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platypanthewriter · 4 years

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Billy Hargrove: Possessed Trash Bandit

For @awickedplacethisis

Steve was always aware of the motion lights around the swimming pool, after Barb. He’d stood at the ready menacing maple leaves that had fluttered in front of the sensor, inflicted mutual terror on at least five deer, and the evening a Canada goose landed clumsily on his roof, thudding and scraping as it rolled the entire way down, he nearly batted it into Christmas dinner.

He was immediately aware when the lurching human being crept from the door to the Upside-Down in the tree by his pool.

At first he just grabbed his bat, wondering why he didn’t screw a piece of plywood over the hole, or at least wrap the whole tree in duct tape, but he registered a human head, and hair, and—and it wasn’t like the figure was menacing anyone, stumbling around Steve’s pool, finishing off the leftover beers and a half-box of Cheez-its. He waited until it had shaken the box three times, and pulled out the bag, scraping long broken fingernails inside the Cheez-it box looking for more.

“Got some cold pizza inside,” he said, from the shadows, and the figure stumbled back, shielding its face.

“What,” it asked hoarsely, and Steve recognized the voice. The bat nearly slid from his fingers.

“Hargrove?!” It—Billy Hargrove, who was supposed to be dead—flinched, and Steve lowered the bat. “Billy,” Steve tried. “Let—lemme call someone. Hopper. Your sister Max, she thinks you’re dead—”

Billy shook his head violently, holding his hands up, and Steve dropped the bat.

“Come here,” he said, trying to keep his voice level. “...come inside,” he whispered, thinking of Max, sitting alone on Billy’s bed in his empty room, and Eleven, who Billy had sacrified himself to save. “Come get some food.”

Billy lowered his hands, so Steve finally stepped closer, grabbing a thin, dirty hand, cold in his grip.

“Jesus, Billy, are you even alive?”

Billy lowered his head. He looked alive, as Steve squinted into the darkness. His skin was scarred everywhere with dark lines, and his lips and nails were blue, but he was breathing, and he shivered as Steve pressed his fingers under the dangling earring, checking for a pulse.

“Come on, Billy,” Steve tugged him forward. “Come inside.”

He’d lost weight, but Billy Hargrove was still the guy who’d spent his free time lifting weights, so Steve’s pulling at his wrist wasn’t getting them any closer to the house.

“I’m going to pick you up if you don’t walk,” he said, finally, and Billy stumbled a couple of steps forward before nearly losing his balance again. He was barefoot, Steve registered, and pinched the bridge of his nose before bending to sling an arm around Billy’s waist, and haul him over his shoulder in a fireman’s hold.

He plonked him in the kitchen—pushing him into a chair when he swayed alarmingly—and handed over the pizza box to watch Billy fall upon it like a dog that finds something disgusting in the yard and wants to eat as much as possible before you tell it no. Four slices in, he started to slow down, cold-sweating, pressing his fingers to his mouth, and hunching his shoulders, so Steve slid the pizza box away, pulling the half-eaten piece from Billy’s hand. He didn’t resist.

“Jesus,” Steve told him, softening his voice as Billy twitched. “Don’t make yourself puke.”

Billy didn’t want hot water—as a shower or bath—and nearly dropped the cider Steve made him, from the instant packets Steve’s boss had tucked in everyone’s locker with one stingy wrap of curling ribbon and no bow. He turned back from the microwave to see Billy fiddling with the ribbon, frowning vaguely.

Steve pressed Billy’s bluish fingers around the mug, turning away to frown out the window at the pool, then swung back around at Billy’s hiss as he spilled the cider. Steve steadied his hands. “Jesus,” he whispered. “I’m gonna get you a blanket, at least—” he made it two steps towards the living room, when his shirt slid down over his shoulder, its cuff in Billy’s fist.

Billy let go, closing his eyes, and Steve stared at him, then rubbed his face, and crouched next to Billy’s chair.

“I’m not going anywhere,” he said. “You get that?”

Billy didn’t react, but when Steve grabbed the down comforter he’d drug downstairs for when he was too lazy to go to bed, he turned away from the couch and smacked into Billy, standing inches away.

“Holy shit,” Steve shouted, and Billy flinched again, stumbling away, so Steve grabbed the blanket and wrapped it around him, pulling him back towards the couch. He shoved his new—roommate?! down onto the couch, tucked the comforter around him, and held up a finger. “Stay,” he said firmly. “Stay there. Gonna get the nail clippers. Okay?”

The blanket crumpled as Billy clutched at it, but he didn’t reply.

“Stay,” Steve repeated, running to the bathroom. When he walked back in the front room, Billy’d slid off the couch. He was in a pile of comforter between the couch and the coffee table, his eyes darting.

“...Harrington,” he whispered hoarsely. “Why are you here. We—we have to go, they—they’ll come back—”

“Jesus,” Steve said, for what felt like the seventieth time. “You’re back. You’re in my house, you’re safe.” He knelt in front of the pile of blanket.

“What do you mean, I’m back,” Billy hissed, reaching out to grab his hand. “We can’t—we can’t stay here. I can take you somewhere safer—”

“You’re safe already,” Steve argued, squeezing Billy’s hand, and clipping the nails that were most torn.

“It’s not safe where there are lights,” Billy tried to stand without letting go of Steve’s hand to push himself up, and didn’t get very far. “Harrington, you fucking moron, what are you doing here, you have to listen, I know I’m gonna sound crazy—there are monsters here, Harrington,” he shook Steve’s arm, swallowing. “Monsters worse than me. They’ll come for you—”

“Okay, okay, I believe you,” Steve gathered him up again, half carrying the Billy-burrito to the wall to switch off the lights.

“...how did you make the lights go off,” Billy asked, wide-eyed, and almost fell, and Steve put both arms around him.

“I have magic monster fighting powers,” he told him, trying not to laugh, but Billy’s eyes teared up, and he swallowed hard, grabbing at Steve’s shirt again.

“Help,” he whispered. “Please. I know I’m—I know I’m another monster—”

“I’ll use my magic to protect you,” Steve told him, pushing him back onto the couch. “You’re safe, Billy.”

“You’re gonna get tired,” Billy whispered, settling in a fluffy lump against him. “Wake me up before you go, don’t just—don’t fucking leave me here—”

Steve could feel him shaking through the comforter, and he leaned closer. “I magicked this space safe,” he told Billy, who nodded, taking in a shaky sigh. He smelled like rusted metal, or possibly blood, and rot. The dark veins across his cheek and neck didn’t look as dark as they had, out in the snow.

“...I’m not even hungry here,” Billy mumbled, and Steve put an arm around him, squeezing, and wrinkling his nose, as Billy’s voice rumbled under his chin. “How long can I stay?”

“Oh,” Steve stared at the tangled hair leaning against his shoulder. “Uh, I need you. I’m gonna pull you back through a magic doorway while you’re asleep, okay, buddy?”

Billy nodded, closing his eyes again, but grabbed Steve’s hand through the blanket. “O-okay. I’ll—whatever you—what do you want me to do? Can I—” he swallowed. “How long can you keep me out of here?”

“No,” Steve shook his head, pulling Billy Hargrove, surreally, into a two-armed tight hug. “No, you’re mine now, okay? You stay with me, and I’ll use my magic to keep you safe.”

“I can’t use magic,” Billy whispered against Steve’s chest, his eyes fixed on the window, and Steve squeezed him tighter.

“All you need to do is trust me,” he told him. “Just trust me,” he whispered against Billy’s nodding head.

Steve snuck off to pee either late that night or early the next morning, and returned to find Billy sitting up, looking around. “You did it,” he laughed shakily. “You came and got me. What—what do I need to do?”

“Jesus,” Steve muttered to himself, again. “How much do you remember?”

“You saved me, because you need me for something,” Billy said, shivering. He pulled the blanket back up around him, rubbing his arms. His eyes were clear, and looking around curiously, and Steve bit his lips, uncertain whether to drop the lie yet.

“Yeah, um...you want a shower?” he asked, cautiously, and Billy groaned.

“If there’s time, yeah, holy shit. Can I—can I take one?”

“I’ll get you a towel and sweatsuit,” Steve said, dodging the issue of Billy’s view of reality. “It’s through there. You need me to help you walk?”

Billy shook his head, biting his lips. “If I open that door and you vanish, I’m gonna cry,” he said matter-of-factly. “You won’t care, if you’re not real, though, will you?”

“I’m real,” Steve told him, pulling him up by one hand. “Want me to call your sister while you’re in the shower?”

“Shit,” Billy said, and snorted. “I—” he swallowed, rubbing his face. “Am—am I going to jail? I killed those people. God, I’m not even—they can’t put a monster on trial, they’ll shoot me in the head—”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” Steve interrupted Billy’s weirdly calm theorizing. “I won’t call anybody, we can talk about it later. Shower first. Here you go, through here.” Billy nodded, then made a high noise in his throat as Steve shut the bathroom door between them.

Steve blinked at it, then wrinkled his nose, and asked, “You, uh, you need me in there while you piss, or—”

“No,” Billy laughed. “No, I’m fine.” He was still laughing a little, against the door, as Steve walked away, but halfway through rummaging through his drawers, Steve heard him yelling “Harrington! Steve Harrington!” and ran down to smack the flat of his hand a few times against the door.

“I’m here, you’re in my house, you’re safe!” he shouted back, and didn’t hear a reply, so he took a deep breath and opened the door on Billy wedged in the corner of the shower, staring at him with wide-dilated eyes.

“Billy,” Steve whispered, and he inhaled sharply.

“Water’s cold,” he whispered. “Did you put me back? Am—am I—” he looked around, his thinner, scarred chest panting with shallow breaths.

“No! I can’t. And you’re fine, it just takes forever to heat up.” Steve took a deep breath and shoveled more bullshit onto the lie pile, reaching in to turn off the shower. “I used most of my magic to bring you out,” he told Billy solemnly, and received a tight nod. “I—can’t put you back, no matter what you do. And I, uh, I made a bunch of spells. Here. On my house, so that can’t happen. And me. And my, uh, Hawkins. You’re safe. Super safe.”

“Th-thank you,” Billy let his head lean back against the wall, closing his eyes.

“I’m gonna order us some food,” Steve told him, having checked the time, and found it later than he thought, and Billy started giggling.

“Can’t order takeout in there,” he was mumbling to himself as Steve left.

Steve ordered about four extra things to stuff Billy with, then looked around his house. Billy yelled his name every few minutes, and Steve answered, feeling like he was playing Marco Polo. The thought of bringing Billy to bed was...weird, so he hauled the air mattress in, and made it up next to his bed, then scrabbled at his hair, and hauled his homework downstairs.

When Billy came out, his scars and skin pink and healthy, he followed Steve’s gaze and smirked, flexing his biceps. Steve rolled his eyes and waved at his spread textbooks. “What I need from you is help with the homework,” he told Billy. “Max said you were smart.”

She hadn’t, but Steve didn’t want to imagine what kind of tasks he’d need Billy Hargrove enough to summon him like an evil genie, so they’d just have to stumble through Steve’s calculus.

“What,” Billy stared at the books and papers.

“Nancy dumped me and it’s weird now,” Steve told him, truthfully enough. “You can do whatever you want as long as you try to help me, uh, edit this essay.”

“...why would you—”

“It was hard work bringing you back,” Steve just let the bullshit train take him, the feeling familiar from talking to girlfriend’s parents about why his own were always busy. Handily, waving a magic wand to rescue a dead guy sounded about as likely as finding him half-naked outside, rooting through the trash like a raccoon. “I fell behind on schoolwork. Got you out as fast as I could. So, uh, will you help me?”

“How can you be magic and that shitty at essays,” Billy squinted at him, allowing himself to be pushed into a chair.

“...you were trying to bring me back?” Billy wandered closer. “...why would you…”

Steve tried to imagine having magic powers, and also derail this from looking too generous. “You did most of it yourself. Stayed alive, found the door.”

When the Chinese food arrived, Billy was standing waaay too close again, and Steve returned to the table and just sat against him, feeling him relax. “You’re safe,” he said. It was becoming a habit. “You’re with me, I’ll keep you safe. Want an eggroll?”

Billy nodded, watching him, and Steve put his arm around Billy’s waist, rather than squish it between them.

“...I don’t remember all of this,” Billy said after a while, his tone bleak, and Steve reached up automatically to squeeze his shoulders.

“We got time,” he said, noticing Billy’s ears and cheeks turning red, and wondering whether it was the heat from the shower, finally circulating everywhere. “I’ve got you, remember?”

“Yeah,” Billy laughed, quirking his mouth. “You’ll keep me safe.”

#harringrove #platypan #platypan fic #Feel better Wicked Place #hurt/comfort #Steve Harrington: pro at improv #Billy Hargrove: Usually a cynic but at this point who knows?!

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chockfullofsecrets · 6 years

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Class 1-A vs. Tickle Might: Part 2

Rating: Gen

Summary: ...title is really the best explanation I can offer

Word Count: ~3.2k

A/N: Thank you so much to everyone who’s reading these and leaving me feedback, and to @gigglingknight for proofreading :) This brings us to nine students down and... quite a few still to go. Let me know what you think!

<<Part 1 :: Part 2.5>>

While it was difficult to track a villain through a crowded city, there was usually some kind of trail to follow: explosions, destruction, screaming. Things became even easier when the villain was running to something –an exit, perhaps.

However, this exercise required All Might to track down twenty teenagers that were trying their absolute hardest to hide and wait him out. He was going to need a little more than just his observational skills.

A little more, it turned out, was an app on his phone attached to the training ground’s security cameras – a simple map that showed a red dot in every location where detection algorithms noticed a humanoid form. Cheating, perhaps, but he and Aizawa had agreed that it might be necessary.

He fished the device out of a pocket on his skintight suit, squinting at the tiny screen. Several dots in his vicinity, and – ah, five or six of them clustered together in the same building. Definitely a good place to start the next phase of his attack.

The mockup of an office building was windowless, pale concrete glittering in the daylight. Starting on the first floor and working his way up was the obvious plan; anyone on the higher floors would be trapped unless they could sneak past him.

He momentarily considered entering through the front door, then remembered that he was playing a villain and knocked his way through a wall instead. “I AM HERE, READY TO CONQUER MY OPPONENTS!”

The room was empty save young Ojiro, who backpedaled frantically as one of All Might’s hands came perilously close to grabbing him. The boy skidded to a stop in the opposite corner, feet planting firmly as his arms came up in a defensive stance.

All Might crossed his arms and stared him down. “Young Ojiro! I’m glad I found you!” he boomed cheerily, then winced as the look in his student’s eyes teetered on the edge of outright panic. “That’s an excellent stance!” he complimented, a little softer.

Ojiro blinked at him. “Ah, thanks?”

The boy’s tail twitched as All Might drew closer. He held up a conciliatory hand. “Just taking a closer look. Feet turned to avoid any buffeting from the front, yet positioned to spring easily to either side, tail used as a counterweight… it appears very sturdy!”

He grinned as Ojiro flushed a little under his praise, still watching warily for a potential attack. “Uh… are we going to…”

“Fight? Only if you don’t wish to surrender first, young hero.”

Ojiro shifted his feet, smiling a little. “I’ll take my chances!”

All Might feinted forwards, expecting a sideways dodge. Instead, Ojiro dropped straight to the ground. Rolling forwards, he wrapped his tail around All Might’s leg and tugged. The hero tumbled backwards, but with his quick reflexes he clapped his legs together and trapped Ojiro’s tail between them.

Now they were both on the floor. Ojiro made a swift move towards the pressure point on All Might’s left knee, but his wrist was quickly caught in his opponent’s massive grip.

“Young hero, it’s very unwise to get tangled up with someone who has a longer reach,” he tutted. For example, I could do this!” He reached out, barely stretching his free arm, and scampered his fingers up Ojiro’s vulnerable ribcage.

The boy snickered, eyes widening. “W-wait… this is…”

“You see,” he continued, drilling his finger into the soft side within his reach and watching triumphantly as Ojiro was overtaken by giggles, “I have some knowledge of pressure points too.”

Ojiro squirmed like an eel as he tried frantically to separate himself from All Might, his free hand slapping at the ground. The room was filled with his laughter, rebounding off the concrete walls, but – there. Another giggle, much higher pitched.

All Might raised his head and looked around. Nobody. “I take it we have a certain invisible student with us?”

The higher-pitched giggling stopped. Ojiro, whose side was still being mercilessly tickled, choked out, “Tooru! Yohohou were s-supposed to attack stehehealthily!”

“Sorry, sorry, the two of you just look funny! I’m helping!”

A pair of invisible hands started to pry All Might’s right hand off Ojiro’s wrist finger by finger. “The other hand, Tooru!” Ojiro pleaded, still trying to worm away from the invading digits of his left.

“I need both hands for this,” she chirped. “C’mon, you can hold out for a bit longer. A little laughing never hurt anyone!”

“It tihihickles!”

“Okay, okay!” Something smacked against All Might’s other hand – Hagakure’s foot, most likely. “Don’t be mean, sensei! Shoo!”

He laughed, pausing his attack to wrap his hand around her ankle. “A noble sentiment, young hero, but you’ve put yourself in danger now!”

“No!” It was chaos for a few seconds – Hagakure trying to pry her leg free, Ojiro giving a mighty tug with his captured tail. He wouldn’t be able to contain both of them this way.

Hagakure was the more valuable target; she didn’t show up on any of the cameras and would be much harder to find if he let her go now. He released Ojiro and rolled to his knees, casting a hand in front of him to find the girl’s waist and pull her down. Ojiro, gasping, pulled his tail free and climbed to his feet, stumbling for the exit. “Tooru, let’s run!”

“Ojiro, help!” Hagakure yelped, facedown on the floor. “He got me!”

The boy wavered for a moment, still in range for an attack, then turned back to the door. “I’ll get help from the others upstairs; just hold on!”

His indecision would cost him. All Might managed to pin Hagakure with a knee pressed gently into the small of her back, and, both hands free, grabbed Ojiro’s tail and sent him sprawling with a decisive pull. “Hah! Two heroes captured!”

“And no hands to tickle them with, villain,” Ojiro growled, bending double and latching onto All Might’s free arm. “Gotcha!”

“I’m willing to work with what I have!” proclaimed All Might, turning to Hagakure and dragging Ojiro with him.

“Wait, wait! Not that!” Hagakure squeaked. Evidently she had her head turned to watch the both of them, and as the tuft of Ojiro’s tail drew closer to her she knew what was coming.

Squealing, loud and unrestrained, filled the room as All Might lightly dusted the end of Ojiro’s tail over Hagakure’s unprotected back and sides. “Nohoho! Go away, go away!”

“Sorry,” Ojiro called, laughing despite himself. “Didn’t you say a little laughing was okay?”

“Shut uhuhup! Why is your tahail so soft!”

At that affront, Ojiro reached out to tweak her side. “Don’t be mean!”

“Ahahaha! Not both of you! I surrender!” she squawked. All Might lifted his knee to let her get away, but they could both still hear her heaving for breath. “Ha… man, this exercise is different than I thought.”

“A valiant effort nonetheless, young Hagakure!” he praised. “Your stealth makes it nearly impossible to attack when you’re not forced to engage with your opponent.”

Footsteps crossed the room, and Hagakure’s shoes and gloves appeared from behind a corner. “Thank you, sensei!” She started to put them on. “That was kind of fun! I didn’t know Ojiro’s tail could tickle that bad!”

“Neither did I, my girl! A lucky occurrence on my part.” He turned suddenly to the owner of said tail, still clinging to his arm. “Now, what shall I do with you?”

Ojiro was already grinning nervously as his friend skipped over. “Try his tail, All Might-sensei! Kaminari messes with it in class sometimes, and he always freaks out!”

“Tooru, come on!” Ojiro protested.

“You didn’t save me!” she retorted, gloves on hips. “Actually, you were helping him!”

“Hah, a rivalry!” All Might grinned. “My girl, would you care to demonstrate?”

Hagakure took hold of a struggling Ojiro’s tail, gloved fingers scratching lightly into the tuft of hair at the end. “You’d expect that it would feel good, like when you get your head scratched, but I think it just tickles him a lot!”

“And what do you think, young Ojiro?”

Ojiro didn’t answer, but his collapse into helpless cackling proved her theory correct. She let her teacher take over, helpfully rubbing her friend’s shivering back as he laughed himself silly. By the time he called for mercy, there were tears welling up in the corners of his eyes.

They helped him sit up. “You’re both… so mean…” he panted.

“Don’t you feel less stressed now that you don’t have to worry about All Might-sensei destroying you in combat, though?” Hagakure asked.

“Heh, I guess so.” Ojiro ran his sleeve across his face. “Thanks for not killing us!”

All Might chuckled. “You’re welcome, my boy. Go to the exit, you two, and enjoy your summer break!”

They left through the hole in the wall; he headed for the stairwell, sure that some of his students were still in the building.

He wasn’t expecting to find four of them right there in the hallway.

Sero, Aoyama, Shoji, and Tokoyami were all rooted to the ground in the dimly lit corridor, apparently halfway though a rushed evacuation. They stared up at him like he’d just melted from the shadows, and in return he graced them with a brightly villainous smile. “Ah, more young heroes. And you’ve even lined yourselves up for me!”

“Merde,” Aoyama hissed, an octave above his already high voice, and that broke the spell.

“Run!” Sero shouted, shoving them all to the door, and the five of them spilled out into the daylight on each other’s heels.

The four boys were still huddled together, backing away from his imposing figure. Sero, in front, looked wildly around. “Aoyama, get out of here! You and Dark Shadow can’t fight in the same space!” When the shiny-surfaced boy failed to move, he slung some tape around his waist and, with a grunt of effort, sent him sailing up to the nearest rooftop.

“Not so fast!” All Might sprang forward to grab the tape-slinging boy – one arm around his waist, the other moving to grab the tape before it could disconnect. Aoyama wailed in surprise as a sharp tug sent him tumbling back down into the fray.

He grinned at them both. “You’re right, young Sero! It’s a definite advantage for me to have Aoyama here. And you really should stop slinging your teammates into the air without any regard for your own safety.” He deftly bound Sero up with the still-dangling length of tape –“don’t get yourself tied in knots, my boy, I’ll be right back for you” – and carried Aoyama with him as he turned to face his two remaining opponents.

Shoji and Tokoyami were running, Dark Shadow unfurled behind them. Even with a wriggling Aoyama hoisted over his shoulder, it took him about five seconds to catch up to them. Dark Shadow squawked an alarm, and the two students spun around. Shoji leaned down, whispering something into his friend’s ear, and Tokoyami nodded sharply in response as he held a hand up. “Dark Shadow, shield us!”

The shadow folded in and around, encasing the two in a bubble of swirling black with two flashing red eyes. “A defensive move, huh?” All Might stopped a few feet in front of the enclosure, lowering Aoyama to the ground. “Young Aoyama, I think we both know what’s going to happen next.”

The boy was hugging himself over his armor, a desperate attempt at protection. “I won’t let you use my amazingly bright twinkling to get to Tokoyami!”

All Might rocked back on his heels, considering. “Well… you could surrender, if you don’t want to take that chance.”

“I don’t want to do that either!”

“In that case…” He wormed a finger into one of the gaps in Aoyama’s ostentatious torso armor, jerking back in surprise as even that slight brush against his belly produced a reluctant squeal and a bolt of blue energy from the boy’s navel laser. “My boy, I don’t think you’re in much of a position to bargain.” Seeing his student’s expression sour in disappointment, he leaned in and patted him gently on the head. “Besides, helping me out wouldn’t be something to regret. Don’t you think that those two could use some more, ah, enthusiasm?”

Aoyama beamed at that. He really was very bright; All Might almost felt the need to squint when confronted with his blinding white teeth. “Of course! Even a failure on my part will bring sparkles to the eyes of my classmates!”

“Exactly! Well, my boy, let’s see just how brightly you can twinkle!” Aoyama’s armor was loose enough to wriggle his fingers underneath, and the mere action of doing so was enough to send him into cascading squeals of laughter while creating his own little light show. “Hm… perhaps a little calibration…” He rolled his student over a little, aiming the random flashes of his laser roughly at Dark Shadow, who began to writhe under the sparkling assault.

The poor shadow disappeared into Tokoyami’s chest with an empty fizzle, and almost immediately Aoyama giggled out his surrender. “Mission… accomplished…” he wheezed into the ground. “Prepare for the sparkle of life to overtake you, Shoji and Tokoyami!”

With one last congratulatory pat to the boy’s head and a reminder to leave the training ground, All Might stood and turned to face his next victims, both of whom were backing slowly away from him. “Ah, you two have come back to the light! Who should I take on first!”

“You protected us admirably, Tokoyami,” Shoji said, stepping forward. All six of his arms were wrapped around himself. “If you run now, maybe Dark Shadow can still recover.”

“A noble effort indeed,” All Might agreed, wrapping a friendly arm around Shoji’s wide shoulders and pulling him aside. “Not even trying to mount a defense, huh? You seem very nervous.”

Even with his ever-present mask, it was easy to see Shoji’s jaw work as he decided what to say. “All Might-sensei, I – well, I have six arms.”

“And six armpits,” All Might said, nodding companionably. Shoji’s face was slowly reddening. “If I had six hands, I would definitely take advantage of that.”

“No one has six hands. Except me.”

“Exactly. Even I just have the two, so really there’s nothing to worry about! Just relax! You can surrender whenever it becomes too much.”

Shoji’s arms loosened a little from their death grip around his torso, and he took advantage of the opportunity to pull the uppermost pair above the boy’s head and pin them in one of his hands. A menacing wiggle of his fingers caused Shoji to freeze in place, strangled giggles already making their way out through his mask. “I – Ihih’m – pretty, uh, pretty ticklish, so I don’t think I’ll last very long.”

“That’s fine, my boy! Now, I know the mask will hide it, but I hope you’ll give me your brightest smile anyways!” He softly stroked the membrane between Shoji’s first and second pair of arms, inwardly cheering as the boy squeezed his eyes closed and dissolved into laughter.

“Ehehehe! I’m smiling, I’m smihihiling!”

“Excellent! But can you smile… bigger?”

A foray directly into the hollows separating Shoji’s arms proved that he could, as evidenced by a ticklish scream and several flailing pairs of arms. “AhahHASTOPSTOPPLEHEHEASE!”

Shoji used the sudden freedom of his hands to bury his face in four of them. All Might, trying not to laugh at his embarrassment, drew him into an engulfing hug. “It’s all right! Aizawa-sensei and I weren’t expecting anyone to be immune to my battle techniques, and you were very brave in defending your friend!” The boy nodded sheepishly into his chest, and he sent him on his way with one last squeeze.

Perhaps he’d handle young Sero next. He peered down the street, looking for the restrained boy, and noticed with some chagrin that only a pile of sticky material remained. Really, he should have expected him to be able to break free of his own tape. Regrettable, but surely he’d be able to find him later.

He turned just in time to be barraged by Dark Shadow, back to nearly full strength. “Ah, young Tokoyami! You’ve recovered!”

“I have,” the boy conceded, bowing his head. “Not in time to rescue Shoji, but that doesn’t mean Dark Shadow and I won’t try our best.”

“I would expect nothing less from you, my boy,” All Might declared, and was immediately forced into a wrestling match with Dark Shadow as the feathered entity tried to swallow his head whole.

The shadow was corporeal, to an extent, and after a brief struggle he managed to get a grip on the thing’s neck and force it back a bit. On a hunch, he buried his hands in what would have been neck fingers and wriggled them around a little.

Dark Shadow snapped at him unhelpfully. More telling was Tokoyami’s reaction – under the assault on his shadow, he flinched and let out a sound that was nearly a chirp, his hand twitching towards his neck.

“You two really are connected, I see. Tell me, can your Dark Shadow feel this?” He dug in a little more enthusiastically, and this time the disembodied head seemed to show a bit more of a reaction, shivering furiously in his grip.

“He can,” Tokoyami conceded through gritted teeth. “Although it – heh – it seems he’s passing most of it on to me.”

“Good bird,” he commented, and tickled it under its chin until, squawking in silent hilarity, it melted from his grasp and tucked itself neatly back into Tokoyami. Said student was shaking slightly on his feet, the occasional snicker trickling from his beak, but he managed to raise his head and look All Might firmly in the eye as he approached.

All Might poked him in the stomach, curious to see the reaction. When that produced another flinch, he moved onto carelessly scribbling over the boy’s belly and ribs, feeling the muscles strain as Tokoyami fought to maintain his composure while staying completely still. “H-how – the embodiment of darkness does not normally – giggle.”

“Your Dark Shadow? It does seem to have a mind of its own sometimes. Maybe it likes the tickling.” A particularly good squeeze to Tokoyami’s side had him folding in on himself, beaked head dipping sharply as if to hide the laugh that slipped out. “At any rate, you have more ticklish spots than it does, but maybe the two of you share one in particular.”

He gently tilted Tokoyami’s head back up and scratched under his chin, cooing to himself as the boy’s eyes fluttered closed and he made that chirping sound again. “Ah, is that what your laugh sounds like?” He tried the tickling again – his ribs, his belly, the silky feathers at the back of his neck. Tokoyami fared much worse this time, arms flying up to push at the attacking hands as he continued to chirp, the occasional recognizable laugh coming out as well. “There it is! Tickle tickle tickle – don’t be embarrassed, my boy, it sounds quite nice!”

Tokoyami was in a pile on the ground before he admitted defeat, leaning weakly into his teacher’s side as he giggled breathlessly. All Might rubbed his back, mentally calculating how much time had passed and wondering if he had time to walk his student to the exit.

It was then that the sensation came over him. The scuff of a foot against gravel, some sixth sense from decades of hero work, all of it assembled unconsciously in his brain to alert him.

Someone was watching them.

He looked up, wary, and there it was – a pair of mismatched eyes looking coolly back.

#bnha #my fic #class 1a vs tickle might #tickling #chocfic

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fanfics4all · 6 years

Text

A Lodge Between Us: Part 2

Request: Yes / no

Don’t be shy, request things! <3 Have a nice day/night (Request are closed)

Archie x Lodge!Reader

Word count: 3100

Warnings: Nothing I think.

Y/N: Your Name

Y/N/N: Your Nickname

F/C: Favorite Color

Summary: You’re Veronica Lodge’s little sister and are dating Archie Andrews. You’re nothing like your sister, you don’t care about the riches and you don’t follow your parent's orders blindly. You become close with the Southside and want to stop your father but your father has gotten into Archies head and is the devil on his shoulder.

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Masterlist

Part 1, Part 2

(Not my photo, credit to whoever made it!)

Veronica and I were walking out of The Pembrooke when Smithers stopped us from leaving.

“Oh, wait, Ms. Y/N. You might want to take the side exit.” He said and we looked at him confused.

“Why?” I asked.

“Yeah, why Smithers? Because she might bump into me coming in from an early run?” Our father said slightly out of breath, walking in the door.

“Good morning daddy.” Veronica said with a smile.

“Good morning, Father.” I said with a neutral expression on my face.

“Mija. You leave before breakfast, you come after your mother and I have had dinner. I can't remember the last time we had a meal together as a family.” He said with a slightly annoyed tone.

“I can. It was at the Dakota. The day you got arrested.” I said with a sarcastic smile.

“Y/N!” Veronica said shocked.

“Well, perhaps we should talk about that. Tonight, at dinner. The four of us.”

“Unfortunately, I have plans. To quote that New Yorker cartoon, how about never, Dad, is never good for you?” I said in his face then walked out the door to school.

It was after school and Betty, Jughead, Veronica, Archie, and I were all sitting outside talking.

“It's another win for the bad guys. No one was there. His entire staff quit. He says he's not sure how long he'll be able to keep the doors open, maybe not even a week.” Jughead said, he was talking about Pop’s. He had gone there for breakfast and it was horrible, he even told us how someone spray painted ‘Death Diner’ on the side of the shop.

“It's because of what happened to my dad. People are freaking out. And I gotta be honest, guys, I don't see myself going back any time soon.” Archie said and I placed a hand on his back.

“Wait, I'm sorry, am I hearing acceptance? I'm not letting one psychopath with a gun dictate what happens to our place.” Betty said and then looked at Jughead.

“Jug, you went crazy trying to save the drive-in.” She added.

“I can't take on any more social issues right now. My hands are full.” Jug said with a sigh.

“With your dad, of course. And he should be your priority. I'll take point on helping Pop Tate.” She said ready to think of a plan.

“I'll help, too, Betty. Hey, anything to get me away from my parents, I'm in.” I said smiling.

“I’ll help too.” V said.

“I gotta jet. I'm off to meet my dad's court-appointed joke of a lawyer at the sheriff's station.” Jughead said grabbing his bag.

“I'm gonna come with you, Jug. I gotta drop some flyers off for Sheriff Keller.” Archie said also grabbing his things. I gave him a kiss and the boys got up to leave.

“Bye.” I said and the two walked off, leaving us girls alone. The three of us talked about what we could do to help Pop Tate out for a few hours and then we all went home for the night.

I was sitting at my vanity all dressed for the day, I was wearing a gray and white striped crop top, a high waisted pink skirt, white ballet flats, and had my pink purse at the ready. For makeup, I did a pink and gray eyeshadow with a winged eyeliner and a more natural toned pink.

I was just finishing my lips when my phone rang. I looked to see who it was and it was Betty.

“Hey B, what’s up?” I answered.

“Hey, Archie’s bed looks like it hasn’t been slept in recently…” My face contorted in confusion.

“Um, okay. Thanks, Betty I’ll go over there right now.” I said and hung up. I finished my makeup, grabbed my purse and quickly left the house.

I got to Archie house and knocked on the door. Archie answered the door shirtless and smiled when he saw it was me.

“I know you haven't been sleeping in your room. So where exactly have you been spending your nights?” I asked him speciously.

“Come in, let me get dressed then let’s walk.” He said stepping aside to let me in. I waited for him to get dressed and then we left his house.

“So Betty?” He asked.

“Yes, Betty. Ever since you and your dad got home from the hospital, she's noticed your room's been unusually empty and quiet. Why?” I asked confused.

“So I can Watch the doors. So I can make sure no one comes in. I know it sounds crazy, but the guy who shot my dad is still out there, Y/N/N, and I'm scared he's gonna come back and finish the job.” He said with a sigh.

“Archie, you went through something deeply traumatic. Can I make a suggestion?” I asked looking up at him.

“Please. Anything.”

“When I lived in New York, I saw a therapist once a week to help me get through all sorts of family drama. Now, I'm not saying to go see a therapist, Archie, but maybe the school counselor could help?” I said and he looked down at me with a small smile.

“Or I’ll always be here for you Archie.” I said with a smile.

“I know you are Y/N.” He said and kissed me.

We continued our way to school and I was meeting Betty, Veronica, and Kevin at the Blue and Gold office. We all sat down and Betty started talking about ways we can save Pop’s.

“We can't let the terrorists win. We need to host an event at Pop's that reminds the town of simpler times. Like, a throwback to when the shoppe first opened its doors.” She said with a smile.

“Betty, I like a good milkshake as much as any girl, and Pop's puts Serendipity 3's to shame. But, why this hill to die on?” My sister asked and I looked at her confused. She was all for this yesterday…

“Orange freezes with my mom and Polly after ballet. Chicken noodle soup with my dad after ice-skating Grilled cheeses with Archie on the last day of summer vacation. It's where I met you for the first time, Vee.” She smiled and then looked at Kevin and me.

“It's where I met you guys for the first time.” She said still smiling.

“Also Jug. He may lose his dad, but maybe I can save this one place for him For all of us.” She said with a slightly sad tone. There was a knock on the door and we all turned towards it.

“Hey, Y/N, may I speak to you?” My dad asked holding my F/C roses and a small white box.

“Daddy!” Veronica said happily.

“Daddy?” Kevin and Betty said confused and looked at each other. I sighed and got up to go talk with my father.

“Every day I was in prison, I thought about getting back to you, your sister and your mother. And I knew it wouldn't be easy, I knew it would take time. Meet me halfway.” He said as we sat down at a table.

“I would love for everything to go back to the way things were. The four of us, walking into some fabulous gala or ball. You with your favorite girls. But I can't. The blindfold's off, Daddy, I can't just put it back on.” I sighed.

“I'm sorry, but I should get back to my friends.” I said grabbing my bag and standing up.

“Yeah, hey, so Were you, uh Planning a dance in there?” He asked with a small smile.

“An event. To keep Pop's from closing.”

“Well, if I can help in any way-”

“I’ll let you know.” I said cutting him off and walked back into the school.

We continued talking about the event when the bell ran telling us that we had cheer practice. Betty, Veronica, and I went to the locker room and got changed then went out into the gym.

“Humpty and Dumpty. Y/N. Just in time to meet our newest recruit.” Cheryl said motioning to Josie.

“In addition to my duties as a Pussycat. And, I just wanna say, girls, I'm so excited to work on my moves and to be a team player, as long as I'm in the front.” Josie said smiling back at us.

“Wait, Cheryl, does that mean you're taking the Vixens back from me?” Veronica asked and Cheryl gave her signature smile.

“But, really, Veronica, were they ever yours?”

“Cheryl, we were wondering if maybe the Vixens would help at an event to save Pop's.” Cheryl laughed a bit then smile.

“Oh, Betty. I did not emerge from the frozen depths of Sweetwater River, nor the flames of Thornhill, to allow my Vixens to sling milkshakes at some death-cursed diner. The answer is a double-cherry-on-top no.” Cheryl said and smiled again. She shooed us away.

“Okay.” Betty said with a smile.

“Great talk.” Veronica said with a smile also.

“Not you Y/N/N.” Cheryl said holding my wrist and kept me talking with her and Josie. We practiced and Cheryl had put Josie and I in the front with her.

The next day was Saturday and I told Betty I would get some decorations for Pop’s I was just coming home with a large bag when I got a call.

“Oh, Ms. Y/N, I'll take those for you.” Smithers said taking the bag from me.

“Oh, thank you, Smithers.” I said smiling at him then answered my phone.

“Hey Betty.” I said and Smithers and I started walking to the elevator.

“An anonymous buyer is buying Pop’s!” She said causing me to stop walking.

“What?” I said shocked and then took the bag out of Smither’s hands, he looked confused but I was so annoyed that I just walked away. I went upstairs and saw my parents and sister eating dinner.

“Are you buying Pop's? The way you bought the drive-in? Anonymously?” I asked walking up to the table and placed the bag down.

“And are you doing this just to buy me? Yesterday, at school, did you think, "Oh, Y/N's working so hard to save the Chock'lit Shoppe, I'll just save it for her!"” I said angry and walked closer to my father.

“Y/N, I'm not buying Pop's. Now, please, lower your voice and sit so we can speak civilly.” My dad said motioning to a chair.

“Do you really want to talk, Dad?” I asked raising my eyebrow.

“That's all I've wanted. A fair hearing. To explain myself.” He said and everyone looked at me.

“Okay. Let's talk about Mr. Andrews.” My mother and sister’s eyes widened.

“Mom asked him to sell his portion of the SoDale project, and the day after he rejected the offer, he was shot in Pop's. Was it your doing?”

“Y/N, first you accuse me, then your father?” My mother asked shocked.

“No, no. I didn't shoot Fred. Nor did I hire someone to do it.” He said stopping my mother.

“I may not be daddy’s little girl, and I may not be your favorite but I still defend you! I kept telling myself, "He's not that bad. You can forgive him." And then you sent me this. A letter threatening you, Mom. That's the kind of man you're letting back into our lives.” I said pulling out a letter and handing it my mom. Her and my sister looked at it and then looked at my father.

“Y/N, Your father didn't write this letter. I did.” My mom said and I looked at her confused.

“I don’t understand…”

“I needed you to testify on your father's behalf, so I wrote this letter. Threatening myself. Not your father.” She said and my dad reached over to hold her hand.

“She did it for us. To survive. So we can be a family again.” He added with a smile. I scoffed and shook my head looking at them.

“You two deserve each other.” I said grabbed my coat and walked to my room.

“Veronica, go talk to your sister.” Is the last thing I heard before I walked in my room.

Moments later my sister walked in. I was getting dressed for bed and she sat on my bed, her legs crossed.

“You need to get over this vendetta you have against daddy.” She said and I rolled my eyes.

“You need to wake up and see the darkness in him!” I said annoyed that she still thinks they’re actually good. She rolled her eyes at me.

“Y/N-”

“Unless the next words out of your mouth are you’re right and I’m sorry, I don’t wanna hear it.” I said cutting her off.

The next day I was staying late at school, avoiding going home, but also helping finish the posters and whatnot for Pop’s. I sighed looking through the pictures on my phone of my dad and me happy, before I realized what he was doing.

“I don't have red hair, nor broad shoulders, or a blonde ponytail, for that matter. Do you wanna talk?” Jughead said grabbing a cupcake and taking a seat.

“You were ready to walk away from your dad, And now, you're crusading for his freedom. What changed?” I asked with my arms crossed.

“He did. He made an effort. Took another swing at being a good dad.” He smiled taking a bit of the cupcake.

“But don't you think some people can't change? Like, it's just in their DNA to be bad?” I asked and his smile fell.

“I'm not gonna presume to know what lies in your father's heart. But Archie's dad almost died. And my dad is going away for 20 years. If there's even a .0001% chance that your dad is trying-”

“I get it… Thanks, Jug.” I smiled and he smiled back. He left and I stayed a bit longer to finish up then went home to get some much-needed sleep for Pop’s tomorrow.

I got dressed in my Vixens try out uniform and meet my sister outside our house. We walked to Pop’s having mindless conversations until we got there. Everyone was there cleaning the outside and inside to get ready for tonight. I grabbed a bucket and went to help Kevin.

“Hey, has Betty called?” He asked Veronica when she walked by.

“Not yet. Let's pray Cheryl comes through for them.” She said and walked away. They were talking about FP’s trial and it was going to be hard for Jug if his dad didn’t make it. We all finished up, Betty and Jughead walked in with uniforms and skates for the girls and aprons for the boys.

It dark out now and there were only a few people that actually showed up. I was at the counter waiting for more customers when Josie walked in. Her and Betty talked in hush tones so I couldn’t hear what they were saying but then they walked outside. Everyone followed and Josie, Melody, and Cheryl were on the roof singing a cover of ‘Milkshakes’. I went back inside to serve tables when my boyfriend walked in.

“Hey Daddy-O.” I said walking up to him.

“Hey.” He said and wrapped his arms around my waist and I wrapped mine around his neck.

“You made it! You feeling okay?” I asked worried about him.

“Yeah. Just taking deep breaths.” He said a little scared.

“I’m proud of you.” I said with a smile and kissed him.

“Come on, you take a booth. And I'll get you a shake.” I said sitting him down.

“Daddy! Mom!” I heard Veronica say and when I turned around there they were. I walked up to them with a neutral face.

“We're not here to fight, we're here to be supportive.” My dad said with a smile.

“Dad, Mom. I've been thinking.” I said and looked over at Jughead, he gave me a smile and a nod.

“Tonight is a new beginning for Pop's. And Maybe it can be for us, too.” I said carefully.

“That's up to you, mija. If that's what you want.”

“Let's try. But, you guys, total transparency, okay?” I said making it clear to them.

“From now on.” My dad said with a smile and we hugged.

“In the spirit of that, I propose that Lodge Industries make a charitable contribution.” He suggested and I smiled and nodded. They went to sit down and I went to go get Archie his shake.

After a little while Pop Tate gathered everyone up to make a speech, I was in Archie’s arms watching Pop talk.

“I gotta put her on the spot. It's thanks to this young lady here that Pop's gets to stay open tonight, tomorrow As long as you folks keep coming!” He said point at Betty and everyone started cheering and clapping.

“Thanks, also, to the Lodge family for a donation they just made that gives us a little cushion to weather any storm that might come up.” He said pointing to my parents. Again everyone cheered at clapped. Betty, Jughead, Veronica, Archie and I all sat in a booth with our own milkshakes and coffee.

“Y/N, should I introduce myself to your dad?” Archie asked looking at my parents.

“You've faced enough dragons for one night. Next time, baby.” I said with a smile.

“So, I guess tonight is a win for the good guys.” Betty asked looking at Jughead with a smile.

“A rare win, but, yes.” Jughead said with a smile of his own.

“Thanks to you Betty.” Veronica said.

“You okay?” I asked Archie as he looked out the window.

“I'm here with you guys. So, yeah. I think so.” He said and I snuggled into his side.

Once the night was over I went home with my family. We walked into The Pembrooke and someone new was at Smithers’s desk.

“Evening, Mr. and Mrs. Lodge. You must be Y/N and Veronica.” The man said and Veronica and I looked at each other confused.

“Where's Smithers?” I asked.

“Oh, he didn't tell you? His mother fell ill so he went home overseas to care for her.” Our father said.

“Did he leave a forwarding address?” He asked the new guy.

“I'll try to track one down, sir.” The new guy said.

“Thank you, Andre.” Dad smiled and he and mom walked away. Veronica and I looked at each other then Andre confused. We followed our parents up to our apartment to turn in for the night.

Tag list: @jojokoko0717 @lilaqueenquinn @lonelydoode @nixdunbarhale @nixdunbarhale2

#riverdale #riverdale imagine #riverdale season 2 #archie andrews #Archie x reader #archie andrews x reader #archie x lodge!reader #archie andrews imagine #betty cooper #jughead jones #betty x jughead #veronica lodge #veronica x sister!reader #hermione lodge #hermione x daughter!reader #hiram lodge #hiram x daughter!reader #fanfic #request

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