maize - share the weirdest encounter you’ve had with a stranger on the street.
god honestly i racked my brain for like an hour trying to think of a weird encounter i've had with a stranger. i mean i've had people ask me for money, but that's not particularly weird. i suppose the weirdest thing was when i saw an older woman collapsed on the sidewalk and pulled over to help? she was having a health episode and apparently someone had mugged her while she was unable to defend herself, which is just unconscionable. i stayed with her until the ambulance came and made sure she was okay.
orchard - share one thing that you’d like to happen this autumn.
hmm. well, a general thing that i want to happen is "get a job that pays for my student loans", which is apparently a high bar to cross. but for autumn specific things? I'd really like to jump in a big leaf pile. I haven't done that since I was a kid.
tagged by @evilbunnyking (thank you!) for the "find the word" tag game. it seems like it is for wips? so doing that! words were trace, laugh, kiss, uhhh something else i forgot
from a kastle wip - word: laugh
Karen scoffs. “I will proudly avoid the title if it means,” she slides into the side of the door as Foggy takes a particularly sharp curve, “not driving like an absolute lunatic.”
Foggy waves his hand idly at her, dismissive. “This is normal, you should see Matt driving.” He keeps his face straight for barely a second before he laughs. “Wait, actually -” He taps at the dash touchscreen, slowing to a halt at a light, his bumper so close to the car in front Karen can clearly see the _____ sticker in the back window.
“Matt, hey. So you know your whole sense thing? Can you drive with it?”
A low laugh comes through the speakers, the sound settling deep in Karen’s chest. “Mmm…can’t say that I’ve tried, but probably. It would be a lot like those driverless cars.
“Don’t those crash a lot?”
“I would give anything to be in a driverless car right now,” Karen mutters.
----------
that's enough, methinks. anyway! i still cant think of what kind of sticker is in the back window damn it. tagging @not-a-regular-mom @notalittlebutalottie @lodessa if any of you want!
If you're taking prompts, lovely person- a kiss to the hollow of the throat, Nate and Kira?
:3c thank you for this prompt
a kiss to the hollow of the throat
Pairing: Nate and Kira
Notes: 5k words | First Kiss, First Date, Making Out :3c
Kira and Nate’s first date - extended edition.
a love to last eternities: 1 | 2 | You Are Here!
read on AO3
we should just kiss (like real people do)
Kira has never truly liked carnivals.
It’s not that she doesn’t think it’s nice to see people having fun. The sound of children laughing and the colorful lights setting the world aglow well after the setting of the sun are wonderful—magical even. The air is filled with the smell of popcorn and fried foods of all kinds. Teenagers run from ride to ride, shrieking with delight, holding hands with friends or their dates. It’s all like a hazy, rose-colored dream that she’d thought only really existed in made-for-TV movies about love and what your adolescence is supposed to feel like.
Then again, the only carnivals she’d ever been to were years ago now, and weren’t so much of a carnival as they were a seedy county fair run by people she’d never seen before, seemingly having been set up overnight. The rides had looked rickety, the food questionable at best, and her strongest memories of those nights had been of being far too cold and exhausted by the time she made her way from one side of the fair to the other. She hadn’t had friends to hang out with really, but sometimes she went because she hoped maybe she’d be able to find someone to hang out with.
All she’d gotten back then had been a runny nose and a lingering smell of tobacco and burning rubber that clung to her even after she’d showered. She really shouldn’t have gone to watch the tractor pull, looking back on it, but it had been the only place with somewhere to sit while she waited for the Agent her mother had left in charge to come pick her up. She remembers quite vividly now how she’d ended up leaning against a wall, shivering, as she watched a pair of teenagers from school sneak off under the big bleachers, no doubt to find somewhere to be alone. Being surrounded by so many people having fun with each other had not done what she’d wanted it to back then—she’d hoped that the fun would be contagious, but all it had done was remind her how alone she really was.
The memory of the loneliness in her chest lingers even now, though she’s also lost in memories of the last time she’d been here on the fairgrounds. She can still feel Nate’s fingers where they’d threaded through hers as they walked through the sideshows and looked around at the lights—the fake date had been the most fun she’d had at a community event in ages. Every time a smell or a sight threatened to send her spiraling back to her high school nightmares, Nate had tugged her a little closer, or Adam’s voice had interrupted her thoughts over the radio in her ear, and she’d remembered where she was, who she was with, what she was doing.
But she’s alone right now, checking up on the new supernaturals running the carnival, and she finds herself wandering down memory lane a little more easily. Especially since the recent contact with her mother has been bringing up—a lot of memories, both good and bad.
They’d gone to one fair together, she remembers, watching a mother hand her young daughter a giant cotton candy. It’d been a short-lived thing, as her mom had been called away before the sun had even gone down completely, but during the little time they’d had, it had been… normal. Rebecca had taken her on all the rides she’d wanted to go on—Kira had even gotten her to go on the merry-go-round with her. She’d won her a stuffed bear at one of the sideshows as well, and Kira had kept it for…
...well, she still had it in her closet, actually.
But, one good memory didn’t make up for the plethora of times over the years Kira had been alone and had had to do things like this alone. She’d never been a popular kid in school—no one wants to hang out with the weird kid who doesn’t have parents and can’t have people over to her house because of that.
“There you are!”
Farah’s voice shocks her out of her reverie, and any thoughts of the past are knocked clean out of her chest as the vampire barrels into her, half leaping onto her back and knocking the wind out of her. Kira groans softly, but manages not to fall over as Farah wraps her arms around her shoulders, laughing, with a half eaten thing of cotton candy in her hands.
“This is great, huh?” she asks, hanging off of Kira in a way that very much says she doesn’t plan on moving.
Kira snorts, reaching up to touch Farah’s arms. “You found the sugar, I see.”
“Yep! Want some?” Farah asks, offering her puff of cotton candy.
Kira sighs, but pinches off a piece and pops it into her mouth, enjoying the taste as the sugar melts on her tongue. They sway on the spot for a moment, just enjoying the lights and the sounds and each other’s company, before Farah snorts into Kira’s coat.
“Care to let me in on the joke?” Kira asks, turning to look at Farah where she has her face buried in her shoulder.
“Nothing. I just remembered that Nate was looking for you.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. Had something he wanted to ask you, I think.” As she says this, Farah shoots Kira a Look, smirking and waggling her eyebrows suggestively.
Despite the way Kira’s stomach flips, she just raises an eyebrow, shaking her head. “Are you going to be like this forever?”
“Ohh, you bet I am. I’ve never seen Natey so flustered over anyone before—it’s cute.”
A scoff leaves Kira’s lips. Yeah, right. “You’re exaggerating.”
“Am not!” Farah objects, letting go only to get right in front of her, grabbing Kira’s wrist insistently. “I know I’ve only been here for, like, seven years but I’ve seen him have crushes before! This? This is way more than any of that.”
Kira’s unsure about that, because she’s just—it doesn’t make any sense! She’s never been considered desirable, really, so him being that into her is just not realistic. Yes, he’s open with the fact that he likes her, but it’s probably definitely just a casual thing. She’s something new and they have a lot in common—that’s all.
She can feel herself making a face as Farah opens her mouth again, apparently determined to drill this through Kira’s head, but they’re interrupted.
“Kira, there you are!”
For some reason, her heart leaps into her throat at the familiar timber of his voice as she and Farah both turn to look at him. He’s a vision in the warm, twinkling light raining from the fairy lights strung up all around them, brown skin soaking up the light until he looks positively radiant. He towers over the people around them as he sidles up, hands shoved deep into his jean pockets.
Nate smiles, barely even glancing at Farah. “I’ve been looking all over for you.”
Kira can feel the look Farah gives her in response to that. “I told you,” she murmurs to Kira, before she steps back and adds, “I’ll leave you two lovebirds to it, then.”
Kira and Nate both give her matching exasperated looks, but she just smiles and then skips off towards the other side of the fairgrounds. Kira keeps watching the crowd even after Farah disappears into it, suddenly nervous and uncertain of herself. After a moment, Nate clears his throat.
“What do you think of the reopening?” he asks curiously.
She looks back up at him finally, finding him glancing around at the lights himself. She wonders if it’s strange for him, being surrounded by all this after having grown up so long ago, or if living through the changing of history, the rise of industrialization, all of it—if living through it made it less strange. She tries to imagine what it would be like to live longer than her allotted time on this Earth, what it would be like to live through First Contact, through to the moment humanity finally takes to the stars.
She imagines he’ll still be here when that happens. He’ll get to see it all.
What a wonderful, tiresome existence that must be.
It’s not until he looks back down at her with concern on his face that she remembers he’d asked her a question. Coughing, trying to ignore the heat blossoming in her cheeks, she clears her throat and says, “Uh, yeah, it’s great. It’s—it’s like something out of a dream. The kind of carnival you see in the movies.”
Nate smiles, nodding his head in agreement. “I agree. They’ve done a wonderful job rebuilding.”
They both look away again, and Kira feels like a teenager again, all fluttering nerves and racing heartbeats. Farah’s words flash through her mind again, followed closely by the way Nate had technically already asked her out, hadn’t he? Why did she still think it was all a joke? She—
“I actually came to find you because I wanted to take you up on that deal we made,” Nate says after another beat.
Oh.
She tries to bite back the grin that tugs at her lips, but fails horribly, reaching up to rub at her jaw to cover the embarrassing smile stretching across her face. Nate’s face seems to light up as he steps closer, closing the distance between them until she can feel the heat of him in the still-chilly spring night air. He leans in closer, beaming, as he asks, “What do you think about making this a date?”
Kira laughs, finding herself suddenly feeling quite shy as she looks away, out at the lights around them. “I’ll be honest, part of me thought you were joking about that.”
“I would never,” he says, sounding a little offended at the thought.
“I know,” she assures him, reaching out to touch his leather jacket, feeling him tense in anticipation under her touch. She brings her gaze back to his, fiddling with a loose thread on his coat. “That was just my insecurities trying to send me spiraling.”
He looks concerned at that, but she takes a deep breath and looks away again, bouncing a little on the balls of her feet. “I’ve always wanted to be one of those people who got to go on a date to the carnival.”
Nate chuckles and she feels one of his hands brush gently at her hip. “I can’t think of a better place for us to go than here.”
They grin at each other for a moment, and she notices that his cheeks have darkened with a happy flush. Another second passes, and then he opens his hand, offering it to her as he says, “So, Kira… how about we make this our first date?”
The implications of the phrase ‘first date’ send butterflies swarming in her stomach, and she can’t keep the smile off her face as she places her hand in his, the utter perfection of the moment sending her heart thumping in her chest. He tangles his fingers through hers and, even though his hands are much bigger, they fit together so comfortably that it feels almost too perfect. Before she can get lost in her musings, though, he smiles brightly and turns to look at the bright lights all around them.
“Where should we go first?”
They spend a good little while wandering the fairgrounds, talking idly about whatever comes to their minds. They try another game or two—Nate wins her a rabbit to match the one she’d won him the last trip they’d had, and she laughs as he stuffs it into one of his jacket pockets for safe keeping. They ride the carousel, and though they joke about the Tunnel of Love, Kira ends up dragging him over to something called The Sizzler—a ride she’d loved as a child that ends with them both laughing, smooshed against each other in a seat as the machine spins them around fast enough to induce vertigo.
Nate’s hair looks wonderfully windblown when the ride comes to an end, and she murmurs an insincere apology as she reaches up to run her fingers through the soft brown waves, surprised at how little product he seems to use to keep them in such a perfectly coifed state. His eyes darken at how close this movement brings them, eyes dropping to her lips, but then the operator is there undoing the bar fastened across their laps, and they’re up and walking again.
It’s only right that they eventually find their way to the Ferris wheel.
It’s ricketier than she’d hoped it would be, once they finally get up to the front of the line. It sets her stomach flipping nervously as they settle into the tiny seat that barely even fits the two of them in it.
She clutches uncomfortably at the lap bar when the ride jerks and stutters into motion, sending her and her date ascending backwards through the night air and up, farther than she’d expected. Kira doesn’t remember being scared of heights, but the solid warmth of Nate pressed against her helps ease her nerves slightly.
It helps ease them even more when she nudges his arm until he lifts it, confusion on his face, and she grabs his arm and places it firmly around her shoulders. He chuckles and she can feel the vibration of it in his chest as she snuggles into his side, resting her head against his chest as a sense of safety washes over her.
Nate’s heart races in his chest, and she laughs softly as she presses her hand gently over his sternum.
“Your heart’s beating so fast,” she breathes.
He hums, stroking his thumb back and forth on her shoulder. “So is yours.”
She grins into his shirt. “This thing looks like it’s held together with duct tape.”
That makes him snort with laughter, though he’s careful not to jostle the car too much now that she’s voiced her concern. “Don’t worry,” he murmurs, tightening his arm around her, “I’d catch you if we fell.”
“Who’s going to catch you?”
He just laughs, shaking his head. The ride jolts to a stop when they reach the top, and when they glance down they find more people boarding the attraction—though Kira quickly returns her gaze to the treetops in front of them and the wide expanse of stars above, steadfastly ignoring the way her stomach had dropped when she saw the height.
“I think my heart might be beating even faster than yours,” he says softly after a minute.
Kira tilts her head, nuzzling her face into the hollow of his throat. “Why? Are you nervous?”
“Very.” The word’s barely more than an exhale. “Don’t you know how long I’ve been waiting for this?”
Kira quirks an eyebrow, even though he can’t see it with her face buried in his shirt like this. “What—riding a rickety Ferris wheel with an insignificant mortal?”
He tenses against her, and she can picture the way his full, dark eyebrows have probably drawn low on his brow. “There are many words I associate with you, Kira—insignificant would be the farthest from them.”
“It’s true, though,” she says, voice flat. She doesn’t want to ruin this moment, but she needs to make it clear that she’s aware that whatever this is, it can’t mean as much as it means to her. “I’m just some woman you met through work. Surely we all blur together after 300 years, no?”
“You are so much more than just some woman, Kira. I don’t—there aren’t the words in any language either of us know to explain it, but I…” He pulls away, leaning back so he can look her in the face. “Kira, just knowing that you return my feelings is so, so much more than I could have ever hoped.”
She smiles sadly. “It’s okay if this is just a fling, Nate.”
“It’s not,” he insists. Frustration is clear on his face, but the adoration in his dark eyes sends her mind spinning as he reaches up to cup her cheek. “Kira, I don’t want this to just be one date. I want—I want a relationship. With you.”
Oh.
“Nate…” she murmurs, and her eyes are on his lips before she can say anything else. She leans forward a little, and he laughs suddenly, shaking his head.
“I want to continue this conversation, but I also desperately want to kiss you while we’re still up here,” he whispers. “May I?”
She doesn’t have to think twice about her answer.
“Please.”
Nate smiles one last brilliant smile before he leans in and captures her lips with his.
The shock of contact has them both inhaling sharply at the first touch of lips against lips. Nate makes a soft sound into her mouth, and she hums in return, reaching up to touch his jaw. His hand on her shoulder slips lower, sliding down her spine, skimming, until his hand stops on the curve of her waist. Heat prickles across her skin, and she swears she sees fireworks - brilliant, multicolor pops of light behind her closed eyelids—as he reaches up and tangles his other hand into her hair, pushing her deeper into the kiss.
They break apart when the ride groans beneath them, and Kira gasps, clutching onto Nate’s shoulders for dear life as he laughs delightedly, pressing a kiss to her cheek.
“It’s alright—I’ve got you.”
The ride is over now, and she sighs, laughing a little at herself as she relaxes into his arms on the way down.
Getting off the ride is a little awkward—Kira thinks that the operator can just tell that they had been kissing up there, but she tries not to think about it as Nate tangles his fingers through hers again as they walk.
Their conversation on the Ferris wheel isn’t over, but she also doesn’t really want to have it standing in the middle of the crowd either. Nate seems to agree with this, because he’s looking around at the carnival around them, trying to figure out where they can go that is private enough to have a real heart to heart. Kira pictures the layout of Hollow’s Peak as she stares off into the crowd, and then she remembers—the stage area that she’d seen set up near the edge of the carnival.
“There’s a stage with a live band we could go watch,” she says, looking back up at him. “It’s on the edge of the fairgrounds. People used to go sit on picnic blankets and listen to music. We could—we could find a place over there, probably, that’s a little more quiet.”
He smiles, running a hand through his hair. “That sounds wonderful.”
And that’s where they finally end up, hovering near the tree line looking down on the makeshift amphitheatre. It’s colder over here, away from the lights and the crowds, and Kira finds herself shivering a bit in the breeze blowing in across the treetops. She doesn’t stay cold for long, though, because Nate comes up behind her, curling around her with a pleased sigh. She leans back against him, hands resting on his forearms drawn across her stomach. He bends in closer, resting his chin on her shoulder as they begin to sway gently.
The band starts to play an incredibly sappy, slow song after a minute, and Nate’s arms tighten around her. Both of them have been wanting to be this close for so long that it’s a huge relief, almost, to have him wrapped around her like this. That same sense of safety that radiates from him in waves washes over her all over again as her eyes drift closed.
“I’ve wanted to hold you like this for so long,” Nate confesses on a whisper. He presses a kiss to her shoulder when she turns her head toward him. “I can’t get you out of my mind. I think about you all the time and being this close to you…” he pauses, chuckling a bit, before he continues, “All I can feel is you. I haven’t felt anything like this in…”
“...decades?” she guesses when he trails off.
“Ever?”
“Oh…”
He laughs, pulling away just to spin her around to face him. He grabs her hand, holding it close to his chest, and begins to dance with her in the dark. She’d stepped up on a big exposed root when they came to a stop, so it’s less uncomfortable than it might normally be for him to slide his arm around her waist and pull her close. He rests his forehead against her temple as they sway, and the moment is so breathtakingly intimate that her eyes begin to sting.
“Sometimes I think I dreamt you,” she laughs, breathless. “How is this even real? No one has ever—I’m—you’re incredible.”
Kira can still feel his heartbeat as they dance, the song swelling around them as he cradles her hand to his chest. His lips brush against her cheek, and she lets out a rough breath.
“I don’t understand how you’re interested in me, and I’m still waiting for the punchline, but—god, I want to be with you, too.”
Nate sighs, a delicate wash of warm breath across her cheek. “Let’s give this a try, then,” he says simply. The music drifts through the air around them and, here in the shadow of the trees, it feels very much like they are the only two people in the world. Nate tilts his chin, trailing soft little kisses along her cheek and down to her jawline. She tilts her head to meet him and their lips meet for the second time that night.
It’s a short kiss this time. Gentle, lingering, but it breaks a moment later as Kira nods against him.
“I’d like that,” she says quietly. “Even though I’m still confused as to how you, Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome, could be interested in me.”
He snorts and she can feel the curve of his smile as he leans down to nuzzle his face into the side of her neck. His teeth scrape ever so lightly at the corner of her jaw as he asks, voice low and hot and suggestive, “Shall I show you how interested I really am?”
Goosebumps prickle across her flesh and she shivers as heat rises up her neck, blossoming across her cheeks and burning at her ears. She closes her eyes as he starts to mouth at her jawline, a shaky breath falling from her lips as she tilts her head for him. The soft, romantic song has faded away now, replaced with something with a faster beat, the thudding bass thrumming in her eardrums, vibrations she can feel in her chest—
“Kiss me.”
She doesn’t even realize that she’d been planning to speak until the words are already tumbling from her lips, barely more than a breathy exhale.
Nate chuckles into her skin, pulling away just enough that he can look down at her, dark eyes warm and eager. He smirks, the hand on her back clutching just a little tighter—and then he pulls away, grabbing both hands to lead her farther into the tree line with a lazy smile on his lips, all confidence and white teeth as he strolls backwards into the shadows. The languid, otherworldly grace with which he moves has her stomach turning somersaults in her gut as the darkness of the forest falls over them, the rest of the world falling away.
Neither of them are watching where they’re going, so it surprises her when he changes direction, pushing her backwards. Her ankles hit something solid and, when she glances down, she finds a decently sized fallen log right up next to a big oak tree. She laughs quietly as she steps up onto the log, still holding Nate’s hands. It’s perfect, closing the foot of difference between them considerably, and now she’s able look him in the eye without straining. With her back against the tree, he steps even closer, dropping her hands in favor of grasping at her hips, and she reaches up to slide her hands up his chest at the same time.
She watches him watch her for a few deliciously tense heartbeats—watches his eyes drop to her lips, almost thoughtful, like he’s considering just where exactly he wants to put his mouth first. Her fingers dig into the front of his shirt, and his tongue darts out to wet his lips, the movement drawing her gaze. His lips stay parted, full and soft, a contrast to the scratch texture of his stubble.
Kira’s still watching his lips when he finally closes the gap between them.
His kiss is gentle and chaste—slower than she’d been expecting. When he led her back here, she’d been expecting urgent fervor and a roaring flame, but instead it’s a low, delectable simmer. The kiss they’d shared on the Ferris wheel had been rushed, a little impatient, because they only had so much time before they were back in eyesight of the bustling crowd. Now, here in the dark, far enough away that they are safe from prying eyes, the kisses they trade are light and almost hesitant. Each kiss he presses alternates between her upper and lower lip, lingering and building in intensity as with each kiss he gets more and more sure of where he is and what he’s doing.
Nate makes a quiet little noise when she flicks her tongue out to meet his, and the sound sends something electric skittering up her spine, making her fingers curl into the fabric of his shirt. She repeats the motion and he tilts his head, deepening their kisses until she is left clinging to him, his arms and his body pressing her against the tree trunk the only thing keeping her legs from giving out. Kira presses up on her tiptoes, struggling to get closer when he sucks her tongue into his mouth, only to gasp when he bends his knee and his thigh slides between hers to help brace her against the tree.
“Oh, god—”
Kira breaks the kiss with a strangled gasp that almost turns into a moan, surprised both by the motion and the reaction she has to it, tilting her head back to suck in a few lungfuls of cool air. Nate doesn’t seem bothered by this, trailing his kisses from the corner of her mouth down her jawline and to the side of her neck. He hums against her as she clutches at him, one arm around his shoulders and the other grasping at his forearm for dear life.
She can’t remember ever having been kissed quite like this, she thinks dazedly as he kisses at her pulse point, open-mouthed and hungry. Another shock of pleasure shoots down her spine when his teeth scrape lightly at her skin, and she wonders breathlessly if he’s going to give her a hickey when—
Nate pauses, pulling back just a little to look down at her skin. His hand leaves her hip to brush against her throat, delicately tracing a shape into the skin—and she suddenly realizes what he’s looking at.
Murphy’s bite mark.
When he doesn’t move for a solid 20 seconds except to trace his thumb over the spot a few more times, she becomes concerned.
“...Nate?”
She can feel him come back to himself even though she can’t see his face. He sighs and presses a chaste kiss to the scars, and then a few more, brushing over the hollow of her throat as he moves his kisses to the other side of her neck. Nate finally goes still when he buries his face in her shoulder, arms sliding around her with a contented sigh.
Kira reaches up after a moment, running her fingers through the soft hair at the nape of his neck and feeling him relax against her. He seems happy to stand like this forever—and maybe she would have been, too—but before either of them can say anything else, Adam’s voice comes in over their radios.
“If you’re all done goofing off, ” says Adam’s flat, disembodied voice, “we should be heading back soon. Finish up and meet me by the entrance. ”
Kira and Nate both groan into the dark, slouching disappointedly against the tree. Laughter follows close behind, though, as Nate disentangles himself a little to press a kiss to her forehead.
“Shall I take you home from here?” he asks, pulling away to look down at her, and she’s surprised by how low and rough his voice has become.
She snorts.
“You mean, should you have an agent drive us both to my apartment?” she teases, laughing when he makes an offended expression. “I’m kidding. Yes, I think that would be a great way to end our first date.”
His answering smile is bright and happy—happier than she’s ever seen anyone when they’re looking at her, if she’s being honest. It’s very easy to take his hand as he pulls away, tangling her fingers through his as she lets him lead her back to society. Though the other vampires are definitely giving them Looks when they meet up by the entrance—Adam’s icy green glare drops very purposefully to their joined hands—she can’t bring herself to feel embarrassed at all. Not when she’s just had the best date of her life, vampire and human combined.
That night she dreams of golden fairy lights and cotton candy lips and the smell of leather and her favorite cologne, with not a nightmare to be seen.
So I finished my binge watch of the CW’s Nikita and well, I think we all know by now that I just love ripping off scenarios from other media and making Kastle fics. It’s my schtick and I’m gonna run it into the ground.
So here is an unconventional marriage proposal Kastle fic. Honestly this is probably how it would go anyway so it’s not like it’s beyond the realm of reality.
But first I want to give a huge thank you to my beta reader and editor, the amazing @joanofarkansass. This fic was initially, um, rough to put it nicely. But like a fairy godmother, she made it happen with incredible insight and gentle critique. I am literally indebted to you and I cannot thank you enough.
I also want to thank @evilbunnyking for reading the final draft, their awesome support, and catching every misplaced period and comma. Thank you!
And just a heads up, the canon in this is really screwy. Foggy and Karen know that Matt is Daredevil and Daredevil Season 2 is canon but basically just ignore the rest of the Daredevil/The Punisher Netflix/MCU timeline lol. Frank is a free man and clear of all charges here (yes that is unbelievable but just go along with it please and thank you). This is canon divergence borderlining on AU and slightly self indulgent and well, I don’t care ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Enjoy!
Karen pulls up right behind the police cruiser, about a block away from the 15th Precinct. She gets out and knocks on the windshield window, making Detective Sergeant Brett Mahoney jerk his head up at her in fear for a fraction of a second.
But once he sees her he lets out an annoyed sigh and gets out. Karen crosses the front of the cruiser to get out of the street and onto the sidewalk, trying to hide her laughter from scaring Brett.
“What’s got you nervous, Mahoney?” Karen asks as he joins her and pockets his keys.
“What’s got me... oh, you know, about to watch Frank Castle walk out and be a free man. Again.”
“Nelson and Murdock won the case. Unfortunately this was not the sequel to The People vs. Frank Castle that New York City was hoping for.”
“That you were hoping for?” Mahoney cracks, raising an eyebrow at her.
“No. Well, maybe Ellison was hoping for it, but… look I’m just glad he was acquitted and that justice prevailed. It’ll be a more positive ending to write up.”
Mahoney shakes his head and starts walking toward the precinct. Karen follows and falls into his stride.
“Look, I know he didn’t kill that mobster,” Brett starts. “As crazy as that sounds, given his track record. But he gave us a hell of a time when we arrested him…”
“Do you blame him? In the span of two years, he has been charged and put on trial for murder twice,” Karen says pointedly.
“Well, you didn’t hear me say this but… the guys did a great job convincing everyone that Frank Castle was a changed man.”
“He is a changed man, Brett.”
“Believe me Karen, I know. I thought Frank Castle was scary as a man who had nothing to lose. I was wrong. Apparently I needed to deal with Frank Castle when he’s got someone he cares about…”
Now it’s Karen’s turn to jerk her head up at him.
“What did he say?” she asks.
“Nothing incriminating, your reputation is safe... I guess. But it’s all over the man’s face Karen. He really…”
“I know.”
It’s a tense silence but the look Mahoney gives Karen is more perplexed than judgmental.
“Do Nelson and Murdock know?” he asks.
“Yes.”
“Jesus…”
“We kept it quiet for a while but when he was arrested we had to tell them. They’re… slowly coming around to it. Should only take another couple years for them to be sort of okay with us.”
“Yeah I doubt that,” Brett replies sarcastically.
Karen chuckles half heartedly in response.
He quickly sobers up again though. “Well if you’re both happy then… I am glad. You both deserve some happiness after this shit show.”
“Thank you, Brett. That’s really sweet of you.” Karen says, just barely able to hide the emotion in her voice.
“Like I said, you didn’t hear any of this from me. Alright, let’s go get him.”
Just then, the front doors of the precinct building burst open with Matt and Foggy dragging Frank away from a horde of pissed off cops.
“Shit,” Mahoney mutters. He jogs ahead toward the mob with his hands up to stop their hot pursuit.
Karen takes her .380 out of her purse and speed walks toward the commotion. She honestly hopes she’s not gonna have to use it but she’s glad to have the comforting weight of it in her hand. She catches up to Matt and Foggy as they let go of Frank. Matt tilts his head toward her, then lets out a deep sigh.
“Come on Karen, that’s not…” he says as he gestures towards her hand that’s holding her gun.
“It’s just Mahoney, Matt. They’re gonna kill him. We have to help,” Karen insists ardently.
“No, we have to get out of here,” Matt dismisses with a wave of his free hand.
“I’m with Matt on this one, Karen,” Foggy agrees. “You have no idea how lucky we got with this case. And that none of those cops tried to kill him just now.”
“Exactly, because of Brett.” She turns her attention back to Matt, who has his walking stick in a vice grip. “We can’t leave him behind.”
“The cops are just upset. They’d be stupid to try anything. He is their boss, and at the end of the day they have to follow his orders.”
“How can you be sure of that?” Karen argues.
The frustration is palpable between the three of them. Karen just then notices Frank’s silence. She turns to him and takes in his clenched jaw and that trigger finger of his tapping away against his thigh.
“Frank? Are you…”
Just then several loud shouts catch everyone’s attention. Mahoney is on the ground now and a cop has his gun drawn.
“Oh, that’s not…” Foggy gasps.
“Come on Foggy.” Matt grabs Foggy’s arm, leaving Frank and Karen alone.
“Let’s get to the car, Frank. Before this gets a lot worse…”
Frank’s expression had barely changed so when he whips his head toward her she can’t help but take a step back.
“Give me the gun,” Frank commands quickly.
“What? Why?”
“Give me the damn gun, Karen!”
He snatches it from her hands and runs back toward Mahoney and the cops.
“Where are you going?!” Karen shouts incredulously.
“To get your engagement ring!” Frank shouts back.
Karen is stunned and suddenly, the last month comes into focus for her. The jumpiness of his movements whenever she entered a room before he was arrested. His trigger finger tapping away more than usual during the trial. How his bottom lip began to tremble out of nowhere each time she kissed him.
Karen smiles as Frank bolts past Matt and Foggy. He takes on several cops at once, knocking them down like bowling pins. Karen makes her way to the boys as Foggy raises his arms in disbelief while Matt tries to pull him away.
“Unbelievable! Are you kidding me, Castle?!” Foggy yells. “Matt, can’t you do something?”
“I’m in the wrong suit, Foggy.”
“Damn it.”
“Matt is also technically blind Foggy. Do we really want to open that Pandora’s box tonight?” Karen reminds him.
“Come on, let’s get to the car. Looks like we’re gonna have to make an escape. And figure out how we can keep this quiet...” Matt muses.
“We almost got through this damn trial without issue, I swear on the Nelson name…” Foggy groans as he runs his hand over his face.
“Karen, come on,” Matt says as he passes her.
Brett is the last man standing and both men have their guns pointed at each other. Karen is about to join the standoff when Brett holds his hand out and reaches into his back pants pocket. He reveals a ring box. Frank takes it and starts running toward her.
“Go! Go! Go!” Frank hollers at her.
Karen bolts to the car, makes a beeline for the driver’s seat and slams the door shut. Frank joins her a moment later in the passenger seat, flushed pink and his hand wrapped around the ring box.
...
“I’m surprised you didn’t take me to Metro General. Or get us back in that service elevator at the hotel…”
Frank laughs and Karen is relieved that the last 24 hours haven’t deterred Frank.
“Seriously, what was your proposal plan?” She teases as she pokes him in the arm.
“Just... trust me Karen. Okay?”
The Williamsburg Bridge is shadowed by a deep orange sunset as they walk hand in hand. Frank suddenly stops and Karen’s stomach drops. He turns to her, tears in his eyes as he exhales a shaky breath.
Suddenly Karen can’t catch her breath, everything is about to change and she isn’t sure she is ready for it. “Frank, you don’t have to do this…”
“Yes I do. It’s tradition and I’m a traditional man. And the hell I went through to get this ring to you... I want to do this right.”
He gets down on one knee and Karen covers her mouth with her hand. Frank produces the ring box in his hand and opens it. It’s simple; a small, oval diamond on a silver band. It’s perfect.
“Karen. A long time ago now, in some diner, I told you that you had everything with a man that I thought you deserved to be with. I told you to hold onto it, use two hands, and never let go. But the truth was he didn’t deserve you. And I honestly don’t either. But I will spend whatever remaining days I have to be worthy of someone like you. I love you. Karen Page, will you marry me?”
Karen hoists Frank off the ground, holding his face in between her hands. Any doubt she was holding onto is gone now.
“You had me at ‘Give me the damn gun, Karen.’”
They both laugh as Karen holds out her left hand. Frank takes the ring out of the box, caresses her hand before sliding the ring into place. They crash into each other, their hands wrapped around each other’s necks.
“I love you too, Frank Castle,” she says when they finally break apart. She takes his hand as the darkness settles in around them. But the ring doesn’t feel like the weight of her .380. Rather it feels like it has always been there. Like home. And she’ll fight like hell to keep it that way and so will Frank. They’re in this together now.
wonderful person: tell me 5 random things about Lucas that you haven't told us / explored yet (things that Adam does and doesn't know?)
Ah thank you, lovely!! <3 you are so wonderful!
Five things about Luca:
1. one wall of his living room is bright pink. it was going to be the whole living room but after one wall there was definitely not enough paint for the entire room so he decided he would have a ~feature wall. now it’s his favourite thing in the apartment. (Adam refuses to face the wall / puts on his sunglasses every time he has to.)
2. i’ve mentioned how he learnt German as a young adult specifically so that he could read the recipes Rook left behind in his recipe book, but he kept learning German because he fell desperately in love with the teacher. (totally unrequited, unconfessed, ridiculous infatuation that lasted far longer than he’d care to admit. in fact, he’s never told anyone after Tina laughed at him for having a crush on someone who spoke only German to him - “least sexy language there is” “Tina you don’t understand.”)
3. for years Luca was really jealous of Haley. it was his dream to open a bakery or a cafe, preferably with a bookstore attached, and he avoided her cafe for years after coming back to Wayhaven. partially out of spite, partially because he hated seeing something he could’ve had. (he tells Adam this when drunk one time and he keeps insisting it’s a good thing - “no listen, listen.” (Adam hasn’t interrupted even once) “what would even you do with someone who ran a bakery? we wouldn’t have ever met you’d never have come inside, it would’ve smelled too good. frankly, if i worked in a bakery i don’t think murphy ever would’ve found me! what vampire can smell my blood over baked good? - don’t answer that - anyway it’s an old dream, who needs that? i have you.”)
4. he has a scar on his hip from falling while ice skating once. he’s not even sure how it happened, but ice skating blades are sharp and it bloody hurt. (Adam knows about this... always makes sure to kiss it whenever he has the chance)
5. he despises pears
(Adam probably doesn’t know this one tbh. all his human friends know never to bring a pear near Luca)
