#it's Heidi's turn to shine

[vcgardenia]

under the moon’s veil (Luke Castellan x Apollo!daughter)

summary: Cora is kinda losing her cookies but in an interesting poetic way! And Luke is totally there for her like Drusilla and Spike or Catherine and Heathcliff.

wc: 2483

cw: angst, lit + greek mythology references, kissing, suggestive content, depictions of insanity, gore and blood

Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results - Albert Einstein

It was the dark of night, and Nyx had tucked all the world in his shining blanket of stars. A glistening sky sighed as another day had passed them by- all was sound, and all were quiet… Well, all but one.

Cora tossed and turned in her bed, anxiously anticipating a rustle from the bushes. After an hour of waiting, tossing, and turning some more, she sat up from her bed and stared longingly at the door. Where was he?

The Apollo cabin was dead silent; not a usual occurrence, and Cora could not have been more relieved. She looked around at the drooling, passed out campers around her- trying to scope how asleep they all were before she made any first moves. Her half-sister Heidi had practically fallen off of her top bunk, and Cora knew she had to leave the cabin before that happened.

She stood up from her bed- almost stepping on the baby deer that her half-brother Liam had adopted after he found it stabbed in a clearing. Normally the counselor would’ve said no, but it was a baby deer with a limp… and the head counselor wasn’t a monster.

Cora tried not to look at it. She avoided its presence entirely before continuing on her self made quest. She cautiously slipped on her Crocs- trying to ensure that no rubbery friction from the shoes would give her away. 

Cora tried to steady her breathing, but it was becoming more erratic by the second. He was supposed to rustle the leaves at the bushes at 10, and then Cora would come out by 10:15. It was currently 11:07 and she had no idea where he was. Cora felt as if she was breaking into a cold sweat; she could feel her hands shaking as she thought of the worst. 

What if he got hurt by someone? Or his ship sunk? Backbiter may have stopped working, someone caught him on the way here- thousands of possibilities were circling through her mind.  Cora’s heart was now racing… what if he was dead? 

She shook her head, refusing to believe her own thoughts. Her entire body was shaking at this point, and she knew she had to run out of the cabin before she started bawling. So Cora ran. She sprinted out of the cabin, and off the well worn path, into the forest. As she ventured further into the woods, less and less moonlight came from the sky above; covered by the growing number of trees. Through the tears and flem in her throat, she began to yell, practically scream his name,

“LUKE. LUKE. LUKE WHERE ARE YOU!” She was breaking down into tears, collapsing over herself into a heap of despair. What had the world done to her love?

“Hey sunshine.” Luke appeared from behind one of the trees Cora had just run past. She kept her head down, sobbing into the ground beneath her; more out of relief now than sorrow. Luke quickly knelt down next to her- rubbing her icy cold back with his pleasantly warm hands. With each up and down motion he made, he would make patterns on her back with his delicate yet deliberate fingers. Slowly, Cora was able to collect herself. While her breathing was still erratic, she was no longer wailing so loud the gods could hear. 

“I didn’t mean to worry you baby.” Luke’s face was full of concern and worry for his love. He hid his face in her hair, muffling his next words,

“Can you forgive me?”

Cora looked up for the first time, turning her head around to see him. Immediately she gasped,

“What happened to your scar?” She instinctively held his face in her hands. Luke smirked, giddy from the attention,

“Percy reopened some old wounds both figuratively and literally.” He chuckled. Cora scowled.

“If you had let me go with you this wouldn’t have happened.” Luke took a large sigh,

“Let’s not talk about this right now. I just wanna see you happy.” Cora’s scowl quickly turned into a beaming smile,

“How could I not be happy when I’m with you, my winged Romeo?” She planted a kiss on his wound, longing to make it disappear with some magic touch.

She could tell even by how Luke held her, that he had longed for her touch. His body bent as easily to her will as a stick of puddy at her fingers. Cora wrapped her arms around Luke’s neck; melting into the warm embrace. She missed this. 

When they started meeting up in the woods, Luke would talk to her about his adventures, she would talk about hers. But, over time it just hurt too much for the both of them. Knowing that the love of their life was existing without them by their side. 

These days they would just touch. Making sure no area was undiscovered before the end of the night; it never felt the same way twice. New scars, new bruises, nothing could stop the passage of time. 

“How long can you stay tonight?” Cora looked up at Luke, searching for an answer in his eyes; begging him to stay just a little longer than last time. In response Luke inhaled, looking ahead of her- knowing he couldn’t bear to see the expression on her face.

“So not that long then?” Cora furrowed her brows. Luke dug his head into her shoulder, shaking his head. After sitting there for a little longer, Cora spoke, 

“Let me go with you.”

“No I- you know you can’t. It’s too dangerous.” She looked at him with bitterness in her eyes, shaking her head,

“If you don’t let me go with you Luke,” Cora searched for her words, tears filling her eyes,  “the last time you’ll see me is hanging from a tree.” Cora started getting up, ready to run away from his phony warm embrace.

“Cora don’t say that. Please don’t say that baby.” 

“Do you even love me Luke?” Luke stared at her with the most puzzled look,

“Why are you saying these things?”

In truth, Cora didn’t know. She just wanted everything to be normal again. She wanted them to swim in the lake together; finding the secret passageway that would take them to the stone cave, overgrown with green ivy. He would hold her in his arms, lifting her up to the ledge where they could just sit. She would put her head in his lap and he would caress her features. They would just talk. They could just talk back then. 

But now, Cora didn’t know what had become of them, of her. Luke was crying, holding his head in his hands as he tried to hold back his sniffles. His voice was breaking with the little whimpers that dared to escape. 

Cora thought back on the week before. She had been in the woods and she had taken a knife with her, trying to pick some raspberries for lunch that day. Cora finally found a bush full of them- not often found in these woods. As she began to pick them, her mind started to wander. Of course the first place it went was to Luke- what was he doing right now? Was he thinking about her? Was he safe? Lost in thought she cut open one of the raspberries she had picked. She gasped. The shade of pinkish red perfectly matched that of Luke’s lips. She grabbed more from her basket and continued to cut into more of them. It was incredible; the shade and pigment would’ve blended right into his if he was here. The juices of the previous raspberry escaped into the soil, merging into one as the cycle of reunion began again. Even the juice had consistency to find comfort in. 

She started cutting open the raspberries with more aggravation; almost jealous of their fate. In her fury she had accidentally cut her own hand, instead of another raspberry. The blood was a redder hue than Luke’s lips, but as she looked down, she could see that it too was able to become one with the earth. 

She smiled.

She hadn’t smiled for weeks. Luke hadn’t been visiting, and it had been filling her with more despair than she knew what to do with. But this spilling of blood was the sweet release she had been looking for. She was now part of the cycle; Cora giggled in glee at the thought. Leaning her head back and closing her eyes, she felt a new moisture on her hand. She opened her eyes to see a creature licking off the blood that had finally connected her to something; given her comfort. It had stolen her joy. It had taken the one pleasure she had away from her. Her face snapped into a look of blind rage, and she stabbed it. 

She quickly withdrew her knife, ready to inflict a second blow- then she looked into its eyes. It was a deer. From the looks of it, the harmless animal wasn’t even a year old. Cora quickly took the knife away from the baby’s untouched skin; it had now been drenched in its first bleeding… and it was all her fault.

After that Cora had made sure one of her siblings found it. The counselor let the deer stay in their cabin of course, he wasn’t a monster… but she was.

She had tried not to think about it since then, but every time she looked at Liam’s baby dear, every time she heard someone question what kind of villain would stab such a pure and beautiful creature…

She turned her attention back to the present.

She couldn’t stay and watch as another beautiful being was destroyed by her hands. Especially not Luke. Her Luke. So she ran. She ran as fast as her legs could take her. She could hear Luke yelling for her, but it all just felt like background noise to her. She had to distance herself from the world. 

Cora had learned to be strong in the face of adversity, and she had always been praised for her level headedness- always keeping perspective, being kind and gracious to all. No matter what happened she always kept her light. But Luke was the exception. He was the hamartia that would bleed her soul dry; without even having to try he could undo her.

Luke was searching breathlessly for Cora. He didn’t know what he said or did, but he had to fix it. As he wandered through the forest he pondered- what happened? He should have seen a breakdown like this happening, he had been gone for too long, he should have come back sooner. Should haves and what if’s raced through his mind as he looked desperately for Cora. She was the epitome of perfection to Luke. He felt as if he had ruined her.

He knew it was selfish to keep seeing her even after he chose his side, but Luke couldn’t help it. He had to see her. Luke couldn’t breathe without her. Some days it felt as if they inhabited the same body, he could tell how her day was going just by looking inwards; other days she was a complete mystery. She would blow up and scream at him, and he would still be just as willing to plunge a knife into his chest for her. 

He wanted to have a life with her, have Cora as a witness to everything he did… but he was a disgrace. He was an outcast of her world. He knew it could never be. She would find some man who is deserving of her- and Luke would have to watch just as Heathcliff watched his Catherine. But he searched nonetheless. Because at the end of the day, he knew that he would rather beat his head against a tree than be in a world without her.

After what felt like ages he heard sniffling coming from behind a bush. Luke let out a breath he didn’t even know he was holding as he cautiously walked over to the noise. 

“Sunshine, are you here?” 

“Go away!” Cora still refused to look at him. She was curled up in a ball on the floor and didn’t look up.

“Baby I-” Luke tried to find his words as he sat to meet her eyes. “I don’t have much time left.” Cora finally looked up, staring at his gorgeous curls instead of his agonizing face. “Can’t we spend it together?” It was a plea. 

Cora moved closer to Luke; leaning in more and more until their foreheads touched. She lightly chuckled as she took her hands and placed them on his torso. Luke smirked as he pried her by the wrists away from what she knew was a sensitive area of his body. With her wrists in his hands, Luke pulled them towards him, which left both Cora and Luke mere atoms away from each other. They stayed there for a good minute- allowing the moment to breathe. 

After a while Luke set Cora’s wrists on her lap. He took his thumb and opened her mouth, letting his tender touch linger on her plump lips. Luke couldn’t help but sigh at how beautiful she looked under the moonlight; despite her father being god of the sun. Cora gave a faint smile, still tired from the buckets of tears she had produced. She leaned in ever so slightly, and was easily able to find her way to his lips.  

They didn’t talk after that, they just touched. Cora and Luke didn’t have time to take off each other's clothing as they normally would do, so they had to suffice with lifting up a shirt or pulling down some pants. Cora was gripping at his clothes almost frantically- sensing that time was running out, that their time on earth together was expiring. Luke would often take her arms and put them to her sides; rubbing them in hopes of calming her down. Then, it was time for him to go. They hadn’t gotten enough time that night, they never got enough time. 

“You have to stay here. You’re safe here. Can you do that for me baby?” Luke begged with his eyes. Cora sighed, letting a tiny whimper escape as they were separated from each other’s touch.

“Yea… yea I can do that for you.” She avoided eye contact.

“Hey. Look at me.” She allowed her gaze to wander to his eyes, “I’ll see you soon, okay Sunshine?”

“The sooner the better my winged Romeo.” She smiled mournfully.

Luke walked away and Cora knew better than to call for him. He longed to turn around, just to see her one last time- but much like Orpheus with his Eurydice, he knew he couldn’t. If he turned around, he would lose the strength to leave. He would stay there forever.

#luke castellan #charlie bushnell #percy jackon and the olympians #percy jackson #smut #lukecastellanxoc #luke castellan x oc #angst #luke caste #luke castellan smut #luke castellan x reader #fem reader #female reader #x reader #orig #original character #luke castellan oneshot #luke castellan fic #luke castellan fanfic #luke castellan imagine #luke castellan pjo #luke pjo #lit #literature #greek #greek mythology #greek tumblr #withering #withering heights

[noirvette]

WE NEVER EXISTED

[band smau]

[THIRTEEN]

masterlist.

prev. | next.

Having the whole fiasco of figuring out the venue and then helping Kyle with his weird texter person problem, (of which he still hasn't bothered telling Stan about), and then a few surprisingly calm days, it's finally the day of the concert.

Nichole was loving the open venue, and was quickly styling herself away with simple tables and chairs a bit further out, having those separated by simple fences from the GA area. Currently, her theme for the night was orange and dark blue, the dark blue having some sort of shine when lights hit on them. It was absolutely gorgeous as you watched the test runs of the stage lights against them.

Kyle was doing a bit better, having gotten some sleep you could assume, and he's been busying himself all day by corresponding with another local yet small band that would be opening for you guys tonight. They had just shown up about 20 minutes ago and was going ahead with their sound check, which Kyle was graciously observing.

Clyde was..late again, however he did say he was going to stop and bring back food for everyone so you really couldn't stay mad at him, nor with him bringing back Kyle's favorite fast food, you're sure Kyle wouldn't object much either.

Stan was talking to the venue's owner and he definitely has never been more awkward in his life. At this rate, you're sure Kyle's gonna step over there and free Stan from the shackles of his poor social skills.

Craig, for once, has shown up to take pictures again, you can see him snapping away at some candid shots, those of which he'll probably use for his portfolio, beside him you're shocked to see Tweek, he doesn't tend to follow Craig that often to these rehearsal things, in fact Tweek doesn't come to the concerts much anyways, he attends a few, mainly to be with Craig. Tweek spots you and waves, you return the gesture and you can see Craig snap a photo of Tweek as you do so.

Giggling and turning your head away from them and staring back onto the open space, you let your mind wander again. You've been excited to perform, especially here in South Park, it's always been fun to perform here, the town surprisingly having been your guys' biggest supporters.

Bebe and Wendy should be showing up soon, in fact you wouldn't be surprised if Wendy was already here and you just haven't spotted her yet. Bebe was trying to get Red to come along, it had been a while since you've last seen her, quite literally it was about 3 months ago when you and the other girls managed to squeeze a sleepover day in all of your busy schedules.

Annie said she was coming when Nichole shot her a text, and if Annie is coming usually that means Red would be too.

Your phone dings, bringing you away from your thoughts.

Groaning you call out to Kyle, "Hey, Kyle?" He turns his head, "Heidi isn't showing anymore we can thank Cartman's stupid ass."

He frowns, "Again, is it the podcast?" Seeing you nod he continues, "He made her miss our last show in New York City because of that god awful podcast. Remind me, why is she in that again?"

"Because she feels bad for him or something, also something about how it was technically her podcast first and she'd rather die than let him get away with the rebranding...?" You scratch the back of your neck, tone overall sheepish for not really knowing why.

"Didn't he.. technically get away with the rebranding though? I mean he calls himself the 'creator' of it?" Kyle pointedly asks.

"Yeah I'm not too sure about the whole reasoning either, Kyle. Oh! Hey so Clyde also should be coming back in about an hour? Maybe now like 30 minutes, I'm not sure he texted me a while ago now."

"Well he better, his sound check is at 3:30.. and if he's not here, I'm telling you now, I am NOT stepping in for him."

"You're gonna totally step in for him don't lie to me."

Kyle gives you a deadpan stare before turning back around to helping the locals, leaving you giggling to yourself quietly for a bit.

"Hey, Y/n," Stan says, sitting next to you on the edge of the stage, "You ready for tonight?"

You look up at him, "Oh, yeah, I'm just bummed that Heidi can't make it because of Cartman."

"Yeah.. Wendy mentioned that like 3 minutes ago.. all because of a podcast episode. Christ.." Stan trails off, "Why is he even doing a podcast episode today? Most of the entire town is attending tonight, who's gonna be listening to his podcast?"

"Well..." You check your phone again, "Heidi says he's going live during the set change between the opener and us, and you know how long those take, people are gonna be on their phones and they're bound to tune in for a bit."

Stan runs a hand down his face, "He's always gotta do something shady, aside from that, how are you doing?"

"I've.. been good actually Stan thanks."

"No problem, I've been worried about you since.." He trails off, you never realized how often Stan trails off before in conversations.

You let out an airy laugh, "No worries, Stan, really and I appreciate you checking up on me. However, you should check up on Kyle, have you noticed how tired he's been looking recently?"

Stan throws his hands up in the air, "YOU'VE NOTICED!" He freezes and suddenly realizes how loud that was, coughing into his fist, face red with embarrassment, "Sorry just.. I've tried, Kyle hasn't been the most... comfortable with talking his thoughts and feelings out, you know that. He just... would rather throw himself into his work than let me in.. you know?"

You both watch as Kyle runs back and forth from the stage to the backstage, "Yeah I get what you mean."

"And I've tried! Really I have but he just waves me off and says nothing important is really affecting him and that he'll 'figure it out' God knows how.. he's never figured anything out, well, whenever it comes to his emotions at least."

You shrug in return, "You've let him know you're there for him.. I guess you're gonna have to wait until he comes to you."

Stan nods at that and the two of you sit in a comfortable silence.

Your phone buzzes and you open the notification without checking what the exact notification was for.

Groaning as you realize who tweeted you're about to swipe and close the app before realizing you were tagged in the tweet, over your shoulder Stan takes a peek, "Cartman? What does he want?"

Turning your phone off you shake your head in annoyance and Stan snorts, "What have you done to make Cartman tag you on twitter?"

"He's so delusional I probably pissed him off in a dream or something." You and Stan laugh.

"Y/N! Your guitars are here, can you make sure they're tuned and good to go? If you want you could start early on your preliminary soundcheck." Kyle breaks the laugh attack you and Stan are having.

You give him a thumbs up and he does one back, going back to whatever he was doing just now.

"Well, gotta get this done," You stand up and stretch, "See ya around, Stan."

"Peace."

TAGLIST: @captivq @kimiesstuff @bwljules @the-cooler-kira @1one1person1 @kenny-the-ken @neenieweenie @n0tangeliccc @frogindisguise @revzxn @mirophobic @gonefiishiing @musiclovebot @bootsieboo @bonez4brainz @s0l4riss @1996kj @sweetadonisbutbetter @scinclaitnoir

#we never existed series #south park x reader #kyle broflovski x reader #kenny mccormick x reader

[broflovski-brah]

south park characters’ eye colors (in my opinion, i don’t remember if there’s a canon, lmao)

Eric Cartman: probably just blue, like baby blue/very light colored blue

Stan Marsh: dark blue-they almost look black, but when the light shines on the lm it’s like this sapphire color

Kyle Broflovski: lime green fading into darker green at the edges

Kenny McCormick: royal blue. they almost look violet, but if there’s light on them they’re like this royal blueish purple color

Butters Stotch: aquamarine, they’re kinda dull-colored, but when he’s in the light they turn this real sort of color

Tweek Tweak: grey eyed tweek?? anyone?? either grey or like…grey with the slightest hint of green

Craig Tucker: dark blue, you can see they’re blue, unlike stan, but it’s a very dark shade of blue.

Clyde Donovan: auburn in the dark, amber in the light, calling it rn

Tokien Black: extremely dark brown, except when the light shines on them, then they’re more noticeably brown

Jimmy Valner: greenish-yellow, kinda a hazel color but with less brown in there

Wendy Testenburger: black, she wishes they were blue though.

Bebe Stevens: baby blue, darker than cartman’s but much, much lighter than craig’s

Heidi Turner: Grey, nothing else to say lol

#south park headcanons #south park #headcanons #eric cartman #stan marsh #kyle broflovski #kenny mccormick #butters stotch #jimmy valmer #clyde donovan #heidi turner #wendy testaburger #bebe stevens #tokien black #tweek tweak #craig tucker

[tiniedemon]

— ♡

daylight

kenny mccormick / reader

— ♡

inspired by ‘daylight’ by david kushner

cw. | angst, mild nsfw content

being friends with the guys was both a blessing and a curse. on one hand, they were your protectors, and they were pretty fierce about it. they were also fantastic company. there was never a moment where you weren’t laughing.

on the other hand, there was kenny mccormick.

a pair of hands came down on your shoulders, kenny’s grinning face appearing next to you. you grimaced, rolling your eyes, and put a bookmark into the textbook you’d been taking notes from. he slid into the booth beside you, eyes lighting up at he looked at you, then to stan and kyle.

“you guys will never believe whose house i just came from,” the blonde blurted excitedly. you felt as though someone had just twisted a knife in your chest, a sour taste in your mouth.

“whose house?” stan drawled with a roll of his eyes, kyle’s face growing bored as he turned his attention from his textbook to kenny. the blonde puffed out his chest, smile bright and eyes shining. you huffed and reopened your textbook, hand working to type your notes on your laptop.

“heidi turner. she’s been one of the greatest so far,” he boasted. kyle sighed and looked back down at his schoolwork, one hand working to type out an essay while the other flipped pages. you envied his incredible multitasking skills.

“kenny, i love you, bro. i really do. but maybe you should probably lay off the whole sleeping around thing. your body count’s almost as high as your age,” kyle mumbled distractedly. stan nodded in agreement and you stayed in your gloomy silence.

“but it’s fun, kyle. i get to have all these fun experiences so i’m like a god when i finally settle down.” you rolled your eyes, letting out a nearly silent sigh. this caught kenny’s attention, his eyes snapping to you with a frown on his face.

“what do you think, y/n? as a virgin with no experience, wouldn’t you rather spend the rest of your life with someone that knows what they’re doing?” he asked. your head popped up, eyes narrowing at the blonde next to you.

“first of all, kenny, i’m not a virgin. i haven’t been for months. you’d know if you got your head out of your ass. second of all, i’d prefer settling down with a man who’s more interested in me specifically than gloating about his hookups,” you deadpanned, then turned your eyes back to your work. kyle nodded along in agreement.

“oh, shut up, kyle. i know for sure you’re a virgin,” kenny grumbled, slumping in the booth. the red head shook his head with a smug grin, finally making eye contact with kenny once again.

“i lost it the same day as y/n. you can piece it together yourself. i know you’re smart enough.”

you couldn’t help the snort you let out, though your heart dropped the second the words left kyle’s mouth. as much as kenny’s escapades hurt you, you didn’t want him to think lowly of you for sleeping with his best friend.

“you fucked y/n?” he asked, in such a quiet voice you weren’t sure if anyone heard it besides you. kyle’s smile turned sarcastic as he offered up a nod.

“there you go, buddy. i told you you were smart!”

your mouth was dry. you could barely meet kenny’s eye as you also nodded, worrying your lip between your teeth. kyle caught your eye, giving you a smile of encouragement and a pat to the hand.

if you hadn’t been so caught in the moment, you would’ve seen the way kenny’s entire face fell before he stormed out of the cafe, throwing some excuse about karen over his shoulder.

“he acts like a simple business transaction is the end of the world,” stan muttered in a monotone, fingers to his lips as he squinted at the book in front of him. you sighed with a roll of your eyes and a nod of your head, kyle murmuring his agreement. you couldn’t help but feel a little guilty.

—

three in the morning was not a pleasant time for a visitor. you were already irritable from the hours of studying you’d completed that day and from the lack of sleep over the past few weeks in preparation for exams. the icing on the cake was kenny swaying on your front porch, hiccuping and covered in bruises and cuts. you raised an eyebrow at him, but didn’t comment, letting him inside your apartment.

“you know where the bathroom is. i’ll meet you there,” you murmured, then trudged off to the kitchen for a glass of water and a sandwich. you carried both up with you, setting them on your desk before joining kenny in the bathroom. he was bent over on top of your toilet seat cover, head in his hands and elbows resting against his knees. he barely glanced at you when you came in, even as you kneeled in front of him and settled a hand against his knee.

“kenny, look at me,” you whispered, eyebrows drawn up in the middle, frown against your lips. he finally managed to bring his gaze to meet yours, letting his hands fall from his face, leaving his teary eyes and quivering lips exposed to you. you sighed and stood completely up, pulling him into a tight hug, his head buried in your stomach. you raked your fingers through his hair, taking a deep breath to settle the butterflies fluttering in your stomach and the ache thudding in your chest.

“you’re okay, ken,” you mumbled, eyes flitting up to the ceiling to push back the tears. kenny rarely ever cried, and when he did, it was so upsetting that you couldn’t help but do so yourself. maybe it was the love you had for him or the pitiful wails he let out. either way, it hurt you just as much as it hurt him.

“i got into a fight with kyle,” he sobbed into your torso, arms circled around your waist and hands gripping the back of your shirt. “i got drunk and showed up at his house. a-and i started yelling at him and i punched him. i’m such a fuck up, y/n. i’m so sorry.”

you sighed and pushed him back by his shoulders, a hand under his chin keeping his glossy eyes on yours.

“you’re not a fuck up, kenny. people make mistakes. you just have to learn from them.” he sniffled grossly as he nodded, wiping the tears from his face with a frown.

“thank you. i’m sorry.” you offered him a kind smile and pulled a bundle of cotton balls and rubbing alcohol from the cabinet in your bathroom.

once you’d finished cleaning all the small cuts scattered across his face, you fed him the sandwich and watched as he drank the water you’d provided. all was done in a comfortable silence, kenny’s eyes downcast all the while, sniffling occasionally. then you were sat on the edge of your bed whilst kenny lay beneath the comforter, eyes locked and your hand stroking his hair.

“it’ll be alright, ken. maybe not now, but it will be,” you hummed. he hesitated before he nodded, offering a shaky smile.

“thank you, y/n,” he whispered. you hummed in response, then pressed a kiss to the top of his head and made your way to the couch.

being friends with kenny was a torturous nightmare.

—

life had resumed as it normally would. you, kyle, and stan were frantically studying for your exams, and kenny was sleeping with another girl almost every night. he still came to brag about it and still was shut down about every single one.

you were growing more angry with every girl he gloated about. you knew that eventually you’d end up blowing up and ruining your friendship. it was one of your greatest fears, but at this point, he was doing more damage than you could handle.

“i can’t do this, guys,” you sighed as you settled into the diner booth. kyle and stan were munching away on the cheese fries they’d ordered for the table. you popped one into your mouth, sighing through your nose.

“he’s honestly getting a bit overzealous with the whole thing,” stan grumbled, kyle humming in agreement.

“honestly, y/n, why don’t you just tell kenny? i mean, what could go wrong?” kyle murmured. you were opening your mouth to respond as a chipper kenny slid into the seat beside you, tossing an arm over your shoulder.

“tell me what?” he asked, bright grin on his face. your cheeks reddened, butterflies swarming in your stomach, arms crossing over your chest and scowl forming on your lips.

“y/n’s a milk before cereal person,” stan responded nonchalantly, pushing the tray of fries towards kenny. the blonde made quick work of stuffing his face with them, seemingly completely forgetting the topic of conversation as the rest of you discussed your exams.

“so what’s really going on?” kenny spoke as the conversation died down. stan and kyle both turned their attention to you, kenny glancing at you out of the corner of his eye as he finished up the food.

“oh, you know, nothing much. just harboring deep romantic feelings for you,” you stated. you tried to be as nonchalant as stan had been, but your voice shook as you spoke and you refused to look at kenny. his entire body stiffened, head snapping your way, and you wanted to die. your eyes were wide on kyle’s, both he and stan stilled with shock.

“what?” kenny asked, his voice small and body unmoving. you cleared your throat, worrying your lip between your teeth, fingers dancing atop the diner table. kyle caught your fingers in his, stan giving an encouraging nod.

“i’m in love with you, kenny. i have been for a while,” you started, stealing a glance at kenny’s shocked face. “i’m not expecting you to return my feelings. please stop talking about your sexual experiences around me. it’s causing me a lot of hurt. that’s all i ask of you.”

kenny was silent for a long time, and tears were welling in your eyes. you felt your heart crumbling in your chest, and the desire to leave the situation became too much to bear. you stood up as far as you could in the booth, grabbing your phone and wallet, and climbed over kenny to escape. he caught your wrist, and you tore it away, walking away with a swiftness.

“what are you doing, bozo? fucking chase her!” kyle snapped. kenny gulped down the lump in his throat and jogged after you, catching you by your wrist again just as you stepped out of the restaurant. he tugged you into a side alley, far from the view of other people in a desperate attempt to keep your privacy intact.

“y/n, wait,” he spoke through gasps. your heart leapt to your throat, looking at him through teary eyes. his face fell upon seeing the sadness on yours, one hand rising to cup your face.

“i’m sorry,” he whispered. you shook your head, sniffling and blinking away your tears.

“it’s fine, kenny. let me go,” you murmured back. he shook his head vigorously, eyebrows furrowed frustratedly.

“no, y/n, it’s not fucking fine. i’ve spent years sleeping around, wasting my life on women i don’t care about, because of you. i’ve tried so hard to find a girl that reminds me of you because you never could give me the time of day. goddammit, i fucking love you, y/n!”

you were winded, frozen, eyes wide and tears falling. your heart thudded away in your chest, thundering in your ears and turning your face pink. then you were laughing, fist gripping kenny’s hoodie for dear life, head tipped back.

“we’re both so stupid,” you wheezed. then you grabbed kenny by the back of the neck and pulled him to you, kissing him with all the passion you held in your body. one of his arms fell around your waist, the other cradling the side of your face. the butterflies in your stomach were swarming again, warmth spreading through your body, goosebumps forming everywhere his hands touched.

“be my girlfriend,” he whispered between kisses, lips moving against yours with a hunger he’d never felt before.

“in a heartbeat,” you gasped as his lips trailed across your jaw and down the column of your throat. your back fell flat against the wall behind you, kenny’s rough fingertips drawing your leg around his hip.

“i’m gonna make love to you right here in this alley. you’re mine.”

by the time you’d gotten back to the diner booth, your hair was a mess and your collarbone was covered in hickeys. kenny was no better, a dopey smile on his face, mysterious stains spotting his hoodie. stan and kyle took one look at your panting bodies and let out matching sighs of irritation.

“you’re so fucking gross, guys. really? in public?”

“i mean, i’d do it too, but still. we’re supposed to be having a nice dinner right now.”

[cosmicgrapevine]

Samantha Nietz. Heidi Haley. Robyn Calvino. Tabby had overheard those names, in ‘hey, what happened to…’ or ‘did you hear about…’ scraps of gossip. Every school had its scandals, and one the size of Kahoti surely had some juicy ones. She was getting a front row seat to one of them—literally, as Shanti drove them to the Nietz house. Shanti was new to Kahoti herself, as of last August; her father’s job had brought him from Boston to Tampa Bay. With her looks, she turned heads as soon as school started, but even in fall, the school’s dating scene orbited around the baseball team. Jordy got first dibs, which he happily took, and after a fairytale homecoming dance, other perks started piling up in her corner; a spot on the cheer squad, teachers suddenly deciding that D+ essay was really more of a C-, and, of course, magic. Such was life when the Cervantes Mafia took a shine to you. “It never really bothered me that magic was real, you know?” Shanti said airily. “There’s all kinds of crazy stuff out there. But maybe I just didn’t understand it well enough.” Success, of course, bred resentment. Girls who had spent three years on—or wishing they were on—the squad stared daggers at this newcomer flouncing right in and stealing away the school’s biggest hunk. Just before winter break, the three aforementioned girls dreamed up a disgusting prank-slash-threat involving a chunk of raw ground beef, some used tampons, and Shanti’s cheerleading uniform. “I think the beef was what really made me snap. Like, they know I’m Indian, they know that makes it worse. If they’d just used, I dunno, raw fish…” she shrugged. Shanti planned her revenge meticulously. She had Jordy spread rumors about a big blowout New Year’s Eve party for all the cool kids at his uncle’s (fictitious) beachfront place, then drive the girls there the day of. Jordy, apparently terrified that he’d wind up on the hit list himself, complied. Shanti was waiting for them, with a trapping ward to keep them from escaping and enough Ward-Ash to turn their psyches into her playground. Robyn was the animal-noises girl Tabby had heard about, and she did indeed get it the least-bad, thanks to a last minute desperate apology. She would only snort or moo when talking to boys, so at least going gay was still on the table. Heidi was forcibly implanted with a sort of all-consuming nymphomania in return for calling Shanti a whore, to the point where her parents started home-schooling her for her own protection. And Samantha, the raw-beef mastermind, got it the worst of all. Shanti parked in the cul-de-sac in front of the Nietz house and tapped the horn—three quick beeps. Soon, a ghostly figure appeared at a bedroom window, a girl with raggedy hair, sallow skin, and disheveled clothes. “Pathological germophobia,” Shanti said proudly. “She can barely leave the house anymore because she’s so scared of getting infected with something. I made her scared of soap and laundry detergent and stuff too, she thinks they’ll poison her. And the cool part? She knows that’s not true, but her fear is just too strong to ignore. So she just sits in her room, getting filthier and filthier. Maybe she’ll die in there.” Shanti’s final lie, the one that truly sealed her enemies’ fates, was successfully spreading the rumor (again, with Jordy’s help) that they had gone to an even wilder New Year’s party, one with ravers and hallucinogens, and got high enough to get permanently re-wired, explaining their new compulsions and fears. It was a bullshit story, one even a DARE officer wouldn’t buy, but hey, they were all suburban teens, and drugs were scary demons on the nightly news. It worked well enough.

#writing sample #tabby #shanti

[bobaboob]

hi beautiful rae!! 🩷 if you’re feeling up for it please do tell me how diluc confessed to you 🥺 im desperate to know

gray and luna my loves these scenarios happen to be one and the same hehe <3

i feel like heidiluc's Lore changes like daily for me depending on what daydreams i had the previous night lmfao... but what possibly happened is this:

so after heidi has been living in mondstadt for a while, she gets turned down for some prestigious geologist position in another nation she was preparing for months for.

diluc is, of course, devasted for her when she tells him the news, her eyes half filled with tears and a wan smile on her face, as she downs another fruity cocktail (he tells himself he’s devastated. he wanted her to have this opportunity. the fact that she’d be leaving mondstadt if she got the job has no effect on him or his feelings and he’s not relieved in the slightest.)

it’s close to the end of the night, and heidi is close to sloshed. he’s never seen her drink like this before, and it’s worrying him to say the least; it feels like no matter how little liquor he puts in her drinks, the flush on her cheeks and the glassiness of her eyes only grows. eventually, he asks charles to cover him and gently persuades her to let him walk her home.

they get a few steps out the door, diluc standing at a respectful distance, his hand hovering near her as she stumbles down the street, when she suddenly crumples to the ground.

she’s unhurt, but she’s on her knees and sobbing now and he can’t think of anything to do but hold her until she calms down.

he tries to soothe her and get her to let him carry her home, but she tells him through garbled words that she doesn’t HAVE a home anymore, she broke her lease on it because she was so positive this job was going to work out and now she has nowhere to stay for the night.

he blinks at her. “if that’s all that’s wrong, why don’t you come to the manor tonight and we’ll figure it out in the morning?”

"oh. i... i would appreciate that..."

and so diluc half-walks half-carries her back to the manor, her eyes red and puffy, but she’s smiling for the first time today in between apologies. she’s sober enough to walk now, but he insists on keeping her upright anyways. both of them pretend it’s normal.

they get to the lake outside the grape fields and heidi asks if they can stay there a while to look at the stars before they go inside, and diluc couldn’t deny her for the world

heidi points out the constellations to him for a long time, leaning on his shoulder and describing the stories behind all of them. he’s barely hearing her with how loudly his heart is beating in his ears. eventually, she seems to run out of steam and buries her head into his chest.

“it’s probably a good thing i didn’t get the job, i think. i’d miss the stars here if i left…”

and her face turns to his as she says it, her head against his lapel, and she’s never looked more beautiful and diluc can’t breathe thinking about how close he was to letting her slip through his fingers.

he’s staring at her so intently that he doesn’t notice his hand coming to bring her chin up, the other settling on the back of her neck, until she’s staring up at him with wide eyes and all the stars of mondstadt in them.

“stop me, heidi.” his voice has never been softer or more vulnerable. “please. i-i’ll bring you back to the manor and you can forget everything i’m about to say or do. just tell me you don’t want… this. me.”

she’s so shocked that neither of them say a thing for a moment, until suddenly there’s tears in her eyes again, and oh, archons, she’s laughing, it’s over-

“i love you too, ‘luc. wanna kiss about it?”

her eyes are shining, and when she smiles up at him he can’t keep himself from pressing his lips to hers.

heidi and diluc share their first kiss of many under the stars of the mondstadt countryside.

and that is one of several ways i’ve thought about the confession going ! <3

#heidiluc #selfship #akdfjlakd you guys are so nice to me #diluc has a lot of end-of-book mr darcy #my affections are unchanged #but one word from you will silence me forever #energy #and heidi is very #oh thank God i've been trying to get you to kiss me for WEEKS

[mxstball]

Legendary Adventures: Jörmungandr

Spear Pillar, Sinnoh.

The air was still as a lone traveler finished his ascent. The Shined Dragon slowly approached the center of the platform and closed his eyes. He prayed but wasn't exactly sure if he would get any answers from the creature that he wanted to see. After a minute, he returned to standing in the air.

Eventually, someone suddenly appeared behind him.

"Did you really just come up here drinking Moomoo Milk, George?"

Jörmungandr turned around. The Shiny Rayquaza was just finishing the end of his bottle. "I was simply thirsty."

"I guess, but I didn't take you for much of a milk drinker."

The two continued to look at each other for a moment, but afterwards, Heidi broke out in a laugh while Jörmungandr cracked a little smile.

"So, is this your new Arceus form?"

"Yup. I call it my Low-Power state. It's kind of like an Arceus when they have that ring all around their bodies. Do you like it?"

"It suits you." He nodded.

"Thank you. Anyway, come in. I guess you came to hang out a little, right? There's a lot that I need to catch you up on."

"I would appreciate that, my student."

#jormungandr #plot: legendary adventures #plot: jormungandr #muse heidi

[laundrybiscuits]

(Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5)

The thing he’s never going to tell Robin, but which he thinks she knows anyway, is that he’s always gonna be a little bit in love with her. Definitely mostly in a friend way, he’s head-over-heels in love with her platonically, but also just a tiny bit not platonically. It’s hard for him to tell sometimes. 

It’s not the kind of love that means he wants anything other than what they have, even if it is, like, 2% romantic. He thinks maybe it’s like 2% milk, how it’s nice just to have a little bit mixed in and not reach for more. 

It’s also why he and Nancy are more or less okay now. He knows he’s not in love with Nancy anymore, for sure. When he reaches for that feeling, probing experimentally, all he finds is a little wistfulness that aches in the right light. But all the love he used to have for her didn’t go anywhere, it just changed into something else. He thinks maybe if circumstances were exactly right, some of it could change back, but he doesn’t really want it to.

He doesn’t know how Eddie fits into all of this. Eddie isn’t 2% milk at all. Eddie probably isn’t any kind of milk, he’s—

Eddie Munson is so strange, he’s so weird, he’s not like anyone else Steve has ever felt any kind of way about. In some ways, it’d be easier if he were normal. Like, an all-American football-loving guy, clean-cut and shining gold. It would be easier for Steve to understand, anyway. 

Instead, Steve watches his ringed fingers push through too-long curls and listens to the swooping scratch of his too-dramatic voice and wonders endlessly about the blurry tattoos that peek out from under his shirt, and can’t imagine feeling like this about anyone but Eddie.

Because obviously if he’s allowed to like boys, he’s going to like Eddie. Shit, he can’t believe that everyone in the world just goes around not liking Eddie so much all the time. 

Steve is kind of obsessed and it’s not fair or normal, he knows that. But Eddie Munson is neither fair nor normal. Eddie Munson is like a wild animal, fierce and free and more wholly himself than anyone Steve has ever met. 

He tries thinking about Eddie like a girl. The hair, the long lashes, it shouldn’t be that weird, except for how weird it is. He doesn’t like it at all. But it turns out he gets a sick little thrill from thinking about Eddie as a girlfriend; thinking about Eddie tucked under his arm, teasing him. Thinking about reeling Eddie in, laughing, feeling him warm and close and alive. 

He’s not even pretty, not in the way that Steve’s used to thinking of pretty. He’s got those girly eyes, sure, and the hair, but he doesn’t look like he could be on the glossy pages of a catalogue or anything like that. 

He’s beautiful, though. Steve turns the word over in his head, tests it, decides he’s okay with it. It’s okay that Eddie Munson is beautiful. 

Well, not okay okay. It still fucks Steve up kind of a lot, on a regular basis. He thinks that if they were back in Shakespeare times, Eddie’s hands and wrists and smile would be the kinds of things people might write poetry about. 

He wonders if he could get Eddie to fool around, maybe. Plenty of straight guys do it. They’re a little old for it to be normal kid stuff, but if everyone’s going to be so dumb about Eddie’s whole deal, maybe the guy just needs an outlet. He thinks that even if Eddie’s not usually into guys like Steve, he could probably be talked into accepting a friendly handjob. 

It would probably be a hell of a thing. Steve feels like a whole new wing of his brain has opened up, now that he’s giving himself permission to think about this stuff on purpose. It’s so easy for him to picture what Eddie might look like with his shirt pushed up and his fly undone, panting and squirming as Steve works him over. It would be a hell of a thing. 

Steve’s pretty persuasive when he tries, so he feels pretty good about his chances there, but the problem is…

The problem is Heidi. And Samantha. And Josie. And all the other girls who he sweet-talked into bed, then never called. It’s so fucking hypocritical of him, but he can’t stand the idea of being on the other side of it all: saying some embarrassing shit like I thought we had a connection and Eddie going I thought we were just having fun. 

Eddie wouldn’t even be mean about it, either. He’d probably be really awkward and apologetic. When it really comes down to it, Eddie hates hurting people, and Steve doesn’t see any way this doesn’t end in hurt. He thinks that watching Eddie try to be as kind and considerate as possible about letting him down would actually break him in a permanent way.

He remembers how he felt around Nancy, the awed realization that you could think a girl was hot and also funny and creative and smart, that you could desperately want to put your dick in her in spite of or maybe because of how intense she was all the time. He’d kind of assumed that that was his big First Love moment. It wasn’t so dumb to think that he’d never feel that kind of new again. 

And then, Eddie. New because it was a guy, sure; new because it meant terrifying unknown things he didn’t fully understand about himself and the different ways his life could go. But Eddie makes Steve feel completely new, head to toe. He figures it kind of makes sense, because he’s a whole different guy than the one who first went after Nancy Wheeler like a homing missile. So it makes sense that this new and improved Steve falls in love a whole new different way. 

Love—now there’s a word. It’s probably not something he can really say. It’s not good sense to say he’s in love with a boy he’s never even held hands with. Hell, yesterday Steve didn’t even know boys were an option for him. But he’s always fallen way too hard and fast: for Nancy, for Robin, for Eddie. 

He’s pretty sure it’s love because now that he’s actually paying attention, he realizes that Eddie’s kind of the first thing he thinks about when he wakes up, and usually the last thing he thinks about at night. Not even in a sex way, though he has a feeling there’s going to be plenty more of that in his future; he thinks about stupid things like, I wonder if Eddie had breakfast today, and I wonder what it would be like to put my hand in Eddie’s hand.

He’s not religious or anything, but he gets why people think it’s a sin. It feels a little…gross, kind of. It feels like, just by thinking this stuff about Eddie, he’s mixing Eddie up in something without his permission. Unfair, somehow. But it also feels like Steve’s dumb brain has its brakes cut, and he can’t stop thinking real hard about putting his fingers in Eddie’s mouth. 

Eddie would hate it. Eddie would say What the fuck, Harrington, and probably hit him. Not hard, because Eddie has no idea how to throw a real punch, but even that might be a little bit good. 

Steve thinks maybe there’s not anything that he doesn’t want Eddie to do to him. Knowing that, now, feels like standing in the middle of a rainstorm, like it’s already too late for whatever’s going to happen, like he’s caught up in something big that moves around and over and through him. 

He’s not religious or anything, but he thinks it feels holy.

(Snippet directory)

#this is literally just 1300 words of me trying to get steve's voice down #steve is the most unreliable narrator to ever narrate #the 2% milk thing is definitely the dumbest thing I've ever written but I stand by it #steddie #fic: come alive in the neon light

[ladydorian05]

A Home for Broken Hearts ~ Chapter 2

Co-written with @made-ofmemories (she also made the header)

What's this!? Two chapters in one day!?

Yup, two chapters in one day!

You can expect one chapter per week, we'll most likely be posting on Saturdays. And last but not least, we'd love to read what you think of this fic! ❤️ Enjoy!! :D

Word count: 2,810

Master Post

AO3

Chapter 2: Of broken hearts and healing ideas

Robin thinks she’s stealthy, sneaking into Steve’s room, but she might just be the clumsiest person in the entire city and she is not as quiet as she thinks she is, creeping around the admittedly cluttered space. He wakes the minute she opens the door. 

“Rise and shine, Stevie!” She sounds far too chipper, ripping the curtains open and sending him burrowing under the covers when the sunlight hits his squinting eyes. 

“Go away, Robin.” His voice is muffled by the comforter bunched up around his face. It’s too early, his head is pounding and he would very much like to go back to sleep. 

“Not until you tell me what happened last night.” 

He must have woken her when he stumbled into the apartment last night. He doesn’t remember much after passing the threshold, but he must have been loud because Robin sleeps like the dead.

The bed dips as she flops down beside him. He lets out a sigh then rolls over to face her. She’ll drag it out of him one way or another, she always does. Steve had never believed in soulmates, until he met Robin and it was like staring at a part of himself that he hadn’t even known was missing. 

Steve peeks his head out from beneath the blanket and sees Robin’s blue eyes staring back at him expectedly. Laying like this reminds him of the sleepovers they’d have as teenagers, staying up too late talking about everything and nothing. He misses those days, back when all they had to worry about were highschool grades and their shitty part time jobs at the ice cream parlor in the mall where they met.

“I had a date with Heidi. Well, I thought it was a date, turns out she only invited me there to dump me.” He contemplates hiding under the comforter again when he sees the expression on Robin’s face morph into sadness, “Please don’t look at me like that. I’m fine, Robs.”

“Sure you are,” she says, but her tone doesn’t match her words. Damn her and that ability she has to see through every last one of his lies. They do this a lot, Steve pretending he’s unaffected by everything even though they both know he’s got a much bigger heart than he lets on, “So where were you until 3am?”

“Some dive bar downtown.”

“Alone?”

“Alone.”

“How did you get home?” There’s concern creeping into her voice now and he hasn’t even gotten to the best, or maybe worst depending on the point of view, part of his story.

“Some random guy from the bar gave me a ride in his van.” He deadpans.

“What?”

“Yeah, we actually stopped at this- I guess you could call it a construction site?” Steve contemplates without a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

“Please tell me you’re joking.” 

“Will it make you feel better if I say I am?”

“Oh my god. How have you even survived this long?” Robin asks, tangling one of her hands in her hair the way she always does when she’s stressed. She’s taking it better than he expected in all honesty. She’s always been a bit of a worrier. 

“Dumb luck mostly.” He shrugs the shoulder he isn’t lying on, “Now that we’ve established that I’m an idiot, can I please go back to sleep?”

“No. You’re going to drink a glass of water, the biggest one we have. Then we’re going out for lunch and I want to know more about van guy.”

“Lunch? What time is it?” It feels early, too early, not time for lunch. Though that could be down to his pounding headache and the fact he didn’t go to sleep until long after 3am.

“12:30.” He feels the mattress shift again, this time when Robin gets up. She grabs his discarded shirt from the floor and it hits him in the face a second later, “Get dressed I’ll meet you in the kitchen.”

“I hate you,” He says into his pillow, there’s no venom behind it. He looks up just in time to watch her flipping him off as she leaves. 

Robin is sitting on one of the counter tops when he wanders into the kitchen 10 minutes later despite the perfectly good chairs a few feet to her left. She tosses a bottle of tylenol at him, he catches it and mumbles his thanks as he grabs an empty glass from the side of the sink.

Robin’s socked foot pushes into the soft flesh of his side, “That’s not the big one and you know it.” He sets the glass back down and pulls out another from the cupboard, holding it up so she can see it and awaiting her nod of approval before he fills it.

“My car is still at the bar, so you’ll have to drive,” He explains to her, suddenly very thankful for all those driving lessons he gave her over the years. They can pick his car up later, he doesn’t think he’s in any fit state to be driving right now anyway.

“Alright, you ready to go?” She asks once he’s shaken 2 pills from the bottle and swallowed them with a gulp of water.

“Yeah,” He pats the back pocket of his jeans and frowns when he finds it empty, “let me just grab my wallet.” 

He finds his keys on the table by his bedside where he set them after stumbling in earlier that morning, he was sure he’d dumped his wallet there with them but it’s not there. There’s no sign of it after he’s turned the rest of his room upside down either leaving him scratching his head as he sits amidst the pile of laundry he’s dragged out from the basket under the assumption he must have left it in a pocket somewhere. 

“Have you found it yet?” Robin calls. He’d tasked her with searching the couch in case it had somehow ended up wedged between the cushions, it wouldn’t be the first time.

“No.” He sticks his head out of his room to check up on her progress.

“I’m starving,” She whines, “let's just go. I’ll pay. We can tear the place apart looking for it later.” 

“Just, let me check my room once more then we can go I swear.”

There’s a knock at the front door and Steve’s pretty sure that’s the only reason she doesn’t argue with him.

“Make it quick, Harrington!” She calls and he darts back into his room whilst she goes to deal with whoever is knocking at their door on a Saturday afternoon. They hadn’t been expecting company, at least none that he was aware of.

He abandons his laundry theory and turns instead to rifling through his drawers. It’s got to be in here somewhere. He’s onto the second drawer when he hears Robin’s voice ringing through the apartment.

“Hey, Stevie! I found your wallet.” 

She’s holding the front door open, a smirk on her face as she watches him come barreling out of his room then freeze in his tracks when he sees none other than Eddie standing in the doorway holding up what appears to be Steve’s wallet. 

He’s wearing an outfit similar to the one from the previous night, only this time there’s a leather jacket over his t-shirt and there’s a different yet still unfamiliar logo on the front of it. The only major difference in his appearance is his hair, it’s untied today, falling in loose curls down to his shoulders.

“Figured you might be missing this.” He’s smiling as he holds out the Wallet in Steve’s direction, “Found it under the passenger seat this morning.”

“Thanks, man, I appreciate it.” 

He tucks the wallet into his pocket and thinks that’ll be the end of it, but Eddie lingers, twirling one of his rings around his index finger. Steve doesn’t know him well enough to tell whether it’s a nervous habit or just something he does.

“There’s actually something I wanted to show you,” Eddie says, “if you’re not busy.”

“We were just heading out to get lunch.” Steve explains, jabbing his thumb in the direction of Robin.

“Oh Lunch can wait, I want to see this.”

“What happened to ‘I’m starving, Steve, I’m going to waste away if we don’t get lunch within the next 10 seconds, Steve’.” 

It’s a poor imitation of Robin’s voice, one that has her curling her lip at him in disgust. It makes Eddie chuckle though, a sound Steve finds himself really liking, which is maybe a little concerning given the fact they’ve known each other for less than 24hrs. That’s an issue for future Steve to unpack. 

“Come on, what’re you waiting for?!” She throws both of her hands up in frustration, the keys in her hand jangling with the movement. She’s already halfway down the hallway while Steve and Eddie haven’t moved.

Steve and Robin take her car, a modern, bright yellow vw beetle that she had started saving for since before she even knew how to drive, and Eddie leads the way in his van. 

Hellfire looks pretty much the same as Steve’s slightly fuzzy memory of it. There’s a little sunlight streaming through the cracks in some of the window coverings and a lot more people milling around, but it still looks just as much of a construction site. 

“Eddie? Is that you?” It’s a feminine voice, cheery and light. At first Steve can’t determine where it’s coming from until a head of strawberry blonde hair pops up from behind the bar.

“I brought some visitors,” Eddie says to the mystery woman who is making her way over to them, then turns his attention to Steve and Robin again, “This is Chrissy my…”

“Business partner,” She supplies when he struggles to find the words.

“Nice to meet you, I’m Steve.”

“Robin.”

“Chrissy helps me out with just about everything.” He pulls her into a one armed hug and she pushes him away playfully with a smile. It’s clear they’re close, but Steve can’t quite figure out what the story between them is. He is, however, sure there’s more to it than simple business partners, “She’s pretty much the only reason anything gets done around here.”

“Yes, I am, which is why I need to get back to work,” She shares a glance with Eddie that Steve can’t quite decipher, it’s the same type of silent communication he and Robin have perfected through many many years of friendship, “It was lovely meeting you both,” She says, her face morphing back into something more open and friendly when she addresses Steve and Robin.

Chrissy leaves them, navigating through the mess of covered up furniture and construction equipment with so much ease Steve is sure she could do it blindfolded.

“Ok, it’s just over here,” Eddie explains, returning to their original task and the whole reason they’re here in the first place. 

He leads them to the wall where Steve had left the scrunchie last night, but now there’s something beside it, two tickets pinned to the wall with messy handwriting scrawled next to them.

‘James skipped town 3 days

before this concert

and didn’t bother to tell me.’

“Heidi?” Robin questions, ignoring the tickets entirely and looking at Steve’s message from last night, “Steve, did you do this?”

“Yeah,” Steve waves her off, he’ll catch her up on everything over lunch, “but who left those?” 

“Don’t know.” Eddie shrugs, “Found them when I got here this morning. Could’ve been anyone there’s people in and out of this place all the time, construction worker, delivery guy, who knows.”

“Holy shit,” Steve says, running his fingers over the edge of the tickets.

“Yeah, holy shit,” Robin echoes, “Do you know how long I’ve been trying to get him to lose some of the ex memorabilia?” She asks Eddie, “Seriously, you should see his room, it's like a mausoleum in there. He once kept a gum wrapper, with a wad of chewed up gum in it for over a year.”

“Alright, thank you very much for that Robin, but I think that’s enough.” Steve cuts her off with a stern glare.

“A mausoleum for broken hearts,” Eddie muses.

Robin’s face lights up with an idea at Eddie’s words. She grabs the marker from the table they had passed on the way over here, the same pen Steve and presumably whoever left the tickets had used to scrawl on the wall.

‘The broken hearts gallery, leave your heartbreak here’

“There,” She says, stepping back to admire her work, “It could be like a community project, maybe there’s more hoarders like Steve out there who need a place where they can learn to let go.”

“I am not a hoarder,” Steve protests, indignant at the mere suggestion, “It’s a good idea though, maybe it’ll help people.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” Eddie interrupts, waving his hands in front of him as he steps between them, “as much as I’m all for self expression. Maybe a literal construction site isn’t the best place for your little art project?”

“It’s the perfect place,” Robin insists, “I can set up some social media accounts, start spreading the word.”

“We could ask for tips for each donation too,” Steve suggests, “You can put the money back into this place.”

“And Steve can help out with the labor, you guys look busy, an extra pair of hands would be good right?” Steve’s glaring at her again, but she’s unphased, “Oh what? It’s not like you’ve got anything better to do.” 

She’s right, she usually is, it’s annoying.

“It would,” Eddie confirms, taking a moment to consider the offer before he says “alright, deal.”

They agree to meet again on Monday at 8am, Chrissy seems thrilled with the news when Eddie calls her over to let her know about their newest volunteer and they share another one of those silent conversations passed through a series of unreadable expressions. 

Chrissy and Eddie are an unusual pair, it was evident the moment Eddie had introduced her to them, and it continues to be evident now. Chrissy is wearing a pair of light wash jeans and a peach t-shirt with a white ribbon tied into a bow holding up her slicked back ponytail, meanwhile Eddie is all dark denim and leather. They couldn’t look more different if they tried. And for all her caution, Robin seems to have taken to them both rather quickly, so much so that he’s surprised she doesn’t invite them to lunch.

They eat at their usual haunt, a little cafe they frequent so often because Robin insists they sell the best apple pie in the whole city. Steve is just glad to have a good cup of coffee placed down in front of him.

Robin spends most of the time with her nose buried in her phone, occasionally passing it across the table to ask Steve’s approval on whatever social media page she’s setting up now. Should it be the broken heart gallery or the broken hearts gallery? Does he think this picture is better or this one? 

“Sure,” He agrees despite not really knowing what the question was. She frowns at him, wrong answer, “Sorry.” 

“I know I kind of just sprung this on you,” Robin starts, her voice is soft a tone she reserves only for serious conversations, “but we don’t actually have to go through with this whole gallery thing if you’re not into it. I just thought it would be good for you to have something to focus on that isn’t...” She stalls, making a few vague gestures with her hands.

“My failed love life or my non-existent career?” He says and she cracks a smile at his bluntness. 

“Yeah, that.”

“I think it’s a good idea, and you’re right. I can’t just mope around the apartment for the rest of my life.” Oh how he wishes he could. 

“Eddie is kinda hot too.”

“Robin!” He scolds.

“What? I’m gay not blind, Steve.” 

“Alright we are not having this conversation,” Steve decides, hurrying to change the subject. 

It’s not like he hasn’t noticed. Maybe if circumstances were different he’d even consider making a move, but he’s in the midst of yet another failed relationship and the risk of making things awkward with Eddie is too great when the guy is letting them use a space in his property for Robin’s idea free of charge.

She holds up her hands in surrender, “I’m just saying.” 

“Show me those pictures again.” 

She obliges, passing her phone over to show him the two very rough drafts of a logo she has put together. 

“One on the right for sure.” 

“That’s what I thought!” She beams, excitedly taking the phone from him and continuing to tap away at the screen. 

What has he let himself be dragged into?

<Chapter 1 ~ Masterpost ~ Chapter 3>

#steddiebigbang23 #a home for broken hearts #steddie #steve harrington #eddie munson #teacher!steve harrington #bartender!eddie munson #robin buckley #chrissy cunningham #broken hearts gallery au #stranger things

[watchtowerindistress]

we are not our demons (9/24) - bruce wayne x batmom

Gif source: aleclightwoodt

Author's note: I wasn't sure if I mentioned Dick's eye color in the first book, so I decided to give him turquoise-green eyes - with Dick's light blue eyes from Young Justice and Finn's peculiar mix of turquoise, blue or sometimes green. I know the comics have inconsistency regarding how many children Bruce adopted? For this case, I decided that all the kids you're seeing (Dick, Tim and Damian) are all his children/legally adopted, including Jason.

Regarding Tim's eyes, I was bored with every single one of those people having blue eyes, so I gave him green ones. Are you able to detect The Princess Bride easter egg?

Is it such a surprise that I surrendered to the will of the community and can totally see Matthew Daddario playing Jason Todd? Just imagine he has the grey lock. Finding gifs is just so hard. Is it too much to ask for a bleeding Alec Lightwood??

Beta-read by Heidi

Words: 4.2k

Please reblog/leave a comment.

Series Masterlist | Want to be tagged? | Read on AO3

And I wanna believe in a world we can’t see

Millions of particles passing through me

And I know there’s a meaning

I feel it, I swear

I can’t see the future, but I know that it’s there

- Fall on Me by A Great Big World and Christina Aguilera -

To say that Ellie had been sleeping restlessly would be a massive understatement.

She felt bad for her reaction in the Batcave and how she handled things. On behalf of her friend, Ellie couldn’t help this mounting stress and anger. It was bound to erupt sooner or later.

Ellie just regretted the way it came out. Still, her reaction didn’t diminish the turmoil she was feeling.

Ellie actually needed a second to breathe and think before she would have to start her day. She was sitting on her bed with her knees bent and the sheets pushed down her calves.

Ellie turned her head to the uncovered windows that let the blue shimmering light of the lake shine through the room. Her bleary eyes were thanking the soft illumination of the early morning. With everything within her she thanked the location of her guest room that wouldn’t intrude with glaring sunlight. Not to mention her alarm that woke her up—there were some things on her agenda she had to get done for today.

At long last, she stretched her legs until the warm material fell away with a soft caress.

Ellie uttered a stretched-out groan when her arm reached towards the nightstand and opened the lid of her pill bottle. After one daily dose and a long, refreshing gulp of water later, Ellie was ready to put her clothes on.

It was time to get out of her worn pajama shorts and white tank top and get to the real world.

After a quick shower and change of clothes, Ellie’s feet dragged her down the stairs and towards the kitchen. Ready to get some caffeine into her.

Alfred’s back was facing her and, like a deity with superhuman senses, his body turned around.

Ellie swore her heart almost stopped beating. “Okay, that was eerie.”

Alfred’s brown eyes twinkled with playfulness behind those glasses while his mouth twitched. “Good morning to you too, Miss Ellie,” he teased without preamble.

Ellie merely shook her head.

“Tea?” Alfred offered and lifted an empty mug.

A grateful smile was playing on her lips before she adjusted the thick-framed glasses on the bridge of her nose. “It’s like you read my mind. Thank you, Alfred.”

Comfortable silence lingered in the air while Ellie took a seat at the kitchen island. Her eyes observed the butler’s actions of filling two mugs with tea bags and steaming water. The brunette helped herself with a small porcelain can of milk.

Her fingers let the invigorating warmth calm her senses. Mindlessly, her hand wove through her hair while she opened her mouth. “How is she adapting?”

Her focus was on the frown on Alfred’s face. “To be expected. Miss Gordon is a strong one who can withstand anything.” Alfred paused, mulling over his next words. “But I’m afraid that she’s far more torn up about this than she’s letting on.”

Ellie nodded numbly, yet she still felt the effects of her inner agony. “Trust me, Babs is letting on exactly what she’s feeling.”

The distress in Alfred’s brown eyes only enhanced his inner conflict. “Do not take Miss Gordon’s words to heart. I’m certain that she would appreciate you seeing her.”

The heated liquid pouring down her throat felt like a welcome distraction from her wayward thoughts. “I won’t. Take them to heart, that is. She’s got to do a far worse to push me away. But I will see her later. Unfortunately, I have some things to do for today. But later,” Ellie promised quietly.

Alfred nodded in understanding, his eyes glinting in the morning light. “Explains your early rising, Miss Ellie.”

She sent him a blank stare but shook her head while chuckling to herself.

The older man’s expression turned mournful. “You did wonderfully yesterday.”

The day before had been … eventful to say the least. The only thing that was stuck on her mind were the painful words she threw at Bruce. One of the reasons why her face revealed her doubts.

Alfred clarified, “Master Tim is a sensitive young lad.”

A small smile played on her lips. Alfred’s words remained true. Ellie couldn’t help the soft spot she had for the Wayne son.

Sometimes she had to hold herself back from taking him into her arms and ruffling that messy hair of his.

“I know. That’s why I like him.”

For some reason Alfred could tell that there was something else on her mind. He narrowed his eyes slightly. “What’s troubling you?”

The heavy sigh breaching from her lips felt like anxiety slowly leaving her body. “I said some things to Bruce,” Ellie admitted painfully.

Alfred took a gulp from his morning drink. “The question is: was it deserved or undeserved?”

Her eyes rolled to her head in thought. “It was more like something inside me just snapped. I just don’t understand how Bruce can remain so calm in all of this.”

Alfred’s eyebrows arched high. “Master Bruce is anything but calm. You need to see it from his point of view. This feels like history repeating itself.”

Ellie’s features tensed at the reminder of their previous loss. “Exactly. But how much does it take for him to finally act? Before someone else gets hurt or worse?”

“At the cost of his own humanity?”

Those words felt like an ice-cold shock to the system. Of course, it had to be Alfred who remained the voice of reason.

“That’s the question, isn’t it?” Ellie muttered under her breath as her gaze on Alfred turned wistful.

The front door banging shut pulled her out of her musings. Alfred merely lifted his head to the point of almost throwing his head back in frustration, without turning his gaze to the culprit in question.

“Master Dick,” he admonished tiredly.

“Sorry, Al,” a male voice called back from the foyer.

The force of déjà vu hit Ellie. Intuition was telling her that Alfred suffered many times under Dick’s furniture abuse.

“Did the Ming vase survive this time?”

Dick entered the kitchen with a weary expression on his face. His gaze met the two people in the room with a greeting nod.

“Hey, guys.” His eyes wandered back to Alfred. “And don’t worry, nothing got broken this time.”

Sympathy rose inside her once she took notice of the dark circles under his eyes.

“Need some coffee?”

Dick threw his head back and grunted, “Loads, please! Just pump it into me, will you?”

Ellie’s inquisitive gaze met Alfred’s. “You want to look after Babs?”

He remained still; the butler gene ingrained into him like second nature. “Are you certain?”

She chuckled quietly. “Don’t worry, Alfred.” Ellie eyed the fresh pot of coffee at the butler’s back. “I can serve a cuppa coffee just fine.”

Alfred’s lips twitched at her choice of words before he went around the kitchen counter. “Fair enough.” After that, Ellie could hear his steps recede in the distance. She stood up and helped herself by pouring Dick a steaming cup.

The familiar sound soothed her mind like nothing else ever could. When anxiety episodes arose, her psychiatrist told her to think ‘happy thoughts’ or to center herself in the present with her senses. In the end, this was her routine.

To drink her daily dose.

It was tough for Ellie at first—to abstain from caffeine for a few weeks if she was getting used to her meds being introduced to her bloodstream. It was no surprise that her body fought the cold turkey with headaches and fatigue. These symptoms could make anyone wonder where anxiety started, and coffee deprivation ended.

“Here you go.” Ellie let Dick fend for himself as he drank up his portion like a thirsty man.

His actions made her raise her eyebrows in fascination—

(The thought that someone raised them like a pack of wolves rang through her head)

— before she placed the pot back into its assigned spot.

Ellie folded her arms over her chest, observing her companion calmly. “You look like shit, Dick.”

The dark-haired detective didn’t even bat an eyelash when he continued burning his tongue with gusto. “Oh, thank you very much. I’ve worked extremely hard to become so.” Dick lifted his cup in a congratulatory manner while staring at her in return.

Ellie shook her head and pressed her lips together before cocking her head. “Rough night?” She inquired sympathetically.

Dick took the opportunity to place his almost empty mug back on the counter. “You could say that.” He was blinking rapidly, his insecure nature shining through his wide blue eyes. “You’ve seen her,” Dick mentioned as a statement and continued after a paused breath. “You think she’d want some company?”

Barbara’s testiness in the hospital came to mind, but on the other hand, Ellie didn’t want to change his mind, just in case she was wrong. Who knew, maybe she would react differently upon seeing Dick now?

Ellie shrugged her shoulders. “Honestly, I don’t know. I thought you would have seen Babs that day at Gotham General.”

Biting his lower lip, Dick’s gaze wandered to the living room near them. “This thing between Babs and I is … complicated,” he explained vaguely, and without offering anything else.

The computer engineer arched an ironic eyebrow. “You guys,” Ellie groaned. “Life is short. Now is really not the time to hold back but to appreciate what you have.”

“Says you?” Incredulous eyes were staring back at her.

Ellie sighed; her eyelashes fluttered slowly. “This better not be about—”

“You know, dear old Bruce is really a fine guy once you get over the moping mess he is, the strange work hours, the overprotective nature, and his strange fixation of beating up people in Halloween costumes. Not to mention that he’s probably richer than Oliver Queen.”

Rolling her eyes, Ellie replied, “Well, that’s not really an accomplishment. Queen lost his company and fortune several times now.”

Dick’s hands lifted in the air in skepticism. “Come on, put the poor schmuck out of his misery. You have no idea how rough it was for him the first few weeks.”

Ellie tilted her head, feeling inner turmoil arise in her. “It isn’t a matter of a simple choice. That I can just decide to get over it. It was about trust. Besides, now we have a relationship that works,” she whispered the next three words under her breath, “more or less. And is bound to both of us depending on each other. I don’t want to jeopardize that.”

Dick’s eyes narrowed slightly while pondering over something inside his head. Ellie’s muttered words might have sparked his suspicions. “Did something happen between you two the last few days?” He inquired quietly.

Ellie sighed wearily once she sat on the bar stool next to him. “Bruce and I had a disagreement on how to proceed with the Joker.”

A crease formed between his eyebrows as a sign of confusion. “Elaborate.”

“Bruce clings to his—in my eyes—unreliable principle of just sending him back to Arkham while I … can’t bear the thought of that clown only getting a slap on the wrist.”

Dick deduced her depraved needs correctly. “You want to see him dead.”

“Is that so wrong of me?” Ellie supported her chin with the ball of her hand. “I mean, how did you cope after the death of Jason?”

Dick’s breath stuttered in his throat and his tempestuous ocean-green eyes widened at the mentioned name. It was a stigma these days. How it had become a taboo word, never to be uttered again.

“He told you about Jason?”

“Bruce didn’t have to. His ghost remains in the cave like a memorial.” Her expression softened; her curiosity couldn’t be contained any longer. “How did he die?” Ellie rasped carefully.

Dick’s breath exhaled through his lips like a deflated balloon. “Jason was the second Robin Bruce trained under his wing. God, he was just a reckless and angry kid—sometimes too much to handle. And that was before Bruce even took Damian in.”

Ellie chuckled softly. “Alfred might have mentioned that about him.”

“Jason wanted to prove himself to Bruce and went after the Joker on his own. It was a trap. That psychopath didn’t care one bit who he was hurting as long as he got Batman’s attention. I don’t know how many hours he was beating Jason with that damned crowbar.”

Ellie swore her heart stopped beating while she whispered, “Oh my God,” with a pained expression on her face. She didn’t know what to think when she remembered that weapon next to his suit. That Bruce would keep that thing as a memory.

“The file stated that he suffered under a pneumothorax and internal bleeding before the Joker set the warehouse on fire. Killed more than just Jason in it. Batman tried to save him by running inside, but it was too late.”

Her hand covered her mouth at the gruesome images invading her mind.

“I’m trying to understand why Bruce wouldn’t avenge him.”

“It was harder for him than you can imagine. Jason was his adopted son.”

“How are you not…?” Ellie shook her head and tried to shape into words how all of this felt like a cruel twist of fate.

“As much as I want to kill him for what he did … I know there’ll be no way back. And I would be no better than him and all the other bad guys we put away.” Dick tilted his head, focusing on Ellie. “Don’t lose yourself in his madness.”

“How are your meds working, Ellie? Are you still feeling tired?”

Ellie rubbed the smooth material of her black jeans and leaned back against the maroon couch. The office of Dr. Claire Foster in Blüdhaven always seemed cozy and homey in her eyes. The small variety of green potted plants decorating her desk always managed to calm her nerves.

The box of tissues placed on the table at her knees felt like a default object in every therapist’s office and left a sour taste in her mouth, although it should have made her chuckle to herself.

“It’s getting better,” Ellie assured her with a small smile. “I no longer fall head-first into my dinner meal.” She really wasn’t looking forward to remembering the first two weeks—time felt fuzzy from that medication, it could have been longer—of immeasurable tiredness, the sensation of elephant tranquilizers infusing her system.

Dr. Foster nodded to herself, scribbling something down on the notepad sitting on her knees and focusing her dark-brown eyes back on her. “That’s a relief. It’s always hard getting used to the side effects of new medication.” The woman tilted her head in speculation. “I’d say the dosage you were prescribed had been pretty invasive. Has anything new happened since our conversation last month?”

Ellie was breathing heavily now, not knowing if she should reveal the latest events. Some variances of truth would be in order.

Her eyes swept to the ground. “My best friend … was attacked and badly injured in her own home.”

“That must’ve been traumatic for you.”

Ellie folded her arms over her chest. “I wish I could do more for her. I know how much she’s hurting.” The crease between her eyebrows grew at her last statement. “Actually, I don’t. She’s paralyzed from the waist down. I just wish she would trust me and let me in.”

The therapist let out a sorrowful sigh and tilted her head. “Am I correct to assume that she’s feeling bitter about her situation? How are you feeling about that? Guilty because you believe you could’ve changed that from happening?”

“I don’t feel guilty. I feel angry.” Ellie exhaled the breath she had been holding slowly out of her mouth. “I feel … My emotions are conflicted and out of control. Even I don’t understand how my thoughts could shift so much. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this helpless.”

The gaze of the dark-skinned woman ventured briefly to the clock over her shoulder behind her. “My advice would be to just be there for her. You have to remember that this is even worse for your friend. What’s important right now is to not forget your own needs and even yourself in the process.” Dr. Foster leaned forward in her seat and weaved her hands together. “You said that your thoughts were shifting. What did you mean by that?” She asked carefully.

Ellie sent her a blank expression before letting air exhale through her nose.

“Shifting as in … I’m harboring thoughts I never thought I would have.”

Her index finger patted against her chin. “Morally?”

“Especially.”

Dr. Foster’s gaze turned speculative. “Perhaps it would be a good idea to find an outlet, maybe a hobby. Do you partake in any interests?”

Intrigue was shining in her eyes at the suggestion. “I think I can find something, Dr. Foster.”

It was around three o’clock in the afternoon when Ellie went down the hallway on the second floor, in search of little Timmy. Her right hand held tightly onto the plastic cup, hoping to do something nice for him if he was going to be holed up in his room.

Not to mention how Ellie always felt so drained after a therapy session and decided to bring some self-care drinks with her.

With her hand placed against the door, she knocked a few times before a quiet, “Come in,” reverberated through the doorway. Ellie pushed down the door handle and stepped through.

Tim’s room had a down-to-earth feel to it and with light colors adorning the walls. Now that she was facing her new surroundings, she couldn’t imagine it any differently.

A blue pennant with the words Brentwood Academy and a griffin embellished the material and hanging on the wall above the bed’s headboard. A tall mahogany bookshelf was standing in the corner of the room and offered shelter for reading material, such as ‘How computers work’ or ‘The Oxford Handbook of Positive Psychology’.

Ellie’s eyebrows rose in surprise at the extensive library for a 9-year-old and stepped further inside. Tim kept quiet, still fully engrossed in assembling his computer. Like her presence didn’t even dissuade him from his year-long quest.

“Still working on that computer of yours?” Ellie’s lips quirked into a fond smile.

Tim’s arms shielded the device, like the young boy believed she was going to stop him from his aspiration, or it was some sort of surprise Ellie wasn’t supposed to see. “It’s not done yet,” he mumbled with a stubborn attitude.

Pressing her lips together, she shook her head while chuckles left her mouth. “It’s okay. I just wanted to bring you something to drink if you’re intending to work on your project for hours on end.”

Ellie lifted the mentioned cup in the air and placed it at a safe distance from any important tools but close enough to catch his attention, on the windowsill.

The golden flecks in his green eyes glinted with interest. The black-haired boy stared at the object out of the corner of his eye, while he twiddled with the screwdriver in his hands.

“No strawberries?”

Ellie shook her head. “No strawberries,” she assured him of the absence of his food allergy. Alfred disclosed that tidbit of information about the boys in the household early on. “Just some good old-fashioned boba tea. With some black tea and lychee fruit.”

She pointed her finger in the air as a reminder once she noticed the gleam in his eyes at the mention of caffeine. “But don’t think this is going to be a daily occurrence.”

Tim lowered his head, hiding the smile on his face. “Thanks,” he whispered quietly.

“Don’t mention it.” Ellie bent forward with interest and leaned her arms against the table to try getting a better view. “Tell me about your undertaking. How far did you get?”

To lay people, the computer monitor seemed pretty much done but a feeling and the motherboard and a few wires laying on the table told a different story. Sentimental nostalgia rose in her when she eyed the Windows ‘98 computer.

“I still need to connect the wires and a few other things to get this thing running.”

Ellie leaned forward like she was divulging a life-long secret. “You know, when I was a kid, I did that too.” Tim’s head twisted in her direction before she continued speaking, “I created some sort of ‘super computer’ as I liked to call it. Scared the … daylights out of my uncle who I was living with at the time once he saw a dismantled computer on the carpeted floor.”

Tim giggled quietly at the vision she portrayed. His tinkling laughter only tickled her own mirth from her chest.

“If you want, I can help you with that.”

Tim lowered his head for a few seconds before he slowly nodded. “Okay.”

Ellie closed the door behind her with a quiet click, her hand resting against the metallic door handle. A small smile was still playing on her lips, savoring the quality time she just spent with Tim. Holding the tools in her hand and instructing him how to improve the tinkering process brought her back to being that geeky kid without a care in the world. It actually took her by surprise how Tim accepted the know-how she was offering since a part of her was afraid that the boy wouldn’t trust anyone with his passion project.

Ellie shook her head and turned her body around until she was facing the hallway.

Out of nowhere, Bruce was standing with his back against the banister, one foot placed on the highest step.

Ellie suppressed a gasp from leaving her lips. That sneaky cat. Over time, she realized she would never grow out of that phase of holding her hand over her chest, like she wanted to contain that cardiac arrest just waiting to happen.

“Jesus,” Ellie muttered under her breath. She slowly walked towards him, like she was reluctant in facing the confrontation. “Someone decided to be a freakin’ ninja again, huh?” she mused.

Bruce decided not to dwell on Ellie’s words and merely nudged his head towards Tim’s door. “Everything okay?” Already concerned that Ellie knew something about his adopted kid of which he wasn’t aware.

The brown-haired woman waved her hand, dismissing it instantly. “Don’t worry about it. Just brought him something to drink. What are you doing here besides stalking in the shadows?”

“I feel like we need to clear the air,” Bruce mentioned softly, making Ellie’s heart thump nervously in her chest. His gaze didn’t hold hers for long.

Her anxious gaze swept over anything but him. “Do we have to though?”

Boundless patience shone in his hazel-brown eyes while he waited in silence for her to come to terms with the talk that was inevitable.

The breath she was holding expelled from her lips in a whooshing exhale when she laid her hands on her hips. Ellie let her hair drop over her eyes as a sign of surrender before she threw her head back.

“Okay, fine. You’re right. I might have gone all bloodthirsty on you. All this wrath and bitterness just swept over me. I just couldn’t help it when it felt like I was all alone with this.”

Bruce calmly arched an eyebrow. “You’re not.”

“Well, you’re like an oyster. I can’t tell what you’re feeling, Bruce, unless you actually say it out loud.” Ellie sighed, spreading her arms at her side.

Bruce blinked slowly. “If I would say what I was feeling, I wouldn’t get anything done around here. Besides, you have no idea how hard this is for me.”

“Then tell me,” Ellie whispered quietly.

“This is excruciatingly hard for me.”

“I just didn’t get you with everything that happened to Jason,” she explained cautiously. Ellie’s voice shifted to something sentimental. “You never told me he was your son.”

Something mysterious blinked in his eyes. “Jason Todd is … not someone I like to talk about,” Bruce muttered with a clenched jaw.

Ellie felt like she was invading unfamiliar territory but couldn’t help her fascination. She genuinely wanted to get to know Bruce again and understand him. “I noticed Jason’s costume … you put it down there on display like you don’t want to forget how he died. Like some sort of memorial.”

Bruce closed the distance between them, making her believe that they were the only people in the world. “I need to remember … the guilt, the shame, my biggest regret. That I couldn’t save him.”

He shook his head, letting a curl of his hair fall distractedly over his eyes. “Trust me when I say this, I never felt more conflicted than now. If I had stopped him before.”

“I’m sorry that you lost him,” Ellie breathed, her gaze sweeping to the ground before her eyes met her hand inching towards his chest in slow motion. Bruce’s warm skin under his clothes made her stomach slip downward. The tips of her fingers stroked his black sweater soothingly.

“Please tell me I’m not the only one who feels this murderous urge….” Ellie shrugged her shoulders teasingly. “Or just to maim.”

The corners of Bruce’s mouth twitched. “Maybe just a little bit.”

Tagging: @mellowstatesmanhandsempath​ @ravenmoore14​ @alwayshave-faith​ @ikranfuad​ @daydreaming-gemini​ @bluegalaxyprime​ @liadamerondjarin​ @steph21369 @andrewswifes-blog​ @yanna-banana

#steph writes #watchtowerindistress #we are not our demons #batfleck #batfleck x oc #bruce wayne x oc #bruce wayne fic #bruce wayne imagine #bruce wayne imagines #batman x oc #bruce wayne #bruce wayne fanfiction #batman imagines #batman imagine #jason todd #alfred pennyworth #dick grayson #bruce wayne x batmom

[aquanova99]

Can you do a headcanon of the guards meeting their human mate for the first time and their mate is all smiles and sunshine

Alec

Dead silence coming from this one for awhile

He has no idea what to say to you

Why are you being so nice to him? Don’t you know who he is?

You do? And you’re still being nice…you’re weird

Alec finds himself hanging around wherever you happen to be. If you happen to strike up a conversation then I guess he can talk but only because you’re talking to him (sure Alec)

However when you weren’t around someone had the nerve to say all of the energy was exhausting (shockingly not Jane) and they hoped you’d settle down once you were turned

Suffice to say Alec was not thrilled and when he told the other guard member to shut it, they wondered why he cared all of a sudden. He told them it was none of their business but if he heard them talk about you again they’d rip their head off

He begins seeking you out more and you’re unknowingly going to start chipping away the wall around him before you two are inseparable

Jane

She was shocked when you first came to the castle, you were only supposed to be a secretary since when does she care about secretaries

Literally only with you

She wants to be annoyed with you so badly but you are always so nice to her when you say good morning

When another vampires talks about she uses her gift a bit and tells them it’s not their job to gossip

She isn’t used to this kind of attitude from anyone, and she hates that she craves it so much

She will probably explode on you one day because she wants to know why you’re so nice to her no one has ever been this nice to her ever

Sunshine probably gives her a hug at this and Jane kind of melts a little when this happen letting her tears come out

She’s convinced you’ll be gifted in some way, maybe like Corin but there’s no way someone as bright as you wouldn’t have a gift of some kind.

Demetri

Loves it

Brags to everyone about it because he just finds it so sweet

Excited when everyone talks about how nice it is that you have so much energy

People tease him that you’re going to have way too much fun as a newborn (which you totally are)

Demetri is excited for the challenge

Will threaten anyone who even looks at you funny, like hand on their throat against a wall “talk about my mate again and we are going to have some problems.”

Sunshine mate is very oblivious to this

Felix

Also obsessed with it

But unlike Jane and Demetri he dreads the day you have to be turned

He’s worried you’ll hate being a vampire and your sunshine will fade away

Does not need to resort to anything like Demetri or Jane once people knew he had found his mate they were sure to keep their mouths shut

Glares at anyone if they don’t say hi back or continues conversation when his mate is trying to be friendly

Thinks you have to be protected at all costs, probably debated wrapping you in bubble wrap so nothing happen to you

Glad you are becoming friends with everyone and wonder why and how he got so lucky and why you would like someone who to him is the exact opposite of you

Heidi

Good the castle could use more sunshine around here

Loves to go out and enjoy more human activities with you because she knows you really enjoy it

You will probably stay human the longest with Heidi so long as you are good at keeping the secret

I think she’d be more clueless about people disliking too much energy

Because who could ever dislike you? That’s ridiculous

I hope no one find your shine because she will rain hellfire on them. She will hunt down everyone responsible and no one will be able to stop her nor do they want to

The only who could stop her honestly being the twins are just impressed someone could make Heidi that angry

But they’ve all grown to love you so if they upset you they deserve whatever Heidi is dishing out

#aquas asks #sorry if these are taking awhile #i think I’m dragging too much real life issues #bc honestly my feelings are sad #not fun when people think you’re calling them out #cest la vie

[dracwife]

never again. | bo

ship: my delilah → bo/heidi

word count: 1270

summary: heidi gets hurt, and bo’s sent into a fit of rage. i titled this ‘copium’ in my gdocs and that’s all this is. but yall said i should just post it anyways, so. here

cw for violence & blood, implications of (past)abuse

He feels his knuckles crack with every hit. Every connect of flesh to bone he feels himself bleed more, bruise and ache overpowers his every nerve and though it stings the adrenaline rushes through his veins and again and again he strikes his fist down, searing fire in his eyes burns as bright as the moon above, casting only a glow across the sidewalk which he's kneeled. 

Reflective is that glow, that against his skin shines the calloused hands and scarcely healed skin rounding his wrists. Blood drips, and he tastes metallic crimson and he swallows, creature of the night he might as well have been sitting like that; kneeled over the body of what could have been nothing but prey, tilting his head back to howl not at the moon but a strangled roar rips through his throat all the same as he falls back finally. Panting, beat for breath he gasps for air and with every exhale that drip that runs down his face falters for a moment. 

Violence is a part of him, inherent as the blood that runs through him and across his face and around him now, his heart beats as well as his hands may and he's learned to bury the things that bothered him not within but in the ground more often than not, and it's times like this he wonders just how that panicked voice behind him that approaches even stays. Inside himself he knows that even with the way he's battered before and again, he'd raise his voice but never a hand to that same one that falls around him now, hands tearing his own away from the body below him and begging. 

When he's ripped away and forced to stand on shaking legs, he's lit a cigarette with marred fingers that's quickly ripped from his teeth by that same shouting form and tossed to the ground, where Bo stomps it out with the same fury that he's atoned the body on the ground with. 

Gentle hands take his own, cracked skin that's stained black from oil and blue from injury, and drag him begging away, pleading to stop. 

He blinks away that rage that's still built within him, and allows himself to be pulled further, if only a few feet but his gaze trains on the figure on the ground still, waiting, hoping it moves again so that he'd get another chance to relieve them of that very breath. Were his knuckles not shone deep the color of cardinal, they'd have been white with the way his fists ball and his nails dig deep into his skin as he tries so desperately to rip himself away from the residual anger that reverberates through him. 

He's not a good man. He knows this. But he sure as hell knows he's a damn better man than the one that's there on the ground now. But it's the finer soul of them all that takes his hurt hands and cries, that buries their face into his chest and sobs, not out of anguish but of fear. 

"You don't gotta look," his fingers that sear with agony cradle their head to him, and he turns away from the scene splayed across the splattered pavement. 

"I wanna go home."

"We are. We are," he drawls, though he takes no steps as they hold tighter to his shirt and tremble in his touch. He can feel the water that will wash his hands of the blood already stinging and winces at the thought, but just as every kill before, he knows the same pain, the pain of knowing that the life that his hands take will never fade. And it's not that he minds, but fears that same reason he kills now will fade instead, would fear him, shy from his grasp when he hurts already. He's tired, and it's fucking with his brain, he tells himself this, but even then he's compelled to reassure --

"Nothing's gonna hurt you. You know that? Never again. I swear on my life. Nothing, ever again. Fuck."

"I just want to go home. Please." 

"You're hurt. You're hurt and it's all my fault --" 

The blood he's smeared into their hair now shines in the light and they don't seem to care, but he does. That blood that ties them together, spilt but binding and it's only when they take his wrist and press a gentle kiss there and plead, chanting their apologies that he brushes their cheek -- oh, but how soft their skin was next to his.

"Lester'll take care of it. C'mon," he pulls them away and down the path home. 

Their hand brushes delicate against their cheek, pale porcelain that glistens in the night, so careful do they raise their touch, "I didn't even notice."

He cuts them off with a grunt, and the flick of his lighter again he's inhaling that smoke that curls in his lungs and curdles in heat the same way his blood boils when he notices the cut that lines their jaw. He wipes their blood away, with his own taking its place and sighs. 

"He got you good there."

"I did." His words are muffled by the smoke that he mumbles out and the tobacco that ashes as he scarcely verbalizes those two simple words. 

"You'll be okay, right?"

So innocent is their questioning, so determined but concerned, their grip on his arm tightens and though he's walking next to them, they claw almost desperately at the fabric of his flannel in wonder. Afraid to lose him. Afraid to be left alone so soon. Afraid to be vulnerable again. He's angry again. Annoyed. At himself, for leaving them even just for that moment he ran into the station. He knew there was someone else there somewhere. He knew it, and he still left. Stupid, stupid man he was. His heart aches, and everything hurts and his mind is clouded with exhaustion as the adrenaline wears off, but he still trudges on down that road holding Heidi close. 

"Will you?"

They sniffle, wipe their face and though they're shaking still they lean against Bo's arm. It hurts, but the pain is worth the comfort if he's able; it's not something he can offer frequently, and he figures that if anything it's all he can do in that moment. So he lets them, and he blinks away the warm tears that threaten to rise when he feels his face heat. 

"Yeah. I…I think so," they whisper, grounding themselves with the touch of mangled scar, he wonders how that's ever easing but lets them anyway and brushes his fingertips as calmly as he can against their hands that are locked around him. His feet fall against the asphalt and distantly he can hear the dog barking. They're almost home now, four walls of safety, and he relaxes tensed muscles he hadn't even noticed were stiff before. Everything aches. But even so, he takes the cigarette from between his bruised lips, and taps at it gently as he watches the cindering flakes fall slow to the ground. A blaze that could mirror his own passionate hatred that even in that moment ghosted his mind and sank in his stomach. That soft touch brings him back, and as he glances at them he places the Red back in his mouth, tongue flicking at the paper for a moment as his eyes scan the other besides him for any other visible injury. When he finds none, he pulls his arm from their grasp against his side and wraps that same one around their shoulder to hold them closer. 

"Then I'll be alright, too."

#dex.writes #ᴍʏ ᴅᴇʟɪʟᴀʜ | r. － b.s. #Selfship

[lulupen2023]

Barty Crouch Jr/Aro Volturi Harry Potter/Twilight crossover part III (I)/III (II)

thank you sooo much for feedback <3

Summary:

Barty Crouch Junior's (somewhat horrifying) fate seems to have already been written… or maybe not? What if there was someone who has other plans for him?

Summary of the chapter: Barty enjoys his new un-life with Aro in Volterra, before receiving a very special invitation…

III (I): Immortality suits you …

Barty loved Volterra. There was nothing magical about it, of course, but he had never been to Italy. To the contrary, beyond London and Hogwarts, he had been in very few places. Perhaps just in some Missions for his Dark Lord, but those Missions didn’t allow him the luxury of being a tourist.

But it was different here. Feeling comfortable due to the spell that allowed him to go out even during the day without shining in the sun, so as not to draw attention on himself, he could take long walks among the hills and all that greenery reminded him of Hogwarts a little bit. And when he wanted to have some fun, he just had to lure someone, perhaps with the excuse of being a foreign tourist looking for information.  And once they were isolated, all that remained to do was to disapparate with them into the Volturi's Manor.

This was another of those days and he had just apparated in the main hall. He stood in front of the three thrones with Aro, sitting at the central one, looking at him with mock reproach. The only one who was truly reproachful was Jane, standing in the center of the room.

“Barty! Again?" she snapped, moving towards the more inexperienced vampire. "I was bored!" he shrugged as he tied his victim with magic ropes, silencing her with another spell. "You will expose us!" the blonde retorted. "It never happened." "You've only been here with us for three weeks!" "Well, it never happened in three weeks!" he remarked cheekily, snatching a chuckle from Aro. The millennia-old vampire loved his insolence.  

"Sister, never mind!" Alec interjected, with his usual apathetic attitude. "No, I do mind, he has to learn how to behave!" she insisted, ignoring her twin and addressing the newcomer.

"You know the rules. You don't go out hunting. Heidi takes care of bringing us the unaware victims when she organizes her trips, as she did yesterday." Jane retorted. "Oh yes, yesterday was a memorable day!" Barty licked his lips at the memory. "That’s it, you see? That gave us enough sustenance for a month. There is no need for these ... extras. " she mumbled, pointing to the victim. The girl could only look at them with terror in her eyes, tightening the strings each time she struggled. The ropes had already begun to cut her wrists and a few drops of blood spilled on the floor. "But it's funny!" Barty pointed out, bringing the bleeding wrist of the crying girl to his mouth and licking it, without even displaying his canines.

"Impudent! You can't always do as you please!  You deserve a lesson," she decided, staring at him. "Pain!" she exclaimed immediately afterwards.

Barty fell to his knees in excruciating pangs of pain, but still found the strength to pull out his wand. "CRUCIO!" he yelled, pointing it against her. This broke her deadly eye contact. Jane went from being the Executioner, causing deadly pain, to finding herself a victim, cursed by a suffering she had never experienced before. "I appreciate the attempt, pretty girl," Barty said with a smirk, "but I've had a year of tremendous and constant transformations into a guy without a leg and an eye. I'm rather trained in pain." He stood up, continuing his curse. "So what's it like to taste your own medicine?" In response, Jane continued to scream, lying on the ground, convulsing. "Aro, are you going to do something about it or what?" Marcus asked his brother, turning to the raven-haired vampire, bewildered. “Why on earth should I? They are so hilarious, much more than those jesters we had at court!" Aro chuckled. "The jesters didn't make us laugh even once, but they were delicious!" Caius grinned.

Deciding that he had had enough, Barty raised his wand, freeing Jane from his painful influence. Alec immediately went to his sister's rescue. "No one has ever treated me like this before ..." she muttered as Alec helped her up. "What a man!" she sighed in fascination, following Barty with her eyes.

- And he also called me 'pretty girl'! - she gloated to herself .

"And anyway, apart from the little taste I had before, I took her for you, Jane," Barty revealed, freeing the now passed out victim from the magic strings and throwing her into the more than surprised vampire's arms. "Oh!" was all she could say.

"I know you have a soft spot for young female students," the Death Eater murmured, then turned his gaze to Alec. "Next time I'll bring you a young scion." "There will be no next times!" Alec snapped. “There shouldn't have been this time either. Sister, repeat it to him, as well," he sought Jane's support. “Oh, such a fuss, brother, you heard it, right? Barty is cautious, he is discreet, and he takes only one victim at a time. He has not drawn any attention to himself. He will not expose us, ”she said to calm him, but Alec noticed  the smile that Barty gave her. "If you want, I can bring that fainted Muggle back to consciousness so you can have fun with it," he suggested with complicity. "Huh no, thank you. I prefer the old way. Time is not a problem for us." In the midst of this mess Alec felt betrayed and abandoned. "Aro, aren't you going to say anything?" he whimpered, trusting in his Sire’s intervention. "Sure. To you, Alec, I say  "Shut up, you're making a big deal about what is actually a trifle.’" Aro rolled his eyes, before looking at Barty. "To you, puppy, I tell you to follow me in my room. Seeing you at work like that is having a certain effect on me…” Barty rushed at him at supernatural speed, dragging him away with him. The destination was Aro's bedroom. Not that Barty didn't have his own, but mostly he was a regular and very welcome guest of the millennial vampire. "Well, I don't understand your tendency to give gifts to Jane. If you're  trying to get in good with her, I believe that already happened  a while ago," Aro scolded, tugging at his hair, as if to punish him. “Now are you also being nice to Alec? Shall I expect some cuteness of yours also towards Caius and Marcus? " In response Barty laughed, kissing him violently.

“I like you jealous, but you don't have to fear. Mine is just an attempt to integrate. I see Jane as neither more nor less than a sister, which in a certain sense she is… and as the only child I have always been, to me it’s such a new thing to experience. " he commented, snatching a tender murmur from his Sire. But Barty was aiming for nothing tender.

"As for you, I’m not even remotely playing nice!" the Dark Wizard grinned, pushing him onto the bed. A flick of the wand and the noble vampire's clothes dissolved, another spell just whispered and the magic cords imprisoned him to the bed. "If you think this will keep me away from you, you are a little too optimistic, puppy!" Aro growled excitedly, sure he could break the ropes with a few simple tugs, but he was astonished to find that the truth was very different. "They are vampire proof, you would never be able to break them, you would just hurt yourself… not that the prospect of seeing you bleed doesn't excite me!" the Death Eater chuckled, starting to unbutton his shirt very slowly and just a little, to torture him as much as possible. Aro expressed his frustration with a loud growl, further amusing Barty. "I don't need to take off my clothes for the moment," he explained, crawling over him with feline movements. "Now I want to dedicate myself just and only to you." He began with a long and moist kiss, more and more ravenous and voracious, before going down the throat.  There the temptation to pull out the canines was strong, but Barty was able to resist. There would be time.

He continued his kisses on his shoulders, along his arms, he lingered for a considerable time on his nipples, sucking and torturing them a little with his normal teeth. Every groan he drew from Aro was a clear invitation to him to continue. Barty did his utmost to pay attention to every part of the snowy body of the millennial vampire, leaving the showpiece for the last. Aro was by now consumed with impatient desire, but the wait was certainly worth it. Barty began to caress his member, now fully erect and throbbing, for some time, teasing just enough to drive Aro mad with lust. Then he placed delicate kisses on the tip, letting his jerky and quick tongue do the rest.

Aro was in even more raptures when the younger vampire took him in his mouth, gradually, without haste, in a slow and pleasant agony. That was before he felt a stabbing pain that made him scream wildly.

"Barty, did you bite me ... there ?" he asked for explanations. The pain gave way to tantalizing pleasure and an overwhelming orgasm, stronger than any he had previously experienced

"The urge was stronger than me, forgive me ..." Barty tried to apologize, raising his head and licking the remaining drops of blood from his mouth. His elongated canines were still on display as he watched the signs of their intrusion disappear from the offended part. "Puppy, remind me to never put a stop to your initiative!" Aro chuckled, still floating in ecstatic afterglow, and then became more serious. "Barty, what are your feelings towards me?"

Barty lay down next to him, taking a few seconds to collect his ideas. "I find your company very delightful. You keep giving me new stimuli, both as a vampire and as a Dark Wizard. And, last but not least, we have amazing sex!" He made Aro laugh in the last part. "Can this be enough for you, for now, without looking at all costs for the word that begins with L?" Aro stared at him silently and then smiled. "Yes, puppy, that's enough for now." "Either way, you are and will always remain my savior. Maybe it won't be romantic, but it’s very meaningful." Barty murmured, kissing him.

“Happy and proud of it. But now… what about you free me? So I'll show you why it was the right choice!" Aro looked at him and winked. Barty obeyed and quickly realized that Aro wasn't lying about it. --------------------------------------------- The days followed one another, time passing almost without Barty realizing it. Until one day, something most unusual broke the peaceful rhythm. The most recent of the maids that were their servants, a young girl who was about the age of twenty, with an uncertain gait and trembling hands, came into the presence of the Volturi with a letter closed by sealing wax. Miraculously, it did not slip from the silver tray that supported it. Barty was standing beside the wall, looking at the servant and then at his Sire, as if it was a game of ping pong.

"Mis-MisterVolturi, I-I bring you a letter from a certain Mr. Moldevort ..." she stammered in utter confusion, extending the little tray towards him. Aro tore off the sealing wax, but his eyes were on the unfortunate young woman. Barty was also glaring at her. "Sweet Sandra, I guess you meant Lord Voldemort!" Aro corrected her coldly.  

"Y-yes, I'm sorry, pl-please-forgive me!" The unfortunate woman did her best to apologize. "Tsk, tsk, I don't tolerate distraction when communicating with me!" He shook his head, bored. "It will not happen again!" she assured. Aro grinned in a way that froze the blood in her veins. "Oh, but I know it won't happen again," he commented with a chuckle. He turned his bemused gaze to Barty. "I can, can’t I?" the younger asked impatiently, already clutching his wand in one hand.

"Oh yes, puppy.  Have fun as well," his Sire agreed. "I'll have to find a servant who can speak correctly!" he snorted, bored. Barty was already behind the girl, but she didn't dare speak or move. He tugged her violently by the hair, to take her to the adjacent room and from there the others heard only the chilling screams from the unlucky girl and the sadistic laughter from the Death Eater for an indefinite time. "I'd say he's not one of those who get right to the point," Marcus commented. "I find him funny," Caius gave his opinion. "We needed some noise in this house!"

When he decided he had played enough with his victim, Barty unceremoniously cast the Killing Curse and the others noticed the green glow. "I'd say I feel  much better now!" he commented, satisfied, returning to the three thrones. “I told you you were going back to Hogwarts, didn't I? Well, my beloved, the time has come. Voldemort expresses a desire to see you again. We will leave at sunset and do not even try to offer me some of your magical devilry. I travel the old way and you will keep me company," he said firmly, making Barty laugh. "I would even go there on foot, as Muggles step, just to reach that place!" Barty swore. "I know and, yes, you can have his letter," Aro smiled,  anticipating his wishes, and handed it to him. During that same day Barty lost count of how many times he had reread the letter. He stroked the now dried ink of that elegant and majestic handwriting with his fingertips, imagining the tone of his Dark Lord's voice and his mood at the time he had written it. Certainly he would keep it among his fondest mementos. -------------------------------------------------- - The carriage dropped them off at Hogwarts Castle. Lord Voldemort had arranged everything for their arrival. The Dark Lord had recommended that, before reaching his headquarters at the Malfoy mansion, the two should take a tour of the school to see how much things had improved. Everything had been explained in the letter. Barty was delighted to return with Aro to the school that had seen him as a teacher for a year, especially when he found that there were only young Pureblood wizards who were learning the Dark Arts under the guidance of other trusted Death Eaters. He found with pleasure the two Lestrange brothers, Rodolphus and Rabastan, who had recovered from the devastating years of captivity. ------------------------------- Aro was quite nervous when they met Fenrir Greyback. But, rather unusual for the quarrelsome nature of Barty, the young man was able to act as a peacemaker between the two of them and the werewolf. "I'll have to give Voldemort a nice little speech about how inconvenient and very deplorable it is to keep such a fleabag in a public place. It undermines the decent image of Hogwarts," Aro muttered his disappointment, amusing his Childe, as they entered Diagon Alley. Barty had shown his Sire the magical secret passage at the back courtyard of The Leaky Cauldron. "If anything, I don't understand why my Lord entrusted those incompetent Carrows with such tasks, not to mention Lucius!" the young Death Eater growled, deeply annoyed. "You know, Aro, this street was always teeming with people, especially Halfbloods and Mudbloods. Now none of them dare to be seen around here anymore!" he informed his Sire with satisfaction. "If it weren't for the fact that we have already had a large dinner before leaving, it wouldn't cheer me up at all, my dear." “At least Purebloods and Death Eaters are allowed to walk around here. They probably were told of our arrival. They do well to hide," the Dark Wizard grinned proudly. ----------------------------------- Narcissa preferred not to welcome their guests. They were instead entrusted to that coward, Wormtail. He led them to the hall where Voldemort was waiting for them. "Master, I brought you Aro Volturi and Barty, as you wished," said the animagus, looking for approval from his Master.

"Leave us alone, Wormtail," the Dark Lord ordered in a hissing voice. He was sitting with his back to them. He only got up after his servant had taken his leave. 

"Aro, my good friend," he greeted the millennial vampire. They both smiled as Voldemort walked towards him. "I thank you above all for the comfortable journey you arranged for me to have," Aro said. “I had to do something," Voldemort smiled. "You definitely don’t strike me as someone who enjoys trains." "That's true," the millennial vampire proudly agreed.

"And, Barty, my boy!" Voldemort turned his attention to him. The Dark Wizard was looking at him with religious silence, kneeling on the ground and gazing up with adoring eyes. But something was wrong. Voldemort realized that he must have practiced some camouflage spell on himself to change his complexion and eyes. "Ah-ah, Bartemius, no masks with me," he admonished, shaking his head. He gestured to show that the younger man could get up. Then he ran a hand over his adoring face, thus canceling the effects of those spells. Now Voldemort was satisfied. “Were you ashamed of what your new nature is now? You shouldn't. Look at yourself; immortality suits you ... ” If only he was still able to do that again, Barty would have blushed. "My Lord ... you ... you are beautiful," he let out. It was just as Aro had described him to him, even better, those icy eyes that looked at him so deeply then… Barty could have drowned in those eyes. "Keep your enthusiasm in check, my dear fanged boy!" a high-pitched female voice interrupted them. "Idolizing my Dark Lord is my job. I'll take care of it," Bellatrix purred as she moved up to stand next to her Master.

From her sudden entrance, Barty knew she had probably apparated into the room. (End I)

The distracted maid scene is inspired by the hidden scene in Twilight (one of my favorite Aro moments, I had to recreate it … with a few variations that I hope you enjoyed; P)

More, so much more to come and get ready for lots of Bellatrix’s and Barty’s cat and dogs fights XD I just hope you enjoyed so far, pleeeease, let me know

#barty crouch junior #barty crouch jr #aro volturi #twilight #harry potter #crossover #crossover fanart #fanfiction #fanfic #barty crouch fanfic #aro volturi fanfic #dark #what if #alternate ending #plot twist #vampires #vampire turning #rating: nc17 #bloodplay

[allinmycorner]

Welcome to Night Two of Week 5! This time, our contestants talked about their prom experiences as Dancing With the Stars threw a prom in the middle of October!

We also had the return of the dance marathon. The remaining eleven couples first danced the hustle as the judges voted for which couple to remove one by one. Daniel and Britt were the first casualties, earning only one additional point. The longer the couple stayed in, the more points they got. After Wayne and Witney were tagged out, the couples switched to the lindyhop and could leave their assigned squares. In the end, it came down to Shangela and Gleb and Jessie and Alan. And Jessie and Alan won, winning eleven additional points as well as the titles of Prom Queen and King.

So who had the prom of a lifetime and who had one they'd rather forget? Let's check it out!

(Note: While the show combined the scores for the two nights, I did not so my standings will look different from the ones on the show).

Joseph and Daniella: I'm not very surprised Joseph ended up going home this week. We're now reaching the point where people are going to go home, no matter how much they've improved or how likeable they are. At least he gets to go out on his cha-cha to "Shut Up and Dance," which was a lot of fun and a high point for him.

Gabby and Val: Gabby got the season's first official perfect score! (Selma's score the night before did not count and was mostly symbolic). She danced a tango to "Good Girls Go Bad" and while Gabby is technically good, she still needs to bring more emotion into her routines. But now that she's reached the top, can she stay there or will someone dethrone her if she's not careful?

Charli and Mark: Charli did not tie with Gabby and Wayne this week! In fact, she came in right behind them before the marathon and her extra points pushed her up the leaderboard again. But she had a fun jive routine to "You Make My Dreams by Hall & Oates. She and Mark have an easy chemistry that really helps with their routines and Charli just keeps wowing everyone week after week.

Shangela and Gleb: Shangela has come into her own and has been declared an honorary fly girl after her cha-cha to "Waiting for Tonight." Shangela and Gleb had a a good mix of performance and technical skills for a wonderful routine. She may be the best positioned to possibly upend our front runners and could hoist the mirrorball trophy with Gleb if she continues to improve like she has.

Wayne and Witney: Wayne also got his first perfect score, the second of the competition, with his samba to "It Takes Two." The dance went well with the song and Wayne nailed the rather difficult dance. He had a lot of fun with it and continues to be the best male dancer in the competition. He could be the one hoisting the mirrorball and if he's not, he's likely going to be the one standing next to the couple hoisting it because I think he can make it all the way.

Jessie and Alan: This probably was Jessie's best dance but I do consider the Viennese waltz one of the easier dances. (With the caveat that I am not a dancer). And she is higher up since she was Prom Queen and got 11 points. She really shined in the hustle and the lindyhop so brava to her. Could this be the turning point for her? Only time will tell.

Heidi and Artem: Heidi did a jazz routine to "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" and brought some early 90s to the ballroom. She did struggle a bit and had a few missteps but it was still fun to watch. Especially as Artem decided to dress as a nerd who got to dance with the cool girl. Interesting take but still a pretty good routine. And Heidi did last longer than her daughter in the dance marathon, so she gets to have some bragging rights this week.

Trevor and Emma: Trevor broke the bottom two streak! He was not in the bottom two and bounced back with a good jive to "Basket Case." He invoked his punk stage and looked very sexy, if you ask me. I hope this is good sign for Trevor and he'll continue to dance for a bit longer.

Jordin and Brandon: Jordin danced a contemporary dance to her own song, "No Air." She went to prom the same year she released the song and it played at her prom, with the spotlight on her. But her classmates were not impressed by it at all. So she got to reclaim that moment with a light but beautiful contemporary piece with Brandon. Jordin is still one of my favorites and I can't help but root for her, especially when she leads a singalong of her song in the skybox.

Daniel and Britt: I liked Daniel's cha-cha to "Sexyback" but it seems the judges disagreed with me. I hope he isn't losing the momentum. He really could be the dark horse instead of Trevor on the men's side but he needs to stay consistent. I love watching him dance and hope I can continue to do so for a bit longer.

Vinny and Koko: This was probably Vinny's best dance and his chance to go to prom since he didn't get to go to his. He and Koko danced to "You and Me" and looked very gracefully. But as I've noted, I find it hard to mess up the waltz unless you just stand there while your partner dances around you. But Vinny has been giving it his all, which is impressive. Does it mean he should win? Probably not. But he'll be interesting to watch until he's eliminated.

Our double show week is now over! Next time, Michael Buble will pop in as a guest judge while the remaining couples dance to his music.

See you then!

#dancing with the stars #season 31 #joseph baena #daniella karagach

[mplaylistdiaries]

August 2018

Summary: My Senior Year. Man was I a mess. I was doing my stage management internship while writing my twenty four page research paper. Which, I had no plan for at all that year. So, I decided last minute to just do it on my favorite fairytale and just run with it. My professor had me rewrite the first half of my paper at least ten times that semester before I even got it right. And, by that point I was stressing on whether or not I was going to even be able to finish my paper. 

PLAYLIST LINK

A Thousand Years (Instrumental Cover) by The Piano Guys

There is a Reason by Konomi Suzuki

His Daughter by Molly Kate Kestner

Whiskey Lullaby by Alison Krauss & Brad Paisley

The Wisp Sings by Winter Aid

Lonely Heart by 5 Seconds of Summer

Unsteady by X Ambassadors

Demons by Imagine Dragons

Willow by Jasmine Thompson

You Say by Lauren Daigle

Youth by Daughter

God Help The Outcasts by Heidi Mollenhauer & Chorus of The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Myth by Beach House

I Found by Amber Run

Not About Angels by Birdy

Heal by Tom Odell

I’m Still Here by John Rzeznik

Believer by Lea Michele

They’re Only Human by Frank Wildhorn, Jack Murphy, and Ivan Menchell

Get Off My Back by Bryan Adams

Cello Wars by The Piano Guys

You Can’t Take Me by Bryan Adams

Meet Me On The Battlefield by SVRCINA

Piece by Piece by Kelly Clarkson

Hold On by Extreme Music

Say When by The Fray

Shine by Caroline

Whatever It Takes by Imagine Dragons

Ready As I’ll Ever Be by Varian & Cast of Tangled

Gone by Beth Crowley

Unstoppable by Sia

Nothing Left To Lose by Jeremy Jordan & Eden Espinosa

I Didn’t Ask For This by Beth Crowley

Something Wild by Lindsey Stirling 

Since U Been Gone by Kelly Clarkson

Why Should I Worry by C.T & Becky Townsend

Lone Digger by Caravan Place 

This Day Aria by Princess Cadence and Queen Chrysalis

One Shot by Hunter Hayes

Lake Effect Kid by Fall Out Boy

Birds by Imagine Dragons

This is My Idea by Lex de Azevedo

Can’t Blame A Girl For Trying by Sabrina Carpenter

Close ft. Tove Lo by Nick Jonas

Need You Now by Lady Antebellum

Too Young by Sabrina Carpenter

Perfect by Ed Sheeran

Turning Out by AJR

Shallow by Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper

Jealous ft. Tinashe by Nick Jonas

Congratulations by Dessa

Stay by 5 Seconds of Summer

Say Something by A Great Big World & Christina Aguilera

Shatter Me ft. Lizzy Hale by Lindsey Stirling

What Is Love by V Bozeman

Watercolor eyes by Lana Del Rey

Leave a Light On by Tom Walker 

Rally Go Round by LiSA

What Hurts The Most by Rascal Flatts

You Are The Reason by Calum Scott

Dandelions by Ruth B.

Symphony ft. Zara Larsson by Clean Bandit

Maps by Maroon 5

When She Loved Me by Sarah McLachlan

Always Remember Us This Way by Lady Gaga

Let Her Go by Passenger

Sleeping by Secret Garden

The Night We Met by Lord Huron

Beggin’ by Maneskin

Brothers Under The Sun by Bryan Adams

Syndicate by The Fray 

Photograph by Ed Sheeran

The Call by Regina Spector

Light by Sleeping at Last

I Want Crazy by Hunter Hayes

A Thousand Years by Christina Perri

I Wouldn’t Mind by He Is We

Saturn by Sleeping at Last

Again by Yui

Enchanted by Taylor Swift

Have We Met Before by Sarah Barrios & Eric Nam

If You Love Me for Me by Julie Stevens & Mark Luna

The Gospel Truth I/II/III

Issues by Julia Michaels

Love Me Harder ft. The Weeknd by Ariana Grande

Starlight by Starset

Eastside by Benny Blanco, Halsey, and Khalid

Better Than One by The Score

Noble Maiden Fair by Peigi Barker & Emma Thompson

Man in the Mirror by Keke Palmer 

Bless The Broken Road by Rascal Flatts

I Will Always Return by Bryan Adams

Master of Tides by Lindsey Stirling

My Jolly Sailor Bold by Ashley Serena

Raising Hope by LiSA

When Will My Life Begin by Mandy Moore

I Need To Know by Cassidy Ladden

Catch The Moment by LiSA

Colorful World by Shayna Rose

No Roots by Alice Merton

#senior year #playlist #music therapy #therapy #diaries #mental health

[fox-buried-in-maple-leaves]

Thunder & Lightning Strikes

If it weren’t for the storm, he wouldn’t have invited the man over.

But with Vesper gone for the week to attend to their clan duties and Heidi away with Miya. Not to mention Cirino was in Italy with that stupid reaper… He didn’t particularly have anybody else to invite over. He tried loud music, but the storm was louder. Video games didn’t prove to be any help either, not without Cirino at least.

Mieran shook the rain water off of himself as he stepped inside of the house, Alee all but slamming the front door shut behind him. The sorcerer quietly locked the door, hands shaking as the storm raged on. “I really didn’t expect that text. Is everything alright?” The reaper inquired, turning to watch his friend’s husband. 

Alee opened his mouth to say something, some witty retort about how he was just trying for Vesper’s sake. Some half truth he always managed. But nothing came out. The windows beside the door lit up as lightning struck, thunder following soon after. Alee’s tail dropped almost immediately, his ears flattening against his head. 

The thunder roared again and Alee backed away quickly from the door, darting beyond Mieran and further into the house. It clicked for Mieran, vaguely remembering Vesper once mentioning the sorcerer was petrified of thunder. “Let’s go do something. Away from the windows.” Alee’s shaky voice suggested from the dark entrance.

The reaper was momentarily put off by the red shine of the other man’s eyes staring at him in the dark, somehow not expecting the sight. But he relaxed, following Alee into their home. “What did you have in mind?” Mieran inquired as Alee proceeded to turn on every single light between the entrance and the living room, including the kitchen light and the light for the stairs.

“Uhm something loud, preferably. Movies? Movies can be loud.”

Mieran took a seat on the couch, eyes following the frantic sorcerer. Thunder shook the house and Alee jumped, grabbing his tail and bringing it close to himself. “Uhm.. All our movie apps are connected to the Smart TV thing, go crazy.. Just no romcoms!” He hesitantly made his way into the kitchen to grab something.

Free rein? Wow they must really be out of it. Mieran leaned forward, grabbing the remote off of the coffee table and turning the TV on. The white couch was in front of large windows, the windows covered by heavy black curtains however. The reaper switched on the TV, scrolling through the available apps.

Alee wasted little time placing snacks and drinks on the coffee table, judging by what he brought out, he’d been stress cooking before Mieran arrived.. But before he could ask about it, the sorcerer apologised and quickly headed up the stairs. Not a romcom.. If Mieran recalled correctly.. Alee liked horror? But if he was wrong.. 

He settled on some crime horror. If anything, it’d be loud enough to cover the sounds of the storm that terrified the sorcerer so bad. Mieran wanted to call them friends, but he wasn’t entirely sure. Most of his knowledge on the man secondhand, things he picked up from Vesper or even Lumio. Hell, he wasn’t even aware Alee could cook until this moment.

Mieran’s train of thought was interrupted when a pillow hit him in the face, the pillow falling into his lap. Alee stood at the base of the stairs, large red and black comforter wrapped around his shoulders, another pillow in his arms. He, reluctantly, turned some of the lights off for the movie. The strike of thunder. The sorcerer scurried to the couch, seating himself directly beside the reaper. 

“So.. Thunder?”

“Shut up, reaper.” Alee huffed, unfurling the blanket and throwing it over the both of them. Mieran just laughed, used to it at this rate. He pressed play on the movie, setting the remote aside after he turned the volume up high. He then helped himself to food as the movie began to play, only partially paying attention to the way Alee hugged his pillow.

The movie wasn’t the most entertaining thing in the world, but at least it was fast paced and loud. Really all Mieran was looking for in order to soothe the sorcerer’s jumpiness. All was going well until the movie grew silent for a scene and thunder loudly sounded, the fox yelping at the sudden sound. 

Mieran blinked when Alee threw themself at him, strong arms wrapping around his waist, the edges of his glasses pressed against the reaper’s torso. Mieran hesitantly raised his arm, afraid to touch the relatively dangerous sorcerer based on past experiences. Another bang and Alee whimpered loudly, a hushed French apology escaping his lips. 

The movie’s sound resumed loudly, but Alee didn’t let go, still hiding against Mieran’s side underneath the heavy blanket. He frowned, cautiously lowering his hand onto what he assumed was the sorcerer’s shoulder. “It’s okay.” Mieran quietly reassured him, frowning somewhat when their grip tightened around him.

Alee’s phone rang and the sorcerer’s yelp was even louder before he exhaled heavily. The man sat up, the blanket falling from his head as he pulled his phone from his hoodie pocket. “Oh so now Cirino can get back to me..” He mumbled, using his free hand to adjust his glasses on his face. 

He tossed his phone onto the couch beside him, almost immediately falling back against Mieran’s side instead. Mieran willed his heartbeat, hoping the soft repetitive thudding would help calm his friend who had their head on his chest. “Never took you for the cuddly type.” He halfheartedly joked.

The sorcerer scoffed, tail swishing with his annoyance, but he made no attempt to move away. Mieran predicted the next bang of thunder, bringing his hands up to cover Alee’s ears as the lightning struck. When it passed he dropped his hands wordlessly, focus moving back to the movie. 

Minutes passed, and with each one he could get more comfortable, get closer. Twenty minutes and Alee was letting him run his fingers through their hair. The long loose messy strands of black hair silky and soft as he gently brushed through them. “Thunder.” Mieran warned quietly, Alee covering his ears quickly. 

They fell into a sort of routine, Mieran doing his best to predict the changes in electrostatic charges in the atmosphere to warn them ahead of time. And for the most part, it seemed to work, Alee surprisingly relaxed. While the sorcerer worked on picking the next movie, Mieran took the time to check his phone, free hand still playing with their hair.

Vesper.. The text was simple, inquiring on how Alee was feeling. Mieran subtly turned the flash off on his phone, leaning in such a way he could at least attempt to take a photo of Alee without the man knowing. He quickly took one, showcasing the sorcerer resting against his chest. “That better only be going to Vesper.” Ah, caught. Mieran sent the photo nonetheless. 

Alee’s phone beeped soon after and the man put on an old horror movie he always enjoyed, swapping the remote for his phone. “Great now xe thinks I’m getting soft for you.” Alee sighed, the fluffy white tip of his tail flicking, his right ear twitched. Mieran set his phone down in his lap, resuming his calming actions of brushing his hair.

“Is that so bad? They do want us to be friends.”

The sorcerer rolled his eyes as he texted a response to his spouse about not being soft for anybody. Mieran released his hair to cover his ears, lightning striking and thunder booming seconds after. “We are friends. Doesn’t mean I’m soft for you.” Alee huffed, dropping his phone once more. 

Mieran got the distinct feeling that the other man was lying, somehow. But he shrugged it off, dropping one hand to his lap and the other back to Alee’s long hair. This was the best encounter the two had, he wasn’t about to ruin it by teasing him further. Not yet, at least. And Alee seemed thankful for it, resting comfortably against his side. 

#☾*✲⋆. Creatio Ex Chao #⋆｡°✩ Alee #𓆩✧𓆪 Mieran #⋆｡°✩ Bleeding Ink #☾*✲⋆. Fates' Will #i AM posting bleeding ink before spiced maple its a sin i know #post timeskip and whatnot