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jtl-fics · 6 months

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Fluent Freshman - Part 42

There are things that change a person.

Moments where after they happen they simply cannot un-happen. Things that a person hears that they cannot un-hear. Promises that a person makes that they can’t, and perhaps even wouldn’t, un-make.

Jeremy’s moment came over winter break the previous year. Jeremy heard things that he could never un-hear in the middle of the night. Jeremy made a promise that he would never break while in the guest room of his parent’s house holding one Jean Moreau tight as he talked about the Nest.

Jeremy was different after that night.

Not wildly different. Not to most.

The only ones who knew had also had a moment, had also heard things, and had also made promises that they intended to keep.

Jeremy is on his way back from the bathroom with a freshly washed handkerchief from the Fox’s most promising Freshman when it all happens.

He watches Richard throw a glass on the ground and go for Caleb’s throat which in all honesty he had been anticipating since he’d seen the seating arrangements. Sitting the Jackals with the Terrapins? After Caleb seduced Alyssa during the Fall Banquet? Who thought that was a good idea?

Jeremy sees FF and sees that he is alone and wonders where Michael had gone off to. He’s glad that FF has stayed put, the guys quiet but he’s not bad company. Jeremy thinks he would have gotten along pretty well with Jean if he hadn’t flubbed the recruitment.

“He just got a restraining order against that step-brother of his.” Aaron Minyard says explaining the awkward air after Jeremy had spoken. “He’s a Fox.” he adds and Jeremy had felt foolish in that moment.

It should have been obvious.

He hears a scream and sees that one of the Terrapins has joined in the brawl and he has one of the steak knives.

What was the point of that when they had pre-sliced tenderloin anyways? He looks over and sees Anita Flores watching the evening start to go down in flames and all he can think is that she’ll probably do better next time. It’s the first banquet she’s run on her own since Claire retired in the fall.

His eyes go to Jean when he hears another scream.

He can see Laila with Jean and Kevin. He can see Alvarez making her way to the two of them. The Trojans know better after last Winter Banquet. They come together and don’t make it obvious that Jean is at the center of their formation.

He sees Melissa get punched when she tries to get between Richard and Caleb. He’s sure she probably just doesn’t like having this kind of violence at her stadium but getting directly between Richard and Caleb wasn’t her smartest move.

Oh Jacob took exception to that. Well Jeremy can hardly blame the guy when his girlfriend and Captain gets punched like that. Caleb’s just lucky that she’s not dating Malcolm any-

Oh Malcolm is getting in on it. I guess he does still have feelings for Melissa. They had been real cute until he cheated on her. He thinks Melissa is better off with Jacob but who knows.

He looks to Jean again and sees that Kevin is leaving the Trojan encirclement and can see the other Foxes start to head for the exit as the fighting grows more intense. He sees Andrew holding Neil’s hand in a vice grip and-

Oh, of course they’d be anxious here. Of course the Foxes were on edge.

He looks and FF is still sat at the table seemingly unbothered by the chaos erupting around him. He watches as the Foxes make their way to the table where FF is sat. Sees them gathering their belongings and sees FF remain seated, eyes on them and then on the chaos.

Ah, the rearguard.

He nods and diverts his attention back to the mess at hand. Honestly Caleb shouldn’t bait Richard and Richard should be glad that he didn’t propose to someone who’d cheat on him. They’d talked about it and it wasn’t like he had customized the ring or anything so he got his full deposit back. He thought Richard was feeling better about the whole thing, had even been dating Erika and-

Ohh yeah there’s Erika with a Terrapin’s jacket over her shoulders and a hickey that he’s pretty sure Richard hadn’t left on her neck.

Man Caleb what the hell, what did Richard even do? Caleb you don’t even like girl-

Ohhhh.

Caleb….bro. There are better ways to handle a crush.

Now fully understanding the situation Jeremy can’t help but think that it’s actually a pretty simple solution. Well, not simple. Richard is pretty straight but like a firm talking to with Caleb will probably-

“Hey, back off!” He hears Alvarez and his head whips around back to Jean where it shouldn’t have left.

Ravens.

Those Ravens.

Jeremy made a promise.

Jeremy had taken lessons over the summer and-

God it felt good to slam his fist into Johnson’s stupid awful ugly chin. The only thing that was even sweeter was sinking his fist into Reacher’s gut.

“Knox what the fuck?!” he heard Jasmine exclaim and they’d been buddies at one point but it was hard to feel anything positive for a girl who watched.

“I warned you guys during the Fall Banquet didn’t I?” Jeremy asks with a smile as he shakes out his hand. He looks to the side and sees that the rest of the team has now fully encircled Jean. Nothing was getting through them to-

It’s too late that Jeremy sees a younger Raven meatball in hand. He tries to stop it but his arms are too short and it nails Jean right in the forehead.

He looks at the marinara roll down Jean’s forehead as he blinks in surprise. Laila lets out a scream and has him cradled in her arms and out of sight before Jean even seems to fully understand what is going on.

“Jean, it’s going to be okay.” Jeremy hears Laila assure.

“Laila, what in the world are you freaking out about?” Jean asks. “I’m French, not Italian. I would not bleed marinara sauce.” Jeremy hears him say out of sight and if Jeremy wasn’t so mad he’d laugh.

“That’s it!” Alvarez exclaims and slugs the sophomore who had lobbed the errant meatball and from there it was an all out brawl between the Trojans and the Ravens. They were all defensive over their frenchmen especially against his old team and Jeremy thinks about the investigation he’s been pushing the ERC towards. Thinks about all the little things he has questioned and put into the heads of all of his friends throughout the Division.

He makes his way to Jean as Ned and Jim have taken on the task of handling Reacher and Johnson.

“God, first the sparse wine selection and now this.” Jean says from where Laila was trying to wipe sauce from his face.

“Here, use this.” he offers FF’s handkerchief and thinks about getting a few himself.

Laila takes the handkerchief, “I thought you said there was a lot of wine.” she says.

“No, I said Kevin was doing a lot of whining.” Jean corrects eyes closed as Laila cleans his face off. Jeremy looks towards the Fox table and wonders how he’ll get the handkerchief back to FF and sees FF rising up from the table and quickly put on his jacket before heading out the door after the rest of the Foxes.

What bothers him is the security guards following them. Everyone should know that security guards + the Foxes + Binghamton = Andrew might start stabbing people.

His concern only grows greater when he sees Michael and a few other Ravens follow.

***

There are things that change a person.

Experiences that you never want to experience again. Words that can never be spoken again. Feelings that can never be carefully locked away not that they’re out in the open and known.

Andrew’s experience happened two years ago. Andrew had heard words that he never wished to hear again in his entire life for the last time in Binghamton. Andrew had felt things staring down at a cell phone that he had never let himself feel before.

He looks at Neil safe and sound on the bus after a different fight, a different riot, in Binghamton and it’s hard to be upset. He hadn’t let his Junkie out of his sight the entire night and the moment that he saw security moving in he had grabbed Neil by the hand. His focus had narrowed down at that moment and no amount of Neil insisting that it was fine would stop Andrew’s determined march out of the stadium.

He only felt like he could breathe when he had ushered Neil into the bus and into a seat. He felt his shoulders ease but he didn’t let go of Neil’s hand, he didn’t know if he would until they were back in Palmetto.

The rest of the team filtered out of the stadium quickly and soon enough Wymack was calling out to make sure that everyone was there. “Smith?” Wymack called.

“He’s right here!” a voice calls out and Andrew thinks it’s one of the other Freshmen.

“Let’s get out of here.” Wymack says.

The team gets on the bus and soon enough they’re putting Binghamton in the rearview.

Andrew exhales.

***

He’d heard Michael call out for him and he’d stopped. With all the distraction and the upcoming loading onto the bus he hadn’t felt the need to be exceptionally low presence.

It’d been a mistake as it usually was.

FF looked at the security guard standing in front of him and out the door to the stadium where the Foxes were loading into the bus.

“Will you meet the Master now?” Michael is asking him and FF doesn’t quite get why he’s asking when it’s obvious that FF doesn’t have a choice.

“No.” he says because Michael did ask which means theoretically he could just be misreading the situation.

“You said you’d meet him if the banquet ended.” Michael says.

FF furrows his brow, “I said I’d get up.” he reminds and Michael looks nervous.

“Please?” Michael asks and FF blinks.

“I need to get on the bus.” FF points and the security guard merely steps into his line of sight as if that erased the fact that the bus was there and he was not on it.

“We’ll get you back to where you belong.” Michael promises.

“I belong on the bus that is going back to my campus where I keep all my stuff.” FF says matter of factly.

Michael looks at him utterly bewildered.

“Enough of this.” The guard says and goes to grab him.

FF moves out of the way.

The guard goes to grab him again and FF backs up and out of the way again.

The guard goes to grab him and FF steps back out of his reach again.

This process continues until they are back into the main stadium where the brawl has taken over all of the teams. FF sidesteps the security guard, and he’s near positive this isn’t a real security guard Binghamton really needs to work on their hiring practices. Only this time he side steps out of the way and the guard crashes like an enranged bull into the punch table.

FF’d feel bad about it but there was no way in the world he was going to meet someone named ‘The Master’ when he has spaghetti pants. Absolutely no chance. Whoever it was probably was important enough to deserve dry clean only pants.

“I need to go.” he says to Michael and heads back for the exit, hopeful that maybe just maybe the bus hadn’t left yet. Nicky was pretty drunk though and he knew that the rest of the team would have a singular focus on Captain Neil.

“No, wait!” Michael pleads and FF stops seeing the other player with tears in his eyes. FF stops and unzips his jacket slightly to reach in and grab the handkerchief he had refolded as his pocket square.

“Sorry, I really can’t stay.” he says and offers the handkerchief to Michael, “You can keep that one or hand it to me the next time we play against one another if you remember.” he says. “Tonight isn’t the night for me to talk with your Master.” he says.

Michael looks at him with wide eyes and accepts the handkerchief.

He walks out back into the exiting hallway and there is an older asian man there. He has a cane and he is standing between FF and the door.

He approaches quickly and the man hits his cane against the ground once, “You will join the Ravens.” he says with authority.

Oh great.

“I'd actually rather not.” Smith responds and makes sure to keep a wide berth from the crazy old guy who’s made his way into the Stadium somehow.

He gets out the stadium doors and-

The bus left.

He sighs thinks about the crazy guy right behind him and lets his presence fade into something only Jeremy Knox could see (APPARENTLY).

It’s pretty cold out as he gets as far away from the entrance to the building as possible and reaches into his pocket for his phone. He dials Nicky.

***

“COACH, YOU FORGOT SMITHY. AGAIN.” A drunken shout from the back of the bus startles Wymack as he lets out a loud string of curses before getting into a lane to make a U-turn.

MASTERPOST FOR ALL PARTS OF FLUENT FRESHMAN AU

#Fluent Freshman AU #Michael is just staring at this handkerchief #And staring at the back of a guy who didn't even break stride passing Tetsuji Moriyama #And contemplating a lot of things at the moment #Laila: “Wait so what would you bleed?”#Jean: “What? Blood? I bleed blood?”#Laila: “But you said you're french not Italian. What would the french bleed?”#Jean: “Laila..”#Alvarez: “No Jean you've decided that Italians bleed Marinara. Finish the thought.”#Jean: “I don't know probably one of the mother sauces? Maybe Béchamel??”#Laila: “Jean we need to know your blood type if you're ever really hurt. Are you sure it's not Hollandaise?”#Jean: “How dare you imply that I would bleed Hollandaise.”#AFTG #Jean Moreau #Andreil #Jeremy Knox #Implied Jerejean #AFTG OC #FF - 42

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sundownsquad · 8 months

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Here's a handful of scene studies! Drawing a certain baby bantha recently made me want to revisit the scenes from the script exerpt where Knox first meets the ottaburas. So here he is meeting all sorts of animal friends, including seeing baby Thea for the first time.

#Star Wars #Clone Troopers #Clone OCs #Trooper Knox #Otta Thea #Ottaburas #Bantha #Eopie #Blurrg

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macabremarble · 6 months

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what are they looking at wrong answers only

#kuroshitsuji fanart #kuroshitsuji oc #kuroshitsuji #black butler fanart #black butler #black butler oc #grell sutcliff fanart #grell sutcliff #othello #william t spears #eric slingby #etc etc the reapers are here #sneaking veronica in to gaslight the fandom that she was a real character #ronald knox

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ghouljams · 9 months

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I was just stalking your fae au and was reading the moose-creature-mimic posts, and I saw you mention that witch can feel when the mimic is trying to break her wards.

Whenever I hear about Fae, my mind immediately goes to the magic system from one of my favourite book series in which people who make wards have to develop wards for specific creatures, and if a creature that they haven’t warded against tries to enter, they can break through, if not break the rest of the wards.

Let’s say for a moment that something like that happens in the Fae AU, where some kind of unfamiliar creature from a foreign civilization comes a knocking on witches doorstep, and is able to break through her wards.

What do you think would happen? If Witch is connected to them, would Witch ‘break’ too? How would Price react to the pure panic and pain shooting through the tethers as an unfamiliar creature breaks through his darling’s wards?

I feel like she would be absolutely broken afterwards (if she survives that is-) Her wards are her safe space, she had never had that happen, she didn’t know what happened.

Would price still trust her to be safe in her own home?

Would SHE still trust her to be safe in her own home??

Just some thoughts 🫣

Oooooooooh. Ok yeah I can do some horror with this. Love the concept. So the Canon answer is that warding in this magic system can be as broad or as narrow as the caster wants. Wards can be weak and they can be broken, but it isn't going to harm the caster, maybe it'll give then a bad feeling but not any actual harm. Not a very good ward if it harms the wrong target IMHO.

For the Witch's home these are wards that are basically generations of people enforcing and reinforcing an all purpose boundary. It's an iron wall that nothing(save humans) is getting through without a permit, and it's tied to Witch both through her magic and her blood. She can feel when things mess with it, but it's like getting asmr, it isn't actually affecting her. She's mentioned before that her wards are threats, so anything that isn't stopped by a simple denial of entry is going to have those threats enacted upon it.

But let's say something broke her wards, let's throw some rocks through the windows and bust shit up. I am going on record to say, this isnt canon:

You feel something crack in the air before you feel it break. The splintering spiderweb of intangible bonds being pushed too far hits you between the ribs and you have to clutch the kitchen counter to stay standing. Something is deeply, desperately, wrong. You don't know how or why(or what) but something is working very hard to get in to your space.

It shouldn't be possible in the first place, you have known this house, these wards, your whole life and you've never felt it give way. You've felt it change, felt it ripple, felt it pop and fizz when it doesn't like what you've let in, but never this. Never the creaking pressure of it bowing inwards and splitting under its own tension. Your fingers wrap tight around your athame as you go to check your back garden, peaking through the curtains. There's nothing.

But you can feel it, you can feel it splintering like a pain in your chest. Tight and radiating out from your sternum. It tingles down your arm, makes your grip feel looser than you know it is. You grab your back door's handle, take a few breathes to give yourself strength, and open it to shoo away whatever is pressing your wards. And very suddenly the splinters give way, like a hole punched through a window.

It feels like all the air has been forced out of your lungs. A cool breeze blows through your door, wrong so very, very, wrong. The smell of moss invades your nose, burdened with the scent of decay. Slime mold oozing against your desperate breaths. You tug your shirt to cover your nose and mouth as the battering ram that had been beating your barrier steps through.

The horns of it scrape your ceiling, actually that bothers you more than it should, you're the one that has to fix it later. Velvet hangs from its antlers, freshly scraped and red, gory and divine. It stands on two clover hooves, and looks at you with malice. If you can even discern an expression from the thing. It's face is completely smooth save for its eyes, or it was smooth. A crack forms along the bottom of its smooth surface, splintering and chipping as it rips its mouth open and screams at you.

The sound is overpowering, dizzying, you feel your ears pop and then the noise is gone, replaced by a persistent dull ringing. You truly wonder when your life got so interesting. You hate interesting. You blame Price.

You cough, gag. You have to drop your makeshift mask to retch against the stench of rotten decay on this thing. It smells like death, weeks old bodies left to fester where no one will find them. You gag again, fingers curling around your throat as you try to keep you athame raised.

Your wards are silent, you home is silent, and you realize that you've never actually experienced true silence. Something is always buzzing or humming with magic, you always have music playing or bottles clinking, you're always surrounded by sound. Now it's all stopped. Even the ringing in your ears has settled into a cottony muffle. You can't feel any of your magic. Your numbed to it.

You drop your hand from your throat to your chest. You can't even feel the tethers there. Your fingers move over the fabric of your shirt without catching, there's not tightness to pull, not warmth to catch. You feel cavernous, empty past empty. What the fuck is that thing.

Whatever it is it seems to have finished its evaluation of you. Finished working whatever spell it was weaving. It takes a step towards you. You don't wait for it to take another before running. Scrambling away from the broken seal of the door towards whatever is heavy and throw-able.

You do your best not to let blind panic take over, to not just run wherever feels safe. You've always thought it was silly when people in horror movies don't do the smart thing, but you've never been in a horror movie before. You bolt towards your bedroom. It's the best guarded room in the house. Even if you can't feel your magic it should still be there. Right?

You feel the swip of the things claws through the air as it tries to grab you. You run straight past your front door without a second thought, sure you don't want whatever that is to be unleashed on the general public. It's claws dig deep gouges into the plaster of your wall, and you pray it doesn't do the same to your bedroom door. You know it will, but it can't hurt to pray. You're not in the mood to be picky with magic right now.

You get your bedroom door closed just in time to hear it splinter as the creature throws itself against it. You don't bother with chalk, digging your athame into the door and scratching sigils and circles as quickly as you can. When you tap them they sit absolutely dead. You smack your hand against your messy circle, willing the magic to respond. You smack it again as the creature throws itself against your door. The circle stays as it was, motionless, silent, still as a drawing.

You are suddenly much more comfortable allowing panic to overtake you. If you're powerless there's really no reason to keep your emotions in check. Your breath heaves, short and quick as you back away from your door and look towards your window. No magic swirls, no books rip themselves from your shelves, your panic heightens and nothing happens. How mundane.

One of the creatures claws punches a hole through the center of your circle, then another, and another. You back towards your window as it grips the wood of the door and attempts to pull it from its hinges. Your fingers push at your window, try to find the seams of it, try to get it open. It doesn't budge, it feels like it's been painted on. You bang your fist against the glass without so much as a crack. The wood behind you splinters. The crunch of it deafening over the silence.

"Price, Price, fuck I am not fucking around Price please," You beg pressing yourself back against the window as the creature drops pieces of the door onto your floor. Even if your magic doesn't work his still must. You've never hear of a fae not responding to their name. Granted you don't know the full thing, you don't know if that's really his name and not just a nickname. It might hold no power without the tethers between you. That doesn't stop you from saying it like a prayer, hoping if you speak him into existence enough times he might come and save you.

Your shoulders are grabbed by an invisible force as you are physically shaken. Your ribs shake, muscles tensed too tight to even take a breath.

There is a wet ache spreading over your stomach, you begin to tilt your head down to see what's wrong and Price catches you. His hand holds the back of your head, pulls it back up and shoves it against his shoulder. "Don't look," he tells you just as quickly as he'd stopped you. You nod against his shoulder.

He pulls something from you, rips the proverbial bandaid off, and you bite him at the pain. It feels like your heart has been knocked out of place, like your ribs have been played as a xylophone. Your stomach twists on itself. Suddenly you are back in your kitchen staring at the cabinets, the space where the creatures antlers had scraped the ceiling. The scratches are still there.

Then the shaking starts. Every muscle in your body starting to unspool in a violent shudder that must quake the very earth you stand on. It's loud. The house is so loud. The wards are practically screaming at you, you threshold wails and sobs where it has been brutalized. Your back door is still swung open to red and orange leaves, a lovely autumn day that leaks the smell of wet earth into your home. Price turns to follow your shaking gaze and kicks the door shut behind him.

"What-" You can't get anything more out around the aftershocks of panic. You're sure your house must look like a war zone.

"Probably some American invention," Price mumbles, "You weren't under long, deep breaths."

You suck in a breath, press your know into his shirt to smell the cool tobacco. It helps. Price keeps a firm grip on the back of your head, keeps you looking where he wants you to while his other hand does something. He touches you in a way you can't explain. It's almost metaphysical the way he zips you up, just on the right side of freezing. You can almost feel his fingers moving muscle and viscera out of the way as he does whatever he's doing. Fixing whatever just happened.

"Fucking hell your wards shredded that thing, surprised it even had the strength to touch you," There's something at the edge of Price's voice, fear your think. You're not sure what he's scared of, it isn't a comforting sound.

"How're you-" You try to focus on the important questions, like why Price hasn't been shredded.

"You lit up like a damn Christmas tree, thought I was gonna have my own attack with the panic you shot my way," He draws his hand away from your stomach, apparently finished with his fussing, "wards were too busy to notice me slip in."

Makes sense, even now they're too busy with repairs to pay attention to your regular.

"It broke my door," It's funny what you latch onto once shock starts to set in. "What did it want?"

"Same thing we all want," Price tells you, and you hate hearing him say it(we), because he doesn't mean it kindly, "you."

#the way i gotta nerf witch to put her in danger #genuinely her wards cannot be broken #youre trying to breach fort fucking knox my friend #oc: witch #1fae1 #fae!Price #it feels very ooc writing witch with broken magic #idk if i like this one #very off the cuff and what not #the words simply pour out of me if im writing past 10pm #a ghost possesses me and compels me to write #anyway this is more creatures tryin to eat Witch #what a tasty snack she is no wonder price wants her all to himself #american myths genuinely scare me so bad #but this is a hannibal inspired monster

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darktwinteekoart · 1 month

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Finally here's my Into the Spamverse poster I've been working on! Started as a doodle and I ended up making it a full on image~ Really happy with the result!

#deltarune #Into the Spamverse #Mellin Nexus #Glamo #Rocket #Knox #Scamton #Locky #Snaks #Addison oc #zombidj #Spamton ex

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ploompkin · 6 months

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I don’t have the time or the energy to clean these up and that is: sad

But I do think they’re cute in a funny way so u get to look at them if u want 👉👈 might delete lateeeer

#scraps #icantdrawshoesicantdrawshoes #don’t look at me #colress #branch chief faba #oc knox #partly #researchethicshipping #Faba is the weirdest character I’ve shipped Knox with yet #Silver? great good yes fantastic even #Colress? a disaster but an interesting one #but FABA??#I’ll be honest it only happened because I already shipped Faba and Colress and then looked at Knox and said #whelp #this would be REALLY funny #and thus the most deranged polycule was born

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mamachasesmayhem · 5 months

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Cardinal Rule • Vigilante Shit

Masterlist | Meet the TIF Team | Next

Pairing: Jake Seresin x oc Lexington Knox

Warnings: Completely fictional and probably highly inaccurate FBI related scenarios. Violence. Girls in male dominated fields because we love badasses with good asses. Fragile male egos. Pining idiots. Best friend's brother. Hidden feelings. Allusion to smut. Probably more, let me know if I miss anything!

A/N: the first part will be familiar to you if you caught the teaser! If you don’t wanna re-read, scroll down to the first cardinal! Happy reading, sweet nuggies 💕

“Lex, what’s your status?” Eric’s voice is low in her earpiece, careful to not reveal his presence to the suspect inside the small house.

Supervisory Special Agent Lexington Knox settles into her stance at the back door. “In position, exit secure.”

“Copy, prepare for breach in 3…2…1. FBI, SHOW ME YOUR HANDS!”

Eric Spencer, chief of the Tactical Intelligence and Forensic Analysis Unit, issues the command before a chorus of similar statements flood her comms as her teammates repeat variations of the order.

“We got a runner!” Aaron Jareau alerts, triggering Lex to plant her feet and square her shoulders.

Not even 10 seconds later, the back door flings open and the unsub they’ve been chasing for the better part of a year lands right in her grasp. Lex throws an arm out right at his chest level, effectively clotheslining the man and knocking him flat on his ass. Taking advantage of his surprise, she quickly flips him onto his belly and pins his arms behind his back.

“Scott Walker, you are under arrest for multiple counts of domestic terrorism,” Lex begins as she swiftly latches the cuffs to his wrists and recites his Miranda rights.

Gideon Rossi, a very recent addition to the unit, appears to her left and helps her haul the criminal to his feet. Once he has been sufficiently mirandized, her teammate chuckles as they tuck him into the back of one of their blacked out Suburbans.

“Damn girl, you pack a punch, don’t you?”

Morgan Ellis sidles up next to her and tosses his arm around her shoulders. “They don’t call her ‘Hard Knox’ for nothin’ my friend,” he smiles proudly.

“Oh shit, I never put it together!” Rossi gapes.

“Brawn, brains, and beauty. She’s a dream, isn’t she?” Morgan brags.

“He’s biased because he trained me. I’m not that great, I have my faults. I mean, I was a whole millimeter off of a perfect, single bullet hole last time I was at the range,” she replied with sincerity.

Gideon laughed, thinking she was being sarcastic at first. But her scrunched brows immediately changed his mind. “You’re not joking, are you?”

She frowns. “Why would I joke about that?”

“I think I’m in love. Will you marry me?!” He replied with hearts in his eyes and the tension dissolves.

“I think that’s a new record, Knox. He made it through the whole first arrest before proposing,” Eric teased as he stepped into the small group.

The next to join the conversation is Emily Declan.

“Hate to break it to you, buddy, but her heart belongs to a sailor boy stationed down the road,” she quips.

“He’s a naval aviator, Em,” Lex is quick to correct her. “And I’m not in love with him, he’s just one of my best friends. Besides, you know I won’t ever belong to anyone. I’m not something to be owned.”

“The lady doth protest too much,” another voice chirps into their earpieces.

Lex rolls her eyes.

Roman Garcia. Boy genius, tech guru, and the little brother she’d never admit to wanting. At the ripe age of 22, he’s single-handedly responsible for keeping up with and protecting all their data and research, as well as providing them with whatever information he can track down via the internet.

“Bite me, Rom!”

“I love it when you talk dirty to me, Foxy Knoxy.”

“I just threw up in my mouth a little bit. On that note, I’m gonna go start grabbing samples from the house. I’ll catch you guys back at the office later.”

She leaves no room for arguments as she snags her collection kit and treks inside.

“Well if it isn’t our resident ass kickers!” Natasha grins from the barstool by the pool table, anxious to see who would take a mark in the win column tonight.

Natasha and Javy have an inside game between them and they can only play when Jake and Lex are in the same vicinity.

You see, they’ve each caught the unmistakably genuine smile that crosses Jake’s face when his little sister’s best friend walks into a room.

He used to be able to cover it with his signature smirk so quickly that you wouldn’t even notice it, but it’s been taking a little longer for his mask to slide back into place lately.

Lex and Jake’s little sister, Joey, walk through the doors of the Hard Deck with bright smiles and tired eyes.

Joey, a research analyst for a large firm, spent the day making her chauvinistic male counterparts feel as small as their dicks by outsmarting them at every turn. She’s absolutely brilliant and stunningly beautiful to boot. It never fails that a man walks in and assumes she’s “Joe Seresin’s” assistant, and she thrives on embarrassing them. As much joy as it brings her to reverse mansplain to them, it gets a little exhausting.

Lex spent the rest of her day collecting, processing, and logging the samples she collected from the house and her eyes were ready to cross after completing no less than 72 reports today alone.

While Joey happily stayed in her clean cut work outfit, Lex had opted to change into her comfy clothes before they left their shared home for the bar tonight.

Jake’s head snaps up, a proud grin crossing his face as he crosses the bar to hug each of the girls.

He reaches for his sister first. “Make anyone cry today, Jo?”

She chuckles and hugs him back. “Nah, I had a meeting with the CEO today, actually. I’ll tell y’all about it after we’ve gotten drinks!”

Joey slips out from under Jake’s hold and heads to the bar, leaving Jake to immediately draw Lex into his arms.

“Saw the news today, Lou. Finally caught the guy, based on your research, am I right?” He compliments, squeezing her tight.

She returns his embrace and smiles up at him. “Fuck yeah, we did!”

“Hard Knox come out to play again?” Jake asks, almost sure he already knows the answer based on how she’s babying her right arm just a little.

Lex drops her head against his chest with a groan. “Yep, dude was about as broad as you and I’m feeling it a little more than usual. How’d you know?”

“I am the seer of all things, Lou. Spend enough time in the air and you develop an eagle eye,” he winks as she steps back.

Lex rolls her eyes and goes to stand next to Joey at the bar. The girls are chatting with Penny as she whips up their drinks when Lex senses someone slipping up to her right, a little too close for someone who plans on minding their business.

“Evening ladies, can I get you a round?” The newcomer asks.

“No thanks, we already got one,” Lex tries to brush him off.

It doesn’t work. He follows up with, “Well, there’s no harm in having a second one, right?”

Joey speaks up next. “Dude. What about either one of our fucking faces says ‘please come flirt badly with me’? I make men with more money and bigger egos than you have cry on a regular basis and she could have you flat on your ass and crying for your mommy in pain faster than you can blink. Take a hint.”

The man bristles, obviously offended that the duo doesn’t find him to be the most amazing guy on the planet. “Damn, I was just being nice. No reason to be a bitch about it,” he snaps back.

“Listen here buddy, you see that tall and jacked dude in the corner? That’s her big brother. And all the equally fit and intimidating people around him? That’s his squadron, they’re the most elite fighter pilots in the world and would squash you like a bug without breaking a sweat. Get lost before someone overhears you running your mouth,” Lex is quick to assert.

He starts to leave, pausing to murmur “ungrateful cunt” before he turns away fully.

“Did he just…?” Lex asks Joey.

“Call you a “see you next Tuesday”? Yeah, he did. Hey, Penny!” She yells the last two words, causing the bar owner to look up.

Joey twists her arm in a circular motion and Penny catches on, ringing the bell loudly and causing the man to freeze at the sound.

The only ones in the bar at this time on a Wednesday night are the Daggers and a handful of regulars, so all heads snap to the bar with eyes full of contention. Anyone regular knows the rules, it could only mean one thing.

Someone disrespected one of their girls.

Jake is the first one by their side, nobody knows how he got there so quickly, but he did.

His eyes connect with Penny’s as he tilts his head in question, the rage barely contained behind a well practiced smirk.

Penny tips her head in agreement and Jake’s large palm wraps around the man’s bicep.

His smile is maniacal when he speaks. “I know one of these ladies must have warned you before you stuck your boot in your mouth. We don’t take too kindly to women being disrespected around here.”

Bradley appears at the man’s other side. “Especially not when they’re one of ours,” he continues Jake’s thought, malice laced in his voice.

They each grab an arm and lift him off the ground, causing him to panic. “The fuck?! Get off of me!” He screeches.

Fully expecting this reaction, Javy and Reuben were ready and waiting near his feet and happily snatched a flailing leg each.

They carry the asshole out with minimal effort and unceremoniously dump him on his ass with smug smiles.

“Thanks for the drink, don’t come back any time soon!” Lex yells, tossing the credit card Penny handed to her after charging a round of drinks to it back at him.

Jake slips his arm around Lex’s waist and tugs her back against his chest, holding her back as everyone else walks ahead of them. “You ok, darlin’?”

She sighs heavily and pulls out of his grasp. With her back turned, she misses the frown that crosses Jake’s features before she faces him.

“I’m fine, kinda pissed he rained on the parade though. I think I’m just gonna head out at this point.”

“Aw, c’mon Lou! I’ll even let you pretend to beat me at pool!” He pleads.

“Nah, I should get going anyway. Max asked me to stop by when I was done here.”

Jake doesn’t even try to hold back his scoff. “Y’know, I really don’t like that guy. Only a pretentious prick is too good for the Hard Deck!”

“He doesn’t even like baseball,” Joey adds from the door.

“Wh-what?! I thought you said that any man who doesn’t like baseball doesn’t deserve his testicles?!” Jake asks, flabbergasted.

Lex pinches the bridge of her nose in an attempt to stave off the impending migraine.

“Yeah, about that. I was actually planning on cutting things off with him. He gets so pissy any time I talk about work, he claims that I’m surrounded by men who wanna fuck me,” she explains.

“I mean he’s not wrong,” Jake smirks. “But you’re leaving the pencil pushing pencil dick?!” He teases with an exaggerated gasp, trying to hide his elation.

“Thank fuck! I hate that guy, babe,” she bumps her hip against Lex’s.

Lex groans. “I know, I know. I think I’m done trying relationships for a while, it’s way too much work. I have enough going on with my actual job. I don’t have the patience to put what little energy I have left arguing or convincing him I’m not sleeping with all my friends and coworkers.”

“As much as he annoys me, I just want you to be happy, Lexi Lou. So if you’re happy, I am too. I know you wanna head out, but I do have something I wanna celebrate. One more round before you hit the road?”

“Anything for you, Jo. Lead the way,” Lex smiles at her best friend.

A small hand lands on Jake’s arm to slow him to a leisurely pace. Her best friend has skipped through the door by the time Lex looks up at Jake. “Hair’s gettin’ a little long there, flyboy. You sure it’s still within regs?”

Jake’s breath catches in his chest at the question.

He got a haircut three days ago, making it most definitely up to regulation standards, so it’s not fear of reprimand that causes him to falter.

No, it’s the underlying meaning to it, the hidden question.

Can I come over tonight?

His answer will always be the same so it takes no thought for him to reply, it’s a reflex at this point. A Pavlovian response.

“Shut up, shortcake. You still drinkin’ Jack and water?”

Always, I’ll leave the porch light on.

“You know it, now let’s go hear the news your sister has to share,” Lex sends him a bright grin, one full of excitement and a little bit of lust, as she tugs him inside.

Unbeknownst to them, Javy and Natasha caught the exchange from their protective perch by the door.

“Well, looks like it’s a draw tonight,” Nat muses.

“Theyre totally fucking tonight,” Javy replies, earning a backhand to his chest. “What?? I’m not wrong, they’re both looking at each other like there’s nobody else in the world. You know what usually follows.”

“Jake always swoons like a lovesick teenaged girl when she kicks ass,” Nat points out.

“You’re just mad you lost,” he chuckles.

Nat groans. “I thought I had it in the bag! I wasn’t counting on pencil dick being out of the picture tonight.”

“Another $20 to the honeymoon fund,” Javy says, kissing the top of her head with a smile.

Lex climbed into her car with a chest full of pride for her long time best friend. After years of busting her ass and dealing with pig headed dickwads, Joey was being promoted to senior analyst and would be the head of her entire department. Officially. In all reality, she’s been running that shit for years. She’d also been tasked with overseeing the opening of a new branch upstate, which would be taking her away for up to weeks at a time.

The Kentucky native frowned, briefly regretting her decision to end things with Max. Losing two of the buffers between hers and Jake’s relationship might make things a little more difficult.

She quickly reminded herself that even though he could be an ass, Max was still a person with feelings and didn’t deserve being strung along to keep her from making bad decisions. She also remembered why she wanted to end things in the first place. He’s not the most supportive of her being in the field, stating she’s “too smart to be turned into Swiss cheese when something inevitably goes wrong.”

It's another reason why she never fully opened up to him, he’d probably agree with her dad’s perspective. The perspective that women are to be seen and not heard, that they belong in the kitchen and nursing babies.

That’s not to say that Lexington Knox didn’t want to be a wife and a mother. She did, but she didn’t want to be the wife to a man who expected that of her, who thought that her only purpose in life was to make him look good.

Gross.

She knocked before turning the doorknob to Max’s oversized house in a swanky neighborhood that screams “look at me, I’m wannabe boujee!” and letting herself inside.

She despised the fact he left his door unlocked, even if he knew she was coming over. She’s in the FBI, of course she knows the error in his judgment.

He should too, to be honest. He’s a lawyer, he makes sure the lowlifes she catches stay locked away. It’s how they met, after all. He was prosecuting a case she provided expert testimony on. Their relationship didn’t begin until months later, Lex not wanting to risk the integrity of the case by being involved with the prosecution.

“Lexington? That you?” Max calls as the door shuts, not moving from the couch.

She suddenly sees what all of her friends have. He really is a pretentious prick, only calling her by her full name instead of a nickname.

It’s funny, how once you decide to admit to not liking one aspect of a person, you start realizing how much you don’t like so many other things.

She steps in front of the couch, drawing his attention from the tv. Once he looks up at her, annoyance evident at the fact she’s blocking his view, she starts talking.

“I’ll keep this brief. It’s not working out with us anymore, I think it’s time we call it quits.”

“What, you wanna go fuck that jarhead again now? Or is it one of your pea-brained coworkers this time?” Max replies sharply, gaze falling back to the screen behind her.

“Fucking excuse me?” Lex gasps.

“Don’t try to lie to me, Lexington. I look at liars, cheaters, and other kinds of losers all day. It’s my job to be able to spot one a mile away. You’re excused, you can go now.”

The small sliver of guilt she felt on the way over rolls off of her shoulders and is quickly replaced with anger and disgust. She never shared the details of her relationship with Jake with him out of fear of him using it against them. They hadn’t even been together for months before she met Max. But that didn’t matter now.

She tamps down her rage, choosing her words carefully before continuing. “Jarheads are Marines, dumbass. Besides, it’s not like you wouldn’t notice if I’d fucked Jake recently. He’s used to handling power between his legs, unlike you, who pushes a pencil.” She leans down to whisper the final blow to his ego in his ear. “It’d have been like cave diving for you, buddy. And I never have to fake shit with him. Bye, Max.”

She breezes out of the door, reveling in the way her newly minted ex’s jaw dropped as he spluttered in shock. She climbs in her car with a smile on her face, and in the blink of an eye, she’s reached her destination.

She pulls into the driveway of the all too familiar home that sits at the end of an almost hidden road by the beach. Leave it to Jake to find a house that looks as natural on the beach as it would back in Texas. The coastal cottage fits his personality well, laid back and simple while also warm and inviting.

The cool breeze coming off of the water as she exits her car helps soothe the burning fury Max’s words sparked. She may not believe a white picket fence is in her future, but she’d never cheat. It’s not that difficult to leave a relationship if you’re unhappy and want to explore other options, she proved that tonight.

Whatever. She tossed that monkey out of her circus, he’s not her problem to handle anymore.

She fishes her keys out of her bag, locking her car, separating the navy blue one from rest, and sliding the key into the lock.

She barely crosses the threshold before warm hands are on her hips and her back is against the door.

A hand at her jaw has her peering into dark eyes surrounded by a thin ring of bright green.

“I just knew you’d end up in my bed tonight,” Jake nips at the skin of her neck. “We both know only I can take care of you like you need. Pencil pusher tried, but he couldn’t make you feel like I do, huh? All that adrenaline pulsing through you right now makes you a fuckin’ brat and he can’t tame you. Nobody can. Nobody can do it like I can, isn’t that right, darlin’?”

The BIGGEST of thank yous to @hangmansgbaby @sarahsmi13s @callsigncurse @aviatorobsessed @jynxmirage & @trickphotography2 for being THE VERY BEST hype girls as I wrote this chapter! I originally planned to let this bad boy burn soooooo slowly, but I changed my mind bc GP existed and gave us so much pretty boy content that I couldn’t help myself 🤷🏻‍♀️. Smutty times comin’ in hot next chapter!

@kmc1989 @trickphotography2 @callsign-magnolia @whatislovevavy @dempy @djs8891 @wkndwlff @daggerspare-standingby @princessphilly @sebsxphia @buckysteveloki-me @teacupsandtopgun @roosterforme @hangmansgbaby @lynnevanss @bobgasm @a-reader-and-a-writer @shanimallina87 @na-ta-sh-aa @blackwidownat2814 @dingochef @scarlettwidow19 @thewulf @hookslove1592 @dckweed @dizzybee03 @jupitercomet @shakespeareanwannabe @littleenglishfangirl @iamgoodrooster @callsigns-haze @lavenderdaydream @starset21 @callsigncowboy @townmoondaltwistle @lgg5989 @hangmans-wingman @capoteera @shinycupcakebaker @sorchathered @seresinsbrat @seresinslady @bradleybabe13 @taytaylala12

#mama mayhem writes #jake seresin #jake hangman seresin #top gun maverick #dagger au #jake seresin fluff #jake seresin smut #cardinal rule #Lexington Knox #jake seresin x oc #best friends brother #Spotify

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