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#and my aunt would probably keep them for herself or bin them
yaminerua · 4 months
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if my mum can be counted on for anything it’s her ability to absolutely ruin my day
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homoose · 3 years
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Love Has a Learning Curve: Part III (x reader)
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Summary: Spencer has to face Anita and Sam— and learns a little about reader’s past. Reader and Spencer babysit for Michael and Henry. 
Pairing: Spencer Reid x fem!reader
Category: fluff, a tiny smidge of hurt/comfort
Warnings/Includes: implied smut, drinking/alcohol, vague mentions of previous emotional/mental abuse (Owen)
Word count: 4.2k
a/n: This picks up right after the end of the tmsidk epilogue! I also worked two requests in here.
Series Masterlist
———
Spencer stacked the last of the tiny chairs in the center of the room, stepping back and dusting his palms on his trousers. He looked over to see Y/N playing a sort of container tetris with the bins of supplies in her closet. He smiled a little to himself, his head still in the metaphorical clouds with her confession of love. 
She maneuvered the bins to her satisfaction and shut the closet doors, pushing against them to squeeze everything in until the latch clicked. She turned to see him watching her and wiped imaginary sweat from her brow. She gave him a wink and a grin, and he was falling all over again. 
She perched on the corner of her desk with a tired sigh, and he made his way across the room to her. She reached for him as soon as he was within arms length, wrapping her arms around his middle. She snuggled into his chest, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Let’s go to dinner to celebrate.”
She laughed and looked up at him. “Celebrate what?”
He shrugged. “You. Summer.” He brought his arms around her shoulders. “Love.”
She smiled and scrunched her nose at him. “You just want me to say it again.”
His lips twitched. “Maybe.”
Her hands came to rest on his hips, her fingers squeezing lightly. “I love you.”
“I love you,” he answered immediately and rather dreamily. 
“Yo, Y/L/N!” 
The call of her name from the hallway startled them both. Anita began to step over the threshold, continuing, “You ready to get absolutely crunk tonight or— oh.” She stopped dead in her tracks, eyes tracking Spencer’s frame. “Dr. Reid.”
Spencer stepped back from Y/N, smiling a little awkwardly at the formality and giving a wave. “Mrs. Lopez. It’s, um— it’s nice to see you again.”
Anita hummed noncommittally, and Spencer shoved his hands in his pockets. She turned her attention back to Y/N. “So, are we going out or what?”
Y/N groaned. “Anita, I’m exhausted. Can we keep it low key? Oh!” Her eyes lit up with an idea, and Spencer could already see where this was going. “Spence and I were gonna get dinner to celebrate, um— summer. Call Sam; we’ll all just go together.”
Anita spared a glance in Spencer’s direction before sighing heavily. “Fine. But I’m drinking.” With that, she turned on her heel and disappeared back into the hallway.
Y/N chuckled. “I swear she’s not actually an alcoholic.” Her eyes landed on Spencer’s face, and she smiled gently. “I know you weren’t expecting a Meet the Friends night, but it’ll be fun.”
“She hates me,” Spencer surmised.
“She does not hate you.” Y/N stood from the desk, pressed a reassuring peck to his lips. “She’s just… protective. That’s all.”
Y/N was entirely wrong. Anita Lopez hated him. That was the only explanation for her absolutely icy demeanor. 
They’d met up with her and Sam at a Mexican restaurant in Tenleytown. Sam was wonderfully kind and funny, even apologizing for having “flipped him the bird” the last time she saw him. And it was a good thing Sam was being friendly, because Anita was decidedly… less so. 
Spencer understood completely of course. He’d broken Y/N’s heart. Penelope had been ready to hunt her down at the mere thought of him being hurt. As Y/N’s best friend, Anita had every right to be wary of him. She had every right to hate him. He’d just... hoped that she wouldn’t. 
Thankfully, Y/N and Sam were more than happy to carry the conversation— he and Anita chiming in here and there. He learned that Sam worked as an attorney at a firm specializing in family law. She and Anita had two kids, Riley and Sidney— one in 2nd grade and the other in preschool. 
“Y/N is still Riley’s favorite teacher ever,” Sam told him. “I mean, it helps when she’s also your aunt, I guess.”
“He didn’t get any special treatment,” Y/N insisted. At Sam’s raised eyebrow, she laughed. “Okay, maybe a little special treatment. But you raised a good kid! And I can’t help it that he was the most trustworthy of the bunch.”
“Oh my god, the field trip,” Sam groaned, rubbing a hand over her face. 
“The field trip!” Y/N turned to Spencer. “My group of kiddos from two years ago— they were kind of a tough group.”
“Kind of?” Anita squeaked. “Let me just tell you, I can hear them through the floor. The entire middle school is literally dreading the day they make it upstairs.”
Sam piped in, “I chaperoned on said field trip to the zoo. And I vowed that I will never, ever go on another field trip. Ever.”
“What happened?” Spencer asked incredulously. 
“So many things,” Sam baited. 
Y/N covered her mouth to stifle a cackle, leaning a bit into Spencer’s shoulder. He couldn’t help but smile, looking around at the three women. Even Anita was chuckling, and she’d barely cracked a smile all evening. 
“Okay, so many things happened,” Y/N started, “but the worst was—”
“The poop!” Sam wheezed. “The poop was the worst part of that day. The smell alone, oh my god.”
Y/N composed herself as best she could, gesturing over the table. “So after this nightmare of a day, we get on the bus, and there’s this— smell.”
“The absolute worst smell you’ve ever smelled, Spencer,” Sam assured. 
“It’s awful. It’s so bad,” Y/N agreed. “And I’m literally going seat to seat, checking to make sure no one has shit themselves.”
“You could not pay me enough,” Anita chimed in. 
“And I get to the seat that is very clearly where the smell is coming from. And I can’t, like— hold my nose, right? I don’t want to embarrass him!” Y/N turned to Spencer with flushed cheeks. “So I ask, ‘Sweetheart, did you have a bathroom accident?’”
Spencer let out a nervous laugh. “Oh no.” 
“But oh, it wasn’t a bathroom accident,” Y/N clarified, waving her hand. “No, no— that would be too easy. This child had somehow managed to obtain copious amounts of poop from one of the zoo animals and packed it into his lunchbox to take home.”
Spencer could feel his jaw drop. “Oh my god.”
“So, he unzips his lunchbox and it’s just— overflowing with shit.” Y/N dropped her head into her hands, overcome with giggles. 
“And don’t forget the worst part: his mom was on the field trip!” Sam lamented, throwing her hands up. “I will never understand.”
Y/N lifted her head with an exasperated grin, and he wasn’t sure if it was the story or the fact that she loved him, but Spencer felt like he could float away into outer space. 
“I told you I had a lot of poop stories,” Y/N reminded him, drawing another round of laughs. As they composed themselves, the waiter came by their table to clear some of their plates and refill their water.
“God, I said we were keeping it low key, and then I drank half a pitcher,” Y/N complained, pushing back from the table. “I’m just gonna go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” 
She gave Spencer a reassuring smile, and he tried not to panic as she stood and left him with Sam and Anita. And because the universe was toying with him, at that exact moment, Sam’s phone began to ring. She pulled it from her pocket with a sigh. 
“Shit— I’ve been waiting on this call all day.” She kissed Anita’s cheek and stood from the table. “So sorry; I’ll just be five minutes, I promise.”
With that, it was just the two of them, staring intently at their water glasses. Spencer was certain he should say something, but he wasn’t sure what. Anita broke the silence first. 
“You know what’s annoying?”
Spencer wasn’t sure he wanted to know. “Considering that the issues one might classify as an annoyance vary for each individual person, there are over seven billion potential answers to that question.”
Anita tilted her head with an unimpressed purse of her lips. Spencer hedged, “And I understand now that it was probably rhetorical.”
“I actually kind of like you.” She leaned across the table with an irritated sigh. “I wanted to hate you, but I don’t.”
He cleared his throat. “Well, I’m, um— I’m glad to hear that.”
“You’re good for her. Smart, humble, kind. Enamored with her, as you should be,” she deadpanned. She dropped her chin into her hand. “Almost as hot as she is.”
He laughed a little at that. “Thank you?”
“You’re welcome.” She dropped her hand back to the table. She still didn’t crack a smile, and her gaze bore into him. “I don’t know how much you know about Owen, and she’d probably kill me for saying anything. But he was a real piece of shit.”
This was not the direction he thought this conversation would take. He didn’t know anything about Owen; he’d tried not to think too much about anyone Y/N might have been with before him. 
“It didn’t start out that way.” She drew her brows together. “Well, I don’t know— maybe he was always an asshole, and he was just good at hiding it.”
She shook her head and leaned back in her chair. “The point is, I didn’t know he was treating her like garbage until it was too late. He was already all…” She gestured wildly around her head. “In her head, telling her lies about herself, fucking her up, isolating her. For years he did that. And then it took her years to get him out of her head. To— unlearn all the lies. To build herself back up.” 
He could see her grinding her teeth, trying to calm down. He was intensely grateful to not be on the receiving end of Anita’s wrath. He was also immensely glad that Y/N had a friend like that. And his blood absolutely boiled at the thought of her ever feeling anything less than adored. 
“You’re a fed or whatever, so I shouldn’t be telling you this,” she continued, “but I would love nothing more than to put that fucker six feet under.” She ran her hand through her hair, and when she continued her voice was the quietest he’d ever heard it. “All that to say, I… I wasn’t there for her when Owen was destroying her from the inside out. And I will never let that happen again.” 
Anita locked eyes with him and her voice was resolved. “I like you, Spencer. And I want to keep it that way. So, just— don’t give me a reason not to.”
She didn’t drop her gaze, and he couldn’t quite think of the appropriate response. He opened his mouth, and then closed it again. His brain was still fixated on the idea that anyone had ever hurt the loveliest and kindest woman he’d ever met.
“Where’s Sam?” Spencer turned just as Y/N slid back into the chair beside him, a comforting hand coming to rest on his knee. 
“Some bullshit from the office that her idiot partner can’t handle.” Anita raised her eyebrows at Spencer, and he nodded minutely. She shifted her gaze back to Y/N with a grin. “Don’t worry. I didn’t scare him too much.”
“Easy.” Spencer steadied Y/N with a hand on her waist as they made the way up the stairs to his apartment. 
“Jesus, I’m so sorry. I just— really can’t drink like I used to.” She clutched a little at the railing, and he held his breath until they were at the top of the stairs. 
He slipped an arm back around her waist as they crossed to his apartment door, fumbling with his keys and fighting back a shiver as she snuggled close and ran her hand low over his tummy. 
“Can’t believe I’m tipsy from a couple margaritas.”
“To be fair, you had four,” he chuckled, turning the key and pushing open the door. 
“Okay, okay,” she relented. “But I used to be able to have a whole pitcher and be totally fine.”
“A pitcher?” Spencer laughed as he locked the door and turned to face her. “I can’t even have one without being completely incapacitated.”
She ran her hands up from his waistband, over his chest, and wrapped them around his neck. “Mmm, so you’re a lightweight.”
“Very much so,” he confirmed, bringing his hands to her hips. 
“Just one more sweet thing to love about you, sugar.” 
He couldn’t stop the smile from stretching across his face at the endearment, the way that North Carolina dripped syrupy and thick over every syllable. She pulled him down to meet her in a sweet kiss, quickly deepening it as he dug his fingers into the softness of her hips. Her hands wound into his hair, tugging lightly and holding him close. 
He broke away to rest his forehead against hers and catch his breath. She laced their fingers together and leaned on him while she kicked off her shoes. He toed his own off and then allowed her to lead him toward his bedroom. 
She sat him down on the edge of the bed and straddled his lap, bringing her hands up to tangle in his curls once again. 
Before she could lean in for another kiss, he murmured, “I’ve been thinking.”
“Sounds dangerous,” she teased, ghosting her lips over his.
“Ha, ha.” Part of him wanted to bring up Owen, but she was so happy and warm and comfortable in this moment. He didn’t want to ruin this night of celebration. He didn’t want to ruin this day that had been so full of love. They had plenty of time to discuss Owen. 
He wrapped his arms around her middle. “You’ve met Penelope. I’ve met Anita. Now that the school year is over… we could tell Michael.”
She pulled back, and the smile she gave him could only be described as radiant, and he knew he made the right decision. “He’s gonna lose his mind.”
A week later, the pair of them were strolling up the sidewalk to the LaMontagne house. Will and JJ were long overdue for a date night, and Spencer had jumped at the opportunity for the two of them to babysit. When they reached the door, Spencer rang the bell and Y/N waited slightly behind him. 
They could hear the joy from behind the door before it even opened, Michael’s high pitched giggle and Will’s booming laugh. Spencer was already leaning down in preparation, and Michael absolutely launched into his arms as soon as the door swung open. Spencer clocked the moment that Michael spotted her, purely because he practically squealed and squirmed right out of Spencer’s grip. 
“I knew it!” Michael cried. 
He wrapped himself around Y/N’s legs and squeezed tightly, and she rubbed a hand over his hair with a bewildered smile. Michael broke away to turn back to Will with a grin. “I told you.”
“You did, buddy.” Will gave Spencer a lopsided smile as Michael tugged Y/N forward by the hand. “Michael had an… inklin’ that uncle Spencer might be friends with Ms. Y/L/N.”
“Not friends, Daddy,” Michael said exasperatedly. “He’s her boyfriend.”
“Oh, excuse me, sorry.” Will held his hands up in apology as he stepped aside to let them all in the door. “Michael had a feelin’ that uncle Spencer might be Ms. Y/L/N’s boyfriend.”
Y/N’s cheeks had turned a very pretty shade of pink. “What— um, what made you think that?” 
Michael waited patiently for her to take off her shoes. “Well firstly, he started picking me up all the time, which was nice but weird. And then he wouldn’t stop asking about you. It was kind of annoying.” Spencer made a choking sound, and Will stifled a laugh. 
“You guys wear the same shoes, and you both love Halloween and tea and reading. I knew you’d like him if he could be a guest reader.” As he led her into the living room, Michael continued, “Oh, and you wore his purple scarf. He doesn’t let anyone wear the purple scarf.”
Spencer vividly remembered that morning— she’d slept over after a midweek date night in April. The temperatures in DC had plummeted overnight, and the outfit she’d brought left her woefully under-dressed for the chilly spring day. He’d wrapped her up in the soft, purple scarf without a second thought. 
She caught his eye with a shrug, and Will tried not to look too smug. Spencer watched her be dragged further into the house, turning to Will with a sheepish smile.
“Well, guess I can’t take all the credit,” Will decided. “Who knew we had a mini matchmaker this whole time?”
Spencer huffed out a laugh as Michael pulled Y/N into the playroom. “This is the best,” Michael sighed. “Now we can play restaurant forever.”
Spencer pulled his legs up in the tiny chair, resting his elbows on his knees and taking a moment to watch the scene in front of him unfold. Usually on nights like this, Michael ran him ragged with demands for magic tricks, story time, and playing pretend. Tonight, he’d actually been able to catch up with middle school (middle school!) Henry, because Michael was totally and completely enthralled by Y/N. 
She was helping with the last of the setup for the “restaurant,” organizing Michael’s menus and straightening his clip-on tie. Of course he’d seen her with kids before. But something about being in this playroom— one that he’d spent so many hours in, watching two of his favorite kids grow up— had him feeling warm from head to toe. 
Henry had bounded down the stairs at the news that uncle Spencer was dating his former kindergarten teacher. He hadn’t realized that she’d taught Henry, too, although with the timeline of her teaching career he should have put two and two together. The generally reserved middle schooler had positively beamed when she gasped out, “Gosh, I always forget how tall you’ve gotten!”
And now three of his absolute favorite humans were in one room, and he couldn’t stop smiling. 
“Hen!” Michael called. 
Henry turned from his spot in the chair across from Spencer. “What?”
“You’re the chef,” Michael informed him. 
Y/N tilted her head. “I thought I was the chef?”
“No, no, no.” Michael pushed her toward the kid-sized table. “You and uncle Spencer are on a fancy date.”
Henry rolled his eyes playfully and stood from the chair, pulling it out for her like a perfect gentleman. She beamed at him and gave him a wink. “Thank you, sir.”
She dropped lightly into the chair across from Spencer and laughed a little at his folded limbs. “You look very comfortable.” 
He laughed and stretched his legs out straight. “The picture of comfort, really. These chairs were clearly designed with six foot men in mind.”
“I’m sorry I’m so under-dressed for our fancy dinner date,” she teased, dropping her chin into her hand. 
“You look stunning, as always.” He gestured to the messy braid Michael had folded her hair into. “I especially love what you’re doing with your hair.”
She sucked in a dramatic breath, bringing up her hand to pat lightly at her hair. “You’re making me blush, doctor.” She peeked behind her and then lowered her voice. “I’m probably going to cry when I try to brush the rats out.” 
He looked at her sympathetically. “I know the feeling. I think I’ve got a wide tooth comb, and I can help. I’ve gotten pretty good at detangling Michael’s handiwork.”
Before she could respond, Michael made his way to the table, holding a dish towel over his arm. “Good evening, sir, madam.” 
“Good evening,” they chorused, with barely suppressed grins. 
“Compliments of the chef.” Michael held out his hand to reveal two slightly smushed strawberries.
“Oh, wow,” Y/N said, eyes wide and gesturing to Spencer. “Honey, do you want to—”
Spencer waved his hand, eyeing the berries warily. “No, no, please, help yourself.”
Y/N held back a smile and accepted the strawberries, holding them carefully in her hand and turning her attention back to Michael. “Thank you so much. What a wonderful appetizer. Could we hear the specials?”
That helped Michael remember the menus, and he pulled them from his pocket and cleared his throat. He handed them the construction paper menus. “Our specials tonight are roasted octopus and a steak tartar.”
From the kitchen, Henry mumbled, “Tartare.” 
“Tartare. Steak tartare is our special,” Michael corrected. 
“Hmm, I don’t know if I’m that adventurous. Maybe my boyfriend is though,” Y/N told a grinning Michael. “What do you recommend for a picky eater?”
“My favorite is the chicken nuggets.”
“Well then, sign me up. One order of chicken nuggets.” Y/N handed him the menu. 
Spencer was still perusing the menu for Le Chateau LaMontagne. He smiled at Michael’s handwriting, but particularly at the places where he could tell Y/N had helped. “Everything looks delicious,” he finally decided, “but, you know... I think I’m also going to have the nuggets.”
When the boys were finally in bed, Spencer and Y/N settled down in the living room to untangle the mess of her hair. She sat on the floor in between his legs as he gently pulled each braid strand free. He smiled at the way she arched up into his touch, shivering when his fingers brushed over her neck. 
“You’re lucky,” he remarked, laying the last braid strand back into its original place. “Michael seems to have gotten a little better at braiding.”
She leaned her head back into his hands. “You detangled the whole thing?”
“Mmhm.” He leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead, then her nose, then her mouth. She brought her hands up to hold him against her, trying to deepen the kiss before laughing at the awkward angle and giving up. 
He sat up as she stood and moved to the couch, snuggling up close to him and tucking herself under his arm. “I’m very lucky,” she agreed. “For many reasons.”
Her hand drifted to rest on his tummy, her fingers immediately tracing little shapes over the fabric of his shirt. He pressed a kiss into her hair. “And tired, too.”
“Hmm?” 
He leaned his cheek against her head. “When you get tired, you, um— you start drawing on my stomach.” 
Her finger paused. “Do I?”
“Yeah.” She shifted to raise her head to look at him, and he shrugged. “I don’t mind. I’ve just— noticed.”
She smiled a little sleepily. “You know I love all of you. But I— well, I don’t know, really. I just like your tummy.” She gave it a quick squeeze. “It’s just— nice and comfy and perfect for resting on.” 
He covered her hand with his own and leaned forward to press their mouths together. She drew his bottom lip in between her own, sucking a little and then giving it a quick peck before pulling back and stifling a yawn into his chest. “Man, I am tired.” She snuggled back into him and resumed her tummy tracing. “What, um— what else have you noticed?”
He rubbed his hand down her arm and pulled her impossibly closer. “You like to play with my hair.”
“Mmmm, guilty as charged.”
He smiled at the sleep creeping into her voice. “I like it, too.” He ran his fingers up to her shoulder, and then back down to the crook of her arm, soothing her closer to sleep. “Hmmmm. You always have at least one point of contact on my body at all times. It’s usually your hands, but sometimes it’s your head or even your toes— like when you tuck them under my leg.”
“Ugh— I’m sorry. Clingy and putting my feet on you,” she mumbled.
She might have been joking, but Anita’s words were replaying in his head. He couldn’t change what had happened in the past. He couldn’t go back and prevent her from being hurt by someone else. But he could be different in every way. He could be open and honest and vulnerable with her like he’d promised. 
“I’m not sorry. I love all of you,” he murmured, pulling her in closer and repeating her words back to her. 
“Even my feet?” 
He could also show her that there was absolutely nothing that he didn’t love about her. “Especially your feet.”
She huffed a sigh into his chest. “Y’got a foot thing I don’t know about?”
He laughed a little at that. “Only for yours. They’re very cute feet.”
“You’re weird,” she muttered, but she hugged him tighter when she said it.
“You love it.”
Her fingers on his tummy had come to rest comfortably just above his waistband, and he knew she was on the very edge of sleep. “Mmhm. Love you.”
He thought of all the little moments over the past few months.
Doesn’t live up to expectations? Sorry for overstepping. Are we dating? Sorry for being clingy. Sorry for taking so long to tell you. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry.
“I love you, too,” he murmured. “So much.”
———
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lettheladylead · 3 years
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Not Your Aunt
Chapter 7: Huey [ao3 link]
It’d been two days since her chat with Dewey and Goldie found herself still in Scrooge’s home. Normally she would’ve left the morning after her little visit, but he’d been so busy with all of his family’s craziness that they hadn’t really had a chance to talk yet. Donald had apparently just left on a trip with his girlfriend and some clone children and everyone was adjusting to all the news and everything they’d been through.
So Goldie figured she would just...wait around. She’d informed the necessary people that she was alive, shockingly, after being missing for a few weeks, so she could take a few more days to herself. And it wasn’t like Scrooge didn’t know she was there; she’d still spent both nights in his bed, but he’d been falling asleep pretty quickly and getting up early and this whole situation they were in felt disturbingly domestic. She’d probably need to leave sooner or later, before anyone started to think she was moving in.
At that particular moment, Goldie was situated on the living room couch, wearing a tank top and sweatpants and flipping through the channels on the TV without much thought. Scrooge was at another meeting at the Money Bin and if she didn’t know any better she’d almost think he was avoiding her with all of his late night meetings. Actually, she didn’t really know better, since this was kind of a new situation for them, but...well...what was she supposed to do about it? Go with him? That sounded terribly boring.
A home redecorating show she liked came on and Goldie decided to forget everything else and just sit back and try to enjoy it. Overthinking things with Scrooge never worked out well for her. It was one of many reasons why after over a hundred years, she felt out of place just sitting in his home without him.
The pitter patter of tiny feet coming her way didn’t ease that feeling at all, either.
She glanced to the right as the other triplet - Huey, she was confident she had that right - picked himself up and plopped himself on the couch next to her. She’d never had a single conversation with this child, but she’d stolen from him and knew he kept a ridiculous number of things hidden under his tiny little hat. It was fascinating. But otherwise she didn’t know much about him or why he would be attempting to interact with her.
“I’d like to go over some scheduling issues,” he said suddenly, pulling a notebook and a pen out from under his hat.
Goldie glanced around the room briefly and then back at him. “...with me?”
“Yes,” Huey responded matter-of-factly. “If you’re going to be staying here for a while or living here or whatever’s happening with you, ideally I’d love to add you to the shared family calendar.”
“...what?”
“...but assuming you’re just here for a few days and then coming and going at your leisure, just knowing ahead of time when you and Uncle Scrooge are having your date nights would be perfect.” He took notes while he was talking, as if Goldie had given him even a single answer. “I like to know where he is in case we need him for anything. I’m sure you understand.”
“I, uh…” Goldie took a moment to go over everything he said and quickly shook her head. “Your uncle and I do not have ‘date nights’.”
“Well maybe not this time around since he’s been so busy, but isn’t that the plan?” Huey asked genuinely, still taking notes on who-knew-what. “Once he’s free I assume you’ll get dinner and have a talk about your relationship and our family. And other adult date stuff.”
Goldie responded to that with the most neutral, unemotional stare that Huey had ever received. She took the remote and muted the television before turning her whole body towards the nosy child next to her, lifting her feet up onto the couch. “And why exactly do you assume that?”
Huey tilted his head at her. “Oh...sorry, isn’t that right? Dewey said you’d been wandering around waiting to talk to Uncle Scrooge so that’s just the conclusion I drew. Plus you’re...y’know, still here even though he’s not. And you’re not stealing anything.”
“I have other hobbies.”
He pointed to the TV with his pen. “Like the Property Brothers?”
Goldie glanced at the screen and then back at the kid. “Even if, hypothetically, you were right about all of that, I am absolutely not ever joining your family calendar.”
Huey shook his head. “I don’t know why you’d say that like it’s a bad thing. Don’t you want to be organized?”
“I’m plenty organized by myself.”
“But if you were synced with us, then you’d know when Uncle Scrooge or Louie is available to spend time with.”
Goldie paused for a moment and stared at him. She’d barely spoken to her favorite of Della’s kids since arriving at the house and having him brought up felt like some kind of dig. She wasn’t sure how to respond to it without getting defensive and she wasn’t even sure what she’d be getting defensive about. “...I prefer the element of surprise. Keeps the boys on their toes.”
Huey shook his head and shrugged. “So how long are you staying here? Can I at least know that?”
“I’m not really sure,” Goldie answered, leaning fully against the back of the couch. It was pretty comfy. “Not too long. I’ve got other places to be.”
“...extremely vague and unhelpful,” Huey mumbled, jotting something down in his notebook. “You and Uncle Scrooge are quite the pair.”
Goldie only responded to that with a short hum, grabbing the remote to get back to her show.
“Can I ask you something else?”
She sighed and put the remote back down. “It’s not like I can stop you.”
Huey turned his body fully towards her, one leg up on the couch and one still dangling. “Well...if I’m making you really uncomfortable or anything, I can stop.”
Goldie raised an eyebrow at him, surprised by the suggestion, but quickly waved it off. “What’s your question?”
“Are you planning on marrying Uncle Scrooge?”
If she’d been drinking anything, she would’ve spit it out at that moment. Goldie could say with absolute certainty that she did not see that question coming. “What could I have possibly said to make you think that?”
“Not you,” Huey said earnestly. “I just noticed that everyone seems to call you Aunt Goldie and I remember in one of Uncle Scrooge’s journals he wrote about marriage when he wrote about you so I assumed you two have had a conversation about it at least once or twice. Right?”
Goldie’s eyes widened and she felt heat rising in her chest that she couldn’t explain away as simple heartburn. She hoped her face wasn’t red to match, because this kid was clearly observant and blunt and she didn’t need the whole family thinking she wanted to get married and move in. “I, uh…” Goldie cleared her throat awkwardly. “...no, it’s not something we’ve really talked about.”
Huey looked at her in confusion. “Not really or not at all?”
She grimaced and sighed and moved her hands around her face as she tried to put her thoughts together. “It’s not...I mean, it’s not never come up, it’s just...it’s complicated. It’d be hard to explain.”
“Try me.”
Goldie frowned and barely stopped herself from glaring at him. “...y’know what, if your uncle is the one writing Goldie McDuck in little hearts all over his workbooks, maybe you should talk to him about it, hm?”
Huey blinked up at her. “I guess I can do that. He’s just always very secretive when it comes to you.”
That got her attention a little more than it should’ve. Goldie sighed internally and didn’t bother trying to stop herself. “...what do you mean by that?”
“Well, like…” Huey moved so both of his legs were dangling again and he could swing them around. “I love romance a lot. I love to read about it and watch romantic movies...my friend Fenton and his girlfriend Gandra are so sweet together and Uncle Donald and his girlfriend are also really sweet together and I really love that for both of them. But then you and Uncle Scrooge seem like you’re happy sometimes but then when I ask him about you he gets all grumbly and doesn’t answer my questions, so that’s not a good sign. But I’m really curious about it because I know there’s all different types of romance out there and I don’t even know how the two of you met.”
Goldie hummed quietly and stared at the wall over the TV, considering her response. She definitely wouldn’t describe her and Scrooge’s relationship as ‘sweet,’ but she’d never tried to sum it up into one word before. “...the way we met is also very...complicated.”
“It seems like everything about you two is complicated.”
“That’s putting it lightly,” she said with a short, quiet laugh. “I do love your uncle, but it’s just-...!”
Huey gasped, and Goldie froze at the realization of what she’d just said. She stared directly at Huey who looked more excited than he’d been for any of the rest of their conversation. He was suddenly fully engaged thanks to her accidental use of the l-word. She glanced away from him and hoped she could stumble over that, but she’d paused for too long for them to simply move past it.
It wasn’t like she’d never said it before, but absolutely never to someone in his family. That would be...too much.
“You do?!” Huey asked - his notepad down and leaning towards her and putting his hands on his cheeks. “Does Uncle Scrooge know? Has he said it too? That’s so romantic!”
Goldie groaned and looked back at the TV, only to see the couple fixing up their house snuggling on the camera. “I mean, look. We’ve been...well, it’s been over a hundred years, so yeah these things are bound to be said at some point-”
Huey let out a tiny, adorable little squeal that Goldie refused to find endearing.
“Alright, I’ve changed my mind!” Huey announced, grabbing his pen and notepad again. “I’m completely fine to call you Aunt Goldie!”
“Wait, what?” Goldie stared at him, feeling very confused like she’d missed a whole big part of their conversation. “You know we’re still not getting married, right?”
“Well, Aunt Goldie,” Huey said with a smirk. “I now know that you’re mutually in love and probably have been for a very long time, so whether you want to be or not, that means you’re part of the family!”
She sighed and lightly scratched her neck.
“Do you have any other family?”
Goldie looked surprised at the sudden question, not expecting this child to suddenly change conversation topics like his brother. “...no, I don’t.”
“Oh,” Huey responded, looking a little sad. “Did they...I mean, you’re as old as Uncle Scrooge, right? So they’re...uh…”
“Dead, yeah,” Goldie said with a shrug.
“I’m sorry!” Huey looked down at his hands. “I shouldn’t have asked.”
She watched him look like he was about to go into some shame spiral and Goldie quickly reached out a hand and plopped it on his head. “Don’t worry about it, it was a long time ago. And we were never close to begin with,” she added with another shrug.
Huey glanced back up at her, blushing a bit from the unexpected physical affection. “Does that mean you never introduced them to Uncle Scrooge?”
Goldie couldn’t stop herself and let out a short laugh, moving her hand from Huey’s head to cover her beak. “Sorry, sorry,” she mumbled as she collected herself. “No, God no, absolutely not.”
He moved his hat back to the position he preferred it in. “Have you met Uncle Scrooge’s parents?”
“Ah...sort of-” Goldie started, but suddenly she froze. She thought about his line of questioning for a second before turning to glare at Huey completely. “What are you writing?”
Huey looked up from his notebook and let out a small chirp as he noticed Goldie’s expression. “Um...I’m just taking notes…”
“Taking notes about what?” Goldie asked as she reached out and grabbed the notebook away from him. Huey struggled to grab it back but Goldie held him down with her other hand.
She scanned over the open page and saw that he’d written notes on all the information she’d given him (about herself, about her and Scrooge’s relationship) and her tone of voice and expression when talking about them. She flipped to another page to see similar notes and rolled her eyes before throwing the notepad back at Huey.
Huey caught it and did his best to avoid her gaze.
“Should I even ask?”
He shoved the notepad and pen under his hat again and rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you.”
Goldie pinched the bridge of her beak. “I’m not upset, I’m just confused. Did Scrooge tell you to come talk to me?”
“Huh?” Huey mirrored her confusion. “No, of course not! It was nothing like that!”
“Then…?”
He sighed awkwardly. “Dewey said he got an interview with you and I didn’t believe him and then we got into an argument about it and he said he had the best interviewing skills in the family, but I’m the one with the Interviewing Badge which I’ve had for several years so I wanted to...prove him wrong, I guess.” Huey covered his eyes with his hands and sighed. “Ugh, this is so stupid. I’m really sorry.”
Goldie raised an eyebrow and reached over to tug his hands away from his eyes. “Kid, it’s fine. I can always understand the urge to prove you’re better than someone else,” she said with a smirk.
Huey looked at her for a few moments before smiling. “So it’s okay if I show this to Dewey?”
She glanced at his hat and then back down at his eyes, which were sparkling and genuine and he was just a very cute kid and Goldie hated how that seemed to be something that affected her these days. She held back a sigh and let go of his arms. “Yeah, it’s fine. It’s not like I said anything that’s a secret.”
“Thank you, Aunt Goldie!” Huey said happily right before he jumped forward and wrapped his arms around her neck.
Goldie let out a surprised OOF! and didn’t hug back, just stared off towards the wall on the other side of the room.
Huey moved back away from her and kept smiling. “Louie’s right, you’re a lot nicer than Uncle Scrooge says you are!” he said as he hopped off the couch. “Thanks for talking to me! I hope you didn’t miss anything important on your show.”
“...nothing important ever happens on this show,” Goldie mumbled as Huey waddled away - probably towards the boys’ shared bedroom. She frowned and tried to will away the blush on her cheeks from the light physical affection. It was disturbing to her how much a little hand-hold or a hug made her feel like she had butterflies in her stomach. It was more than disturbing! She was practically going soft.
She sighed and thought about what Huey said before he left. Maybe she needed to have a chat with Sharpie.
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rubysunnday · 4 years
Text
No. Six
A/N: i actually wrote something, bloody hell (no, this isn’t Umbrella Academy despite what the title says)
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Growing up in Birmingham wasn’t pretty.
Literally and figuratively.
Growing up in a family of six was even worse.
Over her nineteen years of being alive, Y/N Shelby had often wondered who or what she’d wronged in a past life to deserve being the youngest of a family of idiots. When Polly used to make her go to church on Sunday – something she’d stopped doing as soon as she could because if God was real, why was the world so shite? – she often silently asked what she’d done wrong and how she could fix it.
It wasn’t that she didn’t like her family – love was a very strong word, one that wasn’t said… at all, really – they just drove her up the wall.
Ada was the one sibling who rarely managed to annoy her - the two only succeeding in driving each other insane twice and, even then, it wasn’t for long.
Her twin brother, Finn (who was only ten minutes older but seemed to think he was a whole year older), was the main culprit behind her exasperation. He wasn’t the brightest tool in the toolbox and it often led Y/N to wonder how on earth he’d survived nineteen years on the planet without even coming close to dying.
“I didn’t mean to stab myself,” Finn muttered as Ada prodded the stab wound, he’d somehow given himself whilst chopping carrots. “I thought it was the carrot.”
“Well, they do have a similar resemblance,” Y/N replied. She was sitting on the kitchen table, legs swinging back and forth, as she tried not to enjoy her brother’s pain too much.
Finn turned his head to glare at her sister, regretting it almost instantly when he accidentally looked at his very bloody hand. “Oh, fuck.”
Arthur sighed and handed Finn a bucket, begrudgingly rubbing his back as he threw up. “Alright, you’re fine.”
“Somewhere out there a tree is working very hard to replace the oxygen you consume,” Y/N said, scooting across the table, away from Finn. “Now go apologise to it.”
“You’re one too talk,” Finn groaned, head in the bucket.
“Finn, love, everything that comes out of my mouth is pure gold,” Y/N replied, picking up a piece of chicken from the plate next to her. “You lot just never fucking listen.”
“Y/N, you’re not helping,” Ada snapped, taking a moment to glare at her sister.
Y/N licked her fingers and sighed. “I know… I’ve just got nothing better to do than annoy you lot.”
When Finn wasn’t causing complete havoc in the household, it was usually John.
Despite being married – twice – and a father to far, far too many children, John still acted as if he was a child. Y/N had lost count of the amount of times she’d been woken up by John falling down the stairs because he was too drunk to remember that they went around a corner.
Out of all four of her brothers, however, John was – not that she would ever admit aloud to anyone – her favourite. He always seemed to know when she needed cheering up or when she need someone to take her mind of things.
As a rule, the Shelby’s were not a very affectionate family, but John was the exception to that rule. He gave the best hugs – the one’s that could almost piece every broken part of you back together again – and he wasn’t afraid to show his soft side to his siblings.
That didn’t stop him from being a complete twat, however.
“I was going to ask how, but then I remembered I don’t care,” Y/N said, frowning at John who had, somehow, managed to get his car wedged between a wall and tree.
John sighed, hanging his head. “Y/N, for once in your fucking life, can you just help and not make a sarcastic comment?”
“John, you’re the one who taught me to be that way,” Y/N replied, jumping down from her car and walking over to him. “Besides, what exactly do you want me to do about it?”
“I don’t know!” John yelled, throwing his hands up. “Fucking fix it?”
Y/N sighed, leaning on the bonnet of her car, crossing her arms. “Have you tried pushing it out?”
“Yes.”
“Driving it forward?”
“Yes.”
“Moved the branches?”
“Yes.”
“Have you tried reversing it out?”
John paused, frowning slightly. “Ah, fucking hell.”
“You’re welcome,” Y/N called, jumping back into her car. She reversed it back far enough for John to reverse his car out – albeit with a lot of screeching and swearing from both him and the car.
Tommy and Arthur never, usually, caused an issue.
Well, for Y/N, anyway.
The age gap between her and her two oldest brothers meant they’d never really gotten close or had a chance to actually be siblings. Y/N rarely talked to them since neither one was around much, both off running the company.
She saw more of Arthur than she did Tommy. She normally saw him at the Garrison when she was working – because god forbid a woman who wasn’t married be allowed to work for the Shelby Company – and she was often the one to kick him out and send him home.
Arthur was more of a parental figure in her life than a brother. Y/N didn’t remember her mother and had no recollection of their father ever being in their lives – all she remember was Arthur being the one to look out for her.
“Evening,” Y/N said as Arthur sat down at the bar, taking his hat off and burying his head in his hands.
“Mmhm,” Arthur muttered, his head dropping onto the counter with a loud thud.
Y/N turned around, setting aside the glasses she was drying, and grabbed a fresh bottle of whiskey and two glass. She placed them down and poured the whiskey out.
“On the house,” Y/N said, sliding the glass over to her brother. “Well, since you own it, it’s your own shit so who cares.”
She reached over and clinked her glass with his as Arthur looked up at her, a puzzled expression on his face. Y/N looked at him and raised an eyebrow as she swallowed the sip of whiskey she’d taken.
“Oh, what?” Y/N asked, knowing the look on her brother’s face never meant anything good.
“You’re not usually this nice,” Arthur said, picking up his glass.
“Well, I am to Polly and Ada.”
“My fucking point.”
Y/N smiled, chuckling as she finished her drink. “Well, being the youngest of six does mean all concept of ‘nice’ goes out the fucking window.”
Arthur chuckled, shaking his head as he downed his drink in one, slamming the glass back on to the table. “You know, it’s still weird seeing you in here, working… living. I keep thinking you should be back at the house, in bed or getting ready for school. Yet, here you are, wearing John’s old shirt and trousers –“
“Nah, this is your shirt,” Y/N corrected.
Despite what many people thought, Y/N wasn’t opposed to the skirts and dresses her aunt and sister wore. She just didn’t like them as much. It made running and breaking up bar fights considerably harder.
Y/N had realised that Tommy and Arthur never really bothered to mend the shirts and trousers that got holes in them. They just threw them out because they had the money to just buy new ones. Y/N – who had never quite gotten to grips with the fact they had money now – always rescued the clothes from the bin or pile of scraps and mended them enough to let her wear them.
They were always far too big, but she just rolled the waist band up or wore a belt with them and it tended to do the job.
Y/N slid the bottle of whiskey over to Arthur and nudged his hand. “Don’t seem so surprised. I never quite got over the fact we don’t have to be frugal anymore, so I took your old clothes – and Tommy’s, too – and mended them up and wore them myself. Besides, I look a lot hotter in these than I do a dress. I think it’s the waist band, it does wonders for my hips.”
Arthur scoffed, shaking his head as he poured himself another dink. “Y/N Shelby, you are a fucking wonder to me.”
“Why, because I’m nothing like you or Tommy?” Y/N asked, drying another glass. “You don’t see it, Arthur, but I’m a lot more like the both of you than you think. I can just hide my hatred of the world.”
Tommy was, if Y/N had to say, the sibling she had the worse relationship with. Over the years she’d realised that she was far too like her brother for them to ever get along because Tommy just constantly saw himself in her. She would’ve loved to have a better relationship with him – she was always envious of how close Ada was with him – but eventually just realised it would never happen.
Because Y/N was the spitting image of her brother, she just hid it all better.
The one and only time Y/N and Tommy had a meaningful sibling moment that didn’t involve yelling and screaming at one another was shortly after Grace had died. Y/N hadn’t seen him in weeks – he’d disappeared off the face of the earth entirely without a word – but she’d found him one night, sitting on a hill, by himself.
She’d been out riding, gotten lost and – long story short – had somehow found herself at Tommy’s house despite starting out over ten miles away.
Tommy had looked up as she rode up to him and had frowned slightly, looking around to check that it was, indeed, night time.
“What the hell are you doing here?” He asked as she walked up to him.
Y/N waved a hand. “Got lost, long story. More importantly,” she said, kneeling down opposite him and warming her hands in front of the fire, “why are you moping up here in the cold?”
“Doubt you’d understand, Y/N,” Tommy muttered, taking a sip of his flask.
Y/N sighed to herself, sitting cross-legged on the cold grass and leaning back on her hands. She looked up at Tommy, eyes scanning him. “Tommy, you’ve probably heard the same fucking apology speech a dozen times this past week from a dozen different people. None have helped because you blame yourself for what happened.
“Our family isn’t one for affection and, well, for being nice to each other. We never used to even be able to have a conversation without screaming at one another so, whilst I’m almost certain you are high, I’m going to add this one to the list of successful conversations.
“Tommy, look. Life is… shit. But we all knew that already. It doesn’t get any easier. It gets a whole lot worse. Losing Grace will be one of the hardest things you’ll have to live with, and you will always run that moment over in your head, wondering ‘what if?’. But, what’s the point in dwelling in the past so much you forget what a gift the present is.”
“And what fucking gift is the present gonna give me, eh?” Tommy asked, glancing at his sister, his tone cold. “My wife is dead, because of me.”
“Yet your son is still alive.”
Tommy’s cold eyes flicked up to look at Y/N. His brow furrowed slightly as he took in her words. He raised his cigarette to his lips and took a long drag of it.
“Tommy, we don’t get to decide who lives and who dies, despite what you think,” Y/N said quietly, leaning forward, her face being lit up by the fire in front of her. “Nor do we get to decide who tells our story. But, your son, is still alive and breathing. If anyone is going to tell your story and be the one to continue on your legacy, it will be him.”
Y/N stood up, dusting the leaves off the bottom of her jacket. She gave Tommy a small smile and turned around, walking back to her horse.
Tommy watched his sister as she rode off without another word, leaving him and his thoughts alone once more.
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popculturebuffet · 3 years
Text
Ducktales Lena Retrospective: The Other Bin of Scrooge McDuck! or Why Does Lena’s Darkest Hour Have a WACKKKYY Bigfoot Subplot?
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Hello all you happy people and welcome back to Shadow Into Light, my look back the LIfe and Times of Lena Sabrewing. And we’re almost at the end of season 1. Woo-Ooo!. While i’ll have more season 1 episodes to cover for it’s sister arc, this is the last episode in this arc before the finale.. and i’m happy to repeat that next week will be DUCK WEEK as a result, finsihing up this arc and the Della arcs, as well as dipping into season 2 a bit for Lena’s return to celebrate the finale of this wonderful show. Full disclosure: I didn’t PLAN for it this way, I assumed the show would be ending in April, but sometimes serendipity just works out for you. So pitter pat er, let’s get at er.
 When we last left off Webby went on a wild duck chase for her grandma in England and 87!Webby befriended that version of Magica’s niece and told off a grown woman masquerading as a child because her husband likes being called “Daddy”. When we last left the plot proper though, we learned Lena just wanted to be free, and was willing to do whatever it took, and Magica was getting more abusive and more impatient. And if you thought the end to Jaw$! was pretty sad and dark.... strap in and steel yourself as we take a look at one of the darkest episodes in the series.
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The opening sets the stage perfectly as we’re in Scrooge’s Room in the middle of the night, when Lena comes in.. with a knife. 
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Naturally she dosen’t have baked goods, but instead is trying to cut the knife from around his neck while Magica won’t shut up while she works and keeps distracting her and BLAMING her for getting distracted. As for the knife it’s glowing and mystic because naturally, Scrooge doesn’t trust just ANY string but a magically woven one to hold his dime. Unlucky for her her girlfriend walks in at the exact moment she’s standing over her idol holding a mystical knife. I don’t think hallmark makes a card for “Sorry I was lying to you for months for my abusive aunt to earn my freedom and then looked like I was about to slit your uncle’s throat. I love you though. “ Yet. 
Scrooge starts to stir so Webby pulls Lena out of there and back to her room... and flashes a lamp on her to interrogate her. Lena is able to bounce back, asking “what were you doing there”. Which NORMALLY wouldn’t last more than two minutes.. but since Webby was there to get Drool samples, maybe she wants to clone him I mean she does know a guy I think the why is something we’d rather not know about, Webby herself was a bit suspcious and Lena uses her starkerish ways to say she’d also gotten into being a Scrooge fangirl. This also allows her to ask about the dime.. but since Scrooge never takes it off, that means they have no access and both Lena and Magica are stuck watching Webby’s long presentation on Scrooge’s life story. I mean personally i’d love to see this in it’s full probably 8 hour glory but I’m not trying to earn my freedom or stuck as a shadow monster. 
It was then when watching the episode this morning.. I was reminded it had a subplot. And the instant I saw Dewey folding Louie’s shirts... I started to piece together it was the bigfoot one. 
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As you can tell i’m not a fan of this subplot. It has a good core idea, riffing on “kid takes home sasquatch films” like Cry Wilderness, Big and Harry and of course the one that started it all, Harry and the Hendersons. 
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It’s just bogged down by one really obnoxious trait that trips it up and is in the wrong episode entirely. We’ll get to that first scene and the plot as a whole in a moment we just need the setup in the a-story first: Scrooge privately conferring with Beakly, which Magica snoops on. While Lena didn’t get far at all in cutting the rope of his dime, she still left a knick and the fact someone got into his house, let alone his bedroom and got THAT far, means SOMETHING bad is afoot. So while he looks for it he’s putting the dime in the Other Bin for safekeeping. We’ll find out what that is in moment. For now 
Let’s Get This Stupid Sasquatch Plot Over With
We open with Louie having conned Dewey into folding his stuff for the “world laundry folding record”. I mean.. it’s greasy but I gotta respect game here. And it’s not actively harming anyone. Though we do find out from an irate Huey he’s done far worse, if in a hilarious way with Louie’s Kids, his obviously fake charity he uses to get money out of Donald. And so far into it, as Huey hid something he had in the closet and offered to Fix Louie’s stretched out hoodie, the reason he was mad at Dewey, I didn’t get why I hated it before. I wondered why I was so annoyed. Same when Huey while carrying Louie’s hoodies hears his uncle looking for something in the mansion. 
Turns out he’s got a bigfoot hiding in their closet, that he found injured int he woods and brought back and all that good kid finding a mythical creature stuff. Dewey of course loves him on first sight and both want to keep him. But unlike most of these sorts of things where the creature’s damage to the room and what not is played off or the sibling doesn’t know, Louie does see it and isn’t happy about it and only agrees to hide the furry bastard because his brothers blackmail him with his schemes, and refuse to feel sorry for him as the creatures antics continue, including drinking Louie’s special pep and eating his snacks. 
And this is where one of the plots two major issues crops up: The way Dewey and Huey act. Both just ignore any damage wooly foot does, any discomfort to Louie and any obvious downsides of this. Now Dewey being clinginly attached to a majestic creature he found and wanting to keep it? Fits perfectly, and him being mean to louie fits because louie tricked him. Huey however.. is horribly out of character, as while I could see him being charmed at first and not wanting his uncle to hunt his new friend.. he’s not an impractical boy. He’d of tried to get his new friend to the woods first thing because it’s where he’s safest from scrooge and his foot has healed. He’s also a Woodchuck and I can’t imagine the JWG says it’s okay to keep a wild animal person as a pet basically. None of it fits him and makes him into a moron for an episode solely for the plot to work. This still could’ve worked but just have Huey and Louie BOTH get suspicious, Huey later, and find out Tenderfoot is actually Gavin, whose sapient, has a phone and simply is taking advantage of them. it would’ve gone the same way: if they told Dewey , Gavin would kill them, as he threatened to do if louie told his brothers. The Gavin part though is brilliant and a really nice twist I didn’t see coming when I first saw this.  
And it would’ve made the already great climax more interesting as Huey would’ve been forced to use the methods of Louie’s he’d derided to beat a far worse scammer. Instead it’s just Louie but he doesn’t take Gavin’s threats lying down.. and comes up with a clever way to use his scam against him. He shaves Gavin, hides the razor then claims to his brother that not being in the woods means he’s dying or some such thing. So our two idiots and our hero drag them out and while they run into scrooge, Louie still saves the idiots life by manipulating him with a schmaltzy speech and they let him go despite his best attempts to stay, with Louie getting a nice “I win in there”. Overall a bit of a mess with some good ideas, but Huey suddenly taking dum dum juice really drags it down.
So in any other episode this would’ve been fine whatever just mildly obnoxious. What makes it really,  unintentionally obnoxious.. is it’s in the middle of a tense, dark, horror story that dives into the depths of Lena’s soul and ends on a really horrifying note. Case in point Louie shaves a bigfoot and gets his victory over his nemesis.. after an utterly spellbindingly horrific nightmare by Lena, easily the most terrifying moment in the entire show. Followed up with a shaved bigfoot. 
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Now I could buy Disney simply forced them to do this to keep things light... except Frank’s been pretty upfront about the production process, how Disney has treated him, what they’ve said no on. So if it had been something they were forced to do, he would’ve said it. No this is just not reading the room and not thinking things through and an otherwise stellar episode suffers for it.They could’ve waited till season 2 for it, they didn’t, and this was the result. It dosen’t ruin the rest of the episode it’s too good for it, but damn if it dosen’t create mood whiplash so severe I need a neckbrace. 
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The Good Part
So back at the plot anyone actually cares about, we found out what the “other bin” is when Lena asks Webby: While the Money bin is for well, money and precious keepsakes, the other bin is the stuff too dangerous to keep out in the world. And this is the guy who kept a mystical gold eating dragon, a pirate ghost, and a medusa gauntlet in his garage, and we’ll learn after this ep also keeps a giant golden aztec golem in there. NONE of that was deemed dangerous enough to put in the other bin. So Webby is understandably hesitant.. and it gets a bit unsettling when Lena manipulates her into it. While she has in the past.. she usually just nudged Webby into something she’d do anyway at worst, or showed her an r-rated movie or something harmless. While she did use her as an in she clearly cares.. so it shows how horrifically desperate she’s got she’s willing to pressure her into going into Scrooge’s most dangerous and secure location, pointing out this may be her only chance to see the Dime. 
So she reluctantly agrees, and the two head into the garage. Turns out Scrooge keeps all his junk here for more reason than just shoving it wherever it’d go, as the entrance to the other bin is hidden here. The statue that gave Manny his head is actually a clue towards the painting hiding the second bin, which itself requires one of those things used to hold up ropes and such like you’d see at a movie theater... god I miss movie theaters.. I mean watching stuff in the comfort of home is very nice, but it was nice getting out, making a day of it. I mean their around, but I really don’t want to go till one till more vaccinations have happened and it’s a lot safer to go. Wait what were we talking about? Oh right gay ducks going into a horrifying nightmare vault. But yeah the theater thingy is the key, it unlocks the entrance and our heroines head inside. 
In contrast to the modern, buisnessy welcoming bin, the other bin is basically one giant vault/prison, with everything in it securely locked inside identical doored rooms. It’s genius as it is simple: Only 6 people have likely ever had access to this place: Scrooge, Beakly, Gyro, Duckworth and MAYBE the twins. Even Della and Donald being allowed down here is an unknown. The non-scrooge people are only because someone besides him needs to maintain it, keep any creatures fed, that sort of thing and he’d only trust his butler and his housekeeper, who are also both extraordinarily badass, to do so. Gyro is because someone needed to design the cells. I also wouldn’t be surprised if Quackfaster was a 7th since season 3 casts her as Scrooge’s magic expert and he’d likely need specific runes for specific cells. He’d want as few people down here as possible, and even fewer knowing. I’m sure Bradford knew, and i’m also certain it’s the one thing he never quibbled about the expense as while he hates what Scrooge stands for and tried to curb his “chaos” as much as possible.. this is doing exactly what Bradford likes: locking it away where it can’t hurt anybody. Plus quibbling about it might make Scrooge want to show it off to him and that’s.. that's’ a whole lotta nope in a 2 pound bag. 
So for once Webby is very hesitant and very cautious, though naturally Magica points out a door.. and Lena stupidly follows her advice as she knows her “aunt” is impulsive and has no regards for her safety. What did she think was going to happen? They instead find a unicorn.. or rather it’s angry murderous cousin the Sword Horse, which naturally tries goring them. I’d go with Spear Horse, but semantics. Point is Webby is soon tackled by the thing and Magica just wants to let her die. As seen before the tension between Magica and Lena has hit a breaking point: Magica is fed up with Lena’s clear feelings for webby and caring more about her than the mission.. while Lena is fed up with Magica not listening to her, respecting her as sentient being and dismissing her out of hand instead of listening to her often very valid criticism. So Lena naturally ignores her and throws her the knife, which Webby uses to get the Sword Horse back in it’s pen. And then wonders why her girlfriend has  glowing painstakingly crafted magic knife. Whoops. Webby also wants to leave but Lena convinces her to keep going. but it’s also very clear that Webby’s getting more and more reluctant and i’ts very hard to watch. You can’t blame Lena for wanting to be free of Magica: she dosen’t see her as a person, and dosen’t value her life. But it’s still hard to watc her have to manipulate the only person that loves her and do so so.. effectively. It’s easy to imagine Lena’s done this dozens of times to other people.. but not to someone she actually CARES about. 
Webby DOES figure out how the rooms work though: each one is labeled by the year Scrooge caught it. So she assumes one room she fine is the dime.. and Lena of course runs in and slams the door shut... they’ve found it. So we then get to the most terrifying moment of the series. With victory in her grasp magica roars for Lena to claim the dime, filling the room and Lena with shadow with Lena seemingly disolving.. until Magica is restored or at least partially, still a shadow. Magica has just one thing for her.. and Lena’s reactoin is terrified.. and says oh so much in just one expression it’s VERY clear Lena fears she’s about to die... if she’s lucky. Magica’s been so verbally abusive, tearing her down constantly, manipulating her constantly.. why WOULD Lena expect anything good? Why would she expect anything other than pain or death? So a hug is a surprise.. as is Webby who assumes she’s being attacked... and is clearly heartbroken that’s not the case and runs for Scrooge when Magica admits the truth... only for Magica to seemingly kill her, turning her into a doll resembling the original Webby
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Yeah at this point it’s obvious something’s up.. but before we can get to the natural reveal at the end of this horror show, Lena demands Magica change her back... only for a fight to naturally ensue with Magica rubbing the way Lena’s treated Webby in her face: How she manipualted her, lied to her and used her. Even if it was for more noble reasons.. she never told her any of this or tried to and is now directly responsible for her death. She’s a monster.. and then Lena’s amulet activates.. and seemingly finishes the job. 
Then Lena wakes up. This was simply one of SCrooge’s artifact, one Webby mentioned earlier off hand and Webby rescues her. It was all a nightmare.. easy to see given Webby was seemingly killed or turned into a doll at points.. but besides making Lena realize how while not as bad as her aunt, she ahsn’t been great.. it also gives us a painful look into her head and how she sees both Magica and Webby. With Magica.. it’s again VERY clear Magica verbally abuses her, depersons her and is in general a horrifiingly relastic depection of a domestic abuser. But it’s also telling Magica hugs her... while Lena didn’t expect it, this is all her subconcious mixed with a magical cursed artifact, it’s clear that deep down one of the things she wants most.. is for Magica to LOVE HER. 
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That is just... it hurts so much.  She just wants a Mom.. and even then her subconcious can’t give her THAT because it knows the truth. Granted the nightmare thing might of had something to do with it, but still, the fact is deep down she knows Magica dosen’t care about her but she WANTS her to. As with Webby, she fears Magica is right, that all her gaslighting has had an effect and Webby would run away the second she found out. When as we’ll learn.. that’s not true at all. She’s deeply hurt... but she still belivies in her. But Lena can’t even see that. She’s been beaten down so much by someone constnatly telling her no one will ever love her she belivies it herself and all her mind and the dreamcatcher can do is pummel her over and over again with what she feels about herself, what she’s KNOWN about how she treats webby even if she had no way out otherwise, how wrong it’s felt. Just holy shit it’s a lot to take in. 
But all this trauma has made Lena realize she truly does love Webby and this isn’t worth it.. she’ll find some other way out or figure out something, for now their leaving. She’s not dying for this.. not for her. They happen to run into Scrooge who, due to the WACKY BIGFOOT SUBPLOT THAT HAPPENED RIGHT AFTER THE ABOVE SCENE, no I will not let that go even going back to Frank’s twitter asks he outright said it was their darkest plot paired with one of their most insane, he knew what he was doing. Turns out cleverly he kept the Dime in vault one. As he puts it “They never think to check the first one”. Smart. He also keeps his worry room down here. Just a note I wanted to mention. 
He does chide them, and Lena takes the full fall.. but suprisingly he dosen’t ban her from his home or anything, he just asks they be honest and would’ve gladly showed the dime off to them both if they’d just asked. Once Scrooge and Webby walk off far enough Magica berates her again..but Lena is done. She’s realized from her own horrifying nightmares that NO amount of freedom is worth what Magica will get out of this, that her own soul isn’t worth the death of the one person she cares about: Webby will fight her and she might not make it. She loves her more than she fears Magica. And even if it means loosing Webby.. she knows who can stop him. Unfortunately.. this is not a happy ending as Magica simply takes full control. And now has Scrooge’s full trust. 
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Final Thoughts: This episode is one half a masterpiece. The parts with Lena are to this day, as we approach the very last episode, some of the show’s finest writing and Lena’s nightmare is easily the darkest scene in the series, and only not the most gutwrenching.. because we’re getting to that next week. It finishes the first leg of her character arc, with her selfishness all gone, and the only thing she wants is Webby’s hapiness. Granted that leads to a whole nother character arc over her season 2 episodes, but we’ll get there. Point is she’s realized her manipulations are wrong and not worth the cost, and that she’ll never get anything good out of Magica. Freedom.. will take just a bit longer. It’s eerie to watch, uncomfortable as Lena sinks to her lowest point before climbing out of it, and with a very tense atmosphere the whole time, the bin having a smothering uncomfortableness as we know there’s tons of horrible things here.. but we don’t know what. 
So on it’s own it’d be one of the series best episodes, and the plot itself is still one fo the series best.. but it’s weighed down by one of the series worst plots. Still tame compared to a lto of other series worst moments but being paired with something so dark and excellent really shows how fucking stupid this plot was and made it that much more grating. It just clashes badly. Thankfully the crew did learn from this fiasco to the point we got one of the series best episodes “Escape from the Impossibin!”. That one seemingly has two light enough plots, Scrooge, Louie and Della escaping from the bin and Webby stalking the boys, but in a comedic ic still messed up fashion.. but both take a sharp left at just the right time as to not clash: the full implications of what Webby’s doing and her physical fight with Bentina happen around the same time Scrooge breaks down and confesses he’s scared he can’t win this time. The episode gets really dark in the second half but it eases into it and slowly makes it’s way to it, building to it with some laughts to disarm it. But stuff like robo scrooge or the timeloop room, or the timeloop room, or the timeloop room, or the oh thank god i’ts broken. That stuff isn’t SO wacky or out of place that it detracts from the other plot. They compliment each other. Here it’s just two plots that don’t work together at all joined together for some reason.  So yeah overall a very mixed bag of an episode and if you do want to watch or rewatch it.. just skip the bigfoot subplot> it’s not worth it. 
Next Time on Shadow Into Light: It’s all come down to this. Magica finally ges what she wants. The Shadow War is Night.. but before I can tell you that story we have a bit of ground to cover so..
Next on this Blog: The family minus Beakly ends up in Greece. Dewey is forced to deal with his fears about his mom, Scrooge is forced to deal with his old rival Zeus, and Donald is forced to deal with an unwanted admirerer. Spanikopita!
If you liked this review, follow for more, feel free to contribute to my patreon, and feel free to commission a review of your own. Until the next rainbow, it’s been a pleasure. 
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marueonmain · 4 years
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WINDFLOWER
part eleven ~ wank material and how to get canceled ~
(part one) (part two) (part three) (part four) (part five) (part six) (part seven) (part eight) (part nine) (part ten) (part eleven)
A/N: Back at it again. Thank you for 160 followers; do enjoy and take care of yourself! Send a Message/Ask to make my day!
Summary: Alex screws up a lot. 
Pairing: imallexx x reader
Warning: Lots of Language. Implied Domestic Abuse. Heavy Self-Deprecation. 
Word Count: 2.9k    BLUE TEXT = FLASHBACK
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It is a small world. Or at least that is how the saying goes. For example: I happened to have dog-walked for a woman who turns out to be your aunt? Huh, small world.
The world is meant to be small, with everyone just six degrees of separation from one another. 
A lot can happen between six degrees – an ice cube melts,  a steak is cooked well done instead of medium,  a person dies of an unexplained fever.
Sometimes Alex’s world did feel small, constrictingly small like it was caving in on him. But more often than not, it was he who felt small and the world a vast sea – an endless horizon. And he was stranded on a raft in the middle of it. Splashing along with the waves, going wherever the wind wished to take him. Wondering if he would ever be found (if anyone was even searching for him) or if he was destined to drown in the deep dark waters. 
Alex shook his head, and he was back in the present moment. Sitting cross-legged on the sofa. Gripping a controller with his clammy hands, playing LEGO Star Wars with George. Although their characters appeared to be working together in perfect sync, Alex was not actually focusing on the screen. His eyes were, but his mind drifted like that raft on the sea, drifted to earlier that morning.
It rained briefly; when the early morning hours came, everything outside smelled of wet, and the scent seeped in through cracks in the sealing around the windows.
Y/N stirred in Alex’s arms, squirmed out of his gentle hold, and sat up. Shining through the glass door of the balcony was the pale blue of the moon illuminating her features – a pastel recolouring which further softened the curves and lines of her face.
Her unadjusted eyes appeared confused at her surroundings as she looked around. Planting her hands flat on the cushion on either side of her lap exposed her bruised forearm. Each circular mark was darker than it had been when she fell asleep. Alex noticed some quarter or half of the beads on her bracelet matched those bruises in colour – he was not sure how to feel about that.
A shy closed-mouth smile took Y/N’s lips as her eyes landed on Alex. If she were concerned about his contemplative somewhat doleful expression, she hid it well. “You’re warm.”
“Yeah?” Alex asked. It was dizzying, swimming in the lovesick haze of such an odd compliment
“Like sleeping on one of those blankets, you have to plug in – softer though.” 
“Probably more lippy as well.”
“I think that’s fair,” her words fizzled out with a giggle.
Pupils dilated in the dim lighting; Alex had never more resembled the pleading puppy eyes emoji. High on that feeling, he got whenever Y/N looked deep into the depths of him. Like the last piece of his puzzling life was being set into place. Like it was them. Always meant to be them. Together.
He just wished he dared to speak more.
“Jump! What are you doing?” George burst out, bringing Alex back for a moment.
“Sorry.” He had felt it all over again – how anxious he was to speak; how dead his tongue was in his mouth. As if every moment with Y/N was it for him. His one shot. And if he did not say the right thing or if his voice wavered, then it would be over for him. Finished.
Or maybe he would not have to speak at all, and he would lose his chance before he even opened his mouth. His big mouth – his friends would add, and in truth, so would he.
George cleared his throat and asked, “Did you remember to message Simon about the party?”
“Yeah, yesterday. And Tobi got back to me, said he’s coming.”
“Would’ve been easier to have done a group message for them.”
Sighing a short but exhausted sounding sigh, Alex agreed, “Maybe.”
“And Sammy’s coming?” George looked over for a split-second to see his flatmate nod his head; a tight smile plastered on his face. “Good.”
Another moment of comfortable calm washed over Alex and Y/N when something in Y/N’s gaze pulled back – became hesitant – and moved down to her hands. She picked up a crumpled deliveroo receipt from off the coffee table and began fidgeting with it. “If you—” 
Y/N stopped as her phone lit up; the notification was silent, but the light of the screen was visible through the pocket of her jeans. While pulling it out, she unmuted it to an eruption of DING. DING. DING. There were a lot of missed calls and texts, enough that she had to scroll twice up to see them all.
All Alex could read from his spot on the sofa (without wanting to appear as if he was reading over Y/N’s shoulder) was a text message in all caps reading ANSWER ME.
Thumbs hovered above the phone, not typing nor even moving to unlock to the home screen. Her back straightened, and her posture tensed. Eyes not leaving the screen, she said, “It’s Sam. I need to go.”
“That’s all Sammy? It’s a tad overkill, don’t you think?”
“No, he’s just worried.” Y/N took to her feet. Stepping around the coffee table, she beelined to where she left her shoes near the front door. “I don’t—I should have been checking in.”
Alex stood and followed. “Is he that upset? Genuinely?”
She flicked her hand dismissively before using it to pull on her shoes. Keeping her eyes down. “Of course not. It’s just frustrating when he can’t reach me is all.”
“Still…it’s a bit much.”
“And what? You’ve never been frustrated like that with someone?”
“No,” his projection of the word a startling thundercrack in the otherwise civil conversation.
It had not been confidence, though. Not real confidence. Alex had been scared, and he did not like being scared nor admitting to being scared, but he had been.  Frightened because he did not know how to handle the situation.  Terrified that he might have been losing himself. 
Liking Y/N made him nervous; made him protective. And he could not control it.
Y/N looked to him, and he would have to have been blind to not see the bewilderment that came to her eyes at his change in tone. Alex was just so sick and tired of allowing himself and his concerns to be played off. Always feeling like he was screaming to be heard, but no one cared to listen.  
He spoke stern and definite, “No. I’ve never been so agitated with someone that I screamed at them for a near hour. It’s not normal. I’ve certainly, never punched through—” 
DING. DING. Before he could finish, Y/N dropped her head to her phone.
Alex sighed, exhausted, and asked, “He’s still going, isn’t he?”
“Like I said,” Y/N looked up, and coming back into the conversation as if nothing happened, reasoned in a gentle – borderline condescending – tone, “he’s worried about me.”
“No, he’s not. If he were worried, wouldn’t he have gone looking for you?”
“How do you know he didn’t?”
“Where else would you have gone, but here? Does he let you have other friends?”
Taking a step from him, Y/N shook her head like she could shake herself awake and out of the situation – like it was a dream. She asked, “Where is this coming from?”
“Am I wrong? Red?” he didn’t mean it to come out overly harsh; it had. Alex’s eyes begged for the slightest amount of understanding.
“I think I should go.” Contradicting the sharpness that came into her words were the tears that sprung to her eyes, building up, daring to fall. Y/N pushed right through Alex (not unlike her previous shoulder-check) towards the front door with a sudden heaviness in her steps. 
Fuck. Think of something. 
She’s leaving think of something. 
Say something.
Anything!
“Are you still coming to the party Saturday?” Not that.
Stopping halfway out the door, Y/N whipped around with annoyance and anger burning in her eyes. “You’re serious? Is that all you care about? Padding your guest list?”
“No,” the whispered words fell graceless from his lips, “I care about you.”
“Don’t.” Y/N looked as if she were a second away from spitting in his face. “It was a mistake coming here. You can’t just say whatever shit you want, whenever you want. I’m sorry if you think I’ve been leading you on, but Sam is my boyfriend, alright? I love him.”
That was it. Alex did not know that would be it. He did not even know he was that close to the fucking edge. But he had been. And that? That was it. He wanted so bad to be a safe space for Y/N and to not start an argument or come off as if he were attacking her, but that was it.
“And does he love you?” Alex asked with a cruel scoff.
“Beg pardon?”
“Did he love you when he gave you that?” He pointed to her forearm – the five circular bruises.
“Fuck you, Alex.” Her lip curled into a snarl. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
She left. It was 2:01am.
It lingered in his head – the realization he came to when he was stood in the dark staring at his front door too confused to be shocked and too shocked to process the hurt. He lost; he was a loser. It was not a traditional emotion, but Alex felt it burning within even as he sat on the sofa with George.
Idiot. Since their first meeting, Alex dreamed and needed and worked so hard to be with Y/N, and he lost her. Gambled it all and lost. Useless. Weak. His thoughts took on their own intentions. Beginning to feel foreign as if coming from the outside and no longer sounding like him. 
Spiraling. Alex was spiraling. He did not – could not – understand how he could ruin everything life ever offered, bin the good opportunities, and fail all the people important to him. 
All at once, an intense feeling bubbled up from deep in his gut, perhaps the most classically masculine feeling he ever felt. Alex wanted to fight. Angry. Pained. He wanted nothing more than to scream out his voice and rid himself of the scorching torrent of blood that rushed through him, cauterizing his veins. Alex wanted to fight for Y/N. But he could not do that, could he? Fight. Not physically, at least.
“I need water.” George got up and moved to the kitchen, not knowing that his interruption of Alex’s internal monologue was like him saving the younger from drowning.
A light blush rushed to his cheeks as Alex pulled his head up. He inhaled deep and released it in a controlled exhale. Embarrassed with himself for falling victim to self-deprecation. It had to stop, and it was getting better. Alex just slipped up. He rerouted his focus to think neutral (as positive was a little out of reach), think solutions, think forward. 
Life is not a fiction. Not a page-turning romantic thriller nor bafta-nominated melodrama. He was not a leading man. Y/N was not the Eurydice to his Orpheus. Alex was himself. A regular human – he did not have the liberty of being able to go on an epic quest or save the world to prove himself to her.
He could not win back her comfort in him with a grandiose gesture – even if he wanted to. It had to be words. It had to be realistic actions. Sincere. Genuine. And Alex did not care if it would be difficult or if Y/N was difficult to understand, to please, he would keep trying until she told him to stop.
There was no guarantee Y/N would ever again see him as a safe space. Still, he would do his all because…well because he missed her. Alex had never missed someone like he did Y/N. 
He missed her more than he would miss his own heart if it lept from his chest. He missed her like they had spent their entire existence together up until that moment. He missed holding her close – brushing his fingers over her soft skin. He missed that blissful moment where he got to wake up with her there. 
Most of all, he missed how stable she made him feel. He was more present with her than he had been all his twenty-odd years. When she was with him, Alex lived a lifetime in each individual second.
Y/N made him feel strong for the first time in a long time.  He could not always carry himself, but  he would always, always be there to carry her.  
A minute later, George returned to the room with a water bottle in both hands; without warning, he chucked one towards the sofa. It struck Alex in the chest and landed in his lap before he doubled over. 
“Ow!” he shouted into his knees.
Taking a swig from his bottle, the older sighed and asked, “You alright?”
“No!” Alex popped back up and shouted. “You just hit me with a water bottle, you fucking idiot.”
George dropped his then half-full bottle onto the coffee table and took an extra step toward the sofa but remained standing. Looking down on the younger – something George did not have much experience in – he jabbed his index finger into his flatmate’s temple, pushing his head to the side.
“I meant your head.” He repeated, “You alright?”
“Again, George? We’re doing this again? You’ve never checked up on me this much before. Are you alright, Mr. Authoritarian?” Alex stood up and pushed his chin forward, bringing their faces closer and exaggerating the centimetre or four he had over his flatmate in height.
Shrugging both his shoulder, not flustered in the slightest, George said, “I’ve seen you like this before.”
“Like what?”
“After a break-up, you’re fine and good for a few months, but then you get a crush, and you start doing this to yourself. Fixating and—and fanning all these feelings and hyping yourself up to be disappointed. Now with Red—”
“I don’t want to talk about Red.” Alex snapped and moved to step around the coffee table, uncomfortable with the closeness he created. “For fuck sake, my life doesn’t revolve around the woman.”
“I’m not saying that.” George followed him. “Just that with the health advisements and staying inside, maybe you clung onto the first attractive person you saw in reach. Sammy’s not the type you go for – too muscular or whatever – so it’s Red. You should recognize that it’s not real; it’s nothing to do with her as a person; it’s just your pattern.” His prepared sounding speech came to an end as he placed a hand on Alex’s shoulder.
Disgust glazing over his eyes, Alex dropped his shoulder recoiling from the contact like it might burn him. His voice was not gentle, with the sound of his scowl in each syllable, “You really think I’m that pathetic, huh?”
“In a few days or weeks, it’ll go away, all this, and you will feel like a complete idiot for acting like you are.”
“If you know that it’s not going to last, then why are you being such a prick? Why don’t you let me have a little fun in my,” he raised his hands, putting air quotes on his last word, “delusion?”
“Is that what Red is to you? Entertainment?” George looked disappointed. “That’s not fair—”
“No.” Alex refused, folding his arms. “I was repeating what you were saying.”
It went quiet; a pin could drop, and the sound would reverberate like in an echo chamber. Sweat beaded up on both men’s foreheads. Tensions unfamiliar to their apartment seemed to raise the temperature beyond boiling. Alex hated arguing – hated arguing with George. It was not something that happened almost ever until…Y/N.
In the silence, George closed his eyes, squeezed them shut as he dipped his chin to his chest. He blew out a harsh breath before straightening up and again opening his mouth. “If you do not listen to me. If you do not listen to yourself – that logical bit that isn’t wank material and how to get canceled – you are going to do something you regret. People will get hurt. Sorry I’m such a massive prick, but I know you, Alex. I know you and you’ll be fine; you always are. You’ll laugh off this ridiculous crush like you did when you were done daydreaming about Tom Holland twenty-four-seven those two months straight after Homecoming came out. You’ll be fine, but Sammy and Red might not be. I don’t want you starting a fight you’re not able to finish.”
Despite standing still with firm feet, Alex backed off. He could not keep holding on in the intense staredown, and he looked away. Folded arms dropped. There would be no response from him, not to that.
“You not saying anything proves my point.” George finished though he was not triumphant sounding. He spoke like something was blocking his throat, “You know what you’ve been doing is wrong, and you know I’m right.”
Taglist: (message to join!) @angelbabyivy​ @eboysimp​​ @trhtshonf @jaythegay92
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linkysmommy · 4 years
Text
The Time That Came Between
PART I
Part II link here
Fandom: It Lives in the Woods
Pairing: Noah Marshall x fem MC
Words: 3,057
Summary: What happened to Noah after Jazmyn Park sacrificed herself and he fled Westchester?
Warnings: Some minor swearing, topics of drug use and addiction
Author’s note: This is basically my imagination of what happened to Noah after he left Westchester and before he realized that MC was still somewhat cognizant as the shadow monster. I definitely have some creative liberties and my own thoughts on the dark path Noah went on after everything went down. It shouldn’t be too long, but I’m splitting it into parts. It’ll probably be between 5-6 parts when all is finished.
The first thing he noticed was the overwhelming stench of sour, rotting garbage.
Then came the God-awful pain.
It felt like there was a bonfire burning in Noah’s back. The muscles in his body screamed and throbbed, and his body shook violently. He weakly opened his eyes, and could barely see because they were so watery. It was like this every morning when he woke up. But somehow, that didn’t make it any better.
He managed to push himself into a sitting position as he tried to put together where the hell he was. He rubbed the film away from his eyes and glanced around himself. He was sitting in an apartment parking lot, his back pushed up against a huge dumpster bin. A trail of gooey water dripped from the trash can and trickled down the cement pavement. The morning sun shone in colorful rays through the filth, and he could hear the morning hum of cars and commuters as the responsible population began their days. A street cat hissed and rustled through the trash, and one of the windows in the building across from him burst open as yells from the people inside drifted out into the morning.
Noah sighed and leaned his head against the metal trash bin. He didn’t even care that his shirt was soaked with trash water, or that the side of his face was still covered with gravel from the ground. All he could focus on was the pain and discomfort. His burning back, his aching muscles, his runny nose, the wave of nausea that crashed over him.
He should get up, go to his apartment, take a shower, get dressed. He should get to work on time and save some money so he’d be able to go far away and leave forever. But no. Instead, he woke up in front of a dumpster and the first thing he did was reach for his phone. He hated everything about himself as he turned on the screen and dialed the person he simultaneously hated most and needed most in this entire world.
But he was too weak. So he called Reynold anyway.
The phone rang, and rang, and rang. Terror seized through him and his hand began to shake uncontrollably. What if Reynold didn’t pick up? What if—
Before Noah could think much, a very unhappy voice on the other line answered.
“The hell you want? It’s 7:00 in the morning.”
“I need some,” Noah said. “Where can I meet you?”
The voice on the other end scoffed. “Are you serious? You already blew through what I sold you two days ago?”
“It’s been… a rough couple of days.”
Reynold fell silent, which pissed Noah off. He was the one funding this guy, yet Reynold acted like he was the nuisance. Finally, Reynold let out a long sigh. “I’m busy today Malcolm. I don’t have time to—”
“I’ll pay you double. Hell, I’ll pay you triple. Just tell me where to meet you and when.”
Reynold grumbled something under his breath, but then he agreed. Soon, Noah had the place and information typed into his old, cracked phone. Now all he had to do was survive six more hours until they met up. Even that long seemed like more torture than he could stand.
Noah didn’t know how long he sat there, feeling like complete and utter shit. It could’ve been minutes, or it could’ve been hours. All he knew was that when two middle school girls crossed in front of him to head to their bus stop, chattering excitedly about some TV show, the expression on their faces when they saw him was enough to make him want to kill himself.
There was fear in their faces. Fear that the dirty, grimy man sitting by the dumpster would hurt them. Noah lowered his gaze and they hurried past. And he wished, for what must have been the thousandth time in the past twenty-four hours, that his life had never been so goddamn awful that he felt the only way he could survive was through losing himself to heroin. 
He wished that it had been him who took Redfield’s place, and not Jaz.
Never Jaz.
***
The bell jingled as Noah stepped into the gas station where he worked. A handful of customers browsed the shelves, and crouched in one of the aisles was his supervisor, Russ, probably doing inventory.
The door clattered shut behind Noah and he tried to sneak past Russ. But, like some freaking bloodhound, he looked up the moment Noah took a step. Russ’s eyes narrowed and his face flushed with anger. He stood, the item scanner hanging loosely from one hand.
“You’re late again, Johnson.” Russ glanced pointedly at the clock, then back at Noah. “Twenty-two minutes late, to be exact.”
“I’m aware of that,.” Noah said, fighting the urge to roll his eyes. “I ran into some… stuff.”
Russ did roll his eyes. “That’s not an excuse. Not when it happens every day.”
“Yeah, well. I’m here now so let me get to work.” Noah shouldered past Russ to the employees only area. It wasn’t much, but there was a wall with hooks where he could hang his jacket, and shelves and shelves full of supplies. 
Noah hung his jacket and took a deep, calming breath. He hated this job. He hated how Russ thought he was worse than dirt, and he hated how much he resented that. After what he’d done, he didn’t deserve to be treated well by anyone. He deserved every ounce of hatred every single person had to spare.
He brushed his fingers over the scarred skin on the inside of his elbow. It was rough, and still tingled with his most recent dose. He was a coward for trying to find something to ease the pain, to make him forget. It was only fair that the drug no longer made him feel anything other than normal. Where it once had left him feeling powerful and nearly happy, now all it did was make him need it when he wasn’t using, and when he was using he just felt normal.
And normal… wasn’t exactly what he wanted.
The one good thing about Jaz sacrificing herself for him was that at least she didn’t have to live to see him like this. This pathetic shell of a man she thought was worth enough that she decided to die for him.
Noah squeezed his eyes shut and pressed his hand into his forehead. Forget about this. Don’t think. Just get out and do your job, go home, shoot up, go to sleep, repeat. Keep going. Just survive. 
He took one last calming breath, took a moment to steel himself… and then stepped back into the front.
As he approached the counter to take his position for the day., the girl standing behind it glared at him.
“Finally. You made me stay late, you jerk. I’ve been here since 12 AM!”
“Yeah… sorry Diane,” Noah said sheepishly, fumbling awkwardly with the edge of his beanie. “I’m here now though, so you can leave.”
Diane peered up at him from behind the counter and her scowl melted away into a grin. “I’m just teasing, Malcolm! No need to be so serious. Of course I’m not mad at you.”
“Oh! Right. Of course.” Noah forced a laugh and sidled behind the counter. 
Ever since the cops found Jaz’s broken body last September and Noah had become the prime suspect, he’d been on the run, never staying anywhere for too long. He spent time in Montana, Idaho, Utah, and Nevada. He never finished high school, and instead took to getting himself fake IDs and socials just to find work wherever he could get it. But now, he was back in Oregon, a mere three hours away from where it all started: Westchester.
Noah had only been working at this convenience store for two months, but no one in any of his other jobs paid attention to him like Diane did. She knew nothing real about him—she thought his name was Malcolm Johnson and that he moved from Missouri to live with his aunt—but she always invited him out, always found ways to tease him, always tried to make him smile.
And she was cute and pretty and sweet, but she was no Jaz. No one could ever even begin to compare to Jazmyn Park.
“Well now that somebody’s here, I’m gonna go get changed and get the hell out of here,” Diane said with a smirk, nudging Noah as she sashayed out from behind the counter.
“I said I was sorry,” Noah called after her. She just waved and disappeared into the employee area.
Noah let out a sigh and leaned his elbows against the countertop. The store wasn’t very busy right now, so he’d just get to stand there for hours, doing nothing. Doing nothing was hard because when you were doing nothing, there wasn’t anything to distract you from the terrible things you didn’t want to think about. He much preferred busy days to slow days.
The door jingled and Noah heard footsteps as people entered the store. He couldn’t see the door from where he stood. He hoped it was a munchy druggy or a parent with kids. Those people always bought the most stuff, which meant more time to be occupied.
“…Been a whole year now,” a familiar voice drifted over to where Noah stood. “And nobody knows where he is.”
Noah’s eyebrows shot up and he glanced furtively around the store. The newcomers to the store stepped out from behind a row of shelves and then, standing across the room with his back to Noah was a man with a flannel shirt and shoulder-length blond hair. A man Noah recognized all to well. Connor Green.
“Shit,” Noah muttered. His heart pounded in his chest and his mouth felt dry. “Shit shit shit sh—” 
Connor started turning, so Noah did the only thing he could think of. He dropped to his hands and knees behind the desk, disappearing from view.  Diane exited out of the employees-only area just as he did, and he saw confusion flit across her face.
“I miss Jaz,” Connor said. “She was really… somethin’ else. I still can’t believe she’s gone.”
A very unjustified but burning hatred for that man flared up inside Noah. He remembered being at the hardware store, shopping for supplies to go up against Mr. Red—Jane. He remembered how Connor flirted with Jaz and how she flirted right back. And he remembered the day Andy asked them if they wanted to go to homecoming. Noah had said, “Seems kinda pointless to go without a date. And I’m… not really in a good place for that. Dating, I mean.” Then he asked Jaz who she wanted to go with and she turned around and went straight to Connor.
He knew he had no right to be angry about it. He’d told Jaz that he wasn’t in a place for dating, and he probably would’ve said no if she’d asked him. But when she decided to ask Connor and Noah responded with “Good luck,” he really had just wanted to clock Connor in the face.
“Do you think they’ll ever catch Noah?” another voice—a woman this time—asked. Noah’s heart nearly froze at the mention of his own name and he frantically tried to place the voice. Then he realized—it was Stacy Green, of course.
Another pair of hands and knees fell onto the ground beside Noah and he started, jumping back and nearly slamming against the back wall.
Diane watched him with an amused expression. Her short black pixie cut was messily styled and her dark makeup made her features stand out against pale skin. “What’re we doing down here, Johnson?” she asked.
“Uh…” His mind raced frantically, trying to come up with some sort of explanation. Some sort of truth and lie mixture that could get him out of this mess. “I know those people from high school. And, uh, they were snobby assholes who hated me. So, I just don’t  want them to know I work here, okay?”
The amusement faded from Diane’s eyes and she nodded solemnly. “I understand. I know I already clocked out, but… I can cover for you until they leave.”
“Really?” Noah couldn’t hide the relieved smile that stole onto his face. 
“Oh yeah,” Diane said. “But you owe me.”
“Okay yeah, that’s fair. What do you want? I can cover your hours or—“
“A date,” Diane said with a smug smile, and before he could protest she bounced to her feet and pasted a winning smile onto her face.
“Hiiii,” she greeted. Noah wondered if she was talking to Connor and Stacy. All he could see was the gross tile, front counter, and Diane’s legs. “Can I help you with something?”
“Hey,” Connor’s voice said. “Cute shirt, by the way.”
Noah wanted to barf. Flirting with random strangers was so Connor.
“We just wanted to buy a few things and ask a few questions, if that’s all right?” Stacy said. Noah could practically hear the smile in her voice.
“Okay, shoot!” Diane said.
Noah heard the sound of items being dropped on the counter, and then the register creaking like it did whenever anyone leaned on it. He could imagine Connor leaning against it now, looking at Diane with the stupid flirtatious smirk he always used on Jaz.
“We were wondering—” it was Connor again “—have you heard of anyone… suspicious running through these parts?”
Diane let out a sharp laugh. “Is that all you’ve got to go off of? I’m sorry, sweetie, but if I told you all the suspicious people I’ve seen around here I’d be listing names ‘til midnight.”
Noah snorted silently. Leave it to Diane to handle a situation like this so perfectly.
He heard Stacy sign in aggravation. “Connor, maybe I should handle this.” There were shuffling footsteps, rustling of the contents of a purse, and something being slapped onto the countertop. “Have you seen anyone who looks like this man? About this tall, almost always wears a beanie? His name is Noah but he probably goes by something else?”
All traces of a smile evaporated from Noah’s face. His heart started to race with panic. He chanced a look up at Diane’s face, and her eyes were narrowed, her mouth tugged into a frown.
Silence. No sound besides a ticking clock and Russ shuffling around the aisles. Diane stared at the counter, at what Noah was sure was a picture of him. He held his breath, waiting for her to jump aside and say, “Oh you’re looking for this guy? Here he is, take him!”
But instead, she shook her head. Her voice was tight. “Nope, never heard of a ‘Noah.’ Also never seen this guy. Sorry.”
Relief flooded through Noah, almost as satisfying a feeling as a heroin high. Diane wasn’t giving him up. At least not yet.
Connor sighed loudly. “Do you have any idea who might know something? This is important. We got a tip that he moved to this area recently but so far, we’ve found nothing.”
“I don’t know,” Diane said. “Why’re you looking for him? Maybe if I knew I could point you to the right people.” 
Noah frantically grabbed her foot, trying to somehow signal to her to not ask these questions. But she shook him off and kept staring straight forward.
“It’s kind of… a personal thing,” Stacy said.
“Well I can’t help if you don’t tell me anything,” Diane countered.
“Look,” Connor interceded. “The police are after him for something he actually didn’t do. We think we might be able to help him, but he’s dodging us.”
Diane glanced down at Noah for a fraction of a second. Then she shrugged. “A person on the run? I’d look for them in Lensgate Park. Or maybe check out the baseball field on eleventh. Tons of shady people hang out there. They might know something.”
“Lensgate Park…” Stacy repeated slowly, probably entering it into her phone. “Okay. And you said eleventh?”
“Yup,” Diane said dryly. “Is there anything else I can help you with?”
“Nope,” Connor said. “You’ve been great. I hope you have a great shift.”
Finally, finally, the footsteps sounded once again, the bell rang as it was opened, and then the door slammed shut. Noah barely had time to reorient himself before Diane reached down and pulled him roughly to his feet.
“Malcolm, what the hell was that about? Who were those people? They weren’t high school bullies, this was something else entirely. And Noah? The cops? What. The. HELL.”
“Diane, Diane,” Noah said, grabbing her by the arms. “Look, those people are from where I grew up, and they… they can’t be trusted.” His mind scrambled to come up with some sort of excuse, but all he could see was Jaz, over and over again. Her terror when she realized he tricked them, her body, broken in his arms… “Um, they, want to frame me—”
Diane scoffed and glared into his honey brown eyes. “Do you expect me to believe that? Are you just one big lie?”
Noah fell back a step, the color draining from his face. “I—”
“Save it, Malcolm. If that’s even your real name.” Diane skirted around the counter and headed for the door. “I backed you up because I liked you, but whatever you’re involved in, I don’t want any part in it. You can forget about the date.”
Noah’s eyebrows knit together as he watched her head out the front door, never looking back. Russ came out from one of the aisles, glancing between Noah and Diane.
“What happened with you two?” Russ asked.
Noah skirted around the counter, removing the name badge he wore on his shirt. “Sorry, Russ, but consider this my resignation.”
He dropped the badge on the counter and shouldered past a shocked Russ.
“Wh—what?” Russ sputtered, chasing after Noah. “Johnson, if you leave it’s just me and Tom. I need the coverage, at least wait until tomorrow—”
“Stuff came up,” Noah said, pushing the glass door open with his shoulder. “I’ll see you around, Russ.”
Russ watched helplessly from the sidewalk as Noah slid into his old beat-up car. He turned the radio on high as he backed out of the parking lot.
He was going to Lensgate Park, or maybe the baseball field on Eleventh.
He was going to figure out what Stacy and Connor knew.
***
Post-note: I wrote this a while ago and wasn’t going to finish but that fic by @isometimesplaychoices inspired me to continue and finish this fic, ily friend!! 
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bamfoftheundead · 4 years
Text
Some random drabble that came to me while I was out workin with my aunt, it all started bc I read somewhere some guy said that he "looked 30 by the time he was 16" and it reminded me of darkholme. It was suppose to be funny but it took a sad-ish turn
@mikeellee and @dannybagpipesarecalling if you're interested
Enjoy
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" Uhhhh 40? 45? " Kitty answers innocently as darkholme chokes on the beer he'd been nursing for the past hour
" excuse me? WAS? did I hear you correctly? " The man chokes out as he wipes the german beer from his fur. Kitty flusters for a moment before breaking into a fit of tipsy giggles. Darkholmes jaw goes slack as the woman falls forward, arms crossed laughing flat out into the table, and at him.
" i-im sorryyyy " she squeals even harder into her arms.
Kurt's ears pull back in defense and partial embarrassment. Did he really look that old?
The jewish woman in front of him barely recovers before twisting open a new bottle and pouring its contents into her glass.
" it's just- you look much older than you are, it's probably " she fumbles to twist the cap back on " -probably the stress " finishing the bottle she tosses it into the recycling bin nearby. Darkholme deflates in place, he'd always know he'd looked older than he was, christ by the time he was 16 he'd been seen as a man in his 30s, it was irritating but he hadn't truly cared much for looks since his wife's passing. But now the newest object of his affections sat in front of him telling him how goddamn old he looked.
Kitty shakes her head to rid her drunken self of the giggles as darkholme sank into further into his chair.
" but you were always so attractive no matter- no matter what really " she hiccups as he perks up at the revelation " you have this swar- swau- SAUVE, look that makes you so goddamn foxy "
Leaning back into her chair she eyes him over and smiles, definitely a fox. Now fully re-engaged darkholme leans forward and props up his arms, eager to hear more about his apparent "foxyness"
" -and when you came out of the portal and we had that uh, that 'moment' " she awkwardly plays with her fingers as she recalls his earlier reaction. Darkholme looks away for a moment, regretful. " And after that I saw you, really saw you and I knew you were a different worlds Kurt, but like, I literally thought you were at LEAST a decade older " waving a hand is dismissal she giggles again "not that there's anything wrong with being older of course, I do like older men soooo- "
Darkholme chokes again, the statement leaves him speechless for a second moment. It wasn't like he was that much older than her! Fuck he was only a little bit older than this world's Kurt anyway, he was not old.
" your older but in like, a sexy way. It's not a b-bad thing it's just " she takes another long swig of her glass " well actually it's pretty damn hot " her blunt tone takes darkholme back for a moment as the woman squints at her empty glass, frowning she looks around for a different bottle as darkholme thinks.
Coolly the blue man leans forward and pours his own bottle into her glass, she would need to be absolutely shitfaced for their next conversation.
" Well then Katherine, tell me, why do you think I am *hot* " he knew it was a manipulative tactic but he wanted to hear the words from her. Kitty looks stumped for a moment as she drinks the rest of her glass. Slamming the cup back down the jewish woman leans her head back and stares up at the ceiling, solemnly.
" well, i- I think it's because your,,,, your you " playing with her cup she smiles as darkholmes heart stills. " It doesn't matter where or when Kurt's from it's him, it'll always be him and i ... I'll always love him " her eyes stare at the table as her tone shifts quietly.
Frowning the brunette suddenly shakes her head
" no it's not just that, not t-that. Your Kurt, you are but your you, you're darkholme, not wagner. But I- " grimacing she squeezes her glass as the man leans forward
" yes? " He asked gently, needing to hear her answer
" but I, I like you too. It doesn't matter who because I still like you, I .... might even love you "
Kitty laughs soberly as she slides a hand through her hair, laughter shifting into a sad grunt. Darkholme leans back in his chair as well, overwhelmed by his find. His heart beats painfully in his chest as he thinks carefully of his words
" it's stupid, f-e-rget it "
' NO! I mean ... It's alright, I like you too "
His tone lightens as he leans forward and gently places a hand over her own. Surprised kitty looks up and sees her reflection in the blood red eyes of her partner, her friend. Darkholme leans forward, hopeful and somewhat tipsy. Kitty freezes as he grows closer, leaning into her face and gently brushing his lips against hers. Darkholme waits for her to move, to accept what was happening and most of all, him.
Jittery she slides her thumb over his hand and kisses him. Darkholme removes his hand from hers and immediately slides a free arm around her waist. Uncomfortable with the position darkholme pulls kitty forward and watches delighted as she phases through the table. He pulls her onto his lap and holds her as tight as he can as she slides both arms around his shoulders. Pulling away he looks back into her eyes, he wouldn't let this be some drunken mishap or mistake, it had to be real. Instead pulls her close against him, pressing his face into her shoulder as she buries her face against his neck.
They sit there together for some time, not a word passes between the two. Darkholme feels a small wet sensation on his neck, she's crying. His heart freezes and doubt ravages him.
Kitty cries as she clings to the blue mutant underneath her. Fear and doubt claw their way into her mind. She thought of Kurt, her Kurt. This wasn't right, she couldn't just betray him like this. Her stomach clenched with guilt and cheap beer as her mind ran, Kurt would hate her if he'd found out about them, about darkholme. She knew it wasn't right, it shouldn't have felt so right, that she should wait for her Kurt to come back. And that's what she had been doing for so long, it hurt so much. The fear of betraying her first love, the fear is losing a second one- she couldn't take it. Kitty wasn't sure she could survive if she lost darkholme, she'd already lost Kurt and a part of herself the day the man had died but darkholme .... God she couldn't do it
She tries to pull away from his grasp -too drunk to fully rely on her mutation a second time- but the blue man resists. He holds her waist and further presses his face into her shoulder. Kitty squeezes his shirt and feels his own trembling.
As she turns to pull away she hers a sound that nearly breaks her. She feels a few drops of liquid on her shoulder -what she assumed to be beer at first- and came to the startling realization that darkholme, the god hating man was crying, he was fucking crying. No longer held back she lets herself collapse against him. His sobs are small and hard to hear but she can feel them.
Pulling back she looks at the man with watery brown eyes and gently takes his chin into her hand and guides his face. Wet golden eyes meet her own. His brow is furrowed in frustration and his fangs are made known. They see each other and kitty gently takes her other hand and slides it up his cheeks, wiping away his tears as they soak into his furry cheeks. It was obvious darkholme wasn't a crier and kitty was certain she'd never see him like this again. The things alcohol could do to a person was truly amazing. Still holding his face she pulls him close to her, his bigger nose pressing into the corner of hers as their lips meet again.
This time kitty doesn't let go, his fangs press against her bottom lip and she doesn't let go. Darkholme slides a hand through her hair, keeping the other firmly around her waist to ground himself. The two mutants sit together like this for some time, taking in their presence and filling themselves with each other.
Darkholme holds her this time, he doesn't push her away, he doesn't yell, he doesn't let go.
" I may even love you as well, kätzchen "
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Text
Sam, Interrupted: Part One
Pairing: Dean x Reader
Word Count: 2,102
Warnings: typical supernatural violence, language, angst, blood, you know the usual
Author’s Note: I do not own anything from Supernatural. All credit goes to their respective owners. Any and all comments on these are appreciated. I really want to hear what you guys think about this one!
Feedback is the glue that holds my writing together.
Tags at the bottom
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The death of the two women in your life was still very fresh in your minds. They wanted you three to kill Lucifer with the Colt, and as much as you tried, it didn’t work. Jo died for nothing as did Ellen, but the event hasn’t left your mind since. Your mind wouldn’t let you forgive yourself for not doing something more even though Dean’s told you repeatedly that you did everything you could. Jo was dead the minute the hellhounds got to her no matter how much magic you used on her body.
Nonetheless, there were other people that needed to be saved. Other people that had no clue the apocalypse was near them. Other people that were more important than Lucifer since the archangel hasn’t shown up since that night. All you could do was focus on the case in front of you which just so happened to be in a psychiatric hospital where an ex-hunter summoned you.
In order to get into the hospital and do your job, you needed to go undercover.
In order to do that, you needed to tell the truth.
“You were referred to me by a Dr. Babar in Chicago,” Dr. Fuller stated, looking at the file in his hands.
“That’s right,” you nodded.
“Isn't there a children's book about an elephant named Babar?”
“I don't know. I don't have any elephant books. Look, Doctor, I-I-I think the doc was in over his head with this one,” Dean points to his brother. “'Cause my brother is,” he makes a motion with his fingers by the side of his head that usually meant “crazy”.
“Okay, fine, thank you. That's really not necessary,” he stuttered, grabbing his notepad and file. “Why don't you tell me how you're feeling, Alex?”
“I'm fine. I mean, okay, a little depressed, I guess,” Sam sighed.
“Okay, any idea why?” Dr. Fuller asked as he wrote in his notepad.
“Probably because I started the apocalypse.”
“The apocalypse?”
“Yeah, that's right.”
“And you think you started it?” Dr. Fuller asked, looking at you and Dean who just smiled innocently.
“Well, yeah, I mean I killed this demon, Lilith, and I accidentally freed Lucifer from hell. So now, he's topside, and we're trying to stop him.”
“Who is?”
“Me. And him. And her. And this one angel.”
“Oh, you mean, like an angel on your shoulder.”
“No, his name’s Castiel. He wears a trench coat.”
“See what I mean, Doc? The kid's been beating himself up about this for months. The apocalypse wasn't his fault.”
“It’s not?” Dr. Fuller asked, stunned.
“No. There was this other demon, Ruby. She got him addicted to demon blood, and near the end, he was practically chugging this stuff,” you chuckled, adding in your two cents.
“My brother's not evil. He was just... high... yeah? So, could you fix him up so we can get back to traveling around the country and hunting monsters?”
“I really have an itching to kill some demons and Lucifer. I mean, we did shoot him, but he lived and is now going to come after me because apparently, I’m connected to his aunt or something.”
“Lucifer’s… aunt?”
“Yeah. Her name is Amara.”
“Irma,” Dr. Fuller said when he picked up his phone and dialed an extension, “cancel my lunch.”
All three of you gave the doctor comforting and warm smiles which only concerned him more.
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“Dr. Fuller thinks it would be best if we keep you three under observation or a couple of days,” a sickly happy nurse said as she led you down a hall.
She was speaking, but you didn’t listen to a word she was saying. There was something off about the dark-haired nurse. She wasn’t a demon or an angel… but she wasn’t human either.
“All of us? Me, too? And Y/N?” Dean asked.
“Yes, Sugar. The doctor thinks that would be best,” she smiled.
Sam and Dean got their own rooms, and when she was done with them, she walked into your room with a smile on her face. She went down to business and wrapped a blood pressure cuff around your arm, checked it, and then removed it.
“Alright, I'm just gonna give you a little check-up,” she smiled.
“Would you stop smiling all the time? You’re freaking me out here,” you mumbled.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you,” she playfully frowned before smiling again.
“What are you?” you muttered to yourself, not expecting her to hear it.
Though she did, and her smiled faltered just a bit before she reminded herself to keep it on her face always. Yeah, there was something definitely wrong with her.
“How long is this going to take?” you asked.
“Not that long. You just relax and let me do my job.” She was right, it didn’t take that long, and you were walking to the patient lounge with patient scrubs, shoes, and a blue robe.
It’s what Sam and Dean were wearing when you joined them.
“How was your Silkwood shower?” Dean asked you.
“I don’t want to talk about it,” you said in a small voice. Shaking off the horrifying experience, you decided to get down to business about why you were really here in the first place. “I can't believe I let you two talk me into this.”
“Hey, it's the least we could do. Martin saved Dad's ass more times than we can count. He's a great hunter,” Sam defended the man who summoned you here.
“Was. Until Albuquerque,” Dean grumbled.
“Besides, I just figure it's best we keep busy. That's all.”
“Better than what?” Dean asked.
“You know what,” you sighed, still not over Ellen and Jo’s death at all.
“Okay. Look... um... last few weeks, you've kind of been worrying me,” Sam admitted.
“Oh, come on, Sam. Stop,” Dean rolled his eyes. “Look, just because we're in the loony bin doesn't give you the right to head-shrink me.”
“Dean—”
“Ellen and Jo dying—yeah, it was a fucking tragedy, okay? But I'm not gonna wallow in it.”
“Dean, you always do this. You can't just keep this shit in,” you sighed.
“Watch me,” he chuckled before spotting the ex-hunter by the corner. “Oh, there he is.”
Dean left you and Sam, and you watched him go with a sad look. Ellen and Jo meant something to him, you knew, and it sucked he never wanted to talk about anything. Taking a deep breath, you and Sam walked over to Martin who smiled at your presence.
“Sam, Dean, Y/N, wow,” he stood and shook Sam’s hand. “Wow, you boys got big. You too, Y/N. You look good.”
“Thanks. You do, too, Martin,” you smiled.
“Uh... well, thanks for coming,” he motioned for you to sit, which you three did. “In the old days, I could've taken care of this thing with both hands tied behind my back... but, well... now...”
“What do you think it is that we're hunting?”
“I don't know yet. A ghost, demon, monster... animal, vegetable, mineral,” he chuckled. “Hospital's had five deaths in the last four months. Doctors keep calling it suicides, but they're wrong.”
“So, you’ve seen this thing?” you asked. Martin shook his head which lead you to your neck question. “Has anyone seen this thing?”
“Well, a couple patients have, uh... had glimpses, but there's not a lot to go on.”
“Are they reliable?” Dean asked.
“Oh, sure, why wouldn't they be?” Martin wondered.
Taking a look around the room, you noticed a woman danced and hummed around the room, and you knew whatever she said wasn’t going to be reliable. Looking back at Martin, you raised an eyebrow at him.
“I know you three think I'm a bag of loose screws. Now, you wouldn't be wrong. But I wouldn't have called you unless there was something here. I can feel it in my gut.”
“We believe you. Have you checked any of the bodies? Found signs of an attack?” Sam asked.
“Well, uh, no... I don't go around dead b-b-b-bodies anymore,” he flinched. Dr. Fuller approached you four and smiled at everyone.
“Alex, Eddie, Maria,” he smiled at you and the brothers. It’s not like you could use your real names here. “Well, I'm glad to see you're making friends. Why don't you and Mr. Creaser join us for group? Please. Right this way.”
Getting up, you followed the Doctor, but he stopped you and Dean from joining Martin and Sam.
“Actually, I'm gonna be putting you two in the afternoon group.”
“What? Why?” you asked.
“Well, to be frank, uh, the relationship that you two have with your brother seems dangerously codependent. I think a little time apart will do you both good,” he smiled.
He walked away with Sam and Martin, but you two frowned as you watched them go.
“What do we do now?” Dean asked.
“I guess we just hang here a bit until they come back. We can’t do anything without them. Well, I mean we could, but it’ll be like us chasing our tails.”
“Then let’s play,” he smiled, moving a chair out for you at a table with a checkers board on it.
“Don’t mind if I do,” you grinned, taking a seat.
Dean sat opposite of you and set up the board, giving you the red ones and him the black. When everything was set up, he made the first move, and the game started. When the score was tied, you held up a hand and got up from your seat.
“Don’t cheat. I’m going to use the bathroom,” you chuckled before walking away.
As you turned the corner, you looked back to see Dean speaking to someone even though no one was there to begin with.
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After a long afternoon, you and Dean followed several patients down the hall, Dean’s hands in his pockets and staring at the floor. He was kind of depressed, but you didn’t know why he was. He claimed a doctor came to him while you were away to talk about his father, but you were only gone for five minutes. Just as you two passed by a door, it opened and Sam walked out and joined you two.
“Dean, hey. You okay?”
“He’s having a tough time. Please tell us you found something.”
“Yeah. A guy, Ted, says he saw the creature. We should talk to him. You wanna meet here in an hour?”
“Yeah, sooner we take care of this thing, sooner we can get gone. This place gives me the creeps,” he shivered.
Turning around, you come face to face with a patient who just smiled. Before you could say anything, she grabs the back of your neck and kisses you just like that. Your eyes went wide as did the brothers, and she pulled away with a seductive smile.
“Hi.”
“Hi…?”
“I’m Wendy.”
“Uh-huh,” you nodded.
She slapped your ass as she passed by you to leave, and you watched her with a confused look.
“Dude—”
“Not a word, Winchester,” you glared at Dean who lost his smile.
He cleared his throat and pretended what he saw didn’t affect him in anyway.
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After hours, when you knew the nurses would be on their rounds, you and Dean met his brother outside of his cell. Sam had the lock pick he managed to sneak into the place. He knew of the guy that saw the monster you were looking for, and you were going to need to talk to him if you wanted to get this case over and done with as soon as possible.
“Well, it's about time. Nurses are on their rounds. We got, like, fifteen, twenty minutes. So, where is this guy?” Dean asked.
“Room 306,” Sam informed, leading the trio to the room.
It didn’t take long since Sam’s was near his. When you approached the door, you heard Ted screaming in fear. The monster must be in there, and your hands turned blue to get the door opened faster than a lock pick would. The brothers moved out of the way, and right before your hands could touch the door, Ted’s feet slammed against the window so that you couldn’t see inside the place.
“Hurry up! Come on, hurry up!” Dean urged.
Shaking your head, you placed your hands flat on the door as you let your magic do its thing to get the door unlocked. As soon as the door clicked, you opened it only to see Ted hanging from a pipe in the ceiling with a tied bed sheet around his neck.
“Damn it!” you exclaimed.
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theworkofxanderking · 4 years
Text
Twisted Tristan
Chapter 1 - Our City (Volume One)
Warnings: I do not own or claim to own the original content to “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, “Angel”, the comics or any of the original characters from the “Buffyverse” all rights belong to Joss Whedon.
15 plus, displays of Violence, Gore, Torture, M/M, F/M, F/F.
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Faith found herself running through darkly lit underground tunnels her feet drenched by the sewer water her feet was running through while holding a new-born baby wrapped in blankets constantly looking back frantically before turning a corner to find Willow who is standing next to an opened portal anxiously awaiting her.
“Willow there’s just far too many of the bastards if we go through that portal, they’re only going to follow us.” Faith said to her while trying to rock the recently awakened and loudly crying baby back to sleep.
“Then I guess we have no choice but to put the little guy through first and place him somewhere safely while we deal with the unwanted followers.” Willow replied before taking the baby off Faith’s hand and beginning to walk towards the opened portal.
“Don’t worry I’ll hold them off for as long as I can.” Faith promised as she pulled out a wooden stake from her jacket pock while Willow ran through the portal with the baby in her arms.
Willow appeared from out of the other end of the portal with the crying baby boy still in her arms to find herself in a dark alleyway before looking for somewhere safe to place the baby so she could return to help the others.
“Well I’m definitely not going to win any best aunt award anytime soon for dumping my new-born nephew in some dank alleyway, but I promise aunt Willow will be right back the minute she and mummy slay the mean old monsters.” Willow said to the baby boy as she took of her jacket, wrapped it around the baby and placed him on the ground. “We will be right back I promise.”
The baby boy continued to cry louder and louder as Willow ran back through the opened portal to return to the underground tunnels finding Faith fighting with several vampires. Willow quickly summoned a sunlight ball instantly turning the vampires within the proximity to dust.
The joy didn’t last long as the portal suddenly shut itself leaving no trace of it ever being there just in time for Buffy to appear running from around the corner.
“Willow where is the portal?” Buffy asked frantically. “Willow where is my son?”
“I don’t know.” A confused and heartbroken Willow replied.
A random brown-haired girl found herself running down a dark alleyway one night one like the alleyway in which Buffy’s son was abandoned. The girl continued to look behind her truly terrified of whatever was chasing her until in a typical cliche fashion she found herself reaching a literal dead end only for the girl to laugh as fear fell from her face.
This girl was no ordinary girl she was a slayer and she had just lured a vampire into a trap believing she had the upper hand in the situation not truly knowing what she had just let herself in for.
“You literally have no idea who you are dealing with.” She smugly said as a tall dark and handsome man appeared from out of the shadows only to laugh at her response before twisting his face into revealing his vampire face.
The girl quickly stormed her way towards the vampire after pulling a wooden stake out of her jacket leading to her kicking the vampire in the face only to find him quickly jumping back from her hit to punch her across the face as the slayer and the vampire began a fight to the death.
Upon several minutes of brutal fighting between the slayer and the vampire she finally got the better of the vampire kicking him to the ground and prepared to steak him but before she stood a chance a tall, skinny, long raven haired man appeared from out of the shadows instantly grabbing the slayer’s attention.
“I guess there’s a new slayer in town,” He bluntly said, “I thought your kind knew this was my city now.”
The slayer rushed towards her next opponent only for the stranger to quickly get the better of her delivering several punches before kicking her into some nearby bins. However, the girl was no quitter and quickly jumped back onto her feet at the same time the dark-haired vampire raised to his feet.
“Leave this one to me Dante.” The stranger ordered the vampire as the slayer marched over towards him.
Another fight began between the slayer and the stranger this one even bloodier and more brutal than the slayer’s fight against the vampire only this time this seemingly human man was getting the better of her.
In a last-ditch effort to win back the fight the slayer launched her wooden stake towards the stranger’s chest only for him to catch her arm instantly snapping it with force before pushing her down to the ground.
“Wooden stakes only work on vampires darling,” He revealed to her. “And I am no vampire.”
The sinister stranger with long raven hair was not a vampire although his friend Dante was, this man was none other than Tristan Summers, Buffy’s son, the baby who was once abandoned in an alleyway like the one he had just taken down a slayer in.
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Following a successful night hunting Tristan and Dante found themselves making out behind the counter of a demonic dive bar located within New York, a dive bar in which the two men ran together as the demonic, monstrous and vampiric clientele drank their varied drinks throughout the busy bar.
Tristan and Dante’s intimate moment together was quickly interrupted when three male vampires came bursting through the front door.
“I heard you caught another slayer boss.” The first vampire said with excitement. “We came as soon as we heard.”
Tristan pulled himself away from his vampire lover before jumping over the bar counter and walking towards his three vampire minions who are instantly terrified by their boss’ quick movements before staring his minions down making sure they feared him and getting off on that fact.
“I was just about to start a game of darts.” Tristan said with a sinister smirk before ushering their attention over to the other end of the bar to reveal the girl he and Dante had caught earlier tied down in chains to a wooden table flipped on its side.
The slayer was bound and unable to move or escape from her chains while blood poured out from her on various wounds on her broken and bruised body looking in a lot of pain with several darts launched into her body which only served to amuse the bar’s customers.
“The trick to being a good darts player is not only changing the dart board to something of your own liking,” Tristan said demanding the entire bar’s attention as he picked up a dart from a nearby table and launched it in the slayer’s direction, the dart launching into her shoulder and causing her to scream in pain. “It also helps to dip the darts in some poison so if it’s not a bulls-eye it’s still going to hurt.”
“They will come for me and you will all be nothing but dust and bloody limbs.” The slayer screamed at the entire bar.
“No this is a respectable business please don’t be threatening my staff.” Tristan replied sarcastically while walking over towards the slayer.
“How could you turn on your own kind for these monsters?” The slayer asked him as she came face to face with her defeater.
“These monsters are some of my closest friends in fact some I would go as far to say were family.” Tristan corrected her while grabbing her with force by the throat. “Slayers are all fools playing heroes which only serves to shorten your life span.”
Tristan wasted no time in tearing out two darts from the slayer’s weakened body before launching the darts one into each eye causing the slayer to scream out in agonizing pain before Tristan grabbed a hold of her neck once again this time with both hands before snapping her neck and by doing so claiming the slayer’s life.
“We were supposed to keep her alive long enough to get some information about who sent her to New York Tristan.” Dante moaned before jumping over the bar counter and beginning to walk towards his twisted lover.
“You worry far too much my darling,” Tristan responded before passionately kissing his boyfriend. “She’s probably just another foolish slayer who took a wrong turn just like the others.”
“My love we can’t afford to take chances not with her constantly on the move.” Dante warned the love of his undead life.
“Feel free to feast away boys I’m sure the poison would just a little kick to the taste but once you’re done snacking, dump the body outside of city limits like usual.” Tristan ordered his three minion vampires.
His vampiric minions waste no time in rushing their way over to the slayer’s corpse and sinking their fangs into several different locations on her body while Dante continued to look at Tristan unimpressed by his actions.
“What if other slayers knew where she was?” Dante asked. “What if she knew where she was?”
“New York City is ours and nobody will take it from us.” Tristan stated before kissing his lover once again.
“Your mother has proven to be quite the opponent over the years I’d hate for your ego to hurt you my love.” Dante warned him before grabbing Tristan by the waist and pulling him in for another kiss.
“I’ve been ready to meet Buffy Summers for years I can’t wait to see how I fare against the legend herself and I can’t wait to see that look on her face when she realizes she was bet by her own blood.” Tristan replied smugly clearly ready in his head to meet his mother.
A few nights later a clearly not aged Faith found herself riding down a dark road in the outskirts of New York City on her black motorbike before pulling up at the side of the road before getting off her bike and  walking into the forest as she pulled a phone out of her pocket switched on a torch setting and dialed Willow in loudspeaker keeping her hands free to walk through the forest and find what she was looking for.
“I know when hunting woods for a body comes across your mind you instantly think of me but it’s no fun looking for the body the fun is in burying it.” Faith said sarcastically to Willow after she answered her call.
“Well I’m afraid woods and dead bodies is kind of a touchy subject for me since the whole well you know.” Willow replied through the phone. “We need to find out if this girl is the dead slayer we’ve been looking for because if she is then we have some serious problems rising in New York.”
“Okay well now I’m officially hoping it’s her no offense to the girl or anything but if her dead proves the rumors then it means I’ve got myself a party to attend to in the big apple.” Faith responded while continuing to walk through the woods in search of the dead slayer.
“Sadly, I’m pretty certain your going to find her my spells are rarely ever wrong these days.” Willow admitted just as Faith found the slayer’s bloodied and wounded corpse abandoned on the ground without a single fear of the body being found.
“Well congratulations Will it looks like you’re right once again,” Faith revealed while examining the corpse. “It looks like these fuckers really went to town on the poor girl.”
“Oh, goddess this isn’t good,” Willow sighed through the phone. “I know what you’re thinking Faith but please don’t step foot in New York until we send some back up.”
“No offense Willow but I’m not waiting around for the brownie brigade we both know I’m more of a one-woman army.” Faith replied making it clear to Willow she wanted to handle this situation solo.
“Faith the last time a slayer went into that city well your looking at what happened.” Willow warned her.
“Not one to cause offense while literally lingering over the girl’s dead body but a newbie slayer hardly has anything on me.” Faith boasted before hanging up on Willow not allowing her the chance to try and talk her out of her mission.
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A shirtless Dante walked into his bedroom within the apartment located above his and Tristan’s bar while holding two glasses of champagne in his hands eager to cheer up his sulking lover Tristan who was sitting on the edge of their bed looking far from impressed.
“I’m still mad at you for disrespecting me in front of our peers the other night,” Tristan moaned as he stood up to face Dante. “You know I don’t like it when you argue with them in front of me it gives them the idea that I’ll tolerate disrespect of any king.”
“I was merely worrying about my lover’s safety.” Dante replied while flexing his impressive muscles before handing Tristan his glass of champagne.
“You should have more faith in me by now.” Tristan snapped before downing his glass of champagne in one long gulp.
“Tristan Summers you are well and truly remarkable the most delightfully wicked thing that has ever happened to me.” Dante admitted to his dangerous and deadly boyfriend. “I just fear sometimes about losing you and everything we’ve worked so hard for.”
“You know for a soulless blood sucking creature you are quite the caring boyfriend.” Tristan said with a sinister smirk almost as if he was mocking his lover for caring about him.
Dante down his drink in one gulp just like his lover before grabbing a hold of Tristan’s glass and throwing both glasses against the wall causing them to smash instantly as he looked at Tristan furiously before exposing his vampire face once again much to Tristan’s own enjoyment.
“Now that’s the monster I love.” Tristan said before Dante ripped his shirt open with his hands and threw Tristan down onto the bed before climbing on top of him and kissing him passionately.
Faith got off her motorbike once again only this time she had parked it in a parking lot just outside of a seeking looking motel as she stood looking at the building with a dreaded sense of nostalgia having spent most of her adult life living in motel room after motel room.
“If you’re doing any tricks in the room love then you have to pay by the hour.” The old fat and balding male receptionist said to her as she slammed money down at the reception desk.
“I don’t know whether to take that as a compliment or beat your ugly ass for calling me a whore lucky for you it’s been a long night, so I’ll take it as a compliment.” Faith snapped at him before collecting her keys and walking back out of the reception and down towards her motel room.
Before long she found herself in her bed and fast asleep after a quick shower but unfortunately she didn’t get much sleep before being awakened by the sound of foot steps in her room wasting no time to attack she quickly launched herself out of the bed before pushing a dark figured man up against a wall harshly only to switch the lights on to see Angel in front of her eyes.
“I know you’re a girl who’s fond of her sleep but you’re not really going to kill the closest thing you have to a friend just for waking you up, are you?” He asked her jokingly as the two laughed about the confusion before she let go of her vampire friend.
“You should know better than to sneak up on me Angel.” She replied. “I thought you were a vampire well one of the soulless varieties.”
“I’m actually here because of a certain vampire called Dante,” Angel revealed to her as he pulled a folder out of his jacket and threw it down on her bed. “I’ve been following him and his powerful little friend for quite some time now and I’m guessing Willow sent you here for the same reason.”
“So, the vampire has himself a witch friend then?” She asked before picking up the folder, opening it and beginning to have a skim through the pages.
“He’s supposedly human but much stronger than your average human in fact he’s taken down a few slayers allegedly.” Angel explained to her. “There’s rumors that he’s actually one of the very few male slayers in the world and went rogue.”
“So, I’m hunting down a rogue slayer got to love the irony.” Faith said sarcastically while continuing to skim through the pages.
“This supposed slayer and his vampire friend are quite the troublesome duo they’ve got many in New York utterly terrified of them.” Angel admitted.
“I guess that means one dead slayer and one pile of dust coming right up.” Faith responded before throwing the folder back down on her bed. “What are you not telling me.”
“Dante was sired by Drusilla in fact she considers him a son and he lives up to our twisted family legacy.” Angel revealed to a shocked Faith. “He’s very dangerous.”
“I’m guessing this means you want to tag along for the ride so you can have a reunion with your sired one’s sired one.” Faith guessed correctly.
“Dante is dangerous enough by himself and his friend seems to be just as powerful a threat we need to take this one seriously.” Angel warned her.
“Okay then boss man what’s the plan?” She asked.
“It’s time for the original rogue slayer to meet the latest slayer gone bad.” Angel replied with a cunning smile.
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Tristan found himself stood up against the wall outside of his demonic dive bar during the day while smoking a cigarette only to be left shocked to see a brunette rogue beauty appear from around the street corner before the rogue beauty walked up towards him.
“You don’t happen to have a smoke going spare?” She asked him.
“Humans don’t normally have the courage to come around this party of the city.” He replied while continue to smoke his cigarette.
“Well it’s a good thing I’m not entirely human.” She revealed to him. “I’m a slayer in fact I’m probably the most infamous slayer ever to live.”
“So, slayers are just actively seeking me out in the daylight now.” Tristan laughed before throwing his cigarette across the street. “A death wish really does come with the calling then.”
“I’m not like most slayers you see I’m infamous for a reason,” Faith went on to say instantly grabbing Tristan’s attention. “I’m Faith and something tells me you’ve heard all about me.”
And Tristan did hear about Faith he heard all about Faith Lehane and was very happy to finally meet her.
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abutterflyscribbles · 5 years
Text
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@magic-and-moonlit-wings @tough-girl9 a prologue of sorts
“Slimy little weasel!”
“What was that, son?”
Bog fumbled with the diary he had been engrossed in. He had not noticed his mother returning from lunch. Restraining himself from shoving the book hastily out of sight, Bog placed the diary back on its shelf and removed the gloves he had been wearing to handle it.
“Nothing, mom!” Bog called back.
He flipped open a random catalog to make it look like he had been working. Just in time, too. His mother stuck her head around the corner, all frizzy red hair and cheerful grin. “Been back here all day? You should come out front and help the customers I brought with me. I met them at the cafe. Such lovely young ladies--”
Bog slammed a stack of cheap paperbacks on the counter, adding onto the wall of books he had been building around himself all days. “You know better than I do where we keep the cheap, sleazy romance novels.”
“Romance never hurt anybody, there's no reason to act like it bit you!”
She flounced off to the front of the shop.
Bog shuffled the stacks of books around a little, trying to get himself to start a new task. He didn't want to. He wanted to take the diary back out and read what happened next. The diary's author, an unknown woman from a hundred or so years ago, had just recorded the incident of her fiancé's betrayal. Bog had never wanted to sock anyone so much before.
He hadn't meant to do more than skim a few pages of the diary to try and get a grasp of its age, condition, and possible value. Opening it to a random page he found an ashamed little entry about the writer leaning to fence on the sly. That had intrigued him enough to start reading from the beginning and work his way through the typical girly drivel so common in these sort of things.
The diary had been one in a series, it seemed, and none of the other volumes had been collected with this one. It had been purchased in a grab bag sort of deal where Bog had gotten a crate of random old books at a discount. There had been nothing else of interest or value in the crate and most of it had been bought up by art students or people looking to decorate their homes with a touch of pretension.
Giving up on working, Bog rearranged the book stacks to screen himself from view and settled back into his chair with the diary carefully open on the table in front of him. The writing after the betrayal of the author's fiancé grew darker and was written in bolder strokes than before. The brief mention of her heartache was not referred to again and the author plunged into a series of wild escapades that resulted in impressive scandals. Challenging her ex to a duel, for example. Or helping her sister elope with an unsuitable young man.
Each incident was sketched in a brief but vivid style that revealed very little personal emotion. Somehow Bog sensed her heartache even through the reckless, carefree dash of her pen. Maybe it was because he knew how it was to throw yourself into other things to avoid painful feelings. Maybe he was just projecting. Whatever the case, Bog wished he could have met this mystery writer. Or at least read the diaries that came after this one. This one ended with her notes on preparation to leave her family home and appeal to an aunt to help her take a house in town. The aunt sounded like quite the character. Bog wished he could hear more about her.
Closing the diary and stretching, Bog sighed. A fragment of someone's life, chipped away from the rest, a crystallized moment. He could look at the broken edges of it and imagine what the rest looked like, but he'd never really know. He admired the fragment of life he did know. She'd been shy and ashamed of who she was and when it came to a breaking point she shed all her doubts and fears and emerged bold, fearless, and truly herself. Admirable. Enviable. Bog could never imagine doing the same.
He'd been unlucky in love himself but unlike the author the blame had fallen entirely on him. He has assumed too much, pushed too much, imagined what wasn't there. He had imagined that a face and personality like his were at all lovable. He'd been painfully silly. While the author of the diary had advanced, Bog had retreated. Back into himself, into sullen in the back of the bookshop. Books were complete creatures. They didn't change on you. You couldn't misunderstand them like people.
Bog reread the last few sentences of the diary. Off on an adventure. Forever just setting off on an adventure. Not having the rest of the diaries in a way made it possible for her to forever been on her adventures, proud and free. Heartbreak and death, they couldn't touch her. Yes, truly an enviable thing.
Over the weeks Bog found himself looking at the diary again and again in his spare moments and even in moments he couldn't spare. Trying to picture the woman who fought for freedom in a world made to cage her.
'You asleep back there?” his mother called from the front of the shop.
“No.” Bog grunted from behind his books.
“Then get out here and help this customer, I'm swamped!”
Bog put the diary away and gritted his teeth. Customer service was his least favorite thing in the world. Especially when the customer was a woman and his mother was making encouraging faces in the background. Today was no different. A woman, probably around Bog's own age, but carrying it better, was loitering impatiently by the counter. She had sharp features and fine lines of cynicisms etched lightly around her mouth and eyes.
“Yes?” Bog asked. He was ready to see her disgust at the sight of him.
“Finally!” the woman said, “I tried calling you people all week! Don't you answer the phone?”
“Apparently not.” Bog could have explained their number had changed at their website hadn't been updated yet but he doubted that would have appeased her.
“Whatever,” she pulled a handful of papers out of the pocket of her leather jacket, “I'm looking for a book--”
“No, really?”
“Drop dead. A particular book. An old diary.”
Bog's heart skipped a beat. She couldn't have meant his. “Yeah, we get some coming through here, but we don't usually hang on to them long. Not much interest.”
“I'm the not much interest. Here's pictures of one of the companion diaries. It should be bound the same if the original cover is intact.”
Bog's heart sank. The picture looked like his diary. The photos of handwriting samples were a perfect match too. He made a split second decision and slapped the photos back on the counter. “Never seen it.”
“And you've read every book in this place?” the woman said, unconvinced.
“Close enough to make no difference.” he said firmly.
He wasn't giving up that diary. That little piece of a person he admired and felt almost like a friend to him. He'd bought it, legal and upfront. He'd no obligation to even admit he owned it.
“C'mon, you aren't even going to point me to your reject bin of worthless old books? All the other places at least had the courtesy to do that.”
“I make no claims to courtesy.”
The woman blew a few strands of reddish-brown hair out of her face. “Look, you oversized grump--”
“You look, tough girl with a Napoleon complex--”
“Napoleon wasn't even short!”
“You don't deny that you are?”
“Like you can even tell! You must bang your head every time you forget to duck going through a door. Look. This diary belongs in my family and I've been trying to track it down. Some great-great-great aunt or something. I've gotten most of the others but--”
“Others?”
“Yeah, all the early volumes and most of the later ones after she left home--”
“The later ones? Really?”
“Yeah—wait,” She gave him a measuring glare, “you do have one, don't you?”
Bog shrugged.
The woman, to Bog's astonishment, blushed. “You . . . you didn't read it, did you?”
Bog shrugged again.
The woman looked as if death would be a blessing. Bog was totally confused. She ran her hand through her short hair and cleared her throat, “Uh, which one—what point of her life—oh, fork it over!”
“Fork what over?” Bog asked with a smirk.
“You've got it, I want it! It belongs to me!”
“Ownership is nine tenths of the law, tough girl. If I have it, that is.”
“I'll break your thumbs. I'll pay you. A lot. Whatever you want.”
“Not interested.”
“Why? What good is a moldy old diary full of sentimental trash?”
“I like her.”
“Beg pardon?”
Now Bog found himself blushing. “I mean, the one who wrote it. She's—she was interesting. I like her. Her adventures. I like her adventures. She was obviously someone pretty unique and special and I like having that little glimpse into her life . . .”
The woman was red as a beet. From anger, Bog assumed. “You do have it! And please, she was a silly little idiot. Or—or so family legend has it.”
“She was extraordinary.” Bog insisted.
“Extraordinarily silly!”
“You've got the later volumes, right? Have you even read them? She was brave and steadfast and fought like mad for what she thought was right in a time in history where she was expected to sit down and shut up!”
“I hate you!”
“I'm not so foud of you either, tough girl!”
“Just give me the book! I'm putting together a family history thing and I want it for an exhibit. Yeah. An exhibit.”
“Can I make a copy?”
“No!”
“No deal.”
“What will it take, you cockroach?”
“Let me read the later diaries.”
“What? No way! No chance!”
“No deal.”
“Anything else!”
“Not interested.”
“You—I'll—I'll be back!”
The woman crammed her papers back in her pocket and stormed out of the shop.
Bog, avoiding the eyes of the other customers, stalked back to his desk, oddly flustered. He was angry at himself. He'd run smack into the descendant of the woman in the diary and he hadn't even gotten any contact information about her or the exhibit. Idiot. Some manners might have gone a long way, but no, he had to snap and growl. Idiot.
Bog looked at the diary. “I bet you'd dislike me as much as your grand-niece does, if you two are anything alike.”
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homoose · 3 years
Text
Love Has a Learning Curve: Part III (x OC)
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Summary: Spencer has to face Anita and Sam— and learns a little about Maggie’s past. Maggie and Spencer babysit for Michael and Henry. 
Pairing: Spencer Reid x OC
Category: fluff, a tiny smidge of hurt/comfort
Warnings/Includes: implied smut, drinking/alcohol, vague mentions of previous emotional/mental abuse (Owen)
Word count: 4.2k
a/n: This picks up right after the end of the tmsidk epilogue! I also worked two requests in here.
Series Masterlist
———
Spencer stacked the last of the tiny chairs in the center of the room, stepping back and dusting his palms on his trousers. He looked over to see Maggie playing a sort of container tetris with the bins of supplies in her closet. He smiled a little to himself, his head still in the metaphorical clouds with her confession of love. 
She maneuvered the bins to her satisfaction and shut the closet doors, pushing against them to squeeze everything in until the latch clicked. She turned to see him watching her and wiped imaginary sweat from her brow. She gave him a wink and a grin, and he was falling all over again. 
She perched on the corner of her desk with a tired sigh, and he made his way across the room to her. She reached for him as soon as he was within arms length, wrapping her arms around his middle. She snuggled into his chest, and he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “Let’s go to dinner to celebrate.”
She laughed and looked up at him. “Celebrate what?”
He shrugged. “You. Summer.” He brought his arms around her shoulders. “Love.”
She smiled and scrunched her nose at him. “You just want me to say it again.”
His lips twitched. “Maybe.”
Her hands came to rest on his hips, her fingers squeezing lightly. “I love you.”
“I love you,” he answered immediately and rather dreamily.
“Yo, Brooksy!” 
The call of her name from the hallway startled them both. Anita began to step over the threshold, continuing, “You ready to get absolutely crunk tonight or— oh.” She stopped dead in her tracks, eyes tracking Spencer’s frame. “Dr. Reid.”
Spencer stepped back from Maggie, smiling a little awkwardly at the formality and giving a wave. “Mrs. Lopez. It’s, um— it’s nice to see you again.”
Anita hummed noncommittally, and Spencer shoved his hands in his pockets. She turned her attention back to Maggie. “So, are we going out or what?”
Maggie groaned. “Anita, I’m exhausted. Can we keep it low key? Oh!” Her eyes lit up with an idea, and Spencer could already see where this was going. “Spence and I were gonna get dinner to celebrate, um— summer. Call Sam; we’ll all just go together.”
Anita spared a glance in Spencer’s direction before sighing heavily. “Fine. But I’m drinking.” With that, she turned on her heel and disappeared back into the hallway.
Maggie chuckled. “I swear she’s not actually an alcoholic.” Her eyes landed on Spencer’s face, and she smiled gently. “I know you weren’t expecting a Meet the Friends night, but it’ll be fun.”
“She hates me,” Spencer surmised.
“She does not hate you.” Maggie stood from the desk, pressed a reassuring peck to his lips. “She’s just… protective. That’s all.”
Maggie was entirely wrong. Anita Lopez hated him. That was the only explanation for her absolutely icy demeanor. 
They’d met up with her and Sam at a Mexican restaurant in Tenleytown. Sam was wonderfully kind and funny, even apologizing for having “flipped him the bird” the last time she saw him. And it was a good thing Sam was being friendly, because Anita was decidedly… less so. 
Spencer understood completely of course. He’d broken Maggie’s heart. Penelope had been ready to hunt her down at the mere thought of him being hurt. As Maggie’s best friend, Anita had every right to be wary of him. She had every right to hate him. He’d just... hoped that she wouldn’t. 
Thankfully, Maggie and Sam were more than happy to carry the conversation— he and Anita chiming in here and there. He learned that Sam worked as an attorney at a firm specializing in family law. She and Anita had two kids, Riley and Sidney— one in 2nd grade and the other in preschool. 
“Maggie is still Riley’s favorite teacher ever,” Sam told him. “I mean, it helps when she’s also your aunt, I guess.”
“He didn’t get any special treatment,” Maggie insisted. At Sam’s raised eyebrow, she laughed. “Okay, maybe a little special treatment. But you raised a good kid! And I can’t help it that he was the most trustworthy of the bunch.”
“Oh my god, the field trip,” Sam groaned, rubbing a hand over her face. 
“The field trip!” Maggie turned to Spencer. “My group of kiddos from two years ago— they were kind of a tough group.”
“Kind of?” Anita squeaked. “Let me just tell you, I can hear them through the floor. The entire middle school is literally dreading the day they make it upstairs.”
Sam piped in, “I chaperoned on said field trip to the zoo. And I vowed that I will never, ever go on another field trip. Ever.”
“What happened?” Spencer asked incredulously. 
“So many things,” Sam baited. 
Maggie covered her mouth to stifle a cackle, leaning a bit into Spencer’s shoulder. He couldn’t help but smile, looking around at the three women. Even Anita was chuckling, and she’d barely cracked a smile all evening. 
“Okay, so many things happened,” Maggie started, “but the worst was—”
“The poop!” Sam wheezed. “The poop was the worst part of that day. The smell alone, oh my god.”
Maggie composed herself as best she could, gesturing over the table. “So after this nightmare of a day, we get on the bus, and there’s this— smell.”
“The absolute worst smell you’ve ever smelled, Spencer,” Sam assured. 
“It’s awful. It’s so bad,” Maggie agreed. “And I’m literally going seat to seat, checking to make sure no one has shit themselves.”
“You could not pay me enough,” Anita chimed in. 
“And I get to the seat that is very clearly where the smell is coming from. And I can’t, like— hold my nose, right? I don’t want to embarrass him!” Maggie turned to Spencer with flushed cheeks. “So I ask, ‘Sweetheart, did you have a bathroom accident?’”
Spencer let out a nervous laugh. “Oh no.” 
“But oh, it wasn’t a bathroom accident,” Maggie clarified, waving her hand. “No, no— that would be too easy. This child had somehow managed to obtain copious amounts of poop from one of the zoo animals and packed it into his lunchbox to take home.”
Spencer could feel his jaw drop. “Oh my god.”
“So, he unzips his lunchbox and it’s just— overflowing with shit.” Maggie dropped her head into her hands, overcome with giggles. 
“And don’t forget the worst part: his mom was on the field trip!” Sam lamented, throwing her hands up. “I will never understand.”
Maggie lifted her head with an exasperated grin, and he wasn’t sure if it was the story or the fact that she loved him, but Spencer felt like he could float away into outer space. 
“I told you I had a lot of poop stories,” Maggie lamented to him, drawing another round of laughs. As they composed themselves, the waiter came by their table to clear some of their plates and refill their water.
“God, I said we were keeping it low key, and then I drank half a pitcher,” Maggie complained, pushing back from the table. “I’m just gonna go to the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” 
She gave Spencer a reassuring smile, and he tried not to panic as she stood and left him with Sam and Anita. And because the universe was toying with him, at that exact moment, Sam’s phone began to ring. She pulled it from her pocket with a sigh. 
“Shit— I’ve been waiting on this call all day.” She kissed Anita’s cheek and stood from the table. “So sorry; I’ll just be five minutes, I promise.”
With that, it was just the two of them, staring intently at their water glasses. Spencer was certain he should say something, but he wasn’t sure what. Anita broke the silence first. 
“You know what’s annoying?”
Spencer wasn’t sure he wanted to know. “Considering that the issues one might classify as an annoyance vary for each individual person, there are over seven billion potential answers to that question.”
Anita tilted her head with an unimpressed purse of her lips. Spencer hedged, “And I understand now that it was probably rhetorical.”
“I actually kind of like you.” She leaned across the table with an irritated sigh. “I wanted to hate you, but I don’t.”
He cleared his throat. “Well, I’m, um— I’m glad to hear that.”
“You’re good for her. Smart, humble, kind. Enamored with her, as you should be,” she deadpanned. She dropped her chin into her hand. “Almost as hot as she is.”
He laughed a little at that. “Thank you?”
“You’re welcome.” She dropped her hand back to the table. She still didn’t crack a smile, and her gaze bore into him. “I don’t know how much you know about Owen, and she’d probably kill me for saying anything. But he was a real piece of shit.”
This was not the direction he thought this conversation would take. He didn’t know anything about Owen; he’d tried not to think too much about anyone Maggie might have been with before him. 
“It didn’t start out that way.” She drew her brows together. “Well, I don’t know— maybe he was always an asshole, and he was just good at hiding it.”
She shook her head and leaned back in her chair. “The point is, I didn’t know he was treating her like garbage until it was too late. He was already all…” She gestured wildly around her head. “In her head, telling her lies about herself, fucking her up, isolating her. For years he did that. And then it took her years to get him out of her head. To— unlearn all the lies. To build herself back up.” 
He could see her grinding her teeth, trying to calm down. He was intensely grateful to not be on the receiving end of Anita’s wrath. He was also immensely glad that Maggie had a friend like that. And his blood absolutely boiled at the thought of her ever feeling anything less than adored. 
“You’re a fed or whatever, so I shouldn’t be telling you this,” she continued, “but I would love nothing more than to put that fucker six feet under.” She ran her hand through her hair, and when she continued her voice was the quietest he’d ever heard it. “All that to say, I… I wasn’t there for her when Owen was destroying her from the inside out. And I will never let that happen again.” 
Anita locked eyes with him and her voice was resolved. “I like you, Spencer. And I want to keep it that way. So, just— don’t give me a reason not to.”
She didn’t drop her gaze, and he couldn’t quite think of the appropriate response. He opened his mouth, and then closed it again. His brain was still fixated on the idea that anyone had ever hurt the loveliest and kindest woman he’d ever met.
 “Where’s Sam?” Spencer turned just as Maggie slid back into the chair beside him, a comforting hand coming to rest on his knee. 
“Some bullshit from the office that her idiot partner can’t handle.” Anita raised her eyebrows at Spencer, and he nodded minutely. She shifted her gaze back to Maggie with a grin. “Don’t worry. I didn’t scare him too much.”
“Easy.” Spencer steadied Maggie with a hand on her waist as they made the way up the stairs to his apartment. 
“Jesus, I’m so sorry. I just— really can’t drink like I used to.” She clutched a little at the railing, and he held his breath until they were at the top of the stairs. 
He slipped an arm back around her waist as they crossed to his apartment door, fumbling with his keys and fighting back a shiver as she snuggled close and ran her hand low over his tummy. 
“Can’t believe I’m tipsy from a couple margaritas.”
“To be fair, you had four,” he chuckled, turning the key and pushing open the door. 
“Okay, okay,” she relented. “But I used to be able to have a whole pitcher and be totally fine.”
“A pitcher?” Spencer laughed as he locked the door and turned to face her. “I can’t even have one without being completely incapacitated.”
She ran her hands up from his waistband, over his chest, and wrapped them around his neck. “Mmm, so you’re a lightweight.”
“Very much so,” he confirmed, bringing his hands to her hips. 
“Just one more sweet thing to love about you, sugar.” 
He couldn’t stop the smile from stretching across his face at the endearment, the way that North Carolina dripped syrupy and thick over every syllable. She pulled him down to meet her in a sweet kiss, quickly deepening it as he dug his fingers into the softness of her hips. Her hands wound into his hair, tugging lightly and holding him close. 
He broke away to rest his forehead against hers and catch his breath. She laced their fingers together and leaned on him while she kicked off her shoes. He toed his own off and then allowed her to lead him toward his bedroom. 
She sat him down on the edge of the bed and straddled his lap, bringing her hands up to tangle in his curls once again. 
Before she could lean in for another kiss, he murmured, “I’ve been thinking.”
“Sounds dangerous,” she teased, ghosting her lips over his.
“Ha, ha.” Part of him wanted to bring up Owen, but she was so happy and warm and comfortable in this moment. He didn’t want to ruin this night of celebration. He didn’t want to ruin this day that had been so full of love. They had plenty of time to discuss Owen. 
He wrapped his arms around her middle. “You’ve met Penelope. I’ve met Anita. Now that the school year is over… we could tell Michael.”
She pulled back, and the smile she gave him could only be described as radiant, and he knew he made the right decision. “He’s gonna lose his mind.”
A week later, the pair of them were strolling up the sidewalk to the LaMontagne house. Will and JJ were long overdue for a date night, and Spencer had jumped at the opportunity for the two of them to babysit. When they reached the door, Spencer rang the bell and Maggie waited slightly behind him. 
They could hear the joy from behind the door before it even opened, Michael’s high pitched giggle and Will’s booming laugh. Spencer was already leaning down in preparation, and Michael absolutely launched into his arms as soon as the door swung open. Spencer clocked the moment that Michael spotted her, purely because he practically squealed and squirmed right out of Spencer’s grip. 
“I knew it!” Michael cried. 
He wrapped himself around Maggie’s legs and squeezed tightly, and she rubbed a hand over his hair with a bewildered smile. Michael broke away to turn back to Will with a grin. “I told you.”
“You did, buddy.” Will gave Spencer a lopsided smile as Michael tugged Maggie forward by the hand. “Michael had an… inklin’ that uncle Spencer might be friends with Ms. Brooks.”
“Not friends, Daddy,” Michael said exasperatedly. “He’s her boyfriend.”
“Oh, excuse me, sorry.” Will held his hands up in apology as he stepped aside to let them all in the door. “Michael had a feelin’ that uncle Spencer might be Ms. Brooks’ boyfriend.”
Maggie’s cheeks had turned a very pretty shade of pink. “What— um, what made you think that?” 
Michael waited patiently for her to take off her shoes. “Well firstly, he started picking me up all the time, which was nice but weird. And then he wouldn’t stop asking about you. It was kind of annoying.” Spencer made a choking sound, and Will stifled a laugh. 
“You guys wear the same shoes, and you both love Halloween and tea and reading. I knew you’d like him if he could be a guest reader.” As he led her into the living room, Michael continued, “Oh, and you wore his purple scarf. He doesn’t let anyone wear the purple scarf.”
Spencer vividly remembered that morning— she’d slept over after a midweek date night in April. The temperatures in DC had plummeted overnight, and the outfit she’d brought left her woefully under-dressed for the chilly spring day. He’d wrapped her up in the soft, purple scarf without a second thought. 
She caught his eye with a shrug, and Will tried not to look too smug. Spencer watched her be dragged further into the house, turning to Will with a sheepish smile.
“Well, guess I can’t take all the credit,” Will decided. “Who knew we had a mini matchmaker this whole time?”
Spencer huffed out a laugh as Michael pulled Maggie into the playroom. “This is the best,” Michael sighed. “Now we can play restaurant forever.”
Spencer pulled his legs up in the tiny chair, resting his elbows on his knees and taking a moment to watch the scene in front of him unfold. Usually on nights like this, Michael ran him ragged with demands for magic tricks, story time, and playing pretend. Tonight, he’d actually been able to catch up with middle school (middle school!) Henry, because Michael was totally and completely enthralled by Maggie. 
She was helping with the last of the setup for the “restaurant,” organizing Michael’s menus and straightening his clip-on tie. Of course he’d seen her with kids before. But something about being in this playroom— one that he’d spent so many hours in, watching two of his favorite kids grow up— had him feeling warm from head to toe. 
Henry had bounded down the stairs at the news that uncle Spencer was dating his former kindergarten teacher. He hadn’t realized that she’d taught Henry, too, although with the timeline of her teaching career he should have put two and two together. The generally reserved middle schooler had positively beamed when she gasped out, “Gosh, I always forget how tall you’ve gotten!”
And now three of his absolute favorite humans were in one room, and he couldn’t stop smiling. 
“Hen!” Michael called. 
Henry turned from his spot in the chair across from Spencer. “What?”
“You’re the chef,” Michael informed him. 
Maggie tilted her head. “I thought I was the chef?”
“No, no, no.” Michael pushed her toward the kid-sized table. “You and uncle Spencer are on a fancy date.”
Henry rolled his eyes playfully and stood from the chair, pulling it out for her like a perfect gentleman. She beamed at him and gave him a wink. “Thank you, sir.”
She dropped lightly into the chair across from Spencer and laughed a little at his folded limbs. “You look very comfortable.” 
He laughed and stretched his legs out straight. “The picture of comfort, really. These chairs were clearly designed with six foot men in mind.”
“I’m sorry I’m so under-dressed for our fancy dinner date,” she teased, dropping her chin into her hand. 
“You look stunning, as always.” He gestured to the messy braid Michael had folded her hair into. “I especially love what you’re doing with your hair.”
She sucked in a dramatic breath, bringing up her hand to pat lightly at her hair. “You’re making me blush, doctor.” She peeked behind her and then lowered her voice. “I’m probably going to cry when I try to brush the rats out.” 
He looked at her sympathetically. “I know the feeling. I think I’ve got a wide tooth comb, and I can help. I’ve gotten pretty good at detangling Michael’s handiwork.”
Before she could respond, Michael made his way to the table, holding a dish towel over his arm. “Good evening, sir, madam.” 
“Good evening,” they chorused, with barely suppressed grins. 
“Compliments of the chef.” Michael held out his hand to reveal two slightly smushed strawberries.
“Oh, wow,” Maggie said, eyes wide and gesturing to Spencer. “Honey, do you want to—”
Spencer waved his hand, eyeing the berries warily. “No, no, please, help yourself.”
Maggie held back a smile and accepted the strawberries, holding them carefully in her hand and turning her attention back to Michael. “Thank you so much. What a wonderful appetizer. Could we hear the specials?”
That helped Michael remember the menus, and he pulled them from his pocket and cleared his throat. He handed them the construction paper menus. “Our specials tonight are roasted octopus and a steak tartar.”
From the kitchen, Henry mumbled, “Tartare.” 
“Tartare. Steak tartare is our special,” Michael corrected. 
“Hmm, I don’t know if I’m that adventurous. Maybe my boyfriend is though,” Maggie told a grinning Michael. “What do you recommend for a picky eater?”
“My favorite is the chicken nuggets.”
“Well then, sign me up. One order of chicken nuggets.” Maggie handed him the menu. 
Spencer was still perusing the menu for Le Chateau LaMontagne. He smiled at Michael’s handwriting, but particularly at the places where he could tell Maggie had helped. “Everything looks delicious,” he finally decided, “but, you know... I think I’m also going to have the nuggets.”
When the boys were finally in bed, Spencer and Maggie settled down in the living room to untangle the mess of her hair. She sat on the floor in between his legs as he gently pulled each braid strand free. He smiled at the way she arched up into his touch, shivering when his fingers brushed over her neck. 
“You’re lucky,” he remarked, laying the last braid strand back into its original place. “Michael seems to have gotten a little better at braiding.”
She leaned her head back into his hands. “You detangled the whole thing?”
“Mmhm.” He leaned forward to press a kiss to her forehead, then her nose, then her mouth. She brought her hands up to hold him against her, trying to deepen the kiss before laughing at the awkward angle and giving up. 
He sat up as she stood and moved to the couch, snuggling up close to him and tucking herself under his arm. “I’m very lucky,” she agreed. “For many reasons.”
Her hand drifted to rest on his tummy, her fingers immediately tracing little shapes over the fabric of his shirt. He pressed a kiss into her hair. “And tired, too.”
“Hmm?” 
He leaned his cheek against her head. “When you get tired, you, um— you start drawing on my stomach.” 
Her finger paused. “Do I?”
“Yeah.” She shifted to raise her head to look at him, and he shrugged. “I don’t mind. I’ve just— noticed.”
She smiled a little sleepily. “You know I love all of you. But I— well, I don’t know, really. I just like your tummy.” She gave it a quick squeeze. “It’s just— nice and comfy and perfect for resting on.” 
He covered her hand with his own and leaned forward to press their mouths together. She drew his bottom lip in between her own, sucking a little and then giving it a quick peck before pulling back and stifling a yawn into his chest. “Man, I am tired.” She snuggled back into him and resumed her tummy tracing. “What, um— what else have you noticed?”
He rubbed his hand down her arm and pulled her impossibly closer. “You like to play with my hair.”
“Mmmm, guilty as charged.”
He smiled at the sleep creeping into her voice. “I like it, too.” He ran his fingers up to her shoulder, and then back down to the crook of her arm, soothing her closer to sleep. “Hmmmm. You always have at least one point of contact on my body at all times. It’s usually your hands, but sometimes it’s your head or even your toes— like when you tuck them under my leg.”
“Ugh— I’m sorry. Clingy and putting my feet on you,” she mumbled.
She might have been joking, but Anita’s words were replaying in his head. He couldn’t change what had happened in the past. He couldn’t go back and prevent her from being hurt by someone else. But he could be different in every way. He could be open and honest and vulnerable with her like he’d promised. 
“I’m not sorry. I love all of you,” he murmured, pulling her in closer and repeating her words back to her. 
“Even my feet?” 
He could also show her that there was absolutely nothing that he didn’t love about her. “Especially your feet.”
She huffed a sigh into his chest. “Y’got a foot thing I don’t know about?”
He laughed a little at that. “Only for yours. They’re very cute feet.”
“You’re weird,” she muttered, but she hugged him tighter when she said it.
“You love it.”
Her fingers on his tummy had come to rest comfortably just above his waistband, and he knew she was on the very edge of sleep. “Mmhm. Love you.”
He thought of all the little moments over the past few months.
Doesn’t live up to expectations? Sorry for overstepping. Are we dating? Sorry for being clingy. Sorry for taking so long to tell you. Sorry. Sorry. Sorry.
“I love you, too,” he murmured. “So much.”
———
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lettheladylead · 3 years
Text
Not Your Aunt
Chapter 3: Gladstone [ao3 link]
It’d been a year since Scrooge started regularly babysitting his niece and nephew. Goldie had only had the misfortune of interacting with them a handful of times, though one of those handfuls was a week-long bedridden visit where they asked too many questions and got way too attached to her. So before leaving, she stole from their piggy banks to teach them an important lesson: Goldie O’Gilt is not their family and she’s certainly not their aunt.
The next time she visited after that, the kids seemed properly sour and uninterested in her, so clearly they got the message. Or they just had a bad day. Either way, she could focus on Scrooge and treasure and then move on with her plans. She was able to visit without interacting with children a good half a dozen times after that, which really made her days go faster. It was nice.
She was stopping by in early February to grab some items she’d left behind (for safekeeping, of course) when Goldie learned that Scrooge’s family was continuing to...expand. There were now twice as many children in the mansion and the two new kids were apparently not deterred by Donald and Della’s attempts to warn them about their uncle’s thieving ex.
The kid in green found her in the foyer and lifted up his sunglasses to wink at her. “Well hello there!”
She blinked down at him. “...hello.”
He shuffled closer and stuck out his tiny little hand. “Gladstone Gander! And you are…?”
Goldie pinched his hand between two fingers and gave it a single shake before letting go. She didn’t appreciate the tone she was getting from this child who couldn’t have been more than eleven or twelve. “You can call me Miss O’Gilt.”
Gladstone pouted at her response and then shrugged before putting the sunglasses back. “Suit yourself. I’m a real catch!”
“I’m sure,” Goldie groaned. “Where’s Scrooge? I need to talk to him.”
The kid pointed towards the stairs. “Uncle Scrooge is in his office, I think.”
“Uncle?” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Did Hortense have another kid or...are you Matilda’s?” The concept of Matilda having a child had Goldie immediately confused. She was pretty sure she knew that woman’s goals and motherhood was never on her list. They’d bonded over the lack of interest once in the past.
“Huh?” Gladstone tilted his head. “No, Auntie Hortense is married to Uncle Quackmore, who’s my mom’s brother. Who’s Matilda?”
Goldie closed her eyes and put two fingers to her temple as she felt a headache forming. She supposed if they stretched the definition enough, then Scrooge could be literally anyone’s uncle even if they had some gigantic distant relation to him. It was kind of annoying. “I guess she’s...also your aunt. You’ll probably meet her someday.” With that, Goldie turned around and started towards the stairs.
The kid followed her and she resisted the urge to punt him into another room. “So you know Uncle Scrooge and Auntie Hortense? Are you Uncle Scrooge’s secret wife?”
“No.” She didn’t even give him a glance as she headed up the stairs.
“Does that mean you’re single?” he asked with a toothy grin.
Goldie looked down at him again and then rolled her eyes. “You’re a bit young to be at this level of annoying.”
“Annoying?” Gladstone put a shocked hand to his chest and frowned. “You must be unlucky like Donald and Della. Only unlucky people call me annoying!”
Alright, that was a curious enough statement to make Goldie pause and lean against the banister. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
Gladstone walked up another few steps so his head was about the same height as her’s. “I’m the luckiest goose in the world! Even luckier than my mom!”
Goldie quirked an eyebrow. “Luckiest in the world, huh? How would you know that?”
“I know that ‘cause...I’m Gladstone Gander!” He did a little spin and stuck his hands into his pockets before pulling out a dozen twenty dollar bills. “I found all of these just on my walk earlier!”
She stared at the money and, on reflex, plucked a few out of his hands. He didn’t even react as she pocketed them. “That’s pretty normal when you’re walking around Scrooge McDuck’s mansion, kid.”
He reached into his pockets again and pulled out another dozen bills. “No, no, these aren’t from Uncle Scrooge! I got these while walking around town!”
That caught her attention a bit more. Goldie pocketed a few more of the twenties before putting a hand against the bottom of her beak. “That does sound particularly lucky.”
He gave her a thumbs up, clearly happy that he’d convinced her of his gift, and Goldie thought about her plans for the weekend. She’d intended on grabbing a pair of earrings she’d left in Scrooge’s dresser and a mystical gem-finder he’d locked up in his Other Bin before heading to Macaw, but...perhaps she could use a partner. Well, more like a sidekick. Or a mascot.
“How would you like to go on a trip and really put your luck to the test?”
-----------------
Despite him being a very, very annoying little kid, Goldie had to admit that bringing him along was worth the frustrations.
She’d never done this well at the Galaxy Macaw, especially not at the slot machines. She could cheat her way through any old card game, but playing with other people brought too much attention to her presence. And the owner would be very unhappy if he saw she’d returned after what happened last time.
Her disguise wasn’t particularly artful - just a short black wig and green-tinted sunglasses - but it was enough to keep security from noticing her striking blonde amongst the sea of dark-haired birds around them. Gladstone managed to win a new little outfit for himself within a few minutes of entering the casino, and Goldie was happy that no one questioned the child’s presence. After a few wins at the slot machines, earning herself and her little partner a significant bit of cash, Goldie let the kid wander off on his own and started casing the place, getting ready for the actual reason for her travels.
“Miss O’Gilt?” Gladstone asked as he reappeared, tugging at her hand to get her attention.
“I told you not to use my last name here,” she hissed in response, glancing around to make sure no one overheard.
“Oh, right!” He tapped a finger against his chin. “So, then...Aunt Goldie, why exactly are we here? Not that I’m not having fun, but…this all seems kind of random.”
She held back a growl at the name - why did these kids always lean into the “aunt” moniker first? - and plopped her hand on top of his head. “Don’t worry about it. You should just keep having fun while I cash out and take care of some business.”
He shrugged. “Alright, but I bet I could help you with whatever you’re really here for! Uncle Scrooge never lets me help him find stuff ‘cause he says it’s cheating, but this is just how I live, y’know?”
Goldie removed her hand from his head and laid it on her hip. “I appreciate the offer, but this is something I need to take care of alone.” She glanced around the room and paused at the sight of a line of phone booths. “If I’m not back in a half hour, call your uncle to pick you up, alright?”
Gladstone followed her line of sight, then turned back to look up at her. “Are you doing something dangerous?”
“Hopefully not, but you never know.”
The kid pouted and leaned back on his heels. “...are you sure I can’t come with?”
Goldie crossed her arms over her chest. “Just stay here,” she said sternly, and quickly disappeared before Gladstone could follow.
He frowned and looked around himself. He knew nothing bad would happen to him, but it was still weird for an adult to leave him alone in a place so filled with strangers. Goldie was certainly unlike any other adults he’d spent time with, and he wasn’t at all surprised that Donald and Della had such conflicting feelings about her.
That being said, he could see a snack stand not too far away, so he rushed over to grab some pretzels. As soon as he arrived, the man running the stand gave him a big toothy smile, said he was the one thousandth customer of the day, and then handed him a giant pretzel for free.
It was nice being Gladstone Gander.
As he chomped away, a big banner above some of the slot machines caught his attention. In bright, bold letters he saw the words THE MACAW RUBY and more information about it being some rare, potentially mystical artifact that would be on display starting at 5 o’clock sharp.
He thought about that for a moment. From what he knew about Goldie, which wasn’t much but he’d understood the gist of it, she liked to steal things. Really cool, expensive, fancy things. He didn’t have to be a genius to put two and two together and realize she was after that ruby.
Whether or not she wanted his help, Gladstone decided he was going to be a part of this. After all, maybe the ruby would just come into his possession thanks to his luck! No one would need to steal anything, it would simply belong to him. And then he could give it to her and she’d give him a hug as thanks and who wouldn’t want that?
By the time he arrived at the place where the ruby was going to be displayed, it was only a few minutes to five and Gladstone took note of the extremely heavy security detail in front of the curtain. If Goldie hadn’t already gotten the ruby, there was no way she was going to get past all of them.
So he walked up to one of the guards and locked his hands behind his back. “Hi there!”
The guard looked down at him and didn’t respond.
“I’m Gladstone!”
Still no response.
Gladstone pouted, but he was pretty sure he could charm this guy into showing him the gem. “Can I see the fancy ruby?”
The guard made a face at him before turning to look at another guard and then proceeded to speak in a language that Gladstone didn’t recognize. He realized after a moment that it was probably Mandarin, which would make a lot of sense, considering where they were.
The other guard walked over and grabbed Gladstone by the back of his shirt, holding him up in front of his face. “Where’re your parents, kid? You shouldn’t be walking around here by yourself,” he said in a rough, heavy accent.
Gladstone frowned and crossed his arms. “I’m no kid! I’m just really short for my age! And I’ve won, like, fifty thousand dollars today, so you can’t tell me what to do!”
The guard frowned and his grip on Gladstone’s shirt tightened. “What’d you just say to me? I’m not in the mood for some brat and his-”
“Excuse me, sir,” a new voice called out.
All three boys looked over to see Goldie standing there, arms crossed and looking certainly unhappy, and with a purse over her shoulder that Gladstone didn’t remember being there when they’d arrived at the casino.
“That’s my nephew you’re manhandling, you oversized hog,” Goldie growled, reaching out and grabbing Gladstone so she could properly plop him down next to her. “You treat all your guests like this?”
The guard stood up straight and glared at her, pointing angrily towards Gladstone. “You might wanna teach your kid some manners, lady! He won’t be so lucky next time he pisses me off.”
“I’m sure that’s very difficult to do,” Goldie said with an eyeroll. “Come on, Gladdy, it’s time for us to go.”
Gladstone just nodded and took her hand. As they were leaving, a bunch of rich-looking snobs were walking in the opposite direction, probably excited to see the fancy gemstone that was about to be unveiled. He was pretty sure Goldie had already taken it and it was sitting in her bag right by his face. Though he wondered if she replaced it with a fake or if things were about to go crazy in this casino.
A moment later and Gladstone turned his head at the sound of an announcer and some clapping and a stunned silence and then an audience-wide gasp. Goldie clutched his hand a little tighter at the sound of the gasp and he noticed she’d picked up a tiny bit of speed.
With her walking faster, he fell behind her and looked up to see a shocking and unfortunate sight: a few strands of long blonde hair had fallen out from under her wig and were completely visible to anyone who could see her back. He opened his mouth to say something when he was cut off by the loudest scream he’d ever heard from someone that wasn’t Donald.
“IT’S GOLDIE O’GILT! GET HER BEFORE SHE GETS AWAY!”
Suddenly Gladstone was picked up and being held in Goldie’s arms as she quickly exited the building and ran towards the nearest available taxi. He didn’t even have a second to breathe before she had the driver heading towards the airport as fast as he could go.
She tore off the wig and sunglasses and shoved them into her bag, which Gladstone noticed didn’t seem to get any bigger as she did. He looked into it and saw what seemed to be some sort of endless vortex. Neat!
Goldie laughed and patted his head. “Good job out there, kid. That was fun,” she said as she reached into the bag and pulled out another wig - this time it was brown and wavy. It seemed she was prepared for the possibility that someone might try following her.
“Thanks, Aunt Goldie,” he responded with a smirk, remembering how much that name annoyed her earlier. “So where’s my cut of the profits?”
She raised an eyebrow at him and clearly looked like she was about to laugh at his question. “Why don’t we focus on getting you home before we talk about that?”
Gladstone put a hand to his chin in thought. Really, money wasn’t an issue for him. He found money all the time, and even when he didn’t, his parents had plenty of money of their own. But he did feel like Goldie owed him for all his help. “Okay, sure.”
-------------------------------------
First their taxi driver gave them a free ride because he was in such a good mood, then their plane tickets ended up being free thanks to a clerical error, and they were given a free ride from the airport to Scrooge’s mansion because who the hell could keep track of all the reasons why things were free? Goldie was certainly enjoying the perks of carrying around Scrooge’s little luck magnet. If she didn’t have places to be, she’d stop by his office and yell at him for not telling her about the kid sooner.
That being said, he was starting to get a little too attached and it was bugging the hell out of her.
“So when are you gonna visit again? We could go to another casino!” Gladstone said excitedly, bouncing in his seat. “Or some other place you’d need my luck for. An underground poker game, maybe?”
Goldie chuckled and leaned back, recognizing the area the taxi turned into as only a few blocks from Scrooge’s place. “Look, kid -”
“Gladstone!”
“...right. Gladstone. This has been lots of fun, but you shouldn’t get confused. I’m not a part of your family, I’m not gonna just stop by and visit and take you on trips all the time. I just conveniently already had plans to go somewhere where I’d benefit from some luck.”
He frowned. “So this is it? You’re just done with me now?”
“Well…” She shrugged. “I don’t like to limit myself. Who knows what the future will hold? I just wouldn’t get your hopes up or plan for me coming back anytime soon.”
Gladstone pouted again and let out a quiet hmph! before turning to look out the window. They’d arrived at the front gate of Uncle Scrooge’s house and he’d decided he was just about ready to leave.
They came to a stop and Gladstone quickly opened up the door and stepped outside, stretching dramatically and yawning. He turned to say something to Goldie when he was cut off by a loud, familiar screech.
“THERE HE IS!”
Gladstone turned to see Donald and Uncle Scrooge running towards him from down the sidewalk. He was very confused to see that they’d gone for a walk instead of hanging around the house, since they never wanted to go for walks when he was in the mood.
“Hi, Uncle Scrooge-”
Scrooge ran over and swept Gladstone up in a giant hug. “We’ve been lookin’ everywhere for you, lad! Where’ve you been? What did you…” Scrooge’s words faded out as he noticed the familiar smirk staring at him from the inside of a taxi.
“Hey there, hun.”
“G-Goldie?!” Scrooge looked at her and then down at Gladstone and then back up at her. “Did you take him?!”
“Sure did,” she responded with a shrug. “I left you a note in your office. You should really pay more attention to these things.”
Donald just watched this conversation with a frown. He wanted to assume that Aunt Goldie was lying about leaving a note, but he also knew that Uncle Scrooge definitely didn’t check and just assumed the worst when they couldn’t find Gladstone all day. He’d been screaming about how Daphne was going to kill him for losing her son, but it seems he didn’t lose anyone at all.
Scrooge sputtered angrily at Goldie, holding Gladstone against his legs and trying to find his words. “You-! You...you kidnapped him!”
“I did no such thing, you old miser. He wanted to come along,” Goldie said, glaring angrily. She turned towards her cabby and said something that the boys couldn’t hear, then the car started to drive away.
Scrooge glared right back until Gladstone, a few moments later, shook himself out of Scrooge’s grip and ran towards the car. “Wait! But-! What about my profits?!” he shouted as it turned onto the next street over.
Gladstone sighed, realizing his luck wasn’t gonna bring his money back to him. Though he guessed he still had a really fun time and he didn’t exactly need the money, so maybe that was enough. He looked up to see Uncle Scrooge staring down at him. “What’s up?”
“Should I be concerned about this?” Scrooge asked, crossing his arms over his chest.
Gladstone shrugged. “Should I be concerned that a stranger came into your house and took me on a trip across the globe without you knowing about it?”
That one shut Scrooge up, and he huffed before turning around and heading back to the manor. Gladstone looked over at Donald who just seemed to be confused.
“What’s wrong, Donald-o?”
He frowned and shrugged. “I’m just surprised that Aunt Goldie took you on a trip, is all. She’s never taken me or Della anywhere.”
Gladstone slapped Donald on the back a little harder than he meant to, making the slightly younger duck quack. “Eh, I wouldn’t think too hard about it. Ladies can’t resist my charm, after all!”
Donald rolled his eyes. “You know she’s Uncle Scrooge’s girlfriend, right?”
“Huh?” Gladstone put a hand to his chin and thought about some things Goldie had said to him over the past twenty-four hours. He nodded slowly. “You know what? That makes a lot of sense. Yup, yup. That explains everything.”
“So happy for you,” Donald mumbled and started the long walk back to the manor.
Gladstone quickly caught up to him and smiled brightly. In fact, he just wouldn’t stop smiling at his cousin. He was smiling so much that it was making Donald even more irritated than he’d already been.
“What?”
“Don’t you wanna know about my trip?”
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hawkinspostbite · 5 years
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Chapstick
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MASTERLIST
A/N: I do not claim to, nor do I own Stranger Things; the concept, characters, plot, etc.
She was an avid chapstick collector. Her collection was her prized possession, and her dirty little secret. She was known for loving chapstick, she had one situated in a pocket of each of her jackets, on her bedside table, on her vanity, in her locker, and in Billy’s car. Just underneath her bed, in a hollowed-out jewelry box, laid her holy grail. Decorated with stickers all the way back from her childhood to now, She managed to keep the box a secret from all. That was, until the first night Billy slept over.
Her parents were attending a wedding in Indianapolis, and her younger brother had been shipped off to her aunt’s for the weekend, so the house was all hers.
She and Billy were pretty fresh into their relationship, only going together for about five months, but he could already feel a difference in himself. All the other girls he had been with before, whether it be short or long, weren’t her. They were rough around the edges, had very little emotions, and only wanted one thing. She, however, was soft, had more emotions than Billy knew possible, and wanted the world- and everything it had to offer. She stilled his raging heart, calmed his trembling hand, and kissed his frowning lips. He spent less time in detention, stopped picking petty fights, got along with his family, got better grades, and stopped going to as many parties. “Once a party animal, always a party animal.” He’d say. As of late, he much preferred spending time with her than being surrounded by people he hardly knew.
He’d be lying if he said that she wasn’t the greatest thing to happen to him in his short life. His father was a disgrace to the title “father”, his mother was a whore, and he received little to no affection his entire life. In addition to her kindness and carefulness, she was quite the looker. Beautiful at any and every moment, sweet and soft, his favorite piece of art.
Thursday morning she had practically ran into him with excitement. “Hey Bill.” She cooed, drawing his eyes from his locker down to her. He immediately smiled, leaning down to kiss her.
“Morning baby, how’s my favorite girl?”
“Pretty great if I do say so.” She was practically bouncing with excitement. “Aren’t you gonna ask me why I’m so happy?”
He tilted his head, smirking. “Why’re you so happy?”
“Well- since you asked, mom and dad are gonna be out of town this weekend, and they’re sending Sam to my aunt’s and I’m gonna have the house to myself. So, do you wanna sleepover?”
“A sleepover? What’s in the itinerary for this sleepover?” He turned to start searching through his locker for his math term paper. “Mani-pedis, romantic comedies, gossip?”
She scoffed, smacking his arm lightly. “No. I was thinking, movie marathons, maybe breaking into my dad’s mini bar. Oh and probably lots of making out.”
His head whipped to the side. This was a slightly different side to her than he knew. “Sounds like a good time to me. I’m in.”
She was telling the truth, mostly. She forgot to add that she finally wanted her and Billy to “seal the deal”, and what better time than when they were home alone? Listening to his response, she took the final detail and shoved it into the back of her mind. “Yay! It’s a date!” She leaned upwards, kissing his cheek.
A soft blush dusted Billy’s face at the sweet gesture. “I’ll be at your place at eight tomorrow? Sound good.”
“Perfect!”
With a quick kiss and fist bump*, the two parted ways for the day.
*It was just a cute little thing they did
Friday afternoon, she had left school right after the final bell, having Jonathan drop her off at her house. Her parents had already been gone, and her brother was being picked up from school, so the house was silent upon entry.
For a moment she relished in the quietness, before getting to work. She cleaned and tidied each room. Fluffing the pillows, and removing the cat hair from the couch in the living room, wet-mopping the floor and wiping down the cabinets in the kitchen, perfectly setting the dining room table (as if it was already party ready). She simply closed and locked the basement door, as there was no helping that room. Her parents bed and bath were always locked when they left for an extended time, so she needn’t worry about that. She disinfected and perfected her and her brother’s shared bathroom, and closed and locked her brother’s room- it looked like a tornado had hit it.
Then came her room. She vacuumed the carpet, put on clean linens and sheets, fluffed her pillows, made sure she had the softest blankets in the house, organized her besides table, dresser top, and vanity, and made sure her closet was neat and orderly. When she was finished, nothing was out of place. Her entire house was perfect, save the basement and Sam’s room.
She dug through her closet to find her other secret arsenal, her scented candles. She had collected a plethora of vanilla-rum candles that her aunt made her every year for Christmas. She took the bin out and set it on her bed, digging through it to pull out the box of matches. She lit a candle on the coffee table in the living room, one on the kitchen island, one on her vanity and her bedside table, and one on the bathroom counter.
The clock chimes seven times, and she began to get ready. She took a hot shower, shampooing and conditioning her hair to the fullest extent, shaving, making sure she was in tip-top shape for her late night plans. She dressed in her favorite cute pajamas, slightly blow-dried her hair, moisturized her entire body, and for good measure, slathered on a healthy helping of her bedside watermelon chapstick.
Promptly at eight, Billy arrived, duffel bag slung over his shoulder, and a bouquet of baby’s breath in his hand. “Evening Princess, brought you some flowers.” He leaned down to kiss her cheek as she happily took the bouquet.
“Baby’s breath are my favorite.” She breathed in their soft scent.
“I know.” He smiled, placing his bag onto the counter. “You baking a cake or something?” He sniffed the air.
“Nah. Just my favorite candles. Nobody lets me burn them when everybody’s home.” She shrugged, moving to the cupboard to find one of her mom’s canning mason jars. She filled it halfway with water and placed the flowers into it.
“Well I’ll let you burn whatever you want baby. Hey- they look pretty good in that.”
“We don’t own flower vases, nobody gets flowers from anyone.”
The couple stood in silence for a moment, each of them taking in each other.
Billy admired the way the candle light made her face dark, but her eyes were still gorgeous and bright.
She admired how soft he looked in the dim light, and how kind his eyes were.
“I’m gonna go grab a shower quick, if you don’t mind. It was pretty chaotic at mine.” She nodded at him. Neil was away on a work trip, and Max had convinced her mother to let the Party sleepover. Which resulted in literal chaos let loose in Billy’s home. “Why don’t you pick out a movie while I’m up there?”
He kissed her cheek again on the way by.
Two hours later they had watched the entirety of ‘St. Elmo’s Fire’, and she was ready to put her official plan into action. She yawned, snuggling further into Billy’s embrace. “You ready for bed kid?” Billy softly smiled at her.
“Yeah.”
“Why don’t you head up? I’ll blow out the candles and stuff. Make sure the doors are locked. Meet you up there.”
She sleepily walked up the stairs and to the bathroom. She checked herself in the mirror and quickly brushed her teeth, blowing out the bathroom candle and making her way down the hall to her room.
“Hey babe, I was thinking- what the hell are you doing?!” She stepped into her room to see Billy seated cross-legged on her bed, her empty chapstick box next to him, and a pile of chapsticks between his legs. He was carefully examining the varying flavors.
She rushed forward to grab the box. “Billy, how did you find this? Were you snooping on me?” She was genuinely horrified that somebody had finally uncovered her secret.
He looked over at her, holding a green apple Lip Smacker in his hand. “So this is the reason why you always taste so fruity... and why your lips are so damn soft.”
She rolled her eyes. “I don’t really like the green apple one. But you didn’t answer my question! Why were you snooping?”
He looked down again at the array of chapsticks. “You snoop on me all the time.” He shrugged, grabbing the Dr. Pepper one. “I know you keep a damn chapstick on you at all times but I didn’t think it was this bad.”
She groaned, tossing the box at him. “This is so embarrassing.”
“Baby, if a collection of chapsticks... and lip glosses?”
“For special occasions.” She grumbled.
He chuckled at her. “If a collection of lip products is your biggest secret then you have nothing to worry about.” He uncapped the Root Beer one and swiped it across his lips. “I can see why you like these things so much, they’re pretty neat. And they don’t taste half bad either.”
“I never even got to try the Root Beer yet!” She snatched it from his grip.
He grabbed her wrist, pulling her onto the bed with him. “Then taste.” He pressed his lips to hers, making sure she got a taste of him and the chapstick.
She pulled away, and he raised his eyebrows. “I agree, a very good flavor.”
She had completely forgotten about her prior agenda as Billy came up with the brilliant idea to take a “Chapstick Inventory”, they narrowed it down to their mutual favorites, and whatever flavors they didn’t like, he’d take home for Max.
Lemon, watermelon, honey, cherry, peppermint, Dr. Pepper, grape, lime, banana, raspberry, and chocolate stayed. And green apple, strawberry, passion fruit, piña-colada, orange, kiwi, and bubble gum went to Max.
Billy kept Root Beer for himself.
What was once just her dirty little secret had now become their “thing”.
A quick kiss. Billy would always lick his lips right after. “Mm, what flavor was that?”
The answer was always different. “Banana.”, “Raspberry.”, “Lemon.”, etc.
But their favorite was always Root Beer. For it reminded them of their first “sleepover”, vanilla-rum candles, baby’s breath bouquets, soft velvet comforters, and the warmth of each other’s embrace.
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greysfanpage388 · 5 years
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The Handmaid’s Tale Season 3 episode 9
If I thought the past few episodes were slow moving, this episode was even more so 😅 The entire episode was set within the hospital walls.
*spoiler alert*
[[MORE]]
Basically the entire episode was about June being forced to keep vigil over her comatose walking partner Natalie ( OfMatthew), with more June internal monologues and close up shots of June’s face 😅
I actually did enjoy June’s monologues. They revealed that June was beginning to lose her mind, not that I blame her. I would lose my mind too if I have to stare at the beeping monitors keeping my comatose walking partner alive whole day long, after all I’ve been through.
The first omninous sign that June was beginning to lose her mind was when she took the scalpel out of the sharp bin,getting a needle stuck on her finger in the process. Why would they leave her alone in the room with Natalie after her outburst at her walking partner 2 episodes ago? And don’t they have cctvs to monitor any action in the room?
Then enter Janine who was in the hospital for an infection to her eye wound. June was about to cut off Natalie’s oxygen supply when Janine entered the room and foiled the attempt. June somehow thought that it was a good idea to confide in Janine about her plan to end Natalie’s life. Janine, bless her heart, refused to go with the plan and accused June of being selfish and losing her mind. I loved that scene.
The following day, June further confirmed that she was indeed losing it when she attacked an unsuspecting Serena. Serena should have seen it coming and not gone near June alone, especially since their last encounter didn’t end on a good note. Instead she was caught off guard, she thought that June was one of the strong ones. Anyways lucky for her, she managed to protect herself and inform the doctor.
I loved the conversation between June and the doctor. The doctor seemed rather sympathetic and understanding towards her and even helped her to stitch her wounds. That didn’t change the fact that he was more concerned about saving Natalie’s baby than Natalie herself, which goes against the previous O&G practice of putting the mother’s life first.
June admitting to the doctor that she was planning to kill Natalie, Serena and the doctor himself is scary and confirms that she really needs therapy, not that there is any available in Gilead.
June attempting to stab Serena reminds me of Emily stabbing aunt Lydia in the season 2 finale. Even the strongest of them break down and we can’t blame them. Now I wonder whether Commander Lawrence will help June to escape after she has lost her mind, just like he helped Emily? Or is it wishful thinking on my part? ;) Also, why is everyone in Commander Lawrence’s household, including his wife, not in their right minds? 🤔
On a side note, I thought that the scene between aunt Lydia and Janine where aunt Lydia gave Janine the red eye patch was a rare sweet scene. Aunt Lydia seemed surprisingly soft hearted in this scene.
I thought that Natalie’s baby was going to be a stillborn, being born premature, but he’s a fighter like his mother!
It was fascinating how June had a 360 degree turn in behavior after she saw the girls in the hospital for their menarche exam and spoke to one of them. She suddenly told aunt Lydia that she wanted to stay by Natalie’s bedside, after begging to go home at the beginning of the episode. Also the way she spoke to Natalie was totally different at the final scene of the episode. It was like she was speaking to a friend or loved one. Most probably seeing the pink dressed girls gave her a new sense of purpose. Like she told Natalie, she was going to get all these children out. We don’t know how, she herself doesn’t know how, but she’s going to do it somehow. I believe her.
The plot this season has been moving along too slowly, so I really hope next week’s episode would show some signs of The Resistance in action🤞
P.s Who else has the song ‘ Heaven Is A Place On Earth’ by Belinda Carlisle stuck in their head after this episode?
P.p.s It was not surprising but so sad that all the hospital staff including the nurses were male. This is what happens when females are oppressed, there are no females to take on predominantly female jobs.
Do let me know what you guys thought of the episode, I would love to hear from you all 😘
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doberbutts · 5 years
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Actually that reminds me, I had this one doe (Nago- PEW, feeder bin pull) who was absolutely adamant that she did not want to be bred. She violently rejected 5/6 of my bucks, allowed my youngest buck to mount but then chased him off shortly afterwards and refused to let him integrate with the rest of the does in the girl cage, and did not become pregnant from the single successful mating she allowed from him anyway. I had him in there for about two weeks to verify and not a single one of the does became pregnant during this period. I pulled her out and stuck her in an isolation cage for about a week, left him in the girl cage, suddenly everyone was pregnant. Did a switcharoo, put him back with my boys, re-integrated her with the girls, all the girls gave birth to very large litters (smallest was 11! biggest was 16!) and eventually pooled the kits into one large pile.
Which I frequently found Nago sleeping on, either keeping the rotating schedule of nursing moms company, or single-handedly watching over them while the moms were off doing something other than taking care of babies for once. She was a great babysitter, but did NOT want to be a mother herself. A shame, really, because she was super sweet and had a great temperament and definitely would have made some nice babies especially with my PEW buck I'd bought at the same time as her (my favorite of that crew, Momo, who was pulled from breeding due to a different issue). But, I mean, she was clearly not willing to even try so why force her? The others aren't stressed out of a breeding response, so clearly it's not a cage-wide husbandry problem. She had no ratty stress signals. She just didn't want to be a mom. So instead she was babysitter and food service for the moms, and That Weird Aunt That Goes On Vacation When We Invite A Boy Over so that she'd stop attacking my bucks for attempting to woo her cagemates 🙄
I had two does that ended up much the sane way after they uncerimoniously dumped their litters on an already kind of overwhelmed doe and refused to help. Most of my girls took turns when they shared litter piles but these two did not seem to want to do any of the mom work.
And one (Shelke, mismark hooded) was a great mom but she was very aggressive towards humans and I have a policy regarding food that bites me, and the policy is that if you bite me unprovoked you become food sooner rather than later because fuck you, also I'm turning your whole line into food because fuck you for that too. The two does from above were from Shelke so once I made the decision to wash the whole line from my program since by then I had plenty of does that were NOT biting me for reaching into the cage to give them some food, they exited the cage as well. Shelke's last litter also had megacolon and I had ended up needing to cull a significant portion of that litter due to the condition- Shelke's blaze was not all that high and she'd been bred to my black berkshire (Nico, later retired from breeding for the same reason) who had no blaze at all, but all of the babies had very high blazes and I couldn't risk the chance that I'd be producing babies born to suffer again, so in the long run it was probably a good thing to feed off Shelke's whole line. Yes, they were food, but that doesn't mean they should be forced to suffer through the pain of literally having been born without a rectum or any way to evacuate their bowels, dying a slow death either of starvation or sepsis when the over-filled bowels erupt internally.
Otherwise I had 8 regularly breeding females, and 4 regularly breeding males, and got several hundred babies within a year's time with fairly minimal effort outside of standard pet care. With a live-in nonbreeding doe that I just removed from the cage when it was time to toss a buck in with the rest of the girls, and not a single problem keeping up the population in sight, nor was that nonbreeding doe a problem upon reintroduction. I'm not sure if I understand WHY she didn't want to so badly, but clearly forcing the issue was not the way to do things 🙄🙄
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