Prompt - “There are rumours about us.” “I know. I spread them.”
Arthur was a Prince, born as the heir of Uther Pendragon and expected to rule as King of Camelot one day. Arthur was a man with expectations heavier than the world thrust upon him and he bore it with honour, without complaint.
You were nothing but a servant, your only expectations were to complete your duties and bring enough money home to make sure there was food on the table at night. You weren’t destined for greatness, you were not even a footnote in the lives of the richer and yet somehow…somehow you’d manage to capture the Prince of Camelot’s attention without even meaning to and now you were somebody.
You still weren’t destined for anything legendary but now you had the eyes of those with a legacy to make on you. Arthur was intrigued by you, for what reason you hadn’t figured out yet but Arthur liked you enough to add you to his personal staff, trusting you as much as he did Merlin and you recognised that for the honour it was.
Right now you found yourself hiding away from your duties in Arthur’s chambers with Merlin, both of you had made yourself comfortable on Arthur’s bed, picking at a bowl of grapes that lay between you.
“When are you going to tell Arthur you’re pathetically in love with him?” Merlin asks lazily before popping a grape into his mouth and you roll your eyes, knowing the peace couldn’t last long.
“Why must you always ask this stupid question?” You sigh but there was no real heat to your voice, not after years of hearing and answering it. “Arthur is a Prince and I am a servant, there will never be anything between us.”
“Well I heard differently.” Merlin grins and you can feel a smile tugging at your own lips.
“Just because we can’t ever be together doesn’t mean I can’t have fun with it.” You laugh but before Merlin can say anything the door opens and you both look over to see Arthur standing in the doorway, an unimpressed look on the man’s face as he looks between you and Merlin laying on his bed.
“You two are insufferable.” Arthur says exasperated, closing the door and entering his chambers, shrugging his cloak off. “Really, how the two of you have a job is beyond me.”
You just beam at Arthur and Merlin laughs, standing from the bed and helping Arthur out of his chainmail.
“I heard something interesting today, YN.” Arthur says conversationally once he was in his regular clothing. “There are rumours about us.”
Arthur gives you a look, raising his eyebrow at you like he knows you were somehow involved and daring you to deny it, though as you beam over at him, still having not moved from your place on his bed, his face softens.
“I know. I spread them.” You tell him with a grin, watching as a smile pulls at his own lips despite how much he tries to fight it.
“You’re insufferable, you know that, don’t you?” He told you, coming over to lay on the bed next to you and Merlin takes that moment to politely excuse himself, grinning at you like the idiot he was as he left.
“Is it such a terrible rumour?” You laugh and Arthur rolls his eyes, though his smile falls slightly as he shifts closer to you, wrapping his arm around your shoulder and you froze for a moment before letting yourself relax against Arthur’s side.
“It is when we both know how we feel,” Arthur murmured and you felt your eyes widen, glad that he couldn’t see your face. “It is when I hear the maids whispering about me and you and I want nothing more than for their words to be real.”
You blink once, eyebrows knitting together as you shift so you’re still pressed against Arthur but now you can look up at him and he softens as he looks at your expression, reaching out to cup your face gently in his calloused hand.
“Tell me you don’t wish their words were true too.” Arthur murmured, his head dipping closer to yours and you felt your breath htich.
“Arthur,” you breathed out, your gaze falling to Arthur’s lips before meeting his eyes.
“Tell me you don’t feel the same way I feel, YN. Tell me it doesn’t kill you everytime my father brings a Princess to the palace for me to meet, tell me you don’t think about me when you’re dragged to the tavern, tell me you don’t wish I wasn’t a prince or that you were a princess.” Arthur murmured and you couldn’t tell him any of that because he was right, you wished it all but apparently so did he.
“Arthur,” You whispered, apparently the only word you were capable of saying but Arthur didn’t seem to mind.
“Tell me not to kiss you.” Arthur whispered and you stayed silent, mentally pleading with whatever god was out there to have mercy, to let you have this, whatever this was, even if it only lasted for this moment.
Arthur smiled at your silence, bringing your face up to meet him halfway and you let him. You let yourself have what you’d been dreaming about for years, let yourself forget about titles and destinies and let yourself sink into the kiss, practically melting against Arthur and kissing him back, smiling slightly into the kiss.
“Wanted to do that for so long.” Arthur murmured against your lips and you nodded slightly.
“I’ve wanted you to do that for so long.” You laugh slightly, blinking up at Arthur, still not able to believe he’d actually kissed you but you knew the moment couldn’t last and so did Arthur.
“In another life I’d make you mine, I hope you know that.” Arthur told you, voice heavy with regret. “In another life the rules would be damned, in another life, Gods YN, we would be so happy.”
“But not in this life?” You whisper and you already knew the answer because despite how much love you felt for Arthur, despite how much he seemed to like you, it didn’t matter.
“I want nothing more, believe me when I say that. But it would not be fair to you, you deserve to be loved loudly, to not be hidden away as a secret. You deserve somebody who can give you the world and I can’t do that.” Arthur told you, voice shaking and you felt your own eyes stinging.
“I hope we get everything we really deserve in that other life.” You whispered, voice soft and small and Arthur pressed a kiss to your forehead and stayed like that for a little while because what else was there to say?
Prompt - “Don’t hurt him! Just stop hurting him, please!”
Notes - SPOILERS FOR THE LAST OF US SEASON 2, EPISODE 2! Another fix it fic!! Joel Miller & Reader, Ellie Williams & Reader, Tommy Miller & Reader
You and Ellie were the total opposite of one another when it came to feelings. You openly said how you felt, realising that in this world there was a chance everything could be ripped away from you. You never suppressed how you felt, you’d call something what it was. So when you openly called Joel dad for the first time, the poor man’s heart stuttered and he looked as if the world had been pulled out from under his feet before he softened. Ellie never did and it didn’t matter. Joel didn’t need the girl to say it, you all knew Ellie looked at Joel the same, you all knew what you were to each other.
As your journey to Jackson went on, the three of you only became closer and closer. When you’d finally settled in the community a part of you feared losing that, when you weren’t forced within so close proximity, struggling to survive, you worried you wouldn’t be as close, though it turned out it was a useless thought to have. If anything Jackson had brought you closer.
Until Ellie started giving Joel the cold shoulder that was.
New Year’s Eve was the worst of it, Joel having rough handled someone who dared speak badly against Ellie and Ellie losing her cool with Joel.
You sighed as you let yourself walk past the house you still stayed in with Joel and went to Ellie’s in the back, watching as the girl glared at you as you let yourself in without bothering to knock.
“What?” Here to defend Joel?” She snapped.
“Ellie,” you sighed, sitting on the end of her bed. “Joel has only ever…what he did makes him, Joel. I’m not just talking about tonight, I’m talking about five years ago. Since the start Joel has only ever wanted to protect us.”
“He ruined any chance of a cure.” Ellie insisted and your nostrils flared, you’d heard her argument for months now but never said much back.
“There was no cure!” You finally snapped, unable to hear the same thing again when you knew the truth. “There was never a cure, Ellie. Whatever that fucking doctor was gonna do wouldn’t have worked! Joel knew that, Marlene knew that. Their plan was half baked and it wouldn’t have worked! Hell even if it had a chance of working it would have been years back when they still had functioning labs! Joel was never gonna let you die anyway but he definitely wasn’t gonna let them kill you for nothing!”
Ellie was silent, looking at you with an unreadable expression and you hoped you were getting through to her but then she turned away, breaking eye contact with you.
You sighed again and stood up, making your way to the door, stopping before you stepped out.
“He loves you, El, we both know that. There isn’t anything more important to him than me and you. Just…” You sighed, voice trailing off. “You know this is killing him.”
With that you left and Ellie sighed. She leaned back against her pillow and promised herself she’d invite Joel out on patrol tomorrow.
“Coming out?” Ellie asked you, looking less than happy.
“What happened to you?” You asked, walking alongside her.
“I was gonna invite Joel out on patrol, make amends and all that shit.” She told you, glaring as you grinned with satisfaction, finally having got through to her.
“Oh yeah, he took your girlfriend out instead.” Your grin widened even more as Ellie’s glare intensified.
“She’s not my girlfriend.” She grumbled out, looking away from you, hoping to hide the pink on her cheeks.
You laughed in delight but let the subject drop for now, letting Ellie lead you to the stables. It didn’t take long to get saddled up and before long the two of you headed out to patrol.
The cold was getting to you, your teeth chattered together and you were shivering fiercely, hard enough that Ellie tied the horses off and led you into a building, the storm too bad to ride in anyway.
“So,” You asked after a while, more than content to sit and wait out the storm with Ellie. “You finally gonna let Joel off the hook?
“I miss him.” Ellie finally confessed after a few minutes of silence where you had thought she was just going to ignore the question.
You felt your heart ache for the girl, knowing that she rarely spoke about how she felt at the best of times but admitting to missing Joel, she must have been hurting.
“You know, I don’t…you can both say there was never really a cure but I just think, man what if? What if that one was the one thing I was meant to do? But then I think, what if someone was gonna kill Joel? I’d kill them, Y/N/N.” Ellie’s voice was shaky and you smiled sadly over at her.
“Can’t think of the what if’s, there are no what if’s. The only other outcome was Joel not killing them and you dying for nothing. That’s how it would have played out. Even if there was some cure in your head, nobody would know how to get it.”
Ellie frowned at your words but then nodded and you sighed softly, glad it was finally breaking through, glad she was ready to forgive Joel.
“Joel was never gonna let you die, Ellie. He’s done lots of things but letting you die? That’s something he’s never gonna do.” You said softly and Ellie nodded, knowing there was nothing she could say to that.
A Joel Miller that let any harm come to his girls wasn’t Joel Miller.
The conversation turned less serious after that. You and Ellie were laughing over nothing either of you could recall when the radio stuttered to life asking Joel to check in, the voice sounded panicked enough that your nerves were set on edge.
“Repeat that!” You snapped, snatching the radio from the floor, panic building and Ellie looked at you wide eyed.
“Y/N, you seen Joel? He hasn’t checked in for a while.” The voice on the other end asked and you felt your world turn at even the possibility of something happening with Joel.
“Shit no, where was he last?”
You and Ellie immediately headed to the horses, forcing them to move as quickly as possible, only to be stopped by a massive herd of walkers, your horses rearing up and you headed up the mountain, frowning as you saw Joel and Dina’s horses in front of a cabin.
“I don’t like this.” You murmured to Ellie as you dismounted your own horses and Ellie shook her head, her hand gripping her gun tighter as the two of you made your way into the cabin.
Your heart stopped as you entered the room, seeing Joel on the floor half dead and bloody. The shock of the scene was all the group needed and before you could even fight back you and Ellie were on the floor, forced to look at Joel as the girl beat the broken man some more.
It didn’t even look like Joel, you’d never seen him look like this. Even at his worst he was still an unshakeable force, even when he was clutching his heart and struggling for air you knew if something went wrong in that minute he’d flop.
But this…this terrified you. Joel couldn’t get up, he couldn’t move, he couldn’t even groan out in pain anymore. His eyes were on you and Ellie, knowing what was to come and hating that his girls were going to have to see it, and you couldn’t look away.
You couldn’t breathe, your heart was hammering wildly in your chest, hoping like hell you could get Joel out of this alive, even if it killed you.
The girl battered her fists into Joel again and again and the man holding you forced you harder against the floor as you thrashed.
You were begging, pleading, a mess of sobs and tears but Abby doesn’t listen, if anything the begging seems to give her satisfaction.
“Joel, get up! Get up, Joel.” Ellie begged him and your breath hitched as he tried, god he tried so hard to move but he was beaten too bad. Ellie realised it too as she switched from begging Joel to begging the girl hurting him, desperate for her to stop.
Finally she did and you watched as the girl leaned next to Joel, raising the rod and your blood ran cold, knowing what she was going to do.
It’s not until you choke out the most devastated sounding “Dad please!” that Abby paused, the rod froze mid air and that’s all you needed, that one pause was all you needed. Sheer desperation had you forcing the man holding you off of you, he was on the ground before he knew it. The moment seemed to stretch on forever as you moved before anyone could register it, pulling out your knife and burying it in the side of Abby’s neck without a moment of hesitation, watching with a twisted sense of satisfaction as she choked, blood spraying and splattering before she fell to the floor and you whipped your gun out, Ellie scrambling up and the two of you took down the rest of Abby’s group.
You felt exhausted by the end of it, knees buckling just as you made it to Joel’s side, watching as Ellie lay with him and you sat down next to him, both holding one of his hands and feeling like the air had been sucked from you as he squeezed them back.
Reassurance that he was alive.
You hardly remembered struggling to get Joel off the floor, hardly remembered the journey home but you remembered taking him to the doctors office, remembered him being gone for hours as they worked on him, remembered finding comfort in Ellie against your side and Tommy hand on your arm.
You didn’t remember anything the doctor said past the assurance that Joel was alive and stable, didn’t remember Tommy’s arms around you, keeping you upright, barely recalled Ellie pressing against you and crying with you.
It wasn’t until Joel was awake that the three of you were allowed to visit, Ellie stepping in first, followed by you and then Tommy.
“Baby girls,” Joel groaned out and you went to pieces, Tommy’s grip on you was the only thing holding you up as Ellie choked back her own tears, moving to Joel’s side and pushing herself against him.
“M’sorry, I’m so fucking sorry.” Ellie choked out and you stayed by the door with Tommy, much as you wanted to bury yourself against Joel’s other side, Ellie needed this and so did Joel.
“Nothin’ t’be sorry for.” Joel assured her, cupping the back of her head slowly and wincing as he kissed the top of her head.
You listened as Ellie and Joel spoke softly to each other, each of their eyes filled with tears but there was so much relief on their faces as they finally reconnected, realising how close they’d been to losing everything, losing each other without resolving anything, Ellie realising she had nearly been condemned to a life of what if’s and all encompassing grief. You watched the pair with your own watery eyes and shaky smile, leaning against Tommy’s chest as the man kept a steady arm around you, his own eyes stinging with tears.
“C’mere you.” Joel finally said, looking over at you and you let out a small sob, feeling like you would have been frozen to place if not for Tommy guiding you over to the bed.
You practically collapsed into Joel’s chest, letting yourself sob into the man as he held you close to him, not caring about his burning sides as he smiled up at Tommy, appreciation clear on his face for looking after the two of you whilst he was down.
You could still see the image of him lying on the floor, bloody and beaten. Even in the hospital bed he looked weak but he looked like Joel. In that cabin he had looked unrecognisable. It turned your stomach sick, you never wanted to see Joel like that again.
For not the first time that night you felt a twisted satisfaction as you remember sinking the knife into Abby’s neck, not even sparing her another look as she fell to the floor as you took the rest of her group out alongside Ellie.
Joel kept whispering words of reassurance as you and Ellie burrowed into him, not a dry eye in the room. You could feel Joel’s heartbeat against your ear, the steady thumping assuring you he was alive, you were home, Joel and Ellie had made up and everyone was safe.
“Love you dad.” You interrupted his steady stream of assurance, the whispered words choked out between soft sobs but Joel’s heart ached nonetheless.
“I love you two, both of you, so damn much.” He promised, kissing both of your heads again and you let out a shaky breath, everything was going to be ok.
“Love you.” Ellie mumbled and you laughed, the sound mixing with a sob but you couldn’t help it, Ellie had finally realised what you had known all along, the world was too dangerous, too unpredictable to be anything but honest with your feelings.
For Ellie’s sake, Joel didn’t make a fuss over the words but inside his heart exploded. He had never needed Ellie to say those words to him, he’d always known, even in the time she was mad at him, he’d known that deep down, under all of the anger and confusion Ellie loved him.
He was just glad he’d lived long enough to hear the words from both of his girls.
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Notes - Can be read as a pre Ellie x Reader!! Also, no spoilers for Season 2!!
Jackson was the salvation you needed after spending so much of your life outside, everyday a struggle to survive, the people worse than the infected.
You’d lived in a QZ for a few years, abandoned there as a baby but eventually the place crashed and burned, leaving you the fend for yourself. You didn’t know where was safe anymore, if anywhere was safe, so you set off one day and hadn’t stopped since.
Not until you found Jackson.
Tommy Miller was a bright light in the dark as he showed you around the town they had made, showed you where the community gathered to eat, showed you the stables and the school, the workshops and eventually a house that was your own, just across the way from his.
You couldn’t stop yourself from sobbing when Tommy left, leaving you alone in the house. The fire Tommy had lit warmed your cold aching body and you just cried for hours before climbing into your bed, crying some more because when was the last time you had slept in a bed?
It was hard adjusting to this new life in Jackson, the safety of it all, not having to fight and hunt and endure the cold. Tommy was kind to you, he smiled and wrapped his arm around your shoulders every morning as you stood in the doorway of the community hall, plenty of people gathered for breakfast.
You let him lead you in, never going in on your own. You didn’t trust these people, hardly trusted any people after seeing how cruel they could be outside the walls of this Jackson community.
You trusted Tommy enough, you were still getting to know him but he was kind. He spoke everything through with you first before he took you somewhere new, made sure you had all the information you needed.
You found yourself spending more time at Tommy’s house than your own, the house too big and too quiet for just you but Tommy’s, Tommy’s house felt like home.
One night you were sat on the sofa with Tommy, his arm around your shoulder pulling you close to him, rain pouring outside, the fire crackling softly as you spoke, voices low and quiet to match the mood.
“Do you remember the world before this?” You’d asked and Tommy let his eyes fall closed, memories of Joel and Sarah, god he’d loved that kid so much. He loved his brother, missed him every damn day. You felt like a reminder some days of his old life, he could picture it now, picture you there so easily, sat at the breakfast table with him, Joel and Sarah.
“Hard to forget.” He finally said, voice heavy with regret, guilt…loss. “I got a brother out there somewhere, sure as hell hope he’s still out there anyway.”
“You’ve got a brother?” You asked, looking up at him.
“Yeah, I left him behind. It was a bad time back then, things were still fresh, y’know? The world had just gone to hell, we lost…Joel had a kid, my niece, my Sarah. We lost her, first day of the outbreak. Joel was never the same. I ended up leaving him, thought I knew better, joined a new bunch’a people but…well that went to hell too. Then I found this place.”
You listen to Tommy with a sympathetic gaze, leaning further into him and Tommy let himself hold you tight.
He’d lost so much, he’d lost his family, he might never see Joel again.
It wouldn’t ever be ok but he had you. Despite all the bad the world had thrown his way, it had given him you.
“You’d have like them, Joel and Sarah.” Tommy smiles and you laugh softly. “If things had been different you’d have fit right in with the Millers.”
Your heart ached at his words, for years all you had wanted was to be a part of something. Tommy wanted you, Tommy spoke as if you were already his and you let yourself have something good.
For the first time, glad to be in a world that had ended long before you were born.
Months passed and you’d relaxed into Jackson life. You still gravitated towards Tommy but Tommy had spoke to you about enrolling at school, a talk that hadn’t gone great, you’d flat out refused but eventually agreed to try for Tommy’s sake and you had started branching out, befriending some of the others your age much to Tommy’s relief.
He loved you, it had only taken a few months of your presence but he couldn’t imagine life without you now. After a year of having you here, you were like the kid he never imagined himself having.
“Hey darlin, you got a minute?” Tommy called as he saw you across the street, watching as your face brightened.
“Sure, what’s up?” You grinned at him, looking so much younger than when you’d first shown up, looking exhausted and frail, too skinny but hardened by the world.
“Help me with this will you?” He asked, gesturing for you to climb up the stairs he was on as he worked on the structure of a new building, not really needing the help but never passing on the chance to be with you.
You made your way up the metal stairs, handing Tommy different tools every so often, easy conversation filling the space.
“And you know what she…” Tommy was telling you a story of before the outbreak but was interrupted by someone calling his name.
“Tommy!”
Tommy and you both turned to look at the man calling him, Tommy freezing, his eyes widening and you touched his arm softly.
It was like your touch had snapped him back to reality and he moved down the stairs in disbelief, you following after him and watching as the other man met him halfway, the pair dragging each other into a bone crushing hug.
You watched behind them as a girl got off her horse, walking over to stand by you, just watching the two men.
“He with you?” You finally asked the girl and she nodded, looking at you with distrust.
She reminded you of you when you had first arrived in Jackson. On guard, defensive, waiting for something to happen.
“Yeah, Joel’s with me.” She said and your head snapped around to look at her, eyes widening even as she glared at the sudden movement. “What?”
“Joel?” You breathed out, looking back at the brothers. “Oh my god, he found him.”
“What are you talking about?” The girl asked, tone sharp.
“That man there’s Tommy, that’s Joel’s brother.” You told the girl and watched as her own eyes widened, clearly having heard her own stories about your Miller brother from her own.
You watched the brothers pull away, Tommy caressing Joel’s face in disbelief as Joel just stared at the man, speaking softly before they both laughed and drew each other into another tight hug.
“Guess you’re staying.” You grin at Ellie, her expression having softened as she looked at Joel. “Welcome to Jackson.”
Ellie glared at you but you took it as a good sign it was only half hearted.
Eventually everything settled in Jackson. Ellie was an awful lot like you which meant you got on too well, causing trouble wherever the you went and yet neither Joel, nor Tommy could properly chastise the two of you, glad you were finding some good in the other.
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Notes - Season 8, Episode 15 Spoilers // it's a bad week to be a tlou and 911 fan but at least I'm uploading because of it
You’d been in LA for six months now and still hadn’t gotten used to it. For the first few months you’d just sit in your apartment, not leaving unless you absolutely had to, which between all the delivery services out there was rare.
Eventually though you had to get on with your life. You had to start the fresh beginning you’d come here for.
So you forced yourself to start functioning like a proper human being, forced yourself to leave the safety of your apartment and go to a coffee shop a few blocks down the road, forced yourself to go for a walk along the pier, forced yourself to go grocery shopping.
To anyone else it wasn’t an achievement, it was just everyday life but to you it was big.
You’d been reckless back when you were a part of Station 252, an awful relationship, one that had left you a shell of yourself, that had seen you putting yourself into unnecessary situations both on and off the job. Eventually your reckless behaviour had been enough to cause a call to go wrong, people had been hurt because you weren’t focused, because your mind was so far away from the scene.
Yet they hadn’t fired you, you’d been transferred out to LA. You hadn’t spoken to anyone from the new fire house but the Captain had reached out when you got here, assuring you the job was there when you were ready to take the test that would tell you if you were stable or not to go back.
Six months in LA and you had finally felt ready to take it. You were still broken, still had to deal with the fears and the ghosts from your old life but you wanted to go back to work.
And so you did.
You passed the test, shocking even yourself when they’d given you the all clear and spent the morning getting ready, feeling like a bag of nerves as you walked into your new fire house.
You saw some of the team had gathered up the stairs, two of the men cooking whilst the others sat at the table, all five of them talking and laughing and it made you relax slightly, calmed the thunderous beating of your heart as you climbed the stairs and stood just beyond the scene.
The older of the two men cooking was first to notice you, the small furrow of his eyebrows as he looked at you was quickly replaced by a kind smile, drawing the attention of the others.
“Um, hi, can we help you?” The other man cooking asked and before you had a chance to reply the man with the kind smile answered.
“This is Y/N, right?” He asked you and you nodded, watching as he stepped around the counter and made his way over to you. “Y/N here is joining us from New York.”
“No way, that’s so cool! Why didn’t you tell us?” The man asked before turning to you. “Welcome to the 118. I’m Buck, that there is Eddie, then we have Chim and Hen and that there is our Captain, Bobby Nash.”
You smiled at everyone, giving a polite wave and was shocked by how genuine your smile was.
“Buck, watch the food, I’ll be right back.” Bobby said as he gestured for you to follow him to his office and you felt your stomach drop.
“Relax, I’m not here to pick apart your life up in New York.” Bobby said as you both sat down and you nodded, the tension not leaving your shoulders. “I am here though if you need anything. Doesn’t matter what it is, you need me, you pick up that phone and call.”
“That’s it?” You couldn’t help but ask, feeling taken aback with how seriously he’d seemed to mean his words. “No list of rules for me to stick to, no threats looming over my head of what happens if I ever spiral again?”
“You’re gonna spiral again, Y/N. One day you could be great and then the next something’s gonna hit you, it might be your old life, it might be something that triggers you on the job. When that happens, you come to me. I can’t promise I can fix it but I can promise you won’t be alone.” Bobby told you, his voice kind and soft but filled with so much conviction that you trusted him without knowing him.
“That’s it?” You asked softly in disbelief causing him to chuckle.
“That’s it. You came here for a new start, Y/N, I’m not treating you any different to how I treat the others. You’re one of us now.”
His words had your eyes stinging but you kept yourself composed and nodded, choking out a thank you that had the man grinning and gesturing for you to follow him back to the others, Bobby’s hand holding your shoulder the whole time and never straying too far as you got to know the team.
Things had been good, it had been a year since you moved to LA and six months since you’d become a part of the 118, the firehouse feeling more like home than anywhere else ever had.
Things had been good.
Then you had a call that left your hands shaking. It hadn’t even been a particularly bad call to begin with, it was a building fire but it was easy enough to get in and out of, passing civilians down to safety without trouble.
Then the building shook and your heart leapt, remembering the last time you’d been in this situation.
It was the last call before you were sent away and you hadn’t bothered securing your safety equipment properly. It was routine enough that you thought you’d be in and out but then just as you picked a child up ready to get him out, the building shook violently and you felt yourself falling.
Thankfully, despite the drop, you’d kept the kid safe, hurting yourself in the process but that didn’t matter.
It wasn’t long after that you found yourself no longer a member of the 252.
“Hey Y/N!” You heard Buck call through the radio and it snapped you back to reality, your hands gripping your safety harness so hard your knuckles were white. “Y/N, do you copy?”
Your throat was dry, you opened your mouth but couldn’t answer, the panic had already built up and worsened as the building shook again.
You knew you had to get out, so why couldn’t you move?
“Y/N?” Buck tried again, the rest of the 118 stood outside looking up at the building and Buck looked at Bobby desperately.
“I’m going in.” Bobby said when you failed to respond, watching Buck shake his head but didn’t protest when Bobby gave him a sharp look.
Bobby made his way through the building, the smoke blocking his view for the most part but he found you easy enough, you were frozen to the spot, one hand gripping your safety harness whilst the other held the wall like it was the only thing grounding you.
“Hey kid,” Bobby called and he watched as your head snapped up, your wild, panicked gaze meeting his calm one. “You’re okay, you did good. We got everyone out and nobody got hurt.”
He watched you take a moment to process his words before you nodded, not taking your eyes off of him.
“You did good but we need to leave, Y/N.” He said softly, reaching out a hand for you to grab.
You looked at Bobby’s hand, steady and still, and watched as your own finally reached for him, shaking violently, only stopping when Bobby wrapped his around yours.
“That’s my girl.” He smiled over at you and you couldn’t stop the ragged breath that left you, body on autopilot as you let Bobby lead you out, just in time for the building to crumble.
The team immediately encompassed you and despite how foggy your mind felt, despite how overwhelming it was, you couldn’t stop the warm feeling that spread through you at how much they cared.
Plus Bobby’s hand was still in yours, giving it a reassuring squeeze.
Bobby was tempted to pull you into his office once you’d all arrived back to the house but he stopped himself. This was the first time you’d faltered since being here and he wanted to see if you would come to him on your own.
It took nearly an hour but Bobby had to fight back a smile when he saw you approaching him, clearly nervous but his words from the first time you’d met had been playing in your head since you got back.
“I froze.” You said after a few minutes of sitting next to Bobby in silence.
“You froze.” Bobby agreed and you looked over at him, his eyes as kind as they always were, a steady, unshakable force that you needed.
“What if I can’t do this job anymore? What if every time a building shakes all I see is me falling, see the kid in my arms sobbing in fear?” You asked, tears stinging your eyes.
“You can do this job, Y/N.” Bobby told you and his words were so certain that you believed them too, a shuddering breath escaping you. “Everyone got out safely because you made sure they did. You froze, it happens. That’s the beauty of the 118, you freeze? It doesn’t matter, we’re all here for each other, if you can’t get out on your own, we’ll come get you.”
You let out a small sob and Bobby couldn’t stop himself from wrapping his arms around you, smiling as you buried yourself into his chest.
“I told you, you’re one of us. We’re here to you, you’re not alone anymore, Y/N.”
“I don’t deserve it.” You mumbled into his chest and Bobby sighed, running his hand up and down your back.
“Everyone on this team has done something they think they can’t atone for but they can. This team is never going to hold your actions over you, they’re gonna drag you through the tunnel to the other side, trust me I know that better than anyone.” Bobby told you softly and you looked up at him with a shaky smile.
“I’m glad I got sent here, couldn’t imagine not having you by my side.” You told him, smiling as he pulled you further into his arms and held you tightly.
“Me too, kid.” He murmured softly, not at all surprised by how much he’d meant those words, between you and Buck the father instincts he thought were long gone were being dragged up to the surface, protective of the two youngest of his team.
You’d meant it though, despite only being a part of the 118 for six months, it was hard to believe you’d gone so long without knowing Bobby. His kind, steady presence was what you depended on, the way it was so easy to talk to him, easy to trust him. You couldn’t picture a world without him anymore.
Despite all the bad things that had happened in New York, despite all the hurt and guilt and regret you carried, you were glad for it because without it you never would have met Bobby Nash and that was the biggest tragedy of them all.
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Joel Miller had come into your world and completely changed it, without thought, without ever really meaning to. It had just happened. He hadn’t even wanted to be a part of your life, it had happened completely without his permission, entirely because of your stubborn intrusion on his life.
You remembered the time before Joel, the loneliness, the fear, so untrusting of everyone you met after having survived alone for years before stumbling across the Boston Quarantine Zone. And it had just been surviving, moving from one place to the other, a knife gripped in one hand and a gun resting against your hip, jumping and flinching at every sound, fighting back against every human you met because they were worse than the monsters that roamed the earth.
Boston had been your saving grace. You’d been alone for years, the only gap in your isolation had been when a group had taken you and turned you into their prisoner but you’d escaped. You’d escaped numb and defeated, thoughts of what was the point running through your mind on an endless loop. The gun on your hip heavier each day as your fingers itched to use it.
A day later and you might have put an end to all the fighting, the…it wasn’t even loneliness anymore, it was hollowing, like everything had been scraped out from you and you were nothing more than a walking corpse.
But then you had found the Boston Quarantine Zone and the air had been taken from your lungs as they opened the gates for you. You numbly let them check you over, assessing for bites and after a long process you were sat in an apartment, sat on a bed.
It wasn’t safe but it was enough.
You’d only been in the QZ for a month or two before meeting Joel. Just because life within the walls was better than outside didn’t mean the people were nicer, though for the most part the people were human enough there were some who didn’t take too well to new faces taking up rations.
You flinched as you were slammed against a wall in a hidden alleyway, a fist rising before connecting with your face.
“You’ll leave if you know what’s good for you.” A man sneered at you, a group of three circling you and the man raised his fist again only to stop and let out a pained cry.
“You lay a hand on her again,” a new man joined, a scowl on his face as he twisted the man around and bent his arm painfully, “I’ll break every bone in your fuckin’ body.”
The group of three pleaded and the man let them go, immediately uninterested with them as he stepped closer to you. This man was more intimidating than the group of three combined and yet you couldn’t find it within you to be scared, not when he had protected you, especially considering he had no reason to.
“Y’alright?” He asked, voice slightly softer now the threat was gone and you let him tilt your chin up, watched as he winced as he looked you over.
“Had worse.” You shrugged and it was the truth, even with the sting of tears in your eyes, you’d had plenty worse outside of these walls, you could handle a punch.
It turns out that even if you could handle it, you didn’t have to, not alone anyway.
“C’mon.” The man murmured, gesturing for you to follow him and you hesitated for a moment, everything in this new world had taught you that this could only lead to something bad.
Despite that though you let yourself follow the man, let your guard fall down a little bit.
He led you into an apartment building without much conversation, let you into his apartment and told you to sit down before rooting through his freezer.
“Those guys give you much bother before?” He asked, sitting next to you and holding a packet of frozen veg to your eye, frowning as you flinched.
“Never seen them before.” You told him honestly and watched him nod.
“They come after you again, you let me know.” He didn’t even know you and yet he was ready to fight for you, it made something inside you light up, the hollowness you felt suddenly a tiny bit less empty.
“Why’d you help me? You don’t even know me.” You had to ask, people just weren’t this kind, everyone always wanted something.
The man rolled his eyes, clearly catching your way of thinking and you couldn’t help the smile that pulled at your lips.
God, when was the last time you smiled?
“Just doin’ what’s right.” He grumbled.
“True southern boy.” You laugh, watching as his eyes crinkle as a smile broke out on his face. It wasn’t a big smile, it was a barely there one and yet it somehow spread across his whole face.
“Born and raised, ma’am.” He chuckled, pulling the packet from your face.
“How’d you end up in Boston then?” You asked softly.
“Long story short, picked a direction and started walkin’. People said Boston was safe.” He shrugged as if it were that simple but you knew there was more, everyone had a story, not everyone wanted to share it. “What about you, you’re new here?”
“Was on my own for a few years outside. Headed to a few places, rumours were that they were safe, by time I got there there wasn’t much left. Eventually I found this place.” You say as if it had been that easy, like you hadn’t fought to survive everyday.
By the look on Joel’s face though you didn’t need to say it, he got it.
“I’m Y/N, by the way.” You tell him and you can’t help but smile as he repeats your name.
“Nice t’meet you, Y/N. I’m Joel.”
Joel never really got rid of you from that day on. He’d tried, god he’d tried to keep you at arms length, to brush you off but it seemed no matter what he did you wouldn’t be deterred.
He hated to admit it to himself but he liked your company, he liked having you around. He couldn’t remember, well he could and it still sent an ache from him, the last time he’d let somebody in, let somebody be a part of his life. It only ended badly, god he still remembered how Sarah felt in his arms, he still feels that stomach dropping dread when he radios Tommy only to hear nothing bad.
Letting himself care for another person was only going to end badly and yet he couldn’t make himself put an end to it.
He watched as you found yourself again, clearly you’d been through hell and back before getting to Boston but he was starting to see more and more of your personality, you stopped biting your tongue and let yourself banter back and forth with him, you let yourself share secrets with him and smiled more.
Joel liked being the one to make you smile.
“Wait, you're going outside the walls?” You asked one day, sat on Joel’s couch as you looked at him like he was crazy.
“Relax, I do it all the time.” Joel said like it was nothing and to him it wasn’t, it was a routine run but for you it seemed idiotic.
“Joel, it’s dangerous out there. There’s…there’s the infected! There’s people!” You stress and Joel smiled softly over at you, moving away from the bag he was packing and sitting next to you, smiling as you shifted closer.
“Ain’t nothing to worry about.” He insisted, watching as you shook your head. “I’ll be back this time tomorrow, nothing’s gonna happen.”
“You don’t know that. Let me come with you.” You hated the thought of going beyond the walls but this was Joel, the thought of him leaving turned your stomach cold, sure he could say he’d be back but anything could happen in twenty four hours.
“Not a chance.” Joel shut you down straight away. “You ain’t goin’ out there.”
You and Joel glared at each other for a moment longer before you sighed and pressed your side against his.
“I don’t like this.” You muttered and Joel couldn’t stop the smile that spread across his face.
“I’ll be back before you know it, darlin’.”
And didn’t that give you something to preoccupy yourself with. The whole time Joel was gone all you could do was focus on the southern drawl, the pet name he had never used before.
The hollowness you’d felt before Boston was slowly disappearing and Joel Miller calling you darling, well that was certainly one way to make you feel human again, to make you feel whole.
You stayed in Joel’s apartment whilst he was gone, the man had insisted for his own peace of mind and you’d been weak to protest. Here you were curled up in Joel’s sheets, feeling safer than ever.
When Joel got back you couldn’t stop yourself from wrapping your arms around him, head against his chest and relief spreading through you.
“Easy, I was only gone a day.” Joel chuckled warmly, still surprised by the noise despite how often you dragged it out of him, letting himself wrap you in his arms. “Told you I’d be back.”
“You’re alright?” You ask, pulling back only far enough away to look up at him and Joel smiles down at you.
“I’m alright, darlin’, promised you I’d come back.”
Years passed like that, you never got used to Joel sneaking his way out of the walls of the QZ but he always came back, always brought you something new back from his travels to make up for being gone, if only to see the bright smile that spread across your face each time.
At some point you’d moved into Joel’s apartment without meaning to, though Joel wasn’t complaining when your stuff started to mix alongside his, giving his apartment more life than it had ever had before.
Nothing was ever really spoken about between the two of you, it didn’t need to be. As far as Joel was concerned you were his, much as he resented the intrusion to begin with now he knew he needed you. He needed you to remind him he was human, you made him soft, you made him laugh, you made him a version of himself he thought he’d never be again.
And Joel was everything to you. He reminded you there was good in the world, he held you when you dreamed of the bad, he smiled sweetly and called you darling and kissed you like you were the only girl in the world and that was enough, that was everything.
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Prompt - no prompt, just a fix it fic that I wrote an hour after watching episode two
Notes - SPOILERS FOR THE LAST OF US SEASON 2, EPISODE 2
You were shivering fiercely as you rode up the mountain, seeing Ellie already up ahead dismounting her horse.
Tommy had flown past you in Jackson, only stopping when you grabbed him asking him what had gotten him so worked up, you knew the town was on high alert but this was something else.
“Joel’s missing.” He told you, worry heavy in his tone and your blood ran cold. “Ain’t respondin’ to any radio calls.”
“I’m going.” You said, already running off to the stables and ignoring Tommy’s call.
It was dangerous, these weren’t the conditions to be going outside, everything was against your odds.
You were never meant to have survived this long, wouldn’t have survived outside the safety of the QZ walls without Joel at your side. You never went outside without him, it wasn’t safe, not for you, not when your hands still shook when you held a gun, not when you flinched on supply runs when someone shot an animal, not when you froze at the sight of infected or panicked when faced with people who were bigger monsters.
But Joel was missing.
You rode as fast as the horse would go, following the trail you knew Joel would take and only diverting when you saw a group of infected, all running towards you. You practically flung the horse around, speeding up the mountain as they fled down.
Heading for Jackson.
You didn’t stop, didn’t turn towards Jackson to warn them. Between the two you’d always pick Joel. It wasn’t even a choice.
“Ellie?” You called when you got to the mountaintop, Ellie’s head snapping around, relaxing when she saw you before glaring.
“What the hell are you doing out here?” She asked, watching as you got down from your own horse and walked beside her into the cabin.
“Same thing as you I reckon, looking for Joel.” You told her and watched as she nodded, pulling her gun out and looking up at the ceiling, hearing banging noises that had you sharing a nervous look.
“You go that way, I’ll take the other stairs.” You told her, pulling your own gun out and ignoring the way your hands shook as Ellie nodded and you split up.
It didn’t take long to get upstairs but Ellie beat you there and you heard the struggle, peaked through the gap in the door and watched as they forced her to the ground but that’s not what got you.
What turned your stomach was the sight of Joel. You couldn’t see his face but he was deadly still, still in a way that had you freezing, he couldn’t be.
Joel…it was Joel, he couldn’t be.
“Get up, Joel.” Ellie’s voice had you silently gasping in relief, he was alive but barely if the way he hadn’t moved was enough to tell you anything.
Your heart ached as you listened to Ellie plead with the girl, with Joel, begging her not to kill him, begging Joel to get up. She looked younger than you’d seen her in years.
Your blood turned cold as the girl picked up what looked like half of a golf club, kneeling next to Joel and raising it, ready to kill him.
You moved before you realised what you were doing, your finger already pulling the trigger before your brain knew what was happening.
You watched the girl hit the ground and the room exploded into chaos, every weapon in the room was pointed at you and yet for the first time in all the years Joel had been teaching you to shoot, your hands were still.
Ellie scrambled up and raised her gun at the others, one of the boys went to shoot Ellie but you got there first and when the other went to shoot you Ellie had you covered until it was just your people left.
“Joel.” You breathed out, dropping the gun and falling to your knees next to him, carefully lifting his head into your lap. “Shit baby, you’re gonna be alright, it’s gonna be okay.”
Joel let out a soft grunt and tears fell from your eyes. Ellie made her way over, crawling over to Joel and curling up beside him, Joel’s hand shook violently as he reached for her, Ellie meeting him the rest of the way and entwining their hands together.
“You’re alive.” Ellie said and you weren’t sure if she was trying to convince herself or Joel. “What do we do?”
Ellie was asking you. You’d been with Ellie and Joel since the Boston QZ but in that whole time you’d never had to take charge because Joel was always there. Joel always knew what to do but now Ellie was looking up at you, looking as lost as you felt but you knew it was time to step up.
“We get him home. It’s gonna be a hell of a ride, baby, but we gotta get you back to Jackson.” You said, brushing his hair before looking out of the window, hoping Jackson was still waiting for you when you got back.
“El, go see if they’ve got any medical supplies, anything I can use to stop some bleeding.” You asked, hating to pull her away from Joel but knowing you needed to move fast.
Ellie came back with a few supplies, enough that you could put pressure on the worst of his wounds, thankful that they at least used a tourniquet on his leg as you wrapped it to try and save it from infection.
By the time you had finished Jesse had showed up much to your relief because you’d spent the whole time wondering just how you were getting Joel up and out of the cabin and onto the horse by yourself.
Jesse and you managed to get Joel set up on the horse, you riding with him and whispering soft words of assurance whilst Jesse went back inside to help Ellie grab Dina.
Ellie rode her horse as close as she could to you and Joel, her gaze flickering back to him every few seconds. The rest of the ride passed much like that, Ellie looking at Joel to calm her heartbeat, to see that he was still alive, you talking to him about everything and nothing, forcing him to stay awake as Jesse rode ahead once you got to Jackson, the gates opening for you as you got there.
Your heart clenched as you looked at the infected and the dead but you couldn’t bring yourself to care too much when you rode right up to the doctors, letting Jesse take Joel before jumping down.
“Y/N?” You heard a voice call and turned to see Tommy limping over. “Joel!? Jesus, what happened out there?”
Tommy immediately took Joel’s weight off Jesse and you, leading his brother into the doctors with ease, bypassing all the ones who had been hurt and demanding the doctor come now.
Jesse carried Dina in and laid her in one of the beds but the doctor’s focus was completely on Joel, whose eyes had fallen shut the second he was set down.
You were all ushered out of the room, forced to wait whilst the doctor tried to fix him.
Now that you were home it was like everything had hit you at once, your knees buckled but Tommy caught you, standing by like he was expecting it, and you broke down in his arms, sobbing until you couldn’t breathe.
Ellie watched from her seat on the floor, tears silently falling down her face. She couldn’t get the image of Joel out of her head, lying there bloody and beaten, trying to get up despite how hurt he was because she asked him to.
“What the hell happened, darlin’?” Tommy asked, holding you against him.
“She was gonna kill him.” You choked out, struggling to catch your breath. “She beat him bloody and she was gonna kill him. I had t’kill her, Tommy, I couldn’t let her take him away from me.”
Ellie closed her eyes as she listened to you. Since Boston she had watched your relationship with Joel blossom. Sure you’d known each other for years inside the QZ, apparently close enough that you demanded to come when you realised Joel was leaving but you weren’t together then. Joel was still too closed off, too guarded back then. But she’d watched as he softened and you fell, she watched him fall in love with you and she watched as you broke down every wall within him even when he tried to fight it.
She smiled as she remembered you two finally getting together, only once you were safely in Jackson, living together like you were already a couple and nothing more changing after it was official.
Joel had kissed you one day when you were arguing. Neither of you could even remember what the fight had been about, only that you had gone to walk away and Joel had pulled you back, dragging you into a breathless kiss and that had been it.
You couldn’t lose him.
It was an agonising few hours waiting for the doctor. You’d moved from Tommy’s arms to the floor, sitting next to Ellie and pulling her into you, letting the girl cling to you and resting your head against hers.
Things between you and Ellie had been tense. She never blamed you for anything in Salt Lake City but she had been so angry with Joel that things had become strained between the two of you.
None of that mattered now though, you held each other, cried together, comforted each other because that’s what families did.
The doctor came out and you and Ellie scrambled to your feet, Tommy’s hand on your shoulder as you all waited, feeling like you couldn’t breathe until you heard the verdict.
“He’s going to be fine.” The doctor said and more sobs escaped you, leaning into Tommy’s side to keep yourself up right. “He won’t be able to walk for a while, his leg is broken, he’s got some broken ribs, he’s bruised and cut up but he’s going to be fine.”
That’s all you needed to know, you didn’t care about the rest, you could deal with that later because there was going to be a later.
Joel was okay.
Joel was alive.
You’d saved him.
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Prompt - ‘'There is a difference between kissing someone because they are attractive and kissing someone because words no longer accurately express your feelings for the person.'
Notes - Requests are open again, please feel free to send a request in!!
You and Ellie had been the bane of each other’s lives since you’d arrived in Jackson, the pair of you just couldn’t figure out how to get on. Despite the fact that you shared a friendship group you were always at each other’s throats, the first to point out when the other did something wrong, the first to argue against the other one's idea even if secretly you agreed with what their idea was.
You were each other’s worst nightmare and yet you were the first to defend each other when the other wasn’t around, if somebody else started to turn on the other then you’d stand up for each other.
But put the two of you together, you just couldn’t help yourselves.
“It’s a stupid plan.” You said dryly after listening to Ellie propose a plan for the next patrol.
“Fuck you. You’re only saying that because it’s my plan!” Ellie protested and you couldn’t stop the grin that spread across your face because you both knew she was right, if anyone else had said it you’d have been on board.
“I’m saying it because it’s a stupid plan.” You insisted, not backing down, not when it meant Ellie’s nostrils flared as she glared at you.
You got a thrill from riling the other girl up. Despite what people thought you didn’t actually hate her, sure you didn’t know how to be around her without fighting but you didn’t hate her. In fact you loved watching her get worked up, hoping one day she’d finally shut you up in a way that didn’t involve words but you doubted that day would ever come.
Without meaning to you’d fell for her, you’d fell for the way she glared you down, the way she met you word for word when you were arguing, you fell for the way she told her stupid jokes to the others and laughed freely, a bright smile across her face. You’d fallen for the way she played guitar, your house just across from hers and Joel’s and you’d watch her sit on the porch softly strumming the instrument. You’d fallen for the way she jeopardised patrols just to look for comic books and the way she swore like a sailor.
You’d fallen for her, completely and utterly fallen in love and she had no idea.
“We’re doing it my way.” Ellie said with finality and you grinned over at her causing her to roll her eyes at you but you didn’t say anything else, letting her have her victory.
The day of the patrol came and you were in the stables getting the horses ready an hour early. It hadn’t taken much convincing for Tommy to let you work in the stables, you’d already spent most of your free time there anyway, knew the routine better than anyone.
When the barn door opened you poked your head out of one of the horses stalls, just finishing saddling her up, grinning to yourself as you watched Ellie walk in, not yet noticing you as she stopped to pet one of the younger horses.
It was times like this that reminded you of your feelings for her, the times were she didn’t realise anybody was watching her. What she didn’t know though was that your gaze always found her, no matter how crowded the room, no matter the occasion, your first thought when walking into a room was to look for Ellie.
She looked younger now, softer, as she petted the horse, a gentle smile on her face and you felt yourself smiling with her, letting yourself enjoy the moment a second longer before breaking the spell, grinning as she jumped at the sound of your voice.
“Come to tell me you’re changing your stupid plan?” You asked and Ellie immediately turned to you, a curse falling from her lips as she scowled at you.
“Just get me a horse.” She grumbled, moving further into the barn and you smiled brightly at her, eyes lighting up from just being near her. “Quicker we get this over with, quicker I can rub it in your face that it's a good plan.”
Your smile widened and you watched as Ellie’s gaze lingered on your lips for a moment before she looked away.
She always looked away.
“Fucking shit plan is what it is.” You laughed before nodding over to the end stall. “Your horse is all ready, sweetheart.”
Ellie just glared at you but you swore you saw her lips twitch up, her shoulders losing some of the tension as she brushed past you and ran her hand along the horse, opening her mouth to say something but was stopped by the others coming in, ready to saddle up and get started.
The patrol started out like any other, you and Ellie bickering back and forth, you finding every weak point in her plan, not that there were many but you made a few up just to get on her nerves, anything to keep her gaze on you.
Eventually you got to the town you were looking for, hoping there were some supplies laying around somewhere, listening as Ellie separated people into groups of two to explore the large town.
“Much as I hate it, Y/N, you’re with me.” Ellie finally said and you grinned at her.
Nobody could deny that despite your nasty words, despite the fights and arguments and insults thrown, you and Ellie worked pretty damn well as a team. When it came down to it you could read each other well enough that you didn’t need words, moving like it was a dance you didn’t remember learning the choreography to.
You rode a little further into town before stopping to tie the horses to a post, having parted ways with the group leaving only you and Ellie. You let the other girl lead, watching as she rolled her eyes as you gestured for her to go first, letting her guide you into the first building.
“A whole lot of nothing.” You mumbled to yourself, kicking a bottle and watching as Ellie’s head shot over to you, glaring daggers as the bottle smashed.
“Are you fucking stupid?” She snapped in a whispered voice, the knife she was fiddling with shifting as she prepared herself for an infected to come from nowhere.
“God, relax would you? There’s nothing here.” You told her, rolling your eyes and moving out of the first building, watching her shake head in disbelief as she followed you out, shoving past you and into the next.
“How the hell are you still alive?” She asked, her voice still hushed as she moved slowly into the building.
“Sheer dumb luck.” You shrugged and it was true, by all accounts you should never have survived this long and yet here you were still kicking and breathing, beating all the odds.
“Right about the dumb part.” Ellie muttered and you couldn’t help but smile at her back, the words sounded almost fond. “Just…try not to get yourself killed, yeah?”
“Careful Ellie, people might think you care about me.” You laughed but your voice was softer than usual causing Ellie to look back at you for a moment before she turned away.
“Just need you to stay alive to admit my plan was good.” She finally said and your smile widened, god you loved her.
You cleared about five buildings, coming up with a decent supply of things before you pushed into the next one, going ahead of Ellie causing her to grumble but she didn’t stop you.
There was less in this building but you went to check the back room anyway, opening the door and freezing when you heard the tell-tale noise of an infected, its head snapping over in your direction and you felt your blood run cold.
It was quick, quicker than you but somehow Ellie was faster. Just as it reached you Ellie shoved you back and put herself between you and the infected, crying out as it sunk its teeth into her and you watched in horror before snapping into action, scrambling to your feet and sinking the knife into its head several times before it went still on top of Ellie.
“No, no, no,” You choked out, pushing the thing off of Ellie and forcing her to sit up, holding her in your arms. “Shit, no, what the f…why would you do that?”
You pulled Ellie’s shirt out of the way, tears filling your eyes as you saw the bite mark on her shoulder, a sob escaping you as you realised she’d been bitten because of you, she had taken a bite for you.
“Ellie.” You sobbed out, watching as she shifted, sitting up properly to face you, her hand cupping the back of your neck, thumb resting along your jaw as she forced you to look at her.
“I’m okay.” She assured you, her voice breathless as she spoke but you just shook your head.
“You got bit.” You choked out, sniffing and letting out a harsh breath, “Ellie you should’ve let it get me.”
“Like hell I was letting it get you.” She said in disbelief, as if the thought never occurred to her, like she’d always take the option of getting bit herself.
“El…” You breathe out, looking at her with so much grief and regret but Ellie snapped you out of it, dragging your head down to rest on her forehead.
“I’m immune.” She finally told you, her eyes falling shut as she spoke whilst yours widened in disbelief, making a move to pull back but she tightened her grip on you and kept you pressed against her. “It won’t turn me, Y/N/N. I’m immune.”
You couldn’t believe her words, shocked to hear them but relief flooded through your whole body, you felt yourself relax as more sobs escaped you, this time at the fact that you weren’t going to lose her before you had the chance to tell her how you felt.
Before this you never thought you’d admit it out loud, you’d grown comfortable inside the walls of Jackson, forgot how dangerous the world really was, how terrifying it was, how quickly it could all be ripped out from under you.
“Might be immune to a bite but you’re not immune from being ripped to shreds.” You said softly, voice shaky as you finally calmed yourself down a little bit.
“Wasn’t gonna let it get you.” Ellie told you like it was that simple, looking at you so earnestly as her thumb moved to caress your check, wiping away the tears even as more replaced them. “Like hell I could lose you, might be a pain in the ass but you’re mine.”
You looked at her in disbelief, there were no words, you couldn’t force any out if you tried. And you did try, your mouth opened and closed but nothing came out.
Ellie Williams had just admitted, in her own way, that she liked you, that she cared so deeply about you. You’d known the second she stood between you and an infected but hearing the words, hearing her claim you as her own, you couldn’t speak.
You couldn’t bring yourself to do anything but pull her in for a kiss, the type of kiss where words weren’t enough to say what needed saying, the kind of kiss that left you breathless, the kind of kiss that said everything she needed to know.
Your hands tangled in her hair and Ellie cupped your face, pulling you impossibly closer as you put years of pent up longing into the kiss, letting her take control as you melted against her, conveying everything you couldn’t say with words into the kiss.
By the time the two of you pulled away your lips were swollen and your tears had long dried up. Ellie rested her forehead back against yours and held you close, not letting an inch of space between the two of you.
“Guess I can admit it was a pretty good plan.” You said softly, a grin on your face as you watched her roll her eyes. “Though I can definitely live without you getting bit again.”
“Always find something wrong, don’t you?” She grumbled, a smile on her lips as she pulled you into another kiss.
No words were needed, not when Ellie kissed you so possessively, so full of love and need, kissed you like she was hungry for only you and you were content to let her hold you there for as long as the two of you needed.
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Notes - I don't even know if this fandom is still alive but I'm rewatching ouat so have this fic
The day he first saw her, Ms Emma Swan in Storybrooke, Gold was certain all the air had been punched out of his lungs. He’d played it off, of course, not letting it show just how impactful her sudden appearance was to him.
It wasn’t until he was alone, safely inside his shop, hidden away in the back room that he let his facade break. A trembling hand came up to his mouth, he had waited so long for this, for their saviour to come.
It was selfish really. He knew it was but he didn’t care, Gold would never care of such things like selfishness. Especially not when it came to you.
Twenty eight long years had passed since he had held you, since he had felt your lips against his, since he had argued with you over nothing and everything, since he had held you tight.
In another world you had been the one for him. The only one who looked beyond the monster, the legend of the Dark One, who saw more than a coward, more than a creature. You had only ever seen him, all the different parts of him, the parts that he loved and showed off and the parts that he loathed and tried to destroy, hide away from everyone.
It had been so long.
Now he was cursed to this life, to remember every detail of his love whilst she remained none the wiser.
He was forced to steal glimpses, to watch as you eyed him with something he could never place, not mistrust, hell you might have been the only person in town to not fear him. No, you looked at him with something closer to curiosity. How many times had you stopped in his shop, Gold’s heart aching as you questioned all the relics and artefacts in there, aching as you laughed and beamed at his stories. How many times had he longed to tell you of your life, to pull you into his arms and hope to hell true love’s kiss worked.
He never did it though. Instead he endured the ache in the heart most people believed he didn’t have. He let himself forget the tragedy for just a moment, let himself smile softly as your own smile lit up his dark shop, he indulged your questions and flourished his tales just to hear your laugh, he let himself remember what it was like to be this version of himself, no harsh words, no scathing remarks, even when the two of you argued, he let his sharp edges soften for you.
Months had passed since Emma had arrived in Storybrooke and things had changed. Gold knew people had started remembering, just snippets of a life beyond their reach but it was enough, enough to give the man something he thought no longer existed.
Hope.
For the first time in a very long time Rumplestiltskin had hope.
He never knew when you were going to waltz into his shop, it was usually a daily occurrence but never a set time, though it was rare the bell alerted him that anyone was coming to see him. So whenever the soft ringing went off, Gold couldn’t stop his heart from skipping a beat, something he cursed himself for but only half heartedly.
“Gold!” You called into the shop, he could hear the bright smile in your voice before he even turned around.
“Hello, my dear.” Gold murmured softly, unable to stop the smile that pulled at his lips.
You were different in this world but you had managed to keep the very things that made you you. You were still too curious for your own good, often following danger without thinking about it. So overwhelmingly positive and optimistic, such a stark contrast to that man that loved you. At first he had found it sickening and then one day he found he couldn’t live without it.
You were already wandering around his shop, fingers dancing over the trinkets, chatting away before you paused.
Gold heard your sharp intake of breath, watched as your eyebrows knitted together before your eyes scrunched shut.
“Are you alright, dearie?” He asked, stepping out from behind the counter and pausing when your head shot around to look at him, eyes watery with unshed tears.
“What’s this one?” You asked the old familiar question softly, fingers closed around one of the many items in his shop.
Gold frowned as he stepped closer, closing the space between the two of you and taking your hand in his, watching at how you seemed to become breathless with the contact.
He let himself enjoy the contact as he gently opened your fingers and looked down, his hand holding yours and his own breath knocked out of him as he looked down at the object in your hand.
It was a bracelet, one made of gold spun from straw. He remembered it well, remembered taking the time to sit and craft the bracelet, a golden heart resting in the middle. He remembered how nervous he had been to give you the gift, a strange feeling for him and yet one that was not needed, not when you opened it and your smile softened as you traced the gold, looking up at Rumple with watery eyes much like you were now, pulling him into a soft kiss and murmuring how it was the most precious thing anyone had ever given you.
“It’s a bracelet, dear.” Gold told you softly, his own voice sounding far away, even as his lips tilted into a smirk.
“You know what I mean, Gold.” You laugh, the sound light but half hearted. “Everything in here has a story.”
“Right it does and that bracelet is no different. In fact that bracelet is a symbol of the purest love. Each detail hand crafted for the man’s beloved.” Gold explained, keeping his voice barely above a whisper.
You looked away from Gold, tracing the bracelet again and frowning down at it like it was a puzzle you couldn’t solve.
“It’s mine.” You murmured, eyebrows drawing further together.
Gold felt his heart pounding against his chest, praying to any force that would listen that you would remember, that this is what you needed to break the curse on you. He looked at you, desperately waiting, hoping that when you looked up again you’d truly recognise the man before you.
Your heart was racing as your eyes fell shut. Memories assaulted your mind, a man, Mr Gold, except it wasn’t Mr Gold, handed you a green box, you pulled the bracelet out and pulled him close, another memory of the same man, arguing back and forth with you though despite the words there was a smile on both your faces.
Memory after memory came to you until it was all too much and you gasped for air, reaching out and clutching the man before you, finally looking up at him, the tears that had been stinging your eyes finally pouring over and falling down your cheeks.
“Rumple,” You breathe out and Rumple laughs, he laughs in complete disbelief at hearing his name fall from your lips, forgetting what his true name had sounded like when you spoke it. “Rumple!”
You choked on a sob, throwing yourself at the man who caught you with ease, your arms around his neck as you buried your face in his chest. Rumple held you back just as tightly, like he was afraid you’d forget everything if he let go, his own eyes watery as he pressed his face against your hair.
Oh how long had he dreamed for this moment.
“My love.” He murmured into your hair, watching as you pulled away, only far enough back to cup his cheeks, thumb brushing along his cheekbone as you brought your foreheads together.
“I remember.” You told him softly, another sob leaving you. “Rumple, how could I ever forget you?”
“I thought you’d never remember.” He admitted, his arms holding you tight. “I’ve missed you
so much.”
“I can’t imagine…” You trailed off, realising he had spent years remembering everything, years forced to watch you come to him every day and not remember.
“None of that matters, dear.” Rumple assured, finally closing the distance between the two of you, his lips pressed against yours, desperate and full of longing, it had been nearly three decades since he had felt your lips against his and it took his breath away.
You kissed him back, fingers tangling in his hair, pulling him impossibly closer and feeling more and more memories come to light. You kissed Rumple, pouring years and years worth of love into the kiss, knowing there was so much lost time to make up for.
You were both breathless by the time you pulled away, foreheads resting against each other as you just held one another. Neither of you were ready to move away, not just yet, not until you knew it was real, knew it was permanent.
The thought of forgetting Rumple again, your hands tightened around his suit jacket just at the thought and he placed a soft kiss against your forehead, keeping his lips there for a long while.
Eventually the two of you did pull away, Rumple took the gold bracelet off you and gently fastened it onto your wrist, staring down at it with a mix of emotions on his face.
“Took you long enough to find the bloody thing.” He finally muttered, causing a grin to spread across your face. “Picked up every other damn thing in this shop before you picked the one thing that belongs to you.”
You laughed, bright and loud, the sound filling his dark shop and Rumple couldn’t help but smile before drawing you into another breathtaking kiss, the sound something he had missed dearly but now he had forever to hear it. It sounded like a pretty good deal to him.
Thank you for reading!
Rumplestiltskin Taglist /
New character - Rumple and other ouat characters are now on my form so feel free to add yourself to the taglist - link is in bio!
Prompt - ‘I looked at him as a friend until I realised I loved him.’
Notes - Requests are open again, please feel free to send a request in!!
It was an easy thing to do, falling in love with Peter Parker. It was easy and it came so naturally that you didn’t even realise it had happened. One day he was the random kid your dad had brought home, the random kid who was suddenly always in the lab, working alongside you and Tony or working near you on his own things and then suddenly he was the boy you were spending every weekend with, making plans that didn’t involve the lab, walking the streets of New York together, laughing until your ribs ached and finding that one day you knew Peter Parker like the back of your hand.
Falling in love with him was the easiest thing you had ever done.
It was a while before you even realised you were in love, for so long you had been content to be his friend, to have him at your side in the only way you thought you could. It was your dad that pointed out your feelings, one night during a quiet moment in the lab.
Neither of you were working on any one project in particular that night, instead you both sat on the old beat up couch, take out from hours before sat discarded on the table. The silence had settled between you and it was nice, up until Tony decided to break the silence, sending your mind into overdrive, thinking of every moment you and Peter had had together since you’d been introduced.
“You know you can tell me that you and Pete are dating.” Tony said, his voice soft to match the peacefulness between you.
Your eyebrows knitted together in confusion, wondering how your dad had come to that conclusion before realisation hit you.
You liked Peter.
Of course you did. The strangest part of this was that you were only just realising it now, you’d known Peter for a year now, you spent pretty much all of your free time with the boy and yet you hadn’t realised it.
You hadn't realised that when you were having a bad day it was Peter you wanted, it was Peter you called and it was Peter who would swing over without hesitation to make sure you were ok. Whenever you got good news it was Peter you were excited to tell. Whenever a new movie came out or you heard of a new place to eat at, it was Peter you invited. When you laughed until tears filled your eyes it was because of Peter, when you smiled brightly and felt so much love in your heart it was because of Peter.
It was always Peter.
How had you not realised it?
“Oh my god, kid.” Tony laughed, pulling you into him and you let yourself sink against him, laughing with him in disbelief. “You didn’t know.”
“I didn’t know.” You agreed with another huff of laughter, the two of you sitting there just laughing.
“You gonna tell him?” Tony murmured after more silence passed and you let yourself think it over.
Now that you realised that you liked Peter, you also realised that Peter liked you too. Now that you let yourself comb through the memories in a new light, it was laughable that you had never realised it before.
“Yeah.” You told him softly, knowing that your relationship with Peter wouldn’t change much, the two of you had practically been together for so long now.
And you had been right. Once everything was out in the open, once the two of you realised you were idiots, nothing changed, except now you knew what Peter’s lips felt like against yours and how it felt to be held by him.
You still remembered the conversation, still remember how nervous Peter had seemed.
“Can we talk?” You asked him as you walked back towards the tower, Peter’s head shooting over to you, eyes wide.
“Is, um, yeah, of course, is everything okay?” Peter stammered out and you smiled at him, you couldn’t have stopped yourself from smiling if you tried, wondering how you hadn’t managed to see your feelings before.
“I like you.” You said easily, not feeling any anxiety around the words, “I really, really like you. Being with you is the best part of my day, any day that we don’t talk…it’s just not a good day. I like you, Peter.”
You watched Peter carefully for a reaction, smiling at the ways his eyes widened and he stopped in his tracks, disbelief written across his face as he stared at you, his mouth opening and closing.
“Y/N,” He breathed out, seemingly at a loss before he shook his head. “You like me?”
“Yeah.” You laughed softly, watching his look of disbelief morph into a wide, blinding smile.
“You like me.” He breathed out, this time in relief, stepping closer to you and you let him reach out and pull you close, let him rest your foreheads together. “You like me.”
“I’m really hoping you’re going to say you like me back at some point.” You laugh and he joins in, his laugh slightly breathless.
“Yeah, yeah, of course I like you, I’ve liked you for…God, I’ve liked you for so long.” He told you and now it was your turn to look at him in disbelief. “I just didn’t think you’d like me.”
The next year was spent practically joined at the hip. You spent nights sleeping at May’s, the woman getting a soft look on her face, smiling warmly whenever she saw the two of you together, watching the way Peter dotted on you, watching the way Peter lit up whenever you were so much as mentioned. On the nights you weren’t at May’s you were at the tower or the compound, after a talk between Peter and Tony had settled Peter’s nerves, realising that the man loved the fact you and Peter had fallen in love, as if there had ever been a chance that Tony was going to send Peter away and forbid the two of you from being together.
“And we’re going on a field trip to MOMA tomorrow, me and Ned are so excited!” You smiled warmly, against Peter’s chest, the two of you tangled up on your bed in the tower as you listened to Peter ramble on about his trip, feeling more content than you ever had.
Peter’s hands combed through your hair and you cuddled further into him, your palm resting on his stomach before you turned your head to face him.
“I love you.” You murmured, the words leaving your lips for the first time, needing to say them.
You had stressed over those three little words, convinced yourself you couldn’t just say them on any random day, it had to be special. It was only now, laying here in the quiet of the night that you realised this was special, how you felt now, you’d never felt before, the love you felt for him was special enough that it should be said.
Peter got the same look on his face that he had when you told him you liked him, his eyes going comically wide, his mouth parting in disbelief before a smile stretched across his face. He shifted the two of you so he could cup your face softly, bringing your foreheads together and brushing your cheekbone with his thumb.
“I love you too.” He grinned, voice full of excitement and warmth. “God, I love you so much.”
The two of you spent the rest of the night, cuddled close together, trading soft kisses and whispered confessions.
The next morning Peter had cupped your cheek and pulled you in for a kiss and then another one and another one until FRIDAY interrupted, telling him he’d be late if he didn’t leave soon and he grinned down at you, still laying in bed, and kissed you once more.
“I’ll meet you later?” Peter asked as he picked up his backpack and you nodded at him, smiling brightly at him. “I love you!”
“I love you too, have fun!”
Peter gave you one last bright smile before he left the room and you let your head fall back against the pillow, smiling up at the ceiling, the warm feeling in your chest, heavy with love, feeling like it would never go away.
It did though.
That warm feeling of love was ripped from your chest when an alert came through whilst you were sitting in the lab with your dad. You watched as he stepped closer, pressing a kiss on your head before suiting up and heading out, leaving you alone with FRIDAY pulling up multiple live feeds of what was happening.
It was nerve wracking enough every time you had to watch your dad flying around in the Iron Man suit, the anxiety gripping you. You thought that feeling couldn’t get worse, the feeling of terror and dread, wondering if today was the day he didn’t come home. It was overwhelming and it never got easier.
Yet somehow it paled in comparison to watching Spider-Man swing onto the scene, your dad and your boyfriend fighting together and you felt like you'd been dunked in cold water, felt like the rug had been swept out from under your feet. You couldn’t catch your breath.
“What is he doing there?” You asked the empty room, FRIDAY staying silent until she had something to add.
“Miss Stark.” The AI said as softly as she could and you flinched violently. “Mr Parker is currently 43,000 feet in the air and climbing.”
“What?” You exclaim, hands shaking before you grip the metal table top. “Patch me through to him!”
“Y/N!” Peter said breathlessly and your heart was hammering against your chest.
“Pete…” You breathed out, voice breaking around the word. “What are you doing?”
“I think I’m going to space.” He said, his own voice trembling before he took a breath and you didn’t need to see him to know he was putting on a mask, making himself seem braver than he was, making himself be Spider-Man and not Peter Parker. “It’s going to be ok, whatever happens, I'll be back soon.”
“Peter, please. I love you” You begged, the words heavy with fear and Peter forced his voice to stay steady despite how scared he was, despite the fact he felt like he couldn’t breathe.
“I love yo-” Peter started but he never got the chance to finish his words, the connection cutting out and you cried, you cried and begged FRIDAY to track him, to get the connection back.
“Miss Stark, I am sorry but the connection has been lost.”
“FRIDAY, where is he? Where’s my dad?” You asked, a sinking feeling in your chest, feeling like your whole world had just been ripped from you.
“Mr Stark’s signal was lost moments after Mr Parker’s.” FRIDAY said as apologetically as she could.
You sobbed, you sobbed and screamed and threw everything off the table, the lab thrashed by the end of the day, leaving you to sit alone to cry in the mess.
It didn’t get any better. Weeks passed, half the world disappeared and you felt empty. You hadn’t slept since it happened, not until your body physically couldn’t stand to be awake and forced you into a fitful sleep, tossing and turning and waking up with two names on your lips each time.
They were both gone, they’d gone and they hadn’t come back.
They were gone and you were still here and you tried. You forced yourself into the workshop, though the first day you were consumed by grief and memories of working with your dad and Peter but you forced yourself to figure something out.
You weren’t entirely sure what you were figuring out but you spent weeks in the lab, the dark circles under your eyes looked like you’d been punched, you hadn’t eaten properly since that day.
You hated that you were still here.
You were still here and they were gone.
You were at the compound when Rhodey came in to get you, having forced you out of the tower and in with the remaining avengers. His eyes were watery and he couldn’t say anything, his mouth opened but no words came out.
“What is it?” You asked him but he shook his head and could only gesture for you to follow him.
So you did. You forced your aching body up, forced yourself to follow Rhodey out into the cool, night air, flinching slightly as you did. You felt numb to everything, numb to the touch on your shoulder from Steve, numb to Pepper’s soft gaze.
Numb to the ship landing in front of you.
It wasn’t until Rhodey nudged you, forcing you to look up that you felt something for the first time in weeks.
You looked up, watching as a frail looking Tony Stark stepped off the ship and you couldn’t breath, you couldn’t get any air to your lungs, could only stare at him, taking a step closer to him before he spoke, looking at Steve as he did.
“Couldn’t stop him.” He said as Steve helped him down the stairs of the ship. “I lost the kid.”
Your whole world stopped again, your knees buckling as you stepped closer to your dad, before they gave up, Tony just about catching you in his weak arms with Steve’s help, the super soldier taking most of your weight as you sobbed, heart wrenching, painful sobs that had everyone around you tearing up.
“No, no, please.” You begged nobody in particular, feeling Tony wrap his arms around you, his hand holding your head to his chest as you cried and he cried silently with you.
You had your dad back, something you thought would never happen, you thought he was gone forever but he was here and you were flooded with relief but battling that relief for your dad was grief. The grief wrecked you, it wiped you out, it consumed you in a way you had never felt before.
Before you could hope. It was the smallest bit of hope but you could hope, you hadn’t seen him turn to dust so maybe, maybe he was ok but now you knew, you knew for certain he was gone.
He was gone and he wasn’t coming back.
It wasn’t fair, you had only had two years with him, two beautiful, love filled years but it wasn’t fair. You were supposed to have years, you were supposed to have forever.
You would have to miss him for longer than you had ever known him.
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Prompt - ‘Kindness is a gift that costs nothing but means everything.’
It didn’t matter that you had gone through a suffering no person should ever experience. It didn’t matter that your world was shrouded in pain and suffering, in despair and loss, in hurt and hatred. It didn’t matter that you had never really known love, who knows maybe you had once upon a time, long ago but that wasn’t a time you could remember. You refused to give into that suffering, that hurt and that anger. It would have been easy to sink into it, the darkness a welcome relief from the fight you fought everyday to keep yourself afloat but just because it was easy didn’t mean it was worth it. You had nobody in your corner, nobody to back you, nobody to be proud of you but that didn’t matter, you were proud enough that you had managed to hold onto the broken fragments of your mind.
When you had met him you were shaking, the aftermath of the torture still visible across your body. Nobody had ever smiled at you, not that you could remember. He didn’t smile at first, his face was hidden, shielded away behind the metal face plate but then the suit opened and a man stepped out.
He was just a man, there was nothing overly breathtaking about him. He was just a man who looked like he hadn’t slept for a while, who’s hair was a mess and who’s chest seemed to glow under his shirt.
He was just a man.
And yet somehow, when he crouched down to meet your eyes, when he gave you the kindest smile you had ever seen, he was so much more than just a man. He was hope, he was a promise of the future, a promise that things would get better. This man was what you had been wishing for for years and years, a miracle that you deserved after the suffering and torment you had been forced to live with.
“Hi there.” The man said softly, his kind smile still firmly in place as he looked over you, the wires still connected to your temples, the cuffs holding your wrists into place, he took it all in before looking back at you, looking you in the eyes.
Nobody looked you in the eyes, they spoke at you, barked orders at you but never talked to you, never looked you in the eyes like you were an equal.
“Hi.” You answer, voice croaky from a combination of screaming and not having spoken for a very long time. Your words did not matter, you were a weapon, weapons didn’t talk.
“How about we get you out of here, huh?” The man asked, moving with deliberate movements, watching as you tracked his hands, relaxing as they freed you from the cuffs and wincing as the pads were pulled off your temples. “I’m Tony, by the way.”
“Tony.” You repeated, a soft smile pulling at your lips, cracking the dry skin because when was the last time you had smiled? The action felt unfamiliar and yet it felt right.
“C’mon, let’s get you someplace safe.” Tony smiled, bundling you in his arms and giving you a moment to tense and relax before he moved, the suit folding itself into a briefcase that Tony picked up before he carried you through the halls of the base, waiting until you were safely in the jet before pressing a button and you could only watch as the base blew up, a sense of relief flooding through you and you turned to look at Tony with so much appreciate written on your face.
“They can’t hurt you anymore, kid.” Tony assured you, that kind smile still on his face and for some reason you believed him.
You had no reason to, you didn’t know the man. For all you knew this could be another one of their tests, making sure your forced loyalties were still in place, ensuring their brainwashing methods hadn’t failed and yet somehow you knew that that wasn’t what this was.
All because the man had smiled at you.
He had shown you kindness that had been absent from your life for as long as you could remember.
“You’re a hard girl to track down, you know that?” Tony broke the silence that had settled between you two as the jet flew to wherever Tony had programmed.
You looked over at the man with knitted eyebrows wondering what he could possibly mean.
“You've been showing up on the radar more and more lately.” Tony continued, smiling softly still. “I watched the videos, you’re a damn good fighter but there was something about you. Figured it out after a while too when I realised who you were working for, they brainwashed you, right?”
“Yeah.” You breathed out, voice still croaky as you spoke. “They took my memories, wanted to fight them but…”
“You couldn’t fight against their programming.” Tony nodded understandingly and your head and your heart ached at the thought of somebody figuring you out, of being sympathetic towards you, of understanding that you didn’t want to hurt anybody, you didn’t want to do as they ordered.
You felt your eyes fill up with tears and Tony felt for you, he’d been tracking you for months now, monitoring you, watching every bit of footage he could get his hands on and going through your files. You had been their weapon for years now, being taken when you were only a child and experimented on until you were nothing more than an empty shell taking orders. He had to give you credit though, you had a long list of rebellions on your record, fighting back for longer than Tony thought possible.
He was intrigued by you. Your intelligence was extraordinary, suppressed by their brainwashing but still there according to the files. You were quick, sharp and yet looking at you now it was hard to see that cold, detached weapon. In front of him was a young woman who seemed tired, who seemed to want to melt into his kindness, who seemed soft and trusting despite what life had thrown at her.
He felt protective, he didn’t even know you and he already knew that he’d never let you go back to that place again. If they wanted you it would be over his dead body.
Tony’s movements were slow and deliberate again as he took your hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze and suddenly you were crying. The compassion and kindness seemingly too much for you to handle anymore, the realisation that you were free hitting you like a train. You sobbed and let yourself be pulled into a kind embrace, the arms of the man you didn’t know but seemed to trust too easily encompassing you, holding you tight, letting you hold him like he was your only lifeline, like if you let him go you’d suddenly shoot up and be alone in your cell again.
But when you finally calmed down and opened your eyes, there was no cell. Just kind eyes looking at you, no expectations, no orders, just kindness, allowing you to recenter yourself.
Taking a shuddering breath you let the man wipe your tears and didn’t move away from him, allowing yourself to feel a human embrace for the first time, a touch of softness compared to the harsh ones you were used to.
“You’re safe, kid. I promise, you’ll never go back to that place.” Tony promised and despite the softness of his tone, there was such conviction in the words that you had no other choice than to believe him.
The jet hummed around you and for the first time in forever you felt safe enough to close your eyes in the presence of somebody else, allowed your weight to rest on the man who had rescued you despite not knowing you, trusted that he would keep you safe as you were lulled into a dreamless sleep, the man holding you tight as you drifted off with a small smile on your face.
Prompt - ‘In another life, I would have really liked just doing laundry and taxes with you.’
Bucky Barnes was nothing if not a man who felt too much. He’d fight fiercely for those he loved, he’d make an idiot of himself to get the attention of the woman he loved. He let himself get knocked around if it meant he could catch a glimpse of her scowl that he’d always manage to turn into a smile.
“Seriously, Barnes?” You groan as you walk into the medical tent, seeing the familiar sight of James Barnes on one of your beds.
“It wasn’t my fault this time!” He lied, watching as you shook your head but there was a fondness to it.
Bucky could read you like his most favourite book at this point. You’d been appointed to 107th to join their medical team and it didn’t take long to capture the attention of the Sergeant. He had fallen for you in that first meeting, watching you boss around men twice the size of you, putting them into place without fear, putting him in his place when he tried to play off a pair of broken ribs as nothing.
Since then Bucky had done anything to be around you, he’d had his nose nearly broken, he’d fractured his wrist, he’d faked more stomach bugs than he could count. You didn’t buy any of them, you never did and yet you still let him take up one of the beds in the medical tent for hours on end.
“We both know that’s bullshit.” You called him out and he didn’t even try and look guilty anymore, instead he shot you a bright grin and shrugged in a what can you do way causing you to roll your eyes though there was no heat in the gesture. “What is it this time?”
His smile widened impossibly as he lifted his shirt up, noticing the way your eyes took in the sight appreciatively before they widened at the cut across his torso, a blood soaked rag falling down as he lifted his shirt.
“You’re a real piece of work, Barnes, you know that?” You asked, starting to gather your supplies before sitting next to Bucky, the grin still firmly in place, slightly more smug now that he’d seen you take him in.
“Don’t deny it, doll, you love me patching me up.” Bucky said confidently, knowing that you could have demanded one of the other nurses deal with him if you really didn’t like him.
“There’s better ways to get my attention, no need to go get yourself all cut up on my behalf.” You told him, watching as his eyes widened slightly and a smirk pulled at his lips. “Ready?”
“For you, doll, always.” He smirked and you groaned again causing him to laugh, though it was quickly silenced as you pushed the needle through his skin, slowly patching up the wound and letting Bucky fill the silence, fighting back a blush as he spoke.
“There’s my most favourite nurse!” Bucky called as he stumbled into the med tent, leaning heavily against another soldier, his skin pale and sweaty.
“What happened?” You ask straight away, gesturing for the soldier to put Bucky on the bed closest to you as you get to watch stripping the uniform of the man and frowning at the amount of blood pouring from two wounds on his stomach.
“He got shot, ma’am.” The soldier answered and your frown deepened, looking up at Bucky who’s eyes were half lidded but he was still grinning at you, apparently no injury was bad enough to wipe that damn grin off his face.
“‘M fine, Y/N.” He tried to assure you, seeing the frown between your eyebrows deepen and you could help but let out a soft huff of laughter, moving to get some needles, tweezers, gauze, pads and everything else you need.
“Told you there’s better ways to get my attention, didn’t mean go and get yourself shot, Buck.” You say softly, sitting next to him and cleaning the blood, checking him over and seeing both wounds were clean through, good no need to go digging for bullets.
“Shit, doll, you’re calling me by name. My dying?” He asked, slurring the words out and your heart ached at the slight tremor in his voice.
“Come on, it’s me we're talking about. You really think I'm about to let you die?” You ask him, forcing a smile onto your face and looking up at him assuringly before focusing on the worst of the two wounds.
“Better not let me die, Y/N/N, gotta take my girl out on a date.” He breathed out, looking at you so softly, groaning when you pressed down on his wound. “Fuck, doll.”
“Your girl, huh?” You shushed him softly, keeping him talking, needing him to stay alert for your own sanity more than anything.
You took a deep breath, knowing you needed to stay calm in order to make sure Bucky got through this, to make sure he didn’t lose any more blood than he had. You needed to push aside your feelings aside and focus on the patient.
Even if that patient was Bucky Barnes.
“Best girl around.” Bucky slurred out, a choked laugh escaping him and you let yourself smile. “Fixes me up all the damn time, even though she knows I’m an idiot.”
“You certainly are an idiot.” You agree easily, watching as he glares at you, a dazed smile still firmly in place.
You had cleaned the wound well enough that the blood had stopped pouring from it and focused on patching it up, keeping Bucky talking the whole time, even as he winced and flinched, his eyes falling shut.
You were fine so long as he kept talking.
The second gunshot wound was much easier to patch up, you had it cleaned and packed quickly and once they were both dealt with you sat back heavily, looking at Bucky’s face, watching as he forced his eyes open and looked at you drained.
“All done, doll?” He asked, voice thick with tiredness and you smiled softly at him, eyes stinging slightly as you swallowed around the lump in your throat.
“All done, soldier. Get some rest.” You told him, your own voice thick with emotion and you stood up, needing a minute to yourself, eyes watering but a hand on your wrist stopped you from leaving.
“Stay, doll?” Bucky asked softly and you couldn’t bring yourself to say no, a single tear slipping down your cheek as you turned around and sat back down, Bucky forcing his heavy eyes open and frowning at you. “M’alright.”
You nodded, you knew he was, you were the one to patch him up and yet you felt like you couldn’t catch your breath now that you were done. Bucky practically lived in the med tent, you were used to him being hurt, used to fixing up his many injuries. This one was different though, this one was serious.
You’d never really had Bucky in your med bay because he needed saving. There were so many factors that could have changed the outcome, if the gunshots had caught Bucky a bit to the right it could have caused damage you couldn’t have fixed, if it had taken them any longer to get Bucky to you he could have lost too much blood. It was the first time you’d had Bucky in serious danger.
It’s not like you were stupid, you knew who he was, what his job was but when it was just the two of you it was easy to forget there was a war going on outside, easy to forget that seriousness of his job.
“You’re alright.” You breathed out, another few tears making their way down your cheek and Bucky reached down, threading his fingers with yours and bringing them up to his lips, pressing a soft kiss to the back of your hand, his eyes closed. “Sleep, Buck.”
Bucky nodded, following the command easily.
After that day you let yourself give into Bucky’s flirting, giving it back just as quickly as he gave it, realising it could all be snatched from you all too soon.
It was a few weeks later, you and Bucky had practically been inseparable. All his free time had been spent with you in the med bay and he savoured each moment he got with you, his little piece of heaven during the war.
You frowned as you walked towards the med bay, hearing one of the nurses raise her voice. It wasn’t entirely uncommon, most of the soldiers looked down at a woman doing a job, sometimes it was called for but when you stepped closer your eyes widened when you heard Bucky.
“Sergeant Barnes-” The nurse tried again but Bucky cut her off.
“No! I want Y/N.” Bucky demanded, like the med tent was the sort of place to be making demands.
You rolled your eyes stepping into the tent, Bucky not noticing you but the nurse's face filled with relief as she saw you before glaring at Bucky.
“You know,” You say, causing Bucky’s head to snap over to you, your eyes immediately going to the trail of blood falling from his temple. “When your head’s bleeding, people usually aren’t picky about what nurse they have.”
“What can I say? I have my favourite nurse, no point ending up in this place if I don’t get to see my girl.” Bucky grinned at you and you rolled your eyes though there was a fondness you couldn’t deny and you nodded at the other nurse, taking over.
“What happened this time?” You asked, holding a damp rag against the wound.
“Cut my head jumping out of the way of a bullet.” Bucky told you and you sighed, pulling the rag away and seeing the blood had already begun to slow. “Hey, when are you finally gonna let me take you out?”
Bucky had been asking you out ever since he got shot and each time you never gave him a real answer because how could you? There was a war happening, even with his free time he couldn’t just leave to go on a date with you.
“Come find me when you’ve won the war.” You finally told him, watching a blinding grin spread across his face, eyes lighting up as he nodded.
“Doll, I’m gonna marry you once the war’s won.” He swore and the way he said it, you had no choice but to believe he would, you weren’t complaining, the rest of your life with Bucky Barnes seemed like a pretty good life.
“You promise?” You grin back at him, the man unable to help himself, pulling you closer to stand between his legs and closing the distance between you, his fingers tangling in your hair as he tilted your face up to his, his gaze intense, before his lips claimed yours in a fierce, passionate kiss full of promise of a future. You couldn’t help but gasp at the sudden intensity, your hands clutching at his shirt. The world around you faded away as you both lost yourselves in each other, the kiss leaving you both breathless.
“I promise. I’m gonna marry you when this is all over.” He promised and rested his forehead against yours. “On my life, we’re gonna spend the rest of our lives together.”
You hear the tent open and turn around from where you stood sorting through your supplies, rolling your eyes but not stopping the grin that spreads across your face.
“Here comes trouble.” You say to yourself, loud enough for Bucky to hear and he just grins back at you, sitting himself on the closest bed to you. “What is it this time then?”
“Oh nurse Y/N, you gotta help me.” Bucky groans, clutching his heart. “My heart is hurting so bad, think I’m having withdrawals from seeing my best girl, think you gotta cure for that?”
“You’re an idiot.” You laughed at him, swatting him with a rag before going back to organising your supplies, knowing the men were heading into another battle and you’d need everything ready for when they came back.
“Come on, doll.” He pouted dramatically over at you, jumping from the bed and turning you to face him. “A kiss for good luck?”
You rolled your eyes again, something you did a lot in the presence of James Barnes but couldn’t help but smile up at him. Bucky smiled down at you, his hand coming up to cup your cheek in his hand, delicately running his thumb across your cheek bone before he guided you up to him, meeting you halfway and then his lips found yours, gently at first. Slowly, he deepened the kiss, becoming more passionate as he pulled you impossibly closer, his other hand moving to the small of your back and you couldn’t help but melt into him, arms wrapping around his neck, a soft sigh escaping your lips.
“Come back to me, soldier.” You told him when the two of you finally pulled away, foreheads resting against each other.
“I got promises to keep, doll, course I’m coming back.” He said, watching as you blushed at the reminder of his promises.
Bucky stole another handful of kisses before one of the men came in, telling him he had to leave.
“See you soon, gorgeous.” He grinned, pressing one more breathtaking kiss to your lips before running out of the med tent and you sat on one of the beds, watching the spot where he had stood, smiling like a fool in love but you couldn’t deny that’s what you were.
Too much time passed, not enough information was given. You paced holes in the med tent floor, he should be back by now. Something was wrong, there were whispers but nobody would tell you anything, everything was on a need to know basis and it was driving you mad.
It had been well over a week since Bucky left and the ache in your chest grew as more and more days passed without a single word.
When the med bay tent opened your head shot round, there were dark circles under your eyes, your hair was a mess from the amount of times you’d ran your hands through it. You shook your head when you saw the commanding officer step into your tent.
“Don't.” You said firmly, eyes already filling with tears and the man frowned, a grim look on his face.
“Nurse Y/LN,” He started and you shook your head, “I regret to inform you that Sergeant James Buchanan Barnes is missing in action and after our best efforts to identify the location of him and the 107th, we believe he has died in the line of duty. I know this must be difficult news to hear, but please know that you have the full support of the military and all available resources to assist you during this difficult time."
You felt your legs give out, hitting the floor and sobs wracked your body, the choking feeling you got seeing Bucky shot coming back in full force, head shaking as you pleaded with any god that would listen to bring him back.
The commanding officer left, leaving you a sobbing mess on the floor.
“He promised.” You choked out to nobody. “He was meant to marry me.”
You stayed there for a long while, crying for hours for the loss of what could have been. It would have been amazing, a lifetime with James Barnes and now, now you had to miss him for longer than you had known him.
Maybe in another life he came back to you, maybe in another life the war was won and he came back to you, swept you up in his arms and kept every promise he ever made. Maybe in another life, you had lazy mornings in bed, in another life you did the mundane stuff like taxes and laundry together.
When Lex had been forced to Smallville you were devastated, forbidden from following after him and ordered to stay in Metropolis with your father. You had lasted longer there than anyone thought you would, Lionel wasn’t foolish enough to believe you wouldn’t follow Lex eventually even with the threat of being cut off but it was two months before you used the private helicopter to leave your comfortable life in Metropolis and headed to Smallville.
The town was unlike anything you were used to, Metropolis was big, it was busy, there was always something to do. You found yourself missing the city, missing the bustle of the crowds and being able to blend in, at the boarding school nobody cared much that you were a Luthor, most of the kids there came from money and power but Smallville High was different, you were different.
Lex welcomed you with open arms, having been waiting for the time to come where you defied your father’s orders. The two of you had always been close, despite the fact your father had spent years trying to put distance between the Luthor siblings, you were closer than ever. It was Lex who took care of everything when you arrived at the mansion, he enrolled you into the school, he made sure you had everything you needed and he introduced you to Clark Kent.
Clark Kent was unlike anyone you had ever met before, from the beginning you were intrigued by him. You couldn’t explain it either but from the very first moment he smiled at you and took your hand in his you were hooked. You found any excuse to spend time with him, taking him up on his offers to show you around the town, to show you around the school, to see his farm, anything he offered you took eagerly.
At some point the two of you became inseparable, something that felt like both a blessing and a curse. On one hand you loved spending time with Clark, he was captivating, he was charming in his own unique way, he would do anything for anyone and yet on the other hand spending so much time with him meant watching him pine over Lana Lang.
The girl had tried to make a friendship with you, Clark desperately wanted you to like her but you just couldn’t push through your jealousy to get to know the other girl. You knew it was hurting Clark but you couldn’t do it, even for him, not when you felt your heart ache every time he looked at her with the softest smile you’d ever seen.
“Maybe he isn’t as into Miss Lang as you once believed, Y/N.” Lex said one day as you sat down next to him on the sofa after a long day at school, rolling your eyes even as you leaned your head on his shoulder.
“Please, Clark Kent is madly in love with her.” You shot back, hating the jealousy that flowed through you.
“He was asking about you today.” Lex offered, smiling to himself as he felt you shift to look up at him. “As he does every time he’s here. Honestly I don’t think I’ve had one conversation with Clark since you got here where you haven’t been mentioned.”
You couldn’t help but smile, even despite knowing Clark saw you as nothing more than a friend, you had to smile because at least Clark thought about you when you weren’t around.
“And yet it’s Lana that he stares at all day.” You mumble into Lex’s shoulder.
“Have you ever wondered who he’s staring at when you’re not looking?”
From then on you noticed Clark more as you forced your eyes off of him, only allowing yourself to glance at him out of the corner of your eyes and seeing that Lex was right, not that you’d give him the satisfaction of knowing that but the proof was there, Clark Kent was watching you, more and more as each day passed, looking at you like you were something special.
“Y/N, hey, wait up!” You heard Clark call just as you were leaving school for the day. “Can we talk?”
You looked at Clark, watching as he fidgeted and rubbed the back of his neck nervously before nodding and following him into an empty classroom.
“I..um…I.” Clark stuttered out before clearing his throat and starting again. “The winter dance is coming up.”
“Yeah it is.” You said softly, feeling your heart speeding up as you hoped desperately that he was going to ask you to the dance.
“Will you go with me?” He blurted out, eyes going wide. He hadn’t meant to ask the question outright, all day he had been rehearsing over and over again how he was going to ask you out but standing in front of you, every word he had thought of had disappeared but watching as a grin spread across your face he couldn’t help but relax, smiling back at you just as wide.
“I’d love to be your date.” You laughed softly in disbelief, hardly able to wrap your head around the fact that Clark Kent had chosen you.
Clark smiled at you and leaned down to press a kiss to your cheek, smiling like an idiot as he watched a blush spread across your cheeks before he offered you a ride home, taking your hand in his and not letting go until you were climbing out of the truck.
From there things seemed to just fall into place, not much changed but Clark took you out, it didn’t matter if it was a study date, a coffee date or convincing Lex to help him out with reservations to fancy restaurants that Clark felt out of place in but you seemed to fit right in, not that it took much convincing for Lex to help, he was beyond thrilled that his best friend and sister had finally managed to get together on their own.
The winter dance came before anyone realised it and Clark showed up at the mansion, feeling all his nerves leave his body as you walked down the stairs in your dress, your hair and makeup done. Clark felt breathless as he looked at you, you were beautiful and he was glad for Lex putting a hand on his shoulder to bring him back to reality.
“You look beautiful.” He told you sincerely, unable to take his eyes away from you, taking delight in the way you blushed for him.
“Thank you, you clean up nice, farm boy.” You laughed softly, reaching out to straighten his tie and letting your hands rest on his chest for a moment before you were pulled into a kiss.
“Come on, love birds, you’re going to be late.” Lex called, the two of you pulling away from each other with matching smiles.
“One more thing before you leave.” Lex said as Clark took your hand and went to pull you out the door towards the limo that had been hired for the night, you turned to face Lex, smiling at the camera in his hand.
Clark pulled you close and you couldn’t help but smile brightly as you looked up at him, Clark looking at you the way you once could only dream he would, like you were the only girl in the world. You knew how you felt about him, you knew it was love, it was love long before he asked you out and you knew it would be love for a long time.
You hadn’t been brave enough to say it yet, didn’t want to risk ruining what you had with him right now but looking up at him, seeing the way he looked at you, how delicately he held you, how he showed you off in front of everybody, you knew you loved him.
After taking your photos the two of you finally left the mansion and it wasn’t long before you were at the dance. Lana pulled the two of you over to where Pete, Chloe and Whitney were and your small group danced together for most of the night. Months ago a life like this seemed impossible, it seemed so mundane that you would have turned your nose up at it. You thought your life was meant to be galas and favours, manipulation and bribery, dating for profit and titles but standing here in a small town’s gym, you found that you were so wrong. This was the life you were destined for, creating your own family, finding the man you hoped you would spend the rest of your life with, going to school, hanging out at a coffee shop, this was your life and you could never go back to how it used to be, not for all the money in the world.
“May I have this dance?” Clark asked as the music turned slow and the lights dimmed.
You beamed at him and nodded, letting him take your hand in his as he pulled you further onto the dance floor and wrapped his arms around your waist. You couldn’t help but think that you had never felt safer than when you were in Clark’s arms.
You wrapped your arms around his neck, letting him pull you closer as he rested his forehead against yours so he could be heard over the music.
“I’m glad you came to Smallville.” He told you softly, “I couldn’t picture this night with anybody else.”
“Me too, Clark.” You murmured, shocked by the sincerity of his words. You never doubted him but it was strange to think only a few months ago you thought you had no chance with Clark and now here you were.
“I mean it, Y/N. There is nobody else I’d want to be with. From the moment I met you, I knew you were special.” Clark smiled shyly, glancing away for a moment before meeting your eyes again. “I love you, Y/N.”
Your smile widened into a grin and you couldn’t help but laugh, overwhelmed with happiness as you closed the gap between you and Clark, pulling him in close for a kiss that left you both breathless by the time you pulled away.
“I love you too, Clark.” You murmured as his forehead rested back on yours, holding you close as he grinned, savouring the moment between you before the slow song ended and everyone began dancing to the next song.
It was hours later that the limo stopped outside the mansion and Clark walked you to your door, leaning down and kissing you softly, taking his time and letting himself enjoy the moment, feeling almost drunk from happiness from how that night had been.
“I should get home.” He told you softly as he pulled away, not letting go of your hand just yet.
“Or you could stay.” You said hopefully, wanting nothing more than to spend the rest of the night in Clark’s arms and falling asleep there.
“I could stay.” Clark repeated with a smile, watching as you mirrored the expression back before pulling him into the mansion and quietly making your way through the house before you closed your bedroom door behind the two of you.
It wasn’t long before the two of you were in bed, your head resting on Clark’s chest as his arms wrapped around you holding you close to him, Clark’s heart beating rhythmically was the only sound you needed as your eyes drifted shut.
“I love you, Y/N.” Clark whispered against your hair, pressing a soft kiss there as he felt you relax against him, smiling as you let out a soft laugh.
“I love you too, Clark.” You murmured back, unable to think of a time you’d ever felt so comfortable with anybody else as you let yourself fall asleep in the safety of Clark Kent's arms.
Requested - @loving-the-cambridges as part of @cloneficgiftexchange
Prompt - “You are the reason.” & "Don't give up on me."
Notes - I am so sorry this is a week late, I completely got the date of the exchange wrong! Hope you enjoy it!
It was the worst kind of battle, the one where your men lay motionless, scattered all across the battlefield. The battle happening in the air and on the ground meant it was very easy to get overwhelmed and you hadn’t been Anakin’s Padawan for too long before you were suddenly thrust into the centre of the war.
Anakin kept you close between him and Rex as he focused on the droids coming at you from all directions, knowing how important it was to get to the main base in time to meet Obi-Wan and his own men.
The air was heavy as you finally caught a moment's break, hiding out in the cave you had come across. The men were exhausted, as were you and Anakin, the break was needed and you sat down heavily next to Rex, letting your head fall onto his shoulder and feeling how the tension in them drain slightly.
Before anyone could speak the sound of a ship landing not too far outside had you all tensing, Clones made a grab for their weapons as Anakin held a hand up. Seconds later somebody, a Jedi Master, walked into the cave.
“Skywalker.” He called into the cave, Anakin already moving to the opening with a confused look.
“Is that Master Kalen?” Rex muttered from above you and you nodded, not moving your head from his shoulder but straining to listen to what was being said.
“Master Kalen, what are you doing here?” Anakin asked and the Jedi Master gave him a look of distaste.
“I have come to lead your battalion, you have been requested back in Coruscant, orders from the Chancellor himself.”
That had you sitting up, turning to look at Rex with furrowed eyebrows and Rex looked equally as confused. Rex stood up first, holding a hand out to help you up before the two of you made your way over to Anakin and Kalen.
“I can’t just leave my men! I’m in the middle of a mission!” Anakin protested, taking a step towards Kalen who rolled his eyes at the outburst.
“You’re more than welcome to take it up with the Chancellor, Skywalker. I am here to relieve you, this mission will be completed.” Kalen told him, his tone cold and almost robotic- actually scrap that you were sure you’d heard more emotion from C3-PO than you had Kalen.
“Fine,” Anakin relented, turning to see you and Rex behind him. “Master Kalen, this is Rex, he’s my first in command, you won’t find a better Captain.” Anakin said and you watched a small smile twitch at Rex’s lips before he pushed it away and nodded towards Kalen.
“Come on, Y/N.” Anakin said, gesturing for you to follow him and as glad as you were for the chance to leave the planet, another part of you didn’t want to leave Rex behind.
“Only your presence was requested back in Coruscant, Skywalker. The Padawan can stay with me.” Your eyes widened as Anakin turned to look at you, clearly ready to protest but Kalen cut him off. “The Padawan stays, you should leave.”
Kalen walked further into the cave leaving you, Rex and Anakin alone with no room to protest.
“Please don’t leave us with him, Master.” You pleaded and Anakin gave you an amused smile though his eyes flickered over to Kalen wearily.
“He seems like a real piece of work, I’ll give you that.” Anakin murmured, soft enough not to travel through the cave, before he turned to Rex. “Just stick to the plan, ok? It won’t be easy but you have to get to Obi-Wan.”
“Don’t worry, Sir, we’ve got this.” Rex nodded and you smiled reassuringly at him.
“I know you do.” Anakin said softly before reaching over and resting his hand on your shoulder giving it a gentle squeeze. “Stay with Rex, alright?”
“That won’t be a problem.” You grinned at him causing Anakin to roll his eyes but there was no heat behind it. He knew you and Rex had something going on, he didn’t know the full extent and quite frankly he didn’t want to know exactly what his Padawan and Captain were getting up to but who was he to put a stop to it? It would be hypocritical of the secretly married Jedi.
“I’m sure it won’t.” He replied dryly, watching as Rex averted his glance and your grin widened. “I’ll see you soon, stay safe.”
With that Anakin left the cave and you heard the sound of the ship leaving.
“Get ready to move out.” Master Kalen’s voice rang out through the cave and you frowned, turning to Rex who looked at you questioningly. Through the Force you could feel the general confusion from the men as you looked over at the Jedi Master.
“Sir, the men need to rest.” Rex said as he took a step over to Kalen, the Jedi towering over him as he puffed his chest out and gave Rex the same look you would give something you’d trod in.
“I don’t believe I asked for your opinion, CT-7567.” He told Rex and you stared openly at Kalen, watching as Rex’s shoulders tensed up.
You stepped closer to the Jedi Master, mouth already open but Rex put a subtle hand on your back, out of view of Kalen and shook his head. Rumours of Kalen had spread quickly amongst the men since the war had started, it was no secret he was a harsh man and his treatment towards clones was nothing short of cruel, going through his own at a suspicious rate. Rex knew that no amount of arguing was getting through to this man, not from a clone or a padawan.
You glared at the Jedi’s back as the tired men left the safety of the cave and headed back out into the dangerous terrain, the darkness having fully settled causing everyone to struggle to see ahead. The men tried their hardest to stay alert but the exhaustion had gotten to everyone, everyone except Kalen who marched ahead at the front of the group, leaving you and Rex walking behind everyone, shoulders brushing with each step.
“He shouldn’t speak to you like that.” You muttered angrily, missing the way Rex’s lips pulled into a smile despite how much he agreed, it was nice having somebody feel angry for him, it was nice that it was you that was angry for him.
For months you and Rex had gravitated towards each other, both letting yourselves fall into something that could never truly be defined, both knowing that your feelings weren’t allowed and yet both letting it happen anyway.
Neither of you had spoken about it, whether it was because you were scared speaking about it would shatter everything or just because whatever this was didn’t need speaking about, maybe it was a mixture of both but the two of you were happy, the war had been long and taxing, draining everyone of everything and to find a bright spot in all that darkness, who were either of you to deny yourselves of it?
“Don’t smile.” You glared at Rex when you looked over at him, no real heat in the action as you nudged your shoulder into his drawing a chuckle from the man.
“He’ll be gone soon,” Rex promised, taking your hand in his and brushing his thumb against your skin in an attempt to soothe you, watching as the motion caused some of the tension to slip away from your body. “It’s just one mission, what could go wrong?”
He regretted the question as soon as he asked it and he regretted it two days later as he led his exhausted battalion into battle, mind completely foggy and his whole body drained, his men in the same state.
He could see all of them were sloppy, none of them were as alert as they should have been as they went up against a battalion more than triple their size of battle droids. Rex felt his stomach churn as he looked around at the injured and dead men he was entrusted to lead, felt fury within himself as he looked at Kalen who was more than happy to sit back and watch as the clones fought the battle.
Rex was struggling to keep his attention on the battle but he struggled even more to keep track of you. Usually the two of you never strayed far from each other, oftentimes finding yourselves fighting back to back with each other but today the men were stretched too thin so whilst Rex covered one side you were too far away for comfort fighting the other side of the opening where the Separatists had ambushed you.
The battle lasted for hours, those who had managed to come out alive were bloody and beaten, hours before they had thought it was impossible to be more drained than they were but this battle had left them completely devoid of any strength they had left.
Rex let his blaster fall to the floor, leaning against a tree and let his eyes fall shut, his body feeling too heavy to do anything more than just stand there. It had been a long time since they’d had a battle this bad, not since their early days fresh off Kamino. He couldn’t stand the thought of having to go through all of his men, knowing too many had been lost.
The only thing he wanted right now was you.
Just as he was about to force his tired body to move he heard somebody running against the leaves on the ground, wondering which of his men had managed to find the energy for anything but slumping down in silence.
“Captain!” Echo called, stopping to catch his breath as Rex opened his eyes and saw the man completely pale and his hands shook but it was his eyes that had Rex on alert, they were wide and scared in a way Rex hadn’t seen from Echo.
“Rex,” The man breathed out softly and that was enough for Rex to stand to attention, “it’s Y/N.”
Rex didn’t need to hear anything else, Echo’s tone along with his expression told Rex enough and he felt his heart shatter and speed up at the same time, letting Echo lead the way as he raced to your side, stopping in his tracks when he saw the amount of blood pouring from a wound near your ribs.
“No.” He breathed out, his body moving on autopilot as he lowered himself down next to you.
You forced your eyes to open, smiling tiredly up at Rex as he sat with you, gently pulling you against his chest, his head against yours and his arms wrapping around you as he watched Kix apply more pressure to the wound.
“I’m okay.” You whispered, listening to his watery laugh as all the evidence before him told him that was an obvious lie.
“Don’t do this to me.” He pleaded softly, silent tears already trailing down his cheeks. “Don’t give up on me.”
“Never giving up on you, Rex.” You murmured, a smile on your face as you leaned your head back to look at him, watching as he forced a shaky smile onto his face.
“You’ll be okay.” Rex told you, the words meant more for himself than you and he tried desperately to convince himself that this could be fixed, it had to be, Rex couldn’t do this without you.
“You’ll be okay, too.” You whispered back to him, Rex’s face crumbling as he lost composure at your words. “Knowing you, loving you has been the best experience of my life.”
Rex bit back a sob of desperation at your choked out words, watching as you struggled to force them out but you knew if Kix’s couldn’t get the bleeding under control, if Obi-Wan didn’t get here in time, you knew Rex needed something to hold onto after you were gone.
“You are the reason, you are the reason I can find good in the galaxy, you are the good in this galaxy. Don’t lose that.” You coughed and Rex choked on a sob as a small stream of blood trickled down your chin. “You are the reason I know how to love and know how it feels to be loved and I have loved you every day, Rex, I have loved you every day I have known you.”
Rex nodded, tears streaming down his face mirroring yours and he kissed your forehead, letting his lips linger there as he whispered his own words back to you.
“I love you. I love you so much, please don’t do this, Y/N, don’t do this to me.” He begged and pleaded but he knew there was nothing that could be done, he watched out of the corner of his eye as Kix glared down at your wound in defeat, he saw the faces of his men watching with heartbroken expressions as their Captain lost the love of his life, he watched as your eyes drifted closed and didn’t open again.
Rex let his own eyes fall closed, cries of true loss and heartbreak filled the quiet scene and Rex was unable to focus on anything but you in his arms, completely blocking out his surroundings.
He missed as the men around him parted, he missed as Obi-Wan crouched down next to the two of you, gently nudging Kix out of the way as he placed his hand on your wound. He had never been particularly good at Force healing but he called upon the Force and silently begged and pleaded with it to save his Padawan, in title you might have been Anakin’s but everyone knew you were both of theirs, they both trained you, both offered you a shoulder to lean on, both needed you as you needed them.
Rex gasped when he felt a hand on his cheek, eyes flying open to stare at you, colour coming back to your face as you sat up with a wince to face him. His gaze strayed behind you for a moment, watching as Obi-Wan knelt back against his heels and smiled softly at the scene in front of him.
“Cyar’ika,” He breathed out, resting his forehead on yours and watching as you smiled at him with so much love in your eyes. “Thank the stars.”
You laughed softly and cupped his cheek, closing the distance between the two of you and finally kissed him. The kiss was soft and slow but Rex felt more alive than he had ever felt as he pulled you closer, kissing you until the need to breathe was too much.
“Never do that to me again.” Rex ordered and you couldn’t help but laugh again as you kissed him again.
“Yes Captain.” You grinned, watching as Rex fondly rolled his eyes and pulled you against him, mindful of your aching body but needing to hold you, needing to know you were going to be okay and he still had an entire lifetime with you, that you hadn’t been snatched away from him before he even had a chance to tell you that you were his reason too.
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Requested - @cc--2224 as part of @cloneficgiftexchange
Prompt - "Well, I’m sorry I fell in love with you, okay? But it happened and I can’t do anything about it.” “You... What?” & "I never wanted anyone to feel bad for me, especially not you"
The sun streaming through the windows did little to fight against the coldness he felt, he knew the room was warm, he knew the cold he felt deep in his bones wasn’t there and yet he couldn’t fight the shivers that wracked his body. It didn’t matter that he could see the small room his brother’s had shown him to once they landed on the planet, in his mind he was still there, still in that cold, small cell with no hope of escaping.
He’d been there for so long, long enough that he had lost track of the days. He could have planned an escape, could have made some attempt to leave their torture but what for? There was nothing waiting for him outside of his cell anymore.
Gone was his relationship with his brothers, gone was the easy back and forth banter with Wrecker, gone were the late night talks with Hunter, gone were the days him and Tech would sit together, his brother’s voice filling the silence without expecting anything back from Crosshair, gone was Echo’s steady presence, at his side whenever he needed it.
Gone were you.
Gone were the early mornings when the rest of his brothers were still asleep, only you and Crosshair awake in the cockpit holding a warm cup of caff and filling the space with softly spoken conversation. Gone were the days spent trying to stick by your side, gone were the stolen glances and lingering touches, gone was sneaking away after missions to explore together, gone were the chances he took to watch you smile, gone was the promise he’d tell you how he felt tomorrow.
Crosshair had run out of tomorrow’s a long time ago.
After all he had done, all the pain he had put his brothers through, the pain he had put you through, this was the least he deserved.
And so when the chance came to make his escape, to leave the pain and the torture behind he hesitated. The cell door was open, it would be so easy to leave and yet he hesitated.
If the kid hadn’t been there, if her life didn’t depend on him getting her out he knows he would have stayed where he was, he would have rotted in that cell for as long as they decided he was useful alive.
Now he was free and somehow he felt more confined than ever. It wasn’t just because Hunter wouldn’t take his eyes off him, it wasn’t because Wrecker hovered or the fact Omega had seemed to attach herself to him. It didn’t even have anything to do with the fact that you were here, stars above Crosshair couldn’t think of a time he would ever have ignored your presence and yet now he did everything to stay away from you, not able to face you yet.
No, it wasn’t because of you or his brothers that Crosshair felt confined. It was because he didn’t deserve this freedom, in his head he was still in the cold cell, destined to rot away.
Crosshair stood from the floor, unable to lay there any longer. The room had a bed tucked against the wall but Crosshair had only managed about ten minutes of tossing and turning on it before he gave the bed up for the floor, the bed too soft compared to what he had become used to.
Everyone else was still asleep as he made his way outside, no real destination in mind. His feet carried him through side streets until they grew sore and only then did he make his way back, stopping not too far away from where the others were to sit on the sand, the sun shining blindingly on the water.
He didn’t deserve to be here.
“I used to come here.” A voice interrupted him some time later, a voice he recognised all too well. “It’s quiet, no one ever comes here.”
Crosshair didn’t turn to look at you, he couldn’t bring himself to do it but when you sat next to him it was too much. He went to stand but your hand softly grabbing his stopped him.
“Please stop running away.” You pleaded softly and Crosshair didn’t have to look at you to know your eyes were teary but he did anyway, his heart aching for having made you this way.
“I can’t do this.” He told you quietly, forcing his gaze away from yours and looking back out at the water.
“I don’t know what happened to you,” You said after a moment's silence and Crosshair balled his hand into a fist, silently begging you to stop talking. “I don’t know what they did to you and you don’t have to tell me but-”
“But nothing.” He spat angrily, glaring at the sea and instantly hating himself for lashing out at you, so he tried again, softer this time. “But nothing. What they did to me was nothing less than I deserved.”
“Don’t say that.” You said, head shaking as you tried to compose yourself.
“It’s the truth, I tried to kill you, kill my brothers…I hurt you all and for what? For the Empire to throw my loyalty in my face.” Crosshair shrugged.
“For what it’s worth, I never gave up on you.” You told Crosshair, looking away from him as you spoke. “It didn’t matter what you did, how far you strayed from us, I never gave up on you.”
“You should have.” He muttered. “Everyone else did, Hunter doesn’t trust me, Wrecker wants to but he knows I’m nothing more than a lost cause.”
“That’s not true. Hunter’s just being Hunter, he needs time to adjust, needs time to figure things out in his head and then he’ll want to talk to you. Yeah you’re both gonna throw out words you don’t mean, maybe a punch or two but after that…it’s Hunter, he’s glad you’re back. As for Wrecker he wants to come to you, you know that as much as I do but he’s scared, he doesn’t want to spook you so he’s waiting for you to make the first move.” You explained, keeping your voice soft, not turning to face Crosshair as he turned to look at you.
“What about you?” He finally asked, voice barely above a whisper.
“I was with Wrecker. I kept my distance and waited to see what your move was. Turns out your move was to avoid everyone.” You laughed and Crosshair felt himself relax a little, the sound one
he hadn't heard in so long and it somehow managed to push out some of the cold he felt. “I feel for you, Cross, I do. Stars only know what the Empire did to you but you’re free now, don’t let them win, don’t shut us out.”
“I never wanted anyone to feel bad for me, especially not you.” Crosshair said after a long pause of silence and you laughed again.
“We all feel bad for you, despite everything you’re one of us.” You told him so sincerely that Crosshair felt like he’d been punched in the stomach at the speed his breath was stolen from him.
You turned to face him, a small smile on your face and you hesitated for only a moment before you reached out and took his hand in yours, entwining your fingers together.
“I don’t deserve any of this,” Crosshair forced out and you smiled at him softly. “I don’t deserve you, you should be running away from me, leave me behind and move on.”
“Well, I’m sorry but I fell in love with you, okay?” You told him, watching as his eyes widened in complete disbelief. “It happened and I can’t do anything about it.”
“You…what?” Crosshair choked, for so long he had dreamed of you and him, of a life where you could possibly want him but it was such a far off dream, something that would never become a reality and now you were saying the words he had longed to hear for years.
“You’re stuck with me, Cross, I’m not going anywhere, I’m not running away. You’re it for me, always have been.” You said, laughing as a tear or two managed to slip down your cheek and Crosshair only second guessed himself for a moment before his hand cupped your cheek and he softly brushed the tears away, his thumb caressing your cheek bone.
“I don’t deserve you.” He repeated and you smiled brightly at him. “But I will spend the rest of my life trying.”
“I love you.” You told him again, watching as his eyes became watery and he rested his forehead against yours.
“I love you too, so much.” He choked out and you couldn’t stop yourself from closing the small distance between the two of you, Crosshair not hesitating to meet you in the middle.
Crosshair’s hand on your cheek moved to your hair, pulling you impossibly closer as he kissed you, savouring every second of the feeling, something he had longed for and convinced himself he could never have.
Eventually the two of you needed to pull apart for air, breathing heavily but not going far from each other, foreheads together as you both smiled at the other.
For the first time in so long Crosshair didn’t feel a single bit of cold, his body was warm, his heart racing as he held you close. For the first time in a long time Crosshair didn’t feel numb, he didn’t feel pain or fear.
It felt like he was finally off that awful planet, it felt like he had finally left his cold cell behind and stepped into the daylight, able to feel the sun of Pabu for the first time and it was because of you, you were the source of this warmth, this love, this joy, this overwhelming relief that things would be better.
For the first time in a very long time Crosshair felt like things would be okay, he had you, he swore he’d make amends with his brothers, spend the rest of his life making up for everything, spend the rest of his life proving he was worthy of yours and his brother’s love. It felt easier, it felt doable with you at his side once again.
Request - @narcissa-of-kaas - Hey there! Could you please do something with Tech for #39 from your prompt list ?💜
Prompt - “I had a nightmare about you and I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” (Set post season 2, pre season 3)
You couldn’t even say how much time had passed since that Force forsaken day. It had been months at best and yet somehow it felt more like years. You had never been able to adjust to a life without Tech, how could you? It was impossible to believe that there had ever been a time where you hadn’t had Tech in your life, hadn’t had him ready at your side rattling facts of, filling silences with knowledge or just sitting together as he tinkered away. Whenever you needed somebody, it was always Tech you turned to.
Then all of a sudden Tech was gone.
You still remembered the day, still remembered watching him fall from the cart, still remembered the heart wrenching scream that escaped you as you could do nothing but watch, only Hunter kept you where you were, stopping you from following after Tech, dragging you against his chest and forcing you to stay on the cart as it sped away from Tech.
You had no memory of leaving, everything since then had passed in a blur and you were certain it was only thanks to Hunter you had managed to make it back to safety.
A day hadn’t passed where you let yourself believe Tech was dead. You couldn’t ever let yourself believe that, the second you did you knew you’d be done. You had to force yourself to keep that small spark of hope that seemed to dim as each day went by.
You spent your days sat on the comm, pleading for hours for Tech to answer you, pleading with him to come back home, to come back to you. Hunter and Wrecker watched on with aching hearts as you refused to be moved, refused to let yourself accept reality.
The loss of Tech was only worsened by the loss of Omega, then Echo left to go help Rex, unable to stand being on the Marauder. You didn’t blame him, some days being on the ship drove you crazy, there were too many memories, too many constant reminders of those that should have been here but weren’t. Some days you couldn’t drag yourself out of bed, the smell of Tech on the sheets lessened with each day he was gone but you had to believe he’d be back one day.
Months had passed since that day and you were startled all of a sudden when the comm came to life, a distress signal that was used by the Batch could be heard. Hunter watched your face fill with relief, with hope. It broke his heart but still it was a code they used, they had to check it out.
You were relieved beyond words to see that Omega and Crosshair were safe and alive and yet you were disappointed. You hated to even admit it to yourself, hated the fact that when you saw the pair your heart dropped because it wasn’t Tech.
It was meant to be Tech.
Nobody blamed you for withdrawing after that, they knew you wanted Tech back. You had felt the spark of hope you had fizzle out, desperately wanting to stay alight but you didn’t know how to keep believing, didn’t know how to carry on without Tech.
It seemed that even though things had gotten better, two members of the Batch were back where they belonged, it was never right. There was constantly an empty space in every room of the Marauder, a silence after somebody said something where you still waited for Tech to talk, there were no longer random projects left out for you to fall over, it wasn’t home without Tech.
You still sat at the comm but your heart was empty as you spoke, you would give anything for a reply.
Then one day it came.
A strange message that consisted of nothing more than a set of coordinates and a cryptic message of ‘pl45’. Suddenly that spark of hope that had gone out weeks ago was back with a mighty flame, pushing out all the darkness and you just knew, it had to be him.
“Hunter!” You called, looking at the coordinates and the message, Plan 45, it was definitely a code the Batch used.
Hunter frowned as he looked at the message, Plan 45 meant mission gone wrong. It was their code, a random one to use but still their code. He wasn’t sure about it, one look at your face and he knew you had gotten your hopes up, he hated that you were going to be left more broken than before, he wasn’t sure you’d recover from this one.
“Y/N,” Hunter sighed softly but you were already shaking your head at him, standing from your seat and pushing past him into the cockpit. “Hey, I want it to be him too!”
“Then let’s go!” You snapped at Hunter, immediately feeling bad. You knew that whilst you hadn’t been coping well with the loss of Tech, without Hunter you probably would have completely lost it months ago. He truly had been your saving grace. “I’m sorry, it’s just…it’s Tech, I know it is.”
Hunter looked at you, his face contorted with sympathy but eventually he nodded, taking a seat in the cockpit as you typed in the coordinates. He didn’t say anything but that was just what you needed, to have Hunter by your side as you went to find Tech.
It had to be Tech.
It had to be.
It took two days to land on the planet the coordinates led to, a planet you didn’t know the name of and was so far off the map. You were sure Tech would have a fact or two about it if he were here.
You had sat on the comm, watching it, willing it to come alive with another message but nothing more came through.
The ship finally landed and you were the first off it, eyes scanning the forest around you, looking for any sign of Tech. The others followed you out of the Marauder, each of them looking around and seeing nothing, knowing it was going to be bad for you when you came to another dead end.
It was Hunter who heard him first, a crunch and snap of twigs under a boot alerted him and he let out a small gasp, feeling Crosshair and Wrecker look at him.
It took a few more moments but Tech appeared from the trees and you felt your legs nearly give out as you looked at him, unable to move.
“Y/N.” Tech breathed out and that was all you needed to force your feet forward, practically falling into his chest and Tech didn’t care how sore his body was he still wrapped his arms around you and held you close.
“You got my message.” He whispered into your hair and you laughed though the noise sounded more like a sob as silent tears made their way down your cheeks.
Tech felt his own eyes well up but he managed to keep the tears contained as he looked past you to his brothers, though a few tears did manage to trickle out as he saw Crosshair looking back at him.
Eventually you managed to pull away and Tech brought his hand to your cheek, brushing away your tears before he leant his forehead against yours.
“I knew you were alive.” You told him, your voice barely audible as you tried to hold back more tears. “I knew you were.”
Tech leaned forward, brushing his lips against yours and you couldn’t stop more tears from falling as you kissed him back, savouring the feeling after doubting if you would ever feel this again.
You never strayed far from Tech when the two of you eventually pulled away and he was embraced by his brothers, each of their eyes watery and a few of their cheeks wet where tears had fallen.
Eventually you all made your way back into the Marauder and Tech excused himself for a much needed sonic. You were reluctant to let him go but watched him leave, assuring yourself he was back.
“I told you.” You said softly as Hunter came to sit next to you. “I told you he was alive.”
Hunter pulled you against his chest, his arm going around your shoulder as he placed a soft kiss to your head.
“He’s alive.” Hunter murmured against your hair, still trying to wrap his mind around it himself.
By the time Tech had left the fresher Hunter had gotten the ship into hyperspace and everyone was sat together. Tech immediately made his way over to you, not wasting any time in pulling you close to him, your hand finding his as the others spoke softly, your thumb stroking over his knuckles in a constant reminder that he was there.
The six of you sat there for hours, Tech filled you in on what had happened since his fall, Omega had excitedly told Tech about her and Crosshair’s daring escape and the rest of the night was spent reliving old memories until you were all yawning.
None of you wanted to pull yourselves out of that moment but the need for sleep was too much and you forced yourselves up and into bed.
You were happy to go to bed though when Tech climbed in after you and pulled you close, the sound of his steady breathing was enough to lull you into an easy sleep, something that you hadn’t been able to do for months, your eyes falling closed feeling warm and overwhelmingly relieved.
It wasn’t until you gasped awake, shivering at the cold air that you knew something wasn’t right. You looked around and felt your heart sink as you realised you were on a cart, Storm Troopers shooting at you from across the way. It wasn’t until you saw Tech running across the rail line that you felt panic build up.
“No.” You whispered to yourself, Omega looking up at you in confusion. “No, he’s alive. I got him back.”
“Um, Hunter, something’s wrong with Y/N.” You heard Omega say but you didn’t pay attention to Hunter calling your name, instead keeping your eyes locked on Tech like your gaze alone could change everything.
“We’ve got three ships inbound.” Hunter said, dragging his gaze from you and back onto the fight.
You shook your head, how many times had you been forced to relive this day? How many times had you been forced to lose Tech? You thought you had him back, you had him back. Was that just a dream, a way to cope with him being gone?
Power came rushing back to the cart, snapping you back to reality and your eyes filled with tears as you watched Tech running back towards the cart, trying to outrun the blaster shots aimed at him.
You could only watch through blurry tear filled eyes as Tech fell from the rail line onto a falling cart, watching as he just about managed to secure himself with his grappling line but there was nowhere for him to go, the cart was falling faster than he could climb.
“Wrecker, get him on board.” Hunter commanded, though the command was filled with underlying worry.
You let out a choked sob, knowing that command wouldn’t be carried out.
“You must sever the connecting hinge. Now!” Tech instructed and you shook your head madly.
“Tech.” You managed to choke out. “Please.”
“Y/N,” You heard Tech sigh and your name falling from his lips had more sobs escaping you. “I’m sorry, my love.”
You watched as he pulled his blaster out and knew what was to come.
“Plan 99.” He said and you screamed as he fired his blaster, only able to watch as he fell, seconds away from blinding following after him only to have Hunter snatch you away from the edge, holding you tightly against his chest as you thrashed madly against him, unsure of what you could do if you managed to get out of his hold but the only thought in your mind was that you wanted Tech.
He couldn’t be dead.
You shot up with a gasp, silent tears falling down your face and sweat clinging to your body as you looked around, assuring yourself you were in the Marauder. Your heart hammered in your chest when you realised you were alone.
Had Tech ever been back?
You forced your body out of bed, of course he was back, he had to be.
Your feet silently carried you through the Marauder, only stopping when you got to the cockpit and you felt a sob escape you when you saw Tech in the pilot’s seat, looking out of the window as you flew through hyperspace.
The noise had Tech turning to face you with a worried look.
“What happened, my love?” The pet name had your mind flashing back to the last thing he said to you but you shook your head, wiping the tears away as best you could.
“I had a nightmare about you,” You told him, watching as his face softened and he made room for you on the chair. “And I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“I’m okay, dear.” He assured you as you sat in the chair, his arm wrapping around you as he held you close, guiding your head to his chest so you could feel his heart beat loud and clear. “I’m alive.”
The words were a reassurance to the both of you as you sat there holding each other in silence whilst you passed through hyperspace, Tech was here.
He was alive and he was going nowhere.
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