#i stopped right before ruby slippers because i think my sister was there and i don’t like watching that episode with people

[livvyofthelake]

where’s the your boyfriend became the very thing he swore to destroy post. literally season five thesis

#sorry i always talk about season five. not my fault they went so crazy insane with it #actually i never finished my season five rewatch i still have like five episodes in it left #i stopped right before ruby slippers because i think my sister was there and i don’t like watching that episode with people #i will get so mad if someone criticizes my gay little episode for being bad. yeah it’s bad. only i’m allowed to say that tho #beth.txt #🍎

[lena-in-a-red-dress]

Kara and Lena tried to make a movie night like a way to rekindle their friendship. It doesn’t go well.

Movie night doesn’t go so much as it… doesn’t. 

Dinner is so quiet that Kara presses play on the movie just to have something to fill the silence. Usually, movie time is sacrosanct-- eating while watching is  strictly verboten, as is talking. Dinner, therefore, was for gossip and idle chatter, both of which feels very far away now. 

Even when they’ve finished eating and put their plates aside, the quiet isn’t like it should be. Where Lena once curled up next to her in comfortable silence, Lena now sits against the far armrest, her gaze focused on a screen of a different sort. She scrolls through her phone, tapping occasionally, her features pale in its light.

Kara endures it as long as she can. This is better, she tells herself. Better than nothing-- better than having Lena radio silent on the far side of the city, better than seeing her sneer, hearing the derision that coats her words now. But as the movie progresses, the silence and the distraction grows as dense and expansive as the coffin of her escape pod, all those years ago.

“Why does it feel like you don’t want to be here?”

The words materialize from deep in Kara’s chest. Banished, the echoes of the Phantom Zone pulls away, leaving her grounded in her living room.

Shadowed eyes lift from the offending phone, glancing at Kara briefly before returning to the screen. “Because I’m not sure I do.”

After so long not quite believing Lena’s easy forgiveness, the frank truth comes as a brutal relief. It knocks the breath from Kara’s chest, and when she returns her focus to the tv screen, Dorothy and the Tin Man wobble through the sudden tears that surge to her eyes.

This is the truth of them now. Lena, here but not here, and Kara desperately wishing things could just go back to the way they used to be.

“I used to wish for a pair of ruby slippers,” Kara says quietly. “Maybe, like Dorothy, they’d take me home to Krypton.”

She feels the moment Lena freezes, every muscle coiling tight at the sudden reminder that Kara isn’t just Super, but alien. Kara almost tells her not to worry-- that isn’t the conversation they need to have tonight.

“They wouldn’t work on me now, though,” she continues. “Krypton isn’t my home anymore. If I clicked my heels, they’d just take me right back here.”

“To National City,” Lena murmurs. “Your sister.”

But not to Lena, Kara hears beneath the words. Never to her.

“To my apartment, watching a movie. With you.”

Lena stares at her over her phone, article or email forgotten in the sudden tension. Kara can feel it too, stretching the air so thin the very fabric of reality might fracture in infinite pieces. She doesn’t dare invite such entropy while their world still sits so precariously. She focuses instead on Lena’s disbelief, comfortable in its familiarity.

“You always sell yourself so short, Lena. Is it really so hard to believe that I want to spend time with you?”

“Don’t.”

The word comes swift and sharp-- cold steel in the flickering dark. Lena uncurls stiffly. “Don’t say it like I’m something pitiful. Don’t say it like you didn’t think so little of me that you saw the need to lie to me for years.”

Kara unfolds as well, setting her feet on the carpet but refraining from standing as Lena lurches to her feet and begins to pace. 

“It wasn’t like that. It was never that.”

“Then what was it?”

“I was desperate to keep you.” The words strangle in her throat, crowding them close as they spill out of her. “Not because I think you’ll hurt me if I don’t, but because my home isn’t complete without you.”

Lena slows, then stops. In the pause, she takes a deep breath and releases it silently. “I’m sorry,” she says softly. “I have a hard time believing that.”

Kara blinks, and her tears finally spill free. “I know.”

“Not because you’re a liar,” Lena says. “Not just that.”

“Then why?”

“Because it’s exactly what I want to hear. Because I know I don’t deserve it.” Lena folds her arms across her chest. “I hurt you.”

“And I hurt you. And betrayed you. And made you feel alone and worthless. I won’t blame you for making the choices you made when I’m the one who drove you to them.”

Lena says nothing. Her arms squeeze tighter around herself, as though they were the only things keeping her from coming apart at the seams.

“We both made mistakes,” Kara continues. “But I know we can work past them, if we both want to.”

And there’s the crux of it. Kara can see Lena’s doubt even in the glow of the television, the anxious purgatory as Lena wars with her misgivings.

“I don’t know if I can,” Lena whispers.

Kara screws her lips together, nodding. She looks down at her lap. If only things were different. If only they had had this conversation earlier. If only Lena’s honesty had come sooner. If only she hadn’t waited until the Fortress-- if only Kara hadn’t put her in that position in the first place.

But-- Kara grasps for the silver lining still clinging to the edges of their words. But at least they’re being honest now.

If they have any chance of coming back from this, it starts here.

“That’s your choice to make, at any time.” Kara swallows thickly. “But it doesn’t have to be tonight. All I’m asking for tonight is for you to sit and watch a movie with me. That’s all.”

The rest, she hopes-- she has to hope-- will come later.

Patting the cushion beside her, Kara lifted the blanket in invitation.

Gingerly, Lena sits. Kara gives her a moment to settle in before threading her arm through Lena’s and snuggled in. After a moment, Lena sighs. Her head rests against Kara’s.

“I miss you.”

Kara closes her eyes, fighting another press of tears. It’s barely spoken-- barely breathed. It isn’t enough to fix the hurt between them, or to stitch together the years of trust undone on both sides.

But it’s enough tonight.

#supercorp #quarantine prompt party 2.0 #sleepover #angst #mending the rift

[lustinglilac]

Hi can I get a Sad Eyes x reader with numbers #15 & #46 from the prompt list where the reader is Oscars ‘little’ sister and she’s going through something (maybe MH issues?) and her liking Sad Eyes isn’t helping her and Sad Eyes is worried about her. Thank youuu lovely🥰🤎

The only MH issue that I would feel comfortable writing about is anxiety so I hope you don’t mind! I got a little carried away with this. *ALL credit for the name José goes to other writers*

Part 2 to this request!

TW: anxiety, panic attack

15. “Stop pretending you’re okay, cause I know you’re not.”

46. “What if I told you I’ve been in love with you since we were kids.”

GIF BY: @merakiaes 🖤

It had been a few days after the incident and her confessing her love for her brother’s best friend.

She cringed every single time she thought about it, wanting to go back and delete the message as if it never happened.

But she found solace in the fact that he’d admitted some type of feeling back to her.

“Jasmine— I feel terrible. What if he was just saying that to say it? To not hurt my feelings?” The doubt settling in rather quickly as she spoke to one of her good friends.

Jasmine sighs, “Babe, for as long as we’ve known him, he would never do that to you. Ever. And if he does, I’ll beat his ass up, honey.”

“I don’t know how to feel. I just need some time.” She nods her head, convincing herself that that’s all she needed, time away from him.

•••

As if on cue, Sad Eyes had shown up to the house to drop something off for her brother. She didn’t bother to leave her room to greet him and he noticed. Usually, she’d be the first to smile and hug him when she’d see him.

The shuffling outside of her doorway caught her attention for a second, hoping no one was going to come in, “Cesar— how’s your sister doin’?” José asks hushedly.

“She’s good. Just wasn’t feeling well today so she might be sleeping.” Cesar answers.

“It’s 6 o’clock... she never goes to sleep this early.” He thinks back to the times she’d stay up waiting for Spooky to come home after a late night meeting.

“Yeah, early night, I guess.” Cesar merely shrugs, trying to take attention away from the situation. “C’mon, let’s go see what Oscar’s doing.”

With that, the two of them leave. José’s first instinct being to burst through her bedroom door and give her a hug, like she’d given him so many times before. But, he composed himself, hoping she’d feel better tomorrow.

That night, he’d texted her wanting to make sure she was okay.

José Guzman: Hey. I stopped by.. Cesar told me you weren’t feeling well. Let me know if there’s anything I can do to help. Goodnight.

Her screen lit up with his name, her eyes welling up with tears as she read the message. She sniffles back a sob, locking her phone and putting it under her pillow, a stray tear streaming down her face.

The next day, she’d woken up with puffy eyes, getting out of bed slowly as not to disturb the pounding in her head. She brushed her teeth and did her hair, putting on clothes and walking out of her room into the kitchen where her brothers were.

“Good morning. You feeling okay?” Cesar was the first at her side offering her a bowl of cereal, to which she hesitantly took.

Oscar looks up from his phone, “What happened? Everythin’ okay, hermana?” His dark eyes concerned as he looked at his younger sister.

She nods slowly, trying not to cry again, “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m okay.” She swallows down the lump in her throat, refusing to look at her brothers until she didn’t feel the urge to cry.

Anxiety was a bitch. Always had been. Not allowing her to fend for herself and especially making her think she wasn’t capable of anyone loving her.

José made it a promise, even though she hadn’t known, that he’d always be there for her just like Oscar and Cesar were. She was his to protect.

“¿Estas segura?” Oscar puts his phone down, putting his full attention on his sister.

“Si, estoy bién.” She grins softly, avoiding eye contact with him all together. He takes her soft hand in his, squeezing it gently, as if to let her know he was there for her. He’d always be.

“I’m gonna get going, Ruby’s waiting for me. I’ll see you later, text me if you need me, okay?” Cesar kisses the top of her head, grabbing his bookbag and walking out the door.

Oscar waits until the door shuts to talk to her, “If it’s your anxiety again— I want you to know you’re better than it. You can overcome it. Don’t let it bring you down, don’t ever lose yourself to it. You are stronger than it. ¿Comprendes?”

She only nods, afraid that if she speaks up, her emotions would get the best of her. She finishes up her breakfast, putting the bowl in the sink.

“Here— I got it. Why don’t you go rest for a little. It’s early.” Oscar points his chin in the direction of her bedroom, egging her towards it.

She walks to her room, taking him up on his offer, removing her slippers at her bedside and cozying up to her duvet. The message from the night before flashing in her mind. Maybe she’d find the courage to text him after her nap.

•••

She had woken up around 1 o’clock in the afternoon, feeling slightly better than in the morning. Checking her phone, she had messages from Jasmine and a missed call from Cesar. She quickly responded to both and opened the one message she had yet to reply to.

Diaz: Sorry I fell asleep early. I’m okay just had a bad headache.

Locking her phone, she got up to use the restroom. “Oscar? Cesar?” She called out around the hall, hesitating when she didn’t hear a response.

The sound of a door opening and shutting caught her attention as she shut off the tap, walking out of the bathroom. She jumps slightly at the sound of footsteps, turning around to see his tall figure standing there.

“My bad, I ain’t mean to scare you.” José puts his hand up, “I came by to see how you were feelin’. Cesar said you were home.” He clears his throat, looking over his shoulder and back to her trying to gage her reaction.

She shakes her head, “You didn’t have to. I told you I’m good.” She smiles though it didn’t quite reach her eyes, something he definitely didn’t miss.

“Stop pretending you’re okay. ‘Cause I know you’re not.” The words leave his mouth before he can stop himself, reaching for her shaking hand. He hated seeing her like this.

The middle Diaz lets out a shaky breath, finally finding the courage to look at him, “José, I just don’t— I’m scared you’re gonna lead me on. And I don’t want that, I really don’t. About the other night, I didn’t want you to say you liked me back just because I said it to you.”

He couldn’t believe what he was hearing, “You know that I love you, right? That I’ll always be there for you? I made a promise to your brothers that I would protect them but, also, that I would protect you in case anything ever happened. And I intend to keep that promise ‘til the end.” He punctuates his sentence with a kiss to the back of her hand.

“José—“ She stops, the room around her spinning, “I-I think I’m about to have a panic attack.” Clutching onto his shirt, her breathing picking up.

“Hey, hey, look you’re okay. I gotchu. I’m right here.” He holds her close, rubbing comforting circles onto her back.

“I’m so sorry. You shouldn’t have to see me like this.” She sniffles, her voice coming out small against his chest. She felt as if the world was coming down around her and her heart was about to come out of her chest.

“See you like what, nena? I will love you at your worst and I will love you at your best. Lo prometo.” He kisses the top of her head, pressing his cheek to her forehead. “C’mon, let’s go to your room. Te ayudare, I’ll help you.”

The both of them walk slowly to her bedroom. He sits her down on the bed, helping her under the duvet as he situates himself so she’s still able to see him.

“My heart’s racing— I c-can’t calm down.” She closes her eyes, trying to focus on her breathing yet nothing was helping. She takes his palm and places it on her ribcage, holding it there firmly.

José sighs softly, smoothing down her hair, “You’re okay, mi amor. I’m right here, I’m not goin’ nowhere.”

“José— you need to hold me. It’s the only thing that helps.” She speaks breathlessly, scooting over on her tiny bed to give him room to fit. She knew it helped her because of the many times she’d ask Cesar to sleep with her on nights where her anxiety flared up more than usual. The presence of someone she loved near her would put her more at peace.

He lays behind her, one arm tucked into the crook of her elbow while the other rested on top of her head, soft caresses making her feel more at ease.

“Better?” He hums softly, feeling her breathing slowing down as she held his hand tightly.

She nods her head, “Yeah— just stay here for a minute. I’ll be okay.”

“I know you will.” He presses his lips to the back of her head, “What if I told you I’ve been in love with you since we were kids. Would you believe me then?” He asks even though he can’t see her face.

She opens her eyes slowly, turning her head to the side to look at him, “Really?”

“Sí, es verdad.” He assures her, the beating of her heart picking up under his palm again. He was worried he was gonna put her through another panic attack but she seemed better than a few minutes ago. More calm.

“I never knew. I just thought Oscar had scared you into never talking to me for longer than 5 minutes because he didn’t want anything happening between us.” She thinks back to all the times where José would simply drop her off at their home and leave, not a word more. And when he did have a conversation with her, Oscar was always there spectating.

“Well that too. Shit, if he were to see us now, I’d have my ass handed to me, mami.” José chuckles as she laugh softly along with him, the sound like a melody to his ears.

She leans up on her elbows looking down at him, “I feel better now. Thank you— for this.” Her eyes glimmering with what could only be described as love for her protector.

“Don’t mention it.” He leans up to kiss her shoulder, “I gotchu forever, nena.”

#sad eyes drabble #sad eyes imagine #sad eyes #steve villegas #oscar diaz #oscar spooky diaz #cesar diaz #on my block imagine #on my block #Lilac Prompt Event #trigger warning

[ghosteyesfoxwrites]

Ignite

Chapter 2

Yang woke up the next morning to light knocking. She got up and shuffled to the door. She eased it open. Expecting to see Klein, Yang was snapped awake when she saw Blake standing at her door, tray in hand with mugs and the addings for coffee and tea. "Blake? What are you doing?"

Blake tilted her head, her ears flat against her head, "I figured that a nice cup of coffee or tea would be appreciated after last night." Yang hurried out an agreement and moved to the side, letting Blake come through. She set the tray down on a small table and went about making the drinks. "Do you prefer coffee of tea?

"Coffee. Will you be ok if I keep my arm off? Right after waking up, it doesn't fit right," Yang asked behind a yawn. Blake turned around and saw Yang, fully, no longer hiding behind a tray. Deep red orange tank top, black sweat pants with a yellow checker patter going down the side, rolled up a bit. Yang looked half asleep and sleepily smiled at Blake.

Blake relaxed, "Sure. If it makes you comfortable. Cream or sugar?"

Yang hummed, "More cream than sugar."

Blake walked over and sat on the bed, a hot mug of coffee for Yang, steaming tea for herself. Yang took her first sipped and let out a content sigh. "You didn't burn yourself?"

She chuckled, "I always run hot so warm coffee in the morning is nothing." Blake was a bit envious, left blowing on her tea to cool it off. After a few quiet moments of enjoying the hot drinks, Yang spoke, "So. The White Fang."

She felt the bed shift as Blake moved, trying to find a comfortable position, but it wouldn't help when it was her heart that was unsettled.  Blake stared down at her tea, er ear flattened then twitched. "What about them?"

Yang put her mug on the nightstand next to her bed and moved so she was leaning against her pillows and propped up her knee, resting her left arm over her knee. Her lilac eyes searched Blake, but the girl was good, her mask unreadable, Yang couldn't find any cracks. She pressed.

"I can almost see why they wouldn't want Schnee and Menagerie not working together. Does their pain run that deep? I know Weiss's dad was a prick, but she's different," Yang watched. She could see Blake's neck tighten, her shoulders pull back a fraction, her ear turned up, her left trained on Yang. Her hands gripped the tea cup, almost shaking.

Blake let out a shaky breath, "In the beginning, the White Fang stood against for all the right reasons. Us faunus are people, we have lives, loved ones, dreams, hopes. Jacques Schnee exploited the racism, and we.... We didn't have any backing to get him to change his mind. SO my... My father started the White Fang. At the time, a non-violent protest. A gathering, a community of faunus to help and support each other."  Blake took a breath and sipped at her cooling tea. Yang sat up, crossed legged now, wake, listening to Blake was and wasn't telling her.

One doesn't become an expert Huntress by taking things at face value. There is always the underlining story.

Yang watched as Blake stood and walked back toward the table, placing her tea down and paced the room slowly, taking in the photos and knick-knacks Yang had scattered. As much as this was a guest room, it was almost always reserved for Yang. A home away from home. She traced the wood, and that’s when she noticed. Almost everything in Yang's room was wood, almost no metal furniture.

"Why is everything wood?" Blake asked, her ears perked as she looked around, her eyes wide with curiosity.

Yang was taken back by the question, "Uh, because, I like wood furniture? It reminds me of my old home on Patch."

Blake turned back to a shelf and smiled at the pictures. "Menagerie's architecture is all wood frames, beautiful trees." She headed back toward the table and sipped at her tea.

Yang chuckled, "Are you asking me to go to Menagerie, Blake?" The sound of a snort and tea spilling a bit onto the wood was Yang's response. The blonde was up and laughing as she helped Blake clean up. "You ok?"

Blake nodded, sputtering a bit, "Yeah, yeah. I, uh, I mean, if you want." Blake's ears twitched and kept her eyes off of Yang. She shook her head and looked up at Yang, still with no heels, nothing but house slippers and bare feet, Yang looked down at Blake. Eyes soft, quickly darting over Blake's face, keeping eye contact, trying to read what wasn't being said. Blake opened her mouth to be more clear, but Yang's door slammed open and their stood Ruby, already dressed for the day, Crescent Rose in her hand, still in it's small, compact form. "Yang! I can't find--- Oh hi, Blake," Ruby stood more relaxed. Blake hid a chuckle behind her hand while Yang looked a bit more surprised to see Ruby. The outburst not unusual, doesn't mean Yang was ever used to them. Ruby looked about, and noticed the moment was possibly private, and Ruby started to match Crescent Rose. "I will leave you to it, then. Um, Weiss is with Mr. and Mrs. Belladonna, so-"

"You can call them Ghira and Kali, Ruby," Blake interrupted.

Ruby nodded, "Right, right. So, I'll go hang out with them. There's left over chocolate from last night and there's waffles and..." Ruby noticed the quirked eyebrow from her sister. "Ri-ight," she dragged. "Bye." And in her blur, she was gone, rose petals left to drift to the ground.

Yang sighed and went to put on her arm. "She's energetic," Blake commented, following Yang. "Want help?"

She sat on the bed and held on her bed, "You could give me a hand," Yang's grin split her face in two.

Ear flattened against her head, "This is just your life now, isn't it? Hand puns?" Blake stepped over and flopped on the bed. She took the arm and went to attach it.

"I'm always armed and ready for a good joke," Yang snorted. "You gotta hand it to me, you think it's cute. With it, I can definitely keep you out of 'arm's way. You don't have to worry about me getting strong-armed. I can-"

"Yang!" Blake stopped her. She hadn't even gotten to attach her arm. Blake was holding her stomach, shaking, tremors ripped through her as she tried to hold back the laughter threatening to spill over. "You have to stop or I'll leave you, alright?" Blake was chuckling. She reached out and gripped Yang's bicep steadying her arm. 

"Wouldn't it be all left?" 

Blake stopped. Her left ear twitched, her eyes closed, she bit her lip to keep her laughter at bay. She slowly looked up at Yang, her bangs shadowing her golden eyes, the look stopped Yang. Whatever joke was coming next died in the back of her throat, along with her breath, her heart. Blake smirked, clicking her arm into place. She got up and leaned over, gently lifting Yang's chin, closing her mouth. "Alright." And with that, Blake left Yang's room. She closed the door and leaned against it. Her face burning as she held it, letting out a breath. Her steps matched her heart as she headed toward the kitchen. Yang was left in her room, still staring at the door, the usual low hum of her arm rang louder than ever. Or was it her heart pounding in her ears?

That afternoon,Yang was walking around the mansion, familiarizing herself with it. She could almost see a younger version of herself, Weiss, and Ruby running down the halls. It helped her dad's team, STRQ, got hired so often by Jacques. The kids had the run of the house until Jacques had important meetings, then they were confined to one part of the mansion. They loved the mansion at night though. The three of them would quietly travel through the house, excited that the neon colors from the city would bleed into the house, splashing and spilling color all over the white marble, almost as if painted by the shattered moon.  Walking the halls had put Yang at ease. Her and Ruby knew this mansion inside out, backwards and forwards. She stopped in one hallway and looked both ways down the hall, making sure no one saw her before she moved one of the paintings, a giant one of Weiss and her two sibling, Winter and Whitley. Behind was a secret door and she slipped in.

Ruby was out with Weiss and one of the guys in black suits. Weiss' snow white SUV hovered above the ground. An older model, but she couldn't part with it. Her sister had gifted it to her when she first started to drive. Now, she left it in the capable hands of Klein or one of her snowflakes. Ruby would keep eye contact with Weiss for about thirty seconds, then she'd look outside. This repeated during the fifteen or so minute drive from the manor to the city. Weiss was meeting with some politicians about some business Ruby didn't really care about. She just wanted to keep her friend safe. And the stuff she learned from Ghira and Kali that morning, didn't exactly set her on edge, but it did keep her alert. 

It was a few hours later, the meeting had ended, the papers signed, the sacrifices made, Ruby guessed. Some of the stuff Weiss pulled off in the short amount of time she had taken reign was amazing. Ruby was convinced it was black magic. The big guy in the black suit, nicknamed by Ruby as Ice, stepped out first, then Ruby, then Weiss. Ice pulled out a key and hit a button, the SUV made a noise and flickered orange. Ruby's eyes flashed, and time seem to slow. She turned and scooped up Weiss and Ice, and she flickered out. The next thing Weiss knew she was on the roof, Ice on his backside, and Ruby with Crescent Rose open as a large sniper rifle, rose petals everywhere, and then the noise set in. The echoing of an explosion, car alarms going off, muffed voices, large hands on her shoulders, Ruby's back to her, calling to Ice.

"Wha-" Weiss croaked.

"An explosion, miss," Ice's voice was deep. Weiss looked up and blinked once, twice, and on the third blink, she was up and at Ruby's side.

"See anything?" Her right left hand waved and a small glyph appeared. From it, a long, silver rapier appeared with what looked like a six-shot revolver for the hilt. She loaded in several different colored shells, filled with Dust.

"No. I'm sorry I didn't check the car first," Ruby held her weapon in a tight grip, her knuckles white. The street was a bit darker, the explosion shattered the lamps and signs, killing the neon light.

Weiss put her hand on Ruby's shoulder, "You saved both me and Ice. You did your job."

"Miss, you really don't have to call me that," Ice had his back to them, his small hand cannon out.  

Weiss let herself indulge in a smile, "No. It stays." Once the police arrived, Weiss relaxed, a fraction. Next would come questions, EMTs, news, more questions, press, coverage, news, news, news. Weiss dismissed her rapier and sighed. "C'mon, we might as well tackle the next part.

Yang wandered through the secret passages that never left her memory. Ice white and sky blue neon lights set low colored the dark halls. Yang let her left hand drag along the dusty, dull stone walls. If memory served her true, she was behind the library. She felt along the wall for the trick brick. With an little push, the stone sunk into the wall and  the wall groaned, dust fell, and afternoon light ran into the secret passage. When the wall fully opened, Yang stepped out and patted herself off. "Just like old times," She chuckled to herself.

She looked around and saw she was, indeed, in the library. She went to close the wall when she caught a scared Blake in the corner, eyes wide, ear pulled back. Yang froze, surprised herself to see someone else. "Uh, hey, Blake."

"Where... Where did you even come from?" Her ear flicked up fright wearing off, seeing it was Yang. Curiosity slowly taking it's place.

 It was like the sun came in from outside and filled up Yang as she smiled. 

"Secret passage. Wanna come explore?" Blake got up and slipped past her, looking up and down the hallway. "Where are your parents?" Yang asked before watching Blake tentatively step into the passage.

"With almost all of Weiss's snowflakes, going over plans and such. They're in one of her secured rooms." Yang nodded to Blake's explanation. "Where does this all lead?"

Yang stepped through, reached out, hesitated then swallowed her nervousness. She gripped Blake's hand and lead her along, "Let's go find out."

#bumbleby #blake x yang #blake belladonna #yang xiao long #ruby rose #weiss schnee #rwby #rwby fic #multichapter

[latviaaaaaa]

The Guard Cat

She’s staring out the window again. She’s had this habit since she was a kitten; cats like to stare out windows, sure, but she makes a point of doing it for hours at a time. I used to think she was watching birds, or maybe on the lookout for foxes. And maybe that was part of it, but I think we’ve both learned since then that there are scarier things to look out for. And more interesting things to think about.

Her whiskers twitch at a slight movement in some bushes by the side of the road, where we’ve stopped to rest for the afternoon. Some kind of small animal; anything more than that and she would go off like a burglar alarm. I’ve never heard what a burglar alarm sounds like, but I know they used to keep them in public places - banks and museums and malls and such, when burglary was still unusual and considered a threat to public safety. Alarm systems in such places have been deactivated since then, or have fallen into disrepair, which is good for us because it means we can find food and other necessities undisturbed.

Unless, of course, we make a wrong turn and head unwittingly into a trap. That’s when Judy takes over.

Her job is, in theory, an easy one: sniff out trouble, alert the humans, and we’ll all leave. She’s good at it, and she needs to be. We’re really into not waiting out the danger around here, since that usually ends up being worse than just moving on and spending the occasional night hungry. Even a cat would agree, but at least Judy can hunt in the bushes by the road, where the few critters left after the invasion still burrow and nest, shrinking back into the earth like a frightened child into their mother’s arms.

The cat glances away from the window at last, apparently satisfied with her scouting, and finally notices me lying down next to her. We’re on the top bunk in the back, where I get to sleep because I’m the youngest and therefore weakest - that’s basically what Sune said when I asked where we’d be sleeping. “You get to go up there, where Judy’s sitting,” she told me, pointing out the pale silhouette of the cat in the moonlight, the night we packed up our trailer and left town for good, “since you’re so little. She’ll protect you. Plus I get motion sickness, so I want to be close to the ground in case I have to throw up in the middle of the night.”

This was a wise negotiation tactic of hers: give an order, add a minor insult, and then before they can fight back, come up with a maddeningly good reason to support your argument. I knew I wasn’t little anymore (I’m twelve already, for God’s sake!), and even though I wouldn’t have minded sleeping up there, I at least wanted a better reason than, “you’re small and inferior in terms of self-defense, so we’re giving you this housecat for protection. Like that’ll do anything for you.”

But I also knew I really didn’t want to wake up suddenly in the night, covered in my sister’s vomit, so I obeyed with a grumble and snuggled up under my blanket, my face roughly a foot away from the ceiling. Judy made room for me and my blanket cocoon, shuffling herself to the side as I climbed in; then, after I resettled, she padded over to me and licked my face until I opened the blankets for her. It’s become our little routine, every bedtime: she lets me climb in with her, nuzzles my cheek like she’s ringing a doorbell, and snuggles up with me in our warm little blanket burrito. Sometimes I curl my arm around her, scratch her head, listen to the sound of her purr as we both drift off to sleep. It’s like when I used to hug a pillow in my sleep, but fluffier and cuddlier. As solitary as cats are known to be, I always thought it was curious how sweet and affectionate Judy can be sometimes.

Right now, as soon as she notices me, she walks over and settles down next to my head, keeping her warm green eyes trained fully on mine. Her little paws are curled in beneath her weight, her fur keeping them hidden from view, but I know that the front two have a pair of little white fur-socks, and the back two are a dusty, russet color. That’s why we named her Judy, after Judy Garland, because it looked like she was wearing red shoes; on her, they’re a little more reminiscent of cowgirl boots than the sparkly ruby slippers Dorothy owned, but for what she lacks in costume accuracy she makes up for in personality. Judy’s a young tabby, no more than three years old, and she’s been fixed; yet you could swear she thinks of all of us as her kittens.

As if agreeing with me, she leans her head forward and sniffs a lock of my hair that dangles between us, before tilting her head and chewing on it. Human hair is nowhere the same texture as her fur, a fact of which she is well aware, but she tries grooming us nonetheless. Every time I see her curled up on Sune, she’s got either part of her shirt or part of her hair in her mouth. And she takes this business of hers seriously, leaving little puddles of cat drool on Sune’s shoulders as she lies there, unassuming and in blissful peace. Once I tried to wake her, to point out the saliva slowly accumulating on her favorite shirt, but she merely waved me aside with her hand.

“If the cat’s happy, I’m happy,” she murmured through a thick veil of sleep, turning onto her side and letting Judy tumble onto her back, the collar of my sister’s shirt still caught in her teeth.

Weirdos. Then again, I was the one who once tried to return the favor for Judy and ended up with an extensive personal knowledge of what hairballs feel like when they form in your throat, so I guess I’m not really one to talk.

But the cat tries her best, either way you look at it, and I’m grateful for it because sometimes it feels like she’s the only one who is. Ever since we hit the road, Mom and Mama have been… Different. It’s not that they love us less - if anything, I think they maybe even love us more than before - they just have a lot of things on their mind. Like keeping us all safe.

A few days ago, we were completing a raid on an old supermarket. It was a good spot, surprisingly fresh - the fridges were even still cold, which I thought was kind of amazing, and the cash box still had money in it, some of which we took in case we needed kindling for later. Our packs were almost full by the time Mama turned to us and said she thought we should get going soon; the sun would be setting within the hour, and we needed to get back on the road before then. Sune agreed, and went to pick up Judy when Mom pointed out that she hadn’t shown even the slightest sign of panic or fear towards this place since we got there, and that if the cat wasn’t scared, there was no reason for us to be, either.

I saw the reason behind Mom’s logic. Judy had never before missed an evil presence, nor failed to inform us. And the old supermarket was pretty cool. But I’d seen my fair share of what can happen when you overestimate how safe you are indoors, and I didn’t want to stay here any longer than I needed to.

Neither did Mama. And so an argument ensued, and when they started to face each other in a way that resembled lions in a cage, Sune took me by the shoulder and led me away into what had once been the produce section. “Crazy, aren’t they?” She tried to sound upbeat and confident. It fell flat, but I didn’t mind so much; we both hated the sound of our mothers arguing. The quiet of the opposite end of the store, or the sound of her voice dying a shameful, albeit relieving death in her throat, was better.

Until she froze, without warning, nails suddenly claws digging into my shoulder. We had both heard it: the low, guttural sound coming from beyond two swinging doors, where employees used to walk through, back when they still worked here. I barely had time to think that we should’ve brought Judy with us before Sune full-on lifted me up and ran, and I heard the doors burst open with earth-shaking violence behind us and a roar swept old boxes off their shelves next to us, and I clung to her and screamed, screamed, was that me or was that Mama, or Mom, or Sune, or was it Judy, screeching and bolting across the aisles, leading the way to the exit.

We ran and didn’t stop until we reached the van again. It took us all of ten seconds to climb inside, start the engine, and take off down the road, faster than we’d ever driven before. Mama’s knuckles were turning white on the steering wheel when I finally convinced her to slow down, Sune couldn’t take much more until she threw up. When the grey and brown flashes outside the window were finally discernible as nature again, and her stomach had stopped lolling around inside her like a dying fish, my sister fell asleep with her muddy boots on and Judy curled up beside her, nose hidden in her tail, still trembling. I got the strangest feeling, looking at her, that she felt guilty somehow.

That night I lay awake, unable to sleep. It wasn’t so much the memory of the beast in the supermarket, the doors clanging open, the shelves collapsing in our wake that kept me up - although that was certainly part of it - but rather the sound of my mothers’ voices. They were quieter, now, in the driver’s section of the trailer, and more emotional. It had been a rough day.

I could see, in the faint light coming from the open window, Mom holding Mama’s hands as she spoke to her, trying and failing to stay calm enough for them both. “I’m sorry.” I could see her lips forming the basic words. “Agnes, I’m sorry. I thought we were safe.”

Aside from one thing - “Our babies, our babies” - I couldn’t make out what Mama was saying back.

They lay down on the mattress they shared a few minutes later, next to Sune, who was still asleep and who would continue to sleep well into the next day. I continued to lie there, still, frozen in the dark. Mama wouldn’t look at Mom.

Then, as I listened, watched with my closed eyes, something strange happened. I heard Judy’s tired little “mrr” from the bunk below, felt the bed frame quake as she stretched, then leapt over my sister and made her way over to the mattress where my parents were supposed to be sleeping. I listened to her climb over them and settle down in between, purring softly, pinning the blanket down to the bed. Grounding them. It couldn’t have been more than a few minutes before I heard the nightly exchange I didn’t realize I had been waiting for:

“Goodnight, Agnes.”

“Goodnight, Stefanie.”

Judy stops chewing on my hair for a moment and tilts her head at me. I tilt mine back. Her little pink tongue darts out, and I can’t help but laugh as I reach out to scratch her belly. That’s another weird thing about this cat: she has no reservations when it comes to having her belly scratched. She loves belly scratches, even though she’s a cat, she knows what we feel, she can sense evil…

“Hey, Judy?”

I’ve got to be imagining to way she flicks her head at me, eyes happily closed but ears standing straight up. It can’t be that she really hears me. And yet, some part of me knows, intrinsically, that she does.

“Are you our guardian angel or something?”

Her eyes open suddenly, and wide. They lock on mine, as though to ask, how did you know?

Her whiskers tremble a little, so I play with them until they calm down. I shrug at her. “Dunno. I don’t think I did know, really. I just wanted to ask.”

If I can judge by the way she watches me a second longer, looking almost amused, before rolling onto her back and stretching her paws over my face, the answer satisfies. Alright. I can live with that.

“As long as you’re keeping us alive.” I smile when I hear her start to purr in response. I imagine she’s laughing in her sleep.

- March 11th, 2019. Also shortly before midnight.

Hey! So, yeah, I need to figure a way to write decent one-shots without having them turn into full-on existential nightmares, and also within a reasonable time frame so I can like. Sleep. You know?

Aside from this, and the rest of school, life is okay. I saw an old friend of mine today, which should’ve been nice, but I noticed that she’s changed a lot since I last saw her... Like, a lot... So now I just feel kinda bleh. It’s one of those days, it’s a “bleh” day.

So, obviously, the whole “multiple posts a day so I can catch up” thing isn’t working out so well, so I may just have to continue doing them like every 4-5 days or something. That or I’ll actually stretch out my comfort zone and get better at writing short things XD

I would like to know what y’all think of these, so far! If there’s anything in particular anyone wants me to write about, I am very open to suggestions (although seeing as this is a school assignment, even though I would love to write openly about SSSS, I don’t think I can really do more than include subtle allusions to it for now).

#bye for now! #my writing

[ma-lemons]

here’s to love, my rose, pt.2

The best dad is back! I’m really excited for this volume and I really and hoping that Ruby gets angry at someone or breaks down in front of her team. She keeps everything in and no one is that positive 24/7, she’s gonna break sometime and I want her team to be there every step of the way like she has for them.

————————————————————————-

Tai’s heart clenched in his chest as the one tear shed was followed by one several more. Before he knew it, he was sobbing. Sobbing, because he was too late. Raven was gone. Summer was gone. Qrow blamed Summer’s death on himself...

The fact that his team had fallen apart so easily ate at his heart. It filled him with guilt and he’d do anything to rid of it. He was so tired of living in the constant reminder that he let down everyone he loved.

“Why, Raven! Why? Summer... Qrow... I’m sorry. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you when I should have been. I should have done better,” he murmured to himself.

Why?

—————-—-—————————————————-

Ruby woke up, the filtered light coming through her windows. She was glad that for once in her life she could sleep without the reminder that she had to help save the world.

17 was supposed to be an easy time. Right now she was supposed to be in Beacon Academy, living her life with her friends, on her way to becoming the best Huntress around.

She wasn’t even sure if that was possible anymore.

She tiredly rolled out of bed and got into her slippers. Opening the door, she headed downstairs. She paused for a second when she heard loud crying.

“Why, Raven! Why? Summer... Qrow... I’m sorry. I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you when I should have been. I should have done better,” the sound of her father came.

Raven? Summer? Qrow? Why was he crying about team STRQ?

She quickly sped over the last few steps and into the dining room, where her dad was choking on his tears.

“Dad?”

Her dad froze in his place before turning to face her. He looked weary, and upset with himself. Ruby wondered what was going on.

“Dad... are you okay?” she asked him, running to his side. Tai gave a small smile and nodded. She wrapped her small arms around him, in hopes of letting him know she was there for him.

“You’re just like your mother, Ruby,” he chuckled softly.

Mother?

“How so, Dad?” Ruby asked timidly. She was curious, but afraid of going into uncharted territory. Tai never mentioned the past Summer Rose in their home. He’d only insinuate about her, but never would he bluntly talk about who she was or how they had ended up together.

“Ruby, sit down and let me tell you about when I fell for your mother.

Ruby’s eyes flickered over to the window, where a path would lead to her mother’s grave. Her heart fell heavy as she sat down in the chair next to her father’s.

Taiyang took a deep breath. He needed to be prepared. He cried about it and now it was time to do something about it.

So he told his story. He started from the beginning, fragments of what he had to go through when Raven left, and after he and Summer first kissed. Tai was cautious, but after eyeing his daughter only saw that she was quite interested and showed no signs of embarrassment nor shame.

Qrow sat down next to Tai, who was seated at the porch of their home. He had just gotten home from another mission, and was worn out. It was strange playing third wheel to Summer and Tai, but he had gotten used to it. He was used to a rambunctious toddler in the house too.

Qrow took a swig from his flask and let out an easy sigh. It had been a confusing two months. He had went to go find Raven, in hopes that she would come see her daughter, but instead he was met with bandits that would rather kill before negotiating.

He was glad Tai was getting better though. He looked happy and healthy, not like the shell he was a few months ago. Anytime anyone would mention Raven’s name he would freeze and his mind would blank. These days it was a bit better, he tended to pretend he hadn’t heard.

And Yang. She had started calling Summer, “Mama,” which had made Summer cry. Twice. Yang probably didn’t remember Raven’s face too well, and Summer was really the only “mom” she had ever known. Qrow knew she was good for her.

“Tai, how are you?” Qrow asked. He offered him his flask to which Tai shook his head. “You know I don’t drink.”

“I’m fine, Qrow. How about yourself?” Tai asked. Qrow noticed his voice had a hard edge to it and he knew why. They all knew why.

“Tai... you’ve been like this since Yang was born. Are you going to keep acting like this forever? Come on, it’s my birthday, you can’t keep frowning. Your wife and your kid want you to be happy. And... I do too, you ass,” he said quietly, punching Tai on the shoulder.

“What do you think Raven is doing today?” Tai asked, looking at the sky.

Qrow’s eyes narrowed. “Nothing good, of course. Tai... you can’t be wondering about my sister. She’s gone. Think about how Summer feels every time you get in a mood about Raven.”

Qrow was right. He couldn’t keep being sad on the Branwen twin’s birthday. Qrow and Summer were just as bummed that Raven had left as he was. He had a new family, and he couldn’t keep hurting Summer by reminiscing times with Raven.

“You’re right, Qrow. I’ll buy you a drink next time we’re out. Happy birthday, man.”

Qrow grinned and threw an arm around Tai. “That’s what I’m talking about.” He stood up stretched.

“Well, I’d love to stick around, but I have to go see Ozpin. I’ll be back tomorrow.”

Tai nodded. Qrow took off with a running start, and with a burst of black feathers, he transformed into his namesake bird. Tai waited until he was gone until he stood up and went back into the house.

“Summer?” Tai called. He didn’t hear her reply.

“Summer?”

There still was no sound. Yang, he knew was sound asleep, but where was Summer?

Tai knew how much Summer was itching to get back to her Huntress duty. Adrenaline ran through her veins and she was always on the lookout for Grimm. If she wasn’t honorary mom to Yang, she would have left by now. Tai also wished to get back to fighting, but his daughter had helped him put his mind to other things besides fighting. He figured when Yang was old enough, he could teach at Signal.

He hurried up the steps and into their bedroom, where he heard loud retching noises.

“Summer?” he cried, panicked. Tai didn’t waste a moment as he burst into the bathroom and found Summer throwing up the contents of her breakfast into the toilet. She looked paler than usual.

“Summer!”

He rushed to her side and rubbed her back, helping her get it out. After a while, she stopped and slumped against the toilet lid. Tai rushed downstairs and got her water and some stomach reliever.

Back upstairs, Summer had managed to get up, and was rinsing her mouth. Tai led her to the bed and she managed to take the pill and chug the water down.

After she was finished, she took a look at Tai.

“T-tai,” she managed.

Was she sick?

“Are you okay, Summer? Do you have a fever?” he asked, raising his hand to her head.

She shook her head. “No, I’m—“

“Stomach ache? Do we need to go to a doctor?”

“No!”

“Is it that time of the month? Do you usually throw up then? I didn’t know that happe—“

“Tai, no! Listen to me!” Summer growled, her eyes flashing. Tai had seen Summer use her silver eye power, as she could control it fairly well, but he didn’t want to be the target of that wrath. He shut up quickly and his wife sighed.

“Tai... I think I’m pregnant.”

Tai wasn’t sure at first of what he was hearing. His jaw kind of dropped and he stared at Summer. Did he hear her correctly?

“What?”

“I’m positive... we’re going to be parents. Well, you’re going to be a parent for the second time. This is my first, duh—“ Summer stopped and peered into Tai’s face. His blue eyes were blank, and he seemed to be unable to register any information.

“Tai? Are you okay?” Summer asked carefully.

Tai shook out of it. His face grew into a large smile.

“I’m going to be a father again... that’s wonderful.” He grabbed Summer’s arms and pressed a kiss to her cheek. Summer was going to be a mother. Yang would be a big sister. He smiled. Why worry about Raven? He had all he needed right there.

#rwby #summer rose #taiyang xiao long #taiyang x summer #ruby rose #yang xiao long #raven branwen #qrow branwen #here’s to love my rose

[forgetspecifics]

Once upon a midnight dreary (Bumbleby one-shot)

Written on commission from @boom-a-yang​. Shout-out for being the first one to take a chance on me with paid writing. Word count: 3,754

Other links: Ao3 FF.net

Notes: I was given a choice of 4 prompts; it’s written at the end as to not spoil anything.

“Yang,” a voice said quietly, no other sound but the humming of the refrigerator permeating the night’s silence. That was, apart from the incessant tap tap tap at the front door.

The voice tried again, this time louder, small hands shaking awake the heavy sleeper. “Yang!”

A groan signified consciousness from the lump under the duvet, a head of luscious blonde hair rising from its slumber. “What is it? Ruby?” The tired questions came, dazed and confused.

Indeed it was Ruby, Yang’s younger half-sister, pulling her out of dreamland. “Someone’s at the door, they keep knocking,” she informed, looking over her shoulder towards the front door. It was hidden by a divider that formed Yang’s bedroom in their open-plan apartment, yet, Ruby could not help her eyes wandering over there while Yang composed herself.

“The fuck? What time is it?” Yang asked, hauling herself out of bed and into the small kitchen with a glowing digital clock, the device rudely piercing the darkness and hurting her eyes. “It’s one in the morning, damn it,” the older sister was not happy in the slightest.

Ruby appeared behind her, her hushed voice not even close to the average whisper. “It sounded frantic, but you sleep like the dead, and you told me-”

“To not open the door if I was asleep in case you get murdered or something,” Yang finished reciting the rule she had drilled into Ruby’s head (she was at least pleased it had worked). “Ya-huh, I remember. I don’t hear any-”

Knock knock knock.

The two young women stopped in their tracks, mouths shut, testing whatever visitor was interrupting their rest. It wasn’t long before the noise started up again, rapping at the wood faster than the instance a minute ago.

Finally coming completely to, Yang’s annoyance returned. “What is this, an Edgar Allan Poe poem? The only way I’m not gonna be pissed off is if it’s a bird with brain damage waking me up,” she muttered, being cautious to retrieve her knuckledusters from their odds-and-ends drawer in the kitchen. Who knew what awaited her on the other side of that door? She had no other means to protect her and her sister, and their apartment wasn’t exactly in the fanciest neighbourhood nor was it the most secure.

That was their general problem – she couldn’t afford a two bedroom apartment, and there was a lack of luxury in their current one, with no peep-hole in their front door and a broken security chain (that she now wished she’d fixed last week, instead of putting it off).

“Get behind me,” she ushered Ruby with her left arm, who had found her own weapon, their old baseball bat. Smart kid, she mentally praised, before preparing for the worst. She just wanted to sleep, and that meant ridding themselves of the nuisance knocking – impending danger be damned. It also could be someone dying, looking for help, so that motivated her just as much.

Counting down from three, Yang swung the door open in an instant to avoid being rushed and knocked down. The hand that was still poised in mid-air outside their door stopped from surprise as they were greeted by two girls; fists raised and a shoddy wooden bat ready to swing.

The moment passed quickly as recognition between the party inside and the party outside registered, the person at the door throwing themselves bodily at Yang.

The blonde barely had time to react, but managed to not topple over with the added weight. “You scared the shit out of us, Blake,” she was relieved it was only her friend and not a psychopath that was currently clinging to her – but she was still wondering what was going on.

She felt moisture on her chest and small sniffles coming from her black-haired Faunus friend, hastily wrapping her arms, knuckledusters and all, around the slightly shorter frame. “Wait, hey, what’s wrong?”

Now she was worried. It should have been immediate; realising that something wasn’t right. Blake never showed up uninvited (let alone at one a.m.), wasn’t a touchy-feely person, and barely showed emotion most of the time. They were complete opposites in those ways, but still valued each other highly – and she knew it was more than Blake liked to admit.

“I scared you?” Blake finally said, louder than the neighbours probably would have preferred. She was taken inside by Yang, not bothering to resist as she was lifted up without their embrace disturbed. Ruby had backed off seeing the face of a friend, setting her bat down by the door as she closed it. The light from the moon outside was blocked, leaving her little choice but switching on a light.

The sisters then shared a look over the crying girl’s shoulder as Yang held her. Ruby’s face clearly asked for an explanation, but there was none. Silently mouthing back that she didn’t know, Yang simply handed over her weapon and began the comforting process she’d developed and mastered while raising Ruby.

It only took a few moments of moving her palms up and down Blake’s spine to get her to relax a bit, the grip on her tank top loosening. Admittedly Yang had hesitation, having never before hugged Blake for more than a few seconds – she’d have to write this down as a new record on her mental scoreboard.

It usually wouldn’t have mattered; she had no problem respecting people’s personal bubbles, but there was something about Blake that made Yang always wish for more contact. She’d never been able to figure out if she was simply being weird. The answer had finally come as she found that they fit together like two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. Blake was at least a few inches shorter than her without the ridiculous high heels she liked to wear, as she was still clearly wearing her pyjamas and slippers in her apparent haste to get over to the sisters’ apartment. Which meant her face...was buried in her cleavage.

Yang quickly leaned her upper body away, not even sure that this was the same Blake she had befriended. “What’s gotten into you?”

She must have said it the wrong way, because Blake pushed her away with a strength Yang didn’t expect. “Yang Xiao Long, how dare you.” The Faunus’ usually bright golden eyes were sullen, and the redness present clearly showed she had been crying long before arriving.

Yang wasn’t sure how to respond. The phrase usually indicated she’d done something she shouldn’t have, yet the tone wasn’t accusatory. But Blake was staring, so she had to say something. “Uh, I don’t-”

“I had a terrible nightmare about you,” Blake left no room for her to respond, obviously upset, but seemingly unsure of herself now that they were face-to-face.

Yang could hear the forced calm in her voice, her brain falling further behind in regards to why Blake was acting concerned beyond anything she’d ever expressed before. She’d had a dream and her most reasonable reaction was to physically check up on her at one in the morning?

“Oh,” was all Yang could say, not really finding any answer that would better serve the situation.

Blake’s face fell in an instant and Yang knew she’d said the wrong thing again.

“What am I doing?” Blake unnaturally forced a laugh out, stepping aside to make a beeline for the door. “I shouldn’t have come here-”

“No, it’s okay, really,” Yang worked equally fast to take Blake’s hand to prevent her from going anywhere. She should have been more sensitive – just because she was baffled didn’t mean that Blake hadn’t shown up in tears obviously seeking comfort. Which was what she would get. “Ruby, can you boil some water?”

The brunette, who was observing with her own wonder, nodded and padded over to the small kitchen, knowing exactly what Yang was thinking. Tea for Blake; something for her hands to hold and to distract her. While Blake was closer to Yang, Ruby still knew her pretty well. In fact, Yang was the closest to Blake out of all their friends, much to the confusion of Weiss. I don’t know how you can bear her awful jokes, Blake, was something the petite heiress said often.

Yang lead Blake by the hand to her bedroom. She hated calling it a bedroom when it wasn’t a room at all, just a double bed in a corner surrounded by privacy screens, but that was just the way things were. Yang didn’t mind giving Ruby her own room; as long as she could sleep she was good.

“Tell me what’s wrong,” Yang coaxed over the sound of a rumbling kettle, pulling her friend down to sit on the mattress and mussed bedcovers.

Blake fidgeted, zoning out and scanning the not-room; the two solid walls devoid of art while the makeshift walls were tacked with a never-ending supply of pictures of friends and family, and the floor littered with laundry and shoes. Yang had a lot of shoes. She was brought back by a gentle touch on her arm; warm and soft. Yang was warm and soft, the designated mom-friend, but also a kind and generous individual that was considerate of everyone she cared about.

Right, that’s why she was here. To see Yang. “Y- you were in my dream and... I tried calling you, and it went straight to voicemail. I had to come all this way.”

Knowing its shrill tone would have woken her, Yang pondered. “My phone didn’t ring. I put it on to charge before I went to sleep,” she crawled to her beside table to find the power cable dangling precariously in the charge port, evidently indicating she had failed to do as she claimed. The phone was devoid of life as she attempted to turn it on. “I didn’t plug it in properly, it’s dead.”

Her words again had the opposite of the intended effect, causing Blake to make small wail and bury her head in her hands. Yang had never scrambled on all fours so quickly in her life, wrapping Blake in a hug, feeling like she really had done something she shouldn’t have.

“Blake, calm down. Everything’s fine, it was just a bad dream,” she repeated her earlier process, Blake turning into her chest as the kettle finally came to a boil and tuned off with a click in the background.

“It felt so real. I had to make sure you were okay.”

Yang had to listen closely to catch the mumbled words as they were sufficiently...muffled. She tried not to think about Blake’s face in her cleavage, and to think about the real issue. It seemed that something had happened to her in Blake’s dream, something bad enough to shake the normally stoic girl.

She needed to hear more. “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t I be okay?”

Blake didn’t answer right away, and she didn’t move. It felt like an eternity had passed when she finally did speak. “I saw you die, Yang. It was so horrible, I don’t even remember waking up because I was in tears, and-”

“Hey, c’mon now. You don’t have to explain yourself, you were scared,” Yang had heard enough. She knew that Blake didn’t have the most carefree childhood, and that she tended to overthink a lot of things. “Try not to think about what you saw and focus on me.” Yang had figured out over the years that reassurance had to be given quickly, before Blake’s overthinking turned into self-blame, but luckily (or because of her persistence) Blake had come to trust her enough to open up more – instead of pretending nothing was wrong.

Blake’s hands only moved to encircle Yang’s waist, the Faunus thinking herself better off anchored, in case somehow either of them slipped away into oblivion. Still, she wasn’t sure that she could forget what had unfolded right in front of her.

“What if you’re just a dream too?” Her imagination wasn’t always her friend and her mind was often fooled by it.

There was an easy answer to that, but Yang was never one to give the easy answers. “Then you dream about me an awful lot.” She couldn’t help but smile; the thought that Blake’s subconscious was fond of her made her a tiny bit giddy, a familiar feeling she always had when making teasing jokes and comments that elicited a smirk from Blake that she always tried to hide.

“I do not,” Blake said, not bothering to even look at Yang, no doubt hiding her amusement.

Yang continued with her sarcastic wit, satisfied it would distract Blake from her worries. “Wouldn’t want me to know how much you like me, right?”

This time, Blake detached herself, rolling her eyes. “Real or not, you’re insufferable,” she felt better already, her retort rolling off her tongue easily.

Ending their verbal sparring match before it could really begin, Ruby entered the space. “Hey, Blake,” she handed the Faunus a mug of brewed tea, who accepted it gratefully.

Letting the warmth of the cup spread to her hands, Blake gave the younger sister an apologetic smile. “Ruby, I’m sorry for waking you both.”

Ruby, being Ruby, waved it off. Blake was a good friend of theirs. “It’s no big deal. Yang’s really good at this stuff,” she knew that everyone, including herself, could turn to her big sister if they needed to.

Blake nodded, bringing her tea to her lips, her face changing to one of scepticism as she drank. “This is my favourite tea,” she stated, glancing at Yang.

“Yup,” the blonde replied, thinking nothing of it.

“I thought you said this was your favourite tea, sis,” Ruby too grew sceptical, having already been suspicious when Yang had randomly started to drink tea years ago.

Yang was a terrible liar, and it was a well-known fact. She was cornered by her traitorous sibling, and all she could do was grimace as she was caught red-handed.

Ruby grinned sneakily, as she always did when finding something to tease Yang about. “I knew you only started drinking tea because of Blake,” she’d always thought that Blake was the reason, but had no way of proving it – she’d suddenly got lucky, and seeing her big sister blush was incredibly rewarding.

“Yeah, well!” Yang decided to bring out the big guns. “You only study when Weiss is looking, you nerd!”

Ruby gasped, indignant at the accusation. “Weiss is scary! Blake isn’t!” She turned to shrug at Blake, “no offence.”

“None taken,” Blake sat back and watched the sibling rivalry with amusement.

Yang, being the slightly more mature one, shook her head at the ridiculousness of the whole thing. Arguing when they should have been sleeping, especially Ruby, whom she didn’t like to know was losing sleep. “I think everything’s under control now, Rubes. You can go back to bed.”

Sensing the deliberateness in her words, Ruby couldn’t really argue with that. Still, she couldn’t help but still be concerned about her friend. “Are you feeling better, Blake?”

“Much better, in fact,” Blake gave her a small smile over her tea cup, feeling slightly more guilty about keeping the younger girl up than she did about bothering Yang.

“Glad to hear it. Goodnight, guys.”

Bidding her goodnight in return, Blake and Yang were then enveloped in the gravity of what had transpired. Late night comforting had definitely been a first for them, but neither of them could really complain.

Yang turned on her lamp, getting up to shut off the ceiling light that had illuminated most of the large room before. The soft glow reminded her of how late it was, feeling the urge to nod off invade her senses.

“Speaking of going back to bed,” she said jokingly, trying to segue into the topic without implying she blamed Blake for anything.

But of course, Blake couldn’t hide the way her cat ears folded down. “I’ve put you out, I’m sorry. I really should get going-”

“No, that’s not what I meant,” Yang backpedalled, racing back to Blake’s side. “Just lay back for a bit, I don’t mind.”

“You don’t?” Blake put her tea down on the nightstand, unsure of how to proceed. Deep down, she hoped that Yang didn’t, despite her nervousness. She was used to Yang’s kindness, but was still feeling undeserving of it, and unfamiliar with how she craved close proximity with the blonde.

“Not at all,” as if that wasn’t enough, Yang relaxed into her pillows, pulling Blake down along with her.

Blake merely squeaked in surprise, but made no protest. Instead of her head finding a pillow, she was aware that it had landed on Yang’s shoulder. Yang chuckled slightly, readjusting her arm so she had Blake in a side-hug, feeling content with the decision as her friend made no effort to move. Revelling in Yang’s natural body-heat, Blake tried to push away how she’d sworn she could feel the coldness of the Yang in her dream. She couldn’t stop herself asking aloud, “What do you think it means? My dream?”

“It doesn’t mean anything bad is going to happen,” Yang said quietly, hating that Blake might be blaming herself for something that she had no control over. Blake didn’t respond, so she gave a more definitive answer. “If anything, and excuse my smugness, it means you’re afraid to lose me.” Yang was aware that she was often borderline flirting with Blake, but it came so naturally to her. From the very beginning, she’d felt some evel of attraction to the mysterious girl, and it had never really gone away.

That elicited a sigh from Blake. “Of course you’re smug,” she didn’t deny the suggestion; not ever bothered with the way Yang seemed to push the boundaries of their friendship. It was almost as if there were no boundaries to push – which was odd considering how guarded Blake was when it came to most people.

“I’ll never let you live it down, Blakey.” The smirk was tangible in Yang’s words.  Whether it was from the teasing or the nickname, Blake would never know.

“Don’t call me that,” Blake automatically scolded her. They lay there for a beat or two, playfulness ebbing away into companionable silence. Still, Blake wondered about why she’d actually needed such reassurance over a stupid dream. “You don’t think I overreacted?”

“Nope,” Yang said with conviction, making sure to hug Blake a little tighter. “I’m touched that you felt you had to see me with your own eyes.”

Blake had nothing to say to that. It sounded genuine, and at that very second, she’d never felt more grateful that she’d met Yang. She retrieved her cup of tea, thankful for whatever forces that rewarded her with the friends she’d found, happy to savour her favourite brew...and the presence of her friend.

It was a fair while before she saw the bottom of her cup, the warmth having faded from it. She still had Yang, though, who hadn’t made a peep the entire time. Blake turned her head to see the blonde struggling to keep her own upright, lilac eyes fluttered shut.

“Yang,” Blake said gently, the stark opposite of the way Ruby had woken her earlier.

Yang slowly cracked one eye open. “’Sup?”

Blake smiled fondly at the effort Yang had gone to for her this very early morning. “You’re almost falling asleep. I’ve overstayed my welcome.”

“Nuh-uh. It’s too late for you to go home, you can just crash here,” Yang blindly grabbed for her duvet to slip under, but paused when Blake made no move to follow. “You’re totally welcome in my bed,” she held the blanket up, her offer not really made to refuse.

“I had no idea you were that desperate to get me into bed,” Blake remarked, putting aside her empty cup. It was easier to tease Yang when she wasn’t on her game, and a sleepy Yang was very much off her game.

“And I had no idea you dreamed about me,” Yang said, not missing a beat. Maybe she wasn’t entirely off her game. Yet, it sounded more like a happy revelation than anything else.

The Faunus once again deflected as she settled herself into the mattress. “I’m willing to bet good money that you dream about me too.” Betting money was something that Yang loved to do, especially with Nora (that girl was crazy). But to her surprise, her challenge was not met.

“You can’t prove nothin’, Belladonna,” Yang reached out from the covers to switch off the lamp, bathing them in black.

Blake let her eyes adjust, watching Yang closely as her already drowsy state took over once again. Instead of betting against her, Yang hadn’t even denied it. Her answer was ambiguous at best, prompting Blake to wonder if that had meant at all to sound like an admission that, yes, Yang did dream about her.

Blake knew that her brain would work overtime when it came to interpreting the things that came out of Yang’s mouth, always hoping that she never took offhanded comments the wrong way. Yet, this time, she had a gut feeling she’d gotten it right.

Yang, who was steadily drifting off, almost jumped as her hand was brushed against. Fingertips curled around her palm with a featherweight touch. “What’re you doing?” Blake never held her hand – not unless Yang made her, and that was rare in itself.

“I’d rather not have another nightmare, so, now I’ll know you’re still here.”

Well, that was a contender for the most adorable thing Yang had ever heard in her life. Since they’d already knocked down the wall of physical contact tonight, she didn’t feel one bit guilty moving over to be Blake’s big spoon. “There. Nothing to worry about, now.” Her hand was guided into a hug around Blake’s waist as the Faunus snuggled the slightest bit towards her. If she had had any idea how fond Blake was going to become of her tonight, she would have prepared herself. Wrote a speech, maybe.

“Thank you,” Blake didn’t say what for, but she didn’t have to.

And a speech might have been overkill, Yang realised. They seemed to communicate better with fewer words that held more meaning and intention, like it was their own language. And unspoken words were the most valuable thing of all.

“I’ll be here when you wake up, Blake.”

And it took all of Yang’s willpower to not make a sound when she woke up the next morning to a rumbling purr on her chest.

Prompt: Imagine that Person A isn’t normally the emotional type. One night, however, they show up at Person B’s place, eyes red from crying. Turns out they had a vivid nightmare about Person B dying, and they wanted to make sure their friend/crush/datefriend/whatever was okay. Person B is touched by this rare display of emotion from A, and they let A stay with them for the night.

I liked this AU so you might see it again one day.

#rwby #rwby fanfiction #rwby fanfic #bumbleby #bumbleby fanfiction #bumbleby fanfic #rwby bumblebee #yang xiao long art #blake belladonna #au #au fic #gentle gays #commission fic #boom-a-yang

[glitterychaosprince]

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A/N: This was inspired by the song Time Machine by BOTDF, sleep deprivation, and half a liter of coca-cola. I hope you all enjoy this one-shot.

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Angela woke up with a smile on her face as she wondered what her loving boyfriend had planned for her. She chuckled as she grabbed her bath robe and wrapped it around her before heading downstairs to the kitchen. Her smile slipped from her face when she saw the letter neatly folded on the table. Picking it up, she read it. 'I'm sorry for leaving without telling you but me, Ever, Freed and Bickslow had a mission to go on. See you when I get home.'

Angela felt a tear run down her cheek which she quickly wiped away. 'I can't believe he forgot again,' she said with a depressed chuckle. For the third year in a row Laxus had forgotten her birthday. Had gone on a mission with them and told her through a letter.

And it wasn't just her birthday. Valentine'a Day, dates, anniversaries, all conveniently forgotten and traded for missions with the Thunder Legion. Angela had spent the past three years hoping that one day he would prove her wrong, but every time he ended up disappointing her. 'That's it. This time I'm gonna do it.'

~TIME SKIP 2 WEEKS~

Laxus walked into the guild with the Thunder Legion and smiled as he saw Angela sitting at the bar talking to Mirajane. He loved her more than the world itself and he had found the perfect thing to give her after the three years they've been together. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms protectively around her. When she didn't react at all he turned her chair around. 'Is something wrong Angel,' he asked caressing her cheek.

She gave him a weak smile before placing a light kiss to his cheek. 'No Laxus. I'm just tired. I think I'll head back home and take a nap.' He nodded and watched as she left.

He was about to go talk to his grandfather when he noticed the faint disappointed look on Mira's face. 'What?' he asked, slightly annoyed at her because of it. She just sighed and shook her head, going back to managing the bar and pouring drinks.

~TIME SKIP~

Laxus smiled as he entered his and Angela's shared house only to be met with an unnatural stillness to the air. Frowning he went to their bedroom and gently knocked on the door. 'Angel, you up?' he asked as he opened the door only to find the bed untouched with a note placed on his pillow.

Frowning, he picked the note up and read it. Then reread it to make sure that it truly said what he had read. 'Dear Laxus, I'm sorry but I can't do this anymore. For the past three year's you've not only forgotten Valentine's Day and our anniversary, you've also forgotten my birthday and dates we had planed weeks in advance. Everyday I woke up and saw another of your notes was a day my heart cracked. So I'm sorry, but I'm leaving. I already had master remove my guild mark and by now I'm long gone. Hopefully next time you find someone dumb enough to fall for you you'll treat her with more respect than you did me. I tried to be patient, but my patience with you has run out. I hope you have a nice life.'

Laxus crumpled the paper and sat on the edge of the bed, not even bothering to try and stop the tears that were falling. The room was silent aside from his sobs. He should've followed her earlier today. He should've asked gramps if he knew if something was wrong.

He pulled the small jewelry box from his pocket and opened it to reveal the sapphire ring that he had gotten for her. That night he had been planning on proposing to her, but now it's all over. If only he knew how to build a time machine. Then maybe he could prevent himself from being so stupid. Why couldn't he have, just once, remembered the things they had planned in advance. Remember her birthday without her having to remind me about it. Say no when Bickslow and Ever drag me on a mission.

There was a timid knock on the bedroom door and he looked up to see Freed standing there with a shocked look on his face. 'She left,' was all Laxus could manage to get out before he broke down again. Not to his surprise the green haired mage came over and tried to comfort him, but nothing would sooth the pain he felt deep within his chest.

~TIME SKIP 8 YEARS~

Laxus walked around Crocus as he waited for midnight to come. It had been eight years since Angel had left him and it still hurt to think about her. Of course it didn't help that seven of those years he had been sealed in time so it was technically only a year ago that it all happened.

As he was drifting off in his thoughts two small children ran into him. 'Sorry mister,' the black haired girl shouted before her blonde haired brother grabbed her wrist and started dragging her away. He couldn't tell why, but they looked so familiar to him.

He smiled as the boy gleefully dragged his sister off but it soon faded once he saw the lady they were heading to. 'Mommy, can we please go to Ryuzetsu Land?'

'Angela?' he breathed out but it was loud enough to distract her from what she was about to tell the boy.

She turned around and looked right at him before clearing her throat and putting on a straight face. 'I'm sorry but do I know you?' she said.

Laxus frowned. 'You were always terrible at lying,' he said with a chuckle as he approached her.

Angela steeled herself for what he would do. She expected his anger but when he hugged her she felt like crying. 'I've missed you so much,' he whispered into her ear. He then pulled away and looked down at her children. 'So what are their names?'

She smiled and rubbed Jane's head as she hugged her leg. 'Jane and Ash,' she said as she picked Ash up.

She was about to try and get away from him but before she could do anything he brought up the one question she didn't want to answer. 'Hey Ash,' she said to get his attention. With a fake smile she handed him some jewel. 'How about you take your sister into that toy store over there and buy something, okay.'

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Once they were gone Laxus asked again. 'So who's the father?' He didn't really want to know, but he also wanted to make sure they were being taken care of.

A sad look crossed her face as she stared into his eyes. Are free online slots fixed. 'When I figured out I was pregnant I was half-way across Fiore and by the time I got back to Magnolia, you had been kicked out and I couldn't find you. Eventually I came to Crocus and went into labor and have been here ever sense.'

Laxus felt like he had been punched in the gut (except lower) as what she was saying sunk in. 'They're mine,' he whispered as he looked to the ground in shame.

Angela nodded as she looked towards the toy store and laughed at what she saw. Jane and Ash were trying to capture Bickslow's babies as they flew around the big lug. 'You better not harm my children you idiot,' she shouted at him playfully.

He looked up and a big smile spread across his face, his tongue sticking out. 'Long time no see Angel. Where you working now?'

She let out a small chuckle. 'As a bar maid for the Sabertooth guild. The master's strict but it pays well and Jane and Ash love Frosche and Lector, so I'm not gonna complain too much.'

Angela checked her watch and gasped at the time. 'Jane, Ash, come here,' she called out as she worried about being late. 'I'm sorry to cut this reunion short but I have a dinner date with friends before the games start. See you later.'

With that she left, leaving Laxus to watch as her and their kids left. 'So who's the father?' Bickslow asked with his babies chanting 'father, father.'

'Me,' he said with a longing look on his face. 'Now I really wish I had a time machine or some way to go back and fix my mistakes before they happened.'

Laxus sighed before turning and going in the opposite direction that Angela had gone, thinking of everything that he had missed out on due to his own stupidity. He remembered one day Freed told him that over time he would feel better, but at this moment he couldn't have felt worse. He was completely aware of how his own stupidity had played a major role on her leaving him. Had caused him to miss out on the first seven years of his children's life.

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But he swore at that moment that he would find someway to capture Angela's heart again and convince her to rejoin Fairy Tail and become his wife.

He sighed as he came to a stop and removed the box from his pocket and opened it to look at the ring it contained. He would convince her to be his and then he would never let them go.

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Not until the day he was forced to leave them forever.

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[morgaine2005]

Ready for Anything, Chapter 1 - Departures & Arrivals, Scene 1

I got some encouragement, so I’m putting up the first scene of my Kitella fic here. Fair warning, this is unedited!

Tagging @winterinverona, @grrlgeek72, @insectoid5, @thegeekogecko, because you all encouraged me.

“Shall we?” Kit asked, nodding toward the door.

She simply nodded and smiled. Kit took her hand (the one that wasn’t holding the slipper) and they turned to toward the door.

They walked past the garishly dressed girls (Cinderella’s sisters?) and the Grand Duke, who would have to be dealt with at some time that was not this day. As they came to the door, Captain Renfield smirked slightly, triumph in his eyes.

Kit grinned back. Yes, he did have to pick this one – her, his Cinderella – and now that he’d found her, that she’d accepted him, he would—

A footstep behind them made them both pause and turn.

On the wide curved staircase leading to the chateau’s upper floor stood the lady of the house, the redhead in the gown of emerald and jade.

Cinderella’s grip on his hand tightened.

Kit squeezed back and almost spoke, but something – something in the way the shy smile dropped off her face, leaving a single stare of determination – stopped him. His eyes flickered to the lady of the house, but only for a moment. It was enough to see that she stood ramrod straight, her own lips pursed into a thin tight line.

Then he looked back at his bride-to-be.

Cinderella took a deep breath and rolled her shoulders back. A hint of a smile ghosted across her face before she let a few words fall into the silence.

“I forgive you.”

And somehow that was all that needed to be said.

Kit turned a faint inquiring glance in her direction, but she smiled, and Kit realized this was neither the time nor the place for questions.

Together, they stepped out into the sunshine.

No sooner did they emerge, hand-in-hand, into the sunshine than the soldiers assembled to assist the Grand Duke and Captain Renfield in their search sent up a rowdy cheer.

And in that moment, reality hit Kit like a ton of bricks.

He’d found her – the girl in the woods, his Mystery Princess. He was bringing her back to the palace. She would be Queen someday – soon – tomorrow if he could possibly arrange it (probably not, but a man could dream) – which meant there were things to arrange, and a court to prepare, and –

And she had gasped at the attention given just by these soldiers, jumping back like a startled deer. Her dark eyes were huge and wide, and her gaze went right to him.

So Kit leaned in and said, stupidly, the first thing that came to mind. In fairness, it was something his father had said to him once, many years ago, when he’d been startled by a similar raucous reaction.

“Don’t worry. They’re just cheering because this means they get to go home and get their dinners.”

Cinderella stared at him – truly stared at him – and she laughed. It was a beautiful, pure sound, like the ringing of a bell. But it sounded rusty, disused. And she seemed self-conscious of it, for she brought her hand up to cover her mouth. The hand that was holding the slipper.

She stared at the slipper for a moment before laughing harder.

“Gentlemen,” Kit said, holding more tightly to Cinderella’s hand and bowing, “your future Queen!”

The cheers became, if anything, more raucous, and Cinderella began to blush. She curtsied as well as she could with one hand in Kit’s and one hand still holding the slipper. Naturally, this only made the soldiers more enthusiastic. The cheers became interspersed with whistles, at least until one genius in the back decided to try a wolf whistle—

“ATTEN-TION!” bellowed Captain Renfield, and that was enough to silence the soldiers, instantly. “Forgive them, miss; they know not what they do.”

Cinderella just laughed and blushed, and Kit felt himself falling in love with her all over again.

“Your Majesty …” That was the Grand Duke, making his way out of the front door on Captain Renfield’s heels. “I think perhaps we ought to discuss—or at least consider—”

“I don’t,” said Kit, and turned back to Cinderella. “Are you ready to come to the palace now? Or would you like to collect your things first?” She had to have more than just the clothes on her back and one extra slipper.

… Didn’t she?

Cinderella looked over her shoulder at the house behind them. Something like sadness crossed her face, paired with trepidation.

Remembering the confrontation with the lady of the house, he added, “We can send some of the men in to get it if you’d rather not go back inside.”

The look of relief Cinderella had was so potent that Captain Renfield stepped forward. “I’ll see to it personally, miss. Which room is yours?”

“Oh, I—I don’t have one,” Cinderella said. “But there’s a box under a loose floorboard in the attic – the attic where you found me. That’s all I have to take with me.”

Captain Renfield’s eyes widened, and even the Grand Duke looked a bit taken aback. “That’s it, miss?”

“Yes.” Her eyes fell. “Thank you.”

“No trouble at all, miss. Here, Your Grace, you can help me.”

“I—what?”

Captain Renfield, when he grabbed your arm, had the sort of grip that brooked no argument. Kit had learned this many times in his youth and during the wars. The Grand Duke, it seemed, was learning it now.

Kit studied Cinderella’s face as she watched the Captain frog-march the Grand Duke back into the house. She seemed surprised and perhaps a little impressed.

“Cinderella?” Kit asked. “There’s a carriage not far up the road. Would you mind riding back in that? I know you’re no novice horsewoman,” and here he smiled, “but at the same time, I am not sure the people are ready to see their future Queen riding into town bareback and guiding her horse by its mane.”

Cinderella laughed. “Believe it or not, I can ride with a saddle and bridle. Reins, even!”

“At this point, if you told me you could fly, I might very well believe it until definitively proven otherwise.” He stroked her knuckles with his thumb.

She grinned. “I assure you, Kit, I cannot fly.”

“Well, that’s a relief. I had a hard enough time finding you when I knew you had to keep both feet on the ground. Heaven help me if I had to search the treetops as well.”

Her smile was infectious – at least Kit certainly felt it infecting him – and he gently tugged on her hand, leading her down the steps and down the drive. “The carriage, please,” he said to the foremost soldier – Bisset, who had been one of the few soldiers aware their King was riding with them. “And might I borrow your extra cloak?” he asked, referring to the cloak Kit had given to him when he doffed his disguise.

“Of course, Your Majesty!” Bisset handed over the cloak and rode off.

“Cinderella?” Kit asked, letting go of her hand and holding out the cloak for her.

“Oh—thank you.” And by the way she blushed and stepped into the cloak, Kit could tell she was touched – truly touched – by the kindness.

What on earth has she been through?

The question must have been obvious on his face, because her eyes left his and she pursed her lips together.

“Cinderella—”

“Ella,” she interrupted. “That is—Ella is my given name.”

Well, that was a relief in a way. As charming a name as Cinderella could be, Kit did have to wonder about parents who gave their child such an … unusual name.

But he had to tease, just a little bit. “That’s it? Just Ella? That’s not a nickname for anything?”

She looked up then, one eyebrow lifting. “Such as?”

“Well, there’s Gabriella – Daniella – Eleanor – Isabella—although I guess ‘Bella’ might be the more obvious nickname there—Annabella—wait, same thing …”

Her laugh told him that he had succeeded in his mission to cheer her up. Before he could say anything else, though, two things happened at once.

The first was that the door to the house opened once again, and out came Captain Renfield and the Grand Duke, the former holding a box in his arms. The second was that the drumbeat of hooves announced the imminent arrival of the carriage.

Cinderella’s—Ella’s—eyes fell first on the Captain and his box. “My treasures!” she said, the smile blooming over her face showing that whatever was in this humble box, it was worth more than rubies in her eyes.

“Indeed,” Captain Renfield replied. “Er, I do have to ask, though – His Grace and I found some mice while we were searching for the box—”

“Oh, they weren’t hurt, were they?” Ella’s gaze volleyed from the Captain to the Grand Duke and back again. “They’re my friends.”

The Grand Duke’s eyes bugged, but Captain Renfield merely smiled and flipped open the box. “Behold.”

Kit came close enough to look in the box, and there – clear as day and bold as brass – were three little mice and one big mouse, all cheeping merrily at Ella.

“Yes, yes, of course you can come with me! I wouldn’t leave you with …” She paused and looked at Kit. “They—they can come with us, can’t they?”

“Of course,” said Kit. He would worry later about how he would explain to the palace ratcatchers and the small army of cats that roamed the halls that these mice were, apparently, sacred.

“Your Majesty—” the Grand Duke began.

“Oh, look, there’s the carriage,” Captain Renfield interrupted. He closed the box gently; Kit could see that the box was loosely constructed and thus had plenty of airflow. “I’ll put this in the carriage for you, miss.”

“Oh, you don’t have to, I mean, I can carry it—”

“It is my pleasure,” said the Captain with a smile, and Ella said no more – though she looked a bit dazed.

Kit took her hand once more, and he thought Ella clung to it. She turned her gaze to him and seemed to find strength in whatever she found there, for she took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and smiled back at him.

Without further ado, he led her to the carriage and handed her in. “Do you mind if I ride with you?” he asked. “I don’t want to—”

She turned a look at him as if she thought he’d taken leave of his senses. “Of course not,” she replied.

Kit grinned and followed her. “Captain—”

“We’ll see to your horse, don’t worry,” he chuckled. “You worry about your lady.” He shut the door behind them, leaving Kit and Ella to settle in.

It took Kit less time than Ella. He sat across from her, as propriety dictated, and watched as she put her slipper into the box, leaving the cover open, presumably for the benefit of the mice.

“Ella …” he started, and stopped, realizing he had no idea where he was going to from there.

Ella peeked at him through her lashes with a rueful smile. “You look like a man with questions.”

“… Perhaps a few,” he admitted.

“Dozen?” she countered, raising an eyebrow.

“Well, I wasn’t going to say that.”

“You didn’t have to.” Ella smiled as she adjusted her skirts.

Kit reached across and took her hand once more. “You don’t have to tell me anything you’re not comfortable sharing.”

Ella watched their linked hands, her expression inscrutable. But when she looked up, it was with a smile. “But it’s such a good story. And it has a happy ending. And I do not know about you, Mr. Kit … but I do love a happy ending.”

“It seems we are in agreement, then, for so do I.” Kit leaned forward. “And I am all ears.”

I’ll admit that I don’t know where this fic is going beyond the first few scenes. But I’ve been scouring the web for longform Kitella fics, and while I have found some BRILLIANT ones, I want MOAR, so it looks like I will be writing it myself.

Hope you guys liked this little snippet!

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[travelnursebabes]

Road Trip to the Midwest

Day 1, Sat 12/2- Venice, CA—> Tucson, AZ:

We packed up the rest of our little hut (thankfully most of it was done the day before), and magically all of our stuff fit into the Highlander! We even have 6 inches to spare on the top, which gives us plenty of visibility. We left at 8:45am, and the drive to Tucson is 496 miles, or 7.5 hours. The scenery was mostly mountains & deserts, but we were grateful that there was no traffic. We switched off between music and “The Emperor of All Maladies” on tape, but the latter had us both very sleepy... we arrived to Nana & Papa Lautmann’s right at cocktail hour, and were greeted with hugs and gin and tonics. They made a delicious lamb chop dinner and we cheered on their Arizona college basketball team.

Day 2, Sun 12/3- AZ:

We had an amazing breakfast at Nana & Papa’s country club, followed by a fatttt nap for Annette (2+hrs?!). I fixed all of my grandparent’s technology difficulties & cheered on my Packers. We had a fun, competitive round of mini-golf, which everyone participated in, including their dog, Sassy. We enjoyed another cocktail hour at their house and then ate our weight in Mexican food & margaritas at their local restaurant.

Day 3, Mon 12/4- AZ—> Las Cruces, NM:

One more home cooked meal from the grandparents, and we said our goodbyes! Always so sad to say bye to those two <3 Next up is Las Cruces: 292 miles, or 4.5 hours. Our Airbnb was far from being in any “historic downtown”, but it was a roof over our heads. We spent our evening at the movie theater, seeing not one, but 2 movies (Bad Mom’s Christmas & Thor). Dinner at Sonic was our only option before hitting the hay.

Day 4, Tues 12/5 - Las Cruces —> Fredericksburg, TX:

We hopped on the road for our longest drive of the road-trip thus far— 544 miles, or 8 hours. You’d think we had a small child with us, judging on how many bathroom breaks we took. We drove straight thru Fredericksburg to reach our (Annette’s) desired destination: Luckenbach, TX. This tiny dancehall plays a role in country music history, and we thoroughly enjoyed a few beers next to the fire while listening to 5 local cowboys play their guitars and sing. Only a couple of restaurants were open passed 7pm, so our pick to eat at Otto’s German Restaurant was simple. We had delicious bratwursts and veil. Once we got to our bed & breakfast, we were welcomed with a bottle of wine, which was the perfect end to our night.

Day 5, Wed 12/6 - TX —> New Orleans, LA:

We decided to have one more German meal and stopped by the local breakfast joint for an omelette & potato pancakes. Today is our longest leg of the journey— 584 miles, or 9 hours. The driving conditions are less than ideal, and the rain hasn’t let up for a moment. We finally reached our destination, and left our car parked in a lot for the next 2 days. It wasn’t pretty lugging all of our stuff in the freezing cold rain for the 0.4 miles to our Airbnb. Our apartment couldn’t have been cuter! Such a good find in central NOLA. We had a quick turn around and saw a bit of Bourbon street (which had a ton of construction unfortunately) on our walk to our dinner restaurant, Curio. The carpaccio, mussels, ribs, & ribeye were absolutely amazing. We ended our night at 21st Amendment, a cute speakeasy with a very talented jazz band.

Day 6, Thurs 12/7 - NOLA:

We woke up, and what do you know, it was still raining outside. We didn’t let that slow us down though... in fact the cold, wet weather actually lead to a very fun day-drinking day (we’re on vacation, right?!). We started with brunch at Ruby Slippers, whose motto is “you can’t drink all day, if you don’t start in the morning!” Bloody Mary’s and eggs Benedict’s filled our bellies. We checked out the New Orleans Musical Legend’s Park, where we sat outdoors under a heater and Annette made DIY Hot Toddies for us (had to purchase hot teas separately from the bourbon shots). We wandered down Bourbon street and our ears lead us to our next bar, Bourbon Bandstand. Hours passed by while we listened to a fun Blue’s Band, Doc Lovett’s Louisiana Remedy, and took advantage of the 2-for-1 beers. We bar hopped a bit more, trying to soak in all of the amazing talent. Maison Bourbon had a great band and atmosphere. We finally ventured over to Frenchman street and listened to some good tunes at The Spotted Cat. Before we knew it, 11 hours had passed from our first cocktail and meal, and we decided food would be a good call. Dinner at Three Muses was a great end to our night, and we’d highly recommend the bacon dates & the lamb burger sliders!

Day 7, 12/8- NOLA —> Nashville, TN

It wouldn’t be a full New Orleans experience if Annette didn’t try a famous Cafe Du Monde Beignet! We picked up breakfast to-go and hit the road. Next stop, Nashville: 530 miles, or 7.5 hours. Our “Penthouse suite” resembled a college dorm, but the 2 bathrooms/2 bedrooms was key because we had a visitor joining us.... Anna Lautmann (Sam’s older sister)!! A quick turn around and then out the door we were, hoping to soak in as much live music as possible in our quick 36 hour trip. Our first Nashville Uber driver casually dropped that she was Taylor Swift’s middle school Spanish teacher?! Hmm hard to fact check that one, but it got us excited to see who else we may meet in this little town. We started off at Acme Feed & Seed for some dinner & tunes. The rest of the night we wandered down Broadway, drinking beers, tasting moonshine, trying to line dance, and acting like every band’s #1 groupies.

Day 8, 12/9 - Nashville:

“Sleep when you’re dead” is what Anna repeatedly told me as she shook me awake. She wasn’t trying to waste a single moment, and even though only 4hours had gone by since we went to sleep, we were out the door for day 2. Luckily she wasn’t as psycho as to wake Annette up so aggressively, so she met us at our brunch destination, Tavern. The 2-for-1 bloody Mary’s & Mimosas kept us content there for a while. Next we checked out the Country Music Hall of Fame. Back to bar hopping we went, and we came across the most talented band we’ve seen yet at Tootsies. Parker Willingham and Angela Marie.

Day 9, 12/10 - Chicago:

We couldn't leave Nashville without any gifts, so we hit up the Johnny Cash Museum. We also couldn't leave Nashville without brunch, so Sun Diner it was.

About 7 hours later, 477 miles, we arrived in Chicago.

#roadtrip #crosscountry #travelnursing #travelnursebabes