#the sound of flip flops strike fear into the soldiers hearts

[iiloffy]

#ch376 #luffy #reread #opcoloring #the sound of flip flops strike fear into the soldiers hearts #respect #crazy babi

[moxfirefly]

I have to thank @southernblossoms for this one, she got evil!Leo in my brain and he hasn’t left ever since.

TW: Violence, Gore, Blood, NSFW content below

Rated Explicit (18+ years)

“She said I'm looking like a bad man, smooth criminal

She said my spirit doesn't move like it did before

She said that I don't look like me no more, no more

I said I'm just tired”

Leonardo always knew there was an inch inside of him that was darkness.

If left alone and unchecked, it would spread. Fester like some disease and he feared that someday he’d allow it to course through his body so freely.

And let it win.

It seemed today would be that unfortunate day. A night like any other, just more bloodshed than necessary. But hey, who said they should go and kill his father? Torture him to such an extent and string up his body for his brothers and him to find.

In that very moment that inch had grown in his soul to a degree that it blinded him. All he knew was to destroy, to hurt and erase those who had done this. He felt so cold, hands cupping his fathers motionless bloodied feet, the gentle tapping of blood and the cries of his brothers echoing in his ears.

So when Leo stood, bloodied (not bathed in his own), holding the head of the monster responsible, how could he regain peace? This had only brought a momentary second of reprieve and it was so fleeting. He looked into Shredder’s lifeless eyes, numbness spreading but a need that had started out as an inch. A need to kill everyone who had been part of this, directly or indirectly.

They all deserved so much worse.

They all deserved death.

Slow and torturous.

He had disappeared after that night. His brothers knew that this was the end of their leader, of their beloved brother who wanted to believe that good in this world could prevail.

For them they never imagined that Leo would just let the darkness take hold of him, nestle him with such a loving embrace. For him to embrace it right back felt justified, for his brothers it painted the gory picture of things to come.

They never expected to meet him in the opposition. To view him as foe and not family. Leonardo had quickly taken hold of the scum of the earth. He had molded the darkness to serve him.

Raphael thought Shredder was their worst enemy.

He never expected to have Leo claim that spot in a matter of months.

The Foot had fallen under his ruling, and he wasted no time in setting examples, and the bloody path those examples left behind never seized to churn the brothers stomachs.

There was no means of bringing him back, and perhaps it’s for the better.

Because whatever has eaten away inside of Leonardo cannot simply be flushed out of his body, nor ripped from his very soul. The body counts too high by now as he strays further and further away from what he was taught.

From what his father taught him...

_______________

You run with the unsavories. An eat or be eaten mentality that has caused you to survive years and years of gang wars and mutant freaks. Not like you’d throw about that last bit, much less when you’re standing single file, close to pissing yourself because he’s there.

And Christ he’s a sight to behold.

A rumor, a legend, a monster.

You tell him you’ve got valuable info, you know where to follow the trail that’ll lead to success. Even when your partner tries to push his chin up in front of Leonardo, you’re already wincing at what his demise will be shaped in.

Leo really loves cutting heads off.

A strong emphasis on loves.

You swallow, eyes flying anywhere but the rapidly growing puddle of blood that approaches your feet. Even then, your eyes stray towards the newest leader of the Foot, Leo punctures his katana into the head, a crude skewer as he lifts it and examines the severed body part as if answers lie in the gush of blood that falls. Those dark blue eyes move on you, you swallow.

He walks over to you, blade in hand, blood tap tapping onto the ground “Your information” Leo’s voice is weightless, bored almost. You motion towards your pocket, the crumpled up note with a poorly drawn map the key to your salvation. Leo reaches his hand in and you’re still, stiff and frightened by the intrusive touch and his proximity.

He pulls the note out and examines, the ghastly expression of horror on the decapitated head so close you can smell the coppery scent. “Can you get more of this? The coordinantes?” You crane your neck to look at him, his stature imposing. “Yeah, I’m your girl for that shit, swear on it” He flicks the blade and the sound of the head rolling makes your stomach flip flop along with it.

You feel the tip of a bloodied katana on your chin.

“Don’t make me cut off such a pretty head, hm?” You want to nod but the blade digs and Leo’s mouth twitches in something akin to a smirk. The small cut to your chin stings, but you wonder why other parts of you vibrate.

The danger, the adrenaline, Leonardo.

_____________

Your next meeting doesn’t quell your nervousness. Leonardo is an impressive sight as always and it’s imposible to ignore that maybe you won’t make it out alive every time you both meet. Unless proven useful, which you take to heart. You bring all sorts of information, names, rumors, possible gangs wanting to take him on, the police. Any word you heard in regards to him.

“It’s possible they might try to meet you half way, catch you off guard” The warehouse is chilly, that fall weather starting to hit but Leo’s unfazed, the black tails of his mask move with the gust of winds. “Stupid of them to assume that” The second floor of the warehouse seems to be his own, leaving the rest of the crew bellow. He sits on the windowsill, cloth running up his katana, it had been bloody when you were brought in.

“I’m just repeating what I heard, I’m sure you’re more than adept to take them on” You stick your hands in the pockets of your jacket, you’d been frisked not like you were stupid enough to bring a weapon to this.

But then again, the more he polished that sword, the more you wished you had something.

“What else have you heard? Any word on Karai?” The woman in question had appeared to have disappeared into thin air after Shredder’s death and Leo taking command of the Foot soldiers. Wether she planned to reclaim what was hers or if she had simply quit was beyond you and anybody else. “Nothing on her, she might’ve skipped town or the country” You offered, eyes following the sword as Leo placed it on a nearby table.

“She strike you as the type? A coward?” He walked over towards you, his expression so eerily unreadable.

Yet, your eyes wandered over him. Over muscle and scales. Overs scars and bruises. That illogical part of your brain making you wonder and fantasize, because fear could be exciting.

There was something exciting about Leonardo.

“Well?” He was in front of you, looking down at you. It hits you how minuscule you must look to him.

“Probably plotting? You did murder her dad” You find his eyes, you swallow.

“Well he murdered mine. Eye for an eye...” He spoke gently almost.

“Makes the whole world go blind” You finished for him, and maybe that was stepping on a line but you noticed the corner of his mouth twitch up. For a brief second you catch his eyes scan yours, move across your face and settle at your lips.

Passed your neck, towards your breasts.

He turns around and grabs his sword.

“One week, find more info on her, your pay is downstairs” You’re dismissed and before you process anything a Foot soldier is ushering you downstairs and shoving an envelope in your hands.

That night you dream about what your lips might feel like against reptilian scales.

—————————

Karai’s whereabouts are practically unheard off. If there was a trail it had run cold months back and judging from the word of mouth being passed around there wasn’t anything sustainable. You dig up anything and everybody. Every dirt bag with an agenda, ex Foot soldiers, opposing gangs, the mob and just about anybody you have in your radar.

It yields nothing.

You can’t return to Leo with nothing.

Rubbing a hand across your tired face, you make your way through the back alleys of the city. Your one week was coming up and all you had were weak possibilities and baseless assumptions. In your line of business enough information to create doubt can go a long way, but this was conspiracy levels bad.

So you thought and you thought quick.

Pulling out your phone you called him first. Perhaps a dumb move but at the same time you figured it showed that you were trying. You asked if the two of you could meet, the line briefly went quiet before your text tone startled you. He hung up and you were met with the address of a building in Brooklyn and to go up to the roof.

To say you were scared was to put it lightly.

You were shitting yourself.

The roof of the building had a green house which seemed unused but it looked like it was being kept up with the vegetation still green and alive. Your hand made for the door knob but something you could only name as a sixth sense made you freeze.

Leo was there, the shift in the atmosphere was impossible to deny. Your turned and blinked.

Wherever he had been, it must’ve been worse. There was blood on him, a fresh gash by his arm and the steady drip drip of blood hitting the concrete. “Jesus are you...?” You knew he was ok, but whomever had been on the receiving end of this had it by far much worse.

“Inside, go inside” He motioned for the green house and you did. Your eyes scanned around hoping to find something to help with. There was a nest of sorts in a corner, several blankets and cushions, a table and a chair amidst the plants. You found what you were looking for near the bonsais, a shelf with a box of first aid. Leo went towards a counter with a basin and a jar of water, he went about cleaning the gash on his arm.

You approached him with the box of first aid, blue eyes were cautious as you took out antiseptic and gauze. Leo had turned to face you, giving you more room to work on his arm as you bandaged it. “You alright?” Your voice held hesitation, Leo’s questioning gaze turned to amusement. “I’m fine, what I want to know is why you wanted to meet” You finished bandaging him and took a step back.

Pick your words wisely, you thought with a slight shutter.

“Listen I’ve spoken with any and everyone who might have any clue but Karai is off the radar”Swallowing a lump in your throat you shrugged off your jacket, worry manifesting in heat. “I know this isn’t what you wanted and I’m really fucking good at my job but this bitch is either underground or who knows! Dead for all I know!” The exasperation and worry was clear as day, he either took this the right way or the wrong way.

Wrong way being you end up pushed off this very building, at best ironically enough.

Leo swallowed the information, clearly bouncing it around his head. The dry specks of blood scattered across his green flesh. An odd silence fell amongst you both and even when he rose in all his imposing glory you kept your eyes focused on him. Getting a read on that cold calculated gaze of his was hard enough.

Your throat feels painfully dry once he has you backed up against the wall. Something about dying alone with not even an audience to witness it didn’t sit too right with you.

But then again, Leo’s large hand gripped your neck, nothing too tight but enough to alert you to its presence. Those blue eyes looked haunted but just beneath that laid something you couldn’t just place your finger on. The tips of his fingers lightly caressed you, one of them fascinated with your quickened pulse. You can’t blink, unsure what may happen and when he dips down your adrenaline makes you flinch.

Leo halts his movement, his blood feels like it’s pumping loudly enough for you to hear. Wide eyed you lean up instead and ghost your lips against his, Leo sighs through his nostrils and it stays that way. A pull but not enough of a push because there’s still fear in your blood and a hesitation that you can’t put a name to from Leonardo.

Your phone going off startles you, nearly making you jump out of your skin and to a fraction of your dismay Leo takes a step away. One of your contacts name flashed on the screen which meant there could still be some good news. Your turned away to speak, pulling a marker from your pocket you write down some information on your forearm. It’s a quick conversation and once done you turn to see Leo putting together his gear again.

You bit your lip, whatever was about to happen would just have to take a back seat. ‘Fucking coward’ you can’t help but think about yourself.

“One of my guys says he might have it on good authority that Karai is still here” You watch him turn his head to listen, even if he’s got his back/shell to you. “Well?” He pushes while adjusting his swords.

“He says she might’ve just met up with...with one of your brothers” Tense doesn’t even begin to explain what his body did, the mear mention of his family was a sore subject and you had been warned to not even attempt to open that can of worms. Swallowing and feeling your throat stick from how dry it felt you see him pull out a key and toss it to you. “Send me that address, you’ll get your money at the warehouse” You barely manage to catch the key to the greenhouse, but still you raise a brow at the offering.

“Come back here when you’re ready” Is all he says about it, confusion is painted on your face but when he moved to leave he takes a moment to hold your chin. “Don’t make me regret this” He says and before you can attempt to ask he’s gone.

You stay there, twenty minutes or so in nothing but your thoughts and his words swimming around your mind.

Feeling heat between your legs and a lick of frustration consuming you.

_____________

Two weeks you contemplate the key in your pocket.

Two weeks you let your thumb hover over his number but never press down.

For two weeks you find your pillow between your legs, trying to reach the sensation he managed with just his body close to yours.

But nothing.

It’s not enough.

New York is covered in rain as you make your way through the sea of people. Regardless of the many umbrellas you still get soaked and by the time you’re up on that roof, hand digging out the key to the green house you’re drenched.

Inside you shake off the excess and remove your jacket. The cold hits you and you can’t help but feel silly that you’re here, maybe this is his way of taking you out, you’re not needed anymore by now you assume.

You turn on the few lanterns that are scattered through the room. Kicking off your boots you rub your arms and shiver, flesh breaking out into goosebumps as the door creaks open once more.

Leo’s equally drenched when he steps through, the black tails of his mask sticking to him. The two of you just stare at one another, steady drips of water and the rain outside picking up more strengh.

Carefully you watch him begin take apart his gear, leaving his katanas by the door. He’s trying to keep your apprehension at low levels, his steps slow and soft. You let your arms fall to your sides and as your heart tries to hammer out of your chest you don’t flinch this time, even as his hands go for the hem of your long sleeve. You take a deep breath as his eyes wander across your now exposed flesh. The fascination goes straight to your core, feeling yourself warm up as his hands rest on your stomach.

With trembling hands you unbutton your jeans and step out of them and the inhale Leo takes as he closes his eyes makes you reach for him. He holds you against him and sighs, large frame shuddering at the feel of your skin against his reptilian one. He buries his snout against your neck, breathing harder as his hands run all over your back and rear. Leo grips and kneads the flesh and a groan escapes against your ear that makes your wrap your arms around his neck. He feels the softness of your breasts against his chest, he’d be a liar if he said he hadn’t been dreaming about them for months now.

You can’t wrap your head around it but he feels just as you fantasized about him. The roughness of his flesh, the edges of his shell and god his teeth nip at your neck with a growl. Wiggling out of his hold you start to undo whatever else needs to be taken off and Leo can’t help but smirk at your frenzied movements. He allows you to undress him, he’s gutted when your hands land on his waist as you start to kneel before him.

“No, no, kiss me first” He cups your face and presses his mouth against yours and that’s it, you’re done for, you’re hooked and can’t go back now. His kiss is possessive, forceful and it drowns every thought in your brain.

You pressed against one of the tables with the many Bonsais when Leo’a tongue slithers into your awaiting mouth. He sits you down on the table and nudges your legs apart to fit himself in between them, you crane your neck up losing yourself in his kiss. He can taste rain water, feels the sweat and rain mingle on your skin. God he wants to run his tongue all over you, eat you whole if he could.

It feels like forever when he pulls away, reluctance in his body. Blue eyes search into your e/c eyes, he wants to see something maybe your fear so he denies himself falling into this rabbit hole. Your hands press against his plastron and gently you run your nails down the hard plates, you shake your head fascinated by the texture. He’s rough but strong, a marvel of a species.

With some difficulty you managed to push your underwear off and spread yourself again for his viewing pleasure. “I want you,” You nodded, eyes falling to the hard length between his legs. Leo wraps a large hand around it and pumps slowly, body shivering at the sensation. “God I fucking want you so bad” You feel him come back to you, mouth on yours in yet another harsh kiss.

The tip of his cock nudges against your wet heat and he bites your lip at the sensation. Leo pushes into you so frustratingly slow, even as his girth stretches you to a point you’ve never been before. You want him inside of you now, and Leo couldn’t agree more. He bottoms out inside of you with a lengthy groan, head thrown back in ecstasy. “You feel... so fucking good” He growls out through gritted teeth, hips picking up speed as you wantonly take him in. You press your lips to his chest and moan with each slow but pronounced thrust of his hips.

His hand finds itself at the back of your head, grabbing fistfuls of your hair to keep your gaze on his. The slight tug burns so good and you can’t help but keep your pleasure filled gaze on his own. Lips parted you let him rock into you steadily until his thrust start to slam into you. The sensation spreads all over your body, little shocks of pleasure rocking your body.

“Mine, you’re going to be mine and only mine” He voices lowly, a threat laced in his passion. You’re too far gone to speak, nodding aimlessly at his every word, moans falling from your lips. “Nobody will own you like I do, nobody will touch you, Y/N? You understand? I’m making you mine” He pressed his forehead to yours, lost in this feeling.

“Fuck yes, yours, I’m gonna be all yours” You lick his lips and when he reaches a hand between both your bodies your mind goes blank. A vicious shudder overtakes you as you muffle a scream against his jaw. He fills you up so good and so warm with a strange vibration that sounds like an endless growl. Each rope he pumps into you making his eyes roll back. You’re shattered against, limp and raw throat from the scream that leaves your mouth.

He watches your come down, hand against your cheek, thumb running across your lips. When he pulls out just enough to watch his essence cascade out of your pretty little hole, he pumps himself back into you. His eyes say it all, from here on out whatever your life was up to this point is over and done with. Leo nuzzles you still lazily pumping himself in you, blissful to the little tremors your cunt produces around his member making him harden once again. Picking you up, bodies still joined, he makes his way to the nest of blankets on the floor.

You hold onto him, all you can do is hold onto him.

____________

It’s rather odd to be in this position. With an entire year that’s passed it never seems to feel normal, not that you’re complaining though.

Being in a position of power by proxy has its fucking fun rewards.

For example nobody in this city will ever contemplate taking you out. Unless they want a very pissed off Foot Leader to set fire to the city and maybe even the world. From opposite points to now standing at his side. No one is to address you as below them, or touch you or let alone breath the same air you do.

You can still hear the bones that were cracked when one particularly unruly Foot soldier made snide comment about you. Each crack of the mans arm being slowly twisted until his arm broke still rang in your ears to this day. Leo hadn’t flinched, hadn’t even scowled even as the twist turned to pulling the limb off.

He did in fact fuck you hard against the glass windows of the hotel suite he had you both in. The copper scent lingering on his scales, but enraptured with the heat enveloping his cock.

With the city at war everyone had began to run amok to do their own barbaric things. Each part of the city divided between gangs, mobs, mutants, police and civilians. You were out on active Foot duties, you were still free to do as you pleased but with protection and Leo demanded your whereabouts on the hour due to possibilities of abduction.

He knew you were a weakness.

But did he give a shit? Of course not. Let them try, he hasn’t needed an excuse for his tyrannical acts thus far, but if harm did ever befall you, you only wished you could witness what his methods would be to exact his revenge.

And he was so familiar with revenge after all.

You admire yourself in the full length mirror, examining the body that training under Leo has provided you. The mutant terrapin in question comes up from behind you and wraps his strong sculpted arms around your waist. You can’t help but smirk as he rest his chin a top your head. “We’re heading out in half an hour” He mumbles against your hair, enjoying the scent. You watch through the mirror as his hands rub up and cup your breast, with a sigh you rest against his strong build. “What’s on the agenda tonight? Purple dragons?” You feel him shake his head, fingers dipping inside the cups of your bra. “Mob,” Is his sole reply.

You bite your lip, gripping his wrists. “We’ll be late” You try to muffle a moan as he tweaks a nipple, he grinds against your backside. “I’m killing them regardless, and I much rather have the scent of your cunt on my hands while I listen to their boring excuses for parley” Your knees buckled when you felt his hand slither inside your underwear, finger already parting your lips and humming as he feels how wet you already are.

You feel his other hand wrap around your neck, keeping you upright and your gaze on the mirror as his finger dips into your welcoming heat.

He engulfs your every thought, every sensation; and what’s the fate of the world when you’ve got him? He chose you just as much as you chose him. You’ve never considered yourself good, scumbag street rat who just happened to make a living amongst the other scumbags. But this? With Leonardo and the trail of bloodied heads he’s left behind, it’s hard not to be excited to see gasoline be poured on the city. He trails his lips to the shell of your ear and you can’t help but grin.

“Mine” He says.

Burn everything.

#tmnt bayverse #tmnt leonardo #tmnt leo #tmnt leo x reader #tmnt leonardo x reader #tmnt Leonardo x fem reader #leonardo #Leo #leonardo x reader #leo x reader #leonardo tmnt #leo tmnt #ns*w #oneshot #evil!Leo #dark!Leo

[writinginthedarkwood]

Alien! Kirishima x Reader: Better With You

Warning: NSFW, ovipositor kink, implications of past abuse (not done by our shark toothed boy)

I recommend checking out some of the other parts to this AU! MY MASTERLIST 

You can enjoy this without it, but reading the other parts might answer some questions you have. :) 

The tornado siren wailed. It’s a sound I’ve heard my entire life, but it’s taken on a completely new meaning. 

Before, we’d run to the middle of the park and take shelter with our neighbors. I remember being little, and hiding under the ground from the violent winds that would tear through our community. 

The piercing sound stirred all the sleeping bodies around, the light flicked on in my neighbors trailer. I watched her shadow hurry and throw things into a bag through her window. She pushed her small son out of the door as they ran to take shelter. 

Everyone in the park jolted awake, panicking and running in fear.

Everyone but me, and my father. 

My father whistled through his nose as he slept. He turned only slightly in that worn down chair, his foot kicking the pile of aluminum cans over, but otherwise completely unconscious. The T.V. was a loud rerun of a crime show, but it suddenly switched over to the emergency broadcast. 

The male anchor spoke with a shaking voice. “Paris is falling.” He swallowed hard. “Please take shelter immediately....” He held the paper holding his cues and set it down before reading the next line. “A craft was spotted over Lexington... may God have mercy on us.” The camera cut to the sound of the emergency alarm. I rushed and shut the T.V. off, my heart pounding. My father didn’t stir, still sleeping like the dead.

This was it, it was finally my turn.

I ran to the front door and opened it slowly, closing it behind me as quietly as possible. I climbed onto our garbage can, using the gutter to stable myself before jumping onto the roof.

I used to sit out here when I was little, breathing air that wasn't heavy with cigarette smoke.

The sky looks different to me now, like the stars were actually thousands of eyes looking down at me. Or that it might actually crack open, spilling thousands of bug like aliens down to the ground like in the movies. Even though people are terrified, cities are going up in flames and families are being separated. The footage they catch of girls being taken, they always go with a smile on their face.

Whatever was coming for me, had to be better than here.

"Wow the sky looks really cool from down here." A male voice startled me, I gasped and stared at an interesting looking soldier stood behind me. He had no shirt on, but a sash going over his chest was decorated with patches and medals. His black pants almost seemed a bit big on him, and one pant leg was tucked into his boots. He had brilliant and striking red hair, sticking out of his head like a spikey rock formation with just as incredible red eyes to match.

His teeth were sharp, but his face was gentle and kind.

He smiled at me and sat down beside me. "I wish I had more time to look around..." My breath was stuck in my chest, my hands were shaking.

Is this... man the alien? He dug in a pouch on his hip and pulled out a clay figurine. "I found this. I just think it looks awesome, it's for you." I didn't reach out to take it, my body feeling frozen with shock. He gently grabbed my wrist and flipped my palm over, placing a little frog statue in my hand. It was warm from him holding it. It must have came from someone's garden in the park. "I-..." The little frogs paint was chipped, but it was cute. "Thank you. I like it." I kind of smiled at him, not entirely sure how I'm supposed to feel. "I was hoping you would! You've probably guessed who I am." He said with a hint of blush on his cheeks like he was shy. "I was surprised to find you out here in the open." He thought for a moment. "Are you alright?"

I looked at him, his face was sweet and filled with concern.

Hot tears stung my eyes and I buried my head between my knees and tried to hold back a sob.

"Hey, hey don't be upset... I promise I'm not here to hurt you." His touch surprised me. His hand pulled my head out of my hands and turned my face to look at him better.

"Your cheek is swollen. Are you injured?"

I said nothing and his eyes narrowed. "Come here, come here everything is okay now..." He stood and helped me stand to my feet. He placed his lips on my cheek and parted his mouth, his spit making a small space sticky and wet.

A pleasant sensation came over my tired body. He pulled me into his arms, lifting my feet off of the ground and holding me bridal style. I laid my head on his chest, feeling warm and comfortable. I closed my eyes and rested on him.

Is this why all that footage from fallen cities had girls with smiling faces? They suspected brain washing. I don't feel brainwashed.

I feel good.

I opened my eyes to look at him and saw that we were somewhere completely different.

We were in some type of hallway. There were a lot of people here, couples walking together. Some girls looked a bit like me, wearing normal clothes. They looked a bit shaken up, and clung onto their accompanying alien tightly. Other girls were human, but something was different. They were smiling brightly, wearing all the same dress but in different colors and patterns.

A lot of them had small pregnant bellies.

He set me down on my feet and took my arm to keep me steady. "Welcome home! The ship is designed to look like a neutral place our humans would enjoy vacationing too."

It did sort of look like a hotel.

He opened a sliding door by placing his palm on the wall and we stepped inside. "You know you're a little quiet, which surprises me. But I'm hoping you'll warm up... you still have what I gave you?"

I held out the little frog and he took it, setting it on a plain white table. "Our first decoration!" He leaned against the table and crossing his arms, making the medals on his sash jingle. "You probably have a lot of questions. I am Captain Kirishima Eijiro. You can just call me Eijiro, but if you don't like that name you can call me something else!" He nervously laughed. "Wait that's weird. Am I blowing this? I feel like I'm messing up."

"I'm Y/N... it's nice to meet you." I stood there awkwardly and looked around the room. It was pretty plain, a small bed in the corner. A kitchen without any utensils. "So you're not going to... kill me?" I asked feeling like my tears might come back.

He looked at me funny. "No not at all. Did you think that and you didn't fight me?" Eijiro's face was very concerned. "How about you take a hot shower and afterwards we get you something to eat."

The bathroom was small, and the shower wasn't too difficult to figure out how to turn on, but I couldn't get the steamy water to shut off. I wrapped myself in a soft towel and just about opened the door when I heard his voice.

"Yes I'm worried about the wellbeing of my mate. Her wellness scan says her brain is imbalanced. I think she's been emotionally injured." He was speaking to someone, I didn't hear another voice. "Yes sir. Thank you your Highness. I'll give her nutrition and treat her with the medical aide you're sending by. I'll give you a report after a few days to see if her conditions improved."

I opened the door and he smiled at me, looking up from a watch on his wrist. "I can't get the shower to turn off." I said quietly. He happily walked into the bathroom and showed me how to work everything. He turned the water off, and showed me how to open the cabinet and get toiletries. "And if you ever just want to relax you can change what oils go into the water. They're good for stress, sleep, and even waking you up in the morning."

I stood there, feeling a bit exposed in my towel. Eijiro tried to discretely look at my body. His eyes darted over me quickly, but he managed to mostly hold eye contact. "I should probably let you get dressed. I have some clothes for you."

Eijiro gave me a red dress to put on. It had pretty flower patterns sewn into it, giving the fabric just a bit of texture. It was lightweight and comfortable like a night gown. "Before we get some food in you, I'm going to offer some first aid okay?" He opened the front door and grabbed a package that was sitting outside. He unwrapped a vial and prepped a syringe.

He sat down beside me. "Things are going to better for you now. I'm going to keep you safe." He kissed my exposed arm, dragging his tongue across my skin and leaving a sticky trail. The saliva sizzled and absorbed into my skin.

My whole body felt warm. My skin erupted in tingles and chills. The needle entering my arm didn't hurt. "That didn't hurt did it?" He rubbed the injection spot tenderly. "No, what was that?"

"Your wellness scan came back showing some light damage to your lungs, as well as some sort of chemical imbalance in your brain. A few injections should clear up any damaged cells and get the hormones flowing correctly."

Could he really be curing my asthma? I've had issues my whole life with breathing. Nobody seemed to care enough to stop smoking in the house, or even roll the windows down in the car while I'm in there.

"You can make my depression go away?" I looked down at my hands. My finger nails are always picked down to the nub.

"If that's what your imbalance is called, yes."

Eijiro made a meal for me out of a tan powder and some type of hot green liquid. It reminded me of oats, but was very sweet. After eating together in the relative quiet, a sudden drowsiness came over me. He pulled the blanket over my shoulders and tucked me. I was asleep before I could even count to ten.

I rolled over, groggy and still feeling a bit tired. My arms hit something hard, and my eyes shot open. I gasped and almost fell out of the bed at the sight of sleeping Eijiro. He was breathing out of his mouth softly, a bit of drool falling onto his pillow.

I sat up on my elbow and his left arm flopped over me, pulling me back down on the bed with a loud exhale of air leaving my chest. "Hey!"

Kirishima lazily opened one eye before snuggling into my neck. "Good morning Y/N... ready to start the day?"

For some reason I feel a bit more comfortable today. After getting dressed, I had a lot of questions. He explained why I'm here, how the two of us will be living together from now on. "See I don't know how ready I am to start a family." He smiled and put a hand over mine. "I figured we could spend our time on the ship getting to know each other. Our culture is a little different than yours, we usually start a family right away once we find a mate."

I felt a bit of panic rise in my chest. A family? Is that what the rumors meant about the aliens needing DNA? "But I think you could use some time to heal and adjust. What do ya think?"

"I... I don't even know what to say. I feel like I walked into a dream world." It felt too good to be true. There must be more to this I'm not seeing, people aren't whisked away from our troubles to paradise. Maybe I died, and he's really my guardian angel?

"Does that make me your dream guy?" He gave me a wink and I smiled at him.

"So down this way we have all these resteraunts that we can stop by for lunch." Outside of the hotel like halls were more sterile looking, white halls that lead to different sections of the ship. "Before that I thought maybe we could take a look at the gardens." I held his hand while we walked through rows and rows of gorgeous, vibrant flowers. Tree's grew tall and made beautiful shade for us to sit under. We leaned against the cool bark, I rested my head on his shoulder. Kirishima told me stories about Home World and what our lives will look like when we get there.

"I feel like I'm talking a lot. Why don't you tell me about your life on Earth?"

My smile fell and I tried to think of something, anything positive about my child hood. "Well Earth wasn't that interesting. Home World sounds so beautiful and incredible. I mean, no human has any type of power like you do." He held up his hand and flexed, his skin hardening like rock. I giggled and he kissed my cheek.

We spent time like this together, building some type of routine. Wake up together, and then spend the day having fun and eating.

Every night he would give me an injection, and we'd fall asleep holding each other closely.

On my seventh night, I sat up in the dark gasping for air. My heart was pounding against my chest and I let out a terrible choking sob. Kirishima woke up immediately, hopping out of bed and searching the room for some type of threat. The light flicked on and after a few seconds of looking for an attacker he turned back to me and pulled me into his lap. "Y/N what's happening?" His voice was panicked and I tried gulping down air. "I had a nightmare." I pushed my words out with a shaking voice. He grabbed his watch he always wears off of the night stand and put it on. Holding my hand, a holographic screen appeared from the watch. "Your heart rate is rapid, and your endocrine system is pumping a lot of adrenaline." He moved me off of his lap and started digging in the kitchen. He pulled a medical kit out and starting prepping a syringe. "No! No I don't need any medicine." Tears stung my eyes and I took a deep breath. "It's just a panic attack."

He set the med kit down and looked at me strange. "A what?"

"A panic attack. Sometimes I have bad dreams, and they make me freak out." I pushed some of my hair behind my ears and started to settle myself. Usually they last a lot longer than this, but I feel like I have slightly more control than usual.

"What kind of horrible thing in your dreams made you wake up like that?" He sat down beside me and took my hands in his. His hands are callused and warm. I wanted to tell him, tell him anything and everything.

The years and years of living in hell, always being told that I'm nothing and deserve nothing.

"Your injections you've been giving me... they help a lot with-" I took another deep breath. "They help me to not feel like I'm always drowning." He started rubbing my back, just letting me talk. "Does your species have medicine that can make me forget Earth?" My voice cracked and he pulled my head to rest on his shoulder. "I just want to forget everything." I let my walls fall just a bit and cried into his shoulder. "Hey I've got an idea. How about we go for a walk?"

It was dark in the gardens. The artificial sky was lit up with a beautiful display of soft twinkling starry lights. Nobody is around but the two of us.

We laid down in a clearing and just looked up, staring at the beautiful lights like we're stargazing. He let me just enjoy the quiet, holding my hand beside me.

After a little bit he broke the silence.

"You know, I'm a pretty positive guy." He chuckled a bit. "But I'm also a soldier, I've seen a lot of messy and terrible things. Lost organisms that I was supposed to save. Kill organisms because I was ordered too." He spoke seriously, but still managed to have an air of kindness behind his tone. "I think I understand what's going on with you. You've been through war. I can't make the things you've seen and been through go away..." he rolled to his side and touched my face gently. "But I can fill the rest of your life with new memories..." I looked at his face and couldn't help but smile. "And be here for you when the old ones creep back up. You'll never have to go through anything alone again."

I grabbed both sides of his face and kissed him. His eyes were huge with shock, but he leaned into my kiss. He hovered over me, trying to keep his muscular body from pressing down on me too hard. He swirled his tongue past my lips and I shuddered, waves of heat washing over me and pulsing in my core. I gasped and pulled him down on top of me harder, a slight moan leaving the corners of my mouth. He pulled away from me slightly with a nervous laugh. "A-are you alright?"

I kissed his nose. "Your kiss made me lose my breath."

"Well that's because of my spit. It makes you... comfortable." He looked down at me with a smile. "Ready to go back home?"

The next morning I woke up and stared dreamily at Eijiro's face. He looked so much different to me today. His gorgeous face, his toned body. I ran my finger down his chest and my touch caused him to flutter his eyes open. "Good morning baby girl..." He yawned and stretched out his arm. His stretch had him flex all of his muscles and I pushed myself a little closer to him. "Good morning, I was going to hop in the shower..." I tried to lace my voice with lust so he would take the hint that I wanted him to join me. "Okay! While you're showering I'll cook us up some breakfast."

Lightly disappointed I stepped into the bathroom and undressed. I turned the water on and let it run for a moment before wrapping a towel around me. "Eijiro?" I called out and he quickly opened the door and stepped in the steamy shower. "You alright Y/N?" I dropped my towel and stepped in the water. "Oh I'm fine. Could you hand me more body wash?" Eijiro stood stunned for a moment. "Of course I can." He cleared his throat and got into the cabinet. I took the bottle from him and rubbed the soap on myself. "Would you mind washing my back?" I bat my eyelashes at him and he quickly stripped his shorts off and joined me in the water. He slammed his lips against mine and I wrapped my arms around his neck. He pressed my back against the cool tile and his hips pressed against mine. His fingers combed down my back, his nails dragging against my skin and scratching me. I moaned into his mouth. "Please Eijiro... I want you." I whined. He pressed two fingers against my folds and swirled around, feeling my wetness stretch around him. "Are you sure about this Y/N?" I looked down and noticed his member was strange. His member was large, and the tip was rounded and closed off. The veins stood out against his pale skin, because they were maroon instead of a light purple or blue. "Yes please..."

He turned me around and bent me against the wall. I pressed my hands against the glass to steady myself and he backed my hips up to meet him. His tip pushed into my walls, my body eager to meet him. I gasped as he started to move, letting my body adjust slowly at first before gaining speed. His fingers dug into my hips as he groaned while thrusting into me. The bathroom echoing the sound of his body hitting mine. He bounced me off of his pelvis over and over again, I just moaned and cried out his name over and over again. "Eijiro please I'm going to cum-"

"I wanna make you feel so good baby- hold on-" His member shifted in my body, I felt him pulse as something moved through him. He pushed himself against the very tip of my cervix. Something moved up into my body, it felt like a jelly substance for just a moment before dissolving.

I felt fire run down my spine and erupt. I cried out, my orgasm rocking my body. He wrapped an arm around my waist to keep me steady as his cock shifted again. Another dissolving sensation, and then another. I cried out, shaking. My hands fell off of the wall and Ejiro held me close to him, keeping me from slipping in the water. "You alright baby?" I nodded yes, my chest heaving.

We laid snuggled together on the bed for most of the afternoon. He traced shapes on my back, giving me kisses on my head while we talked between naps.

I could get used to this, being touched with such gentleness. "I love you Eijiro." I whispered to him. I snuggled into his chest further. "I love you too Y/N. I always will."

#inthewoods bnha alien au #Kirishima Eijirou #kirishima x reader #ovipositor kink #ovipositor #BNHA au #bnha fanfiction #bnha fic #bnha imagines #my hero fanfic #my hero academia #my hero fan fiction #bnha monster fic #bnha monster au #bnha monster boy #mha kirishima #kirishima x fem

[temperancejones]

Some Kind Of Curse - Prologue

The tension in the air lurking around Steve and Kris McGarrett was the first thing to enter the armoured Humvee. Kris almost had to drag her twin brother and their prisoner to their getaway truck back in North Korea, as he didn’t want to leave Freddy, his best friend, who sacrificed his life for them behind.

Kris, who was already hotwiring the vehicle from the driver’s seat begged him to get in the truck, telling Steve they would come back for Freddy and bring him home. Hell, she even promised him, and that was a very special favour for her to hand out nowadays- nothing can be for certain in the life of a soldier, but Kris was certain that they would be back for Freddy’s body so he could get a proper burial at home like the hero he truly was.

Now safely at the convoy a few miles away from the tiny north Korean village they found Anton Hesse in, Steve lets his shields drop a little bit and mourn his best friend who gave his life for his and his sister’s safe escape. Sitting across from her brother and next to Hesse in the small cab of their armoured Humvee, Kris bangs on the partition to tell the driver to take off, and then puts a hand on Steve’s knee, trying to silently comfort him.

If they weren’t in front of a global terrorist right now, Kris would discuss what just happened to try and get Steve to open up and speak his mind a little bit before their debrief, where he would hold in all of his emotions and just do his job, showing nothing but strength. Deep down, Kris knows that Steve is still a scared sixteen-year-old boy who was sent off to the Naval Academy by their grieving father, who was too depressed from their mother’s sudden and unexpected death to take care of his kids anymore. Thankfully, Steve and Kris got to stay together at the Academy, but their younger sister Mary, who was only 10 at the time, got sent off to Los Angeles to live with their Aunt Deb. Now, fifteen years later, Steve and Kris only really have each other to rely on, as they have been inseparable since the day they left home, which was once on the beautiful island of O’ahu. The only time they really talk to their father and sister nowadays is on birthdays and holidays when they’re not deployed, which unfortunately isn’t often for them. Steve and Kris take pride in their work in the Navy and Army, and that’s because it was there for them both when their family couldn’t be.

Steve nods at his sister, silently thanking her for her support, which causes her to retract her hand from his thigh and put it back on her gun to stay alert. Steve then reaches across the small cab of the truck and pulls the pillowcase off of Anton Hesse’s head, revealing his greasy, dishevelled hair and face. If Hesse wasn’t wearing a TAC vest right now, Kris is pretty sure she would have just shot him on the spot, out of pure hatred and disgust towards this man. Hesse looks around for a moment to try and figure out who grabbed him, and where he is, since he was swiped away from the village so fast that he never got to see who snatched him. When Anton recognizes the McGarrett twins, he lets out a chuckle, which causes Kris and Steve’s stomachs to do a bit of a flip flop. Kris’ heart rises to her throat, getting a feeling that something bad is going to go down, since Hesse almost looked happy to see her and Steve. Staying silent, Hesse looks around the truck again, and then decides to stare at the twins, looking curious about something.

Kris is the first one to speak up at his weird staring. “hey,” she says loudly to him, getting his attention. “What the fuck are you looking at?” She asks him, trying to scare some of the cockiness and swagger out of him. Hesse just smiles and laughs a little bit, which definitely was not the reaction Kris was expecting. Steve leans across the truck and grabs Hesse’s collar, yanking him closer to Steve’s face. “she asked you a question, Anton.” Steve snarls, flashing his teeth a little bit, to try and show Anton that they aren’t going to take any of his bullshit right now. Steve and Kris have been tracking Anton and his older brother Victor across the world for years now and are a little mad that they have only caught one of them so far. Anton rolls his eyes and tests the zip ties on his wrists, trying to see how much room he has to play with. Steve shoots him a glare from across the truck, looking like he wants to reach across the truck and strangle the terrorist, but doesn’t actually act on it. A tense silence breaks out again for the next few minutes, allowing Kris and Steve to look over Anton and analyze his every move so they are prepared for a possible attack by him; they are always on high alert and attack mode, so they are ready for whatever Anton has planned. His extraction from the village seemed a little too easy, and only a bit of a fight was put up at their escape, costing Freddy his life. Deep down, Kris has a gut feeling that there is something else at bay here with Anton, but she doesn’t know what. She looks over at him, trying to read the smirk on his face and understand why he is acting so arrogant about his capture. He should be silent and terrified about being handed over to the American government, not like someone who just won the metaphorical lottery.

Anton sits up in his seat and begins to speak. “It’s funny. You two don’t look Hawaiian.” He says to the twins, obviously trying to get a rouse out of them. He fails miserably of course, because they both remain stone faced. They don’t even blink.

“you’re gonna tell us everything, Anton. Just give it time.” Steve says with a bit of a snappy tone, completely avoiding Anton’s question about them.

Anton just smirks in reply. “But you were born there, weren’t you?” Anton asks this time, still trying to hit a sensitive spot or something on the two soldiers. He probably knows that they won’t reply to any of his questions, but as long as he gets them talking to distract them, then he has completed his task.

Now it’s Kris’ turn to says something snippy to Anton. “Every terrorist cell you and victor helped arm, every supplier you ever worked with, all of your trafficking associates… Everyone you’ve ever sold weapons to… we will know once were done with you.” Kris says firmly, trying again to reiterate that they did not capture him to fuck around and become friends- Anton and Victor Hesse are global terrorists that must be stopped, and it is Steve and Kris’ job to take them down.

Anton wiggles his eyebrows, completely ignoring the glares and threats he is getting from the soldiers in the Humvee with him. “With you two chasing my brother and I around the world for five years… Like a doggy lookin’ for a bone… You don’t think we’d do our homework on you, would ya?” Anton smirks, just as Steve’s satellite phone rings, which makes his and Kris’ eyebrows furrow in confusion. Nobody should be calling them right now, especially when they’re on a mission as critical as this one.

Steve quickly pulls his phone out of his TAC vest and looks at the screen. He scowls at the caller ID, and quickly flashes the screen over to his sister to show her that it’s their dad calling him. Kris’ phone then rings too, which makes her heart rise to her throat. She knows already that this isn’t going to end well- there are too many red flags being put up right now. She pulls her phone out of her TAC vest and sees that the call is coming from her dad’s cell phone too. The McGarretts lock eyes momentarily, allowing each other to know that they know something suspicious is up and to be careful.

“You should probably get that. You two don’t speak to your old man nearly enough.” Anton suddenly says, which makes Kris see red. She immediately knows that this was Anton’s plan all along, and they easily fell into his to trap. All she can do is pray to god that her dad comes out of this unharmed.

After shooting Anton a vicious look, Steve answers his phone. Kris follows suit with hers. “Dad?” Steve asks, feeling his heart pound in his ears. He knows something bad is happening right now but has no idea what to do about it.

“Hey champ… Hey Tiger.” The gruff voice of their father, John McGarrett says, sounding exhausted. Kris and Steve now know that something is horribly wrong from his voice, and from the fact that he never calls them anything other than their names- the nicknames strike them as odd. Filing the nicknames in the back of her mind, Kris is the next one to talk. “You alright?” she asks cautiously, trying not to give anything away too early. John replies almost immediately. “Who are these people, guys?” he asks, now sounding a little scared. The fear in his voice makes Kris’ breath hitch in her throat. John McGarrett isn’t scared of anything, nor does he ever sound as vulnerable as he does now. Something is very, very wrong.

Then, the cocky, arrogant voice of Victor Hesse comes onto the call, which makes her see red. Before Steve can even say anything to her, Kris hangs up her phone and dials the Honolulu Police Department, as she has had that number memorized since she was a kid, since her dad still works there to this day. When a receptionist picks up the phone, Kris asks for Sargent Duke Lukela, who was dad’s best friend when Kris was growing up, and she hopes to god that he is still on the force too- she hasn’t seen him in about fifteen years, so anything could be possible at this point. Thankfully, she gets patched through to Duke right away.

Clearing her throat, she puts on her tough sounding commander voice once Duke answers the phone. “Duke. It’s Kris McGarrett. There is something going on at my house. I have reason to believe that my father is being held hostage by Victor Hesse, a global terrorist and an unknown number of hostiles there. We need your help. 2727 Piikoi Street, ASAP please.” She says as briefly as possible, hoping that Duke remembers her and trusts her enough to listen to this random call from her.

Duke stays silent for a moment, most likely to comprehend everything that was just said to him, interrupting his Tuesday morning, which was already filling up with lots of paperwork. Leaning forward on his desk, his brain starts to go a mile a minute. Why is it always the McGarretts that are getting into big trouble on this island, he asks himself, but then takes a deep breath before answering Kris on the line, who does sound a little scared, even if she was the United States’ first female Navy SEAL, meaning she was supposed to be fearless. “You got it Kris. We will be there in five minutes.” Duke tells her.

Kris thanks him quickly, and before she can hang up, an explosion rocks the Humvee, which jumpstarts her sympathetic nervous system and instantly puts her into fight or flight mode. Letting out a few choice words, she hangs up and throws her phone down, and braces for impact as another explosion hits, this time sending the Humvee toppling onto its side. Kris cranks her head hard enough off the seat in front of her to see stars for a few seconds, but she quickly regains her bearings and remembers the mission at hand.

Anton Hesse… who is currently trying to worm his way out of the Humvee. Kris grabs him by the back of his shirt and pulls him back down to the floor (which is actually the door of the Humvee) next to her. He tries to wiggle his way out of her grip, but she overpowers him and holds him in place as Steve slaps a spare TAC vest on him. Kris checks her gun, making sure that its loaded, and looks at Steve, already equipped with a plan. “I’ll go first and clear the way. I don’t know what’s out there, but your job is to protect the prisoner, okay?” She tells him, and he nods. Feeling her heart rise to her throat, she lets out a puff of air and walks out right into an ambush. Cursing silently, she opens fire on the unknown hostiles, who are head to toe in black, and seem to keep coming from black helicopters over the ridge. Kris takes aim at the helicopters and manages to take down one, giving Steve and Hesse a clear path out of the truck, which is about to be closed in on again. Kris shouts at Steve to move out and covers him as he drags Hesse by the vest to a new spot of cover, behind another transport, making sure that we come out alive from this ambush with Anton. Kris and Steve work on autopilot when taking down the hostiles, making sure to pick them off one by one, so they can manage an escape with their prisoner and figure out how the hostiles managed to locate them so easily. Steve and Kris spilt up, trying to cover more ground and make sure that the coast is clear- there are a couple more hostiles hanging around somewhere, but they haven’t been able to locate them yet, so they decided that splitting up would be the fastest way of finding them. Carefully, Kris walks out from in between two transports, trying to track down the remaining hostiles, when Steve shouts at her to get down. She hits the deck as fast as she can, but not fast enough to avoid getting hit with a bullet or two on the way down. The bullets tear into her left shoulder and her TAC vest, which knocks the wind out of her. Steve quickly eliminates the remaining hostiles, and then shouts something at Anton. Forcing out a cough to get her breath back, Kris scrambles to her feet and sees Steve drawing his sidearm. She does the same and runs over to him. “Put it down, Anton, don’t make me shoot!” Steve yells, and clicks off the safety of his gun. Anton does the same, and aims the gun at Steve, but before he can pull the trigger, Anton is put down by multiple bullets to his chest, fired from Steve’s gun.

Slamming her gun back into her vest, Kris runs over to Anton, who is now wheezing and bloody, gasping for one last breath. “Come on, Anton, please don’t,” Kris pleads quietly, but before she can even reach for his carotid to feel his pulse, Anton goes limp. She checks for a pulse to make sure, but when she can’t find one, its confirmed. She drips back on her knees and lets out a puff of air, wondering what the hell Victor is going to do about this. Before her mind can go to the worst-case scenario, Steve’s phone rings again. Kris rises to her feet and locks eyes with her twin brother- they both know that something bad is about to go down with this call from Victor, and don’t really know what to expect or how to really prepare for it. Kris just hopes to god that HPD can get there in time to stop Hesse from doing something possibly devastating. Steve picks up the phone with hesitation and puts it on speaker so Kris can listen in on it too. Before either of them can say anything, Victor orders them to put Anton on the phone. Stuttering, Steve and Kris try to come up with something that won’t give away the fact that Anton is dead, but only manage to say “Listen, Victor...”, which makes Victor mad. The line goes silent for a few moments, before Victor speaks up again.

“My brother’s dead, isn’t he?” Victor asks loudly. Kris and Steve don’t know how to answer. There is no way that they can say this lightly to him, or even avoid it without their father getting hurt. “Isn’t he?!” Victor shouts at their collective silence and doesn’t even let them answer before he says the worst thing they could possibly imagine. “Then so is your father.” Victor says flatly, then fires off a shot.

Kris lets out a guttural scream as she falls to her knees, begging anyone who would listen to spare her father’s life, as Steve shouts a loud “NO!” into the phone, and tries to yell at Victor, only to find out that he has disconnected the call. Steve curses and redials their dad’s phone, only to get no answer. He keeps trying until someone finally picks up after the fourth time, but it’s not John McGarrett answering, its Duke Lukela. Steve falls to his knees and puts his phone on speaker again so Kris can hear what’s going on too. Right now, she is looking at the ground and taking some deep breaths to keep herself relatively calm.

“Duke, is our father dead?” Steve asks, ripping off the Band-Aid in one go. Dukes silence speaks volumes to the two on the other end of the line.

“I’m so sorry, Steve. I’m so sorry Kris. We weren’t fast enough.” Duke says quietly. Steve lets out a quiet thank you and hangs up the phone. Feeling tears well up into his eyes, Steve takes a deep breath and puts a hand on his sister’s shoulder in consolidation, hoping that they can keep calm and get through this together. They can mourn their father once Hesse is caught and brought to justice for his murder, so for now, they have a mission to complete, and wont rest until Hesse is either in their custody or six feet in the ground.

Kris takes a deep breath and looks down at the green grass below her, Steve’s hand on her shoulder snaps her back to attention and into SEAL mode, remembering that she is still on a mission: Find Victor Hesse, dead or alive and make him pay for everything that he has done, no including the murder of her own father, John McGarrett. Kris pats Steve’s hand on her shoulder and they both rise up to their feet once again – Kris notices some sharp pain in her ribs from the two bullets her vest caught, and a throbbing pain in her shoulder from the bullet still lodged in there. She quickly rips off her scarf and ties a quick tourniquet around the wound to stop the bleeding; this is the least of her worries right now. Right now, Kris, Steve and the survivors of the ambush need to get the hell back to base and report so they can finish their mission and take Hesse down, once and for all, now that he made it very personal.

Fifteen minutes later, once all the casualties are loaded into a transport and the survivors are back on their feet, they continue to base, which is only a few miles away, thankfully. Kris and Steve just can’t seem to get the sound of the gunshot that killed their father out of their mind, though. They both know that it will haunt them for the rest of their lives; in a way, they were responsible for his death, and that is something they will have to carry with them until they die too.

——————————————————————————

also cross posted on AO3 and Wattpad 

AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25176232/chapters/61013149

Wattpad: https://www.wattpad.com/922940248-some-kind-of-curse-a-hawaii-five-0-story-prologue

#hawaii five o #Hawaii Five-O #Hawaii Five-0 #steve mcgarrett #kris mcgarrett #chin ho kelly #kono kalakaua #h50 #h5o #h50 fic #some kind of curse #skoc

[vanilla107]

Flirting on the Battlefield (Part 1)

“Did...did you just moan-?” Catra asked, a grin spreading across her face and her eyes twinkling in mirth.

“No! I-I did not!” Adora yelled, her voice high pitched. Glimmer and Bow’s voices were getting louder and Catra knew she had to leave.

Catra chuckled and leaned closer to Adora’s face, the saviour of Brightmoon, completely still underneath her.

“Well, Adora. If that wasn’t a sign of desire...then I don’t know what is.” ************** The Horde's last mission was a failure and Catra knows if she doesn't produce results, there will be consequences. After receiving some advice from Entrapta, she tries a new tactic, one that starts to work a little too well...

I think this is my fourth She Ra fanfiction and it's unhealthy. I literally can't stop thinking of this show and I NEED SEASON TWO NOW. Anyway, I feel like this is something Catra would totally try to do to get the upper hand! I hope you all enjoy reading it! Remember that comments, indeed make me combust with happiness.

Stay healthy! vanilla107 xoxo

SHE RA MASTERLIST

AO3

****************

Catra banged her fist on the table in frustration.

“Dammit! How did they beat us again?” she yelled and Scorpia watched the feline pace up and down in their boardroom.

Catra, Scorpia and Entrapta where all together, trying to come up with new plan on how to conquer Brightmoon. Their last mission hadn’t been a success. If anything, it had been a disaster and one of their worst missions so far.

“Maybe it’s because they’re princesses and they have magical powers and we don’t?” asked Scorpia and Catra ran a hand down her face in annoyance.

“I know that Scorpia. We all do.”

A loud boom came from the adjoined room and Catra groaned.

“Entrapta, there better not be anything broken in there!” she yelled and the only response was a giggle.

“Nope! Everything’s fine! I needed to test out two new chemicals and observe their reactions. Now, what seems to be the main problem at hand?”

Catra lost it and screamed in frustration.

She flipped their planning table which had all their failed plans scatter on the floor. Her sudden rage shocked Scorpia. Sure, the princess had seen Catra angry but this...this was anger on another level.

“We have to get better! We can’t let this constantly happen! Hordak is expecting results and I can only afford to screw up a few times. There is no way I’ll be compared to Shadow Weaver’s failures!” Catra roared. She paced around the room, her frustrations slowly seeping away.

She walked over to their board of all the princesses in the alliance. Adora was right in the center and Catra sighed as she knocked her head against the photo.

“I have to report to Hordak next week and if there’s no improvement...I might lose my position of Force Captain...or worse,” she whispered and she felt Scorpia place a pincer on her shoulder.

“I understand your frustration but what can we do? We’ve tried everything...stealing Adora’s sword, stealing it while she was She ra, capturing Glimmer, capturing Angella...I think we’ve run out of ideas…” Scorpia murmured.

“What? No we haven’t! Catra obviously needs to use her knowledge in her relationship with Adora to her advantage!” Entrapta said cheerfully while she tinkered with a mini robot.

Catra and Scorpia stared at the scientist and she looked at them with a smile on her face.

“Um...can you please repeat that in normal non-science speech?” asked Scorpia and Entrapta sighed.

“Catra knew Adora when they were little kids. Catra should know Adora’s fears and desires. Maybe we can get some sort of plan from that,” she explained and Catra stared long and hard at Adora’s photo.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up and she smirked as she ripped off Adora’s picture from the board.

“I think...I think I have an idea.”

**************************

It was a few weeks later when the Horde attacked Brightmoon. The team was on a skiff awaiting their orders.

“Remember the plan. You guys keep the princesses from assisting She ra. I’ll take her head on and proceed to put my plan into place. Understood?” Catra said, her sharp tone of her voice rattling a few soldiers.

There was a chorus of ‘Yes Force Captain Catra!” and she grinned widely as she saw Brightmoon up ahead.

Oh, this is going to be fun.

***************************

Catra gasped in pain as she was slammed against a boulder, She ra’s hand holding her neck firmly in place. They were in a shallow pond while the rest of the Horde fought the princesses on the other side of the kingdom. The sun was setting, casting a golden glow over everything. Catra hated to admit it, but She ra looked breathtaking in the gold light but she had to stay focused. They weren’t too far apart and Catra noticed how blue She ra’s eyes were.

“What happened to all your training, Catra? What happened to you always striking first?” She ra gloated and Catra felt her blood boil.

Calm down. Just wait.

“Sorry, I got lost in your eyes. Can you repeat that?” Catra asked, her voice coming out a little lower than usual since her windpipe was under pressure but her tone still sounded seductive.

It was a bad pick up line but she knew it would be enough to confuse She ra for a good second so that she could escape her grip. She ra’s grip around her neck immediately loosened and she looked dumbfounded.

“What did you just say-? Ahh!” she screamed as Catra jabbed her side and escaped her grip.

Catra wasted no time in punching She ra in the stomach and roundhouse kicking her. The princess fell on her knees, clutching her stomach in pain.

“You know, She ra, this whole princessy get up of yours always confused me. Are you still the same Adora I know or do you suddenly feel entitled and put yourself on a pedestal because you’re ‘oh so high and mighty’?” Catra asked as she knelt down and grabbed her collar and yanked the princess closer to her.

She ra gasped in pain and Catra laughed.

“All this princess power and you still got your ass handed to you. I had high hopes for you She ra.”

Before Catra could say another word, the princess grabbed Catra’s body slammed her into the water.

Catra shrieked. She hated water.

“Aw, little kitty still afraid of the water? How about you go for a swim?” She ra grinned as she watched Catra clench her jaw in anger before the feline’s entire facial expression changed.

Catra’s eyes sparkled with mischief and her eyes flickered to the princess’s lips.

“Bite me,” she purred and She ra froze and felt her face heat up in embarrassment.

“Are you blushing?” Catra teased and she felt the strong girl’s grip falter at her question.

“I...What-?” was all she managed to get out before Catra kicked her off of her, winding her in the process.

She shook away the water coating her back and saw the princess gasping for breath next to her, lying on her back. As planned, a Horde skiff swooped down and had a ladder ready for her to latch onto. Catra quickly ran over to the struggling princess and knelt down. Her sensitive hearing picked up that Glimmer, Bow and the other princesses were right around the corner.

“Dream of me, okay Adora?” Catra said flirtatiously as she gently caressed her cheek before all the princesses arrived.

She ran back the the plane and latched onto the ladder as Bow and Glimmer appeared from around the corner and tried to shoot down the skiff. They took off and Catra was pleased to see that most of the Horde soldiers had retreated already. Scorpia looked at Catra from the pilot’s seat and grinned.

“So? How’d it go?”

“All according to plan,” Catra smirked and Scorpia laughed.

“Did you enjoy yourself?” Scorpia teased and Catra’s posture became rigid.

“No! This is all part of the plan, Scorpia! You know that!” Catra hissed, her voice becoming a few octaves higher and the princess laughed.

“I was kidding! But good performance anyway. Just...how are you going to explain this to Hordak?”

“I’ll sort it out. Don’t worry. Now everyone needs rest. We need to keep this up for the next week for it to be effective.”

“Yes, Catra. Let’s go back to the Fright Zone.”

Catra nodded and looked out of the plane and saw all the princesses surrounding She ra.

The princess de-transformed and Adora looked at the retreating skiff. Catra swore she made eye contact with her old friend but she just smiled.

There was so much more where that came from.

*******************

That evening Catra tossed and turned in her bed, frustrated that she couldn’t sleep. Scorpia’s words had her head in shambles.

Did she enjoy being seductive and teasing towards Adora?

Yes.

Did that mean she liked Adora?

...Possibly…?

NO! I need to concentrate on the Horde and being the best possible Force Captain. I can’t like my enemy.

Catra stared at the ceiling and thought of how Adora looked when she had said those provocative words. They had been friends since they were kids and Catra knew Adora had a soft spot for flirting or any brazen compliment. She used to be reduced to a blushing mess when they were kids and Catra teased her about it constantly.

As they got older, Adora managed to control herself around the teasing but still blushed if Catra tried hard enough. Since Adora joined the rebels, their talking ceased and Adora’s immunity to Catra’s comments must’ve lowered. The feline chuckled and grinned in the darkness, her blue and yellow eyes bright with anticipation.

“Oh, Adora. Tomorrow can’t come fast enough.”

****************************************

Adora was freaking out back at Brightmoon and she couldn’t sleep. She ended up pacing her room instead.

“What...Catra? What are you doing!”

Adora wasn’t surprised with Catra’s flirty behaviour but when she joined the rebellion, all of that ceased to exist. Now, Catra was just whipping out pick up lines and challenging her in her seductive tone which did make her heart beat a little faster and-

“Stop!” Adora yelled at her thoughts as she felt her face burn with embarrassment as she flopped herself onto her bed.

“Catra must have an angle with this. What game is she playing at?” she thought out loud.

Nothing. Absolutely nothing came to her mind when she questioned it. She grabbed a pillow and screamed with frustration into it.

“It’s okay...tomorrow is a new day...you just need to trust yourself. Besides, after the attack the Horde did today, they won’t plan another attack for a few more days...sleep Adora. You can do this. You just need to train.” Adora sighed heavily and got under her covers.

Catra…whatever you’re planning, you won’t get away with it.

**************************

“The Horde’s attacking a village! We need to go now!” yelled Glimmer as she burst into Adora’s room.

“W-what? But...but we just fought them yesterday!” Adora shrieked as she bolted out of bed.

“Look, I don’t know what angle they’re going for. First they attacked the palace and now it’s a village. I don’t know the connection but all I know is that Catra is there.”

Adora’s sense were wide alert when Glimmer said her old friend’s name.

“Let’s go stop the Horde,” she said with determination and grabbed her sword.

I will not let my guard down this time.

“For the honour of Grayskull!”

**************************

“Hey Adora~,” Catra purred when she saw She ra approach her.

They were in a secluded part of a forest, away from the village. Glimmer had told her to go after Catra while the other princesses fought off the Horde and helped the villagers. She ra gritted her teeth and there was something about it that made Catra chuckle.

“What? You aren’t happy to see me?” she smirked as she took a fighting stance.

She ra threw her sword and it landed just a few centimeters away from Catra’s face, lodged into a tree.

“Okay then, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed,” Catra hissed and she pounced, knocking She ra to the floor.

She ra immediately got up and charged for the feline. Catra jumped into the trees and hid amongst the foliage. The princess cursed. The trees leaves were thick and she couldn’t spot her Catra in them.

“So, Adora...you do realize I’m still going to call you Adora right? I mean you’ll always be Adora to me.” Catra’s voice echoed in the trees and She ra tried to find the source of it but was fruitless.

“Anyway, how was your sleep? Have sweet dreams?”

She ra retrieved her sword and clenched it to hard that her knuckles turned white.

“I hope you had sweet dreams and you know how dreams can reveal what our subconscious is thinking of. So, did you dream of me?” Catra giggled.

“Shut up!” She ra yelled into the open space.

“I wonder what you dreamed of me? The two of us together maybe? Like how it was before you left the Horde or...?”

Suddenly Catra pounced from one of the branches and hit She ra straight in the back, knocking her to her knees.

“Or did you dream of us differently...hmmm...like...” Catra walked over to She ra who was still on the ground trying to regain her breath.

She put She ra into a headlock and she felt She ra’s hands grip onto her arm to break free.

“-Doing things Shadow Weaver would’ve never wanted us doing together?” Catra whispered into her princess’s ear before kneeing She ra in her back.

She ra hissed in pain and Catra let her out of her headlock and immediately took refuge in the trees once more.

“You’re being a coward, Catra! Fight me like a Horde soldier!”

She ra snapped and she heard Catra’s giggle once more.

“You know I fight dirty, Adora. Just because you’re a princess now doesn’t mean I change too.”

Don’t let your guard down, Adora. Focus!

“I never changed! I found out that what the Horde was doing was wrong! How can you be fine with innocent people being hurt and losing their homes to the Horde?” she hissed and from the corner of her eye she saw Catra’s form leap towards her.

She turned sharply and hit the feline, causing her to crash into a thick tree. She ra walked over to Catra and grabbed her by her shirt and lifted her into the air, her sword dangerously close to her neck.

“Let go of my shirt, Adora,” Catra said slowly and She ra could feel her legs shaking.

“Enough! What are you planning with the Horde?” the princess pressed and slammed Catra into the tree, hoping she would be quiet. Catra hissed in pain but regained composure and looked directly into She ra’s clear blue eyes and gave her a wink.

“Let go of my shirt Adora, unless you plan on ripping it off of me...”

She ra’s eyes widened and she stared at Catra. Without a second of hesitation, the feline kicked her in the chest and lept to the other side of the clearing.

“You should see your face right now, Adora. You are so red,” Catra laughed and She ra clenched her fists in anger.

“Do you think this is some sort of game to you Catra? What are you playing at?” she screamed in frustration as she turned to face Catra.

“Maybe...it’s a little game called Cat and Mouse…and guess what-?” Catra ran towards her, her claws ready to inflict damage. The blonde managed to block her claws from scratching her but they were now face to face.

“-You’re the mouse,” Catra whispered before jumping back into the trees.

She ra gripped her sword and shook her head furiously.

“You think some seductive words are going to get to my head?” she hissed and sensed movement from behind her. She turned around but was too late as Catra knocked her to the floor, using all of her force to pin the giant woman to the ground.

“Well...haven’t they already?” Catra smirked as she saw the prominent blush rise on She ra’s cheeks.

Suddenly, She ra’s form flickered and she de-transformed back into Adora.

Adora stared at Catra with wide, confused eyes, her cheeks now painfully, obviously red.

“Adora? Adora!” Bow and Glimmer’s voices echoed the forest and Catra gritted her teeth in frustration.

She wasn’t finished with making Adora flustered but she had to go if she didn’t wanted to be caught.

“Bye Adora. Dream of me, ‘kay?” As she said those words she trailed a hand down the flustered girls face, down to her neck.

Catra’s blue and yellow eyes gazed into the endless depths of blue that was Adora’s, when suddenly a noise erupted from Adora’s throat and Catra froze, her eyes taking in the full picture of the girl beneath her.

“Did...did you just moan-?” Catra asked, a grin spreading across her face and her eyes twinkling in mirth.

“No! I-I did not!” Adora yelled, her voice high pitched. Glimmer and Bow’s voices were getting louder and Catra knew she had to leave.

Catra chuckled and leaned closer to Adora’s face, the saviour of Brightmoon, completely still underneath her.

“Well, Adora. If that wasn’t a sign of desire...then I don’t know what is.”

Without another word, she stood up and sprinted into the forest.

“Adora! Are you alright?” Glimmer yelled and her two friends burst into the clearing, weapons ready.

“I...I’m okay. Catra got away though.”

“Well, there will be another day when she gets caught. The Horde soldiers did do some serious damage on the village though. We need to go help them clean up and restore it first.”

Adora nodded and walked out of the clearing, only looking back once to relive how Catra had made her feel so vulnerable.

***************************

“Scorpia, you should’ve seen her face! It was priceless! A few more days of this and we’ll soon have full control of Brightmoon and Etheria!” Catra laughed and Scorpia smiled.

“So what is this flirting tactic anyway? How did you know Adora would still be affected by it?” Catra lept from her bed and onto the floor.

“I sorta guessed. I knew Adora always got flustered when I teased her when we were younger but I didn’t think it would still work!” Catra cackled and walked to the boardroom with Scorpia following behind her. “All we need to do is keep this up and Brightmoon will be in out hands.”

“Look Catra, I’m glad you’re happy but are you sure you want to go through with this? What if Adora becomes immune?” Catra’s canines glinted as she smiled.

“Oh, don’t worry, Scorpia. It’ll be fine. If anything, Adora hasn’t even faced the worst of it yet and she should be freaking out back at Brightmoon now. She won’t become immune anytime soon.”

**************************************

Back at Brightmoon, Adora was pacing her room again, mentally cursing herself.

She had moaned in the forest. Everything had happened so fast and she had moaned in pleasure to Catra’s touch and it was a disaster. She couldn’t help it. It just happened. Catra had been on top of her, saying all these damn seductive words with that tone that drove her brain crazy and her body had just responded-

Adora fell onto her bed and screamed into the blankets.

“Why? What is wrong with me? I shouldn’t be feeling things like this for Catra! She’s my enemy!”

Yeah, an enemy you want to do all sorts of sinful things too, her brain said.

 “Shut up!” Adora yelled to her brain and she groaned in defeat. 

She wracked her head trying to figure out what the hell Catra was trying to prove.

“Does she think I like her more than a friend?” she wondered out loud but then covered her head with her pillow.

“That’s not the problem! You freeze up when fighting her and Catra can not have that power over you!” Adora said to herself.

"She...she's with the Horde. This isn't some casual flirting or any sign of attraction. It's...war strategy," Adora said softly, her heart sore at the words.

“Let go of my shirt Adora, unless you plan on ripping it off of me...”

“Or did you dream of us differently...hmmm...like...doing things Shadow Weaver never wanted us doing together?”

Adora could feel the heat rising to her face and could almost feel how Catra’s body had pinned her to the ground.

No, Catra is using your emotions against you. Fight it.

She began pacing again, her brain working ten times faster. She walked over to her window and looked out, envisioning the Fright Zone among the forest.

“I’ll be ready next time Catra, you have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into,” Adora hissed and went to bed.

#catradora #catradora fanfiction #fluff #adora #catra #spop #spop 2018 #angella #vanilla107writes #vanilla107 writes #FotB

[loveinpanem-blog]

Queen of Hearts

Written by: @katnissdoesnotfollowback

Summary: We spend a couple of hours quizzing each other on military terms. I visit my mother and Prim for a while. When I’m back in my compartment, showered, staring into the darkness, I finally ask, “Johanna, could you really hear him screaming?”

“That was part of it,” she says. “Like the jabberjays in the arena. Only it was real. And it didn’t stop after an hour. Tick, tock.”

“Tick, tock,” I whisper back.  

Roses. Wolf mutts. Tributes. Frosted dolphins. Friends. Mockingjays. Stylists. Me.  

Everything screams in my dreams tonight.

– Suzanne Collins, Mockingjay, The Hunger Games Trilogy

An expanded series of scenes from Mockingjay. Text taken directly from the book in italics.

WARNING: RATED T+ for disturbing images, blood, mentions of torture. If you are expecting fluff or whimsy without some heartache first, this is not the fic you’re looking for.

Plutarch droning on about military history would be boring and awful under most circumstances, but having to listen to him during the late afternoon after several hours of running and push ups makes it unbearable. Johanna gave up on staying awake twenty minutes ago and my eyes are drooping. All of us are ready for dinner, a chorus of grumbling bellies rolling through the room periodically. The only excitement arrives when Plutarch uses a several terms that few of us recognize, not even the soldiers from Thirteen. Queen. King. Empire. Monarch. I only know the words from watching Peeta and Haymitch play chess. I didn’t realize they meant something in terms of our ancestors’ history.

A soldier with graying hair asks Plutarch to explain and I drift in and out of the discussion, my mind really focused on the food I should be eating soon. When he finally finishes droning on, York shouts at us to form back up. I jab Johanna with my elbow to wake her. She flops comically for a second before rising from her chair and joining the line of us making our way back up to the surface and the training field.

We push ourselves hard for the last bit of training, a few laps and then rifle assembly. Today, Johanna actually manages to assemble her rifle without help. The fresh air and exercise work wonders to reinvigorate us after the dull lectures. By the time we reach the cafeteria, we are famished.

“Johanna, could you really hear him screaming?”

“That was part of it,” she says. “Like the jabberjays in the arena. Only it was real. And it didn’t stop after an hour. Tick, tock.”

“Tick tock,” I whisper back.

We lay in silence, fearing the night and the visions it brings. I can’t find the line between sleeping and waking. “Tick tock. Tick tock. Tick. Tock.”

There are always sounds in Thirteen. The constant whir of the ventilation systems. Strange clicks as electrical systems cycle on and off. “Tick tock,” I whisper, and they fall silent. The entire world freezes and then the gears resume.

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. The beating sound echoes in my head and calls me forth. The air warms around me, thickens with humidity. Buttercup leaps onto my bed and cleans his paws, staring at me with shining yellow eyes. I try to shoo him and he jumps down. His paws leave glowing paw prints on the floor.

My footsteps follow him and the cadence of the clock. Reaching out, I touch the door and it dissolves beneath my hand, as do the walls. The jungle springs forth in their place. The awful buzzing of the insects creates a rumble, a prelude to the lightning that will soon strike the tree in the distance.

Peeta. I have to get to Peeta before the lightning starts.

Buttercup’s footsteps light the way, but as I get closer, the ground roils beneath me. A sea of litterfall that heaves and crests. Frosted dolphins breach the surface, screaming shrilly into the night before they once more disappear into the soil waves and are silenced. Over and over again.

“Tick tock. Tick tock.”

Still, the clock chimes on as I reach the beach and leave the dolphins behind, only here, the wolves prowl. Snarling with blood dripping from their fangs. Their human eyes watching me.

I cover my ears and break into a run, the screams of the dolphins growing more distant as I circle the Cornucopia. The wolves follow, their stinking breath washing down my spine, their greedy claws grabbing for vengeance. For me.

“Tick tock. Tick tock.”

They follow me as I crash into the jungle, still following Buttercup’s luminescent trail. As soon as the wolf mutts’ paws reach the dirt, their screaming intensifies. Grisly howls of pain and anguish. Then come the birds.

My legs ache with the effort of running. My chest with the pounding of my heart and the need to stop. To take deep gulps of air. But I keep going, ignoring the screams of friends as they swoop around me on dark wings. Gale, Madge, Prim, Rue, Cinna.

On and on I run until the charged air makes my hair stand on end and I skid to a halt in front of the great tree. Lightning splits the sky, cleaving the tree in two, revealing a pristine white throne, a man perched upon it dressed all in white. The remnants of the tree twist into bushes that sprout snow-white roses.

The screaming stops.

“Kneel,” a voice orders, and I have no choice, zapped into obedience by a current not unlike the one on the ladders of the hovercraft.

I cry out at the pain, and when I again lift my head, the jungle is gone. Replaced with a chessboard that stretches to the horizon and beyond, the sky above me crackles with lightning cavorting in storm clouds.

The man on the throne watches me, his face hidden behind a marble mask.

“Who’s been painting my roses red?” he asks. I command my limbs to move so I can kill him. The serpent voice behind the mask who will steal everyone I love from me. But I cannot move and shriek with rage.

“Who’s been painting my roses red?” he roars again. The wolves, dolphins, and birds resume their screams for a moment. Until he commands their silence. “You, Miss Everdeen, you dare to stain with blood and pain, my perfect flower bed?”

I open my mouth to deny it and choke on my words.

“She can’t speak, My King,” Plutarch informs him, sweeping into a grand bow before standing upright. “Allow me.”

He claps his hand, making thunder boom through the land. The screaming resumes until the King shouts for silence. Talons dig into my shoulder. A mockingjay perches there and begins to sing.

“Yes. Yes, go on,” Plutarch urges as the King leans forward in his throne.

“What does it say?” he demands.

“She did not act alone, your Grace,” Plutarch states. “She had help from the Ace.”

“The Ace, you say? Bring forth the prisoner!” the King bellows and the creatures of the night scream in answer. “Silence! Or someone shall lose their head!”

Plutarch claps his hands and two chess pawns drag a limp form across the board, his wrists in thick iron manacles. They drop him to kneel, facing me, in one of the black squares. His ash blonde waves are matted with blood, his shoulders slumped in defeat.

“Peeta!” The mockingjay on my shoulder screams with my voice the instant that I think his name.

A bird perches on his shoulder, a mockingjay’s direct negative. White with black underwing stripes.

“Katniss! Katniss!” the bird howls with his voice.

The king rises and walks to stand behind Peeta as the screams begin anew, a low hum that gradually grows to an unbearable lament. I cover my ears but am otherwise unable to move, forced to watch as Peeta lifts his head to look at me with pained blue eyes. The white bird flaps its wings and tries to lift him from the ground, but his knees are as useless as mine.

“No, not your head,” the king decrees. “Your heart.”

Peeta’s mouth falls open with shock, the white bird screams for him, an agonizing sound that goes on for hours. My black bird joins the chorus as my throat turns raw with the screams I can’t seem to get out, the bird releasing them for me. A red blossom forms on Peeta’s chest where I know his heart to be, growing in size apace with the agony of our screams. His eyes turn cloudy and angry and still our mingled screams fill the night, only his transform from pain and fear to a murderous rage. Blackness taints his eyes, erasing the blue. The white roses on the bushes bleed red from their centers and soon, the roses scream, too.

“Tick tock. Tick tock. Now die by the clock.”

Midnight chimes. And everything screams.

I wake thrashing in my sheets with Peeta’s name a soft wail on my lips. In the dark, I search for my pearl and hug my knees to my chest once I find it. Hold in my real screams as I press the pearl to my lips, biting the lower until I taste blood mingling with the salt of tears. And I promise myself again.

I will kill Snow for this. For taking him from me.

But more words tumble out. “You’re a painter. You’re a baker. You like to sleep with the windows open. You never take sugar in your tea. And you always double-knot your shoelaces.”

Then I dive into my tent before I do something stupid like cry.

Sleep does not come easy, and when it does, it brings no relief. There’s no clock here and still, I hear the ticking. Tick tock. Tick Tock.

Buttercup’s glowing paw prints lead me once more through city streets, littered with rubble and bodies. Tick tock. Tick tock.

Peeta’s memories are here somewhere and I must find them before midnight. Always midnight.

I get trapped, caught in tangles of wire that slither and writhe like snakes. I try to scream for help and can’t. They sprout legs, insects of great length crawling over me. My mockingjay lands nearby and pecks at them, but the insects overwhelm the creature and we are both swallowed, consumed in a black pit, falling for ages until the world flips upside down.

Lightning flashes and I land, poised on a throne overlooking the giant chess board. The bird perches on my shoulder as I survey my surroundings. Broken chess pieces cover the checkered surface. Great chasms split the squares. I glance down and find myself dressed in my Mockingjay uniform, only it’s made of blood red instead of black. When I look back at the chess board, Peeta’s there, kneeling once more, his eyes fierce black chasms of tracker-jacker rage. Hands bound, body neglected. Tortured. He looks the same as he did on the day they rescued him.

All around him, crushed white roses bleed crimson onto the marble ground. The white bird reposes on his shoulder, hissing angry words and accusations, all of them true. I left him. I left him in the arena and then I left him without a hope of recovery, leaving him in the hands of the questionable head doctors of Thirteen. With each accusation, the blood flower on his chest grows larger until he begins to fade away into it.

I will it to stop, but when I move to stand, I can’t use my hands. Glancing down, I scream at the beating mass in my palm. I try to run to him, to return what belongs to him, but I smash my toe on something solid and fall to the ground. Look back to find Snow’s visage captured in marble, severed from his marble body and seeping blood from his hideous, puffy lips.

“We painted his roses red,” Mutt Peeta’s voice snarls at me. “Tick tock.”

I scream and sit upright in my tent.

“It was the waste of a trip. She’s not here,” I tell him. Buttercup hisses again. “She’s not here. You can hiss all you like. You won’t find Prim.” At her name, he perks up. Raises his flattened ears. Begins to meow hopefully. “Get out!” He dodges the pillow I throw at him. “Go away! There’s nothing left for you here!” I start to shake, furious with him. “She’s not coming back! She’s never ever coming back here again!” I grab another pillow and get to my feet to improve my aim. Out of nowhere, the tears begin to pour down my cheeks. “She’s dead.” I clutch my middle to dull the pain. Sink down on my heels, rocking the pillow, crying. “She’s dead, you stupid cat. She’s dead.” A new sound, part crying, part singing, comes out of my body, giving voice to my despair. Buttercup begins to wail as well. No matter what I do, he won’t go. He circles me, just out of reach, as wave after wave of sobs racks my body, until eventually I fall unconscious.

Buttercup limps along the forest path lined with primroses, leaving softly glowing prints for me to follow. We trek through gauzy violet clouds that swirl around me like silk when I wave my hand through their mist. I hear faint screams and wait for the horrors to descend. A silent Mockingjay lands on my shoulder and remains.

He’s waiting for me at the edge of the woods, where the trees open up upon a wide black and white chess board. A soft meow encourages me, and I walk alone across the squares until my feet ache and my throat is parched. I pass a crumbled throne set inside a split open and charred tree. There’s no sign of the carnage caused by the occupants of the throne. Because the monster is within.

I continue to walk. The throne is not my goal.

Eventually, trees rise up from the horizon and my pulse quickens. Smoke drifts across the edges of the board as I reach its end. I kneel in the dirt and stare at the burning rose bushes that block my path. Through the smoke and the flames, I see a figure in a red-stained shirt, kneeling in the dirt. His hands work with assurance, planting seedlings.

The bird on my shoulder takes flight, soars over the burning roses. It’s reverse leaves it’s perch on his shoulder and they cartwheel through the air for a moment before disappearing into the woods.

I want to touch him, to hold him and know that he’s alright. I call out his name. He stands and as he whispers my name, the blossom shaped sain begins to recede, leaving soft yellow in its place. The roses burn. And he waits with me.

My eyes flutter open to my room. Buttercup sits perched on the end of my bed, his tail swishing rhythmically. Tick tock. Tick tock. Eyes glowing yellow and alert in the moonlight. Guarding me until I can get past the burning rose bushes.

He’s still there in the morning. And eventually, after many lost days, both of them guard me in the night and wait for me to wake in the mornings. The yellow-eyed cat and the blue-eyed boy.

Author’s Notes:

My thanks to @titaniasfics for editing this odd little piece and making some wonderful suggestions to tie it all together. Thank you also to @peetabreadgirl for accidentally providing the inspiration for this rather last minute piece. And finally, thanks to @titaniasfics, @akai-echo, @louezem, and @thegirlfromoverthepond for running Love in Panem and this challenge. Keeping the love and the fandom alive, ladies! Thank you so much for your time and brainpower.

<3 KDNFB

#Love in Panem #march madness #mm2017 #tracydoesnotfollowback #Queen of Hearts #everlark #canon compliant #submission #everlark fanfiction #LIP #LIP drabbles