Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Squeak squeak squeak POP squeak squeak POP squeak squeak squeak squeak squeak POP

Blade watched from his desk as words and numbers that meant nothing to him appeared on his whiteboard. 

Squeeeeeeeeeak POP squeak squeak POP……………………POP squeak squeak squeak

Blade glanced down at his laptop, looking over the profile that was pulled up. Although he could not decipher the meaning of anything that was being written, the length and complexity of the equations did not match the reported D- in math. 

“What brings you back to my classroom, Ms. Wolf?”

She turns to him and pops another gum bubble, before giving him a grin befitting her surname. “Because you’re my favorite teacher, of course.” Blade narrowed his eyes on her and she averted her eyes. “...Madam Herta hath decreed mine behavior unacceptable.”

“And what are you writing on my board?” 

“Damage Calcs.”

“I’m going to pretend I know what that is. Why?”

“You took my phone.”

“Do you have any homework you need to do?”

“Probably.”

Blade sighed. “I’m going to be right back.” No response. She was still laser focused on whatever alien language she was writing in. Blade got up to open the door, before it swung open by itself.

“Mr. Blade!” A pair of bright green eyes met his. “Ms. Robin is out for the day, so I was wondering if you needed any help?”

“Ms. Firefly. I was just about to run some errands. Would you mind keeping an eye on Ms. Wolf for me?

“Sure thing,” she said, as she took a seat in the middle of the classroom. Silver Wolf stopped her writing for a moment, looked back at the two of them, before continuing.

The school hallways are quiet after school hours. Some of the rooms are used by the students recreationally, but not very often. Blade makes his way to the break room, where he finds Welt and Himeko waiting for him. The latter smiles at him, while the former gestures to sit at the table. 

Blade holds up his hand and shakes his hand. “I’ve got a student in detention, did all my papers print?

“On top of the printer,” Himeko takes a sip of her coffee. “The pot’s fresh, by the way.”

Blade pours himself a small cup, and starts stapling the papers together. He can hear the chatter of the two beside him, but isn’t paying any mind. Most likely some teacher gossip and student problems. Blade zones out while stapling the packets, only snapping back to reality when Welt taps his shoulder. 

“Hey, did you hear us?” Welt looks down at the papers. “You’re bleeding. Please be more careful with the stapler, Mr. Blade. I’ll go and get you some bandages from the nurse’s office.”

Blade looked down. Indeed, red stained a portion of the papers he was currently holding. He sighed, putting both items down and opting for the sink to temporarily deal with the wound. He winced as the cold water made contact with the exposed wound. 

“What were you two talking about?” Blade asked as he soaped his hands up, massaging and rubbing away at the staining across his wrists. 

Himeko put down her cup, folding her hands in her lap. “We’ve got a new principal, meaning Ms. Fu Xuan will be stepping back to her position as vice principal.” 

“Is that so?” Blade grabbed a towel and sat down across Himeko. “When is he coming?”

“She.” Himeko corrected. “She’ll be here next week.”

Welt came back and bandaged up Blade’s hand. Blade thanked him, and grabbed the papers and coffee. 

“Ah, before you go.” Welt handed him a bag. “The main office staff had some leftover pastries that they were trying to get rid of, and gave them to me.”

“Why are you giving them to me?” Blade asked, confused.

Welt shrugged. “Because I’m trying to get rid of them.”

Blade quietly made his way back to his classroom. He wondered what a new principal meant for the school. It’s been a while, and he was sure the parents and most of the teachers would be relieved that Ms. Fu was no longer in charge. She was good, but too young and definitely too stiff, even for Blade. 

Blade turned down his hallway and reached the door to his classroom. He reached for the handle, and paused. The rooms weren’t particularly soundproof, so he’d definitely be able to hear Silver Wolf’s bubble gum pop. Skeptical, he turned the handle and opened the door.

“M-M-Mr. Blade!” Firefly stammered. She was sitting in the same spot, although considerably more ruffled than before. “You’re back so soon!”

Blade glanced to her side where Silver Wolf was seated, who was calmly unwrapping another piece of gum. “Did something happen?” 

“I cleaned your boards for you.” Silver Wolf gestured to the spotless white boards. She smiled smugly, “You’re welcome.”

“Well, detention is over. I’ll see you after the weekend.” The girls get up and gather their things, before heading to the door. He made his way over to his desk to put down the coffee and papers. “Ms. Firefly, one last thing before you go.” 

“A-Actually, I was just heading to volleyball practice…”

“Good, then you’ll be able to give the coaches this.” Blade held up the bag of pastries Welt had left him with. “And please come again. I’m not sure how you get Ms. Wolf under control, but I appreciate it nonetheless.”

Firefly turned bright red, stammering out a thank-you, before taking the bag and hurrying out of the room.

Blade woke up the next morning with a splitting headache. Groaning, he held his head and sat on the side of the bed. He sat there for a moment, before reaching to open the blinds. The sunlight hit his bare chest, the pleasure of it almost making him forget about the sharp pains behind his eyes.

Behind him, something stirs on the bed. He turns slowly, minding his headache. His eyes go over a rise in the bed sheets, until bed sheets become soft, fair skin. Bare skin and curves turn into a sea of purple, which parts to reveal lips curling into a small smile. Blade finally meets her eyes, which are locked with his, something playful behind them enticing him. 

“Did you get a good look, hm?”

Chapter Text

The air in the bar is always warmer on Friday nights. Blade shuts the door behind him and hangs his coat up. People wave and pat his back as he passes them, and he gives them a small smile. He makes his way to his usual spot at the counter, setting his bag to the side and pulling some of his papers out. The barkeep puts a drink down in front of him, and he takes a sip before getting to work. 

“Stelle, Caelus, March, Guinafen,” he lists as he checks them off. “Firefly, Dan Heng…Silver Wolf.”

He sighs, and squints at what could be writing on the pages. Through all of the nonsense and random doodles, there’s some semblance of understanding. Blade reached for his pen to mark it, accidentally knocking his glass over while doing so.

“Shit,” he swears. He sets the paper down and turns towards the spill, realizing someone was sitting next to him. “I apologize, I wasn’t being careful.”

“No worries, I was planning on getting my dress wet anyways.” The woman’s dry tone drew Blade’s eyes up to hers, and she smiled back at him. “Oh, keep looking at me like that and it won’t be the dress I’ll have to worry about drying.”

“My apologies ma’am, you must have me mixed up with someone else.” He stood up to find something to clean up the mess, only for her to stand up as well and immediately press into him. “Ma’am, seriously, I think-”

The woman slumped over, and would’ve hit the floor if not for Blade. He stood her upright and leaned her body onto his, before taking a glance to the bar, which was populated by a wide variety of empty glasses. He sighed.

“There’s uh, a change of clothes in my car. I think.” She whispered in his ear. “Help me there?”

They had just made it out of the bar, Blade dragging along the mysterious woman, before a voice called out to them.

“Hey!” A man stood at the doorway, looking straight at them. “Where do you think you’re going, dragging off a woman after getting her drunk?” 

Blade held up one hand, the other being occupied with the woman next to him. “I don’t want any trouble, she just needs help to her car-”

“I’ll call the cops on you, creep!” The man paced up to them, and tried to pry the limp body away from Blade. Until the body wasn’t so limp anymore. The woman stood up straight upon being grabbed by the arm, turned, and throat chopped the guy within the blink of an eye. He reeled, coughing, before being kicked to the ground. 

Time seemed to stop at that moment. Blade stood there, dumbfounded, as the man lay unconscious. And before he could react, the woman also face planted into the ground. 

The drive home was silent. He had called the barkeep out to take care of the guy, and asked him if he knew anything about the woman. 

“Beats me,” Gallagher had said, as he threw the unconscious man over his shoulders. “She does look familiar though, maybe she’s been on the news? She’s got the face for it.”

He pulled into his driveway and turned off the car. He shook her awake, and she drowsily climbed out of the car and let him drag her inside. He sat her down on the couch, collapsing next to her and allowing himself a moment to rest in the darkness. 

The air shifted then, and as he sat up to wonder why, a hand on his chest gently pushed him back down. In the darkness, she sat over him, her hand against his chest, then his shoulder, and then his neck. Blade took a sharp breath as nails poked at his skin. He reached up instinctively to pull her hand away, pausing midway and instead settling to wrap around her waist. He felt her smile, and her hand retreated to his tie, pulling him into her. Her lips were warm, and the scent of alcohol drifted heavily between them. 

His fingers wandered across her back, gently pulling at clothing until he reached the zipper at the top of her dress. He managed it halfway down before she pushed away from him, the moonlight revealing her mouth gasping for air, her chest rising and falling through a dress that just barely still covered her top half. He reached up to pull it away, but was interrupted by her grabbing his hand. She shook her head, her lips mouthing, You first.