo Godkids? Can you tell me more about that?

[alright super long rambly post coming up be warned]

that's referring to the characters of Revenance!

which is a story [that I'm planning to eventually make into a video game] set on one of the worlds in my ocverse, and on this particular world there are extremely powerful magical people/entities known as gods.

these gods incarnate into [generally] human form, and are powerful but still mortal. some are born as gods and others choose someone with a fitting personality who won't mind being incarnated into. [what exactly being chosen as a god's incarnation does depends on which one it is.] their reincarnation isn't quite perfect, with each god retaining different amounts of their personality, memories, and knowledge. the things always kept between incarnations are their powers and instincts. they also have "inanimate forms" that they take when not incarnated. some of those can be wielded by regular humans to use some fraction of the god's power, however this is done only rarely, and only in times of great need.

the gods are:

the Light, considered something of a leader, as magic is part of their domain. the inanimate form is a glowing sphere about the size of a grapefruit.

a god of life/growth/plants. its inanimate form is a tangled mass of vines with no apparent roots and flowers that bloom and fade rapidly.

the Decay, a god of fungi and the end of the cycle of life. sort of a benevolent reaper figure. its inanimate form is a patch of huge mushrooms.

the Sky/ the Storm, god of weather and flight. it's the only one that isn't human, generally being a bird of some sort.

Firesoul. fire and lava basically. inanimate form is an eternally burning flame.

the Stargazers, twin gods of darkness and of lost/forbidden knowledge.

a shapeshifting trickster god

and one that has something to do with water.

the main story begins at a time when all the gods are dead, and have not returned in nearly a century, so they're thought to be gone for good. most people don't know what caused this. some of the gods have had their inanimate forms damaged or even destroyed as well.

and then someone steals one. specifically, a man named Adrian steals the god of life and uses its powers to create creatures called revenants to terrorize people and in general just fuck things up, because he believes people have had it too good for too long.

in the town he's from, Adrian is generally seen as just the local asshole, so instead of anyone equipped to fight someone with god powers, the people sent to get the god back from him are two teenagers/young adults: Sera, who is rather squeamish and Extremely freaked out by the revenants, and was chosen mostly because she has her own boat [the main way to travel is via the river, which takes an almost circular route] and Colin, an apathetic dickhead to whom Adrian is an older brother figure. not long into their journey, they meet Tani, who has been tasked with collecting the pieces of the Light, as it's been broken and its pieces scattered across the known world. they let her join their party, even though the time she'll take to search for the Light will slow them down, because neither of them are particularly enthusiastic about their own quest.

I have more to add but can't type it out rn bc I'm off my meds today [getting more tomorrow dw] so have this for now. might reblog this and add more info later

#psii.txt #asks #morsobaby #my ocs #Revenance #Sera #Tani #Colin #fun fact this story is mainly based on / inspired by dreams I've had #so if some stuff seems low on lore it's because I'm waiting to have a dream i can make lore for it from #my dreams aren't often coherent enough for that #long post

[kentuckywrites]

His Body, The Canvas

Pongo has gone missing, and @shunkuroichii ‘s Shun, @pish-posh-mish-mosh ‘s Mira, and @shymindmeta ‘s Sy’Chell grow concerned about his whereabouts. As fate would have it, Pongo went to face a dragon, and the results were unexpected...

A rewrite of Like A Canvas, a fic I wrote a little over three years ago.

Cauldros was an unforgiving terrain, the skies and the land full of ash and flame. Today it was raining fire, brimstone crashing down onto the molten floor. It’d be foolish to come on a day like this, but Pongo flew his Skell into the continent with no second thoughts. It was perfect weather to face the creature that had hurt his friend.

Sy’Chell had almost brushed over the topic. Pongo had been curious as to whether or not Sy could see once, what had caused him to end up in this state. Sy opened up, told him that this was not by choice, that a creature born of the ashes of Cauldros had taken his sight. Pongo knew exactly which indigen he’d been referring to. He knew where to find it, what prior conditions it needed to appear. He knew its name, how it would not be so easily killed.

Vortice, the Deific Blast. A Class 94 Tyrant, one of the most powerful indigens on Mira, and certainly one of the deadliest in Cauldros. Pongo hid his intent to kill it in conversation, though beneath the skin his blood boiled with rage. The planet was aware of his anger, and any attempts it made to calm him ended in silence. He’d packed his things, refueled Eros, stacked as many Piscinoid augments as he could fit into it, and took off without informing anyone. Pongo could use excuses, if anyone questioned him. He’d grown better at lying after all this time. 

Pongo’s target became visible on the horizon as Eros flew ever closer to Mount M’Gando. Pongo clutched the controls of his beloved Skell tightly, his knuckles turning white. Taking down a tyrant solo was nearly unheard of in BLADE, with only the most experienced able to claim that distinction for themselves. Had those BLADEs fought with a similar vengeance? Had it burned in their cores to the point of overflowing? Pongo tried to steady his breaths as his thoughts began to eat away at him from the inside. He wasn’t going to turn back now, not when avenging Sy was on the line.

Vortice roared, circling the top of Mount M’Gando and soaking in its heat. Pongo pushed Eros forward, forward. He waited until he was in range to fire, and when the first diskbombs deployed from his weapon, he finally let his rage consume him. 

~

Pongo was supposed to babysit Apollo and Asteria. He should’ve arrived an hour ago. But he never came. No texts, no calls, he’d simply disappeared. 

Mira could feel from the first minute that something was wrong. He wouldn’t blow something like this off, and it was even more unlike him to not respond to her texts. She curled into herself more as Shun paced in front of her, hands in his pockets. The silence in their barracks was deafening, his footsteps on the cold metal floor hardly registering as sound. She was thankful the kids were both asleep now, but hearing them up and about would’ve been a blessing in that hour of waiting.

“Still nothing?”

Mira shook her head. “No. You?”

“Nothing at all.” Shun removed his hands from his pockets to run his fingers through his hair, still maintaining his rhythmic pacing. “I’m worried. Really worried.”

“I am too. This isn’t like him,” She replied, taking a shaky breath, “I think we should go out there and look for him.”

“Where would we look? We don’t have any clues. And we can’t just leave Apollo and Asteria alone to -”

A growl interrupted Shun’s rambling. Mira’s head turned to Sy, who was sitting on the opposite end of the couch with his arms folded across his chest. It was hard to tell what face he was making underneath his helmet, but when he raised his hands and motioned downwards, it became clear that he was telling Shun to calm down. Shun sighed, stopping in front of the coffee table. Somehow his expression remained blank, but hidden in his eyes was the concern of a protective older brother. Mira stood herself up, leaving her comm device on the couch as she circled the table to approach him. She reached for his hands, taking them within her own and squeezing gently.

“Wherever he is, I bet he’s fine,” She said, partially to convince Shun and partially to convince herself, “He’s strong, remember?”

“But what if something happened?” Shun responded frantically, “What if he got launched into Mount M’Gando? What if he was captured by the Ganglion and is being held hostage? What if he lost his legs to an Ictus? What if -”

“Shun.”

Mira cut him short by squeezing his hands again, and his fingers instinctively curled into hers. Shun’s words hadn’t failed to embed themselves into her brain, raise worries that she hadn’t thought possible. Pongo was strong, that she knew for certain, but he had a tendency to exceed his own limitations. 

When Shun didn’t answer immediately, Mira decided to take the reigns, asking some calm yet possibly informative questions. “When was the last time we saw him? What was the last mission he took? Maybe he’s running late on a big expedition.”

“Yesterday,” Shun shook his head, “He was leaving out of the east gate. Didn’t get to talk to him since I was wrapping up a mission with Eleanora.”

“Pongo babysat the kids on Tuesday,” Mira said, “and that was the last time I saw him. Sy?”

Sy stood up, his Casca reflecting the barracks light. Slowly approaching the two, he pulled out his comm device and began to type furiously. Mira waited patiently until he flipped the screen around, showing what he’d written out. 

I saw him on Tuesday as well. We were talking over dinner after we ran into each other in the commercial district. In conversation I told Pongo how I was blinded, and afterwards he wasn’t acting the same.

Shun squinted, reading alongside Mira. His hands became tense after he finished and he quickly looked away. Mira frowned, confused. “Sy, if you don’t mind me asking...do you know why Pongo would’ve reacted the way he did?”

Sy nodded and returned his focus to his comm device, typing out something new. When he directed the screen towards them again, Mira’s blood went cold. 

I could be wrong, but...perhaps he meant to avenge my loss of sight by defeating the very creature that took it: Vortice, the Deific Blast.

“No. No.”

Shun practically ripped his hands out of Mira’s, heading for the weapons rack they kept close to the door. He picked up his dual guns, checking the cartridges as he spoke. It would be hardly noticeable to the average ear, but Mira could pick out how his voice quivered. “I bet he didn’t bring backup. He never brings backup. Did he even tell anyone where he was going? Damn it, what if we get there and it’s too late, what if -”

“Shun!” Mira called his name again, and he went silent, staring at her, waiting. To her left, Sy reached for her upper arm, holding up his comm device with a new message displayed on its screen.

Go with him to Cauldros. I’ll stay here and watch the kids. 

Mira knew better than to argue. Shun would want her to come - the more the merrier, after all - and the kids would both understand why they left. She could see it now, the future memory of her sitting with Asteria as she painted upon a new canvas with her little fingers, asking about what dangerous missions she’d gone on and how many people she’d saved. Mira would tell the story about how she and Shun saved Pongo from a dragon, a prince in distress, and Asteria would begin to absentmindedly paint the scene as best she could, eyes wide with wonder. She’d nail the volcano, the three little figures of her family, the Deific Blast floating overhead casting its fire upon them. Would she be the knight this time, or would Shun? Who would hold the shield that protected Pongo, and who would wield the sword to slay the mighty beast? 

Mira took two steps forward, about to trail Shun and grab her weapons, when the front door clicked.

It swung towards them silently, revealing a figure standing in the doorway, shoulders slumped and knees shaking. One arm was using the doorframe as support, though its lack of purchase did almost nothing to stabilize him. His hair was frizzy, unkempt, sticking up in strange directions in a chaos similar to Shun’s. His clothes were torn, some parts of his vest hanging on by mere threads. Mira grew increasingly concerned as the figure entered, and she realized he wasn’t wearing shoes, though a pair of worn down socks still covered his feet. That and his fingers were what grabbed her attention the most. It was hard to see, almost unnoticeable since he was wearing fingerless gloves, but under the shredded fabric were lines of blues and purples and reds and yellows, cascading frequently and without remorse. When he picked his head up, the lines became more apparent, strokes of paint that were eerily beautiful, the roots of a tree that had seen hell and survived. Somehow he was able to smile, though it was clear the action was painful to hold.

Shun reacted first.

“You fucking idiot.”

He put his dual guns down quickly before running up and taking Pongo in for a tight hug. Mira winced as she heard Pongo audibly cry out in pain, and Shun stepped back quickly, his hands hovering near Pongo’s shoulders as he scanned him over. Mira soon joined him, noticing that the brush strokes extended down his neck and into his torso. It would make sense if the markings on his fingers pushed further beyond as well.

“We’re happy you’re back in one piece,” She started, “But you look really hurt. Do you mind taking your vest off so I can bandage you up?”

“No, wait, we should get him to the MMC,” Shun protested, “It looks worse than meets the eye. I’m not even sure why you came here first -”

Pongo didn’t appear to be listening to him, though he turned to Mira and began to shrug off what little of his combat vest remained. With the longer sleeves disposed of, Mira could see his arms were coated in the markings, and they visibly went into his chest. Pongo, however, made no move to take off the tank top that he wore underneath his vest.

“Please, Pongo,” Mira reached out and put as gentle a hand as she could on his shoulder. But even the tiniest amount of contact made him shudder. As Shun reached down and collected what Pongo had removed, Mira began to usher Pongo further into the room, further into the light. He let her guide him, putting up little resistance. Even without showcasing his body, the canvas decorated in failed duty, it would have been obvious to Mira that he was wounded. There was something beneath the surface, more roots penetrating below the skin, that was sapping his strength.

In the common area, Sy made a small noise, likely one of worry. But Mira focused on keeping Pongo steady, and she moved to his backside and began to unzip the back of his tank top. Her hands were slow and steady, but her breaths shook as every new stroke of paint was revealed. She had been right; these scars extended onto his torso, but they seemed to pass down below his belt, too. There was no part of his skin untouched by the paint.

It was horrifying. It was painful to look at, painful to imagine the circumstances. 

“Holy shit…” Shun placed Pongo’s tattered vest and gloves on the couch, able to see Pongo’s front half, the damage he’d been hiding. Mira helped Pongo slip out of the tank top and tossed it into the pile Shun had made. His chest was just as bad as his back, if not worse. A tear formed in the corner of Mira’s eye, and though she tried to hide the reason she was wiping her eye, Pongo caught on. 

“I am alright, I promise...just a few bruises. I have faced worse.”

“A few bruises? A few?!” Shun was holding back as much as he could, but every ounce of anger and concern and frustration was leaking through his veyes. “You’re really hurt, Pongo. How can’t you see that?!”

Sy growled loudly, throwing his shoulders back as he added on to what Shun had said. Pongo’s eyes went wide, his smile fading. “Did you really expect me to sit back and not do anything about it?! You did not deserve what happened to you - I can and will take more hits than this to see your revenge carried out.”

Another set of growls, and Pongo began to cry, tears staining his purple and red cheeks. “You do not understand!! I fought to avenge you because I care about you!!” His chest heaved and he took a deep breath, hands shaking at his sides. “But in the end, I...it got away, neither of us died, and I failed you Sy’Chell I am so sorry I failed you -”

“Be quiet.” Shun told Pongo sternly, “None of that matters right now. You need rest.”

Mira opened her mouth, ready to agree, but Pongo cried out, “I will not rest until that fucking monster pays for what it did!!”

The force of his own voice, a vigor that did not match his physical state, caused Pongo to yelp in pain. Mira knew that all previous attempts at contact led to pain, and yet she knew Pongo thrived off of physical touch. She took one of his hands in both her own, caressing the skin beneath as softly as possible. She could swear she felt his blood tingling, occasional pulses pushing through, the faintest remnants of static electricity radiating off of his fingertips.

“Honey, do you think you can get the guest bedroom set up?” Mira looked over her shoulder as she began to lead Pongo away, “I’m taking him to the bathroom to get him patched up as best I can.”

Shun nodded, effortlessly walking past Pongo and Mira to get the bedroom organized. Pongo said nothing to retaliate, resigned to his pain, resigned to his weakness. Approaching the hallway towards the bathroom and bedrooms, Mira gave Sy one last sympathetic glance before turning back to Pongo. 

That glance was all it took for Pongo to speak to the kids first.

“Good morning, you two!” Pongo chirped, his voice cracking by the end. 

Apollo and Asteria hadn’t fully left their bedroom yet, their tiny heads peeking out of the doorframe. Wide eyes and innocent curiosity were given the image of a broken prince, one who had faced a dragon with a sword and shield and came home defeated. They were too young to know the truth - she promised herself that should they ask, Pongo defeated the dragon, he saved the day. It was his determination and resilience alone, a lone fighter in an impossible battle.

“You should get back to sleep, you two,” Mira told them, and they almost listened. But the door stayed propped open as Pongo called out, still attempting to carry the painful burden of a smile.

“Right. I can tell you about these when you get your rest, okay? Sleep is important, especially for you.”

“But Uncle Pon, you don’t sleep at all,” Apollo commented, and Pongo giggled at that.

“The villains never sleep and the heroes never rest, as the saying goes.”

Turning to Asteria, the young and kind and creative little girl Mira loved with all her heart, Pongo offered one last smile.

“I am sorry I was late; maybe we can paint tomorrow?”

#xenoblade x #His Body The Canvas: Short Story #Shun #Mira #sy'chell #THIS WAS SO SATISFYING..... #I amped up the Big Bro Shun a little bit because let's face it #if my little bro walked in covered in lightning scars I'd be a Bit Upset

[ryewi]

lost or found - jhs

➸ summary: on a supposedly calm walk around the park, a random stranger appears out of nowhere and accuses you of stealing his dog.

➸ genre: fluff and an attempt at humor, that’s quite literally it

➸ words: 3,3k

➸ warnings: language and jung hoseok

➸ pairing: jung hoseok x reader (and mild namjoon)

If someone were to ask was adopting a stray dog worth it, you’d probably answer no. Strays were those creatures you’d willingly give a piece of your chicken sandwich to, but the contact would usually end up on that. Never did it cross your mind that adopting one, although unplanned, would happen. Of course, life is unpredictable.

Benji, as you called him, was a very small creature. His fur was white with brown splotches, short and neatly groomed, while his ears resembled fluffy puffs. Although your knowledge about dog breeds wasn’t extremely wide, upon brief inspection on the first encounter, the dog reminded of a shih-tzu.  

On an extremely unfavorable night, the two of you somehow managed to meet. The weather was horrible, cold temperature paired up with loud thunder created a scary atmosphere as you paced fast, trying to forget the hurtful words of your boss. Benji’s quiet and helpless yelps echoed under the bench, earning your attention. He didn’t attack when you crouched, only backed further under the wood until he couldn’t anymore. Your hands wrapped around the soft and delicate body, lifting the creature up and hugging it close to your body.

Benji was noiseless and careful, choosing to stay by your side rather than explore the apartment. The smaller ate the leftovers of your lunch fast, intently listening to the apologies for not being served proper dog food – you weren’t really expecting guests that day. Truthfully, Benji didn’t understand and even if that was the case, he wouldn’t care. The steak was perfectly cooked, full of proteins that his small body needed. Only when you noticed Benji’s small stomach bloat up after his meal, were you content.

The puppy found purchase on a fluffy pillow that fell from the couch. His small head rested on your toes, sharp eyes tracking movements of the characters on the TV. It didn’t take long before quiet snores were heard from his behalf, the adorable creature slowly dropping on to his side.

Benji walked next to you, tiny paws having to make way too many steps to keep up with your long strides. Somehow, he managed, only sometimes falling behind to sniff an intriguing scent. You stopped and turned to take an aesthetic picture of him, crouching down to achieve the perfect angle, when someone came running into the shot. Their frame all but enveloped Benji’s frightened one, yelling ‘mickey’ over and over again.

Scared that the stranger was a madman, you pulled onto the leash, dragging Benji out of the situation. The dog ran back towards you, his tail curved inwards and ears pulled back. A look of frustration was evident on your face, waiting for the other to stand up so you could properly confront them.

When the stranger turned around, his bubbly aura from before was gone and replaced with an annoyed one. His gaze was vaguely threatening, but upon further (yet quick) inspection of his face, the male seemed to be a harmless person. Dark hair, that matched perfectly with the honey skin tone, fell over his forehead messily. His cheekbones were high, nose pointy and jawline sharp like a knife. The pair of eyes currently staring at you were dark in color, almost black.

“You stole my dog!” He yelled, the sound ringing inside of your head.

“Excuse me?” You managed to whisper out. Although taken aback by this man’s beauty, you still caught on to his words which were exceptionally confusing.

“Dog thief!” He whined, one hand coming up to point at you. The man managed to attract a lot of unwanted attention with his act, which made you feel uneasy. It took a quick moment for the brain to properly process his words, bewilderment only intensifying. You gave the other a puzzled look, hand unconsciously tightening around the plastic handle of the leash.

“This is my dog?” You replied in a questionable but confident manner. Benji indeed was your dog, and currently, this person looked like a lunatic to you. What a pity for such a pretty face. He began shuffling; hands reaching inside of his dark coat, frantically touching the soft fur and evidently looking for something. Although you probably shouldn’t have, you continued waiting for his next words, actions, curious what else the man had to say before his words lost their last bits of coherency.

“It’s my dog, Mickey!” The other argued, still hurriedly inspecting his pockets, fingers now tapping all over his butt. Then, as if remembering something, a faint “aha!” left his lips. Before the male could retrieve whatever it was that he found, you spoke up.

“His name is Benji, Sir” Pointing back at the dog and smiling, you watched as the color from his face completely disappeared. His lips parted slightly, offering a nearly imperceptible glimpse of white teeth. Then, the stranger’s eyes became even bigger, disbelief evident like one lonely cloud on clear sky.

“Benji?” He parroted, then proceeded to spell it out as if he hadn’t heard it right the first time. You nodded along, confirming the suspicions and awaiting his upcoming words. “You butchered my dog’s name!”

Cunt. Now that was infuriating. The male could insult everything else, but not your naming skills! Numerous years playing Sims deemed you an expert at giving names that weren’t generic and you were very proud of Benji. It almost sounded like a name someone from the royal family would have.

“This is a dog, not a fucking mouse, so Mickey isn’t any better, now will you leave me alone” You had enough and were about to walk away when the other stopped you. His hand grasped your shoulder. Sudden heat expanded from the place of contact, his warm touch on your cold shoulder offering an almost burning sensation.

“No! I’m not leaving without him! Have you not seen the flyers?!” His voice was different now, probably scared that you weren’t taking this seriously – which honestly, you weren’t. Who was nuts enough to believe words from a stranger, let alone someone who claims that you stole their dog?

Suddenly, a phone was shoved right into your face. The device was turned on, an unclear picture on its screen. When the image finally loaded, it showed a small dog happily resting on a blue pillow, a pretty red collar wrapped around its neck. The creature was similar, no, scratch that – it was identical to Benji.

While you were examining the shot, finding more similarities as time passed by, the other began calling out “Mickey” to gain attention of the dog. Mickey rang out in your head, sound quiet but still extremely uncomfortable.

The dog didn’t care, sniffing around and only sparing pitiful glances in your direction. The man looked let down but didn’t give up as he crouched and began rubbing his fingers together.

“Benji” You turned around and clapped, expecting the smaller to run quick, but did he? No. Benji didn’t even look back. This annoyed you slightly, partly because the dog intentionally wasn’t cooperating (as if he knew what’s happening), partly because of the sly smirk the man gave you. Truly he had proof, a very strong one at that, but so did you. The smaller was on a leash, that you held. This was your dog, not his. Pulling on the leash, you called Benji once again, but to no avail. He gave no fucks. For neither of you.

“Is there a way to convince you?” The man asked, suddenly extending his arm in your direction and licking his lips before talking “My name is Hoseok, by the way”. His eyes were hopeful, and while they tried to stay trained on your face, they couldn’t be stopped from straying behind. That was his small munchkin on someone else’s leash, and although Hoseok was happy that the puppy was alive and in what seemed decent hands, he couldn’t help wanting Mickey back. Taking the stretched hand for a firm handshake, you replied with your name before continuing.

“Well Hoseok, I’m glad to have met you, but Benji’s staying with me” You answered, finally deciding to continue the walk to the puppy park. Unsurprisingly, Hoseok followed you, strides big enough to rather comfortably trail beside. How annoying. “In the end, he obviously likes me more”.

At that, Hoseok stopped dead in tracks. He seemed to give you this ridiculed face, as if not trusting what you have just said. A stray smile played on his lips, except it looked bashful. Hoseok seemed to be thinking that you were joking.  It took a few moments to form a coherent sentence after such a blow.

“I take that as a challenge to prove you otherwise” Hoseok said with such confidence that it sounded borderline intimidating. Then, he raised an arm up and with a determined look, proclaimed: “To the doggy park!”

“That’s an unusual way to ask a stranger on a date” You joked, taking the perfect chance to finally bring some humor into this, to you, pointless conversation.

“Don’t flatter yourself, I only want my dog back” Hoseok replied, waving his hand in a dismissing manner. Ouch.

Needless to say, neither of the two gave up. While Hoseok was trying to persuade you into giving up, you held close onto the little creature as if your life depended on it. The dog was watching the other as intently as you were, not putting any effort into making things easier for the man. You’d catch yourself pitying Hoseok, but upon remembering his true intentions, the emotions disappeared.

The past hour that you’ve spent in the little space protected by tall gates, Hoseok was the only one talking. His mouth never closed, for he rambled on as if there was no tomorrow. He’d show pictures of ‘Mickey’ and claim for the hundredth time that that was the dog currently in your arms. Hoseok even had the audacity to lift one of Benji’s paws up and show the small black dot on his pads, declaring that his dog had the same mark.

Right now, the man was rummaging through his obnoxiously red bag, pulling out all sorts of dog necessities and laying them before your knees. God only knew why the other carried so many dog accessories when he didn’t even have a dog to use them on. Your attention wandered around, falling on the man but not remaining on his words, rather his beautiful appearance. Hoseok’s dark locks created a curtain over his tilted face, but because of your hunched posture, it was still possible to see his breathtaking features.

Although the other looked troubled and his eyes were focused on the inside of his bag, they still appeared optimistic. There was an unfamiliar but warm glint inside of them. His lips were a thin line, two deep dimples at their corners. Hoseok’s pointy nose made you want to run a finger down its bridge, just to make sure that such a perfect curve was real. His honey skin glowed on the noon’s sunlight, making him look that much more attractive.

“This is his collar! And his favorite toy! Look!” The male yelled, throwing something that looked like a carrot plushie. Benji leaped out and ran after the toy, snapping you out of the daze you were previously in. Fortunately, Hoseok paid attention to the little fluff that ran around and not you, whose cheeks were the brightest shade of red. When Benji came back, carrying the carrot in his small jaws, Hoseok took it away and turned to you.

“He even knows tricks! High-five!” Surely enough, Benji lifted up on his hind legs and answered Hoseok’s high five, to which the bigger squealed and clapped like a child. He reached behind and took out tiny dog treats in numerous shapes, which your dog happily munched on. Feeling threatened, you picked Benji up and reached inside of his mouth to take the treats out. The smaller began chewing faster with panicked eyes, as if it was his last meal, making you sigh.

“Stop bribing my dog with toys and treats!” You yelled, then pouted and turned around to sit in another direction. Benji looked over your shoulder towards Hoseok, who chuckled and then sighed in disbelief. Noticing the little’s field of vision, you turned his head away, not willing to lose the fight just yet.

“I’m not bribing! That’s my dog! How much more proof do you need, woman?!” Hoseok’s words rang out. You chose to ignore their effect, for it was gradually becoming obvious that the man wasn’t joking. Seriously, who on this dying planet would spend two hours with a stranger just to steal their dog? Surely, if you were a pet thief, you would’ve given up already.

“Who would leave their dog alone in the rain?!” You argued back, declining to look at the other, scared that your thoughts would wander far away again. Hoseok groaned and although you couldn’t see him, it was possible to feel his eye roll.

“Not my fault! My roommate was walking him that day and-” Suddenly, the man was cut short, which made you turn around to inspect the situation. There, behind Hoseok, stood a tall man, with extremely long legs and broad shoulders. He wore jeans that weren’t long enough to cover his ankles and a brown coat that reached his knees. There was a pair of round glasses resting on his nose, and a brown beret that fulfilled the whole thoughtful aesthetic.

“Speak of the devil...”

“Mickey?! You found him?!” The stranger asked, his words overpowering Hoseok’s. His voice was deep and it cracked here and there from the surprise. The tall man walked past the other to pet Benji, acknowledging your presence with a quick nod and shy smile. The dog began wagging his tail and jumping in your arms, evidently happy.  

“That’s the twat that lost my dog” Hoseok mumbled, eliciting a heartfelt laugh from you for the first time. Your smile was so big that Hoseok’s heart jumped a beat at the sight; you looked so heavenly at that moment. His words somehow managed to lower the tension that unconsciously built up. Although Benji enjoyed the affection he was showed, you felt somewhat uneasy.

“Come on...” The stranger whined, eyes rolling at Hoseok who only sent a glare in return. “We found him now! Can’t you cut me some slack?”

“Namjoon” Hoseok warned, voice strong and authoritative. Namjoon stiffened and that, the tone enough to put him in place. He stood up and looked at you from above, casting a tall shadow and making you look up. The man looked quite intimidating from such an angle, but the moment his hand extended and you caught a glimpse of his dimples, the worry washed away. Helping you stand up, Namjoon smiled, finally deciding to introduce himself.

“That’s me. And you are?” His voice was soothing and you swore that if he were to read the cereal ingredients, it would still sound like the best novel. Hoseok frowned, listening to Namjoon who repeated your name a few times to remember upon hearing it. He approached his roommate and nudged him away, unsatisfied with the atmosphere that was building between you two. Namjoon, unfortunately, hadn’t gotten the hint, continuing the conversation.

“Well, thank you for helping us find Mickey. We’ve been searching for him for so long, I almost became hopeless” He smiled, and at that moment, you recognized the truth. This man sounded so sincere and you shrugged, a small pout playing on your lips upon accepting defeat. Your heart hurt but the mind was somewhat content.

“You’re welcome” The reply came out weaker than you intended it to be, your head hanging lower before glancing at Hoseok. His eyes were wide open in disbelief, lips forming an open O shape. Taking a step forward and putting a tentative hand on your shoulder, Hoseok hunched over and looked you in the eye.

“You’re going to let us have him?” The male asked, appearing more shocked after he voiced out his thoughts. Truthfully, Hoseok couldn’t believe it either, somehow you were giving in pretty fast.

Nodding your head and dropping down to crouch and pet Benji for what might be the last time, you sniffled. The pup put his paws on top of your knees and wagged his tail, eyes shining with your own reflection in them. He looked so happy, obviously unaware of what’s going on and probably thinking about when the next meal’s going to be. At least he’ll continue living his cheerful life. The two men watched over as you bid the emotional farewell, heads tilted to the side and pitiful smiles playing on their faces.  

After a while, you stood up and dejectedly handed the leash over to Hoseok, who had the most dumbfounded expression on his face. Namjoon was the first to thank and reassure you that the dog’s going back to his happy home, where he will be taken good care of. Then, as if timed, an annoying ringtone echoed through the small space. Namjoon was quick to excuse himself, for he had to answer the call. Hoseok stopped his roommate for a quick second, telling him to wait at the car before the other nodded and walked away.

The first remained standing beside you, shuffling nervously. He seemed to be confused about his future actions; yet before the mind was able to abort mission, the male was already reaching out for his phone.

“Let me have your number really quick... so you can y’know... come visit him” Hoseok’s voice was small and the tip of his ears turned red. The male couldn’t look you in the eyes, handing out his device then opting to watch Benji, who chewed on his laces. At that moment, Hoseok looked adorable, for his demeanor was completely different than what you were used to. The confident and assertive persona was nowhere to be seen, a shy boy suddenly replacing its position before you.

Typing the series numbers in the dial and calling fast, the screen of your own phone lit up, an unknown number flashing across the display. Saving your number as a new contact in Hoseok’s phone, you looked up, eyebrow raised in a teasing manner. It was now your turn to play nonchalant and bold.  

“... Visit him or visit you perhaps?” There was a sly smile on your lips, but a matching pink tint on your cheeks. Hoseok finally looked up to meet eyes, a surprised expression painting his beautiful features. Somehow, the irises of the other expanded and even on such distance, it was possible to read his emotions through them.

“Well I didn’t say that, but now that you’ve suggested...” He tried playing it cocky, head turning to look in another direction, tongue prodding at his cheek. Hoseok’s hands were placed behind his back, and only when you nudged the device for god knows which time, did the man take it back. Snorting at the reply, you rolled your eyes and shook your head.

“Turn around, Hoseok, or I may just change my mind and steal that dog from you again” At that, the other laughed and bid his goodbye with a wide smile. You watched Hoseok run towards the exit of the enclosure, followed by his loyal companion. There, he picked the dog up with one hand, heading towards Namjoon who stood beside his car just a few meters away. With his free hand, Hoseok typed something on his phone, only to make yours buzz continuously once he put it in his pocket.

Unknown – 4 seconds ago

I’m free tomorrow 5pm

You can come visit Mickey then, I mean

:)

A/N: This sat in my drafts for so long and I’ve been somewhat unsatisfied with my works lately to write anything new so, ig i’ll just publish this. School started and honestly idk how to feel but i know there will be way less time for writing now.

#jung hoseok #hoseok #jhope #jhope bts #hoseok scenario #hoseok imagine #hoseok fanfiction #hoseok fluff #hoseok crack #jhope fluff #jhope crack #jhope fanfiction #jhope imagine #jhope scenario #bts #bts scenario #bts imagine #bts fanfiction #bts fluff #bts crack #kpop #kpop fluff #kpop crack #kpop imagine #kpop scenario #kpop fanfiction #namjoon #rm #seokjin #jin

[mama-m1na]

Apocalypse: Chapter 6

~~~VI~~~

After a while of talking and pondering life's greatest mysteries, on Rhamina's part mostly, the pair started to drift off on the couch.

Already used to how touchy the ravenette was at this point, Cloud had allowed her to lay across the couch with her head in his lap as she rambled on about her late night thoughts.

As the male eventually drifted off he could feel his surroundings change; he could hear the peaceful sounds of nature, he could smell the crisp freshness carried on the cool breeze; and when he opened his eyes, he saw that he was in a heavily wooded area with light fog.

'What?' the male thought as he spun around, trying to get a grip on his unfamiliar surroundings, 'Where am I?'

Suddenly the sound of twigs snapping alerted him to another presence nearby, but when he turned to face them he was met with the sight of a little girl, the same one he had seen on the bridge.

"Huh?" she asked, stepping out from behind one of the trees to fully reveal herself, "You're not Knov."

The girl had slightly tanned skin, shoulder length black hair, and curious brown eyes that remained locked onto the man in front of her.

She wore a pastel pink sundress despite the overcast weather with a pair of white sandals on her feet.

Her small hands were holding onto a pair of black fans that looked a little too large for her to hold properly at her age.

"Wow, Mister, you're really pretty!" the girl beamed as she smiled up at the male who was still confused about his whole situation.

"Hey, kid, where are your parents?" the blond asked, noticing that the girl couldn't have been any older than four, yet here she was in a foggy wooded area, seemingly, by herself.

"Mommy and Daddy are at work, so I came out here to find my friends," the girl chirped before holding up her fans, "I wanted to show them the presents Mommy got me!"

"Where is this place anyway?" the male sighed as the fog around them started to grow thicker with every passing minute.

"I don't know what this place is called, but it's somewhere near my house," the child shrugged before looking up at the male, "I used to get lost here all the time, but Knov always takes me back home."

"Hey, Mister, are you real?" the girl asked, startling the male slightly, "The clothes you're wearing seem pretty weird... and so is your hair. It's so spiky!"

The blond said nothing in response as the girl stepped closer to further inspect his strange form.

As she walked around him, the male couldn't help but find this scenario familiar to him and as he looked closer at the girl, he was slowly piecing together who it was.

Before either of them could ask anything else of each other, a large wolf bounded out from the trees with a low growl and fangs bared.

Instinctively, Cloud stood between the beast and the young girl, reaching back to grab his buster sword only to find it wasn't there, his hand only grasping at air over his shoulder as the girl peaked to get a better look at what was in front of them.

"Knov!" the girl chirped as she ran out from behind the male to wrap her arms as best as she could around the much larger animal.

To the blond's surprise, the black wolf sat down to start licking the girl's face, but kept it's piercing gaze on the male.

As the girl nuzzled her face into the wolf's fur she let out a gasp, backing up before saying, "Knov, if he wanted to hurt me, then he would have done that already!"

The wolf looked down at her before she continued, "He's just confused. He doesn't know where he is right now."

The canine shook its head before turning back to the male, who's eyes narrowed back at the creature.

"You wish to find a way out of these woods, do you not?" a deep voice echoed in the male's head, but he knew it was the wolf.

"Yeah," Cloud answered as he crossed his arms, ignoring the curious looks the girl was throwing them both.

"I will show you the way on one condition," the wolf spoke before baring his fangs once more, "Once you leave, you are to never return to this place."

"Fine by me," the male shrugged as the little girl gasped at the harsh words of her singular friend.

"Wasn't that a bit mean, Knov?" the girl asked as she walked next to the wolf, leading Cloud through the woods.

"He doesn't belong here," the canine answered as he looked down at the female, "If he were to stay here, then he would become a danger to us all."

Cloud glared at the wolf for his statement but said nothing, focusing instead on the young girl who walked next to it instead.

"Your name is Rhamina, isn't it?" he asked after a few minutes of walking, earning the attention of both individuals in front of him.

"Yep! Fan dancer apprentice, Rhamina Mae Kaius, at your service!" the female chirped as she turned around with a pose before her eyes widened in realization as the wolf let out a silent growl at the male.

"Fan dancer apprentice, Hasu, I mean," she corrected with a giggle as she continued to walk backwards, "I'm still getting used to the other-!"

The girl was cut off as she tripped, falling onto her back before quickly picking herself up and dusting herself off.

"I'm good!" she chirped before turning to continue walking forward, "I'm glad Mommy wasn't here to see that, I would have gotten yelled at for being clumsy again."

"You know I wouldn't let that woman anywhere in these woods," the wolf huffed in distaste as the ravenette matched his pace.

Once the three had reached the edge of the woods, the wolf sat down with the girl by his side before turning to the male.

"This is where we shall part," the wolf spoke, "Keep on walking forward and you shall return to wherever you came from; but remember, you must never return here."

"Yeah, whatever," Cloud sighed before walking on towards the white light that rested ahead of them.

"Goodbye, Mister!" the child exclaimed with a large smile on her face, "I hope you get home safely!"

Back in the penthouse, Sierra had just woken up and was walking to the kitchen to get some food when she noticed Kerstin with a devious smirk on her face at the entrance of the hallway leading into the living room.

"Kerstin, what are you-" "Hush!" the darkette hissed as she pointed over to the couch to see the pair still knocked out.

"This is my only chance to get a picture of her asleep in order to prove how cute she is," the seventeen-year-old whispered as she crept up to the couch, "If she wasn't this tired, then she would have woken up the second I walked out of my room."

"What is the point of doing this exactly?" the brunette questioned as the younger female took out her phone and opened the camera app.

"To prove that Mina is a fucking adorable goose," Kerstin replied as she got the pair in focus.

"Everyone knows that though."

"Apparently she doesn't!"

Click! Flash!

A look of horror appeared on the darkette's face as a growl came from her sibling while the male began to stir.

"Delete that right now," the ravenette grumbled, not even opening her eyes as the male began to shift underneath her.

"But, Mina, you look so peaceful in this!" Kerstin tried to reason as she inspected the image on her screen.

Without any warning, the eighteen-year-old's hand reached out to snatch the device out of Kerstin's grip as she sat up.

Cloud, now awake by this point, only watched as the ravenette lazily went through the device while keeping the younger female away with her left hand.

With a sigh, Rhamina handed the phone back to her sister before stalking off to the bathroom, not batting an eye as she heard her sister's wail.

"She actually deleted it!" the darkette whined, earning a smirk from Rhamina as she closed and locked the bathroom door behind her, "It was such a good picture though!"

She did have to admit that the picture was actually pretty cute; both individuals looked very peaceful in their sleep and it was just an aesthetically pleasing picture in general, so the ravenette sent it to herself before deleting it off of her sister's phone.

'I don't need Kerstin having any blackmail material on her phone,' she thought with a chuckle, 'She already knows so many of my secrets, I don't need her having any physical proof to back up her claims.'

Once she was dressed, Rhamina exited her room to be greeted by the smell of pancakes drifting through their temporary living space.

"Morning, Mina," Sierra greeted as she placed a plate of the fluffy breakfast foods on the dining table, "How are you feeling?"

"A little sore, but much better than yesterday," she replied with a smile on her face as she started to drizzle syrup on her serving, not noticing the look Cloud sent her way.

"So Hana is bringing Kiran up here so we can start planning today," Kerstin said as she was already eating her food.

"That's what she said yesterday," the ravenette confirmed as she poured herself a glass of apple juice

"Hopefully this won't take too long," she sighed before returning to her seat with the iced beverage in her hand.

"Why are you getting homesick already?" Kerstin teased as she leaned forward with a small smirk.

"No, I just want to get this out of the way, so we can start looking into Scyphozoa," Rhamina sighed before biting her lip, "We still have to notify our other allies of it so they can keep a closer eye on the plants in their territories."

"And we're going to have to start stationing guards at our plant again," Sierra added with a frown, "No one likes going over there."

"Why don't you just destroy the generators completely?" Cloud questioned as he looked over to the girls.

"We would, but the designers of the damned things added a fail safe," Kerstin scoffed, "If those generators are taken out then so is everything within a 120 kilometre radius of them."

"A group thought the government was bluffing about that feature in the generators and ended up wiping out an entire city with it," Rhamina explained, "And it pisses me off that no one thought that these things were shady when the government announces something like that."

"Unfortunately, no one knows how to disable that function either, not even the scientists who were hired to work in them," the brunette added from her spot, "Everyone who was involved with the design and construction of the generators are either dead or have gone missing."

"Which most likely means that they're dead in this day," the seventeen-year-old scoffed as Rhamina's phone buzzed.

It was a text from Hana saying that she'd be up with Kiran in about half an hour, so the ravenette finished up her food and put her plate in the sink.

Once the pair arrived, everyone migrated into the living room to start discussing the current situation.

"So what leads do you have so far?" Rhamina asked as she sat with Kerstin and Sierra on the largest couch, "It's been a few weeks, so you have to have found something with how you put everyone on this case."

"We've narrowed it down to two groups that could have been responsible for the Boss' disappearance," Kiran explained as he sat on the other couch with Hana, "One in the red light district and the other in North City."

"Wow, polar fucking opposites, huh?" Kerstin chuckled as she pulled one of her legs up onto the couch, "Either in one of the richest areas of San Diego or the poorest.

"It's good that you have it narrowed down to two but do you know where their bases are located?" Sierra asked as she looked up both areas on her phone.

"In North City there's a casino that one of the groups frequent, so you can get information from there," Hana explained with both hands in her lap, "according to my sources, they should be making a visit there in two days."

"And the smaller group's base is just a club in the red light district," Kiran added, "We can clear that place at any time."

"So we fucking over the rich first or getting down and dirty?" the seventeen-year-old asked as she looked over at her teammates.

"I mean, it would be easier to go to the red light district first since it's an environment we're used to," Sierra spoke, "but I doubt it would be a good idea to start an all out fight in another gang's home base. It isn't our turf."

"So 'Distract and Attack'?" Kerstin asked, causing a groan to leave the ravenette's lips as Cloud, Hana, and Kiran looked on in confusion.

"'Distract and Attack' is an old tactic we would use to basically get the jump on a group," Sierra explained, "Mina would use her magic to keep the main groups' attention on her while the rest of us would sneak past and get done whatever we needed to whether it was stealing shit or taking someone out."

"It may seem like just a normal distraction tactic; but let me tell you, this shit really works," she continued as the ravenette pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Mina, it's a good idea, right?" Kerstin asked the older female as she held a teasing grin on her face.

"I mean yeah, but doing that in a red light district," the teen sighed before another groan left her mouth, "Y'all better be fucking fast, otherwise I'm just going to burn the whole fucking building down with all of us still in it."

"I can stay on the first floor with you," Kiran offered with a smile, earning a frown from the blond, "The person you'd basically need to interrogate is almost always in his office on the third floor of the building."

"Alright, fine we're doing this then," Rhamina said as she looked up with a displeased expression, "When are we doing this?"

"If you guys are down for doing it tonight, then we'd get a bit of a break before having to go to North City," the Korean suggested as he looked over to the group from the smaller territory.

"That's fine with me," Kerstin shrugged, earning agreements from the other two Filipinos before they all looked over to Cloud.

"Doesn't matter to me," he answered, still uneasy about doing this so soon with what happened to the ravenette the day before and the fact the second male was coming with them did not put his mind at ease.

"Alright, then I'll see you guys tonight!" the male concluded with a large smile on his face before he and the doll left.

The group of four actually spent most of their time in their rooms, putting together their things for the last minute operation.

'They better not draw too much attention from upstairs,' the ravenette thought as she stripped off her usual dress and corset, turning to the new outfit laid out on her bed.

'I know fighting is going to be unavoidable, but I pray to whoever is listening, that their ruckus doesn't over power my spell,' she continued with a sigh.

At around nine-forty-five in the evening, the four started meeting in the living room once again with Rhamina being the last one to arrive.

"Damn, Mina, you look hot!" Sierra called as the ravenette exited the hallway, causing Cloud and Kerstin to turn their heads.

While the other two females immediately began showering the eighteen-year-old in compliments, Cloud could only stare with wide eyes at her change in appearance.

She wore a black t-shirt that was cropped with white text across the front that read 'Queen' with a white, checkered border around it; high-waisted denim shorts that stopped at her mid-thigh over fishnets that let into her usual black combat boots; and on her hands were black leather gloves that had the fingers cut off.

Her hair was left down, but she actually wore makeup as her eyes were emphasized with red eye shadow at the outer corners of her upper and lower lids paired with black, cat eye liner while her lips were tinted red with a lip oil.

"Mina, where the fuck did you get fishnets?" Sierra asked as the ravenette brushed a few stray hairs out of her face.

"I don't know, but I thought it would look good with the rest of the outfit," she replied, looking down at herself.

"Mina, why did you even bring that outfit?" Kerstin asked with narrowed eyes, causing the teen to avoid eye contact.

"I totally wasn't planning on going around whenever I had free time to take part in any street fights," the eighteen-year-old spoke as she looked off to the side, "Plus, if I want all eyes on me, I have to be extra, right?"

"Oh yeah, they'll definitely have their eyes on you. Right, Cloud?" the darkette asked, nudging the male out of his trance.

"Huh?" he asked, blinking as he noticed all eyes on him once again.

"Doesn't Mina look good?" the seventeen-year-old chuckled as Rhamina shook her head at her sibling's antics.

"My spell should keep their attention for awhile, but y'all try to keep the noise down when you're kicking ass," the ravenette spoke as she plopped down on the couch, crossing her right leg over her left," I don't want to put any more effort into this than I have to."

"Yeah, yeah, of course, Mina," the darkette chuckled as she took a selfie with Rhamina in the background, flipping off the camera, before sending it on the server that included her and five others.

It was about fifteen minutes before Kiran texted the ravenette, telling them to meet him in the back parking lot.

Once the four arrived, they saw the male leaning against a jet black care until his eyes caught onto the ravenette's figure.

"Looking good, Hasu, but are you sure you want to be wearing that in front of a bunch of drunk guys?" he asked, placing a hand on top of her head with a nervous grin.

"Nope, but it's happening anyway, so let's just get this over with," she shrugged with a lopsided smile.

"We taking your car, then?" Sierra asked as she stepped forward with her hammer gripped in her hands.

"Yeah here, you can put that in the trunk," the Korean said as he walked to the back of the car.

"Cloud, are you riding with us?" Rhamina asked as she turned to the blond who was just standing off to the side with a frown on his face.

"I'll be fine following on the bike," the male spoke before giving a small smirk, ""now you might want to get going before they leave you again."

"Kiran's driving, he won't leave me like those that asshole," the female scoffed referring only to her younger sibling before she jumped forward to give him a quick hug.

"I'll see you when we get there!" she chirped before releasing him and walking over to get into the passenger's seat of the black car.

The fact that she was so close to the other man still unsettled Cloud, but her quick show of affection was enough to dull it, at least for a little bit.

It took about twenty minutes for them to reach their destination and it looked just how the ravenette expected it to.

Very crowded and dirty, way shadier than the Abyss was and most definitely a place she would normally try to avoid walking around when the sun went down.

'Depraved fucks,' she spat in her head as she followed Kiran up to the entrance of the club with her arms crossed over herself, already feeling the gazes of those who just lurked outside the building.

It was not that difficult to spot where the stairs were despite the low light environment paired with the multi-color strobes; they were guarded by two large men who looked like they weren't taking anything from anyone.

"Don't these people know how to wear shirts?" Sierra hissed, already feeling eyes on their small group as the Korean went up to talk to the DJ.

"Mina, I'm sorry," Kerstin sighed as she placed a pitying hand on the older female's shoulder after feeling a chill run up her spine, "I didn't think it would be this bad."

"It's fine, this is San Diego, so I wouldn't expect anything less," the ravenette replied as her eyes swept over the... intense... environment.

"Hey, baby-girl, why don't you come over here and party with us!" a man called from somewhere behind her.

"Who knows? I'll think about it if I get bored, 'kay?" the female replied with a smirk as she sent a wink from over her shoulder while Cloud shot a glare at the table of men.

"I retract my previous statement," the ravenette spoke as she turned back into her group of friends with her shoulders hunched forward, "I wish for death to claim my mortal being."

Before anything else could be said, Kiran returned with two microphones in his hands as he said, "We're all set, does anyone need another run down of the plan?"

"Wait for Mina to draw the attention of all the fuckers here, get up the stairs when the guards leave, and get to the top to find out our shit," Sierra spoke with her hammer strapped to her back.

"Yep, but Hasu isn't going to be the only one on stage," the male spoke with a small smirk as he handed the shorter female a mic, keeping one for himself.

"Yay, I won't have to suffer alone!" the eighteen-year-old cheered sarcastically as she turned the device over in her hands.

"Alright," she sighed, straightening herself out as she turned to her friends, "Good skills and do us a favor by being quick."

Without another word, the two began making their way over to the stage as the music changed over the speakers.

As soon as the male began singing, the group of three began moving to the wall where the stairs were, a good distance away from the guards as their eyes flicked up to the stage.

When Rhamina's voice came through on the speakers, everyone's heads turned to the stage as she took on a playful persona to hide the magic she was spreading over them.

The song the pair was singing was in Japanese so neither Cloud nor Sierra could tell what it was about; but Kerstin, having heard this song before, merely snorted in pure amusement.

"Makes sense she'd pick a song as raunchy as this one," she snickered, the two barely hearing her over the music and cheers, "There's literally a line in here about wanting to suck dick."

That statement elicited surprised reactions from the other two; Sierra choking on air as the blond snapped his gaze over to the seventeen-year-old.

"Kerstin, what the fuck?" the brunet asked in between coughs, earning a shrug from the younger female.

"A lot of nice sounding music is about sex," she reasoned before noticing that the two guards had abandoned their posts to get a better view of the stage.

While singing the chorus of the song with Kiran, Rhamina looked straight into her younger sister's eyes and nodded.

"Alright, time to get this shit started," the darkette spoke as she started towards the stairs, snapping the other two out of their shock.

The ravenette let out a small sigh of relief as the three made it up the stairs unnoticed before coming back in on her part once again.

Upon making it to the second floor, it was relatively quiet with a few grunts here and there, but it was nothing that they couldn't handle.

When they reached the third floor, they all healed up before busting into the boss' office to see a very buff man sitting at the desk.

"What the hell do you think you're doing in here?!"

On the first floor of the club the two childhood friends sat at the bar, slowly sipping on come water after they finished their second song.

Almost everyone in the room was surrounding them, trying to talk them up, but each of them smoothly turned them down.

'I'm surprised no one's gotten violent yet,' the ravenette thought as she sent a flirty wink towards another male, 'I haven't done this in so long.'

"Excuse me, but these were sent over for you two by that man there," the bartender spoke as he placed a bright colored drink in front of each Asian while gesturing to a man that sat at the opposite end of the bar.

Rhamina lifted the glass and swirled the liquid around before narrowing her eyes at something settled at the bottom of her glass.

She did the same to the glass in front of the male, noticing the same result before calling the bartender back over.

"Can you send these back to that gentleman and tell him that he needs to make sure that the powder is fully dissolved before trying to drug people?" the female asked, trying to hold back the bite that threatened to leak into her voice.

"Damn, you found that quick," Kiran spoke in a low tone of voice as the bartender did as requested of him.

"Trust me when i say that you only make that mistake once, Kiran," she sighed while taking out her phone to read.

The male said nothing, but nodded in understanding before he downed the rest of his water as he looked up at the ceiling.

About five minutes later the female stood up and slipped her phone into her pocket before saying, "He's not here, time to go. They're making their way out now."

The two calmly made their way to the exit and waited by the car for a few minutes only to see the three running at them.

"Get in the fucking car!" Kerstin screeched as she practically flung herself into the passenger's seat.

"What did you do?" the ravenette as everyone else loaded their vehicles, loud sounds coming from the back of the building.

"We ran into some trouble on the way out," Sierra huffed as they started down the road, both girls in the back watching through the back window as Cloud hung back to take care of someone who was also on a bike, but there were also two cars following.

As Kerstin stuck the top half of her body out her window to fire back at them, Rhamina looked up and noticed that the car had a sunroof.

"Open the sunroof," she ordered, pulling her fans out from who knows where.

The male driving nodded and the female stood up fully as the glass retracted so she was facing the foes behind her..

Taking a few moments to observe how the vehicles were organized, the female dodged a few bullets before calling out to her companion.

"Cloud!" she exclaimed as he looked up at her, flicking her fans open, "Get ahead of the car, I'll handle them!"

The male nodded before placing his sword in its designated spot on the bike and racing ahead so that all Rhamina could see were enemy vehicles.

Cracking her neck, the female flicked both of her wrists forward as her fans flew from her hands.

Their sharpened edges cutting through one tire of each car, causing them to veer off and ram right into each other; however, the man on the bike was able to swerve out of the way.

"Motherfucker!" the ravenette exclaimed as her fans returned to her hands while a bullet dug into her upper arm.

"Mina, did you get hit?" Kerstin asked as the eighteen-year-old flicked her left fan out to dispatch the male on the motorcycle.

"Fuck, I forgot how much it hurts to get shot when you're not high on adreniline," the female hissed as she lowered herself to the seats before letting out a groan of pain.

"Shit! I can't even heal it right now!" she whined as she kept her left hand over the wound, "The fucking bullet is still in there!"

"Are you serious?" the male asked as he looked back for a moment before clicking his tongue in frustration.

"It's too dangerous to stop anywhere here," Kiran said before looking at Sierra, "Would you be able to get it out right now?"

"Not without a light and tools," the brunette replied as the female next to her tried to focus on her breathing and not the pain in her arm.

"Fuck," the male huffed, "You're going to have to wait till we get to the hotel then, Hasu."

"Yep, okay!" she chirped in a high pitched voice as tears began falling down her face, "Just prepare for me to be a whiny bitch the entire way back."

As soon as the group made it back to the hotel parking lot the ravenette was completely over the entire situation and walked straight past Cloud who just looked confused before he noticed the blood running down her arm.

"What happened?" he asked with just a hint of concern lacing his tone as everyone followed her into the elevator.

"Bitch on a motorcycle," she replied, gritting her teeth as she felt the bullet shift in her arm once again.

Once they had made it up to the penthouse, Sierra immediately went to go sterilize an appropriate sized knife the eighteen-year-old laid on the couch by one of the lamps.

Throughout the entire procedure, Rhamina had her eyes shut as a string of cusses fell from her lips before the brunette was able to get the metal out.

"Cloud, you can use healing magic right?" Sierra asked, earning a nod from the male, "Then I'm, leaving the rest up to you."

The male took the female's spot as she went to clean up before placing his dominant hand over the ravenette's wound, earning a grunt of displeasure.

Muttering an apology under his breath, the male activated the healing materia in his cuff causing a tingling sensation to run through the female as her wound closed.

Once Cloud stood up, the eighteen-year-old used her arm to block out the light and said, "Night night, motherfuckers, I'm not moving from this couch until morning."

It was around midnight, so no one really had the energy to argue with the stubborn eighteen-year-old.

As Cloud walked away from the living room, he threw one last glance at the figure on the couch before returning to his room.

After changing into a set of sleeping clothes, the male simply laid on the bed and started at the ceiling as he thought back to his world once more.

What had happened after he fell? What happened to Tifa?

Was Barret able to get them out safely? What if they were caught by Shinra?

He was about to keep questioning himself when he heard a female voice calling out for someone and it was at this point that he realized that the surroundings around him changed.

Instead of laying in his plush mattress he was on the mossy floor of a forest once again, but this time a trail was right next to him and his sword was attached to his back.

"Iliya!" a female voice called from ahead of him on the trail, "Come one, Iliya, this isn't funny! Your mom is looking for you!"

The male followed the voice to find a teenager with short black hair wearing a purple blouse and baggy black pants stuffed into a pain of brown boots.

"Iliya, there you are!" she chirped upon finding a young boy crouching near one of the bushes by the trail.

"You know better than to go off into the woods at night," she spoke, crouching down to get at his level, "Monsters are very active right now."

"I found a sprite thought!" the boy exclaimed as he held up a jar containing a blue wisp, "I can use this to cure big sister!"

"I'm sure you can," the female spoke with a soft smile as she looked at the jar, "But let's go home now, alright?"

"Okay, Mariana!" the boy chirped as he started back down the trail with a large, toothy grin on his face.

The teen only shook her head as the boy got farther from sight as she started to stand up only to fall back to her knees with a gasp.

"Well, well, well, what do we have here?" a velvety voice asked from behind the girl as a large spider crawled down her arm.

'Shit!' the female thought as she looked over her shoulder to see a creature with a human torso attached to the body of a spider.

"I was hoping to catch a meal, but I've done even better," it chuckled as it loomed over the girl, "I have found an incubator."

It was at this point that Cloud had seen enough; as the female tried to back away in fear while she was slowly losing control of her body, the blond rushed forward with his sword drawn and swiped at the creature only for it to jump back.

"And what is this?" it questioned, its four eyes narrowing in distaste at the appearance of another male.

"A knight perhaps?" it hypothesized as the female succumbed to the paralyzing venom currently running through her veins.

"No matter," the creature shrugged as it got into an attack stance, "I'll have your head either way."

As the fight went on, the female could only watch and listen as she struggled to regain control of her body.

The venom of a drider was extremely potent and could normally keep a human paralyzed for days at a time; however, this girl was not completely human.

By the time the fight was over, the girl was able to stand with the help of a tree as the male placed his sword on his back before approaching the female.

"Who are you?" she asked with a weak glare, barely able to keep herself upright as it felt like her legs would give out at any moment, "Some kind of mercenary?"

"Something like that," the male shrugged before stepping closer to the female, "Can you walk?"

The girl let out a growl before shaking her head; she knew it wasn't safe to just trust wandering people, but she knew she would have been fucked if she was left alone.

"Where's the nearest town?" the blond asked as he picked up the female, using his arms to help support under her knees and her back.

"Just back down the trail," she replied, nodding in the opposite direction that the creature had appeared, "The village is a ten minute walk from here."

The man nodded and said nothing else as he started in the direction that she had told him as a breeze blew past them.

The walk started off silent as the girl just took the time to observe her savior before asking, "What's your name?"

"Cloud strife, and yours?" he asked, blue eyes flicking down to her tired and still, slightly immobilized form.

"Mariana. I don't have a last name," she replied simply as she looked up at the starry sky past the trees.

"What was that thing?" Cloud asked as he just continued walking, taking note of the small lanterns along the trail.

"A drider. They and all other monsters, become much more active in the spring," she explained with a sigh, "Looking for mates and what not."

"Consider yourself lucky that you killed it," she continued with a smirk, "Driders don't care if you're a man or woman... If you can hold eggs, you're fair game."

The male scoffed at the disgusting information before he came upon the entrance of the village she mentioned.

Upon seeing the form of the girl in his arms, a woman rushed forward with tears in her eyes and asked, "Mariana, what happened?"

"A drider came up, but Cloud here took care of it," the ravenette explained as a male around the blond's age took her from him.

"Pretty cool right?" the female asked with a smirk as more worried villagers gathered around.

"Mariana, this isn't time for your jokes," snapped the male who held her as he took her into the village.

"Mister, I can't thank you for saving my daughter!" the woman cried as she bowed in the blond's direction, "Please allow us to give you a room tonight as thanks!"

~~~Fin. Chapter 6~~~

Masterlist

#Apocalypse #Chapter 6 #Fanfiiction #Fanfic #Final Fantasy #Final Fantasy VII #FFVII #FFVII Remake #Cloud Strife #Cloud Strife x OC

[name-me-regret]

Second Star To The Right - Chapter 3

Second Star To The Right Chapter Three

Read on AO3.

- - - -

“Before all of this ever went down In another place, another town, You were just a face in the crowd Out in the street, walking around A face in the crowd

Out of a dream, out of the sky Into my heart, into my life And you were just a face in the crowd Out in the street, thinking out loud A face in the crowd.”

A Face In The Crowd - Tom Petty

- - - -

June 15, 2019 (Saturday)

He’d refused to return to the park no matter how many times Abbie begged him all weekend.

“I wanna see the stolen boy! Maybe we can help save him from the fairies!” she’d shouted. Tony wasn’t there to hear her, or he’d likely have something to say. He had agreed with Harley when she’d talked about meeting a fairy and that it was probably some kid playing a prank on them. As for Harley, he hadn’t told them Peter’s name, because he was afraid that he really was a boy stolen by the fairies and his face would be on a missing poster or something.

Now it was his birthday and it seemed Abbie was more devious than he gave her credit for. She’d somehow convinced Pepper, who was their adopted mother since she was married to Tony, that it’d be a good idea to have Harley’s birthday party in Central Park.

It wasn’t exactly a party, but ‘A Walking Tour & Picnic’. It was a guided tour of Central Park and there was a picnic after the 2 hour tour! Two hours! Who wanted to walk for two hours on their birthday?!

Well, technically his birthday had been Monday and they’d had a small cake just the newly formed family, and now some of Tony’s friends would be along for the festivities since neither Harley nor Abbie had any friends. But still, he didn’t want to go on a hike. Harley didn’t want to risk running into Peter again, because cute boy or not, he was super weird and freaked Harley out.

That’s the reason he was trailing behind the group, hardly peddling on this stupid bike he’d been forced to ride. They weren’t even that far into the two hours, it’d been ten minutes and Harley wanted to quit. It wasn’t because he was out of shape, because he was use to hoofing it to school if he ever missed the bus. He just thought this was really dorky and there were some kids his age pointing and laughing at them.

“I wanna die,” he groaned, wishing he could hide his face at least, but the bike was so old that if he let go he’d likely topple off it.

“Then perish,” a voice cackled. His head whipped around toward the familiar voice, and his stomach flipped when he saw Peter in the trees he was passing.

Harley wanted to ride off, but his gen-z genes wouldn’t let him. “That’s not right. I have to say, I would die for you. And then you say, then perish.” He’d stopped, putting one foot on the ground so he would topple.

Peter grinned with a shrug. “I’ve never been one for memes.”

Harley eyed him. “You are strange, what kid of gen-Z kid doesn’t like memes?” He noticed then that he had the same clothes... again. “And don’t you ever change clothes? Do you live in Central Park or something?”

Peter looked down at his clothes with a confused look. “This is what I had on when I was taken, so I can’t change.” He looked at him, head tilting with a sorrowful expression. “You still don’t believe me, do you?” He stepped back into the tree line, and damned if he wasn’t starting to disappear right before Harley’s eyes.

“Wait!” Harley called, dropping the bike and rushing forward. Peter paused and started to reform again, almost like some kind of ghost. “Shit... fuck,” the taller boy gasped, stopping just a few steps from him. “If... if you’re being held by fairies, can I help? Can I save you?”

His heart was pounding as Peter looked at him, head titled curiously. “Maybe... maybe you can,” he said slowly.

“Harley, where’d you go?” Harley heard Tony’s voice.

Peter looked shocked when he heard the voice, turning to look at Harley. “Peter? What is it?”

He shook his head, stepping away from him. ’Come back... don’t forget about me,’ he whispered, but his mouth didn’t move this time. Before Harley could reach for him, he he was gone as if he hadn’t been there at all.

Tony found him a moment later, but Harley was too shaken that he only managed a ‘sorry’ to being reprimanded about falling behind, and followed the man back to where he’d dropped his bike.

- - - -

June 16, 2019 (Sunday)

Harley wouldn’t say that he was scared, because he wasn’t, not anymore. He’d seen the sadness in Peter’s eyes, the truth; or at least, what he believed to be true. Peter truly believed that he was being kept prisoner by fairies, and he wanted to help him. Harley didn’t want Peter to keep having that desperate look on his face. So, against his better judgment, he returned to the park the next day without telling anyone where he was going.

Sundays were a bit tricky for Harley. His mama had always insisted on going to church every Sunday, and Harley always resisted her on account that he’d feel like a big hypocrite. He was what all the people in the congregation referred to as ‘wicked’. Damn, how he despised that word more than anything he could ever describe. It was hard being gay and religious, because he did believe. How could he look at his mama, who worked so hard so they the things they needed, and not believe. While she was gone now, he still had his sister, he saw her as her smile got a bit wider each day, and she made him not just give up.

So, it was necessarily that he didn’t believe, he just didn’t want to go to a place that called him wicked, disgusting, or immoral. Harley knew that no every place was like that, but he had no time to try and differentiate. He was fifteen, had a nine year old sister that needed him, and that’s all that matter.

Only, Abbie wanted to go to church, and Pepper had agreed to take her, because it’s what their mama use to do. Harley didn’t go, refused to be guilted into going even by her. So, he had Sundays to himself, trying to figure out what to do with himself.

This is the reason he was here now, back in Central Park and trying to find a boy that may, or may not be a ghost. Hell, he could be one of those supposed fairies he said that had stolen him away, and now wanted to steal Harley away. Harley would just have to make sure not to eat any food the other might offer him. It was just that, he didn’t know the first place to start looking.

Harley was moving along The Ramble when he heard something that sounded like ‘pssst!’, which was strange to hear so clearly when there was a lot of people around. Then he saw Peter motioning from somewhere off the man-made path, looking to he halfway inside the stones. It was late afternoon, and it was slightly darker here with the amount of trees surrounding this place.

It was Sunday, so the majority of the people were located in the larger areas of the park, such as the ballfields and the playground areas. This part of The Ramble was strangely secluded at the moment, almost like it was intentional. It felt a bit ominous to Harley, and he felt uneasy, because he wasn’t too familiar with New York, never mind the 840 acre Central Park.

Even so, he jumped the fence easily and approached with caution to where the ghost (maybe) was waving at him. “Hey,” he said cautiously, and was a bit surprised when he seemed to have changed his appearance even when he’d said that he couldn’t change. He would have said something, but he was worried that he might disappear again.

The clothes he was wearing weren’t any less strange, with a bright orange shirt and a green windbreaker with blue trim, and a pair of black and white shorts. His whole outfit clashed with one another, but damned if he didn’t look adorable. ‘Could you stop being a disaster gay for a moment, Harley,’ the blonde haired teen chastised himself.

Peter looked at him, swaying back and forth as if being buffeted back and forth by the wind, only, there was no wind to be felt. It was warm and uncomfortably sticky, so Harley would have been grateful for just a small breeze. He was use to Tennessee weather, but he’d never liked them. At the moment he was wearing cut-off jeans, and a white t-shirt along with his old beat up white sneakers. While it was true that he had been adopted by Tony Stark (there had been a press conference and everything, but Harley and Abbie’s faces hadn’t been shown to protect them for the time being), that didn’t mean he was going to become a douchey rich kid. He still wore the clothes he’d brought from Tennessee.

When he reached Peter, he saw that he’d been right about his mismatched clothes being terrible, but he still made it work some how. Or Harley was just blinded by a cute boy. “So, what do I have to do to... help you?” he asked, trying not to shuffle nervously. Because cute boy or not, he was also a ghost or a fairy trying to steal his soul or something like that.

The other grinned, reaching out toward him and Harley was proud of himself for not flinching away. When their hand’s connected, and it was strange but it didn’t feel like a flesh hand, but it was corporeal and cool to the touch. Harley shivered a bit as he got closer, but made no move to distance himself from Peter. He was seriously screwed if Peter was some kind of fairy creature trying to steal, or eat his soul.

“Come on,” Peter said, grinning as he pulled him forward. He found himself being led down a stone stairway. There was literally nothing down there, and Harley had to duck down under the large rock to get to the sheltered inlet that Peter led him to. He was surprised when he saw some kind of blanket or other spread out, so he didn’t get the seat of his shorts down when he sat on the ground.

When he turned toward the front, he was a bit stunned at the sight. The streets were low with their green leaves, some just bushes, and the shade they provided was no as ominous at all as he’d first thought. It was beautiful, and there was almost something rhythmic in watching the movement of water, no matter how dirty it looked, and now he could hear the soft movement of the wind. It was almost like it was just Harley and Peter, the other’s hand still gripped in his own; cold but solid.

“Who are you, really?” Harley asked him, looking at the other teenager sitting next to him, far too close. Even so, when the other shifted closer, he didn’t move away as his heart started to pound in his chest.

“I’m the wind... and the trees, and the ground under your feet,” he whispered. Harley couldn’t help lean back and away from him, but the rock was at his back, and Peter was so close that he should feel his breath on his face, but there was nothing. He couldn’t even tell if he was breathing.

The came that voice again, like two voice overlapping that he couldn’t distinguish one from the other.

‘It was night, and the rain fell; and falling, it was rain, but, having fallen, it was blood...’

Harley reached out with hesitant hands to the other’s face because he seemed to have gotten lost to whatever he was hearing or seeing. “Peter, come back,” he told him.

’And, all at once, the moon arose through the thin ghastly mist, and was crimson in color. And mine eyes fell upon a huge gray rock which stood by the shore of the river, and was lighted by the light of the moon.’

He was confused, since he didn’t know where the voice was coming from but the other was lost as he stared straight ahead without really seeing Harley. So, he leaned forward and pressed his lips to the other’s cheek, to wake him from his trance and because Harley really wanted to.

Peter blinked and looked at him as his eyes cleared. “Did you just-?” he choked and Harley was a bit amazed as his face flushed scarlet. It was a good look on him, and he found that he wanted to see it more. So, since Peter had leaned close enough already, he closed the last few inches between them and while he could feel his lips, cool and solid, it didn’t really feel like him.

Even so, he heard Peter gasp even if he doubted he needed air, and then he was kissing him back. His hand fumbled for Harley’s and their fingers locked together. Even if he was sure he might have been kissing a shadow or an illusion, it felt nice and he wanted to kiss him for however long he had breath. Harley knew though, that he had to stop, so he broke the kiss.

Peter made a small whimpering sound when Harley pulled away, but he needed Peter to focus; he needed to focus on how to help him.

“Peter, what can I do to help you?” Harley asked, scooting back a bit. Peter leaned forward, probably to keep the kiss going, and damn if he didn’t want to. So, he grabbed him by the shoulders and stopped him, and once again marveled that he felt solid. “Focus, Peter!”

The smaller boy’s face changed to that vaguely distant look, and he was in time to only say his name again before he disappeared like the mist. Only when he was gone did he realize it was dark, the sunlight had gone when before it had been shining through the tree branches, and he hadn’t realized how long he’d been there. Harley realized he had lost time.

Harley suddenly heard the crunch of footsteps and he tensed and moved further under the boulder, eyes darting toward the water, wondering if he could get away through there even if it meant getting his shoes wet. Then he relaxed, because it was likely just park security, and only had a moment longer to wonder what they were doing off the path when he realized it wasn’t park security.

“Hey, what’re you doing there kid?” a rough voice asked. He couldn’t make out much of the man’s face, dark as it was, but he felt one of his hands close around his leg and drag him out. “Spying on us, are you?” he snarled, and Harley saw there were two of them.

“Lemme go!” Harley growled, kicking at him as the man yelped when his foot connected with his face as he cursed. Harley darted around him, barely avoided the other man’s grabbing hand as his sneakers made a scraping sound on the stones as he threw himself up the stairway. The men were shouting after him, but he refused to stop, managing to jump over the fence and took off running, aware that he was being followed.

“Harley,” he heard someone call and his head snapped up, seeing Peter motioning through the trees off the path. He didn’t like the idea of leaving the path and crashing through the woods, but he also wasn’t going to get caught. So, he hopped over the fence, following Peter as he seemed to shine, reminding him of stories that told of lights that would lead travelers stray and to their deaths.

Harley certainly hoped the ghost boy wasn’t leading him to get lost and die.-

- - - -

#Second Star To The Right #Peter Pan AU #peter parker #harley keener #harley keener/peter parker #Harley Keener centric #SSTTR #Harley Keener Adopted by Tony Stark #tony stark acting as peter parkers parental figure #peter parker whump #Edgar Allan Poe references #Harry Potter references #Coraline references #Other literary works referenced #Momentarily Confused/Mentally Unstable Character #Implied/Encouraged Self-Harm #Tony Stark #May Parker #Harley Keener’s Sister #pepper potts #parkner #fanfiction #myfanfiction #Things That Go Knock In The Night series

[whentommymetalfie]

Kiss with a fist

A/N: This was great to write! Maybe I’ll write one from Alfie’s POV in the future.  This contains fluff, some sexual/will he try to shoot me?- tension and stupid humour. And some drunk!Tommy, because I couldn’t help myself. I hope you enjoy it Anon! And everyone else reading it of course <3 

Pairing: Alfie/Tommy

Summary: The beginning of Tommy and Alfie’s relationship. In which there are innuendos about riding, a lot of banter, rum (the good kind) and just generally just a lot of confusion on Tommy’s behalf.

Link to AO3: http://archiveofourown.org/works/13345668

Wordcount: 4000 

Just a few days Tommy’s first meeting with Alfie Solomons, he receives a phone call.

“Thomas,” a familiar voice comes through the line. Why is this man he’s met once calling him by his first name? Tommy is instantly suspicious. It’s some sort of move in a fight for dominance in this partnership, definitely.

“Mr. Solomons. What can I do for you?”

“Oh, I just wanted to make sure you got home safely,” Solomons says. “You were in quite the state. All bashed up and everything.”

Tommy is so baffled that it takes a moment for him to respond. But he's calm when he does. “That is very considerate of you. The trip home went fine.”

“And how’s your pretty head?”

“That’s just fine too,” he says, furrowing his brow and frantically trying to figure out what Solomons is playing at here.

Solomons hums. “That’s good. Bloody good. You’ve got to take care of yourself, yeah? Dangerous business we’re in, you know.”

“Indeed it is.”

“Wouldn’t want anything to happen to you. Such a waste. Still young and all. And with those nice fucking eyes.”

Right. This is some sort of mindgame, Tommy states firmly. Luckily, he’s rather good at those. He’s glad to have figured it out. But before he can form a response, Solomons speaks up again.

“Well that’s all for now. Got business to attend to, and all that. We’ll talk more when I come to Birmingham next week, yeah?”

Tommy falters. “What?”

“I have to take a look at my new business partners’ domains, don’t I?” Solomons says, and Tommy can somehow hear that he’s smirking. “You can show me the sights. If there are any, right, in that fucking shit hole of a town. Or town... more like just a group of houses around a muddy patch from what I've heard.”

“Yes. Of course,” is all Tommy manages to say, before Solomons hangs up.

This deal is not working out the way he’d hoped it would. All that it’s resulted in so far, is to get him beaten half to death, and an unwelcomed visit from this clearly insane man.

Tommy has a distinct feeling that this will all go straight to hell.

Sure enough, Solomons does show up a week later. In the Garrison of all places. When Tommy can’t hide that he’s mildly surprised to see him, he just laughs. Tommy’s first thought is that he’s got a rather nice laugh. In hindsight, it’s at that point things really start to go wrong.

“Well Thomas, you are fucking easy to find.” Alfie looks around the pub. “Nice little place you got here. Quaint, you may say. Shitty, you may also say.”

“A drink, Mr. Solomons?” Tommy asks, feeling that he definitely needs one.

“No, mate, I stay away from shit like that. Well, unless the situation calls for it.” Solomons says and walks over to the snug, opening the door to stick his head inside. “Would you look at that, eh? Is this where you conduct your… business meetings?”

“Sometimes.”

“You got an office? An actual office. Or do you just do your paperwork in a bloody pub? Worrying, that.”

“Not as much an office as a desk in a very small room, but sure,” Tommy gives a light shrug. “Would you like to see that too?”

“Seen enough fucking desks in my life. Let’s go take a look at that horse of yours.” Solomons turns to leave, and Tommy can do nothing but follow.

He discovers something as they walk through the streets toward the stables –Alfie Solomons talks. A lot.

At first, it annoys him. Then, he strangely enough finds himself being alright with it. Not enjoying it. Definitely not. But it’s rather nice to just listen to Solomons go on about something. Perhaps it’s got something to do with that voice of his… He must have some sort of hidden agenda with all this, Tommy tells himself whenever he finds that he is relaxing a bit too much in his company. Problem is, he can’t figure out what it is exactly. Alfie just talks about nothing. The weather, that a dog they pass is nice, which leads into this whole story about how nice dogs are in general.

“See, dogs have this reputation of being dirty, stupid creatures. But so are most people, and I don’t fucking mean anything by it, just that there ain’t no shame in being a bit dim in the head, yeah? Heard that the happiest people are. Fucking idiots. Though back to dogs, right, they really are much more clever than folks believe. I once saw this dog, right-“

He is insane, Tommy thinks. That’s the whole thing. It has to be.

And though this should cause him some concerns, it doesn’t at first. Once he’s stated that’s the case, he can at least be satisfied to know he’s figured him out. But the relief doesn’t last long. Because he soon finds himself laughing at the things Solomons rambles about. And although he catches himself each time and quickly straightens his features, the man looks unnervingly pleased with himself. Which immediately makes him think this is all part of some elaborate scheme, after all. And he’s right back to being on edge.  

“So this is our newest addition,” he says and walks up to the white horse, that immediately comes to meet him. It neighs happily when he reaches out to scratch it behind the ears. He relaxes a bit, it doesn’t do to be nervous around horses, they sense things like that a mile away. There’s also a sense of relief to not have Solomons undivided attention anymore. It’s just something about those eyes, the way they seem to bore into him.

“Fine looking animal. Fucking stupid, though. The lot of them are,” Solomons states behind his back.“Do you ride?”

Stop asking things. “Sure. As a mode of transportation.”

“Ever for... the pleasure of it, eh?”

Tommy looks over his shoulder at Solomons, who is watching him with this tiny smirk on his face. Right. This is a game he knows how to play.

“When I have the time,” he says calmly, quirking an eyebrow as he turns around completely to face him.

“You any good?” Solomons takes a step closer, somehow towering over him despite their height difference not being that great. At least it wasn’t in Tommy’s head until that moment.

“I’m very good, actually.” He locks eyes with the taller man. Solomons’ smirk widens a bit.

“I bet you are.” He stares him down, but Tommy doesn’t falter. “You should do it more often. Help get rid of some of that fucking tension. Bet that would keep you out of trouble, yeah? Less energy to start fights with the wrong people.”

“I can assure you that’s not an issue.” Tommy leans back against the wall. Lights a cigarette. “I make sure to get what I need in terms of,” he pauses, very deliberately, to draw in smoke. “Releasing tension.”

“Do you, now?” Solomons is dangerously close, and his voice is low -threatening?- when he speaks again. The smirk has transformed into something else. “And what is it that you need, Thomas?”

“Nothing that you can provide me with, I’m sure, Mr. Solomons.”

There’s this electricity in the air. Like the moment before you draw your gun on someone. Or…

“Tommy! Didn’t expect to see you here today!” Charlie’s voice suddenly breaks the tension. Tommy’s eyes snap to the entrance of the stable, and Solomons backs off. He’s got that stupid fucking grin on his face again. Like he knows something Tommy doesn’t. Fuck this.

“Charlie, this is Mr. Solomons,” he says. “Associate from London.”

Charlie and Solomons shake hands and exchange a few words. Tommy just tries to calm his racing pulse.

“That… man is on the phone for you, Tommy” Ada says. “Solomons?”

“He is calling you an awful lot,” Arthur says as he passes through the kitchen. “Is there trouble in London?”

Tommy just shrugs lightly and goes to pick up.

“Mr. Solomons. Italians bothering you again?”

“Oh no more than usual,” Solomons voice says over the line. That voice… “Just wanted to check in on you. You’re taking care, I hope?”

“Definitely not. I do my best every day to be a hazard to myself,” Tommy says flatly, and hears a laugh. Quite unexpectedly, it makes something flutter inside his chest.

“That would explain a lot. Like why you got involved with me. Fucking insane decision, that.” Tommy thinks that statement over –is it a thinly veiled threat? Could very well be, but Solomons sounds… happy. Though he's found that the tone of his voice usually means nothing.

“Maybe. The way I see it, every day is another chance to make an unhealthy decision,” he states in the same calm tone. They go back and forth like that for a while. Nothing of importance is said.

Tommy is confused when he hangs up. He’s getting very tired of that feeling in connection with this man.

Ada gives him this… look when he comes back into the kitchen. Smug. She looks smug.

“So, this Solomons,” she begins. “What kind of a man is he?”

Tommy leans against the counter. Takes out a cigarette.

“He brews rum. Leader of a Jewish gang in London, so he’s a good ally to-“

Ada cuts him off by waving her hand dismissively.

“No, not what kind of ‘business-man’-” She makes sarcasm in the last word unnecessarily clear. “What kind of man? What does he look like, for example?”

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Indulge me.”

Tommy almost feels a bit flustered. When did he last feel like that? Last time Solomons was there.

“I don’t know how to describe him,” he says and shrugs.

“Oh please, you’re not blind!” Ada exclaims and gives a short laugh. “Stop squirming and answer.”

“Fine.” He rolls his eyes, puts the cigarette to his lips again just to get a moment to form an answer. “He’s big… tall.”

“Is he actually tall, or just taller than you?”

Tommy merely raises his eyebrows at this and Ada throws her hands up.

“Sorry, go on.”

“He’s got a beard,” he draws in smoke, letting it out slowly through pursed lips. “Dresses a bit… like he does some sort of labour, most of the time.” By the look of those arms… Describing what Alfie Solomons looks like forces him to actually conjure an image of him in his head. “He’s got…” his voice trails off a bit. He thinks of Solomons face. His eyes. Of the way he looked at him in that office. With such utter self-assuredness, as if he was certain nothing in the world could touch him. Such a difference from any other man Tommy has met. Something about that confidence is both infuriating and oddly… attractive. No, definitely not attractive. “He’s got these… eyes,” he says quietly, looking vacantly at nothing in particular.

“I see,” Ada says smugly, and Tommy snaps out of it.

“What?”

“Oh, I have my suspicions,” Ada wiggles her eyebrows. “I know what this is about.”

“Do tell Ada, what is it about?”

“Well, Tommy, sweetheart,” Ada smirks. “That chat out in the hallway sounded an awful lot like banter. You know, the sort of thing you have with that special someone you might have an interest in, but who also drives you a bit crazy, and that’s secretly what you like about them.”

“It was not banter,” Tommy says firmly to stop the flow of absolute bullshit Ada is spouting.

“Call it what you want,” Ada gets up from her chair. “I know a lovers’ quarrel when I hear one.”

Tommy is, for the first time, without words. Ada is out the door before he gets the time to find any.

Solomons keeps on calling. And Tommy keeps on picking up. It’s still unclear to him where this is all leading. Solomons asks things. But just things about Tommy, never the business. Things like: yeah, it’s awful weather here today. Do you like rain Thomas? You seem like the type… These conversations are becoming a problem, because Tommy finds himself slipping, telling Solomons things he wasn’t planning on. And although it's harmless things, it’s the feeling that irks him. That Solomons is lulling him into some sort of false sense of security, that this will somehow lead to him ending up shot somewhere in an alley. Though honestly, what would Solomons have to gain from this manipulation? He controls almost half of London, what use would he have of a bookmaker from Birmingham, other than provide a bit of manpower in the business with the Italians?

Tommy feels like he’s slowly going insane.

Alfie shows up at the Garrison again. This time, he brings a bottle of rum. The good kind.

“Are you bringing outside drinks into my pub, Mr. Solomons?” Tommy asks when Alfie hands him the bottle. It’s late, approaching closing time, and only a few patrons remain in the pub.

“Yeah, figured you could use some proper fucking booze in this place.” Alfie smirks. "Feels like life is hard enough around here as it is. Don't need to be drinking shitty fucking liquor on top of it all."

“So, is this one of those situations that calls for a drink?”

“Yeah, it is,” Alfie says and walks over to the snug, opening the door and holding it in a gesture that clearly states: after you. Tommy does, on principle, not let people hold doors open for him. He stares at Alfie. Alfie stares back. Challenging him. It feels like the room has gone oddly quiet, as the other patrons watches this battle of wills play out. Tommy realises he doesn’t really have a choice. So, he gestures to Grace who hands him two glasses, before walking past Solomons into the small room.

It’s around this point when the whole thing really starts going to hell.

Tommy is drunk. He realises this far too late. Another terrible decision in connection with Alfie Solomons to add to his already rather long list. He can’t quite understand how it happened. He hasn’t had any more to drink than Solomons. He’s also too drunk to acknowledge that the other man has about twenty pounds on him.

“So… bookmaking huh?” Alfie reclines in his seat, studying him over the edge of his glass.

“What about it?” Tommy blinks slowly. Tries to focus.

“Just wondering about the choice of business, yeah?”

Tommy shrugs. “My father started it up. Stole horses. Was in to... illegal racing an’ all that. When he walked out, Polly took over ‘till me’n Arthur and John were old enough. Guess it just went from there.” He empties the rest of his glass. “’s a business as good as any. And I like horses.”

“How come?”

Tommy thinks about it. “You can’t… think about other shit when you’re with a horse. You’ve gotta just… be in the moment. It's nice. Makes my brain stop whirring for a bit. They’re good animals. Kind.” He looks down at his glass and adds as an afterthought, “You don’t get that a lot around ‘ere.”

Alfie nods thoughtfully, scratching his beard. “Me, I’m more of a dog person. Similar in some ways I guess, those animals. Dogs are good-natured critters too.” He leans closer. Somehow, Tommy has ended up sitting right next to him. “Ever thought about the fact that, ‘spite of their size, horses are prey? ‘s why they can become so jittery. They've got this-" Solomons gestures in the air. "Constant fucking need to be on the move. Always running 'round. Never fully relaxed. Got to be a fucking exhausting life."  

Tommy looks at him with half-closed eyes. “Mhm.”

“And for all their… niceness, dogs are predators. 's why they chase you, right? Could tear out your bloody throat, even the small ones, if they felt like it. Heard they can crush a fucking spine with their teeth, the biggest. So, predators, yeah?”

Had he been sober, the implications of the statement would have him reaching for his gun. Now, he just blinks slowly. Thinks that Alfie has nice eyes. Warm eyes. “Guess they are.”

“I’m following you to the fucking door, Thomas. Ain’t no point in arguing.” Alfie watches him struggle with the key for a moment before taking it and locking the door to the Garrison. Tommy can’t quite understand how Alfie is so sober in comparison to him. Solomons, it’s Solomons and nothing else.

“Fuck, remind me never to let you loose on the rum again,” Solomons grumbles. “Clearly, you can’t hold your fucking liquor.”

“As if you could tell me what I can and cannot do,” Tommy grins.

The walk home is sort of a blur. At some point, he almost falls over, and Solomons wraps an arm around his waist to steady him.

“You’ve got nice arms,” he slurs, the alcohol having removed any sort of filter between his brain and his mouth. “Strong. Like you carry around-” he has to swallow. “Carry around a lot of heavy things.”

Alfie looks down at him, but Tommy is too far gone to read his expression. “That pretty mouth of yours will get you killed one day, sweetie,” he says. “Fucking walking about, making deals with people in a whole other league. That’s asking for trouble.”

Tommy just laughs at this.

Alfie shakes his head, knocking on the Shelby household’s door quite harshly to wake someone up. How does he know where Tommy lives?

“I can get to- the inside on my own,” Tommy mutters. Everything is spinning around him.

“Like fuck you can.” Alfie knocks again. “I’m making sure someone gets you to bed. Or I’ll have one of your crazy brothers after me.”

A bleary-eyed Arthur comes to open.

“What the hell is going on here?” he looks from Solomons, to his rather unresponsive little brother hanging off his arm.

“Just delivering this disaster of a person to ya’.” Tommy hears Alfie’s voice. But he can’t see. Has he closed his eyes?

“What did you do to him?” Arthur sounds angry. Then again, he’s angry a lot.

“Believe me, he did this to himself.”

“I’ll fucking kill you if-“

“Watch it with the threats. He’s just drunk. Be happy I took 'im home like a fucking gentleman instead of just leaving him in the gutter somewhere. Could’ve ended badly, that. A lot of men less honourable than me 'round here.” Alfie’s arm disappears from around his waist, and a new set of limbs reach out to hold him upright. He takes a staggering step forward and finds himself clinging to Arthur’s shoulders.

“Tommy? You alright?”

“Sure, ‘s all fine.” Someone laughs. It’s Alfie.

“It’s been a pleasure. See you soon Thomas.

Tommy wakes up the next morning –afternoon- with a pounding headache and a death wish. Everything from the night before is just a blur. But he does remember the exchange about predator and prey. Then something about his mouth getting him killed some day. And as he lies there in bed, strongly reconsidering his life choices, he realises he will have to do something drastic about this situation. Solomons has been holding all the cards for far too long now. And he’s not the one to just sit around and wait for an opponent’s next move.

”Right. For weeks, I’ve been trying to figure you out.”

Alfie looks up from his papers when Tommy walks into his office.

“Thomas, what a lovely surprise. Take a seat.”

Tommy remains standing.

”It feels like the rest of us in this world…” he continues, doing his very best to keep his voice void of emotion. And failing miserably. “We’re in this race, right? With rules. And sure, we break them to get ahead, because maybe we were given a bad horse, and life is unfair. But at least we know we’re breaking the rules. And what rules we’re breaking”

Alfie stands up too, walking around to stand by his desk. Crosses his arms over his chest.

“And then there’s you…” Tommy gestures in Solomons direction. “Who doesn’t even seem to be on the fucking racecourse. You’re off by yourself, frolicking in some bloody field. Completely unaware of what everyone else is doing. And yet, somehow, you’re still winning the bloody race.”

Solomons smiles. And it just serves to rile Tommy up. ”I’ve spent so much time trying to understand your motives. I figured you must be some sort of genius, because I can’t for the life of me understand what all of these unwarranted… phone calls and meetings are about. But now I get it,” Tommy stops to catch his breath. ”You’re just insane. That’s the whole thing. Of course I can’t figure you out, because you don’t function like other people.”

Tommy pauses. Breathes. Feeling his pulse throb against his jaw. He doesn’t understand why this man manages to push every single one of his buttons. How often does it happen that he completely loses it like this? Maybe it’s him that’s insane. And Solomons just keeps smiling. That stupid fucking smile that makes Tommy want to… shoot him in the fucking face.

The other man closes the distance between them in two long strides. And Tommy thinks for a fraction of a second that this is it: Solomons is either going to put a bullet in his head or beat him to death. When two large hands come up to cup his jaw his whole body tenses, all of his instincts telling him to fight, thinking that those hands will soon wrap themselves around his neck. But the touch is gentle.

Then, Solomons leans down and kisses him.

And right at that moment, his head goes silent.

Without understanding what his own body is doing, he relaxes against Solomons’ larger frame. Wraps his arms around his neck and clings to him in a way that is so far from his usual self, desperate almost. The kiss is somehow both gentle and heated all at once, and when Alfie draws back slightly, he finds himself pulling him back down. Alfie –since when did Solomons become Alfie in his head?- lets his hands travel down his backside, and lifts him up onto the desk. Firm. Sure. It causes Tommy a whole onslaught of emotions he didn’t know he could still feel. It's like his body is remembering all of these things it used to do once, before the war. His knees fall open and he wraps his legs around Alfie’s hips, drawing him closer.  Alfie feels big and sturdy against him; safe, somehow. And fuck, it’s so bloody nice to not be the one in charge for once, just melt into his arms and let him take the lead. Been far too long since someone kissed him like this. Far too long since he was held like this.

“Took you long enough to take the fucking hint.” Alfie smirks and pulls away a bit. Tommy’s slips his arms down from his shoulders to support himself against the desk as he attempts to catch his breath. Feels like he’s just woken up from some insane fever dream.

“What?”

“Well,” Alfie cradles the back of his head in one of his hands. “I decided this was going to happen, right, the very first time you walked into my office. With those pretty eyes bloodshot. All bruised. Still walked in like you owned the place, yeah? You just came here, all alone- little as you are, and acted like you fucking owned the place. Wasn't just that pretty face that did it. No, it was all of that... the fucking nerve of you. So I figured I needed to have you. And I'm used to getting what I fucking want.” His words send a spike of arousal through Tommy. He likes a man who can take charge. In situations like these, at least. Or in bed. No shame in admitting that. But there are questions that need sorting out before he can let his mind drift to things like that. Because he still doesn't quite believe or understand Solomons true motives.

“You pointed a gun at me?” He raises an eyebrow.

“Had to take you for a bloody test run, right,” Alfie shrugs. “You know me by now, Tommy-boy. I can be a bit unbalanced, as they say. Can’t have you running scared when that happens. But there's no risk, I figure. Because you're clearly just as fucking crazy as me.”

Tommy realises that maybe he does know him at this point. At least a little bit. Isn’t that an unexpected development? Is he crazy, for doing this? Quite possibly.

“So, is that what all these phone calls and visits have been about?”

Alfie throws his head back and laughs. “Tommy, for all your cleverness, you're completely fucking oblivious. Can’t you see when a man is trying to woo you? Thought my next move would have to be sending you fucking flowers or some shit like that. But sure, I'm a gentleman. I could do that sort of thing. If it gets you in the mood.”

Tommy falters. He blames the kiss. The fact that he’s sitting on Alfie Solomons’ fucking desk with the man in question between his legs.

The past month's events play out in his head, and he suddenly feels very stupid. Had this been any other man, anyone but Solomons, yeah, he would’ve taken the hint. He’s not a fucking idiot. Yes, yes he always was an idiot when it came to things like this. He’s been so focused on figuring out what Solomons grand plan is that this has just passed him by…

A warm hand cups his jaw and Alfie’s thumb runs across his bottom lip.

“You lick your lips sometimes. When you’re thinking, yeah?” he says. “Drives me up the bloody wall. Got to be careful with that, pretty thing. Bet you think a whole lot around your other business associates. Could end very badly that. A lot of dangerous fucking men in this business.”

You are dangerous. I am dangerous. Tommy doesn't have time to respond to this idiotic notion. He has more questions.

“So that time at the stables, you were actually making a pass at me?”

“Bloody hell, Thomas, I couldn’t have been more obvious!” Alfie laughs again. “You think I talk that way with all of my business partners? I practically shoved you up the fucking wall. And you just stood there, talking about getting what you need and looking up at me through those long lashes of yours- Fuck, I nearly did shove you against the wall. Could've just taken you right there.”

“I thought you were just playing some sort of game…” Tommy defends himself.

“Just to see what it would take for you to become flustered,” Alfie leans closer. “I bet you look even prettier when you blush. Guess we'll see about that soon enough, eh?”

“I don’t get flustered,” Tommy states. That's a lie. “And I don’t blush.” Another lie.

“Is that a challenge? Because I’ve got quite the mouth on me, yeah? You haven’t heard the fucking things I can say in bed. I’ll bet you anything they’ll do the trick.”

“What makes you think we’ll ever be in a bed together?” Tommy challenges, but a small part of him wants to add that they could just do it on the desk. Right now. He doesn’t listen to that part.

“That you came here.” Alfie’s breath is hot against his ear. “That you let me do this,“ his hands squeeze Tommy’s thighs as if to point out they’re still open around his hips. “And that you’ll let me kiss you again.”

Tommy does let him. Several times.

#tommy shelby #alfie solomons #alfie/tommy #alfie x tommy #requested by anon #wtma au #peaky blinders fanfiction #fanfiction #requests #tommy is drunk again #and oblivious #and a disaster #what else is new #alfie is smitten