#you walk into the living room and you see ghosty at the edge of her seat

[magnoliabutters]

• TAKE ME •

pairing: simon "ghost" riley x reader (they/them, 18+)

summary: there he goes again, pissing you the fuck off…

warnings: 18+ content, mdni, adult language; cod mw 2 campaign spoilers; reader referred to by rank (lieutenant, "lt") and call sign (aero); weapons, gore, violence; angst to fluff to smut/porn; enemies to lover trope, toxic love dynamic (only to be fantasized in fanfics, not encouraged irl - you deserve better hunty), possibly problematic coping skills, rough sexy time, etc.

word count: ~5.7k

support your author: reblogs for the sexy masked menace, ghostie boy ✨

• ghost stories series • previous part •

note: part two. sorry for the delay! let's live this bad boy fantasy together...

specific warnings: mature/serious topics mentioned - please read over; *trigger warning* small insinuation of sexual assault and questionable interrogation methods (to avoid, begin reading at second red line; skipping will not impact story)

Do you know how unbearably painful it is to just stop - right when it was getting good? As you walk down the hallway, Soap at arm's length away, you attempt to slow your breathing. Anything to get your blood pumping around your body again. Anything to keep your mind off the pulsating feeling in your groin.

Ghost walks ahead, fists clenched. You wonder how he must be feeling. Practically on on the verge of cumming and being made to stop. It's one thing to be edged, but its another to be forced to conceal a raging boner and not knowing the first chance you'll have to address it.

Soap continues down the hallway with heavy steps. His face solely showing determination. Further confirming your hope that he did not see, nor suspect anything. Ghost opens the door to the others' debriefing room and quickly drops it behind him. The heavy door almost slams against Soap's shoulder. "What the hell, Ghost?" he asks with his thick Scottish accent. "Aye, don't take it personal, Soap. Must just have an itchy trigger finger," you suggest as you lug the door open. The room looks exactly like the one you and Ghost explored earlier.

Ghost pounds his fist against the steel door. He waits to hear movement as the door lock pops open. "Perfect, you're going to want to hear this, hombre," Alejandro says as he widens the door. "Qué es?" Ghost asks as he walks in. You can't help the "humph" that leaves your body. He knows some Spanish? It leaves a smile on your face, whether you'd like it to or not.

Alejandro keeps the door open for both you and Soap. "Hermano," Alejandro says with a nod directed towards Soap. "Teniente," he adds as his eyes fall upon you. "Do you want to tell them what you told me or should I get that car battery I promised you?" Gaz says as he points towards the side of the room. Nadia Sidorov blubbers in the chair. Her black mascara smudged down to her chin. She must have been crying since she woke up from her unexpected slumber. You wouldn't blame her. It's not easy waking up in a US black site.

"AQ wants a stealth bomber, okay? They wanted something quick and quiet, to get the job done," Sidorov mumbles between tears. "What job?" Ghost's voice booms from the corner. God, did this man love dark corners. "They-they wanted to take out some gang. I don't know! I don't really ask questions in my line of work. I don't need to know what they're being used for," she yells, exhausted. "You mean, you don't care to know about who your weapons are being used on," you correct her. Her careless and dangerous attitude bubbling up an anger within you. It's a nice distraction.

Sidorov rolls her eyes and shakes her head. "Do they have the bomber?" Soap asks as he walks under the light from the overhead lamp. Her eyes squint as she looks his way. They widen as a smile forms across her face. She begins a slow laugh as she leans her head back onto her shoulders. "Oh, Soapy-boy. What do they have you doin' now?" she says with a soothing, yet unsettling tone. Her entire demeanor has now shifted. The blubbering mess is suddenly exuding confidence and happiness.

Ghost's eyes quickly rush towards Soap. Soap returns with a confused, but suspicious look. Several brutal questions rush through your head. How the hell did Soap know the target? And why didn't he mention that before? "Why don't you go discuss in that other room there," Sidorov suggests as she nods towards the locked door. "I'm sure you have plenty to talk about." You quickly walk over to the woman and crouch before her. "Why don't you tell me what there is to talk about, Nadia?" you ask with a tilt to your head.

"Soap tells the story best," Sidorov seethes through her teeth. "Car battery, huh?" you ask as you quickly stand. You turn towards Gaz. "Who taught you that trick?" you scoff. Ghost watches your every move intensely. Almost as though he is trying to memorize your patterns. Maybe just in case you get into another physical altercation.

"Now, Nadia. You're a very smart woman. That's obvious. You're one of the most prominent arm's dealers in all of Europe," you continue as you make your way behind her chair. “I know you’ve done this before and you know what comes next.” The boys still stand barely outside of the shadows in the small sound proofed room. "Show me how smart you are and start talking," you say as you land a tight grip onto her shoulders.

Sidorov shivers at your touch and remains silent. "Alright," you shrug. You quickly pull the woman down by her shoulders. She falls onto her arms as they are tied behind the chair. She releases a heavy breath as the wind is knocked out of her. She now rests onto her back.

"We got your AQ contact in the other room. He gave us names. Las Almas Cartel and Los Vanqueros," you share as you crouch down beside her. Alejandro and Rudy quickly shift their eyes from you to Ghost. Rudy's upper lip is stiff as he continues watching over Sidorov in disgust. Alejandro's nostrils flare as he pops his knuckles.

"See, we already have all the information we need," you whisper. "I really don't care about how you know Soap here." You stand as you stretch at your arms in front of you and walk towards the front door. Her eyes watching you intently with a stern lip. "Boys, do your worst," you mumble. Sidorov quickly shouts in panic, "Wait! Wait!" You turn around slowly. "AQ showed me Soap's picture. They've been passing it around to anyone with a gun. He's got a hit on him," she stutters out. "Clear out," you instruct.

The boys look at you with either dumbfounded or confused looks. They are both in shock regarding what was implied of them, but also the results of your threat. You received vital information about Soap. Going forward, he will be unable to go into the field for a mission. If he was in the restaurant instead of Gaz, you both could have easily been made and ambushed. Now, he will remain protected and protect his squad by staying in overwatch.

"Clear out," you repeat again at a higher volume. The boys quickly walk outside. Ghost waits at the door. He watches you as you grab hold of the back of Sidorov's chair. You lean her up. Reaching back into your pocket, you reveal another knife tucked in your left sock. You quickly cut the restraints that hold Sidorov's wrists. Without looking back, you walk out. Ghost locks the door from the outside, rendering the inside lock useless.

You walk into the debriefing room with your head down. "How'd you know she'd talk?" Rudy asks. You look up and see the two sergeants, colonel, and sergeant major staring at you. Ghost leaning back against the wall. "Nothing scarier then a room full of men," you say with a deep sigh. "Ghost, you move forward with the plan of action. Brief me in the morning." You leave the room behind in a haste, hell bent in making it back to your cot.

Today was rough. It's time to go to sleep and start over.

Despite making it back to your quarters, you couldn't get yourself to sleep. Insomnia always keeps you up. Some nights your body doesn't accept the sleeping meds. You are just forced to stare at a ceiling as your mind begs for sleep and your body continues to deny the request. Counting those damn sheep as they continue to laugh at your attempts at rest.

With a sigh, you quickly sit up from your cot. Your oversized t-shirt falling to your upper thighs. You walk over to your backpack - the same designated backpack that you will be living out of for the remainder of the mission. "How many knives do you have?" you hear. Ghost. He closes the door behind him as he walks in to your private room without hesitation. Not turning around, you reach into your pack for your untraceable modded phone. "If you get to ask a personal question, I should be able to too," you say to the wall as you note the time. Fuck, 3:00am? you think to yourself as you tuck your device back into the pocket.

"I didn't know that was a personal question," Ghost asks with a low-toned voice. He leans against the wall with his arms crossed over his chest. You turn around to see him in a black long-sleeved shirt. The tight sleeves emphasizing his bulging biceps. He has grey sweatpants that hang loosely at his hips. You note a small sliver of skin between articles of clothing. A thin black inked line flowing up from his hip.

A lighter skulled balaclava mask pulled over his face. Just like you, his eyes rake all over your body. They pay special attention to your bare legs. You enjoy having him watch over you with adoration and temptation. You swear you can hear deep breathing against his clothed mouth. "Do you sleep with that on?" you ask as you point towards his face. You walk over to your bed and lay onto your back in exhaustion, crossing your ankles. "Is that your question?" he mutters from across the room.

You scoff as you rub your eyes. "I don't know, Ghost. I don't know if I care enough to ask a question," you mumble as you rest your head back onto your pillow. Your mind already working as a thinly stretched elastic band ready to pop. "Fine," he says with a hint of frustration as he reaches for the door knob. "Wait," you say involuntarily. This poses as another moment to trust your body over your mind. Unfortunately, you are too tired to hold back any of your body's impulses.

"Can you just lay with me?" you ask. Part of you is deeply uncomfortable with the request. You do not enjoy being vulnerable and holy fuck, were you putting yourself in quite the tricky spot. The fact of the matter is you fall asleep best in someone’s arms. Through trial and error, that has been the best trick to aid your insomnia - if you exclude a good old fashioned orgasm. In an effort to protect yourself, you curl against the wall - putting your back towards Ghost. Maybe it would hurt less if you didn't see him walk out in response to your question? God, being pushed to the edge of exhaustion really does wonders for your decision making.

After a few seconds a silence, you hear Ghost mutter, "I don't do that." You immediately shake your head. Self-deprecating thoughts rush through your brain as you curl tighter and closer towards the wall. You feel his eyes still on you. You mutter disappointed, “Okay, you can leave now.” You are still curled together in a ball, desperate for sleep to take you away from this day. Nevertheless that you are expected to wake in a few short hours to move on your next targets.

Suddenly, you feel a light hand placed upon your upper arm. You quickly turn over, ripping your dagger from under your pillow and hold it to Ghost’s neck. His body tensed as he watches you from the side of his eye. His head tilts up, exposing freshly shaved hair underneath his jaw bone. His hand raises off your skin. “Bloody hell,” he says quietly. “How many fuckin’ knives do you have?”

You roll your eyes and tuck your knife back into its designated spot. “How many fucking masks do you have?” you whisper under you breath. Ghost slowly sits down on the cot, making the cheap mattress squeak. You turn around, feeling his weight shift the bedding. "I thought you don't do this?" you murmur. His big brown eyes turn towards you. Despite their warmth, they still appear dead, a void of human emotion.

"You look like shit. You haven't slept have you?" Ghost asks as he peers down at you. You turn onto your side as you rest your hand upon your pillow. His hand lightly placed in between your stomach and his hips as he twists his torso towards you. “Not all of us can hide behind a mask,” you mumble with your eyes tied to his.

With a huff, Ghost leans back onto the mattress and rests beside you. His face towards the ceiling. His body inches away from you. You try to hold back your expression, completely shocked. When you asked, you were confident that he would never agree. That you messed up by playing your hand too early. But here you are now, reaping the benefits. You slowly raise your hand from your pillow and lower it onto his chest. As your hand meets his warm torso, you feel a growl grumble from his sternum. A warning. You can’t help but smile.

Your hand slowly travels down towards the waistband of his sweatpants. You wanted to feel Ghost again. You wanted that thick girthy cock flooded in your mouth - maybe in other places. Him lying down with you was supposed to put you to sleep, but fuck did it just turn you on more. This small inkling of vulnerability that he’s given you, just by resting beside you. Adrenaline pushes through you, putting you further from rest.

Ghost quickly grabs hold of your wrist, so tight it hurts. You look up to him with your upper lip pulled. "We're here to sleep, Aero," he says sternly. His eyes widened with anger. You smile as this is the first time he says your name. You hate the context, but it felt beautiful heard aloud with his accent. You try to contain your grin as you pull your arm back rather harshly. "You're telling me you came into my room wanting to sleep at 3:00am?" you scoff. A small laugh bursts through his mask. It must have been unexpected for him, seeing as he immediately cleared his throat.

"No, but it's definitely what you need," Ghost says with a low tone. His eyes not daring to move away from the ceiling. "Well, if that's what I need, I sleep best when I cuddle," you murmur as you inch closer towards him. Your hand slowly makes contact with his shoulder. You feel the muscles tighten under your finger tips. Ultimately, you know he would stop you if you did anything that made him uncomfortable. Your fingers continue to travel down to his right peck as you pull yourself closer towards him.

You cannot help but smirk as you are curious how far he will let you go. The man who said "he doesn't do this," but now, you rest your head upon his firm peck. Your arm wrapped towards his hip as you pull him closer into your chest. Your leg over his and tucked between his two. And to perfectly end the night, Ghost tilts his chin down towards you and rests it upon your forehead. As your mind drifts to sleep, you feel his hand gently placed at the base of your spine. You fall asleep, against his warmth, without further trouble.

Your eyes begin to flutter as you are pulled from a restful slumber. You immediately notice the emptied space beside you. However, it does not surprise you. What surprises you is that you aren't hearing your annoying cranked alarm. You quickly shoot out of bed and rush over to your pack. Pulling out your phone, you note the time - 10:06am. Fuck!

Confusion rushes over you as you quickly look for your alarms. You know you put a specific alarm on for 5:00a, for today's mission. You are absolutely confident. Yet, there it rests on your screen toggled off. Quickly, you look around the room - angry as you reach for your clothes. That's when you notice the note resting on your bedside table. A harsh breath pushes from your nostrils as you reach for the paper.

Aero, Thought you needed more rest. Ghost.

Upon reading, you abruptly crumple the paper within your hands. Ghost made sure to go on the mission without you. Your fucking mission! What even made you angrier was that he didn't own up to it in his stupid note. He wants to still pretend the he actually cares about your sleep. You rush to quickly put on your clothes and run out into the hall. You find that your entire squad has gone out on a mission and will be back later in the day.

Fire flushes through your body. All you can see is red. You bite your lip so hard it bleeds. Ghost hijacked your mission and let you behind. He jeopardized your authority as team lead, as lieutenant of the 141. You are fuming. Returning into your room, you slam the door behind you. You grab hold of your phone and rapidly call your mercenary contact. You need to hurt something or someone - bad.

"Johnson, I need a contract," you grumble into the phone. "I'm in France." The man laughs on the other end of the line. "Lucky you, I need some supplies destroyed in Marseille," he shares. "I'll be there in less than two hours," you sternly reply. "I'll text you the details," Johnson says before hanging up the phone. You reach for your pack and grab hold of you rolled up grey mat. Unraveling it upon the mattress you slept on with Ghost, you admire the twinkling dark knives in front of you.

The next time you find yourself at the home base, you are splattered with blood and filled with bumps and bruises. You wanted to take your anger out with that contract, and, holy fuck, did you do just that. You walk past the briefing room as the squad of men sit and stand round a table. Ghost at its head. You continue to walk by, not giving a single glance in their direct. Yet, you feel all their eyes stuck on you.

You hear chairs screech against the floor and a fumbling of two pairs of footsteps. “You okay, LT?” you hear that deep Scottish accent ringing through the hallways. His tone hesitant and concerned. You hear Gaz’s melodic British as he asks, “Should we call medical?” You push down the feeling of disappointment, knowing that Ghost wasn’t the one to rush after you. “I’m good, boys. Thank you,” you say as you raise your hand and continue walking forward.

“We missed you,” Gaz says as he reaches for your elbow. You turn back to see Soap making a “oh shit I shouldn’t be here” face before jogging back to his other Lieutenant. “Yeah, wish I could’ve been there,” you mumble. “He told us you were off doing something for Price,” he shares inquisitively. “I feel like you would’ve told me.” You laugh as you naturally pull done Gaz’s soft hand. “Trust that gut of yours,” you say as you walk towards the showers. Gaz backs off and walks back.

You slowly undress, careful to peel away the dried blood drenched clothes from your skin. You look up in the bathroom’s mirror to see a fresh cut across your eyebrow. A bruise forming across your cheek bone. Your bottom lip busted. All you could do was smile at the sight of yourself. You wanted to cause pain, bring down hell and havoc. You did. You were undeniably successful in your mission.

Pulling down your pants, you see a bruise on your hip. That one is not from your mission, but from last night’s foolish impulse. When Ghost pushed you down onto that desk. When he had your legs spread. When he had you begging for his cock to be inside you. Back when he barely spoke, and didn’t have access to your phone to fuck up your mission. Fuck. You are angry again.

Your shirt comes off in one swift movement. Your shoulders scream at you as you raise your hands above your head. As the pain pounds through your head, you land your hands against the sink’s counter. Another look at yourself. You understood why some wear masks.

Walking away from the stalls, you choose a designated nozzle for your shower - tucked away in the back corner. Of course, home base doesn’t have individualized rooms. You find yourself stuck in a steamy space meant for communal showers. Luckily the water is hot. The warmth truly soothes your sore muscles. You find your first bit of comfort after this morning’s atrocities.

As you rub your soap bar across your skin, you begin to hear movement in that initial stall area. Your eyes open, pulled from their comforting relaxation. The last thing you want is one of your men to see you, and for you to see one of your men. You quicken your lathering so that you may end your shower early if needed.

“Why're you in such a hurry?” Ghost asks. You shudder at his voice. Another shudder once you see his darkened torso behind you. A bright light shining behind him makes his facial features indistinguishable. “Fuck off,” you say as you turn around. He quickly slaps a hand against your ass and takes his other to grab hard against your muscle. You head butt your skull back into his nose. He stumbles back as you turn to face him. The hot water still falling upon your chest.

You watch as his fingers lift his skin-tight mask and reach for his nose. He quickly flings off the blood to the tiled floor. “You’re still upset about this morning?” he asks with a bit of amusement. Your teeth grind together. “How fucking dare you?” you seethe. “You were supposed to brief me in the morning. I’m the fucking Lieutenant!” He clicks his tongue against the roof of his mouth. “Not the only Lieutenant,” he replies softly.

“Riley, get the fuck out of my face,” you shout as you point towards the exit. “What? No more call signs?” he asks with a laugh. “Okay, Lieutenant y/l/n.” In this moment, it doesn’t matter how naked you are. You are pissed. You swear you must have steam rising from your skin.

“You’ve got those eyes again,” Ghost says as he points his gloved finger towards you. “And what fucking eyes are those?” you ask as you drastically turn off the shower head. The warm water quickly pulling away from your body. The cold air hitting you like a truck. “Those ‘I’m going to kill you’ eyes,” he mutters. “I haven’t decided on that just yet. Figured I’d wait ‘till the mission was over as a courtesy to Price,” you say as you move through the man to grab your towel.

Wrapping it around your waist, you continue to walk towards the bathroom exit. You hear Ghost’s wet boot steps behind you. You turn before he makes the horrible mistake of placing his hand atop your shoulder. “I don’t do well with competition,” he quickly mutters as your eyes meet his. His white spray painted skull balaclava staring back at you. “Well, I do especially well with competition but I don’t know how to do things nicely.”

Ghost walks up to you slowly. “You’re competition. Difficult, precise, exceptional,” he says softly. “The kind of competition you sabotage with minimal guilt.” You laugh as you cross your arms around your chest. “Minimal guilt, huh?” you ask. “It might have been a moderate amount,” he says as he inches closer.

“If you jeopardize my position or the mission again, I will have your head,” you say as you welcome his hand on yours. “And my knife will have something else of yours,” you murmur as your fingers tuck under his waistband. He nods as his eyes look down onto you. Those eyes serious and unforgiving.

"Understood," Ghost says without hesitation. "On your knees, soldier," you demand as you tilt your chin high. You peer down at him. His darkened brown eyes stare back at you as he slowly kneels onto the cool tiled floor.

You softly lay your hand upon his cheek, rubbing the fabric of his mask against your thumb. Slowly, your fingers reach the edge of his mask. Your fingers hooked within are met with a stiff grasp around your wrist. “No,” Ghost sternly says. You shoot him a look of dismay. “What you’re about to do cannot be done with your mask on,” you say as you feel his grip loosen.

Finally, his hand drops. You take it as a sign to continue. Lifting his mask, you reveal brown and red stubble to his chin. His lips flushed with pink. The bottom lip slightly larger than the top. You felt your body drawn into him, wanting to feel those perfect lips on yours.

As you pondered how soft his lips must be, you watch as a smile forms at the edges of his mouth. “What I’m about to do cannot be done with your towel on,” Ghost mutters as he softly places a hand at your waist. He untucks the edge of your towel, allowing it to fall at your feet and his knees. His eyes fall upon your naked body. You watch as he licks his lips.

Ghost’s hands immediately press against the tops of your thighs, pushing you back onto the sink counter. A sharp breath escapes your lips as you feel the surface’s chill. He gradually leans in and presses his mouth against your skin. His lips softer than you predicted. You feel your lower back arch as you lean your head back. His lips felt like butterflies, leaving flutters and ripples with every touch. You could feel your skin on fire anytime he pulled away for another kiss.

Your hand involuntarily explores the top of his head. The grooved cloth beneath your fingertips adds to the satisfaction. Ghost's thumbs begin to circle your hip bones. A moan is let out as his tongue trails from your knee to inner thigh. You cannot deny all your blood rushing between your legs. You feel that familiar throbbing as you crave for his touch.

Suddenly, Ghost pulls his mouth from your sensitive skin. You look down in dismay, only to be gifted with those brown eyes staring back at you. You watch as a smile forms on those perfect lips. He slightly opens his mouth as his lashes close upon his eyes. Following his lead, your eyes close as well.

You feel his warm, wet mouth against your skin. Electricity shoots straight through your body, just as intense as any taser. You gasp as you hang your head back off of your shoulders. Your hand travels from his head onto his cheek. Underneath your palm, you can feel his mouth opening and closing as he places sweet kisses upon your nasty bits. His hot breath flushes against your skin, leaving you comforted.

Ghost's tongue presses hard against the most sensitive of your skin. In between moans, you whisper, "Yes, just like that." You hear a chuckle as his hands grip tighter onto your thighs. "Oh, you like that, love? What about this?" Ghost murmurs amusingly. His tongue curls and twists against you. You catch yourself gripping against the tuff of hair of you found on the side of his neck. A moan rips through your body as your hips thrust against his mouth.

"Mmmm, that's good," Ghost whispers. Even his words have direct lines to your pleasure sensors. "I want more," he growls. His tongue pushes firmly against you. Your eyes roll to the back of your head. The pleasure is enough to pull you right out of the environment. Do you even know who you are? Who is he? What are you doing here? All these facts that mean nothing - details that mean nothing when his tongue flutters against you like that.

Abruptly, the details return. With a strong force, you push Ghost backwards. He stumbles upon his knees, but quickly readies himself for your next move. You grab hold of his neck and pull him up and onto you. One of his hands now against the back of your neck. The other tightly pressed against your chest. "I want you, Ghost," you murmur against his lips. His waist now between your legs. Your ankles tighten into a lock against his back. His eyes pull from your mouth and finally fall on yours. "Take me," he states.

Without pause, you quickly reach for his belt buckle. You feel the smoothed bumps of his abs as you pull up a bit of his shirt. Ghost's mouth places gentle kisses against your collarbone. They travel down to your chest and sternum. Your hands shake, something that frankly never happens, as you pull against his belt. A smile forms across his face once again as you grip onto his pants' buttons. You cannot help but match his smile.

As you reach for the zipper, you could feel the growing bulge against your hand. You feel the thumping of your blood as it travels to your lower extremities. "Look how hard you are for me, Lieutenant," you taunt as you pull down his heavy pants. "Only for you, Aero," Ghost's voice flutters against your chest. "Good," you state as your finger pulls his chin up to your mouth.

With a bite, your lips meet in an incredulous manner. You have never felt so aggressive in this setting. You push roughly against him, forcing him to stumble once again - this time with his pants gathered at his ankles. One hand holds tightly against his shirt as you push him against the bathroom wall. Your other hand is on the base of his thick cock. You swear you can feel it pulsate in your hand. The bit of precum helps as a lubricant against your palm. You know this part of him well now. Your hand pumps against his hardened tip. You feel his breath heavy against your cheek as you press your body against him.

"Oh, you like that, L.T.?" you taunt. You place a hardened kiss against Ghost's mouth, pulling away with a bit of his bottom lip tied between your teeth. You could see a little red of blood as you catch another glimpse of him. Those brown eyes with black saucer-like pupils. The mask hanging on for dear life at his cupid's bow. His pale mouth now reddened after a multitude of embraces.

"What about this?" he adds before you can finish admiring him. His hand places against your groin. You feel your breath taken away as his fingers and palm move beautifully in between your thighs. "Fuck," you gasp as you crash your forehead against the nape of his neck. As you struggle to maintain your rhythm, you quickly peer down to spit onto your hand. With a bit of lubrication, you can feel him harden beneath you. You cannot help but smile and press yourself firmer against his chest. He feels so. fucking. good.

Ghost's fingers begin to play tricks with you. They quickly change from fast and slow movements. You can feel bit of frustration burn a hole within your body. You know he's doing it on purpose. You squeeze tighter against his cock. He hisses against your cheek with gritted teeth. You smile as you crash your mouth against his once more.

Both of your hands move at a quickened pace. Thank goodness for that soldier stamina. You hear his breathing shift rapidly. "Fuck, Aero," he whispers. He flicks the "ro" of your callsign a bit longer as he rides through his high. He's close, you think to yourself. You maintain your movement as you feel his body move underneath you. Such a strong and firm body. "Cum for me," you mumble against his lips.

Almost as a reaction to your words, Ghost's movements become harder and rougher. How does he know exactly what you need? The abrupt change leaves you gasping - throwing you off your game. You feel a tightness at the pit of your stomach. A tingling sensation boiling over your temples and forehead. "Shit," you whimper as you struggle to hold your grip.

"Cum for me, baby," Ghost demands. You can hear the struggle in his voice as he is determined to last longer than you. As much as you would want to beat him at his own game, you cannot ignore the fluttering feeling in your chest. Your legs begin to tighten as your eyes roll to the back of your head. Your mouth hangs open. He quickly places his lips against you, not wanting any breath to go to waste. "Ghost," you whimper as you feel your knees pull together. Your thighs clench against his wrist and arm. Your entire body feels the overwhelming pleasure that is Ghost.

With a mere mention of his name, Ghost cums alongside you. You feel his hot breath push against your mouth. His hands tense around you. His moans like music to your ears. You feel his hips rut against your palm. His warm cum splashes in your hands and upon both of your stomachs. With a chuckle, you look down to admire the mess you both have made upon each other. Cum everywhere, just how you like it.

Ghost smiles as his hand returns to the back of your neck. His grip hard and pulling at your hair. You watch him with excited eyes and a smile. "Join me for a shower?" he says as he abruptly drops his grasp. He quickly turns and begins to walk towards the showers, where this all began. He takes off his shirt, revealing several pale scars ripped against his back. Scars that peak your curiosity. Scars that match yours.

That's when he takes off the balaclava, turns on the shower head, and stands beneath the falling water.

note: hope you liked it c: comment or message to join the taglist!

taglist: @hoosier-daddy01 @hypernovaxx @edenstarkk

• nav • no-no plagiarism • one shot • requests open •

#simon ghost riley #ghost mw2 #ghost mwii #ghost x reader #john soap mactavish #soap call of duty #ghost x y/n #ghost x gn reader #gender neutral y/n #simon Riley x oc #simon Riley x reader #ghost x oc #cod mw2 #simon riley #kyle gaz garrick #call of duty fanfic #alejandro x rodolfo #cod fanfic #ghost cod #ghost cod fanfic #ghost fanfiction #ghost fanfic #ghost smut #smut requests #ghost #cod ghost

[babybluesquid]

Consequences of Karrnath Session 6

Constricting Claws and Recollections

Our Players this week:

Dagne, Vengeance Paladin, an undead soldier with the curious property of acting like a living person. Trusts nobody and acts as the leader.

Ro, Circle of Spores Druid, a Talentan halfling who survived The Mourning and won’t go home. They tend to not take things seriously.

Nux, Pact of the Fathomless Warlock, a young teen Marcher who is far from the Kyrzin cult who wants to kill them. Personas are Murlo, a preteen orc girl, and Orim, a young adult human boy. Party child.

Vaeren, Swarmkeeper Ranger, a Deathguard sent to investigate Dagne’s nature. They’re the quiet one who helps keep everyone in line.

The party backtracks a bit and finds a door they haven’t been through yet. Inside is a circular room with a big multicolor arcane circle on the middle of the floor, with smaller circles colored yellow, purple, red, black, and blue surrounding it. Some spell components lie forgotten on the ground of the probable summoning chamber. Nux picks some up and they continue on through another door. The next room is a practice room with a ring of chalk drawn on the floor and some practice weapons on the wall. As the party walks through, Dagne steps into the ring first and is suddenly confronted by an elven ghost. The spectre wears a breastplate and carries a rapier and parrying dagger, then challenges Dagne to a duel. Uneasy, Dagne asks, “what are the terms of this duel?” The ghost lays out the rules: no killing, the duel ends on wounding or concession, leaving the ring counts as concession. “But you’re already dead. How do you expect me to wound you?” The ghost floats up and touches the axe blade of Dagne’s +1 poleaxe, then flinches back and shrugs, “it hurts.” “Then it’s a duel.”

Outside the ring, neither Ro, Nux, nor Vaeren can hear or see the ghost as Dagne suddenly seems to attack air. They fail to connect as the ghost dodges aside. Dagne then pushes faster, intending to prevent the ghost from getting a hit in, before feigning an attack. The ghost sees through the maneuver and momentarily gains the upper hand until Dagne suddenly rushes forward in a move more intended to intimidate than to do actual harm. Frightened, the ghost falls back. Dagne tries to guess at its plan of attack but isn’t sure, so instead they put on a show of pretending to flag. The ghost buys the show and grows confident up until Dagne shoulder checks it so hard it’s knocked right out of the ring. Suddenly, Ro, Nux, and Vaeren see a ghosty figure appear at the outer edge of the chalk circle before vanishing back inside. “An excellent duel,” the ghost says and reaches out to shake Dagne’s hand. Dagne takes the hand and feels a surge of vitality enter them, gaining 10 temporary hit points.

The party continues on, finding another room filled with already destroyed skeletons. This time, there isn’t anyone recently dead or even any blood to be seen, and it seems like the lot of them were quickly dispatched, bones cleaved and broken. Closer inspection by Ro shows that the bones feel more brittle to the touch than they ought to. Unable to find anything of use, they continue to the next room. It’s barren, but there’s a smell of brimstone. Becoming hungry, Nux suggests a rest, and the party backtracks to the summoning chamber to take a short break to eat and talk.

While resting, Nux suddenly starts talking about the Shadow Marches. The recall how when they were a small child, their mom gave them to an old human woman to be raised collectively with other children in the tribe. They can’t remember her name, but know she was nice. Once, she made Nux a blanket, and another time made a massive stuffed ashi bread. “I would give anything to have that again.” Eventually though, when Nux was ten or eleven years old, their mom came back for them, and they couldn’t see the old woman anymore. “Were there any other changelings in your tribe?” Dagne asks. Nux remembers one, an old man who would often chase the kids away angrily. One time he threw a book at them to drive them off. Then, one day, he disappeared and everyone refused to speak of him. Seemingly out of nowhere, Ro asks Nux when they expect to die. “I could die at any second,” Nux replies.

The party decided to continue exploring the tomb and heads back to the room which smells of brimstone. Through a door they find a fork in a hallway and head down the right side. They find a crypt with coffins in the wall and two suits of armor, half plate with a longsword standing in the middle of the room, scale mail with a battle axe and shield off to the side. Dagne opens up a coffin to find a skeleton. Nux wanders up to the scale mail and knocks on the helmet. The thing suddenly turns to face Vaeren and, in elvish, rasps, “Deathguard.” It rushes forward and tries to burry its battleaxe in them. Vaeren manages to dodge aside just in time as the rest of the party jumps to action. Dagne cracks it hard with the butt of their poleaxe, Nux releases an acidic eldritch blast which eats at the metal, and Ro uses a powerful swing of her club, bolstered with magic of the spirits, to shatter the scale mail armor into dozens of pieces. The battle axe and shield fall harmlessly to the ground.

Shaken up but unhurt, the party backtracks and goes down the left fork in the hallway. They come upon a room filled with pillars and living men, armored in green chainmail. Vaeren, recognizing exactly who these men are, shoots on sight, arrow piercing through the chainmail of one Emerald Claw member with an axe and biting into the flesh of his shoulder, one of their ghosts slashes at him. “Take out the archer!” Someone in the backline orders.

Dagne rushes forward and engages two of them in melee. The Emerald Claw are taking up a formation where someone with a close range weapon stands in front of someone with a polearm, and in the backline, archers take shots at their enemies. Dagne swings their poleaxe at the man but he blocks, only to be caught on the backswing. Every archer fires at Dagne. One arrow hits dead center on their helmet, rattling their skull inside. Four arrows fail to find marks, instead glancing off their armor. The sixth arrow flies right into Dagne’s eye slit, burying itself against the back of their skull and leaving their vision obscured in one eye.

Other soldiers close in around Vaeren. Nux fires an eldritch blast at one of them, who, remembering his training, manages to avoid the spell. “Commander, there’s a spellcaster!” He shouts. The man Vaeren shot at the beginning hurriedly closes in on Nux. Nearly surrounded, Vaeren switches to their rapier and manages to slip between the green links of the nearest Emerald Claw member, then suddenly their ghosts drag them back, freeing them from the melee. They then run away, intending to go back to shooting.

The two engaging Dagne let off a successful maneuver, the one with a hammer cracking them in the side and the pikeman poking them in a gap in their armor.

——————

Highlights:

Ending a session mid combat? It’s more likely, and more stressful, than you think.

We are hopelessly outnumbered and they are using tactics. AAAAAAAAAAA I really hope more players show up next week cause this encounter was probably balanced for more of us…

Nux’s tale of home in the Shadow Marches earned them an inspiration die. Nice!

Vaeren keeps getting targeted. RIP. Neither the ghosts in this place nor the Emerald Claw wanna give them a break.

Ro is weirdly dark sometimes. What kinda person asks a fourteen year old when they’ll die?

Dagne dueling the ghost was super tense actually. It was run as a skill challenge and by the end they were one success away from succeeding and one failure away from failing. If the ghost hadn’t bought that they were flagging, they would’ve lost.

Session 7.

#dnd #d&d #dnd campaign #d&d campaign #dnd story #d&d story #dungeons and dragons #my post #my writing #consequences of karrnath #eberron #dagne #ro #nux #vaeren #session 6

[ghostlyanon]

Stuff that Ghosty secretly enjoys watching are: paranormal & mystery shows, cryptid watchings, sci-fi movies, cheesy horror movies, and those yt channels that cook really small food.

#you walk into the living room and you see ghosty at the edge of her seat #watching a feed of some shady bigfoot proof #what you do? #i thrive in sleep ( ooc ) #tbd

[jungkxook]

—demon-etized. (m)

⟶ pairing: namjoon x reader

⟶ analytics: youtuber!namjoon / ghost-hunters au / smut

⟶ words: 6,260

⟶ rating: 18+

⟶ warnings: idiot ghost hunter bts, ghosts making namjoon horny ig?, slight exhibitionism, fondling, fingering, standing sex, unprotected sex, creampie

⟶ description: in this episode of unsolved, namjoon and the boys risk their lives by spending overnight in an abandoned and supposedly haunted asylum in the hopes of finding some ghouls — but the boys are pretty certain the real reason for the spooky moaning isn’t allowed to go on youtube. ***warning: very scary!!!***

⟶ pinned comment: this is part of the not clickbait series!

“Well, this has been fun. Let’s go home now.”

You were starting to think this was a very stupid idea ━ but stupid would be an understatement. The looming asylum standing before you with nothing but the darkened midnight sky in the foreground acts as a foreboding omen that you’ve seen one too many times in pretty much any horror movie. The creepy abandoned estate offering itself up as a seemingly perfect and totally innocent means of adventure for a group of friends only to end in murder or a demon possession should have been enough to scare you all away. Fortunately, you’re not the only somewhat sane person (and you say that very loosely because you did, after all, agree to come with the boys), because you’re both startled yet thoroughly relieved to hear the worried statement coming from a very tense-looking Jimin.

It really was a stupid idea. Spending overnight (which, really, just translates to a few hours and a clickbait-y title for the video) in a supposedly haunted and derelict asylum from the early 1900s offered all sorts of problems that weren’t just supernatural. Squatters, creepy cult members, and risking getting whatever sorts of diseases are riddling the walls of the ancient dwelling were starting to get to you. But it was Namjoon’s idea to come here for his next video upload especially when considering the fact that for the entire month of October he and his group of YouTuber friends host a fan favourite ghost-hunting series titled Unsolved ━ and, whatever Namjoon usually suggests, the boys usually tag along with, no matter how daring or how stupid it may be.

“We literally just got here,” Hoseok retorts as he hops out of one of the two cars you and your friends had shared on the way here. It was a three hour drive from the city with the estate being much larger than you expected it to be, four main buildings sprawling out amongst empty fields. At least the stories of its creepy atmosphere are all the same. Was it the cool autumn breeze sending chills down your spine or something else entirely? The moment you stepped foot out of the car and gazed upon the asylum, it was almost as if you could feel something watching you. But that was definitely just you imagining things. “Don’t be a pussy, Jimin. What’s the worst a ghost is gonna do to you? Rattle some chains? Ooooh, spooky.”

“Okay, first of all,” Jimin rounds on the older boy almost immediately, “vaginas are the strongest muscles in female anatomy, so I’m not being a pussy. Let’s get it right, okay? I’m being a little bitch, and I embrace it. Second of all, if a ghost does rattle some chains near me, I will definitely be booking it back to the car and leaving all of you stranded here.”

From beside you, Yoongi snorts amusedly. He’s the resident non-believer amongst your group of friends so you always wonder why he even bothers to come to these things. He says it’s to help filming, but you think he’s banking on maybe one day seeing a ghost even despite all that charade of hostility. Even now, he’s already filming for the vlog, getting shots of the building but also mostly just Jimin and Hoseok’s banter in the background. “If a ghost does anything tonight, I’ll be genuinely surprised.”

“Something is going to happen tonight. I can feel it,” Jungkook says confidently. He’d been huddled over the opened side door of one of the cars with Namjoon and Jin, sifting through their high-tech equipment that you’re certain they just bought off of Amazon or something. “This place is one of the most haunted places near us. Have you even heard the stories? Apparently there are two most popular ghost sightings. One is some girl━”

“Is she hot?” Taehyung asks.

“She’s dead,” Jungkook deadpans. “Also, pretty sure she was eleven when she died from tuberculosis. Anyway, she’s more of a benevolent ghost. They say you can hear her laughing sometimes. There’s a lot of activity in one of the kids’ rooms. And the other sighting is less friendly. They just call it a shadow man because it’s hard to see its face, but you can always see an outline of a person walking by in one of their treatment buildings. There’s even been physical attacks, with one person saying they got scratched by an invisible force.”

Jimin visibly winces. “Sounds very much like a demon than a ghost to me.”

“Sick!” Hoseok exclaims. You’re worried to find that the group’s morale (aside from yours and Jimin’s) isn’t any less vivacious than when Jungkook started his story. “This is gonna be awesome.”

But you can’t help but to roll your eyes, your feigned boredom really just a weak attempt at hiding your own fright. “Oh, shut up. That’s such bullshit.”

“Is it?” Jungkook quirks a brow, challenging you.  

“Well, whatever happens, we’re gonna catch it.” This confident statement comes from Namjoon. After he hands out the pieces of tech to the rest of his friends, he glances upward at the asylum with a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. “Come on. Let’s find us some ghosties.”

As the group begins to follow Namjoon towards the nearest building, Taehyung can be heard wolfishly quipping aloud, “Time to rock and roll, ghoul boys! And, er, girl.”

“Don’t call us that,” Yoongi grumbles.

It’s comforting to hear the rest of the group erupt into fits of entertained laughter, but any banter is quick to subside as you walk up to the building. You’re relieved when Jimin decides to hang back with you and doesn’t seem to protest when you start to cling to his arm as you’re all ushered through the main entrance of the building and into utter darkness only broken apart by the dim glow of your flashlights. If you weren’t already so frightened, maybe some of it would be comical, like the way the front doors creak open so very slowly in suspense.

Under Jimin’s breath, you can hear him mumbling in chagrin, “We should have gotten holy water.”

As your eyes adjust to the darkness within, you’re able to make out that the inside is just as horrifying as it was on the outside. Dust and debris hang heavy in the air and on the ground, and almost every inch of any surface within the building is covered in graffiti works of art. 

“Oh, fuck that,” Jin scoffs. “We only just stepped foot into here and this place is already giving me goosebumps.”

“Aw, sweet, bro! Check this out!” Hoseok says abruptly, startling almost all of you. He’s standing a bit further off down one hall, beckoning the rest of the group to follow. As you approach him, you can make out what sort of graffiti marking on the ground has suddenly grabbed his attention. “Who wants to lay on the pentagram with me?”

“No one,” You retort.

“I will!” Jungkook says at once, much to your dismay.

Yoongi lets out an audible strained sigh. “If any of you fucks get possessed and kill me, I’m never gonna forgive any of you. Just letting you know ahead of time.”

“Yeah, what are you gonna do?” Hoseok asks. “Come back and haunt us?”

“No, I’ll be dead. Ghosts aren’t real,” Yoongi says. “But I will still be very angry.”

“Noted.”

Before Jungkook or Hoseok can haggle Yoongi into filming them laying on the pentagram drawing and potentially offering their souls up to whatever demon lays waiting beneath it for their souls, the group is moving on. You explore the first bottom half of the building together in a tense silence before making your way up the dilapidated stairs to one of the treatment rooms that Jungkook makes certain to point out is where the infamous shadow figure is often seen. Taehyung decides to suggest, “Should we try the spirit box?”

You almost groan aloud. You fucking hate that thing, for obvious reasons. 

Whether or not you believe in it, the loud gurgling noise is always unsettling and you’re already on edge. Still, you sit back with Jimin as the rest of the boys nod in agreement and fiddle with the piece of tech until it’s been turned on. You’re immediately met with a cacophony of crackling radio static so deafening that your instinctual reaction is to cover your ears. You refrain miraculously, but you still cower in one corner with Jimin as the boys listen intently to the noise.

“Is anyone here?” Namjoon calls out to no one in particular. “If you are, can you give us a sign? Move a chair or say something or push Yoongi━”

“What the━?” Yoongi gawks. “Why me?”

“‘Cause you said you don’t believe in them.”

Yoongi clamps his mouth shut, and nods in a way that admits Namjoon has a point. At that moment, there’s a pique in the static, a jumble of inaudible words that almost sounds humanlike.

“What was that?” Hoseok asks. “Sounded like… It almost sounded like it said ‘leave.’”

“Leave?” Jimin squeaks. “Think we should take that as a sign, guys.”

“Nah, I definitely heard Steve, not leave,” Yoongi says.

Jungkook frowns. “Who the hell is Steve?”

“Maybe that’s his name,” Yoongi suggests nonchalantly. “Be nice.”

After a handful of minutes of even more strained silence, the boys are only able to discern certain words that you’re positive don’t have anything to do with the asylum or ghosts. At long last, they shut the machine off and the room is once more plunged into a formidable silence so dense that you almost miss the spirit box. But almost as soon as the piece of tech has been silenced, does Jimin cry out in pure anguish. “What the fuck was that?”

The boys instantly round on their startled friend who is now cowering behind you. The colour has all but drained from his face, eyes wide in a frenzied panic.

“What’s wrong?” Namjoon asks.

Jimin looks hysterical as he shoves a pointed finger in the direction of the wall opposite the room in the corridor. “I swear on my life I just saw something move out of the corner of my eye over there. Like a-a person o-or something. Looked like a shadow. I don’t know! I thought it was one of you guys━”

“Stop it, Jimin.” Your voice treads on apprehension as you look over at the alarmed boy. “You’re scaring me.”

“Yeah, ease up, Jimin,” Namjoon says, though he seems more entertained than anything. “I’d prefer if you didn’t throw my girlfriend headfirst towards a demon or ghost or whatever it is you saw.”

“Joon.” His name rolls off your tongue in a scolding moan as you rub wearily at your eyes. His words do little to help console you, and you’re certain it fairs even worse for poor Jimin.

“I’m sorry. I just━” Jimin pulls you tighter in front of him. “I swear I saw something. Holy shit.”

Jungkook’s the first one outside the room, his own camera in his hands as he goes to investigate. As the rest of the boys file outside in the corridor, you drag Jimin along with you, favouring not to be alone in any part of the building. You can hardly see anything, let alone a shadow. 

Jungkook turns back around at long last, a devious grin on his face as he finds Jimin’s wandering crazed stare. “Maybe it was the shadow man. Told you he exists.”

“I don’t care what it was. My heart almost fell out of my ass,” Jimin gasps. He clutches at his chest over his heart, for added emphasis. “Let’s get out of here.”

You aren’t quite sure if the boys believe him, but you do notice how quick they are to move on from the room and corridor. A palpable tension hangs heavy in the air that makes you realize perhaps the boys are starting to lose their cool under pressure. 

As you reconvene below on the main floor of the building, Namjoon pipes up. “Let’s split up. See if we can find anything on our own.”

“Okay, Scooby Doo,” Jin snorts. “You do know that this is how every horror movie begins, right? There’s power in numbers.”

“Yeah. Which is what we’ll all be saying when this video reaches trending on YouTube with a million views,” Namjoon says, matter-of-fact. “Which we can only do if we get some interesting content. So, let’s split up into pairs of two. We’ll meet back here in an hour.”

“We could just fake it,” Jimin suggests desperately. “Like every big YouTuber does. The magic of editing, guys.” But no one seems to be listening anymore as the group begins to splinter off. Yoongi and Jungkook decide to venture back upstairs in pursuit of the elusive and supposed shadow man, while Hoseok and Taehyung wander outside. Lost and dumbfounded, Jimin gawks around at his retreating friends, calling out in one last effort, “Anyone? …No? Okay, cool.”

He nearly lets out a yelp when Jin clasps a hand on the boy’s shoulder in a reassuring manner. “You’ll be okay, Jimin. C’mon, let’s go.”

Finally alone with Namjoon, he offers up his outstretched hand to you. You take it at once, gripping his palm a little tighter than necessary as he pulls you towards him. 

“You doing okay?” he asks. 

“Yeah,” You lie, even though you know he can see right through it. 

You’re content to find that he at least keeps your hand in his even as he tugs you along with him to explore the rest of the asylum. You decide to leave the building you’re both in and wander to another one where you stumble upon Hoseok and Taehyung on the main floor briefly. Then, making your way upstairs, you find nothing out of the ordinary but empty rooms that you suspect were once upon a time sleeping quarters for the patients. It’s less frightening than the other buildings, though still a little unnerving the longer you stay to explore. You climb the stairs until you’re on the third landing and inspect almost every room to find nothing. 

At some point, you let out a wavering sigh. Namjoon is busy waving around an EMF reader in a room. It’s empty aside from a dusty cot and a broken wardrobe, amongst a few other oddities covered in a thick layer of cobwebs and dirt. You could have sworn you’ve heard footsteps in almost every room you’ve entered that wasn’t either yours or Namjoons, and the strange sensation that you’re being followed hasn’t been able to shake from you. “Joon? Can we go back now? I’m starting to get a little spooked.”

Namjoon comes to a halt at once, turning around to face you. He gives your palm a comforting squeeze. “Hey, you’re okay. There’s nothing to be scared of. I don’t mean to sound like Yoongi but I highly doubt we have to worry about any ghosts.”

“Well, what do you think Jimin saw?”

“Who knows?” Namjoon shrugs. “It was probably just his imagination. Your mind plays tricks on you in the dark, doesn’t it? Here, let’s talk about something else to distract you.”

“Like?”

A moment of silence passes between the two of you as Namjoon considers another thought. You don’t even realize the smug smirk unfurling on his face until it’s too late. “Well… I had an idea earlier. Just a passing thought, really, but I bet it’d be fun anyway.”

“What was it?”

“We could probably have a quickie in one of these rooms and the boys would never know any different.”

You nearly choke at this, sputtering for air as you reach out to flick Namjoon’s shoulder. “You’re unbelievable.”

“Am I wrong?”

“No,” You admit sheepishly. He places his hands on your hips then, pulling you delicately towards him in a manner that makes it hard to focus now. “But I don’t know how I feel about ghosts watching us. Also, the couple that has sex in any horror movie usually ends up dying first.”

Namjoon shakes his head at you, albeit a little amused at your worrisome thoughts. “Nothing’s gonna hurt you. At least not while I’m here.”

“Coming from the man who tripped going up the stairs at your dorm the other day,” You point out tauntingly. The distant reminder and the sound of his abrupt laughter is enough to momentarily soothe your hammering heart. 

Namjoon gasps, feigning a look of mock hurt. “What’s that supposed to mean!”

“Means I love you very much but I don’t know how well you’d fair against ghosts or demons.”

“Ahh, I see how it is.” 

He sounds mildly offended and pokes his fingers at your sides but, in the ensuing scuffle to flee from his grasp, the both of you trip and fumble until you’re pressed up against the nearest wall, the sound of your snickers like music to his ears. He comes colliding against your front, hands digging into your hips. He leans forward to kiss your lips slowly, feeling you smile against him. A delightful chuckle bubbles at your mouth and he parts from you in the next moment wiggling his brows suggestively while a teasing smirk stretches at his face so wide, his dimples start to poke through.

“Wanna?” he asks. 

It’s a simple question, weighing heavy with dirty implications ━ and honestly? You’re kind of into it. Or maybe that’s just because he returns to kissing at your lips, only this time at the corners of your mouth, then the underside of your jaw. Tantalizing motions that seem to make your head spin violently. Your head lolls back against the wall behind you as he droops his head to your neck, lips meeting with the soft flesh of your throat to suck a delicate blossoming hickey there.

“Okay,” You rasp, “so maybe we can spare some time for this.”

“Ah, so now you’re interested.” His voice is huskier now, muffled by the way he busies himself by nipping at the same spot on your throat. He hears your breath hitch, feels the way you part your legs just slightly enough to have him sink further against you. He marvels at your decision in the morning to throw on a skirt and a pair of thick wool tights. At the time, you had said it was because the weather wasn’t too brisk outside just yet; now, he was thanking you silently for unknowingly picking just the right outfit for the occasion. 

“Namjoon…” Your voice is strained now, a mix between a plea and a whine and he grunts against your neck.

It takes Namjoon a moment to rack his brain, realizing that he finds it hard to even form a proper sentence anymore. “Don’t even need to feel my dick in you. Just wanna get you off, baby. Can I?”

You’re already practically drooling. “Think the boys will notice if we’re gone a little longer?” 

“Who cares?” Namjoon quips. “Jimin’ll probably think we got possessed and lost in the demon world or something.”

You giggle, though your voice splinters off into a soft moan as he continues to nip and suck at your neck. His hand falls to your thighs then, fingers brushing upward faintly until he meets the short hem of your skirt before disappearing beneath it. His hand comes to grasp at the delicate curve of your ass, his palm hot and firm against your soft flesh. 

He groans into your neck. “Been dying all night to touch you.”

“Then don’t stop.”

If the way his hardening cock now forms against your inner thigh any inclination, you don’t think he has plans on doing so. Instead, you watch as he lifts his free hand to your mouth, fingers tapping at your lips in a wordless motion. “Open up.”

You do as you’re told, lips parting just enough to wrap around his two fingers. He gazes at you with hooded eyes as you suck at his digits, tongue laving against the sturdy form in your mouth until his fingers are coated thick with your saliva. His other hand, still attached to the rump of your ass, moves like water over your skin to your thigh once more, nudging you aside just enough, pinching delicately at the skin there; he pulls his fingers from your mouth then, then lets the same hand venture under your skirt in a similar fashion. He wastes no time in pushing aside the material of your panties, pressing his digits at your core, watchful eyes staying fixated on yours if only to watch your every expression. His dampened fingers slide over your folds, spreading them open, running across them, admiring the way your stickiness already forms between your legs. 

“Joon…” You cling to him tighter, both to steady yourself against the sudden ministrations and to shield yourself more from view, though you’re certain there’s a slim chance the boys will come across you and Namjoon like this. You hope.

Namjoon’s fingers slip past your folds then, slow and steady as he feels the tight constricting walls of your cunt. You throb around him, thinking only of his cock, imagining the girth of it fitting snug deep within you. The similar stretch of your walls, the fluid motion of his length burrowing in and out of you, wrecking you into shambles. Now, Namjoon wriggles his fingers upward, scratching at a spot within you that has you writhing against him, the slick wetness of your arousal sufficiently coating his fingers. His thumb finds your clit then, running small circles against the small bundle of nerves.

“So wet,” Namjoon moans, resting his forehead against yours. He notes the way your teeth sink into your lower lip, and pulls his free hand out from under your skirt to tap his fingers against your chin. “Gonna moan for me, baby? Let the boys hear you? Maybe wake the dead?”

“You’re such a brat,” You simper through a shuddering breath, and if you weren’t so consumed by him then maybe you would have laughed at the joke he manages to squeeze in at the last moment. But he’s not wrong. What’s the point in keeping silent in an abandoned building that you’re positive only you and your friends are currently occupying? How much longer do you expect to keep quiet, when the way he’s making you feel begins to slowly burn at your insides? 

He curls his fingers deep in you, and your jaw unhinges in a silent gap. You wonder how long you can last, face burning with every passing second as he fingers you closer and closer to your high. Your hips jut outward to meet his hand with every motion, grinding against his knuckles in a desperate need to get off. You’re shameless about it too, fingers gripping his shirt tightly, brows scrunched together in hardened dedication. 

“Such a pretty little mess,” Namjoon hums. “Want you to cum on my hand, baby girl.”

“Fuck, Namjoon━” You whimper now, head lulling back as he twists his fingers further in you. 

But, as soon as you do so, the echoing sound of footsteps has your eyes darting to the darkened corridor. You make out the sound of oblivious chatter, and the familiar voices of Taehyung and Hoseok echoing from somewhere down below. They must be two floors down, though you can hear them screaming at nothing in particular, except for a string of profanities that meet your ears.

“Jesus, fuck!” That definitely sounds like Taehyung, voice shrill with worry. 

“Chill!” There’s Hoseok, but you think he was also screaming moments ago with Taehyung. “It’s just a spider.”

“I don’t care! Get it off of me!”

“Bunch of dumbasses,” Namjoon shakes his head rigidly, a fleeting grin forming on his face that is quick to fade as he curls his fingers upwards further into you. And, while your attention is somewhat fixated on the boys, you find yourself treading a fine line of not giving a fuck as Namjoon’s fingers stay buried deep within your cunt. Still, Namjoon can sense the slight urgency in your demeanor when your hands wind around his neck to tug at his hair, as if to gesture to the strangers that he already knows are nearby. 

“It’s okay,” he murmurs reassuringly, voice low enough for only you to hear. “You’re doing so good, love.”

He slows his fingers almost to a halt as you burrow your face in the crook of his neck. Your walls continue to clench around his fingers, and he adds a third finger to stretch you out just enough in a teasing leisure manner. He does it on purpose too, this much you know for certain, as he pinches playfully at your waist. It’s lewd, the idea of him fingering you out in public like this but the emboldened adrenaline coursing through your veins doesn’t want him to stop. By now, your high overwhelms everything else, causing you to writhe against Namjoon as he cradles you to him. You cum moments later, your orgasm overcoming you before you can sense it, trembling beneath his hands as he continues to finger you through it. Warm, wet arousal leaks from your core, coats his fingers all over as a punctuating whimper of his name tumbles from your lips.

“That’s it, baby,” he says gently. “Let everyone hear how dirty you are. Let it all out.”

Your thighs shake, squeezing shut around his hand, and all he can do is rub soothing circles into your hips with his free hand. He waits for your breath to steady, as the coil in your belly loosens, instead taking the time to admire you to your fullest, drunken hooded eyes glazed over in that perfect expression he loves.

“Want your cock in me now, Joon,” You whine breathlessly. The whining persistence in your voice excites Namjoon, only amplified tenfold by the way you begin nipping and sucking at his neck. 

“Now?” he asks.

“Now.”

Almost instantly, there’s a noticeable shift in his expression, a shit-eating smirk tugging at his mouth. You smother the rest of it before it can become too smug, folding your lips over his. Still, he hums through your eager kissing, “Yeah? Gonna let me fuck you like this, love? Take you raw against this wall, right here, right now?”

“Yes, please,” You mewl. Growing restless, you beg silently, “Namjoon.”

“Better make it quick then, hm?” 

You can only nod, still in a daze from the orgasm that still courses through your veins. Namjoon’s quick to oblige, pulling his hands from your heat and wiping your slick wetness off on his thigh. Clumsy hands between the both of you fumble to undo the button of his jeans, hastily undoing them just enough to free his straining cock from within. He wedges himself between your legs, hiking your skirt farther up your thighs, and he hurries to free his length from its confinements, wild locks spilling out onto his forehead and into your own line of sight. You push his hair up and away from his face, though your fingers grip suddenly at the roots of his locks when he grips your thigh and hoists it up to his hip, and then pushes himself into you at once, the tip of his warm cock easily coaxed by your already wet walls. He moans into your neck but muffles it halfheartedly by kissing along your throat.

“Easy there, boy,” You snicker, though your own words are a weak drunken slur, drowning out into a muffled whimper as he thrusts himself into you all the way. His hips meet yours roughly, grinding against you as your walls stretch around his throbbing cock.

“I’m needy,” he whines. “Just wanna feel you around me.”

He wastes no time in moving again, pulling his hips back only to thrust into you, adopting a steady fluid pace in such a way that has your head lolling back against the wall, and your mouth popping open in a silent moan as you shift beneath him. The wall of the building behind you is rough and jagged but you don’t feel it, not with the way he continues to thrust into you. His fingers dig into the flesh of your thigh, stretching you apart in such a way that has him pummeling his length into your core just right. 

“Fuck,” he grunts into your neck. Impatient hands move to yank your shirt up to your chest, pulling your bra down just enough for your breasts to pop out. He moves to leave a wet trail of kisses to your breasts, catching one of your nipples between his teeth and sucking harshly at it. The new sensation has your own walls clenching around him, and he almost comes undone then. Against your chest, you can hear him murmur breathlessly, “You feel so fucking good, baby.”

“Mmm,” You tug harshly at the roots of his hair. An unabashedly loud moan nearly tumbles from your lips before you can bite it back. Elsewhere, you can hear the sound of faint footsteps once more in the far distance, Taehyung and Hoseok much closer this time (quite possibly on the same floor as you, but the opposite end), but you don’t seem to care much anymore about the potentiality of being caught. “Fuck, Namjoon━”

“You like being fucked like this?” he rasps. “Out in public, for anyone to see?”

You feebly muster a nod, lips parting in a silent moan safe for the sound of your hot panting in his ear. Hurried yet deep shuddering strokes, he fucks into you again and again until your head is spinning. Every thrust sends a jolt up your spine and, still riddled by your first high, your body is quick to turn into shambles beneath him. Your hands flail outward to grasp onto every inch of his body, hands slithering beneath the material of his shirt, fingernails to dig crescent shapes into his torso, then snaking downward to grasp at his bum, pulling him in closer each time he rolls his hips into yours.

“Joon…” Your voice is an exhausted moan when it meets his ear. He almost doesn’t hear it, instead too caught up in the way your panting breaths mingle with the crude wetness of his cock delving past your folds each time. Somewhere, once more, in the distance even closer this time is the sound of footsteps once more. The thought of someone walking in one you like this━Namjoon wedged between your thighs, drilling his leaking cock into your wet cunt and tearing you to utter shambles━does something chaotically good to you. “Not gonna last.”

“Me neither,” he gasps. “Don’t care. Just wanna cum. Just wanna feel you cum around me.”

His thrusts begin to tread into sloppy territory, fervently itching to get both of you off. You reach your second high first, tumbling towards it with open arms. You can’t contain yourself, the tempting moan dancing upon the tip of your tongue, burning in your throat as your orgasm twists at your belly. “Fuck, baby, I’m gonna━” 

But your voice splinters off into a delicious sounding whimper. Wary of being caught by your wandering friends when you’re both so close to being undone (because, really, the idea of someone else hearing you whimper because of how good his cock is exhilarates him), Namjoon’s hand clamps over your lips and you welcome it graciously, favouring the idea of his fingers poking into your mouth so that you have something to distract your moaning. It still comes, broken and inaudible, smothered by Namjoon’s hand, as your tongue lavs around his digits. 

Now, you’re truly a sight to behold, making Namjoon’s length twitch amongst your walls. Exhausted, fucked out eyes gawk at him, too weak to carry on, instead jutting your hips forward to meet his with each thrust. 

“Shit,” he whines. “Fuckin’ hell, Y/N━”

He comes moments later, frantic slaps of his own hips having him spilling his seed sloppily into your already wet cunt. The abrupt sensation as your own walls clenching so impossibly tight around him, he feels as if he can’t move, though it’s not as if he immediately plans to. Instead, after a few more rocky thrusts into you to ride out both of your highs, he collapses against your chest and you smooth your fingers delicately through his hair. 

It’s a miracle when you both manage to finally pry themselves off of one another. As Namjoon hurries to tuck himself back into his jeans, you fidget with your bra and shirt, and then the hem of your skirt, tugging it as low as it can go. His cum is still warm and sticky between your legs, slowly beginning to run down your inner thighs. 

You catch him looking at some point and ask curiously, “What?”

“Nothing,” he says innocently. “Just wondering how you still manage to look so beautiful even after having my cum fucked in you.”

You roll your eyes as you reach out to ruffle his messy hair in an attempt to tame the damage you’ve caused. He smiles wide at the effort anyway. 

“Decent?” he asks.

“Good enough,” You say. “Now, let’s find the boys before anyone notices we were gone for too long.”

And this, he doesn’t disagree with.

Later, when you and Namjoon have regrouped with the rest of the boys back by the cars parked outside the asylum, everyone looks a little more on edge than when you left them. Except for maybe you and Namjoon. You wonder if the boys notice, judging by the way you and Namjoon keep giggling amongst yourselves.

“So,” Jungkook says, “did you guys find anything?”

“Nothing,” Jin admits. “Just freaked out Jimin a little bit more.”

The boy in question can be seen scowling to himself, arms folded over his chest. “All I gotta say is screw this place.”

Hoseok looks indifferent as he reviews a recording on the camera in his hands. When he speaks, his voice is a casual drawl. “Dunno. Thought we heard some suspiciously loud moaning from one part of that building that I’m almost positive Namjoon and Y/N were exploring.”

At this, Taehyung bursts out into wolfish laughter, only prompted further by your sudden horrified expression that you try to play off nonchalantly and fail miserably at doing. So they had heard you two after all? “Ha! They sure were exploring something.”

While the rest of the boys look either intrigued or rightfully confused, Namjoon shakes his head defiantly. “Nah, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Yeah, sure.”

Resisting the urge to hide behind your hands, you bite your tongue and try to sift through your brain for something else to discuss. Over the childish giggling sounding from Taehyung and Hoseok, you ask, “Well, did you guys find anything? Thought we heard you exploring the third floor.”

“Third floor?” Hoseok echoes, dumbfounded. “We didn’t get that far.”

“But I could have sworn I heard you guys.”

Hoseok’s brows knit together. He exchanges a look with Taehyung, then returns his stare to you. “You probably heard Tae screaming like a lunatic because a spider was on him. We were only in there long enough to try the spirit box out again, but that was on the second floor. Then the spider thing happened. Then, we left.”

Now, this is alarming. You gap at the boys as your mind tries to piece together the puzzles of this dilemma. Had you heard the boys, or perhaps something else entirely? Or maybe it was just your imagination. Namjoon did say your mind plays tricks on you ━ but the sound of footsteps had been so vivid. 

Even Namjoon looks stupefied, gawking at Hoseok. “Wait, you’re not joking, are you?”

“No,” Taehyung shakes his head. “We were filming the whole time. We can show you. Are you guys joking?”

“No,” You promise. “We were━ Erm━ We got distracted. We weren’t really paying much attention but━”

You’re fortunate when Yoongi decides to speak up, interrupting your embarrassed stammering. “So then what did you guys hear…?

A beat of silence passes amongst your group of friends. One-by-one, you each turn to look up at the haunting asylum still standing behind you, the night blurring its shape into one incomprehensible monstrosity. Okay, so maybe the ghost stories about this place are true. A shiver runs down your spine. 

Then━

“So does that mean the ghost is a Peeping Tom or━?” Jungkook asks. You wonder if you should be concerned by his serious tone.

The boys howl with laughter at the thought, though you’re still admittedly a little shaken up by the idea of a ghost watching you and Namjoon bone. Maybe you asked for it, what with deciding to have a quickie in a haunted asylum. 

“I don’t know, but can we please get out of here?” You press thinly. “Jimin was right. Screw this place.”

If the boys are as deeply unsettled by yours and Namjoon’s sudden revelation, you don’t know. You all manage to pack up your belongings and clamber in the cars in record timing, speeding away from the asylum unscathed. And if you really did just witness a ghost encounter, then you suppose it isn’t all that bad. 

At the very least, Namjoon’s video does make it to the trending page.

⟶ All rights reserved to © jungkxook. I do not allow reposting, translating, or any sort of modifying and reuploading of my work.

⟶ Feedback is always appreciated!

#smutcentralnet #btsbookclub #namjoon #namjoon smut #namjoon fluff #namjoon x you #namjoon x y/n #namjoon x reader #bts #bts smut #bts scenarios #namjoon scenarios #namjoon imagines #kim namjoon #kim namjoon smut #bangtan smut #bts fanfic #bts oneshots #youtuber bts #ghost hunter bts

[thefanficmonster]

Not Alone

Valkyrae (Rae) x Reader (Gender Neutral)

Warnings: Mention of death of a pet, Grieving

Genre: Fluff, Comfort, Angst

Summary: When Y/N doesn’t join the scheduled stream of Among Us with some cheap reasoning that everyone else falls for, Rae is far from convinced. She goes on to check the situation on her own just for her suspicions and worries to be confirmed further - something is off about Y/N and Rae is nothing if not determined to find out what.

Requested by @alex3atsbugs  Hello dear, consider this my farewell to the adorable little Marceline, I hope the cutie is looking down at us from heaven right now. Marceline, I might not have known you but I miss and love you regardless.  You have a special place in our hearts and you will never be forgotten. All my love, Vy ❤

“Ok so we’re only waiting on Lily now, right?“ Sykkuno asks, adjusting his earbuds as he scans over the settings for the game since he was the one to create the lobby which is now almost complete - lacking one more astronaut before the game can start.

Rae, who’s been scrolling through Instagram, looking at fanart and edits, snaps her head up to look at her computer monitor with confusion written all over her features, her brows furrowed, “Wait, what about Y/N? Aren’t they coming?”

This sudden change has surprised Rae more than someone would consider reasonable. But, in her eyes, it’s perfectly reasonable and justifiable considering Y/N has never skipped a stream nor have they ever not reported to her even for the tiniest of things such as running late. Even if they are not joining today, which is a huge oddity in and of itself, they would’ve definitely told Rae about it.

“Oh, no they won’t be joining us today. They said they were experiencing some technical troubles.” Sykkuno replies nonchalantly which aggravates Rae a tiny bit. She cannot comprehend how no one else is seeing anything odd here. Maybe it has something to do with how attentive she is when it comes to Y/N - she’s not sure why, but she is - or maybe it’s just a gut instinct but regardless, she can’t shake the feeling that something’s wrong. Not to mention that in all their years of streaming together on Twitch and now on YouTube never has Y/N dealt with technical difficulties that led to them not being able to stream. 

Y/N is the type of organized person that is constantly on top of things. They’d never let a technical difficulty get between them and providing their fans with entertainment. Chances are, if there really was an issue, it would’ve been fixed by now and even if it wasn’t...

Y/N would’ve let me know they wouldn’t be joining, Rae’s mind screams, almost altering her calm facial expression. 

“Hey can you give me about five minutes? My router’s acting up, I’ll restart it.“ Rae blurts out without as much as a second thought. Her thoughts are elsewhere right now, she’s got more important things to worry about. Luckily, her ability of rational thinking pushes through to the surface even without her guidance. 

She mutes her in-game and stream mics, takes her phone and rises from her chair, giving the camera what she hopes is a more apologetic rather than distressed smile before walking off-frame. Once out of view, she dials Y/N’s number, tapping her foot anxiously as she waits for her call to be picked up.

“Hello?“ When it does get answered, she’s met with a sniff before the weak voice utters the hesitant greeting word.

“Hey Y/N! What’s up?“ Rae tried to balance her question between a ‘what’s up?‘ in the ‘what’s wrong?‘ sense and the usual cheerful greeting she uses it as. She doesn’t want to end up seeming paranoid.

“Oh, hey, Rae. Nothing much. Aren’t you supposed to be streaming right now?“ Y/N’s tone raises a bit as they try to apply a bit more energy and enthusiasm into their words, presumably to erase any suspicion that sniffle might’ve caused in their friend who appears to have a sixth sense for when things are up with the people they care about. Or with Y/N specifically.

“Um...“ Rae spares the stream set-up a skeptical look, buying herself time to think of an excuse to partner her negation. She doesn’t want to lie to Y/N but she’s aware that they’ll be quick to ditch the conversation and postpone it if she admits to indeed be streaming. “Um, no, not yet. We scheduled it a bit later. Will you be joining us?“

“Uh, no, sorry, I won’t be able to. I’m sick and feeling like absolute crap so...“

Rae automatically stops listening, not on purpose, she just can’t hear Y/N’s voice over the alarms going off in her head, screaming at here that there’s something SERIOUSLY wrong. The stories not adding up - neither of them making sense to begin with - the lack of any authentic energy in Y/N’s voice, that sniffle she heard at the start of the call. It’s all so scarily wrong that it sends Rae one second away from entering full panic mode.

“I thought you were having technical difficulties.“ She blurts out without any thought of it’d make Y/N feel or how it would change the course of the conversation. 

Y/N inhales sharply as if caught completely off-guard and backed up into a corner, “Oh, yeah, that too. My computer keeps crashing.” Being backed up into a figurative corner doesn’t stop them from trying to further pursue this lie they’ve come up with. A lie so blatant and obvious there’s really no point in them trying to keep it going. Yet they choose to do exactly that.

“Y/N, you’re BSing me, you should know better than that!“ Rae whines almost desperately, “Please, tell me what’s going on? We’re friends, I don’t deserve to be kept in the dark, Y/N!“

There’s silence on the other end, loud silence that almost sends Rae into a breakdown. Some may consider it an overreaction, but let me ask you - wouldn’t you be upset and worried if someone you immensely care about was acting oddly and completely out of character.

“You’re going to think it’s ridiculous.“ Y/N’s voice cracks, letting it be known, clear as day, that they are barely balancing on the edge between keeping it together and crying.

“Of course I won’t, baby! I would never! Talk to me.“ Rae pursues, her heart breaking a little at the sound of her friend’s sadness. It’s taking a really big toll on her, not being able to hold Y/N in her arms instead of trying to gauge out their answers over the phone which is proving to be not at all effective or helpful to either of them.

Y/N sniffles again, “My hamster, Marcy...” She inhales to prevent a sob from escaping her lungs, “...died this morning.”

Rae has heard enough to be sent into action.

                                                            *  *  *

“Thank you so much, Rae. I would’ve probably stayed in bed all day with no effort to keep living whatsoever. You’re an amazing person, I hope you know that.“ Y/N gives the hand of Rae’s that’s holding hers a small squeeze, “I’m so lucky to have you.“

The two friends have been sitting on the couch in Y/N’s living room, the atmosphere a mix of melancholy and comfort. The comfort Rae’s been offering Y/N for the past hour or so has been almost entirely silent, in the form of physical affection, to be exact - hugs, soothing backrubs, gentle abstract patterns drawn on their arm, playing with their hair etc. Needless to say, it’s been far more effective than the attempt of calming them down and helping them out over a phone call.

“Don’t ever thank me for being your friend, Y/N. The honor’s all mine“ Rae rubs Y/N’s shoulder reassuringly, resting her head against theirs.

“Rae, you ditched a whole damn stream for me! Of course I’m gonna thank you! Who else would do that for me?“ Y/N protests, their glossy eyes looking up at Rea, lit up by the small smile that has managed to make its way onto their face.

“Only someone utterly stupid and heartless WOULDN’T do that for you.“ Rae says firmly, holding stern eye-contact with her friend.

Y/N looks away almost shyly, smile growing wider, their cheeks becoming rosier. “You have a way with words, you know...” They bite their lip nervously, “Could you help me express my emotions in the post I’ve been planning to make all day? My fans loved Marcy and I’m sure they’ll be as crushed as I am, I just want to appear strong so they don’t worry about me, you know?” They shrug their shoulders hesitantly as another tear escapes their eye.

Rae carefully and gently wipes their tear away with her knuckles, “Of course, Y/N. You don’t have to do this alone - you don’t have to do ANYTHING alone. Because you are never alone - you’ll always have me.”

Something about what Rae just said and the way she said it has struck a nerve in Y/N that has provoked a few more tears to spill out of their eyes as they somehow manage to whisper a: “Thank you” before throwing their arms around Rae, enveloping her entirely in the warmest of embraces. 

Meanwhile....

“Yo guys, how long does it take for a router to be reset?“ Sykkuno asks his fellow ghostie buds out of the blue.

“Less than five minutes. Why?“ Lily replies.

“Cause Rae said she’d reset her router and be back but she’s been gone for two hours so....“

#valkyrae #rae #valkyrae x reader #valky #valkyrae fanfic #valkyrae x y/n #valkyrae fanfiction #rae x reader #rae x y/n #rae fanfic #rae fic #rae fanfiction #valkyrae imagine #among us #amigops #fic #fan #fandom #fanfic #fanfiction #requests open #request #x reader #reader #RIP Marceline #forever in our hearts

[takuyakistall]

summary: a mountain deity meets a suspicious eel.

length: 5k+

taku’s notes: ah, I finally posted this. It was meant to be posted for a previous milestone but it was delayed, but here it is now jbhjfb I may have gotten carried away with this when I first thought of the AU;;; also !! special thanks to ghostie and rui for helping me with this. If you see this, ily !! this also a three way collab with sven and @xxunrxvelingxx !! please check out their fics when they post it hehe~ they’ll be making separate fics that will go along with our agreed theme which is legends and myths from our home countries. In my case, this was inspired by the story of Maria Makiling!

 "I have provided you everything the mountain has to offer and yet you greedy humans still want more?“ The thunder boomed, matching your footsteps as you made your way to sit on a log stool. Crossing your legs, you said, “I’ve had enough of you humans trying to steal my valuables.” Rain suddenly started to pour down, soaking the four men standing in front of the mountain deity. 

They were shaking in fear as they saw the look you were giving them, they heard that you were usually a gentle and kind person who had never laid a hand on the village folk who lived on the mountain. They scrambled to their feet, with pitiful expressions on their faces as they desperately tried to run away. You made no effort to chase them as you already knew  there was no way they would make it back alive. This mountain is your domain, surely they would get lost  and stay trapped here forever. 

You were usually a kind being but you would spare no mercy for those who enter the mountain with malicious intentions. The locals knew better than to do that but — unfortunately, those men who tried to steal from you were foreigners.

           Your rage didn’t go away instead, it had gotten stronger. The rain was getting heavier, a flood was ready to form and an earthquake was about to start. There was no room for the village folk inside your head, your rage had overruled every moral you once upheld. It was cruel of you to bring these disasters to  innocent people — however, nobody would dare to cross you ever again. They knew that  angering a deity was never a bright idea, especially if they still had plans to live.

“Hah… Foolish humans..! Always scurrying around, striving to attack me and rob me of my riches. In the end, they’ll just meet their doom.”

There was something off about the man who entered the mountain. It seemed like he was struggling to walk. The rage you felt days ago has now disappeared and you felt the need to help the struggling man. You jumped off a tree branch you were sitting on to get a better look on his face — heterochromic eyes, it was unusual to see those  around here, especially when you had isolated yourself in the mountains. He had teal hair with a darker and longer strand framing the left side of his face. He was beautiful, your breath was taken away the moment you laid your eyes upon him.

Then you finally decide to appear in front of him. His senses did not pick up your presence since he was too busy trying to regain his balance. When he finally looked ahead and saw you, his eyes  widened and  slipped.

“Ah-!” He was about to fall. He still wasn’t used to being able to walk on land, his balance was still sloppy and the way he walked was unnatural. Ever since his tail turned into human legs, he’s been walking aimlessly on land with nothing but a dirty tunic on. He had nobody to teach him about how land folks act or lived, he quickly became an outcast among the villagers by the mountain, which sparked your curiosity. 

“..! Be more careful!” You grabbed his hand before he could fall, pulling him up to safety. He finally got a proper look at his saviour and the sight took his breath away. Were you the mountain deity they talked about back in the village? He kept a straight face while trying to connect the dots in his head. Weren’t you the reason he tried to climb the mountain? The blue haired man couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle, “Forgive me, it seems that I’m still not accustomed to my newly acquired legs.” He spoke in a gentlemanly manner which surprises you. Maybe it was because of his dirty tunic that you thought  he was going to be a bit more rough around the edges. You knew it was bad to judge a book by its cover and yet you still couldn’t help but do it anyway.

           “What’s your name?” The cold tone in your voice sent shivers to the man’s spine, surely you had the aura of a deity! He heard the rumours about the gentle and kind lady up in the mountains, but it seemed like you were still kind of ticked off by the last incident he heard about. The man put his hand by his chest and introduced himself with a smile, “I go by Jade, Jade Leech. Would the lovely lady also do  the honor of giving me her name?” It was faint but you noticed it — he was dangerous. 

It didn’t take long for you to become attached to Jade, he charmed you the moment  you met. Your first meeting consisted of you asking Jade a few questions about himself while walking through the woods. You discovered that Jade originally had no legs, thus his lack of ability to be able to walk properly. You offered him help and thankfully, he was a fast learner when provided with guidance. In less than a day, he had already mastered how to walk with his own two legs. 

You were bound to the mountain, you could never leave because you are its guardian. Shall you ever try to leave, your body would run out of oxygen and pass. It seems like Jade was a little fond of your company as he went back up in the mountains the following day.

He was still wearing the dirty tunic when he came to visit you today, you had seen this coming so you had a nearby pixie fetch you some clothes for the tall man. When you handed the clothes to him, he couldn’t help but let out a small laugh, he was intimidated by your cold demeanor yesterday but today it seemed like you were finally fitting the positive rumours surrounding you. A kind and gentle lady who would often go to the village to give your blessings. “Thank you,” Jade hummed out, straying far from you to change into the clothes you gave him. You felt your cheeks flare up a bit when he gave you a smile. You couldn’t help but wonder how this blooming friendship of yours would end. After all, he’s just a mortal, isn’t he? 

28 days remain.

“Oya, a new mushroom to add my collection.” Jade was delighted as he crouched down to examine the newly found mushrooms on the ground. You mentally compare the current Jade you know to the Jade you first met — it seemed like he was an entirely different person. He picks up land dwellers’ qualities and habits fast and now you wouldn’t even dare think about how this man didn’t know how to walk properly just a week ago!

You tried to introduce him to a lot of things the mountain has to offer and yet somehow, he found himself climbing up the mountain on a daily basis just to see you. The village folk were a bit skeptical due to his odd behavior and at his sudden transformation, but they soon dropped the gossip when someone told them the both of you were lovers. It was a ridiculous thought but you never said anything when you saw how they had treated Jade better. 

The more time you spent with him, the more you felt these complicated feelings, like your heart was tied to a knot. The way he smiled at you made it feel like your heart was being squeezed, and the way his eyes sparkled when he talked about mushrooms was simply too adorable! You noticed all the little things about Jade and it made you wonder about how you were going to label these feelings you have for him. You liked to believe that you know everything about the world, but the world loves proving you wrong. You were still naive, even if you are a deity.

21 days remain.

“You’ve gotten better at acting like a land dweller.” Your cold tone made it clear to Jade that something definitely happened to piss you off while he was away. Perhaps it was another human trying to rob you of your riches? Or to take your head as a trophy? No. Jade shook his head at the thought of someone trying to harm you. After all, it is impossible to do so. 

For the past few weeks, he has somehow grown accustomed to your sudden coldness and harsh tones. The people that heard of the mountain deity’s treasures have increased and were bold enough to challenge themselves against you. They gathered into groups and shouted out insults directed at you. You had neither time nor patience to deal with every pest that was bold enough to threaten you, so you had the mountain itself deal with them. If they entered the mountain, they would surely get lost and never be seen again due to natural reasons. 

The only reason why Jade and a few villagers were able to enter the mountain and get back unharmed is because you let them. The moment you sense malicious intent directed at you — they would be disposed of. You were merciless when it came to matters regarding your life and the state of the mountain. Jade knew that, both of you spent enough time together for him to know these kinds of things. With slow steps, Jade approached you, his usual smile was absent and this surprised you a bit. His expression was serious while cupping your cheek with his bare hands, it was warm. You found yourself rub your cheek against his comforting touch, he knew exactly what you were feeling and this reassured you. Jade pulled back his hand and placed it on your head instead, ruffling your hair a bit, “Have you been resting well?”

Truth be told, you haven’t gotten a wink of sleep ever since the attacks increased. Your guard was always up and a chance to sleep never came. However, when Jade ruffled your hair, every muscle in your body relaxed, you fought the urge to close your eyes. Jade didn’t fail to notice your tired state and sat beside you on the log stool that was big enough to hold the two of you. He made you lean against his broad shoulder while stroking your head, his comforting touch making you go closer and closer to your desired rest. You closed your eyes and drifted into sleep, not hearing Jade’s endearing words “Sleep well, My beloved.”

14 days remain.

“Have you done it yet?” Jade entered his temporary lodging to see a beautiful young woman with long black hair sitting on his bed. Jade’s warm eyes turned cold as he glared at the woman who intruded his home. Jade didn’t bother to put up the gentlemanly act anymore. He lunged forward towards the woman and wrapped his fingers around her neck, lifting her smaller figure up in the air as Jade squeezed her neck. The woman was letting out choked noises as Jade continued to give her a cold glare. “W-Wait!” She managed to let out a word, Jade stopped for a moment. “You still need me, you can’t kill me.” The panicked and pained expression on the woman’s face brought immense pleasure to Jade. Oh how he loathed this woman! Jade was ready to snap her neck, staring coldly into her eyes as he squeezed her neck a bit more before suddenly letting go. The woman fell to the ground, hacking out coughs as she tried to regain oxygen in her system. Jade’s unusual rage has calmed down a bit after thinking rationally, he went into his kitchen and brought out some teacups, “Would you like some tea?”

The sweet aroma filled the cozy house as Jade delicately poured tea into the teacups. The woman sitting across him had a suspicious look, staring at the teacup. “Oh, please go ahead. Don’t be shy.” Jade insisted, an eerily calm smile decorating his face, as though the earlier events hadn’t happened at all. “It’s not poisoned, is it? I know how badly you want me dead but,” the woman pushed away the teacup, crossing her legs and arms as a confident look suddenly decorated her face. “If you still want your precious twin brother to live, I suggest you shouldn’t kill me.” Jade’s gentlemanly smile curled up into a big smirk as he set down his teacup, “And what made you think that I still needed you to do so? You’re basically useless.“ 

For a moment, the woman shot Jade a terrified look. She knew that Jade was capable of killing her at any given time, she had to think of an excuse to stay alive. “You won’t be able to use the deity’s heart to cure Floyd without me.” It was true. Even if Jade has gotten the deity’s heart right in his palms, he wouldn’t be able to use it to treat Floyd’s condition. Jade frowned upon hearing the words ‘deity’s heart’. It was the only reason why Jade approached you, he was skillful in deceiving others and masking his true intentions. Though it seemed like his mask was slowly breaking the more time he spent with you. It was true that he was fond of you — very fond but Jade wouldn’t allow himself to admit the feelings he held for you. 

If he ever admitted to himself that he fell in love with you, it would just pain him more thinking about the cruel acts he was about to commit. “I’m close to obtaining her heart. Once I get my hands on it, we’re going back to the Coral Sea immediately.” His monotonous voice scared the woman a bit, how could he be so calm when he’s about to betray a deity? “Got it, witch?” Jade coldly asked the woman. The said woman snapped out of her daze and refuted, “Don’t call me that, I told you, my name is-" 

"Do I look like I care?”

7 days remain.

“Dancing? When did you learn how to dance, Jade?” Jade only let out a mere chuckle as you gave him a curious glance. You looked better than before — the color of your face was slowly coming back thanks to Jade. His presence soothed you and you couldn’t help but let your guard down — you trust him. It has only been a month since the two of you met but you would already trust him with your life. What is this feeling…? What did humans call it again? Attachment..? Or was it fondness…or love? You didn’t know the answer. The moonlight shined upon both of your figures sitting down on the grass. “Do you underestimate me that much?” A teasing smirk appeared on his face, you panicked for a moment because deep down, you actually did underestimate him a bit. You looked away from him, a light hue of pink dusting your cheeks. Shame rising up from the pit of your stomach.

“Oh my, it seems like I’ve gotten my answer. It’d be a lie if I said I wasn’t disappointed.” Jade faked tears, wiping them away dramatically as you giggled at his actions. Jade stood up from the grass, his polite smile never disappearing from his face. Even though he gave everyone that smile, you couldn’t help but feel like there was an underlying tone of feelings and affection he held for you. Yet, you brushed it off like it was nothing — still denying the fact that you were indeed falling in love with him. Jade outstretched his hand towards you, trying to help you up. At that moment, you couldn’t help but think that you were becoming so helpless around him. 

Hesitantly, you took his hand as he helped you up to your feet. You stumbled forward a bit and lost your footing, almost falling had it not been for Jade who catched you before you fell. “Careful!” He warned you, wrapping his arms around your figure as you steadied your balance. You could feel his heart beating, you closed your eyes and allowed your head to lean into his chest — listening to nothing but the beat of his heart. Is this what it means to fall in love? Jade was taken aback for a moment, he didn’t expect you to suddenly rest your head against his chest while standing up. He let out a sigh as he wrapped his arms tighter around you, his gaze filled with an unexplainable fondness. Oh how he wished this moment lasted forever. 

3 days remain

It was dangerous and weak of you to allow yourself to be comforted by the presence of a mere mortal, even the forest pixies told you this themselves. It was a huge mess in the mountains when Jade wasn’t here. You suddenly felt sad at the thought of the earlier events.

“Lady (Y/N)! Forgive our insolence but we are begging you to cut ties with that mortal.” the pixies bowed down, they didn’t dare to look into your eyes — fear evident in their expressions. The pixie who talked to you, Daphne, was the wisest of the bunch — she had stayed in the mountain for far longer than you have. It was safe to say that she was wiser than you but the one who holds the most power was you — the mountain deity. Daphne didn’t have a single hint of fear on her face as she held her head up high, her blue locks tucked behind her pointed ear as she stared at you. 

Rage coursed through every part of your body as your harmless gaze at them suddenly turned hostile. The gravity suddenly weighed down on all of them, forcing them onto their knees except Daphne. Had it not been for her power she accumulated during the years she had lived, she would be most likely on her knees as well. “What did you just say, Daphne?” Your mind wasn’t in its best state due to the responsibilities you had to fulfill doubled, every living being in the mountain knew that and they could see how stressed you were through the mountain’s state. They noticed how the mountain would flourish a little whenever a certain teal haired mortal decided to visit you, they knew that he was a double edged sword to their deity. Though they knew that he was a potential threat to you, when they saw how happy you looked when you’re with him, they couldn’t help but let the both of you be. 

“That mortal man named Jade- He’s not what you think he is.” Daphne calmly responded, she’d been suspicious of him from the very beginning. Those words made the raging flames in your heart burn stronger. You knew deep inside that she was right. You knew he held ill intent from the moment you first met yet you just- You just blindly ignored it like the fool you were. Yet you were reminded of the way he called you his beloved when he thought you were fast asleep, it was one of your sweetest memories with him. You can’t allow yourself to believe that the gentle fondness in his voice that night was all fake.

“He’s after your heart.” 

Those words pierced you right through the heart, uncontrollable tears suddenly forming at the corner of your eyes. You wanted to tell them that he was a good man, that he loved you. Your gaze dropped down to the ground, unable to say anything. The mountain spoke for you. The flowers were withering at a lightning fast speed and so did the trees. The wild animals, some died and some were dying. The waters were drying up, and the ground was ready to collapse any time soon. You wanted to cry. Memories of last night came flooding back. The way he held you so close to him, when you listened to his heartbeat? It was all an act to get your heart?

Daphne wasn’t telling her the whole story, she just wanted Jade gone. She left out the part about Jade’s brother because she knew that being the lovesick fool you were — you would gladly give up your heart to him. She decided to fan the flames, “I… also saw a black haired woman in his house.” Daphne cringed at herself, she couldn’t believe what she was about to say. She glanced at your forlorn expression before continuing, “I think she might be his lover.” Everything seemed to stop at that very moment. You stopped wasting your tears, the thunder clapped. Daphne knew she messed up when she saw your expression — filled with burning rage. 

“It’s for his dying brother.” A small pixie speaked out, receiving a harsh glare from Daphne when she did.

“Flora! You…!” 

Everything stopped for a moment, you held a confused expression on your face as you signalled the small pixie named Flora to inch closer to you. You had hope that everything wasn’t a lie. There was nothing more you’ve ever wanted. You desperately wanted to believe that Jade wasn’t a cold blooded jerk that only approached you for your heart. “Tell me about his brother.” Your weak commanding tone made Flora’s heart shatter into pieces, she could tell how much pain you were in. Meekly, Flora started to explain to you the things she saw and heard when she went to follow Jade to the village; the black haired woman who was waiting for him at his home, the way how Jade choked her, the hateful expression on his face, the things they discussed over tea, and how Jade needed your heart to cure his poisoned twin brother. Flora didn’t leave out the fact that the woman with Jade was actually the one who poisoned his brother and how there were only a few days left before Jade goes back to his hometown.

You were oddly happy. Happy by the fact that everything might not turn out to be a lie and that the Jade you were so fond of was real. Though you were laughable, you were an idiot in love. Love…? Is this what they call this feeling? You loved Jade to the point that you forgave him. Even if he didn’t confess himself, you were willing to forgive him over and over again. You were a fool. The biggest fool in the whole damn mountain. Though if it was for Jade, the man who taught you love and the first man you ever loved, you didn’t mind being called a lovesick fool who ruined her own life.  

2 days left

Jade was running out of time, he could feel his lungs having difficulty trying to breathe as he climbed the mountain. The potion was wearing off and he needed to get your heart and return to the sea now — but he didn’t want to leave, he didn’t want his time with you to end just yet. He wanted more time with you. However,  his brother comes first before anything else, including you. He wouldn’t be able to live with himself if he just abandoned Floyd just like that — it would be unacceptable. Jade’s heart was in deep turmoil as he took a step after the other, why didn’t he.. want to leave you? He stopped in his tracks, his hand clutching his chest tightly as he felt like his heart was being squeezed. He didn’t want to admit it — he would never. If he did, he would never be able to go back to the sea. He continued walking towards your usual meeting area. 

The frown on his face immediately lightened up into a small smile when he saw your figure fiddling with a bunch of leaves. As he went closer, he could notice that you were crying. He kneeled down next to you and asked, “…Are you okay?” gently, Jade tried to place his hand on your shoulder as a form of comfort. You flinched, moving back a bit from his touch and accidentally hitting your head against a tree branch in the process. Jade quickly tried to pull you close to him to inspect what might be a wound on your head. Yet you- you desperately tried to avoid any form of contact with him, your lips sealed shut as you walked away from him to sit on a stone stool. Jade’s heart broke a little. 

You were still trying to compose yourself, tomorrow was your last day with him. You could already see him getting paler and weaker, his withdrawals were getting worse. You needed to think of something, anything. You were going to let him go today, he can have more time to go back to the sea. So he can live. Yet a huge part of you is screaming ‘Don’t!’ You felt weak and afraid, you didn’t know what choice to make but deep down you knew what was the right decision. Mustering up enough courage, your breath shaky, you spoke up. “Jade." 

Jade had never heard you sound so helpless, your voice was shaking, eyes brimming with tears. What happened to you? It was a bit of a shock, for you to call out his voice with such a painfully sad expression on your face. He wanted to know how he could make you feel better, he was about to wrap his arms around you again but he quickly retracted his arm when he remembered how you reacted earlier. So he kept his distance. "Yes…?” He anticipated your next words, hands shaking — his body was slowly turning back. He needed water but he forced himself to stay still and endure the painful withdrawal that came with it. 

You clasped your hands together, muttering a short chant under your breath as something in between your hands started to glow. A single shard of what seemed to be like a gemstone — a piece of jade. It was your heart, clearly influenced by your undeniable feelings for this man you met less than a month ago. Your jaded heart, it was what Jade was after all this time. Once it was in your hands, you clasped it tightly one more time before facing Jade. Tears blurring your vision, “Just… take it.”

Jade’s blood went cold, how…? Did you finally figure out his true intentions? Are you mad? Countless questions popped up inside his mind and his heart rate going faster by the second as he tried to make sense of the situation. Will he lie one more time? Or will he grab the golden opportunity in front of him? Before he could make a decision, he abandoned all sense of reason and pulled you into a passionate kiss. You were caught off guard, yet you kissed him back without any hint of hesitation at all. Your faces so close — your tears started to mix and you didn’t want to let go of him. Neither did he. After pulling away from your heated kiss, he finally managed to mutter out the words he was so afraid of saying. 

“I love you.”

1 day remains

The cool breeze caressed Jade’s cheek as he ran through the forest, your heart grasped tightly in his hand as he desperately gasped for air. He needed to get back, now. The black haired woman from the other day was already ahead of him, looking back occasionally at Jade to make sure he wasn’t dead from the withdrawal symptoms. Memories of last night weighed so much in Jade’s mind, he felt like he was choking as he ran — his legs heavy as he started to sweat more than usual. Yet he didn’t stop running, you gave him this chance to let him and his brother live and he was not about to let it go to waste. He ran and ran and ran until he could finally see the sea. 

Jade immediately jumped into the water, taking in the familiar feeling of being submerged in water once again — not once did his grip loosen around your heart. He allowed himself to breathe for a moment, letting the transformation take its place as his legs turned into a tail. He was slowly letting himself sink to the bottom of the sea, nobody could tell that he was crying from the wet environment of the sea. 

One look at Jade and you can immediately tell that he was empty, void of emotion as he stared at your heart — placing a gentle kiss on it as he muttered under his breath, “Perhaps in another life, we could be lovers once again." 

This is a story about how a foolish mountain deity sacrificed her heart, the very core of her being, to a mere mortal. A story about how cruel fate can be, and how it ruined them. The ending? The mountain deity fell into an eternal slumber after giving her heart up to her lover, unable to wake up after hundreds of years. The mortal man cured his brother and lived a somewhat happy life, longing to see his beloved deity once again on land and was killed after multiple attempts of going to land. 

Perhaps things would’ve been different if they made different choices, perhaps they’d be happily living as a couple now but fate is not so nice, no? There is no happy ending for this disastrous pair, only ruin awaits them if they were to ever meet again in their next lives. They were both fools in the end. 

"Eh~? Jade, Jade~! Did you hear about the transfer student coming today?” Floyd made grabby hands at Jade, excitement bubbling up from the pit of his stomach, will he find another person to squeeze? Jade let out a sigh, seemingly uninterested in the topic but decided to entertain Floyd. “Yes, it does make me feel a bit excited, fufu~”

The class silenced down so quickly, your footsteps towards the class stage could be heard.

“Hello everyone, my name is (Y/N) (L/N)! Nice to meet you all!" 

Jade’s eyes gleamed with growing intrigue, why did you seem familiar to him in some way? He didn’t dwell on that for long though, he just decided that if fate decided to make you a part of his life, then so be it. 

And it begins all over again.

#self indulgent takoyaki #hahaha more jade #twst writing #twst #twst x reader #angst #twisted wonderland #twisted wonderland jade #jade leech x reader #twst jade #jade #jade leech #fem!reader

[desafia]

never believed them, did you? when they said that part of your soul becomes void when a loved one passes // jagged edges of grief & regret, warping black holes of anxiety within the gut. over & over & over, the kaleidoscope of absolute fucking distress that lines the sight, the scream of her name into a room now cold. chrome laces 'neath the skin, manmade cybernetics of silver veins & metal heart // yet, you have never felt freeze like this. three months it has been, ninety days where you crave the walk 'pon eggshells, the bite of her words & fingers slamming into palms. sign towards the heavens: come back, come back, please come back. do it with your knees curled towards your chest, placing yourself into the corner of her living room. offer a call with no response, beg for a reply & hear nothing [ how her voice dares to fade from your mind. the only memory that you could ever care about -- ] can she still see your dreams ?? they aren't of motherly love, wispy farmlands & the scent of home-cooked stews anymore // it's a band of diamond wrapped around a ring finger, soft lips pressing against her jaw, the husk of i love yous dancing from smiling mouths. pathetic fairy tales for those not meant for joy. funny how your dreams are always an oasis that cannot be reached, from then to now. [ she's gone -- ] & so are you. there is no man, no machine, just a husk of what could have been. a vessel of regret & wanting & aching & desperation that curls itself with silent sobs in a room corner. a scolded child with no support, a frightened canine with no love. you thought your future was Death, then a life of asset puppetry. THEN HER. now, it's absolutely nothing.

how would your muse react to mags’ death || @humanetic

i know i asked for this but what the fuck 

anyway if you don’t think her little ghostie ass wouldn’t follow him around you’re wrong

#humanetic #to quote leslie knope: i sad #ANSWERED: ❝ i feel it in my bones，how much you crave to be heard. ❞ #OOC: ❝ it’s just tumblr rp，carol. ❞ #i have no words bye

[only-here-for-jatp]

The Secret Chord pt 3

I am very thrilled with my poetic serious title and my chaotic mess of chapter titles that don’t do the title justice.

Anyway this entire chapter is Nick-centric and contains some negative self-talk so if you have difficulty with that (like I do) proceed with caution and stay safe and okay pretty please.

Also, we stan Carrie in this house thanks.

Read it on Ao3 here

And also below! ~2100 words

Nick was pretty sure this was a terrible idea.

It’d seemed like a great idea last night when he was watching Julie and the Phantoms at the Orpheum. The music was loud, and the crowd was electric. The bass kept up a steady rhythm pounding in sync with his heartbeat and it joined the audience into one body perfectly in sync. He’d felt so alive as if all of his nerve endings were firing at once. His joy came out as an endless ache while he watched Julie perform her heart out, her own enthusiasm evident in every note and movement.

She shone so bright on that stage, more so than anyone he’d ever seen. He’d long since known of her grit and determination, the perks of being in school together since elementary school. Over the years he watched as the little girl with the big voice and no fear stood up to bullies, teachers, and during what came to be known as Fallout 2016 her (ex)friend Carrie.

Julie held her head up so high as she walked through the hallways and he was in awe of her even then. There were still some things he was still working out about himself and she was so unapologetically herself. He’d often wished for her bravery to be that strong.

At the same time, he watched Carrie struggle to keep her head above water. Her dad loved her, but he was absentminded and often off on the road or some tour or party or something, leaving Carrie alone in that big empty house. Before there’d been the joy and laughter of Julie and Flynn echoing in the hallways, but now she sat alone in her thoughts.

It was almost imperceptible to anyone who didn’t know Carrie, after all she’d always been a little rough around the edges, but Nick watched her harsh mask develop. He watched her use deflection and bravado to hide her fraying internal state. Nobody seemed to notice her growing intensity and focus on Dirty Candi, but it seemed like someone needed to do something.

Admittedly his feelings crept up on him. At first, he’d started small interactions as a friendly gesture. Little things like a smile or a wave so he could try to communicate somebody saw her. While she seemed a little confused at first, she soon started flashing him a smirk and a friendly sarcastic comment. Rather quickly their friendship grew, it turned into long conversations at lunch or studying together in the library. What started out as concern turned to pride and warmth as he watched this girl who hurt so much use her unwavering force of will (and a little pink glitter) to get up and meet each day with a take no prisoners attitude.

Once he saw her perform for the first time, he was a goner. That little smirk just did something to his insides. He asked her out and he was happy. They were happy.

Until Julie’s mom died. Whatever fallout might have happened between her and Julie, Carrie loved Rose. She’d been the closest thing Carrie ever had to a mother, and the loss hit her hard. Nick knew Julie would’ve granted her a temporary truce and welcomed Carrie with open arms to grieve. He was even pretty sure Carrie knew deep inside herself somewhere too, but the walls she’d built were too high and too wide to bring them down.

Nick did his best to be there for Carrie, but he knew he wasn’t what she needed. She needed Julie and the Molinas, but it wasn’t going to happen. Not yet. Instead her unresolved feelings ate at her morphing into jealousy and anger and acid. He watched this beautiful typhoon of a girl let the acid and anger consume her. Defenses and walls started going up against him too, until she treated him as little more than an accessory or a chess piece in her one-sided match against Julie Molina.

Beautiful burning Julie Molina who after a year of retreating into a cocoon, hiding from the world and her pain burst onto the stage like a firework. She maintained her grace and inner fortitude whatever the world, or Carrie, threw her way. Above all else though, she was kind. After months of being treated like a doormat, he craved the kindness and gentle protective ferocity that was Julie Molina.

He knew he followed her around like a lost puppy, but even if he couldn’t be with her just being around her made him feel like he could do anything. Be anything, even himself. Her music lived and breathed inside him, the words filling him up and offering him a lifeline when he didn’t even know how close he was to drowning.

He ached to return the favor of her steady reassurance and unconditional acceptance and support. She was incredible and she deserved to know. If he could emulate her even just a little bit, he wanted to try, wanted to practice being like Julie Molina.

Of course, this was how he found himself pacing the sidewalk for twenty minutes, gathering the courage to bring her these flowers. It shouldn’t be this hard. Flowers were a regular post-performance kind of gift. I mean, he did have a crush on her, but she seemed to be into her guitarist? Would she think he was creepy or weird or persistent? He didn’t want to scare her off. Maybe this was a bad idea. He probably didn’t have a shot with someone as incredible as her anyway. He’d like to think he stood a chance since her guitarist was a hologram, but the way they looked at each other….

What did it matter? These flowers were not crush flowers. He would’ve gotten her Dahlias for that. These were simply good job flowers. They’d performed at the Orpheum! That was a big deal. This is fine. This is normal.

A small burst of confidence propelled him forward while he gave himself a mental pep talk in his head. Later he would kick himself for not being more aware of his surroundings, but to be fair no one really expects a tall, mysterious demon man to sneak up behind them.

Yet here he was staring at this man in some steam punk adjacent costume, a smug plastic grin on his face and a mildly threatening atmosphere. He’d rang the doorbell, but he hoped Julie didn’t walk out here while this creep was still around.

“How sweet. The brokenhearted teenager fighting for his girl.”

Nick was taken aback. For one thing, brokenhearted was not the right word. He was hopeful. For another- “Do I know you?”

“No, but you will.”

Nick didn’t even have a chance to react before Caleb’s hands were around his neck. It felt like fire was racing through his veins, consuming him. He couldn’t move, his arms spread wide, but his insides struggled against the invasion. Thrashing and shrieking he screamed inside his mind.

It started in his fingertips and toes, his body feeling like it was too crowded. Like something was growing and pushing him out. He fought so hard trying to stretch and stand up to the purple smoke that was blinding and dividing him. Yet he was losing the battle with every moment. Feeling himself getting shoved and squeezed until he couldn’t feel his arms or his legs or the breaths he took or the beating of his own heart. Until he couldn’t feel the weight of his own tongue.

The world went quiet first. Then it went dark.

Nick came to in a room of boundless dark. He thought about being afraid, but it wasn’t a place where things lurked. He could tell it was just empty. A brief glance showed that he could see himself, slightly translucent maybe, but still there. The space seemed to go on forever and the longer he looked the more anxious he became. His eyes darted from space to space, but it was a never-ending sea of nothingness.

A voice echoed around him, making the world rumble and shake. “Now now, Nicholas. My name is Caleb and it’s nice to meet you.”

“Who are you!? What do you want!? Where am I!?” Nick shouted at the disembodied voice, hearing the fear and trembling in his tone and wishing desperately for the confidence and bravado typically attributed to jocks. What he wasn’t prepared for was the jolt that through him.

The pain stabbed in his gut and it felt like it was ripping him open, piece by piece. He fell to his knees with a scream, doing his best not to sob as the feeling lingered. Caleb laughed before continuing. “tsk tsk tsk. I am speaking, you just need to listen. I am… borrowing your body for the time being. This little lifer girl and her trio of ghostly boy band made a fool of me. And NOBODY defies my will and gets away with it.”

“What does that have to do with- aghhhh” Nick couldn’t hide the sobs as another jolt shot through him.

“Yeah, I’m going to need you to be a fast learner Nicky-poo. I’m in charge and there’s literally nothing you can do about it. Just sit there and be quiet and maybe I’ll return your body back in one piece. Besides you may not know what I’m talking about, but you’re close with that lifer brat Julie. Her ghosties would never let me get close, you on the other hand, well they can’t stop you.”

Nick felt icy terror roll through him. Julie? This madman demon was after Julie? “No” he wheezed. He kept repeating the word as if it would give him power as he progressively got louder until he was standing and screaming it into the void, damn the consequences. “NO. I won’t let you hurt her.”

Another jolt ripped through him as an invisible force knocked him back. The laughter seemed to echo around the space reverberating into an endless mocking loop. “You? You won’t let me? What exactly are you going to do Nicholas? After all, you couldn’t even defend yourself against me. What makes you think you’re capable of doing anything at this point to stop my plans?”

Nick sagged against the ground. There wasn’t anything he could do. His insides felt hollowed out as hopelessness descended upon him. Useless. He was absolutely useless.

“There you go! Now you’re getting it. Anyway, this is the inside of your head and it can be manipulated into whatever I want. Behave and I’ll make sure it’s somewhat comfortable, continue to fight and defy me and I’ll make sure you relive your worst nightmares. Got it?”

Nick nodded, curling up on himself in defeat. If only he’d stayed home today.

“Good, now I just need to borrow your memories real quick and we can get this show on the road. After all, I have a fight too.”

It felt like someone was slicing his brain into pages and flipping through it like you would a book or a deck of cards. He’d grabbed his head at the pain and briefly resisted before giving into the feeling. It was almost like he could feel the fingers turning through the pages. Flipping through his life as if it were nothing. As if he were nothing. He hoped Caleb got a cosmic papercut.

And then for a brief shining moment there was nothing. No Caleb, no jolts, no rummaging through his psyche, no noise. No world. Unfortunately, what looked like a big screen popped up in front of him. Was that the Molina’s house? Were these his eyes? He almost couldn’t watch as Julie opened the door. Then there he was again. Alone in the dark vastness of nothing. He let out an empty laugh. Of course, he was. That was him, always alone. Always hiding. Unable to make any true impact on the lives of the people around him. He’d failed to help Carrie battle her darkness and Julie certainly never needed him.

He wondered briefly if anyone would even notice if he was gone. If anyone would even realize this thing that occupied his body was using him like a puppet. He doubted it. No one ever managed to make it past his walls. No one ever viewed him as more than as that blonde lacrosse player, or Carrie’s boyfriend.

He was as unseen and unheard in here as he was for every other moment of his life.

The disembodied voice never said anything, but Nick was sure he could feel Caleb roll his eyes and mutter “teenagers”. Suddenly a couch poofed into existence and Nick settled into it, finding it oddly comforting. He curled himself around a pillow that he’d dragged into his lap, ready to watch his life spin out of his control.

#jatp #Julie and the Phantoms #Jatp fanfic #The Secret Chord #Nickaleb

[halequeenjas]

Grain of Salt || Jasmine & Nicole

TIMING: Current PARTIES: @nicsalazar & @halequeenjas SUMMARY: Jasmine goes out to her listing in the outskirts to get rid of the ghost that’s haunting the cabin she wants to sell. Nicole sees the house going haywire and walks into help. 

Gardening was often how Nicole chose to spend her day off. Living secluded in the outskirts meant grocery shopping wasn’t always possible. It was obvious from the first day that she would have to grow her own food. She preferred it anyway. Gardening eased some of her anxiety. It always did when she helped her father and grandfather. As terrible as her memory was sometimes, she was thankful to still remember most of their lessons. 

Everything seemed to be going according to plan, until she spotted the extremely out of place car driving in the middle of nowhere and disrupting the quietness. Without being an expert on cars, she could tell it was clearly worth more than a couple of cabins in the neighborhood. She tried to continue with her task, she really did. Except, in the two and a half years she had lived in her place, she couldn’t recall many visitors around. Even the beautiful--albeit old-- log cabin that stood right at the end of the paved road was always empty. She leaned against her shovel, curious gaze following the car until it reached the end of the road. The grip she had on her tool tightened in anticipation, wondering what could bring someone to that particular house.

Today’s listing was going to take some good work to make it habitable. Jasmine couldn’t deny that the log cabin was beautiful even if it wasn’t her style. The thought of living next to all the bugs and forest creatures made her shudder. Ick. The previous realtor didn’t even bother showing it because of how eerie it was on the inside. He spoke of cabinets flying open and doors slamming behind him. It wasn’t hard for her to figure out what that meant. A poltergeist was making itself at home in this cabin. She could see the outlines of the presence almost immediately upon entering the home, but it slinked away from her when it saw the iron rod. She shook her head and bit her tongue. If Larry Bob had taught her one thing it was not to sass a poltergeist right before an exorcism. She created the salt circle on the floor and began with the incantations her aunt had taught her so many years ago. While familiar, it still felt almost strange to feel a surge of power running through her. This ghost was a particularly angry one and resisted her. The shutters on the windows around the house began flapping with a gust of wind as she gritted her teeth, but she did not quit. She spoke the words louder as if demanding the poltergeist get the hell out, but the resistance was strong with this. Ghostie here did not know who they were messing with. She was Jasmine freakin’ Hale and no ghost asshole was going to stand in the way of her and her commission. The doors were flapping now too and the air whistled around her. In the back of her mind, she hoped her neighbors weren’t paying too much attention.

Nicole was surprised to see a young  woman step out of the car. She tried not to draw conclusions. Maybe the owner had finally decided to do something with her property. Or maybe, the owner had passed and this person had recently inherited the cabin. It didn’t matter, Nicole reminded herself. Regardless, it was definitely not her business. While curious in nature, she never meddled. It was better just to go on with her day, there was plenty to do. She kicked the shovel down with her boot to aid herself, digging deeper in the dirt. Not even fifteen minutes passed when disturbing sounds at  the distance stopped her in her tracks. Head turned towards the cabin, where doors and windows smashed against their frames as though a whirlwind was sweeping the neighborhood. It wasn’t a windy day, however. That was easily spotted.  If anything it seemed…the house was collapsing from the inside. ”Fuck’s sake” she cursed under her breath, when it dawned on her what she was seeing. 

She was aware of the abnormal activity that surrounded her, there was no point in making a big deal out of it. At the park, every night patrol she’d encounter things that couldn’t be categorized as regular animals. Even in her own neighborhood, shadows, sounds, strange voices, sometimes she was even paranoid of the wood. She didn’t like to get involved --she didn’t want to--, but there was a good chance the woman inside the cabin could be in danger. Had Nicole bothered to attune her hearing, she would’ve been able to pick up the female voice shouting some sort of chant. Reluctantly, she dropped her tool, dusting her hands off and jogged toward the cabin. She wasn’t sure why she kept going, this was clearly above anything she had ever experienced. As soon as she felt the ground vibrate beneath her, she hesitated, going around the entrance to get a peek of whatever was happening from a side window instead. 

Everything continued to whirl and whistle around her as Jasmine repeated the incantations strongly and clearly. Frames flew off the walls and the cabinet doors banged around her, but she wasn’t going to be scared off. This cabin was prime real estate and she intended on selling it. The only way of doing that was to make sure it was ghost free. This ghost’s game of trying to intimidate her was not going to work. Maybe her Versace outfit didn’t scream tough, but she was in fact just that. The howling wind blew her hair out of place and annoyed her further so the words came out as more of a shout now. Still, no ghost in the salt circle she’d set up on the floor. She was growing annoyed now and the edge in her voice was becoming more apparent. The ghost’s form was getting closer to the circle, she couldn’t stop now. The chaos ensued and she pushed further with her words to banish this ghost away forever. 

Through the window, Nicole was only able to catch the woman --who seemed fixed in chanting and reciting words that didn’t make sense-- but there wasn’t a clear view on her enemy. Shaking her head she walked back to the entrance, tentatively stepping inside the cabin, dodging the frames and papers flying around in the process. It was hard to take in what she saw in front of her, and her heart pounding wildly in her ears didn’t help to gather her thoughts either. The woman in the center of the room  looked just as out of place as her car, and she couldn’t see who or what she was shouting at. Then she took notice of the circle on the floor, causing the hairs on the back of her neck to stand, shivers running down her spine. She couldn’t remember the last time she had yelled, but what she was witnessing called for it. She didn’t, however. Was she even supposed to distract her? That could end up being more dangerous. Whatever she was dealing with could take advantage and harm both of them. But she had to let the woman know she was right there, if help was needed.  Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. Perhaps she was dreaming, she rationalized. Just a different kind of nightmare to what she was used to. Slowly, she approached from behind, trying to get the woman to spot her, but before she could, a gust of wind sent a vase directly at her. She ducked just in time, the jar crashing against the wall behind and breaking into pieces. That definitely earned a scream, “what the fuck!?”.

This ghost was annoyingly stubborn and Jasmine did her best to ignore the increasing tiredness she was beginning to feel. She had to keep pushing or she’d be especially vulnerable to this ghost. Her body was her own and she had no intention of letting anyone use it. The ferocity in her voice rose as she continued repeating the latin words over and over again. Finally, she could see the ghostly figure getting pulled closer to the salt circle, but a shout pulled her focus. Her head whipped to the side and she saw the ghost now ready to throw yet another photo frame. “Duck,” she called out before she returned to repeating the incantations, this time more fiercely as if she was daring this ghost to cross her. She honed in on the poltergeist and narrowed her eyes. Against its will, it was being pulled into the salt circle she’d made on the floor. Her fists balled up at her side and she stared the ghost down with the most intimidating look she could muster. The wind still blew and floorboards creaked in protest, but the ghost was trapped now. “Stay back,” she warned the woman who’d rudely let herself in. A few more repetitions and she saw the familiar signs of the ghost being banished away to god knew where. The sweat was still beading up around her forehead and in that moment, she couldn’t be more thankful for Dior’s waterproof line. She breathed easily for a few minutes following the ghosts departure before turning to the women. “What the hell,” she grumbled, “Do you just like normally let yourself into other people’s houses?” 

Nicole kept her hands over her head, protecting herself from other objects flying at her. She didn’t need to be told twice to stay behind. She observed, mouth open as the woman continued with the chants to contain the whirlwind. Suddenly, the shouts seemed to work, the wind around them stopped blowing and a number of objects dropped to the ground. Her heart hadn’t stopped hammering against her chest when the woman addressed her. “When it looks like it’s about to go flying up the sky, sure fucking do!” she scoffed at the woman’s attitude, but her eyes were trained  on the salt circle. Something about it made her skin crawl. “I thought…” but what did she think, really? Admittedly, not many thoughts had gone through her head. Otherwise, she would’ve locked herself in her cabin until the worst had passed. She swallowed, taking a couple of steps now that things were calm. She wanted to ask her if she was okay after what seemed like a very physical task. Her adrenaline had to be through the roof. But the question got caught in her throat, blurting out harsher words instead. “Saw you go in-- clearly you don’t belong here” to make a point, she shot a pointed look at the woman’s outfit. Growing embarrassed, she felt the need to explain her actions. “Thought...thought you were in trouble” she glanced away, the  objects scattered around the place giving her the perfect excuse to avoid the woman’s gaze. She had promised herself to never leave anyone behind ever again, but she couldn’t tell that to a stranger. “No one’s been in this cabin in years”.

As off guard as the new presence threw her, Jasmine was relieved that she seemed pretty good at the whole ducking things. Once the wretched old ghost was completely gone, she looked at Nicole with a shocked look on her face. Did she seriously just interrupt a banishment and had the nerve to be the one giving her attitude? The nerve. “So what? You were just gonna take a nice trip to space with the house if it really was flying away,” she remarked harshly. Maybe she was being a little too harsh, but the break in her focus could have been dangerous for both of them. She would give her that she definitely didn’t look like she belonged in a cabin in the outskirts of all places. Even the gravel driveway was hard to navigate in heels. Still, she haughtily retorted, “Well, I am supposed to be here. I’m the realtor selling this cabin for the owner. As you could see, it had a little bit of a ghost problem I needed to take care of first.” Normally, she would try to hide the exorcism details, but there was no denying what happened here was supernatural. The other woman saw it with her own eyes. That didn’t stop some of the people who were deep in denial, but she hardly cared what some woman who lived out in the woods of all places thought of her. She softened slightly when she realized the woman wanted to help her. She let out a dramatic sigh and explained, “I had it covered, but like, thanks for looking out. Probably avoid walking into active exorcisms in the future. Concentration is a big thing with making poltergeists go poof.” She relaxed a bit and reached out a hand to shake, “I’m Jasmine, by the way. It’s a good thing no one’s been here in years because that ghost was mean.” As she touched the other woman’s hand she felt a familiar chill. “Oh Christ,” she grumbled, “You’re possessed, too!” She pinched the bridge of her nose. She was entirely too drained to perform another exorcism today.

Nicole opened her mouth to bite back, but realized she had no way to argue and actually make sense. There was no logical reasoning as to why she had followed the woman, she acted out of instinct. She exhaled sharply. A trip to space was sounding pretty good now, away from interacting with humans. Fucking hell. In frustration, she swat away a piece of paper still flying near her face. She crossed her arms listening to the woman explain she was a realtor. “Shit” also, apparently an exorcist? So that had been a ghost --or a poltergeist, she didn’t have time for technicalities-- at least that had been confirmed. She had just witnessed her first exorcism and she hoped it’d be her last, truthfully. “Right...covered” she supposed that was right, but she hadn’t looked too in control. “Staying the fuck away from potential flying houses next time” she repeated, annoyed. Despite the fact that it had been her intention to help from the beginning, the acknowledgement and  thank yous made her uncomfortable. “Nicole” with a mumble, she reluctantly took her hand to shake. What if this woman transmitted something to her? It was too late to question things, because Jasmine’s reaction at the touch scared her thoughts away. She removed her hand as fast as she could, stepping back from her. “What...what do you mean?” while her stammer sounded innocent enough, her heart was beating erratically and she was sure even a person with normal hearing would’ve been able to pick up on it. “I’m not--I’m not... fucking possessed!” she huffed, helplessly looking at her empty hand in search of answers. “Maybe you are possessed, and just--” she swallowed, tears burning at the corner of her eyes. Embarrassing, she had to get a grip on herself. “You gotta be projecting”. 

Exorcisms always took a lot out of her and Jasmine found her mind was feeling more jumbled. She needed an iced coffee and a good nap before she went about her day. Maybe she had been a bit more irritable than intended. It wasn’t the worst thing in the world this woman had wanted to help. “Sorry, I-- Thanks for checking to make sure I was okay,” she said reluctantly. It was a bit obvious she struck a chord and this Nicole woman was thrown off. “Just a general safety tip. That and if you are gonna walk into the potential flying house, bring iron and salt. That’s how you defend yourself against ghosts.” The next part through Jasmine for a loop. It was possible her senses weren’t totally intact given that had been one bitch of a banishing, but she felt the presence of a spirit within Nicole. She saw the ghost that was here fade away though and it hadn’t gone to Nicole at all. Still, she squinted her eyes and noticed the near tears. “Uhm, no, definitely not projecting. Still very much Jasmine Hale. It’s a lot harder to possess an exorcist so we’re not all that appealing of targets.” She shook her head, “Look, I just sense a spirit in you. Are you like-- I don’t know, I think my aunt mentioned that some species could bring that feeling about, but that it’s super rare. Could also just be the fact I’m drained from dealing with a poltergeist. I didn’t mean to upset you.” As much didn’t stop her from throwing a dash of salt at the woman. 

Nicole quickly shook her head. Thanking her wasn’t necessary. She wasn’t searching for appreciation and while she dwelling on what a stranger said or didn’t say to her was a pastime she excelled at, now it wasn’t the time. Emotions were running high. “Yeah, not going anywhere near another one of these in my life. Good to know though” she averted her eyes, refusing to hear more about salt and iron. Her breathing picked up as Jasmine began to refute her claim, shaking her head in an attempt to deny the things the woman spoke. She had to go along and agree that Jasmine was likely exhausted, “probably drained, must be that”. Biting down hard on her lower lip, she preferred to ignore the unpleasant sensation spreading through her chest while she lied so blatantly. At the same time, her brain was screaming for her to leave. Would it be too rude to run away from the conversation? Wouldn't be the first time. She had no desire of ever seeing the woman again, so she didn’t care if Jasmine thought she was weird, that ship had sailed.  But something kept her rooted to the spot. That same curiosity that compelled her to follow the woman in the first place. Understanding the world around her, understanding things about herself in the process. It was surprisingly tempting. She had never met anyone capable of seeing her so easily before, what if... Jasmine had more knowledge to share? “Don’t... don't know about species,sorry— listen, I’m...It’s great you’re in one piece. You clearly need the rest I’ll—” her nervous ramble was interrupted by the woman throwing salt at her. Involuntarily, Nicole stepped back. Well, that was fucking rude. Her eyes widened, raising both arms as she demanded an explanation.

As expected, meeting someone in the middle performing a banishment was not a good introduction. Jasmine noted they both seemed a bit frustrated with each other, but she couldn’t shake the feeling of a spirit present within Nicole. It made it difficult to relax and put on the charm as she normally would. “Good call,” she said in a strained joking tone. Even as the words left her mouth, she couldn’t even buy them. Of course the woman was agreeing she must have been exhausting. That would have been expected regardless of whether or not the woman was possessed or not. “Yeah, yeah, I guess I should go home and get some rest now that the house is no longer haunted,” she agreed, still unsure. It wasn’t like she could do anything about this right now. Two exorcisms in a row would be entirely too much for her to handle safely. She noticed the woman did flinch away from the salt, which was valid, but she didn’t seem very affected and she was sure some of it hit her. Nicole also looked confused. If she was possessed, any ghost worth their salt, no pun intended, would know to stay away from salt and iron. “Sorry, had to be sure. If you were possessed, the salt would have been a big ouch. Clearly you’re not, which I’m sorry. My wires must be a little crossed right now, but like hey, if you were possessed, I’d obviously want to help whoever’s body was hacked.” 

Nicole nodded silently, brows furrowed in concern. Regardless of how uncomfortable their conversation had become, Jasmine did look out of it. She couldn’t begin to imagine how taxing an exorcism could be for a person. “Right, yes— you should. Probably for the best, you kinda look like shit” she grimaced at her words “tired, you look—I mean” her worried gaze lingered on Jasmine. The least she could do was to confirm the woman made it safely to her car after all of this was over. Her arms stayed in the air despite the initial explanation, stunned rather than angry at the action. Had the situation been different, her reaction would’ve been defensive, outraged even. It was for the best that her instincts hadn’t kicked in despite being on edge. Jasmine clearly didn’t mean harm. Her expression softened at the offer, unable to ignore the pang of guilt in her chest. “That’s kind of you...really. Offering a stranger...but uh— don’t have to worry about it. C’mon...” Nicole gestured towards the door, swatting away the salt on her tank top. “Whenever you come back to check on this place...Lemme give you a hand” as long as we don’t talk about my spirit, she didn’t say “you don’t look very equipped for the woods” she let out a shaky laugh, releasing some of the built up tension. She turned around, with the intention to exit the cabin when something stopped her. For a brief moment, her right leg didn’t quite go with the rest of her, catching herself in time before tripping. Her boot had been restricted by the salt gathered on the floor. She shot a quick glance at Jasmine, surely the woman wouldn’t be able to notice such a minor detail. It had looked like a clumsy moment, nothing else. She managed to step the opposite way, moving freely. She walked in silence out of the cabin, a few steps behind Jasmine. As their paths split, Nicole dragged her feet back home, thoughts of uncertainty swarming in her head. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to forget what had happened in the cabin any time soon, and part of her — the part she tried to quiet down, usually dormant— was awoken by new possibilities. 

#wickedswriting #grain of salt #nicole

[megsironthrone]

Direwolf Pup

Based on this request:  Hi! I was wondering if you could write about how Y/N is married to Robb (before the series started) and when the guys returned to Winterfell with the direwolf pups he surprises her in one, the second runt of the litter, because he wanted her protected at all times and as an apology for leaving her clingy ass all day 😂❤️

Here you are lovely! I do not own Robb Stark. He is the property of GRRM.

Warnings: FLUFF!!

Pairings/Characters: Robb Stark x wife!reader

Robb felt terrible. He had to leave you yet again. The two of you had been married for a while now and your anniversary was fast approaching, but the young lord barely had any time to spend with you. He was always training or helping his father. Normally, you didn’t mind, but lately you seemed to be feeling a bit down and Robb didn’t know how to help. He felt like a failure.

He was brought from his thoughts by the sound of whimpering. His brows furrowed as Bran asked what the sound was. They would all soon find out as they approached the body of the dead direwolf. Pups. An entire litter of direwolf pups. Theon and Robb’s father wanted to kill them, but Jon argued to let them live. Robb agreed. There were enough of them for him to bring one back for you. Maybe that would make up for the fact that he was hardly around anymore.

“One pup for each of the Stark children…and Y/N. They are your house sigil, Lord Stark,” Jon told Ned. “I agree, Father,” Robb said, cuddling two of the pups to his chest. Ned agreed and they all grabbed a pup or two to head back to Winterfell. When they found the runt of the little for Jon, it felt like their family was complete. Robb looked down at the two pups in his arms and smiled. He hoped the pup would be the first step in earning your forgiveness.

As soon as he set foot back in the castle, Robb went looking for you. He finally found you sitting in on Sansa and Arya’s lessons with Septa Mordane. “Forgive me, Septa, I need to borrow my lady wife for a moment.” You smiled at him as you rose from your seat. You followed Robb from the room and he took your hand. “Robb,” you started with a giggle, “What’s going on?” Robb flashed you a smile. “I have a surprise for you.”

Robb could tell that you desperately wanted to ask, but you wouldn’t. You didn’t want to take away from the surprise Robb had so lovingly prepared. So, you followed without complaint and when Robb pulled you outside, you didn’t question it. You knew he’d never put you in danger. Robb finally let you go when you reached the kennels. Your brows furrowed in confusion. You’d been in the kennels many times before. What were you doing there now?

When Robb stopped just outside one of the last kennels, you gasped. You’d never seen a real direwolf before. And these ones were adorable. True, they would all grow to be deadly predators, but for now, they were the sweetest things you’d ever seen. Robb gently grasped your elbows and pointed to the second smallest one in the bunch.

“That one is yours,” he whispered. Your eyes widened in surprise. “Mine?” Robb nodded and opened the door. Two of the pups, the largest and the runt, let out little yips. The large one curled itself around your pup, making Robb laugh. “It appears Grey Wind is as protective of your direwolf as I am of you.” You turned and wrapped your arms around your husband. “Thank you, Robb.” He dropped a kiss to the side of your head.

“Of course. What will you name him?” You walked over and scooped the grey and black pup in your arms. He let out a pitiful growl before trying to jump at Robb. You giggled when he curled back into you. “Storm. His fur reminds me of the sky before the rain.” Robb grinned. It was only fitting. You loved the sky before the storm. It was the time when the world seemed the most calm and quiet.

“Storm it is then. And he shall protect you and keep you company when I cannot.” You walked back to Robb and pulled him into a kiss. It didn’t last long before a giggle broke you apart. You pulled back to see little Rickon rolling around with the direwolf you assumed he claimed for himself. The rest of the Stark siblings wouldn’t be far behind, so Robb grabbed Grey Wind and the two of you left the kennels.

“You didn’t have to do this, Robb,” you whispered. Storm was curling closer to you and falling asleep. “I feel it isn’t enough for your forgiveness, Y/N.” You looked at him in surprise again. “Forgiveness? Robb you’ve done nothing to need it.” Robb sighed and shook his head. “But I have. I’ve been neglecting you horribly. I am afraid I’ve been a horrid husband.”

“No you haven’t. You are a wonderful husband! You are caring and loving and kind. You do not hit me or humiliate me. When you do not put me on a pedestal, you treat me as your equal. Do I miss you when you are away? Of course, but I knew what I was getting into when I married you, Robb.” Robb had been silent throughout your impassioned speech, but he had to know.

“Then why have you seemed so upset recently? What could possibly be weighing on your mind if not something I’ve done?” You took your free hand and grabbed his. “It was nothing you’ve done. I-I simply wasn’t sure how to approach the subject.” Nothing more was said until the two of you made it to your shared chambers. Robb figured it was something best talked about behind closed doors.

Once inside, Robb set Grey Wind down and you did the same for Storm. You moved to lie on the bed, Robb following suit. “What subject, Y/N?” Robb was concerned with how you kept biting your bottom lip. He reached over and gently pulled it from between your teeth. “I want to, that is I would like…” It wasn’t like you to be nervous talking to Robb. “Darling, what is it?”

You took a deep breath before meeting his Tully blue eyes with your (e/c) ones. “I want to start a family.” Robb stared at you for a moment before a soft chuckle built up in his throat. You frowned when the laugh left his lips. “Is that all? Y/N, my love, why were you afraid to tell me? I would love nothing more than to start a family with you. I only ask for a little more time. There are some things I wish to learn before becoming a father.” You beamed at him. “I can agree to that.” Robb gathered you in his arms and kissed you firmly.

As you began to deepen the kiss, a series of yips pulled you back to the room. You laughed at the direwolf pups. Grey Wind was attacking the furs hanging off the edge of the bed while Storm was trying to hop up with you and Robb. “Perhaps we already have our family,” you said with another chuckle. You sat up and pulled Storm onto the bed. He immediately laid down between you and Robb, falling asleep in mere seconds. Robb kissed you again. He was thrilled that, until he could give you a child, you were content with the direwolf pup curled up next to you. For now, this was your family and you were both okay with that.

@brewsthespirit-blog @littlemisscaptainfandom @etherealpotter @line-viper @frozenhuntress67 @fizzyxcustard @ghostie-writes @cd1242 @gruffle1 @smalltownbigheart @princessofthefandomrealm @gameofthronesfics @igotmadskills @multi-fandom-imagines8

#game of thrones #robb stark x reader #robb stark #robb x reader

[amazingmsme]

A Loyal Companion Part 3

After a few days of bad weather, Klaus was ready to get out of the house. Jasper was starting to get restless from being trapped inside so long, and he decided that they both could use a nice day outside. He slipped on a thin jacket and was about to head out the door when a voice stopped him in his tracks.

"Where're you goin'?"

Klaus turned around and was surprised to see Five standing their, his arms loosely folded in front of his chest. He had a look of genuine curiosity, his head tilted slightly to the side.

"Just gonna take a walk, maybe go to the park. We're just dying to get out of this damn house," Klaus explained, stretching his arms above his head.

"Cool, mind if I tag along?" Five asked, tucking his hands in his pockets. A surprised smile wormed its way onto Klaus's face.

"Sure! I'm always down for a little bro time," he said, reaching out to ruffle his hair. He smacked his hand away before smoothing the strands. Klaus thought it was a bit odd that Five of all people wanted to go with him to the park, but was pleased nonetheless. Normally it was him who followed his siblings, and most of those times he would just proclaim he was going with them and leave no room for protests. This was a nice change of pace. "Grab a hoodie, it's a bit chilly."

Five scoffed, "I don't need a jacket."

Klaus pointed at him, "You say that now, but you're gonna regret it when you're shivering and I'm all toasty," he emphasized his point by snuggling into the fabric. Five merely rolled his eyes, grabbing his hoodie off a nearby chair. He pulled it over his head.

"There, happy?"

"Yup! Now c'mon, let's get going," Klaus said as he hopped out the door, Five close behind. After walking for about a block, Klaus noticed how his smaller brother was having trouble keeping pace with his longer strides and chuckled. Five's head snapped toward him, "What's so funny?"

"Nothin' really. You able to keep up, tiny legs?" he laughed out. Five glared at him and the next thing Klaus knew, he had a small human clinging onto his back. Jasper hopped away from his side with a start, barking at the boy. Klaus swayed on his feet with the added weight but regained his balance. He shushed Jasper, "It's okay, look I'm fine!" he reassured. Five wrapped his arms around his brother's shoulders and neck and hooked his legs around his thin waist so that Klaus wouldn't have to put as much effort into holding him. He happily rested his chin atop his head.

"Y'know, being young again has it's perks. I mean, sure I can't go out for a drink and I don't get the respect someone my age deserves, but I can still do things like this. And I can get into places cheaper, if not free," he boasted. 

"I can get into places for free too. It's called sneaking in," he snickered. Without warning Klaus bent down and Five had to struggle to keep his hold.

"What the-"

"I can't pick you up right now you big baby! I already got one leech on my back," Klaus spoke to the air.

"Excuse you!" Five exclaimed upon hearing the unfavorable nickname. He reached up and thumbed his ear and Klaus smacked his head, not even needing to look back. He stood back up and resumed walking.

"Thanks to you I can't carry Jasper."

"Oh please, I'm sure "your dog" can walk on his own," he said sarcastically, adding air quotes that he made sure he saw.

"He can, but he has a bit of a limp so he likes when I carry him."

"Well your brother also likes it, and I'm real so-"

"Hold on did you just say you like this?" he asked, shocked that Five would ever admit to liking any sort of physical affection. His eyes widened as he realized his "mistake."

"Shit, no that's not-"

"Awww Five! I can't wait to tell everyone how much you like being held and carried like a little baby!" he teased. Five grabbed his jaw and turned Klaus's face so he could look at him and snarled, "You wouldn't dare."

Klaus smiled, "Oh but I would. Stop that," he adverted his gaze and scolded Jasper, who had growled at the "threat" to his owner. He stopped immediately, but his teeth were still bared and ready to bite if need be. That was another reason Klaus was hesitant to conjure Jasper. He can get aggressive when he felt scared or threatened, and well, he had to admit his siblings could be pretty scary and threatening. He has to admit he was relieved when Luther didn't react while Jasper attacked his leg when he snuck up on him during a nap. He has to work on his manners before he's confident enough to conjure him around his family.

"Stop what? I didn't do anything," Five said.

"Wasn't talking to you. And by the way-" he cut himself off, letting go of his smaller brother. He scrambled to not fall before Klaus grabbed him and hoisted him farther up his back. Five breathed heavily before he calmed himself down, a few nervous laughs escaping his lips.

"What's that? Did I just hear the incredibly serious Five laugh?" Klaus smirked, already knowing the answer.

"Noho, QUIT IT!" he couldn't help but shriek when he felt himself slipping off once more. "You suck," he said when he started cackling.

"Dihid your voice just crack?"

"Shut up!" He released his grip on his smaller brother once more before quickly steadying him. "Stohohop!" Five couldn't help but giggle at his antics. The feeling of suddenly plummeting to the ground before getting yanked back up filled him with a giddy nervousness much like when they used to sneak behind their fathers back to play games. He had been forced to grow up too fast in an empty world, devoid of any human interaction. He deserved to have a little childish fun once in a while, but he won't hesitate to maim anyone who points it out.

"Ben says you should laugh more, he missed it," Klaus said with a warm smile. Five did his best to hide his own as he spoke, "Yeah well, Ben always was a sap." Klaus tilted his head back with a hearty laugh.

"And he says you always were an ornery little fella." Five was going to protest, but voices shouting interrupted them and grabbed their attention. They stopped and watched as three boys shoved a smaller one to the ground and spat on him. They said something they couldn't quite make out and walked away, laughing an obnoxious laugh. Klaus and Five exchanged a look, and he set him down as they walked over to the sniffling kid.

"Hey, you okay?" Five asked, reaching a hand out to him. He flinched slightly before looking at the two of them and accepted the offered hand.

"Yeah, they're just a couple of jerks, I can handle it."

Klaus frowned, noticing the small cut on his forehead. "You sure? I think I know a way to get those guys to leave you alone."

"You do?" both teens said, brows furrowing in confusion.

"Yeah. You know that house on Sycamore Drive that's supposed to be haunted?" The boy nodded. "Great! You have school tomorrow, yeah?" he asked and received another nod. "Thought so. When you see them tomorrow make a bet or dare or something to make them spend the night in the house." The kid scrunched up his nose.

"They won't do anything I tell them."

"That's why you gotta make them want to. Say something like "I bet you couldn't spend the whole night in that house" and I guarantee they'll try and prove you wrong. Little shits like that are so predictable." For the first time since they arrived, he gave them a tentative smile.

"How do you know they'll even get scared?"

"'Cause those rumors about it being haunted aren't just rumors." His mouth dropped open and Klaus shot him a wink. "Make sure to let them know that if they can't last the night, they have to leave you alone."

"Thank you!"

"Now run along kiddo!" They waved at him as he walked away, brushing grass off his clothes. Five looked up at him, "What the hell are you gonna do?" he asked with amusement, waiting to see this disaster unfurl.

"Well, tomorrow night we're gonna sneak into that house and I'm gonna summon some little ghosties for the brats. They'll come out screaming in seconds, trust me."

"Wait, "we"? I have no part in this," he said matter of factly. Klaus whined, "But I'm doing this for you! You love the misery and suffering of others!"

Five took a second to consider, "I really do enjoy it..."

"Great!" Klaus clapped his hands together. "Let's head over there now so I can give those spooks a heads up. I saw a young Victorian woman out on the lawn once, I think it used to be her house," he said, and they set off to the house.

Klaus knocked on the door twice before swinging it open, making his grand entrance. "May I have everyone's attention?" There weren't as many ghosts as he expected for such an old and large house, only 10, but that would be more than enough. All heads turned. The Victorian woman walked down the staircase briskly.

"Who are you?" She demanded and stood right in front of him, her shoulders squared.

"I'm Klaus, these are my brothers, Ben and Five, and my dog Jasper," he introduced all of them. Five looked around blankly, unsure who he was talking to or where they were. Ben gave a curt smile and small wave. She looked down over the edge of her nose and jumped back with a start.

"My, he certainly has... character," she said with a tight lipped smile.

"Yeah, he lived a rough life, but that's off topic."

"Yes, so what are you doing in my house? And how are you able to see us might I ask?" He shrugged his shoulders, "Long story short all my siblings have powers, and I can commune with the dead," he took a deep bow and extended his hand. She placed her own in his.

"Mary Anne Kipling, pleasure to meet your acquaintance." He brought her hand up to his mouth, placing a soft kiss in greeting.

"A beautiful name for a beautiful woman. The pleasure is mine mademoiselle," he said. Five rolled his eyes, barely holding back a gag. He hasn't seen Klaus interact with many ghosts aside from Ben; he knew most of them screamed and complained for him to help and caused him more misery than anything. But there was the occasional reasonable ghost, and Klaus seemed to adopt slang and customs from whatever era they were from, as long as he knew enough about the era that is. It was very strange to see Klaus act like such a gentleman.

"Flattery will get you nowhere in the afterlife," she said, fixing her hair. "But I do admit, it is nice to hear after a few centuries." She leaned in to whisper in his ear, "The other spirits here aren't very social. They mostly moan and mope about the house. And many of them haven't even thanked me for allowing them to stay!" she said in shock and masked annoyance. He placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, "I hate to say it, but most ghosts are like that. Out of the hundreds of ghosts that have haunted me from birth, I can count the number of reasonable spirits I've met on both hands. So might I saw how much of a breath of fresh air you've been?" he said.

She giggled and waved him off before meeting Ben's eyes. She quickly adverted her gaze, trying to hide her blush. That was one thing Klaus never understood: ghosts often appeared like living people, at least to him, and it wasn't until he phased through them or noticed the soft blue glow around them that he realized they were dead.

"I was wondering if I could as a favor of you all," Klaus ventures to ask. She straightened the fabric on her dress, "That depends what it is."

Ben decided he should answer this time. "We saw these boys bullying a kid around his age," he said, gesturing to Five. Her features softened into a sympathetic look and reached out to brush his cheek. He blinked a few times, feeling a burst of cold air on his face.

"I never had the chance to have children," she said sadly. It was always a bit awkward when ghosts got sad or stated their regrets in life.

"Well now you have the chance to help one! So what d'ya say?" She studied them all for a few seconds, but when Jasper started nudging and licking her hand, she couldn't help but smile.

"I suppose. But what's in it for me? And what do I have to do?"

"How 'bout having some actual fun? I mean living here all by your lonesome can't be very entertaining, especially with this lively bunch," he said sarcastically, gesturing to the moping spirits around him. She gave a look of agreement. "And all you have to do tomorrow night is wait for the little heathens to come in and I'll conjure you so they can actually see you and then-"

"You can do that?" she asked in amazement. He shrugged, "Well yeah, it's kinda a package deal with my powers I guess. But once I do that, all you have to do is scare them! Should be easy enough, right?" She nodded, a hesitant smile finding her lips.

"Now if that is all," she said, politely showing them the door.

"O-of course, don't want to outstay our welcome," Ben said, backing up.

"Feel free to drop by Ben, my doors are always open to spirits," she addressed him specifically. Klaus didn't miss the pink on his cheeks when she said that, and Ben let out a light and airy laugh. "That goes for this adorable guy too," she said, bending down in front of Jasper and cooing. She scratched his head behind the ears, and he happily leaned into the touch. He licked her cheek goodbye before they turned and left out the door.

Once outside, Five said, "Never put me in that situation again, it felt weird just standing there."

"Well you could've spoken up!" Klaus exclaimed.

"I can't see her, and it's not like you were doing a very good job translating," he mouthed off.

"Relax, it probably did your ego some good to be silent for a few minutes," he snickered. Five scoffed, "You're one to talk."

Klaus wrapped his arm around his shoulder and leaned in to whisper, "Y'know? I think Ben has a crush on Mary Anne."

"Really?" Five asked the same time Ben shouted, "No I don't!" But the blush on his face spoke volumes more than his words.

"Five I'm tellin' ya, if you could've seen them, you would know they're absolutely smitten for each other!" Ben pulled up his hood and walked a bit faster, "Shut uuuuup!"

"Aww, wait!" Klaus said, jogging to catch up. "I mean, who can blame you? She's a doll and you never got a chance to dip your toe in the dating pool, if anything I'm happy for you!" Five jumped to meet them and appeared by their sides.

"What's lover boy saying?" Ben playfully narrowed his eyes and aimed a kick at his rear which he knew would phase right through him. Klaus saw what Ben was about to do, and the tips of his fingers glowed lightly, using just enough of his powers so that the contact would be solid. Five stumbled forward with the kick and rubbed the sore spot, whipping around with a hard glare, shocked to see no one. He then directed his glare to Klaus, who held his hands up in innocence.

"Don't look at me, it was Ben!" Five pointed at him.

"Your hands are blue!" Klaus's hands immediately stopped glowing and he hid them behind his back.

"No they're not," he denied his involvement. Ben tossed his hands up in the universal "what the fuck?" hand gesture that only Klaus could see. He just laughed and Five rolled his eyes. He'd be lying if he said he wasn't excited for tomorrow night, which came sooner than he thought it would.

The four of them, or two of them from Five's perspective, snuck in through the back door. A woman with a noose around her neck instantly started wailing, giving away their presence and Mary Anne rushed in, relief washing over her as she saw who it was.

"Oh it's you. I was worried it was those kids, and I'm not ready."

"Well we still have a bit of time I think, so we should be okay," Klaus said. "Where's a good place to hide?"

"Hm," she tapped her chin in thought. "Up the stairs and behind the banister. You can't really see it from downstairs." Klaus grinned and bounced up and down on the balls of his feet, clapping his hands.

"Alright! Who's ready to scare some shitty kids?" he asked enthusiastically. The people around him murmured their agreement, so he asked again, louder this time. "I said, WHO'S READY TO SCARE SOME SHITTY KIDS?" This time he was met with a small chorus of cheers from the gathered group. Now he was satisfied.

"Do whatever you want to make them run out of here screaming, except absolutely no touching," he said and gave a pointed look to all the spirits in the room. "They may be asshole bullies but they're still children. Just give 'em a good fright and have some fun! Enjoy yourselves!" Not many of the spirits were as excited as Mary Anne, but a young man who looked to be from the 20's seemed thoroughly pumped.

"I haven't felt this good since I found out I missed the Great Depression!"

Ben smiled at him, "Good for you man!"

"I was 3 years away from loosing all my stocks and this house," he said, holding up his fingers for emphasis.

They made their way up the stairs to their hiding place and waited. It was peaceful. Well, for Five anyway. For Klaus, the ground floor was teeming with the afterlife and he could hear the gentle buzz of their voices. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his smaller brother studying him with a small smile on his face.

Klaus leaned back and crossed his arms, "What?"

"It's nothing."

"Bullshit, what was that look about?"

Five shrugged, "I've never really seen you interact so well with ghosts before. Aside from Ben, of course."

"And Jasper," he interjected.

He nodded, "Yes, and Jasper. But it's refreshing to see you actually use your powers instead of trying to forget they exist."

Klaus blinked in surprise. "Yeah well, normally the ghosts that hang around me aren't as nice as this bunch." Normally Five wouldn't prod any deeper, but he felt that they were having a nice moment and he probably wouldn't get another chance.

"What's it really like living with your power?"

Klaus ran a hand through his hair and huffed out a breath, "You don't wanna know."

Five sat up on his knees to look at him. "That's just it though: I do want to know. We know next to nothing about what it's like, and I'm sorry. We should've tried to understand better, but the only way for us to do that is if you open up. I want to know Klaus."

He was taken aback by this. None of his siblings had seemed to care about his powers, or the problems it caused him. This was a nice change of pace. "Well, to give the ghosts credit, they're not always bad, like Mary Anne. I guess it kinda depends on the kind of person you were in life and the way you died. The spirits who died a wrongful or gruesome death tend to be more aggressive and unpleasant. And the way they died is usually marked on their bodies, if it left physical damage like that headless guy back at the house."

Five gulped, not too pleased with the prospect of a headless specter inside their home. "What kind of things do you see?"

"Kids soaking wet from drowning, missing limbs, gunshots, burns, large gashes, nooses hanging around necks, mothers who had miscarriages holding their stillborns, it ain't pretty. Some cry about it, some yell at me like I can help them, and others just mind their business. I think the longer they're dead the more hateful and restless they become," he mused. He mindlessly started stroking Jasper's head and stared off into space.

"I'm sorry you have to go through that," Five said honestly. Klaus nodded.

"It really does suck."

A beat, and then, "Diego mentioned you had a nightmare the other night." He didn't miss how the man stiffened, his hand pausing as his  fingers curled into the fur only he could feel.

"Did he now?" he asked, refusing to look at Five and kept his eyes on the front door.

"Yes, and I'm not saying this so that you can be mad at him. He's worried about you and thought we should know. Do you have nightmares often?"

Klaus nodded and cleared his throat. "Almost every night, but they've gotten a lot better lately. It's been about four days since my last one." Ben patted his shoulder reassuringly, and Klaus gave him a forced smile. He was proud of him for opening up. He needed to stop carrying all of his burdens by himself.

"That's good. That they've been getting better, not that you have them," Five clarified. "I have them too." Klaus's head jerked over to look at him in shock. He chuckled, though it was devoid of humor. "The apocalypse doesn't really spark fond memories, especially when you see all your siblings' dead bodies scattered under rubble. Not to mention being an assassin isn't exactly a guilt free job..." he trailed off.

Klaus was left speechless. Five never opened up to anyone, especially about something so personal. He guessed he should feel honored.

"I guess what I'm trying to say is, we've all been through some fucked up shit, so don't feel bad or ashamed of having nightmares."

They were quiet for a second before Klaus spoke, "Thanks."

"No problem." A calm silence fell over them as they continued their wait. Jasper laid his on Klaus's lap and spread himself out on the floor for a nap. Klaus scratched underneath his chin, and he let out a heavy sigh full of content.

"Aw you're such a good boy," he cooed at him, earning an odd look from Five, but he ignored it. He was sure he looked strange fawning over thin air. Then down below they heard outside voices struggling with the door. Klaus smacked Five's arm a little harder than he meant to out of excitement. "It's showtime!" He spread his fingers apart and held his hands in front of his face. "Prepare to be amazed!"

The bullies that they had seen the previous day managed to shove the door open. They strutted in cockily, proclaiming how stupid this was and how the house probably wasn't even haunted.

Five looked at Klaus, "What are you waiting for?"

"Just a second," Klaus said on the edge of his seat. They were getting closer to the 1920's man, and just when they were almost face to face with him, Klaus summoned all the spirits down stairs. The whole floor lit up in a blue glow and the boys froze in shock. The man was crouched in front of them at eye level, his hands resting on his knees as he gave a feral grin.

"Boo."

They instantly screamed, clinging onto one another for dear life. They tried to back up, but they only were able to take two steps before bumping into Mary Anne. She dropped to the ground with an ear piercing and heart wrenching wail, her fingers tangled in her hair as she rocked back and forth. The boys had to duck when the woman with the noose swung by from the chandelier, limp and lifeless.

The boys never stopped their screams as they ran out of the house, leaving Klaus, Five, and all the ghosts in their presence laughing.

Summoning ten spirits at once is a big step up from one, especially when they're exerting so much energy. When he summons a ghost, they have to draw on his life energy because they have none of their own, and with so many people feeding off of him, he couldn't keep them corporeal for too much longer so he rushed down the stairs to meet them.

"Great job guys! Did you see the look on their faces?" he slid down the banister. Just before he could reach the floor it gave way under his weight and broke. Seemed as though the rotting would couldn't support even his thin frame. Mary Anne narrowed her eyes at the damage, but didn't dwell on it too long, too excited from what just happened.

"That was so much fun, thank you!" She wrapped her arms around Klaus' shoulders in a tight hug before turning to Five and doing the same. "I haven't felt this alive in centuries!"

Klaus waved a glowing hand, slightly panting, "Oh, it was nothing! They deserved it."

"You were quite the actress. Very impressive," Five complimented. She smiled and touched his cheek. Normally he would slap anyone who did that, but she was a ghost, and he wasn't sure what she was capable of. And she had nothing but good intentions, so he let it slide.

"Thank you." She stared at him longingly, thinking about the life that was stolen from her. All she had wanted from life was to start a family with her husband, but after miscarriage after miscarriage, she knew that could never happen. Her husband left her for another woman, moving into the house right across the street. When his new wife had two healthy babies, she was so struck with grief that she threw herself from the upstairs balcony.

She blinked, shaking her head and bringing herself back to reality.

"Well, that really was a treat! We should do it again sometime," she said.

"Ooo I'm not sure if I can round up hooligans to scare on a regular basis. But we can definitely stop by more often if that's what you mean," he said, giving an honest smile. She nodded.

"Yes of course!" She paused, "Well, I guess I'll see you around," she gave a small wave. They returned it, and Klaus let them slowly fade from the living word. He was exhausted, but in the best of ways. He felt satisfied and happy, and could tell that justice had been served.

They walked outside into the dark, using their phones as flashlights. They each wore proud grins and Ben threw an arm over both of his brother's shoulders, even if only Klaus could feel him.

He wiped some sweat off of his brow; he was fairly worn out. He wasn't used to using his powers like the others were. For a second, Five could've sworn he heard a dog panting, but he brushed it off as Klaus's labored breaths. Unbeknownst to him, Jasper jogged by his side, slowly warming up to the old man.

#a loyal companion #the umbrella academy #umbrella academy fic #tua #tua fic #klaus hargreeves #jasper hargreeves #ben hargreeves #five hargreeves #mary anne

[larosepompon]

Almost There - Ghost!Jungwoo x Reader

Hi all - have some paranormal fluff (I know - for once I’m not writing anything gory or dirty?? Christ on a Bike!) of a 90s ghost Jungwoo who resides in your apartment block.  A/N: A lot of the instances that I used in the story are things that often happened to me in my old family home. (obvs not making out with a ghost lol) We had a benevolent poltergeist that used to take pens and pencils and put them on top of the medicine cabinet in the bathroom, turn lights on and off and pull out books from the bookshelf outside my room etc. If you want to know more about random crap that’s happened to me - send me an ask! Ghosties and the paranormal are my favourite discussion topics! Our story starts as many of these tales do; in a new apartment in a new city. Neo City’s downtown was conversely a mixture of old and new, for example, your apartment complex that was in a listed period building. Climbing the chequered-tile stairs, you carefully ascended to the third floor with the last of your moving boxes. Blowing some strands of hair out of your eyes, you caught a glimpse over your box of someone at the end of the hallway, watering plants under the stained-glass window. “Hi, nice to meet you!” Voicing out cheerfully as you bent down to put the box by your front door. Your smile faltering when the figure was already gone as you looked back up. Odd was the first thought in your head, patting your cheeks lightly to regain a sense of normality. 

The rest of the move went rather smoothly, digging out some old cassette tapes and vinyl’s, singing softly to old tunes as you hung pictures up on the teal walls, arranged soft furnishings and house plants around your large studio. Soon the light dimmed down and you found yourself sitting on the bench of your tall bay window – the feature that drew you to this particular flat in the first place. The sun cast her last golden rays as she bid you goodnight, bathing your limbs and face in a radiant warmth. The ice in your glass protesting as it began to melt, condensation pooling atop of your knee where your beverage was perched. Closing your eyes, you sighed with content, finally relaxing in a space you could finally call your own. Perhaps an hour or so went by with you nursing your drink and humming along to music from your childhood, when you heard a distinct knock at your door. Maybe it’s one of my neighbours you thought, padding over to unlock it. The hallway though, was empty, save for a small breeze that carried a sweet and green scent. “That’s the second time today… you can say hello if you want!” You call out into the hallway, seemingly at nobody. Letting some of the tension out of your shoulders as you close the door, you decide to get ready for bed after your long day. It’s not long until you’re wiping your face after brushing your teeth, making your way over to your comfy new bed, slipping under the covers. As you drift off to sleep, the bed dips and in comes the sweet fragrance once more. You dream of a handsome boy with curtains.

You’re thoroughly puzzled, looking for your toothbrush the next morning. It wasn’t until you looked up and it was placed on top of the medicine cabinet that you thought you had gone crazy. You had only one drink the previous night and had never been known to sleepwalk. Glancing at your reflection with a furrowed brow, all the rational thoughts go through your mind before ignoring it altogether. Today was your first full day living in the city, so you set off to explore new cafes, shops and relaxing spots. It was another sunny day, with a gentle breeze that ruffled your hair from time to time – making for the perfect day to watch the world go by. Well, that was what you had planned anyhow, if not for every café that you fancied being packed out. “Right, let’s not let this ruin our day…” you sigh under your breath, scanning your surroundings for something to take home. Settling on an artisan bakery with luscious pastries and sourdough in the window, you eyed up a few treats to pack up with you. Luckily the walk home was quite short, letting you take time to stroll through the bustling streets before reaching your new abode. As you fished for your keys in the depths of your bag nearing the landing, your peripheral view caught something that made you stop dead in your tracks: the back of someone’s frame going into your apartment, through your door. Scrambling to see if they had broken in, a wave of panic spread through you as your eyes scanned the – very closed – door. Your hand couldn’t help but shake lightly when your keys eased into the lock, making way for your entry. Flattening your palm to the surface, you pushed open the door, bracing yourself for what could be inside. Yet you found nothing… “Hello?! I-I j-just saw you come in here.” You blurt out into the space around you. “Is anybody there?” It was difficult to think yourself stupid at that very moment in time, heart hammering away in your chest, bravely trying to speak out at seemingly nothing. Luckily for you, a studio apartment leaves very little space for anyone (or anything) to hide in - so you eventually found yourself dropping your bags on the kitchen counter and scampering over to the bathroom to check for any strangers. Relief settled in when you found that indeed, nobody has broken into your apartment. Your eyes homed into your bedspread - with a single flowerhead lain on top of it. Like the ones in the hall… you remember, thoughts conflicting over whether this was a new-found stalker or something paranormal leaving you gifts on your bed. Still trembling, you carefully trod toward your bed, hair spilling over your shoulders as you leant down to pick up the flower. The petals a soft creamy colour, wrinkled at the edges, giving them an almost forlorn look to them. You thumbed the petals absentmindedly, all previous ill thoughts dissipating from your mind bringing a soft smile to your features. “Thank you…” you whispered into the air, a faded image of a tall, pretty boy smiling by your wall. 

For about a week you see or hear no sign of ghostly activity in your home or about the hallway, but often find yourself dreaming of the mystery boy with a bright smile and a very floppy, 90s haircut. You don’t recall ever meeting anyone like him before, often showing up in your dreams with ripped jeans and a check shirt or a denim jacket; he always appeared very friendly though. One night you hear his voice for the first time, a gentle tone that lulls you further into your slumber. Little did you know that the boy was sat beside you, smiling down at your sleeping figure, listening to your mumbled voice and quiet sighs as he stroked your hair as best as he could. You awoke feeling refreshed, recalling snippets from your dream while you poured yourself a fresh coffee. Pulling your hair into a high bun, you took your coffee to your sofa, lounging back to watch some mindless morning TV. After a while, when the black liquid in your mug had cooled, you felt a tingling sensation on your shoulder – followed by your pyjama top strap falling down. You went to pull it up again but the area felt unusually cold, with the tingling pressure now on your jaw. As if someone was cupping or stroking your face. For a moment you didn’t know how to react, turning your head slowly to the space beside you and noticing a small dip in the cushion. Your mouth was ajar in wonder, eyes drifting over what looked like an empty space in front of you. Somehow you knew it wasn’t at all. Closing your eyes, you leant into the feeling, letting the ghostly touch brush your lips and pull a soft smile from you. At least they seem affectionate your mind rings with the thoughts of dozens of scary movies depicting evil spirits. Your eyes slowly open, adjusting to the low lighting again, the odd sensation beginning to feel warm on your cheek and jaw. “Are you the boy from my dreams?” your voice came out barely louder than a whisper, scared to frighten whatever this was off. The touch stilled, as if unsure or surprised before retreating altogether. The sofa cushion slowly rose back to normal and you could only sigh. Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything at all. Gripping his hand close to his chest, the young man all but backed out of your apartment, cheeks both burning with embarrassment and a new resolve. He wanted you to notice him.  

your new job as a manager really took it out of you some days. While living in Neo City was great, you felt yourself getting more and more strung out with less time to make friends outside of the office, which also meant less time for yourself and relaxing at home. You had learnt to live with the occasional odd poltergeist activity or random noise in your apartment - having become an interesting and almost normal feature of living in your building. The unknown boy in your dreams becoming a weekly occurrence, your mind kept on wondering if he had any connection to what happened around you. His voice had such a soft lilt to it, laughter sincere and loud when the odd bits of your dream resurfaced in your mind. Fragments of conversation and cracking corny puns together often made you wake up with a smile, that lingering scent of Verbena hung in the air like tendrils.  The late August air draped over your shoulders with humidity, a moist sheen cloying to your every pore like a second skin. Buying a wireless plug for your aircon was your saving grace, programming it to come on 20 minutes before you usually walked through the door in the evening to escape the heat. Shutting the door quickly behind you, toeing off your shoes haphazardly before throwing your bag down onto the sofa, you headed to the bathroom for a much-welcomed cool shower. The refreshing spray of water leaving your skin raised and pert to the breeze of the A/C. Towelling yourself off by your bed, you felt the barest of touches run down your back before settling at your sides, holding you steady. Letting out a quiet gasp, you finished drying yourself, playing off the touch as just the breeze from the aircon unit. Standing unbeknownst behind you, a shy smile was painted on the features of your boy with the floppy hair as he watched you fondly put on your pyjamas. Later that night around 1am when you were fast asleep, the dulcet tones of Madonna from your cassette player broke through the silence of your apartment, causing you to stir. Groggily opening your eyes, you watched in amazement as the bed dipped beside you like someone had knelt down. You blinked a few times to make sure you weren’t still dreaming, but when an almost glowing apparition materialised into view, it was hard to say. There in front of you, leaning on his arm, was your weekly dream visitor. He appeared in muted colour, his smile and his boyish looks shining through the night as he gave a little nervous laugh at your expression. “It really is you!” You exclaimed, smile widening at the sight of the boy. Shuffling back a little, you sat up in bed, taking in all of him better. “It’s taken a lot of energy for me to appear like this, but I wanted for you to see me properly. I’m sorry it took so long.” His voice was so sweet, like honey as he spoke to you in the dark of your studio. “My name is Jungwoo, I used to live here – I’m sorry If I ever scared you! I’ve been wanting to say that for a while.” His eyes went wide as you could see the faintest trace of a blush on his faded appearance. “You’ve never really scared me, Jungwoo. I was confused at first but when I got used to you trying to catch my attention, I felt warm and happy that I had you here sometimes. You gave me the flower too, right?” Jungwoo nodded and watched your eyes sparkle under the moonlight streaming through your window. He thought you looked magical like this. Your warm hand reached out to see if you could cup his cheek and to your surprise, he felt soft and solid enough to touch. Upon contact with him, a rush of tingles zipped up your arm, causing you to shiver involuntarily. Jungwoo bravely pressed a kiss into your palm as you sat there admiring each other. “I’m y/n, I don’t know if you knew that already or not though.” The heat of your blush crept up your neck and face as you felt his lips on your palm. His eyes focused on yours as he reached up to hold your hand. “I knew, I saw it on your mail once. It’s such a pretty name for a pretty face~” Jungwoo’s giggle melts your heart, his lips brushing your knuckles cradled in his hands. “I don’t know if I’ll get another chance to say this but being here with you these last few months - I’ve really begun to like you y/n! I really love seeing you dance and sing in here, I love sitting beside you watching movies…but I do feel sad that I couldn’t wipe your tears when you cry. When you started noticing things I did, or talking to me in your sleep, it made my whole being so happy.” With his little confession, you shed a few tears, laughing through the sparkling wall they created in your vision. All this time you had been sleep-talking to him, the dreams of the boy all in his image. Gingerly, you pulled Jungwoo towards yourself, bringing his airy lips to slot against your own. Your spine tingled and skin raised as his hands carded through your hair, pulling you closer in his embrace. It was both wonderful and odd, kissing a ghost. He seemed solid enough to be there yet it was like thick air, holding you and invading your mouth with his cool, equally tingly tongue. He broke the kiss to dab his thumbs on your cheeks, before pecking them both softly. “I knew you meant no harm when I saw the flower on my bed that day. It made me feel wanted, as strange as that sounds. Thank you, Jungwoo, I really like you too.” Barely above a whisper, your words were just made for the two of you. His cheeks felt soft and your eyelids fluttered closed as you joined your mouths together again. Time was a precious gift, not knowing when you’d share another moment like this, you both made the most of the early hours of the morning. Sharing secrets and moments of your lives, facing each other against the pillows watching intently. Every so often indulging in more languid kisses and touches under the moonlight. The boy stroked your hair once again as he saw you eventually fall asleep, the sunrise not far behind your slumber. You awoke some hours later, the sun warm on your skin as it peered through your window, high in the sky. Hair and sleepwear feeling slightly dishevelled, you noticed that Jungwoo had kindly tucked you back under the covers. You suddenly felt a little morose at the thought of an undetermined time without being able to share another moment like that with your spectre again. Trying to push such thoughts from your mind, your arm stretched across the covers in aid to wake up when you came into contact with something. Fumbling for it further, your eyes crinkled with joy when you discovered it was a note that read: To the beautiful y/n, I feel alive again. I’ll still be here now and then, until the next time I can capture your kiss. Talking properly with you made me so happy, but I didn’t want to be too selfish and not let you rest. Keep playing the tunes of my time, singing to yourself – oh and wandering around in your underwear. 정우 xx You wet your lip with your tongue before giving an indignant huff. Well, he better be glad it’s summer…

#jungwoo scenario #jungwoo x reader #nct fluff #nct fanfiction #kim jungwoo #junguwu #paranormal #ghost!au #jungwoo imagine #cute #NCT 127

[side-scribbles]

Hell’s Hospital

••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

“An abandoned hospital is no place for two middle schoolers.”.

Milo and Cody walked beside Yuna as she scolded them , the three wearing pale blue masks over their mouths and noses. The hallway was covered in eerie artificial lighting , mold having made its home in between the tiles and in the cracks in the walls. Their footsteps echoed in the silence.

“An abandoned hospital isn’t really a place for anybody. So why are you here?” Milo replied with a shrug , Cody elbowing and quietly chiding him on his manners as she sighed.

“I’m doing official research on this place , you two are running around and vloging.” Yuna replied “There’s a world of difference.”.

“You’re just trying to keep the ghosties to yourself.” Milo joked “Afraid of being upstaged by a couple of kids?”.

“Oh please.” Yuna dismissed as a faint smile grew on her face “You’d faint long before you could get any proper footage if your channel is anything to go by.”.

“You actually found it!?” Milo exclaimed , face flushing with embarrassment as Cody stifled his laughter.

“Yep.” Yuna confirmed “Its .. concerning to say the least.”.

“Ugh..” Milo groaned “Can whatever ghosts that are haunt this place come and kill me now?”.

“Don’t give them ideas.” Yuna replied , tone oddly serious.

The three approached the exit , Milo and Yuna bickering idly as Cody lagged behind.

“C’mon slowpok- ..” Milo turned to face Cody , his remark dying in his throat as the spotted the dark stain on his face mask.

Cody pulled the mask down , red leaking from his nose as his eyes became glossy and vacant.

“Cody?” Milo called out , walking towards his friend cautiously.

The hairs on the back of neck stood on end.

There was a crackling sound , the rusted steal beams holding one of the lights overhead groaning under some unseen pressure before caving and sending the fixture spiraling towards the ground in a flash of sparks.

Yuna dove out of the way , the exit being engulfed in a tangled mess of crackilng wires , heated metal , and broken glass.

“Are you two alright?!” She called out , Milo rubbing his arm gingerly from where a few stray sparks made contact.

“I’m fine but somethings wrong with Cody!” Milo replied , waving his hand back and forth in the face of his dazed friend.

Yuna got to her feet , dusting some of the debris bits off before carefully making her way over to the boys.

“Is he alright?” Milo asked as Yuna began to clean the blood dripping off his chin.

“He’ll be fine once whatever’s in there gets out.” Yuna replied , Milo frowning.

“Are you saying he’s possessed?” Milo asked , nervously edging away from Cody.

“Mhm.” Yuna hummed , removing Cody’s glasses and staring at his completely blank expression “It doesn’t seem to know how to work a body anymore , though.”.

“So .. is it harmless?” Milo asked , Yuna looking back at him.

“Considering a chunk of the ceiling fell out , no.” She answered , Cody blinking slowly.

The sound of rattling filled the air , Milo screaming as he felt his arm get impaled.

Yuna’s eyes widened as she started at his syringe filled arm with shock.

Cody was staring at her , same blank expression but with a flicker of amusement in his eyes at her reaction.

Yuna rushed over to Milo , Cody’s glasses being abandoned on the tile floor as she worked to safely remove the deeply embedded needles.

There was more rattling , Yuma looking up to see tables of medical tools being rolled from their rooms and crashing into each other. She dropped the removed needles on the ground , rushing to slow the bleeding as a pair of surgical scissors cut her ear when it whizzed by.

She grabbed Milo’s good arm , pushing him in front as the chaos raged behind them. They dashed through the hall , the sound of echoing laughter beginning to fill their ears as Cody stumbled after them.

“We can’t leave Cody!” Milo exclaimed “Even if he’s possessed right now he’s still in there!”.

“I know.” Yuna replied , pausing at the intersection of branching halls before making a quick dash to the right with Milo in tow “We’ll go back for him once this ghost wears his body out.”

“But-“ Milo began , Yuna hushing him.

“When he’s tired out the ghost will abandon his body , that’s it. Cody will be just fine.” Yuna assured him , attempting to quell his concerns to allow herself to focus on their escape.

After some brief running they duck into the nearest room, Yuna rummaging through the room for some bandages and other medical equipment for Milo’s bleeding arm.

Milo pressed against the door , listening to the sounds of clanging tools and shattering lights as Cody raged in the hallway.

He flinched , the sting of rubbing alcohol interacting with his puncture wounds.

“Are you sure he’ll be okay?” Milo whispered , facing towards the door.

“Positive.” Yuna reaffirmed.

“What if it hurts him? What if it doesn’t leave? What if-“ Milo was stopped by a gentle hand on his shoulder.

“You’ve been tangled with ghosts before , no?” Yuna asked “You’ve got through that , you’ll get through this. Same with Cody.”.

“But it’s never been like this...” Milo answered.

“Like what?” Yuna replied.

“Scary.” Milo said , voice merely a whisper.

Yuna’s expression softened , the two falling into silence as she bandaged his arm. The thuds grew closer , the two tensing at the sound before something rammed itself against the door.

The two froze , the silence heavy as they stared at it.

The doorknob was blown off , slamming into Yuna’s eye and causing her to stumble back. The door was then torn from its hinges , flying forward and knocking Yuna back into an old medicine cart.

Cody entered the room , blood dripping from his nose and ears as the scattered supplies swirled around him.

“What do you want?!” Milo exclaimed , backing away as Cody approached.

A contorted grin grew on Cody's face , the boy letting out raspy laugher at Milo's question.

“You wear the mask , it should be obvious.” Cody replied , Yuna rising to her feet.

“The masks are nothing but a safety measure. To protect us from the germs and disease that was rampant!” Yuna explained “This was a hospital , wasn’t it?.

Cody's grin dropped , a gritted frown taking its place.

“Hospitals are places to help people , to save lives.” Cody replied “This place only holds misery and corpses. There was no hospital here , only a front.”.

“A front? For what?” Yuna asked , slowly inching her way towards Milo.

“Human experimentation.” Cody replied , voice hollow “That mask was a symbol of death.”.

“We had no idea.” Yuna began , voice soft “We didn’t come here to disrespect your passing nor dismiss the atrocities that happened here.”.

Yuna stood in front of Milo , ready to shield him less they lash out again.

“In fact , I can help.” Yuna continued , shoulders sagging faintly in relief as needles and other various objects came clattering to the floor harmlessly.

“How?” They asked , voice faint.

“Get the real story out.” Yuna answered “Word will get around and what happened here will never be repeated .”.

“How do I know this isn’t a lie?” They replied , Milo holding onto Yuna's sleeve as she spoke.

“I can’t give you more than my word in that regard.” Yuna admitted , Milo tensing as the objects on the ground began to rattle “But. I can do something else.”

“Do what?” They questioned , objects falling still once more.

“I’ve been in the paranormal investigation business for a while know , so I know a ghost with your amount of control over objects isn’t just one with unfinished business..” Yuna began “Its usually a sign you weren’t buried right , or weren’t buried at all.”

They shifted , visibly uncomfortable with her implications.

“You can lead me to your body and I’ll bury it proper. You can watch to make sure it actually happens if you’re still suspicious.” Yuna finished “How does that sound?”

“I’d...Like that.” They answered.

“Yuna ..” Milo whispered “He’s bleeding .. we need to get that ghost out of him now.”

Yuna glanced back at him , before looking back at Cody.

“Can you leave the boy’s body?” Yuna asked “I’ll still fulfill my promises , we’re just worried you’re causing irreversible damage.”.

“....Alright” They conceded after a pause, Cody’s eyes rolling forward as his knees buckled.

Milo ran from Yuna’s side , dashing over to Cody and sloppily cushioning his fall.

Yuna felt the temperature drop beside her , turning in that direction.

“Lead the way.” She said , an empty pill bottle floating from the ground and serving as their guiding point.

Yuna carried Cody on her back , Milo sticking close as they followed.

They eventually made it to a room that smelled of rot , Milo having to turn away at the sight of the nearly totally decayed body.

Yuna sent Milo back up to the first level , the ghost agreeing to clear the rubble blocking the exit door to allow them to get Cody to a doctor and Milo home.

Milo sat on the side of the road and waited , Cody’s unconscious body leaning against him as ambulance sirens begin to become audible.

Yuna eventually reemerged from the building , her hands streaked with dirt.

“How'd it go?” Milo asked , hoping to fill the quiet.

“Good.” She replied , walking over.

Yuna removed the face mask , Milo having done the same for himself and Cody several minutes earlier. She dropped it in a pile with the others , taking a seat beside the boys.

“That’s good to hear.”

#mico #yuna

[liamakorn]

Spoopy Love

Pairing: Peter Parker x Reader (Ghost-Hunter AU) 

Warnings: None. It’s a fluff fest y’all. Seriously, hand me Peter Parker, and watch my heart explode. 

Words: 5,092

A/N: GUYS!!! I had so much fun writing this, you have no idea. Somehow, it turned into a Buzzfeed Unsolved AU, and I aint even mad lol. This is for the August AU Writing Challenge by @after-avenging-hours . Hope y’all enjoy it as much as I did, our smol awkward boy deserves all the love! 

I tried to keep it as short as I could, lol, but uh....I think I failed. Sorry XP 

------

“I am so not going in there.”

A small whine that sounded vaguely like your name left his lips, brunette curls shifting in the small autumn breeze.

“Oh, c’mon, where’s your sense of adventure?”

Glancing at Peter, you must’ve made a face, because now he was chuckling, bumping your shoulder lightly with his own. A small, handheld camera hung by a cord on his wrist, swaying to and fro with every movement.

You focused your gaze on the house in front of you, trying to muster up some enthusiasm. It was cold, the sun was setting, and you really didn’t want to be here. How you’d managed to let him drag you on this “adventure”, you’ll never know. Oh, wait, that’s right, he’d flashed those puppy dog eyes and you’d just melted.

However, this was a little beyond your comfort zone. The house was huge, three stories in all. But what it had in grandeur was ruined by the state of the building itself; exposed wood paneling, the rotted porch with hardly a pillar left, shutters barely clinging to their windows. God, you could smell the mold from here. You noticed a few rats dart beneath the cracked walls and nearly fainted.

After another nudge, Peter finally grabbed your attention, pouting at your expression.

“Oh c’mooon! We’re about to catch the only known footage of Eliza Cartwright’s ghost! Aren’t you at least a little excited?”

Allowing yourself one last sigh, you managed a nervous smile, readjusting the heavy bag slung across your shoulder.

“This is a health and safety hazard.”

Somehow, you put one foot in front of the other, forcing your steps closer to the hell hole you were about to spend the majority of your night in. After a few seconds, you noticed Peter wasn’t following, glancing back with an eyebrow raised.

“Well, c’mon, Dimples. This ghost aint gonna catch itself!”

The crooked grin you received was worth every discomfort this house could throw at you.

It’s not like you didn’t want to believe in ghosts. You would’ve loved to have had the same enthusiasm for the supernatural that seemed to flow through Peter every time someone uttered the word “haunted”. It just seemed like there was always a more logical explanation, an answer that made more sense than the supposed “paranormal activity”. Banging in the walls? Faulty pipes. Scratching noises and flickering lights? Mice. Doors closing by themselves? Wind.

Yet, somehow, you ended up a moderator on Peter Parker’s ghost hunting blog, staring up at a dusty old house, on a Saturday. Life sure did have a sense of humor.

Stepping through the creaky front door, you were met with a wall of what could only be described as old people smell, kicked up to eleven. You couldn’t help but cough, taking stock of your surroundings. Dust hung in the air, catching the last few beams of sunlight creeping through the slats of decaying boards, which were haphazardly secured to the windows with rusty nails. The walls were nothing special, decades old paint flaking from the plaster, faded and worn from years of neglect.

The furniture was coated with a thick layer of dust and dirt, making it nearly impossible to discern what color each item had originally been. The cushions seemed to be missing; you counted that as a blessing. Who knows what would’ve been living in there.

A sudden achoo! startled you from your thoughts, shattering the silence of the otherwise abandoned house. Spinning on your heel, you just caught Peter’s wince, the brunette lifting the camera as you pressed your hand to your chest.

“Give me frickin heart attack, why don't’cha?”

His smirk was almost shy as he apologized, chuckling when you lightheartedly shoved his shoulder. You plopped your bag onto the couch, a cloud of dust kicking back into your face. You dug around for your own camera, hiding your face from view and trying to calm your blush. Jesus, how had he wormed his way under your skin so easily? You’d only known each other for a few months, having become fast friends after you’d transferred to his high school at the very end of the year. It was an odd experience, walking into this new school the first day and having Peter and Ned bombard you with greetings.

One minute you were the weirdo loner girl who couldn’t keep up with the new curriculum because she’d moved in fricken June, and the next, you had two amazing friends who actually wanted to hang out with you. Hell, it was that first day of school where Peter had nervously approached you and asked if you wanted to come with him to check out this stupid house in the first place. 

You’d been inclined to say no, but after looking at his expression...you just couldn’t. He’d sounded almost scared, like you would make fun of him or something. Well, needless to say, you’d caved, and here you were, the day before Halloween, hunting a ghost. And, despite your best efforts, enjoying yourself.

Heaving out a sigh, steeling yourself, you turned to face Peter, unable to keep the smile from your face at his fascinated gaze raking the dilapidated living room.

“You ready, Parker?”

An excited grin stretched his features, brown eyes sparkling in the dim beam of your flashlight. His enthusiasm was contagious, and you soon found yourself just as impatient to explore as he was. Attaching a go-pro to the side your head, you noticed Peter staring at you with an expression you couldn’t read. He quickly averted his gaze, clearing his throat and fiddling with the camera. You could’ve sworn you saw pink dusting his cheeks.

As happy as seeing Peter this excited made you, that was quickly dwindled by the borderline dangerous nature of your surroundings. Everything was either rusty, dusty, moldy, or all of the above. You noted the exposed wood of the walls, some of the panels rotted away completely, other rooms visible in some places. Meanwhile, your companion continued to monologue, recounting on camera the details of a grisly death.

“The first spirit we’ll be covering is Christopher Requaitt. He came from the incredibly small town of Seboeis, Maine, and had a relatively poor upbringing. And yet, somehow, he managed to graduate at the top of his class, earning him a job in the household of one James Cartwright. It was rumored that he had been working off a debt to Cartwright, and that, after it was paid, he was hired full time due to his incredible culinary ability. However, these claims were never officially documented.”

You hardly realized you’d stopped scanning your surroundings, completely enraptured by the way Peter’s lips moved as he recounted the tale. Even as you started fiddling with various settings and EMF machines, you kept an ear on him, glancing up every once in awhile, enthralled by the story he was telling. Although you were a skeptic, it was hard not to be interested in the lives of people before you, hearing their history sending a shiver down your spine.

Peter continued, the confident edge to his voice catching you by surprise.

“One night, Cartwright’s wife, Cheryl, became incredibly sick. It would soon be known that she was pregnant with her first, and only, child; but, at the time, she claimed to have food poisoning, contracted from undercooked chicken. Due to Requaitt’s incredible reputation and skill, many have speculated that the accusation was meant to get Christopher fired. She had made her distaste for the cook obvious, never missing a chance to denounce him to her friends and acquaintances.

It is widely believed, by both residents and historians, that James and Christopher had been in the midst of an affair, an incredibly taboo subject at the time. Cheryl, either jealous or afraid for their reputation, might have wanted to take drastic action to halt their activities. Although he was saddened by it, Cartwright had no choice but to fire the cook. Finding himself wracked with woebegone, Chris-”

A snort escaped your lips, earning a playfully annoyed look from Peter. You coughed, trying to disguise your giggles behind your hand. He raised an eyebrow, directing the camera at you, catching your amused expression.

“Something wrong, munchkin?”

You chuckled again, shaking your head.

“Nope, nothing, I’m good. Please, continue.”

Rolling his eyes, he readjusted the camera, a soft smile on his face.  

“Anyway. Finding himself wracked in woebegone-”

He stared directly at you as he emphasized the word, setting off a new round of giggles, prompting a wider grin to stretch his lips.

“-Christopher found he couldn’t live with James’ decision, stuffing his face in the deep frying, killing himself and burning his face off before they could make him leave.”

“Christ, Parker!”

He halted, furrowing his brows in bemused confusion. You tried for an aggravated expression, only just managing a mildly miffed look before a smile broke out.

“Could you be a bit more blunt?”

He chuckled, pink dusting his cheeks even as he shrugged.

“What? That’s what happened, what d’you want me to say?”

You released a huff of air.

“I dunno, Pete, just...you can’t speak ill of the dead, man, that’s like, rule number one in the ghosty handbook.”

Peter’s eyebrows shot up, an amused smirk on his lips.

“Oh, there’s a handbook now? Miss (Y/N) ‘I’m sure it was just the wind’ (L/N)?”

A flurry of giggles interrupted your sentence, covering your mouth to try and contain them. “I’m just saying, have a little respect, Parker!”

A victorious grin stretched his features, your heart skipping a beat when he let out the cutest laugh you’d ever heard.

“Oh, I’m so sorry. Should I mention the fact that the only way they could identify him was by his clothing, because his features had melted together-”

You faked a disgusted face, covering your ears. His snickering sent a warm feeling dancing in your chest, the smile on your face lingering even as your chuckles died. You admired him for a moment, the crinkles in the corner of his eyes, dimples fully on display with his wide grin. Even in the dim beam of your flashlight, shadows dancing across his features; god, he was breathtaking.

After a few seconds, Peter cleared his throat, a touch of shyness flashing across his face.

“You, uh, you alright there, munchkin?”

Snapping out of your daze, you nodded, fiddling with the EMF meter at your belt.

“Yeah, yeah, let’s move on. You mentioned a little girl?”

That familiar sparkle returned to his eye, gripping your wrist suddenly and practically dragging you up the creaking staircase. You fought a laugh, heart pounding at his touch, no matter how minor. You really needed to get a grip on your crush.

You ended up in yet another dusty room, covered wall to wall in what was once a pale pink, but had faded to grey over time. The same confident tone as before overtook his voice, face stone serious as he began his spiel about the area’s most popular spirit.

“Here we are in the bedroom of James Cartwright’s six-year-old daughter, Eliza. She was born barely a year after the death of Christopher Requaitt, leading the residents of the town to question Requaitt’s death. Though nothing came of it legally, gossip and rumors of the supposed affair between Cartwright and Requaitt resulted in Cheryl’s eventual suicide, leaving James with Eliza when she was only four. Tragedy would strike again two years later, when Valerie Peridot would witness one of the many supernatural occurrences in the home. Only, unlike the others, this one was fatal.

“Peridot was the most recent in a long line of women James Cartwright dated after his wife’s death. She had only been dating him for three months before moving in, treating Eliza like her own daughter. But, as she entered the little girl’s room, she was startled to find the large window open, the child standing on the balcony railing and speaking to someone Valerie was unable to see. She seemed upset, screaming at the unseen figure to go away. When Valerie opened her mouth to scold her, Eliza jolted, as if she was pushed, flying from the third-floor balcony to the asphalt below”

Your eyebrows shot up, catching Peter’s attention for a brief second. The crooked half smile he sent your way was enough to catch your breath, hoping to any god out there that he didn’t notice.

“After Eliza’s death, Peridot was obviously suspected, her story of an unseen man shoving the girl out a window seeming preposterous. However, diary entries were found of Eliza’s, mentioning an imaginary friend named “Krissy". Law enforcement thought nothing of it, but spectral enthusiasts disagreed. It was speculated that perhaps “Krissy" was actually the ghost of Christopher Requaitt, enacting his revenge of what was the product of his demise. Eliza mentioned Krissy’s distaste for her family, specifically her mother. Even after her death, the spirit had apparently denounced Cheryl to the young girl, trying to convince her to “remind her father of his sins”. While these claims are somewhat far fetched, is it impossible to believe that Requaitt, heartbroken and betrayed by his lover, would seek retribution in the way of Eliza’s death?”

Peter glanced at you again, tilting his head slightly in question.

“Are you cold?”

You furrowed your brows, confused for a moment. You hadn’t even noticed your own arms encircling your torso, goosebumps rising on your bare arms, too engrossed in his story. Shrugging, you tried rubbing your palms together, the temporary warmth doing nothing to soothe the chill.

“I’m fine. Just a bit chilly is all, let’s keep moving.”

After a few seconds, he nodded, but not before shrugging off his jacket and draping it over your shoulders.

“We’ll only be a few more minutes. Just wanna use the spirit box and then we can head out.”

He lead the way towards a narrow hallway, just missing your intense blush. You tailed him, whining slightly.

“Can we not? I fucking hate that thing.”

He snickered, glancing back at you briefly; your heart fluttered at his bashful smile, slipping your arms into the sleeves of his coat. The fabric completely obscured your hands, filling you with a warmth that rivaled the pink on your cheeks.

Leading into the maid’s quarters was a rundown hallway, barely any plaster left on the walls. This area of the house seemed...moister than the rest, a distant leak echoing around the space. It sent shivers down your spine that had nothing to do with the cold.

“Well....this is ominous.”

Peter laughed, pointing the camera at you once again.

“You scared, Munchkin?”

You lightheartedly shoved him, shaking your head. It was getting increasingly difficult to be annoyed when he flashed those stupid dimples. Peter began setting up the camera against a far wall, pulling out a small black gadget, explaining the mechanism simultaneously.

“So for those of you not familiar, what we’re about to use is called a Spirit Box. It uses radio frequency sweeps to generate white noise, which theories suggest give some entities the energy they need to be heard. When this occurs you will sometimes hear voices or sounds coming through the static in an attempt to communicate. It basically scans radio stations super fast to give the ghost a chance to roast us.”

Your chuckle is quickly cut off by a wince, plugging your ears to drown out the loud shrill given off by the hell box. After a few seconds of garbled syllables and static, you managed to catch what could’ve been either “starry" or “sorry". You decided on the latter.

“Sorry? For what?”

Peter shrugged.

“Maybe it’s sorry about the house?”

You snorted, trying to contain your giggles.

“Man, it should be sorry, this is a fuckin’ mess.”

Peter had the gall to look offended.

“Hey! Be respectful.”

That set off another fit of giggles, followed by a sarcastic tone,

“Oh, now you care about respect? Besides, what’s a pissy ghost gonna do?”

A sudden smirk found its way onto your lips.

“Ooh, maybe it’ll follow you hooome-”

He shoved you lightly, laughing nervously.

“Shut up! That’s not funny!”

You just giggled, vaguely paying attention to the spirit box. You could’ve sworn you heard something akin to, ‘I don’t want to go’, but you couldn’t be too sure.

After another few seconds of unintelligible nonsense, Peter sighed, switching the device off. Trying to hide his disappointed expression, he fixed the camera on his face, a small smile adorning his features. You began to pack up your equipment while he vlogged his outro.

“Alas, dear viewers, it seems that, while paranormal activity does reside in these walls, we weren’t able to catch much of anything tonight. Until next time, where we take a road trip to the Lizzie Borden Murder Hou-”

All of a sudden, a loud bang! followed by several shuffling sounds echoed from somewhere above you, startling the both of you nearly to death. Peter practically dropped the camera, eyes wide in what could’ve either been excitement or fear. Probably a little bit of both.

“What was that?!”

Your first instinct was that someone else had the same idea as you. Or a homeless man was squatting there. Or a wolf was hungry and craved the flesh from your bones. While some more far-fetched than others, none of those options seemed incredibly appealing.

You tugged Peter’s arm, trying to nudge him towards the exit.

“C’mon, Pete, let’s get outta here-"

Just as you said that, the shuffling got louder, swooping past your face and right past a terrified Peter. As the bird settled on an ancient chair, the two of you stayed silent for what felt like ages. Until the dam cracked, and the giggles you were trying to keep back came spilling out from your lips. When the terror had finally subsided, Peter chuckled a bit too, clutching his heart and leaning against the wall.

The giggles didn’t stop. Forgetting yourself, you’d stopped checking your surroundings, completely focused on Peter for most of the night. So, it’d be just your luck that you’d step right onto a spot of water damaged flooring behind you.

Good news? You’d found the source of that dripping noise. Bad news? Your foot went straight through it, sending you crashing down, banging your head on the wooden paneling. You might’ve heard Peter yell out, but your brain was swimming too much to notice, a ringing settling in your ears. You blinked rapidly, trying to clear your foggy senses, only to notice the intense pain shooting up your leg. It was like somebody had taken your ankle and bashed it against a rock a few times. You were almost sure it was broken. You just hoped to god you weren't cut anywhere. The last thing you needed right now was tetanus.

After a few seconds of confused blinking, the rapidly spinning room finally came to a halt; coherent enough to notice your surroundings, Peter came into view, a worried look etched into his expression. His eyes were almost teary as he fussed over you.

Grabbing his hand, you tried your best at smiling, only managing a grimace as your head throbbed. His eyes snapped to yours, squeezing your hand a little too tightly, his free hand checking your head as lightly as he could. When it grazed over the welt right at the top of your forehead, you winced, relieved when he pulled his hand back to cradle your cheek instead.

“Okay, okay okay okay, you’re okay. Can you hear me, sweetheart?”

Blinking a few more times for good measure, you nodded, soothing some of the panic in his eyes. Slowly, as gently as he possibly could, Peter supported your upper back and waist, lifting you to a sitting position, jostling your leg as little as possible. Even then, you let out a slight whimper. The nausea hit you all at once, forcing you to grip Peter’s arm until the room stopped spinning. Although you could barely pay attention to anything but your swimming senses, Peter continued to mumble out loud; whether it was to calm himself or you was unclear.

“God, (Y/N), I’m so sorry, I was stupid to make you come with me, I should’ve just taken you to get some damned coffee like a normal person, now you’re hurt and it’s my fault, Jesus I’m sorry, I’m so sorry-”

“Peter.”

He stopped altogether, eyes wide and terrified. Giving him another, more convincing smile, you sniffled, wiping your face on the sleeve of his jacket that you were still wearing. Taking stock of your leg, you couldn’t see or feel many splinters or cuts, which was a plus. However, your ankle didn’t seem to be faring as well, the throbbing having only worsened as the minutes rolled by. Getting it out of the rotted floor was definitely a priority.

“Alright...okay, Peter. We need to get my leg out, yeah? I’m gonna need your help.”

Peter nodded, visibly swallowing, clenching your hand to the point where it almost hurt. He reached down, careful not to impale himself on the cracked wood, and began to clear as much of the debris as he could. Although the thought of shifting your leg was nauseating, you tried to help as much as you could, knocking splinters away so there was a clear passage you could slip your foot through. 

Taking a deep breath, you squeezed Peter’s arm, cautiously lifting your foot out of the floor. Even that minor jostling sent stabs of pain up your leg, an unintentional cry escaping your lips. Peter tried his best to make the endeavor as painless as possible, supporting your leg and back, moving anything that could bump into the injury. You saw his pained expression at your cry, brows furrowed in worry.

Eventually, you managed to free your ankle, a sigh of relief escaping your chest. You hadn't even noticed you were holding your breath. Once able to shift without feeling like you were going to die, you released Peter’s arm, wincing at the red marks you’d left. He barely seemed to notice, cradling your ankle to assess the damage.

Despite the awful situation, you couldn’t help but notice how beautiful he was. Cheeks flushed, jaw flexing every few seconds, a nervous tick you’d noticed over the past few months. His eyes were trained on you the whole time, a softness to his gaze that sent your heart racing a mile a minute.

Hesitantly, you reached up, tracing his cheekbone with your fingertips. His eyes snapped to yours, the blush you earned filling you with satisfaction. You had no idea where this sudden confidence came from, and you were sure it wouldn’t last. Still, you couldn’t help but make the most of it.

Your voice was barely audible when you whispered,

“You’re so pretty…”

If you thought he’d been red before. Oh boy. Now he was like a tomato, a shy smile stretching his lips before he could stop it. Catching your gaze briefly, Peter chuckled, continuing his examination of your ankle.

“You probably have a concussion. We should get you out of here.”

Giggling, you couldn’t help the fond look you gave him, a dopey grin on your face.

“You’re taking me out? Like, on a date?”

He grinned fully, 50 shades of pink, standing to help you up.

“Alright, you definitely have a concussion. C’mon, let’s go.”

Gripping his hands, you allowed Peter to lift you to your feet, shocked by his strength. Careful not to lean on your bad leg, you hardly noticed when you began to fall, the room suddenly spinning. Peter caught you by the waist, keeping his hold on you until you could focus on anything but keeping your balance. 

The both of you were barely an inch apart, your head the perfect height to lay against his chest. Which is exactly what you did, sighing as your senses began to return to normal. You could just about hear his heartbeat, thumping rapidly against his sternum.

God, you must’ve had a concussion. Or some sort of permanent brain damage. There’s no way you’d be acting like this in your right mind. Peter didn’t seem to mind, though, leaning his chin gently against your hair. It was so calming, you almost forgot about your ankle entirely, letting it droop to the floor absentmindedly.

Immediately on contact, you yelped, clutching Peter’s shirt in a vice grip. He sighed, keeping his arm circled around your waist to support you, becoming your crutch and letting you lean practically all of your weight onto him. Still, he didn’t complain, giving you a reassuring smile.

“Alright, Munchkin, let’s get outta here.”

When you showed up to his apartment, banged up from your adventures, May practically forced you into a cab, taking you to the nearest hospital to be checked up on. You didn’t end up having a concussion, thankfully, just some minor bruises and a sprained ankle, as well as a tetanus shot for good measure. You did, however, get what felt like an eternity of a scolding from Peter’s aunt. Which, to be fair, was incredibly valid. What had possessed the two of you to go to an abandoned ass house, on the night before Halloween, by yourselves, was completely beyond you.

You found it hard to be upset though, laying on Peter’s bed, watching him set up a pillow and blanket on his floor. It was far too late to go home, so you’d convinced May to let you stay for the night. You sighed again, pouting at Peter.

“You really don’t have to sleep on the floor, Dimples. It’s your bed, I can take the couc-"

He paused his activities, a tired smile on his face.

“Are you kidding? You think my injured friend is gonna sleep on the couch? We found that thing on the curb, you’d end up with god knows what.”  

He wandered over, fussing for the millionth time with your pillows and blankets, making sure you were comfortable. You rolled your eyes, groaning.

“You’re acting like I’m on my deathbed. A little fall isn’t gonna kill me, Pete.”

He just chuckled, and, after a few seconds hesitation, brushed some of your hair behind your ear.

“I know, I know. Just...let me take care of you, ‘kay?”

A heavy blush settled on your cheeks, rendered speechless by his sudden shift in demeanor. Wordlessly, you nodded, biting your lip to keep the smile off your face. His eyes caught the movement, focusing on your mouth for a few seconds before falling to his hands. Slowly, almost cautiously, he sat at the edge of the mattress, brows furrowing. As if he was thinking about what to say next.

“Listen…(Y/N)... I wanted to tell you something. And I’m not...well, I’m not exactly sure how to say it, but I feel like this is a good time, because realistically, I know you’ll be fine, but if you’d really gotten hurt in there, I don’t know what I would’ve done, I just-"

He cut himself off, keeping his gaze locked firmly in his lap. Finally, he seemed to focus, taking a deep breath before continuing.

“I asked you to come with me on my stupid ghost hunting trip because, well, you’re just-”

Another deep breath.

“You’re kinda, sorta, basically always on my mind. And I wanted to hang out- well not ‘hang out’ but, I wanted to, y’know, ask you out, but I couldn’t find the words, and now you’re hurt and I-"

He kept rambling, but you barely heard it, too focused in on his confession to notice anything else.

Peter likes you.

Jesus, everything made so much sense now! How shy he was, how timid he’d been asking you to go with him. He wasn’t just asking to hang out. He was asking you on a date. Butterflies filled your stomach, a warm feeling settling in your chest. You couldn’t keep the grin from your lips if you tried. Peter likes you. Peter likes you.

Noticing your expression, he finally stopped ranting, an almost terrified look in his eyes. Clearing your throat slightly, you averted your gaze, mumbling softly.

“I, uh, I like you too Peter.”

His expression was almost comical. Eyes wide, mouth slightly ajar.

“W-what?”

You giggled, an affectionate grin on your face.

“I said, I like you too, you doofus.”

He visibly relaxed, features softening into a sweet smile.

“Oh.”

You both sat there, the silence of his bedroom settling over you like a blanket. You must’ve looked like idiots, sitting amongst his Star Wars sheets with lovestruck expressions, glancing at each other from the corner of your eyes. After a few seconds, he cleared his throat, blush never fading.

“So, um...do you, I mean, there’s a movie next week, would you maybe, uh, I dunno, um-"

“I’d love to, Peter.”

His smile widened even more, brown eyes sparkling as he nodded.

“Okay. Okay, good. So, uh...we should probably get some sleep.”

Peter moved to stand up, but stopped himself. After a few seconds of hesitation, he leaned over, gently pressing his lips to your bruised forehead. As he pulled away, you gripped his wrist, eyes fluttering shut to savour the moment. You were here. This was real. You felt his light breaths across your face, nose practically brushing yours. A breathy giggle escaped your lips, opening your eyes to see Peter already staring at you. You could see every small detail in gaze, golden flakes scattered in their chocolate depths. You kept your voice hushed, scared to shatter the moment between the two of you.

“Can you lay by me? Just until I fall asleep?”

His smile could rival the sun in its brilliance. A thrill went through you as he nuzzled his nose against yours.

“Alright.”

Careful not to touch your ankle, Peter climbed beneath the covers, wrapping his arm around your shoulders. Your head rested against his chest, steady heartbeat a little too quick to be casual. You smirked.

“You nervous, Parker?”

He chuckled, squeezing you in a hug.

“Shut up, Munchkin.”

God, you didn’t think you’d ever stop smiling. Closing your eyes, you breathed out a sigh of content. A year ago today, you never would’ve imagined you’d be here. A new school, ghost hunting blog, and sprained ankle later, and here you were, cuddling with the guy of your dreams.

Things were finally looking up.

Tagging: @captain-ariel-barnes @papi-chulo-bucky @after-avenging-hours @occasionalfics @aliciawentzshadows @writing-parker 

Sorry if you didn’t wanna be tagged in this, lol, I just tagged anyone who I thought might like Peter fluff XP 

#peter parker #peter parker x reader #my work #august au writing challenge #my spider son #spiderman x reader #spiderman x you #peter parker x you #peter parker au #x reader

[crystalninjaphoenix]

Possessed: A Jacksepticeye Fan Fiction

Part One: Broken Spells

Read the theory it’s based on | Read the prequel | Next part

Summary: On Halloween night 2017, Marvin decides to wander aimlessly about the city to relax. Instead, he finds a new threat—or perhaps a new friend...

Never written fan fiction before, so I hope you enjoy! ^.^ Beware, it turned out pretty long.

“Is Chase doing okay?” Marvin asked, speaking into the phone.

“He’s hanging in there,” Jackie replied on the other end. “A little upset ‘cause he can’t take the kids trick-or-treating, but there’s not much to do there. You busy?”

Marvin snorted. “If that’s some half-assed way to ask me to come help babysit with you, it’s not gonna work.”

“It’s not babysitting!” Jackie yelled. “It’s called ‘hanging out with a friend who needs company!’”

“Yeah, well, I have plans.”

“Doing what?”

“Things.”

“Marvin I swear to god, if you’re blowing me off for no reason I’ll sneak up on you while you’re sleeping and relocate you to the roof of the highest building in the city. You’ll wake up and be hanging off the damn edge.”

“Have fun babysitting,” Marvin laughed, then hung up.

In truth, he did have plans. But he didn’t think the hero would see them as important. Jackie was the type of person who cared violently about his friends, and spent every moment of free time he had with at least one of them. Marvin was not like that. Every so often, he needed some time to relax, to think.

Halloween night. The one time when the magician could go out in full costume—mask, cape, wand and all—and not get any weird looks. For all anyone knew, he was on his way to a party. But no. Marvin just enjoyed wandering the city and exploring new areas. He also happened to like wearing his costume. So why not combine the two?

He stopped, leaning against a fence, and observed his surroundings. He’d made his way to the suburbs. This was actually very near Chase’s house, so if he wanted he could join Jackie in whatever it was the hero was doing. Children in cheap costumes were running about, followed by semi-enthusiastic parents, waving flashlights and bags of candy. “Nice mask, mister!” a girl in an astronaut costume called. Marvin smiled. “Nice helmet!” he called back. The girl laughed, but her mother standing behind her glared. No doubt suspicious of grown men dressed in dark capes. Marvin decided it was best to move on.

Not two minutes later, a boy ran straight into him, sending candy everywhere. “Sorry, sir,” the boy said.

“No no, it’s fine,” Marvin assured him. “Here, I’ll help.” He stooped, picking up bars of chocolate from where they’d fallen. He looked at the child, ready to hand them over, only to freeze. A white coat, a stethoscope, blue scrubs—was he seeing things?

The boy frowned. “Um, mister?”

Marvin blinked a couple times. The kid was just wearing a costume. Nothing more. “Sorry,” he said. Then smiled, “I think I just saw a ghost.”

The boy’s eyes widened. “Really?”

“Yeah.” Marvin gave the boy back his candy. “You have to be careful running around on Halloween.”

“Alright!” The boy gripped his flashlight tighter, blinking it on and off as if to show he was prepared. Then he darted away.

Marvin sighed, setting off again. He was seeing ghosts, just not in the way the kid had thought.

It had been nearly three months since Schneeplestein had disappeared. Three months since the operation on Jack had failed, leaving him in a coma. Three months of Jackie pushing himself to the limit trying to find an answer. Three months of Chase slowly spiraling downward into a black hole of depression. Three months of Marvin himself just getting by any way he can.

They all knew something was off. Something beyond ordinary. But none of them knew what exactly it was. Marvin suspected some sort of black magic, but who would have a grudge against any of them?

Gradually, Marvin realized he was in an area of the city he’d never been to before. The buildings around him were tall and narrow, the architecture decades out of fashion. But...music was coming from somewhere. Marvin struggled to remember the word...ragtime. That was it. Tinny-sounding ragtime music was coming from somewhere nearby. Listening, Marvin followed the sound to one of the houses. He stopped outside the gate. Why would music be coming from here?

“Dude, you don’t want to be going in there.”

Marvin whirled around. A pair of teenagers had managed to sneak up on him: a boy and girl, dressed like a vampire and werewolf respectively. No doubt a couple on their way to a party. “Why not?” Marvin asked.

“It’s supposed to be, like super haunted,” the boy explained. “Some old film star used to live there, who disappeared under mysterious circumstances. People think he was killed and that his ghost hangs out there.”

The girl sniffed dismissively. “Of course, there are lots of perfectly normal reasons to not go tramping through some wreck. It’s condemned. You could fall through the floor and break your neck.”

“Really?” Marvin muttered. “What’re you two doing here then?”

“Shortcut,” the boy said, shrugging. “Anyway, if you want to go in, whatever. It’s your life. Or soul. Bye, dude.” The teens walked away.

Marvin turned back to the house. . He believed in ghosts, of course. It would be hard not to believe in the supernatural when you had real magic flowing through your veins. But the question was, would he rather take a risk with a possibly vengeful spirit, or walk away never having seen a ghost?

“Fuck it,” Marvin said out loud. Curiosity killed the cat after all. He vaulted over the locked gate and crept up the path to the house’s door, following the sound of the music.

The door creaked when Marvin eased it open. Inside, there was a hall with three doors leading off, each one ajar. A rickety old staircase led up to a second floor. Holes in the ceiling revealed wooden beams. The floor was littered with broken bits of unidentifiable trash. Everything was silent except for the sound of the music, louder now, coming from upstairs.

Cautiously, Marvin climbed the stairs, each step creaking beneath his feet. Reaching the second floor, he saw a similar hall to the one downstairs, minus the steps. The music was coming from the second door on the left. Dodging holes in the floor, Marvin made his way toward it.

He opened the door, hinges groaning loudly, and peered inside. The room was empty, save for a few old-fashioned armchairs and a small table. A phonograph sat on top of the table, its needle tracing a path on a spinning record.

Marvin found his hand instinctively straying to his wand. He pushed the room’s door all the way open, eyes darting left and right, looking for anything unusual. Slowly, he took a step toward the phonograph. Then another. When nothing happened, he half-ran the rest of the way there.

The phonograph kept playing, its ragtime music oddly happy considering the run-down ruin surrounding it. Looking around one last time, Marvin reached out and took the needle off the record, stopping the music.

Silence.

“Huh,” Marvin said. He’d expected more. Sighing, he turned back to the open door.

Except it was no longer open.

Marvin blinked. “Now, that’s more like it,” he muttered. For a split second, the world seemed to break in two, a red photo negative appearing out of nowhere before immediately disappearing. It was barely anything, but accompanying it was an overwhelming sense of nausea, causing Marvin to double over to keep from vomiting. When he straightened up, a figure appeared before him, only to blink out of existence just as quickly.

An uneasy feeling crept over the magician as he drew his wand, spells running through his head. Behind him, the ragtime started up again, slowed and distorted. It wasn’t particularly threatening, just a little creepy. But still, something in Marvin screamed at him to get out, that there were forces here he couldn’t take on by himself.

“All right, you damn ghostie,” Marvin called. “Why don’t you stop being a fucking coward and show yourself?”

The room seemed to tilt beneath his feet, and Marvin stumbled. The world seemed to break again, afterimages of people appearing in red. Color drained from the room, and the music became unrecognizable, punctuated by whispers. Marvin fought the urge to vomit once again, swallowing hard.

The figure appeared before him again, closer this time, before vanishing. Marvin spun around, looking for where it had gone.

It reappeared, right in front of him. Before the magician could even raise his wand to defend himself, hands reached out and grabbed him by the neck. And squeezed hard.

“Arck,” Marvin choked. He grabbed his attacker by the wrists, struggling to pull away, but the figure held on with inhuman strength. Marvin stumbled back, but black spots were already appearing in his vision. A strange laugh seemed to be echoing through his mind, hoarse and strangled like it was being forced through a throat that hadn’t made sound in years.

One more try, Marvin decided. He threw his head back violently and stepped backwards, pulling his attacker with him. But his foot found nothing to land on, and he fell through the floor, landing with a crash.

Groaning, Marvin climbed to his feet. He’d landed in what looked like a study, with a decrepit desk and chair to match. “Well, I’ve had enough,” Marvin said, his voice hoarse. As if responding, the world around him flickered, his surroundings changing to a parlor, to a kitchen, to a bedroom. The magician almost fell to his knees as the feeling of nausea returned, accompanied by a pounding headache and dizziness.

Shaking his head to clear it, Marvin ran to the door and yanked it open, only for it to be slammed shut. The mad, strange laughter rang again. “Shut the fuck up!” Marvin yelled, raising his wand. A blast of green energy erupted from the end, blowing the door open. Before it could close again, Marvin darted through, emerging into the second floor hall.

He had to get out. He’d had his supernatural experience, and he'd hated it. He ran to the stairs, keeping his wand out in front of him for defense. He reached the top step and started down.

The world broke again, red and green afterimages swimming in front of his eyes. He teetered on the edge. All it took was one tiny push...

Marvin tumbled down the stairs, every inch of his body aching by the time he reached the bottom. Somehow, he’d kept hold of his wand. Using the banister, he pulled himself upright.

“Alright, you demon ghost bitch,” Marvin said through gritted teeth. “You want a fight? I’ll give you one. So come out and face me, you dickwad!”

More laughter. The figure appeared and walked toward him, leaving red afterimages with every step it took. Marvin held his wand tight. When the figure was close enough to see its black eyes, the magician brought his wand upward with a yell, pointing it toward the being.

Green flames tinged with purple exploded with a roar, consuming the figure, burning its essence. A scream pierced Marvin’s mind, seeming not to come from the figure but from everywhere. But the magician didn’t waver, keeping up the magic until he was drained of energy and collapsed to his knees.

Struggling to stay conscious, Marvin reflected on what had just happened. Using black magic flames had been a risky maneuver, but black magic was far more powerful than the regular kind. Unfortunately, it came with heavy consequences. Marvin had barely recovered from the last time he’d used it, but given the choice between consequences or death, he’d take the former.

Something stirred in front of him, and Marvin started, raising his wand. The figure had fallen to the floor with him, but something was...different. The heavy weight he’d felt since he’d entered the house had disappeared. Using the minimal amount of magic, Marvin conjured a small, green witch light.

The figure before him was a man, about average height but more slender than considered normal. His brown hair was hidden underneath a black hat, and a curly mustache adorned his face. He wore a blue vest and a bow tie. When he looked up at Marvin, his eyes were not solid black like they had been, but instead baby blue.

“Um, hi?” Marvin said.

The man scrambled back, eyes widening in fear. His head darted about, taking in the surroundings.

“Whoa, hey, it’s okay,” Marvin said. “You’re okay.” He reached forward to help, though he didn’t know how, only for the man to back away. The magician stopped. “So, uh, what’s your name?” he asked.

The stranger shook his head. He tapped his throat with his hand.

“Ah, I see,” Marvin said, his confusion growing. “You, uh, can’t talk. Well...” Marvin glanced around. Was...was the threat gone? But...the threat had been this man...what was going on? “Um, my name is Marvin. I’m magic, as you can probably tell. Uh...d’you—do you want any help?”

The man hesitated, then nodded once.

Marvin stood up, legs trembling beneath him. “Fuck, too much magic,” he hissed under his breath. He held out his hand again. The man paused before taking it and allowing Marvin to hoist him up. Once he’d gotten to his feet, he immediately collapsed straight into Marvin.

“Whoa, buddy,” Marvin said. “I can’t hold you up. We’ll have to help each other.” 

The two managed to stay upright by leaning on each other. Marvin could feel the other man’s uneven heartbeat and shaky breathing. What had happened to him?

“I have a friend who lives nearby,” Marvin said. “We’re gonna head there, okay?” He waited for the other man to nod in agreement before stumbling out of the house, leaving the ruins behind them.

#jacksepticeye #jacksepticegos #jacksepticeye fanfiction #jameson jackson #marvin the magnificent #jackieboy man #chase brody #dr schneeplestein #antisepticeye #possessed jj fic #brigid writes fanfiction

[spiritvinex]

ghostie

hiiiii i’m a new writer and this is something that i cooked up for the miraculous fandom :) i hope you like it

if you want to read it on ao3

Chapter 1

She wasn’t quite entirely sure as to why she had agreed to partake in a sleepover. Normally, a sleepover wasn’t her idea of a nice time of bonding and just overall having fun with a friend, much less a sleepover with a friend she wasn’t quite as familiar with as she would have liked to be.

And she couldn’t help but feel a little wary when she arrived at the rather grand house that was a bit skeptically remote. Still, this was a friend, right? Nothing bad could go wrong. This was just her mind messing with her, tricking her into thinking that this sleepover would not be as it should normally be, but she knew better. This sleepover would be completely safe, wouldn’t it?

She seemed to believe it, but her subconscious sure didn’t.

Either way, she was going to this sleepover, and she would enjoy it as a normal girl of her age would, even if it was with a new and less familiar friend. All first sleepovers with a new friend are like this, right? A bit awkward and nerve-wracking?

Right.

And so she just managed a nervous smile when she knocked on the large wooden door, waiting for someone to open it. Seconds ticked by, and the sun was beginning to set.

Seconds turned into minutes, and she decided that just maybe her friend was not home for whatever reason, and maybe had no time to call off the sleepover. Though, she couldn’t really decide if she was disappointed or relieved.

However, it turned out to be neither, as just as she was turning around to leave, pink crossbody duffel bag over her shoulder, she heard the door creak open, and a warm “Hello!”.

She whipped her head around to be greeted by her friend, looking as bright as ever, though something seemed a bit… off. And though she kept telling herself that this was just a normal girl like herself, there was no reason to be anxious. She waved to her mom as she walked through the doorway. She shrugged off the sense of unease she had, and smiled as she was welcomed. If she was going to this sleepover, she might as well get the most out of it. It was most likely that she wouldn’t be attending another very soon.

The inside of the home was just as elegant as the outside, if not even more, with windows that reached from the ceiling to the floor, allowing light to pour freely in the entrance, though not much was coming, as the sun was already setting, orange and pink tinging the once blue sky.

It left her in awe, really, how wonderfully decorated just the simple entry room was. The decor of the house was outdated, yet somehow it worked, just managing to make the house look humble and cozy.

Yet, she couldn’t help the nagging feeling in the back of her mind telling her that this house was just not what it seemed. And it all seemed a bit clichéd to her, a grand and luxurious home that soon turns out to be some kind of horror house with any being of a nightmare you could ever think of housed inside. Yes, it all seemed like this was just a cheesy horror movie about to be played out in reality - she was just waiting for the axe-murderer to jump out from behind that oddly-located door next to that velvet sofa.

And for the umpteenth time this evening, she shoved the negative thoughts away, and instead aimed for just focusing on having fun during this sleepover.

“Wow… you have a really nice house,” she complimented nervously, watching as her friend just beamed at her.

“Thank you! I kinda find it a little too old, but it’s how my parents like it, I guess.”

“Oh,” she replied, though a bit unsure as to what to say next. “Well, I think it actually looks kind of cute!” And it wasn’t a blatant lie, the house did look a bit welcoming with the old, cozy furniture and warm lighting. It was just the strange vibes it gave her as her friend walked her to her room that made her shiver. It was an unpleasant feeling, but not something that was so outright creepy that it made her immediately want to scream and run away. The whole place was just a bit... Unsettling.

"Let's go upstairs and I'll show you my room!"

She was shook out of her thoughts by the suggestion of her friend, and took a moment to reassess herself to work out a reply.

"Oh, uh, okay," she muttered, albeit shakily and hesitantly, though apparently her answer was good enough for her friend, as she soon found herself being dragged up the carpeted staircase by her hand.

--

She wasn't exactly sure as to what she had expected from this sleepover. It was nice, though she didn’t have the confidence to classify it as fun. Enjoyable, sure, they did little fun activities that were nice, and it even went so far as to the point where she had forgotten about her uneasiness for a few moments. They painted nails, played a few rounds of ‘Truth or Dare,’ ate junk food together- what a couple of normal friends would do at a sleepover.

She considered the sleepover to be over. After all, what was the most she would be doing with her friend when it is morning again? Just a quick breakfast or so, and then getting picked up by Mom.

However, daylight wasn’t here just yet.

This was evidently the hardest part of this whole ordeal. Sleeping.

It’s pretty difficult to sleep when you have a million thoughts racing through your head whilst simultaneously feeling unsafe in a place you aren’t very familiar with.

So that was why you could find her walking aimlessly through the home, occasionally getting herself lost when turning from one hallway to another, then ending up at the same door she had walked into five minutes ago.

It seemed like this house was a maze of millions of rooms, or something of the sort. She had already been to the living room, dining room, entertainment room, the gymnasium, and two bathrooms that were each the size of her own room at home.

She didn’t have any idea as to which room in particular she was looking for- she really was just doing this to distract her and as a form of some sort of entertainment, as she was having many troubles falling asleep. And, this was far better than laying wide awake in an uncomfortable sleeping bag with no other sound than the ominous creaks and groans of the house (though maybe it was just her nerves making those sounds in her head). Either way, she wasn’t in the most comfortable of situations.

Though, every so often, she thought she could hear the light thuds of footsteps echoing from somewhere around the house, but like the creaks, she assumed it was just all in her head.

She kept her head facing down at her toes, there really was no point in trying to see her surroundings- it was almost too dark to take in anything around her, other than the rather large shadows formed by pieces of furniture that signified what kind of room you have entered. It wasn’t until the floor had transitioned from carpet to tile under her feet that she did look up. It was the kitchen. And although she couldn’t see every detail of the room, she knew that this was lovely kitchen, there was no question about it.

She fumbled around the room, hands reaching out in hopes to reach and touch a wall with a light switch of some sort. It took a few moments, along with some bumps into the edges of counters, and almost tripping over a small trash bin, but her palms eventually met with a piece of plastic jutting out from the wall beside what she could only assume was a refrigerator. With a curl of her fingers and a quick yet hesitant flick, light flooded the room, and every detail was illuminated.

This was a stupid idea.

She couldn’t help but cringe at her own actions. What on Earth made her think it was a good idea to barge into a stranger’s kitchen and turn on the light like she lived here? What if someone could see the light from their room or something? Would they make there way over here and get her in trouble? Scold her? Yell at her? Send her home?

Though, she had mixed opinions on how she would feel about the last scenario.

Come on, what was the worst that could happen?

She was overthinking everything. These were nice people, there was no way they would punish her so harshly for doing something as miniscule as accidentally landing herself in their kitchen without them knowing. She was just doing what she does when she is nervous or unsure of what to do.

Wandering.

They can’t blame her for just wandering innocently to a kitchen. Besides, it wasn’t like the kitchen was a sacred land that no mortal could set foot in and she would be murdered for it, or something of the sort.

These group of thoughts gave her confidence. So what if she was caught? What kind of humans would punish someone severely for accidentally ending up in a place of a home they were invited to as they were just looking around?

That settles it, she’d just keep wandering. A little exploring couldn’t hurt, could it?

The kitchen was so enormous and so intricately designed, she had a bit of difficulty focusing on investigating on a single object. The marble countertops were overrun by only the most expensive of kitchen appliances, a microwave with over ten times as many buttons and options as the cheap microwave that had been kept in her own home for the past two years. There were so many other things that she could have described lying on the counter, but really, how interested can one be by kitchen appliances?

She moved on to the pictures and other scribbled notes attached to the magnetic side of the refrigerator. On there were several crumpled pieces of paper and sticky notes with to-do lists, schedules, reminders, and whatnot hastily scrawled on the parchment.

Buy milk, eggs, cereal, & orange juice.

Dentist appointment Thursday @ 3 PM!!

Sign permission slip for field trip.

They were all notes that were to be expected from nearly every family. A few seemed to have dates that were overdue by a couple of weeks or so, and began to pile up in a messy crowd in one corner of the available space of the magnetic side of the fridge.

A few photos were there, too. They all consisted of her friend and her family, each with an all-too-cheerful smile. At the park, on the beach, at a party- anywhere you found them, they would all be grinning, like everyday was the best day of their lives. There were a couple of photos of certain family members by themselves, her friend holding up a basketball trophy, a young boy (who was most likely her younger brother) with a medal for-

What was that?

She could have sworn she saw something move behind the counter on the side that was open to the living room. Maybe it was someone, though she couldn’t be too sure. Either way, this concluded her little “exploration” of the kitchen. It was probably best to be off to her sleeping bag and pray that morning came sooner.

It took her a few minutes, but she finally figured out the route to the room she was to be sleeping in.

And she had just reached the hallway, when she was stopped again by another hint of movement, though this time, it casted a shadow in front of her. An eerie one. A human one. She whipped her head around and saw…

Nothing.

She let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding in, a drop of sweat rolling off her forehead. An incredibly nervous chuckle escaped her lips, a mockery of her own paranoia. How more silly could she possibly even get? Her imagination was just messing with her- she knew very well that she was the only person awake in this house at this time of the night.

And, much like earlier today, her subconscious thought otherwise.

And her subconscious was right.

This wasn’t just her mind playing tricks on her. She had a right to be nervous and afraid because there were things to be afraid and nervous of in this house. All those noises and footsteps? They were real. Those shadows? They were there for a reason.

Her scream that rattled the entire house? And that sharp, unbearable pain in her back? The pain that felt like a blade had been shoved through her flesh? And her vision going white before seeing red? And then finally going black?

Yeah, that was real, too.

#miraculous ladybug #fanfic #woooo #first story #new writer #welcometomyhumbleabode #ghostAU #adrien agreste #marinette dupain cheng #adrienette #ghostie