#and the more she throws herself into finding the cure for him

[softquietsteadylove]

Hey:) do you know the Hanahaki Disease?

It would be very interesting if you would write a prompt about Gil getting this disease! It will get pretty badly in the next weeks (Gil can’t tell her that he loves her, she has to find it out herself) and Thena tries to help him. Maybe she realizes that it’s her who he loves when he is very close to dying, having a hard time breathing because he is chocking and coughing flowers and blood.

Would be intense Angst/comfort. You decide if there is an happy ending :)

"How is he?"

Sersi sighed, turning to Thena, who had been in to see Gil constantly since he'd first shown signs of Hanahaki. "You know what I'm going to say."

Thena shrivelled. She did know; ever since Gil had first coughed up that first flower, it had only gotten worse. And Thena had been miserable ever since.

"It's not just buds anymore, Thena," Sersi frowned, holding up one such specimen with some blood at the edge of its petals, "they're full blossoms, now."

Thena grasped the blooming white rosebud, stained red around its edge. Roses were one of the deadliest forms of Hanahaki. The prognosis was not good, to say the least. "Oh, Gil."

"I'll leave you two alone," Sersi whispered softly, resting a hand on Thena's shoulder. "He doesn't have long, I'm afraid. Just...just be here with him."

Thena sat herself right next to Gil, watching the laboured rise and fall of his chest, his face twisted in discomfort as he tried to breathe. She took his hand in hers, "oh, Gil, I'm so sorry."

She had been beside herself when he'd first started coughing. It had lasted weeks, and he had refused to admit that it was more than just a cold. It was all the evidence she needed, and it didn't take her long to catch him coughing up the petals.

At first they were small--little bud petals that were annoying, but mild, all things considered. And Thena was furious, demanding to know who had done this to him (who wasn't returning his affections and letting him suffer).

"Just tell me!"

"You know I can't," he'd argued back at her, and it was the only time she could ever remember him even remotely raising his voice at her.

She had looked up Hanahaki extensively, gone to see experts, read books. But the material didn't vary much, and the end result was always the same: if Gil's love wasn't returned and expressed to him, the flowers would take root in his lungs, and he would...

Thena swiped away a few tears, raising his hand to her lips as he slept. She couldn't imagine what he was going through, but the thought of having to go through life without him was taking up a lot of her head. It was selfish, she knew, not just to Gil, but to whomever had done this to him. She just wished she knew who it was.

Their friends didn't seem to have any idea. They all just got these sad, pitying looks on their faces whenever she brought it up (so she had stopped doing so).

If someone else had contracted Hanahaki because of Gil--that she would understand. Gil was sweet, and charming, and funny, everything a girl could want. And more than that, he was so deeply caring about everyone around him. He really had the biggest heart of anyone she had ever known, and he was loyal, and devoted to a fault.

Who was it that had stolen Gil's heart?

Thena frowned at herself. They hadn't stolen it--it was his to give. She just didn't know...why hadn't he told her? They shared everything! He would have mentioned someone he liked, long, long before Hanahaki could set in...wouldn't he?

Gil's face twisted as his chest shook again. He coughed in his sleep, his throat clenching.

"Gil," Thena sniffled, rubbing his chest as he groaned. "Let it out."

Gil choked, a few petals flying from his mouth, also sheer white. He turned over, coughing out the rest of the rose head before lying back again.

"I'm so sorry," Thena whispered, at a loss for what else to do. Her poor Gil was suffering and there wasn't a single thing she could do about it.

And she had thought about it. If she could find whomever had done this to her Gil and force them to love him, then she would officiate their impromptu wedding herself. Anything to put an end to Gil's pain.

But the thought kept bringing up a rather uncomfortable pain in her own chest. She had dismissed it as her sympathies time and time again. But eventually, she had to wonder if that was what really was bothering her.

She had been so focused on learning about Hanahaki in its early stages. But in her sudden and unusual distance from Gil, she had discovered a kind of..uncomfortable feeling.

Who was it that Gil loved? And why wasn't it her?

She had only let the thought cross her mind a few times. She had no right, she told herself. They were friends--the very best of friends. They shared everything with each other, and she was so shocked when he started showing signs of the flowery death that she threw herself into denial.

How could she not have noticed any signs of him falling in love? How did she not even know who it was? And why had she cried when she thought about Gil being in love with someone?

She had been by his side for so long. She knew everything about him, and even things he wasn't sure of himself. His voice was like music and his presence was like the air she needed to breathe.

Why hadn't Gil fallen in love with her?

Thena nestled her face against his shoulder, holding his hand and listening to the whistle of his lungs. It was so ridiculous--now that he was dying, she had lost her chance to love him. Because why love him now just to watch him suffer?

But she couldn't help it.

She loved him. How could she not love him? It was Gil--her sweet Gilgamesh. Her sweet Gil, who would make them food, who would talk with her for hours, who swore he would always be there with her. She had never questioned if she loved Gil before. She thought it was a given.

But apparently he loved someone else, and the flowers in his airway were evidence of that.

Thena brushed her finger over his cheeks. She could see the pallor of his skin, the way his veins were trying to adjust to the disease. Flowers would start bursting through his skin the closer to death he got. Her beautiful Gil would only be more beautiful in death.

Thena moved closer, kissing along his cheek--everywhere she could see the light line of an angry red vein. Why bother trying not to love him, now? She was in love with him, just in time for him to leave her.

"I hope it's quiet," she whispered over him as she kissed his forehead. "I hope it's not painful."

Another kiss.

"I hope I get it next," she admitted without shame, kissing his other cheek. "I hope I find you again."

She kissed away the blood at the corners of his lips.

"I hope you love me in the next life."

Thena leaned over him, pressing her lips to his and tasting the sweet, airiness of roses on him. She vaguely wondered what flower she would grow in her lungs without Gil beside her. Maybe something to remind her of him, like a robust zinnia, or perhaps an orange blossom, to remind her that she would love him far past a single eternity.

"I hope whomever did this to you is suffering tenfold."

"That seems a little harsh."

"Gil?" Thena gasped, sitting up at the melodious sound of his voice. She released her hold on him to look at him properly.

"Hey," he whispered, reaching up to swipe her tears away. He coughed faintly, but no flowers emerged.

"A-Are you," Thena blinked, not daring to believe it as he coughed without a single petal emerging, "are you okay?"

"Better than I was, that's for sure," he even smiled at her, some colour returning to his skin and the redness of his veins fading.

"Gil, I mean it," Thena asserted, her lip wobbling and her eyes unable to stop her tears. She held his cheeks in her hands, trembling as if on the precipice of shattering. "You can't say this and then...and then leave-"

"I'm not going anywhere, Thena," he promised her solemnly, taking one of her hands in his and pulling it to his lips. "Especially not now."

"Oh, Gil," she sighed before leaning in, pressing her lips to his. His hand moved to tangle in her hair, just as desperate to hold her to him. He still tasted like roses. "I love you."

"Just in time," he smiled between kisses, her pulling him closer but unwilling to move him.

"Thena!" Sersi burst back inside. As much as she might like to imagine giving them a sweet moment alone with their lovely revelations, she still had a patient to see. "Thena, it happened!"

"Hey," Gil waved at her, holding Thena's weeping form to his chest on the bed with him. And true enough, signs of Hanahaki were already fading, including any and all specimens of the buds he had coughed up.

"Sersi," Thena looked up, still crying with elation, "is it really gone?"

Sersi smiled, moving Thena away from Gil as gently as possible to place her stethoscope on his chest. She moved it around a few times, looking at Thena clinging to Gil's hands as she did. "That's one hell of a heart rate, but your lungs are clearer than they've ever been."

She was about to tell Thena that the Hanahaki had cleared itself up nicely, but Thena was already in Gil's arms again, kissing his face all over. "I'll leave you two alone."

#the aNGST #I love it though #this was such a unique prompt #and I can write a little angst #but we're all about happy endings here Anon #Thenamesh AU #I looked up the variations of Hanahaki #and we all knew they were going to be in love by the end of this #Gil fell first #and he's like oh. no #his friends are like this is the most inevitable case of Hanahaki imaginable #because of course Gil loves Thena #but Thena is so shocked when she sees it in him #that it doesn't even occur to her that it could be her causing it #and the more she throws herself into finding the cure for him #the worse he gets #and the worse he gets #the worse she feels #and then she's crying wondering why it wasn't her #because she would love Gil back in a heartbeat #she would--oh she already loves Gil #after this he asks her if he can call her Rosebud #and she's like this is the worst experience of my life absolutely not #Thenamesh Hanahaki AU

[sinnomel]

Absolutely Peachy

Pairing: Gale x f!Tav

Summary: Tav and Gale's conversation after Elminster's visit goes great. Slight angst but it ends cute imo.

A/N: First post breaking my very long writing hiatus to write about Gale because there aren't enough fics. Let me know if you'd like more one shots cause I think the world needs more Gale ( ´ ▿ ` ) - Sin

There was nothing in this world that could’ve prepared Tav for the surprise encounter with Elminster. She was hoping that she could meet the esteemed wizard under happier circumstances, perhaps when this damned tadpole was out from between her eyes, attempting to command the helm that is her brain. 

The wise old man was jolly at first, introducing himself to the rest of the group, reprimanding Gale for his lack of decorum and grace. Tav thought nothing of it, inviting the elder to their camp, despite Gale’s scowl, awaiting for Elminster’s true reason for appearing before them in the shadow lands.

However, after the food and wine, Elminster’s visage seemed less friendly, less warm. His words were cold, concise, and fatal. Gale was to gain Mystra’s forgiveness on one condition - he was to essentially explode, destroying the curse within him and everything in a large surrounding area. It could rid them of the Absolute, of course. It could bring death to a lot of people if he decided to do this in or near Baldur’s Gate. Usually, this would be a decision that the group would push past, finding the cure for the tadpoles being their priority as the clock was ticking on them becoming mindflayers. However, this revelation had Tav’s heart sinking to the ground below her. 

Tav had become particularly close to Gale, finding her feeling solidified after spending time with him in between camping and the battlefield. A complete accident on her part. There was something charming about the man’s rants, how his eyes lit up explaining the Weave, talking about his cat and how he would spend his days rummaging through the literature that covered the walls of his tower in Waterdeep. Tav never intended to fall for Gale, yet here she was. 

It was clear as day what her thoughts on the matter were, as Gale had asked if everything was alright once Elminster and everyone else had retired to their respective tents and bedrolls. Tav was beside herself, “Am I alright? Absolutely peachy Gale.” Gale’s eyes held a hint of sadness as she continued. “I’m definitely alright. I’m wonderful knowing that Mystra herself has offered you forgiveness but only under the guise of the afterlife,” she spat. “Tav. I understand your frustration. Trust me, I too am frustrated with Mystra. But I can no longer satiate the hunger of the Orb that rests inside of me. There is nothing that I can do. This is my fate,” he explained, his hand twitching, as if involuntarily reaching out for her hand but stopping himself because she’s upset. He can only assume that his touch would only lead to more anger and hurt. If only he knew how much Tav yearned for his touch, how much she would fantasize it under the stars, sometimes without her knowing how she got to that topic of thinking.

“Since when have we ever listened to fate?” Tav asked, her gaze off towards the right where the water seemed to stand still and the only sound accompanying them was the soft crackle of the makeshift fire off towards the center of camp. “We have tadpoles that threaten our very existence. Every hour that passes, we teeter on the brink of becoming mind flayers. How long have we traveled together and not a single tentacle has sprouted?” she asked. Tav was breathing heavy, the conversation weighing on her physically. She couldn’t comprehend why he was giving in to this demand - his life was on the line and would he so easily throw it away? However, in that instance, Tav realized that this is coming from a selfish place. In this moment, Tav realized that the reason she was so uncharacteristically upset about Gale throwing his life away for the sake of Mystra’s forgiveness and to satiate the Orb maintaining its nest in his chest is because she has grown to love the wizard of Waterdeep. 

Perhaps her eyes had given Gale indication that she had realized something, as he asked “Tav, what’s-“ “Do not ask me what is wrong Gale. I fear I realized something a bit too late. I do not wish to talk about it right now…it isn’t appropriate.” “Is it about me?” He intercepted. 

Tav stumbled and said nothing. Her gaze was now on the dirt ground, her heart pounding out of her rib cage. She was silent for a beat, but Gale was patient. If she was willing to speak, he was more than willing to listen - it would be ironic if she listened to his rambling and he couldn’t do the same. Tav, despite just saying that she didn’t wish to speak on the matter, could not stop herself.

“I’m acting out of emotion rather than logic, Gale,” Tav started. Her eyes slowly made her way up to his own brown ones, making this conversation harder. She could feel her heart changing rhythm upon meeting his gaze, how her body yearned to be held in his embrace in this moment, how she craved a chaste kiss. 

Gale seemed to put two and two together, or rather, what he thought was two and two. 

“I know this seems very obscene and I may never be granted forgiveness. Trust me, I don’t wish to die. But Mystra wants to rid the world of the Absolute. My demise might very well be the only thing that could stop-“

“I love you.” 

Gale was taken aback and fell silent, completely off guard by the three sweet words he would often dream of hearing from Tav’s lips. Perhaps he had imagined it? He dared ask, hoping his imagination, or the amalgamation of his heart beating so thunderously in his chest wouldn’t disrupt the orb.

“Pardon?” Gale asked, his eyebrows furrowed as he took a step toward her. “I love you Gale. I don’t want you to succumb to that entitled goddess for my own selfish reasons,” Tav started, unable to stop her words from coming out. If not now, she felt, when? Who knew when Gale would just decide to commit to Mystra’s possible false promises. 

“There is always another way. We’ve constantly found alternatives to problems. Please…don’t go through with this. Do you not wish to live?” the appointed leader of the group asked the man before her. She could feel the warm accumulation of tears threatening to pour over the edge of her tear ducts, the shakiness of her breath not helping her. 

Gale was speechless. He didn’t know what to do. He always painted this picture of how he wanted to profess his love to Tav - a beautiful sunset in Waterdeep whilst both of them spent the hours in his tower, two glasses of wine served out for them and Tara, his cat in his company, along with the countless books he seems to have. The piano would play songs from their travels to incite conversation of nostalgia, how they felt in those moments, laughing about their perilous travels. And when the sun hit the golden hour, the sky would be adorned with pink, orange and purple clouds, he would place his forehead on hers, his gaze focused on her soft lips and utter…

“I love you.” 

But they were here, in this camp, the conditions of his profession of love not met. Perhaps this was how it was supposed to be because he wouldn’t make it back to Waterdeep. Perhaps he won't live past a couple nights from now. 

“Gale…Say something,” Tav said, her voice cracking, two tears escaping their captivity, trailing down her cheeks. Gale couldn’t think of any words. Instead he chose to react, slowly closing the space between them. His hands made their way up to her cheeks, softly wiping away the stray tears. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He was torn. He very badly wanted to rid himself of the Orb and obtain Mystra’s forgiveness, but on the other, he had Tav, who had seemingly loved him unconditionally. None of his magic was necessary to woo her. Not his history of being a prodigy of magic, not his mastery of spells, not his conduction of the weave. Just him. 

Gale couldn’t help but close the space between himself and Tav, placing a soft kiss upon her lips. In this moment, he forgot all about Mystra and her empty promises, the orb, all of it. All that occupied his mind was Tav and how soft her lips felt against his own. He pulled away, staying close.

“I love you too.”

#gale dekarios #gale of waterdeep #baldur's gate 3 #bg3 #gale x tav #gale bg3 #gale x reader #bg3 fanfiction #gale dekarios x reader #baldurs gate 3 x reader #Tav

[alloftheimagines]

joel miller | left behind

masterlist | taglist | ko-fi

words: 2.9k

warnings: angst, angst, angst. so much angst. ep two spoilers. tess's death. grief. loss. infected stuff. reader is tess's younger sister. age gap. more angst. so much angst. slightly violent reader.

synopsis: in which joel honours a promise he made to tess that means he must force reader to leave your infected sister behind in boston. resentment and a bit of hurt/comfort ensues as you head to frank and bill's.

sibling!tess x reader, reader x joel, little bit of reader x ellie

tags: @sweetbabygirlsworld

“Holy shit. She’s infected.”

You didn’t think the world could fall apart twice, but you look at Tess as Ellie's words settle in and realise you were wrong. Here you are again, losing everything. This time, you don’t know if you can survive. 

“Tess…” you whisper, shaking your head slowly. “No. No. No.” 

Beside you, Joel is deadly still. He looks at your sister with such detachment that you want to scream. This is Tess. Fucking Tess. 

But you know him. You know he’s good at switching off when things get tough. Not like you. You wear your heart on your damn sleeve, and you can’t fucking do this. You look at her again, heart breaking. You feel every tear, every shard slipping through your ribcage. Tess is motionless — resigned. She wears sadness, but no fear. None anybody but you can see, anyway. You grew up with her. You can see the fading light in her eyes in a way the others won’t. 

And you don’t know what to do.

“Let me see it,” Joel orders quietly.

“Joel…” Tess pleads. 

“Show me,” he growls. 

Bitterly, she tears down the collar of her shirt, revealing the infection blossoming across bruised veins. Your knees threaten to buckle, nausea rising in your throat. 

“No.” Tears slip down your cheeks, and you’re already searching the room again for some hint the Fireflies might have left, some sign that it won’t end like this. “No. The girl is a cure. If we can just—”

Tess is saying your name. You’re not listening. If you listen, it will be real. If you listen, you will have to say goodbye to the only family you have left. 

“Joel,” she’s saying now. “This kid… this kid is real, okay? You gotta get her, get them both, to Tommy’s. He’ll know where to go, what to do.”

“No. No, I’m not doing that,” he replies. 

You’re still rattling around, searching old papers and nooks for something, anything; as though you’ll find a miracle in the shadows. 

“If not for the kid then for her.” Tess’s voice rises. You squeeze your eyes shut, your back turned to her. “She needs you, Joel. This is the end of the road for me, but you need to keep going. Promise me."

“I’m not leaving you here!” you shout, throwing the first thing you find against the wall. It smashes to dust. “We’ll find a way out of this, Tess. We always fucking do. Let’s just stop and figure it out!” 

“There is no figuring it out.” Tess marches over to you, gripping your face in her hands. You try so hard to fight it, so hard to stay in denial, but you look at her drawn face and know she’s already half-gone. You know the worry furrowing her brows isn’t for herself, but for you. For what will happen to you now. She practically raised you, toughening you up or else cradling you through the bad nights, never any in between. It made you both strong and so unbearably weak. Not like Joel, who has never let anything touch him. 

You choke on a sob and close your eyes. “Please, Tess. Please. This can’t be it. I need you.”

“I need you. I need you to be safe. I need you to keep going. Please, sweetheart.” She softens, brushing the tears from your eyes. “Please. For me.”

“No—” 

The sound of moans and the shuffling of uneven footsteps interrupt your protest. Joel goes to the window and curses, readying his gun. “Infected. Shit tonne of ‘em. We gotta go.”

You grab Tess’s wrist without thinking. “Come on.”

But she slips out of your grasp, stepping away from all of you. Ellie has tears in her eyes, but she says nothing, looking for the first time not to Tess or Joel, but to you. 

“I can buy you some time, but you have to run. You have to go,” Tess whispers. 

You shake your head again, ferociously this time. “No. No, I’m not leaving. If you stay, I stay.”

She snaps her head away. “Joel. Get her out of here.”

You fight back a bitter scoff, fists curling at your sides — but then hands lock around your arms, nudging you away. “Come on," Joel grunts. "We have to go. Now.”

The betrayal stings. This is fucking Tess. Of all people, he should want to help her. He shouldn’t be giving up on her. 

You snarl, “Fuck you if you think I’m going anywhere!” 

He doesn’t let up, face carved from stone. “We can’t stay,” he hisses, ducking his head to meet your eye. “You want us all to die?” 

“You go! I’m not—”

“Now, Joel!” Tess is yelling. “Get her the fuck out of here now!”

He swears under his breath again and then his arms are like a vice around your waist, your feet lifting from the floor as he drags you away, kicking and screaming. 

“No!” You’re shrieking now, vocal cords ripping apart as you try to reach for your sister. "Tess!"

But she doesn’t reach back. She turns away, and you know with certainty it’s the last time you’ll see her face. 

“Tess, please!” Sobs erupt from you, and you fight harder now, but Joel is too strong, too broad, too heavy-handed to let you go. “Please! Please! Let me go! Let me stay with her! She's my fucking sister, Joel!” 

The fresh air hits you all at once. One moment you’re there, watching your sister get smaller and smaller as infected scratch and rattle the doors, and then you’re back in the rubble of the drab city, the gold dome of Massachusetts State House dwindling. 

And then exploding.

As your feet finally hit the floor and you try to nudge Joel away, the earth cracks with black smoke and you’re thrown to the ground. Joel’s warmth shields you, and you feel Ellie trembling at your side. 

Silence blankets you like ash. It takes a moment for your brain to comprehend it. Any of it. 

You shove Joel to look back at the State House. The building that is no longer a building, just debris and fire. 

The building where your sister was standing not a moment ago. 

“No.” You say the word differently now. Softer. Devastation pierces through it, through you. She’s gone. Tess is gone. 

“Darlin’...” Joel puts his hand on your shoulder and squeezes, and fury sparks through you. 

“You did this!” you scream, hitting his chest again, and again and again. “You took away my choice!” Because the truth is, you would sooner have died in there with Tess than carry on without her. “You took away my fucking sister!” Because he’d gotten her into the jobs, the smuggling. He’d done all of this. 

Joel doesn’t react, barely even budging as you slam into him. His jaw is set, trembling, throat bobbing, and finally he catches your hands and locks his fingers around your wrists. “Look at me.” 

You can’t. You can’t look at him, or anywhere else. You want to vomit. You want to disappear. 

Instead, your chin wobbles and your ribcage opens up and everything pours out of you as you wail. 

He catches you as you sink to the ground, pulling you to his chest, and you’re too weak to push him away now. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispers into your hair, rocking you gently. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry, sweetheart. There was nothing else we could do. Nothing else I could do. But look at me. Please look at me.” He grips your jaw just as Tess had, and you flinch. You hate him. You fist his shirt between your fingers and you want to destroy it, destroy everything around him. 

Except you don’t. He’s all you have left, and the realisation makes you numb. Joel fucking Miller is the only goddamn person you have. 

You do as he asks. You look at him. 

“She bought us time," he says. "We can’t waste it now. Do you understand? We can grieve her later, but right now, we gotta go. We have to get up and keep going. For Tess.”

You hate that he’s right most of all. As you begin to shut down, shock taking over, you look back at the smoking State House and stand. And then you clutch Joel’s collar and bare your teeth. 

Ellie stumbles towards you, eyes round with fear, but you’ve lost the will to care about her presence. You’ve lost everything today.

“Don’t you fucking say her name again,” you snap. “You lost that right. I blame you. I blame you for who she became, who we’ve all become.”

Anguish curls across Joel’s features, but you refuse to feel guilty. You let him go roughly and grab your backpack off the floor, the same one you’d clutched during the outbreak just after you’d watched your parents get savaged by your infected neighbours, Tess dragging you to safety. You’d been thirteen years old, and your sister had gotten you through hell and back, that night and every other one that came after. 

“It shouldn’t have ended like this,” you whisper into the wind, swallowing your own tears. 

It’s the last moment you allow yourself to have, and then you wipe your damp cheeks and glare down at Joel again. 

“Get up. Let’s go.”

He does, looking winded as he rises from his knees to his feet. You allow him to lead the way only because he knows the city, knows his way around, far better than you did. Tess rarely let you do jobs out of the QZ, protective until the bitter fucking end. 

You wish more than anything you could have protected her. 

***

You don’t get the chance to catch your breath again until you get to Bill and Frank’s — which is empty. You never met them yourself, but you know Tess warmed to them, so to find them dead too… it feels like the last piece of good in the world is truly gone. You slump onto their couch still wrapped in numbness as Joel and Ellie gather supplies, reluctant to so much as look at you. Later, you hear them talking about showering, and Ellie thumps up the stairs, leaving the place quiet. You should wash, too. You should eat, drink, prepare for whatever comes next, but you can’t move. Can’t do anything. 

After minutes, or perhaps hours, of silence, Joel kneels in front of you with a plate of food. “You need to eat, darlin'. I know it’s hard, but you have to.”

You hate him calling you that. He never used to call you that. He barely addressed you at all, stubborn, grumpy old man he is. But he’s been family for a long time, and the three of you… 

You got by together. Until now. 

You glance down at the food and your stomach turns. 

“Please,” he whispers, voice cracking. It surprises you, that vulnerability bleeding into his words — and it seems to surprise him too, by the look on his face. You’ve never seen him like this. Not once. 

You take a bite for that alone. It’s dry in your mouth, and you find it hard to swallow, so you push the rest away. He sighs and puts it down on the coffee table, swapping the plate for his flask. You take a swig, whiskey burning like vinegar in your throat. 

“If I talk,” he asks, “will you listen?”

“No,” you answer honestly. “No, I don’t feel much like listenin’, Joel.”

Still, he takes your hand. You glare at your intertwined fingers but make no move to pull away. Perhaps part of you still needs to be coddled, taken care of the way Tess might have.

And maybe you need to know you’re not alone. That he isn’t going to give up on you the way he so easily did with Tess. Which is sick, you know, but you’ve never much been able to help the way you feel about him. The way you have always wanted to peel away his layers and understand him. Tear away his self-hatred, guilt, grief, for whatever horrors he faced before. 

“I didn’t want this. Not for Tess and sure as hell not for you.”

“I told you,” you bit. “I told you not to say her name.”

“I made a promise to her a long time ago.” He continued as though you hadn’t spoken, his brown eyes pleading. “I promised that if something happened to her, I would always protect you. That’s what I did today. I was honouring that promise, and honouring your sister. If you need someone to blame, someone to hate, if that makes it easier, go ahead. But don’t think for a second that this was a choice I wanted to make. I cared about her. I care about you. And even if I have to drag you kickin’ and screamin’, I’m getting you to Wyoming, to Tommy. You and I still have a job to do.” Slowly, as though unsure how you’ll react, he tucks your hair behind your ear. “That kid needs us, but we need her a hell of a lot more if the cure is real. And I… I need you. I need you here with me, safe. I ain’t losing another…”

He bows his head, words thickening.  “I ain’t going back on my promise to Tess, so you can make it difficult as you like. You can never lay your damn eyes on me again. But I’m getting you through this.”

A tear drips down your cheek, your entire body trembling as the sorrow, the grief, finally takes over. 

“Oh, baby,” Joel whispers, voice full of the same loss, the same pain. 

A whimper escapes you as you put your head in your hands. You can’t even hate him now, because you can imagine your martyr of a sister asking Joel to do just that. To protect you above all else. Still, you despise it — despise that your choices were taken away, your voice ignored. 

“I should have been with her,” you say. “She shouldn’t have died alone.”

“She died knowing you were being taken care of.” He squeezes your knee with rough hands. “She died knowing she saved us. It’s the best anyone could’a done. I wish it could have been different.”

“I don’t know how to do this without her,” you admit, because how can you keep it all in? All the love you had for her, all that grief… where will you put it when it’s spilling out of you without warning? 

“That’s something we’ll figure out,” Joel responds. He’s drawing circles into your lower thigh now, the pad of his thumb wearing down your denim jeans slowly. Wearing you down slowly. “You should take a shower then see about finishing your food. That hot water… it’ll help. And I won’t be mad if you use it all before I get my turn.” He offers you a small smile.

But you can’t imagine anything ever helping. You close your eyes, sinking back into the couch. “In a minute. I just need…” You don’t know what you need. If you’re being honest, you need Tess. 

As though knowing it, Joel rises, the couch cushions dipping with his weight beside you. He lets out a soft sigh, fidgeting with his fingers. You feel the weight of his gaze on the side of your face. 

A moment later, he’s draping a blanket over you, and your lids flutter open again in confusion. 

“S’okay,” Joel says. “Get some rest. I’ll wake you when it’s time to go.”

You don’t need to be told twice. But when you try to nod off, you only see Tess burned on the inside of your eyelids. Her face the last time you saw it. The bite. Her pleas for you to go.

You give up quickly, aware Joel is still beside you, unmoving. It isn’t like him to not be moving. 

Rubbing your face, you sit up, pushing the blanket off. “Joel…”

“Hmm?”

“Blaming you... it doesn't make it fucking easier. I understand why you did what you did, even if I don’t like it. But if you ever take away my choice again… I won’t go on with you. I can’t. I know you and Tess still see me… saw me,” you correct with a wince, “as a kid, but I’m not. Not anymore. And I sure as hell ain’t your responsibility.”

“I don’t see you as a kid,” he says quietly. “And I don’t see you as my responsibility, either. Honestly?” He purses his lips, tapping on the arm of the couch before he continues, “I see you as the only damn thing worth going out of my way to protect. Make of that what you will. Just… don’t expect me to let you die if that’s your choice. I can’t do that. I won’t do that. I won’t apologise for it, either.”

You’re not sure what to say to that; what it means. Why Joel, of all people, is the one to say it. You always thought he and Tess… 

“Why? That promise mean so fucking much?”

“Yeah." He looks at you as though for the first time. "Yeah, it does."

You don’t have the energy to wonder what it means anymore. Instead, you pull yourself up on unsteady feet. Your mind is racing, and that shower is sounding better as reality sets in. Just in time, Ellie returns with damp hair and fresh clothes. She offers a small, reassuring smile, and you ruffle her hair, feeling guilty that a fourteen-year-old was subjected to everything you went through in Boston. Whoever she is, whatever purpose people want her to serve… she’s just a kid, and you couldn’t hold it together for her today. That makes you a shitty chaperone.

“My turn,” you mumble, glancing at Joel a final, wary time before heading upstairs. His expression doesn’t change, but you see something new in it now. Something strange. 

Something that looks an awful lot like care.

#joel miller fic #joel miller #joel miller imagines #joel imagine #joel #joel x tess #joel x reader #ellie x joel #joel miller x reader #joel miller x you #joel miller x y/n #joel miller the last of us #joel miller imagine #joel miller drabble #the last of us hbo #the last of us #joel milller one shot #joel miller angst #the last of us spoilers #tess servopoulos #tlou show #tlou #tlou fic #tlou imagine #tlou hbo #tlou spoilers #the last of us fic #hbo the last of us #joel the last of us #the last of us imagine

[sharpedgedfool]

i fucking love your monster au design for shadow could we have some lore abt him? (if you want to :])

Apologies for the essay I'm about to drop for your ask jddfgsdkgf, but here's a sketch as a peace offering and I'll drop all the lore I have for you under the read more! Glad people are interested in it cause I'm currently obsessed with it lmao

OK so basically Eggman in this universe is still the mad doctor type, he’s just obsessed with the occult instead of robotics. He’s a mortal human but hunts monsters for experiments and he’s obsessed with gaining supernatural powers to rule the world, and Sonic and Amy with their usual group are his main enemies.

He has a big following of humans (who think he’s trying to save them from monsters) and a rather large army of other monsters who work for him - so he has a ton of resources despite being a 'regular dude', and he’s slowly collecting spellbooks and teaching himself magic.

He finds a rare grimoire, and it unlocks a treasure trove of dark magics. Now his big master plan is to summon a demon to serve him and gain ultimate power, to do this he needs the seven emeralds for the ritual.

Sonic and Amy are the main hero duo in the story, Sonic was cursed with lycanthropy as a child when a pack attacked his village, he was spared because he was young, and went to find a witch in hopes of a cure. The witch he found was Vanilla, her daughter Cream, and Amy who is her apprentice. Before Sonic could be cured he made friends with a few other cryptids who live in the same woods and in the end decided he’d rather stay cursed with them as he had nowhere else to go anyways. He’s not in a traditional pack (all were-creatures) instead they have a rag-tag group with all kinds of different monsters that live with the witches (Tails and Knux are in there somewhere I promise jkfgdhdf). He likes having the werehog strength so he can fight back and protect his new family.

Rouge is a born Vampire, not turned. Her parents were killed at some point and she took over their coven after she avenged them and proved herself worthy. She’s like the Queen of sorts and rules over a majority of the vampires across the world - she has eyes (and ears) everywhere, there's very little she doesn’t know about. So Sonic and Amy ask her for help when they realise Eggman’s planning something big. She has a huge hoard of gems locked up in a big spooky cliffside castle, she’s obsessed with treasure still. She agrees to aid them to overthrow Eggman in exchange for the seven emeralds for herself. She doesn’t want to use them for their power, so they agree.

Everyone teams up to find the emeralds first, but Eggman outsmarts them, and the ritual begins before they can stop him, and once it’s begun it’s irreversible. The only thing they can do at this point is change who the demon is bound to, so Sonic throws himself into the curse (he already has one after all).

Shadow is the demon that’s summoned. Typical demon pacts imply that he’ll do whatever the summoner asks, granting them ultimate power, but he’ll get their soul in return. The catch is if Sonic never asks him to do anything, he’s technically not indebted and Shadow won't get his soul. It’s a game of temptation, but since Sonic was technically an unwilling participant, Shadow's more intrigued than anything - he’s confident Sonic will eventually cave and ask him for something (they always do) so he doesn’t attempt to trick him, he sees no need.

Sonic now has a demon chained to him constantly, and he’s extremely on guard (demons are as powerful as creatures get in this universe) and he’s off put by how genuine Shadow comes across. Shadow asks a lot of questions, and Sonic assumes he’s doing it to learn how to manipulate him - Shadow finds it amusing. Eventually they get used to each other, Shadow and Rouge get along well (though they both tease Sonic mercilessly together so he tries to avoid her but Shadow will nag him to visit) Amy tries to work on a spell to break the bond between them but it's a notoriously hard spell to break (perhaps impossible as they destroyed the grimoire in the fight with Eggman), but eventually Sonic and Shadow are both unsure if they want it to be broken at all…

Sonic starts asking Shadow questions too, and finds out more about Shadow. Originally he was an angel - thousands of years ago he had a mortal friend (Maria) and the two of them were inseparable. Unlike demons, angels rarely interact with the world so her village mistook her good fortune as witchcraft and assumed Shadow to be a demon. They killed her over it, and Shadow was heartbroken - in a fit of rage he lashed out, wiped out their town and proved to them he could be the demon they thought he was. He became a fallen angel, scorned and bitter - not born of pure evil but clearly capable of carnage all the same.

Unlike hellborn demons, Shadow doesn’t enjoy mindlessly committing atrocities - he has to feel it’s a necessary evil or he’ll turn it on his summoner (this makes him dangerous to summon, he’s normally considered off-limits). He’s one of the more powerful demons but he’s hard to reason with to make it worth it. Eggman targeted him specifically because he thought Shadow would side with him as Maria was a distant ancestor of his.

Once the annoyance of being forcefully summoned wears off,  Shadow’s rather pleased Sonic isn’t trying to use him for anything - he’s secretly happy to have someone with decent morals to hang out with (he’s an outcast in hell for obvious reasons) but he’d refused to make mortal contact with anyone willingly after Maria for fear of resigning them to a bad fate all over again.

Again thank you for reading!! I'll have more art to share soon!! :)

#ask #monster au

[cultofdixon]

Simply with you

Rick Grimes • She/Her Pronouns • When Merle died, Daryl took on the big brother role more heavily compared to when he was the middle child. He doesn’t quite like the idea of Rick having eyes on his sister for whatever reason • ANGST/SFW • TW: Canon Violence / Anxiety / Scars

Requested by: Anon

“Who’s that?” Rick questions his friend Shane as he looks over to the youngest Dixon heading toward her part of the camp.

“Well. Someone yea gonna have to tell that their brother was left chained up on a roof”

“If I can put it off, I’m gonna”

“Fine. Wait for the other brother.”

Maybe he should’ve said something to soften the blow.

“You left my brother? On a goddamn roof?!” Daryl snaps about to throw a punch when his sister Y/N stepped between him and the sheriff.

“Thanks…He was just—-“ And then Rick was cut off by Y/N’s left hook in the face knocking him on his ass.

“Stand down buddy, or my boot will end up when the sun don’t shine” Y/N hissed and part of her was tempted to spit on the pig but given she has a soft spot for the man’s son. She wasn’t going to do it in front of Carl.

All she did was scoff and walk away from the scene to wrap her head around what happened. Shane helped Rick back to his feet and part of him felt the need to apologize to her but Daryl instantly blocked his way.

“Stay away from her, cowboy”

Not like that lasted long.

“You didn’t find him?” Lori asks Rick once they handled the horde that came through and collected the bodies. Andrea still by her sister.

“No, but Daryl’s hopeful in the sense that he did get himself out of the handcuffs”

“How did he—“

“You don’t wanna know, Lori” Rick frowns glancing over to the Dixons as Y/N kept this deadpan look when Daryl was telling her about Merle only for her to look over at him locking eyes.

Y/N’s expression saddened before looking away from the sheriff heading toward their camp outside of camp to pack up. They weren’t safe there anymore.

The plan after learning about certain things, was to take Jim to the CDC in hopes for some cure to the virus coursing through him from the walker bite. Y/N got her things in the back of Daryl’s truck after he strapped down Merle’s bike.

“Yea leading us”

“Yeah I know, because both my and Merle’s bike couldn’t get in the bed” Y/N laughs slightly slipping on her army green jacket zipping it up making her way to her bike. “Plus I’ve been to that place…how many years ago?”

“Too fucking long ago, Merle was supposed to take yea to school to go on the damn trip. Next thing we know DPSS called”

“God, memories…” Y/N‘s smile slowly fades and Daryl took notice of such as he was about to reassure her that they’ll find their idiot older brother but Rick made his way over to them to discuss the plan once more.

“We’re leavin’ soon. You know—-“

“She knows, man. Just follow her lead” Daryl interrupts before going to get in his truck as Y/N looked over to Rick who met her eyes in an instant.

“See you there” Y/N states putting her helmet on, the only safety smart Dixon, before getting on her Hornet 919 and starting it up.

The ride had a few bumps, then a literal one being leaving Jim behind. But they kept the plan of going to the CDC…

During the night with good food and a few bottles of wine…Y/N stared at the glass given to her while everyone laughs and enjoy the conversations they were sharing. She couldn’t help the unsettling feeling of someone looking at her bringing her eyes to look around finding the same blue eyes from hours before looking right at her. A laugh escapes her as her voice blends into the groups so Rick couldn’t exactly understand why that erupted from her.

But she’s enjoying herself, right?

Y/N dropped her drunk brother on the couch rolling him on his side so he wouldn’t choke on his throw up if it happened. She’s gotten used to this. Once Daryl was taken care of, Y/N left the room they were in to take advantage of the hot water she’s been hearing about. But shit had other plans…

The young Dixon approached the common room after hearing something off and she didn’t hesitate to open the door finding Shane trying to get more physical with Lori. Wouldn’t be the first time she walked in on the two, normally she’d bat an eye but given Lori’s expression of relief when she walked in.

Oh I’m gonna fight a pig Y/N glares at Shane watching him step away from Lori. “You better get or I’ll fucking make you”

“Like I’m scared of you” Shane scoffs only for a knife to go dangerously close to his Adam’s apple as his whole body tensed when she pressed her knife against his skin.

“So. You gonna leave or what?”

It took him a second before shaking my giving her a thumbs up as she releases her threat but doesn’t leave until he’s the first one out. But even when Shane finally left, Y/N quickly turned to Lori with worry written on her face and Lori’s never seen that feeling on her before.

“You okay?”

“Yeah…thanks to you…”

“I’ll walk yea back to your room before going back to mine” Y/N decided to wait til morning to enjoy that hot water. She wanted to make sure Lori got back alright.

Once Lori entered the room her husband and son were in, Rick still in a bit of a haze from the alcohol got up for a second heading toward the door seeing Y/N instantly tense. He stepped back thinking he was the reason, but it was more so what Shane did.

“Rick, keep an eye on Shane.”

“Wha—What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Just do it or you’ll regret it” Y/N frowns stepping away and heading back to her room with her brother.

The CDC…was a luxury short lived then it sort of..definitely got worse from there…

“You better be safe, dumbass.” Y/N punched Daryl in the arm as a reminder of what she’s really going to do if he gets hurt searching for Sophia. “Can’t have another gun shot victim”

“Hey I won’t get mistaken for a fuckin’ deer”

“A walker more like it” Y/N scoffs stepping away from Daryl and the horse he was taking from the Greenes. The farm family they stumbled across after someone they took in shot someone from their group. Poor Carl.

The moment Daryl left, Y/N quickly brought herself to check on Carol to see how she was holding up before making her rounds to the Grimes. Ever since the CDC, she checks up on them. Plus when Daryl ain’t in view, Rick isn’t too afraid to talk to her.

“Hey” Y/N caught Rick off guard as he was staring at his sleeping son with Lori laid beside him through the mesh of the tent. “Yea sure it was safe for him to recover out here?”

“Hershel said it’s fine.”

“Mm. Daryl went to look for Sophia, he should be back in a few hours”

“Be honest” Rick turns to her, freezing in a bit of the moment as all she did was cross her arms giving him a curious look to what he’ll be asking. But he got lost in his thought. “I…Forget it. Doubt he’d find her before nightfall”

“Searching can take days. Months. Whatever. Just don’t say anythin’ bad to Carol, alright?”

“Right…what are yea going to do? While you wait for your brother”

Y/N glances over to the barn as she was curious why they never went in it. But she pushed that agenda down, someone else will check it out eventually. “Might take my bike into town. Or the near by neighborhood. See if I can find anything of use for us. Or even Sophia”

“You shouldn’t go alone”

“I prefer to be”

The second Y/N left the farm, Rick instantly told Lori that he was going on a run when the reality is he’s going to check on Y/N. Something was off. At least he thinks so, he’s going with his gut here.

But the moment he got in a car, Glenn and Maggie asked to tag along for whatever he was going out for. For other reasons. Rick didn’t need to know that when he turned into the nearby neighborhood finding Y/N’s bike parked.

“Hey isn’t that—-“

“Yeah, Imma go see if she needs anythin’. You check out another home for anything”

“Is there a time frame for when…?” Glenn questions Rick as the sheriff gives him a confused look with a quick side eye toward Maggie before getting the hint.

“30 minutes should be enough” Rick states parking the car and stepping out once he secured his gun and knife. Like he was keeping track of that shit.

The man didn’t exactly have a plan. All it was was to find Y/N but nothing after. Why was he even going after her in the first place? Doubt that will be answered given he didn’t find her first, it was the other way around and she wasn’t happy about it.

“You have no idea how awkward it is to walk in on Glenn and Maggie” Her voice made him quickly turn as Y/N instantly pushed him into the house that her bike was parked by, she was actually looking for supplies. She wasn’t—- “The fuck did you think I was doing out here Rick?”

“I just. I—-“

“Spit it out!” She snaps and Rick quickly in a ‘heat of the moment’ reaction, wrapped his arms around the youngest Dixon as she froze in to the contact.

“You didn’t seem alright and I don’t know. I wanted to make sure you’re alright”

Y/N continued to stand there and Rick continued to hold her until he felt he was over stepping a line. But as he started to pull away, she latched onto him holding onto him and gripping onto the back of his shirt. Neither said a word.

And haven’t since that moment…

Daryl got shot

The barn was full of walkers

Sophia was…found

Shane lost his mind

The barn fire

People got separated and scrambled around the farm, the common point they knew was to go to the highway to regroup. Daryl instantly went to Rick grabbing him by the collar when his sister didn’t turn up right away.

“The fuck did yea say to my sister?!”

“I don’t know what you’re talkin—“

“Before the goddamn fire. Before the walkers spilled out. When I was recovering after being shot and impaled.” No one bothered to intervene. Especially given they were still feeling everything. “If she don’t turn up because of the shit yea told her—-“

The group tense to the sound of rustling coming from the tree line as they separated to get their weapons out. But once the smartest decision being made, Beth turning on her flashlight, the light shone directly on the youngest Dixon coming out of the shadows.

“Thank—“

“—-god” Rick sighs watching Daryl quickly run over to his sister seeing the damage, riding in a hurry wasn’t her strong suit.

“Yer bleedin’” His concern washed over his tone assessing her injuries as Y/N instantly smacked away when he touched her side. “They feel broken? Your ribs?”

“Yes. But come on…I’m not dying here”

“You’re not gonna die.” Daryl hissed bringing her arm around his shoulders bringing her to the group.

This…was the start of a grueling nine months of hopping from shelter to shelter. Or at least what they can make into a shelter. Then the prison came…and well. The beginning wasn’t great, you know this…they’ve lost so much.

T-Dog’s Dead

Lori’s Dead…

…Merle’s dead

Daryl has always been protective of Y/N, but now it’s just them. They didn’t have to worry about Merle anymore and in their sense…that was weird. Odd. Different. He was going to be even more protective to make sure nothing happens to his sister. Has to do better…can’t lose her like Merle.

Y/N tiredly makes her way back to the main prison after taking the night watch. She wouldn’t mind staying there longer, the infusion of new people made her anxious.

“Hey…” the retired sheriff’s voice wasn’t the only thing to catch her attention, it was also the soft coos that escaped the baby he held close. “You finished your watch?”

“Yeah, what are you doing out here?” Y/N kept her voice low for Judith who started to finally fall asleep.

“Missed her screamin’. Didn’t want to wake our whole cell block and hell maybe the next one over as well” Rick laughs softly looking down at his daughter finally sleeping. “You should head back inside, alert whoever’s next”

“That would be my brother, surprised he ain’t out here already”

“He always been protective of yea huh?”

“First it was our mom dying, then dad leaving…now Merle.” Y/N tensed slightly as she crosses her arms. “Can’t blame him.”

“Right…”

She wanted to say more but she knew she had to get back.

“Goodnight Rick, keep her warm out here” Y/N squeezes his shoulder on her way back inside the prison as Rick watches her go inside keeping his eyes trained on her until she faded from his view. Bringing his attention back to the small child.

Y/N slowly and quietly brought herself into the cellblock pushing the blanket for a door out of the way collapsing instantly on the deconstructed bunk bed. Even with all that’s happened, good or bad, she couldn’t help but think back to when Rick hugged her. She felt…safe in his arms but a part of her knew he wouldn’t want more.

…or

A few days passed and Daryl finished getting ready for the run with his sister, Glenn, and Maggie. But when he called for her outside of her cell, he was met with silence.

“Cmon Y/N, everybody is ready” Daryl moved the blanket to find nobody. Weird.

He instantly went to Hershel who was in the cellblock at the time asking if he’s seen her but he did not. Neither has Beth when she came in right as Daryl was leaving.

The archer stepped out of the prison spotting his sister in the gardens with the retired sheriff and before he could go over there, he was instantly stopped by the happy couple. Overly happy couple. Maggie kept Daryl cemented by the entrance to their cellblock as they all knew he wouldn’t push her out of the way.

“Why she out there with him? Thought we—-“

“We’re trying to like. Get them uh…”

“Together.” Maggie side eyed Glenn before giving Daryl a straight look. “We are trying to get them together. So don’t—“

“Nah I don’t approve of this—-“

“Last time I checked you’re not her dad—-“

“Yeah I fuckin’ ain’t. I didn’t give her those cigarette scars. Now get the fuck out of my way before he takes her somewhere and leaves her there” Daryl snapped leaving the two speechless but when he tried to push past, Maggie stopped him once more.

“She ain’t Merle, Daryl. You ain’t gonna lose her like him in any way”

“She also…knows better than to work with sketchy people. From what I know of her.”

“Besides, Rick will keep her safe. He’s learned a lot from his mistakes…he’ll keep her safe, Daryl. You won’t lose her too” Glenn stated and Daryl tensed to his words glancing over to the two in the field.

She was happy. Genuinely happy and none of that fake crap…Y/N was happy and Rick was going to make sure nothing and no one takes that from her.

#cultofdixon #the walking dead #rick grimes fanfiction #rick grimes #rick grimes x reader

[bunnyshideawayy]

cassian. great man, wonderful friend, absolutely terrible mate.

we have seen Nesta’s sisters, who arguably have less of a reason, defend her more than Cassian has ever thought about. HELLO?

my issue with cassian acosf and onward is that we are truly expected to believe they he deeply understands Nesta when he’s been shown time and again to never stick up for her and never fully trust her. he does nothing to help her over come and face her traumas / depression, she’s left to do that on her own, but best believe he’s down to fuck and make her hike! (no sarah sex and physical exercise are not cures)

after reading the entire series once and now twice seeing Rhys threatening anyone who dares breath wrong in Feyre’s direction under the guise of just “protecting his mate” i find it extremely hard to believe cassian allowed or even sides with anyone who speaks ill of/to Nesta or threatens her- all of which Rhysand and most of the IC (besides her sisters and Az) do, most of the time while directly in front of cassian in conversations he’s involved in. the most he does is…pout a little? throws a hissy fit? the two times i can remember him even remotely stick up for Nesta he immednantly backtracks as soon as Rhysand pushes back, both times the final decision being put in Feyre’s hands, this continues even into CC3 (and let’s thank the mother Feyre loves her sisters which is something ik yall nesta haters can’t stand.)

let’s move onto something i know yall don’t want to talk about, his verbal abuse. “oh but nesta also said-“ we know what she said, that is not the point. if this man knew all along nesta was his mate and truly wanted to help her heal from her traumas and depression why did he take every chance he could to provoke her? Nesta called Rhysand an asshole, and he IS especially to Nesta, and instead of keeping silent as he does when Rhys/the IC harshly critique her, he immediately gets angry and in her face to defend him. funny he can’t do that with her, his MATE? or let’s talk about this scene

oh okay! that’s totally something you say unprompted to your mate who is severely depressed and traumatized because she won’t eat! she’s totally not shaking because she’s triggered! then to add the lecture “we’ve been here before, too” oh okay! so you admit you know what she feels like (very doubtful although i’m not going to compare their traumas, both are valid he just does not understand her like he thinks he does) it’s patronizing and a little frustrating. she doesn’t want to be there in the first place, purposely throwing a sensitive subject in her face will not magically motivate her or cure her- she is simply doing what she has no choice in. she has been stripped of all autonomy, humanity, and “normality”- she feels alone and valuable in a way she as never felt before and she has NO HELP. none!

i’ll end with the hike. yay more physical activity as punishment- but if i said that was abuse yall will bring up the pregnancy so ill do it for you! Yes, Nesta was wrong to tell Feyre THE WAY SHE DID, she had every right to tell Feyre about her own body and pregnancy, it just shouldn’t have happened the way it did. everyone knew it was wrong to keep it from Feyre, even Cassian, so instead of forcing her to hike a mountain as punishment to ware her down mentally and physically he couldve stood up for both Feyre and Nesta to Rhysand the moment he threatens to KILL NESTA. a simple “hey buddy you knew it was wrong to keep that from Feyre you can’t kill my mate for telling her even if it was out of anger” would suffice. not once during their entire hike or during her breakdown does he reassure her, not even when she is tearing herself apart because she doesn’t feel worthy. don’t even get me started on what happens in CC3.

over all i think Nessian is great and they have some great moments, the end of ACOWAR lives rent free in my mind but i am incredibly disappointed with Cassian. i do feel like Nesta deserves better from everyone (besides Feyre and Elain who, again, are the only ones who i truly believe love her unconditionally.)

anti nesta’s this is not a safe space for you.

#acotar #nesta archeron #acosf #nesta acosf #pro nesta #nesta acotar #nesta supremacy #nesta deserves better #nesta x cassian #nesta x eris #nessian #feyre acotar #feyre archeron #elain archeron #elain acotar #sjm books #sjm multiverse #sjm universe #cc3 hofas #cc hofas #hofas #hofas bonus chapter #a court of silver flames #cassian acotar #cassian #rhysand #inner circle #anti rhysand #anti inner circle #eris acotar

[kuekyuuq]

Supercorp - Rehashing the Fallout once more

Today's menu: Kara Danvers' Double-Standards.

I am rewatching Supergirl, and it occurred to me why I am with Lena on the "you lied to me" point. (Not the brain-wash the planet or taking a year to get over herself and realize her own - horrible - mistakes parts, though.) Not because of the lie itself or its content, but its context with Kara's very own history!

Let's take a walk...

In the pilot Kara gets mad at Alex for her having kept her double-life as a DEO agent secret from her.

Kara is utterly disappointed and distraught at the secrets her parents kept from her (Medusa, Myriad), some of which affected her directly (Krypton's impending destruction).

Kara finds out that James is Guardian before he told her and she was pretty upset, explains it's because they are humans throwing themselves into danger.

When J'onn explains to Kara how bonded Martians share their minds, Kara expresses how she thinks the “no secrets, no lies” sounds “beautiful”.

Kara ends their relationship with Mon-El over him lying about his true identity (and him being the Prince of a cruel society), ignoring him when he said he tried several times to tell her. When Mon-El let himself into Kara's apartment to apologize, he BEGS for forgiveness

but Kara says she deserved better than being lied to… Yes, she secretly forgave him at this point but still breaks up with him (Rhea told her to do so) and cries over it.

Music Meister teaches Kara (and Barry): “Love is about letting yourself be saved, it's not just about saving other people.”

Trust.

Lillian tells Kara, she doesn't need to spill SG's identity, because when Lena FINDS OUT, it'll be so much worse.

(And Lillian was SO on point!)

When Kara and Clark spar and have a heart-to-heart, Kara wonders if she can have it all, Clark assures her about the most important people make keeping the secret worth it and how letting (only) those important people in IS enough. Later, asked the same questions, Cat tells Kara that women have the guts to be vulnerable, lists her accomplishments.

Kara does not take Lena possessing some of Lex's Kryptonite nor the whole Sam/Reign-secret kept from her well. Gets even angrier when Lena creates her own Kryptonite (in her quest to fight/cure Reign …and cancer and other human ailments).

Or Mon-El hesitating to tell and keeping from Kara about his time-travelling, marriage and his actual mission…

That is up until mid-s03 and not even counting the many times how the show also taught us through Alex', J'onns and Lena's lenses that lying and pretending to be someone one is not to those important/close to oneself, is harmful to their (romantic and platonic) relationships and themselves.

Do I need to go on?

...Kara is clearly fully aware at that point that secrets (even her own) do not bode well in any type of relationships she would like to have and keep.

And, yes, I am fully aware of the "point of no return" argument, in all its validity, that at some point the lies had stacked up so much, that the hurt was inevitable, the fear of rejection more and more founded, of Kara wanting to be "just Kara" with Lena… Every season, every in-show year that passed and Kara kept her secret(s), it became impossibly harder to come clean. But, re-watching the show, it just seems so… irresponsible? And the more often Kara makes a point herself being lied to is a bad thing, even …hypocritical.

I am not saying any of the people who lied to or kept things from Kara were in the right or wrong - a totally different discussion that would require individual assessment. But, Kara, making the same point over and over again? Several times about the very topic of hidden/fake identities and double-lives… But then proceeding to keep her proclaimed best friend in the dark about herself, still?

Yeah, that bugs me. A lot.

IMO, after the whole Mon-El returned thing Kara would or should have had an epiphany about telling Lena the truth about herself… but then Reign beat her into a coma and all kinds of hell broke loose.

But… Yeah. Not even for Supercorp reasons. But internal logic.

From a story-writing perspective; you have your (main) character face a (similar but slightly different) situation a couple times before they learn their lesson. You plant the seeds (in this case: identity reveal) and then have it play out, based on what the character had learned(!) this far. And you have them deal with the worst-case-scenario backlash, if you need any for drama's sake, but it should make some level of sense… Instead they had Kara learn nothing, had her lie to Lena for another two years, and turned Lena into a spiraling madwoman. And Kara… well, now in Mon-El's shoes, could not quite understand how Lena (in Kara's former shoes, but with much more tainted personal experiences) was deeply, intimately hurt, devastated, and struggling.

Kara saw this coming - but tbh, when Lillian spoke so (unintentionally) truthful, Kara should have focused on the implied "if someone ELSE but you tells her", and when talking to Kal, realized that he didn't keep his secret FROM his most important people (Lois, James…) to protect them. Taken Cat's advice to have the guts to be vulnerable to reap Lena's long-term trust instead of settling for "for now this works, right?".

Not to mention that the whole show over and over stressed, that Kara could "have it all" without revealing herself to the world (the 100th episode even making a point that telling the world WILL put her loved ones at risk) or deciding on one half of herself, but then the show ended, and… yeah… I guess, some sort of witness protection for everyone?

No more casual strolls for "just Kara" through the park…

I adore the show, but… continuity?

It's just a bit painful to re-watch the show and watch Kara fault and shame others over and over again, only to go ahead and do the thing herself... Aware, yet oblivious. And NOBODY calls her out on it. (The one time Alex asked her and Kara was all like "I had to take the dog to the vet" is too little too late.)

Thankfully the fandom is so amazingly creative <3

#Kue out.

#supergirl #supercorp #the reveal #lena luthor #kara danvers #kara zor-el #lies #none of the pics or gifs are mine! #rant #picture heavy #long post

[sachirobabe]

Chapter 6

Gojo Satoru x reader

Wc: 2835

Curseless au

Summary: Amidst the zombie apocalypse, your courage shines as you not only saves lives but capture the heart of Gojo Satoru. Together with his first-year students, you all embark on a perilous journey, not only for survival but in a quest for a cure that adds a poignant layer to the unfolding romance.

<— Previous | Masterlist | —> Next

You packed as much as you could in your backpack, it was hard finding the balance between clothes and medical supplies; you never know what could happen.

Satoru somehow always finds a way to be near you, right now is no different. "Which ones should I bring?" He smiles happily, showing you two parts of socks, both having the most crazy and ugly patterns you've seen.

"Don't you think those are a little out of style, Satoru?" You raise an eyebrow at his sock choices.

"Yeah? Well I could say the same for you." He eyes what you're putting in your backpack.

"Are you suggesting we go to a mall? I hear they have great deals." You laugh, "buy one get the whole store for free."

Satoru laughs loudly, throwing his head back, his white hair going everywhere. You've started to find some of his hairs on your clothes now that you've been near him for a while. Each time you do, you return it rightfully back to him.

"C'mon, we should go get our weapons." You roll your eyes, but before you left you turned back to face him slightly, "and bring the pink ones." You point to his left hand.

He shakes his head, still chuckling to himself and throwing his backpack over one shoulder. Despite you guys planning on being gone for a few weeks, Satoru suggested everyone just bring one backpack, it was safer that way in case you all had to be running.

You meet up with Itadori who seems excited about switching out his brass knuckles for a gun. "Are you still going to use your bow?" He asks you.

"Probably not. I don't see how effective it would be, bullets are faster and quicker." You answer, your back feeling empty without your arrows.

"It would be quieter though. None of the guns here have silencers." He tells you. You only shrug, but still opt to use a gun.

It was still dark outside, with it being winter the sun arose later, that also meant it would be freezing outside. You zip up your third layer jacket, knowing you'd need it.

Shoko looks exhausted, she had a tendency to stay up late reading, last night was no different.

"Nobody's carrying you." Satoru points to her and she rolls her eyes.

"I'll be fine."

"You really should've gotten more rest. We aren't stopping until sundown." Nanami's deep voice echoing in the room. Shoko goes off into the kitchen, most likely to make some coffee for the go.

"Who's carrying the food?" You say, looking at everyone who's only carrying things in one backpack, knowing it'd be a lot of food to carry for everyone going.

"I have some granola bars and other small things, but if we want to eat, we'll need to hunt and cook it ourselves." Nanami says, "I suggest bringing your bow still, the guns scare the animals." You nod and make a mental note to grab if before leaving.

"Won't the fire we'd be cooking our food on bring attention?" Nobara asks.

"Not at night. Nobody in their right mind is out at night." Satoru answers for Nanami, wrapping a scarf around Megumi for warmth, knowing his face gets cold easily.

Everybody had chosen their guns, and were waiting at the basement door, you had quickly gone back and grabbed your bow and arrows.

"How're we gonna get let back in?" Itadori asks Maki.

"This door leads underground, We can get back in through there." She says, putting on her gloves, mentally preparing herself for the cold to hit her.

"Where is it," Megumi says, slightly muffled by his scarf.

"A little into the woods." Inumaki signs, he pauses before saying anything else, but ultimately signals he's done.

"Good enough for me." You smile and join back in, you had been practicing signing with Satoru and Inumaki while you were healing. You were getting a lot more comfortable. "Ready." You say.

Satoru leads the group, you falling somewhere in the middle to protect the younger ones, Nanami found himself in the back. It was a narrow hallway after the stairs.

You were a little claustrophobic, but this wasn't too bad, you still had a little room put your arms halfway out, but nobody could walk side by side down there.

It was cold already, your breath could be seen and you weren't even outside yet. You prayed to whoever was above that this would be a safe trip with no casualties.

Satoru signaled to stop as he opened up the door above, it took a little strength because it had been frozen, but that was no issue for him. He went up first and Megumi following after him.

After everyone was out, Nanami shut the door, making a mental note of where the door was when you'd all return. Everybody took out their flashlights, the sun was peeking on the horizon, but it'd still be awhile before you'd all be able to see.

You scoped the area around, making sure no zombies were close. Your gun was over your shoulder, but you had never shot one before. Nanami gave you the basic rundown.

The single file line that was underground had dismembered, you found yourself walking with the second-years, Nanami and Shoko leading the way and Satoru with his students.

You all kept conversations at a low volume, you were very tense. Every noise caused you to look in that direction despite nothing being there when you had looked prior.

At some point, Satoru and you had ended up behind the second and first years, time went by much faster after the sun came up, it was warming, but not enough.

"You scared?" Satoru asks.

"Not really." You answer, putting your flashlight away, calmer too now that you could see around you.

"That's good." He says, copying you and turning his flashlight off.

"I am starting to get hungry, though." You rub your stomach.

"Same here, you take a bite out of me and I'll take a bite out of you." He jokes, you roll your eyes at him and call him stupid. "I know Nanami said we would only stop to sleep, but he'd let us take a break after a while."

"Good, I know our legs will be needing it." You chuckle.

Nothing interesting had happened for the last 4 hours, occasionally you'd run into a zombie and Nanami would get rid of it then keep walking. The cold wasn't bothering anybody no more, who knew walking for hours would make you sweat.

"Let's go for another 4 hours and see how we feel." Nanami tells the entire group, Satoru extends his hand towards you to help you up and you gladly take it.

After the four hours the sun was setting, Nanami led the way to the first checkpoint to get settled into for the night.

You're unsure on how they found this place, but you're not complaining. It's in the middle of the woods, surrounded by trees which oddly makes you feel safe.

It was a little dusty inside, but everything was intact. The second years were tasked with setting up the beds and the first years did some light cleaning.

"You've got an hour or so of daylight to catch anything." Shoko tells you as she hands you a small map of the area.

"Any preferences?" You chuckle and wink at her, "You comin' Satoru?" You yell behind you.

You hear rushed footsteps and see the white haired boy, now wearing a beanie. "Aww, how cute." You pinch his cheek really hard making him frown.

"Can I shoot one?" Satoru asks as he opens the door for you both.

"Be safe." Nanami waves you two off.

"Absolutely not. You'll shoot me." You joke.

"How'd you know my plan?" He bumps into you. Your head shakes and you sigh at him. "Let's try this way." He points to your left and you both walk in that direction. "How're you feeling?"

"I feel alright, not too bad. And you?"

"Just cold." He shivers.

"You didn't have to come with me, I could've gotten Nanami or Shoko." You say, ducking under a tree branch.

"I'm offended." He says loudly and you hit him to remind him that he's scaring off the animals. "I'm better than any of them, so I figured you'd want the best."

"Cocky much?" You roll your eyes, "didn't I save the 'oh so strong one'."

"I wasn't armed." He side eyes you. "Plus I know you enjoy being around me."

"Mhm. And what gave you that idea?" You scrunch your nose.

"You're always near me."

"You follow me everywhere I go." You deadpan and he thinks for a moment, but ultimately changes the subject.

He extends his strong arm, making you huff as you run into it, he puts his finger to his lips, eyeing what's in front of him.

A fox was half behind a tree, it hadn't seen you both yet so you quickly crouch down and pull his tall self with you. Quietly you remove an arrow from your back, letting your bow fall slowly into your hands.

It was eating something it had killed, all of its attention was on it. You carefully draw your bow, slowly so it didn't make much noise, your aim was right at its head, wanting to make this quick and as painless as possible.

You let out a breath and released the arrow, the fox made a noise as it was hit and ultimately fell to the ground. Satoru was up before you were and ran as quickly as he could to finish it off.

He tied the foxes legs together to make it easier to carry. "Nice job." He praised. Then he pauses taking a good look at the fox. "What the fuck..." he whispers.

"What's wrong?" You ask worriedly.

"You hit it right in the eye." He says amazed. "You're incredible." His compliments gave you butterflies.

You took the arrow out of its eye and put it behind your back with the others. Satoru insisted on carrying the fox himself, you think he just wanted to show how strong he was. It was about 30 pounds, his guess.

Satoru tried to gloat about how he did all of the work, but nobody in their right mind believed him. Nanami was impressed, he was worried most of the animals would be dead from the zombies.

You watch from the window as Nanami chopped up some wood, you were just keeping a lookout for him in case anything happened, but Satoru had a sour look on his face.

He knew it was wrong. He quickly hid his very expressive face and stood alongside with you to see what was so interesting about Nanami.

"Oh good, now that you're keeping a lookout for him I'm gonna run to the bathroom real quick." You say and leave him.

Now he feels stupid for thinking you were just watching Nanami to see him in action. Nanami then dragged him out to help make the fire and skin the fox.

You've never had any sort of animal besides the basic ones, but fox wasn't too bad, it was bland.

"I'm still hungry." Itadori says.

"No, we have to save this." Nanami frowns.

"Please?" Itadori rubs his still growling stomach.

"I don't mind hunting, Nanami." You join in, feeling bad for Itadori.

"That's not the issue, I'm afraid that there won't be many animals left to hunt." He explains. "Go drink some water, Itadori. Fill your stomach."

Itadori sighs and does just that before getting ready for bed. Nanami kept the fire alive in the fireplace. Nobody could see smoke in the dark and especially not this far into the woods. You still suggested that somebody keep watch and he agreed.

You offered to do first watch, so you sat in the living room couch, feeling the warmth of the fire. Shoko handed you a book to read, but you had gotten some word puzzles to work on instead.

Just as you thought everyone had gone to bed, Satoru startles you as he walks into the living room with a blanket and pillow.

"What're you doing?" You frown.

"I wanted to keep you company." He smiles widely, setting his pillow up against you and lying down with his blanket, his long legs were stretched across.

"At least get some sleep." You shake your head and return to your puzzle. He mumbles something and you notice his eyes are closed. He's so exhausted, he barely sleeps every night and it catches up to him.

You hear his soft breathing, thankful that he doesn't snore like 90% of the male population. You feel yourself nodding off every once in a while, but you keep yourself busy.

Satoru had shifted in his sleep, but you paid no mind to it. Suddenly he opens his eyes and jolts awake, you're scared as he hyperventilates. You quickly make him face you and you softly tell him to breathe.

His eyes were filled with fear, this was new to you. After a few minutes he had calmed down, slumping himself onto you.

"Do you want some water?" You ask him and he silently nods. You quickly come back and hand it to him, he takes slow sips as he's still calming himself down. "Is..everything alright, Satoru?"

He nods his head, not making eye contact with you. "Yeah. Just a dream." He whispers, rubbing his eyes and feeling his cold sweat go away.

"Do you wanna talk about it?" You ask him and he immediately denies. You frown, he made you talk to him when something was wrong with you, now you are determined to get him to do the same. "What happened? Talking about it makes you feel better." You urge him.

He denies again. This time moving his head to face the wall. You take hold of his chin softly and turn him to face you, "This is my question." You demand and he shuts his eyes momentarily before talking.

"I had a bad dream." He says, almost embarrassed.

"What happened in it?" You urge him more and he shakes his head, "you can't back out of this." You say. "You made me tell you and now I expect the same."

"We all got split up and some of the students turned because of me." He says, his voice trembling a little, he told himself he was not going to cry and he was standing by it.

"That's really scary, I'm sorry Satoru. It was just a dream, nothing bad will happen to any of us." You promise. "It's okay to be upset."

"Ive been having these nightmares for a while." He admits. "Since day one of all of this."

"How often?"

"Everyday." He says. "Well—not since we've had you join us, it stopped for a little."

You nod, thinking about your next words. "I get nightmares too, it's normal. But I believe one day we'll never have them again, all of this will go back to as normal as it can get."

"That's starting to feel like this is now our new normal." He sighs.

"I know." You sink into the couch. "I don't like that you have nightmares."

"I don't like that you get panic attacks." He says.

"Nothing will happen to your students. I promise." You look into his eyes, they are half-lidded as they look down at you from the height difference.

"We'll survive." He nods.

You two were silent for a while. Satoru occasionally took sips from his water.

"Thank you." He says, "for talking to me, I do feel better."

"I told you so." You bump his shoulder lightly.

"Don't you wonder how the rest of the world is?" Satoru lays back down.

"Sometimes." You say.

"Like what are other people doing? Do they feel as hopeless as us?"

"Of course they do. I bet they have nightmares and panic attacks too." You fight the urge to play with his hair, it's really been getting long.

He hums, "You better get some sleep." He says to you.

"And what about you?"

"I won't be able to sleep after my nightmare." He sheepishly smiles and gets up from his spot to switch with you.

"Are you sure?" You say, already feeling your eyes closing as you lay on the warm pillow he left for you.

"Yes." He chuckles and throws the blanket over you, taking your seat and continuing your puzzle.

You begin to drift off, you can smell Satoru's hair off of the pillow. He smells really good. It helps you fall asleep.

Satoru notices your steady breathing and cannot resist the urge to not touch your hair. He twirls it around in his fingers for a little, not in a creepy way at all, but he finds a lot of comfort with you. He notices his heart beating a little quicker whenever he's near you.

He's really screwed now.

#jjk satoru #jjk nanami #jjk gojo #jjk x you #jjk x reader #jjk #jujutsu inumaki #jujutsu kaisen x reader #jujutsu kaisen satoru #jujustu kaisen #jujutsu satoru #jujutsu gojo #jujutsu megumi #jujutsu itadori #jujutsu kaisen #satoru gojo x reader #gojo satoru x you #gojo saturo #gojo satoru x reader #satoru gojo #gojo satoru #gojou satoru x reader #gojou satoru x you

[guilty-pleasures21]

Another one?! Ugh, I get bored at work, okay?!

Guys, you don't know how many iterations this scene went through 😩.

1. Ergh, I don't really know if I want to write this ...

2. I wrote it.

Part 1 - the towel

Part 2 - the next morning

Warnings: descriptions of sex including fingering (f receiving) and ... I don't know what to call it, c*ck rubbing?

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

He slipped through the window into X’s bedroom and collapsed into her desk chair, not wanting to risk getting any grime onto her bed. At least he’d managed to get a vial of Scorpion’s poison, he thought, setting it down on her desk. Now they could try to reverse engineer a cure so it wouldn’t be so deadly anymore. His lips quirked at the ends at the sound of X singing along to the music she was playing as she took a shower. She had a nice voice, he thought to himself, not expecting it from someone normally so soft and shy. He rolled his neck, trying to get rid of some of the soreness as he waited for her to be done. The shower stopped running and she walked out of the bathroom soon after, her damp hair brushing over the curves of her breasts, her more sensitive parts barely hidden beneath the towel she’d wrapped around herself. He sucked in a breath at the sight. 

     She’d forgotten that she’d put her pyjamas in the laundry that morning, leaving her stranded in the toilet without any clothes to put on. But it wasn’t like she needed to cover up for anyone anyway - she lived alone, after all, no one would see if she just slipped out to grab some clothes from her cupboard. But then a flash of red caught the corner of her eye and she jumped, startled to find Miguel sitting in her desk chair, lips parted and eyes wide as his gaze travelled over her barely concealed form. She squeaked in surprise and clutched her towel tighter around her, wincing in embarrassment. “Miguel?” 

     He shouldn’t stare, he shouldn’t stare, he shouldn’t stare. But f*ck, she looked gorgeous, her long, smooth legs, her soft, tanned skin, all of her just waiting to be devoured by him. He dragged his gaze up to hers, snapping his jaw shut and swallowing hard. “¿S-Sí?”

     She kept her head down, avoiding his gaze as she made her way over to her closet. But why had he come over? Was he injured? That was the only time he’d normally come over. “Are you okay?” 

     His eyes fell back to her body as she shuffled over to the cupboard, unable to help themselves from roving all over her. He nodded, then tried to stammer out a response as she reached into the cupboard to get her clothes. “I-I … I just …” 

     She released her hold on her towel to dig out her pyjamas from deep inside her cupboard - she really had to rearrange her closet - but she hadn't twisted the towel tight enough, so it fell open, revealing her entire bare back to him. She let out an embarrassed yelp and grabbed it before it fell to the floor entirely, wrapping it back around herself tightly. She winced and turned back to him slightly, too afraid to look up and see what his reaction would be. 

     ¡Ay, p*ta madre! She was … She looked so f**king soft, her cute little ass just waiting for him to bite down on it and force more embarrassed squeaks out of her mouth. He clenched his fists and bit down on his tongue, his body almost shaking with the effort it took to restrain himself. He called out to her, trying to get her to look up at him. “Ara … Arañita.” 

     His voice was low, hoarse and she bit her lip at the desire evident there, peeking up at him shyly from beneath her eyelashes. 

     ¡Ay, coño, she was cute! He reached a hand out to her, then stopped halfway, curling his fingers into a fist and lowering it back down to his side. He shook his head at her. “Don't … Don't look at me like that, arañita.” 

     And this was it, this was the turning point. She could either run back to the toilet, throw her clothes on and pretend like none of this had ever happened … Or she could tease him, in that way she always did, her gaze trailing over his body appreciatively before she flashed him that challenging smirk. Her features flickered with indecision as she considered her options and he prayed to God she'd choose the latter. He didn't think he'd be able to control himself much longer, not with the way she stood across from him, so small and delicious, just waiting for him to have his way with her. Finally, the ends of her lips twitched and she looked up at him again, her eyes glinting with mischief beneath her dark and curly eyelashes. He swallowed hard. 

     “Like what? Dr O'Hara?” she asked him naughtily. He groaned and marched over to her, forgetting all about the soreness in his body as the adrenaline began rushing through his veins. He placed one hand on the cupboard behind her, leaning over her and trapping her beneath him. Then he dragged his thumb across her lower lip, his pupils dilating as his eyes fixed on her mouth. 

     “Carajo, arañita,” he mumbled softly. “You know what it does to me when you call me that.” Her eyelids fluttered at the feeling of him so close to her, so warm and so strong, the calluses on his skin catching on her lips. She tilted her head up, overcome with the urge to close the gap between their mouths - to taste him as she'd imagined doing so many times before. 

     “W-What … does it do you … Miguel?” she breathed. “When I call you that?” 

     Coño, that was even worse: hearing his name fall from her lips like that - like she needed him, not just wanted him. He let his fingers trail down her throat, then bent over, bringing his mouth even closer to hers, so that he could feel her breath blowing over his lips. “Arañita.”

     She shivered at the huskiness of his tone, at how so very close he was to her, the woodsy, slightly spicy scent of him washing over and clouding her brain. “S-Say my name, Miguel. P-Please?” 

     She tried to pout up at him, to frustrate him like she always did, teasing and poking him until he couldn’t take it anymore, his mouth watering with how badly he wanted to taste her. But her eyes just fell to his lips when she opened them again, unable to focus on anything else. So he pressed his lips to hers, gentle at first, the more aggressive, his tongue sweeping across her mouth as he licked her up hungrily. Mierda, she was even better than he’d imagined, soft and sweet, her tongue winding around his as slow as he was fast. He uncurled his fingers from around her throat as he continued moving his mouth against hers, his hand drifting down her collarbone and to the fist still clenched around her towel. He tugged on her hand lightly, then lowered his lips to her neck, moving his arm to wrap around her waist as he began pressing open-mouthed kisses along her shoulder. “X. X, can we … X …” 

     He brushed his nose up her neck, nudging her head to the side and grinning against her ear when she let out a soft gasp. Then he lowered his hand to grip her ass, growling when she let out a surprised yelp as he closed his fingers around her. She whimpered as he tugged on her skin with his teeth and he let his hand trail even further down her curves, right to the edge of her towel where he started sliding his hand up her bare skin. 

     “W-Wait!” she gasped, grabbing onto his forearm to stop him in his tracks. He curled his fingers against her, confused, then straightened, his chest heaving with shallow breaths as he tried to focus. 

     His eyes were so dark, the glowing copper of his irises engulfed almost entirely by the blacks of his pupils. She gulped at the sight, then looked away quickly, mentally rehearsing what she wanted to say to him. 

     “I really … I really like you, Miguel. Like, a lot. And I … I don’t want just a one-night stand from you.” She glanced up at him quickly, trying to gauge his reaction at her confession, then lowered her gaze again. “Or something.” She let him go then, shifting nervously in position as she waited for his response. 

     ‘One night wouldn’t be enough for all the things I want to do to you, arañita,’ is what he would have said if she hadn’t just poured her heart out to him so honestly. She turned back to him, her lips parted in surprise, her eyes wide with shock. Then she bit down on a smile, curling into herself shyly. P*ta madre, he’d just said that out loud. He took a step away from her, pinching the bridge of his nose in frustration as he tried to figure out what to say. 

     “I … I didn’t mean … What I meant to say was …” He rubbed the back of his neck, his heart thrumming in his chest. “I … really like you too, X.” He turned back to her, lifting his gaze to meet hers, and she grinned at his confession. Coño, she was cute, standing there smiling at him shyly while she was still all wrapped up in her towel. He had to get her out of that damn towel. She brushed her hair behind her ear, oblivious to his thoughts. 

     “Okay, so … what should we do now? I mean … I’ve never done this before and …” She smiled up at him again, excited this time, and he felt the testosterone begin to sprint through his veins. But then all of a sudden, her features melting, an expression of apprehension overcoming her face. “Wait. You’re my boss, Miguel. Is this … allowed?” 

     Mierda, he hadn’t even thought about that. His stomach churned with anxiety. “I don’t know. I’ve never … I’ve never checked … before.” 

     “Um, well, we can check?” she suggested, grinning at his revelation. Then she started moving closer to him, her each step slow and cautious. “And, even if it isn’t allowed, I mean … it’s not like we’re going to be all lovey-dovey at work and stuff. We’ll still be professional! And, anyway, we’ve kept this secret for this long.” She stopped in front of him and shrugged, treating him to a smile so sweet that he felt his mouth start to water. He cupped her cheek in his hand, his eyes racing across her body hungrily. She was right, they’d find a way, they’d … 

     “Arañita,” he began, his voice hoarse with restraint. “Are you sure? You … I’ll be fine. But you …” He would be fine, renowned and respected as he was. But she? Fresh out of uni in her first job? A woman of colour surrounded by entitled, middle-aged men? And non-confrontational as she was? They’d eat her alive. And she was much too clever for that, she had far too much left to give. He couldn’t do that to her - he wouldn’t. She reached up to twine her fingers around his, her expression softening in understanding. 

     “We’ll be careful, Miguel,” she reassured him. “I know how much you care about me. And … I don’t think I can spend another day pining after you hopelessly now that I know what your lips taste like.” His jaw dropped at her naughty declaration. He knew he wouldn’t be able to go back to ‘pining hopelessly’ after her now that he knew what she tasted like. Now that he’d seen that cute little ass of hers just ready for him to bite down on it and make her squeal for him. He licked his lips as he cupped her face in both of his hands now, pulling her to him so he could start kissing her again, harsh and desperate, like she was a lake in the middle of a desert. He licked her tongue aggressively, running his hands down her wonderfully soft little body and lifting her up into his arms so he could carry her over to her bed. He set her down, then deactivated his suit and crawled on top of her, nothing left between them but his underwear and that goddamned towel. 

     He was hers, all hers, his broad chest, his tanned skin, his rippling muscles. She reached out a hand, brushing her fingers cautiously across the hard planes of his chest. Holy shit, he felt good. She couldn’t wait to feel him wrapped all around her, his firm muscles pressing against her soft curves. He lowered himself on top of her and she slid her arms around his neck as he began kissing her again, running her fingers along his back appreciatively. She wrapped her legs around his waist, then moaned as he pushed his hips into hers, his large bulk grinding against her already throbbing p*ssy. 

     “Arañita,” he groaned, burying his face in the crook of his neck. She hugged him tight, sliding her fingers into his hair and scrunching the strands as he grinded himself into her, his hips rolling so deliciously against hers. 

     “Miguel …” she called out to him, smiling against his neck nervously, “I’m still a virgin, by the way.” 

     P*ta madre, how could he have forgotten?! He sat up quickly, pulling himself away from her and putting far too much distance between them. “Are you … sure you want to do this? We don’t have to; if you don’t want to.”

     She pushed herself up to a seat, grinning at the desperation so clearly written across his face. 

     “I want to!” she replied quickly, trailing her gaze over his body and licking her lips. “Are you insane, Miguel?! You’re so hot! I want you so bad, mi araña.” His lips twitched at her statements and he leaned forward again, allowing her to curls her fingers around his shoulders, getting a feel of a corded muscles. 

     “Besides,” she began uncertainly, avoiding his gaze in embarrassment. “I know what it feels like. Kind of.” He shook his head, confused. Was she saying what he thought she was saying?

     “W-What?” She looked away and cleared her throat, her cheeks heating up at her admission. 

     “I’ve … touched myself … before … a little,” she mumbled, still loud enough for him to hear. He perked up, his eyes lighting up at the thought. 

    “Where?!” he asked her quickly. She raised an eyebrow, taken aback by his unexpected excitement.

     “What do you mean ‘where’?” He gestured to her body.

     “Where do you touch yourself?” Another confused raise of her brows.

     “Where do you think I touch myself?” 

     “I want to see.” He nodded at her towel, his tone firm. “Show me.” And finally, gracias a Dios, finally, she unwrapped that damned towel and slid it off, tossing it aside. She leaned back on the pillows, fighting against the instinct to cover herself up as his eyes ran over her body, bare before him. She bit on her thumb, a mischievous expression on her face.

     “Don't you want to touch me, Miguel?” she teased him. “I already know what it feels like. Don't you want to find out?” Miguel clenched his jaw as he leaned over her, sucking in breath as he tried to figure where to start. F*ck, she was gorgeous. X chuckled and sat up, sensing his uncertainty. Then she climbed into his lap and wrapped her arms around his neck. He groaned at the feeling of her breasts pressing against his chest and dug his fingers into her ass, gripping her tightly.

     “Cariño,” he pleaded. X giggled at the desperation clear in his voice and slid her fingers into his hair, burying them in the soft strands as she began kissing him. She moaned into his mouth as he wrapped his strong arms around her, his tongue tangling with hers so deliciously. He slid one hand down her back, dragging his fingernails along her spine until he reached her thigh, then he lowered his lips to her neck, holding her close to him as he brushed his nose along her shoulder. Ay, por Dios, she was so f*cking soft. “Arañita …” 

     “Mmm, Miguel.” She bit her lip as she began moving her hips against his, her head falling back in pleasure as she felt his clothed c*ck brushing up against all her sensitive nerves. He kissed his way up her throat, his hands arching her lower back and pulling her more vigorously against him. He sank his teeth into the crook of her neck, his sharp fangs grazing her skin pleasantly. She lay one hand on the bed behind her, stretching herself out and grinding herself even harder against him. She was getting so wet, so very wet, her arousal dampening his underwear beneath her. 

     “Miguel! Miguel!” she moaned loudly, digging her fingers into his brawny shoulder as the pleasure kept building up inside of her. Miguel growled as he pressed a kiss to the crook of her neck, then he lowered her down onto the bed, spreading her legs wide. He reached down and pulled his underwear off, revealing to her his rapidly hardening c*ck, and she felt her nipples tingle with excitement. He took hold of himself as he leaned over her, pressing his tip against her folds and tracing her clit with his c*ck. She shivered at the feeling, her eyelids fluttering shut as her hips bucked off the mattress, begging him for more. 

     “You like that, preciosa?” he chuckled, delighting in how helplessly she squirmed and writhed beneath him. “You like feeling my d*ck on your p*ssy?” He buried his face in her neck, groaning at the very thought, and moved to wrap his arms around her, pressing her against his chest. 

     “Arañita,” he whined, nipping at her ear as he dragged his c*ck along her folds, rubbing himself up against her. Dios, she felt so f*cking good, her stiff nipples dragging along his skin as her soft breasts bounced up and down against him. He reached a hand down and slipped a finger inside of her, pushing and prodding at her walls as she twitched and writhed around him. She moaned loudly and rocked her hips harder against his hand, her movements getting more frenzied as she approached her edge. Finally, she came, his powerful muscles holding her in place as she shook and shuddered in his arms. He kept his d*ck pressed against her p*ssy as he removed his finger and kissed a trail along her cheek, his c*ck so painfully hard for her. Especially when she was looking up at him with that lovely f*cked-out expression on her face. He growled, his fangs pricking her skin at the spot where her neck met her shoulder and she sucked in a breath, curling herself around him tightly. 

     “M-Miguel,” she whimpered, her toes curling at the feeling of how hard he was. God, he felt good, his strong body wrapped around hers so very nicely. “Let me … Please?” 

     He pulled back to look down at her, her curly hair matted around her face, her cheeks flushed and glowing with pleasure. Dios, she was beautiful. He leaned closer to her again, his lips curling into a smirk as he murmured against her lips, “let you what, princesa? You know there’s no way you’re fitting my d*ck into that tight little p*ssy of yours tonight, right?” 

     She whined in protest and grabbed onto his face, kissing him deeply, the movements of her tongue so slow and appreciative against his. 

     “Mmm, I can … There must be … something else … I can do,” she mumbled in between kisses, hoping to please him even half as much as he’d pleased her. He grinned and slid his hand down her torso, taking hold of her breast and squeezing it. 

     “Mmm, arañita.” His low voice rumbled out of his chest and sank into her skin, vibrating along her very bones. He circled her nipple with his thumb and she squeaked into his mouth, feeling herself starting to leak again at the feeling of his calloused skin on her. All his, she was all his, her cute little smile and round perky tits and her soft and smooth curves. Just as he was hers. He lowered his mouth to her shoulder, brushing his lips down her collarbone and to her breast where he dragged his tongue across her nipple before pulling it into his mouth. He sucked on her gently and slid his hand back down to her p*ssy, teasing her clit with his fingers so that her arousal continued to drip out of her, her body so sensitive to his every touch. Then he sat up and flipped her over, pulling her hips up off the bed. She barely had time to react before he'd slid his d*ck in between her thighs, squeezing her legs together so that they closed around his c*ck.

     “F*ck, arañita,” he muttered, his fingers digging into her ass as he began moving his hips back and forth, rubbing his bulky length against her soaked folds. He leaned over her, bracing one hand on the bed by her head and using the other to lift her up against him. He pulled himself in and out of her slowly as he moved his hand up her abdomen to squeeze her breast, burying his face in her neck and groaning against her as he did so. “Mmm, sientes … You’re so f*cking soft, arañita.” 

     He pulled her up so she was on her knees, back pressed against his hard chest as he thrust his hips against her, his legs holding hers together so her thighs squeezed around his d*ck. God, he was huge, so large and so satisfying between her, rubbing up against her clit so very nicely. He grazed his teeth against her neck as he kneaded her breasts in his hands, relishing the way her ass bounced against his abdomen as she came again, her tiny little body struggling against him. He licked a line up her neck and nipped her ear when she was done, then wrapped his arms all the way around her as he felt his own body begin to tighten. She let out a surprised yelp as he came too, his body twitching as he tried to continue his movements through it, his balls slapping lazily against the backs of her thighs as he painted her skin with his seed. He slumped over her when he was done, his heavy weight forcing her back down onto her stomach beneath him. 

     “Miguel,” she laughed, finally having returned to her senses. He didn’t even give a grunt of acknowledgement, so out of it he was. “Miguel, I can’t breathe!” He sighed and flopped over onto his side, giving her the space to curl herself up around him. He slid his hand up her back and pressed a kiss to the top of her head, cuddling her loosely against him before moving his fingers to her hair. 

     “Miguel,” she murmured, breathing in the wood and nutmeg scent of him. He hummed in question, his fingers twirling her curls as he waited. “When did you … When do you think you started liking me?” He wrapped his arms tighter around her and she snuggled against him comfortably. 

     “That first time, after you helped me with that first mission,” he mumbled into her hair, thinking back on it. She'd heard him curse as the Lizard had cut him with a claw, piercing the fabric of his suit and breaking the skin of his arm. He recalled her tone being laced with panic as she'd asked him if he'd been hurt, but she said nothing more about it after he'd waved her off, letting him focus until he'd taken down the villain. Then she'd commanded him to go to her place, waiting until he'd dragged himself over so she could patch him up. And as he'd sat at her kitchen island, her slender fingers brushing against his skin, her messy hair tickling his cheek as she huffed in annoyance over his carelessness, he realised that he was glad she'd found him out - glad that it had been her and no one else who'd discovered his secret and then convinced him to let them help. Because, he'd realised then, he didn't want anyone else. He just wanted her. Just her, just for him, the two of them together. “What about you?” 

     She pushed herself up slightly so she could give him a fake look of confusion. “Spiderman or Miguel?” 

     “Arañita,” he chastised her, his brows setting into a frown. She grinned and lay back down in his arms. She trailed her fingers along the defined ridges of his chest as she thought about it. 

     “Well, I always kind of had a crush on you - because you're really hot and really smart,” she told him, her tone tinged with amusement. “But … I think for me, it was that time you asked me what was wrong. When I was sad that day? And you made me stay back after the meeting to check up on me?” 

     She tilted her head back to look up at him, her almond-shaped eyes so wide and pretty as she gazed at him in question. His lips curled at the corner and he brushed her hair out of her face. 

     “I really liked you then,” she confessed, grinning and snuggling back into his chest. “You're so … You care so much about me. How could I not like you?” He smiled, his eyelids fluttering shut as he drifted off to sleep, the both of them warm and content in each other's embrace.

#miguel o'hara #atsv miguel #miguel spiderman #miguel spiderverse #miguel x reader #miguel fanfic #miguel smut #miguel x oc #spiderman 2099 #spiderman 2099 x reader #miguel ohara #miguel x y/n #miguel x you #spiderman 2099 x you #spiderman 2099 fanfiction #spiderman 2099 smut

[wanderingaldecaldo]

Auld Lang Syne

Some sentimental thoughts after the cut.

Two months ago I thought Rosalind Myers would be "just" a one night stand during Val's journey to find a cure; instead they celebrated the holidays together (1, 2). Rosalind reignited my passion for the game, and made me truly understand superlatives like "screaming crying throwing up" and wanting to eat glass.

I'll forever love Mitch. He helped pull me from the worst depression of my life, led me to Discord and Tumblr, and ultimately people who have become dear friends. My love for him prompted me to write a novel-length drama/romance smut about guilt and loss when I hadn't written in years. No one can ever supplant him or the place he holds in my heart.

All that said... Rosalind upended my world. She rewired my brain, I don't know how else to put it. Perhaps she's the result of a lifetime of latent lesbian attraction, perhaps it's being closer to that age myself and seeing such representation. She offers something that Mitch never can — a reflection of a woman of a "certain age". More shocking to me that I'm exploring a ship with someone other than Mitch is the subject herself. Ros is quite the opposite of Mitch, in nearly every way, but that allows me to explore different sides of Val through her.

2024 will be filled with Val & Ros, but that doesn't mean the end for Mitch & Val. Val's canon is still The Star ending, riding off into the sunset with Mitch and the Aldecaldos, plus there's the NOGLY sequel in the simmering stage; plus corpo Val's story is still being written. They'll still be around, just off doing their own thing in the corners of my subconscious, waiting for me to get back to their stories.

If you made it this far, thank you. If you've been a supporter of Mitch & Val, you have my undying love. If you've just joined for my brainrot-induced meltdown, welcome and I hope you enjoy my disaster bisexual. Whatever the case may be, thank you from the bottom of my heart.

May 2024 be filled with light and love for all of us.

#cyberpunk 2077 #cyberpunk 2077 photomode #cp2077edit #cyberpunk photomode #videogame photography #my screens #rosalind myers #president rosalind myers #madam president #valerie vermilion #streetkid!val #myers x v #myers x fem v #wlw ship #milfguard #aka president's merc au #mitch x val #happy new year #soppy posts #shippy everyday #❤️💙

[raviollies]

Bad bad moon update!

1.The gang prepped as much as they could for Arameia's wolfing out time but we all know that a werewolf is hard to prepare for. While she was chained and wolfsbane scattered around the perimeter it unfortunately didn't stop her from breaking the chains and advancing on the squad. She lunged at Blythe who was attempting to cast a spell to reign her under control, breaking Raha's glaive in the process

2. Raha attempted to get her off but his strength is very caca in comparison to a 9ft werewolf so he got tossed and hit his head on a rock and just. Got knocked out for the rest of the fight.

3. Lorelai and Eirwen attempted to pull her off as well, and Eirwen thinking holy water might do something to a lycanthrope threw it at them...forgetting that Lorelai is a vampire. Who now has radiant burns on her hands :(

4. Arameia was able to toss them off as well, and in her last effort, through the pain of her hands, Lorelai attempted to wrench her off of Blythe using a horn as leverage. Unfortunately this was the time that Arameia finally failed a saving throw and the....horn broke :)

You'll notice that the horn scene is repurposed from out CoS campaign - we wanted to keep that for Arameia but give that moment a new context, and thought that this would be fitting. It's very traumatic for everyone involved, but for different reasons.

Arameia's loss of a horn now represents how her werewolf nature got the best of her - how she almost hurt several of her friends. That this is something that haunts her and why she has been searching for a cure, and every day without it, this sort of conclusion draws closer.

For Lorelai, it is a stark reminder of her own trauma with her accidental parricide. Of her not knowing her strength and causing much more damage than she intended, disfiguring Arameia when she merely wanted to pull her off. Post this scene, she disassociated due to the PTSD and just ran into the woods.

Arameia regained control due to the pain and managed to find a spot in the corner of the camp to spend the night, apologetic for the damage she caused and hoping Raha is okay, haunted by the fear in Blythe's eyes when looking at her. Eirwen carried Raha to Blythe's carriage and made them some calming tea to deal with Shit and checked up on him due to his head injury.

In the morning, the gang reconvened - Raha is okay but concussed. Lorelai was still MIA but Blythe informed them that Lorelai came back and is just resting in the cabin and it's best to leave her be. It was a very somber moment, but the gang is resolute to stay together. No one blames Arameia for what happened except herself, and no one blames Lorelai for what happened except herself.

Next time is Eirwen's past coming to haunt! Stay tuned (๑ö◡ö)۶

#for some reason the preious post isnt. coming up on the dash. #BUT #arameia #blythe #eirwen #raha #lorelai #I THINK THE SESSION WAS AMAZING. 10/10 #it was the arameia's player first time leading and they did great!!! #also lorelai and arameia pararells....werewolf and vampire...wow this is so 2000s...

[oddlyhale]

Call me a boomer or whatever, but I actually like doing budgeting.

If they're that strapped for cash, and if I had to make budgeting decisions, I would: - Cut Jaune out of the volume. Since his arc ends with him reverting back to his younger self, there's no need for him to be in Ever After. - Weiss killed Penny on the Golden Bridge. She's in terrible grief for what she did and is in constant anxiety to explain herself to Ruby. - Cut Little out of the volume. From what I understand, creating Little was a huge feat because their model is more complex than the usual models we see. Cut them out and save money and time from creating them. - Move the Red Prince battle at the end of the volume. We can keep the marketplace throughout the volume since it helps set some world-building of Ever After through the NPCs and environment. - Neo is fine in the volume, she didn't pop up much. And since she has no VA to be paid, Neo is very expandable, but it was good that they didn't overuse her this volume. - No suicide arc!! It was stupid!! - Keeping Ruby separated from her team for the majority of the time. Would save quite a bit of time and money to only focus on Ruby rather than having to focus on them all at once. Yang, Blake, and Weiss can have their own episodes. - Ruby starts to see glimpses of Weiss running off into different wooded paths, yelling something about being late. Ruby chases Weiss throughout the volume. Weiss doesn't stick around often and vanishes. - Neo is down on her luck. She doesn't feel the need to go after Ruby because she feels like she's trapped in another universe and she can't get back home. However, a new anger towards Cinder festers. - Instead of creating more Ever After characters, utilize the main characters. Weiss can be the White Rabbit and Blake can be the Cheshire Cat. Yang can either fight to stay normal or become a character. All will be cured by the end of the volume. Neo also starts to act like the Mad Hatter. - It appears that Ever After is taking over the minds of whoever has fallen. Ruby and Yang both feel the effects as they both start to feel different from their old selves, but they're able to stay original. - Eating food (A LOT OF FOOD) and drinking a lot of tea was a notable part of Alice in Wonderland 1951. They could say that eating anything from Ever After causes the character change. - Ruby can't find Cresent Rose but she does find Summer Rose's weapon at a blacksmith's shop (but she doesn't know it belongs to Summer Rose). She carries that around because it feels familiar to her, but also she wants a weapon to defend herself. It'd be fun to watch as Ruby tries to work with a new weapon. - Weiss sees the glass sword of Penny's. She doesn't remember Penny, but the sight of the sword throws her into a frenzy and makes her lose time. Her time dilation goes out of control and it causes bouts of chaos wherever she's at, but the Red Prince isn't bothered by it.

i'll come up with more later in a reblog

#rwde #rwby rewrite #volume 9 #budgeting

[superdanverstrio]

Kidnapped PT.7

Masterlist

PT.1  PT.2   PT.3   PT.4  PT.5 PT.6

Summary: Baby Danvers Get kidnapped and it’s up to Kara and Alex to do everything in their power to save them.

Warnings: Torture, kidnapping, graphic description of injuries.

A/N: Will a 100% be a marvel x supergirl crossover.

When Kara arrived to your apartment, she found you safe and asleep in your bed.

Some days passed and you just kept getting worst and worst. It got to a point where you didn't get out of bed except for emergency, and it took everything in you to just take a step without falling. You were nauseous, dizzy, really weak and your still healing wounds were hurting more than usual. Sometimes you were so cold, and sometimes you felt like you were in a volcano.

“Alex?” You ask when you woke up and saw your sister. “ Hmm?” She said, closing her book and placing it in her lap. “I really don't feel good.” You say. Her expression quickly changed. “What do you mean, what's wrong?” “Everything hurts and I feel so weak.” You say, tears brimming your eyes. “Alright, how long have you felt like this?” Alex asked. “A week.” You said closing your eyes to try to get rid of the dizziness.

“Hon, please don't fall asleep, I know you must be tired, but I have some questions.” Ales asked in a soft voice, she placed her hand on your forehead to see if you were hot, and unfortunately you were really hot. “Shit, you're really hot.” She says. “Alright, do you feel like throwing up?” You nodded your head. “Kind of.” “Ok what do you say we bring you back to the D.E.O, it could be nothing, but I prefer not to take risk.” She said, and you agreed.

You were back at the D.E.O, hook up to many machines, with Alex taking care of you and Kara at your bed side, with the same worried expression. “Do you feel a little better.” Kara asked. You gave her a little nod, the frown on her face deepen as she saw how unwell you still were.

“Alex, can I talk to you?” J'onn ask entering the room. “I'll be right back.” Alex said giving you a kiss on your forehead. “I just saw the footage of the Alien escaping, and I think i sort of know where he went.” Alex frown. “What do you mean 'kind of know'?”

“Well, a little before you join the D.E.O, I had this weird dream, but now I don't think it was a dream.” Alex nodded, signalling j'onn to keep going. “I woke up in a building in the middle of New work. I won't go into too many details, but I met people there, they were superhero sort of. They called themselves the Avengers.” Alex scoffed. “The Avengers? That's a… original name for a team.” Alex said. J'onn then went on by explaining what everyone did and what happened when he was there. “Ok, but how is that related to the alien's location.” Alex asks. “Well, Doctor Strange, the wizard, he can teleport by creating these circles that bring him wherever he wants. Those circles are the exact same as the on the alien when through. So now that we know the multiverse is real, I think it wasn't a dream, and somehow I travelled to another planet.” J'onn said.

“That makes sense, so now can we get there.” “I'm not sure, maybe the device that Cisco gave to Kara could travel us there.” J'onn suggested. “Maybe you're right, I'm going to try to look into it.”

A few days passed, and your condition just kept getting worse, you were exhausted all the time, you had lost all your appetite, and you threw up at least 3 times a day. Alex was so caught up with everything, she had barely enough time to take care of herself. She needed to take care of you, find the alien, find a cure for you and on top of that she needed to find the alien. Of course, she wasn't alone Kara helps with taking care of you, Lena with finding the cure and brainy help tracking the alien down, but it was still a lot.

Kara walking in Alex quarters, she saw Alex sat on a bench staring at the wall. “Alex?” Kara asked, braking Alex out of the trans she was in. “Mhm? What?” "Are you ok?” Kara asked, Alex took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah… yeah, I'm fine.” “You know, you're a really bad liar sometimes.” Alex gave a small smile and place her head in her hands, starting to tear up. “Come on, tell me what's wrong.” Kara said, placing her hand around her sister to comfort her.

“It's just… I know everyone is telling me it's not my fault, but I really feel like it is and having to take care of Y/N on top of being the director having to deal with everything it's just a lot. And I'm really worried about them and what if they die, I don't think I could ever forgive myself.” She said tears falling. Kara hugged Alex tightly and rubbed her back. “Alex, why didn't you tell me. You know you're not alone, you have Winn Lena J'onn Brainy and you have me. You know what, I think you should go home tonight, and before you argue J'onn is just as qualified as you to take care of the D.E.O and me and Lena can take care of Y/N.” Alex hesitates for a minute but agreed, “fine, but you have to call me if there is anything wrong.” “Of course.” Alex went home, and she could finally get some much-needed sleep, and everything went smoothly all night with you and the D.E.O.

Although it was the last thing she wanted, Alex had no choice but to call Eliza when your condition didn't improve. The look on her when she saw you laying in the D.E.O's med bay hooked up to so many machines was one of pure worry. “Oh god, sweetheart, you look so bad.” Eliza said, coming to your side. “Thank you.” you said barely above a whisper. Your mother place a comforting hand on your forehead and when she did, she noticed how hot it was.

“God, they are burning up, how long have they been this way?” She questioned. “Um, maybe like a week, they have only been getting worst since we brought them here.” Alex said just as worried. “ What's wrong with them?” Eliza asked, “Well that's part of the reason we called you, we don't know yet.” Alex said.

You were slowly falling asleep whilst your mother and big sisters talked, You were half of sleep when your stomach turned. You groan and slapped your hand over your mouth, you frantically looked around for Kara. She noticed your panicked state and quickly gave you the bucket, she sat you up and pulled your hair back. “Alright, let it all out, it's ok.”

When you were done throwing up, you laid back down. “I'm sorry.” You muttered exhausted. “Don't apologize, honey, it's not your fault at all.” Your mother said soothingly. After that, you fell asleep for a while.

#supergirl fanfiction #supergirl #supergirl x reader #alex danvers x reader #marvel #fanfic #kara danvers x reader #kara danvers imagine #kara danvers x you #kara zor el x reader #kara danvers #kara zor el #alex danvers #alex danvers imagine #tw kidnapping #kidnap tw #torture tw #sick

[loveinhawkins]

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10 Part 11 Part 12 Part 13 Part 14 Part 15 Part 16 Part 17 Part 18 Part 19 Part 20 ao3

When the doorbell rings, it isn’t Lucas. It’s Erica.

“Lucas is coming,” she says, hopping off her bike and picking up a plastic bag that’s looped around the handlebars. “I told him to give me five minutes.”

“Sure,” Eddie says. He tips from concern into something approaching bemusement as Erica throws the bag at him; when he catches it, he feels the coldness of it, opens it up to find two tubs of ice-cream.

Erica side-steps him into the hall, calls over her shoulder, “Hurry up, Eddie, or it’s gonna melt.”

Eddie laughs. “Hi to you, too.”

When he reaches the kitchen, Erica has already opened the freezer to clear a space, Steve watching her from the counter with a look of benign amusement.

“I’d better be compensated for this,” Erica is saying. She points at the space she’s made, and Eddie dutifully slots the tubs inside. “This goes against the you supplying me with free ice-cream for life deal.”

“You literally ate my ice-cream,” Steve says. “Besides, I kinda figured that contract was null and void when Scoops went kaput.”

Erica shuts the freezer door. “I didn’t have a contract with Scoops, I had one with you.”

And she stops. “Have,” she corrects quietly.

No longer able to focus on putting the ice-cream away, her hands fall to her sides. Her little smile drops, and all at once, Eddie is reminded that she’s just eleven years old.

Steve’s face softens. “Why’re you really here, Erica?”

“Lucas,” Erica starts, then pauses—but that’s an answer all of its own, Eddie thinks. She collects herself, looks Steve directly in the eye. “He might not… get it all out.”

“I’ll talk to him,” Steve says.

“He was…” Erica glances down. “I don’t wanna see him like that. Ever again.”

“Hey, look at me.” Steve’s tone is gentle. “I’m sorry.”

Erica sighs loudly; Eddie can hear the frustration and hurt in it, but mostly the love. “You don’t have to—that’s not why I’m telling you,” she says. “I don’t…” Her eyes widen a little. “I don’t know why I’m telling you.”

Steve smiles at her, lifts up one arm in offering. He makes a beckoning gesture. “Help a guy out? I don’t have travelling by bar stool down yet.”

“Was that meant to be funny? Pathetic,” Erica replies, but she’s heading over to him as she says it, lets herself be pulled into a hug.

Steve whispers something in her ear—Eddie half-hears it as a crack about her ice-cream preferences, and she giggles a bit, does a more dramatic sigh and says, “Nothing can cure your poor taste, Steve.”

She settles into the hug.

Eddie thinks of the slip up she made. Had, have. Past, present. Hates that she was forced into thinking of Steve in the past tense—for even a second is a second too long.

As Erica heads out, she turns to Dustin, who’s sitting out on the driveway, waiting for Lucas to show up.

“Look after him,” she says with an intensity that might’ve been funny if Eddie hadn’t known all that had caused it.

Dustin chuckles slightly. He jerks his head back to the house, where Eddie stands at the front doormat. “Which one?”

Erica grins, looks a little lighter. “I meant Lucas, but guess you’ve got your hands full. You’re the babysitter now.”

As she gets back on her bike, Eddie calls after her. “What, don’t I get any orders?”

She glances at him over her shoulder, one foot on the pedal. Her gaze lingers for a couple of beats, and he thinks of her staring him down at Hellfire, sharp and analytical. But now there’s a softness there, too.

“Keep doing whatever you’re doing, I suppose,” she says, and her lips twitch into a smile that’s just pretending to be sardonic, and Eddie feels his heart swell.

-

Dustin sits with him on the stairs. When Lucas arrived, he barely said a word, not even to Dustin, instead heading through the hallway like someone marching towards the gallows.

They stay put, giving a semi-illusion of privacy—voices can travel far in this damn house—but they can hardly hear anything right now, just the soft rumble of speech, the rise and fall of a question, then silence.

“Can I tell you something?” Dustin mumbles haltingly.

“Sure,” Eddie says, and means Of course you fucking can. Always.

“It was my fault,” Dustin says into his knees, “with… Max. When I was—Lucas, he came to get me when you, um. When you drove away.”

Eddie doesn’t know what his face is doing, but he feels a pang of guilt which Dustin must notice, because he nudges Eddie’s forearm.

“I was kinda… freaking out. A lot, actually. By the time we got to the house, Max, she—she’d already stopped listening to her tape. I… I gave her time to think about it, you know? If we were quicker, we might’ve…”

Stopped it. Eddie’s all too familiar with that sentiment.

“You know, like with Steve. He… he must’ve thought about—about it for ages when he…” Dustin clears his throat. “When he saw the clock.”

Eddie doesn’t have the heart to tell him that Steve had made his decision in a split-second, like it was inevitable; like he’d already committed to it long ago, stared that awful option down and came to the conclusion easily, if it meant everyone else would be safe.

-

“This is stupid,” Dustin announces after another five minutes have passed without them overhearing anything, not even the whisper of a voice.

He’s down the stairs before Eddie can even think about stopping him. Even if he had been quick enough, he’s not sure if he would’ve decided to stop him in the first place. Shit, he’s not all that sure about anything; there’s no guidebook for this.

He follows Dustin into the kitchen, sees him standing by the fridge; Lucas is sitting at the counter, holding a glass of water Steve must’ve instructed him to take.

Steve is speaking with a quiet urgency, his eyes pleading as he considers Lucas searchingly. “You don’t—don’t need to be nice to me or anything, dude. I can take it. Don’t, like… tread on eggshells on my account.”

“It was my fault,” Dustin interrupts.

Lucas frowns, shakes his head.

And Eddie and Steve speak in unison, a firm rebuttal: “Dustin.”

They jolt in surprise, glance at each other—and then Dustin snorts and says, “Holy shit, that was like a sitcom. Did you, like, practice that or are you just losers?”

And that makes Lucas laugh into his glass of water.

And then… maybe it helps, the echo of laughter in a room, even if it’s only for a moment.

Because suddenly Lucas just launches right into it: how he ran back inside, Dustin in tow and, still catching his breath, it had taken him a few seconds to realise that he couldn’t hear Max’s tape playing.

“Erica noticed first,” he stays, staring into the glass of water. “Her voice went all strange and—I’d never heard her like—like that before. Then she pointed, and I saw… Max had taken her headphones off.”

He grips the glass tightly. The back of his hand dashes away the tears at first, but then he just lets them fall—slow and sluggish tracks, like he’s not even aware that he’s crying anymore.

“Steve, she was… She was begging. For—for him to…”

Steve breathes out, passes a hand across his face. “Jesus, Sinclair, I’m—”

“I love her so much,” Lucas whispers with a certainty that’s much greater than his years, “but I c-couldn’t reach her. It was like she—the only thing that stopped her was…”

“When everything went to shit,” Dustin says when it’s clear Lucas can’t go on.

And it’s like Eddie can hear it, suddenly—that oppressive silence. Feeling like there was no air left to breathe, that there never would be again.

“Steve? Steve.”

Steve’s eyes, glassy and gone, no light behind them. The awful stillness of his chest.

The world ripping apart.

Eddie presses a finger hard to the inner corner of one eye, a vain attempt to block out the image. He thinks of the kids being thrown to their knees with the force of it, a window shattering—and as the rest of Hawkins screamed with no understanding, they would know exactly what it meant.

Lucas and Dustin look like they’re reliving it, too, their faces drawn.

Eddie thinks back to the RV, when Nancy first laid out the apocalyptic vision that had been forced upon her. Eddie, once again a silent watcher in the crowd, his eyes drifting over them all, noticing every twitch, every grim set to their mouth—a horrifying sense of resignation. Eddie thinking yet again that Jesus, they’re used to this.

He had thought that he’d reached his breaking point with Chrissy’s death, and then…

But the others, they’ve had years of this, stretched thin like elastic. Eddie remembers as they began the drive back to Hawkins, as the rest of them gradually dropped off to sleep. Remembers thinking, right before he caught Steve’s whisper, How much more can they take?

It’s Steve’s voice that brings him back. He starts a little at the sound.

“Lucas, you… you would’ve reached her, okay? You’d have brought her back, I know that you…”

There’s a look that passes between the three of them, Steve, Dustin and Lucas: some shared understanding. They’d barely talked about what happened when Vecna’s curse took hold of Max, apart from the song that saved her. The most Eddie is aware of is that it happened in the graveyard.

The rest is not for him to know, he thinks.

“Look, I’m not—I’m not in her head, but I don’t think she wanted to—to—” Steve says, and he stumbles a bit over the words, voice growing a little thick with emotion. “She was… scared. Really scared. And that’s—that’s on me, man.”

For barely a second, Steve’s eyes flicker over to Eddie’s. Then he looks away.

“I’ll talk to her,” Steve says, and it sounds like I’ll fix it, I’m sorry, I swear. His shoulders tense, and Eddie can practically feel it, another load this fucking selfless boy takes on like it’s as natural as breathing, and he kind of wants to cry.

He doesn’t.

-

Max doesn’t ring the doorbell, opens the front door so quietly that Eddie only notices when a gust of wind shuts it behind her.

After a grateful phone call from Steve, Claudia Henderson had given Lucas and Dustin a ride home; the emptiness of the house is now all too apparent as Max stares Eddie down in the hallway.

“Hey, Red,” Eddie says, aims to be soft enough to soothe, not too much for fear that it’ll get her hackles up. He can feel the tension within her, can almost hear the grinding of her teeth. He can’t fuck this up. One wrong move, and she’ll run.

He gestures through to the living room. She clips him with her shoulder as she barges past him, and that’s fine; if it makes it hurt a little less for her, he’ll take more than that.

She stands in front of the couch where Steve sits. She wraps one arm around herself, a move Eddie recognises. Unconscious self-defence. He thinks of her voice over the walkie, still managing to laugh at Steve’s movies. Marvels in a horrified sort of way at how long she’s been pushing everything down.

“I’m sorry,” Max says. She looks down at the floor.

Eddie moves slowly, stands at the end of the couch, not too close to Max. Steve turns to him very slightly, eyes flitting between the two of them.

Eddie doesn’t need to hear it to know what Steve means. Be careful.

Eddie barely moves his head in a nod. I know.

“I’m not staying long, so just.” Max raises her chin, and her eyes are burning—and people who didn’t know any better might call that defiance. Eddie doesn’t. “Just tell me.”

Steve opens his mouth, then closes it. He glances down at the coffee table, where the cracked tape still lies.

“Tell you what, Max?” he asks, so quiet, so worried—like he’s scared that with just one word, he’ll ruin everything.

“What I did wrong,” Max says. She scrubs at her eyes, blinks up at the ceiling, and Steve’s face falls.

“You didn’t—”

Max sighs harshly. “I’m not stupid. You can—” She turns to Eddie, and he watches in horror as she squeezes her eyes shut, bracing herself, like Eddie might crack first, might give her the judgement she’s desperately searching for. “You can say it.”

“Max,” Steve says.

“I fucked up the plan. It was meant to be me. There—there must’ve been a reason that he—”

“No,” Steve says, and the word is strong, his resolve clear. “Max, listen to me. No.”

But Max shakes her head. “I must’ve done something, I know I did, I made him get in your head—”

“That’s not how it works,” Steve says, kind but firm. “Max, it was—nothing is worth you—”

“You’re a fucking hypocrite,” Max whispers. “I was marked already, asshole, he was coming back to claim—”

“Oh my god, no,” Steve repeats. “Max, what? He had no claim on you, you never deserved—”

“And you did?” Max challenges. Her lips are trembling.

“No,” Steve says, gentle. “But… hey, listen, it. It would’ve been—”

“No, it wouldn’t have been!” Max explodes, and she’s shaking where she stands, like she might break apart. “It wouldn’t have been worth it or okay or whatever bullshit you were about to—”

“All right, all right—”

“You would’ve been gone.” And all at once, she goes very still. “You were gone.”

She pinches the skin on the back of her hand, hard enough to hurt, and Eddie thinks that’s enough.

He walks over, as slowly as he can. He doesn’t touch her, but he stands close enough that she could reach out if she wanted to.

God, Red. Please let me help you.

Max snarls as he lifts one hand in offering. “Fuck off,” she breathes, and she strikes out, hits him in the chest. It’s hard enough for him to have to bite back a gasp, but that’s fine; as far as he’s concerned, she can hit him all she likes.

But that doesn’t last long. At some point, her hand clenches around his shirt, and she just holds on.

Hardly daring to breathe, he slowly reaches out and steadies her, both hands around her elbows.

“Easy, I’ve got you. You wanna… walk with me? That’s it, there you—”

Eddie only lets go after he leads her to Steve. She sobs, once, twice, then the dam breaks as Steve sits up, pulls her close.

“Max, I’m so sorry,” he says. “It wasn’t fucking fair. Shh, hey, hey, there was nothing you could’ve—oh, baby.” His voice fades away for a moment, the barely held back tears audible. He kisses her temple. “Oh, Max, I’m so sorry. I’m here, okay? Shh, shh. Hey, we made it, huh? We’re gonna be all right.”

She cries it out for a while—eventually, all Eddie can hear is her stuttering breaths, slowly evening out.

“Oh,” Steve sighs shakily, and he strokes Max’s hair off her face, catches Eddie’s eye and mouths over the top of her head: She’s asleep.

Eddie gets a blanket from the arm of the couch, tucks it around her—knows that Steve won’t be moving one inch, not even when the angle he’s sitting at is bound to make his leg ache.

“I’ll call her… mom?” Eddie says, cautiously.

Steve thinks about it, then nods. “Yeah,” he murmurs, presses another kiss to Max’s temple when her chin dips down in sleep. “That should be… Lucas said that they’re both staying with his folks for a bit.”

As Steve’s speaking, a tear falls down his cheek. You’d never have known, Eddie thinks, not unless you were looking for it.

On impulse, he runs a hand through Steve’s hair before heading to the phone, and hopes that it says enough.

-

“I didn’t think it would be like this,” Steve says dully. He’s fiddling with one of his pills, rolling it back and forth on the counter.

Eddie pauses, mid-taking a can of Coke out of the fridge. It’s just the two of them again, an exhausted Max picked up by her mother, who somehow barely batted an eye when Eddie answered the door and led her to her still sleeping daughter; Dustin picking up schoolwork—of all things—from his house.

“Like what?”

Steve swallows the pill dry, which makes Eddie inwardly wince.

“I hoped it wouldn’t be like this,” he corrects, not answering the question.

Eddie leans against the counter with his hip, opens the can. Waits.

“It’s just… I spent some time thinking about it, you know? Well.” Steve laughs humourlessly. “Not like I had that much time to… weigh it all up, but…” He sighs. “I thought they’d be okay, if…”

Eddie sets down the can before his hand can shake.

“It’s just. Like. I know you weren’t there for it all, but I guess I kinda… got used to them bouncing back? Sort of. Um, we all needed to.” He swallows. “I had to think that they’d be okay,” he whispers. “That was, like, one of the only thoughts that kept me from…” Steve shakes his head, eyes far-off again, and for a moment they’re in the RV, and Steve is saying, gaze fixed determinedly ahead, Listen, I can see a clock in the middle of the goddamn road, okay?

“From losing it,” Steve finishes.

There’s a tremor to Steve’s fingers as they drum on the counter, uneasy taps.

Eddie reaches over, gently stills him—two of his fingers resting on Steve’s knuckles.

“They bounced back from monsters, Steve,” he says slowly. “Not from… not from losing people.” From losing you.

Steve covers his eyes with the hand Eddie isn’t touching. Breathes in and out. Shudders.

“I’ll be fine,” he says, choked. “Just… ignore me for a second, Eddie.”

At first, Eddie tries to, because that’s what Steve had asked, but then Steve’s hand moves on the counter, until he’s gripping onto Eddie’s hand tightly; and Eddie holds on as Steve’s tremor moves up through his arm, his chest, until it’s all of him.

Do you see the gaping hole you would have left? Eddie thinks. Bites down on his lip to keep from crying, because this isn’t about him. Do you see how much they would have missed you?

Do you get it now, how much they love you?

But as Steve weeps for his family, for himself, Eddie can’t hold back the thought, as inevitable as the tide going out.

I would have fucking mourned you forever.

-

Sometimes in between the afternoon and evening doses of medicine, Steve drifts off into a kind of waking sleep—he’s still there enough to be roused if someone asks him a question, but his head nods sleepily more often than not, half-caught in a dream.

In the quiet, Dustin returns, finds a gap in the couch so he can sit next to Steve without jostling him—then sets about doing homework, and Eddie can’t begin to imagine how he’s focusing on it. But then again, Dustin has the kind of mind that once wanted to solve a Russian code for kicks in the summer vacation.

It’s peaceful.

Peaceful until Steve’s head jerks up with a ragged gasp.

And before Eddie can even say anything, Steve grips Dustin by the shoulders.

“Oh, you’re—” Steve exhales, chest catching on it. “Oh.”

His eyes are wild, darting all over Dustin, face cracked open with a vulnerability he’d never show if he was fully awake. His hand reaches up, moves through Dustin’s hair, searching, searching.

“Steve,” Dustin says, but it’s not a question. Like he kind of knows, understands just enough without being told.

And as Steve cups the back of Dustin’s head, Eddie gets it. He’s looking for blood.

“It wasn’t real, Steve,” Dustin says, with a clarity and kindness that makes Eddie think oh, I fucking love you, Dustin Henderson. “We’re good. Okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Steve answers, hooks his chin over Dustin’s head and hugs him. -

When the phone rings, Eddie picks up quickly; Dustin and Steve are both fast asleep, heads lolling onto the back of the couch.

It’s Wayne—and he doesn’t sound all that surprised to hear Eddie answer.

“How’d you know I was still here?” Eddie asks.

“Made an educated guess,” Wayne says. He sounds fond. “That and Joyce Byers called.”

Oh, Eddie thinks. And then, of course she did.

“We’re on the list,” Wayne says, “to get re-housed. S’going quicker than expected. Reckon that they,” he stresses the word like it’s a capital They, “don’t wanna give folks too much time to complain.”

He says it with such ease, and Eddie’s suddenly thrown back to him arriving at the trailer, small and angry and afraid, and Wayne just looking at him, saying gently, “Well, kid, we’ll make it work.”

Eddie sighs into the receiver. “I’m sorry—”

“Ed, shut the hell up,” Wayne says through an obvious smile, and Eddie chokes out a laugh that’s slightly wet around the edges.

-

The phone rings again, and this time it’s Jim Hopper.

“Look alive, Munson. Got a number for you.”

“Oh, uh.” Eddie runs about for a notepad and pen. “Okay?”

Hopper fires off a number which Eddie copies down and underlines, just because it feels like that’s the kind of thing he should do.

“That’s a private number, got it? Ring if there’s any trouble.”

“Um, sure,” Eddie says. “I’ll, uh. I’ll tell Steve.”

“No, kid, that’s for you,” Hopper says before abruptly hanging up.

When Eddie sets the phone down, Steve is sitting up, Dustin stirring and grumbling a complaint. He hears Steve laugh under his breath: “That’s what you get for trying to do math right now, dude.”

Eddie sits cross-legged on the floor in front of them. Thinking.

“You okay?” Steve asks.

“Jim Hopper’s fuckin’ weird,” Eddie says distantly.

Steve snorts. “Wow. And that’s coming from you.”

Dustin giggles himself awake as Eddie flips him the bird.

-

Jonathan Byers comes round just as Dustin heads upstairs to use the shower which—okay, sure. Eddie’s getting used to the whole people coming and going thing, and in theory he knows that obviously Jonathan’s been around for this since the beginning, but it’s another thing to see it in person.

It’s like an annoyingly stubborn part of his brain is still stuck on high school, looking at Jonathan and Steve in the same room, whining: But that’s not right—your kind don’t mix.

Jonathan’s polite, Eddie will give him that, but it’s obvious from the outset that he’s just here to speak to Steve.

Eddie leaves them to it in the living room, but it’s hard not to overhear, even when he’s doing his best to concentrate on the hum of the microwave as he heats through casserole.

“She’s staying in her room a lot, and you know what her mom’s like, Steve, she won’t—”

“Yeah, Robin said she tried to call, got no answer.”

“The most I could get her to talk was when she was with Holly. It’s like she doesn’t want to leave her alone.”

“Yeah, I… God, I don’t know. Wish I knew how to…”

“Me, too. But you’ll… you’ll call right, if she…? Fuck, it scares me sometimes, she’s so quiet. Don’t know if she’ll even turn to anyone.”

“Yeah, Jonathan, ‘course I’ll… Look, it’s just. It’s just been a lot, man. For all of us. She just needs some time, I think.”

“Yeah, I—sorry. I just worry.”

“Me, too.”

Eddie punches the buttons, sets the microwave on again before it can screech at him.

Jonathan leaves soon after that, gives Eddie a slightly awkward but sincere smile, bids goodbye to Steve with a, “Look after yourself, Steve.”

There’s a weight behind those words.

“Wheeler okay?” Eddie asks, once the front door has shut.

Steve sighs. “Hope so.”

The silence is heavy, and because Eddie can’t leave well enough alone, and apparently has a compulsion to put his foot in his mouth when it comes to this pair, blurts out, “Yeah, I kinda thought you two were a sure thing, man.”

Steve gives him a sideways look that Eddie can’t quite read. “Do you always do that?”

“Do what?”

Steve shrugs. “Like… imagine other people’s futures.”

It’s not said, but Eddie can hear the instead of your own loud and clear.

The embarrassment is expected. What isn’t is how he strangely welcomes it—no-one’s seen him like that before, cut right down to the core of him.

It’s his turn to shrug. “Kind of? It’s… you know what this town’s like, man. People and, like, how it’s all gonna turn out… some folks’ lives are easier to imagine than, uh. Others.”  

It was a bit like solving a simple puzzle piece: it had been easy to imagine Nancy and Steve together, to picture them as they were back then, young and sweet in the school corridors… using the belief in them as a sure thing to try and keep himself from losing it in a world turned (literally) upside down.

Steve’s lips twitch at the corners into a little smile. “Thought your whole thing was how people can defy expectations, or whatever.”

“Yeah, well. Even I’m not immune to hypocrisy, Harrington.”

Steve huffs a laugh. Hums. “I think I was always meant to love her,” he says, slow and thoughtful, “just… not in that way.”

“…Oh.”

Steve’s smile shifts into something melancholy. “I think we were both lonely, y’know? And, like… too similar. We both got trapped in our heads whenever shit went sideways. So if we needed, like, help or just… we couldn’t… couldn’t reach each other. Does that make sense?”

Eddie nods faintly.

“Eddie, can you promise me something?”

Eddie nods again, holds Steve’s gaze. Anything.

“Nance, if she—if she comes to you, just… be there for her?”

Eddie opens his mouth, but Steve keeps talking.

“I mean, ‘cause, you’re a good listener, man. And you’re kind. You can… see people.”

And Eddie suddenly has to hold his breath. He knows what Steve is referring to, thinks of how he recounted his meeting with Chrissy in the woods, as the group hiked from Skull Rock. I don’t know, man, I just knew something was up with her. Like, something was really wrong.

But the way Steve speaks to him—there’s more underneath the words. Kind of sounds like You can see me, too.

Eddie swallows through the burning in his throat. “I will,” he promises.

#the self sacrificial steve agenda #steve and erica #steve and lucas #steve and max #steve and dustin #steddie fic #steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #steve x eddie #erica sinclair #lucas sinclair #max mayfield #dustin henderson #eddie and erica #steve and nancy #eddie and nancy #eddie and max #steve and jonathan

[pagesfromthevoid]

Imagine this because I am and it’s just. It’s cute and I just REALLY WANT TO PLATONICALLY HUG ASTARION IN THAT FUCKING DUNGEON

Cuddle Puddle:

The party returns back from killing Cazador and Astarion has essentially disappeared. Tav is worried sick, because even if they’re with Gale, Astarion is her friend and she’s scared. Gale tries to reassure her obviously because he doesn’t want her worried but she just can’t help it.

Astarion finally comes back, still covered in blood and battered from the fight, and Tav immediately approaches to check on him. He tries to wave her off but she scolds him, reminding him that they’re friends and she was scared.

“Can I just…can I hug you? Is that okay?” She asks, because she’s never actually touched Astarion, let alone hugged him.

He hesitates but nods slowly, because he also hasn’t been hugged in centuries and honestly he has no idea what to expect. But Tav throwing her arms around him to hold him like this is almost too much to bear. And he just starts sobbing into her neck.

So when he’s finally done sobbing and being a mess (Tav doesn’t mind. She reminds him over and over it’s okay to cry! She cries all the time! So does Gale!), he pulls away and apologizes. But she waves him off with a reassuring smile.

“Why don’t you lay with me a while? Just so you’re not alone.”

And Astarion immediately thinks —no, she’s not trying to proposition me. Not now, not after everything. But looking at her, he realizes she’s *not*. She’s just…being nice. Offering solace and comfort in her arms like a mother would her child.

“I’m sure your wizard would be less than thrilled,” he counters, though he wants to. So bad.

“Gale doesn’t mind —do you?” She turns to Gale now, those puppy dog eyes working wonders on the resident know it all. “Just a cuddle. Nothing more than that.”

Gale stammers a bit and blushes, but shakes his head. “I- no, of course not. A comforting embrace is an important cure for overwhelming feelings. And I’d know —Tav has spent many a night comforting me.”

“Gale —,”

“I mean with cuddling!”

Astarion hesitates again, but nods slowly as Tav takes his hand gently. Gale pushes two of the beds in the Elfsong room together, making it a little more comfortable for the three of them to lay down. Astarion is surprised Gale agreed, given how uppity he had gotten when Halsin approached Tav, but he’s secretly thankful the Wizard didn’t mind as he sat on the edge of the beds.

Tav practically throws herself into the middle, sighing as she pulls all the pillows around her like she’s making a nest. Astarion watches for a moment then kicks his shoes off and joins her, allowing her to take him in her arms and rest his head against her chest. Her arms snake around him tight, hugging him close to her. Gale makes room for himself on her other side, where she rests her head on his shoulder as he wraps his arm around her.

“What’s this, then? A cuddle party and I wasn’t invited?” Karlach all but yells, throwing her hands in the air. “Finally get my engine tuned and I can’t even have a cuddle.”

“No one said you couldn’t,” Astarion counters, peaking up from where he lay against Tav. “It *is* rather nice.”

“Softy,” Tav teases, running her nails through his hair. Then she extends her free arm out to Karlach. “C’mon then.”

Karlach all but squeals in delight, pushing another bed closer to connect the three. Then she throws herself into the mix, laying half on top of Gale and Tav.

“Fuck, this is great. I love this. I love you guys.”

Tav glances up at Gale, who’s trying not to move too much or risk pushing Karlach off him. But he leans down and kisses Tav’s hair and Astarion all but gags.

“No way,” Karlach warns, swatting Gale’s face away from Tav. “Absolutely no lovey dovey shit in the cuddle puddle.”

Halsin joins next, though he takes up far more space than anyone else. And then Shadowheart comments about missing out on all the fun, so Tav finds her way out to pull her in too. Wyll joins, laying closer to Astarion with a soft smile and his arm around the vampire (who totally doesn’t move away from Tav to lay a little closer to the Blade of Frontiers. No way). Lae’Zel side eyes everyone, but caves and sits on the floor beside the bed.

Eventually, they throw all the pillows and blankets in the sitting space by the fire to make more room for everyone.

This begins the party cuddle puddle.

#bg3 #baldur’s gate 3 #baldur’s gate iii #karlach #shadowheart #wyll ravengard #gale of waterdeep #bg3 astarion

[redrobin-detective]

Simon and Betty Roles and Relationships

So I watched the F&C finale and I, personally, loved it to bits but I can see some early rumblings of dissatisfaction. I can't say I got everything I wanted more Simon and Marcy dammit but I felt everyone's arcs resolved well. Especially Simon and Betty's. Allow me to ramble at length.

What really became clear to me in episode 9 is how much F&C Simon and Betty's relationship is a complete role reversal of their AT selves/relationship.

In both cases, you had one who was - through their own conscious actions - cursed to a non-human existence where they didn't have complete control of their thoughts or actions. They are separated from all their loved ones, including their True Love, and given relatively little agency in their own story.

And then you had the other, who watched their love become this non-human entity where they couldn't meaningfully interact. They become obsessed, consumed with saving their True Love, going as far as to ignore having a potential future in Ooo along with kidnapping and doing sketchy magic.

They got trapped in this tragic cycle of loss and insanity trying to save each other and all it did was cost their own happiness. What GOLBetty was trying to tell Simon was that they both made mistakes as humans in the past (her wrapping her entire life around Simon's to the detriment of her own desires and him for being oblivious to it and not considering her) but this cycle had to stop. They'd both made choices they regretted and the outcome wasn't what either wanted but it was the one they landed at. In e9, Simon admitted to "being sorry" for "wasting the second chance Betty gave him" because he was! He was still clinging to their doomed narrative. It was his final selfish act, to throw away the chance she gave up everything for and then force her to watch him scramble after her despite it being impossible. GOLBetty told him to break the cycle and he did.

I said earlier they made choices they regret, both as individuals and a couple but the love was real, it was true and it was now over. They will both carry that love but they cannot be together. Too many things got in the way and they would tear apart the universe trying to exist together. So Simon moved on properly, embraced this new world and life in Ooo. He devoted himself to his loved ones and made a life for himself that wasn't revolving around Betty. It was the healthiest things he could do for both of them.

As for Betty, Simon spent a thousand years as Ice King before he was freed. Some of those moments were good even if a lot of them were bad. She is a whole new type of being able to see and maybe somewhat control the chaotic forces of the universe. I imagine there are some aspects she did like. For example, how appropriate is for a woman who always made herself smaller and bent to the desires of others to be venerated as a Goddess with incredible power? There is no cure now but I like to imagine some day in the future - someone comes along and helps frees Betty from her self inflicted curse. Simon will be long gone I imagine having lived his own full life and died in peace. But now it will be Betty's turn for self discovery and a new chance at happiness.

Their story together was tragic and they both suffered greatly but a running theme of Adventure Time is that happiness is possible, you just need to find it. And for them, finding it meant letting go. I found it beautiful and sad and poignant and awful. I have other nitpicks with the finale but the resolution of their story -at least Simon's side of it - makes me feel settled. I would love to see a future installment giving Betty back her agency just like this series did for Simon.

#adventure time #fionna and cake #fionna and cake spoilers #it really hit me how simon and betty completely flipped roles at the end of AT #just this endless loop of madness and sadness and magic #so if simon -who was told he would ice king until the sun blew up- could escape #then so can betty in my mind #petrigrof #its sad! A doomed narrative where in this case you dont do anything to reunite #just quietly love and mourn and move on