#MA'AM YOU ARE REPEATING THAT CYCLE

[animezinglife]

Boy moms are something else.

I get that moms will always see their children as their "babies." That's completely fair and to be expected.

What I'm a little less comfortable with is when your fifteen-year-old son who's over six feet tall is somebody you consider "too young" to stay home by himself.

My parents would toss the phone at me (landlines back then), make sure I knew where the guns were in case there was an intruder, tell me there was enough food to cook whatever, and say "have fun" when I was eight.

#boy moms #wtf #if I had a fifteen-year-old son I'd be WAY more worried about him having a girl over or throwing a party #SHE WON'T EVEN LET HIM COOK #WTF #this is how you raise a manchild #I don't know ANY boys who hadn't already been staying home on their own from around the same age I did that I grew up with #I love her but she also complains because her husband is the ONLY man out of our group who won't cook and clean #MA'AM YOU ARE REPEATING THAT CYCLE

[eatmangoesnekkid]

The Kill: To Come Fully Alive in Your Female Body is to Know How to Give Death Like a Country Woman Who Knows How to Process Her Home-Grown, Organically-Raised Chickens When It's Time

How I Reprogram My Cells With New Narratives Using My Imagination and After Care (My Gift to Readers On Tumblr)

I'm almost 48 years old and every month my body releases a healthy beautiful egg because it is still trying to have a big chunky baby.

I'm not peri-menopausal yet but will be using this year to reprogram my tissues with new narratives around menopause beyond the dehydrating stories I can feel trapped in my female line. The keycode here is that it takes time so you must begin now....early.

I'm deeply a strategic and proactive woman in all my fairy playfulness and do not dissociate from any cycle of my body or womanhood in any way. Instead I spend time reprogramming my cells and lovingly planting new narratives into my body, in this case, around the experience of menopause. No doctor will prescribe pills or other substances for my natural female cycles that I have already falling in love with. The keycode here is that your love for the process is essential.

I find comfort in the present moment and I also find comfort in imagining and projecting into the future. I do not fear menopause. I do not hold common expectations that it will be difficult or dry out my pussy or my libido will fall as the culture teaches. I am clear that I won't need hormonal medication. I consciously use my energy to envision myself in the details of what I desire in life as a radiant, flexible, wet, high libido, sassy, symptom-free menopausal woman. But I don't just envision, I feel the emotions of being radiant, flexible, wet, etc. OUR EMOTIONS CONNECT US INTO THE UNIVERSE.

I am often lightyears ahead of what we call "time." Ancient-future. I am planting cosmic seeds now BEFORE my menopause years and continue to take action in the desired direction through staying active and continuing to work on my flexibility and inner beauty—forgiving, clearing, letting go, and dreaming. “Yoh, the fuck you mean ‘wait and see, ’” I thought to myself after a woman waiting in line with me at the airport said that menopause will be the worst time of my life. I responded back in the gentlest manner, " Ma'am, my menopause will not be difficult and I will not feel hot nor lose my high libido.” Haha I said that to her and continued, “I'm not an average woman and anm already programming my future menopausal years in which I rest well at night and wake up aroused for the day. I appreciate your well-intentioned words but they do not apply to me nor do I consent to that experience. I’m such a weird one—not regular. Never been.” The keycode here is that you must be willing to cut people off at the neck who subtly lead life from a victimized position about their own bodies and attempt to place that same energy onto you, even with well-meaning intentions. She was a lovely woman otherwise —and I knew she meant well but I also knew that she giving me feedback on what lives deep in my body, in the hidden and unconscious. I can’t see it but I felt it in our interaction. Therefore I wasn’t really metaphorically cutting HER neck off. I was starting the journey of severing the part of my female lineage that feels the same way as she does. I will repeat this process over and over again in my imagination, then begin the journey of self-soothing my tissues and nervous system with lots of intentional massage, juicing, and rest. What we give death to is still a valuable part that our psyches will miss interacting with, a part that up to now has made us feel safe and held. Lots of self-soothing and letting our tissues know that we will be okay without this aspect of self are essential after care.

I always ask the earth for support and speak my desires into the orange trees as I'm picking fruit, walking through a park, or hiking. The keycode here is that you need initiate support from another divine authority, whether nature, God, your ancestors, etc.

I permit myself to see my future menopausal self being juicy and abundant.

I have always lived my life this way--often 2-3 steps ahead of the game, laughing and playing a lot along the way.

Too many women and other female bodied people are stuck and trapped by the trauma they have programmed to believe about themselves (their cells). It's important that you remember who you are--a magical woman and experience this reality lightheartedly, playfully, and magically accordingly. The keycode here is that your playfulness and lightheartedness help to release any resistances. They become your fuel and battery propelling you forward into your next level or landing you directly into a quantum leap.

Maybe you aren’t concerned about menopause yet but you can apply these key codes to any other aspects of your life. --India Ame'ye, Author

[arithecreatorsstuff]

Cruel and Malicious Phraseology

Since the JLA ban on profanity in the workplace took effect, some of us have gotten rather inventive in expressing our less positive sentiments. No guesses for which member of the Old Guard had the most insults hurled at them, but... his initials are HJ. There is no context, only hostility.

"I could put an entire box of alphabet pasta through a spin cycle and come up with a better plan than that. Stop trying to be Batman, one is enough."

"Go stick your head inside a black hole, you posh knobhead!"

"Listen here, you overhyped rodent posterior... rocking up like you're the brightest glow stick in the rave negates the very idea of a stealth mission. Adjust your glow to match your intellect, please."

"You got this, huh? Looks like you handled that masterfully. Tell you what there, Mastermind... let me know if you need help finding your teeth after that glorious victory."

"Plans A, B, AND C all tanked? Over to you, Glowworm, you usually head straight to Plan D for "dumb crap" anyway."

"Quick question, do you even Metal Gear?"

"Oh, what in the unholy name of Ymir's jockstrap did we walk into this time?"

"Do... do the Big Bosses not realize pockets are a thing? Like, where am I supposed to keep my wallet, or anything, really? Is the Marquis de Sade the staff tailor, because wearing this is gonna drive me mad."

"You and I have been friends for a while, but... when you say things like that I kinda want to stab you in the eye with an explosive arrow."

"I get now why you prefer being underwater. Less dumb. Much less screaming. Speaking of... I bet you know some epic dive spots. They'll be at this for hours, we're not needed here. If the Boss asks, you're teaching me marine ecology in the wild."

"Huh. Here I thought Joker held the title for "Most Punchable Face on Earth", yet here's the new heavyweight contender, ready to throw down for the belt."

"Go boil your head in some more of that cheap weak sister beer!"

"Why don't you go hug a claymore mine already?"

"Eat my boots!"

"No, ma'am, I'm not ready for that jelly, I prefer cream cheese on my bagel anyway. You're... not talking about food, are you? Oh, monkey bread."

"Repeat after me: Pants. Are. Not. Optional!"

"I'd rather drown than EVER go clown. I might not have taste, but I have standards."

"Oh, by Artemis' sandals what did you do this time?"

"Yanno, you and a certain dirty old man thunder God have the same issue: too focused on the ladies to do your job. Eyes in the head, you ain't her type. Trust me."

"IN THE NAME OF SIGYN'S GIRDLE WILL YOU STOP SNEAKING UP ON ME LIKE THAT! The Boss can get away with it, as he was trained in silent infiltration and is not a creepy drunken sorry excuse for a washout. Either knock on the door like a normal human, or run the risk of having to sing "I've Got A Lovely Bunch of Coconuts" to even enter the men's locker room."

"You died? I see your brain sure stayed dead."

"It's a RAID, not a rave. Lose the shiny stuff and glow trim, we're trying the Splinter Cell approach. Also... do you really need the three extra ammo belts? They're thugs, not the blooming Xenomorphs."

"I know over 20 languages, yet cannot explain exactly how much I'd like to beat you with a pufferfish."

"But did you die again? No? So... why so grumpy, Mr. Grouchy von Groucherson?"

"How? How do you claim to be a master shot, yet miss the ginormous glaring weak spot every time? Are you a plant from the Court of Owls? Make it make sense."

"Huh. Sniper scope, but still can't see the obvious. Just ask her already! Aphrodite help me, but you're blind if you can't see she likes you."

"Thanks, but I don't associate with the chronically dumb."

"A date? Let me check my calendar. Sorry, looks like I'm going to be washing my hair for the foreseeable future."

"Would you kindly get your head out of the poor man's rear entrance so he can get some work done?"

"Games teach you problem solving in real time, teamwork, the importance of understanding the mechanics in any situation, how to manage difficult individuals, pattern recognition, and much more. Odin's eyepatch, you must be a pretentious little sod to think you can't learn from gaming. Now quit whining and pick your fighter already. You're holding up the match."

#dc oc #jla #creative insults #no profanity no problem #batman may regret this policy #not everybody loves hal #most of us just tolerate him

[welldonekhushi]

How would Arjun react once he heard of Kristoff's death in the Siberian mine in MW3 when they were rescuing President Vorshevsky and his daughter? (In my canonverse Kristoff and his Jaeger Corps squad take the place of Team Metal in that mission). Do you think he would take Dahlia in as his own as she has no family left?

GASP, MA'AM! HOW DARE YOU HURT MY FEELINGS LIKE THAT 🥹

For that, Arjun hearing the news of Kristoff's death would.. shatter him. Especially when he left his daughter, Dahlia behind all by herself in this sudden tragedy. Arjun would love to take care of his daughter, but he wants to give her a life full of love, affection and with no suffering. Maybe Arjun gets to know about Kristoff's relatives and asks them to take care of Dahlia, because knowing Arjun was a soldier never off duty, he didn't want to repeat the same cycle for her again.

Otherwise, he hopes Dahlia gets the best future ahead, and pays tribute to the Major for his bravery and sacrifice.

#thanks for the ask! #stargazing-sapphire #oc asks #call of duty oc #captain arjun #kristoff 'avalanche' jorgensen

[anniesocsandgeneralstore]

Here’s the new AU I thought up! A Robin Hood AU with a twist!! Ronnie and Jake were engaged/married before he’s sent off to the Crusades/a medieval conquest. She promises to stay faithful to him until the day she leaves this earth. Well, that’s put to the rest very soon after Jake is sent off because he’s reported to Ronnie as having died in battle.

Soon after, the sleazy lord in the neighboring village takes an interest in Ronnie and tries to force her to marry him. After he goes too far, Ronnie with her trusty fellow ladies Natasha and Catherine take off to the woods, where they’ve heard tale of the legendary Robin Hood and his Merry Band of Thieves, aka Pete and Co.

The ladies are immediately taken into the fold due to Pete having served with Goose and knowing that he died saving Pete’s life in battle.

Time goes on, and word slowly reaches them that there is a mysterious man setting siege to the corrupt lords’ properties all over the area. It’s rumored that he works with the Grim Reaper himself since no one sees him until it’s too late.

It’s ya boy, Jake and Javy, setting fire to the men who separated him from his love, Ronnie. He was also told that Ronnie had died, but the sleazy lord told him that to try and kill Jake in an emotional frenzy. Instead, Jake started a rampage to lash out at those who sent him on the crusade.

Our two favorite lovers are eventually reunited, and the first thing they do is Ronnie gently cups Jake’s cheeks, strokes her thumbs across his face, and whispers, I knew I would see you again. Before they kiss.

MA'AM MA'AM HOLY SHIT MA'AM I AM ASCENDING

i am more than willing to expand and discuss further with you M cause uh.......Oh My. I freaking love Robin Hood, any version. And the subversion that it's Mav that's the robin hood figure is top tear. he's already got his maid marian in penny, and the cycle is beginning to repeat itself and that is FASCINATING.

and "I know I would see you again" my HEART CAN'T TAKE IT like??? they thought the other was dead??? I am weeping, screaming, throwing up????

also just the thought of this Ronnie (ignore the other two jamokes, this is a still from romeo and juliet):

is filling me with the upmost delight

thank you so much for sending this in M you queen

#annie answers #my precious m #oc: veronica bradshaw #robin hood au #jake hangman seresin #jake seresin #hangman #oh would jake still get called hangman cause people think he's with the grim reaper?? #now that's a thought

[voidofteeth]

Watching someone reflect on the Ugly Trends(tm) of their youth while fully following the (imo) Ugly Trends(tm) of right now is kinda funny

Like, Ma'am, you're stuck repeating this cycle in another ten years and I am likely stuck watching you do that x)

#not meant to be demeaning or anything like that #I just find cycles like this fascinating #chitter media #culture

[elainemorisi]

.

#a lot of things are predictable + annoying on this website #a LOT #and several have reared their heads today #but for my money one of the most... idk like it's not the most annoying #(that honor definitely goes to pearlclutching over motherfucking adults dating one another loooord) #but the most something #is how INCREDIBLY PREDICTABLE the straight women are when they find a new man #literally it is <6 weeks on average before he in some way deeply disappoints because of course he does #but this cycle repeats like three times a year! #minimum! #ma'am-s! #what R you doin! #like men being shit isn't actually the eyerolling part here obv they are that is bad #but I wouldn't even know about it if a certain sort of folk didn't start the gush-nonsense at like... date two!

[unpretty]

askdump with spoilers up to chapter 22! but also including some older ones because i keep forgetting

bramblepatch asked:

I LOVE the implication that the answer to Minnow's "cool, I wonder why there would be a door here?" is that Vaelon decided "cool, let's put a door here." Heroes Just Wanna See Cool Shit.

being able to set your own fast travel markers is the dream

@apparently-possessed asked:

I can't believe no one has commented on how Karzarul has the gall to call the Abysscale erotica scandalous. You made them to have sex with sailors you horny buffoon. You go off and find them in

Groups for frustrated sex.

No excuse my dude. They have always been the horny monster.

that was a PRIVATE INTERLUDE between a monster and several different ships worth of sailors and also sometimes other monsters and someone was INDISCREET which is RUDE and he would not have invited them if he'd known they would snitch

also tbh he was mostly offended by the implication that he was some kind of monster bimbo

anonymous asked:

"Monsters that are just slime orbs would have implications" yes, because the entire design and origin of Abysscales is completely without implications.

i find those implications less distressing tbh

@bramblepatch asked:

On rereading the last couple of chapters: as tragic as Vaelon's wish binding them all together is, it kind of seems like it might not be all bad for the world around them? Lynette already had her blessing at that point and I feel like a Sunlight Heir who didn't have that kind of persistent connection to the Hero and Monster would have the potential to go waaaay off the rails a lot more often than Heirs do anyway. Karzarul might be the one blatantly causing problems on most cycles, but having him and the Hero active when the Heir comes to power at least keeps them focused on their reincarnation bullshit...

you cannot deny that the hero does try to stop them from killing each other and also everyone else

he never said he'd succeed

@spinachwrap asked:

BIGGEST BOY It took me til chapter 20 to understand how Violet and the boys showed up and I about yelled. New! Monsters!!!

@asimovsideburns asked:

Sorry I’m just thinking about Astielle again and most if not all of Ari’s humanoid forms being at least partly imitative of someone he likes (and the others being made of what he thinks they’ll like) because moonlight is a reflection

@ephemeraltea asked:

part of what i love so much about your writing, particularly noticeable in astielle, is that you take a silly or off-hand thing and make it have true depth and emotional weight. like. collect one of everything from this open world video game. but for minnow, it's proof that she has desires outside of previous lives, that her experiences are not just slowly pixelating copies of things she's done before. this flower, i know i've seen it as me, because i have it pressed and saved at home. i have a memory of it that is only mine. and that fucking gets me!!!!

anonymous asked:

Karzarul getting all huffy about monsters naming themselves after descriptors *shakes my head* This is a TRADITION OF YOUR PEOPLE carried out EVEN TO THIS DAY *gestures to Violet who is... violet* I don't want to hear anything from you on the topic Mr. Beautiful.

anonymous asked:

RE: Karzarul getting huffy. It's probably influenced by the little Vaelon voice in the back of his head repeating "But that isn’t really a name..." over and over again, but still. I don't want to hear it from you, Mr. Beautiful!

anonymous asked:

Just from the way Karzarul responds to being told Elias died of being old with an Unconvinced Hm™ it seems like he knows about the immortality thing. But maybe they DO start aging after one (or more) of them dies?

@ceruleanvulpine asked:

RETURN OF “I WANT YOU WHATEVER YOULL GIVE ME” AHHHH

anonymous asked:

MA'AM. MA'AM HOW COULD YOU. I can't believe you did this to us VAELON NO

listen. i did it to myself also.

@punkpixieprince asked:

god even when I KNEW how it ended I still cried SO MUCH. I'm still crying right NOW. I imagined it in so many ways but honestly knowing it was an accident, that even after everything he killed her on accident, just really... destroyed me a little.

anonymous asked:

Vaelon: If I like everything *just the right amount* and not too much, then I won't want to commit suicide when it's gone. FORTUNATELY, I only have one person that applies to. And EXTRA fortunately she is now immortal. ... UNFORTUNATELY, there are now TWO people. EXTRA unfortunately, they are now trying to kill each other.

it turns out having gratitude-based cbt and existential nihilism as your religion has its limits as a depression treatment when literally no one around you has ever noticed that's what you're doing

anonymous asked:

What Vaelon Says: I don’t want any of us to be alone. What Vaelon Means: I don't want to be alone, and I don't mind leaving Karzarul alone if it means I can avoid being without one of the two people I can't live without.

vaelon has always vastly overestimated the extent to which karzarul wandered off to hang out with the many cool new monster friends his mom made him, and who he never wanted to introduce him to

anonymous asked:

Excited about the first mention of Moon priests. Also enjoy having my personal belief that the Sun priests are insufferable validated. Vaelon is STILL the only Void priest in evidence, ever. Understandable, seems like a difficult calling. *imagines poor little deluded Star priests running around in modern times being VERY WRONG*

anonymous asked:

They get a little mark on their hand to show who killed who? Does that work with people not-them? Did Leland wander around with a little sun on his hand from killing all the heirs? Is that how he's been telling everyone HE's the heir??? Did it happen to some random guardsman the first time and then Leland murdered him to try and get it himself? *chanting* Mark of Cain, Mark of Cain!

anonymous asked:

Idk if I should be happy or devastated for predicting what would happen for the most part in chapter 21 and 22. But also wth the sun on his hand???? Where are those terms and heckin conditions please tell me those were as immutable as the weapons

anonymous asked:

That Lynette died with her left hand clean makes me feel violent emotions. How many? Monsters with Vaelon’s face and deaths that Karzarul could feel. Enough to get used to it. She waited until he said he wasn’t connected to them. She spat monster like a slur. Sun circle advisors whispered in the ear of a woman who’d asked to be able to commit atrocities that her empire was the world. You’re too good at this, I don’t know if I can recover.

(☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞

anonymous asked:

Yeah, Lynette. You never asked for help, AND THAT'S THE PROBLEM.

anonymous asked:

“Why is it always my fault?” That's a very valid question, Karzarul. I can't think of any time the other two attempted to accommodate you, other than Vaelon mentioning he started helping people because he knew it bothered you, or him taking you back to the lake when you were in visible physical distress. Even when you hadn't done anything to cross her empire, when the only thing you'd taken from her was a small amount of Vaelon's attention, Lynette blamed you.

anonymous asked:

“Of all the fucking things you could have done, You made a new one. Another fucking monster, with his face. Do you think that’s going to stop me? Or do you think you’re proving something, making me kill him? Having to see his face, again and again and again, every time I kill one of those fucking things? His face, staring back at me, every fucking time and now you’ve made another one." ...Not everything is about YOU Lynette.

anonymous asked:

I loved learning that Vaelon designed Karzarul's moon/bug motifs.

anonymous asked:

Gaslight (Karzarul about things being his fault), Gatekeep (Karzarul away from Vaelon because if you can't have him *the way you want him* nobody can have him), Girlboss (of an empire that is actually only negatively impacting your mental health and it would be better for you to ditch that gig)

karzarul just hated to see a girlboss winning 😔

#original #writeblogging #astielleblogging #astielle spoilers

[butterbuni]

♥ Prologue ♥

Prologue of Disguise, a Kaminari x Fem Reader

"Hello my dear viewers! Thank you for joining my stream. If your new here thanks for coming. If your one of my regulars welcome back, you know the drill." I looked up at my left monitor watching the numbers of watchers rise as well as the number of donations.

"We are just waiting for one more guest! LightningMcSpark101 he is always late." I rolled my eyes playfully knowing he would be watching the video later when I upload it. My discord rang and I quickly answered it, "Dude you are so late!! The viewers were waiting!" I said into my mic.

"Aw man, I was so sure I was on time this time!" I heard him say from the other end. "Alright alright, all is forgiven! Hurry up and let's get this started. I only have 2 hours today!"

"Sure thing dude! I am so beating you this time!"

"In your dreams Sparky!"

"It's on G/N (Gamertag name)"

I smirked at my screen and took hold of my controller pressing play on the newest battle game that I was sent to try and review.

The screen lit up as it announced my ultimate victory. "Haha! In your face Sparky!! I win once again!"

"Awe man!!! I was so sure I was going to win this time!! You defeated me dude how is that even possible!!!" he exclaimed from his end.

"Ha, you thought. Thanks for helping me show off this game!" I looked over to my left monitor and saw my view had only gained as well as the occasional donation, "I hope you guys enjoyed my demonstration as much as I did! Make sure to go out and buy this amazing game! It's a lot of fun to play especially with friends maybe one of you may get lucky and I would play with you next time. Unfortunately, it is time for me to log off however same time next week. What do you say Sparky?"

"You bet!"

"Bye guys!" I said as I waved goodbye with one hand and clicked end stream. I let out a sigh of relief. That was so much fun. "Sparky you do not know how much fun that was!"

"I am so glad you let me try it out with you! Hey, when are you going to let me see your face you always wear that face mask. I only see half of you!"

"I will let you see my face when pigs fly!" I said scratching the side of my face avoiding not wanting to give him a straight answer. He asks this every single time we go on live together. "Plus it's not like I've seen your face either for all I know you are a 40-year-old man, but you don't sound a day over 15," I said cheerfully.

"Oh wow thanks." he said sarcastically, "I would show you my sexy awesome face but I don't think you would be able to resist me."

"Ha, you wi-"

The alarm on my phone went off stopping all conversation, "Oop looks like my time has come! See ya later dude!" I said quickly changing tabs to end our call. "Aw, c'mon just a little longer. I'll promise I'll be good."

"Sorry, sparky you know the drill I really need to go now," I said hastily wanting... no needing to end the call.

I heard him sigh from the other end. My cursor hovered over the end call button impatiently. My eyes kept darting to my bedroom door. He was taking too long and I didn't want to end without saying goodbye

"I'll catch ya next time G/N. Next time I promise to beat you in whatever game we play."

"Don't hold your breath," I laughed and clicked the end call button. Once it ended, I quickly tore off my face mask and took off my headset. I pulled out a medium-sized box from beneath my desk and put both of them in.

I quickly took out the game cd and put it back into its packaging. I pulled out a bigger box from beneath my desk that had various other games I've collected and put the game in. I sighed, "I wish I didn't have to live like this." Almost as soon as I closed both boxes and put them away, there was a knock on my door.

Fuck. Already?

"One moment!" I called out. Why why why now. I went into my walk-in closet and quickly changed into clothes that my parents deemed suitable for walking around the house. There was another knock at the door, "I'm coming!" I fixed my hair and opened the door quickly revealing my butler. He wore a simple black and white suit with a handkerchief hanging off his arm and as usual his gray hair was slicked back.

"Hello Bertrum," I said standing up as straight as possible.

"Hello ma'am your parents are waiting for you downstairs. Dinner today is coffee-rubbed steak with brussels sprout salad." He bowed down to me.

Great just my luck. I rolled my eyes just before Bertrum rose from his position. "How wonderful I will be down in a second."

He nodded and went on his way. I shut my door closed once he left. With my back against the wall, I slide down to the ground. I wish we could have normal food for one. I would kill for a hamburger right about now.

I got up from the floor and dusted myself off. I might as well get this over with. The sooner I get there the sooner I can leave.

I walked over to my vanity mirror making sure all my 'imperfections' were perfect in the eyes of my parents.

Once I felt ready I walked out of my bedroom making sure to be extra slow about it. I walked through the halls of our family portraits and statues. I've walked this same path for years and each time I still don't feel like I belong.

Every single one of the pictures had a family member who did something great with their lives. Some went on to be some of the greatest support items manufactures. Some became politicians. Some even became costume developers. But here I was, some random teenager who just happened to be born in a family with everything.

I walked down our spiral stairs my hand running down the banister. Well, everything except parents with the capability of love and care.

I walked into the family dining room to see the long table completely dressed in fancy dishes. Both my mom and dad weren't looking at each other. Mother was typing away at something on her laptop and Father was talking to someone on the phone.

I don't even know why they require me here anymore when they wouldn't even pay attention to me.

"Hello Mother. Hello Father." I said flatly announcing myself in. "Hello Y/N," they said without even glancing at me.

I sighed. Of course, they wouldn't even look at me. I am sure they have even forgotten how I looked considering I don't even remember the last time they looked at me for more than 10 seconds.

I took my seat at the far end of the table to wait for the maids to deliver the food.

The dining hall instantly fell into silence with nothing but the clacking of Mother's keyboard and the low gruff talking of Father on his phone. It was unbearable.

Mother finally spoke to me as the maids came into the room with our dinner.

"We have decided where you will be going for high school." She spoke, "With your quirk, we decided that you will go to U.A and join their support course."

"But mother I was planning on becoming a hero like the rest of my friends," I spoke up as a maid dropped my dish in front of me.

She scoffed at me, "I can see why the Todoroki family would want their son to be in the hero course but I don't know why the Yaoyorozu family would let their daughter partake in such a trivial career."

"Mother heroes have a lot of importance in our society! Without them, the world would spiral into chaos. Plus the support course won't even have people to sell their inventions."

"Support for quirks will always be in business with or without the heroes. The heroes are the cause of chaos. They refuse to properly dispose of villains, making our society go into a cycle of a hero-catching villain only for the villain to escape and wreak more havoc. If they would make an example of one of those good for nothing bastards, the people in our society wouldn't have the nerve to stand against heroes."

"But Mother that is such a horrible-" I started to say looking at Mother in disbelief.

"I know you are not talking back to me right now!" she raised her voice at me slamming her fork down on the table.

"No Mother," I said looking down at the plate of food.

"Good."

It was silent once again. Father didn't even bother trying to come to my side and I didn't even bother standing up for myself.

I've learned the hard way that when something is asked of me, I have to do it. Or else.

I picked up my fork and picked at my food. I wasn't even that hungry plus it wasn't like brussel sprouts and steak were very appealing.

"Aren't you eating Y/N?," Father said turning off his phone and picking up his own fork to eat. He only said that to me so he could still pretend to be that caring father he once was in his only little fantasies.

"I just don't have the appetite right now," I said dejectedly. "You should eat your food. Do you know how many kids are starving?" Mother said.

"Maybe you should feed them this nasty stuff," I mumbled.

"I didn't quite hear what you said. Could you repeat that for me?" Mother's eyebrow twitched as she gripped the fork in her hand tightly. I didn't think she could hear me. "I just think we should distribute our wealth to help people less fortunate. People could stop going home hungry," I said dropping my fork down. If she wanted to talk about starving people we can talk about starving people.

"It is not our fault that they made bad choices in their lifetime and ended up poor. Why should we share what we worked hard to get." She said not sparing a glance at me.

I rolled my eyes once she paid more attention to her food than me. Every time I try to have this conversation with her she shuts me down with her hypocritical ass. I stared at her as she ate her food. Who is she to talk about hard work when she worked her way up into my father's pants. The only hard thing she's probably ever done up till now was picking a way how to seduce him.

After a considerable amount of time of pushing my food around my plate the maids came and whisked away our plates. I gave them my thanks. Mother and Father however just picked up their laptop and phones and excused themselves from the table leaving me by my lonesome.

I sighed. Welcome to the life of L/N Y/N.

----------------

Once my parents were out of sight I rushed up the stairs and past the halls filled with everything my family wanted me to be and into my bedroom. The one place in this house that I felt comfortable. The one place in this big mansion that felt like home.

I locked the bedroom door and quickly logged into my computer. I looked at the number of donations I received from today's stream. I let out a yell of excitement seeing the 2000$ on the screen. A whole 500 more than last time.

I could do more with this money. I pulled up a list of local poverty fundraisers. If Mother and Father won't do anything, I will.

I donated the money equally between the topmost trusted charities. As soon as I clicked the submit button for each I felt satisfied. Even if it wasn't much, the money I made off my twitch account was what kept me motivated to keep going. People out there were suffering and people like my parents were sitting down and letting it happen when they could be doing something about it.

I've thought about wiring money from my parents' accounts but I'll just get myself in trouble so two years ago I started live streaming. When I started earning money from it, I realized I could be making a difference with it.

I sighed as I leaned back in my chair. Two years ago I wouldn't have dreamed of going against my parents' wishes but here I am. Created my own monitors from scratch with the help of my quirk and Momo making the parts. I let out a sad laugh. I even went as far as to covering half my face just so I won't be recognized by anyone.

Just as I spun in my chair looking at my ceiling, my phone buzzed on my table. My head perked up looking at it. Who could be texting me at this time?

I picked up my phone seeing it was a discord notification from Sparky. I smiled softly at my phone. It's like he always knew when I was down in the dumps. I may not know who he is behind that screen but he has quickly become my best friend. ~~~~ Y/N Character Sheet 

#bnha #bnha reader insert #bnhareader #bnha x reader #bnha x you #bnha x y/n #reader insert #reader #mha #my hero academia #mha reader #mha reader insert #bnha kaminari #bnha kami #denki x you #you x denki #kaminari denki #denki kaminari #kaminari x reader

[nifujiswhore]

003;

Waking up in his small bed, in his plain medium sized bedroom was tiring for Jasper.

Getting up and dressed in the Texan heat, helping the workers on the farm (he refused to call them slaves as his father encouraged), making breakfast for his mama while she sits and watches outside in a coma-like state.

It was all so repetitive and mundane for him. Repeating the same cycle everyday.

On this particular day he decided to go into the main town and walk around, see what was in the markets. Not particularly dressy, just in some semi-formal clothes he would use while helping around the house.

Stopping by a particular fruit market he saw a woman, not much older than him, crouched down handing some bread and fruit to a boy he normally would visit.

"Mr. Whitlock! Mr. Whitlock! Look what this kind lady gave me!" tugging on his slacks.

"Leo, what have I told you about calling me that; it makes me sound old." The boy, now known as Leo, started dragging him towards the pretty lady who just gave him the food.

She wasn't wearing anything particularly memorable, but it still took his breath away. The corset accentuating her waist, the pale sundress she wore that complemented her caramel skin tone as well as showing her collarbones, the intricate braid her white hair was in. For a solid second he just stared at her, entranced. Just studying her unique eyes that he could see oceans and galaxies in, while she was smiling so brightly at him and Leo showing off her pearly white teeth and exaggerated canines.

She was simply stunning.

"Hello ma'am." Tearing her gaze away from the cute little boy she was talking to, to the man standing next to him she didn't want to look away.

He was the most handsome man she had ever seen, her family were beautiful don't get her wrong but this was a different kind of beauty. One that dragged you in and drowned you, a siren's song. He was tall, about 6 foot 2 and had honey blonde hair that went down to his broad shoulders. He was muscular but not off putting, he oozed charm and charisma with a smirk that made her knees weak and a voice like the sweetest honey. His cognac eyes that made her heart stop and stomach flutter.

He was the prettiest boy she had ever seen in her 500 years.

"Hello, good sir." She couldn't stop looking at him but reluctantly had to as Leo grabbed her attention again. Taking his chance to introduce himself to the pretty lady. "My name is Jasper Whitlock. May I ask what your name is?" "Talia Mikaelson, Mr. Whitlock."

"Please ma'am, Jasper is just fine."

"Only if you call me Talia."

- - -

They got on spectacularly from then on, seeing each other in the town and what-not. Organising to see each other almost everyday, it was the happiest Talia had ever been and her family definitely noticed the change in her demeanour.

Rebekah would tease the girl every time she saw her with a smile. 'Oh? Going to see your lover?' or 'I'd be careful sister, as soon as our brothers catch you two he's as good as dead.' She would say those things so callously and scare Talia so much that she would avoid her brothers all together to avoid an incident.

Interrupting her train of thought was Niklaus while the two were walking arm-in-arm. "What are you thinking about love?" wrinkling her nose at the term of endearment, she replied with a simple 'not much' while continuing to look around the market square.

"Are you sure you're not looking around for your lover-boy?" He knew he had to keep this conversation short and punctual because of her inattentive adhd. Although being 'all powerful' as many would assume it did come with drawbacks, more than they would have liked, and that was one of them.

"No, he's normally still working the farm with the other workers. But he'll be getting off soon a-" she thought she was being discreet in all honesty, clearly she wasn't. "How did you know? Did bekah tell you? She promised me-"

"Calm down love. Breathe" Nik thought it was quite funny, seeing her panic about something so small but also a little unsettling as well. She'd never paid attention to anyone, or anything really, to be this entranced.

"It's quite obvious, the hiding, the smiling, the blushing. Leaving the house at the same time every couple days, then leaving the house at odd hours." Sporting an amused smirk watching blood rush to her cheeks "and not to mention I've never seen you so concentrated and focused on anything our entire lives." Now she was full on blushing, shying away from his eyes and hiding her face in her brother's chest.

Feeling the rumbling from under her cheek she playfully hit his chest muttering an "it's not funny, Nik." she swiftly tried to turn and leave to avoid embarrassment but Nik didn't let her run from the conversation.

Connecting their eyes, the sea blue of his eyes meeting the mosaic of hers, "Is he that important to you?" a nod, "do you think he's your mate?" another nod. "Love, I need verbal answers."

"Yes"

"Do you love him?" Niklaus asked the question that had bought them both strife, her with lack of interest in people generally, and him with his bad luck with women.

"I do," she responded without hesitation. Taking a deep breath he thought that that was enough for him.

"Then let's go meet him then, hm?" With a child-like sparkle to her eyes, she started leading him to the Whitlock farm.

- - -

Jasper had not long finished helping the workers in the farm, it had been a month or so from when he initially met Talia, and seeing her in town had steadily become his favourite part of his day.

Stepping onto the porch of his house he saw his mama, Talia and an unfamiliar man he assumed was Niklaus or Klaus, based on descriptions he'd been given of her siblings. They were all happily conversing with Klaus watching the interaction between his mother and his beloved with amused eyes.

Now, Mary Whitlock was a rather reserved woman. She was the 'perfect housewife' before her son was born, only doing as she was told, doing her 'wifely duties' to 'service her husband', and when he was born she was 'set out to pasture' as she liked to put it. Her duty was done, she provided her husband with a son to continue the legacy.

So when his son brought home a lovely, well-mannered, coloured woman, Mary was worried that her son brought a gold-digger to his home. Not the best assumption she'll admit to now but an assumption quickly dismissed when the two were introduced to each other.

Mary thought that talia was cute, a little ditzy and air-headed, the reason she later found out was because of mental health disorder, but she was entertaining and fun to talk to nonetheless. Always telling stories of adventures she went on with her family, previous places she stayed in, letting Mary live vicariously through her stories.

"What's going on here Mama?" Jasper asked, pausing in his step and kissing his mother on the forehead.

Sweat glistened off skin, and talia followed a particular droplet that decided to entrance her by gliding down his throat and down the collarbones that were visible under his unbuttoned shirt, then disappearing into the fabric of his singlet. Talia had never wanted to fucking claim him more than in that moment. Mary snapped talia out of her quickly darkening thoughts and by the ever growing smirk on Niklaus's face he could smell it too.

Damn enhanced senses, nothing is private anymore.

"Oh, Talia was just introducing her big brother to us. Why don't you go inside, get cleaned up and meet us in the parlour, sweet boy, rinse off all that sweat and grime, hm?" Mary suggested with a sickly sweet smile. Jasper, agreeing quickly, helps his mother to her feet and to his surprise latches onto Klaus to support her while inviting him inside.

"What about me? Do I get a kiss, Sweet boy?" Slightly mocking and slightly pouting, she quickly turns his confused expression into one of love and ardor.

She always knows how to make my day brighter, never fails to make me laugh too. How did I get so lucky?

Letting out a small chuckle, he reached forward to kiss her cheek but she had other ideas. What was meant to be a chaste kiss on the cheek turned into a deep and passionate embracing of lips. Pulling away slightly breathless and with a mischievous glint in her eyes "So, can i help you get all that sweat and grime off you?"

Just what am I going to do with you. Erupting into full-on laughter the couple walk into the house.

- - -

Over the course of the next three months, Jasper was introduced to the rest of the Mikalesons. Although they were weary of who was courting their little sister, seeing the beaming smile on her face was all worth it and surprisingly Finn was the first to welcome Jasper.

Jasper got on well with Niklaus and Finn due their shared love for the girl, Rebekah and Jasper were friendly but not overly, Elijah shared his academic interests with Jasper and Kol didn't really care much to know him as long as he was making his sister happy.

On this particular day, Talia decided to take a dip in a secluded crystal clear lake, with a waterfall with tumbling down grey rocks surrounded by greenery. She had decided to let her wings out, show her true self, because it had been a while and the heavy water flow would be good for her back muscles.

It was by chance that Jasper had found her. Frozen and afraid, he watched her (not creepily) with a feeling of betrayal pinching at his chest.

"Are you just going to hide and watch me, or come out?" The normally bright and bubbly voice that made butterflies explode in his stomach was now scared and reserved. "I won't hurt you, I swear Jasper." Hearing talia use his first name so seriously was what convinced him to step up from where he was hiding and sit on a rock near the water, close but not too close.

"Do you-" "What are-" they started simultaneously, then Talia let him go first because he likely had many more questions.

"What are you?" he inquired, taking in her new features, the horns that sat at her hairline, the navy blue wings that sprouted from her shoulder blades, the gradient scales and pale constellations that sat upon her cheekbones and ran down her arms, torso and legs. Eyes sharper and clearer than ever and teeth that suddenly looked more dangerous. Beautiful was the only thing that came to mind when he looked at her.

"I'm a mutant. I got it from my dad." shyly peeking at his face, in the meekest voice possible, "are you afraid of me?"

"No" there was no hesitation from Jasper, "maybe at first, but-" slowly sinking into the water to hide her surprise and disappointment, "-but I realised you're still the same person I fell in love with, the person I love."

That was the first time either of them had said those three words and boy did Jasper time it perfectly. Slipping off the rock and into the water to join her.

"Your laugh, Your smile, the way you always know how to make me smile. Mutant or not, coloured or not. You are still the woman that holds my heart." not caring that his clothes were getting wet he cupped her face in his hands and pressed their foreheads together, wiping the tears that ran down her cheeks uncontrollably.

"Nothing about you could make me afraid, darlin'" and with that he pulled her into a passionate kiss conveying how much they loved one another.

#jasper whitlock x oc #the originals #kaiju amongst the deities #the twilight saga #the vampire diaries #jasper hale #jasper x oc #jasper cullen #elijah mikaelson #niklaus mikaelson

[andrewmoocow]

Steven Universe Alternate Future chapter 14: A Fusion Too Far (originally published on April 19, 2021)

AN: Well, time to get this big elephant out of the room before we move onto the big Part 2 finale. I'll be honest, I was kind of disappointed we didn't get any closure on Jasper and Lapis's relationship and that they'd turn into Vegeta and Goku respectively. But then again, I'm here to fix this myself, so here we go.

Synopsis: Steven helps Lapis and Jasper try to make up for the past.

Cast:

Zach Callison as Steven

Jennifer Paz as Lapis, Zuli, Diopside

Kimberly Brooks as Jasper, Cherry Quartz

Estelle as Garnet

Amy Sedaris as Teal Zircon, Diopside

Ian Jones Quartey as Snowflake Obsidian

Auli'I Cravalho as Orange Spodumene

Featuring Esmé Bianco as Malachite

--

"Okay Gems, Steven left me in charge of his interpretive dance class since he left, so I'm gonna need you all to work hard for him." Lapis ordered a class made up of Zuli, Cherry Quartz, Teal Zircon, Snowflake Obsidian, and Orange Spodumene while she set down a boombox and tightened the sweatband around her head. "Are we clear?"

"Yes ma'am!" the class of Gems shouted with a salute.

"Ooh, this is gonna be so much fun!" Zuli muttered cheerfully.

"I know, right?" Teal Zircon replied just as eagerly.

"Are we ready?" Lapis asked rhetorically as she switched on some music. "A five, six, seven, eight!"

"Same as it ever was, same as it ever was. Same as it ever was, same as it ever was." The stereo began playing as the class began copying Lapis's moves. When she twirled left, they twirled with her. When she jumped up and landed while pumping her fist in the air, they jumped up too. "Same as it ever was, same as it ever was. Same as it ever was, same as it ever was."

"I'm having so much fun!" TZ exclaimed excitedly as the class began freestyling, but her gem began glowing without her knowing.

"Me too!" Zuli replied as her gem began glowing as well. Suddenly, as the two stood dancing back to back, they transformed into a large mass of light and then, into a massive fusion bearing traits from both Gems. Unlike an average fusion, this one was a lot more deformed due to the accident that caused it.

"Uh, guys?" the fusion of Zuli and Teal boomed nervously as the rest of the class gazed in shock at her. "A little help here?"

"Uh oh, we got another fusion accident." Snowflake declared worriedly.

"I'll go get Amethyst and Pearl, hopefully they'll know what to do." Orange Spodumene stated as she raced to get help.

Lapis was just as stunned at the sight as her students, but for far different reasons than the rest. A Lapis fusing with another Gem that results in a big problem? That seemed all too familiar to her. "Uh, you know what? Class dismissed."

"Wait, Lapis!" Cherry Quartz cried out as their teacher flew away. "What about TZ and Zuli?!"

"Amethyst and Pearl got this covered!" Lapis called back to Cherry. "I just need to settle some problems of my own."

As Lapis continued flying, the fusion of Teal and Zuli continued standing there, contemplating what just happened. "So, anyone want to ask me what the weather is like from up here?"

--

"Now just breathe in, and out." Garnet instructed Steven as they took a private yoga class at the tower. "Let these troubled thoughts know that you won't let them take you over."

"Don't let them take over, don't let them take over." Steven repeated to himself while shutting his eyes, but he did let one thought take over as he heard someone land behind him. "Lapis?"

"Hey Steven, hey Garnet." Lapis greeted the two Gems.

"Did class end early for you?" Garnet asked the waterbender as she got up to face Lapis.

"Yeah, but there was a little problem." Lapis answered. "Teal Zircon and 2F8D accidentally fused during class, which really reminded me of a certain incident."

"You came to us because that reminded you of Malachite, right?" Steven asked. "You know, I've already made a mental note to get you and Jasper to make up for what happened while you were fused."

"I like that you want to help them amend for the past," Garnet smiled to Steven. "But I feel they won't forgive each other, since their time as Malachite was torture for both of them."

"Yeah, remember?" Lapis reminded Steven. "Jasper tormented me because I forced her to stay fused with me, but then I tormented her because she tormented me, and it was all one big cycle of abuse and toxicity until we were separated. I feel like if I really want to move on, I need to make up for at least some of my past actions."

"I know, no need to remind me of stuff I already know." Steven said. "But I still feel you two can make up somehow!"

--

"Absolutely not." Jasper declared angrily as Steven and Lapis stood before her in the forest later that day.

"Garnet warned you." Lapis cautioned Steven out of the corner of her mouth, but he didn't listen.

"Aw come on Jasper, Lapis really wants to apologize for torturing you while you two were fused as Malachite!" Steven begged Jasper to listen to him.

"Oh really?" Jasper raised an eyebrow in disgust. "The way I see it, I came out as far more stable once you freed me from her!" she bragged. "But I think a bit of my attitude may have rubbed off on the brat here. I mean, what has she done since we de-fused?"

"That's a bit personal." Lapis replied in shock at Jasper's accusations. "Also, YOU came out a little more stable? The first time we met since the island, you were begging on your knees to fuse with me again AND you started hunting down corrupted Gems just to get that feeling, which led to you getting corrupted yourself!"

"I think that's enough of this kind of back and forth for right now!" Steven got between the two Gems. "Why don't we try some trust exercises, like an icebreaker?"

"An icebreaker?" Jasper replied in confusion. "Well, there sure isn't any ice around here."

"No, it's not that kind of icebreaker." Lapis corrected her ex-fusion partner. "It's like you ask people questions to try and get to know them better. I'll start." She then cleared her throat. "What do you like to do in your free time?"

"Training, brooding, terminating all kinds of Earthlings that try to invade my territory." Jasper responded. "What about you?"

"A lot of stuff." Lapis replied. "I really like making meep morps, collecting leaves, dancing-"

"What on Earth is a meep morp?" Jasper interrupted Lapis. "Sounds like some dumb human ritual."

"It's what she and Peridot call art." Steven informed the larger Gem. "Now Lapis, please continue."

"Gladly." Lapis said. "I also love watching this show with Peridot called Camp Pining Hearts. It's a Great North drama set in a summer camp where all the campers compete against each other in Color Wars."

"Sounds dumb, kind of like you." Jasper rudely declared, which got Lapis mad.

"Now you see here you big lug!" Lapis yelled. "Camp Pining Hearts is good-natured, cheesy dramatic fun! Well, except for Season 5, that was utter garbage."

"Kind of like your attempts to try and "make up" with me." Jasper replied in air quotes.

"Okay, maybe icebreakers aren't working very well but hey," Steven interrupted the bickering pair. "Why don't we try something different, like trust falls?"

"What's that?" Lapis and Jasper asked in unison.

--

Steven would soon answer that question by having Jasper stand with her back facing towards the edge of a cliff, with Lapis spreading her arms out down below. "It's exactly what it sounds like." Steven explained. "One of you has to fall over and put their trust in the other person to catch them."

"Yeah, I don't buy this." Jasper snarled as she turned around to face Steven and Lapis from above. "I could easily crush her, as much as I really want to."

"For once, I think I'm gonna side with Jasper on this one." Lapis agreed with the larger Gem, making herself sick to her stomach. "I never thought I'd say that."

"Okay, change of plans." Steven suggested. "Lapis falls and Jasper has to catch her, sound good?"

"That makes more sense." Lapis obliged and flew up to the cliff while Jasper dropped down to meet Steven.

"Okay, now close your eyes Lapis, and let Jasper catch you." Steven commanded the ocean Gem.

"Alright then." Lapis replied as she shut her eyes. "Are you still standing there Jasper?"

"Yes, yes I am." Jasper responded with her arms spread out. "Now fall already!"

Lapis did as she was told and leaned off the edge of the cliff, allowing herself to start falling to the ground. But when she came close to returning to solid earth, Jasper casually moved out of the way, letting Lapis instead fall back first onto the grass.

"Jasper!" Steven scolded the bigger Gem.

"What, you never said how to catch her." Jasper grinned nervously, and Steven returned it with an irritated glare. Lapis just facepalmed as she got up off the ground.

--

"Okay, let's try another team building exercise." Steven stated while walking Jasper and Lapis through the forest. "Here's the deal, one of you has to wear a blindfold and walk through the woods while the other one has to give instructions." He opened up his jacket and pulled out some cloth to serve as a blindfold. "Now who wants to go first?"

"Give me that." Jasper ordered as she snatched the cloth from Steven's hand and tried to wrap it around her head. Unfortunately for Jasper, the knot she tried to make wasn't very good. "Come on, stay on my head you stupid Earth material!"

"Guess that means I'll have to tell her what to do." Lapis realized while Steven tied the blindfold around Jasper's head for her. "For once."

"Okay, are you ready guys?" Steven asked the pair as he finished tying a tight knot on the blindfold.

"Uh, yes." Lapis nervously said.

"Uh, where are you two?" Jasper asked while facing away from Steven and Lapis. "I can clearly hear you, but I can't see you. What kind of torture device is this?!"

"I can see you're already getting the hang of this." Lapis grinned snarkily. "Okay, first, you gotta walk towards those trees over there." She pointed over to a group of trees lined up nearby. "Got that?"

"What trees? All I see is white!" Jasper barked before Steven put his hands on her hips and guided her towards the trees.

"Okay, next, follow the trees until you hear rushing water." Lapis grinned mischievously while Jasper did as she told and she and Steven followed her. "I can see you're getting warmer."

"And I have a bad feeling about this." Jasper muttered while following the sound of racing water. The source of the sound came from a nearby raging river, and Jasper was about to fall over before Lapis gave her next command.

"Okay, stop!" Lapis ordered, telling the big quartz to halt in her tracks before she gave one last order. "Now that we found the source of the rushing water, jump in."

"I don't know where this is going, but if you say so." Jasper obliged and jumped into the river, but she realized too late what she got herself into. "What is this?!" Jasper yelled as she ripped the blindfold off her face and realized she was drifting down the stream. "Lapis, you tricked me! I'll get you for this!"

"Lapis!" Steven scolded Lapis, who just replied with a shrug.

"I punched her sky high and she turned out fine." Lapis responded. "She can survive this." Despite her protests, a disappointed glare from Steven forced Lapis to fly up and race after Jasper to save her from the river.

--

"If this is payback for letting you fall, I understand why but this is totally disproportionate!" Jasper yelled as the force of the river continued carrying her throughout the forest. "Um, can anyone please help me?"

Jasper's prayers were soon answered, though not in the way she wanted. Lapis soared over the drifting Gem and prepared to pick her up with the river water, but Jasper instead grabbed her by the hand and pulled her down. "Oh no, you don't! You started this, and now you're coming with me!"

"I was only trying to help you!" Lapis yelled crossly. "Though Steven forced me to do it, but still!"

"You help me?" Jasper said before she let out a loud cackle. "Maybe when I get shattered!" The big Gem kept on laughing much to Lapis's irritation, but she was soon cut off when she realized the river was going to lead to a waterfall. "Uh oh.

"Don't tell me, we're going to go over a waterfall." Lapis deadpanned.

"Indeed." Jasper confirmed just as deadpan.

"Sharp rocks at the bottom?" Lapis then asked.

"No, unfortunately."

"Doesn't matter, bring it on."

And just like that, the bickering pair put aside their differences and came together screaming as they went over the waterfall.

--

As soon as Lapis and Jasper got out of the mountainside lake that the waterfall led to, Steven stood there with his arms crossed and crossly tapping his foot. "You two are unbelievable!" he chastised the two. "I just want you to forgive each other for Malachite and at least be friendlier to each other! Is that too much to ask?!"

"Steven, you have to learn that sometimes, even when two enemies become friends," Lapis said to Steven. "there's no chance they'll instantly treat the horrible things they did to each other in the past like someone stole forty cakes or something."

"I concur." Jasper nodded.

"See, another thing you two can agree on." Steven nodded in exasperation. "How about this? You say at least one nice thing about each other, and that's it. Understand?"

"Okay, if it makes you chill out a bit." Lapis shivered at Steven's current behavior and turned to Jasper. "Well, I'll give you this Jasper. You may not have wanted to do all those activities, but at least you didn't just give up on them."

"Kind of like how you never gave up on treating me like trash." Jasper harangued in reply, stunning Steven and Lapis. "Just look at you Lapis. Even years after we split, you keep on refusing to treat me with kindness."

"What kindness?" Lapis growled. "You never treated me like that, so what makes you think-"

"LET ME FINISH!" Jasper boomed. "You abused me, and what do you get? A nice life with that Peridot, being a member of the Crystal Gems and living at that stupid Little Homeworld! Meanwhile, I've spent my entire life neglected and tortured on this worthless planet, yet you get off scot-free for all the horrendous things you've done! Let's face it, you may think everything's all okay, but I'm still the only one who's seen you for the monster you are."

Throughout Jasper's furious lecture, Steven stood there in shock at how nothing had been going his way today. All he wanted to do was help two enemies become friends, but nothing had worked. And as Jasper kept on accusing Lapis, he slowly began to turn pink until finally, he snapped. "ENOUGH!"

"Again?!" Jasper yelled at the sight of Steven turning pink again.

"This is new!" Lapis exclaimed.

"I just wanted you to make friends, but neither of you are listening to me!" Steven yelled as the force of his tantrum knocked the two Gems off their feet and back into the lake. "Why can't anything go the way I wanted to FOR ONCE?!"

With a single stomp of his foot, Steven almost caused an earthquake, and the mountain above them began to violently shake until it resulted in a rockslide. As he came back to his senses, Steven realized just how bad he had made things. "Oh no!"

"Steven!" Lapis cried out and tried racing to rescue Steven, but Jasper held her back.

"Leave the kid, he can survive this!" Jasper discouraged Lapis from saving her friend.

"But he's one of my best friends, and your Diamond!" Lapis replied. "You wouldn't want to see him get hurt too, right?"

"Correction, Pink Diamond is my Diamond." Jasper admonished snootily. "That right there is just her son who thinks he can walk around making people do what he wants just because of his lineage."

"But still, you wouldn't want Pink to die again, right?" Lapis said when she got an idea. "Wait a minute! Let's fuse!"

"You're joking, right?" Jasper said in utter disbelief.

"We got no other choice, please!" Lapis begged her ex-fusion partner while reaching her hand out. "Come on, just say yes!"

Lapis was right, they did have no other option, though Jasper believed she was making things up just to make Steven happy. But regardless, Lapis did make a good argument.

"Fine." Jasper finally relented and took the blue Gem's smaller hand. "But we are never doing this again, capiche?"

"You got it." Lapis obliged before she was twirled around and caught by Jasper in a dip, and then they started glowing as their forms began to merge.

--

"Of course something horrible happens when I try to do good." Steven admitted in defeat as the rockslide began to get closer. He didn't even try thinking of escaping or protecting himself, believing that this was to be his fate. "Lapis, Jasper, everyone. I'm sorry."

Just then, a massive turquoise figure with two sets of arms, one dainty pair and one burly, came flying from the lake and landed in front of Steven. He could see that on her back was Lapis's gem and when the Gem turned to face him, she had Jasper's gem on her face. The more graceful hands picked Steven up while the bigger hands got to work on forcing the rockslide back with a seemingly infinite series of massive punches. "RAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

"Lapis?!" Steven gasped at what he was seeing. "Jasper?!"

"Yes, it's us!" Malachite said. Unlike the last time Steven saw the fusion of Jasper and Lapis, she instead had a British accent of sorts. However, Lapis's softer tone could be heard until she suddenly switched to Jasper's rougher tone. "Now keep quiet while you're being saved!"

Steven did indeed stay quiet as Malachite held him in one pair of hands while the other pair finished punching the last of the rocks away. "Are you okay?" she asked.

"I'm fine." Steven panted nervously.

"Good, let's go home." Malachite smiled, when her head suddenly twitched and Jasper started taking control of the fusion. "Seriously, how did he not try to run or protect himself?!"

"Really ruining the mood here!" Lapis's side of Malachite argued as she began to fly away from the lake.

--

The two halves of Malachite's personality kept on arguing while she flew Steven back to Jasper's cave, until they finally touched down and de-fused.

"I still can't believe it!" Steven exclaimed happily. "You guys fused, and neither of you was forced to do so!"

"Well to be fair, Lapis kind of forced me to fuse with her because she kept convincing me you were her Diamond, like everyone else does." Jasper said as she decided to return to her cave.

"But still, it was nice to have something to work together on, right?" Lapis said.

"Okay, I'll admit, it was nice to have a common goal for once." Jasper agreed. "Look, like you said, the past can never be forgotten. But I think that might be a good first step."

"Yeah." Lapis replied.

"Well, guess we should be going now." Steven said while he and Lapis prepared to leave. "See you again soon Jasper."

"Whatever." Jasper groaned while fully retreating into her cave.

"So, how was it?" Steven asked Lapis while they walked back to Little Homeschool.

"It was real weird at first, especially when we became Malachite again." Lapis admitted. "Even though we still were fighting for control, I think we may have made a breakthrough on Jasper. Who knows, maybe you're right and we could become friends one day."

"Yeah, who knows." Steven sighed happily until he came to a realization. "Hey, speaking of fusions, how are Zuli and TZ doing right now?"

--

"Uh, still need a little help here." The fusion of Zuli and Teal Zircon, now dubbed Diopside by the other Gems, called out while everyone gathered to gaze at the new fusion. "Is there any way to turn this off?"

--

I have a feeling this chapter is going to divide people, but I feel like it was finally time to deliver a reconciliation that was as in-character for both Lapis and Jasper as I could, and give us a slightly more stable Malachite that was more Two-Face than monstrous depiction of a toxic relationship. Speaking of which, did you know malachites become less toxic when sealed? But enough talk, next chapter is the beginning of Part 2's big finale, and I am so excited to finally focus more on a certain Rutile and her Topaz.

#steven universe #steven universe future #fanfiction #steven universe alternate future #steven quartz universe #lapis lazuli #jasper #malachite

[bleedinghearthalstead]

SWAT!Jay / Upstead AU

A/N: THANK YOU SO MUCH everyone for your lovely comments to my first fic, I’ve been overwhelmed by your positive feedback. That said, it has inspired me to write another one-shot. I will also crosspost these on AO3. Enjoy!

When his wandering eyes land on the front desk, he sees that the desk sergeant is giving him a look. A look that says, "don't you dare give me any trouble". Walking up to the desk, he gives her a friendly smile that slowly but surely morphs into a frown. She's squinting at him, looking him up and down, and granted, it doesn't look great.

With both of their schedules being terribly unpredictable, Hailey and Jay can go a whole week without seeing each other outside of their marital bed, one or the other having to sneak into their home in the middle of the night. So when Jay is given the afternoon off because his commanding officer is planning on adding a new sniper to their rotation and Hailey texts him that they just wrapped the case they have been working on for the last week or so, he decides to pick up his wife from the district.

Stepping inside the big double doors and walking up the front stairs, he takes a look around. You wouldn't really call it a beautiful building, but it sure feels like home. Most districts have been modernized and feel sterile and cold – hell, the SWAT base at Homan Square looks like a rundown storage facility–, but the 21st district has its own personality and you can practically feel the history within its walls. When his wandering eyes land on the front desk, he sees that the desk sergeant is giving him a look. A look that says, "don't you dare give me any trouble".

Walking up to the desk, he gives her a friendly smile that slowly but surely morphs into a frown. She's squinting at him, looking him up and down, and granted, it doesn't look great. Not really thinking about where he was going to go (well, technically, he is on his way home), he had changed into black basketball shorts and a Tool band t-shirt, his baseball cap on backwards. Looking down at his shirt, he realizes he does look like a bit of a tool.

"Can I help you, sir?"

"You must be Sergeant Platt." The minute eye twitch is the only tell that she is surprised he knows her name. She remains visibly unimpressed otherwise – she is wearing a name tag, so that wasn't very hard to figure out.

"Do I know you?"

"No, but I've heard stories about you," he says, conspiratorially leaning in closer.

"Oh is that so?" She narrows her eyes at him. "And who did you hear those stories from?"

"My cell mate at Stateville only had lovely things to say about you." He winks at her. There's that eye twitch again, which Jay counts as a personal victory. Just when he thinks that the woman is going to leap over the desk and/or shoot him, there's a buzzing sound to his right and Hailey is standing at the top of the stairs that go up to Intelligence, looking surprised to see Jay.

"What are you doing here?"

When he sees the sergeant's hand moving towards her hip, Jay throws his hands up. "Hey, babe!" Platt's eyebrows shoot up. His voice comes out slightly higher than usual. "I'm here to pick you up, didn't you see my text?"

Hailey glances between Jay and Trudy, Jay with his hands up and Trudy's hand hovering over her holster, and her eyes widen. "Jay, honey," she says, putting great emphasis on the endearment, "you should've called."

Slowly turning his head from his wife back to the sergeant, Jay carefully lowers his hands while maintaining eye contact, watching Trudy do the same. Ceasefire accomplished. Hailey comes down the rest of the way and goes right up to Jay, standing up on her tiptoes to give him a quick peck on the lips.

"Hey, babe," he repeats, this time softer – definitely less panicky and high-pitched.

"Hey, babe," Hailey parrots and gives him a coy smile, then turns to Trudy. "Trudy, this is my husband Jay." Trudy is still glaring at him, but at least she has taken a mental step back from shooting this man on the spot.

She raises an eyebrow at Hailey. "So Mr. Upton here is quite the comedian, huh?" Hailey in turn raises her eyes at the ceiling, asking whatever deity is willing to listen what the hell her husband has done this time.

"It's Halstead, actually," Jay interjects, "and yeah, it runs in the family, my brother's a total clown." Trudy waits for him to elaborate, but he doesn't.

Hailey rolls her eyes at him, ignoring the last part of his answer. "We were both too stubborn to change our names."

"And there were so many forms." Her husband shakes his head.

Trudy only nods. "Well, I hope you were joking about prison." Jay snorts and Hailey cusses him out under her breath.

"Sorry about that, I couldn't resist." He gives her a bashful smile. "Hailey said you were solid, so no hard feelings, right?" He reaches out his hand and after a second's hesitation Trudy reluctantly shakes it.

"Good to finally meet you, Mr. Halstead," Trudy says while pointedly looking at Hailey.

"Same here." He nudges Hailey in the side. "Shall we?"

"Let me just grab my stuff from upstairs." Hailey hesitates though, seemingly reluctant to leave her husband with Trudy, thinking of the absolutely idiotic things he could and probably would say if left to his own devices.

"Go on then." He shoos her away, then winks at her. "I'll be just fine here with Trudy." Hailey gives him a look telling him to behave himself, then excuses herself and hurries off, trying to give them as little time as possible to rip each others' throats out.

Once the metal gate closes behind Hailey with a clank, Jay leans his elbows on the front desk and gives Trudy a mischievous smile. "So what's the hot goss at the 21st?" Before Trudy is tempted to crack him over the head with the wooden clipboard she is currently holding, a voice next to them startles them both. Not that anyone would've noticed, both of their poker faces immaculate.

"Hey man, what are you doing here?" A patrol officer who has just walked up to the desk is beaming at Jay.

"What's up, buddy?" They shake hands, then Jay points his thumb over his shoulder to the gate that Hailey disappeared through a minute ago. "Just picking up Hails."

The officer hands a bunch of keys over to Trudy, who makes him sign a sheet. "Well, good to see you. I'll see you at the next game?"

"Yeah, man. Say hi to Jenny and the kids for me."

"Will do. See ya, man."

As the two men say their goodbyes, Jay has his back turned to Trudy, who catches a glimpse of the patch on Jay's baseball cap. "SWAT, huh?"

Jay swivels back to Trudy, a confused look on his face. Talk about an unexpected change of topic. At his reaction, Trudy motions at the top of Jay's head, whose mouth forms an 'oh' in realization. He reaches up and turns the visor of the cap to the front, the olive green SWAT patch now on full display. "Oh yeah," he chuckles. "Cat's outta the bag, I guess."

"So it's Officer Halstead, to be correct." It's not even a question, the way Trudy says it.

"Yes, ma'am." And if Jay stands up a little straighter, then that's a total coincidence.

Now that Trudy thinks about it, she does know the man standing before her. Well, knowing him is a bit of a stretch, but a long time ago she heard a story from an old friend of hers at the police academy, how a baby-faced recruit named Halstead tore through basic recruit training like it was a fun day at a children's playground, even showing up the instructors at firearms training. When SWAT got wind of the ex-army sniper, they started grooming him for an assignment with them before he was even out of the academy and even though he still had to go through his probationary period and had to serve three years before he could be officially considered for SWAT. If Trudy remembers correctly, he was occasionally allowed to join SWAT training cycles before he was permanently assigned.

Combining his track record with Hailey's meritorious promotion to detective, they are one hell of a force to reckon with. Trudy is actually impressed. She has to admit that she did misjudge him based on his albeit sloppy attire. Guess you really shouldn't judge a book by its cover.

Before long, Hailey comes bounding down the stairs again, carrying a large gym bag that Jay wordlessly takes from her as soon as she stops next to him, slinging the bright purple bag over his shoulder. "All good?" She skeptically looks between Trudy and Jay.

"Yeah, we're good." Jay smirks. "Right, Trudy?"

Trudy hums. "Quit while you're ahead, Officer Halstead." With that, Trudy goes back to the report she was working on before Jay waltzed into the district.

Glad that no heads started rolling while she was away, Hailey waves goodbye at Trudy before Jay has the chance to make another retort. Jay takes Hailey's hand in his and they walk to the doors.

"Oh, one more thing," Trudy calls after them, not even looking up, "approved."

Hailey frowns at Jay, who is sporting a suspiciously smug grin on his face. He doesn't say anything though, just tries to lead his wife outside. The corner of Trudy's mouth turns up in a half-smile when she watches the younger woman slap her husband's arm and hisses "what!?" at him. The older woman can only wonder what juggling married life between those two elite units looks like, when even she and Mouch barely see each other with their more moderate schedules.

* * * * *

They are driving home in Jay's jeep and heavy metal is blaring over the speakers, but Hailey's detective side needs know what happened. She turns down the volume and turns to Jay who is drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. "What did you say to her?" Hailey looks at her husband, who still has the biggest grin on his face.

"Nothing, I swear."

"Did you bribe her!?" Hailey exclaims.

"What!?"

"What did she mean 'approved'? You made some deal with her?" Jay just bursts out laughing. "This isn't funny! Sergeant Trudy Platt doesn't just say 'approved'."

He purses his lips, trying to suppress his laugh. "She figured out I was SWAT, but she didn't really say anything else and then you were back already."

"That's it?"

"Yeah, you're still the only one with the childhood connection to her…" He pauses, then scrunches up his nose. "Unless I missed something." Hailey swears her husband isn't usually this obtuse.

"Alright, fine," she huffs.

When they stop at a red light, he turns to her, his expression solemn. "Babe." He lays his hand on her knee and rubs his thumb over it. "You're cute when you freak out."

"Shut up." Jay's grin is back at full force and Hailey can't help but grin back. He leans over to kiss her on the cheek before the light turns green.

"I'll try to be less embarrassing next time," he promises, then adds, "love you."

Hailey takes the hand on her knee and entwines their fingers. "Love you, too."

#upstead #jay halstead #hailey upton #chicago pd #swat!jay au #in case anyone was wondering #i like to believe married!jay is way more chill and goofy and less angsty than the version we know #don't get me wrong he still is a total killer badass but he also has killer jokes ba dum tss #also that is an actual tool shirt and i am laughing way too hard at this #bhhfic #watch me never write any swat action

[zoppzoop]

3 and 27:))

Hello ma'am! Ily and imy!!!! I hope you're doing good!!

03: Do you regret anything?

Seriously speaking, not getting studying done sooner because of procrastination. And also not having talked to my parents about architecture sooner. I literally started thinking about it seriously day before yesterday after talking to mom and dad. But ehh i just gotta study hared now.

And non-seriously, not taking the chance and going to the stationery with dad to buy stuff lmao

I went with mom and got just one fineliner pen.

27: Have you ever broken someone’s heart?

Tbh yes and twice. Or maybe thrice? Four times??? idk if one of them was a hearbreak or actually just a prank.

Anyways buckle the fuck up we're in for a story time and this is gonna be a stupid ride

Okay, first the 'prank' (now that i think about it it was definitely not a prank). i was in the 7th grade and this one dude from my class came up to me while i was boarding the bus to go home and handed me a piece of paper. And im here confused as to what the f u c k? The dude was kinda like in the competition for the top rank in class (we were very competetive, there were like 5 of us) so i was just confused. I got in the bus and opened the paper. And it had a bunch of stuffs that i dint bother reading because the first thing my eyes landed on was 'will you be the annabeth to my percy?' And (yes i was a huge pjo fan that the time) i got out of the bus and literally yote the paper in the trash (cruel, yes i know. But listen. The dude used to tease me by literally shipping me with another classmate (thats also another story) and GOD that was so fucking ａｎｎｏｙｉｎｇso yes i was angry. And i legit didnt like any of the people in my class. All of them were just,,,, nah. Sobyea next day he asked me 'so?' And i said ',,,so what??' And he's like 'whats your reply?' And i straight up said 'uh i threw the paper' and he just turned around and left.

And then we became enemies-ish and literally fought hand-to-hand once (i was kicking so hand to foot i guess?) But ye that happened. And then a bunch of more stuff happened and by the time my dad was gonna get a promotional transfer to another place half the class became like one big group of friends and we became pretty good friends in the end.

Now lets talk about the dude who i got shipped with. I got teased for a whole year and like we were all pretty good friends right? So i didnt mind it in the beginning but then it got too overwhelming in the middle and it literally made me hate every single one of them. But then it got subdued and we decided we'll maybe date? And we didnt exactly say that out loud but he used to walk me to my bus (okay so the bus system at my old schoom was like a few buses were inside the campus and a few were outside. His was inside and mine out, so he used to walk me there. And then one day he said lets hold hands (and we did it was cute and we held hands and walked to my bus for like 2-3 days but then had to stop bc people started teasing us, we didnt end it on bitter terms btw. He used to have like taekwondo practice int he last period and we usually had english then so while going to the buses i used to give him my notes for the day.)

And like a few days later we realised that sure this is nice but he was gonna move schools soon and i legit wasnt that interested in relationships at the time so we 'ended' whatever that was. And on his last day when he dropped me off to my bus he asked me if i had a phone so we could keep in touch and i didnt have it so i said no and he was like 'hmm okay, bye take care' and left. And then his best friend stayed behind and jokingly said 'ah you broke his heart'

Yea okay two down two to go.

Third dude was in my bus and in my class and the friend group which was made up of half the class and wow i feel bad about everything w/ everyone now lmao

Anyways this was in 8th grade. So we were pretty good friends because we were in the same bus and class for the past 3 years now and considering my dad's profession thats a long time in the same place (its usually just one year) and ye so we were pretty close. Everyone in the bus used to olay team up games like charades and stuff

(ah shit i remember a fifth one in the colony damn i hate this)

Anyways number three, so we used to talk a lot. I'd gotten instagram by this time for art stuff so we talked there a lot. Like we sent each other memes and he got my weird and cursed meme shit and also got into anime and bts a bit to understand what the fuck i was saying. And he used to get teased because middle schoolers and junior highschoolers are stupid kids in those terms so ye there was a lot of teasibg which i tried to instantly shoot down because i didnt want a 7th grade repeat when there were chances of dad getting transfered soon coz i want good memories of the place y'know? So ye that happened. And i found out last year (in 11th grade and after dad got the transfer (i started 10th grade after the transfer) and apparently he got teased because he did actually like me and me shooting all that stuff down was literally just a rejection itself so that happened.

And number 4 was a similar thing but way more stressy because last year some random dude hit me up on Instagram and im here confused as to what the fuck? Ｗｈｏｍｓｔ？ and he says he's a friend of the first dude, second dude and the fourth dude (all of them are in the same coaching institute and 1,2 and 4 were also in my class in the past right. They were 3 of the 5 who were in the competition for top rank) and he legit says he wants to talk to the girl that two of his friends fought over and i'm like sir WHAT the Actual ＦＵＣＫ. because in the begining they were good friends in class right? And they had some unknown falling out and im like bitch literally WHAT the FUCK. So he brings up proof and shut because i didnt believe him and fuck off he also broght in another classmate who knew and im here losing my mind because the actual fuck you motherfuckers. Anyways apparently since i didnt like 4 back, he had his heart broken so eh. It was literally a 4 year old thing which those idiots were fighting over even now like dude the hell???

So ye that happened and a whole gc was made and shit was solved and cleared out blah blah freindship rebuilt yadda yadda bullcrap i got so tired by now that i literally am still kinda ignoring everyone rn. (half the reason why i deleted ig was because its distracting and half bc i wanna ignore them all lmao)

Anyways number 5 was in my colony and also in my bus when he used to go to the same school (he shifted to a boarding school later bc some stuff happened w his dad which is a whole another wild thing) and ooh he was also my neighbor! We used to go and play badminton in the clubhouse (literally all the kids of our age group and older used to go there. And after badminton when it was like 7:30 or 8 we used to just sit around in a circle and play truth or dare or red hands or kabbadi or literally anything we could think of. Fun times ngl.) So ye he was on a trip home on a long weekend i think and we ended up cycling around the colony, just us two hanging out. And we were talking and this one girl who he told me was his crush when he was still in school came up and he then told me that that was actually a codename thing he and his friend created and that was their codename for me and he also said he was over it now and i was just there completely shook because i honestly thought he hated me in the middle somewhere lmao. And he said he was just annoyed because another mutual friend of ours in the colony told him that i had a crush on this other guy like one house away from mine (my best friends house was in the middle lmao) (anyways that mutual frined the traitorous mf i truStEd her (actually i'd already confessed to the dude and got turned down i legit wasnt even that invested so it wasnt a big deal. I just wanted to kinda get done with this crush thing once and for all. He turned me down politely. He's a sweet guy he used to be there i the club after i was done with my coaching stuff around 7:30 and then us two played till like 9. It was nice) so ye he told me about his crush on me which lasted a few months??? and that he was over it and i also told him that i'd gotten the rejection from my crush a loooong time ago and he's like huh cool. and ye we kept cycling and talking ab more random stuff till it was time to head home .

ｗｈｅｗ ANYWAYS THERE WAS A LOT TO UNPACK HERE. Anyways- sjdvskdb thanks for the ask this was a wild ride down memory lane. I didnt even remember half the shit till it came down to it.

#also this just reminds me how i used to be at around the top in my class and the coaching at the old place #but here im just #ehhhhhh below average #i kinda idk.... stopped trying??? #i legit dont know what hapoened to me i ised to be such a good student dude #i miss those smart big brain days. #i even had a ongoing fic with like above 100k readers on wattpad back then #i peaked in 8-9th grade ngl #lish.answers

[ellaenchanting]

Hypnovember Day 21: Fighting

Resistance play- by someone who has never quite mastered it as a subject. Consider yourself forewarned. 

When Andrew was a kid and first learning self-hypnosis, he had this exercise that he taught himself as practice. It was a simple exercise, really. He would put his hand on the arm of a chair or on the bed, and then he would imagine that it was stuck- so stuck that it just wouldn’t move. He would try different images- it was velcroed, glued, tied down- until he was able to really feel  those stuck sensations. 

He would routinely practice this exercise, mentally experimenting with methods and imagery.  Mentally allowing himself to believe totally in reality of the stuck arm. He grew adept at experiencing the duality of both knowing that he was just imagining the sensations (and that he could move his arm anytime he liked) and feeling with absolute certainty that his arm was stuck. Glued. Motionless.

 It was strange and exciting- like developing the ability to be two people at once. He was his own hypnotist and his own subject. Suggester and responder. Controller and controlled. 

He thought about these early memories sometimes when they did resistance play.

Well, as much as he could think when they did resistance play.

Slave cannot think, slave just obeys.

His mistress loved resistance play. She delighted in watching him struggle and strain against an irresistible impulse.  It was a satisfaction of a deep desire for both of them- bourne out of hours of cartoon hypnosis where strong heroes were regularly helplessly overcome by mind controlling bad guys. The heroes would fight and fight the control, their eyes rolling back and jaws going slack, to no avail. There was a furtive secret sexuality to it all, to the heroes losing the fight and becoming so helpless and enraptured. He thought of their blank looks or dopey smiles after they were defeated. They looked satisfied.

He wanted to be that helpless- for her control to be so real that he was helpless against  it. Helpless no matter how much he fought. Helpless no matter what he did.

There were many ways to play with resistance. Today, she hypnotized him and had him repeat one of his mantras on a loop while deep in trance. She made it clear  she would “wake him up” (“you’re never really awake when we do this” he remembered her voice reassuring) and the mantra would continue. His job was to try in vain to stop himself from helplessly repeating the mantra over and over again. If he was able to, he would win a reward. 

They both knew the loaded meaning of that word- try.

To try meant to fail.

Andrew came back to himself as she snapped her fingers, somehow already kneeling and words coming out of his mouth before he could stop them. 

“I am your obedient slave. I am your obedient slave. I am your obedient slave….”

Try, he told himself.

Fail, a deeper part of him whispered.

As he came to, he could hear the quality of his voice change- moving from a monotone to more of an awake, surprised tone. His voice was still going. He needed to do something to stop the repetition. He could feel the mantra  affecting his thoughts even now. He focused on the automatic movement of his mouth, trying to slow those to stop the words from forming.

“Good boys obey”, a deeper part of him echoed, obeying the earlier command to keep speaking.

Failure.

To try is to fail.

He tried again more forcefully to stop speaking, succeeding only in making his voice seem strained. Nervous.

A part of him delighted at the change in his voice quality, how strained and theatrical it sounded. He used these signs of his struggle to further immerse himself in it, to confirm both his own efforts and their futility. 

His eyes started rolling back a little bit. He wanted to resist  (mistress loved to watch him try and resist  be a good boy and give her something to watch) but- the idea that he was being controlled was so thoroughly hot that even THAT weakened him. He was turned on by his own impotence and that arousal  just gave her more power over him. 

The mantra continued. 

He tried to bite his mouth closed to stop the torrent of words.

The words were a flood, water building up behind a rickety dam. Building and building, so much pressure. Too  much pressure. Impossible to stop…

Trying is failing

Release.

“I am your obedient slave. I am your obedient slave. I am..”

The words cycled again. It felt so good. It felt like defeat. 

Mistress chucked. “Oh, poor Andrew. That was a very good try though! I bet it’s difficult to even think of disobeying when you’re constantly reminding yourself what an obedient slave you are- isn’t that right?”

Andrew continued his mantra “I am your obedient slave..” But deep inside he answered. “Yes ma'am”.

“You should try again, slave. Try harder. I really want to see you exhaust yourself for me.”

“Mistress enjoys watching me struggle. Make a good show for mistress”

“I am your obedient slave..” The mantra went on and on. Andrew closed his eyes and concentrated with all of his might on stopping it.

Wear myself out for mistress. Drain myself for her.

He wrinkled his forehead. His voice took on a strained quality, like he was trying to grit his teeth. The mantra continued despite his best efforts.

“I am your obedient slave. I am your obedient slave…”

“Open your eyes!” her voice rang out imperiously.

His eyes sprung open, automatically.

She was starring at him. “Look at me, puppet. It’s not so hard to stop speaking. Let me show you.” She snapped her fingers and commanded “Voice off!”

Andrew suddenly found himself mouthing the mantra with no voice.

Mistress giggled.  “Your mouth can stop too- NOW.“

She snapped and it did. Silence. 

“That isn’t so difficult, is it?” She smirked. “Mouth and voice, on!” she said with another snap. 

“am your obedient slave. I am your obedient slave. I am your ob-”

“Mouth off!” she said. The mantra stopped.

“Mouth on”

“… obedient slave. I am your obedient slave. I am your…”

She smiled again. “See, I’ve been nice and  given you some practice. Now you can try it. On your own. Try to stop speaking.”

“…your obedient slave. I am your obedient slave.” He mustered all of his energy, really letting himself mentally push against the words.

“I AM your obedient slave! I AM your oBEDient slave!”

“Mistress is enjoying this,” he thought,  noticing her pleased look with the corner of his eyes and the corner of his mind.

“ I AM YOUR uh-uh-obedient slave!!”

But it was no use. The words kept coming.

He was powerless.

He felt himself break. 

“Good, ” said mistress. “Let those words overpower you.  You can’t help yourself at all, now, can you? You’re too tired to fight. Y'know , if you keep repeating that phrase  in a loop, you’ll probably just go right back into trance for me”

She was right. He was beginning to feel sleepy.

“…..youuuur obedient…

“You can try and resist that too, if you’d like”, she smirked.

But Andrew had no fight in him. The words were begining to slur “i ammmm your”

“even though you’re probably so tired from resisting earlier, so helpless already…”

“obeeeeedient" 

He felt drugged, trying to keep his eyes open but they were blinking

 blinking

heavy

"slaave”

heavy

“I’m”

closed

“slave”

gone

As his head drooped down, Andrew felt himself let go into an endless falling trance.  He was barely aware of his mouth still muttering his mantras under his breath. Mistress came over to where he was kneeling and petted his dark hair as he drifted.

“Good boy. You did very well for me. You’re so beautiful when you fight like that- I love to see it. Thank you.”

Deep inside, Andrew felt peaceful. He had gotten so good at letting himself experience this. He drifted and floated, satisfied.

#hypnovember #resistance play #feels #ugh this took forever to write #sorry if it's sloppy #i'm falling asleep myself

[cafeinthemoon]

Blue Velvet - Chapter III

Title: Blue Velvet

Genre: Fanfiction

Pairing: General Hux x oc

Rating: teen | up

Word count: 2619

Chapter (s): 3/10

Warnings: implied sexual content, making out, non explicit sex, some sort of emotional manipulation ???

Additional tags: original planet, original food, original alien characters

Symbols:  ✔ | ➕ | ▶ ▶

Read the previous chapters here: Chapter 1, Chapter 2

Chapter III - Purple Passion

Street art has a magic scent of its own, and I was so curious to see how Armitage would react to such thing that I let my mind wander a bit in this chapter. But I'm not regretting a single word of it.

" I thought love was on the stage"

(Florence and the Machine, Hunger)

There was a place in the city that became my favorite since my first the day here.

It was what one could call a great market: an extensive, roofless territory that turned into a commercial district, where we could find everything we wanted, in all colors, sizes and levels of quality. Crowds of people would fill it, but its streets were large enough to house all the tourists, natives and merchants who depended on it. It used to open every day and for entire cycles, so you didn't need to adapt your agenda to be able to visit it.

I used to go there in the middle of the week, at the evening, when I knew I would be free from any commitments. Sometimes I would go with some friends, but most of the times I would just walk alone in the streets; I would visit shops, observe the colorful tents and buy the items I believed to be worthy (and which would not drain my financial resources). I also used to talk to some of the oldest merchants, especially the non-humans; I would listen to their stories of old, when the market was infinitely smaller and didn't attract much people, and in return I would sing some of their favorite songs. I even learned some songs in alien languages, but I can't remember their complete lyrics now.

I believe that my greatest reason to love the market was the fact that I could walk through its streets without feeling exposed or watched. On the stage I was always observed, of course, but I had the control over what was seen; in my life outside of it, this kind of control didn't exist.

It was one of those evenings, maybe two days after my performance at that club, followed by the strange conversation with the man that introduced himself as General Hux. It was understandable that, after that encounter, I started to pay more attention to the holonews, and because of that I found out the First Order would stay in Odbeei for one more week. Which meant that he must still be around.

Maybe he was closer than I could imagine.

I was standing before a tent of a florist and found a bouquet of purple passions. It was a beautiful one, with four or five buds that were about to blossom, wrapped together by a brown, rustic stripe. I've always found them a magnificent species, but long time ago I convinced myself that, by their usual price, they would remain out of my reach forever.

I forgot to mention that, despite some products were sold at an impressive cost, some of the sellers were not as bitter as the prices. So, the woman of that tent, noticing my interest in that bouquet, insisted with me to take it. First, I shyly refused, but soon I was explaining to her that I would have to sing for a century to pay for those flowers and I would probably lose my voice before reaching my goal.

The florist laughed and was about to say something, but she fell silent when a second client approached.

- Would you mind telling me how much these flowers cost, ma'am? I'm interested on them.

I turned my neck to his side as soon as I recognized his voice.

He was pointing at the purple passions that were close to my hands; I cringed instinctively. The woman repeated the price, and he paid for the flowers without hesitating or trying to negotiate the cost. He thanked the seller but didn't wait for her to separate the bouquet and give it to him: he took the flowers by himself, observing them, oblivious to both of us and everything around.

- It would be a shame if we come to see the day when your voice will not be heard anymore – he said as he touched the petals; he looked at me and, with a curious smile, offered me the bouquet – Now you own the flowers, and your voice will remain untouched.

I took the bouquet so carefully as if the flowers were burning, but finally they were wrapped around my hands, as I was trying to accept the fact that now they belonged to me. When I looked up, I noticed he was staring at me, waiting for an answer. I must have taken so long to process what just happened that I didn't realize I should say "Thank you" before anything else.

Instead, I asked him to accompany me in my wandering through the market.

- Naturally, if you have some time for such thing, Sir.

Soon he said he did.

We left the flower tent and followed among the next ones, I myself concentrated on the bouquet, the General occupied in processing everything he was seeing. But his eyes wouldn't settle on anything for a long time; he didn't seem the kind of person who takes time with what can't bring him no benefits, no matter how much pleasing or attractive it looks. Thinking of this brought back that suffocating sensation in my throat. Why was he seeking for opportunities to be with me?

- During these few days since we arrived at Odbeei, our deals didn't start but after several hours after noon – he started – I must say that it seemed unusual to me.

- Unusual?

- Correct me if I am wrong, but you don't seem to care much about using the first hours of the day to solve priorities.

These words confirmed what I thought about him as someone attached to order and pro activity. It was still too soon to say if I'd appreciate it or not, but a spark of patriotic pride – or personal pride in disguise – made me reply to his statement with less docility that I intended.

- General, I'm not familiar with your routine as a military man, and I also don't know much about the management of cycles in other planets, but here in Odbeei we do things the way that seems to work for us. And we've been doing this for too long to consider drastic changes right now. It's understandable that some cultural traits of a planet look strange for a foreigner, but I'm personally satisfied with this philosophy. I believe it is wiser to focus on taking care of things with the attention they deserve than on being too rigid with the time of the day when we do it.

Different from what I expected, he didn't look irritated or offended by what he heard. Could he be someone who would rather concentrate on the things themselves instead of the manners of who said them?

I had no the time to find out, for I needed to focus on what he would say in answer.

- Fair enough. I apologize if the way I put the question was offensive for you. But I'd like you to understand that things like free time and flexibility are not a common trait of my days.

Of course. I've been living for so long a life separated from the other people's, so distant from anything that remind me of routines that I didn't came to see that what we were doing now – walking around a crowded place and speaking amenities – was anything but uncommon for someone in his position. I immediately felt the need to apologize.

I stopped and turned to him.

- I'm so sorry. I don't want your few hours of freedom to turn into a burden.

He smiled.

- There is no reason to worry about. Especially when these few hours of freedom can be spent in such a delightful company – and before I could think of something to say, he opened his arm in a gesture that indicated all the available ways ahead – I would be glad if you'd choose where we should go now.

I looked around, and even when I knew the places to where each of them would lead us, I hesitated for a moment, then turned to him and smiled.

- Do you trust my judgment, General?

He nodded but didn't turn his eyes from my face.

- This is why I am still here.

  ***

  We were passing through a large street, as crowded as the previous ones, but with no tents on its sidewalks. In their place there were artists of all kinds: painters, actors, dancers, musicians playing native instruments, foreigners and aliens singing or reciting poems in their mother tongues; there were also philosophers preaching about the ways of the Force to disciples sitting around them, as well as those ones we used to call nature-masters, teaching secret recipes of an infinity of herbs and roots used with medical purposes for free.

I was more than ued to that miscellany of colors and sounds, and I've come to love it as a smaller version of the Galaxy inside the original one; so, I walked among the people and the attractions as if I was in my living room. I couldn't say the same about the General: though he stood up with his manners and tried to remain calm, he didn't succeed in hiding that all those sources of sensory stimulation were not his first idea of having fun. He was looking around as someone who wanted to understand what he sees, but without the need to think of it as something of good taste or pleasing; he was, however, too polite to make rude observations, especially after what we talked about the cycles in Odbeei.

By those reasons, it was a great relief for both of us when just ahead in our path, we found something that mutually interested us.

It was one of those small, open stages for amateur singers and musicians that could be found in many corners of the market. Those lowered wood platforms, too close to the sidewalk's ground, were among the most appreciated things by both natives and tourists in the city: they weren't just a good instrument to relaxation, but also the very beginning of the career of many of our stage professionals; I myself started in one of them.

There was a man singing a modern version of a song that was popular two decades ago in our planet, playing a hand harp with many strings. I knew most of the lyrics, but I didn't want to take the risk of surpassing the singer with my voice, so I sang along with whispers. I didn't look on his direction, but I knew the General was paying attention; I couldn't tell if the show matched his taste, so I preferred to count on the possibility of him finally finding something that caught his genuine interest.

- It was on one of these stages that I first performed when I came to this city – I told him after the musician finished the song and was about to leave the platform – I miss them.

He turned to me.

- Here is your chance to revisit them.

I was caught by surprise with his quick reaction to what I said. I considered to say that we should move ahead, but the way he smiled when he offered to hold the bouquet convinced me to stay, and I let him softly take the flowers from my hands.

I walked to the edge of the platform and talked to the responsible for it, a Bothan dressed in a red tunic who consented with just a few words and pointed at a pile of instruments at a corner. I thanked him but explained that I'd rather sing with free hands. He nodded and gestured to the stairs beside the stage, through which I was supposed to make my entrance.

There was a microphone on a stand at the center; I took it and left the stand aside. I said good evening to the people around, introduced myself and announced the song.

I used to love the street stages for many reasons, one of them being the chance of staying so close to the people that I was able to see the bright in their eyes and their mouths curling in genuine smiles, as well as hearing some of them mumbling along and clapping their hands. It wasn't different that time, even when some of the youngest were not familiar to the chosen song: most of them was paying attention to what they were seeing and hearing, and I felt like the first times I stood on similar stages in other parts of the city, and I raised my voice without caring about anything but what I was doing.

However, it wasn't the attentions of the tourists that interested me most at that time.

He was a little apart from the others, in a spot where he had a clear view of the stage. As he did in the club, he observed each of my movements, and sipped the sang notes as if they were his favorite drink. In his eyes I noticed a glimmer that I wasn't able to see at the club because of the distance between the stage and the rows. It was not just the bright of pure artistic contemplation: with that there was something else, something that even now I find difficult to explain; it was like he was taken by some addiction, craving for more. I was sure that if I stayed and sing for an entire cycle, he would still be there to listen.

The strangest thing in all of this was finding myself willing to see it.

With the progress of the music, I would dedicate more and more efforts to keep his eyes glued on me, his concentration on my notes. I risked a smile when with his gaze, he made it clear that he was aware of what I was trying to do. Somewhere in my mind, a little voice was pointing out how unusual it seemed that I was having so much fun for catching the attentions of that man, for I haven't talk to him more than two times and didn't knew much about him apart of his name and his function.

Being at that open space surely was helping me; being there was not like being in the club. In that place, the lights and the looks of people who watching me would pierce my skin; their whispering and their judgment would dissect me, examining me as a wild species. In the street, it was I that would lead them; the pieces were all mine, and no one would make any move without my consent. There, I could fix my eyes on anything and anyone I choose and reach them with just the strength of my voice.

In the club, it was like having those eyes on me could kill me. In the street, I seemed to need them to survive.

Finally, the song ended.

I put the microphone back on the stand, left the stage through the same stairs, exchanged a few polite words with the Bothan and walked away, seeking the General's company. He gave my flowers back; as I settled them in my hands, I felt suddenly shy. Now that I was no longer away from him, protected by a wooden level that would keep me right above the ground, it was impossible not to hear the same little voice screaming inside my head: what the hell I was thinking?

All I knew is that the closer I came to him, the less I cared about thinking. I also knew that if I spent more time by his side, things would not follow a different direction.

#star wars #star wars fanfiction #armitage hux #general hux #general hux fanfic #general hux x oc #armitage hux x oc

[saiilorstars]

Star-Crossed

Previous Story || Current Masterlist

Chapter 1: A Different Christmas

Fandom: Doctor Who

Pairing: 10th Doctor x Female OC

(Minerva’s face claim: Victoria Camacho)

(Kaeya’s face claim: Michelle Trachtenberg)

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Story Summary: Minerva & the Doctor are now together and ready for their next set of adventures with Donna Noble! However, things get complicated when secrets of Minerva's family are revealed and Minerva is forced into a certain process. How will Minerva & the Doctor react when they figure out the ultimate secret of the Moontsays? What will Minerva become in the end? *Second in the Monsoon Seasons*

Chapter summary: It’s Christmas on the Titanic, the perfect setting for Minerva’s and the Doctor’s first date..until there’s a count-down for the ship to crash land on Earth. 

Author's Note: For those who have read the last story, this story will no longer follow Minerva's POV and will have certain scenes without Minerva and the Doctor that I deem important to the story.

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Minerva and the Doctor stepped out of the TARDIS, wanting to clarify where the hell they had landed in. Minerva was actually a bit nervous due to the name Titanic being scrawled over the life preserver. That name hadn't led to good events...

The pair stepped out into a supply closet, the Doctor closing the door of the TARDIS, wiping his hands and taking Minerva's to lead them out. He wasn't quite used to holding her hand so openly and so he hoped he wasn't pushing her or making her a tad uncomfortable. But as they entered a new room decorated for Christmas with crowded people dressed for a fancy occasion, Minerva gasped at the sight and pulled him by their interlaced hands to a window. .

She didn't mind one bit.

"This is outer space!" she exclaimed, blinking as she looked out the window.

"Right..." the Doctor mumbled as he took a turn at the window.

"Attention all passengers. The Titanic is now in orbit above Sol 3, also known as Earth. Population: Human."

~0~

Minerva fixed the last of her dress before stepping inside the console room, about to call she was done when she heard the low grumbles of the Doctor. The Martian stood with his back to her, beside the console, his arms seeming to be fixing something on his front.

"Anything the matter?" she asked shyly as she made her way over.

The Doctor turned around, gesturing to his undone bowtie, "I don't like them," he declared, about to make a whole lecture on why he would never ever wear a bow tie despite what she had once told him about his future self...until he really saw Minerva.

Minerva noticed his look lingering on her and shifted nervously, tugging on a side of her dress, "Martha usually helped me fix myself for you," she began her excuse over her appearance, "She was the eyes behind my back," she tried looking over her shoulder for any flaw she could've missed.

"No, you look...wow," the Doctor whispered, his eyes trailing her over.

Minerva wore a laced black dress with three-three-quarter sleeves. The dress went above her ankles and was quite simple in reality. There was a lace cover, nearly like a sheath, that formed a deep V-neckline while the dress's under layer covered her chest. She accompanied the dress with beige stilettos. Her hair was left down, only two braids connecting in the back with a beige ribbon tied as a bow.

"Thank you," Minerva mumbled, her face flushed, "Do you need help with that?" she pointed to the Doctor's unfinished bow tie.

"Uh, yes," he blinked, remembering how uncomfortable Minerva had been when that Zian had trailed her with his eyes. He most definitely did not want to make her feel like that again.

"It's your unlucky suit," she remarked, a playful hint in her tone.

"Yeah, I'm really hoping we can break that cycle this time round."

"Perhaps we can, you look really good," she said shyly, focusing on his bowtie, "It's funny, you know," she started speaking again, her face refusing to be any other color than red, "I would think you'd be good at tying your own ties, even if they were bow ties."

"I'm a bit nervous," he confessed.

"Of what?"

"Us...this ship...but mostly us."

"Well I'm not gonna bite, if that's what you're worried over."

"You wouldn't hurt a fly."

"I don't know, maybe if I get really crossed I may get a fly swatter," she playfully warned and earned a laugh.

~0~

The pair walked through the reception room of the ship, hand in hand, both studying the surroundings. There was a band ahead, playing 'Winter Wonderland'.

"Merry Christmas, sir, ma'am," a steward passed by.

"Merry Christmas!" Minerva exclaimed after him, the feeling of Christmas doing really well for her after such a horrible year...even if it never technically happened.

They walked into the room from earlier, where people were mingling about while waiters served and the band played. They passed a rather loud man, Rickston Slade, who was talking into a mobile, "It's not a holiday for me, not while I've still got my vone. Now do as I say and sell."

"That's not very nice," Minerva watched the man go, "...just like mom and dad."

"C'mon," the Doctor tugged her into a different direction, any thoughts of her parents would make her upset and that is something he would not stand for anymore. They approached a robot, golden angel dressed in a white robe with a halo, "Evening. Passenger 57. Terrible memory. Remind me. Uh, you would be..."

"Information: Heavenly Host supplying tourist information."

"Good, so, um... tell me - 'cause I'm an idiot - where are we from?"

Minerva giggled, covering her mouth so she wouldn't interfere.

"Information: the Titanic is en route from the planet Sto in the Cassavalian Belt. The purpose of the cruise is to experience primitive cultures.

Minerva cleared her throat, finishing up her giggle, this being a serious matter to her, "So the 'Titanic', huh...who exactly thought of that name?"

"Information: it was chosen as the most famous vessel of the planet Earth."

"Did they tell them why?"

"Information: all designations are chosen by Mr Max Capricorn, president of Max - Max - Max..." the Host started malfunctioning, repeating its last words until its voice became higher in pitch.

"Ooh, bit of a glitch," the Doctor reached into his pocket for the screwdriver.

A chief steward hurried over to the pair, "Sir, ma'am, we can handle this," he waved for assistance and two more stewards arrived to take the Host away, "Software problem, that's all. Leave it with us, sir. Merry Christmas," he followed the other two employees, "That's another one down. What's going on with these things?"

"Hm, see this is why ships aren't called the Titanic anymore...they start malfunctioning..." Minerva shook her head, stopping when she noticed the Doctor looking at her with a fond smile, "...what?"

"You're really adorable, do you know that?"

"...my grandparents used to tell me that," she shrugged, her cheeks turning to a pink tinge, "Plus uncle Aaron."

"Would you care for a dance?" he stepped up to her, one hand behind his back and the other offering to her.

"You know how to dance now?"

"I always danced for you, to make you feel better," he took her hand, "Now I do it because it's our date, our first date."

"Oooh, I like the sound of that," she immediately grinned.

"So do I," he led her over to the dance floor where several couples were dancing.

They positioned themselves as usual and started to dance, the Doctor actually doing a decent job. Perhaps John Smith had seeped a little through him.

He dipped Minerva, grinning proudly at the fact she was blushing deep red again, "You know, I should've done this the last couple of times we've danced..."

"Done what?" she whispered.

He raised his eyebrows, his playful grin fading as he pressed his lips to hers. He slowly brought them back up from the dip without breaking their kiss.

Before Minerva felt herself get really lost into the kiss, she pulled away, feeling so hazy, "Wow...yeah, that would've been nice."

"My beautiful complexion," he reminded, thinking of the 1950's and even the guinguette.

"Ugly complexion," she corrected sadly.

"Nah, I see beauty both inside and out. And your complexion has made you stronger, cliche or not."

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Well, you're certainly complex...and...very good looking," she breathed, her blush deepening, "Has it made you stronger?"

"Fair game, Clever Girl," he conceded, "But...maybe not stronger, but it's definitely added perspective to my life. I've lost so much and it's made me realize that I can't waste time. I may have all the time in the world but it's nothing if I'm gonna be alone for it."

"I'm here, and I can promise you I will always try to be there...for as long as I can."

He smiled, however a sad one. Time would be a mighty strong issue for them...but he didn't want to think about it, at least not right now. Not when, after such a horrible, dark year had passed, or technically hadn't, there was finally something, someone, that made it all better.

"Doctor, I know this is off topic and all...but I just have to ask," Minerva bit her lip, hoping she wouldn't ruin this date...and potentially her relationship.

"Ask away," he grinned.

"You're really going to help Kaeya, right?"

His grin faded and he looked down at her, "Why are you asking me that?"

"Because I want to make it clear that I won't stand in the way or make one of those jealous girlfriend scenes if you're going to help her. I don't want you to go back on your word just for me. I want to help her too."

"I'm going to help her, I promise," he nodded.

"And...if you still have lingering feelings for her, well...it may be best to get that out in the open."

"Are you doubting my feelings for you?" he stepped back, ending their dance for the moment.

"It's not doubt," she continued with nervousness, "I know you feel something for me but put yourself in my shoes. I spent a year thinking, debating what your feelings were for me...what they were for Rose and Kaeya. I just want you to be sure of yourself because when Kaeya comes back, she's gonna want to be with you and I don't want my heart broken...I don't think I deserve that."

He sighed deeply, understanding Minerva's feelings. He beat himself up for all the pain he caused her throughout the last year, and even the year before where he practically ignored her. She didn't have an easy life and looking at it now he made it even more complicated. He added death threats, confusion, emotional pain; that was all him. But he knew, he was sure of what he wanted. He wanted...Minerva. Kaeya, she was still apparently the woman he met centuries ago, only sick, and what they had was something he would never forget. She was his first love and sure, it may not be entirely erased but it wasn't like he loved her anymore. He had a soft spot for her, but he wanted Minerva. Even before thinking of Kaeya he felt more inclined to Minerva, especially after 1913. He didn't want to leave her side, he wanted to make sure she was always alright, and most certainly happy. But beyond that, he wanted to be with her at all times.

When Kaeya returned, he would help her, but that would be it. He would still be friends but...that was all he could offer.

He reached for Minerva's hand, reconnecting them for their dance, "I know it's hard to trust me and my feelings, I get it. But I want you, no, I need you, to understand who I choose. Without realizing it, my hearts had already chosen you...my mind was just a bit slower."

"Twenty-six more brains than I and you're slower?"

"When it's about you then yes," he nodded, "But listen to me, I won't ever break your heart. Because if I do, I will personally throw myself into a black hole."

"It's me, then?" she asked meekly, "You chose me?"

"You're clever, listen to my words carefully," he pressed his forehead onto hers.

"And when Kaeya returns?"

"She'll receive our help and I'll set things straight."

"What if she's not happy? I wouldn't be..."

"There's not much I'd be able to do for her then," he shrugged.

"I'm really glad to hear all this," she admitted, nervously smiling, "You pick me..."

He cupped her face and smiled, "Of course I pick you, Clever Girl," he gave her a kiss to prove his words had been real.

~0~

A young blonde waitress, Astrid, accidentally bumped into Rickston Slade, and dropped her tray of drinks.

"For Tov's sake, look where you're going! This jacket's a genuine Earth antique," Rickston growled, looking down at his wet shirt.

"I'm sorry, sir," Astrid got down to pick up the shards of broken glass from the floor.

"You'll be sorry when it comes off your wages, sweetheart. Staffed by idiots. No wonder Max Capricorn is going down the drain."

"Hey, that's no way to speak someone," Minerva walked over, the man almost scoffing there was a second woman trying to annoy him, "It's Christmas."

"Who the hell are you?" he demanded, "The woman dropped her drinks on me!"

"It was an accident. And my name is Minerva, you don't have to take that tone with me," she crossed her arms, "You do better if you speak in a proper manner."

"I am one of the most important people you'll ever meet, sweetheart," he sneered, "And you would do best to shut the hell up!" Minerva flinched at his high voice, "Do you know who I am?"

"No, but do you wanna know who I am?" the Doctor cut in angrily, walking in front of Minerva, "I'm gonna be the one to shut you up if you talk to my girlfriend like that again. Now vamoose."

"But she's the one that-"

"I said leave," the Doctor stepped up, gritting his teeth. He was not gonna let some snooty humanoid alien yell at his Clever Girl. He knew she was more than capable of defending herself, seeing as she had spent so much time being on her own, but now he was her boyfriend and he would defend her from people like that man.

Rickston huffed and walked off, giving Minerva a nasty glare.

The Doctor watched the man go, turning around only when he was sure Rickston was truly gone, "Minerva?" she gave him a hug, nodding her thanks, "Miss?" he looked at the waitress who quickly met his gaze at his call.

"Thank you both," Astrid said, "I didn't mean to cause trouble, honest. I was walking and I tripped, and..." she sighed, this would certainly put a dent in her job duration.

"It's alright, it wasn't your fault," Minerva let go of the Doctor and helped her pick up the remaining glass from the floor.

"Oh n-no, no, this is my job," Astrid tried to shoo Minerva's hands away.

"Please, if I didn't let the maids at my house serve me, what makes you think I'm gonna allow it now?" Minerva shook her head, smiling at the thought of her actually letting someone serve her, "I don't think so!" she set the last of the glass on the tray and stood up, Astrid following.

"That's quite a change from all the passengers I've served," Astrid confessed, sheepishly.

"You'll come to realize my girlfriend is not like anyone else you've met," the Doctor announced, rather proudly as he wound an arm around Minerva's waist. He wasted time in realizing that as well, he would make everyone see it on the first spot.

"I see that," Astrid nodded, seeing Minerva blush at the remarks.

"I'm the Doctor," he held out his free hand for the blonde.

"Astrid Peth," she shook his hand.

"Minerva Souza," the brunette held her hand out as well, Astrid nodding and shaking it next, "Merry Christmas, by the way. Hope someone's told you that before us."

Astrid chuckled at the nonsense, "No, no one ever really does."

"Well, here's a second time around, Merry Christmas."

"Thank you ma'am."

"Oh please don't," Minerva shook her head, glancing up at the Doctor, "Ma'am makes me feel old."

"That's how I feel when they call me 'sir'," he grimaced.

"You enjoying the cruise?" Astrid asked the two.

"We think it's lovely," Minerva replied, glancing around, "I've never actually been on a cruise. And it's a shame cause if it ever drowned, I would be the first to survive."

The Doctor chuckled, "Cause that doesn't sound conceited!"

"What? It's not my fault I'm a good swimmer! Coach said I could've made to the Olympics if I wanted."

"You had a coach?"

"Yeah, that was the one good thing my parents did for me. They let me take swimming classes. I was really good!"

Astrid glanced from one to another, highly amused at their lack of attention span. They acted like she wasn't currently there and not in a bad way either. They seemed so focused on each other, so...inclined to each other.

"I'd like to see you then," the Doctor nudged her, "The TARDIS sure won't hide the swimming pool from you."

"She's angry with you, you shouldn't hit her with a hammer," Minerva rolled her eyes, by chance seeing Astrid again and remembering where they currently stood, "Oh, I am so sorry Astrid! We didn't mean to ignore you, really, we're sorry." She never wanted to make anyone feel like they've been ignored, and Astrid seemed so nice that she was most definitely on that list.

"No worries, maa..." she paused as Minerva gave her a sharp look, reminding her of the name she was supposed to use, "...Minerva. No worries, Minerva."

Minerva nodded, "So are you liking the cruise? If I do remember the lessons," she glanced at the Doctor, recalling his many lessons of the great outerspace, "Planet Sto is quite far from Earth."

"Oh, it doesn't feel that different. I spent three years working at the spaceport diner, traveled all the way here...and I'm still waiting on tables," Astrid gestured to her tray and walked away, stopping by a table near a window.

"No shore leave?" the Doctor asked, the pair following her.

"We're not allowed. They can't afford the insurance. I just wanted to try it, just once. I used to watch the ships heading off to the stars and I always dreamt of...It sounds daft."

"Believe me, I've always dreamt of traveling the world. One could say I'm making it..." Minerva smiled, resting her head on the Doctor's arm.

"You dreamt of another sky. New sun, new air, new life. A whole universe teeming with life. Why stand still when there's all that life out there?" the Doctor smiled, bringing the brunette closer to him, both thinking the same way of their travels, of their lives.

"So...I take it you two travel a lot, then?" Astrid guessed with full certainty it was that way.

"All the time. Just for fun," Minerva replied.

"Well, that's the plan. Never quite works..." the Doctor sighed.

"Must be rich, though," Astrid said.

"Haven't got a penny," the Doctor whispered, Astrid's eyes widening, "But she's loaded," he nodded to Minerva.

"I'm not 'loaded'," Minerva crossed her arms, "My parents do have a good economical status...but that's them. I'm just Minerva, the stowaway."

Both smiled at each other, Astrid standing there awkwardly until they finished up their little moment, "How did you get on board?" she asked. She knew there was tons of security around the ship. How did those two manage to sneak in?

"Accident. We've got this, sort of, ship thing. I was just rebuilding her. Left the defenses down, bumped into the Titanic. Here we are. Bit of a party, I thought "Why not have a first date here?" the Doctor smiled at Minerva.

"I should report you two," Astrid looked between them, the thought never crossing her mind.

"Go ahead and try," Minerva smirked, knowing she wouldn't do it.

"I'll get you a drink..." she declared instead, leaning forwards and whispering, "...on the house," and she walked off.

"She seems lovely," Minerva remarked and turned to the Doctor, "And thank you, by the way."

"For what?" he frowned, what had he done now?

"For defending me against that snooty man," she reminded, "It was awfully nice hearing you say 'girlfriend' several times."

"Well that's what you are to me," he stepped closer, "Um...I mean...if you'd like to be..." it had occurred to him that while they did establish a relationship, he hadn't technically asked her if she wanted to be called his girlfriend.

She leaned up, only having to do it slightly with the heels she was wearing, and pecked his lips, "I think it's fantastic. I've got a boyfriend for the first time in my life."

"First kiss, first boyfriend..." the Doctor beamed, "...I'm off to a good start!"

"Wonder what else you might be the first of..." she smirked and winked, walking off.

It took the Doctor several minutes to realize her implication and when the light bulb went on...he blushed like a tomato!

~0~

Morvin and Foon Van Hoff sat at their table, trying to ignore a group of first-class passengers on the next table who were laughing and pointing at them due to their dress attire. It wasn't their fault they had fallen for a trick that said they had to use country-western outfits.

"Just ignore 'em," Movrin said to his wife.

"What's going on with them?" Minerva plopped herself on the chair beside Morvin, the Doctor sitting beside her.

"Yeah, something's tickled them," the Doctor agreed.

"They told us it was fancy dress. Very funny, I'm sure," Foon rolled her eyes.

"They're just pickin' on us because we haven't paid. We won our tickets in a competition," Morvin explained.

"I had to name the five husbands of Joofie Crystalle in "By the Light of the Asteroid". Did you ever watch..."

"Is that the one with the twins?" the Doctor asked.

"That's it. Oh, it's marvelous," Foon laughed.

"Probably not good enough for that lot," Morvin sighed, motioning to the laughing crowd, "They think we should be in steerage."

"Well, that's not nice," Minerva glanced back at the passengers.

"Certainly can't have that," the Doctor reached into his pocket, Minerva smirking when she realized. He held the sonic at his side and aimed it behind him. The champagne of the passenger's table popped its cork and sprayed them all.

"Did-did you do that?" Foon asked the Doctor, blinking as she looked from him to the passengers.

"Maybe," he shrugged and put away his screwdriver.

"Oh, we like you," she said.

"That makes three," Minerva sighed with content. He beamed and pecked her lips.

"I'm Morvin van Hoff," the man reached and shook the Doctor's hand, "This is my good woman, Foon," he gestured to his wife as he moved on to shake Minerva's hand.

"Foon. Hello, I'm the Doctor," he shook her hand, "This is my lovely girlfriend." Oh yes, he will definitely love saying that from now on. "Minerva Souza."

"Nice to meet you," Minerva shook Foon's hand.

"Pretty little thing," Foon smiled, "Although you could use some more meat on you, have a buffalo wing."

Minerva chuckled, "No thank you."

"Attention please. Shore leave tickets Red 6-7 now activated. Red 6-7," a man's voice called from a distance.

Foon took out a ticket, "Red 6-7. That's us," she stood up followed by Morvin, "Are you Red 6-7?"

"Oooh, can we?" Minerva looked at the Doctor.

"This whole not able to deny you anything is gonna get me into trouble, I can see it," he shook his head, yet smiled nonetheless at her beam, "C'mon!"

"Come on," Morvin put an arm around Foon, "We're going to Earth."

"Heeey..." Minerva's head lulled to the Doctor's, her eyes sparking with an idea, "...want to add a third person to this trip?"

"Who?" the Doctor looked around, they didn't quite know anyone around the ship.

"I've got you that drink," Astrid showed up with two glasses for the pair.

"Oooh," the Doctor nodded with realization, "Oh yeah, sure!"

Minerva clapped her hands excitedly, "We've got a treat for you!" she announced to the blonde, taking her tray and setting it on the table, "Starts with 'Planet' and ends with 'Earth'," she linked arms with Astrid and walked away, the Doctor following behind.

"Red 6-7 departing shortly," Mr. Copper announced as a crowd of passengers gathered around him.

"Red 6-7 plus two," the Doctor held up his psychic paper.

"Uh, quickly, sir, and please take two teleport bracelets if you would," he passed out three of the bracelets to them.

"But I'll get the sack," Astrid whispered to the pair.

"Brand new sky," Minerva said, handing her the bracelet.

"To repeat, I am Mr Copper, the ship's historian, and I shall be taking you to old London town in the country of U.K. ruled over by good King Wenceslas. Now human beings worshiped the great god Santa, a creature with fearsome claws, and his wife Mary. And every Christmas Eve the people of U.K. go to war with the country of Turkey. They then eat the Turkey people for Christmas dinner... like savages."

Minerva raised an eyebrow, "Excuse me? I don't eat turkey for Christmas...much less Turkey people."

"Excuse me, sorry, sorry, but, um...where did you get all this from?" the Doctor asked, making a face at that 'history'.

"Well, I have a first class degree in Earthonomics. Now stand by..."

"I smell bullshit," Minerva mumbled.

"Language," the Doctor gave her a sharp look.

She leaned up and gently kissed him, "I think you'll come to realize I can say what I want."

"Sure," he whispered, wishing she'd give him another as proof of that.

She chuckled, "Men."

"And me! And me! Red 6-7!" a high pitched voice rang through the crowd, a small red-skinned with short spikes on its head alien pushed its way through the crowd.

"Well, take a bracelet, sir?" Mr. Copper handed a bracelet to the alien.

"That won't be good," Minerva's eyes widened.

"Uh, but, um, hold on, hold on. What was your name?" the Doctor was mildly concerned for the alien's fate if seen by the humans.

"Bannakaffalatta."

"OK, Bannakaffalatta. But it's Christmas Eve down there. Late-night shopping, tons of people. He's like a walking conker. No offence, but you'll cause a riot 'cause the streets are going to be packed with shoppers and parties..."

...but they were beamed down to the Earth.

The group arrived on an empty, London street in the dark night.

"Huh..." Minerva looked around, confused by the solidarity of the streets.

"Now, spending money," Mr. Copper turned to the group, "I have a credit card in Earth currency if you want to by trinkets or, uh, stockings or the local delicacy, which is known as "beef" but don't stray too far, it could be dangerous. Any day now they start boxing."

"That is seriously wrong," Minerva crossed her arms, noticing the Doctor still looking around, poor thing confused of the loneliness of the streets.

"It should be full. It should be busy. Something's wrong."

Astrid, meanwhile, looked around in awe, "But it's beautiful."

"Well this is just a street," Minerva shrugged, "Quite deserted by the looks of it..." she mumbled the last part.

"But it's a different planet. I'm standing on a different planet. Th-there's concrete...and shops, alien shops, real alien shops! Look, no stars in the sky. And it smells. It stinks!" Astrid gasped, "This is amazing! Thank you!" she hugged Minerva.

"Well technically, you're the alien here," Minerva pulled away.

"You're human?" Astrid blinked, stunned at the fact, "Proper human?"

"Yeah, I just happen to be with an alien who snuck us in."

"Amazing! Can we go to the alien shop? Er, I mean shop?"

"Well, I guess we could take a look," Minerva tugged on the Doctor's hand, "Unless you want to keep looking at the solitude."

'I'd rather look at you," he admitted without thinking, immediately blushing when he realized what he said.

"Oh, I like that," she chuckled, swinging their locked hands as they led Astrid to a newsstand across the street.

"Hello there! Sorry, uh, obvious question, but where's everybody gone?" the Doctor asked the elderly man of the stand, all bundled up with winter clothes.

"Oh-ho, scared!"

"Right, yes. Scared of what?"

"Where have you been living? London at Christmas? Not safe, is it?"

"Why?"

"Well, it's them, up above," the man pointed up to the sky, "Look, Christmas before last we had that big bloody spaceship, everyone standing on a roof," he pointed at the small TV that was showing a clip, "And then last year, that Christmas Star electrocuting all over the place, draining the Thames."

"This place is amazing," Astrid sighed in content.

"And this year, Lord knows what. So everybody's scarpered, gone to the country. All except me...and Her Majesty," the man stood up proudly and looked at the TV.

Her Majesty the Queen has confirmed that she will be staying in Buckingham Palace throughout the festive season to show the people of London, and the world, that there's nothing to fear.

"God bless her!" the man saluted, "We stand vigil."

"Well, between you and me, I think her Majesty's got it right. Far as I know, this year, nothing to worry about," the Doctor declared.

"Cause this time the man responsible is on a date," giggled Minerva.

"Oh ha ha," the Doctor rolled his eyes, "You know, you've been involved in all-"

But the trio were teleported back to the ship, leaving the newsstand man gaping at their disappearance, "Then again..." he slumped back to his seat.

"...the events too, Minerva," the Doctor finished now in the ship again, "Oi, I was in mid-sentence," he said to Mr. Copper.

"Yes, I'm sorry about that. A bit of a problem. If I could have your bracelets..." Mr. Copper reached for them.

A chief steward joined them, "Apologies, ladies and gentlemen, Bannakaffalatta, we seem to have suffered a slight power fluctuation. If you'd like to return to the festivities. And on behalf of Max Capricorn Cruiseliners, free drinks will be provided."

The group then started disbanding.

"That was the best, the best!" Astrid gave another hug to Minerva before she returned to her work.

The Doctor walked over to the chief steward, Minerva following, "What sort of power fluctuation?"

But the chief steward walked away.

"Oh you know there's something wrong," Minerva crossed her arms.

~0~

Midshipman Frame was watching the meteoroids in the ship's bridge, "That's a bit odd, sir, the meteoroids are changing course. Still, we can put the shields up to maximum just in case."

"As you were, Midshipman," the captain instructed.

Midshipman Frame looked over and saw the captain pushing buttons on an instrument panel, "Sir? You're magnetizing the hull, sir. It's drawing the meteors in."

"Port turning Earthside."

"I take it that's deliberate..." Midshipman Frame frowned.

"Port turning Earthside."

"Bit of a light show for the guests?" he tried, none of it making sense, but still...

"Something like that," the captain mumbled, continuing his work.

~0~

Back in the reception room, everyone was having a dandy time. The Van Hoff's were eating at their table, Rickstone Slade was winning at roulette, Bannakaffalatta was dancinng and Astrid was busy serving, flashing smiles to the Doctor and Minerva.

The Doctor put on his glasses and took out his screwdriver to use on the frame. Minerva joined him, a drink in her hand, "You know now that we're together I can say this freely," she began to say and he looked up at her, "You look adorable in those glasses."

He beamed, "Oh really? I thought you weren't a fan of them."

"I like geeks," she grinned, recalling Martha's words, "And I like you and all your weird traits. Hm, attraction between geeks really is very weird."

"I don't think you're a geek," he leaned over to kiss her, cupping her cheek as he pulled away, "You're just clever. And I love it."

She blushed, "I like you too."

"The fastest, the furthest, the best...my name is Max."

The Doctor returned to work on the frame, finally opening it only a few seconds later. He changed a few of the settings until the screen showed the Titanic and its surrounding, "Oh no..." his eyes widened, the shields had been turned down!

"What? What is it?" Minerva asked, leaning forwards to get a better viewer.

He ignored her and ran to the window, seeing the meteors approaching. He glanced back at Minerva, his hearts beating in concern...for her.

~0~

Back in the ship's main bridge, a communications whistle sounded, followed by the Doctor's voice, "Is that the bridge? I need to talk to the captain. You've got a meteoroid storm coming in West 0 by North 2."

"Who is this?" the captain asked.

"Never mind that. Your shields are down. Check your scanners, Captain. You've got meteoroids coming in and now shielding!"

"You have no authorization. You will clear the comms at once."

~0~

"Yeah? Just look starboard!" the Doctor exclaimed.

"Doctor!" Minerva's voice made him turn around, watching her being "escorted" by two stewards. She had been left with the task of keeping watch...and that hadn't gone so well.

"You let her go right now!" the Doctor left the comms and stormed for them.

"Come with us, sir," the steward took him into custody as well.

~0~

"But he's right, sir. The shields have been taken offline," Midshipman Frame went to an instrument panel.

"Step away from there," the captain ordered.

"But we have to re-energize them."

"I said step away, Midshipman."

Midshipman Frame looked up to see the captain aiming a gun at him.

~0~

"You've gotta listen!" Minerva struggled with the steward's grasp as she and the Doctor were hauled through the reception room.

"You've got a rock storm heading for this ship and the shields are down!" the Martian argued.

~0~

"They promised me old men," the captain explained to the Midshipman.

"I'm sorry, sir?"

"On the crew. Sea dogs, men who'd had their time. Not boys."

~0~

The Doctor managed to break free from the stewards, forcing himself to leave Minerva for a couple seconds so he could warn the other passengers. He ran up to the stage where the band was playing, "Everyone, listen to me! This is an emergency! Get to the lifeb -" a Host covered his mouth and pulled him away.

"Let us go!" Minerva tried kicking but in vain.

~0~

"I'm sorry, sir. It's my duty!" Midshipman Frame reached for the panel when the captain fired at him.

~0~

The Doctor and Minerva were taken out of the room, the stewards having to use more force on the Doctor than the brunette, "Look out the windows!" the Doctor shouted to a group where Rickston was present in.

Astrid, Rickston, and the Van Hoffs slowly made their way to the windows. Even Bannakaffalatta excused himself from a conversation to go and see, "Them, friends," he went over to the windows.

Rickston's eyes widened when he saw the meteoroids growing closer.

"If you don't believe me, check the shields yourself!" the Doctor continued to shout.

"Sir, I can vouch for him!" Astrid started following them.

"Look, Steward, he's just had a bit too much to drink," Morvin tried, also following.

"Sir, something seems to have gone wrong. All the teleports are down," Mr. Copper joined in.

"Now now!" the chief steward waved them off.

~ 0 ~

Back with Rickston, he stepped back as a small rock broke through a window and landed in front of his feet.

"Oxygen membrane holding. Oxygen membrane holding."

Rickston turned to a Host nearby, "You there. Has anyone checked the external shielding?"

"Information: you are all going to die."

He ran over to a steward, "Where's the Chief Steward?"

"That way, sir."

~0~

The chief steward was taking the Doctor and Minerva down the maintenance corridors, Astrid, Mr. Copper, Bannakaffalatta and the Van Hoffs following after them.

"The shields are down, we are going to get hit!" the Doctor frantically insisted.

Not only were they about to be hit, but he had just promised Minerva that nothing would hurt her...and yet here they were.

Why would he ever think a date on a Titanic would be a good idea?

~0~

Midshipman Frame laid on the floor with a gunshot on his abdomen, "You're going to kill us."

"I'm dying already. Six months. And they offered me so much money... for my family," the captain explained.

~0~

Rickston had caught up with the others in the maintenance corridors, demanding from the steward, "Oi! Steward! I'm telling you the shields are down!"

"Listen to him! Listen to him!" the Doctor said.

~0~

The captain remained at the wheel...

"Red Alert. Red Alert."

~0~

Outside the ship, the meteoroids were heading straight for them...

~0~

The meteoroids struck the side of the ship, everyone inside thrown onto the floor.

~0~

Hosts lined up in front of employees...ready to kill.

~0~

Minerva banged straight onto a wall, her head making the first, and possibly the worst, contact, "Ow!"

"I've got you!" the Doctor pulled her to him as soon as he could reach for her, "It's okay..."

...he didn't really know if it was okay.

The panels were becoming undone and falling down, possibly hurting the others. But it was finally coming to a slow halt, the Doctor the first to get up with Minerva at his side, "It's stopping..." he looked around, hearing the ship groan a bit as it finally did stop.

"I rest my case about the Titanic," Minerva mumbled, her head pounding.

"Are you okay?" the Doctor checked her, seeing the bow on her hair tainted at its edges with red. He quickly checked her head, finding a cut that didn't look too bad, but yet...

...there was a cut...with a blood...on his date...his girlfriend...

"It's just a small cut," she sensed his oncoming guilt. She reached for her bow and tugged it off, seeing the red blotches on it, "Nothing to worry about."

"But you're..."

"Okay," she smiled up at him, "There's more people to worry about right now."

He sighed, "This is a really bad name for a ship..." then he glanced at his suit and frowned, "Either that or this suit is really unlucky."

"Still look amazing in it though," Minerva mumbled, thinking she hadn't been heard.

He had to smirk, "Well..." he cleared his throat, "Is everyone else alright?" he moved over to a steward who laid on the floor and checked his vitals, "He's dead."

The chief steward stood and walked up to the surviving group, "Ev-everyone... Ladies and gentlemen, Bannakaffalatta, I must apologize on behalf of Max Capricorn Cruiseliners. We seem to have had a small collision."

The Doctor walked over to a comms panel.

"Small?" Morvin scoffed, the whole ship had been blasted and this was small?

"You know how much I paid for my ticket?" Rickston demanded.

"Does this really come to money?" Minerva frowned, disgusted at the fact that was all he cared for.

"If I could have silence, ladies, gentlemen..." the steward tried again.

"Again, who the hell are you!?" Rickston demanded.

"I am gonna be the first human to knock you out."

"If I could have silence, ladies, gentlemen..." But the rest of group, save Minerva and the Doctor, started arguing, "Quiet!" he shouted and they stopped, "Thank you. I-I'm sure Max Capricorn Cruiseliners will be able to reimburse you for any inconvenience. But first I would point out that we are very much alive."

"Are you all right?" Astrid turned over to Mr. Copper, helping him with a cut on his head.

The Doctor joined the group, putting his arm around Minerva's waist, the woman still glaring daggers at Rickston. He wanted to prevent another injury from happening. Minerva seemed alright to him, despite her affection insecurities, but he wasn't sure how the whole Master and Kaeya really affected her and he wanted to be there in case she cracked or anything. He'd have to run certain tests after this date to see just how much she'd really been affected.

"She is, after all, a fine, sturdy ship. If you could all stay here while I ascertain the exact nature of the - the situation," the chief steward went to open a hatch.

"Don't open it!" the Doctor exclaimed, but it was too late.

The chief steward was sucked put into space by the vacuum. Everyone grabbed onto a piping near them before they were pulled out as well. The Doctor struggled and made his way to the comms where he used the screwdriver on the computer to replace the shield.

"Oxygen shield stabilized."

"Everyone all right? Minerva?" he quickly turned back to her.

"Yeah," she nodded, pulling on the side of her dreSs.

"Astrid? Foon? Morvin? Mr Copper? Bannakaffalatta?"

"Yes," the little red alien answered.

"You, what was your name?" the Doctor turned to Rickston, trying his best to be polite but the fact the man had repeatedly yelled at Minerva wasn't helping.

"Ah, Rickston Slade."

"You all right?"

"No thanks to that idiot."

"The steward just died," Minerva glared at him, not that he cared.

"Then he's a dead idiot."

"That's it!" the brunette stepped forwards.

"Okay! Why don't you come with me, yeah?" the Doctor quick pulled her away from the group and brought them to the hatch opening.

"I don't like him!" she grumbled.

"I think we've noticed," he patted her back.

"Sorry, missing the big picture here. What happened? How come the shields were down?"

"I don't think it was an accident," he sighed, "And there goes our nice, first date."

She smiled softly, "Hey, what's a date without some adrenaline?"

"Minerva, I'm sorry...I'll get us out of this, I promise."

"Oh, I don't doubt you will. You always do."

"You trust me just like that?" the Doctor asked, a bit perplexed at her calm manner despite nearly dying.

"Doctor, there's something you should know: I trust you with my life."

He blinked, "Really?"

She nodded, "You don't have to promise me anything, I know you'll do it. In a stupid, moronic way...but you'll do it. Just like always."

"Good," he nodded, smiling brightly, loving he had all her trust despite the many trips gone wrong they had taken, "And this won't be the exception!"

She pecked his lips, "No it won't."

"All we need to do is get to the Reception room," he swung his arm around her shoulders, turning to a window in front of them, "We can take everyone on board and...oh."

Minerva just smiled, the TARDIS floating outside, "Like I said, you'll get us out of here in a stupid, moronic way, but we'll get out!"

"Is something wrong?" Astrid stepped over, seeing their attention locked on the window.

"That's my spaceship over there," the Doctor pouted, Minerva giggling to the side.

Astrid peered into the window, frowning when saw just a blue box, "That's a spaceship?"

"Oi, don't knock it," the Doctor scolded.

"It's a bit small..." she tilted her head, "...aren't you a bit cramped?" But she glanced over to the pair and saw them quite close and together, "Right," she smiled, only thinking of what that box could provide for them, "It's your snogging box."

"It's not," the Doctor shot her a look.

Minerva looked around, playing innocent, "Well we haven't exactly tried it yet," she mumbled, attracting his attention in a snap, her cheeks flushing pink, "We haven't exactly 'snogged','" she whispered to him, her gaze stuck on her playing fingers.

"Ooh..." he looked back to the window, his face flushing red at the thought of actually snogging her. That...that could be nice...

Astrid smirked, she could just tell those two were barely beginning their relationship by the amount of times they blushed, "So, um...that blue box?" she reminded them.

"Oh, yes, well," the Doctor cleared his throat, "It's a bit distant now. Trouble is, once it's set adrift, it's programmed to lock onto the nearest center of gravity and that would be...the Earth."

"We've got a long journey to do," Minerva slipped under the Doctor's arm on her shoulders and walked over to a comms.

"Where to?" Astrid asked, the Doctor following her.

"Well, up to the main bridge of course, that's where you steer the ship, aka, our way of getting back to earth and getting the TARDIS."

"Clever!" the Doctor dropped a kiss to Minerva's head.

"I try to be," she shrugged, looking at the other guests, "And we promise we'll get you out of here," she told them, seeing their worried faces, well, really only focusing on the Van Hoffs and Mr. Copper, Rickston could bite it.

""Deck 22 to the bridge. Deck 22 to the bridge. Is there anyone there?" the Doctor called.

~ 0 ~

Midshipman Frame moaned and clutched his side, reaching for the comms, "This is the bridge."

"Oh hello, sailor. Good to hear you. What's the situation up there?"

"We've got air. The oxygen field is holding. But the captain..." Midshipman Frame looked over to the captain's body buried under wreckage, "He's dead. He did it. I watched while he took down the shields. There was nothing I could do. I tried. I did try."

Minerva heard the despair and guilt in his tone and moved the Doctor a bit to speak into the comms, "Hey, don't worry, we believe you," she spoke softly, "Just stay calm. Tell us your name. What's your name?"

"Midshipman Frame."

"Nice to meet you, sir. We're a bit curious to know of the state of the engines..." Minerva looked at the Doctor for confirmation, smiling with pride when he nodded.

"They're um...hold on," Midshipman Frame pushed himself forwards and groaned.

"Have you been injured?" the Doctor asked at the sound.

"I'm all right. Oh my vot. They're cycling down."

"That's a nuclear storm drive, yes?"

"Yeah."

"The moment they're gone, we lose orbit."

"What!?" Minerva nearly choked at the words, "But earth..."

"Oh yes. If we hit the planet, the nuclear storm explodes and wipes out life on Earth. Midshipman, I need you to fire up the engine containment field and feed it back into the core."

"This is never going to work."

"Trust me, it'll keep the engines going until I can get to the bridge," the Doctor switched off the comms and turned to Minerva who seemed terrified.

"Doctor, Martha is down there...my grandmother..." she looked out the window again.

"And they'll be alright," he assured, "No one is going to die."

"We're going to die!" Foon cried at the mention of the word.

"Are you saying someone's done this on purpose?" Mr. Copper asked.

"We're just a cruise ship!" Astrid was also close to tears.

"Okay, okay. Tch, tch," the Doctor stepped beside Minerva, taking her hand in am effort to calm her in the process, "First things first. One: we're going to climb through this ship. B...no...two: we're going to reach the bridge. Three - or C: we're going to save the Titanic. And, coming in a very low Four or D or that little "iv" in brackets they use in footnotes...why. Right then, follow me."

"Hang on a minute," Rickston called, stopping the pair before they turned around, "Who put you in charge and who the hell are you anyway?"

"I'm the Doctor. I'm a Time Lord. I'm from the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous. I'm 903 years old and I'm the man who's gonna save your lives and all six billion of the people on the planet below. You got a problem with that?"

"...No," Rickston blinked, stepping back.

"In that case, allons-y!" the Doctor reverted to his childhood ways and turned around, leading the others away and noticing Minerva smirking to herself, "Anything the matter?"

"Nothing, that was just really hot," she whispered, her face flushing a deep red.

The Doctor smirked and kissed her head, loving that he could have that affect on her...oh yes, he definitely liked where this relationship was going.

~0~

The group came to a metal door that led into a stairwell littered with debris and sparking cables.

"Careful. Follow me," the Doctor went ahead and cleared the way for the others.

"Rather ironic when this is very much in the spirit of Christmas. It's a festival of violence," Mr. Copper began another of his lectures, missing the big confusion on Minerva's face, "They say that human beings only survive depending on whether they've been good or bad. It's barbaric."

"Actually, that's not true. Christmas is a time of - of peace and thanksgiving and..." the Doctor trailed off, "...what am I on about? Christmas is always like this," he shook his head and uncovered a dormant Host.

Not for me," Minerva spoke up, "Christmas used to be nice..." the Doctor watched her as she grew quiet, "...Back with my grandmother, and the snicker doodles..."

"Hey, you'll have your snicker doodles tonight, okay?" he promised her, "We can bake those cookies again and I promise to try and not make a mess this time round."

"Snicker doodles on Christmas, with my new boyfriend?" Minerva considered it, practically bursting with joy even if she was on a dead ship that was going to crash into her planet, "Yes, please!" she pecked his lips.

He beamed and returned to the host beside them, "We've got a Host. Strength of ten. If we can mend it, we can use it to fix the rubble."

"We can do robotics, both of us," Morvin volunteered, Foon stepping beside him.

"We worked on the milk market back on Sto. It's all robot staff."

"See if you can get it working," the Doctor nodded them to go ahead, "Now let's have a look," he took Minerva's hand and led them up the stairs with the rest of the group.

"It's blocked," Astrid remarked when they stopped in front of a big wreckage in front of them.

"So what do we do?" the Doctor asked.

"We shift it!" Minerva exclaimed.

"That's the attitude. Rickston, Mr Copper, and you, Bannakaffalatta... look, can I just call you Banna? It's gonna save a lot of time."

"No! Bannakaffalatta!" the red alien said firmly.

"All right then, Bannakaffalatta, there's a gap in the middle. See if you can get through."

"Easy. Good," Bannakaffalatta squeezed through the opening, the ship lurching as he did and sent loose debris on the them.

"This whole thing could come crashing down any minute!" Rickston cried, looking up in case something else fell down.

"Oh, Rickston, I forgot. Did you get our message?" the Doctor asked as he searched for a way to move the debris.

"No. What message?"

"Shut up!"

Minerva surprised the Doctor with a kiss on his cheek, "I really like you."

He smiled softly at her, her calm attitude despite the severity of their situation was quite attractive as well, "I like you too," he blushed, giving her a short kiss on the lips.

"Bannakaffalatta made it," came the little red alien's voice from across.

"I'm small enough, I can get through," Astrid volunteered and began making her way through the hole.

"Me too," Minerva looked down at herself with disappointment, "I tell you it's gonna be quite interesting trying to kiss you," she looked at the Doctor and compared their heights silently.

"I find that..." he leaned to her and whispered, "...hot," she blinked and blushed real hard, the Doctor chuckling as he gave a small kiss on her cheek.

"And I'm out," she said with a shaky voice, following into the hole where Astrid had gone.

"Careful!" he called after her.

"Thing is, how are Mr and Mrs Fatso gonna get through this gap?" Rickston demanded.

The Doctor rolled his eyes, the man's attitude was not going to ruin his mood with his girlfriend, "We make the gap bigger. So start," he handed Rickston a piece of metal.

"We can clear it from this side," Astrid Caledonia as she helped Minerva out of the hole, "Just tell me if it starts moving."

"Thanks," Minerva stood to her feet and dusted herself off. She then noticed Bannakaffalatta laying on the floor. "Bannakaffalatta, what's wrong?"

"Sshhh," he put a finger on his mouth.

"What is it?" Astrid moved over, Minerva behind her.

"Can't say."

"Are you hurt?" Minerva studied him but saw no physical injuries.

"Ashamed..."

"Of what?"

"Poor Bannakaffalatta," he lifted his dress shirt to reveal cybernetic components, turning his head away from them in shame.

"You're a cyborg," Minerva remarked, a tad surprised.

"Had accident long ago. Secret."

"No, but everything's changed now," Astrid said softly, seeing the alien in full shame, "cmCyborgs are getting equal rights. They passed a law back on Sto. You can even get married."

"Marry you?" he turned his head over to them.

"Well, you can buy me a drink first. Come on. Let's recharge you," Astrid pressed a button on his torso and stood up, "Just stay there for a bit."

"Tell no one."

"We promise."

"What's going on up there?!" the Doctor called, alarmed at the silence. Minerva was never that quiet, or quiet at all.

Minerva glanced at Astrid with a mischievous smile, "You wanna see something funny?"

"We're on a ship that's about to crag and kill six million people including us...I'll take what you got," Astrid sighed, really in the mood for a genuine laugh.

Minerva sauntered back to the hole, seeing the Doctor on the other side, "I just got engaged to Bannakaffalatta!"

"WHAT!?" There was a loud bang from the other side that made Astrid jump in her spot.

Minerva glanced back at Astrid, her eyes eyebrows wiggling. She just barely holding her laughter in.

"Excuse me!?" the Doctor rubbed his head on the other side. It had crashed into the pipe above him. Minerva had gotten to the other side only two minutes ago, what the hell happened!? He supposed that she was just that gorgeous anyone would ask her to marry him, that's why Zian had tricked her into marrying him after all...

"I'm just kidding, Doctor!" Minerva laughed, unknowingly making him breath out in relief.

"Minerva!" he shouted, her laughter just increasing.

"Martian!" she mimicked his tone.

"That was funny," Astrid concluded, chuckling herself.

"Told yah," Minerva smirked and continued with her work.

~ 0 ~

"Almost done!" Morvin called up to the trio of men upstairs.

"Good, good, good," the Doctor moved to a comms, "Mr Frame, how's things?"

"Doctor, I've got life signs all over the ship but they're going out one by one."

"What is it? Are they losing air?"

"No. One of them said it's the Host. It's something to do with the Host."

The Doctor immediately looked down to the Van Hoffs where they had just finished up the Host.

"It's working!" Morvin exclaimed happily.

The Doctor rushed down as the Host took Morvin by the throat,

"Kill. Kill. Kill."

"Turn it off!" the Doctor ordered as he came down.

"I can't, Doctor!" Foon cried.

"Go!" he arrived and shooed Foon away. He took out the screwdriver and used it on the Host, "Lock! Double deadlock!" exasperated, he put away the screwdriver and used his hands to help Morvin free, "Okay, go upstairs!"

"Run, darling, run!" Foon called to her husband and he ran up the stairs.

"Information: kill, kill, kill..."

"Rickston! Get them through!" the Doctor shouted.

"No chance!" the man went in himself through the hole.

"Rickston!" Mr. Copper called after him.

"I'll never get through there," Foon shook her head.

"Yes, you can. Let me go first," Mr. Copper started going through the hole.

The Doctor ran up to the comms, the Host following, "It's the Host! They've gone berserk! Are you safe up there?"

~ 0 ~

But inside the main bridge, Midshipman Frame turned to see another group of Host heading for the open door, "Kill. Kill. Kill," they chanted.

The man closed and locked the door in time, only catching the hand of one of the Host.

~0~

Minerva, Astrid, and Mr. Copper were currently trying to help Foon through the hole,

"No, I'm stuck!" she cried.

"Come on, you can do it!" Minerva urged, glancing at Rickston who stood to the side and just watched.

Mr. Copper was using a metal pole as a lever to widen the space, struggling actual, "It's going to collapse!" but Foon finally made it, leaving Morvin and the Doctor, "Rickston, vot damn it, help me!"

"No... way," Rickston shook his head.

"Coward and useless!" Minerva moved over and helped Mr. Copper.

"Morvin, get through!" Copper yelled.

Morvin was having a bit more of a struggle to get through the hole, the chants of Host nearing behind as the Doctor ran up to the hole.

"Doctor, he's stuck!" Astrid yelled, able to see the man just slightly around Morvin.

"Mr Van Hoff, I know we've only just met but you'll have to excuse me," the Doctor placed his hands on Morvin's rear and pushed him through.

"That's it," Astrid helped Morvon, "We've got you. Doctor, come on, get through."

The Doctor however, turned to the Host which was literally right behind him, "Information override! You will tell me the point of origin of your command structure!"

Minerva and Mr. Copper were straining to hold open the hole, "Doctor! We can't hold it!" came her strained voice.

"Information: Deck 31."

"Thank you," the Doctor grinned and scrambled through the hole, "Let go!"

Mr. Copper and Minerva released their grip on the pole, the beam crashing onto the Host's head.

"Oh thank God!" Minerva encased him in a big hug, her heart nearly beating out if her chest. He hugged her back, both forgetting for a moment that there were other people as the enjoyed their embrace, knowing for the moment they were both okay.

~ 0 ~

At the bridge, Midshipman Frame turned to see the hand of the Host that was locked between the door and wall moving. He yelped and turned a handle that shut the door completely, cutting off the hand. But he looked through the window of the door and saw a line of Host's waiting for him.

~ 0 ~

The group opened the door to find a clear room, a kitchen of some sorts. There was even a table with some food on it.

"Morvin, look, food," Foon pointed and walked towards it.

"Oh great. Someone's happy," Rickston rolled his eyes.

"Don't have any then," Morvin moved to his wife, not about to let him make her cry again.

"Ow!" Rickston flinched, "Did you just...ow!"

"Sorry," Minerva had walked past him with a smirk on her face.

She elbowed him...twice.

The Doctor headed to the comms, concerned for their friend up at the bridge, "Mr Frame, you still there?"

"Yes, sir, but I've got Host outside. I sealed the door."

"They've been programmed to kill. Why would anyone do that?" the Doctor asked, his mind still trying to come up with a valid list of reasons and of the culprit.

"That's not the only problem, Doctor. I had to use a maximum deadlock on the door, which means..." Midshipman Frame sighed, guilty of yet another problem of the ship, "No one can get in. I'm sealed off. Even if you can fix the Titanic, you can't get to the bridge."

"Yeah, right, fine. One problem at a time," the Doctor made a face at that, he'd have to worry about it later, "What's on Deck 31?"

"Um, that's down below. It's nothing. It's just the Host storage deck. That's where we keep the robots."

The Doctor looked at a scanner beside, putting on his glasses, "Well, what's that? See that panel? Black. It's registering nothing. No power, no heat, no light."

"Never seen it before."

"100% shielded. What's down there?"

"I'll try intensifying the scanner."

"Let me know if you find anything," the Doctor removed his glasses, "And keep those engines going!"

Minerva walked over, seeing the concern on his face and feeling bad she couldn't exactly help him, "Hey..." she bit her lip, feeling really stupid that was all she could say.

But he smiled, pressing a hand onto her cheek, "I'm getting you out of this, I swear," she nodded, staying still as he gave her a kiss on the forehead.

Astrid felt a little embarrassed for intruding on the pair's moment but she felt like everyone needed to eat if they were to continue their trip up to the reception room, "Sorry," she smiled dimly, "Saved you some. You might be a Time King from Gaddabee but you need to eat, and I know humans also have to eat for survival."

"Yeah, thanks," the Doctor took the plate from the blonde.

He moved Minerva to a seat and together sat down, Astrid across them. He picked up a piece of food and held it to Minerva, but she shook her head, "I'm not hungry," she frowned.

"But you gotta eat," he insisted. He'd already faulted her at this date thing and he wasn't about to let her pass out on account of a nutritional issues.

"My stomach feels kinda funny," Minerva continued to refuse the food, clutching her stomach and shaking her head.

"Mm, that would be on account of not eating," Astrid pointed, in the middle of eating her own plate.

The Doctor nodded her thanks for the help as Minerva reluctantly let him feed her. Though after a couple seconds she started smiling, "You're looking at me like that again."

"Looking how?" the Martian frowned.

"Like the time when we visited my grandmother and ended up in 1969."

"You just reminded me of 1913, that's all. The things you said...the way you moved...everything," he whispered, rubbing a thumb over her cheek. His hearts fluttered at all the kisses he had given her, the moment he had fallen in love with her as John Smith...

How long would it be until he, the Doctor, fell in love with her?

"So..." Astrid smiled at their silence, the two were currently staring at each other with those smiles the couples of earliest stages wore, "...how old are you, Minerva? I'm a bit clueless on human education."

"Recently eighteen," Minerva took a bit of more food.

"Hm," she glanced between Minerva and the Doctor, finding the two to look not so different based on ages, "Doctor, you look good for 903."

"You should see me in the mornings," the man had a mouthful of food in his mouth.

"It's not pretty," Minerva declared, the pout on his face making her giggle, "But now that we're together, perhaps I could think you looked very cute...handsome..." her hand trailed down his face, "...hot..."

Astrid shook her head at the pair, knowing it was better to leave them as they got deeper into their moments. She stood up and walked to the others, the pair not even noticing her departure.

"I think you look cute all the time of day," the Doctor remarked, watching her blush rapidly.

"That's because by the time you see me I'm usually always dressed and stuff..."

"May I remind you that I have seen you in your nighties several times now, your hair all messy..."

Minerva considered his words and realized he was right. Without realizing it, the Doctor had been allowed in her room early in the mornings and late in the nights, or whatever it was called in the TARDIS. Though everything was kept to friendship, Minerva knew it wasn't something common for her to let a man into her room like she did with the Doctor. It actually made her blush because they'd been on the same bed, sometimes her in her pajamas, nighties, and also pretty close...

"Hm...well," she considered the right words as her tongue seemed a bit slurred from her thoughts, "All that is gonna be changing. Just because we're together now...it...it doesn't mean we're...we're gonna, um..." her cheeks flushed red at where her thoughts had drifted to. She might have joked about it earlier but it didn't mean she was ready to take that large step in her relationship, in her life...

The Doctor chuckled, knowing exactly what she had meant, "Minerva, nothing that you don't want, or not ready for, is going to happen."

Minerva had to smile in relief, "I'm sorry. It's just...I know this is ridiculous and stuff, but I'm young...I don't, I've never actually..."

"It's alright. There's nothing wrong with that. Let's just focus on our relationship, yeah? We can finish getting to know each other, give each other a few kisses here and there..."

She chuckled, "Just a few?"

"Just a few," he assured, no where near meaning those words.

"Doctor, it must be well past midnight, Earth time. Christmas Day," Mr. Copper called from the other end of the room, making the pair glance back.

"So it is. Merry Christmas," the Doctor said to them and returned his gaze to Minerva, "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas," she whispered, watching him lower his head to press his lips on her for a Christmas kiss.

"Mm, Christmas kiss," the Doctor pulled back, mere inches from her lips so he could steal another one from her, "I like."

"How things have changed from last year," she reminded, their last Christmas just after losing the Tyler's plus saving Donna.

"I gotta find a mistletoe..." he murmured, not even caring about their last Christmas.

Minerva laughed, pushing him slightly back, "Doctor!"

"This Christmas thing, what's it all about?" Astrid asked, sensing the holiday had to do with a lot of kissing since that's what they seemed to be doing a lot.

"Long story. I should know, I was there. I got the last room," the Doctor shrugged, remembering that event.

"But if the planet's waking up, can't we signal them? They can send up a rocket or something," Mr. Copper suggested.

"We don't have spaceships," Minerva frowned, slightly irritated with the man's lack of knowledge of her home.

"No, I read about it. They have shuffles, space shuffles."

"Mr. Copper, I'm human...we don't have that."

"Mr Copper, this degree in Earthonomics,... where's it from?" the Doctor asked, amused by Minerva's irritation.

"Honestly?"

"Just between us."

"Mrs. Golightly's Happy Travelling University and Dry Cleaners."

"That makes sense..." Minerva mumbled, taking more food into her mouth.

"You - you lied to the company... to get the job?" Astrid blinked.

"I- I wasted my life on Sto. I was a travelling salesman, always on the road and I reached retirement with nothing to show for it. Not even a home. And Earth sounded so exotic."

"Hm, I suppose it is, yeah..." the Doctor smiled in thought of the planet, glancing at the one person that stood out from the whole race.

Minerva caught his look and turned to look at him as well, slightly perplexed, "You think I'm exotic?" he nodded, his smile softening, "I don't know whether to take that as a compliment or not..."

"So she's human," Astrid pointed at Minerva, "And I understand why she would know so much about it, but you..." her finger drifted to the Doctor, "How come you know it so well?"

"I was sort of...a few years ago, was sorta made... well, sort of homeless, and, um there was the Earth..." the Doctor looked down for a moment, his actual home was gone and Earth seemed like it was always calling him there...like a second home...cause there was someone else he could be with now...

Minerva rested her head on his arm and reached for his hand, "You're not homeless anymore. You got a family in me, Martha, and hey, even my grandmother when she finds out."

He faintly smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head, "Thank you."

"The thing is, though," Mr. Copper sighed, too in depth with his big problem to focus on the pair, "If we survive this, there will be police and all sorts of investigations. Now the minimum penalty for space-age fraud is ten years in jail. I'm an old man. Well, I won't survive ten years."

"I won't let that happen," Minerva immediately said, looking up to see the man. He was surprised she would say something like that considering they didn't even know each other. But Minerva saw in him her grandfather, and how could she allow someone like her grandfather to be imprisoned?

There was a banging on the door, the Doctor jumping from his seat and rushing to a door at the other end, across from the one being banged on, "A Host! Move! Come on!"

The pounding increased, even a dent forming from the force that made Astrid scream. The Doctor used the sonic on the other door and opened it, revealing another room that happened to be the engine room. There was a makeshift bridge that was created by a fallen strut...above the engines.

"Is that the only way across?" Rickston frowned at it.

"On the other hand, it is a way across," Minerva sighed, this time agreeing with the man of the way to get across.

"The engines are open," remarked Astrid, also not happy.

"Nuclear storm drive. Soon as it stops, the Titanic falls," the Doctor explained.

"But that thing, it'll never take our weight," Morvin stepped towards the edge.

"You're going last, mate," Rickston gave him a quick look.

"It's nitrofine metal. It's stronger than it looks," the Doctor tried to explain as he worked on the door, getting it shut.

"All the same, Rickston's right. Me and Foon should -" Morvin's foot stepped on a weak piece of metal where the railing gave way...and he fell down towards the engine.

"Morvin!" Foon cried, running up to where her husband had just been.

The others watched in horror, as if that didn't just happen...

"I told you! I told you!" Rickston exclaimed.

Minerva turned to him, outraged he was so snooty and selfish he wasn't even remotely perturbed a man had just died, "SHUT UP!" she screamed, actually making him flinch at the volume of her tone.

Foon turned to the Doctor, hysterically crying, "Bring him back! Can't you bring him back? Bring him back, Doctor!"

"I'm sorry, I can't..." the Doctor looked at the opening, still shocked himself.

"You promised me!"

"I know. I'm sorry. I'm sorry..."

"Doctor, I rather think those things have got our scent," Mr. Copper had turned to the door as stomping of the Host's were nearing the group.

"I'm not waiting," Rickston shook his head and started crossing the bridge.

"Careful! Take it slowly!" the Doctor called, disliking the man for his attitude as well but his death was not something he would ever wish...

There was a tumbling as the ship rocked, making Rickston nearly fall, "Vot help me," he mumbled to himself as he continued.

"You're okay. One step at a time. Come on, you can do it," the Doctor urged.

"They're getting nearer!" Mr. Copper exclaimed.

"Seal us in," the Doctor muttered to himself, using the sonic to shut the door on them.

"Leaving us trapped, wouldn't you say?"

"Never say trapped, just inconveniently circumstanced," the Doctor turned around, moving for Minerva, he didn't feel right leaving her alone in this room...or anywhere, now that he thought about it. After the Master, he'd be damned if anyone could separate them.

"Maybe he's all right. Maybe - Maybe there's a gravity curve down there or something. I don't know. Maybe he's unconscious," Foon was saying in hopes, unable to grasp the idea that her husband was actually dead.

Astrid was beside her, trying to calm the woman, still solemn herself of the event, "I'm sorry Foon. He's gone," she hugged the widower.

"What am I going to do without him?" Foon sniffled.

"Yes! Oh yes! Who's good?!" Rickston had hopped off the bridge on the other side, completely unharmed.

"Bannakaffalatta, you go next," the Doctor instructed.

"Bannakaffalatta, small," he nodded, stepping onto the bridge.

"Slowly!" the Doctor called, glancing between the door and the bridge, the Host continuing with their pounds behind the door.

"They've found us!" Mr. Copper gasped.

"Minerva, Astrid, get across right now," the Doctor started pushing Minerva towards the bridge, motioning Astrid to follow.

"No, what about you?" Minerva managed to turn and stop the Martian.

"I need you to go first," he tried to push again but she wouldn't budge, making her sigh, "Minerva, please."

"Not without you," she said quietly, dead serious.

She didn't wait a year to finally be with him to be separated on their first date. Beyond that, she just wouldn't leave him, friend or girlfriend, she just wouldn't.

He took a heavy sigh and resigned to get everyone else started across the bridge, "Astrid, Mr. Copper, please don't argue and just go," the pair glanced at each other and nodded, "Foon, you've got to get across right now."

"What for? What am I gonna do without him?" Foon sniffled, still gazing down to where her husband had fallen through.

"Doctor! The door's locked!" Rickston called from the other side, gesturing to the locked door.

"Just think... what would he want, eh?" Minerva moved over to Foon.

"He don't want nothing, he's dead!"

"No, when my grandfather died, he made sure to tell us he wanted us to live our lives and not to cry over him. He wanted us to be happy," Minerva insisted, trying to move Foon but the woman was sobbing.

"Doctor, I can't open the door. We need the whirring key thing of yours!" Rickston called again.

"We can't leave her!" the Doctor shouted.

"She'll get us all killed if we can't get out!"

The Doctor looked at the group and Minerva, knowing very well that he couldn't risk her safety, not now, not when he had just gotten her. He rushed to Minerva and Foon, "Mrs. Van Hoff, I am coming back for you, all right?" he tugged on Minerva's arm and brought themselves to the bridge, moving Minerva first.

But as the two stepped on, the metal of the bridge creaked at the additional weight it had to sustain.

"Too many people!" Bannakaffalatta glanced back at the pair.

"Oi! Don't get spiky with me! Keep going!" the Doctor shooed him off.

"It's gonna fall!" Astrid continuously looked down at the engines, afraid she'd slip and fall...and die.

"It's just settling! Keep going!"

But the Host stopped pounding...

"They've stopped," Astrid frowned, glancing back at the door that was silent now.

"Gone away?" Bannakaffalatta suggested.

"Why would they give up?" the Doctor mumbled to himself, no one chasing after him ever gave up...

"Never mind that. Keep coming!" Rickston motioned them to get to him. Why would they waste time like this? If an enemy was chasing them, and suddenly left they should run.

"Where have they gone? Where are the Host?" the Doctor ignored the man, focused more on the danger of missing Hosts...and then Minerva tugged on his arm, she looking up with wide eyes.

"Doctor...angels can fly," her mouth fell open at the Host's above flying down towards them.

"I usually love it when you're clever, but on this occasion, I'm gonna have to say I don't like it."

The same group of Host were gliding down from above, encircling the group, "Information: kill," they reached for their halos.

"Arm yourselves! All of you!" the Doctor ordered, all of them reaching for pipes or bits of metals to defend themselves.

The Host threw their halos at them, each of them swatting it away for the first couple of times. However, one halo managed to graze the Doctor's arm and another Mr. Copper'Copper's leg. Minerva's pipe was flung down by a halo, nearly knocking her down as well.

Astrid dropped to her knees, "I can't," she looked up at the endless halos coming their way.

"Bannakaffalatta stop! Bannakaffalatta proud! Bannakaffalatta, cyborg!" Bannakaffalatta lifted his shirt and discharged energy towards the Host, knocking them all out except for one that fell on the bridge behind the Doctor.

"Electromagnetic pulse took out the robotics. Oh, Bannakaffalatta, that was brilliant!" the Doctor turned to the little alien, Bannakaffalatta falling to the ground almost immediately.

Astrid went to his side, "He's used all his power!"

"Did good?" he asked her.

"You saved our lives" she smiled at him.

"Bannakaffalatta happy."

"We can recharge you, get you to a power point and just plug you in!" her smile started fading as Bannakaffalatta eyes threatened to close.

"Too late."

"No, but...you gotta get me that drink, remember?"

"Pretty girl," Bannakaffalatta closed his eyes and died.

Muffling her tears, Astrid went to button Bannakaffalatta's shirt but Mr. Copper reached for his power source.

"I'm sorry. Forgive me," he apologized sincerely.

"It's the EMP transmitter. He - he'd want us to use it," Mr. Copper removed the transmitter, "I used to sell these things. They'd always give me a bed for the night in the cyborg caravans. They're good people. But if we can recharge it, we can reuse it as a weapon against the rest of the Host. Bannakaffalatta might have saved us all."

"Do you think? Try telling him that," Rickston pointed behind the group, turning to see the Host that had landed behind begin to move.

"Information: reboot."

"Use the EMP!" Rickston shouted.

"It's dead!" Mr. Copper shook his head, lowering the EMP.

"It's gotta have emergency..." Astrid took the EMP to take a look at it.

"Doctor," Minerva reached out for him, the Martian moving up to confront the Host. He lived to give her heart attacks.

"I gotta try something," he mumbled, before directing to the Host, "No, no, no. Hold on. Override loophole security protocol... Ten! 666! Oh. 21, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. Um, I dunno, 42! Uh, one!"

The Host actually stopped midway and stood passively, "Information: state request."

"Good...right," the Doctor, internally sighing of relief that for the moment they weren't going to be killed, "You've been ordered to kill the survivors, but why?"

"Information: no witnesses."

"But this ship's gonna fall on the Earth and kill everyone. The human race have nothing to do with the Titanic so that contravenes your orders, yes?"

"Information: incorrect."

"But why do you want to destroy the Earth?"

"Information: it is the plan."

"What plan?"

"Information: protocol grants you only three questions. These three questions have been used."

"Well, you could have warned me."

"Let me try," Minerva whispered to him, preferring him to back away.

"Sh," he blocked her way of walk with an arm.

"Information: now you will die."

It prepared to strike, the Doctor completely moving in front of Minerva, but a lasso was thrown over the Host's head and tightened around its body by Foon.

"You're coming with me," Foon closed her eyes and jumped over the side, pulling the Host with her down to the engines.

"Nooooo!" the Doctor shouted, looking down as Foon fell to her death.

"Poor Foon," Minerva sighed.

"No more," the Doctor muttered, so done with the deaths. Next thing he knew it could be Astrid or Mr. Copper, or even worse, Minerva.

~ 0 ~

The group made it into another set of maintenance halls, the Doctor giving orders as soon as they entered, "Right. Get up to Reception One. Once you're there, Mr Copper. You've got staff access to the computer. Try and find a way of transmitting an SOS. Astrid, you're in charge of this," he held the EMP to hers, "Once it's powered up, it'll take out Hosts within fifty yards but then it needs sixty seconds to recharge. Got it? Minerva, take this I've preset it. Just hold down that button. It'll open doors," she gave her a kiss on the forehead and moved on to Mr. Copper.

Minerva stood there, dumbfounded for a couple minutes till she realized he was practically saying goodbye, "Hold on..." she grabbed Rickston's arm and handed him the screwdriver, "Open the doors, don't lose it."

"All right!" he nodded, not caring who ordered now as long a it got him out of this ship.

"Doctor!" Minerva trailed after the Martian as he handed Mr. Copper a first aid kit.

"Mr Copper, I need you fighting fit. Astrid, where's the power point?" he blatantly ignored Minerva for a second.

"Under the comms," she nodded to the power point, following him to learn how to re-charge the EMP.

"When it's ready, that blue light comes on there," he explained.

"Martian!" Minerva stomped her foot, knowing she sounded like a child but it was the only way to grab his attention, "Astrid, can we have a moment?" she asked softly, "Please?" Astrid nodded and walked away, sensing the oncoming disagreement between the pair.

"Minerva," the Doctor sighed, acting as if he was currently working on something mega important.

"You're talking as if you're not coming with us," she informed, however she doubted he hadn't realized yet.

"There's something down on Deck 31. I'm gonna find out what it is."

"And what about me, huh? You expect me to keep going with everyone else and leave you?"

"Frankly, yes, I do," he nodded, locking his gaze on the machine.

He didn't want to face her and her big, shiny jade-green eyes that would get him to do anything she wanted. And not this time, he could not do what she wanted this time, it was far too dangerous.

"Doctor, I'm not going to leave you."

"And I'm not taking you," he said, purposely cold.

Hopefully, she'd get irritated and leave on her own. Later on, he'd apologize to no means end until she forgave him. But for now, she needed to go away.

"I'm coming with you!" Minerva raised her voice, she was so not letting it go.

"No, you're not!"

"Yes!"

"No!"

Minerva paused, suppressing her anger as best she could, yet her voice was still raised when she spoke again, "And why not?"

"Because I won't lose you!" the Doctor finally looked up, that last part coming out in a shot that shut her up and had the group silenced. Minerva blinked, processing his words again and again in her mind. He sighed, regretting his shout upon seeing her startled face, "Minerva, I just got you. I won't risk your life for anything. I don't know what's down there but it's gotta be pretty bad if it doesn't care that a whole planet is gonna be wiped out. So you see, I need you to stay with the group, in the Reception, away from Deck 31."

Minerva's heart fluttered at his immense care for her. But even through all that, she just couldn't grasp the idea of leaving him alone to face the big ole enemy. It was wrong.

"Minerva, please, please, stay with the others," the Doctor pleaded, moving around for her, "I'll come back, we'll bake those cookies and then I'll find us a mistletoe and I'll kiss and kiss and kiss you till you forgive me, okay?" he placed his hand over her cheek, "I promise I'll come back."

She opened her mouth to retaliate when he interrupted her with a kissed. She loved the way she felt about him, but she knew that would lead to him getting what he wanted through a kiss.

"Okay," she whispered as he parted from her.

Her agreement made him breathe a little easier, knowing she would be far away from the biggest threat on the ship besides the actual ship crashing, "Thank you," he breathed.

"But I'm not happy about it," she informed as he took her hand and moved her beside the charger.

"I know, and I'll do my best to make it up to you afterwards," he assured, because they would survive this.

"I expect a very good kiss," she said, watching him blush.

"Um, I think it's done charging," Astrid slowly approached them, wanting to make sure they were really past their disagreement before joining. The EMP was past charge but the pair had been so caught up with each other to notice, "It's alright," she plucked it off and turned to them, "So, you two okay now?"

"Yeah, he's just got one heck of an apology to make after we get the TARDIS," Minerva smirked at him.

"I'll take you to those ice mineral lakes, we can go to Manet, and even Marie Antoinette?" he tried to see if that was making her smile, and one she did, he continued, promising himself he would take her to see all those things, "Agatha Christie? Um, Ooh, how about Rio?"

"Wow," Astrid blinked, all those places and people sounding so amazing, "Wow, um, all that sounds terrific. I take it you guys travel a lot?"

Minerva scoffed, "That's what he does for a living. I just kinda tag along."

The Doctor wound his arm around Minerva's waist, "She's not a tag along, she's my girlfriend and a rightful traveler in the TARDIS. That's what we are, just travelers. Imagine it. No tax, no bills, no boss, just the open sky."

Astrid could imagine it, after all that was all she wanted to do in life, travel and see the world, "Listen, uh...I'm sort of...unemployed now and I was thinking the blue box is kinda small, but I could kinda squeeze in. Like a stowaway."

Minerva and the Doctor shared a glance, meanwhile Astrid stared at them with such hope.

"It's not always safe," the Doctor informed, still gazing at Minerva for help.

He didn't know what to think about Astrid's request. It had been mere hours since Martha had left the TARDIS. Minerva was also puzzled on what to say, but something deep inside told her Astrid was her a year ago. All her life, Minerva wanted to go see the world, be productive and do something. She could see the same gleam in Astrid's eyes and she felt like she couldn't turn the blonde away...but ultimately, it was the Doctor's decision that would make it or break it. The box of wonders was his and only he could decide who to bring on board.

"I wouldn't cause any problems," Astrid added, nervously seeing the pair thinking of it for too long, "I've got no one back on Sto, no family, just me. So what do you think? Can I come with you? Please?"

The Doctor glanced at Minerva, wanting her to be okay with a new passenger, a female besides Martha, to come along. He didn't know just yet if Minerva was the jealous type, he knew for a fact he was, but she hadn't shown any jealousy traits so far. Granted, Martha had never shown the least bit interest in him so perhaps Minerva just hadn't been exposed to any jealous causing situations. But he had hurt her, with Rose for ignoring her, and then with Kaeya and his confusion, he wouldn't hurt her anymore. No more. He would always take her and her voice into consideration and he would start now.

Minerva gave him a small nod, truly wanting Astrid to accompany them, "I think she would make a fine companion."

Astrid beamed at her response, that was one down, and now for the other...

"Yeah, I'd like that, too," the Doctor agreed, also seeing in Astrid that little spark of curiosity that all his companions had.

Astrid squealed, jumping and hugging the pair, "Thank you! Thank you!"

"Alright, alright, m now let us go so we can get you out of here," the Doctor struggled to free himself from Astrid's grip.

"Right, sorry," she stepped back, sheepishly fixing her uniform, "Just excited."

The Doctor nodded and walked towards a comms nearby, the ship lurching and rocking them as he reached, "Mr Frame, you still with us?"

~ 0 ~

Midshipman Frame was at the wheel, nearly having fallen from the lurch as well, "There's nothing more I can do. We've got only eight minutes left!"

"Don't worry, I'll get there."

"The bridge is sealed off!"

~ 0 ~

"Yeah, yeah, working on it. I'll get there, Mr Frame, somehow," the Doctor left the comms and turned for the group, "Mr Copper, look after these two please," he set a hand on Minerva's shoulder, "Astrid, look after him. Rickston, um...look after yourself. And I'll see you again, promise," he pecked Minerva on the lips, moving to leave when she yanked him by his arm back to her, "Minerva, I thought we discussed-"

But she had grabbed him by his lapels and pulled him down to her level for a very large, deep kiss that left them both panting for air when they had finally pulled away from each other.

"That is what I expect as the beginning of your apology when you get back, got it Martian?" Minerva kept her arm wound his neck, refusing to let go until it was very clear.

The Doctor could only nod, for a woman who never kissed anyone she sure had some moves that left him like putty in her arms.

She smiled with satisfaction, unwinding her arm and stepping back, "You take care, okay?"

"Y-yes, I'll see you later!" he winked and ran off.

"Well, c'mon then newest box of wonders companion," Minerva swung her arm around Astrid's shoulders as they headed for the reception room.

"Box of wonders?"

"Yeah, it's my nickname for the TARDIS. It's brought me so many wonders," she sighed in content, "I'm sure it'll bring you many too."

~ 0 ~

The Doctor ran into a small kitchen where in less than two seconds he was surrounded by four Host. He grabbed a pot by the handle and was fully prepared to use it as a weapon, "Wait, wait, wait, wait! Security protocol one! Do you hear me? One! One!" he shouted and they all stopped, "Okay, that gives me three questions. Three questions to save my life, am I right?"

"Information: correct."

He frowned, "No, that wasn't one of them. I didn't mean it. That's not fair. Can I start again?"

"Information: no."

His frown turned into a pout, "No, no! No, no, no. That wasn't one either. Blimey. One question left. One question. So, you've been given orders to kill the survivors but survivors must therefore be passengers or staff, but not me. I'm not a passenger. I'm not staff. Go on, scan me. You must have bio records. No such person on board. I don't exist therefore...you can't kill me. Therefore, I'm a stowaway and stowaways should be arrested and taken to the nearest figure of authority. And I reckon the nearest figure of authority is on Deck 31. Final question: am I right?"

"Information: correct."

"Brilliant. Take me to your leader," he dropped the pan, smiling with content, "I've always wanted to say that."

~ 0 ~

The group arrived into the reception room, Astrid using the EMP to bring down the awaiting Host.

"Rickston, seal the doors, make the room secure. Mr Copper, keep an eye on the Host," Minerva instructed, Astrid give him the EMP, "Astrid, do you think you could check the computer for the SOS?"

"Who put you in charge?" Rickston frowned at the girl's authorative tone she had taken.

"When the Doctor isn't here, I''m second in command," Minerva walked over to Astrid who had slammed her fists on the computer, "What is it?"

"It's down," Astrid turned to the teleport bracelets, an idea popping into her head, "Oh..."

"Yeah, I remembered they were still up here," Minerva moved beside her.

"Should we?" Astrid asked her, unsure how she should manage this new "companionship" in the best way, "Or do we listen?"

"Astrid Peth, if there's one thing you should know about traveling with the Doctor is..." Minerva strapped on the teleport bracelet, "...never listen to what the Martian orders you to do, especially when he's your boyfriend."

~ 0 ~

The Doctor was being willingly escorted down to Deck 31, the Host storage facility. There were small structural damages and small fires, but that wasn't of concern for the Doctor yet.

"Now that is what you call a fixer-upper. Come on then, Host with the most, this ultimate authority of yours, who is it?" he asked, two doors sliding open behind him, making him turn around, "Ooh, that's clever. That's an omnistate impact chamber. Indestructible. You can survive anything in that, eh?" a small vehicle started wheeling out, "Sit through a supernova or a shipwreck. Only one person can have the power and the money to hide themselves onboard like this and I should know, 'cause..."

The vehicle was actually a giant life support system for Max Capricorn, the head of the ship and company...only he was just a head now, "My name is Max," his gold tooth glinted.

"It really does that," the Doctor paused in surprise. But he had to snap out of it fast, he had to hurry and deal with this guy so he could get back to Minerva and begin that apology...

"Who the hell is this?" Max asked.

"I'm the Doctor. Hello."

"Information: stowaway," the Host responded.

"Well..."

"Kill him," Max ordered.

"Oh, no, no! Wait, but you can't. Not now. Come on, Max...You've given me so much good material like...How to get ahead in business. See "head"? "Head in business"? No?" the Doctor was really losing it there.

"Oh, ho ho, the office joker. I like a funny man. No one's been funny with me for years."

"I can't think why..."

"176 years of running the company have taken their toll."

"Yeah, but...nice wheels," the Doctor gestured to the car, all in all it was a pretty nice thing.

"No, a life-support system in a society that despises cyborgs. I've had to hide away for years. Running the company by hologram. Host, situation report."

"Information: Titanic is still in orbit."

"Let me see," Max moved forwards and the Doctor stepped out of his way, "We should have crashed by now. What's gone wrong?" he frowned as he stared down at the running engines, "The engines are still running! They should have stopped!"

"When they do, the Earth gets roasted. I don't understand. What's the Earth got to do with it? It's got really lovely people..." the Doctor nearly pouted, how could anyone want to destroy Minerva?

"This interview is terminated."

"No, no, no, no, no, no!"

Neither of them noticed Astrid peeking around a corner. She was actually pretty nervous of what she could do down there on her own. After insisting with Midshipman Frame to get her and Minerva teleportation power to come down here, they'd only managed to get him to agree sending one of them. Minerva stated that she would come and so Astrid agreed, understanding that the brunette had someone she deeply cared for down here while Astrid really only wanted to just help. The best way to help was letting Minerva do what she wanted. Unfortunately for them both, the power had gone wrong and Astrid was sent instead, leaving a pretty peeved Minerva behind.

"Hold on! Hold on! Hold on! Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! I can work it out. It's like a task. I'm your apprentice. Just watch me," the Doctor frantically asked, the sudden death of his not a play thing anymore. He had a girlfriend to get back to, he could not just die anymore, "...Business is failing and you wreck the ship so that makes things even worse. Oh yes! No. Yes. The business isn't failing, it's failed. Past tense."

"My own board voted me out. Stabbed me in the back."

"If you had a back. So..."

Astrid moved forwards...

"You scupper the ship, wipe out any survivors in case anyone's rumbled you and the board find their shares halved in value. Oh, but that's not enough. No, 'cause if a Max Capricorn ship hits the Earth, it destroys an entire planet. Outrage back home. Scandal! The business is wiped out."

"And... the whole board thrown in jail for mass murder," Max smirked, it truly was the perfect plan.

"While you sit there, safe inside the impact chamber."

"I have men waiting to retrieve me from the ruins and enough off-world accounts to retire me to the beaches of Pentaxico Two where the ladies, so I'm told, are very fond of...metal."

"So that's the plan. A retirement plan. 2000 on this ship, 6 billion underneath us, all of them slaughtered. And why? Because Max Capricorn is a loser," the Doctor spat, angry this man was responsible for the Van Hoffs death, Bannakaffalatta's, Minerva's safety...for revenge.

"I never lose..." Max declared.

"You can't even sink the Titanic."

"Oh, but I can, Doctor. I can cancel the engines from here."

An alarm started to sound...

Engines closing.

"You can't do this!" the Doctor cried, two Host holding the Doctor by the arms and pulled him away from Max.

"Not so clever now, Doctor. A shame we couldn't work together. You're rather good. All that banter yet not a word wasted. Time for me to retire. The Titanic is falling. The sky will burn. Let the Christmas inferno commence. Oh! Oh, Host! Kill him," Max ordered, the Host not holding the Doctor removed it's halo to strike the him.

"Mr, Capricorn!" Astrid shouted, freezing everyone in their places, even the Host. She was currently in a forklift, "I resign," she started the forklift and went towards Max.

"Astrid, don't!" the Doctor struggled to stop her, the Host still holding him back

Astrid lifted the front of Capricorn"Capricorn"s life support vehicle, managing to bring up its tires. However, his rear tires still had enough traction to cause a standoff. The Host that was about to strike the Doctor threw it's halo at Astrid, missing her for a part of the forklift instead.

"He's cut the break line!" the Doctor exclaimed, but the blonde didn't listen.

She lifted the fork higher, completely lifting Capricorn off the ground, and stepped on the gas. But just as she was about to fall forwards along with the forklift and Capricorn, there was a blue light and Minerva flashed on the step of the forklift.

"What are you-" Astrid blinked, seeing Minerva's eyes completely blue for a brief second and her arms covered in bits of ice before she was yanked off the forklift, landing on the edge of the cliff.

"Minerva!" the Doctor called, completely terrified.

It all happened too fast.

Minerva looked at the Doctor, her eyes reverting to jade-green, before he could notice, her eyes watery as she knew what would happen. She tried to jump off the forklift before it fell down.

Her hands managed to grab onto the edge, "I can't...I'm slipping," she started to sniffle as she looked down to the running engines.

"No!" the Doctor tried breaking free from the Host, their leader still wasn't completely 'dead' and so his orders were still intact.

"Come up, Minerva," Astrid grunted as she tried pulling the woman up, "Come...up!"

The Doctor finally broke free from the Hosts and started running towards the women.

"See the world, Astrid," Minerva offered her a sad, teary smile.

...and then her hands slipped from Astrid's.

"NOOOOO!" the Doctor fell to his knees right beside Astrid, looking down in horror as his Minerva, his Clever Girl, his girlfriend plummeted down to her death. He had to look away, a coward he was that he couldn't dare look at his failure.

He had failed Minerva, completely failed her.

Titanic falling. Voyage terminated.

"Doctor!" Astrid shook his arm, understanding he was shocked of the death, but there was still a whole planet to save, "Please! Help us!"

No one saw a blue light rush down before Minerva actually hit the fire underneath. The clever girl faded, only the tips of her hair faintly touching the fire.

The Doctor was struggling to force himself, to remember the other 6 million people on the planet. That included Martha Jones and Minerva's grandmother...

...but Minerva...she...she was...no...NO.

"Please," Astrid begged, in tears for the loss they just witnessed, "Save us."

But the Doctor looked down the engines...there was no one anymore. Minerva had probably submerged down the raging fires...

He winced terribly at the thought...had she died before reaching the fires? Or was she being burned alive? He looked away, unable to see the place of his fail...of her death.

"Doctor!" Astrid suddenly gasped, "The bracelets! The teleportation bracelets! She had one on, and..."

He blinked...seeing where her thoughts had gone to.

"If the ship is saved then maybe a fraction of power could be left and..."

The Doctor had already bolted to his feet and ran off.

Astrid quickly jumped to her feet and ran after him.

~ 0 ~

Midshipman Frame screamed as the Doctor and Astrid literally broke through the floor of the bridge.

"Deadlock broken."

The Doctor climbed through tandem stood, Astrid struggling but eventually doing it as well.

"Ah, Midshipman Frame at last!" the Doctor greeted, for politeness reasons, but the face he wore was not the kind to greet...

"Uh, the Host!" Midshipman Frame reminded.

"Controller dead they divert to the next highest authority and that's me," the Doctor headed for the wheel.

"There's nothing we can do. There's no power. The ship's gonna fall."

"Titanic falling."

"Yeah, yeah, what's your first name?"

"Alonzo."

That actually managed to surprise him, "You're kidding me..."

Both Frame and Astrid glanced at each other, "What?" Frame asked, confused.

"That's something else I've always wanted to say...Allons-y Alonzo," the Doctor mumbled to himself, recalling Minerva's giggles at his "stupid made up word".

He had to hurry. He had to...his mind was all jumbled up and the only thing he could think of was her, the clever girl, the one who just needed to come back. And he was gonna make it so.

The ship lurching reminded him of the problem. He tried to steer as they fell straight towards the Earth's atmosphere, Frame and Astrid screaming for their lives. The ship burned as the speed ignited.

And alarm sounded and the Doctor used his foot to check, his eyes widening at the impact zone.

"Oh great..." the Doctor muttered, using his foot to dial, "Hello, yes, um...could you get me Buckingham Palace?" he paused for alarm moment until they answered, "Listen to me! Security Code 771! Now get out of there!"

~ 0 ~

The Queen of London rushed down a hallway of the Buckingham Palace, still in a dressing gown and curlers.

A footman ran beside her, carrying a corgi, "Open the door!"

~ 0 ~

The newsstand man stepped out of his Kiosk and looked up at the sky, seeing the big ship, "Don't you dare, you aliens! Don't you dare!"

~0~

Engine active. Engine active.

The Doctor pulled back on the wheel, sending Frame and Astrid back against the wall. With great strain, the Doctor regained control of the wheel, managing just by a hair you moss the Buckingham Palace. He gasped deeply, unable to believe he had actually managed to save the whole bloody planet...and fail one person, the most important person.

~ 0 ~

Outside the Buckingham Palace, the Queen was waving at the passing ship, "Thank you, Doctor! Thank you. Happy Christmas!"

~ 0 ~

Sensing they were out of trouble, Astrid and Frame let out a big relief, even managing a laugh. The Doctor, on the other hand, remained somber, steering in silence. He had to place the stupid ship on idle so he could rush back to the reception room...

~ 0 ~

"Doctor," Astrid called in a feeble voice, the man still standing at the wheel, "We did it..."

"Not the person I strive to saved," he muttered then ran like the wind to the reception room, "Rickston, sonic, NOW!" he yelled, Rickston and Mr. Copper flinching. Rickston threw the sonic over, "Mr. Copper, the teleports, have they got emergency settings?"

"I don't know. They should have," Mr. Copper looked around, seeing Astrid and Frame walk in, "Where's, um..uh..." Astrid shook her head.

"Minerva fell, Mr. Copper. She fell. What's the emergency code?"

"Uh, let me see..."

"What the hell are you doing?" Midshipman Frame asked, the Doctor working on the teleport machine like mad.

"I can bring her back."

"If a passenger has an accident on shore leave and they're still wearing their teleport, their molecules are automatically suspended and held in stasis so that we can just trigger the shift," Mr. Copper explained.

"There!" the Doctor stood and turned around, a faint glowing beginning to appear, "C'mon! C'mon! C'mon!" the glow turned blue, but nothing happened, "Only halfway there. Come on," he adjusted the inner workings of the teleport, "Feed back the molecule grid, boost it with the restoration matrix," but the teleport sparked, "No, no, no, no! Need more phase containment."

"Doctor," Astrid called, already knowing it just wouldn't work.

"No! If I can just link up the surface suspension..."

"Doctor, she's gone," Mr. Copper said, sorrow for him already bursting within.

"I just need to override the safety. I can do it!"

"Doctor, let her go."

"NO!" he yelled, making everyone jump. He kicked the teleport in frustration and turned around, showing them all he was close to tears, "I just got her and I lost her! I can't just let it go!" that was the most ridiculous thing he ever heard of, how could he let the most amazing woman go?

"But there's nothing to do," Astrid softly said, the guilt stirring inside her. Minerva was dead because of her.

"I can't do anything!" the Doctor shook his head, dropping to his knees as he stared at the blue glow across, simply light was what it was. He couldn't even bring Minerva's ghost back... "I failed her, I lost her..."

He had done everything to keep her safe, everything in his power. He sent her back to the reception room to keep her alive while he would deal with Capricorn. He promised her snicker doodles for Christmas, a big grand apology after he returned. He promised her he would be back...and she died.

She was gone.

How could he possibly move on from this? How would he explain to Martha that he had let her best friend die just hours after they had left her. How would he explain that to Isadora? He promised her he'd take care of Minerva with his life...how could he explain her death?

Astrid looked at the blue light suddenly speed out the window. She slowly approached the Doctor, cautiously placing her hand on his shoulder, making sure he wouldn't lash at her or anything. When she heard him begin to quietly weep, she dropped to his side, giving him a side hug, both mourning a good woman.

~ 0 ~

Somewhere in an open space in London, the TARDIS awaited...a faint blue glow at its top, just fading as the Doctor, Astrid, and Mr. Copper approached.

The Doctor remembered Minerva's promise to Mr. Copper to save him from jail. He couldn't let Copper go, that would be against Minerva's wishes. If he could please her in the slightest, even in her death, than he would. Astrid, having no where else to go, was brought along, but he would have to talk about their offer to bring her along the TARDIS...

Without Minerva, he just couldn't.

"So, Great Britain is part of, uh, "Europee" just across the British Channel you've got Great France and Great Germany..." Mr. Copper was explaining, really doing it to try and distract the Doctor, the man solemnly walking ahead of he and Astrid.

"No, no, it's just - it's just France and Germany. Only Britain is great..." the Doctor mumbled, barely heard by the pair.

"Oh, and they're all at war with the continent of Ham-erica?"

"No, well...not yet, uh...could argue that one," he sighed, arriving at the TARDIS, "There she is. Survive anything."

"The box of wonders," Astrid smiled at the blue box, the Doctor wincing and glancing back at her.

Those were Minerva's words...

Astrid smiled sheepishly, seeing the Doctor's remembrance, "She told me about it...the box of wonders," she walked towards the box, placing a palm on it, "She said it brought a lot of wonders to her..."

The Doctor stepped towards her, gathering the courage to let her down easily, "Astrid-"

"I don't want to come along anymore," she said quietly, seeing him blink in surprise, even Copper was a bit shocked and he didn't even understand what was fully going on, "I can't. Not, not after what happened," Astrid sighed, "She died because of me. I can't travel in this box, being happy...when this happened. I can't. I won't."

The Doctor nodded, respecting her wishes. He was secretly thankful he had declined all on her own. That was one less problem he had to deal with.

"I'll stay here, on Earth, if that's possible," she continued, walking backing to Copper.

"Just lead a quiet life, please," the Doctor said, she nodding.

"And, uh, what about me?" Mr. Copper looked between them. Astrid was young she could easily find a job, even marry a nice human man...but he, am old man, what could he do to survive?

"Give me that credit card," the Doctor held his hand out, "Take care of each other, this will be for you and her."

"But that's just petty cash, spending money. It's all done by computer. I - I didn't really know the currency so I thought a million might cover it."

"A million? Pounds?" the Doctor gaped.

"That enough for trinkets?"

"Mr Copper, a million pounds is worth 50 million credits."

"How much?" Copper and Astrid blinked, glancing at Rachel other.

"50 million and 56."

"I - We've got money!"

"Yes, you have," the Doctor handed them back the card.

"Oh my word. Oh my vot! Oh my goodness me! I – Ya-ha!"

"It's all yours - Planet Earth. Now that's a retirement plan. But just you be careful, though."

"We'll take good care of each other," Astrid assured, "He'll be like my grandfather, I'll be good to him."

"But I can have a house, a proper house, with a garden, and - and a door, and..." Copper was just too excited about all this, "Oh, Doctor, I will made you proud," he hugged the Doctor, "And - and I can have a kitchen with chairs, and windows, and lace..."

Astrid chuckled, but stopped as the Doctor turned around, unlocking the TARDIS, "Doctor..." she called, making him freeze but not turning back, "...I'm sorry, I'm really sorry. I won't ever forget Minerva, ever. She was the first, kind passenger I met...and I've worked for a very long time. She saved my life, and I couldn't save hers. That's something I can't and won't ever forgive myself for."

The Doctor nodded, glancing back to see her give him one last look before turning to Mr. Copper, both walking away.

He unlocked the door, moving to step inside...but he couldn't. He couldn't face the console, a lonely, lonely box...with Minerva's rooms, her things still there. He left the doors and walked to the lake. He stared out, the city lighted up for Christmas night. Everyone was out there, celebrating Christmas with their family, their friends, their loved ones...

He would've been celebrating as well, a new type of Christmas. One where he would kiss his girlfriend under a mistletoe, until she couldn't breathe cause of her lack of a respiratory bypass system. She would then teach him, yet again, how to bake snicker doodles, and he would make a mess again. She would kiss him, tell him it's alright then salvage a batch of cookies for them. They would eat their cookies, make some brownies and get hot chocolate...

It would've been perfect.

But he failed her.

And for some reason, his mind couldn't help but drift to last year...he should've realized from the beginning of that past year. When they lost Rose, and he realized how much he ignored Minerva, he resolved to focus entirely on Minerva and learn who she was. He didn't realize it then, their closeness, their bantering...it was because something had clicked. Something small, but that was how it started, no? He didn't want Minerva to see Leonardo Da Vinci anymore cause he claimed to her, and himself, that the man was twice her age and not good enough for her, but in reality...he might have been a little jealous. He didn't know it but his hearts did. How could he not realize his feelings for her sooner? How could he have been so stupid? He had to go and waste all that time because of his feelings for Kaeya. Minerva, she had always been there for him, even when he didn't deserve her. She always stood by him, comforted him, and was just...a best friend. He waited too long, wasted too much time, and now...now the clever girl was just gone.

And it was his fault.

He should've ran faster, faster to grab her hands and pull her up. He didn't understand what she was doing in the engines in the first place, along with Astrid. He left them both to go and deal with the problem himself. But Minerva was Minerva, and he should've known she would've tried to come and help him. He should've done something...how useless he turned out to be. He could save everyone, six billion people of a planet...and he couldn't save his girlfriend?

There was a strong glow of blue emerging behind him, cutting off his solitary thoughts. He glanced over his shoulder just as a strong, icy-cold wind picked up. He turned around to see a blue light across from him, glowing stronger with each second.

"Show yourself," he ordered, not in the mood for another enemy.

A collection of silver particles collected at the center of the light until a form, a humanoid form, began emerging. The Doctor could hear overlapping words being whispered, but he couldn't make them out.

He covered his eyes as the light became an all-time brightness, nearly blinding one. And when it disappeared...

...Minerva fell forwards, unconscious.

"Minerva!" the Doctor shouted, running over and falling to his knees beside her, lifting her body up to his lap, "Minerva!? Minerva!?" he shook her, unable to grasp what had happened.

She was freezing cold, something no human could ever withstand. He listened intently to her heart and caught a faint beating, a normal beat for a human. While he checked her over, he didn't see that same blue light reappear at the top of the TARDIS, swirling around for a second or to before racing up to the sky and beyond.

"Minerva? Minerva, please wake up," the Doctor begged, his voice breaking as the Clever Girl remained unconscious, "Please, don't go. I need you, please," he pushed strands of her hair off her face, growing frantic and desperate as her eyes stayed closed, "I promise you I'll take better care of you. You'll be my life, my everything. Stay and I'll show you how much you mean to me, please," he shook her gently.

His hearts zinged when he felt her slightly move. She quietly fussed, her eyes opening halfway, "It's cold," she mumbled, her eyes snapping shut as her head lulled to his chest.

He let out a big laugh, a big shaky laugh with tears in her eyes. She was alive. She was alive and cold, but alive. She was with him again, in his arms, breathing! He couldn't grasp that idea of it happened but that cold, prickly wind seemed familiar...

But right now, he didn't give a damn.

...she was alive!

Minerva's eyes finally opened again, feeling doozy but she supposed that was what could happen after you died and came back to life, "Hi..." she whispered.

The Doctor's eyes shimmered with tears, "Hello," he whispered.

"Is it still Christmas?" her eyes looked around, slowly realizing she was in his lap with her Christmas date dress and he in his unlucky suit.

"Just for you."

"And Astrid? Is she okay?"

"Yes, you saved her you little hero," he tapped her nose, making her smile, "You died saving her..." his own smile faded, "...you died."

"I didn't die..." she closed her eyes as she tried recalling what had happened, "...I didn't even touch the fire. There was this light...and it was cold," the Doctor nodded, knowing he'd have to look into that as well, "But I had to save Astrid. She wanted to see the world and I already saw it. There was no more power to go down, but then...a blue light..." she whispered as she remembered that right before suddenly finding herself being teleported there had been some light near.

"Don't you ever do that to me again," the Doctor begged her, resting his forehead on hers, his eyes closing as he took her in, her vanilla scent, her heart beat, her breath, her everything. She was here again and she would never leave.

"I'll try," she stared at him, feeling guilty for putting him into that state.

But she had to do it. She couldn't let Astrid die, not when the blonde wanted to see the world like she did. Astrid had to survive and if Minerva died, she died trying to save another person. She couldn't think of a better reason to die: die to help someone else.

"I swear to you, Minerva Souza, I will never let you go again," he shut his eyes hard, like he was making a wish that he hoped with all he had would come true. But he was making an important promise, a swearing, that he intended to live up to until he died, "I am going to take care of you, make you happy, give you everything you deserve."

She smiled softly, her heart, beating slower as it was, skipped a few beats and there, "My Martian..." she whispered, her hand reaching up to his cheek, "...you are incredible."

"You know what?" the Doctor's eyes opened and lowered to her lips, "You've got to let me make my apology."

She noticed where his gaze had fallen to and managed to blush through her prickly cold skin, "I've gotta apologize too..."

That was his cue and he went straight for it. He kissed her with so much emotion, so much hunger, for her. He had to show her how much she meant, even if it was too early, even if it was their first date, she died and she had to know what that caused. He lifted her up in his arms as he stood up, the kiss never breaking as he fumbled his way to the TARDIS, the doors, for once, opening with ease. They closed after them, even locking on their own as the pair headed for the console.

The Doctor set her to her feet, his arm winding around her waist, his lips still attached to hers. His free arm found the controls and started up the TARDIS. The ship lurched soothingly for the first time, now in the Vortex.

"Mm, guess what?" the Doctor pulled back only slightly as he still meant to kiss her more and more.

"What?"

"I met an Alonzo today," he informed, her eyes widening, "Mr. Frame of the ship."

"Alonsy Alonzo, hm," Minerva thought about it for a second, her hands staying put on his face, "Guess I should congratulate you for that," she pulled him back to his lips, setting soft, sweet, kisses on them, "You know what?" she mumbled against his lips.

"What?" he asked, muffled by their kisses.

"We're making out," she teased, biting back a chuckle, "My first make out."

"Hm, I just snogged the cleverest human," he smirked, kissing her a bit harder for effect.

"I'm making out with an alien," she pulled back, the thought of their different origins barely coming into mind.

"Is that a problem?" he asked with genuine nervousness.

She pretended to think hard on it, "Mm...I'm not sure...you're an alien...I'm a human..."

"Minerva..."

"Martian," she giggled again, and he sighed, "Why kiss a human when I can snog a Time Lord, ahem, Martian."

"I am not a Martian," he said tiredly. He cursed Donna Noble for giving her that name...

"Hm, I prefer Martian's to snog, perhaps I could go find one then."

He refused to let her go, "Maybe I can be a Martian for a little while."

"I thought so," she winked, resuming their snog session.

~ 0 ~

Isadora Lozano was busy baking snicker doodles for Christmas. She'd be spending it alone as her daughter was busy working and her son was some where in Switzerland apparently. There was a knock on the door, however, and she left her work to go answer the door.

She found her granddaughter, Minerva, with the Doctor...with interlaced hands. She raised her eyebrows, looking between one another. She just chuckled when they both blushed, no idea how to explain how it happened. But it wasn't a surprise, it was quite obvious, even from 1969, the Doctor's eyes glimmered each time he looked at Minerva. And Minerva, well, it was just plain obvious the moment she had returned.

"Think you can set two more plates for us, grandma?" Minerva asked.

"It would be am honor to spend Christmas with my granddaughter again, and her new boyfriend," she stepped aside and let them in.

"Merry Christmas, grandma," Minerva encased her in a big hug as soon as she had turned after closing the doors.

Minerva had died, and without saying goodbye to her grandmother. Now, she was alive, with her boyfriend and her grandmother. The Doctor figured after such an awful experience perhaps Minerva would like to spend a Christmas with her grandmother as well. He could run all those tests on her after Christmas. After the Master, Martha's departure, and the Titanic, she deserved a nice peaceful night. Minerva was completely excited to share a Christmas with him and her grandmother, claiming now she could teach him how to really bake the most delicious snicker-doodle cookies in the world with the help of the original baker, her grandmother.

#ocappreciation #doctor who #10th doctor #doctor who fics #dw fics #10th doctor imagines #10th doctor fics #dw imagine #oc: Minerva Souza #oc: Kaeya Louvier #fic: star crossed #fd: doctor who