Chapter Text
Written: July 1st - 5th, 2026
Published: July 13th, 2026
I groan loudly while stumbling up the trail behind my friend. They insisted I go hiking with them to get out of my room for a few hours and to work out in a different environment since I don't like the gym. "This is TORTURE! You're TORTURING me!" I whine in despair while leaning against a tree. Wanting to claw my skin off just to feel clean. The sweat and the way it cools when the wind hits is sending my mind into overdrive. Im five seconds from screaming into the void begging for an elder god to end my misery.
"Oh lighten up, babes." He chuckles while looking back to me, holding onto his backpack. It's packed full of nutritious snacks and water. "You'll be clean later, ya big baby." He says before turning back to the trail. I scowl visibly with frustration, having been squeezing my thumb in my fist in a desperate attempt to regulate myself stealthily. Matt is one of the few friends that doesn't know im autistic. I like to keep it that way.. people always fucking baby me after I tell them. It's so fucking irritating. I'm not a goddamn kid. I'm twenty fucking two years old.
I sigh loudly and just follow, holding my soaking wet hair up in a fist to get it to stop dragging across my neck. It feels like razorblades now instead of a tickle when I'm not overstimulated. Gritting my teeth and taking deep breaths to force myself to calm. Knowing I'll be sm embarrassed if I melt down in front of him.
We soon near a suspension bridge that looks VERY sus. It's connecting one side of a huge ravine to the other and looks sketchy. "Nope." I say with a shake of my head, biting the inside of my cheek.
"What now, Belle?" Matt groans with irritation, turning back to look at me. Standing on the bridge already.
"That looks sketchy as fuck Matt. I'm not getting on it." I shake my head vehemently. I've seen enough final destination to know where THIS is going.
"Belle, you're being paranoid. Come on. It's sturdy, see?" He jumps up and down making the whole bridge shake, I wheeze and lunge forward while reaching for him only for him not to fall.. making me look like an idiot. He laughs with a beaming smile at me. Looking handsome as fuck.. the bastard.
"Why do we have to cross it?? Besides it might have a weight limit!!" I say with a whine, feeling self conscious about my body now.
"If Shrek can walk across the lake of lava with Donkey, you and me can cross this." He tell me with a deadpan and I glare. How dare he. Using my love of Shrek against me. "Babe. Come ONNN. Trust me okay? Have I ever let you down before?" He rests his hand on his hip.
"You've been a dink during this fitness shit." I say with deadpan glare at him we became friends at the gym. He saw me struggling to lift and he helped me.
He chuckles with a smile. "But before helping you with your weight loss journey. I've never let you down Babes." He looks me in the eyes and I exhale.
"...fine." I sigh out and he grins, holding his hand out to me. I take it reluctantly, shivering when I feel how slimy it is from his sweat. But it's grounding me right now so I grin and bear it. Gripping it tightly in my hand, he turns and begins to walk. The other half holding the rope.
The both of us slowly begin to walk across the bridge. My heart thundering in my chest. "Don't look down- don't look down-" I sing out while staring up at the pretty clouds. But my mind screams at me to watch my step- "SHREK!! IM LOOKIN DOWN!!!" I squeak while staring at how high up we're, Matt snorts out a laugh, gripping onto the ropes and jostling the bridge and making me grip it tight.
Then thetes a loud creaking noise which makes us stop. "Belle?" He says with furrowed brows. "TURN AROUND!!" He yells just as the ropes snap and we're free falling. I flail around wildly with a scream and Matt holds tight on my hand pulling me close, wrapping his body around mine and using it to cushion the fall. Positioning himself so he's below me, I feel lips press against my head and all I can think of is 'I was right'.. before we hit. My head hitting Matt's and knocking me out.
A scream of agony is what I wake too, or realizing it's coming from me. My entire body hurting as I look around deliriously. I cry out when I see the open unseeing eyes of Matt laying under me, the signs of a weak smile on his face. "Matt- MATT NOOOO!!!" I sob violently trying to turn only to scream in pain again. Crying up into the sky. "WHY DIDN'T YOU LISTENNN!!! MATTT!" I release dry heaving sobs as my body goes into overdrive and pulls me back into unconscious.. except I don't wake up again.
- Third Person POV -
- ??? -
A vibrant Orange cat dressed in a suit and top hat sits lazily on an old mahogany chair, slurping stars from a broken tea cup that looks like it's painted in blood. He smacks his lips with a content smile. "Oh Miss Nesbit you MUST try this tea, the bouquet is exquisite!" The felines says with a haughty British voice, sniffing the tendrils of steam coming off the cup.
It teleports to the seat near him, now wearing a pink dress with a blue hat. A daisy pinned to it. Beautiful golden hair cascading over his shoulders. The cat sniffs the tea and giggles as if it's a woman. "Oh most indubitably, sir Friendsworth!" Wagging their paw towards the seat they just sat in. Slurping up the stars from a pink chipped and cracked cup covered in hearts.
The table covered in thousands of broken porcelain cups extends as far as the eye can see, a deep dark pine forest surrounding it on either side. The sounds of starving animals is heard in the darkness, waiting for someone to stumble inside so they may rip them apart.. on the table sits a few immaculate tea pots. So very few that it seems they're rare.
A tear rips open above the table making the feline enraged. The costume he's wearing tears off and he jumps up onto the table with a snarl. It's pupils each different sizes, now wearing a custom tailored green suit and top hat covered in pins. "YOU DARE INTERRUPT MY TEA PARTY?!??" He shrieks out while pulling on his ears, his claws slicing them to ribbons. The moment he releases them they heal back to normal.
"Apologies for disturbing you, Darjeeling.." Tiamat says with softness, dropping a blue soul from above gaining the crazed cats attention. "One of a pair that just passed through into the pools.. be gentle with it." she tells him calmly, feeling pity for her child. She lets him get away with so much.
Darjeeling as he's known now was once a young man in 1865.. an avid reader and enjoyer of stories when he could get his hands on them. He often borrowed books and traded them around with others who could afford them. Often telling stories by word of mouth... His death wasn't.. glorious. He didn't die in battle. Nor did he die of old age.. he didn't even have his mind when he left the mortal plane... He had suffered illness from the fumes of the hat shop he lived above.. The fumes and toxins got into his mind and turned his brain to mush. Mad Hatters syndrome. But they didn't know that then.. He was thrown in the Looney bin and put in a straight jacket, laughing and playing tea parties by himself to keep his mind alive. He so enjoyed the story of Alice in wonderland.. his fractured mind latched onto the last piece of himself desperately... Darjeeling.. died aspirating his own vomit in the middle of the night. He was found stiff in the morning. He didn't even get a proper burial, just thrown into a mass grave.
Now because of those horrifying years of torture and self isolation.. Darjeeling is as Mad as a Hatter in the afterlife. Forever. It was a miracle he survived his trial when he was stolen from the pools. He got lucky and was given to Hathor who took pity on him.. Allowing him to live through the story of Alice in wonderland. He fell in love with Alice easily.. Hathor is the one who bestowed his name upon him. She told him it was a type of tea and he fell in love with it... He hosts tea parties for all of the cats.. but when he's alone.. he hosts them for himself. And his many personalities.
Darjeeling snatches the soul out of the air, turning it around in his paws while mumbling incoherently to himself. Tiamat takes her leave with swiftness, the tear stitching together in seconds. Jumping off the table and moving to the seat at the head of the table, he sits down and pulls out his tools. He made pottery in his human life...
Transforming the soul into a beautiful pristine teacup, uncaring of the name of the woman. He searches for her interests and plucks one at random. The teacup gains color, images of super heros cover its surface.
Darjeeling grabs one of the few teapots he has and pours gasses and dust into it. Heating it and waiting for it to bloom before filling the cup and letting the tea steep.. thus beginning the trial. "Let's hope you make a wonderful teapot! Ahahha!" He giggles with crazed glee, licking his lips in anticipation for the flavor of tea she'll make with her suffering.
what's Darjeelings trial twist you may ask..? he doesn't give the souls any powers or ways to defend themselves.. but he does give them a starting package so to speak. He's not a complete monster.
- Belle POV -
I gasp loudly while sitting up, a sob leaving my throat as I wrap my arms around my body. I hyperventilate and cry violently into the sheets as my body updates mentally. I DIED. I FUCKING DIED. OH MY GOD- I cry and grieve for Matt, for myself.. for my family.
I stay like that for a few hours until I finally make my way out of the bed. Eyes red and puffy I look around with confusion, finding myself to be in an apartment of some kind. Definitely not my mother's house.. "Where am I..?" I mumble while looking around for any clues.. I must have been transmigrated or reincarnated? Transmigration upon death maybe? I spot something on the coffee table and rush over to it.. it's a pile of envelopes. All labeled with what they contain. Information. My birth certificate, social security- everything I would need to be a citizen of the USA. Even a rental agreement that states I have five months rent already paid for and a bank statement that tells me I have a bunch of cash in my bank. There's.. even a detailed description of what all the moneys from. Like my action figures and trading cards.. all sold and put in my new account. From what I could tell most of my stuff from my life is here.. but most is also gone or downgraded like my computer and phone. Whatever brought me here compensated me for the downgrade! He gave me cash!
"How.." I mumble with confusion until I spot a newspaper at the very bottom of the pile.. News of Tony Stark having returned from being kidnapped on the front of it with a date making my heart drop into my ass. "......oh.." I whisper before standing up and making my way back to my room to have another meltdown. of all the worlds- he MCU??? I would have rather been put in Stitch!
- Fast Forward -
- Two Days Later -
Wrapped up tight in my favorite sensory jacket, a scowl on my face. Having eaten everything in my apartment already so it's either starve or leave.. so I researched and found a grocery store nearby. I'll get what I need and come back. Minimal time outside.
I had a meltdown for an entire day and allowed myself to unmask. To process mentally and figure out a game plan.. Then.. I began to research. I've figured out that I'm after the first Iron Man movie.. so I have some time before the first Avengers movie.. Hulks gotta go nuts and Tony's gotta fight the electro whip guy.. then Thor will appear in Mexico...
So I'm going to be long term prepping. I don't want to get involved with any of their bullshit. I'm a normal fucking human goddamnit. I'm not superhero. I'm not special- well I mean OTHER than the autism I've got nothing going for me except maybe my smarts... I'm going to get a job, work my ass off then buy an apartment with a five year long lease- or outright buy an apartment which is gonna be hard... Or I can get a storage unit and pay five years in advance for when the blip happens.
I mean- of course I want Tony to live. He's one of my favorite characters. He's so fucking funny and always makes me giggle.. but I don't want to poke the bees nest. I want to survive. I know I don't belong in this world.. it's a miracle the TVA hasn't arrived- unless Loki already did his thing.. If I can I will give them the info and let them do what they will with it.. but otherwise I'm staying ten feet away.
I sigh as I step into the grocery store, grabbing a cart and picking up the things I need. Pissed that all the brands have changed except a select few because of brand deals in my world. Great, now I'm gonna have to find new fucking safe foods. I think to myself with anger, when I don't have a safe brand I grab a couple of other brands to experiment with.
Anyway, I don't plan on leaving a mark on this world. No kids. I never wanted kids in the first place but definitely not now.. I'm not sure if my DNA is different or whatever. Maybe I could get some pets? I think with a raised brow, humming at the idea. I'll look around to see if there's a kill shelter nearby.. yeah. That's a good plan. Who needs babys when you have fur babies. I smile to myself with a sigh. There's companionship down. This will be easy... Hopefully.
- Next Day -
- Shelter -
"Hello! How can I help you?" A tired woman behind the counter asks as I step inside. Eyes flicking around and analyzing my surroundings.
"I'm looking for a dog..?" I say anxiously and she raises a brow.
"Okay. Anything-" She goes to begin her speil but I stop her.
"Which ones set to be killed next?" I ask with a raised brow and she pauses.
"Well.. We have a pair that's set to be put down later today.. a dog and cat. Found wandering around together.. they couldn't be separated." She shrugs her shoulders and I nod my head slowly. Oh I love dogs and cats.
"Can I see them?" She nods and steps out behind the counter, opening the door to the loud ass back room that's filled with cages. I grimace at the noise but follow her as she walks down towards the back.
She shows me a cage with a shaggy haired black dog that looks like Sirius' animagus form from Harry Potter. He's laying with a long haired orange cat curled up in its legs. The dogs hair stands up when they see me. "This is them." She gestures to the cage, I step closer and crouch down. Noticing that there's no name stated on the sheet.
"Hi babies.." I say softly with a smile, holding my hand out to the cage. The dog growls slightly but I remain patient, not moving my hand and allowing him to come and sniff me on his terms. "You wanna come home with me?" I ask them both, gauging their reactions by their body language.
"The dogs bitten a few of the volunteers, be careful." She warns me and I wave her off mentally. No such thing as a bad dog unless it's got rabies. He's just scared and unsure. You abducted him from all he's known no doubt.
The cat gets up and stretches, looking at me with a squint. They walk closer and sniff my hand, their tongue flicking out and licking me. I smile at them cheerfully, keeping my squeal from escaping. the feline begins to purr and licks me some more. The dog visibly relaxes, army crawling forward and sniffing my hand more eagerly. "I'll take them." I tell the woman and she's shocked.
"Uh.. okay." She chuckles while scratching her neck and nods. "Come to the front, I'll set up the paperwork."
"Ill see you in a bit, babies." I coo to the animals before getting up and making my way to the front. Filling out all the required forms and paying the adoption fee.
"So, what are you gonna name em?" She asks with curiosity, leaning against the counter.
"Stitch and Lilo." I say with a small smile. Lilo and Stitch is my ultimate comfort series. Whenever I'm feeling overwhelmed I watch that or when it's REALLY bad I watch Bluey. Blue dogs for the WIN.
I buy a small carrier for Lilo to bring her home, accepting a leashed Stitch from the woman happily. "Let's go home babies." I coo to them and the dog pants with excitement, his personality turning to a complete 180 when we get outside.
Companionship acquired. Next step is job. I think happily. Bringing the both of them to a pet store to get the necessities.
- Fast Forward -
- Home -
Letting Stitch off his leash, the canine begins to sniff around eagerly as he explores the apartment. I set the carrier down and open it, Lilo sprints out and hides under the couch. I'll give them a bit to acclimate.. but give them food so they feel comfortable. "Come here, babies. Let's get some food in your bellies."
I walk to the kitchen and grab some canned dog and cat food out of the bag. I empty the contents into two bowls. One is Stitch the other Angel. Setting them on the floor I whistle out and Stitch trots into the room while sniffing the air. "Slops on!" I call out to them with a smirk, setting down a big water dish and stepping back. Watching as Stitch eats some of his food before walking over to the couch. Lilo slides out and follows the dog as they both begin eating. The both of them sharing their food with each other.
Making my way to the couch, I sit down with a sigh. Grabbing my laptop and loading up this world's version of Indeed. I grab the remote and play some of the Lilo and Stitch TV-show. Humming along to the intro music while I look for well paying jobs. I'll need around 500k to out right buy an apartment... And for five years of rent i need 1.5 million.. The rent being 800 a month now.. "Let's just outright buy. It's cheaper." I say with a deep sigh.
I groan and rub my hands over my face. The minimum wage is 7.15 an hour.. if I work eight hours a day I'd get 57 bucks.. id earn about 20k a year with some change.. "Fuck.. I won't make it on minimum wage.. and that's if I don't eat anything or pay bills-" Tears form in my eyes and I hiccup, molten stress flooding my being. "I'd need like- like twenty years to earn enough with that! Ill need- 136 dollars a day to earn enough.. but that would take ten years- which is all the time I have.." I whimper while pulling on my hair. I look around my apartment to my belongings and let out a sigh. "I'll have to sell some stuff.. Use my insider information to buy stock.. that's the best way to get Blip money.." I mumble to myself and load up a stock buying website.
"Stark Industries stock to be precise.." I notice it's down since Tony announced his change from weapons to green energy. "That's what I'll do. I'll sell it before Ultron happens." I exhale loudly and my eyes begin to sparkle with hope. I open my banking app and mentally calculate how much money I'll need for five months of survival and spend the rest on Stark stock along with Apple, Microsoft and other big companies like Nvidia. Most of it being Stark because I know it's a big pay off. "Everything will be okay, Belly Bear." I mumble to myself.
When the Chitauri attack relatively soon I plan on taking everything that's precious and having a vacation at an Airbnb or bed and breakfast out of state. Stitch and Lilo will be ready to roll by that time training wise...