You woke up to a deep ache in your shoulders. It was sore all the way down your back. Probably bruised to hell.
You grunted, and your breath fanned back onto your face. You attempted to move, despite your smarting back, and your hands brushed against loose dirt and flaky wood. You tried to adjust your eyes, but there was nothing to see. Just… black. Wherever you were, it was a narrow space. A dirty narrow space.
Was it time to mention you were also slightly claustrophobic?
You were sweating. The air was stuffy. But there was something cold right next to you. Something cold and yielding. You reached for it, blindly patting with your hand flat out, until your fingers curled around something with contour.
You mapped out the dimensions of the object before recoiling in horror. That was no object—that… that was a body.
Which, with your odds, meant you were in a coffin. An oddly large, though still cramped, coffin. Underground. With no way out but through the suffocating dirt.
Freaking ghouls.
Your first instinct was to scream. To pound up against the wood and holler until your throat was raw. It wasn’t that you wouldn’t, either; it was that you couldn’t.
You couldn’t breathe.
There was something in your chest right now. There had to be. A void where your lungs had been, like a vacuum that swallowed up all the usable air. Your heart was in your throat.
Were you running out of oxygen? Was it already too late? Your shallow breaths were burning a hole in your chest. You couldn’t breathe.
You reached over to the corpse, this time with urgency. Cold but still flaccid. The body had been fresh for about an hour, then. Rigor mortis hadn’t even begun.
Does it matter? a part of your mind reasoned. It sounded a little like Dean. There’s a cold, dead body next to you, you’re on your last round of air, and you still can’t stop being a nerd?
“It matters,” you muttered to yourself. “Matters ‘cause that means I’ve been stuck down here for about an hour. Takes about five hours total to run short on oxygen. Means at the very least, I’m not dying… yet.”
As hard as a transition was going to be, you needed to breathe deep and slow. But there was still a tightness in your chest.
Relax your shoulders, you could almost hear Sam chiding.
“A little… difficult to do… suffocating in a pine box,” you said, but you relaxed them anyway. You then took in your first, full breath since you woke up. That was progress.
You couldn’t count on the Winchesters finding you in time, or at all. You were going to have to take matters into your own hands and try to climb out of the grave. Dean had done it before, so you could too.
Dean’s also, like, 200 pounds of muscle, Sam cautioned.
If you were going to climb out of your grave, you needed a mask to protect your face from the dirt. Which meant you were going to need to work your shirt off of your head. You brushed your hand over your stomach. Well, you must have put up a fight. Your shirt was shredded, so… that was a no go.
The dead guy had a shirt, Dean said.
Fantastic.
You looked over to your left, to the corpse you couldn’t see. You reached over, awkwardly pulling the shirt up. Its cool skin grazed yours as you worked the fabric over its head.
The neck didn’t jerk about; it was rigid, but the arms weren’t. Rigor mortis was kicking into gear. Which meant you had been down here for roughly two hours. Working as a hunter, you needed to have some level of knowledge on the dead.
Such a nerd, you could see Dean rolling his eyes.
You tied the bottom of the shirt which took a little while with your arms pinned down and the pitch darkness to guide you. Finally, though, you made a tight knot.
You pulled the shirt over your head like a bag and sat there for a moment. You wished the Winchesters could talk you through this.
That’s when you broke at the pine box. The dirt was cold, dry, and thankfully loose. It fell in clumps around your shoulders, and you shoved it down at your feet.
Climbing your way past the dirt was no joke. It was grimy and freaking difficult. It was like those foam pits that gymnasts use that are nearly impossible to work your way out of, except in complete darkness with limited space. In other words, a freaking nightmare.
But you kept working. Kept pushing up while pushing the dirt down. Six feet, Sam reminded you. Just six feet. Once you’re standing, just work upward. Should be about as tall as I am, yeah?
You made a risky move upward, throwing your hand up as far as it could go, and touched air. A light breeze fell over your skin.
To say it was encouragement was an exaggeration. You worked twice as hard, shoving your way to the top. When your hand felt hard dirt, you crunched your abs and pulled until your chest hit the surface. You frantically dug your legs out before collapsing on the ground.
You went into a fit of hysterical laughter, a result of your adrenaline high and the last throes of your panic.You threw the filthy t-shirt off of your head, inhaling the air that you had once taken for granted.
In your brief delirium, you recalled Dean Winchester retelling his old raising-from-perdition story. He had hardly mentioned climbing out of his grave, as if it hadn’t been important. His focus had mainly been on the mystery of the angels and how they turned out to be douches. He had made this part sound like a. Slice. Of. Pie.
And, well, you got a freaking reality check today. Because it was an entire body workout, and it was exactly as terrifying as it sounded—no, worse. Waking up in pitch darkness, in a small space, with a corpse, six feet under the ground? Hell naw. You were lucky you’d had enough trauma to know how to push back your panic. Because two years ago, you probably would have rotted down there, helpless.
It left you to wonder, though. Why the ghouls left you alive, and not the dead guy. All the other grave desecrations had been long dead—but you were the first to live.
First, you were going to have to get back to the motel. You already knew the boys were gonna freak.
///
When you opened up the hotel door, the Winchesters sprang out of their chairs, barking your name in surprise. “You're—you're…” Sam stammered as he took in your state. You couldn’t blame him; the grave had covered you in dirt from neck to toe.
“Alive. I know,” you said. “I’m also really dirty. You mind if I use your guys’ shower?”
Sam blinked. “No, not at all, but uh, seriously—what happened?”
You let out a halfhearted, breathy laugh. “Nothing I couldn’t handle.” You tried to shrug past Dean, but he caught your arm.
“You were gone for three hours,” he said.
“Look, we’re just worried about you. Could you humor us?” Sam added. His eyes were pleading and damn hard to say no to.
You scowled. “You two gotta tell me what happened on your end first. Deal?”
“Deal,” Dean said. “You know most of it. Several grave desecrations of old gravestones, but fresh bodies where bones should be. People in town go missing a few days before that. We split: you went to check on the newest body, while we checked the cemetery. We ganked the ghoul, figured you were coming back from the morgue, but you never showed. After about three hours of looking, we came back here to see if you had maybe come back at all. Actually, we were just about to leave again.” Dean clapped his hands. “Did you ever find anything at the morgue?”
“Yeah, the guy had died from…” …asphyxiation. You trailed off. “Oh crap…”
“What? What is it?”
“Asphyxiation. The guy… he, uh, he had died from asphyxiation. Originally, I mean. The ghoul had been burying his food to eat later. Like… like a squirrel. Must have taken the guy out to snack on, but he was already dead.” It was all coming together. “The ghoul was either stupid or confident because he got sloppy. Probably because he was too hungry to care. That’s why… why I… why I…” Damn it, you let that slip. You peered around them, looking for escape. “Guys, hey, can I just shower? I really just wanna—”
This time, Sam caught your arm. He was gentle, but he had a firm grip. “That’s why you what?”
You clammed up, peeling your eyes away from them. “Why I… uh…” you couldn’t think of an excuse, and the silence was becoming too long to make a convincing one on the spot. You should have walked into this room with a workable lie in mind, but all you had wanted was to shower, scrub all the dirt off your skin, and to lather soap where you had touched that god-awful corpse. You just wanted to be clean and to sleep.
And you seriously were trying to tell them things. Lying sucked, but this? You weren’t sure if you could tell them this and come out of it in one piece.
Sam softly said your name again, trying to bring your eyes back to his. It was too easy. He knew your tells. Your eyes always gave you away if you lied.
We’re never going to let this die, your inner Dean voice sang. And you internally swatted it away.
I know, you thought sourly. Behind your eyes, a pressure built. Just let me go so I can cry alone. I can’t cry in front of you. I can’t. “He—it… might have… buried me alive.” It took everything you had in you for your voice to stay steady.
Both of them rocked back a little. Dean looked a little dazed, and Sam looked pale. Sam tilted his head, “Excuse me, buried—?”
“It explains the dirt,” Dean sighed. “No offense, sweetheart, but you smell like a toilet.”
Oh, shove it, Winchester.
“Yeah, I know. That’s why I just want to shower—”
“Hold on,” Sam said. He had his hands combing his hair. “Hold on, hold on, just— am I the only one bothered by this?! She— you could have died!”
“But I didn’t,” “But she didn’t,” you and Dean said in unison. He winked at you and you rolled your eyes back.
“Sam. I have been through a lot. You know it, I know it. I’m not that girl from two years ago. You said it yourself once before: I’m a Winchester now. And I’m not a Winchester without a few near death experiences.”
Sam scowled. “You two are so frustrating. Fine, go. Go take your shower. This conversation isn’t over, though.”
Thank God. You could handle this later. The conversation alone had keyed you up. You were burning with tension, anxiety, and trauma. You waved a hand at him. “Fine. But can we do it in the morning? I am so frickin’ exhausted.” It wasn’t a lie; you had bruises lining your entire back, and your face muscles hurt from all the fake expressions you were sending Sam.
They can’t know that I’m weak. How hard could it be, anyway?
Dean did it once, like a freaking champ. Why couldn’t you just suck it up and be a big girl?
He looked on at you with that sad, thoughtful look of his. Complete with the infamous Winchester puppy eyes. “Yeah, sure.”
You were happy to get out of the conversation—and this hunt—relatively unscathed. Hopefully, you would never have to go through that crap ever again, or you really didn’t think you’d be able to keep yourself together like you just had.
When you shut the bathroom door behind you, you let the silent tears run down your face. You bit your hand, heaving, wishing you had the freedom to scream. But you couldn’t, so you didn’t. All you did was turn on the shower right as you let out a quiet sob into a towel to muffle it out.
Why did your life suck so bad?
///
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Sam waved his flashlight around the porch of the house. “Neither do I. But this is our only chance to gank this shapeshifter before it moves to the next town.”
“I just have a gut feeling.” You met eyes. In the shadows, they were a deep, compassionate brown.
“You don’t have to come if you don’t want to.”
Well, that wasn’t happening. “Forget it,” you huffed, nervously stepping into the front yard.
“I mean it. If you aren’t comfortable, then I can do this myself. I’ll understand.”
“Don’t be stupid. I’m coming with.”
Sam’s eyes lingered on you before nodding slowly and turning away, keeping the flashlight pointed at the door as he approached it. When the door handle didn’t turn, he fished his pockets for his lock pick.
Meanwhile, you stayed on guard, anxiously looking into the dark street like you expected a jump scare. You hugged yourself as the icy breeze bit through your jacket, saying, “I hate this.”
“My offer still stands.”
“Your offer still sucks.”
He shut up, leaving you some time to ponder about the case.
One who was oblivious to the supernatural might believe the MacDonalds—and, yes, Dean had a blast poking fun at their surname—were just an unfortunate family. It was a small home—or were small homes now, you supposed—containing two divorced parents and their only child.
Knowing that the shapeshifter would strike tonight, you had to split between the two households. Dean took to the father, meanwhile, you and Sam took the mother, knowing that the entire family went for a therapy session.
Dean’s little parody, ‘Old McDonald had a therapist’ played into your head. At most annoying, if a little pitchy.
The break-in, you suspected, was exactly where the shapeshifter was getting all his DNA to shift.
Most people didn’t realize the trauma that came with a theft, and you had the misfortune of experiencing it. You once lost trust in the lock of door—lost trust that it would hold or that you could sleep in peace knowing that you were alone. All because a werewolf-witch hybrid decided he wanted your heart, and not in a sexy way. But that was another story.
Thankfully, now, you felt more at ease with the Winchesters—though that didn’t mean you couldn’t relate with the poor family. Break-ins were terrifying.
And not only had there been one break-in, but two. The shifter had been in both homes, which put an even larger strain on the family’s relationship. They quickly turned against each other, throwing accusations and lawsuits to feel more powerful. When really, they were both victims.
It was really an unfortunate situation for everyone involved.
You shook your head. “I can’t even imagine what that kid went through. I wouldn’t doubt they were trying to get him to take sides. Just imagine your parents doing that to you. I could never.”
Sam gave you a funny look. “Can’t really imagine. Both of my parents are dead.”
Oh, damn. You should have known. “I’m so sorry—”
Sam shrugged. “It’s fine—you didn’t know. Anyway, it was… years ago.” He looked uncomfortable. “Can we focus?”
“Yeah.”
Sam jiggled the thing in the lock, and when it clicked, he straightened, slowly pushing the door open, slightly wincing as it creaked. He crept forward, entering the home and shining his flashlight on possible hiding spots in the shadows, wary of anyone that could be inside.
You followed close behind, unwilling to split up like people do in horror movies. Thankfully, Sam didn’t mention it. Perhaps he felt the same.
“This is so creepy.” The house was giving you the heebie-jeebies. There was a narrow staircase which slowly disappeared into the darkness of the upstairs, and none of the lights would turn on with the flipped switch.
“Huh,” Sam said, bouncing the flashlight in his hand. “Guess this will have to do.”
“You got a second one? Not a big fan of the dark.”
You could nearly see the gears turning in his head. It was no secret you were afraid of the dark. Ever since, well, multiple unpleasant experiences.
You probably needed a therapist more than the MacDonalds—but Dean had rubbed off on you, always talking negatively about those 'shrinks’.
Anyway, what was the point of a therapist when you always had to lie to them? It wasn’t like you could ever tell them the whole truth—you’d be sent to an insane asylum.
Even PTSD wasn’t worth that.
Sam hummed, patting his pockets. “Nah, Dean took it. We’ll have to share.” Then, to your surprise, he handed you the flashlight.
You blinked. “Thanks.”
He took a lighter from his breast pocket and shrugged. “No problem.”
You stepped further into the house, feeling bolder with the flashlight in your hands. The light fell over a cabinet, and with it, two framed photos alongside a small lamp.
Sam was your shadow, peering over your shoulder at the cabinet. He reached a hand, tracing over the dust of the family photo. The eyes of the child were flashing gold.
You stared. And stared some more. “Well, that’s…” you trailed off.
“…yeah,” Sam agreed.
“His eyes are…”
“…yeah.”
You both briefly took in that information. “So the kid was…”
Sam’s mind was on the same track. “I’ll call Dean,” he said, walking to the kitchen and using his lighter to see the buttons on his flip phone.
You scanned the room, waving the flashlight until it illuminated a thin gooey membrane on the bathroom floor, which trailed out into the hallway. “Oh, god, no,” you said. You inched closer, shining the light down on the mound of slimy shapeshifter skin on the tile.
“Sam!” you called, running back to the main of the house where you nearly crashed into him.
“We need to go,” you both said simultaneously.
Sam pointed to the foggy window where red and blue lights had replaced the black abyss of the night. “Save your I-told-you-so’s. We need to get out of here. Now,” Sam said.
As you made it for the backdoor, he grabbed your arm. “No,” he pointed to the kitchen. “Window."
The kitchen window was a decent sized opening. He climbed through easily, and you tumbled out after him, terrified to your core.
The lights were almost blinding.
An officer shouted, his silhouette darting out from the shadows. You hauled yourself over the tall wooden fence, just a hair behind Sam, right as the officer caught up.
A gloved hand grabbed your arm.
Like a deer in a bear trap, you fought as they tried to secure your wrist. "Help me, help, help, help,” was all you could cry as Sam ran back. You struggled to wrench your hand out of the tight grip; punching at it, but it was like iron. You could see more officers were nearing.
Sam set fire to the officer’s hand with his lighter, but it still didn’t let go. Smoke rose and you finally stabbed the hand with your silver knife.
The officer shouted and released you.
You and Sam sprinted down the grass to the sidewalk, feet rapid, aiming for the line of trees on the horizon. The forest would provide enough cover for the police to lose sight of you.
It had turned into a footrace.
You tried to match your steps with Sam, but his legs were longer and stronger than yours. You weren’t a poor runner by any means, but he surpassed your endurance by a long shot.
So did the officers, apparently, as they were gaining ground on you.
You were just a step behind Sam (who was hardly breaking a sweat), struggling to keep your distance between you and the advancing officers.
Your breath was hot, your lungs already burned, and you lost your pace. Sam noticed and grunted, glancing at you from his peripheral. It was just a little noise, but it brought the strength and energy back into your step.
The trees were a few blocks away. Just a little further, and you could catch your breath in the shadows.
You let out a strangled yell as your nervous system completely frizzed, seizing and crumpling to the ground in a breathless heap.
Sam shouted your name.
You blinked up, dazed and confused. What… what was… was I shot? What…
The officer was ordering you to put your hands behind your back, waving a yellow device at your chest.
A taser. One prong dug into your chest, while the other was deep in your leg.
And the officer was at liberty to light it up again.
You complied, slowly bringing your stiff arms back, so they could cuff them. And from the scuffling to your right, Sam was doing the same.
You could take on monsters any day, but three officers with loaded guns and tasers? It wasn’t a fair fight.
This officer was seemingly much more pleased with himself in comparison to his partners. He lugged you up beside a planted tree, not to be confused with the woods, which was standing ten feet away. How irritating.
His eyes flashed golden, and you tensed under his hold.
“You’re the shapeshifter,” you breathed.
“Must you spoil the surprise?” All at once, he raised his gun and killed the other officers with two resounding bangs.
You screamed.
Sam stumbled in his handcuffs, which had him secured to the chain link fence to your left. His eyes were like saucers as the officer arresting him dropped dead at his feet. “What… why… why did you…” he asked, stunned. “You’re the…”
You bit back another scream as the monster put a knife to your throat. The blade’s edge was cold, just enough to be painful against your skin.
Sam’s hazel eyes were dark. “What do you want?"
His cuffs were far too low for him to stand, so he had to awkwardly hunker down. It looked uncomfortable.
The maniac had the blade right against your jugular. All it would take is pissing this guy off, and it would be over—you’d be dead.
"You’re going to give me the demon knife,” the monster demanded. His hand was dripping blood from where you’d stabbed him.
“How entitled,“ you said.
The knife pressed harder. “I don’t care what you have to say, girl. Sam Winchester has the demon knife, and I want it.”
"Well, good luck, chuckles.” You spat, “Because Sam sure ain’t going to listen to you.”
Sam’s brooding, however, didn’t waver.
The shifter trailed the knife along the veins of your neck. “It wouldn’t be hard for me to kill her.”
"He’s bluffing,” you said, and you fell on the wet dirt, choking back a scream as he lit up the taser.
He leaned in, his breath warm on your ear. “Not bluffing,” the shifter said. "I just have better things to do than pick fights with noble Winchesters.” His eyes flashed. “My only exception is the knife. It’s the demon knife, or it’s her. You choose.”
“Sam…” you warned. “ Sam don’t—” The shifter pulled the taser’s trigger, and you keeled over into the dirt, trying not to cry. “Sam—” you tried in vain. You were met with another interval of several long, excruciating seconds.
Getting tased felt like a full-body charley horse. Pitchforks instead of prongs. Portable Hell.
Little tremors still ran through your arms. You wanted to tell Sam that you couldn’t let the knife get into the hands of this psycho, but from the look on his face, you could tell he was thinking the same.
It wasn’t that the knife mattered to you (because it didn’t, you had angel blades that worked just fine against demons) but it was that the knife would matter in the shifter’s hands. This guy was clearly unhinged.
You were all for killing demons, but giving any kind of knife to this guy just put a bad feeling in your gut. If there was anything you’d learned today, it was that your gut had a pretty good intuition.
“This can go on…” he sighed. “Though, I’m not sure how long a human heart can take this."
“Enough.” Sam finally said, glaring. "We’ll give you the knife.”
“Oh, you’re not giving me anything. You’re going to tell me where it is, and I’m taking it.”
You couldn’t let Sam tell him where it was. “What do you want it for, anyway?” you snarled. “It can’t be of any use to you. You kill people, not demons.”
“Sure, it’s of use to me. Demons are scum on the earth. They kidnapped and tortured my family, and the knife is just what I need to avenge them.”
“So that gives you the right to hurt the MacDonalds? What would you want with them anyway?”
The shifter laughed. “Oh, all that? That was just a case to reel you guys in. I knew you’d follow the little ‘omens’. And then you’d see the skin I left so clumsily by the dumpster, and you’d talk with the parents and find out that… oh, wow, their stories aren’t matching up about each other—how could I have been so messy? Silly, stupid shifter.”
He smiled, resting a hand on your shoulder and squeezing. “You know, it was funny watching you do the whole 'monster test’ on the parents. It was cute. You’d never assume it was the child, would you?”
The photo on the cabinet had been from before the parents had divorced, so this guy must have planted himself for at least four months, doing whatever he pleased until the Winchesters got wind of his ‘mistakes’.
“Honestly,” he said. “I couldn’t care less about the MacDonalds; I was just biding my time until the infamous Winchesters showed.”
Sam’s lips were curled in disgust. “All this for a knife?”
You noticed a shadow twitch from behind Sam and in the line of trees. So small a movement that if you blinked, you would have missed it.
The shifter sneered. “Rather hypocritical, coming from someone who would do anything for their family. Would do anything to get the Colt to kill the devil.”
“That’s a lot different—” Sam argued.
Again, you saw something move in the woods.
The monster cried, “No! No, it’s not! These demons—they’re slaying my kin. They’ve ruined everything, and so have you! All you’ve ever—”
You intervened before it got out of hand. “You know what? Fine. I’ll tell you where it is,” you said. “After all, just a knife, right Sam?”
Sam’s expression became one of absolute bewilderment. “What? What are you…”
“Where is it?” The blade dragged down and dug a little harder at your collarbone.
You couldn’t help but smile. “You’ll find it in Hell.”
Dean Winchester took the shot.
The silver bullet hit its target on point. Right through the shifter’s heart, and the monster crumpled, its skin already peeling.
Dean ran over, shotgun slung over his shoulder. "You guys okay?!”
“Yeah. The crazy shifter wanted the demon knife.” Sam nodded. “Lockpick in my left pocket.”
“Got one already,” Dean said, waving his. “Why didn’t you just give the knife to him? You guys look like he beat the shit out of you.” He worked on picking Sam’s cuffs.
“I had a bad gut feeling,” you grunted. “He would have killed us afterward.” You were in a daze. Your muscles were rigid and they smarted like a bitch. Your skin was tingling.
Dean glanced your way, and when he saw your condition, left Sam the lockpick to do the rest himself. “Jesus—hey. Kid? Hey, hey, you gotta stay awake.”
“M'fine,” you groaned. “Just really sore.”
“What happened?” His eyes flitted over you.
“Zzch zzch zzch,” you mumbled, imitating the noise. “Taser. Not fun.”
“How many times he get ya?”
“Too many.”
Dean angrily worked the cuffs off your wrists. “That could have killed you.”
You knew he was referring to your time with the werewitch, which left you with a few heart complications. You shrugged. “Didn’t.”
Sighing, Dean hauled you up. “All this for a gut feeling?”
“He would have actually killed us if we let him get his way,” you said, leaning into him. “Could see it in his eyes.”
Dean threw your arm over his shoulder. “You gonna recover?”
If you guys want any request for imagines or prompts about Marvel characters,DC characters,Stranger Things,Game of Thrones,Community, Harry Potter (any era, any characters),Brooklyn 99,Friends,Supernatural basically anything! I accept everything!
It can be fluff, smut, angst, soulmate au, etc
By commenting you can send requests, you’re also welcome to DM me or send me an ask if you’re more comfortable with that :)
This is the only place where I can openly speak about the fact that I’m reading smutty fanfictions during my night shift while the hottest resident in my hospital is sitting right next to me writing his doctoral thesis on the influence of sports on multiple sclerosis.
So a while back I learnt that Yelena was aroace in the comics but in the MCU I only felt like she was ace and not “canonically” aromantic.
Which was why I never implied about anything sexual happening between Yelena and the reader in my fics but still kept them romantic.
But I see how unconsciously erasing the aro part of her can feel degrading to the aroace community, which I truly never wanted. So from now on, I will only write for Yelena x reader if the request is platonic or if it is about a queerplatonic relationship.
Again, im sorry if I offended anyone with my Yelena x Reader fics.
Petrichor- Ignis Aurum Probat || Hermione x Slytherin! Fem! Reader.
Y/n pinched the bridge of her nose and exhaled deeply, waiting for Scylla to catch up before both of them went to the great hall for dinner.
The best friends ate silently as the rest of the Inquisitorial Squad boasted about busting the D.A and getting them into detention.
“ Y/l/n, celebrate with us. You too, Vervain. What’s got you two so glum?” Blaise asked, noticing they were the only ones who weren’t joining in on their party.
Y/n just smiled slightly, making some excuse about a headache to get Blaise off her head.
Once his attention was diverted, Scylla spoke up,” Pink Toad is really testing the limits isn’t she?”
Y/n jaws tensed, trying not to punish the poor cutlery in her hands,” When is she not, honestly.”
“Still, banning any issues of the Quibbler is just insane. And quite desperate.”
Y/n hummed before something struck her. She smirked as Scylla brought that topic into light,” Then that means we are doing something right after all. If she’s getting desperate, that means she’s threatened…”
Scylla seemed to catch on her train of thought, a sly grin appearing on her face,”… and once she makes this ban, more people are going to believe Potter’s story since no one likes Umbridge to begin with at all.”
“Exactly”
“Huh. How the tables have turned. And to think it’s her who’s bringing this upon herself.” Scylla chuckled under her breath,” So you going to tell Granger about this happy news?”
It seemed like Y/n had momentarily forgotten about the arrangement to meet her girlfriend, but no one could really blame her. Listening to Umbridge was guaranteed to fry most of your brain cells off.
“Please don’t tell me you forgot.”
“Uhm…no of course not. I was just thinking about something else.” Y/n lied, quite terribly. Scylla just hummed in apprehension before letting it rest.
Later that night, near midnight the H/c girl sneaked out of her dormitory and left for the astronomy tower.
Once she reached the door, narrowly avoiding getting caught by Filch, she cast the silencing spell under her breath, before making her way up the tiny staircase.
Upon seeing the brunette already present, she feared she might have been late,” Have you been waiting long?”
Hermione turned around, giving a small smile, eyes still distant thinking about something,” No. Just arrived.”
Quietly sighing in relief, the Slytherin walked up to her and tried to see what had the Gryffindor princess so riled up.
After a couple minutes of silence, her patience had worn thin,” Are we going to converse or just keep stargazing?”
“ Stargazing seems pretty romantic, don’t you think?” Hermione slightly smiled before sighing,” but maybe that could wait for a while.”
She sat down, patting the spot beside her for the other girl to sit as well before she began,” Are you mad I told them?”
The (y/h/c) girl gave it a thought, analyzing what she felt before looking up,” I don’t think I’m mad. I am quite…surprised, for the lack of a better word. I thought you wanted to keep it to yourself for a bit longer, the last time we talked?”
Hermione could see the questions swimming behind her girlfriend’s eyes and again felt guilty about the reason she had revealed their secret in the first place,” I-…well yes. I did.”
She gulped before averting her eyes towards the ceiling, not having the courage to look at the Slytherin who’s trust she had been slowly gaining,” I’m really sorry Y/n.”
Y/n furrowed her eyebrows in confusion and concern, her hand gently taking hold of the Gryffindor’s and squeezing it,” About what? What’s going on?”
“ You had disappeared. I didn’t know what to think. I couldn’t find you anywhere and even Scylla didn’t seem to know and then you lied to me about where you were going to and -”
“Princess, slow down” Y/n calmed the bookworm, trying to make sense of her ramble,” What are you getting at?”
Hermione finally met her gaze before whispering,” I slipped up about our relationship because i was ..I was getting worried that you might’ve been the reason we got..caught”
Her voice had died down by the time she finished her sentence and Y/n wouldn’t have even heard it entirely if it wasn’t for the pin-drop silence that surrounded them.
Her hand slowly left the Gryffindor’s, processing what was just said,” You still don’t trust me…”
Hermione tried to desperately explain, not wanting to lose the Slytherin,” No! No, I don’t even know if I truly believed it but it just kept plag-”
Y/n held up her hand, not wanting to hear anything more . She took a deep breath, trying to stabilize her emotions before she got up to leave.
Hermione followed her till the door and grabbed her wrist,” Y/n listen! I really didn’t-”
“It still plagued you enough to slip, Hermione” Y/n finally said, her voice surprisingly calm,” It riled you up enough to get consumed by it. Doesn’t that say enough about the trust you have in me.”
She turned around slightly,” I don’t think this” she gestured towards them,” will work if we didn’t even trust each other to a decent amount.”
Not being able to believe what the Slytherin was suggesting, she uttered the first thing that came to her mind,” Well, if you tried being a bit more honest, maybe I wouldn’t have such doubts!”
Y/n silently gasped at the accusation before turning around to face the Gryffindor, eyes blazing,” I have been nothing but honest with you Granger!”
“Then why won’t you tell me where you have been!?”
“Because I made a promise not to!”
Hermione inhaled sharply,” Does that promise mean more to you than I do? Can’t you even trust me to keep a secret for you?”
Y/n screwed her eyes shut, thinking her words through before replying,” I have more respect for the person I made this promise to. It is not trust, it’s about keeping my word. “
She opened her eyes, her gaze cold,” I told you I’d tell you when I could. I never refused.”
She turned to leave again before stopping to say one last thing,” It would be better if we didn’t meet anymore. Goodnight, Princess.”
***
Y/n sat in front of the fireplace, eyes staring into the void as the memory of a couple hours ago kept playing in her head.
It might’ve been around two in the morning but she couldn’t bring herself to fall asleep. It helped that they didn’t have any classes the next day, she could sleep in and avoid interacting with people.
Who was I trying to fool? This was never going to last. Nothing good ever does.
She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn’t notice she wasn’t the only one in the common room.
His voice brought her out of her trance,” You sneaked out?”
She looked behind her to find Blaise sitting at one of the desks in the room, finishing his assignment. She looked confused as to who he was addressing before her eyes fell on the frozen figure near the door.
Scylla slowly turned towards him, eyes flitting to Y/n for a second before going back to him,” Uh……yes. As you can clearly see. Why ask the obvious?”
Y/n and Scylla looked in apprehension at Blaise, who just stared right back at them before shrugging,” I don’t care what you’ve been up to , if that’s why you are worried. Pretty sure snogging someone. “
He smirked when he saw Scylla’s face change the slightest bit of red. He gathered his stuff and bid them goodnight in the next couple minutes.
Y/n went back to staring at the fire, avoiding Scylla’s eyes.
That turned out to be a mistake seeing how her not meeting her best friend’s eyes only confirmed to Scylla that something was wrong.
But Scylla didn’t approach her and continued towards her room. Y/n was quite surprised, having expected quite a nagging from the raven haired girl.
And she wasn’t wrong, because in the next few minutes she was met with someone bumping something cold on her shoulder, jolting her out of her thoughts.
She turned around to find a bottle of firewhiskey being handed to her, Scylla bringing two glasses to fill for them both.
After both of them had a filled glass in hand, Y/n looked at the girl in question.
Scylla rolled her eyes,” I have a couple bottles stacked in my trunk. Sneaked them from home.” she trained her eyes onto the (y/h/c) girl,” You look like you need it.”
Y/n chuckled dryly before taking a huge sip, instantly gagging slightly. Scylla laughed,” You aren’t supposed to chug it, you git.”
Silence followed after, nothing much was said, just the clunks of glasses hitting the table being heard.
“So are we just going to sit in silence and drink the night away?” Scylla asked, her words slurring just a tad bit. When she was met with a quiet but tired look from Y/n she continued,” not like i have any issues with that. We can totallyyyy just drink throughout the night.”
She took it as a win when Y/n gave her the slightest bit of a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.
“We broke up.”
It was whispered so faintly that Scylla didn’t catch it,” You better speak up if you expect me to hear it”
“ We- I think we broke up.”
It took Scylla an entirety of three whole minutes to actually process what was said,” I’m sorry but WHAT!?”
“Shush!!!” Y/n shushed her loudly,” You are going to get us caught. And I’m the prefect here, I’ll be in more trouble!”
Scylla took another sip, trying to steady herself before asking again,” You broke up?”
When Y/n just shrugged and continued drinking her alcohol, Scylla stood up and marched towards the door.
“Where are you going at this hour?”
“To give Granger a piece of my mind.”
Y/n sputtered out a bit of her drink,” It’s nearly three in the morning!”
That seemed to stop the other Slytherin who took a moment to think things a bit more through before taking her seat back, not ceasing to grumble. Y/n bit her bottom lip,” And well…I was the one who broke up. How are you going to give her your piece of mind?”
Scylla instantly turned towards her, speaking dangerously low,” You broke up with her?”
She narrowed her eyes in anger when Y/n nodded,” If you are going to go on another spiel about this not working out because of your family, Merlin have mercy, I will kill you.”
Y/n clicked her tongue as she turned back to the fireplace,” No, though I guess that would’ve happened soon enough.”
She turned around in annoyance when a cushion hit her head,” Well then don’t leave me suspense. Tell me what happened.”
After finishing her glass, Y/n relented and told her about everything that had transpired in the Astronomy Tower. And she wouldn’t be wrong to conclude Scylla was angrier than she was in the beginning.
“Wow! You haven’t told me where you were either and it’s not like I stopped trusting you because of that!”
Y/n didn’t have much to say to that so she let Scylla grumble for a bit longer before trying to calm her down.
It took a bit of convincing but Scylla finally relented and granted her best friend’s wish on not hunting down the Gryffindor and creating a scene.
A somber atmosphere filled the Slytherin common room as the hours passed by.
They continued to drink for some more time before Scylla spoke up,” What do you think you want to do after this entire thing is finished and the upcoming war is over?”
Y/n lethargically blinked,” That’s out of nowhere. First and foremost would be leaving my household.”
Both shared a quiet chuckle,” Yes, please”.
Y/n thought a bit more before answering,” I think I’d like to be a healer. Or an Auror. That would be cool.”
“An auror would suit you, yeah” Scylla nodded before Y/n directed the question towards her,” Me? Hm. Honestly, I can’t see past the war for now. Probably because we were born at a time where war is all we’ve known in a way I guess…”
“I wouldn’t blame you on that.”
“I’m still hunting down Granger tomorrow”
“I know.”
***
The next morning was less chaotic than Y/n had expected it to be.
Somehow Scylla had resorted to only death-glaring the brunette instead of marching up to her and causing all of Hogwarts to know their business. Could’ve had something to do with Rae giving her some talk before breakfast, but whatever it was, she was thankful.
The first class that morning was with Umbridge. Y/n regretted not bringing a flask of firewhiskey because she knew she could not handle the toad without punching someone, in the current state that she was in.
Nevertheless, it seemed like the Weasley twins took the role of the firewhiskey because they definitely made her entire day with their pranks.
It was the most she had laughed in a while as she watched Umbridge stutter and stammer and utterly fail to control the firecrackers.
She was also amongst the crowd of the students who were at the balcony, watching the twins fly away from the prison that Hogwarts had become.
Good for them…
***
“You have some nerve coming up to me” Scylla snarked, eyes not wavering from the Gryffindor who couldn’t seem to hold the same eye contact.
“I can’t believe you roped my girlfriend into this as well” Scylla went on when the brunette couldn’t seem to speak up,” The only reason I haven’t left yet is because I am curious about what prompted you to corner me in this classroom. So speak.”
Hermione narrowed her eyes at the tone used but chose not to comment on it,” I gather that Y/n has told you about what happened the other night.”
Scylla didn’t answer and the brunette took that as an affirmation,” Was this some kind of a sick joke to her?”
Hermione internally cursed herself for asking that when she saw Scylla’s eyes widen before blazing with something akin to anger,” If you are here to bloody shit on her, I suggest you stop right now before I do something that will make me end up in detention.”
Scylla made a move to leave when Hermione spoke up again,” Wait!” She sighed,” If this was all serious and no joke, why won’t she trust me enough to let me know what’s going on?”
Scylla turned back around and looked the Gryffindor up and down before answering,” If it wasn’t a joke to you, why won’t you trust her enough to let her keep secrets?”
The Slytherin raised an eyebrow when Hermione fell silent.
“You aren’t an authority she answers to Granger. Remember that.”
“Do you know?” Hermione asked after a beat, just as Scylla was out the door of the classroom. The Slytherin stopped midway and her answer was a kick to Gryffindor’s gut.
” No. But I don’t abandon people for things they aren’t ready to tell”.
***
Y/n was about to leave McGonagall’s class when the said professor interrupted her,” Hope you continue to work hard Ms. Y/l/n. You’ve made really good progress and I would suggest you maintain and push forward”.
The glint in the professor’s eyes had more meaning than what was spoken out and Y/n was able to grasp that quite well.
“And please, do give yourself a sufficient amount of rest”.
Y/n gave the older witch a weak smile, before making her way back to the dorms.
I wish it was that easy Professor…
***
“Hermione, what’s up with Slytherin’s best friend glaring at you all week?” Ron asked as he stuffed his face with chicken.
Harry scrunched up his face in disgust a little before looking at Hermione who seemed lost in her own world. He nudged her a little,” Hey, you good?”
Hermione startled awake, as if she was asleep this whole time and looked around,” Pardon?”
Ron furrowed his eyebrows and shared a look with Harry before reiterating his question again.
Hermione stole a glance towards the Slytherin table before focusing her gaze on her dinner.
She noticed the red rimmed eyes and eye bags under the Slytherin’s eyes, making her heart ache a little.
Was she the cause of that?
She averts her eyes quickly when the Slytherin Prefect meets her eyes across the hall.
She bites her tongue and chews on the inside of her mouth, contemplating on how to break the news to the boys about what had happened a week ago.
“Hermione, what is it?” Harry asked, sensing the inner turmoil. Rom immediately jumped to the worst conclusions and became livid,” Did she betray you? Hurt you? Oh i’m going to kill that bi-”
“Ron, stop” Hermione finally uttered, eyes still not lifting up,” We had an argument, that’s all. Scylla probably doesn’t like the way I reacted to the situation. We mi-”
She stopped herself midway, deciding she can tell them her problems later and focus on what is more important,” Forget it, we have other things to discuss” .
Both the boys wanted to argue with her but her tone told them the decision was final.
***
“Hey, Y/n where are you going now?” Scylla asked, Draco stopping mid-step as well,” We have patrolling duty, remember?”
Y/n didn’t stop walking but still slowed her pace down,” Oh, I have to study. I’m running a bit behind on some of the assignments. Cover the shift for me please”
Before both the Slytherins could say anything else, the (y/h/c) girl was out of sight.
They just shrugged at each other before continuing on their way.
***
Y/n rushed through the hallway to Umbridge’s office, one of the other Squad members having found her in the library, saying it was important and that Umbridge wanted all of them there.
She opened the heavy door, panting lightly,” I apologize for the tardiness Headmistress”
“Oh, it’s no problem. You are right on time actually. Make sure none of them move a muscle” Umbridge commanded in her high squeaky voice that always managed to grate on Y/n’s nerves.
That was when Y/n was able to take in the situation inside the room, which had just a bit too much pink for her liking. She could see why the meeting was suddenly so important.
Her eyes fell on Harry who seemed bound to the chair with Umbridge taunting every single thing that the boy answered.
Umbridge turned to her for a second,” What are you just standing there for? Get to work.”
Y/n quickly got hold of the Gryffindor brunette beside her and held her hands tightly behind her back. She pulled the bookworm to the corner of the room, a little away from Umbridge and the rest of the squad but the room being tiny made that a bit of a challenging task.
“Get your hands off her, you bitch!” Ron shouted, struggling against Blaise’s hold.
“I’d watch what I say if I were you, Weasley” Y/n hissed.
Hermione did prove a lot stronger than she looked and Y/n had to do everything in her power to not accidentally hurt the Gryffindor witch while not letting go of her hold on her. After having tolerated a couple seconds, she stomped her foot on Hermione’s to effectively get her attention.
“Stop struggling for a second and listen.” Y/n whispered. Hermione was about to protest but something in her told to comply,” I want you to stay still for sometime and let me think of a way to get you all out of this, alright?”
But before the Slytherin could even figure out an escape plan, Hermione yelled, “Stop!”
Umbridge was a moment away from using the cruciatus curse but Hermione’s shout caught her attention right at the nick of time.
“Hermione, no!” Harry yelled desperately.
“What are you doing Granger” Y/n hisses under her breath, her grip on Hermione’s arm tightening subconsciously but Hermione paid her no mind.
“We have to…”
“Well, tell me! I don’t have all day!” Umbridge exclaimed, looking at Hermione menacingly.
The Gryffindor took a deep breath before answering,” We-We were trying to find Professor Dumbledore.”
Umbridge raised an eyebrow in interest,” Dumbledore you say…And child, why were you trying to contact the former headmaster?”
Scylla looked at Y/n in question as if asking her to somehow shut Hermione up but she was as clueless as anyone else in the room.
Hermione made a show of having an internal conflict as she answered,” Dumbledore asked us to make a weapon. We had to inform him that it’s ready…”
Umbridge grinned, a sinister glint appearing in her eyes. She looked around the room and cleared her throat,” You and Mr. Potter will lead me to this weapon. Immediately.”
The pink toad then turned to Draco and Y/n specifically,” Make sure no one leaves this room until we return.”
As Y/n let Hermione go, she looked at the Gryffindor with uncertainty. The bookworm seemed to catch on and sent a quick glance towards the Slytherin, in hopes of reassuring the girl a bit.
Y/n leaned back on the wall, looking at each and every occupant of the room properly and could clearly see the questions laced in Ginny and Ron’s faces as they looked back at her.
She just sighed and closed her eyes for the time being.
***
Draco paced around the room, grinning with mischief and satisfaction,” I can’t wait until you Weasleys are expelled. You have been stinking this castle up way too much”
“Shut up” Ron growled and looked like he would’ve pounced on the Platinum blonde boy if it wasn’t for Blaise restraining him.
Seeing how none of them could physically harm him, Draco went on,” You guys are just as bad as theMudbloods, blood traitors!”
Y/n opened her eyes and narrowed them at her cousin in warning,” Draco.”
Before Draco could continue, Hermione and Harry came through the door, panting.
With no Umbitch behind them.
And that’s when chaos erupted.
Both the groups started fighting each other in any way they could, Luna kicked Gayle in the shins, Ginny punched Draco in his stomach and a lot more that just couldn’t be deciphered clearly.
Y/n discreetly removed herself from the main fight and stood at the corner of the room. Her eye caught the fireplace before glancing at Potter’s group.
The only way they could get to wherever they had to go was if the Squad wasn’t there.
“Duratus Artus…”
Suddenly, every Slytherin in the room froze in their spots. None could move any of their muscles except for their eyes.
The other group looked around in confusion, freaked out by the sudden magic spell that seemed to only affect the Squad.
But regardless of it, they decided to seize the moment and made their way to the fireplace. Though just before stepping in, Hermione stole one glance at the Slytherin prefect in the corner and couldn’t help the small knowing smile that grazed her face before getting engulfed by green flames.
***
Y/n paced the hallways near Umbridge’s office. It helped that it was Slytherin’s night for patrol, so she could stay out without getting in too much trouble.
But that was the last thing on her mind at that moment.
“Your pacing isn’t going to make them come any faster” Scylla yawned as she got dizzy looking at her best friend,”Y/n sit down, you are going to give me a headache”.
But all words went to deaf ears.
Y/n was lost in her own world, arms crossed across her chest and eyes never being taken off the tiles.
It was past four in the morning when Y/n heard something down the hall. She took out her wand and shook Scylla awake,” Wake up!”
“W-What, What!?” Scylla sputtered, eyes still half closed.
“There’s someone over there” Y/n whispered harshly, having her wand at-the-ready as she approached the noise, Scylla closing following behind.
“It can’t be them, they would have had to cross the hallway we were in if they returned…right?” Y/n whispered, not really expecting a reply.
Both of them hid behind the wall around the curve when they heard familiar voices. Their eyes widened before they turned the corner.
“You’ve returned!” The Slytherin prefect exclaimed before running towards Hermione, engulfing her in a tight hug. The gryffindor was shocked for a second before squeezing back just as tight.
They weren’t sure how long the hug lasted for but a clearing of the throat made them spring apart. Dumbledore looked at them amused before taking his departure.
Scylla looked at Harry who looked like he had seen a ghost and approached him,” You alright there, Potter?”
Harry absent mindedly nodded before Ron and Neville forced him towards the Gryffindor tower.
Ginny turned back to look at Hermione in silent question to which she replied,” You go on ahead, I’ll be there in a minute.”
“I’ll take my leave as well, I really need sleep” Scylla yawned before making her way to the Slytherin dungeons.
The remaining girls looked at each other for a couple seconds before Y/n spoke up,” I should probably go to sleep as well.”
Her face was back to being neutral but before she could turn her back Hermione stopped her,” Wait”
Y/n turned towards the brunette, tilting her head in question.
“You clearly have something that you want to spit out”
Y/n narrowed her eyes at the brunette, not liking the fact that someone could read her that well. This was dangerous.
“Well? Are you just going to stand there?” Hermione prodded, crossing her arms across her chest.
Y/n just stared for a silent minute before huffing,” Astronomy Tower. Now.” She didn’t wait to see if the brunette followed but the footsteps that soon resonated against her own was indication enough.
The walk to the tower had been a quiet one. Hermione’s confidence slowly withered in the silence she had to endure in the company of the Slytherin who somehow felt close yet unfamiliar.
And having the voice in her head being the only audible company did nothing to ease her nerves about their relationship. If there was still something left of it.
The (Y/h/c) girl opened the door and looked at the brunette expectantly. Hermione furrowed her eyebrows for a second before understanding what that gesture meant.
“Right, sorry.”
Y/n entered right after and locked the door behind her. Still with no verbal communication, she strode towards the balcony and stood beside the window, closing her eyes as a breeze brushed past her.
Hermione took a moment and just let herself enjoy the view in front of her, trying not to give into the tears stinging at the back of her eyes as she remembered she might never see this again.
Feelthis again.
When the Gryffindor finally got the courage to face her fate, the Slytherin prefect turned towards her.
She took a deep breath before hitting Hermione’s shoulder harshly. Hermione stumbled back in surprise but stopped short of whatever was bubbling up her throat when she noticed the tears glistening in Y/n eyes.
“Y/n-”
“No! You don’t get to Y/n me right now.” Y/n inhaled sharply,” Tell me, where did you all sneak off to?”
Hermione stuttered, not expecting the tone the (y/h/n) girl used against her,” Uhm, uh, the ministry…”
“TheMINISTRY!?” Y/n’s eyes bulged out,” At this hour!? At this period of time with the Minister being cuckoo and Umbitch here,as part of the ministry!?”
Hermione didn’t get a chance to tell her side of the story before Y/n plunged into hysterics,” Are you fucking out of your mind, Hermione!? What were you thinking!? What could be so bloody important that you had to sneak off to the ministry FROM UMBITCH’S OFFICE!”
“I-”
“You don’t know a bloody thing do you-”
” Y/n-”
“ Do you understand how dangerous that-”
The Gryffindor finally lost her patience and grabbed the Slytherin by her shoulders, shaking her until she stopped rambling her head off. The sudden jerk seemed to pull the girl out of her spiral and take a moment to breathe.
Hermione took that opportunity to speak, reliving moments that she wished she could erase from her memory forever.
The more she narrated, the more quiet the Slytherin prefect became, processing everything being thrown at her.
“… We got ambushed. Lucius Malfoy and other death eaters. Bellatrix was there too…”
Y/n couldn’t hold in the gasp this time,’ Lucius and Aunt Trixie were there…no…merlin, no….” She steadied herself against the wall, eyes unseeing anything in front of them. It seemed like the severity of the night had just sunk into her.
Hermione paused, though she didn’t look up at the Slytherin.
She didn’t have to, the tremors in the girl’s voice was enough to tell her there was more to unpack in that tiny phrase. Things that she lost the right to learn about the last time they were in the tower together.
She wiped the stray tears away quickly, before the other prefect could notice them. She didn’t know if it was because of her guilt and ache for the Slytherin or because of everything that had transpired just a couple hours prior.
“Yeah… the whole package huh, definitely took us by surprise” the Gryffindor chuckled weakly after a moment, trying to lighten the mood. Y/n looked up at the brunette, eyes looking a little more alive and gave a small nod.
Hermione took that as a cue to continue and let out a shuddering breath,” …It was scary Y/n/n… We were chased and hunted like prey. And in the end we were caught” Her voice became quieter by the second,” all of us were gravely injured. I thought we were done for.”
Y/n could feel her heart become heavy as she listened on.
“If it-if it wasn’t for the Order….. None of us would be here right now.”
Hermione turned towards the Slytherin, tears coating her cheeks as her lips trembled,” I’m sorry. I’m so sorry Y/n.”
Y/n furrowed her eyebrows at the sudden apology but was soon answered.
“The moment when one of the death eaters had a wand to my neck, the only thought that struck out was how we left things. HowI left off things. And how i might never be able to apologize or let you know that i did not mean anything that i said that night, that i do trust you, that i-”
“Granger.” Y/n interrupted ,”I forgive you.”
“You..do?” Hermione blinked in disbelief.
Y/n sighed as she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes briefly,” Yeah. I won’t be able to forget it though. Or say that I wasn’t hurt. “ She looked at the brunette,” because I was. And I might not be able to trust you completely any time soon either, not when you have your own doubts which I don’t blame you for.”
Before Hermione could completely lose the hope in her eyes, she continued,” But, I am ready to work through that with you, if you want.”
It took Hermione a full second to process what was implied before she broke into something that sounded like a choked sob and exclamation at the same time.
The Gryffindor cleared her throat, sniffling a little,” Yeah. I would love that.”
Silence fell over them once again as they listened to the early morning chirping of birds before something struck Hermione. She looked pensively at the slytherin who had her eyes closed again.
“I can feel you staring, Princess.”
Hermione bit her lip to hide the smile that threatened to creep up at hearing that god awful nickname again. Who knew she’d actually miss it.
“What is it?” Y/n asked before she finally took in the injuries that coated the brunette’s body and pursed her lips,” We need to treat those first.”
Hermione brushed her off,” Slight bruises, they don’t need immediate attention. But I wanted to ask. Are you now allowed to tell me what you were hiding?”
Y/n stared at her for a while, as if her eyes were boring into her soul.
Without another word, the Slytherin stood up and walked towards the door.
‘Did I step on a boundary already?’ Hermione chided herself before moving to stop the girl she just got back.
But the slytherin stopped on her own and stood in the center of the room. She could feel the confusion emitting from the Gyffindor and proceeded not to delay it any further.
Y/n closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
Hermione’s eyes widened as she observed. Once where her girlfriend was standing, now stood a tigress.
Hermione stumbled back in surprise before looking in awe.
The tigress sat down, patiently waiting for the Gryffindor to get her bearings back. The girl’s eyes wandered all over the tigress, trying to grasp what was being shown to her.
After a moment the brunette slowly approached the animal, hands running through the soft fur causing the tigress to close her eyes and lean into the touch,” You are beautiful.”
The tigress chuffed, causing Hermione to snort,”Your welcome.”
After taking a couple more seconds to admire the majestic creature towering over her she pulled away and Y/n took that as a sign to turn back to her human form,” That was what I was hiding.”
Hermione nodded, still in awe, before another question made itself present,“Why?”
“McGonagall didn’t want anyone knowing. If word got out, who knows what Umbridge and the ministry would’ve done.” Y/n shuddered just thinking about it,” And I myself did not want anyone knowing. I would rather keep this information out of the ears of anyone, in fear of it reaching my family.”
Y/n didn’t need to continue, Hermione understood the implication and the hidden motives in the Slytherin’s answer.
“Thank you”
Y/n just shrugged before pointing at the brunette’s arm,” You want to get that dressed or would you rather bleed to death?”
Some weeks after the warehouse fight in Macao Akihito is stolen from the hospital and finds himself in enemy hands … but what to do with him? One man has some little cruel idea to get his payback from Asami. It leads to a knife held up high, ready to strike, in the hands of Akihito. His words “Bye bye Asami-san” ring through the Warsaw hotel room less like a threat, more like they were a weapon themselves.
With a single strike Asami can save himself… but how to save the one he loves? How to bring Akihito back? Also, who is behind all that mystery, who is the real enemy and how far will Asami go to finally have what he craves: A future with Akihito safely at his side?
This story starts after “Innocent Eyes” chapter 1.
—– SPOILER WARNING: for the “Innocent Eyes”-arc —– TRIGGER WARNING: for violence, torture, abuse, past child abuse, involuntary drug use, brainwashing and a lot of angst, plus secondary character death. —– PAIRINGS: Asami x Akihito, Mikhail x Fei Long, Aaron x Akihito
-Y/N L/N met Percy Jackson and everything is now ruined.
Chapter 22: Then It Ended
As soon as we came, Annabeth ang Grover tackled me. We were the first heroes to return alive to Half-Blood Hill since Luke, so of course everybody treated us as if we’d won some reality-TV contest. According to camp tradition, we wore laurel wreaths to a big feast prepared in our honor, then led a procession down to the bonfire, where we got to burn the burial shrouds our cabins had made for us in our absence.
Annabeth’s shroud was so beautiful—gray silk with embroidered owls— Percy told her it seemed a shame not to bury her in it. She punched him and told him to shut up.
Percy being the son of Poseidon, he didn’t have any cabin mates, so the Ares cabin had volunteered to make his shroud. They’d taken an old bedsheet and painted smiley faces with X'ed-out eyes around the border, and the word LOSER painted really big in the middle.
As I was still unclaimed, Hermes cabin had made me one. (Just… IDK go crazy with your shroud IG)
It was fun to burn.
As Apollo’s cabin led the sing-along and passed out s'mores, Percy and I was surrounded by my Hermes cabinmates, Annabeth’s friends from Athena, and Grover’s satyr buddies, who were admiring the brand-new searcher’s license he’d received from the Council of Cloven Elders. The council had called Grover’s performance on the quest “Brave to the point of indigestion. Horns-and-whiskers above anything we have seen in the past.”
The only ones not in a party mood were Clarisse and her cabinmates, whose poisonous looks told me they’d never forgive us for disgracing their dad.
That was okay with me.
Even Dionysus’s welcome-home speech wasn’t enough to dampen my spirits. “Yes, yes, so the little brats didn’t get themselves killed and now they’ll have an even bigger head. Well, huzzah for that. In other announcements, there will be no canoe races this Saturday….”
Going back to the cabin I finally had time to talk to Luke. Who just expressed his relief of me being fine, and how he was scared when Annabeth told everyone about me. No wonder everyone was so shocked seeing me come back with Percy.
On the Fourth of July, the whole camp gathered at the beach for a fireworks display by cabin nine. Being Hephaestus’s kids, they weren’t going to settle for a few lame red-white-and-blue explosions. They’d anchored a barge offshore and loaded it with rockets the size of Patriot missiles. According to Annabeth, who’d seen the show before, the blasts would be sequenced so tightly they’d look like frames of animation across the sky. The finale was supposed to be a couple of hundred-foot-tall Spartan warriors who would crackle to life above the ocean, fight a battle, then explode into a million colors.
As Annabeth, Percy and I were spreading a picnic blanket, Grover showed up to tell us good-bye. He was dressed in his usual jeans and T-shirt and sneakers, but in the last few weeks he’d started to look older, almost high-school age. His goatee had gotten thicker. He’d put on weight. His horns had grown at least an inch, so he now had to wear his rasta cap all the time to pass as human.
“I’m off,” he said. “I just came to say … well, you know.”
I tried to feel happy for him. After all, it wasn’t every day a satyr got permission to go look for the great god Pan. But it was hard saying good-bye. I’d only known Grover a year, yet he was my oldest friend.
Annabeth and I gave him a hug. She told him to keep his fake feet on.
I asked him where he was going to search first.
“Kind of a secret,” he said, looking embarrassed. “I wish you could come with me, guys, but humans and Pan …”
“We understand,” Annabeth said. “You got enough tin cans for the trip?”
“Yeah.”
“And you remembered your reed pipes?”
“Jeez, Annabeth,” he grumbled. “You’re like an old mama goat.”
But he didn’t really sound annoyed.
He gripped his walking stick and slung a backpack over his shoulder. He looked like any hitchhiker you might see on an American highway.
“Well,” he said, “wish me luck.”
He gave Annabeth and I another hug. He clapped Percy on the shoulder, then headed back through the dunes.
Fireworks exploded to life overhead: Hercules killing the Nemean lion, Artemis chasing the boar, George Washington (who, by the way, was a son of Athena) crossing the Delaware.
“Hey, Grover,” Percy called.
He turned at the edge of the woods.
“Wherever you’re going—I hope they make good enchiladas.”
Grover grinned, and then he was gone, the trees closing around him.
“We’ll see him again,” Annabeth said.
July passed.
I spent my daysplanning out strategies with Luke for capture-the-flag and making alliances with the other cabins to keep the banner out of Ares’s hands. I got to the top of the climbing wall for the first time without getting scorched by lava.
From time to time, Percy and I would walk past the Big House, he’d glance up at the attic windows, and think about the Oracle.
I tried to convince him that its prophecy had come to completion.
“You shall go west, and face the god who has turned.”
“Been there, done that—even though the traitor god had turned out to be Ares rather than Hades.”
“You shall find what was stolen, and see it safe returned.”
“Check. One master bolt delivered. One helm of darkness back on Hades.”
“You shall be betrayed by one who calls you a friend.” Percy recited.
“Ares had pretended to be our friend, then betrayed us. That must be what the Oracle meant…. Or maybe Nereid?”
“And you shall fail to save what matters most, in the end.” He sighed. “I had failed to save my mom and lost you…”
“So why are you still uneasy?”
The last night of the summer session came all too quickly.
The campers had one last meal together. We burned part of our dinner for the gods. At the bonfire, the senior counselors awarded the end-of-summer beads.
Percy and I got our own leather necklace, and when I saw the bead for my first summer. The design was pitch black, with a sea-green trident shimmering in the center.
“This is so beautiful…” I smiled to Percy.
“The choice was unanimous,” Luke announced. “This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea God at this camp, and the quest he undertook into the darkest part of the Underworld to stop a war!”
The entire camp got to their feet and cheered. Even Ares’s cabin felt obliged to stand. Athena’s cabin steered Annabeth to the front so she could share in the applause.
I’m not sure I’d ever felt as happy or sad as I did at that moment. I’d finally found a family, people who cared about me and thought I’d done something right. And in the morning, most of them would be leaving for the year.
* * *
The next morning, Luke called me. He gave me a paper, telling me to fill it out, and asked me to meet him as soon as I could.
I knew Dionysus must’ve filled it out, because he stubbornly insisted on getting my name wrong:
Dear (WRONG NAME) ,
If you intend to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, you must inform the Big House by noon today. If you do not announce your intentions, we will assume you have vacated your cabin or died a horrible death. Cleaning harpies will begin work at sundown. They will be authorized to eat any unregistered campers. All personal articles left behind will be incinerated in the lava pit.
Have a nice day!
Mr. D (Dionysus)
Camp Director, Olympian Council #12
That’s another thing about ADHD. Deadlines just aren’t real to me until I’m staring one in the face. Summer was over, and I still don’t know what to do. I had no where to go to. The only option I had was Percy’s or maybe Hades was not joking about inviting me back to the Underworld.
Sighing I decided to just meet Luke before filling it for second opinions.
The campgrounds were mostly deserted, shimmering in the August heat. All the campers were in their cabins packing up, or running around with brooms and mops, getting ready for final inspection. Argus was helping some of the Aphrodite kids haul their Gucci suitcases and makeup kits over the hill, where the camp’s shuttle bus would be waiting to take them to the airport.
I was walking around looking for Luke. I jumped when I felt someone tap me from behind. I instinctively unsheathed my knife and turned only to see Luke with his hands raised.
“Whoa! Calm down just me.” He laughed.
“Kinda weird seeing someone laugh at a knife pointed at them.” I smirked sheathing my knife.
“I only laugh since its you.” He smiled and ruffled my hair. “Are you done with everything?”
“Not really. I don’t know whether to leave or not yet. That’s why I came. Help me?” I asked him.
He turned to me and to the forest. “How about you hear me out about something… important and private… then decide?” He gestured towards the forest.
“Not planning on killing me are you?” I squinted at him.
He gasped. “Not you. Never. I would never hurt you.”
I let him lead me to a shrouded area of the forest.
“How serious is this thing that you can’t let anyone see? I am blindly trusting you here Luke.” I laughed nervously. But when he didn’t reply I felt something was off. “Luke, okay this isn’t cool. How deep into the forest do we have to go?”
“Y/N remember when you said… You want to be the person I trust…? How you promised to help me?”
“Luke?” He took my hand and pulled me sharply. I winced at how hard he pulled me. “That hurts! Let me go!”
He snapped back and let go of my wrist. “I-I’m sorry… Y/N…”
As much as I knew I had to leave, I couldn’t I was worried about him. I reluctantly placed a hand on his shoulder. “What’s happening?”
“I did it…” I said and sat on the ground. “I swear I didn’t mean to get you hurt. But, I confess to everything. I stole bolt and helm, I summoned the hound, I gave Percy the cursed shoes… And just now, I tried to kill Percy Jackson.” He looked at me with empty eyes.
I shot up and looked at him in emotions I couldn’t put in words. “W-Wh—” I wanted to leave and check on Percy. But once again, seeing him right now… I need to stay with him. “Why are you telling me this…?”
“Join me… please?” his voice was weak. He sounded vulnerable. “Let’s serve my Lord together…”
“L-Luke… no. I-I can’t do that!” I took his shoulder, “Y-You should stay with me instead. How about that, huh? L-Let’s explain to Chiron and the others… come on please. I could help you!”
Nothing was working.
“Come with me…” He muttered.
“Luke, I won’t join you. You have to change your mind. You can’t do this.”
“I can’t change my mind.”
“I can help you with that? How about you go with me huh? I could spend all my time doing this and that. Please, just change your mind.”
He didn’t reply for a while until he whispered, “Promise me.”
“Promise you what?”
“You’ll stay with me.”
“What? Luke I wo–”
“You won’t join… Just…don’t stay here for the year… and stay with me.”
“I-If I stay with you… what would that mean?”
“Yo-You… might change my mind.”
“I’ll go.” I replied with no hesitation. “I’ll leave camp for the year. And I’ll find my parent to prove to you that Gods and Goddess aren’t all bad. We’ll find my parent together.”
“I do my lord’s bidding–”
“You can still do it. If you want to. But whatever happens… stays only between us. I’ll stay with you until I change your mind. And I’ll bring you back to camp.”
“I would never do anything to ruin your trust in me.” He knelt down. It was kinda awkward but hey… “I need you.”
Worry not hero. We shall stay.
“Please…”
We’ll meet again. Wait for us, we shall join you soon. Now leave.
I had no idea what happened since when I came to Luke was gone and there was no sign of him anywhere. How were we going to st—
We will meet him once we leave. Now go as our hero needs us.
I suddenly remembered Percy’s state that Luke had told me about. So I ran. I ran to the Big House
***
Percy finally opened his eyes.
He was propped up in bed in the sickroom of the Big House, his right hand bandaged like a club. Argus stood guard in the corner. Annabeth and I sat next to Percy, I was holding his nectar glass and she was dabbing a washcloth on his forehead.
“Here we are again,” Percy said.
“You idiot,” Annabeth said, “You were green and turning gray when we found you. If it weren’t for Chiron’s healing…”
“Now, now,” Chiron’s voice said. “Percy’s constitution deserves some of the credit.”
He was sitting near the foot of the bed in human form. His lower half was magically compacted into the wheelchair, his upper half dressed in a coat and tie. He smiled, but his face looked weary and pale, the way it did when he’d been up all night grading Latin papers.
“How are you feeling?” he asked.
“Like my insides have been frozen, then microwaved.”
“Apt, considering that was pit scorpion venom. Now you must tell me, if you can, exactly what happened.”
Between sips of nectar, he told them the story.
I bit my lip trying to keep what happened between Luke and I private. It was a risky move that would not be approved by anyone after all.
The room was quiet for a long time.
“I can’t believe that Luke…” Annabeth’s voice faltered. Her expression turned angry and sad. “Yes. Yes, I can believe it. May the gods curse him…. He was never the same after his quest.”
Percy was looking at me as if checking what was my reaction to his story.
“This must be reported to Olympus,” Chiron murmured. “I will go at once.”
“Luke is out there right now,” Percy said. “I have to go after him.”
Chiron shook his head. “No, Percy. The gods—”
“Won’t even talk about Kronos,” Percy snapped. “Zeus declared the matter closed!”
“Percy, I know this is hard. But you must not rush out for vengeance. You aren’t ready.”
“Chiron… your prophecy from the Oracle… it was about Kronos, wasn’t it? Was I in it? Y/N? And Annabeth?”
Chiron glanced nervously at the ceiling. “Percy, it isn’t my place—”
“You’ve been ordered not to talk to me about it, haven’t you?”
His eyes were sympathetic, but sad. “You will be a great hero, child. I will do my best to prepare you. But if I’m right about the path ahead of you…”
Thunder boomed overhead, rattling the windows.
“All right!” Chiron shouted. “Fine!”
He sighed in frustration. “The gods have their reasons, Percy. Knowing too much of your future is never a good thing.”
“We can’t just sit back and do nothing,” He said.
“We will not sit back,” Chiron promised. “But you must be careful. Kronos wants you to come unraveled. He wants your life disrupted, your thoughts clouded with fear and anger. Do not give him what he wants. Train patiently. Your time will come.”
“Assuming I live that long.”
Chiron put his hand on Percy’s ankle. “You’ll have to trust me, Percy. You will live. But first you must decide your path for the coming year. I cannot tell you the right choice….” I got the feeling that he had a very definite opinion, and it was taking all his willpower not to advise me. “But you must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, or return to the mortal world for seventh grade and be a summer camper. Think on that. When I get back from Olympus, you must tell me your decision.”
“I’ll be back as soon as I can,” Chiron promised. “Argus will watch over you.”
He glanced at Annabeth. “Oh, and, my dear… whenever you’re ready, they’re here.”
“Who’s here?” Percy asked.
Nobody answered.
Chiron rolled himself out of the room. I heard the wheels of his chair clunk carefully down the front steps, two at a time.
Annabeth studied the floor.
“What’s wrong?” Percy asked her.
“Nothing. I … just took your advice about something. You … um … need anything?”
“Yeah. Help me up. I want to go outside.”
“Percy, that isn’t a good idea.”
Percy slid his legs out of bed. Annabeth and I caught him before he could crumple to the floor.
I said, “I told you …”
“I’m fine,” He insisted.
He managed a step forward. Then another, still leaning heavily on me. Argus followed us outside, but he kept his distance.
By the time we reached the porch, his face was beaded with sweat. But we had managed to make it all the way to the railing.
It was dusk. The camp looked completely deserted. The cabins were dark and the volleyball pit silent. No canoes cut the surface of the lake. Beyond the woods and the strawberry fields, the Long Island Sound glittered in the last light of the sun.
“What are you going to do?” Annabeth asked us.
“I don’t know.” Percy replied. “I got the feeling Chiron wanted me to stay year-round, to put in more individual training time, but I’m not sure that’s what I want. I also don’t want to leave you both with Clarisse only.”
Annabeth pursed her lips, then said quietly, “I’m going home for the year, Percy.”
He stared at her. “You mean, to your dad’s?”
She pointed toward the crest of Half-Blood Hill. Next to Thalia’s pine tree, at the very edge of the camp’s magical boundaries, a family stood silhouetted—two little children, a woman, and a tall man with blond hair. They seemed to be waiting. The man was holding a backpack that looked like the one Annabeth had gotten from Waterland in Denver.
“I wrote him a letter when we got back,” Annabeth said. “Just like you suggested. I told him… I was sorry. I’d come home for the school year if he still wanted me. He wrote back immediately. We decided… we’d give it another try.”
“That took guts.”
She pursed her lips. “You won’t try anything stupid during the school year, will you? At least … not without sending me an Iris-message? Both of you?”
Percy managed a smile. “I won’t go looking for trouble. I usually don’t have to.”
“You already know my plans.”
“When I get back next summer,” she said, “we’ll hunt down Luke. We’ll ask for a quest, but if we don’t get approval, we’ll sneak off and do it anyway. Agreed?”
“Sounds like a plan worthy of Athena.”
She held out her hand. Percy shook it. She gave me a hug.
“Take care, Seaweed Brain,” Annabeth told Percy. “Keep your eyes open.”
“You too, Wise Girl.”
Then turned to me, “Good luck on your own quest Droopy.”
“Of course Peabody.”
We watched her walk up the hill and join her family. She gave her father an awkward hug and looked back at the valley one last time. She touched Thalia’s pine tree, then allowed herself to be lead over the crest and into the mortal world.
“I made my decision.” Percy said. “What’s yours?”
“I’ll be leaving camp… I’m going to look for my parent…”
He looked at me in shock. “I’ll be back next summer,” I promised him. “I’ll survive until then.”
“Alone?”
I smiled at him.
“Don’t you want to stay with us? Mom said—”
“I want to find my parent. I need to. I’ll be fine Percy.”
I helped Percy to his cabin so he could pack and went to mine. To my surprise I see a middle-aged man with an athletic figure slim and fit with salt-and-pepper hair, and a very familiar sly grin. He had bags at his foot.
“Delivery for Y/N L/N.”
“Uhm…”
“Hermes.” He said.
I froze and looked at him with wide eyes.
“Personally packed. As a thank you for what you’re about to do.” He smiled softly and handed me the bags.
“H-Huh…?”
“For helping Luke.”
“I…”
Don’t forget her mail!
Ooh! And tell her to bring us snacks next time we meet since it’ll be often now!
No it wouldn’t be often! She’ll be with Luke!
“Both of you keep quiet.” Pulling out a mail he handed it to me. “Luke… prayed to me telling me about your plan. He asked me to help you. I don’t know what or why he did it. But I know he’ll change thanks to you. So do guide him.”
“Sorry you lost me at the talking air…” I blinked.
Hermes laughed and showed a caduceus. “It’s just George and Martha.”
“Hi?”
Hello!
Hi
“I just wanted to let you know. No god or goddess could see you. No matter how hard they tried. So your secrets.. are really secrets. Good luck on your travel.”
Next time we meet you should have snacks.
Then he vanished.
Staring at the letter on my hand, I was stunned seeing it was from… my mom and dad.
Sweetie,
You’ve made quite a friend here.
-Mom and Dad.
I immediately knew where to look. I hurriedly took my bags not bothering to check the contents. I ran to Percy’s cabin and helped him out so we could leave.
Percy got a cab and looked at me worriedly.
“I’ll write you. Stay safe Arthur Curry.” I ruffled his hair and watched him go.
I didn’t know where to go so I just went to the first secluded area I saw.
“You have more stuffs than when you arrived.” I heard someone behind me.
“You prayed to your dad. I hope he knows how to pack.” I sighed turning to him. Turning around I barely made out Luke from the few days I last saw him. “You okay?”
“Do you know where to look first?”
Call upon our hound.
I whistled, I don’t know why. But when I did, D/N came out of the blue. Luke looked at me and my dear dog, who was probably bigger than the hound he’d summon back then. “How do feel about L.A?” I said riding on D/N and making space behind me for Luke.
END OF BOOK ONE!!! THANK YOU FOR READING YLATHB I HOPE YOU ENJOY!! I’LL PUBLISH BOOK 2 WHEN I’M DONE OR EVEN AT LEAST HAVE WRITTEN 5 CHAPTERS OF THE BOOK 2 ;))
I read *a lot* of fanfictions, since when I was really young. I am forever grateful for all the talented writers that I’ve discovered, there are some really wonderful stories out there, some are even better than what is canon… This is one of them, for me It was such a comfort reading it that I needed to have it printed! So, thanks @maiden-of-asgard for your story
Finallygot an email back saying they have fixed my blog! It’s kind of exciting. It was so frustrating not being able to do anything, to be honest. I still have made a sideblog for my fanfiction work though. I’d love to see you follow me if you want of course! For a little while, I will reblog my fanfictions to here and my main blog as well. This blog will be mostly for the gifsets I make. I figured since I made it, I might as well use it!
I already have a new Dom!Billy Russo story was posted and have started writing works based on Henry Cavill’s characters. I have a new Dean fanfiction in the works and maybe finally writing something for Johnny Depp’s character from the Secret Window, that I have been putting off for years now.
For this followers update, I’m stealing an idea from another beautiful people and asking everybody to suggest their favourite Marvel fanfictions! I’ll do a separate post later with them in.
Leave them in my inbox or reply to this post. Show me what you’re reading, everybody! ❤
Ich habe eine ganz interessant Entdeckung gemacht. Und die möchte ich gerne mit euch teilen, weil ich mir vorstellen kann, dass viele von euch auch gerne FanFictions lesen.
Also bei FanFiction.de kann man die Geschichten ja auch runterladen, das klappt auch bei eurem eReader und dann könnt ihr die FF auch mitnehmen, wenn ihr irgendwo unterwegs seid wo ihr schlechtes bzw. kein Internet habt. Außerdem ist das Lesen auf dem eReader auch bequemer als auf dem Handy (womit das runterladen übrigens auch klappt)
Person 1: What is the thing we can’t live without?
Person 2: -_- oxygen!
Me: (raising my hand trying to reach the ceiling in excitement) oh may I? I know I know.. Fan-fictions, fan-fictions (looking at those morons with expressionless faces and idiots living on oxygen) F A N…- F I C T I O N S!! ( ͜。 ͡ʖ ͜。)
Did I just spend almost 12 hours working on a single chapter of a fanfic so I could publish it today? Yes.
Do I regret it? No.
Some readers follow a story chapter by chapter from its beginning; others discover a story and read all the posted chapters within the space of a few days or even hours. They deserve the best I can give.
Still didn’t read this fanfiction? You will still be here tomorrow, but your dreams may notby@tupacaze, a story that explores the relationship between Tom Holland’s Spider-man and Jon Bernthal’s Punisher.
