their writing: the dawn breaks and you are anew. the person you once were vanished. the rising sun offers a fire to burn her to ashes.
me: hey there- i just wanted to you to know your work is amazing. i love reading your writing. please continue! it is so eloquent. your wording and command of the english language are just incredible. you show such a deep emotional intelligence.
them: lol ya i do a write sometimes thnx bb [gif of the rock]
Warnings - Nothing too graphic except TW for slight vomit (not very descriptive).
Lucio had never felt so comfortable before in his life. He was drifting between the haze of sleep and consciousness, aware of his surroundings but not paying any true attention. It was warm, dark… and if Lucio had paid enough attention, he would notice the increasingly loud muffles of someone-
“Santos!”
A large, dark skinned hand slammed on the desk- barely an inch away from Lucio’s head.
Lucio jumped, an audible gasp escaping him as he awoke. He glanced around the classroom, which was filled with his smirking classmates, made Lucio realise with embarrassment he had fallen asleep in class… with probably the least patient teacher there was.
Looking up at Professor Gabriel Reyes, Lucio gave the man an apologetic smile. Reyes expression remained unchanged, unimpressed mixed with stern disappointment. Also a hint of intimidation, which was not hard considering how tall and scarily scarred his professor was.
“Uh… my bad Professor?” Lucio said meekly, trying his hardest to repress a yawn. He felt exhausted.
“”Your bad”?” Reyes cocked an eyebrow. “I expect all my students to pay attention to my lectures, and answer when I ask a question, Santos.”
“Question?” Lucio said, looking around to his peers. Most were snickering at this point, and being generally unhelpful. “Uh… could you please repeat it, professor?”
Reyes sighed, and all Lucio wanted to do was shrink down and disappear.
“I had asked you what the three laws of motion were.” Reye supplied, not entirely helpful for Lucio. He had been unable to pay attention to the two hour long lecture, and any memory of that information was non-existent in his mind. “You were set the task of researching it yesterday. I assume you did your homework?”
Crap… Lucio thought, unable to hide a grimace. He was screwed.
“The three laws of motion are… well, it’s the thing with Isaac Newton…” Lucio said, trying to speak slowly enough to think. Even if he knew it, his mind was going blank from the stress of the situation. “Uh…”
“I think that’s enough Santos, it’s clear you didn’t do the reading I set out for everyone yesterday.” Reyes grumbled, and turned away from him to face the board. Lucio gritted his teeth, feeling an awful mix of guilt and anger.
He understood why Reyes would be annoyed, but his professor’s awful mood seemed uncalled for. Then again, Reyes was always in an awful mood.
Lucio watched as he wrote on the whiteboard, making sure to take notes to ease his professor’s irritation. Which seemed an impossible task.
The next hour dragged ever so slowly, Lucio had to use any willpower left to stay awake- he really couldn’t afford to anger Reyes any further and risk being held behind.
Unfortunately, Reyes did just that.
“Santos.” Reyes called, as Lucio packed up his bag and went to leave with his other classmates. Lucio stilled, repressing a sigh. “We need to have a chat.”
“What’s up, Professor?” Lucio asked, cautiously, as he approached Reyes desk. But he had a feeling of what it was about. Reyes grimaced at his casual wording.
“Santos, tell me, why are you in this class?” Reyes asked, sharply. Lucio was taken aback, from both the question and tone. He shifted awkwardly.
“If this is about the late homework, I am sorry professor. I’ve just been kinda busy with my job and-“
“This is more than just the homework.” Reyes sighed, he didn’t look too angry- just weary. “You have been in this class for a few months but you seem to have no interest in the subject, you’ve been missing deadlines, putting a part-time job a priority when your education should be.”
Lucio was silent, staring at one of Reyes potted plants (lilies of all things), conflicted. The words struck close, all the doubts of himself laid bare- the why am I here? Is this what I want?
“Are… are you kicking me off the course?” Lucio asked quietly, Reyes rolled his eyes.
“No.” Reyes said, shaking his head slightly. “I’m not going to do that. It might seem like the opposite Santos, but I want the best for you- for my students. If you don’t want to be here, don’t be- or waste your time. Our time.”
“Uh… thank you?” Lucio said, and couldn’t help but glance towards the door. Reyes noticed.
“You can leave.” He sighed, and as Lucio practically rushed towards the door, he called out.
“Bring your damn homework next time!”
BunnieUnnie: YO where R you??? ^-^;
Froggo: Prof kept me behind :C
BunnieUnnie: aw T_T …meet me at our spot??
Froggo: can’t rn soz :O… gotta check on Amiguinho
BunnieUnnie: R U srsly naming him Amiguinho??? -_-
Froggo: Don’t judge me woman!!!! Jk jk… but maybe meet later??? You can hang with your GF until then? :)
BunnieUnnie: Blocked! >:C
Lucio smiled to himself, pocketing the phone as he made his way through campus. Much to his relief, lessons for the day were almost over, Lucio having an hour or so for a free period before his compulsory maths class. He would usually meet with Hana, but instead he had some pretty important errands. Ignoring his buzzing phone (likely Hana sending him silly GIFS), Lucio picked up his pace – the campus was pretty big, it would take him at least twenty minutes to get to his apartment.
Leaving his poorly patient for so long left a sour taste in Lucio’s mouth- the 2 hour long lesson not helping much with that concern.
Lucio was out of breath by the time he reached his apartment complex, key ready in his hand, he jogged up the two flights of stairs- barely stopping to unlock his door and rush inside. A quick glance around reminded him of the very due clean out needed- empty takeout boxes practically lined his kitchen and living area, dirty laundry thrown into a pile.
His mãe would throw a fit at the sight.
Lucio ignored it for now, sliding his bag and jacket off onto the floor whilst he made his way to his bedroom. The cage was still sat secure on his desk, undisturbed and silent as Lucio approached. He assumed Amiguinho was still sleeping.
“Hey, time to wake up Amiguinho…” Lucio cooed, as he opened the roof door. He had managed to find time to pick up some rat pellets on the way so quickly prepared his food. He hoped that the rat was healthy enough to start on solids, and not just fluid. “You up little guy?”
Lucio continued to talk softly, reaching down to nudge the bundle of fabric- he hadn’t the heart earlier to disturb and move Amiguinho earlier.
As his finger moved a section of the fabric aside, a soft pink nose slowly emerged- moving erratically, soon very twitchy whiskers were now visible. Lucio froze, staring as Amiguinho slowly lifted his head and let out a soft hiss.
“Hey, it’s okay.” Lucio said, moving his hand away- he learned his lesson the other night. “Nothing to be scared about here, just checking to see if you’re alright. You hungry?”
Lucio didn’t expect a response, he always spoke so openly with animals- even if people looked at him strange for doing so. If anything, it reassured Lucio more than the rat.
Amiguinho crawled slowly, lifting himself out of the scarf. Lucio could tell by his movements that he was still recovering, his gait wobbly and awkward, which was not helped by the missing limbs.
Thankfully his eyes seemed brighter, and more alert- and no obvious signs of shock were present.
“You’re looking so much better than yesterday Amiguinho!” Lucio smiled, and placed the bowl of pellets down in front of the rat. “Hey, you think you can eat some of this?”
Amiguinho didn’t move for a moment, staring wide-eyed at Lucio. Then, he leaned down to sniff the bowl, never taking his shiny eyes off Lucio.
His pink nose wrinkled with distaste, the rat bearing his teeth and letting out a much louder hiss than before. Amiguinho turned his back to the bowl, instead choosing to look (glare?) upwards at the still open cage roof. Lucio closed it slowly.
“Amiguinho, you have to eat. It’ll help you feel better.” Lucio chastised him, but wasn’t too concerned, yet. “But hey, it’s alright… you’re still healing, I know you feel too terrible to eat, but try later yeah?”
Sitting back on the edge of his bed, Lucio sighed. It would be naïve to assume the still injured rat would be ready to eat, and if Amiguinho had never eaten pellets before- it would be unlikely he’d rush to eat something unfamiliar.
Lucio shrugged to himself, and feeling hungry himself, decided to fix up some lunch.
He was halfway mentally composing a new song when the food was ready to dish up. Lifting the red hot pot off the stove, Lucio hummed- left foot tapping to an imaginary beat.
It was a traditional feijkoada dish, although it was nothing like his mãe would cook- a half-assed discount version if anything. But it reminded him of home, and was one of his favourites.
Delicious meat and beans, with a touch of homesickness.
With a hearty serving of feijkoada in a bowl, Lucio made his way back to the bedroom- wanting to keep an eye on his patient during his meal.
To Lucio’s dismay, he still had another class at the college in less than a couple hours- as well as work in the evening.
As Lucio settled with his meal on the bed, covers still messy from the morning, he began to eat. Lucio couldn’t help but practically hum at the taste, after only having a hastily half-eaten cereal bar the whole day, the meal was mouth-wateringly satisfying.
But, loud grating sound caught Lucio’s attention, he glanced towards the plastic enclosure, where Amiguinho was hanging off the bars of the roof, gnawing the metal frame frantically. Lucio worried for the injured rat’s safety more than anything else.
“Hey, hey, stop that.” Lucio said, gently.
Putting his bowl down, he scooted closer to the cage. Amiguinho froze in his movements, still gripping onto the roof with only one fore limb- impressive really, considering how weak the animal should be at this stage. “You’ll hurt yourself, Amiguinho.”
The rat gave a rather loud hiss in reply, Lucio frowned- but as Amiguingo bared his teeth; his grip on the cage slipped, the animal landing on the plastic bottom with a rather loud thud. The animal looked dazed.
“Oh, crap.” Lucio swore, and went to open the enclosure. He was too racked with worry to care about bites, so he scooped Amiguinho up in his hands. Lucio stroked Amiguinho lightly on his soft forehead, practically holding him against his chest like a baby.
The small rat was shaking slightly, but otherwise seemed unhurt- if not woozy. Lucio continued to stroke his forehead gently, the action seeming to calm the animal.
“You got to be more careful Amiguinho, you’re still recovering from yesterday and last thing I want is for you to be any more hurt…” Lucio chided, his soft expression turning slightly tense when Amiguinho started to shift in his arms.
It was instinctual, but Lucio could still vividly remember the painful sensation of being bitten by a rat, and would rather not repeat it.
But instead of the aggressive response he expected, Amiguinho only moved to raise himself on his hind quarters, his pink nose scrunched up as he sniffed towards Lucio’s bowl of food…
Suddenly Amiguinho tensed, and before Lucio could react, he dived.
“Hey!” Lucio gasped, his grasp on his food slipped- the bowl tipping sideways which caused half of meat to spill on the white duvet covers.
This didn’t bother Amiguinho, who was happily munching on the very species inappropriate food. The rat’s face was covered with the reddish sauce, making him look almost feral.
“Man…” Lucio sighed, rubbing his face in exasperation. “You wouldn’t eat the pellets, but thought my lunch would be a nice treat, huh?”
Amiguinho said nothing, instead he choked.
“Oh shit.” Lucio breathed, frozen as the rat hacked violently a second time- it seemed it he was eating too fast for his throat to manage. It wasn’t until he coughed a third time that Lucio jumped into action, lifting the rat in one hand as he quite sharply pressed Amiguinho’s ribcage.
A few repeated presses seemed to help. Amiguinho’s choking became less forceful after a few moments. Lucio grimaced as the rat finally threw up, chunks of half eaten meat finally unstuck from his throat.
“You really are accident prone, aren’t you?” Lucio sighed, gently wiping some sauce and food from Amiguinho’s mouth with his hand. The rat squeaked quietly, his amber eyes focusing on Lucio as he wiped away the debris. “You’re going to give me a heart attack y’know.”
Lucio grabbed a washcloth from his bathroom, Amiguinho still curled up in his arms. With the damp cloth, he finished cleaning all the sauce off the rat’s face- the animal seemed weak after his choking fit, and barely put up any fight. It was a worrying sight.
Lucio glanced at his watch, and bit his lip.
“I don’t think I can leave you here… but I got class…” Lucio mused to himself, his eyes catching sight of a small carry cage/vivarium he uses to take Alfonso, his frog, to the vets.
Warnings - Heist/Hostage Situation, Some mild Injury, Violence, Usage of Guns.
“Eh Roadie… this city is choc-a-bloc of civvies… should be a piece of piss to get away in this crowd, huh?”
“Concentrate, Rat.”
It was midday, the city that never slept was busy with the rush hour. Two individuals were sat in an inconspicuous vehicle… although the individuals themselves were rather not.
Although Roadhog insisted on civilian disguises, at least before the heist, the normal clothes could not hide his enormous size, his obvious pig mask to be replaced by a black ski mask and goggles. Thankfully, it was winter, and he could get away with wearing such a thing.
Junkrat was the complete opposite to his partner, whereas Roadhog was large, Junkrat was very skinny, tall and had a messy bed of blonde hair with some missing patches- from where he got a little too excited with his explosives. His amber eyes were wide, full of maniac excitement.
“Remember the plan?” Roadhog asked, voice deep and gruff. Junkrat nodded.
“Course’ I do mate!” Junkrat grinned, although he did had a track record of forgetting everything, and just making up as he went along- this led to a lot of close calls that Roadhog had to drag him out of. “I go in, make a nice distraction for ya. You go in through the back way, whilst I ave’ a lovely ol’ time with the civvies. Simple.”
“No civilian casualties Rat.” Roadhog reminded him. “We don’t need any more heat after us. Got it?”
“Roger!” Junkrat mock-saluted, causing Roadhog to shove him out of the truck. Junkrat only stumbled once. “Okay, okay. I’m on it Roadie. See ya in 10.”
Roadhog simply grunted, and Junkrat made his way across the street to the bank. He tried to control his erratic movements, thanks to his prosthetics he had quite the recognisable gait, and after hitting up almost ten different banks in the same state, the last thing Junkrat needed was to be recognised.
…well, not until they got the money at least.
It’s not like they need it, the rich wankers... Junkrat thought, as he was approaching the main doors- not surprised to see the usual two security guards stationed at the front. Both he and Roadhog had been staking out this place for a couple weeks now- the guard placement was predicatable, as well as the cameras, and the location of the vaults wasn’t too difficult to figure out.
They had beaten better odds, so Junkrat confidently strolled past the armed guards- they glanced at his wrist, but seeing nothing, didn’t bother to stop him.
Junkrat gritted his teeth, picking up on this interaction almost immediately.
He would be the first to admit that causing anarchy and mayhem was great fun, and his speciality. Most people who knew of the Australian fugitives only thought they cared about the money, it was a very big plus side to the heists, but their plan was bigger than that.
Well, at least Junkrat’s.
Junkrat was determined to get revenge against the anti-shifters, those who dared to take away his rights and those who left his home country in state it was now. Junkrat knew most of them were rich suits with too much money, and with money came power.
Take away the money…
“G’day Sheila, hope ya don’t mind me asking a question?” Junkrat had approached the main desk of the bank, where a rather long queue was forming. He poked one of the customers to get her attention, it was a petite woman, short and sweet looking.
The perfect hostage.
“Oh?” The woman turned around, and in that moment Junkrat grabbed her arm- bringing her close to him, whilst holding a gun to her head. She stared in shock, unable to process exactly what was happening.
“Try to run and I’ll shoot, got it?” Junkrat told the woman, turning to face the rest of the building with the hostage in front- everyone was slowly becoming aware of the danger, the two security guards fully alert, as they had their guns pointed to Junkrat. But he could detect their nervousness, their faces twitching with insecurity.
Newbies.
“Anyone try to leave this buildin’, and this poor sheila will ave’ her brains all over the floor, got it?” Junkrat raised his voice, finally gathering the attention of everyone. Everyone was frozen in shock. “Now, get yourselves to the floor with hands on ya head, nice and easy does it. You two coppers as well, drop ya weapons.”
Everyone began lowering themselves to the floor, the two security guards lowering their weapons to the ground. Junkrat glanced behind the counter, to the woman that was still behind it. She hadn’t moved yet, and Junkrat could see her hand inching downwards.
“Oi, ya better not press that button.” Junkrat said, and couldn’t help the maniac giggle that left his lips. “I can see ya tryin’, so unless you want blood on ya hands- I suggest you step away and get on the floor.”
The woman made the wise decision to listen, pale and shaking as she lowered herself to the ground- away from the desk. It was at this moment that Junkrat’s watch buzzed. He grinned, and with one hand, he grabbed his detonator. Pressing the red button, a rather large explosion shook through the ground- causing some of the hostages to cower and even scream.
“Now, now, no need ta’ panic.” Junkrat chuckled, knowing that Roadhog was already in the vaults was exhilarating. “I just came to make a withdrawal, y’know how it is.”
“W-why are you doing this?” Junkrat’s meek hostage cried out, causing him to tighten his hold on his. She whimpered.
“Nothin’ personal love, well, unless ya one of those Shifter hating wankers.” Junkrat said, his grin becoming furious. His hold even tighter. “Do ya even know what this bank does to us Shifters, I bet ya don’t even care!”
The woman sobbed.
“That’s what I thought,” Junkrat growled, his angry gaze landing on every trembling hostage. “You lot are just ignorant cunts, I don’t even feel sorry for ya!”
Junkrat continued his half-coherent rant, the pent up anger barely controlled. If he could, he would level the entire building- it was a very tempting thought.
His watch buzzed again.
“Oh, well, look at that time!” Junkrat sighed, peering over the hostage’s shoulder to look at his watch. “Wish I could stay and chat some more, but duty calls. Come on sheila, time to move.”
Junkrat pressed the gun closer to the hostage’s head, which caused her to gasp. Junkrat pushed her forward, ensuring she was in front of him the whole time for cover. Junkrat may have been scatter-brained, but he wasn’t stupid enough to let go of the hostage yet, not when he wasn’t a good distance away from the bank and guards.
Junkrat hurried outside, the hostage barely keeping up. He saw in the distance the black truck, which Roadhog was hopefully in.
Junkrat was starting to think this heist was going far too well, when loud sirens blared down the street.
“Fuck!” Junkrat jumped, and roughly pushed the hostage to the ground as he took off in a sprint towards the car. He just barely got in when the gun shots rang out. “Hit it Roadie!”
Roadhog didn’t respond, too focused on driving and getting them out of there. Despite his large size Roadhog was very adept at getting the vehicle to move, quite quickly, even if it wasn’t his dear motorcycle.
Junkrat held on for dear life as he booted it down the street- a growing number of copper cars after them. At least twenty, Junkrat counted.
“Honestly, I’m flattered so many coppers came to see us off!” Junkrat said, laughing manically. Roadhog grunted, swerving past the many cars on the road. Junkrat’s cackling and the wail of sirens the only sound present. It was mayhem.
“I can throw them off. Try and shoot their wheels.” Roadhog instructed, and he sped around a corner. That motion alone caused two of the cop cars to nearly crash into eachother- it seemed they were desperate.
“Gotcha’,” Junkrat nodded, opening the widow and leaning out. He would throw some grenades, but knew it would only piss Roadhog off as it would bring more heat to them if a civvie got caught in it. Junkrat mentally sighed as he shot some rounds at the cars. His aim was piss poor, but the threat alone was enough to keep the cars at bay. The risk of civilian casualty was too much for the coppers to retaliate.
The chase seemed to go on for forever, whenever they turned a corner, another cop car would follow. Roads soon were being blocked, traffic stopped, it seemed the coppers were leading them to somewhere specific.
“Uh, Roadie-“
“I know.” Roadhog grumbled, speeding up even more. They were nearing the docks, soon there would be nowhere to go except the water. Except-
“Is that a bloody drawbridge?” Junkrat pointed out with a frown, the coppers were smart- they led the two towards a dock, the only escape a drawbridge that was currently lifting upwards. Junkrat’s frown turned into a comically wide grin. “Roadhog, we can make it- boot it!”
“You’re crazy.” Roadhog huffed, but he was smiling beneath his mask. The car was now as fast as it could be, and only a few metres away from the still moving drawbridge. Junkrat braced himself as the car flew up the ramp, letting out crazed laughter as the vehicle was suspended in the air.
It would be one hell of a way to go, they both thought.
Somehow, the vehicle landed. The fact they didn’t instantly crash and die was surprising, but not unwelcome. The wail of sirens a distant reminder of the still present danger.
However, as Roadhog went to accelerate, the engine cut off.
“Shit.” Roadhog grunted, Junkrat staring at him. “We gotta walk.”
“Fuck, where’s the money?” Junkrat asked, as they jumped out. Roadhog gestured to the large potato sack he grabbed out of the boot, hefting it with one hand easily despite the fact it was filled to the brim. Junkrat simply nodded, and led the way. The two fugitives slipped into an alleyway.
“We got one of our safe houses this side of the city?” Junkrat asked as they jogged, glancing around every corner with unrestrained paranoia. Roadhog grunted.
“East Street, few blocks away.” Roadhog said, pointing towards the end of the alleyway. “Out this way.”
“Got’cha!”
The sound of sirens had disappeared, but Junkrat still couldn’t relax. He felt so on edge, as if the coppers would jump out on them any moment. He could tell Roadhog felt the same, his large friend tense, with his massive fists clenched.
They were not far from the safehouse, an abandoned apartment not far from the docks. The coast seemed clear, but as they turned the final corner out of the alleyway- they came face-to-face with a fully armed police barricade on the street. Junkrat glanced back- a small fleet of discreet copper cars blocking when they came from.
Both Roadhog and Junkrat glanced to eachother, they had faced worse odds, but this wasn’t going to be easy, or… clean.
“Drop your weapons and hands up!” An officer yelled into a microphone, and as if to enunciate his words, the guns pointed to them were cocked and loaded quite audibly. “Roadhog and Junkrat, you are under arrest-“
“Oh, will ya just shut it!” Junkrat cackled, hands inching towards his explosives. “We all know we ain’t going down easy- let’s just cut it short, eh?”
With that, Junkrat lobbed a mine which landed quite nicely on one of the copper trucks. Without hesitation he detonated it, causing a large explosion among the first line of vehicles. Coppers jumped out of the way, those who weren’t caught up in the explosion started to shoot.
Junkrat dodged out of the way of the bullets, finding a nice car to hide behind. He threw an array of bombs towards the cops, as Roadhog charged them with his massive shotgun. The coppers didn’t seem to know what to do at first, but gathered their wit and began focusing on Roadhog.
Junkrat noticed this.
“Oi, over here you fucking cunts!” Junkrat yelled, gathering attention of some of the officers. He grinned when some dared to come closer, in the distraction he planted a few mines in ground, in hope some dumb copper would step on it.
Five managed to.
“Hahaha, take that!” Junkrat cackled, not caring that some blood splattered on his crazed face. He looked around for Roadhog, only to find him being surrounded. Whilst Roadhog was very capable on taking on a group of armed men with just one hand, he looked injured, and quite heavily so.
Junkrat swore, and went to leave cover and blow up the wankers that dared try to hurt his friend. Roadhog fell to his knees, Junkrat saw red-
“Get out of here rat!” Roadhog roared, startling Junkrat. He froze, the urge to escape conflicting with protecting Roadhog.
In his moment of hesitation, a copper managed to sneak up behind Junkrat. Junkrat could barely react as he was pinned to the floor, but once he realised what was happening he began to fight back.
Junkrat snarled as he kicked the pistol out of the officer’s hand, the weapon sliding across the gravel a few paces away. Junkrat got to his feet, barely dodging a bullet that grazed his ear from behind. Turning to the offender- Junkrat realised he couldn’t spot Roadhog amongst the crowd of coppers that were beginning to advance on him.
“What did you cunts do ta him!?” Junkrat gritted his teeth, realising that he was becoming surrounded.
Junkrat swallowed heavily, his chest becoming tight with a familiar sensation.
It was a quick, painless transformation, and the suddenness of it gave Junkrat the opportunity to escape. It seemed the coppers didn’t expect it, as they looked around in a panic.
Junkrat scurried past them.
-x-
The wail of sirens echoed through the streets, a signal for Junkrat to stay hidden. He was still in his shifted form, a small rat.
It made it easy to hide, and blend in with the cityscape. But it was starting to get too cold for his small body, Junkrat shivered as he hid underneath a dumpster.
He was more worried that the coppers now knew he was a Shifter, and whether Roadhog was still alive or if he had managed to escape.
The death of either of them was always a possibility, they lived life dangerously- with a large bounty on their head, and many authorities after them for so many reasons. But Junkrat always thought that if they were going to die, or be arrested, that it would be together.
And with a bang… Junkrat thought. The very idea that he may be alone again was terrifying. Junkrat didn’t want to even consider it. So he decided he would search all of their safe houses, knowing that if Roadhog got out of there, it was very likely he was holed up in one of them.
With that in mind, Junkrat peered out from under the dumpster, the sirens were beginning to die down- although he knew he was far from safe. As Junkrat scurried out of the tight space, something grabbed him.
Junkrat stared up in horror, as a scruffy street cat pinned him to the ground.
-x-
So… cold…
Still in his small rodent form, shaking from the cold and the shock of the situation, Junkrat collapsed.
He had managed to escape from the hungry feline, but not without injury. It was laughable, he thought. That he managed to get away from a whole precinct of police with virtually little to none harm, but a skinny, mangled street cat nearly ate him alive.
Junkrat whimpered, letting out pathetic, small squeaks he couldn’t control. He didn’t have the energy to change back, too focused on the pain of bleeding out, the ever biting cold that seeped into his very bones…
Is this how the infamous Junkrat really goes..? Junkrat thought, and if he could, he would laugh. Maybe cry too, if he had the energy.
Closing his eyes, Junkrat let out a ragged breath. He was losing consciousness fast, and if he had held on for longer, he might’ve noticed the silhouette of man approaching him.
http://archiveofourown.org/users/dontbeupsettihavespaghetti/profile Will be uploading all fics dumped here onto this account - a few hours after first upload.
Shifter - Chapter One - Boombox Week: Alternative Universe
Other Tags: Junkrat/Lucio, Boombox, Fluff, Comfort, Romance, Mentions of d.Va/Sombra, No Omnics, Modern AU, Shifter AU/Shape shifting AU.
Chapter 1/?
Word count: 4000+
Chapter One – Lucio
The city of New York was beautiful in the winter, Lucio thought, as he walked down a sidewalk sprinkled with a light dusting of snow. Thankfully he remembered to cover up with a warm scarf and gloves before he left for work. It was nearing 3pm, the streets becoming more vibrant with the rush hour- although every hour seemed like rush hour for New York.
Lucio deftly dodged around the many people that wandered or also rushed by, when he first moved to the city it had seemed a rude thing to do, but was now one of his many habits as he travelled from A to B.
Lucio was finally nearing the pet store, a small local place that was one of his two jobs that he worked - to keep himself in college and under a warm roof. Lucio would admit it was stressful, working two jobs, and studying a degree in engineering that he didn’t quite want to take, all whilst trying to cope with being abroad in a country far from his home of Brazil, away from family.
“Lucio, you’re ten minutes late.” Lucio’s boss, an aged man named Paul sighed, trying to look stern but failing. He was a lax guy, too lax to care about slight tardiness. Especially when it came to one of his hardest working employees.
“Yeah, sorry bout’ that.” Lucio said, with guilt. He did feel bad. “Professor Reyes kept me behind for like an hour, I had to catch up on some work before he let me go.”
“I’ll accept that excuse, but try to be more on time next time.” Paul shrugged, handing Lucio a piece of paper. “I got some extra jobs for you today, just some extra cleaning out and feeding. You can handle that?”
“Yeah, no problem man.” Lucio mock saluted with a grin, glancing down at the list- it would be an interesting shift for sure.
Once his boss left him to his tasks, Lucio began by feeding and cleaning out the reptile section, checking their lamps were working and that the animals were healthy. Lucio couldn’t resist putting his earbuds in, humming and swaying lightly to the music as he worked. He cooed and petted the animals when he could, feeling quite cheered up by the presence of them. Whilst Lucio was only working in the pet store for some extra money, he couldn’t deny the fact he loved working with animals. They were pure creatures, unable to judge or be cruel and not to mention highly therapeutic for many people, including himself.
It was refreshing after a stressful day at college to unwind with the animals.
Customers entered the store every so often, most just browsing the animals- or picking up supplies for their own.
Lucio served them all with a bright smile, and he would admit being proud of his customer service skills, the ability to engage strangers in a conversation came easy to Lucio. Usually the topic was animals, unsurprising considering the place.
At one point, Lucio served a young brunette woman who came in to buy some bird food, they were having a pleasant conversation about what species of bird she was hoping to spot. Lucio noted that she was British, having a pleasant cockney accent.
When the woman passed the money over, her sleeve slipped down her arm, past her wrist.
Instinctively, Lucio looked and spotted the brand. A large red S on her inner wrist.
He quickly looked up, only to witness the woman pale even further- she looked terrified.
“Oh… um…” Lucio was at loss for words for a brief moment, the woman’s terror catching him off guard. But he understood why completely. “Hey, I didn’t mean to look miss, but you got nothing to worry about here. We’re not that sorta place, what you are isn’t any of our business.”
For a moment, the woman looked shocked. But her tense expression melted into relief.
“Thank you…” She breathed, composing herself. “You wouldn’t believe how many people refuse to serve me when they see it… are you…?”
“Oh, me? Nah, but I do feel for you.” Lucio sighed, fighting down the instinctive anger that came with the subject. “I uh, really don’t know what to say, other than sorry that you had to experience that.”
“…well, cheers luv,” The woman said with a sad smile, glancing around the store- which was beginning to fill up with people again. “I should be off now, have a good night, yeah?”
“Yeah, you too,” Lucio nodded, watching the woman leave for a moment before serving the queue that had built up.
-x-
The interaction had stayed in Lucio’s mind for the rest of the shift, he couldn’t help but think about the injustice against the Shifters, the almost militant control over people who had a power they couldn’t control or change. Lucio knew it was worse in other countries, Brazil wasn’t exactly progressive when it came to the Shifters.
The fact that America (so called land of the “free”) required Shifters to be visibly branded left a sour taste in Lucio’s mouth, he tried not to stew in it for too long. Whenever he thought of the curfews, the discrimination- it pissed Lucio off. Not an ideal mood at work.
It was now nearing 7pm, and in 15 minutes Lucio would be able to leave. He was sweeping the floor, the store empty of any customer. The only sounds being the chirping of the lovebirds and budgies, and the rattling of plastic hamster wheels. Lucio hummed to himself as he swept, feeling exhaustion creep up on him.
Can’t wait to get home and rest… Lucio thought wistfully, but frowned. Damn, Reyes set that deadline for tonight…
Lucio sighed heavily, resigned to his fate of an exhausted late night, and an even more tiring following morning.
-x-
If it wasn’t for the startling bright lights of New York, the street would be pitch black- the air was starting to get uncomfortable in temperature, the once beautiful snow an almost deadly layer of sleet. Lucio shuddered, tucking his nose further down his scarf, he could never adapt fully to the cold. After double checking the store was locked properly, he began to make his way home.
He didn’t live far from the pet store, only a few blocks away which was convenient. Lucio liked to cut through the alleyways to lessen the journey further, he found walking down the pitch black alleyways intimidating at times- but Lucio knew he was fast enough to get away if need be, and could put up a fight.
So, he pushed down his initial fear and entered the dark mouth of the alleyway beside the store.
Lucio liked to be aware of his surroundings, leaving earbuds out and ensuring he scanned the area properly. It was devoid of anyone, which was both a relief and not. He began a slow walk- scanning for any sleet that may slip him. It almost got him a few times.
Lucio had only walked a few metres down, when he heard an odd sound.
It was a very feint squeak, so feeble Lucio doubted he heard anything at all. Taking out his phone, he flipped on his bright torch setting- scanning the ground where he swore he heard the animalistic sound.
It took a minute to find the source, but the sight Lucio found made him gasp.
Beside a dumpster on the ground, was a curled up rodent. On closer inspection, Lucio knew it was a rat. They were not an uncommon sight in the city, especially near dumpsters. But the thing that shocked Lucio the most was the fact it was injured, and quite severely so.
Blood covered a vast majority of the blonde fur, some dried and most looked fresh- as if still seeping from the wound. The rat’s hind limb was bent at an awkward angle, looking broken or at least sprained. Lucio noted with pity that it was missing the other hind limb, and one of its forearms- old wounds considering the healed over stumps.
The only reason Lucio knew it was still alive was the fact its whiskers were twitching rapidly, the rat letting out a soft squeak when he stepped closer. It looked like a goner, and Lucio knew he had to do something to help the poor thing.
“Hey little buddy,” Lucio cooed softly, kneeling beside the shaking animal. It was startled at his presence, a startled hiss coming from the animal- although it came out more garbled than anything. “Hey hey, I’m not gonna hurt you little guy. I just wanna help, okay?”
Lucio was speaking more to reassure himself than anything, but it seemed his soft words caused the rat to stop hissing feebly at least.
What should I do?
In this situation, Lucio knew he had to react quickly- it seemed like the rat had lost a lot of blood, and from what he knew that could lead to shock, which was deadly to such a small rodent. Lucio also knew the best option was to free the animal of its pain as quickly as possible, which would be euthanizing the poor rat.
Lucio shuddered, he couldn’t bear to hurt the little guy- the thought of trying to snap its neck was sickening. He was too much of a pacifist to inflict any harm, even with good intent. Lucio also didn’t like the idea of taking it to a vet for it to be only killed too, even if it was the best option…
Without much thought, Lucio wrapped his scarf around the rat- he was going to try to take care of it.
-x-
“Yo Hana- you got a first aid kit in your dorm?”
Lucio had asked breathlessly into his phone, which he held up with his right shoulder as he jogged through the streets. The bundle in his scarf was barely moving at this point, the occasional squeaks dying out into quiet. Not a good sign.
“Hey Lucio… uh I think so, why?” Hana replied, sounding curious, but also concerned. “You hurt or something?”
“Not exactly,” Lucio breathed, the sight of Hana’s dorm coming into view- thankfully it wasn’t very far from the store, or Lucio’s own apartment. “It’s kinda hard to explain, I’ll show you in a minute.”
“Oookay Lu?”
When Hana opened the door to find a dishevelled Lucio, with windswept dreads, a look of panic in his eyes and his scarf bundled in his arms. She didn’t know what to think.
“What’s wrong?” Hana asked as Lucio came inside her room, looking around until he found a non-cluttered surface, i.e. her desk- placing the bundle onto it. Hana watched with curiosity.
“Don’t freak out on me Han, but I found this little guy out by the store…” Lucio explained, and Hana peeked into the scarf. “I couldn’t just leave him.”
When Hana saw the heavily injured rat within the material, she jumped back with some alarm.
“Lu! What if it’s got rabies?” Hana whined, trying to hide her disgust. Although she did look at the bundle with pity. “Poor thing… but it might have a load of diseases. And it’s on my desk!”
“I know, sorry Han.” Lucio said, feeling only a little guilty. He was more concerned for the increasingly quiet animal lying in his scarf. “I just need to borrow some bandages and stuff, then I’ll be off.”
“It’s okay, I know you want to help the little guy… but is he even still alive?” Hana asked, with a sad frown.
Lucio pulled the scarf away so he could see the rat more clearly, and on closer inspection it seemed like it was still breathing- its abdomen was moving feebly, very weak breathing but breathing nevertheless. Lucio let out a sigh of relief, although he knew there was much to do still.
“I’ll get the kit,” Hana said, brushing her hand over Lucio’s shoulder as she walked over to her drawers. The Korean girl returned with a thankfully large first aid kit, Lucio thought there would be enough in there to help somewhat. “I think I got some latex gloves in there, put them on before you touch it.”
“Gotcha,” Lucio nodded, and took out what he needed. Latex gloves, antiseptic wipes, bandages, and gauze. Lucio was thankful for his limited but useful animal first aid knowledge, it was sometimes needed in the store. “We need to clean his wounds first, find out what exactly is wrong. The blood is making it hard to see anything…”
“Just tell what to do Lu,” Hana nodded, and Lucio got to work.
It took longer than he thought to just clean the wounds, the blood had soaked deeply in the blonde fur- Hana compressed some of the more serious wounds whilst Lucio used the antiseptic wipes. Most of the cuts and wounds were only mild, and were already clotting- however a large slash across the rat’s stomach was a cause for concern. Lucio made Hana compress it whilst he prepared a sterile saline solution, as well as a clean cotton pad and gauze. Lucio couldn’t do much for the fractured hind limb.
Lucio was too engrossed in his tasks to even feel nervous, although Hana looked quite pale.
It seemed like forever, but finally Hana and Lucio had cleaned and bandaged all the visible wounds- Hana looked feint, and Lucio couldn’t help but exhale heavily.
“Lu, please let me know next time when you plan to bring over an injured animal and get blood all over my desk.” Hana sighed, glancing down to her blood soaked gloves with a grimace. She threw them in the bin with a frown. “Ugh.”
“Heh, yeah sorry bout’ that…” Lucio said with a chuckle, looking around Hana’s dorm room- a quite cluttered sight considering her massive TV and console setup. “You got a lamp I could use? This little guy could use some warmth.”
“Sure, just don’t get blood on it.” Hana quipped, plugging in her desk lamp and angling above the rat. “…Do you think it’ll be okay? It was practically dead when you brought him here.”
“I think he’ll be okay… I mean, as long as he doesn’t go into shock.” Lucio sighed, and pulled out the chair to sit- Hana perched herself on her bed. Lucio saw the state of his scarf, and groaned. “You gotta spare scarf or something? Think mine should be burned at this point.”
“Definitely,” Hana smirked, and tossed Lucio a bright pink scarf from her drawer- decorated with cute bunnies. “Pink would suit you.”
“You right, I mean, everything suits me Han.” Lucio smirked, he carefully moved the rat out of the bloodied green scarf- throwing it straight in the bin when he could. The animal barely moved at this disturbance, Lucio didn’t know if that was a good thing or not. He then wrapped the bandaged rat in the pink scarf, making sure it wouldn’t aggravate his wounds. “It suits him better.”
“You sure it’s a “him”?” Hana asked, and Lucio shrugged, looking down at the rat.
“I guess? I just get that vibe, y’know?” Lucio explained, now that the blood was cleared away Lucio could get a better look at the animal. The rather skinny rat had light fur- a blonde colour streaked with yellow, his long whiskers were nearly transparent, and to Lucio’s surprise its eyes were open wide- he expected some shade of red common to albinos, not a pleasant mixture of hazel and orange.
“Huh, I think it’s awake.”
“Oh, really?” Hana jumped out of bed to approach the desk to take a look, Lucio noticed that the rat’s gaze was quite blearily- as if it wasn’t focusing properly. “It looks really out of it.”
“He probably is…” Lucio said, sighing sadly. He supposed it was a good thing if it was awake at all. Then, a thought came to Lucio’s mind. “Damn… do you have anything we could feed it? Maybe food would be too much… fluids maybe?”
“Should I google it?” Hana said, already unlocking her phone. After a brief search she hummed. “It says the best thing to do for an injured rat is to give it “warm fluids” to rehydrate it.”
“So just some warm water?” Lucio said, Hana shrugging in response. “Doesn’t sound too difficult, think I saw a syringe in the kit.”
-x-
It was easier said than done to hand feed a delirious rat warm water, Lucio had placed the scarf on his lap- cocooning the rat between his arms and the material, as he gently coaxed the syringe into the rat’s mouth, slowly injecting the warm water. At first it seemed it was working, the animal instinctively swallowing the liquid. Its eyes were open but still quite blurry, Lucio began to worry if there was any lasting brain damage.
But then it hissed loudly.
The rat seemed to suddenly come to its senses, eyes more alert, and noticing the syringe and Lucio’s finger- dived for the kill. Lucio couldn’t help but yell out when the rat chomped on his index finger.
“Ah!” Lucio cried out, but refusing to let go of the injured animal. “Fuck! That really hurt.”
“Lucio, you alright?” Hana had rushed over, hearing his cry of pain through her headphones- she ignored her game for the moment to stare at his wound. “Shit Lu, it got you pretty bad.”
Lucio glanced down to the offending animal, and his finger. The rat had managed to tear the skin deep enough to bleed, it was a throbbing pain that made Lucio grit his teeth.
“I’ll get the kit… again.” Hana said with a slight smirk, although when she came back with an antiseptic wipe and plaster, she was frowning. “You should probably get that checked, if it has a disease…”
“Yeah, yeah… I’ll go to the doc tomorrow.” Lucio agreed, and couldn’t help but glare lightly at the rat still in his hold. The glare softened when Lucio realised how weak it was again, it seemed biting him took a very big toll on the rat. It was breathing harshly, eyes half closed. “Hey, little guy… it’s okay. I ain’t gonna hurt you, I promise.”
It let out a pitiful squeak.
“I can tell you love animals Lu,” Hana chuckled. “Even after being bitten you’re still cooing to him like he’s a baby.”
“He’s just scared, it wouldn’t be the first time I was bitten cause’ of that.” Lucio shrugged, and decided that the rat had enough warm fluids. “Uh… do you have a crate or something I could put him in? I don’t really have anything back home, don’t think Alfonso will appreciate a rat in his vivarium.”
“A frog and rat living together, couldn’t imagine what would go wrong.” Hana giggled, then hummed in thought. “Sombra used to have a hamster, maybe she might have her old cage?”
“Ooo, Sombra.” Lucio grinned, causing Hana to roll her eyes. “I haven’t met your girlfriend yet.”
“Firstly, she’s not my girlfriend-“
“Yet.”
“Yet, and secondly, shut up.” Hana blushed, making Lucio laugh aloud.
“Aw, I’m only teasing Han.” Lucio said with a chuckle. “Could you text your not-girlfriend girlfriend if she has one? I’d appreciate it.”
“Hm, you’re lucky I love you.” Hana grumbled, and began texting her crush. Lucio smiled fondly, he was glad Hana had someone she cared about a lot, he knew his best friend had been through a lot and deserved it, being displaced from Korea for being a Shifter was tough, and being forced abroad away from family to protect her was a pain he could somewhat relate to.
Lucio never thought of Hana any different when she confided in him, if anything, Lucio thought it was pretty awesome his best friend could transform into a rabbit.
“Okay.” Hana said with a pop of her bubble-gum, her cheeks were still red. “Sombra says she was going to get rid of her old cage for room, so you can have it for nothing. She’s um, coming over now.”
“Ooo-“
“Shut. Up.” Hana growled, furiously popping another bubble.
-x-
Thankfully, the rat dropped off into a slumber whilst Lucio and Hana waited for Sombra to come over. Lucio carefully placed the bundle back on the desk, under the heat lamp where the rat could stay warm and comfortable. Lucio noted with a smirk that Hana was growing increasingly nervous.
“Chill Han, you said yourself Sombra isn’t your girlfriend. You got nothin’ to be worried about.” Lucio pointed out, now sat beside the Korean on her bed. She gave him a half-hearted glare.
“You better not say anything embarrassing Lu,” Hana huffed, trying to focus on her game but failing miserably. “I might have a little crush, but don’t go ruining any little chance I have, ok?”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Lucio said, and he was only a little serious- he wouldn’t do anything too drastic. Lucio couldn’t help but chuckle when someone knocked on the dorm door. “I think you should get it.”
“Ugh, funny.” Hana sighed, but practically jumped up at the sound, throwing her controller and headphone onto the bed recklessly. Lucio was surprised, Hana was religious over her treatment of her devices.
She had it bad.
“Hi, Sombra.” Hana said brightly when she opened the door, on the other side was a pretty olive skinned woman. She had a very punk sort of vibe, with pretty purple streaked hair which was shaved on one half. Lucio knew she was definitely Hana’s type. “Come on in.”
“Hola Hana,” Sombra said with a smirk, Lucio swore it was almost flirtatious. She walked in carrying a medium sized plastic tank. Sombra nodded towards Lucio when she spotted him. “Hey.”
“Yo, name’s Lucio.” Lucio stood up to take the tank out of Sombra’s hands. “Thanks for this by the way, I appreciate it.”
“Hana told me what happened,” Sombra nodded, glancing towards the desk. “Though I’m not much of a rat person, thought I could help… I didn’t need this old thing anyway, so it’s not much of a hassle.”
“Glad to hear it,” Lucio said, placing the tank on Hana’s bed. He went to retrieve the rat, still bundled in the scarf sleeping. “If you’re not much of a rat person, what did you have?”
“Oh, y’know, the usual hamster that every little girl gets for a birthday.” Sombra said with a sigh. “It was my little Hermanas pet, but she didn’t want it anymore. Got stuck with the responsibility. Kinda sucky when you’re trying to get through college and find a roommate who can deal with the noise of the things.”
“Roommate?” Lucio questioned, looking back to Sombra after he gently put the rat in the tank. It would do for now. “…hey, you found one yet?”
Out of the corner of Lucio’s eyes, he could Hana glaring daggers at him.
“Nope, still looking.” Sombra looked between Lucio and Hana. “…why? You know someone who could help?”
Hana sighed, Lucio grinning.
“Yeah, I know for a fact that Hana is still looking for a new roommate.” Lucio said casually, hiding a grin by turn his back to them. “Just a thought.”
“Well, I just had a thought Lu…” Hana hummed, poking Lucio harshly in the back. “…that maybe it was time you went home?”
“I had the same exact thought!” Lucio teased, dodging another aimed poke. “Okay, okay I’m going. Damn woman, you’re vicious.”
“You better believe it.” Hana sing-songed, Sombra looking on with mild confusion.
-x-
Carrying the plastic tank back wasn’t as difficult as Lucio thought, he had gently refused Sombra’s offer for a lift back in her car. He didn’t want to separate the potential love-birds from… bonding.
“Nearly there buddy,” Lucio cooed into the tank, where the rat was still bundled up sleeping. Lucio hoped it wasn’t too cold for him, it was getting late and more snow had begun to fall. Thankfully Lucio’s small apartment was in view, it wouldn’t take any longer than a few minutes to finally get home. “You’ll be all nice and warm again, promise.”
Lucio continued his cooing until he was finally inside, and as he looked around his cluttered apartment he remember how much he needed to clean. Lucio found an uncluttered table in his bedroom to place the plastic tank on, then he searched for a spare heat lamp to keep the rat warm, thankfully having some spare from a previous spending spree at the pet store.
Thank Deus for staff discount. Lucio thought with chuckle, as he set up the lamp above the tank. It would keep the rat warm which would be important for recovery, Lucio wasn’t sure what he was going to do with him, whether to keep him or rehome him. He definitely wouldn’t just throw him on the streets again.
It didn’t seem like the rat was wild, if anything, it just looked like a very skinny fancy rat. Domesticated… even despite the bite.
Maybe he was abandoned… Lucio frowned. The thought itself was upsetting, but not unlikely, it wouldn’t be the first time an inexperienced owner dumped a pet that proved harder than expected to care for.
“I won’t let that happen to you again,” Lucio mused aloud, with a sigh he began tidying up. He knew he wouldn’t get much sleep tonight, not with having to hand feed the rat fluids every couple hours.
-x-
“Man… I should probably name you…” Lucio hummed, whilst he syringed some warm water into the rat’s mouth. It was still out of it, not seeming very alert, but still swallowing the liquid. Lucio took that as a victory. “You mind just Rat? I’m pretty awful at names. Alfonso can attest to that.”
No response, not that Lucio expected one.
“Hm… Buddy, Ratty, Skinner?” Lucio listed off names, grimacing at each one. “Nah, too generic. Damn I’m terrible.”
Lucio emptied the last of the syringe, relieved to see that the rat had drank every drop. His breathing was evening out to a more normal rate, and Lucio couldn’t spot any signs of severe shock. Despite the bad state he found him in, the animal was recovering.
Lucio yawned.
“Looks like it’s time for bed…” Lucio glanced at the clock on his bedside table, it read just past 1 o’ clock. Lucio knew he was going to be exhausted for college, and work tomorrow. But he didn’t regret it, he could handle some tiredness if it meant the little rat was safe, warm and most importantly alive.
Lucio gently placed the rat back into the plastic tank, which was covered by a layer of towels and blankets, as well as the bright pink bunny scarf. Despite being half-delirious, the rat instinctively burrowed into the warm material. Lucio smiled at the sight, and started to undress for bed. He decided to just sleep in his boxers, slipping under the cool covers of his bed with a sigh.
Closing his eyes, it didn’t take very long before Lucio was lightly snoring.
