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#good luck getting your daughter back Blake
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Baby and the Bees: the Belladonnas
Several days after Yang and Ruby found a little Faunus baby in the desert and brought her home. Blake has gone full mother panther mode. Weiss is a helicopter aunt. Ruby is the fun aunt. And Yang has somehow managed to become even more of a lesbian disaster.
Blake: *humming a tune while holding the baby and rocking side to side*
Baby: *coos and looks up at Blake's ears*
Blake: *tilts head and slicks her ears back*
Baby: *slicks ears back*
Blake: *raises one ear*
Baby: *raises one ear with some difficulty but giggles with success*
Blake: Good job! You did it! *nuzzles soft tuffs of hair on fuzzy ears*
CLICK!
Blake: *straightens in surprise and turns to see Yang smiling lovingly. Scroll in hand* Yang! Uh, how long have you been standing there?
Yang: Long enough to get all of that on video and an absolutely adorable new wallpaper. *gently takes the baby and blows a raspberry on a chubby cheek*
Baby: *squeals with laughter and grabs Yang's bangs*
Blake: *snaps a picture* She sure likes pulling your hair, doesn't she?
Yang: *winks* She's not the only one. It's just cuter when she does it.
The door nearly flings off its hinges as Kali sprints into the room. Ghira barely keeping up and completely out of breath as he tries to wrangle his wife.
Kali: Where is she?!
Ghira: Blake, I'm sorry! I tried to keep her at bay as long as I could.
Kali: Oh! Little Cub! *pulls baby from Yang and starts cooing as she walks to the common room* Hello, I'm your grandma! Yes, and you are just the cutest little thing! Oh, I can't wait for your mamas to make you a little sibling!
Baby: *giggling in delight at the prospect of having a sibling*
Blake: MOM!!!
Yang: *blushing* I mean... If there's a way to make it work...
Blake: YANG!!!
Ghira: *from the common room* Kali, Kali, no. I can't hold her. She's the size of my hand. I don't want to drop- KALI!
Yang: Uh.... we should go save your dad...
For those who want to read the first part. Here's a link:
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silversmoke-20 · 2 years
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Hello, can I request headcanons for team rwby (or just blake and yang if that's too much) with an s/o that loves to cook and is pretty good at it? Sorry if this was not detailed enough.
Oh it's alright! I don't mind if it's detailed or not, just as long as it's simple for me to understand, Oh and I added in a special guest!
Team Rwby with a reader who loves to cooks
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Ruby Rose
Ruby loves it when you cook, and the best part is that you bake cookies that she likes!
Ruby would try to steal and taste test, only for you to slap her hand away as she runs away with a few giggles trailing behind her.
You tell her that you can only make one jar of cookies for the week and if she eats it all in a day, then you won't make more until next week.
Ruby would definitely save as much of your baked sweets as she can to enjoy as long as she can.
Whenever you finish baking cookies, you her the ladel and the cookie dough bowel for her to eat.
Ruby would definitely Would try to bake your favourite sweets as a thank you.
Ruby shares her cookies and you should feel honoured cause Ruby never shares her cookies with anyone! That includes her family.
Ruby would hug you and watch you cook from behind you.
Ruby is basically your hype girl whenever you're cooking.
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Weiss Schnee
Weiss enjoys your love for cooking and would oftentimes ask if she could help you cook.
Weiss obviously would hire you to be her personal cook.
She would basically buy you the finest ingredients on remnant.
She would challenge you to cook harder meals and you would gladly take those challenges.
She would no doubt say, "you are the best cook in remnant."
You once made a cake shaped like her emblem, and she loves it.
You ask Weiss if she likes to taste test and she would do it without a second thought.
Whenever she gets sick, it's hands on deck cause you are going to make her the most delicious soup she ever has.
Weiss would hire bodyguards to guard you when your cooking at her mansion cause she believes someone would assassinate you.
Weiss is basically the Type of girl who loves to watch you cook.
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Blake Belladonna
She's banned from the kitchen.
She would try to help you whenever she can so she can steal a couple pieces of fish.
By couple I'm talking about the entire salmon fish and you can't with her shenanigans when trying to steal the fish.
You love cooking seafood dishes and Blake loves eating that.
So when she wanted you to meet her parents, she was happy they accepted you.
So when you ask Kali if you could help cook she happily obliges.
Only to be surprised as she points at her husband and daughter and say, "You two are still banned from the kitchen."
You have never laugh in your life as you told Kali that Blake is banned from the kitchen back home.
Blake's parents loved your cooking and wouldn't mind having you visit whenever you get the chance.
Blake is the type to steal food so be on guard.
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Yang Xiao Long
This girl banned from the kitchen not because of her jokes.
You would bonk her head with teaspoon, ladel, and wooden spoon with a deadpan expression.
She would immediately run off if she notices you grab a jar of honey or anything that is sticky.
And Brothers her jokes are so annoying and yet they somehow made you laugh.
When you let Yang cooked well.....
Let's just say that kitchen was quarantine and gave you nightmares.
How can she set a glass of water on fire?! Cause a simple butter on bread to explode.
Yang is basically a terrible cook, but her terrible jokes makes you laugh.
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Qrow Branwen
He is scared of his bad luck ruining your cooking.
Quite the opposite as his semblance somehow helps you cook much more effectively.
So when telling him this, he is so going to help you cook.
And you love it whenever he gets confused when you ask him to get the ingredient you need.
---------------------------------------------------
Y/n: "pass me the cheddar."
Qrow: "the what?"
Y/n: "The shredded cheese."
Qrow: "the what now?"
Y/n: "y'know the Shreddie cheedie."
Qrow: "oh that! Here you go."
Y/n: "Thanks bird brain~"
---------------------------------------------------
Whenever Qrow wakes up, he would walk up behind you and hug you and rest his head on your shoulder.
Qrow is basically the man who gets confused with food and comes up nicknames for it.
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justsomewritingblog · 7 months
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Not So Sweet Surprise
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Request:  any chance we could see that conversation between Sun and Ghira? Kali's probably rolling her eyes because this is just like what HER father did. :)
Requested By:  Anonymous
Pairing:  Sun Wukong x Blake Belladonna
Summary:  This is a prequel to ‘Sweet Sunset’
Warnings:  None?
A/N:  This was really fun to write.  Thanks for the request!
Word Count:  672
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sun took a deep breath, staring up at the Belladonna house.  He had thought about turning around and running, tail between his legs, but he was determined to marry Blake.  He chewed the inside of his cheek, thinking.  Before he could stop himself, his hand rose and took the doorknocker, slamming it against the wood twice.  The loud and eerie sound unnerved him, but it was too late.
The door opened, revealing Kali.  He breathed a sigh of relief, glad Ghira hadn’t answered the door.
“Hey, Mrs. B.”  He greeted.
“Sun?  What are you doing here?  Not that I’m not glad to see you.”
“Well, I was wondering if I could talk to you and your husband.”
Kali opened her mouth to respond, but it wasn’t her voice that Sun heard. “About what?”  Ghira’s voice entered the discussion, nearly scaring Sun half to death.  His eyes widened, and he stiffened like a board.
“Sir!  I was just- I was going- I was wondering- I was hoping-”
“Spit it out, man!”  Ghira ordered.
“IwaswonderingifIcouldmarryyourdaughter!”  He blurted out.  Ghira and Kali shared a look.
“One more time.”  Ghira instructed.  Sun opened his mouth.  “Slowly.”  He clarified.  Sun took a deep breath.
“I was wondering if I could marry your daughter.”  He spoke more slowly, though he still sounded uneasy and he looked like the slightest movement from Ghira would send him running.  Kali’s face held a grin, while Ghira’s remained mostly stoic.  If Sun were being honest with himself, he wanted to die.  The silence was tense, which Kali seemed to notice.
“Why don’t you come in, dear?”  She offered, gently grabbing his arm and pulling him inside.  Sun hesitantly followed, but quickened his pace, feeling Ghira’s cold eyes burning holes in the back of his head.
Once inside, Kali set him down at the table, and went to get some tea going.  Sun followed after her, afraid to be left alone with her husband.  He did his best to stay out of the way, while she got some snacks around, until she was finished and took the tray out to the table.  They sat down, Sun sitting as far away from Ghira as possible, in case he needed a running start.  Kali broke the deafening silence.
“Why don’t you start at the beginning?”  She urged softly.  Sun inhaled a deep breath.
“Okay, so I was on a ship, being chased by some of the shipmates.  I ran off, and passed your daughter, Blake, and-”
“Not that beginning, Mr. Wukong.”  Ghira interrupted.  Sun swallowed thickly.
“Right.”  He managed to get out.  “Well Blake’s just amazing.  She’s smart, fun, caring, considerate, really good at everything she does, determined, persistent, and she’s got the nicest eyes I’ve ever seen…”  He trailed off, a far-away look in his eyes.  Ghira and Kali shared a look.  Kali nodded and Ghira sighed.
“Well it sounds like you truly love her.”  Ghira noted.  Sun was brought back to the real world and looked at the large man.  “You have our blessing.”
Sun’s grin in that moment could put the actual sun to shame.  “Thank you!  I can’t even express-“
“But if you do anything to hurt her, you will wish you’d never been born.”  He warned.  Kali rolled her eyes, remembering that those were the exact words her father had told Ghira.  It clearly intimidated him, so he decided to re-use it.
Sun nodded vigorously, his grin only faltering slightly.  Nothing Ghira could say would upset him at this point.  He quickly rose to his feet and hugged Kali, who laughed and patted his back.  Sun moved to Ghira, but before he could wrap his arms around him, Ghira spoke.
“Don’t push your luck.”
Sun simply nodded before turning and running out the door, letting out little shouts of victory.  Ghira and Kali walked to the door, watching him disappear behind buildings.  Kali looked up to her husband, who had a small, fond smile on his face.  Kali smiled softly, kissing her husband on the cheek before disappearing back inside.
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A/n:  Repost!
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howlingday · 2 years
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a man needs a maid au) bleiss schnee was a down on her luck bastard with about a month left to live before the atlas mob killed her, if the cold didn't first, weiss schnee was a heiress with a chip on her shoulder and a desire to throw her father's many sins back in his face since her successful takeover of the company. what better way for the two of them to solve their problems than by hiring the bastard of jaquess as a maid for the main household? and why is bleiss weirdly good at her job?
"Oh, maaaaid!" Jacques Schnee was caught in a waking nightmare. He walked into the bedroom of his bastard daughter, who was spread out comfortably on her lavish, silk and velvet sheets, and stood straight.
"Yes, Mistress Gelé?"
"I demand my laundry to be attended to!"
"Right away, Mistress." Jacques nearly gagged as he lifted the hamper of soiled garments, carrying them out of the room. He passed his true benefactor, Weiss Schnee on the way out. She didn't even offer a glance.
The corporate takeover of the Schnee Dust Company was an arduous task, requiring years of quiet research and silent observation. Blake then caught a break looking through her father's deleted e-mails. Despite his claims of being a powerful business supergiant, he failed to understand the importance of good cleaning. She found an e-mail from one Mary Gelé, a former maid of the Schnee household until she was fired, around the same time she was conceived in her mother's womb. Reading the e-mail, she found that her father owed money for child support with the woman, which he refused.
Weiss copied the e-mail and began messaging Mary. What surprised her, however, was Mary's absence on arrival of her rendezvous. Mary had been dead for ten years, and the conversations were actually from her daughter, Bleiss. Her mother fell on hard times after she was abandoned. She held onto her child, hoping she would be blessed once more. And that blessing was Bleiss. Bleiss wasn't amused.
"What did you do this time?" Weiss asked her half-twin.
"What didn't I do?" Bleiss sneered. "If he thinks being my maid is going to make up for the shit my mom went through because he didn't want to own up, then he's in for a world of hurt."
Weiss scoffed. "At least hold some dignity."
"Oh, I've got dignity by the balls," she then cupped the air, then closed them into a fist, "and I'm ready to squeeze 'em!"
"The least you could do is act more cordial."
"And the least you could do is pull that stick from your ass." She then twirled to look outside. "If my mom saw where I was now, she'd be crying."
"That's... surprisingly sweet of you." Weiss replied.
"Yeah, and I'm crying because that stud isn't over more often." Bleiss turned towards Weiss. "Speaking of, when's his next visit?"
"There's no reason to invite Arc-"
"Abup bup bup!" Bleiss held a finger up, silencing Weiss. "Just because you missed your chance doesn't mean we all have to. And I've got three reasons right here."
Weiss rolled her eyes as her sister gestured to herself in the most vulgar manner. On their first meeting, Bleiss was dumbstruck by the blond gentleman. She followed him all night, laughing especially loud at his jokes, and trying to find any excuse to grab hold of him. It was adorable until she got home and revealed her plans of... monopolizing on his personal effects. She shuddered at the description.
"Mistress Gelé," Jacques announced, returning with an upright posture, "the laundry is in the wash."
"Good!" Bleiss barked. "Now you can get to work on scrubbing the bathroom. Make sure you get behind the toilet."
"Yes, Mistress." Jacques sighed in defeat, exiting to retrieve supplies.
"You know, my darling was right." Bleiss smiled. "A man does need a maid, but a woman deserves a good bitch."
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arc-misadventures · 2 years
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Jaune the Traitor: how do Blake and Adam react to some Atlas prick at Beacon badmouthing Jaune?
What Would, Jaune Do?
Adam: So… Here we are, Beacon Academy!
Blake: Wow… I’ve never seen buildings so tall before…
Adam: Yeah, nothing like this back home.
Blake: Maybe one day; Dad, and Jaune have been trying to get a CCT built in Menagerie for a while now.
Adam: Really? What’s stopping them?
Blake: Oh, the usual stuff: Atlas wanting a military presence on, Menagerie to maintain it. SDC, trying to get exclusive mining rights. Jaune’s head. The usual, really.
Adam: Ahh, okay… wait? Is people wanting, Jaune’s head normal?
Blake: People have always wanted his Jaune’s head, where, and how they wanted it is the question…
Adam: Wait, what do you mean by…?!
(BOOM)
Blake: W-Was that an explosion…?
Adam: Already?
Blake: Already?!
Adam: I won’t lie, this place blows up allot. So much so, that you kinda tend to faze it out.
Blake: Seriously…?
Adam: Yeah… This place is… is weird.
Blake: Okay…? Wait…? Is that a, Schnee?
Adam: Eh? Yeah… Isn’t that, Weiss Schnee the singer? Didn’t know she was training to become a, Huntress.
Blake: But, why is she here, shouldn’t she be in, Atlas?
Adam: Is there a reason she has to be in, Atlas?
Blake: No. Just wondering if there was… eh? What’s this?
Adam: A bottle of Dust, fire Dust.
Blake: Why is this… oh… that’s why. Hey, Schnee!
Adam: Eh, Blake what are you doing?
Weiss: Yes, excuse me?
Blake: You dropped your, Dust.
Weiss: Oh, why thank you.
Blake: A cork bottle? I thought you, Schnee’s had high standards for your items.
Weiss: Well, normally yes, we do, but…
Blake: Or, is this just another way to reduce costs and increase profits. At the expense of the workers no doubt, mostly, Faunas workers at that…?
Weiss: Excuse me?!
Adam: Oh no… Blake, what are you doing? Shit, uhh… what did, Jaune say I should do in this scenario…?
~~~
Jaune: Okay, listen here, Adam; knowing, Blake as we do, she will inevitably get involved in a fight about faunas rights, or against a racist, or something like that. Regardless of what, or whom started it, you must prevent this from happening! So, to do this, you need to act as the neutral party; the mediator of the group. You need to deescalate the problem, and try and resolve things in a peaceful manner. Even if it means taking a hit, or two. Considering this your training from me while your at, Beacon. Why? Well… it’ll be useful at some point in the future, trust me on this it will. Good luck!
~~~
Adam: Mediate and deescalate the problem… Sounds easy enough… Blake?
Blake: What?!
Adam: C-Calm down, Blake. She’s not Jackas… I mean, Jacques Schnee. She’s his daughter, not the man himself. I doubt she has any input on what he does.
Blake: True…
Adam: Besides, its the first day, don’t want to get into fights on the first day after all.
Blake: Haa… You’re right… Let’s just go…
Adam: Alright that’s…?
Weiss: Hey!
Adam: Yes?
Weiss: While, I’m glad to see you won’t be picturing me in the same light as my father… Do you think You don’t owe me an apology for what you said?
Adam: Eh…?
Weiss: You, falsely accuse me, of things I have no control over; Do you think I’m not owed an apology?
Adam: Not when you put it like that. But…
Blake: No. I’ll admit I was wrong to judge her for what her father does. But, I am not apologizing to a snobby brat like that!
Weiss: Excuse me?
Blake: You’re excused.
Adam: Blake, settle down
Blake: Do you think, Jaune, would allow this kind of talk; What do you think he would do?
Adam: He told me to do literally what I’m doing now.
Weiss: Wait… Did you say, Jaune…? As in, Jaune Arc…?
Adam: Yes, yes we did.
Weiss: You’re taking the advice of that traitorous bastard.
Blake: Excuse me…?
Weiss: Taking advice from the, Traitor on how you should do things?! Nothing he says should be taken seriously, one shouldn’t trust the words of a traitorous bastard!
Adam: …
~~~
Sienna: Okay, listen up, Bullbrain! If anyone, anyone at all insults my ma… I mean, Jaune! I don’t care if it’s you’re fellow classmates, or Ozpin himself, you better give them hell for what they said! Or else I’m going to rip your balls off, and make you choke on them! You hear me!
~~~
Adam: Well then, you better tell that to Atlas; considering half of their military doctrine is based after what he taught them.
Weiss: What, no it’s not?!
Adam: You’re right, it’s not. It’s on what we taught them, when we kicked their asses!
Weiss: You wouldn’t have won if you didn’t have the, Traitor on your side!
Adam: And you would have one, if you didn’t betray him in turn!
Weiss: He betrayed us first!
Adam: So, you’re saying that he should have just let the, Atlas military gun down helpless Faunas in cages?
Weiss: What, of course not!
Blake: So what you’re saying then is that he should have killed those soldiers, and what he did that day wasn’t treasonous?!
Weiss: He killed his fellow countrymen! That’s the very definition of a traitor!
Adam: Well maybe then…?!
Glynda: Enough!
Weiss: Huw…?
Blake: Wha…?
Adam: Oh shit…
Glynda: Ms. Belladonna, Ms. Schnee, orientation is about to begin, I recommend you continue this conversation… Later… Understood?
Weiss: Yes, Ma’am. My apologies.
Blake: I’m sorry. It’s at the auditorium, right?
Glynda: Correct; Head down this hall and enter the gate, and you’ll be there.
Blake: Thank you. Goodbye.
Glynda: Mr. Taurus…
Adam: Yes, Ms. Goodwitch?
Glynda: I was going to applaud you for deescalating that potential fight there, until you decided to escalate it yourself. Care to explain why you decided to aggravate, Ms. Schnee there?
Adam: I… I have no excuse, Ms. Goodwitch. I knew I shouldn’t have done it, but I did so anyway… I’m sorry, I’ll make sure I do better in the future.
Glynda: I see… Very well then. Since it’s the first day I’ll let you off with a warning.
Adam: Thank you, Ms. Goodwitch, I appreciate it!
Glynda: Good, now get going; you’re teammates need their leader.
Adam: Thank you again, Ma’am.
~~~
Adam: Phew… That was close… Maybe I shouldn’t listen to Sienna’s advice that much…?
: E-Excuse me!
Adam: Hmm? Oh hello, you look new… You lost?
: N-No, I’m not not lost, I just needed to ask you something.
Adam: Sure, what is it?
: Do… Do you know, Jaune Arc?
Adam: Yeah, before I came to, Beacon he was, well he still is my teacher.
: R-Really?!
Adam: Yeah…?
: W-Where is he, c-can I talk to him! Please, tell me!
Adam: Okay, who are you, and why do you want to talk with him…?
: Oh… Yeah, I should have said this from the beginning… My name is, Jeanne, Jeanne Arc!
Adam: What…?
Jeanne: Can you tell me about my older brother, please?!
\\\
Better explain a few things:
Adam, and Blake are different people since, Jaune saved, Adam, as it were. So he didn’t go full psychopath, and Blake never left to join him in the White Fang. So they’re personalities are different as a result of it.
As for Weiss’s destain for, Jaune. He is more or less hated by everyone in, Atlas. So, yeah… Weiss thinks the worse of him.
Also, Weiss is no prick. Early Weiss just fit for the overall story is all.
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➳the girl in the lilac dress ♠ ♡
in which y/n meets fred's ex-girlfriend, days after fred confessed his love for her. there's still some confusion on the status of their relationship. angst -> fluff. narrated by you, y/n l/n.
fred weasley x fem!reader
word count: ±5.4k
tw: angst (not too bad though), mean words, blood, mentions of auror missions, kidnapping, needles, st mungo's
drop a follow if you wanna see more of this content!!
my masterlist:D
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ft. hermione, lee and alicia
I don't wanna look at anything else now that I saw you
I don't wanna think of anything else now that I thought of you
the girl in the lilac dress
i was in a good mood. on the way to work to receive my mission, i was humming a song that had just come out. it was catchy and worth the wait.
out of the corner of my eye, a lilac colour appeared suddenly. strange, i thought. it approached me, in the form of a beautiful woman. she had the lightest grey eyes and the smoothest milky-white skin, and the shiniest locks of dark brown hair. she walked in a flowy lilac gown, her slim model-like body walking in a model-like fashion.
i was pretty sure she wasn't headed towards me, but when her luxurious voice said "good morning" in the calmest tone possible to me, i looked at her confusedly.
"hi!" i replied brightly, smiling.
she smiled sinisterly, "my name is pretoria aphrodite, i'm fred's ex-girlfriend."
he hadn't ever mentioned an ex, but i knew he had dated quite a few people. she made me seem like a glass of water next to a glass of red wine, naive and ugly. i was those two things anyway.
"oh! i'm y/n l/n! nice to meet you, you do seem like a daughter of aphrodite," i said politely.
"darling, all women are daughters of aphrodite. i understand fred's interested in you?"
she observed me and i laughed.
"i don't think that's quite the word. he's my best friend."
"friends with benefits?"
"oh gosh no! i don't really know where we stand, honestly."
"bitter about it?"
i thought for a second, "nah, i couldn't be. love's a hard thing."
"it is, indeed, and you work for the ministry?"
i nodded, "head of the auror office. what about you?"
"i model for witch weekly."
i gasped, "you're the p. aphrodite? i should've known!"
"big fan?" she looked amusedly at me.
"my friends are, so naturally i am."
"you don't seem the type fred usually goes for."
"i wouldn't say he's even going for me," i said cautiously.
"you are much too cutesie for his type."
i glanced up at her. she was smiling kindly.
"pfft, but better cutesie than nothing, amirite?" i asked friendlily, "well it's been nice to talk with you, but i gotta hurry!"
"no worries, i'll come with you, i have some business at the ministry too. have you seen his past exes?"
"uhh, not really?"
"well they're all models for one magazine or another."
"oh, okay. and that's important because...?" i asked her carefully.
"i just thought you should know."
i laughed, "i'm not model material, am i? i don't mind at all."
she looks taken aback. "i would say, with longer hair," she plucked a hair out of my poor mess of locks, "and a shorter upper body, with perhaps lip fillers, you'd look model-like."
her tone was analysing and not at all attacking.
"only three things??" i asked, shocked.
"you are rather... pretty already," she mused, "not model-like, but cute."
we had reached the ministry.
"thanks, see you later!" she waved and disappeared.
all that was left was a buzzing fly which soon flew away.
i immediately dialled in my auror code in the red telephone box and was sent into hermione granger's office.
"'mione! how good to see you!" i hugged her.
"hello y/n!"
in the ministry and the auror department, the head of the auror office was probably more important than the minister for magic. i didn't know why. she had brought me a cup of hot chocolate.
"thanks, 'mione, you didn't need to. what's the mission today?"
"two babies are being held hostage in a coded location by a person who calls themselves the light lord. dark lord, light lord, y'know?" she handed me a coded piece of parchment.
i thoughtfully pondered, "the light lord. who do you need?"
"i was hoping you go on this mission, then you could give me some news on this light lord person."
"that's doable. we'll need to bring in hepole and a ministry official to negotiate passports and such. and a strong auror team."
"right on it. i'll get wally becker and charlotte-ann becker. they're a force to be reckoned with on the borders."
"how much experience?"
"they're twins, been doing this for about fifty years now."
"perfect. and hepole?"
"on the way."
"thanks, minister," i winked at her, getting out my telephone and dialling the disguise unit.
"hello, poplinn speaking."
"pop, we need a few disguises. light lord."
"miss l/n! o-of course!"
"and pop?"
"y-yeah?"
"call me y/n."
i hung up, dialling harry's office.
"harry, call draco and be in my office in ten minutes. i don't care what business he's doing with scorpius, we've got babysitters here. light lord, perhaps a second of voldemort."
"of course."
i picked up the ringing phone that was in the corner of hermione's office.
"y/n, me and scorpy are having a zoo day, we're at the muggle zoo you suggested."
"sorry dray, but it's important."
"there's no one else?"
"there are others, but we need your expertise."
there was a pause, "i won't need to show my dark mark?"
"it's fading anyway. no."
"i'll be paid?"
"in hundreds."
"how old are the children?"
"2 and 4," hermione said.
the silence told me he was sold.
"i'll be there."
i picked up the big microphone and said, "auror unit 156 to the brief room. no need to bring anything. see you there!"
"good luck," hermione grimly said, "be safe, head."
"mhm and cup o' coffee tomorrow? if i survive, that is," i grinned.
"'course."
i smiled, "c'ya!"
she was shaking her head.
"oi, no disappointment, 'mione! i was the one who got the ministry out of paperwork!"
"burning paper doesn't count, y/n."
"it wasn't burning paper, hermione granger, it was arson."
"no, it was the saddest form of arson i've ever seen."
"hey! that's rude."
"just go on your mission already."
i laughed, "on it, minister. kalle?"
kalle looked at me, "yes?"
"tell miss minister to take a break and play a game or something, will you?"
she smiled, "okay."
"give my thanks to your mother too, loved the cookies!"
"alright, good luck, head!"
"thanks, bye!"
i apparated to the brief room, where everyone was strapped into special camouflage clothes.
i handed hepole the parchment and immediately began briefing the unit, harry and draco, on the mission.
"please be safe out there. if you're injured, apparate or travel back here, okay?"
i looked at hepole.
he cleared his throat, "they're in albania. the forest there."
"okay. harry and draco will provide attacking forces," the two nodded.
"i want lopex, quentin blake, quentin grill and hilly to break into any establishment," i say to the team, "and eron, hawks, melv, argonas to hold the offender hostage. johnathan, team healer as always. i'll take the children. hepole, you come and accompany us till the forest, then you have my permission to stay back, and beckers, stay invisible with the cloak, write a report for the minister when you come back, understand? have faith, team! i believe in you. we travel by apparition with the machine in three minutes. call your family, chat, have a snack, drink some water, and relax."
i picked up my telephone and dialled my parents.
"hi mum, dad, i'm going on a mission!"
"alright, be safe sweetie," my mum called.
"yeah, don't die kiddo," my dad added.
"right right, i love you, bye!"
the mission was successful. we rescued the children and sent the kidnapper to trial for azkaban. i escaped with a gash on my forearm, but quickly fixed it up with a spell. it ended late in the evening, so the team healer had gone home. the wound kept opening again, but i wasn't sure if it needed stitches.
putting everything away and making sure the aurors were okay, i headed back to the apartment i shared with fred.
i felt emotionally and physically drained, ready to enjoy a good shower and a good late dinner.
when i fiddled with the key to the door and opened it, my heart absolutely stopped.
pretoria aphrodite was kissing fred passionately. i felt my heart fall ten thousand flights of stairs in disappointment. of course. i was all a rebound who was pathetically in love with him.
when they stopped and saw me, pretoria smirked and fred stood up, astounded.
"uhh, continue? sorry," i apologised awkwardly.
"wait, y/n, it's not what it looks like-" he said.
"i don't mind, be safe," i smiled, too tired and too weak to do anything, closing the door and feeling tears well up in my eyes as i took my bag and myself somewhere. anywhere away from this all. my wound burned. i cursed under my breath as i made my way to st mungo's.
"y/n, you should have come here earlier!" yvonne, my friend, says, as she slowly injects a needle into me, "it's infected! and it needs stitches."
i laughed, "everything needs stitches. this is why i didn't become a healer, yvonne."
she shook her head in dismay.
"lol."
i watched the needle go in.
then she stitched the bloody mess of a wound up, cleaning it gently.
"now i can't stay, y/n," i pouted, "no, don't give me that face, i have other patients."
i nodded, "thanks yvonne."
"no problems. take care. you're too reckless."
"am not!"
she laughed. "that's funny."
after the trip to st mungo's which was pretty short, i wondered what to do. my mind kept floating to the scene i had just witnessed.
i was just the stupid, stupid, girl he used as a rebound. he didn't even use me as a real rebound, just someone who was simply infatuated with him to help him forget his unforgettable ex.
looking at a shop window, i caught a glimpse of myself. i hated being insecure but it happened.
i looked ugly. eyes too small, nose too big, lips not full enough. my thighs touched and i didn't have abs. i had a long gash running down my forearm, surrounded by other cuts. my hair was messy and disgusting. compared to the angel on earth pretoria was, i was nothing. small and plain was nothing when luxurious and beautiful was present.
and it hurt. my heart hurt. my head hurt.
i shook my head gently of my thoughts, chuckling bitterly.
fred weasley was completely and utterly out of my league.
whatevs, i thought. hurting was fine.
deciding to get over him once and for all, i bought some groceries and apparated to the doorstep of lee and alicia's glamorous cottage.
i knocked twice on the door. "hellooo!" i called out.
"baby, can you get that?" lee asked alicia.
alicia opened the door, smiling as she saw me.
"hey ali!"
"hi! come in!"
at first glance i could tell she knew something wrong.
"can i sleep here tonight? and take a shower? and eat some of your food please guys? and maybe steal a shirt i left here for safekeep? and maybe use your telephone? i'm really sorry for troubling you, so i got you guys snacks."
i was the second cousin by marriage of lee. it was good overall, but he was super naughty.
"snacks?"
"your favourites."
"then i guess you can," he said cheekily and i laughed.
"alicia, i don't know how or why you ended up with this child, but i'm glad you did," i told her and she laughed heartily.
"he's cute, isn't he?"
"no," i quickly stepped into the guest bedroom and took a long shower, letting a few tears slip but not enough so that it looked like it. i was subtle.
i bundled up in heavy clothing and wrapped my hair in a towel.
gingerly, i bandaged the wound.
by the snores in the other room, lee was asleep. i crept out quietly, going to cook something.
alicia was sitting down, with my favourite comfort meal prepared. i felt tears of appreciation well up in my eyes.
"thank you, ali, i love you."
"you damn well do."
we both giggled.
"what happened?" she asked me.
"nothing. i just wanted a change."
"from fred? liar. i'll ask again. what happened, y/n?"
"just a long mission, that's all."
"after long missions you usually watch movies with fred."
"couldn't i visit my best friend and my cuz?"
"you visit us on weekends. it's a friday."
"well i wanted to visit you!"
"bullshit."
"is it that hard to believe?"
"what the fuck did fred do to you?"
"nothin'?"
"c'mon y/n, you have to tell me. there's a reason why you didn't go to angie and george's tonight."
"i went here because they're super kissy. you guys have space and act normally. i appreciate that."
"you're awesome at lying."
"i'm not lying!"
"does this happen to involve pretoria aphrodite?"
i nodded, sighing, "she's so nice and pretty." i played with my food.
"i bumped into her. she's pretty, but not nice."
"oh?"
"she called me fiercely ugly. she forgot i model for witch weekly too."
"what did you say back?"
"i told her to fuck off."
i laughed, "she was very nice to me. but next time i see her imma kill her."
"of course she was nice to you, you're a lil angel! anyway, she's an animagus, didya know?"
"whoa how did you know?"
"caught her in a jar. she's a fly. who do you think told hermione to catch rita skeeter in the jar?"
i laughed, "rita skeeter is a beetle! gosh, she's annoying."
"what did fred and pretoria do?"
"nothing."
"please tell me?"
"they-" i swallowed, "they were kissing, and so i came here because i didn't wanna watch anymore."
"hang on, he told you he loved you a few days ago?"
i nodded.
"that doesn't seem right."
i shrugged, "pretoria's better than me. i don't blame him."
"his mother would kill him!"
i shrugged again, "i don't think he was legit when he said that."
"molly weasley, y/n!"
"look, he can explain it to you, i don't even wanna hear it. the first stage of mourning is denial, they say."
"doesn't mean it's good."
"denial is awesome. it's ignorance, but you choose to be stupid. i'm already so stupid!" i groaned, covering my face with my hands, "so so so so so so so stupid, foolish, dumb, and i don't want you to tell me i'm not because i know i am. pathetic."
i gobbled down the rest of the meal, "ths 's delicous," i said, swallowing, "g'night!"
"don't be afraid to let it all out."
"yeah."
i shut the door softly, before brushing my teeth and collapsing exhaustedly on the bed, nodding off quickly.
the next day, i woke at 4am, and put on new clothes, apparating to the phone box and filling out paperwork for the missions yesterday.
i joined hermione quickly, handing her a cappucino and sipping my mocha.
"court sitting this early?" she asked me.
i nodded, "mistake of sirius black, now they do all court sittings within 24 hours of arrest."
"that's smart."
"yeah. it's good. he's obviously guilty right? just a dust of veritaserum to bring it all out?"
"i reckon he'll just confess."
"criminals don't go down easily."
"you guys did a spotting job. the children were unharmed."
"are they here today?"
"they're in st mungo's. being monitored."
"parents?"
"dead."
"oh gosh, those poor children. what's going to happen to them?"
"someone's adopting them, wally becker and his wife."
"that's awesome."
the court hushed as we entered the room. hermione and i shared amused glances and began the sitting.
he was found to be guilty and was chucked in azkaban.
"what an idiot, sending a message like that."
"yup," i chuckled, "what with hepole in our ministry, they never escape."
we laughed.
"how's everything with ron?" i asked her.
"i don't know if he's still into me?"
i almost laugh at her statement, "bro. of course he is."
"i never see him."
"then see him more!"
"how? i'm so busy!"
"busy enough for ron?" we both took sandwiches from the canteen lady with courteous smiles and words.
we sat down at the cafeteria.
"i guess not, but he's busy!"
"busy enough for you?"
"i guess not."
"'xactly."
"but he might not wanna go on a date."
"why? the boy's obsessed with you, 'mione!"
the aurors and ministry workers looked at us in fear as i rose up. i chuckled.
i immediately skipped over to the telephone, putting in the WWW's number.
"y/n! what on earth are you doing?" hermione said in a panicked tone.
"nothing to be worried 'bout."
"hello?" it was george. i thanked the heavens for that.
"yolo george, give the phone to your lil bro please."
"'kay."
hermione was gaping at me. i smirked at her.
"y/n?"
"hey ron, i want you to meet me in rosemary park at 5pm today."
"o-okay."
"could you also bring hermione's favourite snacks and wear an extra jumper?"
"what? why?"
"i'm curious, that's all," i said, "see you there!"
"is that y/n?" i heard fred's voice.
"nup, it isn't," i replied.
and with that, i hung up.
"hey 'mione?"
she was glaring at me, "what."
"meet me at rosemary park at 5pm?" i batted my eyelashes at her, before bursting out in laughter.
she laughed, "i love you."
"pfft, love ya too. you really are too careful. like he would reject you."
"what do you think i should wear?"
"let's go off work early today, at 3," i suggested, "we're both on top of our work anyway."
"okay! you wanna go now?"
"it's 11?"
"yeah!"
"alrighty! kalle!"
kalle turned to us, "yes?"
"hi! me and minister are going out to talk about the mission."
"alright, bye."
we apparate to hogsmeade.
"what theme do you wanna go for?"
"hmm," she thought for a second, "floral!"
"alrighty!" i fumbled for my cell phone and dialled the WWW's again.
"hello?" it was fred this time.
"heyo freddie," i said to him like nothing had ever happened, "tell ron to dress up at 5 pm in something cute but not too out there, preferably in florals or somethin', and he better bring me hermione's favourite flowers."
"wha? if he's going with you then- ohhhh."
"thanks, bye."
"wait!"
"mhm?"
"can we talk?"
"erm- about what exactly?"
"everything."
i sighed, "later, okay? i'm out with hermione and you've got work."
"okay. have a good time, lovely."
"you too."
i was utterly confused. here he was one day kissing pretoria, and now he was calling me lovely?
what the hell was going on?
"let's go, mione!"
we went and bought her a pretty pink dress with white lilies adorning it. it was cute and definitely casual, sort of like a sundress.
"what if he doesn't come?" hermione chewed on her lip.
"hermione jean granger, we both know that ron is absolutely definitely a thousand times head over heels in love with you. he wouldn't ditch you for the world! and look at you! anyone can see he's lucky to have you! you both are star-crossed. when has he ever ever ditched you?"
"with lav brown."
"lavender, she's, she's dead, hermione," i said carefully, "fenrir greyback bit her to death. it was a tragic, heroic, death. she was listed in the extended casualties sent to my office a few months after the battle. i think she's watching down on us from wherever she is up there."
"she's dead?"
"yeah," i replied sadly, "life is so short."
"yeah."
"what i'm tryna say, is that that might've happened, but it won't happen again now that he knows you love him and he loves you. understand?"
"yeah."
"and love him well, for the sake of lavender brown."
"for the sake of lavender brown," she said, smiling.
"yup, now, light lord. his name is actually pont knight."
"pont knight?"
"former assistant of me."
"pont knight?"
"yeah, i know right."
"how did he go again?"
"oh, i fired him," i laughed.
"why?"
"smart guy but terribly lazy and he kept asking for promotions! like please do something if you want money."
"interesting."
"he moved to eastern europe to chase after the trendiness of the islands. i think it was just an excuse. he's changed. he used to be clean-shaven and have the blondest hair."
"do you think he did anything else?"
"we did put him on veritaserum, right?"
"yeah, but it's illegal to put someone on it for more than 10 minutes now in court sittings."
"we could go visit him in azkaban later? i'll take gregir."
"yeah, maybe tomorrow or the day after?"
i nodded, "'course. today is a rest day for the aurors right?"
she nodded, "yeah, half of the agency is at home or working out in the gym."
"good. sometimes this work is so tolling, 'mione."
"yeah, i heard from st mungo's you got hurt?" her eyes were concerned.
i rolled up my sleeve, "that's it."
"that's it? what do you mean, that's terrible! you need to take better care of yourself."
"well sometimes it's hard to. it was worth it."
we continued chatting until it was 4:30.
"oop!" she checked her watch, "i have to go!"
"good luck! tell me how it goes, minister! i'll head back to check if anyone's called for you or me and dust it all up."
"thanks. i owe you."
"nah. i owe my job to you. if minister for magic didn't exist, i wouldn't either. i love you 'mione, be safe!"
"love you too!"
i apparated to the phone box and typed my letters in.
with a whoosh, i immediately spotted two letters and a beeping phone. i answered the phone, solving the problem of the woman on the other end of the line and scribbled a reply to both of the letters.
i finished the paperwork and sent it off, then visited my office. it was piling with letters. i answered all of them, redirecting some of them to different departments, before calling everyone back.
i spotted some of the aurors from yesterday's mission sitting in the cafeteria and talking.
i sat down next to them, "how are you guys doing? any injuries?"
they shook their heads, "we've been spending time in the healer's office and just exercising lightly by the orders of johnny," argonas explained and i nodded.
"take it lightly, and go home if you want to. seeing family always helps the process, hopefully not too many nightmares?"
they laughed, "nightmares all the time, miss," hawk said lightly, "get used to it in this job."
i frowned, "have you tried speaking to doctor yvonne? she might have ways to solve nightmares."
"ahh, miss, sleeping draughts can only do so much," hawk replied cordially.
i laughed, "alright, hawkeye, but just make sure you're not getting traumatised okay? what about you, lopex, quentins?"
they shrugged.
"it's okay? the door was very hard to bust into," lopex said quietly, "we had to try several bombarding charms."
"now, lop, it was easy work!" draco said, sitting down, "hello, head auror, hello unit."
it brought on a cacophony of greetings.
"how are you doing, dray?" harry sat down next to him, "hi everyone!"
we all replied with more greetings and a steady conversation started and flowed for a couple of hours.
i felt my cell phone go off and i excused myself, noting it was 9pm already.
i apparated to the apartment doorstep, knocking on the door just in case anything was happening. i checked the caller id, it was hermione.
fred opened the door, hair messy, still good looking. i smiled at him, patting his shoulder as i ran to the ringing telephone and picked it up.
"y/n!" i could just hear the beam in hermione's voice.
"'mione! how did it go?"
"absolutely wonderful, head auror, ahhh, he's so cute!"
"what happened?" i asked, smiling already.
"well it was really cold when i saw the picnic blanket, which was matching my dress for some weird reason, and ron was there in the cutest button up and he looked so handsoME and he gave me a flower, he's always handsome but i just can't! ahhhh!" she squealed and i clapped my hands in excitement.
"and then i was shivering and he gave me hiS JUMPER and it smelled like him and oh my gosh i think i might just be in love, y/n!"
i giggled, "my cooling charm did work!"
"whaT y/n????"
cackling, i said, "continue, i wanna hear more this is so adorable!!!"
i ignored the dirty glance fred gave me, quietening my voice.
"and then we had food and he said he had cooked it himself and was being such a dear and i told him that i loved him over and over again!!!"
i squealed silently again.
"and, and, gosh my english has gone out of the window!"
"english is nothing compared to the language of love!!" i giggled.
"we watched the sunset whilst cuddling, and i fell asleep and then when i woke up i was in his bed and he was looking at me intently and i just, i'm the luckiest girl alive!"
"you are but you deserve it! that's so sweet! i'm happy for you goshhh, you are the cutest couple. you're both such darlings!"
"and then we watched a muggle movie and he got scared of the spiders and it was so adorable ahhhhHHHH!!!"
"that's the cutesttttt," i gushed.
another dirty look from fred. i gave him a frown back.
"and then he walked me home and it started raining and we kissed in the rain and another check off of my bucketlist and oh my gosh he's so perfect."
"oh gosh that's beautiful," i was smiling uncontrollably.
"anyway," her tone changed into one of mischief, "wanna meet up tomorrow to talk about it?"
"sure thing! when and where? i'll be there!"
"erm, lemme chec- think," i heard the suspicious rustling of papers.
"you're sus. let's just talk about it over the phone. i don't want anything weird."
"how about 10 am in the morning at the field of fireflies?"
"that's a highly romantic place, miss minister. isn't it for couples or something?"
"no? you must be talking about fiona farm."
oh. "yeah, probs, well okay, it better have good coffee. i'm dying of boredom too, does it have a playground??" i asked, hopefully crossing my fingers.
"nope."
"awww, shucks, i don't think i'll go then. you wanna come over though?"
"no please come! there's a surprise!"
i was sold, "lovely. i'll be there at 9:30!"
"no, no, don't do that."
"what the hell, hermione, you're being so suspicious!"
"i'm not, okay? just come on time, you won't regret it."
"if there's any funny business i'm not committing arson ever again."
"oh crap."
i sighed.
"just come anyway!!! good night cheerio!!!"
"what the-"
the line ended.
i frowned, noticing the glare fred gave me yet again.
"is everything okay??" i asked him.
"no," he said rudely.
"well, do you need any help?"
"no."
"how was your day?"
"fine."
i sighed, "okay."
"you called ron cute."
i laughed lightly, "that's it?? and so what's kissing a girl huh, nothing? i called him cute because he treats 'mione like a goddess, because she is a goddess, for goodness sake. and he is cute, in a completely objective way," i added absentmindedly, "all you weasleys are."
he frowned.
"she kissed me!"
"oh i don't mind, i couldn't. my two braincells can't handle it. you kiss whoever you wanna, okay? live, laugh, love, and all that." i smiled.
he was silent.
"and we can talk after i meet up with hermione, okay?"
"okay."
"we don't needa if you don't wanna, of course. g'night."
"have a nice sleep."
the next morning, i got up and went to the field of fireflies or whatever.
it was a beautiful place. it was a full on field. meadows stretched across the near english countryside. the sky was clear and light, and the world around me was stunning.
winds blew from all directions, and i soon found myself accio!ing a jumper.
"hermioneeee???" i called, "you're leaving me hanging."
had hermione stood me up? i chuckled at the very thought, soon rolling in the field of flowers as i laughed.
"hermione you devil you stood me up! you left your poor little work wife hanging!" i shouted dramatically.
i suddenly spotted a little house? by the side of the meadow.
i ran towards it.
"whoa."
it was absolutely magnificent. beige little bricks were stacked on top of each other, grey bricks dotted in. the shillings were dark green, and plants hung out everywhere in the cracks of the house.
large windows which reflected the blue light in the sky spanned across the whole house, and a single wooden door stood ajar.
i just wish i had brought a camera. i sat on the grass, playing with the hem of my jumper sadly. even hermione didn't have time for me. i wondered what a sad person i must seem like.
"contemplating life there?" i heard a far off voice. i swung my head around, seeing fred standing and grinning.
yeah well duh i was, no thanks to you, i thought.
i immediately got up.
"we can talk here, right?" fred asked, as he brought me into the house.
"wow," inside, it was cluttered and messy, with plants sprouting everywhere and bookcases and things everywhere. i loved it.
"you like it?" he asked.
"love it."
"good, because i bought it," he laughed at my flabbergasted expression, "i'm rich, darlin'. let's sit, i cooked lunch."
"was this your plan? to have hermione stand me up?" i asked.
"love, i wouldn't call this a plan. simply just a boy trying to explain himself."
"look i don't need an explanation. i told you, you can love whoever you wanna, i don't mind, i don't care, i support."
"but i'm gonna have to explain because i wanna kiss you."
"then go ahead," i sighed, "if you're lying i will stab you."
"jeesh okay."
i looked at him.
"oh yeah, i forgot the food, here," he said casually, handing me a plate filled with yummy looking delicacies. i was willing to put up with his rubbish story telling for the food, i guess.
"alright, i'm all ears."
"okay. so she talked with you right?"
i nodded.
"did she take a piece of hair from you?”
i nodded again.
"so you came home just right about when the night lights flicker on in london. or so i thought it was you. it was actually, aphrodite, yeah? in polyjuice potion. and she knocked on the door, which i thought was strange. i opened it and she immediately kissed me, as you. and it was weird but it was you and i would give the world to kiss you like that," he said bluntly and i could feel my face heating up, "and then it went like that for a few seconds and she turned into pretoria, and by then the woman had her claws on me. then the door opened and i knew i had made a mistake and then you left and apologised so sweetly. i'm so so sorry, my love, please, i never meant to hurt you, i never meant to do anything. i broke up with her last year. i haven't wanted to be with her since. i want to be with you."
i looked at him. i knew he was genuine.
"okay. i'm sorry too, for not trusting you. i guess i was just really unsure of our relationship. it's still kinda blurry."
"what do you wanna be?"
"could we be official, please?"
he grinned, "of course."
then smiling sheepishly, he added, "can i kiss you now?"
"only if i'm the only girl you kiss from now on," i teased, smiling.
he blushed, placing my hands over his heart. it was beating very very fast.
"feel that, beautiful?"
i nodded.
"only you."
he gave me a cheesy grin and laughed at my blushing face, before tilting my head upwards and going in for a kiss but kissing my cheek.
"that's not fair!"
and that's how his head ended up falling into my lap, as i ran my fingers through his ginger strands.
he had fallen asleep just as the sunset began.
it was breathtaking. hues of orange and red danced across the sky.
"i can think of something a lot more beautiful than that," fred said, smiling.
"oh?"
"yeah. yeah."
"i don't believe you."
"that's because you can't see yourself right now."
145 notes · View notes
wonderswritings · 3 years
Text
Fighting For... Nevermind
Summary: We survived the end of the world, again. What used to separate us, now unites us. What was just supposed to be ten years asleep, turned into a hundred twenty five. Now we’re somewhere new, a planet with unknown variables. We’ve been fighting for so long, maybe this time we can settle down. Maybe this time, we don’t have to fight.
Warnings: The 100 Themes so blood and gore I guess
Pairings: Bellamy Blake x Fem!Reader, Clarke Griffin x Twin!Fem!Reader
Fighting For… Masterlist
S6 Masterlist
Previous // Next
Tags are Open!
Previously:
“Show me how to be YN enough to fool her mother because no nightblood, no drive.” “Good luck with that. YN and her mother have never been close.”
“Families on the ark were only allowed one child. Abby gave YN up and she lived in the skybox till we went to earth. Then when YN’s daughter was killed, Abby told her it was her fault.”
“What happened?” “Bellamy’s sister happened.” “And she was with Bellamy, romantically.”
“He found out that I wasn’t YN.”
“You don’t get it. If Bellamy knows that YN is dead- then all of this is for nothing.
“We’re all the hero of our own story.”
“Who else knows?” “Nobody yet. Just us.” “Clarke?” “She’s been with Abby in the library.”
“For what, another war? Is that really what YN would want?”
“I don’t know what YN would want. It’s too bad we can’t ask her.”
“I loved her! I loved her and she’s dead!” “I know man, I know, okay? And I’m sorry, but she’s dead. YN is dead. She’s gone.”
“I know you’re in pain. I know you want revenge. I would too.”
“Abby and Clarke are showing them how to make nightblood.” “I take it she doesn’t know that one of her daughters is dead. You’re gonna have to kill her, too. Same goes for Clarke, her twin. You think my need for revenge is strong?”
“If killing him is what you need, then do it, but let the violence end here, an eye for an eye.”
“YN is dead.” “So when do we attack?” “We don’t.”
“We do what YN would have done. We survive.”
“What’s wrong?” “It’s YN. She- she’s dead. I’m so sorry Madi.”
“I’m so sorry. I- I love you.”
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Gasping, I jerked forward, my chest heaving.
“What the hell?”
I looked around the room, making a face. This didn’t look like the room full of skeletons, though as I looked down, maybe it is. The blue dress Delilah had given me for the party was gone, and instead I was wearing the clothes I wore on the Ark. I stood up, from the bed, looking around the room. Clarke’s sketches filled the walls, overlapping. There were a few of mine mixed into the clutter, but they were all my memories. There was a desk across from the bed, piled with journals. I walked to it, picking one up and flipping it open, recognizing my hand writing. I read it, gasping.
“I love you.”
Maria shook her head, turning.
“I’m sorry.”
“Maria-”
“I- I promised myself and Delani that I wouldn’t say anything but I- I just needed you to know.”
I stood up, walking towards Maria, grabbing her hand and turning her towards me, placing my hands on her cheeks, leaning up and softly kissing her before I leaned back.
“I- I love you too. But loving me is a death sentence.”
I shook my head as I closed the journal, laying it down on the desk. I looked up at the wall, running my hand over the drawing.
“Surrender trikdaun. Surrender and this can all end today.” (shadow stalker)
I shook my head as I winced, Octavia’s sword cutting into my chest.
“Never.”
Octavia opened her mouth to say something when there was a yell, both of us turning. My eyes widened as Octavia moved her sword away from me, swinging it out towards Maria.
“No!”
I shoved Octavia back as I ran towards Maria, catching her in my arms, my knees slamming into the floor as I fell down. I shook my head as I placed my hands over Maria’s stomach, applying pressure.
“What did you do? What did you do?!”
Maria winced as she reached up, placing her hand on my cheek, her thumb moving across my cheekbone.
“I’m sorry.”
I shook my head, tears blurring my vision.
“Stop. You need to save your strength.”
“I’m sorry I’m doing this.”
I huffed, looking around for something to use to stop the blood.
“Doing what?”
“Dying.”
I shook my head, reaching up and wiping the tears so I could see.
“You’re not dying.”
“It doesn’t hurt anymore.”
“You’re gonna be okay, you hear me? You’re gonna be just fine.”
She smiled weakly as I sobbed, blood coating her mouth.
“I love you.”
I sniffled, leaning down, kissing her.
“I love you too.”
Her hand fell down to her side as I leaned back up, watching as a trail of blood dripped from her mouth, her chest no longer moving.
I gasped, stumbling back. I shook my head as I turned, looking around the room. There was a drawing of when I killed Finn, the day Mount Weather attacked me and Banto, me and Bellamy kissing the night the grounders attacked. Raelyn playing with her doll was below it, causing tears to form in my eyes. There was another drawing of me in my cell on the Ark, my dad beside me as I leaned into him.
“You could be happy here.”
“This’ll be fun, what’s the worst that could happen?”
“You and your sister, trouble follows you both.”
“Promise me, you’ll come back to me.” “I promise.”
“I love you, so don’t go doing anything stupid.”
“He’ll hate you for it.” “Yeah well, he’s not here and I don’t care.”
I made a face as the voices got louder, walking towards the door. I stopped in front of it, hesitating before I opened the door, making a face as there was a bright light, stepping out into my room in the bunker, my clothes changing into my Nyxlana outfit. I walked further into the room, hearing someone humming. I balled my hand into a fist as I turned the corner, my eyes widening as I gasped.
“Ai niron.” (my love)
Maria smiled, opening her arms. I shook my head as I crashed into her, taking a deep breath as I felt the sting of tears.
“How is this possible? How are you here?”
Maria sighed softly as she leaned back, looking down at me.
“What's the last thing you remember?”
I made a face, thinking back on the room of skeletons, Russell and Simone fighting before Russell injected something into my neck.
“I died.”
Maria nodded, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the table, sitting me down in the chair before she sat across from me.
“You rest.”
“It’s over. I- I’ve been fighting for so long.”
Maria nodded, smiling slightly.
“I know you have.”
“I never thought I’d see you again. I- I didn’t get to say goodbye to Madi, to Clarke.”
I sniffled, shaking my head as I looked over at Maria.
“I didn’t get to say goodbye to Bellamy.”
There was a clash of thunder, causing me to jump as I turned, looking around.
“What the hell?”
I made a face, looking over at Maria.
“We’re in a bunker, why is it thundering?”
Maria shot me a look, causing me to sigh as realization hit.
“It started when I got upset.”
“Niron, listen, what do you hear?”
I tilted my head to the side, shooting Maria a look.
“Rain? Which seriously, that should be impossible because we’re underground, in a bunker.”
She laughed, shaking her head.
“I’m serious. Focus. Between the raindrops, what else do you hear?”
I took a deep breath, closing my eyes as I listened. I could still hear the rain, which was still weird but the longer I listened, I heard it. A steady thumping sound, and the longer I listened to it, the louder it got.
“A heartbeat.”
I opened my eyes, looking over at Maria.
“I’m still alive.”
I made a face, shaking my head.
“No, no. I- I saw it. He killed me.”
“He didn’t.”
“You’re just in my head. I- the bunker was the worst part of my life, but you and Raelyn made it worth it. I loved being with you and her, even if I was still upset over Bellamy, so here you are. Because we’re both dead, and he’s alive.”
Maria stood up, pulling me up out of the seat, wrapping her arms around me.
“Oh niron.”
I shook my head, leaning back, looking up at her.
“I don’t understand. Am I dreaming?”
“This place is reacting to you niron. So we’re just in your subconscious somehow, but beyond that, there are no answers for you here YN.”
Maria nodded towards the door, gently pushing me towards it.
“So go on. Go figure this out. I’ll be here if you need me.”
I stopped at the door, turning back towards Maria.
“I love you.”
Maria smiled, closing the distance between us, placing a soft kiss on my lips.
“Forever. Go on.”
I nodded, turning and opening the door. There was another flash of bright light, causing me to close my eyes. When I opened them again the light was gone, and I was no longer in the bunker. Instead I was standing in a hall on the ark, jumping when I heard someone scream.
“Sanctum is mine!”
I turned, looking around when I saw a bright red door, a wreath hanging on it.
“What the hell is going on?”
I turned when a door creaked open, slightly tilting my head to the side.
“It is reacting to me.”
I walked down the hall, pulling the door open. The door closed behind me as my clothes changed, causing me to look down, seeing I was wearing the grounder outfit Lexa had given me.
“Hello Miss Griffin.”
I shook my head as Allie turned, taking a step back.
“No. I pulled the kill switch. I destroyed you.”
“And I saved you.”
I made a face, tilting my head to the side.
“What?”
“Why do you think you’re still here? I may be gone, but this precious depository of your memories is here because of me. You’re welcome.”
“The neural mesh is still in my head. It must have interfered with the drug they used to wipe my mind.”
“Correct, and so you see, you exist because of me. But you won’t if they figure out how you freed Raven.”
I turned when she walked towards the wall, nodding at the drawing.
“We emp’d the chip, but only in Raven and Abby, not me.”
“If I were you, and in a way I am, I’d keep this memory safe.”
She held her hand over the drawing, flashes of that night appearing before she clenched her hand, pulling the drawing off the wall. She closed her hand around it, and when she opened it, the drawing was transformed into one of the City of Light chips. I took the chip from her hand, placing it in the pocket inside my vest, hidden by my jacket.
“Thank you. But, for the record, you tried to steal all those memories you’re now saving.”
“I tried to spare you the pain and horror of your existence.”
“There is no joy without pain.”
Allie nodded, turning as she looked over my memories.
“I never did understand humans. Those painful memories aren’t even here. They’re cast away deep in your mind, where you don’t have to face them, and yet- you can’t let them go.”
I made a face, tilting my head to the side.
“Wait, you said this is a repository of my memories.”
She nodded, looking over at me.
“Yes.”
“But there’s something there I’ve never seen.”
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I was back in the hallway, no longer wearing my grounder clothes, instead wearing the clothes I was wearing in Sanctum. I walked towards the door, making a face.
“Sanctum is mine!”
There was screaming and gunshots as I reached for the door handle, the door flying open.
“Proximity alert.”
I stepped back, seeing the shadow of a person as I kept my distance.
“YN Griffin.”
They stepped out of the door, my eyes widening as she tilted her head to the side, smirking.
“It’s nice to meet you. I’ve heard so many things, most of them murdery, but, you know, no judgement.”
“Josephine?”
She grinned, tilting her head to the side.
“In the flesh. But you shouldn’t have opened that door. This body is not big enough for the both of us.”
“Russell really did it. He stole my body.”
“And clearly made a mess of it. It’s been hundreds of years since a mind wipe failed, but I got to say, this isn’t bad, not as organized as my mindspace of course, but mildly impressive.”
“Mindspace?”
“The brain creates these constructs when two minds share a body, like lucid dreaming only not as fun. It’s a self preservation thing, trying to keep the minds separate so the body doesn’t die. You kind of messed that up when you opened the door, so you know, thanks for the accelerated brain deterioration.”
I made a face, slightly shaking my head.
“Wait. You’ve been through this before?”
“Never anything as advanced as this, but yeah, back in the day before Gabriel perfected the mind wipe, there were a few mishaps. I got jacked into some people’s minds while the lights were still on. They were so average.”
“What happened?”
“The first was a six month old. Her mind was undeformed, full of chaos, shapes and sounds. Then there was Savannah, I swear I was not that obnoxious at fifteen. And then they died. Brain hemorrhaging leads to stroke and we all fall down. It’s messy and hurts like a mother, would not recommend it. Two minds, one brain never ends well, so this-”
She waved between us, tilting her head to the side.
“Is a problem. How did you even survive?”
I huffed, shaking my head.
“You just want to know so you can figure out how to get rid of me.”
“Ok. Weren’t you listening? If we don’t do something, this body dies. That what you want?”
“Of course not. Why can’t you just find a new body and give me mine back?”
“I could, I suppose, but it’s risky. The last Primes who went on ice died forever. I’m not really into that. Besidies, possession is 9/10 of the law, and just between us girls, I kind of like your body.”
“You’re a sociopath.”
“Judgy. Besides like you’re one to talk, Nyxlanna. The way I see it, you have two options. Tell me how you survived so I can fix it, and I’ll make sure your people live happily ever after, or don't, and eventually, we’ll both die anyway. The difference is, I’ll be reborn in someone else, tell my father what happened, and he’ll kick your people out to die in the woods.”
I clenched my jaw, glaring at her as she stopped pacing in front of me, twirling her hair.
“Go float yourself.”
She made a face, shaking her head.
“I have no idea what that means.”
“It means I’m not telling you anything and I don’t go down easy.”
“Wow, you're selfish. Not to mention dumb. Your mindspace contains all your memories, so try not to think of where you keep them.”
A picture of my cell on the ark appeared, and I huffed when I heard the door at the end of the hall open, Josephine grinning as she walked past me.
“Hello. You control your mindspace YN. Too bad you can’t control your thoughts.”
I turned, shaking my head as I followed after her, my clothes changing once more as she looked around my room.
“I rescind my compliments. This is a disaster. Didn’t anyone ever teach you about organizational structure?”
“Get out of my head!”
She turned towards me, rolling her eyes.
“Now now. Sharing is caring YN.”
She walked towards the wall, running her fingers over the memories. She stopped at the blank space on the wall, tapping her hand against it as she turned towards me.
“Are you hiding a memory from me? Rude.”
“You’ll never find it.”
Josephine grinned as she walked around the room, looking omy memories over.
“You know, I study all life, but insects always fascinated me most. They’re merciless, ruthless. I respect that. People are so messy, so emotional. Because of that, they give themselves away. I could always figure people out, even as a kid. I could tell when they were nervous. Their pulses would beat fast. Eyes would dart, breath would quicken. It’s physiological. You know what my spidey senses are telling me about you right now?”
She stopped in front of me, tilting her head to the side as I glared at her.
“That I’ll never help you wipe my mind?”
“You think you’re a badass, but your bravado covers self doubt. You had to physicalize your secret so you could keep it close, where you have control. I bet you have it on you right now. Now let me have it.”
She threw a punch at me, causing me to grin as I blocked it, punching her in the face. I threw another punch at her, causing her to fall backwards as I grabbed her, slamming my knee into her stomach, causing her to double over as she groaned. I punched her again, gasping when she turned, slamming into me, knocking me back out of the room. I pushed her off me, jumping up. I threw another punch at her, causing her to fall back onto the floor. I walked towards her as she tried to get up, kicking her in the face.
“Oh shi-”
I shoved my foot down onto her back as she crawled back towards my cell, grabbing the door and slamming it into her head repeatedly. When she stopped moving I turned, walking towards the corner and leaning back against the wall, sliding down the wall as my chest heaved. I closed my eyes as I leaned my head back against the wall, jumping when an alarm rang out.
“Warning. Collision alert.”
I looked over at where Joesphine’s body was, gasping when I saw the spot empty, causing me to jump up. I looked down the hall, watching as the red door opened, Josephine smirking as she walked out.
“We’re back bitches.”
I stepped back, shaking my head as she stalked towards me.
“How?”
“Come on, you’re smarter than that. How do you think we’re resurrected? My mind drive backs my consciousness. I can’t die in the mindspace, but you can, unless whatever fluke kept you here can bring you back. You, my friend, are playing for keeps. I took a sedative about an hour ago, so that gives me all night to kill you in here, or find the memory of how I can kill you out there. Got a preference?”
I shook my head as I turned, running down the hall, Joesphine yelling after me.
“Easy or hard way, either way, you die!”
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I gasped as I ran through the door, clenching my jaw when I looked around, seeing I was standing in the middle of the pits.
“What are you doing here?”
I turned, watching as Oc- Blodreina walked towards me, gripping the hilt of her sword.
“I need to stay ahead of her. I just- if I can hide-”
“I thought you were a fighter.”
I made a face, tilting my head to the side as I looked over at Octavia.
“What?”
“Well, I guess I can’t say you’re a fighter considering each time we clashed swords, you never killed me. You had the opportunity to kill me and you never did.”
“You know why.”
“Do I? Because you believed I killed your daughter, your lover I get, but even then you didn’t kill me.”
“If I killed you, then Bellamy would’ve hated me. He would’ve resented me.”
I shook my head, glaring at her.
“I would’ve resented me. And whether I like it or not, you are my sister. I still love you. You hurt me in ways I would never hurt you and I still love you.”
I watched her as she paced the pits, looking over at me.
“Why didn’t you ever question it?”
“Question what?”
“If I really killed Raelyn or not.”
“You were standing over her with a bloodied sword. What else was I to believe?”
“I understand why you thought I killed her. I mean, you did watch me kill Maria, though that was an accident.”
I balled my hands into fists, clenching my jaw.
“You’re wrong.”
She shook her head, grinning.
“I don’t know why you’re arguing with me, YN. After all, I’m just a subconscious projection of you.”
The alarm sounded again, causing me to huff as I looked around.
“Warning. Collision alert.”
I turned towards Octavia, glaring at her.
“Help me.”
She scoffed, turning.
“That’ll happen.”
I balled my hands into fists, clenching my jaw.
“You owe me.”
Josephine walked through the door, grinning at Octavia as she looked her up and down.
“You look fun.”
Octavia turned towards me, grinning.
“Have at her.”
She walked out of the pits as Joesphine walked towards me, grinning.
“Even your projections hate you YN.”
I huffed, turning and running out of the pits.
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The bright light faded once more, my clothes changing again. I clenched my jaw when I saw the ugly tank and shorts I wore when I was in Mount Weather. I looked around, seeing a door with the window smashed. I walked towards it, seeing a body bag laying on the bed. I pushed the door open, looking around the room as I walked towards the bed. I took a deep breath as I reached out, unzipping the bag. I pulled the bag over to the side, gasping.
“Axel?”
His eyes snapped open, smirking as I gasped, jumping back.
“Hi.”
He sat up, as I stepped back towards the door, shaking my head as I looked him over.
“No. I don’t want this. I don’t want any of this.”
He climbed out of the bag, walking towards me.
“That’s the thing, YN. Some part of you does want this, or I wouldn’t be here. I have a question for you. Why are you fighting so hard to stay alive?”
“I have to-”
“Save your people. Yes I know. Too bad I wasn’t in that group, huh?”
“You were.”
“I wasn’t!”
“You tortured me! I thought you were given the bone marrow. How was I supposed to know that you hadn’t received it? I can’t remember what happened in Mount Weather, but I remember you, standing over me as I begged you to help me.”
He clenched his jaw, looking anywhere but me as I shook my head.
“I never meant to hurt you Axel. I’m sorry.”
“Tell me, are you sorry about what your sister and boyfriend did to Jasper? After all, killing his girlfriend is what sent him off the deep end.”
“Jasper made his choice.”
“Wrong. His death, like mine, is on you too. You do things, but other people pay the price.”
I clenched my jaw, shaking my head.
“Enough.”
“You’ve killed more people that you’ve saved. Do you realize that? If you actually cared about saving people’s lives, you’d walk away. What was it you told Maria?”
He tilted his head to the side, nodding.
“Oh, that’s right, the people you love die because you’re cursed. Wanhei, the queen of hell and death while your twin is your commander, killing those you deem unworthy. But you don’t need her to do your bidding anymore, do you Nyxlana?”
An alarm sounded once more, repeating the same words.
“Radiation alert.”
Axel turned towards me, grinning.
“She’s coming. Why don’t you just give in to her? Just give up control for once.”
I made a face, shaking my head.
“Control. I’m in control.”
I looked up at Axel, grinning.
“I have an idea.”
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Josephine walked through the door, her eyes widening when she saw Axel.
“Whoa. You have a little something..”
She pointed to Axel’s face, Axel reaching up and touching his cheek before he glared at Josephine. Josephine laughed as Axel glared, looking to the side.
“She hid it in the cave.”
I huffed, turning towards Axel and shooting him a look.
“Are you kidding me?”
Josephine laughed as she looked between me and Axel.
“I mean, your projections are the best.”
She looked over at Axel, nodding.
“Care to take us?”
Axel nodding, the room in Mount Weather changing to a group of tents near the woods. I took a deep breath, refusing to think of what happened that night on the edge of Arkadia as Josephine turned towards Axel.
“Thank you, melty guy.”
Josephine looked around as Axel disappeared, making a face as she glanced at me.
“We’re playing games now, are we?”
I shrugged, following behind her. She stopped at one of the smaller tents, pushing the flap open before she gasped. I moved to the side as she was thrown back, grinning when I saw Banto run out of the tent. He punched her in the face when she tried to get up, knocking her out. Banto turned towards me, smiling.
“Strik gona.”
I smiled as I ran towards him, wrapping my arms around him. He leaned down, returning my hug and picking me up.
“I’ve missed you.”
Banto smiled as he set me down, casting a glance at Josephine before he looked back over at me.
“I know I said trouble follows you everywhere, but I didn’t think it’d be this bad.”
I huffed a laugh, nodding.
“I know. But I need your help.”
Banto nodded, his face growing serious.
“Always.”
Banto turned, picking Josephine up.
“Come on.”
I followed after Banto, walking behind him as he led the way through the woods and to a cave.
“What is this?”
Banto glanced back at me, nodding slightly as we walked into the cave.
“This is where we put you, that night, to keep you safe. I didn’t want to risk you being found.”
I made a face as he lowered Josephine to the ground, grabbing the shackles and putting them on Josephine’s wrists.
“I came to in the woods, not in a cave.”
Banto glanced at me, grinning as he shrugged.
“You’re stubborn.”
Joesphine picked that moment to come too, tugging on the chains.
“What is this?”
I grinned, looking over at her.
“You have no control here, because this is my mindspace. Turns out, I can create whatever I want.”
“Cute. So what’s your plan? Stall until I wake up? I’ll just try again, night after night, and the more time I spend here, the faster you die and let me tell you, that death ain't fun or pretty. You can’t win. So why bother?”
I shrugged, crossing my arms over my chest as Banto moved to stand beside me.
“To make sure you lose. I’ll find a way to survive, I always do.”
“You got spunk, I’ll give you that. Things were different, we could have been friends, but I’m bored now.”
My eyes widened when she slammed her head into the wall with a sickening crack, blood forming behind her before she gasped, her eyes widening. The cave disappeared, the light blinding before the Ark came into view again, seeing the red door. I shook my head, turning and running down a hall, Josephine yelling as she walked through the door, Russell walking out behind her.
“I may not be able to create anything in your mindspace, but I can sure bring something in!”
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I ran down the hall, looking around for a place to hide. Everywhere I turned looked exactly the same, and what time I spent on the Ark was just one room with four walls, Russell yelling.
“Ever take zoology YN? Hunting tactics of predator species?”
Josephine’s voice rang out next, causing me to run faster.
“No? How about a quick lesson then? The most common pursuit predators expend energy running down slower prey, or they pace themselves and let their prey tier out. I’m proposing a third option.”
I turned down the hall, slowing to a stop.
“Just show me where you hid it so we can both kick back and rest.”
I turned when Josephine turned down the hall, shaking my head as I took off running again.
“All this running is plain undignified.”
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Josephine grinned as the doors opened, walking through the small room before she came out into the woods.
“Yahtzee.”
Joesphine walked towards the throne, seeing the box sitting in it, grinning. She walked towards it, grabbing the lock.
“Let me guess.”
─── ・ 。゚☆: *.☽.* :☆゚. ───
I walked out of the treeline, clenching my jaw.
“Get away from that.”
“Oh, hey YN.”
Josephine stood up, grinning at me.
“This is the place you were avoiding? It’s not even that scary. Little ominous, sure.”
Josephine turned, pulling the knife out of the tree, causing me to gasp.
“You’re gonna be okay. You’re okay.”
I leaned up, kissing his cheek.
“You’re okay.”
Finn smiled, leaning his head down.
“Thanks princess.”
I sniffled as he took a harsh deep breath, leaning his head down into my shoulder.
“I love you.”
I clenched my jaw, shaking my head.
“You shouldn’t be here.”
“It was clever hiding it here, the place you wouldn’t go so the place I wouldn’t look. Memory is funny, you know? The formative stuff, the traumas, the things we can’t move past, they live deep in the brain stem. These are the wounds we pay shrinks not to fix. These places control us, make us who we are. It’s actually connected to the lower brain function, breathing, reflexes. It’s why you cry when you think of Maria and Raelyn.”
“Shut up.”
“All of this guilt for the deaths you’ve caused, but I don’t get it. Why are you so torn up? Everything you did was to save your people. I’d do the same thing.”
I scoffed, rolling my eyes.
“A ringing endorsement.”
“The thing I don’t get is why you don’t care about saving your people now.”
I made a face, slightly tilting my head to the side.
“What?”
“Let’s say you could somehow fight me off and get your body back. What would that do to your friends and family? Do you think my father would just let me go? What you’re doing right now leads to the genocide of your people, which, I guess is par for the course with you.”
“I just want to live.”
“Do you though? Because your mind sure doesn’t seem to. Have you ever even once considered that the solution is to sacrifice yourself? Your people are safe, Bellamy made sure of it. I mean, he took your death hard, sure, but he knew the only thing a leader could do was to strike a deal for peace. Now it’s time for you to step up. Bow out gracefully, and your people get to live happily ever after.”
I shook my head, glaring at Josephine.
“You’re lying. Bellamy would never make a deal like that.”
“Why? Because he loves you? The lack of trust hurts me YN, so that’s why I brought this.”
She lifted the book, causing me to make a face as she held it out towards me.
“You have journals and drawings. I have books. Don’t judge. Here, take it. It’s not a trick. I don’t play that way.”
I hesitated before I reached out, placing my hand on the book.
“I can guarantee safety for the rest of your people. We’ll share everything we’ve learned about surviving on this moon.”
Tears were streaming down Bellamy’s face as he shook his head, clenching his jaw.
“I’ll take your deal because it’s the smart play and it’s the move she would have made.”
I gasped lightly as I let the book go, taking a small step back.
“It’s time for you to sacrifice for your people YN. Don’t start another war they’ll have to fight.”
I took a deep breath, looking over at Josephine.
“I need them to be okay.”
Josephine nodded, sighing softly.
“By my word, your people will be safe. Bellamy is meeting with my father first thing in the morning to discuss building them a compound. They’ll have a new home, a new life. Madi can go to school like any other kid. Your sister can settle down, be happy, find peace. Your friends can settle down. Everyone can stop fighting, including you.”
I sighed, nodding slightly.
“Tell Madi and Clarke I love them. Tell Be- tell all of them.”
Josephine nodded as I walked past her, walking towards the throne. I took a deep breath as I kneeled in front of it, reaching for the lock on the box. I huffed a laugh, shaking my head as I looked back over at Josephine.
“You forgot Bellamy and Raven.”
Josephine scoffed as I turned the last dial, unlocking it. I stood up, moving to the side as Josephine knelt in my place, opening the box. She pulled out the five braids that were braided together, flashes of Banto and the others appearing before she set them down to the side. She picked the doll up, flashes of Raelyn laughing as she played with the doll. She picked up the knife next, an image of Delani appearing before she set the knife down, grinning as she picked up the chip. Raven appeared as she screamed, the others turning her to the side as Clarke cut her neck, the goo from the chip spilling from the cut. Josephine smiled, nodding.
“An emp. Cool.”
She looked over at me, nodding slightly.
“It’ll be over soon. I promise.”
I watched as Josephine walked out of the mindspace, turning and sitting down on the throne, crying.
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I was back in my room in the bunker, leaning against the wall as I looked down at the book in my lap, the drawing staring back at me when I heard the door open. I gasped, sitting up.
“Maria?”
I jumped up, walking out of the room, setting the book down on the table as I passed it. I gasped when I saw who it was, wrapping my arms around them.
“Monty.”
“You call this doing better?”
I made a face, leaning back and looking up at Monty.
“Giving up isn’t better.”
“That’s not what I’m-”
Monty sighed, shooting me a look.
“I’m doing this for the others. They’ll live if I die.”
“I’m doing this for my people? Look, I’ve heard that before YN. Clarke says each time she makes a decision that affects everyone. And it’s just an excuse.”
I sighed, moving and sitting down at the table.
“They’ll be better off without me, Monty.”
Monty shook his head, making a face as he walked towards me.
“Will they? Because I don’t think that’s true. Look, I get it. It’s been endless. But they won’t be better off without you.”
He looked down at my drawing, picking the notebook up and placing it down in front of me, the picture of Bellamy glaring at me.
“Bellamy was inconsolable for four years when we were on the ark. He found your cell, and he stayed there. He still wears the necklace I made for him with your picture. And Clarke? She’s your twin. One half of the same soul split. You two may have never been close, but I know how much you loved her. What about Madi? She finally got to meet her ani. You were supposed to help her figure out how to lead as commander. How are you supposed to do that if you give up?”
“They’ll be fine. Madi will have Clarke, just like Clarke’ll have Madi. And Bellamy-”
I sniffled, sighing.
“He has Echo. They’ll be fine. It’s not like this isn’t the first time I’ve died. They moved on last time, they can do it again.”
I shook my head, looking up at him.
“Besides, Bellamy already made a deal that keeps them all safe.”
“This is about being the good guys. Yeah, that means our side gets to live, but at what cost? You’re giving in to people who murder human beings to live forever.”
I sighed, shaking my head.
“Monty, what do you want from me? It’s too late. I already gave Josephine the memory. As soon as she wakes up, she’ll know how to get me out of my head. It’s over.”
“We’ll see about that.”
Monty held his hand out towards me, tilting his head to the side. I looked down at it, making a face as I took a deep breath. I looked up at Monty, Monty nodding at me as he offered me a small smile before I placed my hand in his. The room in the bunker disappeared in a bright light, and when the light disappeared we were walking down the hall of the ark, stopping in front of Josephine’s door.
“This is Josephine’s mindspace. She controls it.”
Monty looked over at me, grinning.
“What’s she gonna do, kill you?”
I laughed, shaking my head as I stepped forward, opening the door. I looked back at Monty, Monty nodding at me. I took a deep breath as I turned, stepping into the room, my eyes widening.
“Wow.”
Monty came to a stop beside me, looking around.
“Two hundred three years of memories.”
I jumped slightly when there was an explosion, the lights above us shaking.
“Good news is, we can affect her body here. Bad news is, Josephine seems to sense it. Come on, let’s find something we can use.”
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I gasped as I let the book go, shaking my head as I could still see Josephine cutting Issac’s throat. I looked over at Monty, sighing.
“You were right. We can’t let her win.”
Monty smiled at me before he turned back towards the panel, making a face.
“Almost got it.”
I walked towards him, Monty pumping his fist when it beeped.
“Yes!”
The door opened, Monty gently pushing me forward. I walked through the door, music playing as the light faded, showing a cafe from before.
“Earth before the bombs.”
“Hey, check it out.”
I walked towards Monty, looking down at the newspaper article, a picture of Diyoza on the front with the words she “got her” taking up half the page.
“Nice place.”
I huffed slightly as I looked around, making a face.
“Why would she keep this memory locked away?”
“More importantly, how do we get control from here?”
I looked around, my eyes widening when I saw Josephine sitting at a table.
“Come on.”
Me and Monty sat at the empty table behind Josephine, listening to her conversation. I looked around, looking everyone over when a guy walked towards Josephine, Josephine turning shy as he sat down. He asked her out and she turned him down, the man growing angry before he pulled a gun out, setting it on the table. He brought the gun up to his head, pulling the trigger. Everyone screamed as they ran out of the dinner, Josephine staring at the body, screaming.
“This is the thing she couldn’t face.”
“We need to use it to control your body. I have an idea.”
The lights in the dinner started to flicker, alarms blaring.
“Alert. Incoming bombshells. Take cover immediately.”
I looked over at Monty, shaking my head.
“Quick, hide.”
Monty nodded as he jumped up, running behind the bar as I stood up. The door to the diner flew open, Josephine walking in, wearing the same clothes the other her wore, yelling when she saw me.
“You never should have come here! Get out!”
Her voice grew louder as the lights flickered, the cafe fading into the halls of the ark. I made a face, turning when Josephine’s door opened, Josephine running out and tackling me to the floor. She climbed on top of me, screaming.
“I gave you the chance to go quietly!”
She wrapped her hands around my throat, squeezing.
“I said I’d help your people. Deals off.”
I gasped when she disappeared, sitting up and looking around, not seeing her anywhere as I coughed.
“She’s awake.”
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“Alright. In exchange for ignoring that you murdered YN.”
Bellamy looked up when the door opened, watching as Josephine walked in, grinning slightly as he shook his head, clenching his jaw.
“You build us a compound.”
Russell glanced at Josephine before he looked back over at Bellamy.
“What about the mother and sister? And the child? Will they agree?”
“I’ll handle our people.”
Bellamy looked over at Miller, Miller huffing as he nodded.
“How long will it take to build?”
Josephine cleared her throat, crossing her arms over chest. Russell glanced at Josephine, holding his finger up.
“Just a moment sweetheart.”
Russell turned back towards Bellamy, nodding.
“With all of our people helping you, it will go much faster.”
Bellamy looked over at Josephine, his heart breaking more at the thought that YN was standing just a few feet from him, but she was gone. He made a face when he saw Josephine tapping her arm, his eyes widening slightly when he realized it was rhythmic. He grabbed his notepad, writing down the taps.
“Talk to Ryker about a work schedule, and you’ll need a detail of about fifty of your own people. You’ll build a wall that- Bellamy.”
Bellamy was staring down at his notepad, his heart beating faster.
“Bellamy, are we agreed?”
Bellamy slightly shook his head, glancing at Josephine’s arm where she was tapping before he looked over at Russell.
“Yeah. We’re good, for now.”
“I’ll order construction to begin.”
Bellamy looked over at Miller, nodding to the door.
“Let's go.”
Miller clenched his jaw as Bellamy walked out of the room, turning towards Josephine, glaring at her as he walked by her. Bellamy looked back when the doors closed, leaning towards Miller.
“Hey, remember when Pike taught us morse code?”
Miller shrugged, tilting his head to the side.
“I slept through most of earth skills so.”
“Ok.”
Bellamy translated the code, holding the notepad out towards Miller.
“Josephine was tapping out morse code on her arm.”
Miller made a face, taking the notepad from Bellamy, reading the notepad.
“What does it mean?”
Bellamy smiled, feeling relieved for the first time since everything happened.
“It means YN’s alive, and we’re gonna get her back.”
Previous // Next
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razorblade180 · 3 years
Text
Interdimensional Moms: part 1
Intro <-
Yang:So how we doin this? Drawing straws or... well we actually don’t have straws here so-
Weiss:It’s obvious that you wanna go first.
Blake:Extremely obvious.
Ruby:All over your face.
Yang:Hey now, don’t call me out like that! We all have so much to sort out here. I don’t even know where to begin. Differences could start and stop anywhere for all we really know.
Blake:From what it seems, Beacon itself would have one or two minor changes, but the real changes start after the fall. At least, for you three that is.
Weiss:You saying you’re different?
Blake:Unless you three started going on dates with Jaune at Beacon, then yes, I’m different.
RWY:(They’ve been together that long!?)
Yang:Okay, starting from Beacon...nothing really stands out too much. Jaune and I were just friends. *cringes* Back then, a certain faunus caught my eye.
Blake:Ah...right. I guess that tracks in practically every universe.
RW:Oh yeah it does. You two are joined at the hip.
Yang:Haha, really? Glad to hear it. My Blake and I are best buds! Remnant has never seen such a dynamic duo! Can’t say it didn’t take a lot of time effort after a rough patch. We actually dated in my world.
Blake:Same.
Yang:What!? How long?
Blake:I don’t know, it was pretty on again off again.
Yang:Well for me it was after Haven. Both of us had gotten pretty serious. All the growing we’ve done together and apart had brought us closer. However, Adam unintentionally put a wedge between us. His attempt to change and the problems that came with it were-
Yang stopped midway and saw the confused faces of her otherworldly teammates. They were shocked, confused even. Especially Blake, who looked the most shocked of all.
Yang:Umm did I say something odd?
Blake:Adam, he...isn’t dead?
Yang:Oh, well I guess that’s the start of the major changes then. Blake and I fought Adam at Argus. Stabbed him through the chest and watched him fall down rocks into a river.
Ruby:That lines you with my world. Dude died that day. Like any normal person should.
Yang:Well Adam is anything but fucking normal. Man has the craziest luck. A young women, the winter maiden in fact, she saved his life. She’s not exactly normal either. The maiden, Jacquelyn, ended up sticking by him to see if she could change his ways. This naturally meant we’d run into them again. And that’s how things fell apart.
Blake:What do you mean?
Yang:You were fully committed to seeing if Adam could actually change. I wasn’t, so we constantly butted heads in any situation involving him. Then we would fight about things that had nothing to do with at all. Eventually, we broke it off. We remained on decent terms but I was pretty heartbroken about the disconnect. Enter our lovable blonde idiot. Jaune did everything in his power to cheer me up.
Weiss:Sounds like him. Always such a bleeding heart. That boy just can’t help himself. Let me guess, his kindness and concern made you feel all warm and fuzzy?
Yang:Hehe, guilty. It was more of his willingness to laugh at my puns. Jaune’s always been interesting to talk to. He tries to act cool and calm even though he’s terrible at it, then comes clean right after. Before I knew it I was telling him things I hadn’t talked about with people before. I could tell he looked at me like most guys do, but also genuinely wanted to listen to me. Talk about playing unfair; he got defenseless. Suddenly I was smiling again. Anytime with him was time well spent. Then one day, I kissed him.
Ruby:Happily ever after?
Yang:Not even close! Hahaha!
Weiss:Why do you sound proud?
Yang:It’s funny looking back at it to a certain degree. Gods, I was such a brat. More than a few fights are on me. Between Blake, Raven, and other experiences, my insecurities flared up in ugly ways over nothing. It even got us to break up too. I was officially done with dating. My Ruby was out in an uncomfortable position.
Ruby:I bet! I’d never want you two fighting. Especially in my world. Picking between the person I love and my sister!? I don’t know what will happen.
Yang:I kinda do. *sets up* You’d start dating Jaune because you’ve looked at him since Beacon. The two of you would confide in each other and share a special kind of love, but it would be bittersweet. All because your sister still pines for him and never met to make him leave, and Jaune never says it, but he hates how things fell apart. He’s faithful to you and would never do you wrong, a guy to truly cherish. So... you let him go. Watch him walk back to your sister like you asked, because my happiness was worth that much to you.
Ruby:....
Yang: In my world at least. Honestly it’s still the most amazing thing I’ve seen you do. We must’ve cried over that conversation for hours. I felt so guilty and you only smiled, hugging me tight. Jaune and I had a few more stumbles. Nothing serious though. Eventually we moved in together when the world was saved. You and Oscar got together officially which made me happy. Even made our weddings a competition of who’d make dad bawl his eyes out the most. You won by the way; Raven came back into our family and into dad’s arms. Last but not least I had a baby. Yujin Xiao Long, my fucking pride and joy from above.
Weiss:Wow, that’s a lot.
Blake:What am I doing? Did I marry Sun?
Yang:Yep. You and blondes Blake, I tell ya.
Weiss:Hold the phone! Who am I with!?
Yang:Pretty sure you’re technically single. Buuuut, Neo and your have gotten pretty friendly from what I managed to interrogate out of you.
Weiss:That’s, highly unexpected. For a number of reasons.
Yang:Better believe it. Besides Cinder, a few crazies, and Salem, a few people made something of themselves. Dying sucks after all.
Ruby:You have a dead Cinder?
WBY: You don’t?
Ruby:*crosses arms* Hmph, I’ll wait my turn. Yang, you said you’re the only mother from our team. If Blake and I have been married for quite some time then what, we don’t want kids?
The joyful sunshine from Yang slipped into grayer skies. Her smile faded and it increasingly got harder to look at this Ruby without thinking of her own.
Yang:Are you sure that’s something you wanna know? I’ll tell you, but I didn’t want to bring down the mood with the problems where I from.
Blake:Problems? How big of a problem.
Yang:The biggest we’ve faced. It’s...a lot.
Ruby:Well we’ve listened this far. *takes hand* Lay it on us.
Yang:Pfft, oh boy. So...umm...another secret war came up. One that caused us to leave our friends and family for over a decade.
Weiss:A decade!?
Blake:What gets worse after Salem!? Who tries anything after a grimm queen!?
Yang:So a majority of Remnant was still unaware of her, but a fight like that can only be kept under wraps so tightly. Plenty of people still learned fractions of the truth. A few of those people weren’t exactly nice guys. They idolized her efforts and became her followers that wanted to keep her will alive, starting with taking revenge on the people who defeated her. We were so unaware. So caught up in normalcy. They ambushed us, and I mean everyone. We...we didn’t come out unscathed. Ren was crippled badly. Weiss, you almost your brother. Jaune’s family got hit but thankfully lived. The real casualties were aimed to hurt Ruby.
Ruby:Oh, of course. S-So, either you’re about to say I had no time to start a family, or...
Yang:...
Yang:When I tell you the look you made when you learned what happened to Oscar, to Qrow... that’s the moment it felt like my little sister left forever. Till this day you don’t smile like you used to. Very recently, now that it’s finally over, you’ve started looking better, but those ten years were hell. We choose to go out and fight again, avoiding contact with family. I haven’t had a real opportunity to be in my daughters life.
Ruby:How old is she?
Yang:Sixteen soon. Left her when she was four so you know. *tearing up* I missed everything. Just about anyways. Ironically it was Raven and Adam that helped her through the years with Jaune and Dad. Eventually we came back and ooohh boy was Yujin not thrilled in the slightest. Hehehe. Her right hook is really strong. I only had about a week with her before things got complicated again. *wipes eyes* But it’s okay. We left on good term. Something I definitely don’t feel like I deserve.
Blake:I can’t believe a thing like that would be possible.
Yang:Cults are a huge problem in Remnant now. You’re definitely aware of that. You actually oversee a little group from the shadows to deal with them in secret. An idea you got from experience. Adam works for you and everything. Hate to admit, but he’s become the guy you wanted him to be. Even has a family. I’m grateful to him. He personally kept my girl safe.
Blake:To think I’d hear you say that. Now I know this isn’t my world.
Yang:Don’t get me wrong, I still will hit him if given the chance. My life hasn’t been charmed and sacrifices too great were happening way too many times but it finally has gotten to a point where everyone feels like we’re taking steps towards a better future.
Weiss:Moving forward?
Yang:Yes, I was trying to avoid the phrase but yes Weiss, we’re moving forward. Still... *looks at Ruby*....
Ruby:W-What?
Yang:It’s unreal seeing you like this. My Ruby has become so strong and endured but hasn’t really picked herself up completely. All her tragedy stemmed from the loss of Oscar and Qrow; her last talk with Oscar was fight about kids too. That’s the entire reason she went off alone in the first place. Looking at you I can’t help but question my own choices. If...I just let her stay with Jaune, then maybe-
Ruby:Nope.
Yang:Huh?
Ruby:Look, if I know anything about your world, then it’s gonna be me and I can tell you without a doubt your Ruby doesn’t blame or would consider her own happiness without you. She loved you enough to take the chance to find love again. You really think there’s anything you could’ve done differently at that point. That girl is as stubborn as they come! *smiles* So buck up cowgirl. You deserve it.
A sense of warmth came over Yang as she heard those words. This other Ruby smiled at her with the same love as her own; completely caring about Yang’s feeling before her own. Yang felt so...unburdened. She couldn’t help but cry a little, laughing softly as she did. Who would’ve thought love could transcend worlds? It was so vindicating, therapeutic even.
Yang:Ruby, you’re something else entirely, you know that?
Ruby:It’s my curse. All I ever wanted was normal knees but the world said “no, special eyes!”
Yang:Well I guess I should thank the world then?
Weiss:You said your Ruby is getting better? That’s good. Still, it must be pretty weird looking at Jaune. Can’t imagine how lonely it must feel losing a love twice.
Blake:It never numbs.
Yang:Geez you two, lighten up. We can’t all be depressed. Ruby also didn’t lose Jaune. Actually....there may or may not have been an interesting...arrangement for a brief period of time.
Ruby:Ehhh what?
Yang:Hehehe well, hahaha, ummmm a decade is a very long time without feeling any kind of pleasure in a bleak situation. And you know me, I have to share things with you all my life.
Ruby:OH MY GOD!!!
Blake:*grinning* Yooooo! You loaned out Jaune!?
Weiss:That’s....accurate; in a lot of ways.
Ruby:That’s so scandalous! How could you!?
Yang:I didn’t force it! I gave the option, you said no, then you changed your mind because things got real stressful. Like come on, a decade of death and loneliness.
Ruby:Sigh...yeah. I can see it. Still, it’s so filthy. He’s a married man. What, so I’d just look at you and say “Yang I’m gonna sleep with Jaune, don’t come in the room.”
Yang:....
Ruby:What?
Yang:....Nothing.
Ruby:Bullshit! What is it!?
Yang:*scratches head* Well, I was lonely too, and a week is only so long-
Weiss:Oh so it was a group thing!!?
Ruby:WHAT!?
Yang:Only sometimes!
Ruby:SOMETIMES!?
Blake:HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!! THAT IS AMAZING!
Ruby:Why are you laughing!?
Blake:Because that’s just so extreme, and not, all at the same time. I could totally see that happening.
Weiss:Same. Dang, Jaune slept with sisters. That’s dangerously close to being like your dad.
Ruby:That’s different!
Blake:Is it though?
Yang:Eh, I don’t see the problem. We’re all grown and make choices. Plus I’m the one who guided you through awkward teenage changes. It not like we didn’t share a room for years.
Ruby:That doesn’t make it okay.
Yang:Eh debatable.
Ruby:*red* It isn’t though! How could I do something so bold!? So taboo!?
Weiss:It isn’t like you’re the one who did it. Just a version of you.
Ruby:Not better!
Yang:Awwww it’s okay Ruby. Let’s hug it out. Hehehe *opens arms*
Ruby:Don’t touch me!
Weiss and Blake laugh until their sides hurt as Ruby tries escaping the bear hug that terrorized her. Yang’s world found interesting for sure. Weiss finally decides to help Ruby out.
Weiss:Got a picture of Yujin?
Yang’s eyes lit up and pulled out her scroll. Her team huddled around her and collectively cooed like that parents they are at the sight of a blonde young girl with gorgeous blue eyes with a black combat school graduation cap and gown and a certificate proudly raised up high. If it wasn’t for those eyes and shoulders length hair, they might’ve mistaken her for Yang.
Yang:She’s going to Beacon early because she’s fucking awesome like her mom.
Ruby:I think you mean her aunt?
Yang:I know what I said.
Weiss:I bet she’s just as hardheaded.
Blake:What do you think your kid is up to right now?
Yang: Well...*smiles*
xxxx
The girl in question sat at a work bench with oil on her face and her hands busy tinkering with gauntlets. She looked over at blueprints in a journal. If they were right, then she was definitely doing something wrong. How her mother made something so complex was crazy!
Yujin:Come on Yujin. You can fix a car, making gauntlets into a sword that don’t break should be easy!
Footsteps came up from behind her and a plate stacked with sandwiches. She looked up and smiled at her dad that gave her a wink, then kissed her forehead.
Jaune:Haveing fun, you grease monkey.
Yujin:Jokes on you, I like monkeys. Just a few more attempts and I’ll have the coolest weapon in Remnant. That entrance exam is as good as aced.
Jaune:Not if you don’t have a landing strategy. Tomorrow we’re going on a trip.
Yujin:Does it happen to be near a cliff?
Jaune:Who can say? Rule one of being a huntsman, be prepared for everything.
He ruffled her hair and left, laughing evilly. Yujin could tell he’s been waiting for this day. She pulled out her scroll and searched through a collection of videos labeled “mom” and found a super early one. She hit play and watched her mother give a peace sign to the camera as trees increasingly got closer from below.
Yang:Beacon rules!!!! Wooohooo!
The camera flipped and focused on a familiar blonde flailing through the air like a doll in the distance.
Yang:Oof, hate to be that guy! Wait, that’s vomit boy! Hahah, hope he survives. He owes me shoes. Poor dude. I guess he needs more training in flirting and landing. Wait, eugh I think he barfed again! Hahaha!
Jaune:Stop watching that one!!!!
Yujin:Hahaha but it’s the best one. The ending is priceless.
Jaune: *walks back down*
Yang:Well if he survives this I guess I can off him at least I can offer him mints and company. Fake it to ya make Jaune. Between me and Ruby, at least you’ll look like a player. Heh, nah, I don’t think I can support a bunny onesie.
Yujin and Jaune:*grinning* And then she did! *high-fives* Arc charm, baby!
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laserdog10 · 3 years
Note
Alright. What about Lea and Kuro? What's your hookup story?
Lea: Wellll...
Kuro: 😅
---
[10 years ago]
It was a scheduled meeting between the Schnees and Belladonnas, Yang was out on a mission while her husband Whitley was left with their 8 year old daughter. Lea wasn't dolled up since she didn't have to be present in the room with her father, she was pretty self-sufficient as far as being a kid would get her but the snow dragon knew what to & what not to do as a guest in a home that wasn't hers.
Lea: *yawns* I'm so bored...I wanna play games and eat snacks!
She harrumphed plopping herself down next to the door her parent and honorary relatives conversed about whatever adulty stuff she couldn't understand much of. Lea did know for a fact it was about Human/Faunus equality, yet didn't know much beyond the basics. With a heavy sigh she pulled her Scroll from her overalls booting up Street Combat 2: Gang Rumbles.
Lea: Gotta keep up my win streak, can't let Garnet beat me like he almost did last time, hehe.
The second her phone loaded to the main menu out of the corner of the Xiao Long-Schnee's eye did what appeared to be a shadow slithering along the wall. Much to her surprise it moved along the door until it slid right under into the meeting room.
Lea: E-eeeeh?! WAIT A MINUTE!
In a futile effort Lea tried to grab the creeping darkness, thinking fast she summoned a Glyph as a step-stool to open her wooden obstacle. With a mighty pull, then push, tumbling inward everyone present ceased midsentence staring at the snowy brawler.
Whitley: L-Lea???
Kali: Sweetheart what's the matter?!
Sun: You okay?
Lea: U-u-uhhh, there was a shadow! A-And it was like, moving, on the walls like a snake! It went under the door, it's in here!
The young girl's aunt exhaled in exhaustion before rising from the head chair at the table.
Blake: Kuro, please come out, what are you doing?
As they all searched for the boy, Lea noticed a pair of small tiger ears peeping from under the shade provided by the massive table. To her surprise a little boy's head emerged from the darkness giving Lea a wink then playfully shushing her.
Lea: YOU!!!
His face changed to a look of terror once the impressively strong grip his adversary had around his skull attempting pry him out of his pool of black only to get pulled in. For a brief moment the shadow on the floor zig-zagged this way & that from the struggling, until finally...
"KURO!"
As if they were tossed by an unseen force both children rolled back to the physical realm, before the imposing glaring eyes of Blake.
Ghira: Young man what is the meaning of this?
Blake: Is this another one of your pranks again!? You know how important this stuff is, I-*groans in frustration*
Kuro: Not my fault!!!
Sun: Hey you're just saying that cause you got caught red-handed, buddy. We talked about this kinda stuff y'know?
Kuro: ...
Whitley: *chuckles* Well we appreciate the help dear. Better keep an eye on him for your aunt, agreed?
Lea: *nods making her pigtails bob*
Finding herself back on the other side, this time she had company...who didn't want to be there.
Kuro: *pouts* Thanks for ruining my prank, meanie...
Lea: Excuse you, your idea of a prank was interrupting a very important business meeting with the S.D.C. and Silver Fang! That's being a meanie!
Kuro: Nuh-uh! No matter how much mom gets mad at me, it won't matter, cause I'll be the new Silver Fang leader one day!
Lea: *scoffs* Good luck being any sort of when you act like a dumb kid.
Kuro: You're a kid too, dummy!!!
Lea: BRAT!!!
Kuro: JERK!!!
They stared each other down until finally stomping to sit a good distance away, arms crossed and frowning angrily. Well, it wouldn't be long for after literally steaming to cool off Lea's face softened up. With deep breath she broke the tense silence.
Lea: You're Semblance is pretty cool by the way...
Kuro: *ears perk up* Th-thank you. Yer' really strong for how small you are.
Lea: Heheh, yup, I'm a Xiao Long! We always have more strength than we show! *smiles proudly*
Kuro: Pffft! Oh really, you ever beat a Beringel in an arm wrestling contest?
Lea: *red* N-no, but my mom suplexed one before!
Kuro: ...oh. That's awesome!!!
Lea: I know right?!
Soon the unlikely friends chatted the night away, the hours the meeting took turned to mere minutes with the amount of aimless childhood blabbing the eldest Belladonna made with his Xiao Long-Schnee friend.
Kuro: I'm Kuro by the way, but you already knew that when mom got mad...
Lea: Haha, yeah, must be common for you. I'm Lea!
[Present day]
Kuro: After that we've been inseparable since.
Lea: Yep, totally inseparable! *leans a bit closer to him*
Garnet/Jack: Get a room...
Kuro/Lea: SHUT UP!!!
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Text
Under Atomic Skies {John Blake x Reader}
Requested by: Anonymous Wordcount: 2558 Summary: John Blake would do just about anything to keep his family safe.
You looked over at John as he came into your cozy little Gotham home. His mouth was set in a grim line against the contours of his handsome face. You could feel the stress radiating off of him. “Did the kids see?” He asked, turning off the television that you were sitting in front of. You shook your head in a no, and he sighed in relief. They were playing in their rooms, your son and your daughter. The blasts in the street had caused the house to rumble, but they didn’t ask any questions. They just played ‘earthquake’. You didn’t want to explain to them what happened until your husband, John, got home with his own explanation. And what he said, all of it, it broke your heart. This was the city you both grew up in. This was the city you had fallen in love in. Gave birth in, raised your kids in, got a mortgage in, worked in, made your home. And it was being threatened once more.
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“There’s going to be riots, and looting, and who knows what else,” You said, your eyes looking over to the front door. There were three locks on it already, with John being a bit of a cautious man. With you being a cop’s wife. But those three didn’t seem enough when you were now the wife of the only cop, or detective, left to protect the city. The rest were caught in the underground. John’s partner included. “What are we going to tell the kids? Is Ross alright? Should we move to a safe house?”
“Ross is fine, I’ve already figured out where he is. There’s a sewer grate right above them, I can talk to him,” John said, which made you give your own sigh of relief. Your husband’s partner was like family, your kids even called him Uncle Ross. “I have hope in Gotham, we’ll get through this, sweetheart.”
But you weren’t so sure. You loved this city, but it tended to turn out bad people one after another. Thieves, mobsters, even an evil clown. And now this man who called himself Bane. It was safe to say that you were terrified, and wished that you shared in your husband’s positivity. In his hope. It was one of the things that you loved best about him. And things usually turned out pretty okay. The city had John Blake - it was going to be okay.
--
The days started to seem shorter as the countdown to the bomb began. There just didn’t seem to be enough time in the day to really appreciate each and every one. John was gone most of the time, working as a Detective, working with Batman, being the only cop in a city which was run by madness. You hardly ever left the house, and when you did, it was to go to the boys’ orphanage and help out there. There was no point in trying to work from home right now, the business was down the toilet. So you took on volunteering at the boys home, bringing your kids with you so you could keep an eye on them all at the same time. Father Reilly appreciated your help.
“It’s good for the boys to see a friendly face,” He admitted to you as you were passing out juice boxes to the kids. “All of them seemed to be glued to the news the days. They’re too young for such things. Too innocent.”
“If I wasn’t here, I’d be doing the same,” You admitted to the friendly father. You kept pressing that smile on your face, just as John did when he came home and gave the kids a huge hug each night. But the news was wearing you down. Scarecrow, Dr Jonathan Crane, was acting as judge, jury and executioner. All of the major shopping centers were looted as ‘wealth’ was dispersed in the way of material goods. You never joined in on any of that. You weren’t going to let the city take you down with it.
“There’s always hope,” Father Reilly said, putting his hand on your shoulder in solidarity. “That’s something I learned from being around these boys. No matter what life throws at them, they still play with a smile on their face.”
“It’s hard not to stay hopeful with John around,” you admitted, sitting on a bench with a juicebox of your own. You looked out over Gotham. There was still smoke in the air. There was always smoke in the air. The sounds of chanting from the courthouse. Vehicles still moving about down there, despite there really being nowhere to go. John had filled you in that one of those large trucks was carrying around the bomb, and your eyes caught on one as it turned a corner a few blocks down. It was terrifying, knowing that it was so close. But you still had a few days before it would go off. There was still time to find it. There was time to fix this whole mess. “Include John in your prayers tonight for me, father? It can’t hurt for us to be a little louder.”
“I already include him every night, y/n,” Father said, sitting beside you, stretching out his old leg bones. He was no longer the young man who used to chase John around this very building. The stress was taking a toll on him, and had even before the bombings. “And all of those officers stuck under the city.”
“They’re getting food and water, and vitamin D tablets,” You explained. “John and Ross have been keeping in touch. He’s even been scouting out an area where he might be able to get them out. He’s been working nonstop on this. I hope that when it’s all over, I can convince him to take a break.”
“Good luck asking him to take a break from anything,” Father Reilly laughed. It was the first real laugh you had heard since this whole thing began, at least from someone other than a child. It made you grin. You knew that it was absolutely true. John was one of the most dedicated people in this city. And when he believed in something, whether it’s in Batman, or in you, he never gave up on it. He’d fight til the end.
--
The day after tomorrow. The bomb was going to blow, according to John. The military still weren’t letting people go across the bridge. They were even threatening to blow that up themselves to stop people. Most of the population didn’t know, they were much too busy fighting each other to realize that Bane wasn’t actually going to give a detonator to an ordinary citizen. Or that an ordinary citizen would even want this city to blow up. He had to have the detonator all this time. And with Batman missing again, and the cops still trapped, and only very few people actually working on the streets... even your hope was beginning to wane. And John’s.
You moved into the shelter with the boys, taking care of them, tucking them in, acting like the mother that they never had. Because if all went wrong, this would be their last few days and they deserved to feel that love. You put the blankets over them, made sure that they had their bears which they were given as emotional support, and gave them each a peck on the forehead. Even the older boys, so quick to shun the bears since they were childish, needed something to hold onto.
The day before the bomb went off was chaotic. All of your rations were packed away to take off in the morning, just in case things didn’t work out. John was convinced that the military would see reason and let a bus full of children across. And you, importantly. He wasn’t going to be able to go on if anything happened to you, he admitted.
“You just do your job, Detective Blake,” You said, laying in bed with him, looking into his big, dark brown eyes. “And keep up hope that everything is going to turn out alright. It’s like that saying you know I love so much. Everything will be okay in the end, and if it’s not okay, then it’s not the end. We have to remain optimistic about this. Not just for us, but for the kids.”
--
The bomb was set to go off in less than an hour. All of the kids, the father, a few other works, John and yourself had piled onto the schoolbus and tried to get out to the bridge. The military were guarding it cautiously. Too cautiously. Guns were pointed not only at you, who had gotten out to support John, and your husband. Father Reilly was giving up hope. But you weren’t. The second that John had gotten the door unlocked, you slipped through it, standing in front of him.
“Please,” You pleaded, stepping forward tentatively. Your eyes were struggling to meet the soldier’s, and not just focus on his gun. “I’m asking you not as a citizen of Gotham, but as a mother. As a human being. These children are innocent in all of this. If they don’t leave, they’re going to get killed anyway. Have you seen the riots, and the looting, and all of the crime? Is that an environment you want your kids raised in?”
“You need to get back,” The soldier said, though his voice was shakier than before.
“Please, do not shoot,” John yelled, his accent cutting through the air. He walked up alongside you, badge in hand, those hands up towards the sky. He stepped in alongside you, then a step ahead, protecting you. Always acting like your human shield. Warning shots came towards you, to the ground by your feet.
“Get back,” John whispered to you. And you didn’t fight him on that, you went right back behind the chain-link door with the others, but watched with worried eyes. Your fingers slipped through the holes, gripping onto the metal. However much John worried about you getting hurt, you worried right back. Tenfold. The city would be lost without him. You would be lost without him, so would the kids.
“Detective, please, stop!” The young looking officer barked out. He looked as scared as you felt. But John was stubborn, and wasn’t going to stop for anything. He took two steps forward. More bullets shot near his feet, sending little shocks of light. That made him pause, but not stop. Another step. “STOP WALKING.” He looked towards another soldier that was with him and said the words that made your heart stop. “BLOW IT.”
The two men disappeared behind the shelters made of sandbags. “John-” You cried out, hoping to God that he would turn around and walk back to you before the explosives would go off.
“DO IT.” The soldier ordered.
Your stubborn husband. He made another step before the explosives detonated. Smoke filled your vision, but you saw that he was thrown backwards. You went through the door again, coughing through the dark and acrid smoke, trying to find him. A whole section of the bridge fell from existence, causing a rumble that made you fall. A hand caught your own, and you could feel from familiarity that it was John’s.
“YOU SONS OF BITCHES,” John said, getting onto his feet and pulling you up alongside with him. He had his arms around you, still shielding you from the military. You avoided looking at them now, because John was speaking what you were thinking. “YOU KILLED US.”
It was hard to maintain that hope in the face of this much adversity, but you had to try. He was moving back towards the door, back towards the kids. You stopped him outside of the bus, wrapping your arms around his shoulders, and brought him in for what might be your last hug. “You’ve done everything that you can, my love,” You said, looking into his dark eyes. “I have faith in the Batman. And in Gordon. They’re figuring this out, and if they don’t then - then you cannot blame yourself. You risked your life time and time again. Gotham can not ask any more from you.”
John nodded, but you could still see the frustration on his face. But then another expression took over it. One of hope. And wonder. He pointed behind you, towards the skies, towards the water. You turned around to see that there was some black thing flying through the air, holding what looked to be-
- the bomb.
It was being flown over the waters, towards the sea, away from Gotham. Batman had come through. There was no mistaking who else it could be in that jetblack air craft. Nobody else had the technology for that. Your hands went to your heart, holding it in because it was beating so quickly, it felt like it might pop out. John put his arms around you from behind. All of the kids rushed to one side of the bus to look out of the windows. There were excited voices coming from everywhere.
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Then the bomb went off. You could see the explosion from where you were. It caused a stiff wind to blow towards you. The bridge rippled as the water beneath it did as well. It was a wonder that the windows of the bus didn’t break. But it was gone, and it was over. And though you felt relieved, you looked up at John with sorrow. He had believed in the Batman, more than he believed in his own police force. But at least the threat against your family, for now, was over and done with.
--
When you first saw him wearing the mask and the suit, you were worried. Who wouldn’t be? He was taking over the moniker of Batman and all of the enemies that brought along with it. But at least he had promised that he would wear the mask, something he had sworn never to do in the first place. But he had you to think about, and the kids. He’d already had an enemy threaten you, with Bane and the entire city, and he realized this wasn’t just about playing heroics. It was about taking care of his own. His people. Gotham’s people.
“Are you going to be home to tuck the kids into bed?” You asked, before John set off to go to the underground bunker. Even you didn’t know the exact location. The less you knew, the better.
“I’ll try to be,” He said, cupping your chin and pressed a sweet and loving, though quick, kiss upon your lips. “Don’t wait up for me though.”
“Easier said than done,” You said. He chuckled, knowing that was the truth, gave you a long look like he was memorizing your face, then disappeared out into the evening twilight, to get ready to prowl the night in his newly assigned role as The Batman.
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Chopped: Holiday Trope Exchange 2020 Masterlist!
A huge thanks to every person who signed up for our fic exchange, we got 21 really wonderful fics! We’re sorry it took us so long to get this out to you all! For anyone who isn’t sure what this was all about, this was a double blind gift exchange where each of our twenty-one (21!!!) writers were assigned four tropes from an anonymous recipient, and were tasked with writing a fic that fit our holiday theme, and included all the tropes. The only guidance from their recipient were a couple of brief notes they included during the sign up, and both the writer and recipient were revealed when we shared all the fics! A big thanks to the Tropesters who stepped up to write a second fic when we needed them! These fics, as with all our TROPED fics, were creative and unique, and found ways to utilise tropes that may seem so simple but were transformed in really spectacular ways! Please enjoy these wonderful holiday fics!
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roots in my dreamland (my house of stone, your ivy grows) (Rated M) [Bellarke]
Written by @captaindaddykru for @thelittlefanpire. The four assigned tropes were 1) Doppelgängers, 2) one character is a dancer, 3) first snow, and 4) kissing to keep a cover/a secret.
Summary: Clarke really wants it to work out with Bellamy, but as an A-list Hollywood actress there’s a lot of contractual obligations she can hide behind instead of confronting her own insecurities and past mistakes. Luckily, this Christmas she’s lucked out, and her stand-in Josie is more than willing to (completely selflessly of course) take her place.
Now comes the hard part.
brighter than moonbeams (Rated T) [Memori]
Written by @the-most-beautiful-broom for @thedefinitionofendgame. The four assigned tropes were 1) The characters play a game,2) Secret Santa, 3) Exes to Lovers, and 4) Surprise kiss.
Summary: Murphy and Emori fall in love fast, and then talk themselves out of it. Years later, their paths will cross again, and they realize that their might be parts of their story that are yet to be written.
What a way to start the year (Rated T) [Bellarke]
Written by @bellarkeshoe for @bellamysgriffin. The four assigned tropes were 1) Law enforcement partners, 2) Character gets BADLY injured and they hide it somehow only to reveal later that they are mortally wounded, 3) Characters hugging after they’ve been through hell, and 4) Kissing in the snow.
Summary: It’s New Years Eve, and Bellamy and Clarke got stuck working.
It’s Alright, It’s Okay (Rated M) [Clurphy]
Written by @sailawaymayday for @wwjacksparrowd. The four assigned tropes were 1) Found Family, 2) Groundhog Day/timeloop, 3) Character gets shot/stabbed/BADLY injured and hides the wound somehow, only to accidentally (someone else touches them and their bleeding, they collapse, etc.) reveal later that they are mortally wounded, and 4) Hurt/Comfort.
Summary: Clarke makes it onto the Ring with the rest of Spacekru. What happens when New Years Eve keeps repeating itself? And what does Murphy have to do with it?
Dancing in Graveyards: An Arkadia Anthology (Rated T) [Gen Fic]
Written by @justbecauseyoubelievesomething for @kinetic-elaboration. The four assigned tropes were 1) Small town gothic, 2) Christmas Lights, 3) First snow, and 4) Sneaking someone in/out of your window.
Summary: Three small town gothic stories intertwine as old friends reunite and try to make the best out of their lives. Raven returns home after her foster father’s death and is pulled like a magnet to her enigmatic highschool sweetheart. Jasper seeks solace from a tragedy and desperately attempts to outrun the ghosts of the past. Bellamy battles his inner demons and prays not to tear himself and his loved ones apart in the process. And all of them come to realize that they belong together, even if the place they call home is shadowed by sorrow.
do or die, you’ll never make me (because the world will never take my heart) (Rated T) [Bellarke]
Written by @shen-gong-oops for @probably-voldemort. The four assigned tropes were 1) Fake dating, 2) Amnesia AU, 3) Enemies to Friends to Lovers, and 4) Superhero AU.
Summary: As the youngest member of the Guard and the daughter of the Guard former leader, there are high expectations set for Clarke. The Marketing and PR teams at Ark expecting her to be prim and proper during any conferences, while simultaneously performing their well-rehearsed fight choreography to a T.
But when four unknown supes challenge the juggernaut that is Ark Industries, Clarke wonders if herodom isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
Merry Christmas, Lovebirds (Rated G) [Murven]
Written by @kinetic-elaboration for @shen-gong-oops. The four assigned tropes were 1) One character cautiously says “i’m going to kiss you now, okay?” or some variation of that, 2) Mutual pining, 3) A misunderstanding, and 4) Tattoos.
Summary: There’s never snow for Christmas on the beach, Murphy is a culinary genius, Raven has a boyfriend, and other presumed facts, too obvious to mention.
Once Upon Our Story (Rated G) [Bellarke]
Written by @andthelightbulbclicks for @bellamythology. The four assigned tropes were 1) break-up/make-up, 2) Did they or didn’t they, 3) Extremely biased flashbacks of the same event, and 4) Bookstore or library AU.
Summary: Bellamy returns with as much fanfare as one can imagine when driving a school bus decorated as Santa Claus through town, leaving Clarke shocked and all of their friends confused given he hasn’t been home in months.
(Or: Six months ago, Bellamy left Arkadia.
Six months ago, Clarke didn’t.
Six months ago, their friends knew the relationship ended, even came up with their own versions of what really happened. But the question that they all want to know for certain– is why?)
Dream A Little Dream of Me (Rated T) [Clurphy]
Written by @queenemori for @vmreed. The four assigned tropes were 1) One character has a child, 2) Protectiveness, 3) Only one bed, and 4) Soulmates.
Summary: It was just Murphy’s luck that right as he was starting to enjoy Earth, he had to leave. But he’d rather that than succumb to a fiery death wave. He and the other residents of the Ring remembered Clarke every year during their New Year’s Eve celebration. But even when they weren’t celebrating Clarke, Murphy couldn’t seem to get her off his mind. He wished his brain would stop playing tricks on him by making him think she was alive. Clarke was dead. Wasn’t she?
i don’t wanna burn out, so wont you please set me on fire again? (Rated M) [Murven]
Written by @kuklash for @sparklyfairymira. The four assigned tropes were 1) Protectiveness, 2) Exes and Lovers, 3) Small Town AU, and 4) Characters fall on each other and have a moment.
Summary: The wind nipped at Murphy’s nose as he stood in the doorway of the gas station on the edge of town. Work was slow, as it always was after sundown, especially in the mid-December cold, but someone had to make sure the good townsfolk of Arkadia could get their milk and gas after the small general store closed. All 800 of them. He watched the cars drive by throughout the day, recognizing each and everyone of them. Bellamy’s beat up truck he worked all highschool to afford, Clarke’s clean new sedan, even that jerk Finn’s loud ass motorcycle. He watched them all pass one by one, his old classmates returning home after another semester of college at the University of Polis. The only sign that time was passing at all.
The phone inside rang, breaking him out of his melancholy, at least for now.
“Great,” he thought, sarcastically. “A phone call 10 minutes before we close.”
He walked back inside and put on the most cheerful customer service voice he could muster.
“Dropship Gas, this is Murphy. How can I he-”
A familiar female voice cut him off, leaving him cold.
“Murphy? Thank god!”
It was his ex.
Everybody wonders what it would be like to love you (Rated M) [Bellarke]
Written by @sparklyfairymira for @captaindaddykru. The four assigned tropes were 1) Celebrity AU, 2) Meet Ugly, 3) Characters must share something, and 4) Characters aren’t together but are mistaken to be.
Summary: Bellamy Blake and Clarke Griffin are household names thanks to their music. They belong to the same label so they often work together on duets—even though they can’t stand one another. Their first meeting is disastrous and six years later they still can’t get along.
toward brighter days (Rated T) [Sea Mechanic]
Written by @reggieshamster for @/ashplana. The four assigned tropes were 1) Apocalyptic Log, 2) bed sharing, 3) road trip au, and 4) mythical creatures.
Summary: Dear Harper,
I am ridiculously out of it this morning. Last night, when we reached the campsite, Luna suggested we give Echo her own bedroll, since she gave hers up the night before.
Which meant Luna was sleeping with me.
Beside me.
Excerpts from Raven’s journal as she travels to Polis for the Winter Solstice Festival
three words, two hearts, one maybe (Rated G) [Bellarke]
Written by @bellamysgriffin for @bellarkeshoe. The four assigned tropes were 1) Youtuber AU, 2) best friend’s sibling, 3) frikdreina, and 4) miscommunication.
Summary: After an accident blinds Clarke, Octavia’s been encouraging her best friend to keep up with her artwork. In order to inspire her, she recruits the help of her older brother, Bellamy, who’s recently launched a new exhibition at his museum, to feature her work. Bellamy likes Clarke’s work, and he’s more than happy to help. But when she doesn’t show on the big day, he takes matters into his own hands. With an old video camera, he records people’s reactions to Clarke’s artwork so that she’ll know just how talented she is. But when he sends it to his sister, he doesn’t expect her to upload it to YouTube. And he definitely doesn’t expect to go viral.
Something Beautiful, Simple, and Bright (Rated T) [Clurphy]
Written by @wwjacksparrowd for @queenemori. The four assigned tropes were 1) Friends with Benefits AU, 2) Prank war, 3) characters are not together but are mistaken for a couple, and 4) Based on a Song.
Summary: Six months after Wonkru and Eligius manage to establish peace and divide Eden between themselves (with a little slice shaved off for Spacekru, of course), Clarke has a mission: plan a New Year’s Eve party for fifteen hundred people within three weeks.
Murphy’s mission? Stop her from burning out in the process. Oh, and if he could just get Monty to quit it with the freaking noisemakers, that would be great, too.
(…Okay, yeah, he’d also like to date Clarke for real instead of just sleeping with her. But that’s a pipe dream, right?)
put your faith in the devil and the deep blue sea (Rated M) [Clurphy]
Written by @probably-voldemort for @kuklash. The four assigned tropes were 1) Time Loop AU, 2) Characters fall on top of one another and have a “moment”, 3) Enemies to Lovers, and 4) Superhero AU.
Summary: Twenty years ago, when the clocks changed from 11:59pm on December 31st, 1999, to 12:00am on January 1st, 2000, the world ended, exactly as the doomsdayers had predicted. Now, there are only a few livable months left on Earth, and the privileged are evacuating for a life in space, abandoning the planet.
But not everyone has given up.
Clarke was only three when the world ended, and she’s spent most of her life in her mother’s lab. Now, as the last space ships are preparing to leave, her mother’s machine is finally ready, and Clarke and her mother are heading back in time to try to stop the apocalypse from happening in the first place.
An attack on the lab leads to Clarke heading back to 1995 on her own, and the past isn’t quite how Clarke’s vague memories from the beginning of her life paint it. Clarke soon discovers that not only did the machine do more than just send her back in time, but she wasn’t, in fact, sent back alone.
Will she be able to stop the apocalypse before the clock strikes midnight? Or are some parts of history unchangeable?
All I Want For Christmas (Rated T) [Memori]
Written by @thedefinitionofendgame for @the-most-beautiful-broom. The four assigned tropes were 1) Fake dating, 2) Joke kiss turned real kiss, 3) One character is sleeping and the other character is watching them totally in love, and 4) Blanket fort.
Summary: Tired of being single, Murphy decides to take matters into his own hands and get himself a girlfriend before the annual Christmas Day dinner with his friends. Having had bad luck in the past with girls - all twenty four of them - Murphy is determined to make the twenty-fifth, the “Christmas Day” number, his forever.
Of course, this is easier said than done. When his fellow coworker, Emori, seems to be having similar problems and suggests them being each other’s “fake dates” to their Christmas parties in December, Murphy jumps at the chance. Fake dating is better than being totally alone, right? It appears that way, at least until Murphy starts to catch feelings; the ones that make you question everything you think you know. As their “fake feelings” start to become more real, Murphy realizes that Emori’s the one he wants for Christmas. But she’s got walls up and even though his heart doesn’t stand a chance, Murphy’s determined to break them down and show her what falling in love really means, maybe with the help of a little December magic thrown in.
As long as we’re together, no I can’t get much higher (Rated T) [Murven]
Written by @dylanobrienisbatman for @andthelightbulbclicks. The four assigned tropes were 1) Zookeeper AU, 2) Treasure Hunt, 3) secret places, and 4) Secret Santa.
Summary: Murphy has only known Raven for a little while, but the longer he spends getting to know her, the more he realises that there’s no hope of him not falling in love with her.
So when he gets her for Secret Santa, he makes it his mission to nail it.
before i knew you (Rated G) [Clexa]
Written by @dylanobrienisbatman for @sailawaymayday. The four assigned tropes were: (1) Pen Pals, (2) 3+1, 4+1, 5+1, etc., (3) surprise kiss, and (4) character meets another characters ex.
Summary: What do you do when your penpal, the person you know the best in the world, who you love, turns out to be the rather rude (if also rather pretty) sales girl from downstairs? Lexa is about to find out. or - 3 times lexa and clarke meet without knowing they’ve been penpals since childhood, and the 1 time Lexa figures it out.
when life gives you shit, you make kool-aid (Rated M) [Becho]
Written by @reggieshamster for @dylanobrienisbatman. The four assigned tropes were: (1) Bodyguard AU, (2) Bed Sharing, (3) Kissing to Keep Cover/a Secret, and (4) a Character gets shot/stabbed/badly injured and they collapse, being caught by their loved one.
Summary: Bellamy used to have it all, and then one screw-up cost him his career and his fancy life. Now, working as a bodyguard for alcoholic businessmen and their families, he gets a call from his sister for a job… escorting a hitwoman to testify against a man convicted of crimes against humanity. What could possibly go wrong?
and left the secret at the grave (Rated T) [Clurphy]
Written by @probably-voldemort for @justbecauseyoubelievesomething. The four assigned tropes were: (1) Murder Mystery, (2) Partners in Crime, (3) Exes to Lovers, and (4) Snowed In.
Summary: At 8:57 on the morning of December 23rd, eight year old Jordan Green discovered the body of Skybox Inn owner Vera Kane on the floor of the lobby. His screams woke up the other guests of the inn, as well as the live-in butler.
The discovery of the body was followed shortly by two more discoveries. The first was that the storm the night before had knocked out the phones and the internet, and the second was that the inn was completely snowed in with no hopes of escape anytime soon.
Thirteen people trapped in an inn.
Uncountable secrets.
One murderer.
One question.
Who killed Vera Kane?
what a tangled string of Christmas lights we weave (Rated T) [Linctavia]
Written by @thelittlefanpire for @reggieshamster. The four assigned tropes were: (1) Royalty AU, (2) Cyrano AU, (3) Characters fall and end up landing on top of each other and have a “moment”, and (4) Hair brushing and/or braiding.
Summary: When the royal family loses their beloved Prince Wells, the future king of Arkadia, all eyes are on them. The Queen remains as stoic as ever, the Spare grapples with his new responsibilities, the Princess drowns in her grief, and the King is threatening to abolish the monarchy forever.
At Christmastime, as tensions in the palace rise with the vicious tabloids outside, the royal family makes an escape to a castle in the mountains, hoping to find solace and reconcile with their loss.
Princess Octavia will try to mend her broken heart back together as she becomes entranced with the letters sent back and forth between herself and another. But when it’s revealed who the true penman is, will she rise above her sorrow or sink further into it?
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Take a read! Leave a kudos/comment! Our Tropesters worked so hard on creating some unique, festive fun fics from all the amazing tropes that were sent in. Thanks again!
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warsmith-38 · 3 years
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How I would do RWBY pt.4
World Travel Arc.
Season Four.
Cinder was found by Salem after fall of Beacon.
Missing arm and eye.
Salem helps her and even rewards her.
She accomplished her goal of shooting Ozpin with the arrow.
It didn’t take, sure, but that’s not Cinder’s fault.
Arm is replaced with grimm arm.
An eye was also offered but Cinder refused because she wants a visceral reminder of her failure.
Translation: Because chuunibyou.
Cinder spends her time training to compensate for and overcome her new disabilities.
Has massive grudge against Ruby.
What should have been two easy wins were stolen from her by sheer dumb luck and circumstance.
She has made it her goal to prove that she is more powerful than Ruby and will do so by tearing her heart out and turning it to ash.
Salem decides that Ruby will be an issue to her long term plans and sends her best assassin, Tyrian, to kill her instead of Cinder.
Just like Summer.
She doesn’t want to send Cinder on the grounds that she thinks that homegirl REALLY needs to chill.
Ruby is full murderhobo.
Killing grimm and taking whatever freelance bounty money she can on her way to Mistral.
Fuck if she knows what she’s going to do when she gets there but she hasn’t planned all that far ahead.
She just wanted to not be stuck at home again.
Finds JNR, who had volunteered for general assistance in the areas around Mistral.
JNR says that there’s both a grimm issue and a bandit issue in the area.
Ruby wants everything to do with it.
Blake is on her way back to Menagerie.
Encounters SSSN who are on light duties and are being sent to putz around in Menagerie.
Sun asks her ‘what the fuck is your plan?’
Blake says that the only place for her in the world is back home with her family.
Weiss is also back home with her family but is far less into the idea.
Dad is distant and detached.
Mother is drunk and miserable.
Winter is the only one she properly interacts with, training and sparring to keep herself in shape.
Winter offers a position in the military, a cushy one at that (Can I get an amen for nepotism?)
Weiss ignores the offer, is depressed, misses her friends.
Yang is stuck at home, also depressed, dealing with deepening abandonment issues, and constantly fiddling with the trinket Raven gave her.
Having Ruby run off only made things worse. Combining her abandonment issues with the feeling of letting her sister down when she needed her most.
Tai barely pays attention to her outside of his constant worrying about Ruby but eventually sees the trinket and tells Yang about Raven.
Is very clearly bitter about the whole thing but is pretending he isn’t.
VERY rose (ha) tinted glasses about Summer.
Not that she was secretly a piece of shit or anything, but to hear Tai talk about her she made saints look like goatfuckers.
Ironwood shows up and gives Yang robo-arm as an apology for saying he’d help her after the fight with Mercury and then letting her down.
Ironwood helps break Yang out of her funk, offers some military style counseling, helping her work off the muscle atrophy, even teaches her some spec-ops chokeholds and the like.
Yang says it’s nice to have an actual male role model/father figure in her life.
Ironwood rips Tai’s shit in for being such a bad parent to Yang.
Tai has no real counters to what Ironwood is saying.
He realizes that he’s been a neglectful asshole and starts helping retrain Yang too.
Weiss makes a scene at an event her father is putting on.
Jacques sits her down after it and says that they’re going to have a completely frank conversation.
Topic shifts to their viewpoints and life choices.
He’s fine with his daughter disagreeing with him, he just wants her to understand him and he her.
Weiss calls him out on the blatantly bad shit the SDC has done.
Jacques defends his points, saying that he tried to make things better for the faunus and the White Fang just made everything worse for everyone.
Weiss tells him that passing the buck is bullshit.
Agree to disagree.
Jacques gives her a spiel laced with double meanings about freedom and making your own path.
Weiss leaves that night. (keikaku doori (Translation: All according to keikaku (Translators note: Keikaku means plan)))
Jacques might be a dick but he does want his family to be as genuinely happy as he can make them.
Blake gets back home.
Gets royal reception on the grounds that she’s the daughter of the chief of the kingdom.
Sun sends SSN to get on with their mission, he’s gonna be a while, faunus business.
They understand, they’re hip to this sort of thing, and tell him that if he needs them they’re just a phone call away.
He calls Blake out for being one of the most privileged faunus alive while lecturing others on said topic.
Blake and Sun walk in on White Fang people trying to recruit Ghira.
Notices Blake in the process of telling them to leave.
Ghira shoves everyone out of his way to embrace his long believed dead daughter.
Emotional reunion.
Sees Sun, makes joke about ‘Adam’s cheerier replacement’.
Blake gets sad.
Ghira assumes Adam died or something and doesn’t press the matter.
Calls for a royal banquet to celebrate the return of his daughter.
Sienna is present.
Sienna is overjoyed to see Blake alive and well.
Blake is happy to see ‘aunty’ Sienna but is apprehensive to talk that much with Sun glaring at them both.
Ilia is there (as head of local White Fang cell) and is happy to see her old friend is alive.
She already knew but has to keep up appearances, especially after The White Fang was seen at Beacon.
Very poor publicity to be seen operating at a place like that.
Ilia had been reassigned to Menagerie before the fall happened so she’s not guilty of taking part.
Later has small meeting with Blake, Sienna, Ilia, Sun, Ghira, and Kali.
Sienna tries (again) to bring Ghira into the White Fang.
His joining would bring all of Menagerie and the connected resources into the conflict.
This is opposed by everyone else present barring Ilia.
Ghira says that he has washed his hands of the problems in Atlas and has local stuff that he believes is more important in the long run.
Supporting Wild Call is how he helps the rest of his people.
Kali’s been running Wild Call since Ghira stepped away to run Menagerie.
Sienna talks about how faunus are treated in certain parts of the world.
It really is nowhere near as bad as she says it is.
Blake brings up terrorist acts in places completely innocent of any faunus abuse.
Sienna ‘condemns’ these acts and blames them on ‘bad apples’ like Adam, citing the fall of Beacon.
Says that Adam was acting alone and without official endorsement.
She’s lying through her fucking teeth, but the only other one who knows that for sure is Ilia.
While taking part in the fall was technically unsanctioned, Sienna knows all about Salem and was okaying Adam’s efforts working with her.
Ilia suddenly feels very guilty for some odd reason.
Ghira is very confused, doesn’t keep up too much with world affairs, generally too busy.
Blake rounds on Sienna for trying to shift the blame to Adam, cites all of the bullshit attacks she was involved in, letting it be known that she herself was in the White Fang.
Ghira and Kali both become enraged at Sienna, who told them that Blake was killed years ago at a protest gone south.
Sienna tries to make excuses for the cause.
Is escorted with Ilia from the palace at gun point.
Kali and Blake reconnect as Ghira has a sit down with Sun, telling him to tell him everything he knows.
Weiss is stowed away on airship bound for Vacuo/Mistral (doesn’t really matter which, ship gets taken down either way).
Ship gets attacked by grimm and gets splashed.
Weiss makes it to shore and travels southward, realizing that maybe she should have planned this a little more than not at all.
Wonder who she picked that up from.
Ends up surrounded by bandits who see the pretty girl from Atlas who might just be worth a lot of cash.
Weiss kicks the shit out of them.
Raven shows up.
Weiss loses.
Yang decides enough of her sulking and gets ready to set off to find Ruby and either 1. Bring her home 2. Look after her and keep her safe on her personal quest 3. Kick her ass for running off and making everyone worried 4. Some combination of the above. (Maybe hit up where Raven’s map leads along the way if she gets the chance)
Tai acknowledges that he can’t always protect his girls.
Tells Yang to not be too hard on Ruby, realizing that she would never have been happy with a calm, sheltered, life.
Summer was the same way.
He also apologizes for neglecting Yang for as long as he did.
Yang gets a hug from Tai, a salute from Ironwood, and a slobbering from Zwei.
Yes, the dog is still here. He’s a good dog. Every story could use a good dog or twelve.
Gets to the continent that Mistral is on. (I do not care about the name)
Starts biking in the direction that the conflict zones are, hoping to find word about Ruby along the way.
Gets accosted by bandits along the way.
Kicks the crap out of them.
Raven shows up saying that she expected nothing less from her daughter.
Yang realizes that she is indeed around where the map was pointing her.
This was supposed to be a test to see if Yang was resourceful enough to track her down.
Didn’t really mean to come this way just yet, but sometimes things just work out that way.
Raven happily takes her daughter to the main camp.
Yang is apprehensive to get comfortable and seems a little disappointed that her mother is just some asshole bandit.
Raven gives her a speech all about survival of the fittest and might makes right and all that jazz.
Yang wants to know why she left her in the first place and why she is suddenly wanting to be back in her life after all this time.
She’s got a lot of questions and Raven has very few answers.
Raven avoids Yang’s questions and says that she’s always been watching her from behind the scenes.
Yang actually dislikes that even more because it means that she could have been there for her the whole time, yet wasn’t.
Raven continues by saying that if Yang’s so weak that she couldn’t beat a pissant like Neo then she really needs mama to teach her what’s what.
Offers Yang a position in the tribe and even offers to make her second in command.
Yang then sees Weiss in a cage.
Raven explains that she’s going to be given to Salem to use as a hostage in Atlas.
Yang had already given up on getting answers and was already going to tell Raven to eat shit but now...
Demolishes the camp, takes Weiss away on the bike, and leaves the trinket Raven gave her in the dirt.
Would have taken the time to kick the shit out of Raven, but she needed to get Weiss out of there.
Raven is livid.
In Menagerie, Ghira and Kali have very upfront conversation with Blake.
They are upset with her that she ran off with terrorists but are happy she’s alive.
They also admonish her for running/taking the easy way out of every problem she’s had.
Blake is exasperated that the last place she could run off to is calling her out for running off so much.
Adam is all like ‘what up bitches, imma kill ya’.
Has sizable team of White Fang commandos with him and some grimm Salem sent.
Ilia shows up with her own commandos to counter his.
Both sides duke it out with the Belladonnas (Nightshades technically) getting pissed and telling all of them to get off their lawn.
Blake fights Adam.
Starts losing.
Sun calls SSN in for the assist.
They help but not all that much.
Sienna shows up to break the stalemate.
Starts kicking the shit out of Adam’s posse.
Officially denounces and attaints Adam for his crimes.
Adam leaves and swears vengeance, telling Blake that if he can’t kill her, he’ll kill RWY and make sure they know it was her that sent him to them.
Blake finally learns her fucking lesson.
Start to pack up to stop Adam before he kills RWY and, either afterwards or in the process, find and reconcile with RWY.
Takes the time to actually explain why she’s leaving this time.
Ghira understands.
Sienna takes partial blame and offers Blake the last known location of a red hooded huntress with a big fucking scythe her spies found.
Blake thanks her, but refuses an escort, hitching a ride back to the mainland with SSSN.
Ghira and Kali thank Sienna for the help but still tell her to get the fuck out and that the White Fang and their war are both not welcome in Menagerie.
In the name of their past friendship, they don’t just shoot her.
Blake has parting conversation with Sun about justifications and personal growth.
She and Sun amicably part ways.
SSSN go back to their usual shit and Blake starts hunting for Ruby.
Her logic is that, as far as she knows, Weiss is surrounded with SDC security and Yang is probably somewhere safe-ish, while Ruby is actively in a dangerous locale and ripe for predation.
Speaking of…
Ruby and JNR are clearing out local grimm around Mistral as expected.
Include sad scene or two there they find the ruins of Nora’s home village, destroyed by bandits.
Tyrian is all like ‘what up bitches, imma kill ya’.
Ruby is actually very eager for a fight against one of the important bad guys.
That excitement is curbed when Tyrian lets her know that he was the one to kill Summer.
Ruby is now more scared than anything.
R+JNR fight him and get their asses handed to them.
They try running but Tyrian isn’t giving up the chase.
Turns into cat and mouse game.
Jaune is pushed to his tactical limit against an incredibly intelligent and just as unpredictable enemy.
Everyone is scared out of their minds.
The cat (Tyrian) is just playing with his food (R+JNR) at this point.
Could have killed them at any point but he’s a sadistic animal that gets off on this shit.
Nora flies into a fury, bellowing that she will never lose anyone close to her ever again.
This creates an opening in Tyrian’s style.
Jaune’s planning manages to exploit this enough so Ruby gets a good hit on him, severing his tail.
He is very unhappy at this development.
Decides that he’s done playing with his food.
Wrecks R+JNR.
About to kill Ruby when Qrow ex machina runs him off.
Jaune discovers his semblance is healing and uses it on everyone that needs it. Which is everyone.
Qrow is annoyed that Ruby ran off on her own but understands.
Says that there’s an abandoned chateau that can serve as a pit-stop.
Been in the Branwen family for ages.
They abandoned it after they lost their fortune and it got overrun with grimm in the past.
Grimm have since moved on but the building is still there.
He’ll explain everything he can when he knows they’re out of danger.
Raven contacts Salem and tells her which direction Yang and Weiss are going.
Salem barely cares about what one of her least important agents is up to.
Notices that Ruby is in the same area and gets wind that Tyrian failed.
Sends Cinder and company to meet up with Raven and get hunting.
Salem makes a point of ordering Cinder to let Tyrian take on Ruby and not get involved against her.
Cinder just happens to ignore that order.
Blake does a little extra tracking but heads in the right direction.
Yang and Weiss hear about a red hooded huntress with a big scythe and follow the rumors.
Everyone converges at the chateau at the same time.
It’s a very all over the place scene.
Ruby is happy to see Weiss and Blake but is a little wary of Yang after how their last conversation went.
Yang is eager to make things up with Ruby but more than a little scornful of Blake.
Blake is scared of everyone’s rejection but understands their anger and is more than willing to work through it if they’d have her.
Weiss is happy to see everyone but her happiness and excitement is curbed by how everyone else is reacting to each other.
The tension explodes when Cinder and co. arrive.
Ruby and Cinder lock eyes.
Ruby goes quiet for a moment-
And then goes completely Broly BERSERK!
Group of boss fights.
Ruby madly charges Cinder in a rage.
JNR, Qrow, and Weiss begin fighting Emerald, Mercury, Tyrian, and grimm they brought.
Blake fights Adam. (again)
Yang fights Raven, constantly calling her on her shit.
Abandoning her and Tai to be some asshole bandit, siding with Salem, being a coward, et cetera.
Says that she has figured out that the reason Raven left was because she’s just a chicken shit coward who can’t deal with the world.
All of her issues and traumas have manifested into a sort of nirvana of wrath that gives her a one-time, ‘fuck you, mom’, power up that puts her at Raven’s power tier level.
Ruby vs Cinder takes them away from the others.
Ruby is in berserk, adrenaline filled, wrath fueled, fugue state, taking hits that should be stopping the fight but aren’t.
Cinder is also not fighting at her best due to A. missing eye, B. her grimm arm having a built in weakness to Ruby, and C. the fact that she had no idea that Ruby would go fucking mental like this.
Ruby eventually knocks Cinder down a pit and promptly passes out from blood loss.
Blake beats Adam and tells him to fuck off, saying that she will not stoop to his level of murder.
Yang overpowers and beats Raven, but barely.
JNR is busy with the grimm and Qrow is busy with Tyrian, who has a freaky grimm tail now.
Weiss is fighting both Emerald and Mercury.
Is losing pretty hard.
Yang shows up to fight Mercury.
WY have their first proper rival fights against E+M.
And proceed to lose.
Raven has heel-face turn and bails them out.
Tyrian is killed at the same time. Small justice for Summer.
Qrow reunites with Raven.
The Branwen siblings intimidate E+M, faking not being fuckoff exhausted.
Dare they stand against this deadly alliance?
Nope.
Emerald and Mercury cheese it.
Raven explains that since Yang beat her, Yang is now in charge of the bandits.
Raven says how proud she is that her daughter is such an ass kicker.
Yang is about to tell her off but then realizes that Ruby is still gone.
They find her in a widening pool of her own blood.
Jaune heals her.
Everyone wonder just what the fuck that was that Ruby did.
It’s not its own power or a sub-power of her new semblance.
She was just that fucking angry at seeing Cinder.
RWBY has a big ‘we beat the middle to high tier bad guys’ group hug.
Ruby affirms that she senses that Cinder is still alive but accepts the hug anyway.
Raven says that Salem’s next target is Mistral itself with Adam’s White Fang hardliners.
Yang says thanks for the info and then tells her to do what she does best and fuck off.
Literally everyone mirrors the sentiment.
Raven leaves in a huff but starts to question her morals.
RWBY is now reunited as a team.
They’re not quite back to normal, but they’re all together again.
Reunited RWBY, JNR, and Qrow now on course to Mistral proper to recoup and make new plans.
Season four done.
8 notes · View notes
elriell · 4 years
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Book Rec’s
Going to try and add a lot of less known books that are amazing and not enough people talk about, this would be too long if I talked about each one in depth, so I am going to leave my fav quotes as that tends to give me a feel for books and whether I will like them and I will link the GR page for more info! Happy reading:)
Fantasy Vibes
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From Blood And Ash by Jennifer L Armentrout    (CLICK THIS TOO)
“Death is like an old friend who pays a visit, sometimes when it’s least expected and other times when you’re waiting for her. It’s neither the first nor the last time she’ll pay a visit, but that doesn’t make any death less harsh or unforgiving.”
“Fear and bravery are often one and the same. It either makes you a warrior or a coward. The only difference is the person it resides inside.”
 “You're an absolutely stunning, murderous little creature.”
Storm And Fury by Jennifer L Armentrout
“What are you going to do if it does get worse?” he asked. “Maybe I’ll get myself a seeing-eye gargoyle.”
(HONESTLY BADASS GARGOYLES. SO UNIQUE AND AWESOME)
Demons At Deadnight by A&E Kirk   
“I launched into a graceful ninja-like front roll, then stood my ground to face the monstrous heathen, fearless in my determination to vanquish the deadly foe.
Nah, just kidding. I bolted, discretion being the better part of not getting dead.”
“We are killers,” Matthias said. Bad news. 
“Not girls. We don’t kill girls.” Good news. 
“She’s no girl.” Insulting news? 
“What? Of course she’s a girl.”
 “Want me to check?” 
“Shut up, Blake,” the rest of them chorused.”
The Cruel Prince by Holly Black   
“If I cannot be better than them, I will become so much worse.”
“If you hurt me, I wouldn't cry. I would hurt you back.”
“I am going to keep on defying you. I am going to shame you with my defiance. You remind me that I am a mere mortal and you are a prince of Faerie. Well, let me remind you that means you have much to lose and I have nothing. You may win in the end, you may ensorcell me and hurt me and humiliate me, but I will make sure you lose everything I can take from you on the way down. I promise you this is the least of what I can do.”
MM Romance
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Him by Sabrina Bowen & Elle Kennedy
“Our mouths fit together so perfectly. Every time we kiss, I fall even more in love with him, and it has nothing to do with sex or lust. It's him. His closeness and his scent and the way he soothes me.”
“I…” He clears his throat. “I’d let you do it, though.” My hand freezes in his hair. “You would?” Wes nods. “I’d let you do anything to me, Canning.”
Misfits by Garrett Leigh (Poly romance, its just so perfect ala herongraystairs!)
“Learn something. Read a book. Explore someone. Anger is just a hole where your life could be.”
In The Absence Of Light by Adrienne Wilder
“The light is a funny thing, Grant. We think it shows us what we need to see, but in reality, it blinds us. That’s why I brought you here. I wanted you to see me.”
“Morgan may be autistic, but he is a normal man with a mental condition, not a mental condition who is a man.”
HOneStly JUST READ IT
The Foxhole Court by Nora Sakavic
“It’s not the world that’s cruel. It’s the people in it.”
“I'm not a math problem." "But I'll still solve you."
“Is your learning curve a horizontal line?”
“Who said 'please' that made you hate the word so much?"  Andrew gazed at him in silence for a minute. "I did.”
“I didn't think I was a personal problem. You hate me, remember?" "Every inch of you," Andrew said. "That doesn't mean I wouldn't blow you." 
EVERY QOUTE IS ICONIC TBH 
Vampires, Angels & Greek Mythology
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Bloodlines by Michelle Read
“The greatest changes in history have come when people were able to shake off what others told them to do.”
“Takes a lot of tries before you hit perfection." He paused to reconsider that. "Well, except for my parents. They got it on the first try."
“No, thank you," said Adrian. "These hands don't sully themselves with fighting.”
“Everything's about my personal entertainment. The world is my stage. Keep it up- you're becoming a star performer in the show.”
Angels Blood by Nalini Singh
“Some things were worth the dance with danger.”
“You do realize this makes your wings even more unique." "Are you saying you shot me as a cosmetic procedure?”
“You ask a lot of questions for a dead woman.” “What can I say? I prefer to die well-informed.”
“You don't fear me," he said now. She wasn't stupid enough to lie. "I'm petrified. But I figure you didn't make me come all this way just so you could push me off the roof.”
Dark Lover by J.R Ward (warning OTT vamps if thats not your jazz either skip)
“Some bridges you crossed on your own, no matter who drove you to the edge”
“Vengeance was one hell of a roommate.”
Half-Blood by Jennifer L Armentrout
“Two people see each other across a room or their skin brushes. Their souls recognize the person as their own. It doesn’t need time to figure it. The soul always knows… whether it’s right or wrong.”
“It’s just words and words mean nothing. Only action does.”
“People do the damndest things when they’re in love.”
“There is a difference between love and need. Sometimes, what you feel is immediate and without rhyme or reason.”
Assasin-y Goodness
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Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers
“When one consorts with assassins, one must expect to dance along the edge of a knife once or twice.”
“I comfort myself with the knowledge that if Duval ever feels smothered by me, it will be because I am holding a pillow over his face.”
“Surely He does not give us hearts so we may spend our lives ignoring them.”
“There is no shame in scars, Ismae.”
Daughter Of The Pirate King by Tricia Levenseller
“I am me because I choose to be me. I am what I want. Some people say you have to find yourself. Not I. I believe we create ourselves to be what we want.”
“Lass, you've the face of an angel but the tongue of a snake.”
“Everyone has something dark in their past. I suppose it's our job to overcome it. And if we can’t overcome it, then all we can do is make the most of it.”
“Waiting. Not waiting. One lover. A hundred lovers. There should be no judgement either way. A woman is not defined by what she does or doesn‘t do in the bedroom.”
“Even a man who’s spent his whole life at sea has reason to fear her when she’s angry. But not I. I sleep soundly. Listening to her music. The sea watches over me. She protects her own.”
Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
“No mourners. No funerals. Among them, it passed for 'good luck.”
“It's not natural for women to fight." "It's not natural for someone to be as stupid as he is tall, and yet there you stand.”
“I will have you without armor, Kaz Brekker. Or I will not have you at all.
“The heart is an arrow. It demands aim to land true.”
“Kaz leaned back. "What's the easiest way to steal a man's wallet?" "Knife to the throat?" asked Inej. "Gun to the back?" said Jesper. "Poison in his cup?" suggested Nina. "You're all horrible," said Matthias.”
The Kiss of Deception by Mary E. Pearson
“It can take years to mold a dream. It takes only a fraction of a second for it to be shattered.”
“Taking another life, she had whispered, even a guilty one, should never be easy. If it were, we'd be little more than animals.”
“Maybe there was no one way to define it. Maybe there were as many shades of love as the blues of the sky,”
“We all have our different skills. You’re patient to a fault, which sometimes doesn’t work to your advantage. I, on the other hand, have the patience of a wet cat. Only on rare occasions does that come in handy.”
“Maybe there were a hundred different ways to fall in love.”
Circus Vibes
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Caraval by Stephanie Garber
“Every person has the power to change their fate if they are brave enough to fight for what they desire more than anything.”
“She imagined loving him would feel like falling in love with darkness, frightening and consuming yet utterly beautiful when the stars came out.”
“Some things are worth pursuit regardless of the cost.”
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
“You may tell a tale that takes up residence in someone's soul, becomes their blood and self and purpose. That tale will move them and drive them and who knows that they might do because of it, because of your words. That is your role, your gift.”
“Secrets have power. And that power diminishes when they are shared, so they are best kept and kept well. Sharing secrets, real secrets, important ones, with even one other person, will change them. Writing them down is worse, because who can tell how many eyes might see them inscribed on paper, no matter how careful you might be with it. So it's really best to keep your secrets when you have them, for their own good, as well as yours.”
Six of Hearts by L.H Cosway
“Note to self: Never try to out-trick a trickster.”
“So why not live with the magic? Be a kid again and believe in the fantastical. Life is more fun with a little smoke and mirrors.”
“We all have thoughts that we would never, ever vocalise. And people who say they don’t are liars.”
“I once read that people who have imaginary friends never reach out to touch them. There’s some part of their brain that subconsciously knows it will break the spell. That’s what it feels like with Jay.”
Amour Amour by Krista & Becca Richie
“We all traverse in and out of people’s worlds, leaving footprints. Some larger, some smaller, but there is always a mark. We can’t sweep it away.”
“Life is a rollercoaster with no volunteers. We’re all forced to take a seat and ride it out.
“I’m average. I’ve been average most of my life, but there are moments where I feel extraordinary. Invincible. Able to conquer any fear and step outside any box. There is no illusion, no fantasy. I can climb a forty-foot pole. I can fly eighty-feet in the air. I can be taller than tall. It’s a dream that I’m living. Every day. With him.”
More M/M Romance
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The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller
“I could recognize him by touch alone, by smell; I would know him blind, by the way his breaths came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of the world.”
“And perhaps it is the greater grief, after all, to be left on earth when another is gone.”
“He is a weapon, a killer. Do not forget it. You can use a spear as a walking stick, but that will not change its nature.”
“He is half of my soul, as the poets say.”
Axel’s Pup by Kim Dare  (Shifter Romance & BDSM FYI if thats not your jazz)
"I want to screw you, and tie you up, and make you writhe from-you know all that. But I want so much more. I want the whole thing, not just a quick scene. I want twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. I want you to be mine. I won't take anything less."
Aristotle And Dante Discover The Secrets Of The Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
“In your dream. You were looking for me.""I'm always looking for you," 
“He was funny and focused and fierce. I mean the guy could be fierce. And there wasn’t anything mean about him. I didn’t understand how you could live in a mean world and not have any of that meanness rub off on you.”
“He looked like an angel. And all I wanted to do was put my fist through his jaw. I couldn't stand my own cruelty.”
“One of the secrets of the universe was that our instincts were sometimes stronger than our minds. Another secret of the universe: Sometimes pain was like a storm that came out of nowhere.”
Shattered Glass by Dani Alexander
"Tell me something good about your life," I whispered, needing to hear that he wasn't as broken as I thought him to be.[...]"You." It was so quiet I almost didn't hear it.”
“Is he my competition?” I asked. “Everyone is your competition.” Peter lifted his hand to his eyes and began lowering it incrementally. “It goes normal human beings, crazies, republicans, my hand, imaginary characters, corpses and then, in a moment of lustful psychosis, you.” By the time he was done, his hand was below the table.
Romance 
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Kiss The Sky by Krista & Becca Richie
“You’re not a pit stop. You’re my finish line. There’s no one after you.”
“People hope to touch the sky. I dream of kissing it.”
“I love the way he’s staring at me. It makes me feel more than just beautiful. I feel like I’m his. Like no one else could possibly compare to me. He doesn’t even have to say the words. I see it in his eyes. I can practically read it in his mind.”
“I’ve wanted so many things in life,” he says softly, “but you’re the one that has meant the most to me.”
Translation: I love you.”
Wallbanger by Alice Clayton
“You know those moments when everything is exactly the way it was meant to be? When you find yourself and your entire universe aligning in perfect synchronization, and you know you couldn’t possibly be more content? I was inside that very moment, and fully conscious of it.”
“The right woman for you wouldn't want you to change anything about your life. She wouldn't rock your boat, she'd jump right in and sail it with you.”
“It breaks my heart the way young girls pick themselves over, never thinking they're good enough. You make sure you always remember, you're exactly the way you're supposed to be. Exactly. And anyone who says otherwise, well, poppycock.”
Ugly Love by Colleen Hoover
“Ugly love becomes you. Consumes you. Makes you hate it all. Makes you realize that all the beautiful parts aren't even worth it. Without the beautiful, you'll never risk feeling the ugly. So you give it all up. You give it all up. You never want love again, no matter what kind it is, because no type of love will ever be worth living through the ugly love again.”
“Some people they grow wiser as they grow older. Unfortunately, most people just grow older.”
“Sometimes the spirit of a man isn't strong enough to survive the ghosts of his past”
“My grandfather used to say the placement of a birthmark was the story of how a person lost the battle in their past life. I guess you got stabbed in the neck. Bet it was a quick death, though.”
On Dublin Street by Samantha Young
“Gentlemen are gentlemen in bed. They make sure you're having a good time." "I'll make sure you're having a good time, and that you're okay with everything. I just won't be well mannered about it.”
“In truth it’s difficult to describe a broken heart.”
“Sometimes words aren’t needed for you to know a change has come upon you.”
Romance Series
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Paper Princess by Erin Watt
“My skill, if I have one, isn’t dancing. It’s my ability to believe that tomorrow can be a better day.”
“My life is mine. I live it. I control it.”
“but a clean knife still makes a painful wound.”
“Fate is for the weak--those people who don't have enough power or will to shape life into what they need it to be.”
Foreplay by Sophie Jordan
“I’m not going to lie to you and convince you that I’m someone good and shiny like your guy that’s going to be a doctor.”
“You can’t even see it. I’m the safest thing you’ll ever find”
“That's what I wanted. Something to enrich me, to make me feel better about the things in my life that I could never change."
Wait for You by J.Lynn.  (AKA Jennifer L Armentrout) 
“You are really…” “Amazing? Awesome?” He paused, brows raised. “Astonishing?” “I was going to go with bizarre.” “Well, hell, if I had feelings that might actually hurt.”
“As long as the sun’s shining, shit can’t be that bad.”
The Deal by Elle Kennedy
“Sometimes people sneak up on you and suddenly you don’t know how you ever lived without them.”
“I want to murder him in his sleep, A. No, I want to murder him when he’s awake so he can see the joy on my face when I do it.”
“And the most important lesson I learned is that I’m not a victim—I’m a survivor.”
Romance w/ Epic Plots
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The Unbecoming Of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
“This was the boy I loved. A little bit messy. A little bit ruined. A beautiful disaster. Just like me.”
“You could start a fire with the heat between you two.""You're mistaking bitter animosity for heartfelt affection.”
“You're supposed to say, 'All I want is your happiness. I'll do whatever it takes, even if it means being without you.'""Sorry," Noah said. "I'm just not that big of a person.”
“I’ll walk forever with stories inside me that the people I love the most can never hear.”
“We are far too screwed up for a goddamned love triangle.”
“You will love him to ruins.”
The Winners Curse by Marie Rutkoski
“He knew the law of such things: people in brightly lit places cannot see into the dark.”
“Isn’t that what stories do, make real things fake, and fake things real?”
“The Winner’s Curse is when you come out on top of the bid, but only by paying a steep price.”
“The god of lies must love you, you see things so clearly.”
Obsidian by Jennifer L Armentrout (are you getting the idea I love everything she writes? because I do!)
“I've always found that the most beautiful people, truly beautiful inside and out, are the ones who are quietly unaware of their effect."
“More books." His eyes went wide. "You have, like, them books you just said you haven't read." "Doesn't mean I won't get more books."
Angelfall by Susan Ee
“I never thought about it before, but I'm proud to be human. We're ever so flawed. We're frail, confused, violent, and we struggle with so many issues. But all in all, I'm proud to be a Daughter of Man.”
“Sometimes, as we're stumbling along in the dark, we hit something good.”
“I knew from the start that your loyalty would get you killed. I just never thought it would be your loyalty to me that would do it.”
Unique Reads
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Dont Look Back by Jennifer L Armentrout
“I was stuck in a life I didn't remember, squeezed into the shell of this girl - this Samantha Joe Franco - and the more I learned about her, the more I was starting to hate her.”
“Things aren’t perfect. They are far, far from it,but they are getting there, and I wasn’t looking back. Not when there were so many good things in the future.”
Verity by Colleen Hoover
“I wasn’t heroic. I wasn’t simple. I was difficult. An emotionally challenging puzzle he wasn’t up for solving.”
“A writer should never have the audacity to write about themselves unless they’re willing to separate every layer of protection between the author’s soul and their book. The words should come directly from the center of the gut, tearing through flesh and bone as they break free. Ugly and honest and bloody and a little bit terrifying, but completely exposed.”
“No one is likable from the inside out.”
“Find what you love and let it kill you.”
Painted Faces by L.H Cosway
“We all paint on a face to show the world," Nicholas replies philosophically. "For some of us, that's quite literal.”
“I love him because he makes me laugh when I don't feel like laughing. I love him because he challenges my view of what a man is. I love him because I know I shouldn't love him and that he'll break my heart. I love him because he's a complete and total anomaly. I love him because I want to kill the sadness inside him more than I want anything else in the world.”
“You saw me, changed my life, made it better, and I’m completely fucking in love with you.”
Sorcery of Thorns by Margret Rogerson
“It was always wise to be polite to books, whether or not they could hear you.”
“Knowledge always has the potential to be dangerous. It is a more powerful weapon than any sword or spell.”
“When terrible things have happened to you, sometimes the promise of something good can be just as frightening.”
“You belonged in the library, as much as any book.”
“You unmanageable, contrary creature. You have made me believe in something at last. It feels as wretched as I imagined.”
Obviously not every book is going to suit everyone, everyone has pet peeves, and things that they won’t enjoy but hopefully this gives you some variety and I personally loved them all at some point! Pls feel free to come to my ask/chats to discuss any of them  that would make me so happy <3 this took 4 hours damn
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alyssawritesssfics · 3 years
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Hounded [5] 5. Twilight’s Last Gleaming
Pairings: Bellamy x OC // Kane x daughter!OC
Word Count: 2.5K
Warnings: violence, series spoilers
Summary: When a pod from the Ark falls out of the sky, Bellamy’s motives finally come to light.
Author’s Note: Hii, I’m back with the fifth chapter/episode. I really hope you all enjoy it! Please remember to note and reblog! It really helps me see interest and therefore update the story more often. Thank you! 
Tag List: @topazy​ (DM or send an ask to be added)
previous chapter // series masterlist
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After Monty’s attempt at contacting the Ark had fried all of our wristbands, I found myself sat by the fire, staring into it blankly. 
The first person I thought about was my mother. If she didn’t know before the dropship descended, she had to have found out soon after. She was probably second in charge, keeping an eye on our vitals. Did she think I was dead? Or, was she still holding onto hope? My mind then drifted to my father, whom I was sure would have accepted that I was gone for good. Finally, I thought of my grandmother, who probably still had no idea what was going on. It wasn’t like she visited me often, usually too busy tending to the Last Tree.
As I thought of my family, slowly beginning to accept that I’d never see them again, Fox’s voice grabbed my attention.
“Guys, look!”
I turned my head, following her finger pointed up at the Sky.
“A shooting star?” Another delinquent asked.
Suddenly, the “star” began to light up, a ring of fire surrounding it. “That’s not a shooting star.” I mumbled, standing up. “It’s a pod.”
Octavia quickly came to my side. “Do you think it’s from the Ark?”
“Bellamy, get out here!” Fox called out.
Bellamy soon emerged from his tent, shirtless with Roma and Bree following behind him. “What’s going on?”
“They’re coming to help us,” Jones smiled. “Now we can finally kick some grounder ass!”
“Please tell me they brought down shampoo,” Roma quipped.
I rolled my eyes, moving closer to Bellamy with Octavia following close behind. “What’s the plan?”
Bellamy looked around before letting out a sigh. He led a few of us towards our main tent. It wasn’t long before the few of us had put together a plan.
“If it cleared the ridge it’s probably near the lake,”
“We’re ready to go,” Octavia said.
“No one’s going anywhere. Not while it’s dark, it isn’t safe.” Bellamy replied. “We’ll head out at first light.”
Mumbles ensued as most of the group piled out of the tent. I watched as Octavia stepped in front of Bellamy, stopping him from leaving. “What if the Grounders get to it first? Bell, we should go now.”
“Octavia’s right,” I said. “We can’t afford to lose any supplies they might’ve sent down here in that pod.”
Bellamy’s face tensed. “I said we wait until sunrise.”
As he pushed past Octavia and exited the tent, the two of us exchanged a worried glance. “He’s hiding something.” I finally said.
Octavia nodded. “He’s definitely hiding something.”
I spent the majority of the rest of the night waiting for Clarke and Finn to return, them having left camp not long after the wristbands had fried. Finally I noticed them heading through the newly built gate, looking around frantically.
Standing from the log I was sat on, I made my way across camp, reaching them just as Fox had.
“Looks like everyone’s up,” Finn remarked.
“Did you guys see it?” Fox asked. “It had to have been from the Ark, right?”
Clarke nodded. “Grab your stuff. We’re gonna go find out.”
I shook my head. “Bellamy said we have to wait until sunrise.”
“Where is he?” Clarke asked, as I pointed to his tent.
Clarke made her way towards Bellamy’s tent, Finn and I following close behind. She pushed the flaps of the tent to the side, being the first of the three of us to step inside. 
“Ever hear of knocking, Bitch?” I heard Roma speak from inside the tent. When she noticed Finn and I enter behind Clarke, her face tensed even further. “Oh, great, it’s a free show. Anyone else want to take a look?” She was sitting in the cot with Bree, both of them attempting to cover themselves with a makeshift blanket. Bree was quiet, slowly sinking further under the blanket.
“Where the hell is Bellamy?” Clarke asked.
“He took off a while ago.”
Finn looked around the tent. “His gear is gone.”
Clarke shook her head. “He told everyone to stay here. Whatever is in that pod, he wants it. We’ve got to get there before he does.”
Clarke and Finn quickly exited the tent, causing Roma to roll her eyes. “You’re welcome!”
I smiled nervously, slowly backing out of the tent. “Sorry about that.”
After exiting the tent, I jogged to catch up with Clarke and Finn, who were almost at the gate already.
“I should’ve known he’d go for that radio,” Clarke mumbled.
Finn raised an eyebrow. “How were you supposed to know something like that?”
“He’s spent every single minute since we landed making sure no one on the Ark finds out that we’re alive,” Clarke responded. “Of course he’d make a run for that pod before anyone else got a chance.”
“You can’t always predict what people are going to do,” I spoke up.
Clarke shook her head. “That’s exactly what I have to do to keep us all safe. I screwed up, let myself get distracted.” He glanced at Finn for a moment, before looking ahead once more. “I won’t let that happen again.”
We had been searching for hours, with no luck, before the sun finally came up. Clarke and I separated from Finn, hoping to have better luck in locating the pod in groups. As Clarke and I stepped into a clearing, we saw the pod sitting next to a tree. Clarke wasted no time, rushing over to it and yanking the door open.
I found myself behind her, staring into the pod over her shoulder. Inside was a girl, not much older than us, her hand placed on top of the wound on her forehead.
“Oh, my god.” Clarke breathed.
The girl looked at us, her eyes wide. “I made it?”
Clarke and I nodded in unison.
The girl struggled to pull herself free from the pod, Clarke and I helping her regain her balance. Finally, she stepped away from the pod, slowly walking through the leaves on the ground. A smile appeared on her face as she began spinning around.
“I dreamed it would smell like this,” The girl said, noticing the drops of water falling upon her bare arm. “Is this rain?”
Clarke smiled. “Welcome home.”
“Raven?”
Clarke and I spun around, spotting Finn who had just stepped through the bushes. His eyes were wide, his face as pale as a ghost.
“Finn!” Raven called out, rushing over to him. The two kissed for a moment, before Raven pulled back. “I knew you couldn’t be dead.”
“You’re bleeding.” Finn spoke, running his thumb along the cut.
Raven winced, though maintained her smile. “Right now, I don’t care.”
“How did you get here?”
“You know the big scrap hold? On K deck?”
Finn nodded, eying the pod behind Clarke and I. “You built that from scrap?”
“I kind of rebuilt it,” Raven spoke, earning a laugh from Finn. “What, like it’s hard? It just needed a couple of parts and some love.”
“You’re insane.”
“I’d do more for you, and worse. Just like you would for me.” As the words left Raven’s lips, her legs gave out, Finn quickly grabbing her arms.
“Come sit,” Finn spoke, leading her to a rock. He removed his jacket and draped it around her, before eying her cut one last time. “Let me get you something for that.”
Finn rushed over to Clarke, who quietly handed him an ice pack. He frowned, noticing her eyes were scanning every inch of the forest, except for where he stood. “I’m sorry.” He mumbled.
Clarke looked at him, her eyes shifting to me for just a moment before landing back on the ground. “Let’s not talk about this.”
Finn looked over at me before nodding, rushing back over to Raven.
I watched Clarke’s expression change over and over again. “Are you okay?” I finally asked.
Clarke didn’t speak, simply nodding before heading over to Finn and Raven. “She needs to put pressure on her wound.”
“This is Clarke,” Finn spoke. “And this is Athena.”
Raven’s eyes lit up. “Clarke Griffin?”
Clarke nodded.
“This was all because of your mom.”
“My mom?”
Raven nodded. “This was all her plan. We were trying to come down here together. If we waited-” She trailed off, her face growing pale. “Oh, my God. We couldn't wait because the council was voting whether to kill three hundred people to save air.”
“When?” I asked.
“Today. We have to tell them you guys are alive!” Raven stood from the rock, rushing over to her pod. “The radio's gone. It must've gotten loose during reentry. I should've strapped it to the A-strut. Stupid!” Raven hit the pod with her fist.
“No it didn’t,” I mumbled.
“This is all my fault,” Clarke shook her head. “Some else got here before us. We have to find him.”
While Finn and Raven went off on their own, Clarke and I remained together, searching the woods for Bellamy. He finally appeared a little ways ahead of us, just casually walking along. Clarke and I exchanged glances before running up to him.
“Bellamy!” Clarke snarled. “Where is it?”
“Hey, Princess, you taking a walk in the woods?” He asked, smiling.
Clarke stopped in front of him, her face red. “They’re getting ready to kill three hundred people up there to save oxygen, and I can promise you it won’t be council members. It’ll be working people.” She poked his chest. “Your people.”
Suddenly, Finn came out of nowhere, shoving Bellamy hard. “Where the hell is the radio, Bellamy?”
Bellamy shoved Finn back. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“Bellamy Blake?” Raven asked, her soft expression turning to a smirk. “They’re looking for you everywhere.”
“Shut up.”
“What is she talking about?” I asked.
“He shot Chancellor Jaha.”
Our eyes all shot to Bellamy, who kept his eyes planted on the ground. “That’s why you took the wristbands. You needed everyone to think the ground wasn’t survivable.” Clarke choked out.
Finn shook his head. “All of that ‘whatever the hell we want’? You just care about saving your own skin.”
Bellamy didn’t respond, instead turning and beginning to walk away. Raven shook her head, following close behind him. “Hey, Shooter! Where’s my radio?” She jumped in front of him, causing Bellamy to stop.
“Get out of my way.”
“Where is it?” Raven pressed once again.
Bellamy shook his head. “I should’ve killed you when I had the chance.”
“Really? Well, I’m right here.” Raven stepped closer before Bellamy grabbed her suit, shoving her up against a tree. In a matter of seconds Raven had pulled out a knife, pointing it at Bellamy’s throat. “Where’s my radio?”
“Stop it!” Clarke yelled, getting between them.
Bellamy let go of Raven, turning away from the group. When he finally turned back around, his expression had softened. “Jaha deserved to die. You all know that.”
“Yeah, he isn’t my favourite person either, but he isn’t dead.”
We all looked back at Raven.
“What?” Bellamy choked out.
Raven sighed. “You’re a lousy shot.”
I turned to look back at Bellamy, quickly approaching him. “Bellamy, don’t you see what this means?” I asked, my voice quiet. “You’re not a murderer.”
Clarke stood next to me. “You always did what you had to do to protect your sister. That’s who you are, and you can do it again by protecting three hundred of your people.”
Bellamy looked back at me, his eyes wet. I locked my eyes onto his, a frown forming across my face. “Where’s the radio?”
Bellamy stared back before finally, he shook his head. “It’s too late.”
After Bellamy had finally told us where he tossed the radio, Clarke and I returned to camp to gather a search party. The sun was slowly disappearing behind the hills in the distance before finally Jones pulled something out of the lake.
“Guys, I found it!”
Everyone rushed over, Raven quickly grabbing it from his hands.
“Can you fix it?” Clarke asked.
Raven examined it for a moment. “Maybe, but it’ll take at least half the day to dry out the components to see what’s broken.”
“Like I said, it’s too late.” Bellamy spoke from behind us.
I could feel my fists ball up and I spun around, marching through the shallow water to meet Bellamy on dry land. “Do you have any idea what you did? Do you even care?” I asked, my jaw clenched.
“You asked me to help. I helped.”
“Three hundred people are going to die today, because of you!” Clarke snapped from behind me.
I shook my head. “How can you just not care?”
Bellamy avoided my eyes, staring directly down at his feet. I knew he wanted to speak. To defend himself. Maybe he had finally realized he just couldn’t.
“Wait,” Raven spoke up. “We don’t have to talk to the Ark. We just have to let them know we’re down here, right?”
Finn nodded. “Yeah, but how do we do that with no radio?”
Raven smiled, looking around. “I think I have an idea.”
Raven took Clarke, Finn and a few others back to her pod in hopes of savaging parts. Her plan was to send flares high enough using rocket fuel that the Ark would see them. By dark we had managed to set them up, everyone gathering around, anxiously waiting for the show to start.
“You guys ready?” Raven asked, cheers erupting through the crowd. “Alright then, light ‘em up!”
In just a few moments, flares began shooting off into the sky, lighting up the entire camp. Everyone just stared on, in awe of the sight. I thought back on the books I’d read on the Ark as a kid, picturing the images of Fireworks. This wasn’t quite like them, but they were probably the closest we’d ever get.
My eyes left the sky for a moment, landing on Bellamy, who stood off to the side. His arms were folded across his chest, a frown painted neatly across his face. As much as I wanted to ignore him, I couldn’t help but join him.
“Not enjoying the show?” I asked, slipping beside him. “I mean, why would you? They come down here, you’re kind of screwed.”
Bellamy’s face tensed.
I thought back to our time in the Cave. What he’d said to me that night. “What’s done is done, Bellamy. You can’t change it now, so learn from it, do better next time.”
Bellamy looked at me from the corner of his eye, his expression turning into a small smirk as he looked down at the ground, them back up at me. “Seriously?”
“What?” I asked, smiling. “You were right then and I’m right now. You did what you had to do to protect your sister, but if you want any chance of being forgiven when they get down here, you need to do better. You need to show them that you’re worthy of forgiveness, just like the rest of us.”
Bellamy shook his head. “It’s not that simple, Athena.”
I let out a sigh, turning my attention back to the sky. “Who says it can’t be?”
~
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tempest-toss · 3 years
Text
“Recap” into teaser
[[Ozzie here! Just writing this author’s note to say that I’m really glad that this is finally done! It took three months (mostly procrastination) but it’s here! And if you’re wondering, it’s being posted here on the Tempest blog first because it is considered lore for Tempest. Before we begin I would like to say a few things:
1) The writing style is weird because it’s written in a recap sort of way 2) The writing style seems to switch partway through as it does start to lead into a teaser-sort of style near the end. Apologies for the weird switch, but it would’ve been harder to write if I had to stick to one style for this. 3) There are Content/trigger warnings including: mentions of blood/gore, death, mentions of suicide. If there’s more, please let me know so I can properly tag it.  --Ozzie]]
Sapphire woke up in a chamber. It was outfitted with a sink, a mirror, a bunk bed, and a metal door locked, needing a keycard. After getting herself familiar with her new surroundings, the room started to flood from a sudden pipe burst. With quick thinking, she looked around the room and managed to procure the keycard for her door. She quickly exited and shut the door. As she began to look around the new hallway she was in, seven more doors near her opened, and out walked people she recognized immediately: Bandage, Rewind, Neon, Sprockets, Goggles, Clack, and Pixel, code-named agents that worked alongside her for the MTF unit Omicron-5. The quick breather of reassurance that they got from meeting each other soon ended as Goggles pointed out that water was quickly filling the hall behind them. That was all they needed to bolt forward.
 They quickly found stairs and ran up them until there were no more stairs to use. A quick look revealed that they were at a level that opened up into a wide floor. Just as they were reaching the end of the stairs, they heard a commotion from up above. A quick look-up confirmed that there was a secondary set of stairs not attached to the ones they were on. Down from the secondary stairs arrived seven more people. It didn’t take long for it to be obvious that they were from GOIs.
The first ones to introduce themselves were an Alexylva student by the name of Gardenia Meadowood, and a Serpent’s Hand scholar by the name of Morty Aeron. Specializers in botany and embalming, these two were the first to introduce themselves to Sapphire and the others and were the only ones to not have any real immediate identifiers (Morty did have a snake tattoo that reached to his hand, but it was mostly obscured by his sleeves.)
The remaining five were easy to associate with a GOI considering they had their logos and/or markings on open display. Two of them, Iouli Thomaie and Vassilis Admetos, were Sarkites, easily identifiable thanks to their tattoos. Two other young men were members of the GOC, according to the picture they wore along with their ID badges, which identified them as Benny Smith and Jason Snike. The remaining three were a father, mother, and daughter trio all bearing the Insurgency’s logo on their matching hoodies; they identified as Blake, Cheryl, and Tina. Shortly after introductions were made, a part of the wall collapsed, revealing a young man who would identify as Jeremy Fairfield, a secretary for Dr. Wondertainment. 
After all, introductions were given (again), a voice was heard through speakers in the room. The voice identified themselves as “The Gamemaster'' and said that the eighteen of them were going to participate in a game of life and death. They were instructed to go through special numbered doors via numbered bracelets that they wore (something they didn’t realize they were even wearing), and that they could escape if they left through a door marked with a nine. They could only enter a numbered door if the digital root input equaled the door’s number; furthermore, the minimum number of people required to open a door was six, and the maximum was ten. When opened, the door would remain open for nine seconds, before closing on its own. Once the inputees entered through their door, they would have 81 seconds to find the deactivation panel. If they find it, they have to input their numbers and the countdown would end. If they didn’t find the panel, didn’t all input themselves, or if at least one person stayed behind outside of the numbered door, then those that were beyond the door would explode from bombs placed in their stomachs. The Gamemaster dropped two last bits of important info. Firstly, this game is timed. All players have nine hours to escape. Second, the transmitters that connect to their bombs are in their bracelets. The only way to get your bracelet off is to either escape or if your heart ceases beating. He then wished everyone good luck before the speakers signaled that they had been disconnected.
The eighteen began to talk amongst themselves. “What is going on?” “Why was I selected for this nightmarish game?” “We have BOMBS in our guts!?” Sapphire gave a sharp whistle, immediately quieting everyone. With the chatter quieted, and a deep breath taken, the conversation resumed, but now with a more logical focus. The first thing the group did was test to see if what The Gamemaster said was true. They tried to open one of the two numbered doors present to them with three, four, and five people, but found them unable to open. They tried one last time with six people, and the door was able to open. That’s when the first incident occurred.
Jason fell in after the door had been opened for seven seconds. He fell so quickly that no one was able to grab him as the doors shut. A methodic beeping was heard. Jason began to panic from the inside. He then told everyone to tell his siblings that he loved them before a sound of an explosion was heard. Shakingly, six of them opened up the door to reveal blood, tissue, and the clothes and bracelet of Jason. Nobody moved as the doors slowly shut themselves after nine seconds. His death meant that everything that The Gamemaster said was truthful.
After the reality had settled in, the overall motivation to continue had lowered. However, they knew that they couldn't stand around and do nothing because of the time limit The Gamemaster had put on them. They took a moment and figured who could go through which of the two doors and split up and entered them. 
After clearing the puzzles they had encountered in the rooms, (and after one group nearly exploded from being unable to find the deactivation panel early on), the groups met up again in an area reminiscent of a hospital room, except it was full of empty cots and had three numbered doors. A quick examination showed that the main power for the scanners had been removed, thus preventing them from going any further. Everyone agreed to split up and search for them, the only exceptions being Rewind, Gardenia, and Tina, who decided to assist Tina in finding a restroom. About an hour later, Goggles ran up to Sapphire to tell her that someone had restored the panels. Sapphire knew something was wrong when she noticed that Goggles was not smiling. As soon as she was about to ask why a scream was heard from the hospital room. Sapphire ran with Goggles back to see why a scream was heard.
In the middle of the room was Blake and Cheryl laying in their own blood. These two insurgents, father, and mother to Tina, now lay dead in front of the numbered doors. Suspicion was immediate amongst the now fifteen remaining “players''. After all, everybody had split up, so all alibis except for Gardenia, Rewind, and Tina were hard to trust. But it seemed that a culprit was found quickly, as Neon pointed out that Iouli had been obscuring her hand behind her back. A quick pull from Morty revealed that Iouli’s hand was stained with something red, which caused an argument as Vassilis defended Iouli, claiming that she was innocent. His words were swiftly eaten as Iouli pulled a blade from her pockets and lunged at Tina, only to be grabbed and suplexed by Vassilis himself, causing Iouli to be knocked out. Some rope was grabbed from a nearby room and used to tie her up; after affirming that she would stay put, the fourteen split up their groups and entered through the two rightmost doors. Fortunately, the puzzles this time around were a bit more straightforward. They soon exited back into the hospital room with relatively high spirits, despite the loop they realized they had made. 
Iouli was gone. They found her body lying in the hallway, stomach down. A quick test with Bandage and an examination by Morty confirmed the truth: Iouli Thomaie had no heartbeat, and she was killed by a sharp attack to her gut. Instead of suspicion, confusion spread amongst the fourteen; the only question that was floating in their heads was, “How could she be killed if we were all together?” It was a tricky conundrum indeed, as everyone except Iouli entered the two numbered rooms, and everyone was by someone the whole time, so there would be no possible way that someone could have left, murdered Iouli, and returned. Sprocket’s voice piped up, amplified by the silence.
“Well, what if she took her own life?” Everyone turned their heads toward him. How could he say something like that, and what prompted him to say that? 
“Sprocket may have a point,” Neon spoke. “We went through different numbered doors and we think we have each found half of a special document. We were discussing as we were leaving the hospital room a few moments ago.” Everyone gave their full attention to the duo as they began to speak. 
“Through my door, I found a document describing a neurotoxin called Korem-23,” Sprockets began. “It was discovered by Dr. Andrea Korem, and evidently, it’s very hard to create. It must be kept in temperatures at around 30- -10 degrees, otherwise, it’ll evaporate or solidify. It is also a very tricky toxin, as the resources required to make it are hard to acquire, and it can only be administered as a liquid.”
“Through my door, I found the other half that explained what it does,” Neon continued. “It would seem this neurotoxin is unique in the fact that unlike other neurotoxins, it is not fatal, however, it does interfere with certain aspects of a creature’s psyche. Mainly that it causes the victim to experience heightened aggression, stress, and desperation, which eventually leads to them becoming desperate to… y’know” she said, knowing that she needed not to expand further on the topic. Sapphire couldn’t help but look at Iouli’s body. Could that be true? Could Iouli have been injected with Korem-23? But if that is true, then wouldn’t the one behind all this, AKA The Gamemaster, have infected more of them? Sapphire wasn’t the only one that had this idea, as others were slowly coming to the same conclusion. The clock in the main staircase brought them out of their thoughts as the chimes were heard. They had a few hours remaining.
Panic began to slowly creep into the remaining “players”. Could they actually escape from where they were? After all, every single room that they had been in so far has made it seem like the location everyone was at was a ship of some kind in the middle of the Atlantic ocean. If they escaped, would there be a boat for them to use? Doubt was beginning to dampen their spirits, so to stay positive, Neon, Sprockets, and Benny decided to explore any remaining areas to see if they could find the number nine door since most of the ship was available to them.
About half an hour passed before a loud yell was heard. Without any hesitation, everyone ran down towards the general area where they heard, and the sounds of a pair of doors opening alerted them to what room to enter. The room they entered was designed in a way that resembled a celebration room, but nobody paid any attention to that, but instead the corpse of Sprockets. The mournful cry of Pixel echoed throughout the room. Tuning out his cry, Morty checked Sprockets’ hands, discovering a scrap of paper written with his blood. He showed it to Gardenia, and the two approached the door, drawing almost everyone’s attention. It was then they realized a possible motive for murder: The number 9 door. They saw Gardenia and Morty pull apart the panel and fiddle with wires, and an unlocking sound resonated through the room; using Sprockets’ final words, they were able to bypass the door without leaving anyone behind. With a promise to avenge him, Pixel was able to leave Sprockets’ body and join the group as they opened the door, and found the exploded remains of Neon. The sight alone prompted Tina to burst into tears, while a feeling of anger filled most of the others as the main culprit was now blatantly clear: Benny. With a few calming words, everyone continued beyond the door, eager to make sure that Benny could not escape.
Fueled on adrenaline, the remaining participants rushed forward, eventually reaching an open area with stairs and the murderous GOC member. A standoff was initiated, as Benny pulled out a gun, and threatened to shoot whoever moved forward. Then, presuming that all intel would die with them, began to monologue. He began a spiel admitting that he orchestrated almost every death and that he was part of a rogue cell of the GOC known as the Platinum Fangs, who were the puppet masters behind the Isolation Experiment. It was this experiment that caused them to separate from the GOC, as they didn’t approve of the human experimentation. As he continued, Jeremy reached into his pocket and pulled out Dr. Wondertainment's Stretchy Stretch Stretch String™ and with a quick whip smacked the gun out of Benny's hand and another attack brought him down. He was quickly restrained and was knocked out with a kick, for extra precaution. With that, everyone stopped and let out some deep breaths: They were finally going to end this experiment once and for all. With the mastermind tied up and with them, they bid a farewell to the building and their fallen comrades and then ran up the stairs. Soon the end was in sight and they burst through the door, expecting the sea breeze, only to walk out and see the barren frost land that was the wilderness of Russia. The ship was never real, but instead, all participants were in a facility built underground, most likely to withstand a nuclear event. A van, most likely having been used to transport everybody here was nearby. Using their skills, Goggles was able to hotwire it and Rewind was able to call in to Site-781, which was nearby, and let them know of their arrival. They then piled in and drove, all of them a mix of happiness and shock that they had survived the whole ordeal.
At Site-781, everyone was checked for injuries and the members of the GOIs were interrogated with the assumption that they had something to do with the earlier events. In the end, Morty, Jeremy, and Gardenia were allowed to leave, while Vassilis took Tina and vanished before the Foundation could decide what could be done about them. An encrypted message received later seemed to point to the idea that Vassilis took Tina to the Insurgent cell that she grew up at. Benny Smith was the main focus of the Foundations’ time; he was eventually incarcerated.
Unfortunately, the stress of the experiment took a toll on Pixel, who ended up slipping into a coma, in which his memories of the event were locked away as he eventually woke up with no knowledge of anything having happened. In order to heal and so to not trigger any horrible memories for him, Goggles, Clack, Bandage, and Rewind decided to go on temporary leave from the Foundation for several years, with the ultimate choice at the end to figure out if they would be willing to return or get amnesticized. With no more of her members to work with, Agent Sapphire pulled the plug on Omicron-5, and the name was retired.
It’s been nine years since the first Isolation Experiment occurred, but that didn’t mean it was the last. For a few years afterward, several other experiments occurred; some were short, some were done by other people, and one was so intense that it gained notoriety in the public eye. For each of these experiments, Agent Sapphire made sure that she was involved in their investigations so that she may be able to help end them once and for all. Five years after the initial one, the eighth Isolation Experiment ended up revealing a flaw that exposed the Platinum Fangs, and they, along with any possible connections, were apprehended. After this, Agent Sapphire became content with the knowledge that nothing that heinous would ever happen again. So she was hit with a horrible pang of unease when she received an email from an O5 with the simple subject of: “It’s happening again”. The rest of the email explained that Agent Sapphire would be a willing participant and would have to risk her life to put an end to this once and for all. After thinking about it, she obliged.
Elsewhere, different people were ending their days and packing up. Some were double-checking their bags, some went to the back of their room to check out a noise they heard, and some were simply on a drive. But each of them are met with the same fate of a white gas that puts them to sleep. When they awake they’ll each have to participate in a game of life and death, where teamwork is key but deception is much more profitable. Hopefully, they can all make it out alive when they go through The Isolation Experiment.
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heyyyharry · 4 years
Text
Chapter 5: So Big, So Small
(from the My Girl Trilogy: Stay Mine)
…in which Y/N says the truth and Harry cannot.
Word count: 6.6k
AU: actor!Harry, older!Harry, younger!Y/N, (4-year age gap).
Wattpad link (with original character: Thea as Y/N)
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“Blake, hi, what are you doing here?”
“Hey, I wanted to see you to--” Blake trailed off as soon as he saw Harry on Y/N’s couch. He gave a courteous smile which Harry returned, but if Y/N had paid attention, she would have noticed the passive hostility between them.
Harry trusted Y/N as much as she trusted him, but he didn’t trust Blake. He assumed Blake had been doing all those nice things for her because he wanted to slip back into her life as if all those years he’d been away had meant nothing. And of course, Harry couldn’t stop him from wanting to get her back, but Blake would be an idiot to think he had a chance.
“You were saying?” Y/N asked her ex-boyfriend, who immediately plastered a smile on his face.
“I’ve got some good news for you,” he said. “So I was helping my boss with this new case and guess who the client was? Wait for it...Laura Hilfgard!”
“The author?!”
“Yes!”
Seeing Y/N’s face lit up with joy, Harry couldn’t stay out of it anymore. He got up and walked up to them. Blake pressed his lips into a small smile when Harry put an arm around Y/N’s shoulders and gave her a chaste kiss.
“Blake met Laura Hilfgard, babe! She was his client.”
Her excitement brought a grin to Harry’s face. “That’s the author you like, isn’t it?”
“I didn’t think you’d know her, Harry.”
“Of course I know her.” Harry faked a smile at Blake. “I’ve read all the books beside Y/N’s bed, so I know every author she likes and dislikes.”
“That’s...very impressive.”
“Thank you.”
The sarcastic tone the men had exchanged went right over Y/N’s head as she turned back to Blake. “But what happened? Was she in trouble?”
“No, it’s actually the opposite.” Blake laughed. “She’s getting a divorce. She’s pretty happy about it.”
“Oh, good for her!” Y/N exclaimed, hugging Harry’s arm. “So, what was she like as a real person? I suppose she was just as sweet as I imagined.”
Blake nodded. “She was very sweet. She’s also a literary agent, did you know that?”
“Yes! I actually sent her my manuscript a long time ago but she hadn’t replied. It’s probably got lost in the spam.”
“Well, would you like me to give it to her in person?”
Y/N’s jaw dropped. She snapped her head to look at Harry, whose brows drew together as he tried to figure out what Blake was up to. But the guy didn’t even spare him a glance. He was only beaming at Y/N.
“I think Ms Hilfgard liked me,” Blake said. “I’ll ask her to read the story and give you some feedback. I mean, if that’s fine with you.”
“That’s better than fine! Thank you! Thank you!”
Y/N then told Blake to wait as she ran to the desk by the window and took out a yellow folder from the top drawer. Harry was still gawking at her when she hurried back to the door.
“You finished the story already?” he asked, forehead puckered up as she told him, “no, this is the old version.”
“Why don’t you wait until you’ve finished, love?”
“It’d take forever. Laura might not accept submissions anymore,” she said eagerly. “You said the old version was good, right?”
“Right,” the men answered at the same time and exchanged weird looks with each other, but Y/N couldn’t care less.
“Then it’s worth the risk,” she said with confidence, taking a deep breath. When she was sure they had nothing else to say, she kissed the folder for good luck and gave it to Blake. “If this works out, I owe you big time.”
“I’ll give it to her tomorrow.” He smiled. “I have a feeling that she’ll love it as much as I do.”
Y/N was over the moon, her eyes twinkled as she kept thanking Blake until he was gone, but seeing the look on Harry’s face pulled her back down to Earth.
“What?”
“Nothing,” he said as she shut the door.
“You’re not happy for me?”
“I am. You know I am.” Harry scratched the back of his head. “It’s just...you were mad at me for giving your manuscript to John Conall, but now you’re so excited and--”
“It’s not the same though! I was mad at you because I thought you asked Conall to sign me. That guy didn’t even bother to read my story, and you kind of bribed him by agreeing to attend his daughter’s birthday.”
“And how are you so sure Blake doesn’t personally know Laura Hilfgard?”
“Because...it’s...Blake.” Y/N gave a shrug, her face scrunched up as if she couldn’t figure out a proper explanation. “Babe, this is not personal. I just want someone to like my writing because they like my writing, and not because I’m -- because I’m your girl.”
Harry sucked in a breath. He took a step forward, wrapping his arms around her waist as she put her hands on his shoulders.
“You might be my girl, but you’ve always been a great writer,” he said. “And if people like your writing, they like your writing. It’s not because of me.”
“We don’t know that.” She shook her head, her eyes narrowed. “People are always gonna be biased when it comes to who knows who. You work in a similar industry, you know what it’s like.”
“I suppose.” Harry gave a nod and kissed her lips. “I’m sorry. Let’s not fight, okay?”
“We’re not fighting. We’re just...debating.”
“And you win.”
As he put his mouth on her neck, she tossed her head back, laughing and pushing him away. “I don’t want to win. I just want us to understand each other.”
“Do you think we understand each other now?” he asked.
“Yeah, I think so,” she mumbled, making him smile again.
Y/N held Harry’s cheeks and traced a thumb down the bridge of his nose. The creases between his brows disappeared as he closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers.
“Are you okay?” she quietly asked. “You seem so worried. And I know it’s not only because Blake showed up.”
Harry released a slight laugh as he took another deep breath. “Gemma texted me. She wanted to know how it went.”
“Oh, no. What did you say to her?”
“I haven’t replied,” he admitted. “And I--I don’t think I’m going to.”
“Harry!”
“No, listen.” He grasped her elbows as she pulled away. “I need to get to know Winton so I could prove to Gemma that he’s really changed.”
Y/N took in a sharp breath and cocked her head in disbelief. “You want to get to know Winton now?”
“I already told you--”
“I thought you were just gonna forgive him and let him go. If you want my opinion, then I don’t think it’s a good idea to take him back into your life, let alone get to know him!”
“I have to.”
“No, you want to!” Harry froze at the emphasised word. She held his face, stepping closer. “Baby, I had wasted so many years hating my dad and blaming him for everything that went wrong….I thought I was torturing him, but I was also torturing me. So I understand, and I’m happy you chose to forgive Winton. But...I just--I just want you to be careful before taking him back into your life. I love you so much and I don’t want you to get hurt.”
Harry lowered his head. As he said nothing at all, Y/N had to ask, “promise me you’ll be careful?”
He ground his jaw before meeting her lips, nodding slowly. “Yes, I promise.”
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“Bitch, look at me while I’m telling you a story!”
“Just a second!” Y/N tossed the second pile of clothes onto the bed and adjusted the laptop screen so her best friends on the video chat could get a better view. “Sorry, I’m having a fashion crisis right now.”
“Sounds serious,” Amala said, giggling at how Y/N was running around her room in an oversized tee and no pants.
“Are you going to another event with Harry?” Celine shook her fists enthusiastically. “I need to know the theme to help you decide if you should be a lowkey whore or go all out.”
“Cece!” Y/N cackled, her mouth fell open. “I’m not gonna be a whore. I’m having dinner with Harry’s dad and his half-sister tomorrow night!”
“Oh, shit,” Celine mumbled while Amala was in hysterics. “Then extra lowkey whore. Because you’re gonna fuck him after dinner anyway, right?”
“I hate that you know me,” Y/N said and all three of them dissolved into laughter.
“But wait,” Amala arched an eyebrow, “I thought Harry hated his dad and half-sister?”
“So did I, but he’s happy so I support him.” Y/N threw herself on the bed and lay on her stomach. “I’m still gonna make sure he’ll be careful with those two, just in case they’re not who they say they are.”
“Good.” Celine exhaled while exchanging looks with her wife. “Well, we also think you should be careful.”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know what we’re talking about.” Celine scoffed.
“Blake. Roman.”
“Why did you say his name like he’s Voldemort?” Y/N guffawed at Amala’s serious expression and ran her hand over her face, pushing her hair back. “I literally had to tell Harry that he was worrying for no good reasons, and now you--”
“He had a good reason,” Celine argued.
“And we’re with him on this one!” Amala added.
Y/N opened her mouth again but Celine didn’t even let her start. “Look, baby, the poor man is doing everything to get you back. He makes you dinner, checks on you whenever he gets a chance, and keeps asking to use your shower. I think he comes over even more often than Harry!”
“He’s just lonely, that’s all. He doesn’t know anyone else in London,” Y/N said as she sat up, rubbing her hands on her thighs. “Besides, you know I’m one hundred percent committed to Harry. I would never do anything to hurt him or our relationship. And I don’t even love Blake like that anymore.”
“I know, my love.” Celine sighed as she rested her head on Amala’s shoulder. “But Blake and Harry might not. Men are so stupid, you have to be straightforward.”
“Blake doesn’t love me anymore.”
“Do you really believe that?”
Amala’s question left Y/N tongue-tied. She blew out her cheeks, subconsciously picking at her nails as her eyes bored into the screen.
A knock on the door made her jolt right up.
“Y/N! Are you home?”
“Shit, it’s Blake.”
“Told ya.” Celine raised an eyebrow as she pursed her lips. “We should hang up now. Call us later?”
“Wait, don’t you wanna meet him? He asked about you guys.”
“He was never really our friend,” Amala said. “He was always too cool for us, and he hung out with us because of you.”
Y/N nibbled on her lip as Celine went on, “just don’t give him hope. You have to draw the line before he gets too close.”
Before Y/N could say another word, her two friends had ended the chat.
“Gimme a second!” she shouted to Blake and quickly put on her pyjamas pants so she could answer the door.
“I’m so sorry to disturb you,” Blake said as soon as she appeared, but she shushed him before he continued.
“Don’t worry, it’s fine.” She shook her head, her face brightened. “Did Laura respond?”
“Not yet.”
“Oh…” Her smile fell instantly. She had been waiting for good news for nearly a week and she had been so confident. So what if she was wrong?
“Laura is not in London at the moment,” Blake said when he saw her frown. “I gave your manuscript to her assistant and I’m sure it’ll get to her when she gets back.”
“Okay, thank you so much.” She nodded, smiling back at him. “So what do you need?”
“Um...this might sound annoying but...my shower broke again. Could I please use yours?”
“It broke again?” Y/N let out a harsh breath as she remembered what Celine and Amala had told her earlier. “Do you--do you mind if I come see it?”
Blake was taken aback by the response, but he didn’t question it as he invited her into his flat. It was neat and clean, the opposite of his childhood bedroom in Holmes Chapel. Such details reminded her that he was a different and grown man now, even though it hadn’t felt that way since he came back.
She followed him to the bathroom and he stayed at the door while she stepped into the shower. She turned the shower on and off a few times and not a single drop came out of it.
“Told ya.” Blake smiled when she turned around, her cheeks were so red she could feel them heating up.
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine.” He shrugged, the way his eyes were fixed on her made her heart feel jumpy. “What’s wrong, Y/N? Tell me.”
Y/N took a little time to think, but Blake wasn’t patient enough to wait.
“Look, I totally understand if you want to say no. I’ll just wait until tomorrow and--”
“No, it’s not like that,” she cut him off, finally looking up and meeting his eyes. “I was just...talking to Cece--”
“Oh, Cece’s over there?” His face lit up, but she shook her head, smiling.
“I was video-chatting with her and Amala. They’re married now.”
“Yeah, I heard.” He rubbed his jaw. “I wasn’t invited but no hard feelings.”
Y/N snorted and rolled her eyes. “Anyway, you know how I tell the girls everything, right?”
“And they think I still have feelings for you?” Blake asked, his expression remained unchanged. He didn’t even give her a chance to answer before asking another question, “does Harry think so too? That would explain why he doesn’t like me.”
At this point, Y/N had no choice but to be honest.
“He could be dramatic sometimes,” she said, “but...he’s a very loving man. He cares about me and I really love him.”
“I’m sure you do.” Blake’s mouth twitched as he hung his head. “Look...When I first moved here, I was very lonely. It was so nice to find someone to talk to, and not just anyone, you. We basically grew up together, Y/N. You felt like home to me, and...and I couldn’t help but care about you, but only as a friend.”
“Yeah, that--that was what I told them.” She sighed.
“I don’t need them to get it, as long as you do.” He let out a laugh, lifting his shoulder in a half-shrug. “But I’ll take it down a notch from now on. I know how you feel when people care about you too much.”
“No, it’s fine, really. Harry always cares about me too much and I’m starting to enjoy the attention.”
Y/N didn’t expect a reply, but it came as a shock to her that Blake would give a mirthless laugh. “What’s so funny?”
Blake chewed the inside of his cheek as if thinking if he should tell her, and eventually, he decided that he should. “You’ve been on your own so often lately, I feel like your boyfriend has other priorities.”
Y/N put her hands on her hips as she scoffed, her mouth opened wide.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, Y/N. I’m just telling you the way I see it.”
“Well, the way you see it, is wrong. You don’t even know him.”
“You don’t have to defend him. I know he’s an actor and he has a different life--”
“I don’t have to defend him because I know him. You don’t!” She stabbed a finger at his chest before crossing her arms. “And I’m actually gonna move in with him so I don’t care what you have to say.”
Y/N did not believe she’d said it out loud. She was just as shocked as Blake and both of them froze for a second, just staring at each other with their mouths agape.
“When are you moving in with him?” Blake spoke first, he sounded rather frantic though he tried not to be.
“I-I’m not sure yet,” Y/N uttered. “He asked me a while ago but I haven’t answered.”
Blake jammed his hands in his pockets, his eyes shifted to the floor. “Well then--when are you gonna tell him?”
Y/N wanted to answer that question but she didn’t know how. She leaned back against the glass wall of the shower, biting a nail and pondering for a minute. She was surprised Blake was patient enough to wait for her.
“I’m gonna tell him the next time I see him.”
Blake wasn’t happy with that answer, but Y/N was too busy worrying about something more important to give him her attention. The sound of water leaking from the showerhead brought her back to reality.
“Your shower’s working again,” was all she said before rushing out of the room.
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“Harry! Harry! Wanna read my new story?”
“Not now, Bambi! I’m busy!”
Nine-year-old Y/N stopped at the entrance of the treehouse as she found her older friend sprawling on the dusty wooden floor with paper, markers and paste. He didn’t stop to look at her, so she sat down beside him, crossing her legs and holding her pink notebook to her chest.
“Wow, is this for an art project?”
“No, it’s for Gemma,” Harry replied as he lifted the paper to show her what he’d been working on. It was an awful portrait of his older sister. She had red eyes, two devil horns on top of her head, and was spitting out fire. The word ‘PRANKED’ was written in capital letters right in the middle of the drawing.
“That’s so mean.” Y/N cringed, but Harry seemed rather satisfied with her reaction.
“Her new boyfriend is a jerk. He treats me like sh--I mean, he treats me terribly when she’s not around, but she always believes him and not me.”
Y/N took some time to think before she spoke, “it seems to me that Gemma is blinded by love. But why do you blame her for what her boyfriend did?”
Harry stopped colouring for a second. Y/N believed he was trying to think of an answer, and when he realised he didn’t have one, he said, “either you’re on my side or stay out of this.”
“Of course I’m on your side. Always.” Y/N sighed and put down her notebook. She guessed her story could wait.
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Y/N was holding Harry’s hand under the table when Winton and Emilia arrived at the restaurant. They were looking around with eyes bulging out of their heads, so Y/N guessed they had never been to a place like this before. The first time Harry had taken Y/N to a fancy restaurant, she had been so thrilled, yet so scared that she wouldn’t fit in, so she knew exactly how Winton and Emilia must be feeling now.
But they weren’t the only ones who were nervous about that dinner. Harry was shaking his leg rapidly under the table while talking in such a chill manner that no one could tell he was faking it. His acting skills could be so useful in this kind of situation, but even so, the dinner still felt very awkward.
One person would be talking while the others tried to act interested, and there would be silence in between separate topics during which everyone was just eating and avoiding eye contact. It took them almost an hour, but once they had grown more comfortable with each other’s presence, the conversation flowed more easily.
Harry and Emilia found a common ground as film topics were brought up, and Y/N was happy to find out Winton was a dedicated reader and understood her passion for books and writing.
Harry had never wasted an opportunity to praise his girlfriend, so he couldn’t shut up about what a great writer she was. It made her feel like she was with her dad at a family gathering, but to be honest, she didn’t mind at all.
In the middle of the dinner, Winton noticed the ring on Harry’s hand and he happily exclaimed, “is that my ring?”
“This one?” Harry smiled as he looked at it. “No, it just looks like yours. I lost your ring when I was a kid and Y/N gave this one to me for my last birthday.”
“Aww, you guys are the definition of true love,” Emilia said with both hands on her chest.
“Thank you,” Y/N said, giving her boyfriend a funny stare which made him scoff into his fist. In their talk last night before bed, they had both agreed that Emilia was weird, but since they and the people they hung out with weren’t exactly the definition of normal, Emilia’s personality had never really bothered them.
“I have one good news!” Emilia said as the waiters brought desserts to their table. “Isaac asked me to be the model for his next shoot, and I said yes! Isn’t it exciting?”
“Wow, congratulations, Emi,” Harry said as he exchanged looks with Y/N again.
Emilia laughed at their dumbfounded reaction. “I know what you two are thinking. Isaac and I are just friends. He’s just really nice to me.”
“Did he tell you where Harry was having his photoshoot the other day?”
The question froze Winton and Emilia to the spot. Y/N honestly didn’t expect that, she simply asked that question because she and Harry had assumed Isaac was the one who’d told them.
As Winton was about to answer, Emilia blurted out, “yes, how else would we know?”
Y/N breathed out a smile, letting go of Harry’s hand under the table to fold her arms on top of it. She wondered why Emilia appeared so apprehensive. Did she think she was about to be exposed? Did she have secrets to hide?
“It’s just Isaac had never blindsided Harry like that. You two must be very close,” Y/N said, not breaking eye contact with Emilia, who leaned back into her chair and smoothed out her dress.
“Oh, come on, Y/N. Don’t be jealous.”
“Jealous? Why would I be jealous?”
Harry tapped Y/N on the arm but she shrugged him away, and Emilia pretended like she didn’t see her father’s warning glare.
“You used to model for Isaac, right?”
“That’s enough, Emilia,” Harry spoke as Winton heaved a sigh and picked up a fork to eat his dessert.
“I’m sorry, Y/N, it was a joke,” Emilia said as she touched Y/N’s hand on the table, but Y/N immediately pulled it away to hold Harry’s hand instead.
“It’s okay. Let’s just move on.”
Seeing the uneasy look on Emilia’s face, Y/N believed there was more to this girl than a bubbly personality and a tragic past. She must have had something to hide.
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“I don’t trust Emilia,” Y/N said as soon as she was alone in the car with Harry.
He drove away, keeping his eyes on the road and one hand on her thigh. “I agree, she was talking too much about her biscuits.”
“No, I’m serious!” She smacked his arm as he cackled. “Didn’t you see the way she reacted to me asking about Isaac? What was that all about?”
“I think she’s just odd, but she means no harm. Well, except for when she was rude to you, that was unacceptable!”
Y/N laughed slightly and rolled her eyes. “I don’t know. I think she might have manipulated Isaac into telling her where you were.”
“Or...Isaac did it because he wanted me to hear Winton’s side of the story. Isaac is all about justice and kindness and forgiveness.” Harry gave a shrug and stole a quick glance at his girlfriend. “You look so sexy when you’re acting like a detective, but don’t get stressed out about this, babe.”
“You’re right.” She exhaled, fanning herself. “You’re probably right. Now I’m being weird.”
He chuckled and squeezed her thigh. “Are you tired, kid? I cannot wait to get back and go to sleep!”
“Go to sleep?” She gasped. “What about me?”
A corner of his lips turned up as he stole another look at her. “What about you?”
“You haven’t fucked me in two days.” She raised two fingers, pouting like a child, making him laugh.
“Oh, no. I haven’t?”
His fake surprised reaction got her amused. She leaned in and whispered into his ear, “if you’re tired, you can go to sleep. I promise I won’t be too loud.”
“Stop it! You’re gonna make me crash my car!”
As he started squirming in his seat to fix the bulge in his pants, she was shaking with laughter.
“You think this is funny?” He smirked. “Just wait until we get home.”
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“Are you sure you want to do this?”
“Yes, I’m sure, Bambi,” Harry asserted. “You don’t have to be here if you don’t want to.”
“I want to!” Y/N said a bit too loud and the older boy shushed her as they kept tiptoeing up down the hall. Harry got down on his knees, so Y/N did the same and crawled behind him towards Gemma’s bedroom door. He sat on his heels, smiling devilishly while taking one last look at the envelope in his hand.
To: Gemma
From: Dad
“What if she gets angry and kills us?” Y/N whispered.
“Then we’ll die like heroes,” Harry told her, trying not to laugh at the way her breath quickened out of fear. Her face screwed up as she saw him kiss the fake letter before handing it to her and telling her to do the same.
“What’s it for?”
“Good luck.”
“Oh.” Her mouth formed a tiny circle. She quickly kissed it and gave it back to him.
Harry slipped the letter under his sister’s door and sat by it with his back against the wall. Y/N hurriedly rushed to his side and flopped down, hugging his arm tightly. Despite how worried she looked, the boy seemed enthusiastic. He covered his mouth and tittered into his palm.
“Oh man, she’s going to be--”
“I’M GOING TO KILL YOU!”
The kids screamed when Gemma burst out of her room. She tackled Harry to the floor before he could run and started hitting him while he was kicking her back to defend himself. Y/N was bawling as she tried to pull Gemma away, but Gemma was too strong and Harry was helpless. Gemma’s fist hit Y/N’s head by accident and knocked her to the ground. Fortunately, Anne showed up just in time to break off the fight before it got worse. She held Gemma back so Harry could escape. The boy crawled towards his little friend and hugged her to his chest. Both of them were crying.
“Let me go! Let me kill him! I’m gonna kill you, you little jerk!”
“Gemma, calm down!” Anne held her daughter tighter. Gemma was kicking and screaming and Y/N could’ve sworn she had never seen someone so angry. For a second, she thought Gemma’s head was about to explode like one of those cartoon characters on the TV, but suddenly, she buried her face into her mother’s chest and started sobbing.
Y/N was in shock. Why was Gemma crying? Because of the drawing? It was just a stupid drawing. Y/N was trying to figure out the answer when Harry took her hand and pulled her with him. They hurriedly ran downstairs, leaving Gemma with Anne.
Anne returned to the living room fifteen minutes later to find Harry and Y/N sitting on the couch, holding hands but too scared to speak.
“Harry, go to your room. We need to talk.” Anne jerked her head towards the staircase, and Harry gave Y/N one last look before he stood up.
The little girl rose from the couch as she watched her older friend run upstairs. His mother turned back to her with a gentle smile and said, “you should go home, Y/N.”
“But...”
“Harry will be fine.”
Y/N’s lip shuddered as she clasped her hands together. “Please don’t ground him! If you do, please let him come to the treehouse.”
“Just go home, baby. I promise you Harry will be fine.” Anne smiled and touched the little girl’s cheek. “It’s Father’s Day. Why don’t you spend it with your dad?”
“It’s Father’s Day?”
“Yeah, you didn’t know?”
“No.” Y/N’s eyes shifted to the floor as she started fidgeting with her own fingers. “My dad is out of town, and...and we never celebrate it anyway.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
Y/N quickly looked up. “Was that why Gemma was crying? Because she missed her dad?”
Anne didn’t answer that question. “Why don’t you wait for Harry in the treehouse?” she said. “He’ll be there after we’ve talked about what happened.”
Y/N thanked Anne before she left and went straight to the treehouse to wait for Harry. She was pacing back and forth and biting her nail, and as soon as she heard his footsteps at the entrance, she turned her head so fast it could’ve fallen out.
She rushed towards him and hugged him tightly. He wrapped his arms around her and chuckled. “You’re acting like I just went to war or something.”
“Are you grounded?”
“Yeah, but I’m still allowed to see you.”
Y/N put a hand on her chest and exhaled in relief as they sat down on the floor. Y/N wasn’t sure if she should bring it up or let it go, but she was curious to know how Harry felt about what had happened.
“Did you fake that letter because it was Father’s Day and you know Gemma was expecting it?”
The boy hung his head like a criminal in a courtroom, nodding slowly before he confessed, “yes.”
“Were you expecting a letter too?”
There was a pause.
“Yes.”
Y/N thought she should stop, but she couldn’t help it. She got on her knees and scooted closer to him, holding his hands on his lap. “What did your mother say to you? Was she angry?”
“No…” He breathed and looked up. “She was more disappointed...and sad…She made me apologise to Gemma.”
“So you two made up?”
“Not really. Gemma didn’t want to see me, but she’ll forgive me in a few days when she forgets. She always does.”
“What about her boyfriend?” Y/N asked, making Harry snort.
“I’ll come up with another plan for him.”
“Harry...”
“Just kidding, Bambi.” He pressed his lips into a smile and rubbed the red spot on her forehead where Gemma had accidentally hit her. “Does it hurt?”
She shook her head and pushed his hand away, not wanting to let him change the subject. “You’ve never liked any of Gemma’s boyfriends though. Why is that?”
“Because they were all jerks.”
“Not true. The last boy was nice.”
As Harry couldn’t disagree, he rolled his eyes and admitted, “she doesn’t need a boyfriend, she’s happy with us.”
“She’ll have to get married at one point.”
“No, she doesn’t. Marriage sucks. It only hurts people. Look what it’s done to your parents and mine, and us.” Harry picked up a yellow leaf at his feet and stared at it for a long moment. “You know, my mum told me that...after my dad left she had never felt so lonely. She had to take on more responsibility and did all the things my dad used to do when he was still here. The house that used to be small for the four of us suddenly felt so big. You might think missing one person wouldn’t make a difference but it does, Bambi. You’re lucky your parents are still together.”
“And that my house is smaller than yours,” she said with a serious face and he couldn’t help but let out a soft laugh.
“And that, too.”
Y/N took some time to gather her thoughts before she told him, “well, when I grow up, I will sell my stories and buy a small house so I won’t feel too small compared to it.”
“That’s nice, Bambi.” Harry beamed as he rubbed the red spot on her forehead gently. “What will you do with the rest of your money?”
“I’ll buy tickets to visit you once in a while,” she happily said. “You’re gonna be an actor, right? Actors travel a lot. You’re gonna have ten houses in ten different countries!”
“Well, if I’m so rich, I can just buy you tickets so you can visit me.”
“No, thanks, sir.” She pushed his hand away again, lifting her chin and crossing her arms. “I’m gonna make my own money because I’m gonna be an independent woman.”
“Of course, you are. I believe in you,” he said and tapped her nose. “Now, since I’m grounded and have nothing better to do, why don’t we read your new story?”
.
.
.
Harry and Y/N arrived at his house in no time. He drove his car into the underground garage, so eager to take his girlfriend to bed and call it a day. They raced each other upstairs to the living room like two little kids, completely carefree and unaware of what was waiting for them, well, who was waiting for them.
Harry stopped dead in his tracks as he loosened his arms around Y/N’s waist, and she turned around, eyes wide with shock.
“Your assistant let me in,” Gemma said as she got up from the sofa.
“What...what are you doing here?” Harry faltered, he let go of Y/N and walked up to his sister who was standing with her arms crossed.
“Where were you?” Gemma asked.
“We went on a date,” Harry told her. Y/N couldn’t believe he lied. She was biting her nail while waiting for Gemma’s response.
“I was invited, you know.”
“What?” Harry froze. And so did Y/N.
“To the dinner.” Wait, what? “Some girl named Emilia Styles called me. Do you happen to know her?”
Y/N’s brain stuttered for a moment and every part of her went on pause, waiting for her thoughts to catch up. She could only see Harry’s back from where she stood, but he was standing so still as if he’d stopped breathing.
“I knew something was wrong when you didn’t text me back and I got the phone call,” Gemma said slowly. “I turned her down. Don’t worry, I was polite because I didn’t know the girl. But I know you. You’re my brother. And saying that I’m disappointed and angry would be an understatement.”
“Gem--”
“Don’t!” Gemma raised her voice, making Harry jump. He reached for her hand and she pushed him away. “God, you are so fucking obsessed with wanting him back you let him get into your head and you lied to me!”
“I was going to tell you, I just didn’t know how! But--but Winton is not who we thought he was.”
“I don’t fucking care, Harry!” she shouted, pointing her shaky finger to his face. ”I don’t give a fuck if he’s joined the military or become a priest or been saving lives in Africa! No matter how ‘good’ he’s become, he’s still dead to me!” She gnashed her teeth as her bottom lip trembled. “And right now, I can’t help but feel the same about you.”
“You don’t mean that,” Harry’s voice broke. Y/N was white as chalk and her eyes were as wide as they could stretch. She wanted to say something, but she knew if she spoke, it would only get worse.
Gemma raised her chin as she clenched her jaw and whispered, “yes, I do. You are becoming selfish just like him, it makes me sick.”
“Gemma!”
Harry chased his sister out of the door, leaving Y/N to drown in the gloomy silence of the mansion. She gave herself a moment to catch her breath before going to the backyard for some fresh air. There was an outdoor pool which was cleaned every two days, but Harry rarely used it as he was busy all the time.
She sat down on the edge, feet dangling in the blue water. The soothing coolness helped her relax until she heard his voice from behind, “don’t jump in without me.”
She pulled her legs up, about to stand up but Harry had already sat down next to her.
“How was it?” she asked as he rolled his pants and put his feet into the pool.
“She left before I could catch up.”
“I’m so sorry, babe.” Y/N wrapped an arm around his shoulders, rubbing his arms. “Maybe you should give her a day or two to cool off and then apologise.”
“I’m afraid it’s not that easy.” He breathed while staring at the water. “It might have been like that when we were children, but it’s different now. We’re both adults. I knew there would be consequences, yet I couldn’t help it.”
Y/N sucked her lips into her mouth, her chest felt so heavy. She hated to see him sad and he had been through so much since the death of his stepfather. She was desperate to cheer him up, she would do anything.
“I think I’m ready.”
Harry turned to look at Y/N, his forehead creased as he was confused. “For what?”
“I’m ready to move in with you,” she said, but a smile turned into a frown as his reaction wasn’t anything like she’d expected. “What? Are you not happy?”
“I am.” He kissed her twice, holding her face. “But...are you?”
“Of course I am. I love you.”
But even after hearing those words, Harry still seemed unsure.
“Do you really want to or you just feel like you have to?”
Y/N was just about to say she wanted to, but her mouth froze as soon as it opened. Do you really want to, Y/N? she asked herself while looking around his enormous backyard.
“Hey, it’s all right.” He cupped her cheeks and turned her face back to him. She expected him to be mad, but he flashed her a toothy grin instead. “You know, when I saw you sitting here all alone, I realised how small you looked compared to all the space in this house. And I think I know the reason you were so reluctant to make that decision.”
“Harry--” She took his wrists, but he didn’t let go.
“Bambi,” he looked into her eyes and smiled, “I think you should keep your flat for now until we’re both ready for such commitment. At least you have your neighbours and won’t be so lonely when I’m away.”
“So it means…” she trailed off, biting her lip. “It means you don’t hate Blake anymore?”
The way Harry cringed at the name made Y/N giggle.
“I still hate that kid, and I still don’t trust him,” he said, his nose crinkled, “but I trust you, and I know you will put him in his place if he ever tries to cross the line.”
“Thank you.” Y/N wrapped both arms around his neck as he hugged her waist, burying his nose into her hair.
“Thank you for putting up with me, kid. As long as you stay, I wouldn’t care if everyone else left.”
“Don’t say shit like that.” She playfully hit his back but didn’t let him go. “I’m gonna have a serious talk with your crazy half-sister tomorrow. She’s crossed the line this time.”
Harry pulled away, eyebrows drew together. “Do you think Isaac gave her Gemma’s number?”
“Probably. For all we know, he could be brainwashed,” she said, making him laugh.
“Well, let’s not make an assumption too soon.”
“Agreed.” Y/N nodded once and dramatically puffed out her chest as she cleared her throat. “I promise you we’ll get to the bottom of this and find out what secrets this young woman might be hiding!”
“Holy shit, you’re so hot when you talk like Sherlock Holmes!”
Y/N’s lips curved into a smile as she poked the dimple on his cheek. “And you’re so lucky to have me.”
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