Emily (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
iluvroadrunner6) wrote2020-03-09 09:25 pm
iluvroadrunner6) wrote2020-03-09 09:25 pm
Entry tags:
- canon: dctv,
- canon: leverage,
- canon: lost girl,
- canon: marvel cinematic universe,
- canon: supernatural,
- canon: teen wolf,
- canon: timeless,
- canon: vampire diaries universe,
- dctv: barry allen,
- dctv: laurel lance,
- dctv: thea queen,
- leverage: alec hardison,
- leverage: eliot spencer,
- leverage: nate ford,
- leverage: sophie devereaux,
- lost girl: bo dennis,
- mcu: natasha romanoff,
- mcu: sam wilson,
- mcu: steve rogers,
- prompts: get your words out,
- ship: barry/thea,
- ship: ben/elena,
- ship: bo/derek,
- ship: eliot/lucy,
- ship: laura/parrish,
- ship: laurel/steve,
- supernatural: ben braedan,
- teen wolf: derek hale,
- teen wolf: jordan parrish,
- teen wolf: laura hale,
- teen wolf: sheriff stilinski,
- teen wolf: stiles stilinski,
- timeless: lucy preston,
- timeless: rufus carlin,
- timeless: wyatt logan,
- tvdverse: elena gilbert
get your worlds out { 2020 } yahtzee tracking
TRACKING
SET #1: PICTURES
ACES
Title: can't you hear the choir now
Fandom/Original: Lost Girl/Teen Wolf
Prompt: Broken Glass
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 300
Summary: Bo comes to the sheriff's age in a tense situation.
Warnings/Notes: As a request for
Title: you're only killing time and it'll kill you right back
Fandom/Original: Lost Girl/Teen Wolf
Prompt: Neon Music Girl
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 300
Summary: The fight isn't over - Bo follows the creature into the darkness.
Warnings/Notes: As a request for
Title: and i never really sleep anymore
Fandom/Original: Lost Girl/Teen Wolf
Prompt: Upside Down City
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 300
Summary: Bo gets Derek and Stiles (kinda) to help her with her recovery.
Warnings/Notes: As a request for
Title: i was damned and you were saved
Fandom/Original: Lost Girl/Teen Wolf
Prompt: Hitchhiker
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 300
Summary: Bo has a small confrontation with Stiles after leaving Derek's place.
Warnings/Notes: As a request for
Title: and i know you've got the scars to prove it
Fandom/Original: Lost Girl/Teen Wolf
Prompt: Stone Circles
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 300
Summary: Bo finally tracks down what she was looking for.
Warnings/Notes: As a request for
SET #2: WORDS
FIVES
Title: my need is such; i pretend too much
Fandom/Original: Supernatural
Prompt: Compassionate
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 600
Summary: Ruby begins her work in tipping Sam to the dark side.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: and you'll have to stay, til you somehow find a way
Fandom/Original: Original (Paladinverse)
Prompt: Gamy
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 600
Summary: Deirdre and Cassandra make their way to a new world.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: but you were something like a dream come true
Fandom/Original: DCTV
Prompt: Punctual
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 600
Summary: Barry's perpetual tardiness is a source of amusement for his date.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: and left a part of you behind
Fandom/Original: Teen Wolf
Prompt: Tangy
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 600
Summary: Melissa and Chris regroup after another night dealing with the supernatural.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: and all that you know rearranges
Fandom/Original: Original
Prompt: Lazy
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 600
Summary: Aaron comes home to an unexpected sight.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
SET #3: WORDS
SEVENS
Title: there's something between us that nobody else need's to see
Fandom/Original: DCTV
Prompt: Aggressive
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 2,200
Summary: Zari makes a very strong first impression with the crew of the Waverider.
Warnings/Notes: AU Season 5 because I miss Amaya Jiwe. Also written for
Title: forever can never be long enough for me
Fandom/Original: Original
Prompt: Chirp
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,300
Summary: Raina is less than pleased to find out her daughter got married without her.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: you know i love you, did i ever tell you?
Fandom/Original: DCTV
Prompt: Pretentious
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,700
Summary: Barry convinces Iris to come out to a fancy honorary dinner with him. In true Flash fashion, it goes horribly wrong.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: so much of me is made of what i learned from you
Fandom/Original: The Magicians
Prompt: Extrovert
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,500
Summary: Fen helps Julia recover after the loss of her magic.
Warnings/Notes: An AU end of S3. Written for
Title: and for all she can take, there is more there to steal
Fandom/Original: DCTV
Prompt: Roar
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,600
Summary: Shameless fluff of Zari and Nate getting to raise their dragon baby together because I could.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
SET #4: COMBO
THREE OF A KIND
Title: there's a color deep inside like a blue suburban sky
Fandom/Original: Supernatural/The Vampire Diaries (SPN AU)
Prompt: Honest
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,487
Summary: Ben and Elena visit Ben's mother and it doesn't go as planned.
Warnings/Notes:
Title: it's your business if you want some, take some
Fandom/Original: Supernatural/TVDverse (MCU AU)
Prompt: Adaptable
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,321
Summary: Elena has to start her life over and tries her best to adapt.
Warnings/Notes:
Title: and i think that's worth fighting for
Fandom/Original: Supernatural/TVDverse (TVD AU)
Prompt: Screaming in a Plastic Bag
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 920
Summary: Elena and Ben go out to finishing their first year of med school.
Warnings/Notes:
SET #5: COMBO
FOUR OF A KIND
Title: i can be anything you want me to be
Fandom/Original: Leverage/Timeless
Prompt: Inconsiderate
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 1,201
Summary: Eliot and Lucy run into each other while Eliot's on a job.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: and it's like all you didn't know you were waiting for
Fandom/Original: Leverage/Timeless
Prompt: Leathery
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,209
Summary: Team Leverage is in need of a historian.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: this is how you begin to be whole
Fandom/Original: Leverage/Timeless
Prompt: Painting setup
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 694
Summary: Lucy tries to make a decision on a paint color.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: but who we are and who we want to be
Fandom/Original: Leverage/Timeless
Prompt: Knick knacks
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,199
Summary: Eliot and Hardison are digging into their next mark when everything goes sideways.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
SET #6: PICTURES
FULL HOUSE
Title: i'm who i am and i think that's worth fighting for
Fandom/Original: DCTV
Prompt: City lights
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 1,098
Summary: Kate gets invited to spend a night out with Team Supergirl.
Warnings/Notes: The Kara Drink Scale was created with inspiration from Brooklyn 99.
Title: you never get much for the dues you pay
Fandom/Original: From Dusk Til Dawn (TV)
Prompt: Airplane aisle
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 962
Summary: Seth has to wrestle Kisa and Richie onto a plane for a plan everyone hates.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: and i always get those dangerous dreams
Fandom/Original: TVDverse/White Collar
Prompt: Guy with the moon
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,145
Summary: Neal and Rebekah hit another roadblock in starting a family.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: be afraid of the old, they'll inherit your soul
Fandom/Original: TVDverse/Cloak and Dagger
Prompt: Electrical equipment
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 2,210
Summary: The Harvest comes calling and Tandy tries to protect Davina.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
Title: happy ever after in the marketplace
Fandom/Original: Castle/Original
Prompt: Suitcase
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 850
Summary: Kate and Baal get away for a while after saving the world.
Warnings/Notes: Written for
SET #7: COMBO
LARGE STRAIGHT
Title: they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [1/5]
Fandom/Original: DCTV/Marvel Cinematic Universe
Prompt: River view
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,049
Summary: Laurel, Connor and Barry travel out to visit Steve in Washington, DC.
Warnings/Notes: A spin-off of this fic. An AU version of Winter Soldier, and Laurel is AU'd to high heaven because I can.
Title: they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [2/5]
Fandom/Original: DCTV/Marvel Cinematic Universe
Prompt: Street poet
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,174
Summary: Laurel and Steve finally get their reunion date, but it still gets complicated.
Warnings/Notes: A spin-off of this fic. An AU version of Winter Soldier, and Laurel is AU'd to high heaven because I can.
Title: they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [3/5]
Fandom/Original: DCTV/Marvel Cinematic Universe
Prompt: Warm
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 1,272
Summary: Laurel finds out about the Triskelion and things get more complicated.
Warnings/Notes: A spin-off of this fic. An AU version of Winter Soldier, and Laurel is AU'd to high heaven because I can.
Title: they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [4/5]
Fandom/Original: DCTV/Marvel Cinematic Universe
Prompt: Loyal
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 1,812
Summary: Barry goes to offer his services, while Laurel bides her time.
Warnings/Notes: A spin-off of this fic. An AU version of Winter Soldier, and Laurel is AU'd to high heaven because I can.
Title: they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [5/5]
Fandom/Original: DCTV/Marvel Cinematic Universe
Prompt: Sandy
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 962
Summary: Laurel and Steve are reunited and they build a plan to take down HYDRA.
Warnings/Notes: A spin-off of this fic. An AU version of Winter Soldier, and Laurel is AU'd to high heaven because I can.
SET #8: COMBO
YAHTZEE
Title: i'll tell you the dreams that i've been keeping
Fandom/Original: Teen Wolf (AU)
Prompt: Balloons
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,500
Summary: Laura and Jordan get asked the question no parent is excited to hear.
Warnings/Notes: Like with Ben and Elena,
Title: flames are not what get you burned
Fandom/Original: Teen Wolf (AU)
Prompt: Fireworks
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 1,500
Summary: Laura makes an offer the Parrish concerning Fourth of July festivities.
Warnings/Notes: Like with Ben and Elena,
Title: tomorrow we'll be free my love
Fandom/Original: Teen Wolf (AU)
Prompt: Rings on a chain
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,500
Summary: Laura is missing her mother and Parrish suggests a way to help.
Warnings/Notes: Like with Ben and Elena,
Title: when paradise calls me, i'd rather be here
Fandom/Original: Teen Wolf (AU)
Prompt: Flaky
Rating: PG
Word or Line count: 1,500
Summary: Laura is having trouble sleeping, so she resorts to baking.
Warnings/Notes: Like with Ben and Elena,
Title: tell me where's the challenge
Fandom/Original: Teen Wolf (AU)
Prompt: Ribbed
Rating: PG-13
Word or Line count: 1,500
Summary: Laura gets captured and imprisoned by the thing she was trying to capture and imprison. Whoops.
Warnings/Notes: Like with Ben and Elena,
set 1 | can't you hear the choir now ~ lost girl/teen wolf ~ 300
“Sheriff? Sheriff!”
Bo’s head snaps towards the sound of Derek’s voice. He’s cradling the older man in his arms, as blood spills from the sheriff’s midsection. Dropping to her knees next to him, she examines the wound. Derek’s reaching for his phone to call an ambulance, and she shifts to place a hand down and apply pressure.
“He’s bleeding out fast. I don’t think the ambulance will make it.”
Fear dances across Derek’s features, before glancing down at the man next to them. “Can you—?”
“I need a bump.”
Derek doesn’t hesitate. “Take whatever you need.”
Bo doesn’t give him time to dwell on whether or not that trust is worth extending. Instead, she leans forward, one bloody hand clutched in the front of his shirt for a rough and dirty kiss, pulling just enough chi from him to get the job done. Then she bends over the sheriff with a small smile.
“Sorry, Sheriff. This is going to get a little personal.”
Chi flows out of her and into the man below her, and Derek takes over examining the wound. Tension eases from his shoulders. “He’s healing. It’s working.”
Bo finishes, and she glances over with a smirk. “Did you think it wouldn’t?” Derek gives her a look in return, shaking his head before his head snaps in the direction of the door.
“Someone is coming.”
Bo reaches for her dagger nearby, eyes still glowing neon blue from the recent chi transfer, and a tall but skinny man bursts through the door, wearing an FBI jacket and waving a pistol.
‘What the hell, Derek?”
Derek rolls his eyes. “Great. Stiles is here.”
Bo frowns, and the glow finally fades from her eyes. “What’s a Stiles?”
set 1 | you were only killing time and it'll kill you right back ~ lost girl/teen wolf ~ 300
If there were questions after that, Bo’s not paying attention. Instead, she’s looking up behind the sheriff, as Derek tries to explain.
“We were tracking something for the sheriff. Whatever the thing was, it attacked us. This is Bo. Her eyes are glowing because she’s not human. You’re not new to this, Stiles.”
“Derek.” Bo turns and grabs his arm, drawing his attention back to her. “It’s not gone.”
Derek turns to meet her eyes before gesturing for Stiles to go to his father. “You get your dad out of here. We’ll meet up with you once we’re finished with this.”
“What, you’re just going to go off on your own?”
Bo doesn’t wait. She’s already caught the scent. She charges out of the shack and into the trees, barreling through the Preserve. She won’t run the risk of losing this creature. The fact that it’s invisible isn’t a problem. Unlike most invisible creatures, this one had an aura. It was hungry. And she was going to use that hunger to run it into the ground.
Neon red lines dance through the trees, getting closer and closer the more ground she gains, and once she’s within range, she chucks her knife and watches as it lodges in the creature’s back, and the beast flickers into view. It turns, screams, and then the real fight begins.
By the time Derek arrives, the thing is dead, dropping down in front of Bo like a rock. However, it still got it’s licks in, so that drop also reveals the claw marks deep in the flesh of her stomach.
“Bo?”
She sees his concern before glancing down and sighs. “Shit.”
Everything goes black, not long after that.
set 1 | and i never really sleep anymore ~ lost girl/teen wolf ~ 300
The neon lights of the nearby stores leak in through the window, and it takes her a moment to realize that she’s on Derek’s couch. As she tries to wrangle herself into a sitting position, a wave of pain shoots through her.
“Hey,” Derek makes his way around the couch. “Easy. You’re not healing.”
“Yeah, it’s super gross having you bleed all over the place.”
Bo glances over to the new voice she doesn’t recognize. “Who are you?”
“Stiles. You were helping my dad out earlier? It must have been the blood loss because he said you saved him by making out with him.”
“Nope.” She winces again. “I’m a succubus. Making out’s part of the package.”
Stiles stares for a good long minute.
“Stiles?”
“Yeah, Derek.”
“You need to go.”
Stiles glances over to him. “What? Why?”
“Because she needs to heal. So you need to go.”
“I watch you guys heal all the time.”
“Look.” Bo rubs Stiles’ arm gently, using some of her succubus wiles. “I would love it if you could run down to the store and get me a big tub of ice cream.”
Stiles’ eyes glaze over, and he nods. “Yeah, sure. I can do that.”
“Rocky road. Don’t stop till you find a massive one.” Stiles bolts at the door not long after, and she turns to Derek. “How long do you think we have?”
“Maybe a half-hour? Why?”
“I’m going to need a lot more than a bump.” She looks up at him, knowing what she’s asking. He doesn’t even hesitate before tugging at his shirt collar and pulling it up and over her head.
“Take what you need, Bo.”
Again, she doesn’t fight him, yanking him down and pulling him into a deep, messy kiss.
set 1 | i was damned and you were saved ~ lost girl/teen wolf ~ 300
“Guess my mojo wore off, huh?”
“So you did whammy me. What the hell?”
“I needed to heal. You were getting in the way.”
“Getting in the way of what? What’s so different about the way a succubus … ” His voice trails off before his eyes widen. “Oh, God. Did you suck out Derek’s soul through his dick? Am I going to go back to the loft to find a desiccated Derek body?”
“No,” Bo rolls her eyes. “I don’t kill people for food.” Anymore, but Stiles doesn’t have to know about her complicated past. “It’s just a little personal, and Derek isn’t into an audience.”
“That’s just gross. No one wants to see that.” Stiles rolls his eyes. “You do know he’s got a bad history of women –”
“Yeah.” Bo cuts him off before he even finishes that sentence. “That’s why it’s only a ‘when absolutely necessary’ thing.”
“Right.” Stiles eyes her carefully. “You know, brainwashing me into ice cream fetching doesn’t exactly make you the most trustworthy person on the planet. I’m keeping the rocky road.” He then glances back over his shoulder. “Does Derek know you’re out here?”
“I left him a note.”
“Need a ride to wherever you’re going?”
She raises an eyebrow. “Thought I wasn’t exactly trustworthy?”
“That’s why I want to keep an eye on you. Friends close, enemies closer. All that.”
She snorts before shaking her head and nodding. “Fine. Guess I could use a lift.”
set 1 | and i know you've got the scars to prove it ~ lost girl/teen wolf ~ 300
Bo smirks, and Derek raises an eyebrow as he moves to sit next to her, stretching his legs out in front of him.
“I would have thought you would have better manners than to sneak out on a friend.”
“I left a note,” she defends, before shrugging. “And I was wired. You’re less fun when you’re sleeping.”
He laughs. “Fair enough.” His eyes scan over the scene in front of them, the stones arranged in need, concurrent circles, ending in a pile in the center. “What is this place? I don’t think I’ve ever seen it before.”
She shrugs. “Trick calls them faerie circles. As far as mortals know, they make time a little woozy, but for Fae, it’s different. It siphons people into prisons. Ones this big? Were for the super powerful.”
“Who do you think is imprisoned here?”
“My stepmother, Persephone.”
A long pause. “Persephone. Like … the goddess Persephone?”
“That’s the one.” Bo sighs. “They imprisoned her for siding with my father, but the truth is he trapped her first. And, if I can figure out how to reverse it, maybe I can set her free.”
“I have an idea.”
“A good idea?”
“Peter tends to know a little about a lot of stuff. Maybe we can leverage him for some kind of information.”
She wrinkles her nose. “Do we have to?”
Derek snorts. “Trust me. I know the feeling. But he knows the land history around here better than anyone.”
“Fine. Maybe I can be persuasive.”
That has Derek making a face, but he doesn’t comment further until he raises a hand. “Also, just to be clear – you’re saying that your father is Hades?”
Bo grins at him. “Bet you’re grateful you dodged that bullet, huh?”
set 2 | but you were something like a dream come true ~ dctv ~ 600
Most would say that Barry is always late, but this is an instance where he didn’t want to be late. It’s one thing when it’s people accustomed to him and his punctuality-impaired behavior. It’s another entirely when you’re dealing with someone who only met him after he got super speed.
The door to Thea’s apartment swings open, and she squints at him. “You’re late. You’re even late for my ‘five more minutes for me to fix my hair’ routine.”
“Yeah, I’m really sorry.”
“You have super speed.”
“I do.”
“And you’re late.”
“It’s something that baffles many of my friends and family.” He glances at his watch. “But if we leave now, we might be able to make it for our reservation still?”
Thea gives him a dubious look at the prospect. “In this traffic? I think you underestimate how many cars like not to move.”
“Don’t have to worry about the cars when you can run around them.” He holds a hand out to her. He has a feeling she’ll take it, just from what he knows about her, but he still gives her the option rather than just taking her by the shoulder and running away with her.
She grins. “Are you offering to superspeed me to dinner?”
“If you want. It might be an easy way to avoid being forced to wait in the entryway.”
“Oh, you don’t have to convince me,” she laughs, before taking his hand and letting him pull her in. “I’ve wanted to do this literally since we’ve met.”
Barry grins, before tucking his arms around her and they disappear in a shower of red and gold sparks.
“Okay, I gotta ask. Why are you late?”
Barry turns to her as they walk through the streets of Star City after dinner. “This time in particular? Because, honestly, I just got distracted by a bank robbery on the way here, and it took a little longer than I thought to wrap it up …”
“You nerd,” she teases softly. “I mean, in general, why are you late all the time?”
He helplessly shrugs. “I don’t know. A lot of the time, it feels like I’m just rushing through everything. There’s so much to do, and I don’t have enough time – or that’s how it feels.”
“Yeah, well. Life’s short. I get that much, at least.”
“I’m trying to be better at being on time for the things that matter. Especially since I literally have no excuses anymore.”
“I’d appreciate it. My ‘five more minutes to fix my hair’ is quality first date material that you missed by not being on time.”
He smiles softly. “Maybe I can make it up to you next time? Kind of like a do-over?”
She grins at him in return, before stopping and turning to face him. “You think you passed enough for a second date?”
“I think I made a good case for why I’m second date material.”
“Ah, see, there’s one more test you have to pass.”
Before he could think about it for too long, Thea pushes up on her toes and leans in to kiss him softly. Barry can’t help but smile against her lips, one hand coming up to cup her cheek and pull her closer, indulging in the moment for as long as they can. When they finally part, he tips his head to the side with a smirk.
“So? Am I second date material?”
Her grin widens before letting him keep her close. “Speed me back to my place, and I’ll tell you.”
set 4 | there's a color deep inside like a blue suburban sky ~ feel the noise ~ 1,487
Elena glances over as she shifts the store-bought pie on her lap. There’s an awkward resettling before she scoffs and shakes her head. “Yeah. I’m fine.” It’s just that she and her boyfriend and driving over to meet his mother for the first time. And this is the same mother who tried to break them up once before without even knowing her. Why would she have any reason at all to be anything other than fine?
Ben’s hand wanders off the steering wheel to take hers, giving it a small squeeze as he does. “Don’t be nervous. It’s going to be fine.”
“I’m sure it is,” Elena says softly. “I just know we didn’t necessarily get off on the right foot, and I want to make sure I make a good first impression. Hence not bringing anything I made myself.”
He laughs, keeping his eyes on the road. “It’ll be okay. Really. Mom’s calmed down a lot since you, and I first started dating. I think it probably helps that I didn’t have a complete mental breakdown when you told me the truth about the world.”
“That is true.” She pauses as they pull into the driveway, looking at the house where Ben grew up. It seems so quaint and normal, but she knows from the outside, this isn’t always the case. Still, she’s excited to be here, and she wants to try and make things better with his mom – whatever that may entail.
Ben squeezes her hand again before bringing it to his lips to kiss the back. “You ready to do this?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
They quickly climb out of the car and make their way to the front door. The Impala is sitting in the driveway, which has Elena relaxing a little bit more. At least she’ll have one ally other than Ben. Ben opens the door when he reaches it, sticking his head inside to get the attention of whoever’s inside.
“I’m home!”
“You’re here!” Lisa comes in from the kitchen, Dean close on her heels. She throws her arms around his shoulders and pulls her son in for a warm hug, completely ignoring the woman next to him. Elena’s smile falters, just a little, but she keeps it up, letting them have their moment.
“Mom,” Ben sighs as he finally pulls back to reach for Elena’s hand. “This is Elena.”
Lisa’s face falls, just slightly, as she takes in Elena. Elena knows people well enough to know when the smile turns from genuine to feigned, but she doesn’t call her out on it. “Right. Elena. So nice to finally meet you.”
“It’s nice to meet you as well,” Elena replies, holding out a hand to shake Lisa’s. “I’ve heard so much about you. I’ve been looking forward to it.”
“Of course.” Lisa gives her hand the briefest shake, before turning back to her son and pulling him back towards the kitchen. “You have to see what I’ve done with the place. We just put new tile in the kitchen.”
As the two Braedans retreat to the kitchen, Dean sidles up next to Elena and passes her a glass of wine to go with his whiskey. “You’re gonna need this.”
She makes a soft noise of agreement before clinking her glass against his and downing a hefty sip of her wine. “Is there any way to save me?”
Dean smirks before draping an arm over his shoulder. “Nah, you’ve got this. Just take a deep breath, and don’t let her get to you.”
Elena can’t help but sigh as he leads her away. “Easier said than done.”
Eventually, Dean and Ben wander off to talk about cars and other stereotypically male things, leaving Elena and Lisa alone. Elena shifts uncomfortably on the seat as leagues of silence stretch between them, before she clears her throat and tries to make small talk.
“You do have a lovely home.”
“Thank you.” Lisa’s response is quick and curt. “Ben’s bought it for me when he made it big, so I try to keep it up as best I can.”
“It’s lovely. Feels like home.”
“I’m surprised you would know what home is.”
Elena’s shoulders tense, because she’s trying not to let Lisa rile her, but the casual way she says it, so off the cuff, steps on the one nerve that Elena never does very well with ignoring. “Excuse me?”
“I mean, you’re a hunter, aren’t you? In my experience, they tend to smash in and wreck homes rather than know anything about making them.”
Elena’s lips press into a thin line before she puts her glass down and holds up a hand. “Okay, you know what? I don’t have to do this.”
“Excuse me?”
“You don’t know anything about me. You’ve never bothered even to try. And I’m not sure if it’s because you’re like this with all of Ben’s girlfriends or if it’s because I told him the truth you were keeping from him. If it’s the latter then, I’m sorry. I’m so sorry I couldn’t stomach lying to your son about the way the world works because I wanted to keep him safe. But for the record, not all hunters are the same. I had a great home life and a great family, and I grew up happy. I’m not Dean Winchester with better hair.”
Lisa doesn’t seem to know what to say. Her mouth moves, but no words come out, so Elena keeps going.
“And honestly? My parents knew the truth about the world. And they lied to my brother and me both. Do you know what the result was? Almost everyone I love is dead because I didn’t know how to protect them. I’ve almost died multiple times. And we lost them long before we were ready to. So don’t try and tell me that I was safer for not knowing the truth. Was I happier? Maybe. Was I prepared for the world I was entering? Absolutely not.” Elena sighs, running her hand through her hair. “Look. You did the best you could, and I get that. You wanted to protect your son, and in a lot of ways, that’s the best anyone could do. But that doesn’t make what I did wrong either.”
Elena reaches for her glass of wine, finishes it, and then shakes her head.
“Since you don’t want me here, I’m going to go. Ben can text me later. I don’t want to ruin your visit, so I’ll just give you your space.”
If Lisa calls after her, she doesn’t hear it.
She doesn’t make it very far. She lands on a park bench not far from the house and immediately starts stewing in guilt for the way she let Lisa push her buttons. She didn’t mean to lose her temper, but it was something she had been feeling for a while. She wanted to be kind to Lisa, for Ben’s sake, but it’s hard when Lisa isn’t willing to extend her the same courtesy.
About twenty minutes later, Ben finds himself on the bench next to her, and he nudges her shoulder gently. “Hi.”
Elena looks over, her guilt written all over her face. “I’m sorry.”
“You have nothing to be sorry for.” Ben drapes an arm around her shoulders and pulls her in closer. “She kind of had it coming.”
“Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I had to rise to the bait.” Elena sighs. “I wanted to try to mend bridges. She just … hit the wrong nerve.”
“I know. And I am not blaming you. Mom’s good at hitting those nerves.”
Elena nods, before getting up. “I should go apologize.”
“The only person you need to apologize to is Dean. Apparently, he’s very offended about your commentary regarding his hair.” Ben gets up and runs his fingers through the hair against her temple. “Kinda gotta side with you, though.”
“But your mom …”
“Mom needed to hear that. And I say you wait for her to apologize to you.”
Elena nods because she can try and do that. “Maybe. But I’m not sure how successful that is going to be if I have to sit in the house with her.”
“Fair enough,” Ben nods, before taking her hand. “How about some ice cream instead?”
“Oooh,” Elena nods. “I can work with ice cream.”
“Good.” He grins. “There’s a great spot I always used to go to when I was a kid.”
“Then lead the way.”
Ben’s smile widens before pulling her in close and giving her a warm kiss. “I love you. You know that’s not changing, right?”
“I do. And I love you too.” She turns and wraps her arm in his before turning and starting to walk away from the park. “To the ice cream?”
Ben laughs before leading the way. “As my lady commands.”
set 4 | it's your business if you want some, take some ~ guardians ~ 1,321
Elena locks eyes with the woman across from her, desperately searching for signs that she’s placing her faith in the right person. She knows that Katherine’s been around a long time and has been dodging the Mikaelsons for even longer, but asking this sixteen-year-old to leave home is currently a step too far. The vampire sighs, setting the ship’s console to autopilot and turning to face the teenager in front of her.
“It’s not a perfect idea. But it’s the best one we have right now.”
Elena’s chin quivers, glancing past Katherine’s shoulder into the vastness of space. Her tiny homeworld of Mystic Falls is getting smaller and smaller in the distance, and part of her is desperate and clawing to go back, even if it’s dangerous. “I don’t know if I can do this.”
“You can, Elena.” Katherine takes her arms, moving into her field of vision and drawing Elena’s attention back to her doppelganger. They’re alike in so many ways – same bone structure, same eyes, same face – but there are differences. From the long curly tresses of Katherine's hair to the coldness of her smile, there are ways to tell them apart, if you take the time to look. Katherine’s been running for so long, Elena is always surprised when Katherine shows her a moment of tenderness. “You are a Petrova. This means you will adapt, you will change, and you’ll survive, just like every doppelganger who’s come before you. You’ll find a way.”
“What if I’m bad at adapting?”
“You probably will be. But I think you have it in you to rise to the occasion.” She tips her head forward, pressing a kiss to the top of Elena’s head. “Go in the back and get some rest. We have a long way to go before we meet up with the Ravagers.”
Elena swallows hard, but nods. She’s still not sure she’ll feel safe among the Ravagers, but Katherine is right. She needs to grow and adapt. Might as well go out of the frying pan and into the fire. She makes her way back to the quarters she’s been given with the meager belongings she managed to salvage before looking up in the mirror.
“Elena Gilbert. My name is Elena Gilbert.” Another deep breath, this time with more conviction. “My name is Elena Gilbert.”
Maybe if she keeps practicing, it’ll start to feel like her own.
Dean is less than pleased with his new teenage girl stowaway. He argues with Katherine about it at length before she leaves, but whatever leverage she has on him is enough for her to get her way. Elena opts not to make a fuss about how much she’s not wanted. Instead, she follows silently, shoulders squared, and trying not to give away how scared she is.
Dean’s ship isn’t as lush or comfortable as Katherine’s – it’s more utilitarian than anything else. She follows him across the catwalks and walkways until he comes to a pair of quarters in a more quiet area of the ship. He punches in a code to one of them, and an empty room opens.
“You’ll sleep here.”
Elena nods, stepping into the room past him. Dean crosses the path to the door across from hers and bangs on it loudly.
“Ben! Get your ass out here.”
She places her things down on the bed, intending to rearrange it on her own time and keeping one ear on the conversation happening outside her room. Katherine warned her to be aware of everything. Might as well start now.
“What, what is it?”
“We’ve got a new crew member. I want you to show her the ropes.”
“Her?”
“Yeah.”
“You’re bringing a girl on board?”
“It wasn’t exactly my idea, but I owed someone a favor.” There’s a pause before Dean brings her back into the conversation. “Elena, could you come out here?”
Elena takes a deep breath before stepping back into view in the doorway of the room. The person Dean is talking to is a boy, maybe a little older than her. His hair’s disheveled like he’s been sleeping, and when he sees her, his eyes light up as though he sees something he likes. Elena’s seen it on other faces before, men like the Mikaelsons, when she met Klaus for the first time, and it’s made her uncomfortable, but she tries to lean into it this time, lifting her chin a bit.
(Katherine tried to teach her that men’s attention could be used to her advantage if she plays her cards right. Elena doesn’t know what cards those are – she doesn’t want to play them at all – but she’ll figure it out if it’ll help her survive this new landscape.)
“This is Elena. Elena, this is Ben. Elena’s going to be working with us indefinitely, so I need you to get her up to speed.”
Ben’s eyes look her up and down before a grin crosses his face that makes her want to roll her eyes. “Sure. I can do that.”
“Good. Elena, you get settled, and you’ll start first thing in the morning.”
Elena nods in agreement before extending a tentative: “Thank you.”
Dean pauses on his way out, before glancing back over his shoulder. His eyes meet hers before he shakes his head and keeps walking. Ben sighs, before taking a couple of steps towards her.
“Don’t take it personally. Dean does that a lot.”
“Right.” Elena takes a breath, giving him a small smile before going to retreat to her room. He follows, but he doesn’t enter, just leans in the doorway to continue to talk to her.
“So how long are you staying?”
“Not sure. Guess it depends on how well I do.” She doesn’t want to slow them down, and she doesn’t want to be a problem, so it seems like, for now, it’s a matter of how long it takes before she wears out her welcome. “Dean sort of owed someone I knew a favor, so I’m not sure he wants me here.”
“Dean doesn’t want anyone here. It’s a side effect of his being Dean.”
“Funny. He keeps a pretty big crew for someone who doesn’t want anyone around.”
Ben snorts. “Trust me. If he could run the Impala all by himself, he would.”
Elena nods, before turning to sit on the bed. “So, why are you here?”
“Dean kidnapped me when I was a kid.” He says it so casually, as though there’s nothing wrong with it when in reality, there’s everything wrong with it. “He taught me everything I know.”
“And you’re okay with that? That he kidnapped you.”
Ben shrugs. “Wasn’t much left for me on Earth anyway.” He doesn’t give her a chance to dwell on that comment, simply moves forward. “So yeah. Take today to settle in, and if you get hungry, I’ll take you down to the mess hall.”
“Great.” Elena nods. “Or, you could start showing me the ropes?”
Ben tips his head to the side. “It’s your first day. You sure you want to jump in headfirst.”
She shrugs. “I have to start sometime. It’s all about adapting, right? Faster I learn, faster I can earn my keep.” There’s a bit of bravado in what she says, realizing for the first time that she doesn’t have to be the demure little Elena that people knew on Mystic Falls. She doesn’t have years of expectations of behavior. She can be whoever she wants to be.
And maybe it’s time she turns into something a little different.
Ben seems to sense the challenge in her words, and he straightens, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “Okay. We start now. Don’t expect anyone to go easy on you, though.”
He turns to lead the way, and she smirks as she turns to follow him. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”
set 4 | and i think that's worth fighting for ~ salvatore school ~ 920
Elena looks up as Ben sits across from her, placing a tray of tequila shots down in between them. She still has her mixed drink that she’s been nursing since the party started, and she looks briefly apologetic at the implication. The rest of her class is out celebrating the end of their first year of med school, and Elena couldn’t bring herself to celebrate with them – at least not yet.
“I know. That’s kind of why I took myself over to this pity party for one.”
He raises an eyebrow at her curiously. “And why are we having a pity party exactly?”
Elena shakes her head as she takes another sip of her drink. “Nope. It’s going to make me sound even more pathetic than I already am.”
“Right now, this is pretty pathetic, so what exactly do you have to lose?” He raises an eyebrow at her curiously. She gives him a look in return before taking a deep breath and closing her eyes.
“Today’s my birthday.”
“And that’s a bad thing?”
She pauses, weighing the pros and cons of actually being honest about it, before sighing. “I’m turning twenty-eight.”
Ben pauses, before leaning in to squint at her. “No, you’re not.”
Elena nods solemnly, before reaching into her wallet to pull out her license and passing it over to him. “DOB, June twenty-second, nineteen-ninety-two.”
He takes the license and studies it intently, before glancing back up at her again. “But when you got here, you said you just graduated from Whitmore.”
“Because I did.” She rubs the back of her neck with one hand. “I hit some … let’s call them roadblocks.”
“Roadblocks that put you, what? Five years behind?
“It’s a really long story. You’re probably want to get back to the party.”
“I like long stories. And I have a lot of tequila here that I can’t drink all by myself. Plus, it sounds like you need to get it off your chest, so, please. Partake of my liquid courage.”
Elena glances from him to the rest of the group dancing in the other corner of the bar, to the flight of tequila shots, and sighs before taking one and knocking it back. “Okay. This is going to sound like a soap opera, but I was in a coma for five years.”
“Five years?” Ben leans back in his seat, before reaching for a shot himself. “And you lived?”
“It’s a really long story, but I guess it was … elective? I had a condition for which there wasn’t a readily available cure. So I slept while they figured it out.”
“Damn.” He knocks back his shot before placing the empty glass back on the tray. “You look amazing for a coma patient.”
She laughs, because between vampirism freezing her at eighteen and the magical coma after she got the cure, she certainly looks young enough to be part of this graduating class. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t feel the weight of her real age, however. “Good healthcare, I guess.”
“Right.” Ben tips his head to the side. “So five-year coma, and you just go right back to being a doctor?”
She shrugs. “When I went under, I figured everything would be okay. I thought that the guy who at the time, was the love of my life would be there when I woke up. Whatever challenges came with that, I thought that as long as I had that, everything would be okay.” She reaches for another tequila shot, downing it and letting the burn carry away. “But when I woke up, he wasn’t there.”
“He left you while you were in a coma?”
“Not exactly.” She pauses as she tries to figure out how to explain it. “He chose something bigger than us. Which … honestly was a really good look for him, but the result wasn’t conducive to us being together.”
“I’m sorry.”
She shrugs. “It is what it is. And I’m over it, mostly, at this point. It’s just … I don’t feel like I’m twenty-eight, you know? I feel like I’m a twenty-three-year-old trapped in an older person’s body who’s supposed to have her life together by now.”
Ben shrugs. “So don’t have your life together. Live for the mind you have.”
Elena’s brow furrows. “What do you mean?”
“All your life expectations got thrown out the window, and you had to start over. And that sucks, I get it. But you just finished something that only a small percentage of people have, and you did it well. You deserve to celebrate it. So fucking celebrate it.”
Elena laughs, before looking down at the remaining shots in front of them. “So what I think you’re saying is that I should let it go, do all these shots and just have a good time?”
“More or less. Though maybe not all the shots, let’s not go crazy.”
“Oh, Braedan,” she shakes her head. “You’re drinking with a bored rich kid from Mystic Falls now. Drinking was our town sport.”
Ben straightens, before leaning in to meet her. “So what you’re saying is I should get some more shots.”
“I definitely think you should get some more shots.”
He laughs, before lifting his hand and gesturing the rest of the party over. “Alright, then. Welcome to the party, Gilbert.”
She grins as she picks up one of the shots, and raises it in a toasting motion before knocking it back. “Happy to be here.”
set 5 | i can be anything you want me to ~ leverage/timeless ~ 1,201
Sophie’s staying close, posing as her sister for simplicity’s sake, so Eliot’s lingering in the background, taking on his old art professor persona to blend in with the rest of the crowd. As the night goes on, he manages to charm a few wealthy socialites with the small bits of art history he learned from Sophie over the years.
“They say it took Da Vinci fourteen years to finish the Mona Lisa, despite its size. Most attribute it to the fact that he’s such a perfectionist, and he wanted to make sure every detail was right –”
“Or there’s the alternate theory that he was just a massive procrastinator.”
The crowd of socialites parts and there stands Lucy Preston, drink in hand, challenge set in her gaze. He knows that when it comes to history, she’s probably right. He also doesn’t mind her being right, even if it’s not particularly useful for his cover. Still, a smile quirks up the side of his face, and he raises his glass to her in return.
“Well, considering we can’t ask the man himself, I suppose we’ll have to agree to disagree.”
Lucy grins in return, taking a few steps closer. “I suppose we will. Professor Lucy Preston.” She sticks a hand out to him. Smart girl. He appreciates her trying to keep his cover.
“Professor Adam Sinclair. A pleasure, Professor Preston. I’m a fan of your work.”
“Really? Can’t say the same for yours.”
It’s a tease, and he knows it. The more his attention zooms in on Lucy, the more the socialites wander off to find someone else to flirt with while they spend their husband’s money. As soon as they’re all out of earshot, his posture changes to something more relaxed and less performative.
“Surprised to see you here.”
“The person managing the collection is a friend from the university.” Lucy shrugs. “I’m paying her back for many, many history lectures she sat through against her will.” She glances over her shoulder briefly before taking a step closer. “What about you? Are you … on the clock?”
Eliot pauses, glancing over his shoulder to check on the client. She and Sophie are wandering through the gallery, arm in arm, and there’s been no sign of any of the mark’s men. Still, he probably shouldn’t leave. Typically, him getting distracted is when things go off the rails.
“Kind of,” he admits. “Why?”
“I was thinking about getting some air. Wondering if you might want to join me?”
“Yeah. I could go for a walk.”
“Eliot.” Hardison’s voice is a warning in his ear, and Eliot turns his head away from the rest of the room as he offers Lucy his arm.
“I’m just going to check the perimeter. I’ll be back.”
“Uh-huh.”
Wanting to avoid Hardison’s judgment, he reaches up to pull his earwig out of his ear, tucking it into his pocket before turning to Lucy with a smile. “Let’s get that air, shall we?”
She smiles in return and nods. “We shall.”
“You know, I almost asked you to come to this with me.”
They’re around the corner from the front of the gallery, away from the doors and the people. It’s the opposite direction of the parking lot, so anyone who noticed probably knew what they were up to, but no one stops them, so they must not care that much. Eliot is checking the perimeter because he is working, but that doesn’t mean he can’t multitask.
“So why didn’t you?”
She glances up to look at him, keeping her arm in his as she shrugs. “I guess it didn’t seem like our … thing. Our thing is you come over my place and cook, and I flirt with you while you cook, but we never really seem to get past that.” She sighs. “It’s a great pattern, don’t get me wrong. I am certainly not going to kick you out if all you want to do is cook for me forever, but … part of me is kind of curious.”
“About what more might be like?”
“Something like that.” She glances up again with a small smile. “You don’t seem like the dating type.”
“I’m not,” he admits. “But that’s not necessarily personal. It’s just …”
“I know. Wyatt’s given me glimpses sometimes at what you guys used to do. It makes sense that you wouldn’t want to drag someone into that.”
“Now’s different, though.” Working with his team is stable. Steady. Sure, they piss people off, but not to the degree that he used to. The enemies here aren’t as dangerous, which makes his life a little bit safer. And he always has the same place to return. “But, I’ll admit I’m pretty rusty.”
“I don’t mind rusty,” Lucy admits with a smile. “I think that I probably fall into that category myself.”
Eliot nods, before turning to face her more as they round the corner to the back of the building. “So … maybe next time we have dinner, it could be … out somewhere?”
“Maybe, yeah.” Lucy grins. “But there’s one thing I want to try first.”
Her hand fists in the front of his shirt, tugging him closer as she backs into the wall of the gallery. He goes with her easily, bracing one arm against the brick behind her as he leans in, but stops short of fully kissing her. There’s a lingering moment where he waits, giving her the chance to push back or pull away, but when doesn’t, he pushes the rest of the way, catching her lips with his for a long, slow kiss.
Eventually, they part, and he glances at her with a small smile. “Good?”
“Very.” She nods. “In fact, I think eating out is probably overrated, and you should keep cooking for me at home.”
“I should?”
“Mmm-hmm. And possibly breakfast in the morning.”
He laughs, before nodding. “I think I can do that.”
“Good.” She then sighs as she leans back into the wall again. “You probably have to go back to work now, though.”
“I do.” He made that mistake once, and he’s not going to make it again now, as much as he may want to. “But maybe I could come by later to make you a midnight snack?”
She grins, before nodding as she straightens his shirt, hiding the wrinkles she caused with the lapel of his jacket. “I’d like that. I’ll see you later.”
She pulls away to head back off towards the parking lot, and he waits until she’s out of earshot before reaching into his pocket and putting his earwig back in place, ready to head back to work. Tonight is ending on a much better note than he expected. Let’s just hope the rest of the job continues to go as planned.
set 5 | and it's like all you didn't know you were waiting for ~ leverage/timeless ~ 1,209
For the better part of an hour, Hardison’s been droning about this particular mark. Eliot has been devoting most of his attention to cooking in the kitchen. He’s been only half-listening for a while now because when you’re dicing peppers, losing your focus can result in losing a finger, but he checks in and out when needed.
“No problem. Sophie, how’s your historian?”
“Unfortunately, it’s not that simple. Billings has a pre-approved list of historians whose work he respects. So we need one of his specific historians.”
And then Hardison stops and stares at Eliot.
He realizes the eyes are on him, but still doesn’t look up right away, waiting until he finishes the last bit of the pepper before meeting the full intensity of Hardison’s stare. Another moment where he stares back and his brain catches up on the rest of the conversation.
“Wait. You want my historian?”
Nate blinks, before glancing back at him. “You have your own personal historian?”
There’s a beat as Eliot tries to figure out how to rephrase. “Well, she’s not my historian, exactly …”
“Lucy Preston is on Billings’ approved list,” Hardison interrupts, saving Eliot from himself. “Given that she knows what we do, I think she might be the best one to approach.”
“Is she your girlfriend?” Sophie has tossed the case to the side for the moment, prepared to go whole-hog on digging into Eliot’s personal life. “This historian.”
Eliot ignores her for the moment. “What will she have to do, exactly?”
“Verify my forgeries. It’s just our in with the company, so I doubt it will blemish her record. And not to toot my horn, they’ll probably be damn near perfect.”
He presses his lips together for a moment. He wants to protest, but given how many times they’ve roped Maggie in on things, Eliot’s leg to stand on isn’t all that long. So he takes a deep breath and nods. “I’ll see if she wants to come over for lunch.”
“Great.” Nate looks less than pleased at an unknown variable added to the situation, but Eliot isn’t worried about Lucy’s ability. She’s been on enough missions to hold her own. It’s everything else that has him worried. “So, you prep the historian, and we’ll worry about everything else.”
As the other three members of their team trickle out of the room, Hardison joins Eliot in the kitchen and leans against the counter as the other man cooks. “Sorry, man, I didn’t mean to put you on the spot like that.”
Eliot glares at him in return. “You better make sure you have her covered, Hardison.”
“I will. Trust me.”
Eliot does trust him. He also knows him, however, and therein lies the problem. “Fine.” He moves to start plating the food onto two plates, and as Hardison reaches for one, Eliot smacks his hand away. “That isn’t for you.”
Hardison pouts. “But, can’t I have a little –”
He smacks Hardison’s hand again. “Not. For you.”
Hardison pouts, holding one hand as the plates are lifted and taken into the dining room. “Man, that’s just cold. Making us smell it cooking and then telling us we can’t have any …”
“You didn’t just invite me over here for lunch.”
Eliot raises an eyebrow, glancing at Lucy out of the corner of his eye. “I didn’t?”
She skewers another piece of chicken, holding it up in the air as she shakes her head. “Nope. And while don’t get me wrong, I am very grateful you decided to cook for me, I’m kind of at the point where my common sense is overriding my taste buds, and I’m wondering what the catch is.”
“I have to have a catch to invite you over?”
“No. But there usually is a catch where we’re having lunch, and Hardison is hanging out in the other room, pretending like he’s not here.”
Hardison, almost as though on cue, sticks his head out of his office door. “What? What was that? Are y’all inviting me to come eat with you?”
“No.” Eliot sighs, before looking over at Lucy again. “We need your help.”
“Is this a Rittenhouse thing?” There’s tension in her shoulders, almost as though everything she worked for was suddenly coming apart again, but Eliot shakes his head to reassure her.
“This is just a general history thing.” He shifts to face her more. “You know Preston Billings?”
She makes a face. “Unfortunately.” Then she blinks. “Is he your next target?”
Eliot nods. “One of his employees came to us for help.”
“And you want me to help?” Both men are taken aback by how delighted she looks. “Do I get to be the face?”
“Uh, no. Sophie is the face, technically.” Hardison shrugs. “But we do need you to tell him that the forgeries I spent days creating are real.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?” Eliot frowns.
“You’re in?” Hardison asks tentatively.”
Lucy glances between the two of them as she takes another bite and then smirks. “Oh, you must not have met him yet. I will happily tell him whatever you want me to tell him if it means he’s going to suffer later.” She perks up with a smile. “Can I see what you’re going to show him?”
“Yeah.” Hardison takes a step back slowly. “Sure.”
As Hardison disappears back into his workspace, Eliot turns to face her more with a smirk. “You’re excited about this, aren’t you?”
“Maybe.” Then she laughs. “It’s been so long since I’ve been on a mission. It’ll be fun, and we’ll get to do this together.”
“Yeah, well, I’ve been on missions with you. You have to follow my lead on this one.”
She holds up her hands and nods. “Scout’s honor. I promise. So when is this going down?”
“We’re going to approach a gala he has coming up.”
“I think I got an invite to that. I was going to blow it off, but I guess this gives me an excuse to go.”
“Great. Then Billings won’t find it suspicious that you’re suddenly there.”
She nods with a small smile. “Wanna be my date?”
He laughs, before nodding. “I would love to.” Before he can say anything else, Hardison makes his way back into the room and places a box of leatherbound journals down on the counter. Lucy glances over, eyeing the covers before looking back at Hardison.
“Which ones are the forgeries?”
Hardison leans back, crossing his arms in front of his chest. “All of them.”
Lucy’s jaw drops, and she pushes up to take one of the journals in her hand. “You made all of these?” She flips one of them open, running her fingers over the pages to test the feel, as well as the leatherbound exterior. “How? How did you get them to feel like this so fast?”
Hardison looks a little smug as he watches her look them over. “A magician never reveals his secrets.”
Lucy eventually looks up at him again, and she shakes her head. “You’re kind of terrifying.”
Hardison grins. “Well, you know. It’s what I do.”
set 5 | this is how you begin to be whole ~ leverage/timeless ~ 694
“Nope.”
The sigh comes soon after. A frustrated, tired noise that Lucy chooses to ignore. She’s currently perched cross-legged in the middle of the room, a bowl of cereal in hand, and paint chips splayed out in front of her. Sitting directly ahead of her is an accent wall, primed white from their efforts the day before, waiting for someone to put a color on it.
Any color.
Preferably a color that will match with her plans for the rest of the apartment, but Eliot would settle for just a color at this point.
She holds up a finger as he takes a step closer. “Don’t judge my indecision. This decision is a big, permanent choice, and I’m going to take my time with it.”
“I’m not judging,” he says as he moves to sit next to her.
“You’re judging a little.”
“I’m judging if I should start going off to prime the rest of your apartment while you decide. Hopefully, by the time you finish, I’ll be done, and we could just paint everything.”
She snorts over a mouthful of cereal. She takes a second to swallow. “Do you honestly think it’ll take me that long to make a decision?”
He grins. “I think that at the rate you’re going, I could at least get another room done. Maybe two.” There’s another beat before he adds. “You could also just leave them white.”
Lucy shakes her head before turning her attention back to the primed white wall again. “When I was in grad school, I was rooming with a math major. She painted her room white with this dry erase paint so she could do her math on the walls.”
“That’s … a lot of math.”
She laughs. “It was. But we also didn’t lose our security deposit, so I didn’t mind.” She pauses. “Anyway, I never want to see that much white again. These walls deserve to have color.”
Eliot nods, and then he waits. He knows there’s more to this particular decision she’s agonizing over. There’s a reason layered below the old roommates and other pretenses. He just has to wait for her to be ready to tell it. So he waits, letting the silence settle between them before she finally turns again.
“This is my first place after Rittenhouse. After my mom.” She places her bowl to the side as she shifts to lean into his shoulder a bit. “I just want this place to be mine. A fresh start, you know? And I don’t wish to that start to kind of idle and get brushed to the wayside when I get busy.”
“That’s fair.”
“But it also involves making a decision when I have no idea what I want.”
“Maybe.” He glances up at the wall again. “But it’s just paint. Worst comes to worst, you repaint it if you change your mind. Besides, most people repaint their houses every five years anyway.”
“Oh, really?” She laughs. “Is that a fact?”
He smirks. “That’s what I’ve heard anyway.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Make sure it gets added on my calendar.”
“Good.”
Lucy smiles before sighing as she looks up at the blank wall again. “Think we can just try a couple of different cans and test them before making an actual decision?”
Eliot nods. “I think that’s how most people tend to do it.” He glances down at her paint chips. “Think you can narrow it down to just three?”
She takes a deep breath before nodding. “Give me another thirty minutes?”
He smirks at her as he leans in to press a kiss to her temple before reaching for her empty cereal bowl. “I’ll clean up breakfast. Then we go to buy some paint.”
“Deal.” She catches his shirt before he can go too far before leaning in to kiss him softly. “Thanks for being so patient with me.”
“My pleasure,” he nods with a smile. “Thirty minutes.”
“Thirty minutes. Promise.”
It may take them another hour to get to the store, but at least they finally get there. That counts as progress, doesn’t it?
set 5 | but who we are and who we want to be ~ leverage/timeless ~ 1,199
“Mmm?”
“Why is your girlfriend on this shady corporation’s watchlist?”
Eliot’s brow furrows as he glances up from the television. He doesn’t know why Lucy’s come up when Hardison’s supposed to be researching their newest mark, a shady tech corporation that has been abusing their employees.
“What?”
“They’re tracking her movements. They have all kinds of alerts and photographs.” A pause, as Hardison, squints at the laptop screen. “Really … weird photographs.” Another break. “ … I know Lucy is a historian, but does she also happen to be into historical reenactments?”
Eliot straightens already reaching for his phone. “No. Why?”
Hardison pauses, before looking at Eliot solemnly. “I need to ask you something, and I need you to take me seriously.”
“Why do you want to know, Hardison?”
“My question first.”
“I asked you first!”
“I can’t answer your question until you answer mine.”
Eliot grits his teeth. “Then ask the question, Hardison.”
Hardison takes a deep breath, turning to face him and holding up his hands in a placating motion. “Is Lucy a vampire?”
If this were a normal situation, Eliot might have laughed. If he hadn’t known what he’d known about Lucy in the first place, he would have brushed it off as Hardison being ridiculous. Unfortunately, Eliot is all too aware of the things his girlfriend did, and as his face sobers, Hardison’s begins to do the same.
“Damn, is she really a –”
“No.” Eliot shakes his head. “No, she’s not. What did you find, Hardison?”
Hardison reaches over and turns the laptop to face Eliot. Collected in the folder were various pictures of Lucy, from multiple periods in history. It’s almost all background, incidental things, not photos she posed for, but it’s enough to tell that it’s her. “Damnit.”
Eliot’s phone vibrates in a short burst, the kind that tells him he has a text message from Lucy: Pineapple.
Thirty seconds later, his phone rings. Eliot answers. “Yeah.”
“They got Rufus too.” Wyatt sounds frantic. “They almost got me, but I’m a faster shot.”
Great. So that’s another mess to clean up later. “I’m heading to Lucy’s first, but I’m sending Hardison to you. He might know where to start.”
“Sending Hardison to who? Where am I going?”
Eliot holds up a finger as he waits for Wyatt to speak.
“Is he ready for this?”
“Don’t know. But I think we know who might have started this.”
“Okay. I’ll make sure Christopher has his clearance ready for him.”
“Will do. See you soon.”
Eliot hangs up, and he looks over at Hardison again. “I’m going to give you an address. Go there, and give them everything you have on the mark and what they know about Lucy. They’ll explain the rest.”
“Eliot –”
“Hardison. Trust me. Please.”
Hardison eventually concedes and nods, before turning around to gather his laptop. “Alright, alright, okay. But are you going to have to explain all of this to me when you get there.”
Eliot nods, knowing that Wyatt and Agent Christopher will likely beat him to it, but for right now, whatever gets Hardison out the door, he’ll do. Soon, they’re parting ways, trying to cover as much ground as they can in the time they have.
He arrives at Lucy’s apartment to find a mess. Not that he expected anything less. Eliot does a quick sweep to make sure he’s not missing any clues, and while he sees her phone, there doesn’t seem to be much left behind. He takes her phone and is ready to head over to the bunker to check in with Wyatt and Hardison when Hardison calls him before he can even reach the door.
“We got the demands. They want the plans to the Lifeboat.”
Eliot is honestly surprised that he’s keeping himself together and not already yelling about time travel. But he appreciates his ability to stay on task. “Where?”
“I’ll send you the address. We couldn’t track the mark’s phone, but Jiya and Rufus have a system, so as long as he and Lucy are together, you should be able to find them both.”
“I’m on my way.”
It doesn’t take long to drive over to the location, a small street fair that sold knick-knacks and other odds and ends. The coordinates from Hardison indicate that Rufus is somewhere in these crowds of people, so he starts to make his way through slowly, taking his time, so he’s not caught off guard. Eventually, he begins to pick up familiar voices over the murmur of the crowd.
“You are really going to regret this.”
“Lucy, I know I’ve asked you this before, but please stop antagonizing our captors before Wyatt gets here.”
An unfamiliar voice speaks with a sneer as Eliot gets closer. “You underestimate me, Ms. Preston. I’m ready for a man like Wyatt Logan.”
Lucy turns to look towards the back of the tent where the mark has them seated. Eliot is there, waiting for his moment. There’s enough security around that he knows he needs to play this carefully. Still, Lucy smiles when she sees him before her face sobers, and she turns to face the mark again.
“Wyatt Logan isn’t the guy you should be worried about.”
“Oh? And why is that.”
The sound of fists hitting flesh echoes from somewhere nearby, followed by the sound of a struggle. The mark seems unnerved before one of his men comes flying through the entrance to the tent. Eliot enters not long behind, eyes glancing briefly to Rufus and Lucy to make sure they’re okay, before turning back to the mark.
“Security! Where are you?”
“They’re taking a nap,” Eliot replies casually. “Maybe you should join them.”
The mark scrambles to his feet, running past the mouth of the tent and back into the street market, and Eliot shakes his head before turning to release the hostages.
‘Hi.”
“Hi,” Lucy grins. “You sure it’s okay to let him go?”
“DHS and Wyatt weren’t far behind me. I’m sure they’ll catch him.” He moves behind her to release her hands. “You both alright?”
“Yeah, fine,” Lucy shakes her head. “Just a couple bumps and bruises.”
“Good.” Rufus is released next, and once they’re both free to move, he steps out of the tent to check the area. “Now, all we have to do is head back to the bunker and pick up Hardison.”
Lucy blinks. “Why is Hardison at the bunker?”
“He had relevant information.”
“Uh-huh. So I take it Hardison knows about the –”
The flaps of the tent fly open, and suddenly a breathless Hardison appears, glancing between the three of them. “Oh, good. Y’all are fine.”
“Hi, Hardison,” Lucy nods, before gesturing to the man next to her. “Hardison, Rufus, Rufus, Hardison.”
“Hi,” Rufus waves, confused.
“Hi,” Hardison nods before looking at Eliot again. “So how long, exactly, have you been sitting on freaking time travel!?”
Eliot sighs before he glances to Lucy. “I’m gonna say yeah, he knows.”
Lucy laughs, before stepping forward and taking Hardison’s arm to lead him back out again. “Ride home with us, and I will tell you all about it.”
set 7 | they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [1/5] ~ dctv/mcu ~ 1,049
“Buddy, I really need you to sit properly in your chair,” Laurel sighs and waits until he resettles before nodding. “And yeah, we’re almost there.”
“What kind of museums do you want to see, Connor?” Barry asks.
“Mom said we could go to the Air and Space museum this time. We didn’t get to see the space exhibit last time.”
“I love the Air and Space museum,” Barry grins. “We’ll make sure it happens, promise.”
“Awesome,” Connor smiles in return, going back to his video game. Laurel shakes her head, before turning to Barry with a smile.
“Thanks for coming down with us.”
Barry glances over from his seat across from her and Connor on the train and flashes her a smile. “No, I was happy to. I think it was definitely time for me to get out of town for a bit. Besides, you and Steve should get to have a little alone time.”
“I’m not sure how much alone time that’s going to amount it,” Laurel laughs as she gives her son a gentle squeeze. “Between this guy and Steve’s job, I feel like those moments are going to be few and far between. It’ll just be nice to see him for a little while.”
“Hey. Steve may be a symbol of American exceptionalism, but that doesn’t mean the two of you are both not people,” Barry grins. “I have no problem babysitting the kiddo so you can get a few minutes alone.”
“I will keep that in mind.” She shakes her head, turning her attention back out to the scenic views of the Potomac next to her. The train ride between Central City and DC is a long one, but Barry made for good company at the very least. But they’re almost there, only mere miles from their destination and it seems like it’s been so long coming.
Being in a long-distance relationship is hard. Being in a long-distance relationship with a super-soldier is even harder. But Laurel has weathered through it, doing what she needed to protect her son and keeping him out of the eye of the government, while still being with the man she loved. It’s a delicate juggling act, but they make it work.
And it doesn’t hurt that her son loves him. Maybe it’s because her son loves him especially.
Not long after, they pull into the station, and Laurel’s eyes scan the crowd, looking for the man they intend to meet. He’s not hard to spot – Steve Rogers is the kind of guy who stands out in a crowd, no matter how much he may try not to, and soon the blond head draws her eye. She takes Connor’s hand in hers before making her way closer.
Steve spots them about halfway there, waving to get their attention. Connor notices the movement, and he smiles and darts the rest of the way ahead of his mother.
“Hey, Steve!”
“Hey, kiddo,” he grins as he drops down to give him a high-five. “How was your trip?”
“It was great! We took a train the whole way, and Barry came with us.”
“Barry?”
“That would be me.” Steve looks up at the unfamiliar voice and smiles at the other man. Barry grins in return, before holding out a hand. “Barry. Allen. It’s nice to meet you, sir. Big fan of your work.”
Steve laughs before shaking his hand. “Nice to meet you as well, Barry. Sorry, I didn’t know Laurel was bringing anyone.”
“Oh, I’m here as a tag-in grown-up, so you guys don’t have to deal with Connor twenty-four seven.” Barry grins. “You’ll hardly know I’m here.”
Steve glances over at Laurel in confusion, and she shrugs. “Sometimes, it’s better to have an extra adult, just in case.” Particularly one who can run inhumanly fast at a moment’s notice.
“Natasha will be very hurt that she doesn’t count as an extra adult.”
Laurel laughs. “The last time we tagged in Natasha, Connor knew how to pick locks, and that was bad news for his birthday presents. No offense to Natasha.”
Steve grins in return. “Fair enough.”
Connor bounces in return, before grabbing Barry’s hand. “I’m starving. Can we go get a snack?”
“Yeah, bud, I’m right behind you.” Barry grins, before nodding to Steve again. “Nice meeting you. We’ll be over here.”
Steve smirks as he watches them go, before turning back to Laurel. Laurel smiles in return, before taking another step in and pushing up on her toes to kiss him. There’s a happy noise of surprise before he sinks into it and pulls her closer.
“Hi,” she murmurs as the kiss breaks.”
“Hi,” he agrees. “I really missed you.”
“I missed you too,” she says, winding her arms around his neck. “And I know we have to go and settle at the hotel, and I should probably get him actual food for dinner, but I really, really would love to tag Barry in for a bit to spend time with you.”
Steve nods, before resting his forehead against hers. “What about tomorrow? We could have dinner. Get you some quality adult time?”
“Yeah,” Laurel nods. “I would like that. And you should probably work out a day for him too.” She nods towards the little boy who is darting back to their side, Snickers bar in hand. Barry is not far behind him, tucking a stack into his backpack for later.
“Steve! You want to come with us to the Air and Space Museum? We’re also going to see the dinosaurs too.”
“I would love that, Connor,” Steve places a hand on his shoulder gently as he turns to escort them all off the platform and towards his car. “Maybe we can make a day out of it this weekend.”
“Awesome!”
Connor darts ahead of them, Barry on his heels, while Steve and Laurel follow close behind, her hand in his. Somewhere behind her, she hears the sound of a shutter and turns to try and get a better look, but the photographer is gone as quickly as they landed on her radar.
For the moment, she doesn’t think much of it. By the end, she realizes she probably should have thought a little harder.
set 7 | they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [2/5] ~ dctv/mcu ~ 1,174
Their date for the next night doesn’t happen. Steve gets called up for a last-minute mission, and she winds up spending the evening with Connor and Barry, which is not as terrible as it sounds. They reschedule when he returns, Laurel being Steve’s first call when SHIELD releases him, but she can tell from his voice that something’s wrong. He sounds frustrated and tense, and she knows better than to ask about it on the phone.
Instead, she agrees to the rescheduled time and resolves to herself that she’ll ask him about it when they’re alone, and no one might be listening.
When he arrives at her hotel room, everything about his body language reads as wrong. There’s tension in his shoulders, in his jaw. She does her best not to let it banish the smile from her face, and instead steps in to kiss him softly.
“Hey.”
“Hey,” he smiles softly. “I thought we could walk to a restaurant not far from here that’s pretty good? There was a pretty bad accident not too far from here, so we probably shouldn’t get in a car.”
“I think a walk sounds great.” She turns to give a final goodbye to the boys, easily distracted by video games, before stepping through and letting the door close behind her. Then she tucks her arm in his and follows him down the hallway. “Did everything go okay at work?”
The tension returns to his shoulders, and he shakes his head. “Every time I think I’ve managed to find my footing here, it reminds me how out of my element I am.”
“I’m sorry.” They step onto the elevator, and she waits until the doors close behind them before continuing. “Did something go wrong?”
“Not exactly. It seems like everyone expects me to lead without having all the information.” Steve leans back against the wall, looking at the numbers as they tick down as they descend. “Everything’s so compartmentalized. I don’t know who to trust, and I’m starting to think that the reason I joined doesn’t exist anymore.”
“So leave.”
Steve glances at her curiously. “You know, you’re the second person to say that to me today.”
She laughs. “Then, you’ve talked to two brilliant people today.” The doors to the elevator ding open, and she retakes his hand, stepping forward into the hallway and heads towards the lobby. “Who was the other one?”
“His name is Sam Wilson. He’s a counselor for vets.”
“I like him already.”
Steve shakes his head. “I don’t know what I’d do with myself if I left.”
Laurel pauses, before giving his hand a small squeeze. “Central City is lovely this time of year.”
Steve glances over to her with a small smile. “Is it?”
“It is. And I happen to know a burgeoning group of heroes who could probably benefit from your experience.” She waits until they’re out on the sidewalk before turning to face him some more. “But in all honesty, Steve, there’s more to you than just a soldier. You went into the ice when you were twenty-five. No one is in their final form when they’re twenty-five. You should be allowed to take the time to figure it out.”
Steve shakes his head. “I don’t know. They might have some kind of patent on me or something.”
“My patent law is a little rusty, but I’m pretty sure you can’t patent a person. The serum maybe, but even if they did – patents expire. You say the word; I’ll start building a case.”
He smiles before turning to face her. “So what I hear you saying is that I should listen to my lawyer.”
“It’s pretty standard legal advice.”
He sighs, before shaking his head. “I don’t know. Right now, SHIELD feels like the most and least logical, all at the same time.”
Laurel nods, before squeezing his hand. “You don’t have to make a decision right now. But if you need me to lawyer you out of here, my offer is there.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he murmurs as he leans in to kiss her again. After a moment, he pulls back with a small smile.
“Good.” Laurel glances down the street, seeing the street vendors starting to pack up for the evening, and linking her arm in his again. “So. Dinner?”
Steven nods before continuing to lead the way. “Dinner.”
It doesn’t take much for Steve to persuade her back to his place when dinner is over. She had been planning on staying the night in the first place, so all he honestly has to do is offer. As they make their way to his apartment door, they bump into Steve’s neighbor, a nurse who he briefly introduces to Laurel.
“Hey, you left your stereo on, by the way.”
Laurel blinks, because that doesn’t sound like Steve, and he seems surprised as well. “Thanks,” Steve nods, before turning and narrowing his eyes at the door. Laurel waits until the nurse disappears into her apartment, before turning back to him, keeping her voice low.
“You didn’t leave your stereo on, did you?”
He shakes his head before pulling her closer to the door and tapping one finger to his ear silently. She takes the cue for what it is, before closing her eyes and focusing on the sounds coming from beyond the door. The music does make things complicated, to be sure, but it doesn’t take her much longer after that to make out the heartbeat lurking within.
She holds up her finger to indicate one person. Then her head tips to the side as she listens more closely then taps her hand against her chest rapidly. The heartbeat is struggling. They might be injured. Steve nods, before taking her hand and pulling her away from the door and back towards the stairs. Once they leave the floor, he holds a hand out for her phone.
“We need to call you a cab.”
Once upon a time, Laurel might have fought that order, but that was before she became a mother. Steve knows what she can do and what she can do is not what he needs. And they both agreed not to put her on SHIELD’s radar as a result. Whatever it is that Steve’s mired in, she’s not going to be part of it. It hurts, but it’s the best way to keep her son safe.
“Are you sure?”
He nods. “I don’t know what’s going on, but I’m willing to bet it’s not good.” As they reach the sidewalk, her cab pulls up, and she turns to face him again.
“Be careful.”
He nods, before leaning in to kiss her. “I will. I’ll call when I’m clear.”
She nods, before sliding into the car and watching him through the window as she drives away. Part of her thinks that she shouldn’t have left him there, but Steve is Captain America for a reason. She’s sure he’ll be fine.
In the morning, she’ll see how wrong that assumption is.
set 7 | they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [3/5] ~ dctv/mcu ~ 1,272
The sun beats down on the National Mall as Laurel and Barry sprawl under a tree to take in the shade. Connor is running somewhere ahead of them, making friends with a couple of other kids and jumping into an intricate game they’ve devised themselves. Laurel idly checks her phone every once in a while, looking for signs of life from her partner, but ever since she left him last night, he’s been radio silent.
Her gut says that something is wrong. But she knows that texting her anxiety at Steve right now isn’t going to get her an answer. So she waits, taking a deep breath and keeping her eye on her son for now. Barry, being the empathic friend that he is, gives her a small nudge after a while.
“You okay?”
Laurel glances up in surprise, before nodding. “Yeah, I’m fine. Just things were a little weird with Steve at the end of last night.”
“Between the two of you? Because I was kind of surprised that you were back so early.” Laurel raises an eyebrow, and Barry’s eyes widen as he holds up his hands. “What? You’re both consensual adults. I’m not judging.”
She laughs, before shaking her head. “No, it wasn’t us. Just something was going on in his apartment, and he sent me home, but I haven’t heard from him since. I just hope he’s okay.”
“He’s Captain America,” Barry reminds her gently. “I’m sure he’s fine.”
“I know,” Laurel nods. It’s a logical conclusion to make. Steve survived seventy years under the ice. In theory, he could survive whatever happened to be waiting in his apartment. But Laurel also knew that even if he was a super-soldier, that didn’t mean he was infallible. One good headshot, and he would be gone. “I’m just … a worrywart.”
Barry nods once, before reaching for his phone. “Well, if something happened to him, it would definitely have made the news. So … let’s check.”
Laurel squints as he pulls out his phone. “No, that can’t possibly work. That’s way too logical a solution.”
Barry laughs before opening his news app and flipping through the options. He goes quiet as he swipes through, and Laurel diverts her attention back to Connor; as a result, letting the moment feel normal until Barry goes tense next to her, and he reaches for her arm.
“Uh, Laurel?”
She turns, and he holds out his phone in front of them. On the screen is her boyfriend, throwing himself out of an elevator at the Triskelion and onto the ground. Then, the following clip is a motorcycle standoff with a Quinjet. None of it makes any sense, but as she scrolls lower to the article, all the information seems to imply that Steve has turned on SHIELD. He’s wanted for questioning regarding the death of Director Fury.
“None of this makes any sense.”
Barry glances away for a moment, eyes scanning the crowd. “What happened last night?”
“His neighbor said that he left his stereo playing. When she was gone, Steve said that he didn’t. He asked me to listen in on the room; I told him there was one heartbeat, and it looked like the person was injured. He put me in a cab, and I haven’t heard anything from him since.”
“Okay.” He considers for a minute before reaching for Laurel’s hands and pulling them both to their feet. “Let me go talk to Cisco and see if the STAR Labs satellites can track him down. SHIELD doesn’t have access to those. You should grab Connor, though, and get back to the hotel.” He pauses before turning back to her. “Are you sure you’ll be okay to do that on your own?”
Laurel nods in agreement. “Yeah, I’ll be good. Go.”
Barry nods as well, before disappearing in a blur of lightning and a gust of wind. Laurel doesn’t linger long, immediately moving forward and reaching for her son’s hand. “Connor, we have to go.”
“What, already?” He turns and glances over his shoulder. “Where’s Uncle Barry?”
“That’s why we have to go. Something’s come up, and we have to go back to the hotel, okay?”
The one upside to raising Connor around superheroes is that he knew that if something was wrong, to listen to his mother. Laurel takes his hand as he says goodbye to his new friends and starts to pull him back towards the street to try and find the cab.
“Is Uncle Barry, okay?”
“Yeah, sweetie,” Laurel gives his hand a small squeeze as she goes to pull up an uber. “I’ll tell you everything when we get to the hotel.”
Connor accepts that as an answer when a black SUV pulls up to the curb in front of them. The window rolls down, and a gruff looking man offers her a smile that doesn’t quite feel friendly. “Laurel Lance?”
She looks down at the phone in her hand – she hadn’t ordered the ride yet – and then looks back up at him again. “I’m sorry?”
“My name is Brock Rumlow. I work with Cap. He wanted me to make sure you were safe.”
Immediately alarm bells are ringing. The most consistent coworker Laurel’s dealt with of his is Natasha, and I feel like if Steve were truly worried about her, he would have sent her and let Laurel know she’s coming. She doesn’t particularly feel like getting in a car with a strange man is smart at the moment, so she nods her head and takes a step back.
“I’m okay. Is everything alright with Steve?”
“Yeah, he’s fine. Things are just a little complicated, and he wants me to take you to him.”
Another warning bell. Steve has always kept her at a distance when it comes to his missions. He won’t uproot her life to go on the run with him if that’s the case. And again, he would ask her himself. Nothing about this felt right.
“No, that’s okay,” Laurel says with a small smile. “I think we’re just going to go back to the hotel. Stay put.”
The man’s smile falters, and she can see the cracks in the façade. Her response isn’t what he expected. Interesting. “Then let me give you a ride? It’ll be safer.”
“That’s okay,” she nods. “I called an Uber.”
At that, the man’s face goes cold. He proves in an instant that all her instincts were right, and seconds later, she feels the cold press the barrel of a gun against her back. Connor immediately gets tugged closer, pulled into her arms.
“I really think you should get in the car, Ms. Lance. Just to be safe.”
Laurel glances left, then right, trying to get a gauge for the situation. The street is too crowded; it would be too much of a scene. She picks up on the sound of a whoosh and turns again. Barry is a few paces out, out of the view of her captors but close enough that she can make eye contact, and shake her head to wave him off.
Barry needs to help Steve. And if they need him, they’ll call.
The man behind her steps forward, opening the back door of the SUV and pushing them both inside. Once the door closes behind him, he climbs in the front seat and holds out a hand.
“Phone?”
It’s not a request. Laurel places the device in the palm of his hand, before leaning back and pulling Connor close. “Buckle up, kiddo.”
“Mom? Are we in trouble?”
Laurel purses her lips together before nodding her agreement. “Yeah, buddy. I think we are.”
set 7 | they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [4/5] ~ dctv/mcu ~ 1,812
STAR Labs manages to track Cap from a mall in DC to an old SHIELD camp in New Jersey, then back to DC again, to a private house in the name of a guy Barry doesn’t recognize. Laurel hasn’t mentioned that name to him, and neither has Cap, not that they’ve spent much time together. Still, without Laurel calling him in to get them out, for whatever reasons she has, he has time to kill, and he might as well help the good guys.
Besides, Steve needs to know the stakes at hand, and he doesn’t want them to be able to blindside him with it later.
Taking a deep breath, Barry knocks on the door lightly before stepping back with his hands in his pockets. A minute later, the unfamiliar man comes to the door and squints at him, and Barry offers a small smile.
“Uh, hi. I’m … looking for a mutual … friend?”
The other man squints at him. “Buddy, I think you’ve got the—”
“Barry?”
Steve appears in the doorway over Sam’s shoulder – not enough that a random passerby on the street can see him but enough to gauge in the conversation and seem very confused.
“What are you doing here?”
“Laurel sent me. Sort of? STAR Labs has excellent facial recognition and satellites that the government can’t access. But, uh, we need to talk.”
The new guy looks back at Steve, raising an eyebrow and Steve nods, before gesturing for him to come inside. Barry sags in relief before holding his hand out to the unfamiliar face. “Barry Allen.”
“Sam Wilson. You know what you just did is kind of creepy right?”
“Yeah, well, desperate times call for desperate measures.” Barry follows the other two men inside and comes into the main room, where another redheaded woman is sitting at the table, who looks at him in confusion.
“Who are—”
“Barry. Allen. You must be Natasha. I’ve heard a lot about you from Connor.” He holds out a hand to her, and the icy, tense demeanor melts as soon as Barry provides context. Natasha nods, before reaching out to shake his hand.
“Well, Connor’s a pretty cool kid. How did you find us?”
“Apparently, Barry’s got an in with some friends who are good with facial recognition.” Steve makes his way around the other side of the table, hands on his hips. “What do you need to talk about?”
Barry swallows hard, glancing at the three of them, before turning back to Steve. “The bad guys have Laurel and Connor.”
Immediately, Barry can see Steve’s posture deflate. One hand comes up to rub at his eyes. “When?”
“A few hours ago. We saw the story about the Triskelion on the news, and she sent me to try and see what I could find out, and she was going to take Connor back to the hotel. When I went back to meet up with her, I saw a guy forcing them into a car at gunpoint. I went to help, but she waved me off. I think she was worried about proximity and exposure.”
Steve nods. “So you know about –”
“Yeah. I’ve been helping Laurel with it.” He glances between the three other people in the room before asking the question that might not get answered. “What’s going on?”
Steve looks at Natasha and Sam before turning back to Barry. “Over the past seventy years, HYDRA has been slowly infiltrating SHIELD.”
“HYDRA?” Barry blinks before even more distress crosses his face. “Like … Red Skull Nazi HYDRA?”
“That’s the one,” Natasha quips.
“Oh, this is really bad.” Barry paces away for a moment, before shaking his head. “This can’t go down. We have to stop them. What can I do? How can I help?”
“Barry …” Steve looks concerned. “I appreciate telling me about Laurel, but you’re a civilian. This mess isn’t your fight.”
“Are you kidding? This is everybody’s fight, and I can’t just …” It takes a second to register the fact that Steve said the word “civilian,” and then understanding crosses Barry’s face. “Oh. Oh, she didn’t tell you. That makes sense; it’s not her secret to tell.”
“Didn’t tell me what?” Steve frowns, looking more confused.
A brief, lopsided smile crosses Barry’s face, and he disappears in a gust of wind and a spark of lightning. Less then a minute later, he returns and places a box of a dozen doughnuts in front of the group. Steve stares in disbelief before it hits him.
“You’re the Flash.”
Barry nods. “I’m the Flash.”
“Then why didn’t you –”
“As I said, Laurel waved me off. They were smart, they picked a crowded street, and knowing what I know now, I’m pretty sure it would have gotten messy. But she’s got a way to call me. Connor’s got a sensor in his jacket that, when tripped, sends an alert right to my phone. She’ll press it when she’s ready, but until then, you have me. So use me.” Steve still looks torn, and Barry takes a step closer. “Look, Laurel can take care of herself. I’m almost certain that they don’t realize what they’re holding. And I know that she would tell you what I’m telling you now—HYDRA can’t win. Don’t let them use her as a distraction.”
“The second you get that call, you go. No matter what’s happening with us.”
“I promise.”
Steve nods, before exhaling slowly and picking up a military file from the table in front of them. “How do you feel about stealing from the military?”
Barry grins, before reaching for the file. “I’m surprisingly okay with it.”
Pins and needles start tingling through Laurel’s legs as she tugs her son closer. Having Connor in her lap for hours is not the most practical position to be in, but they’re not giving them many options, and she refuses to let them take Connor too far from her. It doesn’t help matters that Connor’s scared, fiddling with the hidden sensor designed to call any superhero that’s plugged into the alert system. Laurel reaches forward, placing her hand over his, and pulling it away, gently.
“Not yet, honey,” she whispers as she presses a kiss to his forehead. “We have to wait.”
“Why?” Connor asks softly. “I’m scared.”
“I know, kiddo. But we have to make sure it’s safe, and the bad guys are not going to notice it.”
The armed guards watching them monitors across the room haven’t given them much of their attention. It’s clear that they’re simply tools to be used and discarded when they’re no longer useful, and Laurel won’t let that happen. The timing just needs to be perfect.
Eventually, two heavily armed men enter the room. One of them was the man who held a gun to her back, the other she didn’t recognize. The latter starts to reach for Connor, and she knows that she’s out of chances, but resists and tugs her son closer. “What are you doing?”
“We need you to make a call,” the former replies reaching for her arms to pry Connor out of her arms, and she still struggles. “He’ll be fine. We just want to make sure that we have a proper incentive.”
“Mom!” Connor struggles as well, not wanting to leave, and Laurel realizes they’re out of time. Her fingers pinch down on the sensor, feeling the click as it activates before releasing Connor and letting the first man pull her away. She hopes Barry isn’t too far away.
They tug Connor out of the room and drag Laurel towards a set up with a laptop. They sit her down in front of the video call setup. The man’s hand is still on her shoulder, but she stays calm, waiting for her moment to strike. If this is the leverage call, then at least she’ll be able to see Steve and verify that for now, he’s still okay.
Rumlow, the man who picked them up, appears on the screen. “We don’t have far to go, big guy. So here’s even more of an incentive for you to stay put.”
Steve’s face swims into focus, and his expression is a strange mix of relief and regret. Laurel gives him a small smile. “Hey.”
Steve doesn’t speak. Rumlow, however, continues in his stead. “Here’s how it’s going to go, Cap. You behave, let us get you where we need you to go, and she stays breathing. You misbehave, and things have to get messy.”
Steve’s eyes don’t leave Laurel’s, and in the end, they both know that’s not true. They’re taking Steve somewhere to eliminate him, and after, they’ll eliminate her too. It’s in both of their expressions that they know how this is going to end, at least in HYDRA’s mind.
“Laurel—”
“Hey.” She cuts him off before he can say something overly sappy, something that sounds too much like a goodbye. “It’ll be okay.” She can tell from the look on his face that things certainly don’t seem that way at the moment. There are sounds of a struggle in the distance, and she looks back to Steve again with a smirk. “Kick their ass, Cap.”
There’s a flicker of a smile, and while Rumlow demands they cut the feed, Steve gets out: “Yes, ma’am.”
One of the armed guards moves forward to turn off the setup. The other reaches for her to drag her backward, likely to deliver some kind of punishment for not playing the part of the scared victim, but Laurel jerks away, easily dodging the blow that’s coming. The large man looks off-balance, and she darts forward again, reaching for the baton on the belt of his uniform and yanking it back to give herself a weapon to use. She takes a couple of steps back until her back hits a wall, and she can see a swarm of men looking to rush her, but she doesn’t give him the opportunity.
She opens her mouth and screams.
Soundwaves rip through the room, destroying electronics and blowing the column of men backward, knocking them off their feet. They’re all caught by surprise until one of them puts two and two together.
“She’s a meta.”
“Sorry,” she smirks. “Did I forget to mention that?”
A few of them manage to scramble up again, reaching for their guns, but she surges forward and uses her baton to smack them back down again. She’s a little rusty with fighting hand-to-hand in a massive crowd like this, but minutes later, she has some help. A rush of wind and lightning surrounds her, and soon the remaining HYDRA operatives are bound and unconscious, and Barry is whisking he and Laurel away to safety.
They fight may be over for now, but they all know that things are just getting started.
set 7 | they left no instructions, just a legacy to protect [5/5] ~ dctv/mcu ~ 962
Steve sends word once they’re out of HYDRA’s clutches and somewhere safe, and Barry transports both Laurel and Connor to that location. That location turns out to be a secret bunker in the middle of nowhere, and when they skid to a stop, they find themselves face to face with Colonel Nicholas J. Fury, who’s looking very confused.
“I thought this was supposed to be a secret bunker.”
“Some secrets are worth sharing,” Steve replies pointedly before making his way across the room and pulling both Laurel and Connor into a hug. It’s not bone-crushing, the way she knew he could if he wanted to, but it’s still tight enough for her to see that he’s been worried.
“Hey,” she says, looking up at him with a soft smile. “We’re okay.”
“You almost weren’t,” he replies firmly, before looking down at her again. “But I’m really glad you are.”
It takes them a minute to catch the new arrivals up on the rest of what they know now – Bucky Barnes being alive, how the HYDRA intends to use Project Insight. It’s all terrible, and Laurel shakes her head as she puts Connor down and turns back to the rest of them.
“But you have a plan, right? To stop it?”
“We do,” Steve nods, before looking over to the slim man standing next to her. “We could use your help, Barry. There are going to be a lot of civilians in the blast zone.”
“I can get them out,” Barry replies. “Whoever I can.”
“Good. While Barry’s doing that, Sam, Hill, and I will handle the targeting swaps while Fury and Natasha take care of Pierce.” Steve takes a breath before looking over at the rest of them. “We move out in an hour. Take care of what you need to take care of and meet back here.”
As the rest of the team disperses to begin their preparations, Steve glances over to Laurel. “Can we talk?”
Laurel glances at Barry, and he nods before taking Connor’s hand and leading him away. “Hey, Connor. Let’s go see if we can find something to eat.”
Laurel then turns back to Steve with a nod. “Let’s go.”
He leads them over to a quiet corner and takes her hand with a squeeze. “About Bucky …”
“Are you sure it’s him?”
“It has to be.” Steve sounds so confident she doesn’t want to doubt him, but she also knows that life can be complicated, and this situation seems doubly so. Still, she knows that he’s not going to be able to let this rest. “I have to find a way to fix this, Laurel.”
“I know.” She reaches up, brushing a hand against the side of his face. “But don’t let him kill you in the process, okay? You can’t save him if you’re dead.”
Steve nods, before taking a deep breath. “What if it’s him or me?”
“It’s not.” Laurel shakes her head, making that definitive the most straightforward way she knows how. “Sometimes you don’t solve a problem by going at it head-on. Sometimes, you have to retreat and regroup. But you’ll figure it out, Steve. I know you will.”
“Just don’t die.”
She smirks. “That’s all I ask.”
“I’ll do my best.” He pauses, leaning in to kiss her softly. “See you on the other side?”
She nods as he pulls away to get started. “I’ll be here.”
In the end, Steve got very close to being unable to honor that request. Barry finds him on the banks of the river, shot, unconscious, and very, very injured, but somehow alive. Laurel’s not sure how, but part of her thinks that maybe, Bucky Barnes is to blame for that. He’s out for a few days as he recovers, and in the interim, Laurel sends Connor back to Central City with Barry, where Oliver would be waiting for him, wanting to see that his son unharmed for himself.
Laurel knows that Oliver is going to have words for her when he gets home, but that’s a problem for Future Laurel to handle.
Right now, Present Laurel elects to enjoy this beach walk with Steve before they part ways again – Laurel to return to her life in Central City, and Steve to go in search of his friend. As they reach the edge of the water, she lets the sand curl between her toes, as he turns to her.
“I’m sorry our visit got complicated.”
“It’s okay,” she shrugs. “It comes with the territory.”
“I know. But that doesn’t mean I don’t wish it could have been better.”
“Maybe next time. If you and Sam get some downtime, you could swing through Central City. Cisco could make some upgrades to Sam’s flight suit.”
Steve laughs. “Are you sure Sam would be okay with that?”
“I don’t know,” Laurel shakes her head. “But it would free up some time for the two of us to spend some time together.”
“That is true,” Steve nods. “We have been unfairly interrupted a lot lately.”
“Yes, we have,” she agrees, before pausing to wrap her arms around his waist. “But are you going to be okay in the meantime?”
He nods again as he leans down to kiss her, cupping the side of her face with one hand gently. “I will be. I don’t want the lead to go cold.”
“I get it. I want to make sure you make it to Central City in one piece.”
“I will. I promise.” He leans in to kiss her again, before tugging her gently away from the water. “C’mon. If we don’t get going, we’re going to miss your flight.”
She pouts, before letting him pull her away from the water. “If you insist.”
set 8 | i'll tell you the dreams i've been keeping ~ canon au ~ 1,500
Laura glances over at five-year-old Amelia, who’s looking very innocent at what truly is a straightforward question. Being in kindergarten has been good for Amelia – she’s making a lot of friends her age and getting socialized like a real child, which she was in desperate need. Things have been quiet in Beacon Hills for some time, so she hasn’t had to be subject to the jostled in- and out-of-town adventures that she did when she was an infant.
“What kind of birthday party, sweetie?”
Amelia shrugs, twisting from side to side as she plays with the hem of her dress. “I don’t know. Madison Rollins had a fun party, and there was a magician, and a bouncy house and cake and ice cream, and all her friends got to come and bring presents and then we got bags of candy at the end.”
“That sounds like that was an awesome party.”
“Yeah. And my birthday is soon, and I’ve never had a birthday party before. So can I? Please?”
Laura takes a deep breath, because as fun and exciting as birthday parties are for the children, she can only assume that they are chaos bombs waiting to explode on the adult side. Still, having birthday parties are a right of passage that every average child should get to enjoy.
“Let me talk to your dad when he gets home, okay? But maybe a small one.”
“Really?” Amelia’s smile hits her right in the weak mom spot, and she already knows she’s going to cave to this simple enough request.
“Yeah, really.” Laura turns her eyes back to dinner as Amelia skips back to her homework. “So, who would you want to invite?”
“Madison and Zoe and Sylvie and Marcus but only if he promises not to eat any boogers, and Maria …” More children’s names follow soon after until she listed her entire class. And then she perks up at the end. “And Joy! Can I invite Joy even if she’s not in my class?”
“Yes, you absolutely can.” Good. There will be back up. Putting Derek and Dawn to work should be easy enough.
“And can I have a magician? And a bouncy house?”
“You said that Madison had those at her party. Do you want your party to be just like hers?”
Amelia considers thoughtfully. “So those things aren’t at every birthday party?”
“Not necessarily. A lot of them do, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make them into whatever you want them to be. You can make it a mermaid party or a circus party – you get to pick.”
The daunting idea of that task seems to calm her as she considers. “I’ll have to think about it.”
“You do that,” Laura nods as the door to the kitchen swings open.
“Think about what?” Parrish asks as he makes his way in, and Amelia leaps to her feet.
“Daddy!” She launches herself at her father, and he scoops her up, resting her on his hip. “Mommy said I could have a birthday party!”
“Uh, Mommy said she would talk to Daddy about maybe having a birthday party. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Mia.”
Amelia ignores the correction, turning to focus on her father. “Please, Daddy? Can I have a party?”
Parrish glances to Laura, raising an eyebrow, and she raises one in return. “Why don’t you go wash up for dinner, sweetie, and me and your mom will talk about it?”
Amelia nods, letting him set her back down on her feet, and she runs off to the bathroom. Parrish then turns back to Laura and takes another step closer. “What’s wrong with a party?”
“She wants to invite her entire class. So that will be twenty plus five or six-year-olds hopped up on sugar and soda and taking out that energy on everything they can get their hands on.”
“A fair concern.”
“There will also be at least one major meltdown if things don’t go according to Amelia’s perfect plans, as well as one fueled by crashing from sad sugar and just generally being overtaxed and overstimulated.”
“She’s five. That can happen any day. There will probably be one if you tell her no, she can’t have a party.”
“… That is true.”
“Plus, imagine the delighted look on your daughter’s face when you manage to bake her a perfectly sculpted, three-tier mermaid cake,” he teases as he makes his way closer.
“Is that the cake I’m making?”
“Also, how delighted I will be when I get to eat the scraps and misfires of said cake.”
She laughs. “I see how this works. You’re just trying to get me to bake a bunch of cakes.”
“It is one of your better skill sets,” he smirks as he leans in to kiss her softly. She kisses him back before sighing softly.
“I guess it would be kind of unfair never to let her have a birthday party.”
“It would. And if we invite Joy, we can at least tag in Derek and Dawn. Maybe some other adults too.”
Laura sighs softly. “Okay. Okay, what could it hurt?”
Parrish grins before pulling her closer. “It’ll mean the world to her.”
“Yeah, I know it will,” she nods as she goes to turn off the stove. “I just hope we don’t wind up regretting this later.”
“Oh, we absolutely will,” he nods. “But it also won’t be the last time we do it either.”
“Last time you do what?” Amelia asks as she makes her way back into the room, drying off her hands on her dress.
“Throw you a birthday party,” Laura replies, and immediately the little girl’s face brightens. She runs over, throwing her arms around her parents’ legs and pulling them close.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!”
Laura can’t help the smile that crosses her face as she pulls her daughter closer. This moment is worth it. She just hopes she will still remember this a few months from now.
“Is it just me, or are your ears ringing too?”
A few hours earlier, the house had been full of screaming children bouncing off the walls and shoving as much sugar as they could get into their tiny little bodies without making themselves sick. Some of them didn’t succeed in not making themselves sick. Laurel doesn’t want to think about it anymore.
Instead, she flops on the couch, closing her eyes and basking in the quiet of the disarrayed house. Balloons scatter in the corners of rooms, though some of them are beginning to float down to the ground. Paper plates, napkins, and the occasional clumps of food have been left haphazardly around the house. And wrapping paper, ribbon, and mud are tracked on various floors throughout the first floor.
But for the first time in hours, it’s quiet. Not even their child is running scattershot through their home, because they managed to convince Uncle Derek and Aunt Dawn to host a sleepover so that Laura and Parrish could have the chance to clean up.
Parrish doesn’t respond to her question. Instead, he looks over at her. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For not listening to your very valid concerns about the damage they could do.”
Laura laughs, before nudging him enough that she could lift his arm and settle into his side. “It’s okay. You were also right. It’s an important right of passage, and it wasn’t fair for me to try and keep her from it.”
“Okay. I’m still sorry.”
“I think we both are,” she sighs, before tipping her head to look up at him. “But now that we have this valuable life experience, we know what not to do next time.”
“My vote is no soda. I never want to see soda again.”
“Duly noted. No soda.” Laura glances up at him with a small smile. “But I think for first-time party throwers, we threw a damn good birthday party.”
“We’ll have to get the Amelia report back in the morning, but I concur.” He leans down to kiss her gently, before looking out over the rest of the room and wincing. “Guess it’s time for us to get cleaning.”
“We probably should. Or we could also take a nap and have that be a problem for future Laura and Jordan.”
He grins down at her, before shifting to scoop her up and pull him away with her. “You know, I happen to like the way you think.”
She laughs and lets him carry her away to their quiet of their untouched bedroom. The cleaning will still be there for them when they wake, but at least for now, they can bask in their victory of having thrown a successful birthday party. As far as Laura knows, they have earned it. They survived the party. They survived the children. In the morning, they will likely survive cleaning up too.
She’ll likely regret the mess, but not much else.
set 8 | flames are not what get you burned ~ potus ~ 1,500
She knows that she shouldn’t play with Parrish the way she plays with most of the members of her mother’s Secret Service. He’s made his feelings clear, and she should respect them. Still, she can’t help herself. Dangle something unobtainable in front of her, and she can’t help but lean in hard, always wanting what she can’t have.
Maybe her family is right to be concerned about her. Her commitment issues have commitment issues. But it is safer. Putting herself out there while her mother is still President is much more dangerous.
Parrish looks over at her, his eyes glancing over her briefly – to assess that she’s alright, not for any other reason. She knows that. “Dr. Hale.”
Laura flashes him a small smile as she goes climbing into the SUV. “You got stuck on First Daughter duty?”
“Stuck isn’t the word I’d use,” he replies congenially, and she can’t tell whether or not he means it. Still, she doesn’t question it as she slides into the backseat, moving all the way over so that he can follow her. For efficiency, they informed her that she would have more than the usual number of officers on her security detail as she makes her way to her mother’s appearance in Midtown.
Also, she assumes something to do with the increased police presence for everything Fourth of July related, but she knows better than to try and press for information.
He slides in next to her. “Buckle up.”
“Yes, sir,” she smirks, before reaching over to grab the seat belt behind her. “Any plans for the Fourth? Or are you heading back to DC for the big extravaganza?”
“I’ll be in New York.”
“Really?” she raises an eyebrow, assuming it had to be some vacation. “I didn’t know they let the Secret Service have off on the Fourth of July.” Given the President needs to be everywhere at all times, it always seemed to her like an all-hands-on-deck situation.
“They do when you’re changing details.”
It takes her a minute to process the double meaning behind that statement. Changing details is relatively standard. The agents following her have come and gone more often than not, mostly by her own doing. At the same time, someone tasked with the President doesn’t usually get transferred to another office for no reason.
And then it takes another minute for her to realize that that means he’s switching to her detail, which is undoubtedly a step down from where he was. “Oh.” She pauses, before tipping her head to look at him curiously. “I’m sorry?”
“It’s not your fault,” he replies evenly, and even with all her psychological training, she can’t tell if he’s as calm and content with this as he appears to be. “It’s fine.”
“Is it fine?” It’s more of a question than it sounds. Given their history – or lack thereof, more like collisions every time she happens to find herself in his presence. She doesn’t want him to be stuck on a detail he’d be uncomfortable with, but she also is genuinely curious about how this is happening.
“It is,” he nods, leaving the conversation at that and not inviting any further prodding. That’s not uncommon – he always prefers to keep things professional, after all, so Laura nods, and turns back to the window, watching the city as it passes by.
“Well, I’m happy to have you. And if you have any questions about the city, just let me know.”
He nods, the tension leaving his shoulders as the subject changes. Silence falls between them before he takes a deep breath and glances at her.
“I could use recommendations for a place to watch the fireworks?” The question is tentative, almost as though he doesn’t know if he should be asking. “Somewhere not too crowded, or a good spot to try and get to?”
She considers, then shrugs. “You could always try my place.” He tenses again, and she holds up her hands. “No funny business, I promise. I have a magnificent view, and it’ll be way quieter and less crowded than the usual spots to watch at the river. We’ll order some pizzas, have a couple of beers. Totally friendly.”
Parrish stays quiet for a long minute before nodding. “That would be nice. Thanks.”
“No problem,” she nods with a small smile. Hopefully, they’ll be able to smooth things out, and this won’t get any bumpier in the future. “It’ll be fun.”
A knock sounds on the door, and she lifts her head out of the fridge. “Are you pizza or Parrish?” she calls through the door after him.
“It’s Parrish, ma’am,” Hunter replies, and she smiles before making her way over to open the door.
“Hey,” she grins. “You made it.”
“I did,” Parrish nods before making his way inside. “Do you always answer the door like that?”
“Only when I’m expecting someone,” she smirks. “Plus, I know that if you were a true unknown, Hunter wouldn’t have let you get that far.”
“Hunter’s been with you for a long time.”
“He has. The only man I haven’t been able to scare away.” She rests a hand over her heart. “Probably because he’s immune to my charms.”
“Does such a thing exist?”
“A wedding ring is an effective ward against my powers,” she teases. “That, and having a husband named Michael, who is a total sweetheart.”
Parrish laughs. “So my real mistake was not getting married before I got here.”
She raises an eyebrow curiously at that. “Well, that, and I do understand the meaning of the word no.” Laura makes her way over to hand him a beer, and his fingers brush against hers. It’s the most contact they’ve ever had, and she stills against the shiver before turning away to reach for her own. “So technically, you are safe.”
“Am I?”
She can’t tell if the question is for her or him to answer. “You are.”
He looks over at her, before reaching one hand up to rub the back of his neck awkwardly. “Right. Sorry.”
Another silence falls between them, and she’s about to drastically change the subject before there’s another knock on the door. “That’s probably the pizza. I’m going to –”
“Yeah. Right, go ahead.”
The pizza eases tensions. With the food between them, they go back to laughing and joking. When the fireworks start, they move to the windows, watching as the colorful splashes of red, white, and blue sparkle against the sky in varying displays.
“You weren’t kidding about the view,” he says softly, eyes watching the city as it reflects the fireworks at him.
“Your mother being the leader of the free world and you needing the most defensible apartment New York has to offer has its benefits.”
She falls in step next to him, staring out over the city and not taking stock of how close they are. He smirks before turning to face her, and that’s when she notices, their closeness requiring her to look up to meet his eyes. She’s close enough to hear his breath catch, and he hesitates on what he was going to say, before glancing back to the window.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.”
She swallows hard, turning her attention back to the window as well and trying to keep her focus there. Her eyes close as she feels Parrish’s knuckles brush hers, followed by his fingers attempting to tangle in hers.
“Jordan.” It’s both a question and not at the same time. She realizes how familiar it is, but it’s already too late.
He stops, but his fingers don’t stray away. “How’d you know that?”
“It’s your name.”
“Yeah, but you’ve never actually used it.”
“You’re off duty.” She replies softly before turning to look at him. “And this doesn’t seem like the moment to call you Agent Parrish.”
He meets her eyes, holding her gaze as his hand moves to take hers, turning him to face him more. She goes with him willingly, eyes tipping up to meet his, and he’s far too close for this to be anywhere close to professional. She knew better. She should never have offered.
“What are you doing?” Not to get him to stop. Just to get him to think.
“I don’t know. But fighting it isn’t helping. So maybe …”
He doesn’t finish the statement. He just leans in to kiss Laura. She surges up on her toes to meet him and tries to ignore how it makes her toes curl that no other first kiss ever has. She holds it for as long as he’ll let her, before he pulls back, startled.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be.”
“I should go.”
She doesn’t want him to. She wants him to stay, but she won’t force him. “Okay.”
Parrish turns to grab his things and go, leaving her in the shadows of the holiday fireworks, and she can’t help but feel like things have gotten far too complicated between them.
set 8 | tomorrow we'll be free my love ~ regency au ~ 1,500
Parrish’s arms slide around her waist to tug her closer against his chest, and she can’t help but smile at his voice in her ear.
“You’re brooding. I thought I very clearly outlawed brooding the day I married you.”
Laura rolls her eyes as she leans back into him as her hands come to rest over her arms. “It’s not brooding,” she replies. “It’s … bittersweet longing.”
“That sounds dangerously close to brooding.”
“Does it?” she teases as she glances to face him. “I think it’s just different enough to get around the laws of my husband.”
“I think your husband will be the one to decide that.” He presses a kiss to her neck. “For what do you long? Is it something I can help with?”
She takes another breath as her hands come up to play with the rings hanging around her neck. It’s not something Parrish can resolve for her. No one can bring her mother back from the dead to witness the wedding of her daughter. No one could have brought her mother back to see her own.
“I just wish my mother could have been here to see this. To see her grow up.”
His arms tighten around her, a tentative squeeze of comfort. He knows he can’t permanently fix this particular problem, and she can feel the encouragement he wishes to give her.
“I know. I’m sorry.”
She smiles softly in response, before turning to face him. “I know she would be proud of what I’ve done and how I’ve managed to build the pack. At the same time, knowing it is not the same as hearing it from her.”
Parrish nods, keeping her close before a curious look crosses his face. “What if there was a way you could?”
Laura frowns. “How do you mean?”
“Hope is quite an accomplished witch. Perhaps there is a way to reach beyond the veil and speak to her.”
Hope flutters briefly in her chest, before glancing over her shoulder to the lands beyond her balcony. She wants to jump at the opportunity to speak to her mother after years without, but part of it also seems too good to be true.
“It might be worth asking,” she says slowly. “Though I have no idea what I would say. And what about Derek and Cora—”
“If this is successful, then perhaps we can arrange the same for them. But we won’t know until we ask Hope.”
Laura nods, before squeezing her husband’s hand. “Is she here? Or have she and Ben gone into town?”
“Last I saw her, she was heading towards the roof to paint.”
Laura nods, before pushing up on her toes to kiss him softly. “Thank you for the suggestion.”
“Of course, love,” he murmurs before pressing a kiss to her forehead. “I hope you find what you’re looking for.”
She squeezes his hand once more, before leaving their chambers and heading to the roof where the young witch was painting in the early morning sun. She feels terrible for interrupting her, but if she doesn’t ask now, she’ll lose her nerve.
“Hope?”
The girl turns and greets her with a smile. “Yes, Lady Hale?”
“There was something I was hoping you could help me with.”
“Of course.”
“My mother died years ago, as I’m sure you know. But … I was wondering if perhaps your magic might be able to … help me speak to her again.” She holds up a hand. “If you can’t, it’s fine, I just thought … maybe it was worth asking. We’ve never had a witch particularly close.”
Hope tips her head to the side, considering, before placing her brush back down on her easel. “Do you have something of hers?”
Laura reaches for her necklace again, removing it and holding them out to the young witch. “Those were her wedding rings.”
Hope closes her fingers around them, before nodding with a small smile. “I think I have an idea. Want to take a trip out to town?”
“Now?”
Hope nods. “Just for the evening.”
Laura considers briefly, knowing that the Lady of the Manor can’t run off without warning. At the same time, if it’s just for the evening, what can it hurt? She turns to the girl and nods.
“Where are we going?”
By the time Laura returns to their room, it’s late in the evening. She had given the notice that she and Hope would be taking some time away and not present for dinner; even then, it’s been dark for hours by the time she arrives. She opens the door to meet her husband’s hopeful eyes.
“Well? Did it work?”
A small smile lights across her face as she makes her way closer, sitting on the edge of the bed next to him. “It was more than I could have imagined.”
“In a good or bad way?”
She laughs, before nodding. “In a good way.”
“So, Hope was able to put you in touch with her?”
“It’s way more than that.” She pushes up to change out of her travel clothes before climbing into bed with him. “It was … I don’t even know how to explain it.”
He nods, before reaching up to curl her hair back behind her ear. “Do you want to try?”
She takes a breath, trying to determine where to start. “Orleans witches practice ancestral magic. Their ancestors move into a well, where it’s easy to communicate with and still learn from them. My alpha power works similarly, passed down from one alpha to the next.”
Parrish nods slowly. “So, she was able to use that power to summon your mother?”
“Not just my mother.” She smiles widely. “But my grandmother, and her mother, and … every Hale alpha since the beginning. They were all there.”
He’s silent for a moment, eyes widening as he tries to take in that kind of connection. “That must have been … impressive.”
“It was. And so much more.” She smiles brightly as she curls in closer, leaning in to kiss him. “And I never would have gotten to speak to any of them if you hadn’t pushed me. So thank you.”
“I don’t think I pushed so much as offered the suggestion,” he replies with a smirk. “You did all the heavy lifting.”
“Still.” One hand comes up to brush against his cheek gently, her thumb drawing a half-circle against his cheekbone. “I am grateful every day that we are where we are. My life is so much more than I ever could have dreamed, and I wouldn’t have any of it, if not for you.”
“We are both blessed,” he murmurs, leaning in to kiss her again. “I don’t regret a single part of my life with you in it.”
“I’m glad we’re agreed,” she murmurs. “I just wish I could find a way to share this with Derek and Cora. She gave me messages for them, but I wish there were more I could do, especially for Cora.”
“We just have to keep digging.” He tips his head to the side. “If Hope doesn’t know the answers we’re looking for, maybe her Aunt Freya does.”
“Maybe,” Laura sighs as she resettles next to him. “And I wish that I could share this with Amelia before I’m gone. I don’t want her to feel like she’s alone in trying to manage all of this power. I want her to know that I’m with her.”
“She will,” he presses a kiss to her forehead. “You’ve been with her every step of the way so far. I doubt that will stop.”
“I know. I think in some ways, I always knew my mother was with me, but at the same time, it feels different now. My understanding of it is different. For a long time, it was such a loss, but … now it feels more like a gift.”
“Good. I’m glad.” He smirks as he leans in to kiss her again, and his kisses turn slow and lazy, leaning into his wife more as he shifts above her. “And I’m delighted to have you home again.”
She grins widely into his kiss before nodding. “Do you intend to show me how happy you are?”
He laughs. “I will if my lady is interested.”
“Always,” she murmurs, sinking into the warmth of her husband’s embrace. Her remaining concerns are problems better left for the morning.
Now, time to be with her husband, and little else.
set 8 | but when paradise calls me, i'd rather be here ~ puppy love ~ 1,500
She’s feeling frustrated and restless, so she heads to Parrish and hopes that maybe he could work her into exhaustion so she can get some sleep. He’s more than up to the challenge, and it works for a little while. She drops to the bed, sated, and soon after he falls asleep, she tries to too.
She made an extreme effort. But the longer she sits there, waiting for sleep to come, the more she realizes that it isn’t going to happen. As quietly as she can, she slips out of bed and makes her way into the kitchen. She doesn’t want to leave, necessarily. She wants to find a way to clear her head so that she can eventually, hopefully, fall asleep next to Parrish and feel rested.
Brushing past the piles of projects and tinkering materials that she makes her way into his kitchen, poking in cabinets to see what she has at her disposal. In true bachelor fashion, there isn’t much. But there is flour, and butter, and eggs.
That’s certainly a start.
One stealth dive out the window later, and she returns with a few more ingredients and prepares to beat her demons into submission with dough and a rolling pin. It feels like the most natural thing in the world, folding flour, sugar, yeast, and more into the dough before whipping up a layer of butter to fold in. She sets it in the fridge to chill and returns to bed, hoping that sleep will take her.
“Everything okay?” Parrish mumbles, half asleep and not conscious, and she smiles before pressing a kiss to his temple.
“Everything’s fine,” she murmurs. “Go back to sleep.”
He does so without much protest, and she does the same, closing her eyes, curling into his shoulder, and willing her exhausted body to give in to the opportunity presenting itself.
One hour ticks past.
Then two.
Then three.
Soon it’s rounding the corner to five-thirty, and she huffs, delicately slipping out of bed again and going back to her baking project. She takes her rolling pin and begins working the dough still, before cutting it into pizza and rolling it until neat little crescents as the oven warms behind her. It’s almost automatic at this point, making a baked good she’d seen her mother cook so many times before. She can tell that the consistency is right, the layers are there, laminated into the dough.
She likes to think that Talia would be proud of her for this. Not for how she’s handling the pack, because that much is a certified disaster. The twins are falling apart, Peter is a mess, and Laura can practically feel Deucalion breathing down her neck, scenting the power vacuum from miles away. But even if all else fails, she can make her mother’s croissants from scratch running on zero sleep in two days.
That’s undoubtedly a thing to be proud of, isn’t it?
Footsteps start in the bedroom after the croissants slide into the oven. Parrish appears in the kitchen, half-dressed and a rumpled sleepy mess. Something in her heart still tightens when she sees him like she wants to keep seeing him, just like this, for as long as he’ll let her. But she knows that they don’t have that kind of time, as much as she may want it.
“Morning,” she says with a small smile.
“How long have you been up?”
“A while.” An understatement, but he’s not awake enough to call her on it.
“Are you baking?”
“Yeah.” She gives a small shrug. “I needed to kill some time, so I thought I’d make us some croissants.”
He stares at her for a moment, before squinting. “Instead of coming back to bed?”
“Sleep, and I haven’t been getting along lately.”
That seems to wake him up more, and his sharp detective gaze looks her over as though he’s trying to find the button he needs to push to solve the problem. “When did you last sleep?”
Laura closes her eyes as she shakes her head. “Can we not focus on that and focus on the yummy, buttery goodness that’ll hopefully be coming out of that oven in about twenty minutes?”
Parrish, unfortunately, is not as easily swayed as her previous boyfriends, happily bribed with baked goods of any kind. He’s an actual grown-up who cares about her beyond what she can do for and to him, and she hates herself a little for how she’s leading him on – or at least how Laura feels she is. She knows that their times in Beacon Hills are numbered, at least for now. And the problem with seeing someone who already has roots in the ground is that you can’t take them with you.
“When, Laura?”
She sighs. “I got a couple of hours Monday?”
“It’s Thursday.”
“It hasn’t been a good week.” Her voice is quiet as she shakes her head. “I just … I don’t know. I don’t know what I need; I just need to be busy. Eventually, I’ll crash out.”
“That isn’t exactly healthy.”
“I’m aware. It’s not like I haven’t tried. My body doesn’t exactly want to cooperate with healthy at the moment, so I’m working with what I have.”
His voice softens, one hand reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. “Okay. I’m sorry. You’re right.”
“Thank you.” She gestures to the oven and gives him a small smile. “Can I get a thank you for making you a lovely homemade breakfast?”
He smirks, before leaning in to kiss her. “Thank you for the croissants. Though I didn’t know you could bake.”
“Yeah, I used to do it all the time when I was home. It was me and Mom’s thing.” Her voice hitches, just slightly, and she swallows it down, even though she knows he sees it. “Croissants were her favorite. She used to bake them for special occasions.”
“What occasion is this?”
She smirks. “The occasion of I needed a project I could start and set aside just in case I managed actually to fall asleep and not screw anything up.”
He laughs. “A handy occasion.”
“I thought so too.” She grins as the oven timer goes off, and she goes to check the croissants, before pulling them out of the oven. They’re a perfect golden brown, puffed up and flaky, and she can’t wait to shove them in her mouth. But she should at least wait until they've cooled.
“Those look amazing,” Parrish admits from where he’s sitting, now that he can actually see them, not just smell them.
“We can eat them in a sec. We just have to let them cool.”
“Well,” he smirks as he tugs her in to sit in his lap. “I happen to know a great way to pass the time.”
She laughs as he pulls her in for a kiss, distracting her from the moment at hand as he pulls her in closer. She wishes, for a moment, that this didn’t feel as safe. She would feel less terrible for playing this game.
Laura eventually wrenches herself from his grasp, to check them, feeling a few of them to see how hot they are before picking one of them up and breaking it in half. She passes one to him, before taking one for herself.
“Let me know what you think?”
Parrish nods and holds his half up. “On three?” She nods in agreement, and he counts down: “One, two …”
They both take a bite, and tears immediately flood her eyes as it’s everything it’s supposed to be. Light, buttery, flaky – it’s ever special breakfast they’ve ever had at home, and it’s like a dam breaks within her as the tears come hard and fast.
She knows it’s because she’s overtired. She knows it’s because she hasn’t allowed herself to grieve, not the way she should. But she doesn’t have the time to fall apart, so what else is she supposed to do?
“Damn, that’s delicious.” A pause as he turns back to her and sees what’s happening. “Oh my god. Laura, it’s okay. They’re delicious.”
“I know,” she says softly, trying to wipe the tears away. “They’re perfect.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
“I miss my mom.”
Parrish doesn’t hesitate. He moves forward, scooping her into his arms and pulling her back towards the couch. She lets herself break down in a place that feels safe, and he keeps her there, for better or worse.
Eventually, the crying jags slow, resting her head against his shoulder. She can feel the wave cresting, finally, like the thing that was keeping her awake was all the things she’s been holding back.
“Stay until I fall asleep?”
“I’ll stay as long as you need me to.”
The safety is enough, and it’s not long after that that she gives in to the exhaustion and lets sleep carry her away. At least in the morning, there will be croissants.
set 8 | tell me where's the challenge ~ guardians ~ 1,500
Traitors.
They clearly must have been brainwashed. Laura won’t let it happen to her. She knows who she is. She knows her mission.
Kill the crew. Capture the hellhound. Return the hellhound to Laura’s master.
Should be simple enough.
Fire red eyes that glow in the low light of the room when she gets too close to the glass. The hellhound’s anticipating her betrayal. It’s smart. That’s good. It would be no fun if it weren’t.
“What?” she smirks. “Worried I’m going to break out of here?”
“Worried isn’t the word I’d use.” The hellhound rises from its seat as her siblings leave, coming closer to the glass. “More like I know you’re going to try. It’s just a matter of how you decide to try.”
Laura shrugs, looking at the room around her. “I’ve got options. There’s air circulating, which means there has to be a vent somewhere. If that doesn’t work, this is just glass. I could probably break through it somehow.” She shrugs. “I’m not my siblings. Impulse has never really been my game.”
“I’m sure it isn’t if it took them this long to catch you.”
“Honestly, I’m much more interested in how they caught you.” She pushes to her feet, stalking towards the hellhound and looking it in the eye. “You are much harder to find. Trust me. I’ve been looking for a while.”
Its eyes flash again. “Well, they weren’t trying to catch me. It was more of a mutual agreement.”
“Then how about we mutually agree to let me out of here?” she asks, raising an eyebrow. “My boss has a big seat at the table waiting for you. Power like you’ve never dreamed. What do you say to that?”
The hellhound tips its head to the side, before shaking its head. “Not all of us are after power. And I already have more power than I could ever want. What could he possibly offer me that I don’t already have?”
For some reason, that question she doesn’t have an answer. The loss confuses her long enough for the hellhound to step away and head towards the door.
“When you figure it out, I’ll be over here.”
Detoxing her from Thanos’s influence takes longer than it did for Derek or Cora. Thanos had always kept her close, unwilling to risk the treasure that he had on hand. It’s a couple of weeks before they start seeing the signs of withdrawal, eyes manic and wild. She wakes up most nights covered in a cold sweat, throws up what little she does eat, and feels like she’s losing her mind.
She can see flashes of a life she doesn’t fully remember in front of her. Part of her rejects those as being hers, not wanting to remember the weak person she used to be. At the same time, the more fragmented her memory becomes, the more she starts to fall apart.
“Stop it!” She strides towards the wall, trying to fight the urge to beat her head against the wall until everything rights itself again. “Stop it, stop it, stop it!”
Her head cracks against the plexiglass. She can smell the blood as it pours from the spot, but it doesn’t steady her and focus her on the moment. She stumbles forward again, another crack fills the air, and the pain helps, but it still doesn’t make the old memories go away. It only makes it worse.
Cora’s voice shouts from somewhere in the distance, but she can’t focus enough to find the words and understand what they mean. There’s a rush of air and a flash of heat that enters her small little room, and she stumbles backward, trying to get as far away from it as possible. She opens her eyes, trying to see what’s coming for her, and nothing about it makes sense.
The shape seems humanoid, but it’s wreathed in flame, striding towards her with purpose. Part of her stumbles backward, wanting to get as far away from the fire as possible. Her back hits the plexiglass, and the void doesn’t stop advancing, hands coming up to rest against the side of her face as it holds her in place.
Things start to crystalize as his eyes hold hers. The memories separate, and she starts to see the world for what it is. She begins to see the things she’d done for what they were, and her knees begin to give out under her.
The flames extinguish, and suddenly the void is a man. She meets his eyes as one final memory comes to the surface. It’s of her mother, eyes wide and surprised, and the feeling of her claws cutting her mother’s throat.
“Oh, god.” Her body sinks further into his hold, and together they both drop to the floor as tears flood her eyes. “Oh god, what have I done?”
He keeps her close as she cries, and waves of grief she hasn’t been allowed to feel for years come crashing over her.
It’s almost another week before she feels well enough to leave her tiny cage, and it’s because she’s suddenly aware of how gross she is, and that she desperately needs to take a shower and change her clothes. It’s still so tentative, one step in front of the other like she might relapse if she goes too far. She makes it to the bathroom, and she cleans up, and for the first time in a long time, she feels almost human.
She’s not okay, by any stretch of the word, but she’ll get there once she figures out how to find Thanos and rip him apart, one piece at a time.
Instead of returning to the box, she moves to the kitchen instead, her body suddenly remembering that it needs to eat. This ship is almost too quiet for the number of people who live on it, but she does eventually find the hellhound, stirring something on the stove in the galley. He turns when he hears her coming and looks up in surprise.
“Hi.”
“Hi.” She points over her shoulder. “Cora let me out so I could …”
“Yeah, I know. Cora told me before she and the team headed to the Dal.” Her eyebrows rise in confusion, and he adds: “A bar on this planet.”
“Oh.”
He glances over to his food and then back at you. “Are you hungry?”
“Starving.”
“Grab a seat, and I’ll get you a bowl.”
“Thanks.” She looks around awkwardly before moving to the table. She then looks up at him again. “I don’t think I ever got your name.”
“Jordan.” He dishes out two bowls of space mush, before moving to place on one the table in front of her. “But most people just call me Parrish.”
“Laura. But I think you already knew that.” She swallows hard, before picking up her spoon to stir her mush. “I also think I owe you a thank you. If you hadn’t intervened when you did, I think it would have gotten a lot worse.”
“No problem,” Parrish shook his head. “I could help. I wanted to help.”
“Even after I tried to kidnap you and serve you up on a platter to Thanos?”
He smirks. “I think we both know you wouldn’t have succeeded.”
She opens her mouth to challenge that, but in the end, she shakes her head. “Still. Thank you.”
He nods. “I’m sorry that that happened to you. Having something mess with your head like that is terrible.”
“Yeah, it is. But I’ll figure it out.” Her mother’s face flashes through her mind again, and she shakes it off. “Derek and Cora did, so that means I can too, right?”
“Right.” Parrish takes a scoop of his mush, then swallows. “You’ll be okay.”
For some reason, that’s far more reassuring than it should be. Laura lets him have the last word, falling into silence as she devours the food like she hasn’t eaten in weeks. Then, she looks up at him, deciding to take a step into the future than dwelling in the past.
“Think you can show me around before they get back? So that I can get myself oriented?” A beat. “Maybe tell me a little about the crew?”
“Yeah,” Parrish nods with a small smirk. “Ready for the grand tour?”
She nods in return as she gets up with a smile. “Lead the way.”