#Evergreen Tracking Container

[lilacmingi]

ORNAMENT ODYSSEY

My works are 14+ ONLY. If you’re under 14 DO NOT interact with me or any of my works. And please don’t spam-like!

Pairing: Santa!Jongho x fem reader

Word count: 10,300

Note: MERRY CHRISTMAS!! This was supposed to be ready yesterday but I got stuck. If anything seems rushed, I’m sorry. I wanted to get this up by Christmas. Anyway this idea came to me in late November. Very last minute haha. Reader finds a strange ornament and after accidentally breaking it, she’s transported to the North Pole where she meets Jongho who doesn’t look anything like the Santa Claus she was told about as a child 👀

A consistent gust of warm air hit your frozen fingers as you tapped them rhythmically against the steering wheel to a Christmas song playing on the radio, your mood had brightened significantly due to your job giving you a full week off for the holidays. You'd just finished your last day of work before the break began and you couldn't wait to get home to take full advantage of your free time. There was so much you could do: catch up on the shows you'd postponed starting, do some last-minute Christmas shopping, bake some delicious holiday treats, or reconnect with your inner child and do some fun festive crafts. There was always the option to do absolutely nothing too.

Your fingers extended, pleased to feel that they'd warmed up under the steady gust of heat from the vents in your vehicle, a small sigh of relief expelling from your lips.

The commute home was an enjoyable one, your tires coming to a slow rolling stop in the driveway, the engine dying out when you pulled the key from the ignition. Shouldering your bag, you stepped out of the car and walked to the mailbox, pulling open the small door to find a newspaper, junk mail, and a Christmas card from a relative. Collecting the items inside, you tucked them under your arm and started towards your house, slowing to a stop when an object on the ground caught your eye, something you didn't notice before you left for work in a rush that morning. You stepped closer to find an ornament at the edge of your yard amidst the blades of dried grass.

"Hm." You hummed, reaching down to pluck the glass sphere from the ground to examine it. Inside was a crystal snowflake that almost seemed to hover in the hollow space inside the little globe. It was mesmerizing and captured your attention for a few seconds as you tried to figure out what sort of string could've been used to create such an illusion. A sudden gust of wintry air passed, breaking your trance and making you wince. Your eyes briefly swept the area, trying to figure out who could've dropped such a stunning holiday ornament and where it came from. For all you knew, it could've fallen out of a passing car or out of a bag someone was carrying down the street, though it's a miracle it didn't break during its drop... wherever it came from.

Clutching the ornament in your free hand, you started towards the front door, unlocking it and stepping inside, shivering from the chilly outdoor air, the heat inside welcoming you like a cozy blanket.

You dropped your mail onto the coffee table along with the peculiar ornament and went to your room to hang up your bag and change into some looser, more comfortable clothes. Your feet, now donning a pair of cozy boots to wear around the house, shuffled back into the living room where you picked up the glass orb containing the crystal snowflake. You'd never seen anything like it before and felt bad for whoever had lost it. Chances of finding that person were slim, as many people drove through your town and tracking down the owner would be almost impossible. Besides, it was just an ornament.

Scanning your fully decorated Christmas tree, you searched for a place to hang the new addition, finding a bare spot near the top part of the artificial evergreen. A tiny grunt left your lips as your arm stretched towards the peak, gently sliding the ornament over a branch, stepping back to admire it.

Just as you went to sit down and begin your well-deserved holiday break, the ornament, having not been hung properly, dropped from the branch, tumbling from limb to limb down the extent of your tree before shattering on the floor, sending broken glass scattering along the hardwood.

Before you could bend down to start cleaning up the mess, the shards and fragments materialized into shimmer that started to slowly swirl around the floor.

"Oh no. Oh no. Oh no." You panicked, stumbling back as a gaping hole started opening up in your living room where the ornament had shattered, a raging swirl of white and icy blue sank into the floor and created a tunnel going far beyond your comprehension.

How was this happening?

You tried scrambling away, but a gust of wind started pulling you towards the pit. The speed at which the portal opened was too fast for your retreating movements and a scream ripped from your throat when you fell down into the floor, practically being sucked in.

A blur of blue and white moved past your line of vision, making your head throb. It was too much for you; the sensation of plummeting paired with your panic and the disorienting colors was so overwhelming that you began feeling faint. Your throat burned from the abrasive scream that came out and your chest ached from how violently your heart rammed against it. A feeling of lethargy hit you like a ton of bricks as you made your descent, your eyelids becoming heavy. You were about to pass out. The battle to keep your eyes open was lost in a single second, your body shutting down completely from shock.

You groaned softly as you slipped back into consciousness, the feeling of velvet under your fingers and an ache in your back that made you wince. Every limb felt like lead, weighing you down, your muscles riddled with weakness. As soon as your eyes cracked open, you were met with a flash of vibrant red underneath you, your head tilting down to find that you were laid across a couch—a red one.

What happened?

You blinked the spots out of your vision, catching sight of a pair of glossy black loafers attached to the legs of someone standing by the couch. Your eyes following up the body of whoever was watching you.

The man that stood before you was clad in a crisp red suit with a white dress shirt underneath. His black bangs were tousled lightly along his forehead, his soft chocolatey eyes gazing down at you, head tilted slightly.

"Well, hello." He greeted, his voice smooth like silk.

"Who are you?" You asked, sitting upright and rubbing your head.

"Jongho, but most know me as Santa."

You blinked incredulously, brows furrowed.

"I'm sorry? Santa?"

"Yep."

"But Santa is—"

"Fat? Old?" He finished for you.

You nodded, feeling a little sheepish.

He merely chuckled, not bothered by your assumption. "You don't think one Santa can take care of the whole world, do you?"

"That's... how the story goes."

Jongho chuckled heartily. "No. There's Santas all around." He gesticulated in the air.

"Where am I?"

"The North Pole, or at least my personal North Pole. There's multiple of those too."

You shook your head, letting out a huff of disbelief. "No. That's not possible."

"Why? Don't believe in Santa?"

"Not since I was a kid."

"Ah, so you're too old for those kinds of things, is that it, Y/n?"

Your brows furrowed. "How do you know my name?"

"Santa knows everyone's names." He responded simply.

"This can't be real. I've hit my head or something."

"I had you checked out. You have no signs of any head injuries."

"Then I'm dreaming."

"You're not dreaming. You landed here through a portal. How? Humans aren't supposed to have access to this realm."

A portal.

Your mind had finally cleared enough to recall the last thing that happened before you blacked out.

"An ornament."

Jongho's expression shifted into a more serious one, letting you know that what you said held significance. "What kind of ornament?"

"A glass one."

"With a crystal snowflake inside?" He added.

"Y-yes. How'd you know?"

Jongho sighed, moving over to his desk, pulling out a notebook, flipping through sheets of paper, his finger dragging down what you assumed was a list. He closed the notebook with a sharp snap and reached for a glossy green announcement microphone on his desk, pulling it over to speak into it.

"I need to see San and Wooyoung in my office."

You looked to Jongho for answers to unasked questions.

Moments later, the frosted glass door to the room opened up and two men donning green button down silk shirts and black pants stepped inside, each one with a noticeable set of pointed ears.

Elves?

The one with glossy black hair styled into a mullet turned to look at you, his eyes widening. The man beside him with shorter black hair leaned forward a bit to peer past his companion at you.

"Oh. Hello."

"San." Jongho spoke up, causing the second elf to stand upright.

"Yes?"

"I want you both to tell me what happened yesterday."

The duo shared a puzzled expression.

"Our job?" The one named San responded.

"You two went to scope out a neighborhood yesterday. What happened?"

They both stiffened at the tone in their boss' voice. They knew when he meant business.

"We went to count houses and figure out the best places for you to land on the big night." Wooyoung spoke up. "That's it."

"You dropped your ornament." Jongho stated.

San turned to Wooyoung with an expression of frustration, his brows creased so intensely that two lines became visible between his eyes.

"I told him we needed to go, but Wooyoung just had to do a few tricks."

"I didn't know it fell!" The other elf argued.

"Well, it did and look what happened." Jongho gestured to you.

All you could do was stare, shifting uncomfortably on the velvet couch after being the center of attention.

"She was found lying in the snow right inside the entry gates." Jongho explained further.

"I'm sorry." Wooyoung apologized. "I tried looking for it before we left, but I couldn't find it. It was too dark out."

"Yeah and I had to use mine to get us back home." San added, glaring at him.

A prolonged silence stretched out across the room before you broke it.

"You can get me back home though... right?" You looked back and forth between the three of them, your eyes landing on Jongho for a response.

San and Wooyoung's expressions said it all before Jongho even uttered a word. Getting you home wouldn't be an easy task.

"I'm sorry. Each elf gets one ornament to transport them back here after they're done scoping the neighborhood. There are no extras."

Your expression fell at Jongho's explanation.

"Surely there's another way. What if one of your elves loses one like last night?"

"That's why everyone goes in pairs, so there's a backup."

"And we have watches as a last resort!" San piped up, showing off the futuristic-looking tech strapped to his wrist. "We can call headquarters and have them bring us in."

"Couldn't you do that for me?" You turned to Jongho. "Y'know, get someone to open up the portal and get me back?"

"It doesn't work that way. If you want to return home, you'll have to wait until Christmas Eve. The portal can be opened when I make my rounds and I can take you back home then."

"But that's al most a week away!" You exclaimed.

Wooyoung opened his mouth to say something, earning a sharp warning glare from Jongho that caused him to stay silent. This went unnoticed by you.

"I know it's not ideal, but look on the bright side." Jongho stated. "You get to spend Christmas week at the North Pole. Not many people can say that."

Not ideal indeed, but he had a point. Of course you were bummed about the circumstances you found yourself in, but there wasn't anything that could be done. You were stuck there.

"Let me get your sleeping arrangements in order." Jongho reached for the green announcement mic again, speaking into it. "Yeosang, I need you in my office, please." He pulled away and turned to address you. "There's a cabin by the workshop that you can stay in for the week."

This was all so much to take in: Santa, elves, the North Pole, the fact that you were going to be stuck there. All you could manage was a nod in response. What else were you supposed to do? You didn't have a choice but to accept your circumstances.

The soft click of the door to the office announced the presence of who you assumed was Yeosang. He donned the same silk green shirt as San and Wooyoung and a set of pointed ears stuck out from his brown hair.

"You wanted to see me?" His voice was smooth and deeper than you would've assumed just based on his appearance.

"Could you take our special guest to the empty cabin next door?" Jongho gestured to you, Yeosang's eyes following.

"Oh." He blinked, visibly taken aback by the presence of a human at the North Pole. "Of course. Follow me."

You got to your feet and walked over, the fatigue in your limbs still present from losing consciousness earlier. You did your best to shake it off, quietly passing Jongho and the two elves whose eyes followed you all the way to the door.

A look of awe crossed your features as soon as you stepped outside the office, your hands coming to rest on the railing of the second floor overlooking the scene below. Before you was a vast workshop filled with stations and machines, the layered sounds of assembling floating in the air as hundreds of elves worked to create and wrap gifts.

"This... is real?" You breathed out in disbelief.

"It is." Yeosang confirmed. "Must be hard to wrap your head around since you're an adult."

You blinked a few times, even reached over to pinch your arm only to flinch when a sharp jolt of pain ran up it.

"It is, but it's also everything I dreamed about as a kid."

Yeosang smiled warmly, starting down the steps. "If you think that's cool, you should see the cabin you'll be staying in."

"Why'd you tell her you couldn't get her back home until Christmas Eve?" Wooyoung asked after you were escorted out of the room.

"If you say one word, you're in the stables for a week." Jongho pointed.

"Those hay bails are so uncomfortable though." The elf whined.

"I meant cleaning the stables, Wooyoung. Not sleeping in them."

"That's even worse!"

The snow crunching under yours and Yeosang's shoes was the only sound between the both of you as you stepped out of the noisy workshop and onto the wintry terrain. The little village that greeted you was like something right out of a Christmas movie and even more proof that what you were experiencing was very much real. Cabins and even small businesses lined the snow-covered street with lampposts covered in garland.

"What's your name?" He spoke up.

"Y/n."

"I'm Yeosang, Jongho's assistant of sorts."

"You don't build toys?" You asked jokingly in an attempt to ease some of the anxiousness you felt.

That earned a small chuckle from him. "No. I just make sure things are going smoothly in the workshop and help Jongho if he ever needs me."

"I honestly expected kids."

"Kids?" Yeosang chuckled melodically. "Kids can't do heavy lifting."

"Right." You huffed out a little laugh, realizing your perception of elves and the North Pole was extremely warped by films and stories.

"So how did you end up here? I'm assuming it had something to do with San and Wooyoung."

"Yeah." You sighed out. "I found one of their magic ornament things and put it on my tree, but it fell off and broke."

"Ah." He nodded knowingly. "Well, there isn't a better place you could've ended up. Jongho will make sure you're taken care of." He gave you a sincere smile, his gaze lifting. "Here we are."

Sitting before you was a cozy-looking cabin that was similar to the others in the area, a wreath with an empty wooden sign in the middle hung on the front door. As soon as you stepped foot on the stone landing, your name was etched into as if by magic.

The gasp that left you made Yeosang laugh softly. "Pretty cool, right?"

"Very cool." You murmured, your fingers tracing over the letters of your name carved seamlessly into the small sign.

"Well, take a look." Yeosang gestured.

You reached a tentative hand towards the doorknob and pushed it open.

Stepping into the cabin was like entering a warm blanket, a Christmassy one that smelled like peppermint. Every inch of the living area was covered in holiday decor, there was even a tree dotted with stunning ornaments, unfortunately none that could get you back home, you assumed. You turned to look at the elf standing in the front doorway, the wonder evident on your features.

"I'll let you get settled." He bid you farewell and stepped back outside, closing the door behind him.

The crackling of the fireplace filled the area as you moved down the hall to the bedroom, which was equally as covered in Christmas cheer, even the bed had a holiday theme with a fluffy red comforter and throw pillows to match. Taking slow steps towards the window, you gazed out at the fantasy-like village below, your attention drifting from the small businesses and cabins to the workshop that stood proudly at the end of the township. Your accommodation was located beside it and from your bedroom, you had a clear view of the round window on the second floor of the large shop—Jongho's office.

Knowing he had a view of your little cabin gave you a sense of security and you were certain he'd assigned it to you for a reason.

You stepped away from the window and decided to check out your room for the week, opening up the closet to find it filled with garments. Your fingers flicked through each one as you checked the tags, they were all your size. Even the three pairs of shoes lined along the floor of the closet were your size.

"Woah." You breathed out in awe.

The clothes inside varied in style, most of them being sweaters—cute ones too. Part of you expected overly festive holiday sweaters, but these were tasteful. You were even provided with a couple sets of red silk pajamas, one long sleeved with pants and the other short sleeved with shorts.

In the bathroom was a toothbrush, toothpaste, and all the amenities you might need. The cabin was fully-equipped, it seemed.

You left your temporary abode shortly after getting a look around and ventured out into the little village, figuring if you were going to be stuck there, you might as well look around and somewhat familiarize yourself with the place.

You'd thrown on a jacket provided in the closet of your cabin, relishing in the warmth it brought when you braved the elements. Snow had started to fall from the overcast sky above, the clouds sending down small flurries that fluttered down onto the white-blanketed ground.

The quaint elf village had everything: a cafe, a few clothing stores, and even a grocery store. There was much to check out and you weren't sure where to start.

After some contemplation, you decided to pop inside the cafe and see what kinds of goodies were sold at the North Pole. As soon as the door opened, you were greeted by a mixture of various aromas, all of which were pleasant to your olfactory sense: freshly-baked goods, sweets, and warm beverages.

An elf bustled about behind the counter, pausing long enough to ask, "Can I get something for you?"

"I'm just looking." As soon as the words left your mouth, she spun back around and proceeded with whatever task she was doing.

Two large wooden signs hung from the ceiling with a list of what was served there. The categories ranged from savory baked goods to sweets and warm drinks. Unfortunately, you still weren't feeling the best after your little blackout, so you weren't in the mood for anything, but you made a mental note to try it out before your stay came to an end.

You received a couple stares from the few elves sitting in the cafe, probably on break from the workshop, but you didn't pay any mind to it, knowing they more than likely weren't used to humans wandering around the North Pole. Still, you were grateful no one questioned it. Part of you felt bad for Wooyoung, not wanting to spread word of his blunder that caused you to end up there.

After browsing the cafe, you headed out and meandered down the street to peer at the windows displaying different merchandise. If not for the occasional elf passing by, you would've assumed this was a normal town based on its appearance. It had just about every shop your own town had, there was even a post office, most likely only for mail to Jongho since many kids often wrote letters to Santa.

Exploring the festive borough was almost therapeutic, wether that was the visuals of it or the atmosphere, you weren't sure, but once it started getting dark, you retired to your cabin.

You prepared to turn in for the night, donning the pajamas that suited you best at the moment, sliding under the sheets and snuggling into the mattress.

The bed was cozy and cloud-like, but you couldn't sleep. The thoughts in your mind spun around like a blizzard and no matter how hard you tried, you couldn't seem to settle in. Though you'd somewhat come to terms with your situation and accepted the fact that everything you thought was fiction was a reality, your body didn't seem to cooperate and you found yourself unable to relax in the unfamiliar environment.

Shuffling along the snow-covered streets of the North Pole village, you made your way into the massive workshop where hundreds of elves were hard at work. Tugging your jacket closer to your body, you made your way up the staircase to Jongho's office, knocking tentatively on the frosted glass door.

"Come in."

The door clicked softly when you opened it, stepping into the room you had woken up in earlier.

"Y/n." You didn't miss the way Jongho's face lit up a bit at your presence.

"Hey." You greeted.

"Can't sleep?"

You shook your head, moving over to sit on the velvet couch, watching Jongho scan a long list that spilled off the side of his desk and went across the floor.

"Sorry if I caught you at a bad time."

"No, no." He looked over at you with a gentle smile of reassurance, grabbing a small sticky tab to mark his place on the list. "I'm just checking it twice. Though I'll have to check it again the night before Christmas Eve. The list is always changing." He turned his chair towards you, giving you his full attention. "How did you like the cabin? Was it satisfactory?"

"It's more than satisfactory, but how'd you personalize it for me?" You asked.

Jongho chuckled softly. "It's magic. As soon as you step foot in the entryway, the house fills with what you need."

Your eyes widened a bit in awe, feeling something akin to childlike wonder spark in your chest. At first, you were in shock about everything, unable to process it all, but you were beginning to accept the reality. The fact that the stories you heard as a child were true would be jarring to just about anyone.

"You know what helps me when I can't sleep?" Jongho asked with a faint grin. "Hot cocoa."

A slightly amused smile tugged at the corner of your lips. That did sound nice and sometimes a warm beverage helped when insomnia was at its worst.

"Would you like to get some?" He offered.

"I'd love some."

Jongho offered you his hand and helped you off the couch, guiding you out of his office. It was after 1 AM, but the elves were working hard, doing preparations for the big night.

"Did you get a chance to check out the village?" Jongho asked while descending the stairs.

"A little bit. I stopped in the cafe."

"And what did you think?"

"It's more normal than I thought. As for the cafe, I didn't really have an appetite at the time, but everything looked really good. Is that where we're going for cocoa?"

"Nope." Jongho had an unreadable expression on his face, but it almost felt like smug excitement.

His eyes drifted over to the lines of workstations as you passed, craning his neck to briefly examine the handiwork of the elves tinkering away and assembling different things.

"Do you ever rest?" You asked out of curiosity.

He chuckled. "I do. My living quarters are over there," He gestured upstairs to a red door with a silver J on it, located just a short distance from his office. "but when Christmas is near, I often stay up into the night making sure everything is running smoothly."

You let out a low whistle, impressed by his commitment, though someone in a position like him had to be committed to what they did or else things would go awry.

"It makes so much sense that there's multiple Santa Clauses around the world. One guy doing the whole job seems impossible."

"It is. If I had to supervise everything and deliver presents to the entire world, I don't think I'd ever be able to rest." He sighed out, running a hand through his shiny black hair. "I don't know how the story ended up being told that way. One guy? Please." He scoffed.

You chuckled, following Jongho into a breakroom of sorts with tables and a wall of what looked to be coffee machines.

"Here's where the magic happens." He grinned, walking over to grab a couple clear glass mugs.

You observed him while he got to work, preparing two machines and sliding the mugs into place. A hissing sound rang out and the cocoa started pouring out into each cup, filling them both perfectly. Jongho took the drinks and relocated to a section of the counter where jars with various toppings were lined up. He scooped out some chocolate curls, putting a small spoonful into each mug, then reached into a nearby fridge to grab a can of whipped cream, spraying a layer over the top of the cocoa, and finally topped each one with more chocolate curls.

"Candy cane?" He offered, gesturing to a cluster in one of the jars.

"Yes please."

He took two and placed one into each mug, handing yours over. "Voila."

You smiled down at the drink as the warmth from it seeped into your palms.

"The extra chocolate curls make it better and I add extra scoops of cocoa." Jongho winked, the gesture making something stir within you. "Don't tell anyone working at the cafe, but I make the best hot chocolate around here."

The smile on your face grew and you brought the beverage up to your lips, taking a small sip of it. The sweet, warm liquid awakened your tastebuds and summoned a sensation you hadn't felt since you were a kid. You had plenty of hot chocolates in the past years but none of them were able to give you that feeling that Christmas brought on when you were a child.

Jongho's boba-like eyes stared at you expectantly, waiting to hear your opinion.

"The only word I can use to describe it is delightful."

"Delightful." He echoed with a proud smile. "I like that."

The both of you returned to his office, sitting on the couch together to enjoy your hot chocolate.

"Do you like the pajamas?" Jongho spoke up.

"Mhm. I like that I got two options. Very thoughtful."

"Good. I want everything to be perfect for you since you're stuck here for a week."

"I'm starting to think it won't be so bad." A soft smile settled onto your lips. "It still doesn't exactly feel real though—being here, I mean."

He nodded in silent understanding, though he was glad you were beginning to get comfortable at the North Pole, except for the fact that you couldn't sleep.

"I'm curious. You said the naughty and nice lists change, does that mean a child can be switched to another one at the last minute?"

"It does. That's why I check one last time a couple hours before takeoff. I want to make sure every nice child gets presents."

"You love what you do, don't you?"

Jongho's face lit up and he nodded. "Bringing joy to children is my whole life."

There was something about the way he spoke with such passion and conviction that let you know being a Santa was his purpose in life.

"By the way, I hope Wooyoung didn't get scolded too much for losing his ornament." You mentioned after a beat of silence.

Jongho found it sweet that you were concerned about someone you didn't even know. "Just a little scolding, that's all."

Comfortable chit chat was exchanged between you and the handsome Santa while you sipped on your hot chocolate, pleased to find that it was working to make you drowsy.

Once your mug was empty, Jongho escorted you back to your cabin, wishing you goodnight and a restful sleep.

"If you need anything, don't hesitate to come ask."

The following day of your North Pole stay, you were inside your cozy Christmas cabin, enjoying the warmth of the fireplace when you heard a knock on the door. Jongho was the last person you expected to see, but there he stood, looking handsome as ever. He was in his usual red suit ensemble, but donned a matching puffer coat with white fur around the hood, which you thought was very fitting for him.

"What are you doing here?" You asked.

"I wanted to take you somewhere."

"Take me somewhere? Aren't you busy?"

"Not at the moment, no. Yeosang is monitoring the workshop and he'll let me know if anything is wrong."

"Okay, well, let me get some shoes on and grab a jacket."

You settled on a pair of warm boots and shrugged on your coat, heading out the door with Jongho.

"So, do I get to know where it is you're taking me or is it a surprise?"

"What do you think?" He turned to you with a cheeky grin that said it all.

All you did was nod, holding back a little smile as you walked with him down the snow-covered streets.

"Are you hungry?" He asked.

"A little."

"Maybe we could swing by the cafe before heading to our destination."

"That'd be great."

The cafe smelled even more welcoming than the first time you stepped through its doors. The aroma of cinnamon, warm vanilla, and coffee wafted in the air and wrapped around you like a comforting hug.

"Anything you'd like to try?" Jongho asked.

"I don't know. It all looks so good." You murmured contemplatively, peering through the glass of the display case at the array of baked goods.

"I recommend this one." Jongho offered up an option, gesturing to his item of choice which was some sort of muffin. "I get it often."

"In that case, I think I'll try it."

He approached the counter and ordered two, handing over some money to the elf working there, the same one from the day before who was so busy. He said something to her, but you were immersed in reading the little signs displayed with the baked goods inside the glass case.

The muffin was warm in your palms, still holding heat from being in the oven. It made your mouth water. Jongho turned towards you with an expectant expression on his face.

You took that as your cue to have a bite of the fluffy muffin, humming enthusiastically at the flavor of it.

"It's good, right?" He grinned.

You nodded, following him over to a small circular table for two by one of the large glass windows of the cafe.

"Did you sleep well last night?"

"I did." You nodded happily. "That cocoa did wonders. I went right to sleep."

"I'm glad to hear it. You seem to be having a good time here so far, by the way." Jongho mentioned.

"I am, even though today is my first full day here. I feel like I'm in a Christmas movie."

He grinned, visibly pleased to hear that, especially since he was feeling a little guilty for being selfish and lying about getting you back home.

"Do you ever wish you had a change in environment?" You asked. "A place that isn't covered in snow all the time?"

"Not really." He shrugged. "Besides, on Christmas Eve I get to fly around the country and see different places. That's enough for me."

"So you really like it here?"

"I do. It's my home, after all." He smiled fondly, his warm brown eyes gazing out at the streets beyond the windowpane.

Your attention drifted from the tenderness in his eyes to the slight curve of his button nose and the shape of his slightly pouty lips. He was handsome, that much was obvious from day one, but only now were you really drinking him in. There was a boyish charm about him and yet he was very clearly a grown man.

"You should eat the rest of your muffin before it gets cold." He commented without glancing your way. "It's best when it's warm."

You stiffened and could feel the burn of embarrassment creeping up your cheeks. He'd somehow seen you staring.

Without uttering a single word, you took another bite of your baked treat, your eyes flickering up long enough to see the faintest hint of a smirk playing at Jongho's pretty lips.

A chilly gust of air hit your cheeks when you stepped out of the cafe, having had a little snack before heading to your intended destination.

"Not used to the cold of the North Pole?" Jongho inquired with a slightly sly grin.

"It's just a shock to the system after being inside the toasty cafe." You responded with a barely restrained smile, following Jongho through the snow, heading back towards the workshop.

You asked no questions and trailed alongside him as he made his way to a building located near the back of the giant shop. As you got closer you realized the structure was a stable, your eyes widening a little in realization.

"No way." You couldn't mask the excitement in your tone.

Jongho grinned. "Yes way. I wanted to give you the best North Pole experience and I thought what better way than to let you see the reindeer?"

"I can't believe this is happening." You came to a brief halt just outside the front doors. "Is Rudolph real?"

Jongho's lips quirked up a bit at your question. "He is."

The disbelief and elation on your face was enough to make his pulse skyrocket. Seeing you so enthusiastic about the place he called home was only making his feelings for you grow, not that he minded that.

"Rudolph is a total legend." You whispered out in awe.

"Don't let him hear you say that. He'll get a big head about it." Jongho chuckled. "He's got quite the ego, what with the whole song and movie about him."

Without thinking, he took your hand and guided you into the stable, your heart beating a little faster at his touch.

Nine reindeer in exceptionally clean enclosures were lined up inside the surprisingly spacious building. On the wooden door of each little stable was the reindeer's name, carved neatly into a sign. All you could do was stand there and stare in shock and awe.

"You can pet them if you'd like."

At Jongho's words, you tentatively approached the nearest stable—Prancer's. The reindeer was chewing on a mouthful of hay as you brought your hand up to rub the top of his head. You couldn't believe it, you were actually petting one of Santa's reindeer.

"Are they well-behaved?" You asked, moving to gently rub Prancer's ear, to which he started tilting his head in appreciation.

"They certainly are." Jongho's posture straightened up pridefully at his statement before he approached Comet's stable beside you, pulling out a carrot to feed him.

You watched Jongho grinning adoringly at the reindeer, murmuring things to him while rubbing on his jaw lovingly. In turn, Comet raised his head to rub his nose against the side of Jongho's face, eliciting the most heart-melting giggles you'd ever heard. The way his eyes crinkled up made butterflies erupt in your stomach; his gummy smile and cute little teeth only adding to the intense fuzzy emotions in your chest.

"Here."

Your gaze drifted to the carrot Jongho held out towards you. You took it and started feeding it to Prancer, who ditched the hay immediately when presented with the crunchy orange vegetable.

"If you're one of many Santas, does that mean there's multiple reindeer with the same names?"

Jongho hummed and gave a nod. "Each country has their own Santa and thus their own reindeer."

Every bit of information was being soaked up by you like a sponge. It was so intriguing to find out about such magical things.

"How are there multiple Rudolphs?" You questioned.

"Well," Jongho turned to look at the stall with said reindeer's name on it. "that one over there is Rudolph Jr. Jr. Jr. Jr., well, you get it."

One by one, you went down the line and stopped to give attention to each reindeer, Jongho handing you a carrot every so often to feed them. Finally, you made it to the most famous of them all. You tried to contain your excitement, but your expression said it all—you were so giddy. Rudolph's red nose glowed softly as you gave him some scratches around his ear. He bobbed his head enthusiastically like a horse would, rubbing his nose against your cheek, causing you to giggle.

"He likes you." Jongho commented with a grin, passing a carrot over.

You fed the vegetable to the reindeer who munched on it happily.

"Do you come out here to spend time with them often?"

"Every day." Jongho smiled softly. "Even if all I do is feed them. On Christmas they usually get a special treat for doing so well."

"Just out of curiosity, they don't actually eat dry oats and glitter, do they? You know, the 'reindeer food' that kids mix up at school to sprinkle in their yards on Christmas Eve?"

"Oh absolutely. They love that."

"Are you serious? For real?"

"Are you kidding me? No." Jongho burst out into loud laughter. "They don't eat glitter."

The deadpan expression on your face only made him clutch his stomach, doubling over slightly.

"That's not funny."

"It is." He managed to utter through cackles.

Embarrassment flooded through you at your own gullibility. Then again, how were you supposed to know? You just found out yesterday that Santa Claus and elves existed.

"Seriously, you can't just do that."

Jongho had to brace himself on the wooden railing of the reindeer pen as he laughed even harder. All you could do was stand by and watch with crossed arms. Finally, he let out a dramatic exhale and stood upright, wiping his eyes.

"I can't believe I got you with that one."

"You're horrible." You huffed.

"I just wanted to mess with you." He gave your head a single pat. "No harm, no foul."

"There was harm to my dignity."

He let out a laugh. "You're funny."

The sound of jingle bells emitted from an unknown location, interrupting the moment. The sound alerted Jongho and he raised his wrist, pulling his sleeve down to glance at a watch exactly like the one San showed off yesterday.

"Ah. Yeosang needs me. One of our machines is glitching." He ran a hand through his hair. "I can walk you back to your cabin if you'd like or you can watch me do boring stuff like repair a machine."

Part of you didn't want your time with Jongho to end so soon, besides, mechanical work at Santa's workshop couldn't possibly be boring.

"I think I'd like to watch you save the day."

A smile crept onto Jongho's face. "Alright then. Follow me."

You shuffled into the cafe, curious to see what was available that day, not that you were planning on buying anything. You didn't have any money with you. If you'd known you were going to be sucked into a magical portal to the North Pole, you would've grabbed your wallet first.

"Can I get you anything?" The female elf behind the counter asked.

"No thank you. I don't have any money." You admitted embarrassingly.

"That's not a problem. If you want something, just let me know."

"I don't understand." You huffed out an awkward half-chuckle.

"Jongho said to give you anything you wanted."

The expression on your face shifted, your brows lifting and eyes widening.

"He did? Are you sure?"

"Positive. Yesterday when you two were in here he told me."

It took a moment for you to formulate a response. Jongho was the one that called the shots around here, so you knew you wouldn't be able to dispute.

"I'll have one of those muffins from yesterday, please. I'd also like one hot chocolate if that's okay."

She flashed a friendly smile. "I'll get that for you right away."

Your muffin and coffee was handed over. In response, you thanked the worker and told her she was doing a wonderful job, feeling like you needed to provide something in exchange for free food, even if it was just a few positive words.

You sat by the window, at the same table you were at with Jongho. The muffin was just as delicious as it was yesterday, the hot chocolate was good too, but Jongho was right when he said he makes the best cocoa.

After a warm treat at the cafe, you meandered towards the workshop. The past couple days of your stay was mostly spent in Jongho's office since you felt the most comfortable around him. Perhaps it was the fact that he was a Santa and just exuded a friendly energy, or maybe you genuinely trusted him simply for his personality rather than his title. In your heart, you felt it was the latter. He was kind, funny, and attentive despite his busy schedule.

Whenever you weren't at the workshop, Jongho often peeked out his window at the front of his office, having a clear view of your cabin. He'd catch glimpses of you walking around inside or even standing by your bedroom window to gaze at the town.

Something warm and foreign had made its home in Jongho's chest and it stirred whenever you were around. That feeling started the day you arrived and he'd spent far too long staring at you while you laid unconscious on his office couch. It might've been creepy, but he hadn't seen another human at the North Pole ever, so of course he was intrigued, perhaps even entranced.

Jongho abruptly got to his feet and headed towards the door to his office, surprised to find you standing outside when he opened it.

"Y/n."

"Did I catch you at a bad time?" You asked.

"No. I was actually going to look for you."

"You were? Why for?"

"I wanted to take you on the snowmobile."

"You have a snowmobile?"

"Of course I do." Jongho chuckled. "I've gotta find some way to entertain myself while on vacation. You wanna go check it out?"

You nodded eagerly.

Jongho abandoned his office and led you through the workshop towards the garage where his sleigh and snowmobiles were parked.

"I went to the cafe today." You mentioned, heading down a hallway.

"Did you?"

"I did and the girl working there told me you said I could have whatever I wanted."

"Is that a problem?"

"No. I was just surprised."

"You ended up here because of one of my elves' mistakes, it's up to me to make sure you have the best time here."

The conversation was forgotten immediately upon seeing the magnificent ruby sleigh sitting in the middle of the garage. Your jaw fell open at the wondrous sight.

"There it is." You breathed out, admiring the intricate gold swirls on the side.

Jongho grinned and gave the massive sleigh a pat on the side. "She's a beaut. Never steered me wrong."

"I know I'll get a chance to sit in it in a few days, but may I?" You gestured.

"Knock yourself out."

A small gasp of joy escaped you and you hopped up in the sleigh, gaping at the control panel.

"I wasn't expecting so much technology."

"Well, there's a gps, digital maps to show the layout of everyone's homes, and even a list showing which child gets their next present. All that info gets sent right there from E Tech." He pointed to the two small screens on the control panel. "It's very advanced."

"Wow." Your fingertips brushed over the silver controls, marveling at the screens. "What's E Tech?"

"Elf Tech." Jongho clarified. "Our communications hub in the workshop. The elves there help me make sure I'm on the right track."

You climbed out of the massive sleigh, dropping down beside Jongho.

"You ready for the snowmobile now?"

You nodded, zipping up your coat in preparation. He grinned and snatched a set of keys from a compartment on the wall, along with two pairs of goggles, sitting astride the seat. You slid in behind him, your arms wrapping around his waist, the closeness making you feel warm inside. He passed one pair of goggles to you, letting you slide them on before he did so himself.

"Hold on tight. Don't want you falling off."

At his words, you squeezed him more securely as a precaution, the engine on the snowmobile thrumming to life.

The motor vehicle was driven out of the large garage and out into the snowy terrain. Just outside was wide open space coated in a white blanket, giving Jongho plenty of area for taking off in his sleigh on Christmas Eve. The snowmobile thrust forward and tore through the fluffy snow-covered ground. A little squeal of both surprise and joy slipped out while you pressed your cheek into Jongho's back. He laughed and accelerated, moving even faster, stirring up snow chunks in the process.

You lifted your head, peeking over his shoulder, the icy air blasting your cheeks. Flurries flew by, landing in both yours and Jongho's hair, dotting your heads in tiny white clusters. He cut the steering handles sharply, forcing the vehicle to turn and a yelp to leave your lips. Gleeful laughter emitted from Jongho, who seemed to be enjoying your reactions immensely, trying to pull more startled sounds from you by speeding up and riding over small hills.

"I'm not scaring you, am I?" He asked.

"No." You laughed, your vice-like hold on him getting tighter while you nestled your face at the junction between his neck and shoulder. The faint but warm scent of sugary cookies hit your senses, mixing with the icy air. It took a moment for you to register that the aroma was coming from Jongho. He smelled like freshly-baked cookies. For some reason that little detail was endearing and made your heart soar with adoration. Without making it obvious, you nuzzled a little closer to enjoy more of it.

Jongho was elated to see you becoming accustomed to the North Pole, now knowing your way around fairly well after four days. Though the village wasn't all that big, he was still happy. You'd taken to the streets on your own to peruse the shops and stop by the cafe again. Naturally, Jongho snuck a peek out his office window as you left the workshop and strolled down the wide path through town.

"Hey, boss."

Jongho spun around at the sound of San's voice. "Yes?"

"Wooyoung and I scoped out the Gyeonggi province last night. It's the last one we had, so you're all set for Christmas Eve." He mentioned. "We dropped papers off to E Tech earlier and they're programming the info into the system for the sleigh. Just wanted to let you know."

"Thanks." Jongho gave a small smile. "Wooyoung didn't wanna help you deliver this message?"

"He thinks you're still mad for screwing up, so he just sent me."

"I'm not mad at him, I just want him to be more careful."

"I made sure of that last night. No more aerial tricks."

"Good." Jongho nodded. "Thanks again for the update."

San gave a nod accompanied with a dimpled smile before heading towards the door. His strides came to a halt as his hand rested on the knob. "How's the girl?"

"Y/n? She's fine." Jongho turned to face the window again, the hint of a smile playing at his lips. "Much better than I thought actually. She seems to be having a good time here."

San's grin grew wider. "That's great to hear."

With that, the elf exited the room, leaving Jongho to himself.

Things were getting busy at the workshop and you'd just left Jongho's office to make a trip to the break room for hot chocolate, which you'd been having often, making it exactly how Jongho had the first night you were there.

Yeosang stood by Jongho's desk to go over a list of tasks that had been completed so far, as Christmas was approaching fast. As soon as the door closed behind you, the man in charge started skimming over a stack of papers on his desk, not seeing the expression his assistant had made when you left, his eyes darting between the office door and the boss.

Without looking up from his paperwork, Jongho spoke, "Do you have something to say, Yeosang?"

The elf got a little sheepish at being caught without even being looked at, but Jongho was very perceptive.

"Nothing." He brushed it off. "I should go over this list with you."

"If you have something to say, you should say it." He raised his head and looked over at his assistant.

Yeosang was hesitant to speak, but did so anyway after a moment of silence. "I see the way you look at her, the way you act when she's around."

Jongho's eyebrows furrowed a bit.

"Your whole face lights up and your gaze follows her out the door every time she leaves. I can tell you like her." Yeosang continued.

Jongho pressed his lips together in response to his assistant's observation, which was true.

"Every Santa needs his Mrs. Claus." The elf added quietly.

Those final words seared themselves into Jongho's head. Yeosang was right. He never thought he needed anyone by his side, but after having you in his life, albeit briefly, he was learning that having some company was nice. Jongho had never considered a partner. He'd always been so focused on his job. Focused on making sure everything was on schedule. In all his decades of being a Santa, he never once thought about finding someone to spend his free time with, but Jongho had been selfish, he knew he had. He was keeping you there and withholding information from you for his own desires. There was just something about you that drew you to him and he needed time to figure it out. He had never been so enchanted by anyone at first sight.

Having you around has been such a treat and a refreshing change to the life Jongho deemed perfect. He loved telling you about the inner workings of the North Pole and what he did as a job. He loved introducing you to the wonders of his realm and the magic within it, but he needed to come clean.

"Christmas Eve is tomorrow." Yeosang mentioned. "She'll be going home."

All Jongho did was nod.

"Could you please be careful with the gifts?" Yeosang politely asked the line of elves, watching as they tossed gifts into the back of the magnificent red sleigh.

Even though he was in charge of helping run things, he was hardly able to be stern, always instructing others in the most well mannered way possible. It took him a while to even get to that point, but he'd made lots of progress.

Jongho stood by to observe, donning a red suit similar to the one he had on the first day you'd arrived, except the notch lapels of his red suit jacket were covered in white fur along with the cuffs and the bottoms of his pants. On top of his head was a classic Santa hat, adjusted to where his slightly wavy black bangs showed from the front.

You spent a little longer than intended standing in the living room of your cabin. A dull ache in your chest presented itself when you thought about having to leave. Who knew six days at the North Pole would have such an impact on you? During your brief stay, you'd experienced so much and learned even more. You stayed in a place you no longer thought existed and hadn't believed in since you were a child. All this time, you thought the North Pole was just a barren snowy landscape in the Northern Hemisphere used as a location for a fictional being, not one of multiple magical realms filled with elves and reindeer with glowing noses.

Even as you stood in the garage with Jongho and watched Christmas Eve preparations, you couldn't shake the disappointment of leaving. Part of you wondered if you'd see Jongho again after tonight.

Everything seemed to go by in a blur, your goodbyes with Yeosang and San, the apology from Wooyoung for causing you to end up there, and even boarding the sleigh.

The dreamlike experience of being up in the sky, watching the reindeer guide the magical sled through the air proved to be a good distraction from your thoughts and the dread of having to return to normal life, which now paled in comparison to your experience at the North Pole.

Jongho was incredible to watch, sliding down chimneys with ease and somehow making it into homes without chimneys, dropping piles of presents within a single minute.

"How do you do that?" You asked in awe.

"I'm Santa." He winked.

Jongho had meant to come clean about his dishonesty, but things were so hectic he never got a chance to say anything to you before leaving the North Pole. It was probably for the best, he figured. He'd just tell you when he dropped you off at your house, that way if you were angry with him, you two could part ways there and you wouldn't have to be around him while upset.

House after house, Jongho delivered gifts, filling the homes of all the nice children on the list. Then you arrived in your neighborhood, your heart sinking with dread.

"This is it." You spoke through an exhale, standing by your back door, not liking the heaviness in your chest.

"Before you go, there's something I have to tell you." Jongho spoke up.

"Okay." You watched him expectantly, the look on your face making his gut twist uncomfortably with guilt. You had no idea what he'd done.

"I lied to you. I could've gotten you back home the day you arrived."

You blinked, processing his words. "What?"

"Just... let me explain, please. I've done this job alone for decades. I love it. I love planning each Christmas, getting letters from children across the country, making them happy. I never thought I needed anyone else, it never even crossed my mind—but then you came along. You quite literally showed up out of nowhere and came into my perfect life, or what I thought was perfect."

You watched him, listening intently to his explanation.

"When I first laid eyes on you I felt something that I hadn't felt before. You intrigued me and I wanted so badly to keep you around and see what you were like, to figure out what my feelings were. You've brought so much light and joy into my life in just six days, but I was selfish. You have every right to be angry with me. You're free to go inside and forget all about me if that's what you wish. I'll understand."

Anger. Where was it? Because after hearing Jongho's explanation, you didn't feel it. Instead, you felt relief. You thoroughly enjoyed your time at the North Pole, in fact, it had reawakened that childlike warmth in your chest that you'd been unable to get back, despite loving the holidays.

"There no need for you to apologize."

Jongho's expression shifted from one of guilt to surprise. "I lied to you though."

"Yes, you did. However, you also gave me the best experience I could ever ask for and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't going to miss it."

He blinked in disbelief.

"Truth is, there's something about you too, Jongho. Something that makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside and I don't think it's because you're a Santa."

He could feel his heart rate rising, the consistent thud in his chest becoming faster.

"So what you're saying is... you like me too?" He took a step forward.

You nodded. "That's exactly what I'm saying."

"Have you ever kissed under a mistletoe?" He asked you.

"No."

"Would you like to?"

Before you could question him, Jongho pointed up, your head raising to find a mistletoe magically growing on one of the beams of the roof over your back door. You looked to Jongho in surprise. All he did was chuckle, sliding one arm around your waist. The space between your faces diminished little by little, your eyelids slowly falling shut moments before Jongho's soft lips landed on yours. You'd been secretly admiring them almost since the beginning of your stay in his realm and now you could confidently say they were as soft as they looked.

He hummed contently, holding you tighter while depending the kiss, one of his gloved hands cupping your cheek tenderly. Your closed eyes nearly rolled back at the sensation of Jongho's lips dragging slowly over your own, slotting sideways to kiss you wholly. Waves of blissful tingles rolled over you, warmth blossoming in your chest as your hands gripped his fluffy lapel to somewhat ground yourself.

"So you really want to live at the North Pole with me?" Jongho asked after parting ways, his warm breath brushing your lips.

He wanted so badly to keep kissing you, to keep holding you, but he was on a schedule.

"I do."

"It's a big decision."

"I know." You breathed out.

"And you're certain?"

"I am. I just have to tie up some loose ends here."

"Understood." He murmured, still holding your cheek in his palm.

"I can come back and visit, right? See my friends and family?"

"Of course."

You nodded. "Okay. It's settled."

That night, you parted ways with Jongho, no longer feeling upset about the departure, as you knew your separation was only temporary. You quit your job and took care of any other things in your life that you were preparing to leave behind, making arrangements to move away to just one of many North Pole realms.

Three days after Christmas, you heard a knock at your back door, finding it odd. Who would go to your back door? When you peered outside, your question was answered. Jongho stood outside, a bright smile on his face.

You couldn't help yourself, overcome with excitement as you leapt forward and threw your arms around him.

"Aww. How cute!"

The sudden voice that came from above startled you and your head jerked up to find a swirling portal, the sight of Jongho's office on the other side and San poking his head out.

"Would you leave us alone?" Jongho huffed.

"Hey, my mistake is what got you a girlfriend." Wooyoung appeared on the other side of the portal.

"Guys, leave them alone." Yeosang showed up and pulled the two elves away. "You're only here to help her move her things."

You chuckled, amused at the banter going on.

"Do you have your stuff?" Jongho asked.

"Yes, it's all ready to go."

Inside, you had suitcases and duffel bags, along with a few boxes of items you couldn't part ways with, all of them packed and ready to be moved to their new home.

Jongho tossed them up through the portal with ease, Wooyoung and San catching each one, setting it aside in the office. A few complaints were exchanged about how the portal could've been opened a different way so things could be carried in instead of tossed up, but you learned that was, again, Wooyoung's fault.

One by one, your stuff was moved until all that was left was yourself.

"Are you ready." Jongho took your hand, giving it a squeeze.

"As ready as I'll ever be."

Yeosang, San, and Wooyoung dropped a short rope from the portal.

"Seriously, you should've opened it on the wall or something." San grumbled.

"I said I was sorry." Wooyoung whined as Jongho made his way up, joining the others.

You took hold and were pulled up through the portal and into the office you'd become so familiar with.

"You two can take her stuff to my living quarters." He told San and Wooyoung, helping you stand up. He leaned in, whispering softly in your ear, "Welcome home."

Masterlist ᝰ — enjoyed this imagine? reblogs & comments are very much appreciated!

DO NOT steal, plagiarize, copy, repost, alter, or translate my works in any way

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[rathayibacter]

last day to buy all four Charcuterie zines for $15!

Charcuterie's a zine series I use to collect various odds and ends of my design work together, revising and cleaning up old projects and bundling them all together. it's a really fun collection to look through, as you can see how my skills and sensibilities as a game designer and writer changed and grew over time. in fact, under the break, let's talk about everything contained within this bundle!

GAMES SWEAT, TEARS, BLOOD: a 200-word rpg where you play out the climactic final duel of a long and tangled story Terrible Tweens: a game about monster kids getting into trouble on Halloween night Terrible Tweens 2nd Edition: a revised version that emphasizes the dynamic of fitting in vs standing out the devil's after both of us: a horror game for two players about trying to survive in the aftermath of a mysterious disaster Double-Bro-Seven: a cooperative game about guiding a drunk secret agent through a series of objectives The Problem of Evils: supervillains debate the definition of evil in the final stages of their master plan Bird & Breakfast: go on vacation to a small beach city populated by birds you are an earthworm who aspires to kill god: self-explanatory you are an earthworm who aspires to kill god 2nd edition: gets even bigger and more absurd INITIATIVE: a little combat system where your place in initiative order is also your location in space Explicit Course: an exquisite corpse-inspired silent ttrpg where nobody's quite sure what's going on A17-Q Declassified: members of an SCP-style secret organization who never find anything cool Maybe One Day, It'll Be Enough: war gods at the end of time dig graves and complain about each other Wizard Yard Sale: enchant household objects and sell them to each other (business card game) Adversary: become the twist villain of a different game (business card game) Pact: summon demons for fun and profit (business card game) Bid for Control: spend money to influence the narrative (business card game) Digit Labyrinth: do math! (business card game) More About The Spaces Between Notes: tell a collaborative story together that stretches to the end of time (business card game)

SHORT STORIES beginnings: an alternative creation myth, following a god who methodically smiths every particle in the universe by hand Archimedes the Wonder Horse: a summary of a boy and his horse movie from another world, where it's discovered that the horse can solve arbitrary math problems The Evergreen Luxury Hotel and Day Spa (est 2031): the single employee of a luxury resort is placed in a time loop each day to ensure everything goes perfectly Three Gifts: a short story about prophecy and a chosen one who refuses to go along with the status quo

POETRY Breaking Fresh Snow: a mindful walk home in the dark Pop Quiz: a three-part poem about identity The Tower of Revelations: the process of searching for Truth There's Two Kinds of Magic: a false dichotomy reveals something honest Taking Inventory: keeping track of everything 77: opening your chest up and seeing what roosts inside A Flower Halfway in Bloom: a wizard dreams of a strange, broken world Procedure: instructions and commentary on surgically extracting a human soul The Stars Weren't Out: glimpse the shape of the world Resolutions: a reminder to myself

[misguidedasgardian]

I need to (9)

... Remember

MASTERLIST

Summary: It turns out, you can’t outrun the past 

Pairings: Cregan Stark x Fem!Reader 

Warnings: MIGHT CONTAIN SPOILERS cursing, talks about cheating and inappropriate relationship, angst, fluff, hints of blackmail, gaslighting, this is awful, might contain some triggers regarding psychological abuse relationships, and relationship with power imbalances, toxic relationship

Wordcount: 3.998 k how cool 😂

Notes: Can’t believe we are already in the 9th chapter! what a trip! hehe Anyways, like it was said in the warnings... it gets a bit angsty

Cregan was nervous

Really nervous 

His room was a mess, his bed completely covered by clothes, his own clothes, that he had tried on and then discarded for different reasons

“This one is too formal”

“This one has a small hole in it”

“This one makes you look like a creep”

“This one makes you look like you just ended filming Aegon’s conquest history channel remake“

All commented by Jace

“Dude it is going to be fine! just a shirt and some jeans will do”, said Jace, “maybe a button up shirt with jeans, clean jeans…”

“I want to make this special”, he said, “like, enough that it looks like I care… but not enough that she thinks she is under dressed”, he continued

“Wow”

“I really like her, I want this to go well”, he looked at Jace in the eyes, making him smile

“Where are you taking her?”, he asked

“To that place with Yitish food?”

“Oh it's cool”

“Right? I mean, it is not very fancy, but is a treat, the place looks amazing, and it has a great variety of food you know, plenty to pick up from… and it's kind of intimate too, but not that fancy that we are nervous because of it…?”

“She is going to love it”, he said, confidently, “I’m happy for you guys, even though you just met, I can tell there is something going on”

Then Cregan’s phone dinged, he grabbed it and smiled when he realized it was a text from you, but then he got serious

“What?”, asked Jace

“She canceled”, he said, sadness sneaking into his eyes

“Why?”, asked Jace, “did she say?”

“She said she is very sorry, but she can’t make it, and that I please don’t hate her for it”

“Oh man”, whined Jace, “I know she likes you, maybe she got too nervous”, he tried

“Yes, maybe I jumped the gun, maybe I was too fast”, Jace twisted his lips, “well… I hope I didn’t make it awkward”

“You didn’t”

“I was really looking forward to it”, he whispered, “I wonder what happened”

“Well lucky for us… we have a man on the inside”

. . .

You hugged into the pillow tighter as you fell someone opening the door, embracing yourself for the coming storm that was your roommate

“Heeey!”, she sang, “how are the preparations going?”, whe she saw you, laying on the bed, you heard her stop in her tracks, “what happened? why aren’t you getting ready for your date?”, you sniffed, couldn’t hold it together

“I can’t go on a date with Cregan”, you whined

“Why not? you were so excited”, she asked

“He was here…”, you whined, “my ex, Aemond was here…”

48 hours before

You had your morning free, and so did Cregan, so he had accepted to pose for you for the photography class 

You met in the park that joined all the buildings together

He was waiting for you, so handsome, still in winter clothes, so were you

As soon as he saw you, he drew a big smile that made your heart jump within your chest. You smiled widely

“Ready for some pictures?”, he asked

“Oh I hope you are ready”, you teased

You grabbed him by the hand and dragged him to an evergreen tree that was in the main part of the park, it was huge, with purplish-red leaves and a white color on its branches and trunk, it was breathtaking, you knew here in the North they called it “the heart tree”

One of the branches hangs low, so it was perfect for Cregan to stand in front of it, the beautiful leaves in the background 

“Watch the ISO and the exposure”, he said as he smiled at you, entertained

“Oh no, I’m using automatic”, you mocked, his face got all serious and you snapped a picture

“Hey…”, he protested

“Am I the teacher’s pet or not?”, you teased, he laughed wholeheartedly 

“Alright”, he said posing. He had control of his “model face”, he was so handsome you were thankful you had the camera hiding your face or else he would see clearly how nervous you were.

“I’m thinking something…”, you whispered

“What?”, you pushed him into the tree, he laughed, a couple of leaves frames his face, and you snapped photos, of the beautiful leaves, and his laughing face in the background

“YES!”, you cheered, checking the pictures, they were great

“Can I see?”

“Oh no”, you teased, “you will have to wait”, he hadn't showed you the pictures, you were not going to show him yours yet

“Wanna grab a cup of coffee?”

“Yes”, you said back, you started your walk towards a small cafeteria just outside of campus

“Is the cold getting to you yet?”, he asked 

“No, its fine”, you whispered, “I like it”, you entered the small coffee shop, as the rest of the campus, it was made of old stone, had a nice, ancient but cozy sense to it, nice warm lights, wooden tables and vintage coffee machines, cozy seats with wooden cushion made of soft, old colors, it was so beautiful 

“How do you like your coffee?”, you let him invite you, as you smiled coyly at him

“An Ashford with a spoonful of chocolate, no lactose milk, two sugars”, you said with a shy smile

“You have a sweet tooth” he muttered looking at you with a smile on his face, “I like that”, poor barista felt like she was intruding while you undress each other with only your eyes 

“How do you take yours Ser?”, you teased back

“Dornish”, he finally broke the spell and talked to the woman, “semi-skimmed, a spoonful of cinnamon, one brown sugar please”

You had to take a mental note of that

You took your coffees and sat on a cozy table by the corner

“What do you think about Friday?”, he asked, “for our date?”

“I’d love to”, you answered with a big smile, it was two days from now, “where are we going?”

“It’s a surprise”, he said

“Uh, what about the dress code?”, you teased

“Mmm”, he hummed, “I’ll leave it to you”

“oh c’mon!”, you whined, “you have to give me something!”, you teased, he shook his head, he looked at your cup and smirked

“Now, I don’t want to push it and get between a girl and her caffeine, but… “ he said with a smile, “I am curious about your beverage”

“That’s funny, I am curious about yours”, you teased, “so specific and exotic”

“Let’s do it then”, you looked into his eyes as he looked into yours, you passed each other's coffees, fingers touching

The taste was strong, but comforting, much like Cregan himself, so foreign to you and yet, it felt kind of homey

He moaned softly, catching your attention

“So creamy..”, he whispered, his intense gaze on you

“Yours not so bad itself”, you whispered, completely flustered.

His gaze was on you, yours was on him, the smell of chocolate, coffee and cinnamon was in the air… the heat from the small wood heater warm your body as the sip of the coffee had, soon, Cregan was too far for your own comfort, he seemed to notice, moving on his spot to come close to you 

“I bet it tastes even better… if I do this…” Cregan leaned in, and you felt your heart in the back of your throat, a cinnamon taste in your mouth

He was going to kiss you, you closed your eyes and puckered your lips like a tennager in those cheesy romcoms, but the kiss never came

“HEY GUYS!”, Ben joined you at the table, clearly oblivious to what was going on, Cregan and you separated as the other burned your skin, trying to make him believe nothing had happened

Shit fuck

“Hey dude”, said Cregan with an embarrassed smile, “how that paper coming?”,

“Great”, he said, “you won’t believe what my economics professor did today…”, he started chitchatting, Cream arm was behind you, he didn't remove it as he got comfortable on the Long chair next to you, as he listened to his friend

You were about to kiss him

The boys started talking, you chipped in once in a while, but you had classes son after, so you apologized and left 

You were about to kiss Cregan… the taste of cinnamon still lingered on your lips, it was exhilarating, scary and exciting all at the same time

Besides photography you had six very demanding classes, and you needed to focus, your performance was way better than the one in Dragonstone, you were more invested, more dedicated and far more interested, but… the first semester was always the hardest, it was a hard contrast against highschool and…

You had a date with Cregan Stark

Oh gods

What were you going to wear? jeans? sneakers? boots? a dress with many layers so you won’t freeze to death?

Homeworks and research had you spend the rest of your day head down into the computer lab and wood workshop, trying to get ahead some work so you would have friday free

Also, you used a special program to develop the photos, the face of Cregan staring back at you his flirty eyes, his smile

He was so handsome… 

You wondered what he thought of you when he developed your photos.. no matter, you prepared the 5 photos of his portrait and were done for. Wanting to leave him for the next 48 hours until your date. 

Tomorrow you had design workshop, the most important class of them all 

You needed to get your head in the game, you were struggling, as many first years, but you needed to keep the work up, and even though you wanted it, bad, you couldn’t get distracted with Cregan.

28 hours before

But as you were preparing to get out of your room the next morning, Sara already had left, you opened the door, and gasped

Finding someone else at your doorstep, wanting to knock on the door

“Aemond”, you whispered, wide-eyed and shaking, he smiled softly, his eye twinkling

“Hey stranger”

You were cutting classes for him, as you looked at him flinching, squinting your eyes as he sipped on his black coffee from the Arbour, no sugar, no happiness, pure bitterness. He made a sour face and let the coffee sit a bit away from him

“This place is… picturesque”, he said like he was looking at a week-old roadkill

“I like it, it was character”, you said defensively

“Of course you do”, he said mockingly. You watched him expectantly, you started playing some sort of sick game, whoever speaks first, looses 

He looked back at you, and then he drew an amused smirk

“Well, I think you proved your point”, he lost

“What do you mean?”, you asked

“You punished me, ghosted me, fled from me, you proved that you can be independent, I learned my lesson, now let’s go back South”

“I didn’t come here to prove anything to you”, you said, “and much less to punish you”

“Did you get my emails?”, he continued

“No”, you lied, and he knew you did, because he smiled, “I did a week ago, what does that have to do with anything?”

“I told you I was coming…”, he said, “I told you you tricked me, that woman tried to babytrap me”

“Did she trapped you with her vagina?”, you whispered angrily leaning over the table, “what was it? a carnivorous plant? Were you an innocent fly?”

“Stop it!”, he whispered back, “you are being childish”

“And you are being borderline a psychopath”, you said back, “is over between us Aemond, you cheated on me, we are done”, he smirked

“When did fighting for your relationship stop being romantic?”, he asked

“I told you…”, you were getting angry, and he had barely moved his lips, he was fresh as a lettuce, so, you needed to calm down, “I don’t want to work things out, cheating is a deal breaker”

“And I’m telling you… I think you should reconsider”, he said simply

“Why would I?”, you asked back, “is not like we are married with two kids, Aemond…”

“Not yet darling…” he said with a smile once it would have made your legs turn to jelly, “I’m thinking it would be foolish to throw it all away, many thought we were the perfect couple, we had the looks, the money, the influence… all of it”, you rolled your eyes, “we are perfect for each other”

“No we are not”, you said, your lip trembling.

The worst part is? He could manipulate you, he could make you believe his words, right now, sitting in front of him, you felt powerless, even though now you were in your university, across the continent, with your friends, your terrain…

He still had that power over you

“See, I think we are”, he said

“You… never took me seriously”, you whispered, “you made me change colleges, you were willing to sacrifice my future…”

“I never make you do anything”, he said simply, your eyes filled with tears, “you did on your own volition, you decided to go to the best school on the country on your own”

“I didn't”, you whined

“You did it because you knew it was the right thing to do”

“Aemond I don’t want to be with you anymore”

“Why, because I looked away once?”

“You fucked my teacher Aemond, a professor of the school”, you said, “my mentor, the only one who gave a shit about me”

“Well, now we know why, don’t we?”, you froze, “she used you to get to me, she targeted you… to use you to get to me”

You believed him

“Aemond, you fucked her”

“I know”, he said, seriously, “I fell for it, but now, I’m telling you that I regret it, that it might just be the biggest mistake of my life, because I lost you”

“You are sad because you lost the founding for your father’s campaign”, you said bitterly, he smirked

“We are perfect for eachother”, he said, “we belong together”

“Aemond, this whole thing made me realize that… we are not so perfect for each other, we want different things”, you whispered, “you want… I don’t know, global domination, power, a public life, I don’t want any of those things”, he only looked at you, angrily

“Are are together since the tenth grade”

“I know”, you said, “and it was beautiful, innocent and sweet, but we are not kids anymore”

“No, you are right”, he said, “we are no longer kids, what we do, the decisions we make, matter and affect those around us…”, you frowned, not knowing what he meant, “Now I know, you shared that picture to damage me as well”, he said bitterly

“I didn’t share that picture”, you said firmly, “I just wanted out”

“You wanted revenge, you got rid of her because you wanted her gone”

“That’s not true”, you whispered, “Maris Baratheon stole the picture from my phone and spread it around, not me…”

“Either way, you took it”, he said, “You spread that photo of us”, he said with venom in his voice, “Do you want to play that game?”

“I didn't spread anything!”, you said back

“Do you know what I can get out there? from you?”

Your world stopped spinning as you looked at the man across from you

He had nude pictures of you

Things you had sent him, and he had taken screenshots of, you knew because you received the notification. WHen you confronted him, he gave you this whole speech, that he was your boyfriend and there had to be trust between you, that is “how relationships work”

“Are you threatening me?”, he chuckled darkly

“No darling, I… just… pointing out the trust we had for each other”, nothing, because you didn’t have nude pictures of him, he never send you one, and the ones he did, you didn’t take screenshots, “the things we had shared, and lived… together”

It was a threat

A single tear fell from your cheek

“Now now, why are you crying?”, he asked innocently

“Aemond let it go, you are in Dragonstone, I bet you can find someone better than me, someone that wants the same things as you”, you said softly 

“No one like you babe”, he whispered 

“Aemond, we are not getting back together”, you said firmly

“I don’t think you are thinking clearly”, he repeated, “we love each other, I came all the way up here for you!”

“I didn't ask you to!”, you fought

“Together, we have money, influence, power, together we have a future…!”, he continued

“I wonder who benefits more from all of this”, you whispered 

“...And we love each other”, he continued

“Not anymore Aemond…”, you tried to stand up, but he stopped you, grabbing your hand

“I’m here for three more days”, he said, “I advise you to think about it, or else… I might let someone steal your pictures from my phone like Maris stole yours”, you paled, releasing yourself, and exiting the cafeteria, you could still make the second part of your class after the recess

But you couldn’t focus

He wouldn’t do that, would he?

No…

He would, you knew he would, he would spread them all around Dragonstone campus, and perhaps even here, but you didn’t know they would fly here

Your face was in those pictures 

4 hours earlier 

Your nerves had been on edge since yesterday, you thought about it even, coming back to him, but you couldn't, if he was going to post those pictures fine, you could not live your life blackmailed by your ex boyfriend

You met Aemond again, this time, in the fanciest restaurant in town, way out of your budget but enough for me, you found him sitting there, sipping a cup of wine

You in jeans and a sweatshirt under your jacket, you tried to ignore his disgusted face

“I thought this palace could be ideal to celebrate”, he said softly

“Celebrate what?”, you asked shyly

“That we are recuperating what we once had, because of course you regained your senses” he served you whine

“I don’t think you are understanding what is going on”, you warned, he sighed, apparently giving up

“This place has changed you…”

“Thankfully”, you said sharply. He looked at you, he got angry, you could tell, he already knew by looking back at you that you were not going to budge, that you were not going to crawl back to him

“Not really”, he said bitterly

“Aemond, I’m not going back together with you”, you said firmly, “my life is here now”

“Your life? away from your family? and your friends?”, he mocked

“My friends are here now, and I see my family any time I want”, you defended

“in a second-rate school?’

“Is the best school on my field”

“Design”, he mocked, “do you think here, alone, by yourself, can you achieve all the things i can give you? easily?”, he was lashing out, and you were going to take all his heat

“I want to discover it”, you said simply, he frowned, you could tell 

“Do you think you can find someone who is going to love you as much as I do?”, he continued, you stopped moving, “who can give you all the things I can?”, you only looked at him, “you will never found someone like me, especially not with that guy you are shamelessly walking and talking to”, now you were scared

“How do you know?”, you asked, and then you shook your head, “Aemond, I really hope so”, you said back, “I really hope I never find anyone like you ever again”, you were to stand up

“I made you”, he bit out, “I made you the person you are today, I gave you everything, you were just an orphan when we started dating you had nothing… I gave you connections, I introduced you to my family, and my friends in Dragonstone”, you only looked at him with pity, “last chance… are you going to throw all of it away?”, he asked

“I already did”, you bit back, “Don’t ever contact me again Aemond”, you whispered, “I thought we could be civil, but if this is how you want to ends things, so be it, I don’t ever want to see you again”

“That is going to be difficult in political events”, he mocked

“I’m going liberal”, you answered blankly, “And your friends all acted like they had sticks up their asses, oh and Aemond? Apart from Helaena, your family SUCKS! your brother has hired sex workers and he is only 21, and has a drinking problem, your grandfather and father are creeps and your mother Aemond, your mother is in a religious cult!” you said before you storm out of the restaurant 

And that is how Sara found you, curled up in your bed, sobbing

When the adrenaline of the rage and the heat of the fight abandoned you, you started crying and couldn’t stop

You were sad, scared of what Aemond could do, and in hysterics, because you still believe what he says, because he had power over you

What if nobody ever loves you?

When she entered Sara saw the state you were in and went to hug you tightly

At least you did have friends, you did, good friends, with even only two months of meeting them you knew that you loved 

“What happened?”, she asked. And you told her everything

. . .

It took you all night and the rest of Saturday to regain your composure, you knew you owed Cregan an explanation.

So you went with Sara to their palace, half an hour before they had invited you to play board games with the rest of the group, and order from The Tavern Wings and Beer, you really thought Jace and Sara had made this up for you and Cregan to talk, because you knew Jace had asked Sara why you canceled your date

As soon as you entered the apartment, Jace and Sara locked themselves in the kitchen with lame excuses, leaving you and Cregan alone

“I’m sorry Cregan”, you said, he could see how sad you were, and he wanted more than anything to console you, “I really do like you, but I don't want to string you along, really I… my ex did a number on me, and he paid me an undesired visit yesterday, and I realized I’m just not ready to date yet”, you said, finally looking at him, “but I really do want you close, and hang out with you, do you think you can settle for a friendship first?”, he smiled softly

“Of course I can”, he said, “thank you for telling me”, you begged him, with your eyes, even without releasing it, and he couldn’t help it, he hugged you against his chest, and you immediately hugged him back

“I’m sorry”, you whispered against his chest

“You have nothing to be sorry for” he said, caressing your back

Jacaerys and Sara were clearly listening, when they gout out of the kitchen with big smiles on their faces

“Let’s warm up before the rest get here”, said Jace

“I think we all need to sign agreements before a notary that clearly stated that what is going to happen here, when i completely destroy at “Iron Bank property” is not going to affect our relationship with you guys”, you laughed 

“Oh I agree”, tease Sara, “But when we play ruins of old Valyria, that is when I’m burning you all”

Baela and Rhaena, Alysanne, Ben, Jon, and you four

It was so much fun

Perhaps tomorrow everyone was going to know how you looked naked, but tonight? you were going to enjoy it 

If you still had your friends by your side, you had nothing to be afraid of.

More notes: now we are done, we are not going to be seeing that fucker anymore, for the time being, I mean, he got the message, he won't try to get with reader again, but he might be mentioned or show up in the future when they run into eachtoher

I edited a sentence int he discussion about Alicent, not fair what I wrote, I edited it

taglist! ❤️

@mxtokko @princesssterek @thefandomimagines @iamavailablesstuff @misspascalpunk @sweethoneyblossom1 @ipostwhtifeel @lunamoonbby @ahristata @watercolorskyy @yazzzmints @n4tforlife @littleshadow17 @alexa4040 @speedyballoonpainter @hc-geralt-23 @rayrayredpanda @eralen @yentroucnagol @valeskafics @iloveallmyboys @schadenfreude-and-sarcasm @ttkttt @aleemendoza2425-blog @drwstarkeyy @casualfansoul @urmomsgirlfriend1 @bruher 

[ink-flavored]

Anthology Blast Prompt 6: Artificial Pollination

for the Athendroyln After Dark Anthology Full prompt list for the Anthology Blast Tips are appreciated! Contains: human/dryad, misunderstandings, accidental indecent exposure, accidental public sex, muffing, fingering, handjobs, tree/flower/non-genital sex, magic sex toys, first time (with each other), fondling, explaining sex and genitals Dysphoria warning: There is a trans woman in this story. Her genitals are referred to as: clit/clitoris, hard/erection, ball(s), testicle(s), inguinal canal(s), inguinal ring(s), cunt(s). Please use discretion if these words will trigger any dysphoria.

Candice stumbled off the train with the few other passengers who took the Athendrolyn Public Transportation rail this far out. Arborbend was the final stop on the line, and compared to the other APT rail stops, it was falling apart at the seams. The metal-framed wood structure was rickety and weather-beaten, A few planks squeaked under her boots in a way she was particularly uneasy about, considering the river was only one unfortunate accident away.

She shook herself, traipsing down the stairs. There was no way this place wasn’t magically reinforced—she hoped. It should have been.—and if it was really that structurally unsound, they wouldn’t run the train on it anyway. Besides, there was no point in letting something so small bother her today. She was meeting Maggie for plant shopping.

Candice had never been to Arborbend before, but Maggie insisted it was the neighborhood with the best plant nurseries in the city. Which made sense—being so close to the edge of town and therefore the local forest, Arborbend was the unofficial dryad population center of the city. Stepping out from the rail stop and into the midsummer sun, it was obvious.

The roads were completely dirt. No streets, no pavement, not even any wheel tracks from anyone who dared try to drive or bike. Instead, dozens of dryads glided right through the uncovered soil, almost floating as they pushed themselves along by their roots. Some planted themselves in the middle of the path, standing motionless to soak up the afternoon sun.

The buildings were all wood, some using fully grown trees in their design, and every single one had a garden. Whether it was a neatly tended window planter, or vines climbing up the walls, not a house or business crossed her eye without one. They were taller, too, and so were the doors. They reminded Candice of the “nested doors” in more populated parts of the city, but there were no alternate doors for shorter creatures here. She didn’t mind that—she had to use the taller nested doors to avoid banging her head on the “human sized” doors that were just a little too short for her. Dryad doors would be a welcome relief.

The one thing this neighborhood did not have was any street signs. Candice bounced on the balls of her feet, trying to figure out where she was going.

“Over here!”

Candice snapped her head around and slumped in relief. Maggie waved her gnarled branch of an arm from not too far away. Her evergreen leaves were as big and forest-dark as ever, the crown of her branches piled tall on her head in a cone shape. If anyone could help her navigate this part of the city, it was a literal magnolia tree.

“Thank the Gods,” Candice said, approaching at a light jog. She had to crane her neck to look Maggie in the face, the tall and lanky tree that she was. “I thought I was going to have to memorize this place myself.”

“Don’t worry,” Maggie said. She spoke with magic, like all dryads, her face made of twisted bark, with no mouth, nose, or skin to wrinkle. Despite that limitation, her tree sap eyes shone a happy amber. “I know it’s hard for the unrooted to navigate around here.”

“Yeah, I bet.” She gestured down the street. “Go ahead, lead on.”

“Well, first.” Maggie pointed in the opposite direction. “We’re going this way.”

“And that’s why I’m glad you’re here.”

Maggie laughed, her bark creaking, and she started off down the dirt road. Candice could have sworn she saw one of her closed flower buds start to bloom, but it was gone the next time she looked. Maybe it was her imagination.

The path they took was so convoluted Candice knew she would have gotten lost a hundred times if she tried to do it herself. There was almost nothing intuitive about how the roads were organized—to a human, anyway—and sometimes buildings appeared out of nowhere to block the way. Maggie navigated it all flawlessly, as if she had a map right in front of her. Though, more accurately, the map was underneath her, her roots churning through the dirt to find her way.

“Here we are!” she announced, at the end of their maze. “Welcome to Whistleroot Plant Nursery.”

Before them was a beautiful, massive greenhouse, more extravagant than even the most decorated buildings Candice had seen on their way here. The glass walls displayed plants and flowers for at least two stories from top to bottom, all of them flourishing. The roof burst with them, the glass top opened to let them stretch their branches and give the whole building a leafy haircut.

“Wow,” Candice said.

Maggie plucked her roots out of the dirt to walk on top of the ground instead. “Shall we?”

Candice raced ahead to beat her long stride and open the glass door for her. “After you.”

A big white blossom popped open near her face, ten big petals and a bright yellow center. It was beautiful, but Candice didn’t get to admire it for very long. Panicked, Maggie’s hands flew up to coax the flower back to a closed bud.

“Thanks,” she said, hurrying into the nursery. “Sorry, I—Thank you.”

“No problem.” Candice followed behind her, feeling like she was missing something.

It was another short-lived feeling, as the inside of Whistleroot Plant Nursery dazzled her even more than the outside. An entire spectrum of colored blossoms spanned as far as the eye could see. Knowing almost nothing about plants, she could already tell which ones were magical—flowers unfurling when someone walked by, only to close again when they passed, vines reaching out to dig around in other planters, some that spoke. Although, maybe that wasn’t so shocking.

“What do you want to look at first?” Maggie asked—a walking, talking plant.

“I need something totally unkillable,” Candice said. “I have whatever the opposite of a green thumb is.”

“Come on, I’m sure you aren’t that bad.”

“I’ve killed a cactus before.”

Maggie nodded slowly. “Okay, that does change things. Let’s… go this way?”

She ducked under a curtain of vines and Candice followed. She hadn’t touched a plant in years, but since meeting Maggie at a terrarium build-off, she was warming up to trying again. After all, her gray-banded kingsnake, Barbecue, was going need a new enclosure soon. If she could overcome her plant-killing tendencies and make it a vivarium for him, she would be the proudest snake parent in all of Athendrolyn.

“So, I don’t know about unkillable,” Maggie said, approaching a wide tray of ferns, “but magical plants do tend to be hardier than mundane plants.”

“I’ll take whatever I can get, honestly,” Candice said. “As long as it won’t kill me back.”

She shook her head, laughing. “No, no, of course not. Most of them are totally harmless.”

That wasn’t really an encouraging caveat, but hey, Maggie was the expert here. Candice turned the label of the nearest pot toward her. “’Echo fern,’ huh?”

The plant rustled its leaves. “Echo fern, huh?”

She jumped back. “Gah!”

“Gah!”

“Are you okay?” Maggie asked, clearly trying not to laugh.

“I’m fine.” She glanced warily at the talking fern. “Not sure about this one, though.”

“No problem, there are plenty more!”

They kept moving through the magical section. On the left, they passed a tray of cute looking flowers. Candice felt a little more at ease looking at them—they didn’t move, or talk. Maybe they were for potions. In fact, they looked like completely normal oxeye daisies, clustered together in big white and yellow groups.

“What’s so magical about these?” she asked, picking up one of the planters.

“No, you shouldn’t—”

The flowers angled their petals right at her face. Maggie yanked them out of her hands just in time for one of them to shoot all of its petals clean off its stem. They went flying around the nursery. One sliced clean through a thick vine and sent it tumbling to the ground.

Candice stared, horrified. “What the f—"

“Those are assassin daises,” Maggie explained, and gingerly put the planter down. “They’re, uh, not for beginners.”

“Right. Shit.” She scooted a little farther away. “I’m… going to listen to you before touching things from now on.”

Maggie quickly ushered her away from the assassin daisies and towards something much nicer looking. A series of plants in medium-sized ceramic pots were lined up by one of the glass windows, waving their long, stringy stems in the air. Pea-sized leaves ran up and down each stem, shifting back and forth like they were caught in a breeze.

“This is a twisted tassel vine,” Maggie said. “It’s happy with being watered once a week in a spot with good sunlight, and it’s friendly!”

She brushed her hand across the nearest vine. It delicately wrapped itself around her finger-branches, all the way up to her wooden wrist. The other vines from the same plant listed through the air toward her, swaying side to side.

“And they like to dance,” she giggled, and joined it swaying from side to side.

“That’s so cute,” Candice said, smiling at the sight. Maggie froze in place, glancing between her and the plant.

“H-here, you should—Come on, try it!”

She grabbed Candice’s wrist and held her hand over the plant—kind of unnecessary, since she would have done it anyway, but whatever. Maybe she was just excited.

The twisted tassel leaned toward her, feeling through the air for her hand. True to its name, the vine twisted around and around her fingers, soft leaves brushing her skin. It had a tighter grip than she expected, as if made of muscle and not a fragile stem. When it moved its free vines, swishing back and forth, she felt it trying to pull her along. The little tug from a plant that liked to dance was simply too adorable for Candice to pass up. Now she and Maggie stood in the corner of the plant nursery, swaying back and forth like it was something to do.

“This feels kinda silly,” she said.

“But it’s fun,” Maggie added.

“Yeah, it’s fun! Somehow!” She laughed at how ridiculous it was—she was dancing with a plant. Two plants, if she counted Maggie.

Although, maybe she shouldn’t, because Maggie had stopped again. She just stared, amber eyes sparkling. If she had a mouth, Candice would have bet money on a grin.

“What?” she asked.

“Hm?”

“What’s that look for?”

She startled, as if she didn’t realize what she was doing. “I—I wasn’t—”

“Excuse me,” said a terse voice behind them. They turned and saw an oak tree dryad, as disgruntled as their near-featureless face could express. “I believe the magnolia here is flowering.”

“W-what?” Maggie rushed to pat down her leaves, leaving the twisted tassel behind, and gasped. “It was behind me, I’m so sorry. I—I didn’t even realize.”

“Just be more careful next time, hm?” The oak dryad left before either of them could reply.

Candice frowned after them. “That was rude.”

“It’s not a big deal,” Maggie insisted, but she stood a little farther away. “Let’s keep going?”

“Well, hold on. I like this one.”

“You do?”

“Yeah, it’s fun.” Candice carefully untangled herself from the vines and lifted the pot into her arms. “My new adventure in plants starts now.” The twisted tassel seemed to like that idea, reaching up to play in her hair. “Although, uh. Does it ever stop… doing this?”

“It stops at night,” Maggie said. She reached over the twisted tassel display and plucked a long piece of string out of a cup. “You can tie it up for now.”

Candice held the pot as far from her as her arms could reach so Maggie could pluck the vines out of hair and tie them together gently. It didn’t completely stop, wiggling half-heartedly, but it wasn’t so adventurous while she carried it around.

Neither was Maggie. She rattled off plant facts when they got near one she liked, but not as enthusiastically. She kept her distance from Candice, too, leaving a polite bubble of air reserved for strangers. It was really weird, and a little worrying.

Every time Maggie bloomed, she tried to close the flower back up. Candice had only seen a full flower bloom from her once while they were hanging out, on accident, and she apologized profusely for it. She was always cagey about why, so Candice just assumed it was a dryad thing she wouldn’t be able to understand. After that stranger scolded her about it, she was even more sure that she was missing something. But after this reaction, she wondered.

It seemed like Maggie was repressing herself. Flowering was a natural thing for plants, right? Why was it such a big deal that she would go out of her way to apologize for it? Why was it such a big deal that strangers would scold her for it? Candice didn’t really want to ask her in public, if the subject was so embarrassing. But there had to be some way to make her feel better.

“This twisted tassel obviously can’t go in a vivarium,” she said, off-handedly. “I think I’d be scared of it dancing Barbecue to death.”

“Me too, it would be too risky,” Maggie agreed. “Plus, he would definitely hate it.”

“Yeah, he’d try to murder this thing.” Candice nudged her with an elbow. “You helped with the build-off, right? What kinds of plants usually go in one?”

“Hmm, he’s a desert species, right?” She glanced around at the sea of plants before them. “You can always play it safe with mundane desert plants—palms, agave, aloe vera, bromeliad if you want some color. Oh!” She rushed over to one of the mundane plants and plucked out one with long, wavy leaves, growing in the shape of a star. “This is a red cryptanthus, aren’t they pretty?”

“That’s awesome. It almost matches his orange-y part.”

“It does, doesn’t it?” Maggie gasped and shoved the cryptanthus back on the tray. “That gives me an idea. Come on, over here!”

Candice hefted the twisted tassel pot in her arms and followed as close as she could. Maggie led her back to the magical plant section, and stopped in front of a relatively normal looking leafy specimen. Suspiciously normal, she thought, but maybe it was the daisies getting to her.

“This is a chameleon blossom,” Maggie explained. “It looks like a normal plant, right?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

Maggie took the pot from her. “Go on, touch it. It won’t work if I try.”

Candice shuffled forward. “Are you sure?”

“It’s totally safe, I promise!”

Cautiously, she reached out to brush one of the leaves. The whole thing shuddered and turned the same peachy-beige as her skin.

“Whoa,” she said.

“And it copies other animals too! So if you put this in Barbecue’s enclosure, it would change colors to match whenever he got near it.”

“That would be pretty cool. I wonder if it would stress him out, though.”

Maggie nodded. “Good point. It is a defense mechanism to scare animals away.”

“I’ll ask around the herp scene.” Candice took the twisted tassel pot back. “Someone else must have tried it at some point.”

“Probably.” She picked at a groove in her bark. “I really thought it was a good idea, oh well.”

“Don’t worry about it. I still have to prove I can keep one plant alive before I start building an ecosystem.” She started walking backwards to the checkout. “And this thing is getting heavy, so I’m good starting with one.”

Candice paid for her plant, including the upcharge offer to enchant the pot to be easier to carry. While they waited at the register, she gave Maggie a light punch on the arm.

“Thanks for coming plant shopping with me,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” Maggie said, but shrugged. “I don’t think I did all that much, though.”

“What do you mean? You recommended I come here in the first place, which is why I’m buying this plant right now. That was my one goal, and your suggestion is why I did it today.”

She shifted her weight, glancing down at her roots. “Well, I guess.”

“You gave me some good advice for Barbecue’s future home. I learned some plant facts!”

“You almost got attacked by an assassin daisy.”

“And that. Which you saved me from, so hey, you also saved my life today!”

Maggie laughed, leaves rustling. Another one of her flowers popped open—a big one, soft-looking petals forming a delicate circle around the cone-like center. She raised her hand, no doubt to close it, and Candice couldn’t keep her mouth shut.

“Why do you do that?” she asked.

“Do… what?” Maggie replied, frozen in place.

“Why do you close your flowers all the time?” She reached for Maggie’s hand and guided it away. “I think they’re pretty.”

“Uh—I, um—Thank you, but—”

“I didn’t say anything before because… I felt weird, I guess, but I really wish you wouldn’t.”

Maggie glanced all around, anxious, but she didn’t take her hand back. “C-Candice, that’s really nice of—”

She went completely still as Candice reached up to cup the flower she tried to hide. The petals were soft, and a little waxy. It was too high up for her to smell, but maybe if she got on her toes—

“What is going on out here?”

Maggie snapped upright. The dryad cashier was back with the twisted tassel, looking as shocked and appalled as a tree could get. Before Candice could explain, Maggie snatched the pot out of the cashier’s hands and shoved down to her. She stumbled back—but it was much lighter.

“I’m so—we’re so sorry,” Maggie stammered, already shuffling toward the exit. “She’s still learning about, uh, dryad things—”

“If you want to teach her that, wait until next spring and save it for the rooting area. Please.”

“Th-that’s what I was about to tell her! Thanks, goodbye!”

And then Maggie dragged her full-speedout of the plant nursery by the crook of her arm. She didn’t settle for just being out of the building—she dragged them down the street and into an alley between houses. That one flower was closed up tight. Candice felt less confused and more like she’d fucked up. Big time.

That cashier was almost as horrified as she was to be attacked by the assassin daisy. Was flowering out of season rude? Was it really impolite to touch someone else’s flowers? That would make sense, it was a part of someone else’s body after all. Maggie seemed more bothered by Candice touching her than the other dryads telling her to close her flowers, too. Standing awkwardly in the alley, her stomach sank.

“Are you okay?” Candice asked, not knowing what else to say.

“I—I think so? I’m fine,” Maggie stammered. She stared right at the ground. “I’ll be fine, it’s not a big—”

“No, stop.” Candice sighed and put her plant on the ground. “I didn’t mean to—I thought I was helping. You seemed so upset when that one person told you to close up, and it seems like it stresses you out a lot, so I thought…” She circled her hands, searching for an explanation, but quickly gave up. “I don’t know what I thought. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay, really. It’s a little embarrassing, but—”

“I didn’t want to embarrass you. I wasn’t thinking, and I made you look rude in front of everybody. I didn’t mean to, but I still messed up. I’m sorry.”

Maggie slowly looked up. “Rude?”

“Yeah? Isn’t that why everyone was upset?”

“Not… exactly.” Her bark creaked, the dryad equivalent of a sigh. “I should have told you what it meant before now. It is sort of rude for me to flower in public, but it’s not offensive or anything it’s—indecent.”

Her heart did a little nervous kick. “Indecent how?”

Maggie diligently refused eye contact as she explained, “Dryads don’t reproduce like unrooted creatures do. It happens in the spring, when we get pollinated. Our pollinated flowers turn into fruits, and planting a dryad’s fruit is how more of us are ‘born.’ In that way, all our flowers are like your… sex organs.”

Candice put her hands over her mouth. “Oh Gods.”

“So when I flower in public it’s pretty embarrassing, but, uh, touching it—”

“Oh Gods, I’m so sorry.” Her face burned too bright to hide, but she did her best. “Maggie, I’m so, so sorry, I can’t believe I just—”

“Please don’t feel bad! It’s my fault, I didn’t say anything because I didn’t want you to know how much I want you all the time and—” She broke off with an anxious creak.

Candice peeked between her fingers. “What?”

Maggie stood perfectly still, as if she would turn invisible and the conversation would disappear. As the rest of her statement sunk in, Candice realized Maggie had been flowering for almost the entire time they’d known each other. She slowly lowered her hands from her face.

“I didn’t know dryads could have… urges,” she said, and it was true. If she had known, she might have brought it up sooner.

“Yep,” Maggie squeaked.

A different kind of heat flushed her body and pooled in her lower back. “How about this: I still feel really bad for having accidental flower sex with you.” It broke the tension, finally, and they both laughed. Candice reached out for one of Maggie’s gnarled-branch hands, running her thumb across the bark. “If you like, we can have flower sex on purpose. To make up for it.”

Three different blossoms burst open on her head. She didn’t make a single move to hide them. “Really? You want to?”

“I want to try, at least? I don’t really know what dryad sex is like.”

“I don’t know what human sex is like either.”

“Cool, so we’ll both be learning things.” Candice reached for her other hand. “Your place is definitely closer, soooo…?”

She nodded so vigorously that a couple of her leaves fell off. “Yes! Yes, it’s this way.”

Candice barely remembered to pick up her twisted tassel before Maggie raced off down the maze-like streets. She was really excited, not that Candice could blame her if she’d been waiting around all this time. And Candice was too, if apprehensive. Not only had she never had sex with a dryad before, she hadn’t been in a sexual situation with another human in ages. Unless she counted herself, which felt like cheating.

Still, her body reacted where her mind faltered. Since the promise of affection had been raised, she hadn’t been able to stop her heart from racing. The heat in her cheeks hadn’t left and neither had her growing arousal. She was glad she’d stopped tucking years ago, because her hardening clit would have made it very uncomfortable.

They arrived at Maggie’s place quick. She didn’t waste any time opening the door and inviting her inside, and Candice obliged just as fast. Maggie clapped and fairy lights leapt into enchanted lanterns lining the walls, washing them with a soft yellow glow.

“Make yourself at home,” she said, gesturing out vaguely. “Oh! I should—do something.” As fast as they arrived, she rushed into a different room.

“Don’t stress yourself out,” Candice called after her, setting her plant by the front door. She knelt down to unlace her boots, scanning the room as she did.

The twisted tassel would have plenty of company. Maggie’s home matched the trends of the other buildings: covered in plants and exceptionally tall. Disregarding the height, the place was small, with one huge living space and only two additional rooms. Most of the decorations were plants, blooming in all colors, creeping up the walls, or across the floor. There were a few shelves and tables free of vegetation, holding books or picture frames. In the center of the living space, there was a big comfy looking couch and low tables on either side. In the corner near a window, the floor was entirely ripped out. The exposed soil looked like the roads—churned up by roots, like it was used often. A nightstand with a few drawers rested against the wall nearby.

“I’m back!” Maggie said, somehow sounding breathless. She had a fistful of stones in one hand and a parrot-sized gargoyle in the other arm. It chomped down on her bark, to no effect.

“Who’s this?” Candice asked, making her way across the room.

“This is Feldspar. It’s cranky because I woke it up.” She hefted the stone animal in her arm and ushered it to another room. “I just want to get it set up in the library, so it won’t, uh, interrupt.”

“Wait, you have a library?”

“It’s nothing crazy!” She came back out, free of her passenger, and shut the door. “I’ll show you… another time? Or later?”

“Yeah, later is fine.” Candice stepped a little closer, her heart in her mouth. “So, uh, how are we doing this?”

“Right. So. I sleep in the corner over there, so I have this.” Maggie gestured at the couch. “I keep this for unrooted guests, and I can unfold it for more space.”

“Sure, that works.”

She went over to the couch and pressed a button on the side. The whole thing sparkled and popped into a fold-out bed. Candice waddled over and sat down, blood thumping in her ears. Maggie sat next to her. They looked at each other.

“What do humans do first?” she asked. A few more flowers bloomed among her branches.

“It depends,” Candice answered, scooting closer. “Do you know what a kiss is?”

“I’ve seen them. I don’t know if…” She gestured at her mouthless face.

“It’s worth a shot, though. Right?”

She nodded, so Candice made the first move. She reached up and cupped her face, all braided branches and shiny amber eyes. They closed the distance together, Candice planting a kiss where Maggie’s lips would have been. The rough bark scratched against her. It tasted like wood. They pulled back and looked at each other again.

“Did you,” Candice asked, “get anything out of that?”

Maggie shook her head apologetically. “Not really.”

“Okay, scratch that off. How about touching?”

“Most of my sensation is up here.” She pointed at her crown of branches. “But I know yours is everywhere, right?”

“More or less.” Candice reached for the hem of her shirt. “I can take this stuff off and we’ll go from there?”

“Y-yeah, okay. If you—if you want.”

Candice stood up, smiling into her chest. Maggie knew enough about human sex to understand that part. She peeled her shirt off and dropped it to the ground, then unclipped her bra to let her breasts swing free. Maggie reached out shyly.

“Can I…?” she asked.

Candice stalled at the button of her pants. She redirected to take Maggie’s cautious hand and press it to her stomach. “Go ahead.”

Her bark creaked in a way that sounded a bit like a human whimper. Her branchy fingers skidded across her skin, over her soft belly and up her sides. Candice held her arms in the air to give her room to explore, flushing. The rough touch of bark felt weird on her mouth, but against her body, it felt nicer than she expected. Like a pumice stone or rough brush, Maggie’s hands dragged across her skin with a comfortable scrape.

“These are more sensitive,” she said, guiding her up.

Maggie cupped her breasts, and she sighed hotly. She flicked her amber gaze up and down, working her way up to massaging them in her coarse hands. Candice put her arms behind her head and threaded her fingers through her hair, biting her bottom lip. It felt a lot nicer than she expected.

“Is this okay?” Maggie asked, keeping up her work.

“Yeah, yes,” she breathed. “Can I do something for you?”

Her hands stuttered. “Uh, my… my leaves?”

Now that she was sitting down, Candice was face to face with her leaves and flowers. As enticing as the flowers looked, she started with a leaf first. Maggie creaked as she ran her fingers over the wide, oval expanse. The dark green top was smooth and leathery, contrasted by the rough, yellowish underside. Candice pinched it at the base with one hand and used the other to run down the center of the blade, all the way to its tip.

“C-Ca—” Maggie stammered.

“Is that a good sound?” she asked.

She nodded. “Y-yes, it’s good.”

Encouraged, Candice hopped to the next nearest leaf. She traced her fingers across it, feeling it up like she’d feel a human’s body. She pinched and dragged some more, smoothed it with her thumbs, followed the path of the veins. Maggie made more creaky-whimpers as she had her leaves fondled, hands slipping from Candice’s chest to wrap around her waist.

It didn’t phase her. Enthralled in her work, she switched leaves when Maggie’s voice tapered off, revving her back up again with a fresh caress. The only thing that slowed her down was the flowers.

Maggie opened so many new blossoms, Candice was worried she’d run out of leaves. Her fingers already brushed the sides of petals on her search. They bumped against flowers as she stroked and touched the leaves. The air smelled light and lemony, sweet and enticing, begging to be noticed. And Candice definitely noticed.

They weren’t in public anymore. They were here to have sex. She could touch them now. She wanted to touch them even more, knowing what they really meant. So she did.

Candice cupped the nearest flower in both hands, cradling the petals in her palms. Maggie shook, branches trembling, and warbled a moan through her enchanted voice, bark squeaking even louder. Candice couldn’t help but smile, bending down to sniff. The citrus was even more powerful this close.

“You smell nice,” she said.

“Th-thanks,” Maggie shuddered. She lifted her head, eyes shining desperately. “C-can we—I need to—”

“Yes, I want to.” Candice dropped her hands to cup her face. “Just tell me what to do.”

“O-okay. I have to get something.”

She stood up and Candice felt a little proud to see her wobbling. She went to the corner of the room with the ripped-up floor—her “bed”—and dug around in one of the drawers. When she came back, she had what looked like a rubber glove with tiny brushes on the finger pads.

“This is a pollination toy,” she explained. “It’s not safe to touch the carpels or stamens with your hands, so you can use this instead. It feels like a pollinator, but it doesn’t actually carry pollen.”

“That’s a good idea.” Candice took the glove and pulled it on. It was a little big at first, but an enchantment shrunk it down to fit snugly around her hand. “Like this?”

Maggie stared blatantly at the fingertips of the glove. “Mhm…”

She smiled a little, showing it off. “I can’t reach you up there.”

“Oh! Right! Let’s, uh, lie down?”

They scooted onto the fold-out bed together, until Maggie was on her back and Candice sat by her head. There were dozens of flowers open on her branches now, each with its petals spread invitingly and curly carpels lifting toward the sky. Candice held a gloved finger over one, suddenly aware of how fragile they must be.

“Let me know if I do too much,” she said. And lowered her hand.

The instant the brush touched her carpels, Maggie made a long creaking sound. Candice rubbed it in a gentle circle, hoping treating it like human genitals wasn’t too far off. The branches under the flower rustled and Maggie creaked again.

“Good,” she moaned. “Good, good, feels good.”

Candice nodded, relieved she was doing something right. Experimentally, she used her thumb and index finger to brush the sides, among the dozens of stamens. Maggie squeaked, body twitching underneath her.

“Bad?” she asked, backing off preemptively.

“N-no, no it’s good.” She wiggled a little. “Please, it’s good.”

She went back to what she was doing, stroking the whole center. At the very top, she tickled the carpels with her finger, and slid back down. It made Maggie creak-moan again, so she kept it up. It did feel a bit like playing with someone’s clit, teasing it over and over. The petals were easy enough to imagine as soft folds to push through to get to her sweet flower-pussy.

“C-can you switch?” Maggie stammered.

“Switch flowers?” Candice asked.

“Mhmm. It feels good to switch a lot.”

“Gotcha.”

Candice gave the flower one final tease and dragged her fingers to one next to it. Now in the right mindset, she brushed the carpels in tiny circles, fucking her gently like she asked. This flower was just as sensitive as the last, Maggie creaking for each little brush. She rubbed the stamens with her thumb, spanning her other fingers wide across the inside of the flower.

“O-oh fuck,” Maggie moaned, and Candice almost jumped.

“Did you just swear?”

She covered her face with her hands. “S-shut up, you made me.”

Candice had to pull her hand away so she could laugh. “It’s not a bad thing! I’m proud of myself for that.”

Maggie uncovered her face, reaching for her leg. “Can you try again?”

“You can count on it.”

She got back to work on a third flower. Like before, she teased and circled the carpels, stroked the stamens, but added brushing the petals to her repertoire. It was even easier to continue her personal metaphor, listening to Maggie moan as she rubbed her flower-clit and fingered her flower-pussy. Before she reached her peak, she jumped to a different flower, starting fresh in a new cunt. The broken sound Maggie made with her bark made her gut twist itself in horny knots.

Candice twirled around the base of the carpels and stamens, teasing it before using all five fingers to stroke it to the top. Maggie arched off the bed, branches trembling in ecstasy. Candice tried to keep her there, fucking this one a little rougher. Careful not to damage her delicate flower-pussy, she flicked the carpals, raked her fingers along the petals, pressed into her stamens hard. Maggie trembled harder, moaning crazily. Candice smiled to herself, imagining the flower was a leaking hole. A sweet, aching cunt, sticky and wet from her fucking and desperate for more.

“C-Candice—” Maggie sobbed, clamping down on her leg.

“Are you—” she started to ask, but completely forgot what she was going to say.

All down Maggie’s body, she leaked sticky amber tree sap. Her face, her arms, her torso, her legs, all of it oozing through cracks in her bark and dripping down her slender frame.

“Gods, are you serious?” Candice breathed. She wished she had taken her pants off earlier, clit leaking pre-cum freely.

Maggie nodded, creaking out a whimper. “M-more.”

It was impossible to resist that.

Candice used her pinky to fuck one flower, and stretched her hand as far as it could go. She just barely planted her thumb in the center of another, and did the best she could to fuck two at once. Maggie shook and moaned, and—fuck, she leaked more sap. A huge glob pushed through her cheek, glistening as it slid across her face. Unable to resist, Candice bent down and sucked it off.

They both moaned that time. The sap was sticky and thick and tasted as citrus-sweet as her flowers smelled. Candice jumped to another pair of flowers, this time close enough that she could fuck them both without stretching too much. She used her free fingers to tease her petals, and kissed another glob of sap off her face. A sticky, glistening Maggie writhed, spreading her sweet wetness all over the cushion. Candice whined and slid down to lick some off her neck.

“You taste so good,” she whispered, her tongue thick and sticky.

“H-haa-a—”

Candice worked double-time on her flowers. She fucked at least two at any time, using her other fingers to stroke the curve of her petals. When three flowers lined up close enough, she fucked all of them, using her middle finger as the point of the triangle. She wasn’t sure if Maggie could come, or if the sap was her coming, but she hadn’t been told to stop yet, so she kept it up.

Gods, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to—watching her whole body leak was so sexy it made her wonder why they hadn’t fucked months ago. The only thing keeping Candice from licking her up from head to toe was that she knew Maggie wanted her flower-pussy railed. She needed to be fucked in her dozens of cunts, needed every one of her clits teased until she screamed, she needed Candice to fuck her so bad she was begging for it in public.

So she fucked Maggie hard. She fingered the curve of every petal she could reach, flicked her carpals, rubbed her stamens, she fucked each flower like it was its own sopping wet pussy. And in a way, it was. As Candice fucked her a dozen times, she moaned brokenly, trembled with lust, and drooled sap across every inch of her body.

When Candice lost track of which flowers she’d fucked and which were neglected, Maggie grabbed her arm and pushed it aside. Even her hands were sticky with sap.

“You okay?” Candice asked.

“D-done,” she stammered.

“Done it is.”

Candice peeled off the glove and set it on the arm of the couch. She turned back and admired the mess Maggie was, laying in a shallow pool of her own sap, and still covered in it. She laid down, propping her head up on her folded arm so her hair wouldn’t get caught in the sap.

“Did I do a good job?” she asked.

“Mhm,” Maggie mumbled. Her eyes were dim with exhaustion. “Much better than bees.”

Candice smiled softly, reaching out to swipe her sticky cheek. “Does this stuff just happen, or is this your version of an orgasm?”

“What’s orgasm?”

Well, that answered that question. Candice licked the sap off her fingers. “I can show you what mine is. Or we can do it another time, I get it if you’re too tired.”

She grabbed her hand with a sticky branch. “No, no, I wanna see.”

“Okay, I’m going!”

Candice flopped onto her back and finally, finally, wiggled her pants off. She kicked them over the couch, shivering as the air rushed over her naked body. As predicted, her clit leaked pre-cum at a steady rate. Her pubes were sticky, and so were her inner thighs, all coated in a thin layer of her wetness. Her clit was soft, too, as her erections had been short lived for years, a warm bundle of sensitive skin. She breathed, trying to relax.

“There are a lot of different ways to do human sex,” she explained. “It just depends on what you like to do, and who you like to do it with.”

“What do you like?” Maggie asked.

She opened her mouth to explain, then thought better of it. “I’ll show you.”

Candice sat up and leaned against the arm of the couch. She spread her legs, a blush rising to her cheeks again, but she swallowed it down. Maggie rolled onto her side to see better, watching with genuine curiosity. She swallowed.

“So, I guess I should tell you all the parts. This is my clit, or clitoris.” She picked it up, cradling it in her hand. “There are other words for it, but mine is a clit. It’s my main pleasure-thing, and it’s also where the uh… seed comes out.”

“Like a stamen?”

“Yeah, sort of.” She flipped her clit up to lay on her stomach, and cupped her sack next. “These are… there’s not really a sexy way to say it, they’re balls. Testicles. This is where the cum—the seed is stored, before it comes out. I don’t really use them for that, though.” She curved her fingers around the round shape of one ball. “Instead, I do this.”

Candice could do this easily, but went slow for the benefit of her audience. She pushed the testicle inside her sack up inside itself, gently pressing it up and folding it inside. Like a pocket turned inside out, she pushed the testicle and then her sack back into her inguinal canal, and sighed at the familiar feeling of being full of herself. She followed it with her fingers, pressing up into the inguinal ring—into one of her cunts. She kept her thumb against the bulge of her testicle in her abdomen, keeping it in place.

“Like this,” she breathed, almost forgetting to speak.

“What does it feel like?” Maggie asked, creeping forward to get a closer look.

“I think it feels good.” Candice used her other hand to form her other cunt, much faster for the sake of getting it done. She whimpered a little. “Feels… full and warm.”

“What do you do now?”

She laughed breathily. “Well, now, I fuck myself.”

Candice gently rubbed her fingers around in her cunts, against the entrances of the tight rings. She shuddered and sighed, treating herself like she just treated Maggie. Soft, but firm. A delicate touch, but still a fuck. Luckily for her, her cunts were not as delicate as a flower. She moved her fingers in and out, properly fucking herself from both sides.

Maggie watched her finger her cunts with rapt attention. Most of her flowers had closed, exhausted from their fucking, but a few remained open. Candice watched Maggie watch her, and her legs spread wider on instinct. She wanted her to see, to learn about human fucking just like she’d learned about dryad fucking.

She fucked a little faster, pausing with one hand to give herself more room. With one hand, she fucked her cunt, in and out, fingering herself until she whimpered and bit her lip. With the other, she massaged the entrance, her inside walls, the bulge in her stomach. Candice squirmed for her own touch, fucking and caressing both. She fingered herself as deep as she could and moaned, curling her toes on the couch. Her clit leaked freely over her stomach, pre-cum sliding down her body like Maggie’s sap.

“Can I try?” Maggie asked, scooting even closer.

“S-sure,” she breathed. “You might n-need to clean off the sap first.”

With a wave of her hand and a magical shimmer, the mess of sap evaporated from the couch and from Maggie, leaving them both spotless. Candice was a little disappointed, but that wasn’t important. She clenched her stomach, like she did when she used to tuck, and took one of her hands out. Maggie scooted forward, staring down at her crotch like it were as delicate as her petals.

“Gimme your hand,” Candice said. Maggie placed her fingers into her palm. The ends of her fingers were blunt, like sticks that had been snapped off at the end. No pointy bits, good sign. The wood might be rough, but she already liked that. “I’m going to put you inside me, okay?”

“Do I need to be careful?”

“Generally, yeah. I’ll let you know if something hurts.”

Her fingers were so thin that Candice easily guided three of them inside her with barely a stretch. The wood was scratchy, especially on such a sensitive area, but when it grazed her skin it felt good. Good enough to have her chest heaving, eyelashes fluttering, and Maggie staring at her.

“What now?” she asked.

“You can move,” Candice managed, “if you want. Or you can just rub it around. Both are good. And I’ll do mine.”

She nodded and Candice went back to fucking herself. Without the barrier of her own hand, she could pull out farther and fuck herself deeper. She groaned for herself, and then gasped. Maggie’s fingers ground against the inside of her cunt as she moved them out slowly. She pushed them back, another gentle scratch against the most sensitive parts of her. Candice whimpered.

“Does it hurt?” Maggie asked, sounding worried.

“Not enough that I want you to stop,” she replied. “Keep going, please.”

She obliged, fingering her cunt gently. Candice, on the other hand, fucked her other cunt with all the pent up arousal she’d been stewing in. She pressed against her walls, circled the tight ring of her entrance, pressed her fingers up as high as she could. It was contrasting erotic torture the way Maggie carefully made love to her. The wood of her branches felt like a rough, raw fuck, but her gentle press was anything but rough. Maggie pressed into her slow and deep, and pulled out so carefully that she felt every inch leave her cunt. It made her legs tremble, and she needed more.

Candice used her free hand to rub her leaking clit, stroking it as fast as she fucked herself. She whimpered, hot and wet and aching, chasing her climax with reckless abandon. Maggie pressed her fingers in so deep—she bucked her hips and moaned.

“More, more, keep going,” she begged.

“Can I do this too?” Maggie asked, pointing at her clit.

Candice just nodded and she got the hint. Maggie wrapped her hand around Candice’s, and they stroked her soft clit together. It was slower than she wanted—it was agony—but she let it happen, too desperate to say no to anything. She fingered herself slower, too, matching pace with Maggie’s careful lovemaking.

Her whole body felt connected. The two of them fucking her cunts, sliding her wet clit in their hands, it tied all of her pleasure together into a tight knot at the base of her spine. Candice hung her mouth in a silent moan, watching the way they fucked her together, deliberate and deep. Her thighs quaked.

“Fuck,” she whispered, “Fuck, fuck, I’m close.”

“Close to what?”

Candice came with her mouth wide open, moaning and arching her back. Her clit spurted a little clear cum, throwing the glob onto her chest. After a moment of ecstasy, she relaxed and let her hands drop. Maggie followed her lead, pulling away.

“Th-that’s an orgasm,” Candice breathed.

“Oh,” she said. Another flower bloomed. “I liked it.”

She laughed a little. “Hey, me too.”

With a little help from magic, Candice cleaned up and readjusted herself. In the aftermath, they laid on the couch together, Maggie holding her close against her bark chest. Candice didn’t hear a heartbeat, laying where one would have been, but she smelled like lemons and wood. It was a good trade off.

“Sooo,” Candice started, “are we dating now, or what?”

Maggie hugged her. “I would like it if we were.”

She smiled. “Me too. I guess this is our first date, then.”

“Oh, I guess so.” She covered her face with a hand. “What an intense first date…”

“We can do something more relaxing next time. Like… take a nap or something.” Candice snuggled into her neck. “Starting now.”

Maggie laughed her creaky wooden laugh. “Goodnight, Candice.”

Candice smiled, closed her eyes, and dreamt of pretty white flowers.

-

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[valentineforlemonandcherry]

Foxtail & Wolfsbane Part 48

Summary: Your lifelong obsession to hunt down the Nine-Tailed Fox has not gone as expected, and seventeen years later, you find yourself coming back to the place where it all started: Hogwarts. However, with Sirius Black’s escape from Azkaban and Headmaster Dumbledore’s hire of a certain Professor R. J. Lupin, you suddenly find yourself intertwined in the fates of those with whom you thought you had parted ways with long ago.

[Multi-Post Story] [Rowan Scamander x Reader] [Remus Lupin x Reader] [Young Sirius Black x Reader] [Tristan Graves x Reader] [Severus Snape x Reader] *Note: Rowan Scamander, Tristan Graves, Susana Holmes, Cas Carneirus, Henrietta Weiss, Thomas Picquery, and Magdalene Clarke are OC characters.

[Warning: Story Contains Explicit Smut.]

*Please do not repost or copy my work without my permission. Thank You!

☾ Click Here for Foxtail & Wolfsbane Home Page (All Chapter Links) ☾

Rowan had not been lying when he said that the media attention you received from being with him would follow you around.  You figured that since you were a bit of a recluse, you wouldn’t be recognized.  However, as you were about to find out, that wasn’t always the case.

One winter evening, you covered the Hogsmeade watch for Emmeline, who had a bad bout of flu.  That same evening, Remus gave a report to Dumbledore regarding recent werewolf movement.  Afterwards, Remus walked down to Hogsmeade to find you. 

You were shifting uncomfortably and breathing into your hands, trying to ward off the cold.  I can’t wait to get out of this bloody cold.  Snow is beautiful and all, but three hours out is quite enough, thank you.  I can’t wait to get back home to Remus.  Some hot tea would be perfect.  Oh, and I’ll drag out that extra comforter, so we can be extra warm tonight.  As you were thinking this, you spotted a rather familiar figure approaching you through the falling snow. 

“Remus?” you blurted out, quite surprised.

“Hello, darling,” Remus greeted you. He noticed at once, “You’re cold.”

“No, no, I’m fine,” you said quickly.

However, Remus insisted on pulling you in close to him anyways, to warm you up.  When your hands naturally fell on his chest, he saw you weren’t wearing gloves. “Your hands have gone all pink. See, you are cold.” He tsk’ed at you. “I told you to wear gloves tonight. Why aren’t you wearing any?”

“I forgot,” you said truthfully. “I thought I’d do some light reading before my shift, y’know, right after you left. But I lost track of time and was nearly late in getting here, so I rushed out and I – um – I forgot.”

Remus stripped off his gloves.  You immediately began to protest, but he’d already shoved your hands in his gloves.  “Remus, don’t be silly, I’m perfectly fi - Oh, they’re so warm!” You sighed happily.

“Yes, that’s the point.” Remus obviously meant to scold you, but that sparkle in his eyes betrayed that he was quite fond of you anyways.  “Shall we go home?”

“Yes, please.”  You stood up on tiptoe for a moment to give him a short, sweet kiss. “I was looking forward to getting home to you.  I’m so happy you came and found me.” 

“Mm, me too,” Remus murmured, returning your kiss. 

The two of you began to walk away together, when Remus remarked, “Hogsmeade looks beautiful, doesn’t it?”

It was true.  The streets were lined with soft, powdery snow, and people walked along, all dressed in their winter best and carrying glittering parcels in their arms.  Above them, the lamplights flickered through the wintery atmosphere.  The lampposts were wrapped warmly in lush evergreen garlands and scarlet, emerald, and green ribbons.  Meanwhile, every store window boasted its best display and most festive decorations.  Honeydukes proudly displayed its famous holiday fruitcake, which weighed a bit more than the average baby.  Across the street, Madam Puddifoot’s showed off its winter-time tea set featuring engraved snowflakes on the finest white porcelain, and mistletoe and pink and blue ribbons framed the entire front window.  A few shops down, Zonko’s advertised its “24 pranks for the 24 days of Christmas,” including a cheerful Santa Claus that puked confetti at the most inconvenient of times, exploding eggnog, paired with the usual exploding Bonbons, and a joke snowball that one could discretely slip into a back pocket, only to have the unwary victim wonder, hours later, why the back of their pants had suddenly gotten quite so wet and warm.  Meanwhile, the windows of the inns and bars were all foggy, indicating that people were having a grand old time inside.  Whenever the door to a bar opened, a golden glow of light spilled out onto the snowy sidewalk and laughter and easy conversation could suddenly be heard.

You and Remus were admiring all this, when someone called out loudly, “Oi! Aren’t you Scamander’s girl?”

Quite flustered, you blurted out, “What?”

A tall man, wearing a festive emerald cloak and a top hat, raced up to you. “Yeah, yeah, I remember taking your picture a few years ago!”

Recognizing the man at once, Remus hurriedly tried to hide his face behind his cloak collar.

Meanwhile, you had to rummage around in your memory before you realized - “Oh! Right, uh – Topper, was it?”

“Yeah! Wow, I didn’t expect you to remember me.” Topper shook your hand enthusiastically. “Great to see you!”

“Um, sure, yes. And how are you?”

“I’m fine.  I got married to my lady and all.”

“Congratulations, Topper. That’s really great.”

“It sure is! But now, who’s your friend, huh?”

“Oh, this is - ” You turned around, only to find that Remus had foregone all false modesty and resorted to wrapping his scarf around his face. “Erm…”

“Wait! Remus Lupin, is that you?” Topper said excitedly.  Out of nowhere, he pulled out a camera and – flash!

“Hey!” you shouted in surprise. But the camera was already gone, stowed away somewhere in Topper’s voluminous cloak.

Topper leapt forward. “Wow, I haven’t seen you since you were a boy! Remember me? I was good friends with your dad, I was.”

“Sure…” The scarf fluttered halfway down Remus’ face, as he abashedly put his hand out to greet Topper.

“Wait!”  Fed up with Topper’s antics, you grabbed the back of his cloak and yanked him away from Remus. “Did you just take a photograph of us?”

Shamelessly, Topper replied, “I did! You’ll probably see it in the papers in a few days.”

“You’re not serious!”

“‘Course I am! ‘Gossip’ section of the Daily Prophet, if I can manage it. Good spot, eh?” Topper grinned at you, before he suddenly checked himself. “I mean, I can’t promise it, I’ve got to get Rita’s approval.”

“No!” you said loudly.  “No need for Rita’s approval, no need for the Daily Prophet at all.”

“‘Course there is!”

“But no one’s interested in me, Topper!”

“No, but you’re Scamander’s old girl.  People always want to know what he’s up to!”  Topper flashed you a cheery grin.  “C’mon, don’t be all shy and modest now.  You were brilliant before.  Very brave, saying you didn’t care whether you were photographed with him or not.”

“But that was a different situation - ”

“Ah, love’s love!” Topper waved you off, beaming. “Anyhow, great to see you again! Thanks for remembering me. Gosh, you’re nice. And Remus, tell your dad hi – or, you know what? I’ll write to him myself, eh?”

“No need,” Remus said meekly. 

But Topper steamrolled on, clearly not hearing Remus. “Anyhow!  Happy Christmas, you two!” He spun about and – crack! – (with a yell, you tripped backwards) – he Disapparated.

“What in the world -!?” you sputtered.  You tried to grab onto a nearby fence to pull yourself up, but Remus’ mittens were too big for your hands, and you couldn’t get a good grip.  Finally, you settled for pushing yourself up into a sitting position.  “Merlin!”

Remus reached out to pull you out of the snow.  “Are you all right, Lovely?”

“That man’s a maniac!”  You shook your head in disbelief.  “Have you ever seen anyone move so quickly? I wasn’t even sure whether he took a picture, except that I was blinded by that horrendously bright flash.”

“His whole family is like that,” Remus remarked, while brushing snow out of your hair. “At least, that’s what I remember.”

You looked at Remus questioningly, and Remus explained, “Topper used to come around our house often.  He and my father attempted to capture photographs of the certain apparitions and spirits that my father studied.  They were wildly unsuccessful, but I think my father liked that he never lost enthusiasm." Rather dryly, he tacked on, "I see that he still hasn’t.”

As Remus finished speaking, his eyes flickered down to you.  You gazed up at him with bright eyes, alight with curiosity. 

“Lovely?”

“I’ve never heard you speak about your childhood before.”

“Oh. Well…” Remus reached up and awkwardly touched the back of his hair.  “It was a very uneventful childhood.”

“Was it?” you said, humoring him, but still clearly curious.

“Yes.” Then, rather abruptly, Remus suggested, “Shall we go home now?”

You smiled.  “Yes, please.”  You grasped his hand in yours and, closing your eyes, you Apparated yourself and Remus back to Grimmauld Place.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

That night, you snuggled up beside Remus in bed.  He ran his fingers through your hair before letting his hand rest against your shoulder.

“Mm,” you mumbled, liking that he was holding you.

“Sleep, darling. You had a tough shift today,” Remus whispered, and he lovingly kissed you on the top of your head.

You closed your eyes.  But, a few minutes later, instead of falling asleep, you called out, “Remus?”

You felt Remus still underneath you. Confused, you opened your eyes and called again, “Remus?”

Remus hesitated, and then he whispered, “Are you asleep, Lovely?”

“What? No.” You blinked awake fully and propped your head up on your hand to look at Remus.

“Oh.” Remus gave you an awkward smile. He squeezed your shoulder, as he told you, “I wasn’t sure.”

“Do I talk in my sleep?” you wondered.

“Once in a while, you do.”

“Really?” you said, genuinely surprised.

“Yes. Lately, you keep talking about ‘moon’ this or that and ‘rabbit’ something.”

“Wow.”

“But you’re awake.”

“Evidently,” you said, amused.

“Well.” Remus gently touched your cheek. “What is it?”

“Oh, yes.  I suppose I wanted you to know…” You traced the soft cotton neckline of Remus’ nightshirt with your finger. “… that I love you.”

Remus smiled.  He drew you in for a moment to kiss you sweetly on the lips. But afterwards, he caught your gaze and he realized – “What, Lovely? There’s more, isn’t there?”

You hesitated, biting down on your lower lip.

Remus waited patiently.

You managed to begin, “I was simply curious…”

“About?”

“About you.”

“Still? I keep telling you, Lovely, that I’m not very interesting. I haven’t really led the most exciting of lives, and my personality’s – er – quite straightforward.”

You shook your head at this.  But then, Remus shook his head right back at you, as if to negate your negation.  You couldn’t help but giggle a little at this.  Hearing your sweet laugh, Remus instantly softened.   “Really, I don’t think there’s anything to be curious about with me.  But if there’s anything you want to ask me about, you can.”

Finally, you said, “It’s come up a few times before. Only, I feel it makes you sad, and I don’t want that, so, um…”  Your voice fell to a soft murmur. “I mean, today, for instance, with Topper, you started to talk about… your family.”

“Oh.” Remus stilled slightly, and as he fell into thought, you felt his arms fall away slightly from you. 

Staying with him, you pressed your hands warmly against his chest as you reassured him, “You shouldn’t feel any pressure to tell me about your family. I’ll stay quiet about them if that’s what you prefer, I swear. It’s just that I can’t help but notice that when you talk about them, you seem sad, disappointed almost, and I want to know if you’re okay.  Or, perhaps you’re not okay, but then, I want to know that, too.”

Remus was still for a minute longer, but then, with a long sigh, he hugged you quite tightly, drawing you up into his arms.  Burying his face against your neck, he murmured, “You can’t help but notice, huh?”

“Yes…” You were confused as to why Remus repeated that to you, when it seemed the least relevant of all the things you’d just said to him.

“So strange…” Remus breathed out. 

You gently nudged your shoulder, making Remus lift his face and look at you. “What’s so strange?”

Remus gave you a soft, almost embarrassed smile.  “It’s strange how much you notice me.”

You scrunched your nose at this unexpected reply. “Huh? Why wouldn’t I? I can’t help it - ”

“I know you can’t,” Remus said. “It’s who you are.”

Still confused, you tried to explain yourself, “Well, perhaps, but it’s more about – it’s more because – well, I love you.”

Remus’ brow furrowed.

Seeing his confusion, you tried to explain, “I notice things about you because I want to know about you. I like to know how you’re feeling and what you’re thinking and what I can do to care for you. I know I’m not always the best help, but if there’s something I can do, I’d like to try my hand at it, as long as you’re okay with… with it… Um…” Your voice died away, as Remus grew perfectly still. Your eyes widened slightly when Remus didn’t react at all to your words.  He simply lay there, staring at you rather intensely.  You swallowed, and you whispered, “Remus?”

In his mind, Remus was thinking, with the utmost fondness and exasperation, Whatever will I do with you, Lovely?  All your brightness and curiosity – you’ll drag out all the worst parts of myself, and kill me with kindness, hm?  Is that the only way you’ll ever be satisfied with me?  But all he said was, in a polite, almost disinterested tone, “So, you’re curious about my family, are you?”

“Well, yes,” you admitted. “But really only because they’re related to you. I mean, of course they’re related to you – they’re your family.  But you know what I mean.”

“I don’t think I do,” Remus said honestly. “In any case, my parents haven’t been involved in my life for years now.  They know well enough that I prefer to be on my own, and I’m sure they prefer to live on their own.”

“Oh…” You weren’t quite sure what to say to that.  Well, maybe it’s best to keep quiet for now.  After all, it’s Remus’ decision as to his relationship with his family, you recognized. But the thing is, there’s a sadness that bleeds through everything when he talks about his parents.  Behind the defensiveness, I can sense that perhaps… he misses them.

Remus watched you, half-wishing that you would simply let it go and half-falling in love with you yet again because he knew you cared about this for his sake and you were trying so hard to say things the right way for him.  

Finally, you said, “Okay.  I’m sorry if my bringing it up bothered you.”

“It didn’t,” Remus replied, almost too quickly. “It’s all right.”

I know it is, but are you? you wondered.  However, tampering down your curiosity, you simply nodded.  You meant to shift back over onto your pillow after that, but you felt Remus slip his arms around you.  Recognizing that Remus wanted you to sleep in his arms tonight, you happily accepted, nestling up against his chest and hugging him tightly.  Closing your eyes, you let out a long breath, and finally, you fell asleep. 

Remu shut his eyes as well.  Soon, he was able to fall into a light sleep with you, when, through a haze of sleepiness, he thought he heard you murmur, “No… No, wait… Fox’s home…”

Remus blearily opened his eyes, right as you mumbled into his chest, “Come back… So fast… Rabbit…”

“Rabbit?” Remus muttered tiredly.

To which you, still fast asleep, whispered back, “Moon…”

Remus blinked tiredly at the ceiling, yawning a little.  In that half-asleep state, Remus finally allowed himself to think the thoughts he always kept carefully hidden away, even from himself: Lovely, you’ve no idea, do you?  How much your curiosity hurts me, and how much it heals me too.  And I wonder if you’ve ever been able to guess that what I really want to say is that you’re my family now.  Remus’ eyes slipped shut as he fell back asleep, while you snoozed away on top of him, dreaming that you’d come across a soft, snow-like bunny with a big, fluffy tail, and huge, thumping feet, carrying him huge distances as he hopped about a familiar, mythical, wintery landscape that had once been the home of a certain Nine-Tailed Fox…

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

By morning, Remus forgot entirely about his secret wish and you didn’t remember your secret dream. Instead, the two of you sleepily yawned at each other and when you murmured, “Coffee?”, Remus muttered hoarsely, “Yes, please,” in a manner that made you smile tiredly at no one in particular.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

At the breakfast table, the two of you sipped your morning coffees.

Remus remarked, “I finished your book.”

“Hm?”

“The book you authored, on the Nine-Tailed Fox.”

“Oh, I didn’t know you were actually reading it.”

“Of course I did.”  Remus looked over at you.  “I have a question for you, though.  It says that when the Nine-Tailed Fox gets her ninth tail, she becomes immortal.”

“Yes, that’s true.”  

Remus’ brow furrowed for a moment, as he thought about how to pose his question coherently.  “That moment of immortality… If it happens at the moment the Nine-Tailed Fox gains her ninth tails… Was that when – I mean, was that the moment when you disappeared from the attic?”

“Oh.” 

“You don’t have to tell me,” Remus said quickly, “and I understand if you can’t talk about it.  I was simply curious because I never quite understood what happened then.  Your appearance changing, the shattering glass, such strong winds… and then you disappeared…”  He reached out and grasped your hand tightly in his.  “I was no longer a werewolf, but you were gone.” 

You squeezed Remus’ hand back, but as you did, a thousand memories flashed through your mind of the Nine-Tailed Fox, the infinite universe of ships in bottles, that glass sea that you were trapped at the bottom of for millennia, with that lonely moon echoing out into a vast, spiraling universe of nothing but half-whispered dreams…

Remus watched you quietly. 

After a long moment, you murmured, “I’m not sure what to say except that yes, there was a moment where I felt the Nine-Tailed Fox turn immortal.  The sense of power that roared through me.  It was pure, unadulterated freedom.  To live forever, and to live powerfully…” You closed your eyes, recalling what you had felt in your heart then.  “I thought it was what I always wanted for myself.”

“Yes,” Remus whispered, “your dream of freedom.  You told me about it at Hogwarts. I thought it was a beautiful dream, and a brave dream.”

“Yes, only when I actually experienced a taste of it, it turns out that it wasn't what I wanted.  True immortality, infinite freedom, endless power – I couldn’t handle it.  I didn’t want that power, and I wouldn’t know what to do with all that freedom. And the thought of living forever... I can't explain it, but it makes me sad.”  You opened your eyes.  “In that moment, I felt so sure that I wanted to be human.” 

“I see.” Remus soothingly stroked the back of your hand with his thumb.  “I like that about you, Lovely - that you chose to be human.”

Leaning in to kiss him, you whispered, “I’ve always liked that about you, too, Remus.”

It was at this tender moment that Sirius strutted in.  “Does my nose deceive me, or do I smell breakfast?”

Remus sighed quietly as the two of you broke apart. “Morning, Padfoot.”

“Morning, Moons. And you,” Sirius said, choosing to address you in a way that made you roll your eyes at him.  

“How come you always come in time to eat the food, but not to help make it?” you grumbled, as you nonetheless handed Sirius a plate of food.

Sirius shot you a roguish grin.  “Pure coincidence, obviously.”

“Padfoot, I know you lie in bed, straining your stupid dog ears to hear when the stove goes quiet,” Remus said, not sparing him.

You glared at Sirius, but he held his plate up in just such a way as to block out your irritated face as he turned away to sit at the table.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

You, Sirius, Remus, Tonks, Molly, and Bill cleared out one of the mustiest basement rooms that day.  It was quite an eventful afternoon, between discovering the ghoul living in a trunk that threw all manner of silverware (and a single smoking pipe that was actually smoking) at all of you when the trunk was opened, the music box that sent everyone to sleep upon hearing the music (until Remus had sense enough to reach over and slam it shut), and the cursed skeleton hand that grabbed onto you and adamantly refused to let go unless it was given something else to hold onto (for it grabbed onto Tonks' bubble-gum pink hair, which flashed wildly as she screamed, until thankfully, Bill sacrificed his earring to tempt the hand to reach for that instead). 

Exhausted, all of you trooped back upstairs for lunch.  To your surprise, however, you found that your brother had arrived at Grimmauld Place, carrying a basket of pastries sent by your mother. You recognized it as her apology for the last time you’d seen her.

“What are you doing here?” you asked your younger brother.

He grinned at you.  “I came to see you, of course.”

You began to reach for a muffin, when your brother abruptly announced that he intended to join the Order of the Phoenix as a Muggle ally. 

At this, you whirled around.  “Absolutely not!”

Tactfully, if not a little obviously, everyone else meekly put their heads down and, shoving sandwiches and drinks into all manners of sleeves and pockets, shuffled out of the dining room to leave you and your brother be. Remus remained behind, though he sat quietly in the corner.

“Why not?" your brother asked. "I’m only joining the organization that you’re already in.  And so’s Mum, for all intents and purposes.”

“You can’t.”

“Sis, I’m not a kid anymore!”

“I know, but now is not the time,” you pushed back firmly. “It’s a dangerous time in the Wizarding World, and people like you and Mum are most at risk.”

“But if it’s as dire as you say - ”

“It is.”

“ – Then that’s exactly why I’m needed now.”

You shook your head fervently.

Your brother pressed on, “If the Order’s trying to protect non-magical folk, you need allies to play the messenger, right?”

“Even if that’s true, it’s not your role to play!”

“You’re protesting so much because I’m right.”

You paused, disarmed by his astute comment.  “But that’s not – You’re my brother, and I say no.”

Your brother gave you a knowing look. “You sound just like Mum when she can’t control something.”

You opened your mouth to retort, but nothing came out.  Oh Godric, he’s right.  This is exactly what Mum does.  The realization hit you hard, and you found yourself floundering.

Remus, who had been quietly watching, stepped in.  “Your sister is only trying to protect you.  Dumbledore knows that you and your mother are willing to help.  If things become dire, he will likely come to you regardless of anything else.”

You gave Remus a hard stare, not wanting to acknowledge the possibility of your brother joining the Order. However, Remus continued speaking to your brother. “However, there’s no need to play the martyr before that.  This war will not be won by one or two acts of bravery, but many years of strategic prolonging.  What we need most from you now is to prepare yourself.”

Seeing your distraught face and considering Remus’ words, your brother sighed.  “Fine, I’ll think about it.”  He started to head out, when he noted, “By the way, the pastries are from Mum, and they’re for Remus. She said to tell you that before you ate them all yourself.”

You swatted at him.  “Get out of here.”  But then, you watched from the window to make sure your brother left safely. 

Once he was gone, you turned away from the window.  Remus noticed the blank look on your face.  He came over and pulled you into a gentle embrace.  “Family, huh?”

You let out a tired laugh.  “Yeah, exactly. Family.”  You nestled into Remus’ embrace for a moment.  Then, noticing the basket of pastries behind Remus, you said, “Evidently, those pastries are for you and not me.  So, would you like five croissants or six almond biscuits to start with?”

Remus scrunched up his nose, overwhelmed by even the thought of eating so many pastries at once.  You smiled fondly at his expression. It reminded you of how McGonagall and Pomfrey had once decided between themselves that Remus could do with a general "sprucing up" and therefore piled him with citrus fruits at every given opportunity, until Remus quite unexpectedly found himself on a months-long mission to secretly stow away said citrus fruits in the Hogwarts staff room. The two of you had unknowingly crossed paths then, too, as you'd discovered the pile and, thinking you were helping this strange collector with their mission, added citrus fruits to the pile at every chance you got too, until poor Remus was convinced that he was haunted by some citrus ghost that McGonagall and Pomfrey had unleashed on him. When the two of you had finally discovered what was happening, you'd both had the same realization, which had been utterly heart-breaking back then - We'll always find each other in the same hiding spots.

But now, that thought filled you with joy, and when you saw Remus' bemused expression, as though he were being directly confronted by these croissants and almond biscuits, you couldn't help but laugh at the adorable absurdity of the situation.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

As it turned out, Topper was a man of his word, for he did indeed write to Lyall and Hope Lupin.  About a week later, Arthur Weasley walked in one morning to report for Order duty, and he gave you and Remus an unexpected piece of news. 

“Morning, Arthur,” you greeted him.  “Care for some coffee?”

“Yes, that’d be lovely,” he replied.  “But before that - Remus, I believe you have some visitors.”

Remus looked up, confused. “Here? At Grimmauld Place?”

“Yes. Er - Friends of Dumbledore.” Arthur’s ears slowly began to flash pink, as he fumbled, “Well, that’s not what I meant to say. I mean, it’s true that they are friends of Dumbledore, else they wouldn’t be allowed into Grimmauld Place.  But what I meant to say is – your parents are here.”

You suddenly spilled the coffee you’d been pouring.  Meanwhile, Sirius’ head swiveled around as he looked at Remus in awe.  “Your parents?” 

Remus’ grip went vice-tight on his fork.  But all he said was, “Fine. I’ll go and see them.”

“They said they’d also like to see you,” Arthur said, looking over at you.

“Oh…” You looked over at Remus.

At this, Remus paused.  “How do they know…?”

Arthur held up a copy of the Daily Prophet. There, in the Gossip column, was a moving photograph of Remus with his scarf slipping down his face and you blinking stupidly at the camera as the flash went off.  To be fair, it was a tiny little section of the column, but still – there it was.

Arthur handed over the paper to Remus.  “If I understood correctly, the photographer – er – sent this copy to your parents.  Congratulated them or something like that.”

“What the hell’s going on in this picture?” Sirius wondered, as he read it over Remus’ shoulder. “Are you getting beaten up by your own scarf?”

“No, I wasn’t getting beaten up by - ” Remus sighed, choosing not to finish his reply.  Instead, he looked over at you. With an inscrutable expression of his face, he asked you carefully, “Well?”

“I don’t suppose I have time to change,” you said nervously.

“You look fine,” Remus said.  “Besides, it will be better to get this over with as quickly as possible.” He cleared his throat and got up from the table. 

You started to follow him, when Sirius leaned over and whispered, “Lose the bunny slippers.”

You hastily slid the slippers off of your feet before you followed Remus out, wincing as you stepped across the cold, stone floor.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

“Remus!” Remus’s mother, Hope, instantly came forward to hug her son. 

“Mum.” Remus smiled back at her, but his smile was tight and his eyes were quite guarded.

Another voice rang out. “Hello, son. It’s been far too long, hasn’t it?” It was Lyall Lupin – Remus’ father.

“Yes, Dad,” Remus replied, his voice quite muted.   

You gazed at Lyall and Hope, curious to see how much Remus looked like them. Lyall was a noticeably tall man, and while in some ways, Lyall looked very much like his son – with the slightly curly light brown hair and the hazel eyes – his demeanor was quite different.  There was a centeredness and weight to Lyall, which his son did not have.  Lyall also wore a heavy travelling cloak, which gave even more breadth to his strong shoulders.  Meanwhile, Remus’ mother was dressed plainly, with her light blonde hair pinned back neatly.  She had a soft smile, but her blue eyes were disarmingly bright, almost piercing.  As Hope greeted her son, her hands fluttered all about Remus’ shoulders.  You smiled because Remus often made the same movement to you whenever he wanted to know how you were.

Gesturing towards his parents, Remus introduced you, “These are my parents, Lyall and Hope.”

You gave them a small smile and tried to look appropriate.  “Hello.”

Lyall asked, “Are you the woman in Topper’s photograph?”

“Uh, yes, that would be me,” you said, embarrassed.

“You’re much lovelier in person,” Hope remarked, smiling at you.  “Not that the photograph of you wasn’t lovely in any way, but you’re even more charming in person.”

“Well, we were blind-sided by the photograph,” you offered awkwardly.

“Yes, Topper really needs to learn his manners, doesn’t he?” Lyall remarked.

You smiled back at him, hoping that it would indicate your agreement without insulting his long-time friend.

Then, Hope cocked her head at you, and she remarked knowingly, “You’re also the woman who saved my son from his werewolf condition.”

“Oh…” you said, surprised.

“I wrote to them and told them when it happened,” Remus explained, “including the fact that we’re not sure exactly how it happened.”

Lyall’s voice took in a slightly stonier tone as he said to his son, “But you didn’t say in your letter that you were in a relationship with her.”

Remus hesitated. “Well, no, I suppose I didn’t. I’m sorry.”

There was a long beat of silence.  You clutched your hands together behind your back nervously.

Finally, Lyall spoke in a carefully measured tone, “I’m very happy for the two of you, but there’s been something weighing on my mind.  I’ve been looking into it ever since you told me that you were no longer a werewolf.  But before I tell you what that is, let me ask you first, so I don’t pry into your life needlessly - is it true what the article said?”

You glanced over at Remus, but he seemed unwilling to give a reply.

“What does it say?” you asked, trying to keep the conversation afloat and give Remus a chance to think through his reply. “We haven’t actually had the chance to read it.”

“It says that the two of you are a couple.”  Lyall stared at Remus. “Is that true?”  

You looked over at Remus again.  The answer was clear to you, of course, but you didn’t want to say anything that would get Remus in trouble.  Remus did not look back at you.

“Son?” Lyall pressed.

Remus’ gaze fell to his father’s feet.  “Yes. I’m in love with her.”

You stared at Remus, confused. His words warmed your heart, as he admitted outright that he was in love with you.  But you didn’t understand why he didn’t simply say that the two of you were together.

“That’s not what I asked.” Lyall gave his son a hard, questioning gaze. “The fact that you were willing to be seen in public with her confirmed that for me already.  But the question is – are you two a couple?”

Remus was unable to look his father in the face. Behind Lyall, Hope nervously bit her lower lip.  Your gaze flitted over all three of them, as you were unsure of what to do.  But finally – “Yes,” you answered. “Yes, we’re a couple.” You stepped closer to Remus and took his hand in yours.  Looking at Remus’ parents rather anxiously, you said, “I know you don’t know me very well, and I’m sorry about that, but, given time, I hope you’ll approve.”

Hope clapped her hands to her mouth, and her eyes shone brightly with happiness.  But the next moment, her eyes dimmed, as Lyall gave a deep sigh.

“Son.” Lyall’s voice was heavy with disappointment.

Remus flinched.  You could feel how cold and sweaty his hand was in yours. He began to speak, somewhat hoarsely, “Dad, we haven’t - ”

“And you can’t. You know that, don’t you?”

Hope reached out to her husband.  “Lyall, remember, this is Remus we’re speaking about.  Our son.  You know how responsible he is.  I’m sure he’s thought of this already.” 

“Yes, I know my son,” Lyall said, and for a moment, he looked miserable. “Strong. Honest. Brave. That’s my son.  But that is exactly why we must do this – to spare him the doubt and the pain.”  He turned back to Remus.  “Son, when it comes to relationships, to feelings, you must have realized by now what I warned you about all those years ago – that it distorts your perspective.”

“It hasn’t,” Remus said softly.

“So she knows then?” Lyall’s gaze flickered over to you. “You’ve told her, in no uncertain terms?”

“Dad…” Remus murmured tiredly. “Mum’s right. Please, you don���t have to do this.”

“I do, because I’m your father.” Lyall’s voice was steely, and for a moment, you were afraid that he was going to yell.  But instead, he put his hands on Remus’s shoulders and squeezed them tightly. “Remus, I have seen you go through challenges that others can scarcely imagine.  I’m sorry that I couldn’t protect you. I’m sorry. I know that the last thing you want to hear from me are these warnings, of me telling you not to do certain, natural things.  But it’s for your own good, I promise you.  I am trying to protect you.  Because if you were to let your guards slip, for even a moment, you might - ”

“Lyall, that’s enough,” Hope interrupted. “He knows what you mean.”

“You don’t have to keep telling me these things,” Remus murmured, almost numbly.  You felt his hand slip out of yours.  “I know that there’s still a risk, so I can never – I can never have children.”

You blinked. Oh. So that’s why he never… Oh.

Lyall looked sadly at his son. “Yes.  I looked into it, and there simply isn’t enough evidence either way.  It means that there’s a risk that even if you aren’t a werewolf anymore, we can’t know for sure whether or not the werewolf genes would pass onto a child.”  His eyes shone with tears. “I’m sorry, Remus. It’s not my intention to be involved in something so private or to curtail your happiness with the person you love, but I wish to spare you. Because the worst thing – the worst thing, Remus, is to be a father to a child who cannot forgive you.”

Your mouth fell open.  What did he just say? To his own son!

“Lyall!” Hope cried out. “How can you say that?”

Remus’ eyes fluttered shut. “Dad, stop. Please…”

It took a moment for your emotions to hit you.  It was such a complicated situation: Everyone’s hearts were bleeding out all over the place, and you had only just met Remus’ parents and Remus himself seemed so young and fragile before them – and it was all too much.  But suddenly, one thing became very clear to you, and when it did, the first emotion to burst into your heart was anger.

“How dare you!?” You hardly realized that you were shouting, but all three of the Lupins started. “How can you possibly imagine a world in which Remus’ child would resent him?” Furious beyond belief, you were almost spitting as you stepped forward, and, poking your finger in Lyall’s chest, yelled,  “You say you know your son, but you clearly don’t! Because I swear to you that Remus would be the most loving father there ever was, and there is no world in which his child would do anything but reciprocate that love!”

“Lovely, please - ” Remus was trying to draw you back towards him, away from his father.

Only, you didn’t budge.  You stayed planted right between them, as you continued, “I realize that you want to protect your son, but this is not the way to do it!  How could you even imply that his child wouldn’t love him? Do you even realize how wonderful your son is? I’ve been in love with him for years and years, whether or not he was a werewolf, because of who he is! How can you make him think, even for a second, that he wouldn’t be the best father there ever was? That’s not protection, whatever you say! How dare you - !?”

“Enough!” Remus finally yanked you back.

It suddenly hit you what you were doing – yelling at Remus’ parents, whom you’d only just met and shouting at them about how they weren’t going about protecting him in the right way.  Shame overwhelmed you, extinguishing your fury in an abrupt, but powerful tidal wave.

“Oh, Merlin,” you blurted out. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to – I’m sorry, Remus.”

“No, just – just - ”

“No, we’re the ones at fault,” Hope said tearfully. 

“Yes, I apologize.” Lyall turned his face away, but you could hear how thick his voice was with tears.

“I’m so sorry,” you repeated, mortified. “I’ll leave first.” You hurried out of the hallway. 

Upon hearing your outburst, Sirius and Arthur had quietly gathered in the hallway, but you ran past them, squeaking out, “Sorry, not now!” and up to your bedroom. 

Once in the bedroom, you let out a long breath. You leaned over and put your hands on your knees, to steady yourself.  Slowly, you got your heartbeat and breathing under control again.  As you did, you noticed your bare feet.Wryly, you thought, And I thought bunny slippers might be the issue.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

Still in the hallway, Lyall said, “Perhaps we had better – better go.”

“You can stay if you want,” Remus offered, though he continued to address the stone floor at his father’s feet instead of his father. “Maybe a cup of tea…?”

“No, but you should. Make your favorite – Earl Grey.” Hope reached out and tenderly touched her son’s face. “You look lighter now. Like the weight of the world’s been lifted off of your shoulders. I’m sorry we couldn’t be the ones to give that to you.”

Remus shook his head. “Mum…”

“Let’s stop, Hope. We’ll only make things worse,” Lyall said quietly. “Take care, Remus. I’m sorry. I never intended for our meeting to be such a – Well, never mind.  Go, have that tea, son.”

With that, Lyall and Hope Lupin left Grimmauld Place.   

Remus stared at the doorway for a long time afterwards, until Sirius came and found him.  Sirius put his hand on Remus’ shoulder and began to guide him out of the entranceway, when Remus suddenly blurted out, “It was the best I could hope for.”  As soon as the words left Remus’ mouth, it hit him that he spoke the truth, and that was precisely why his heart was breaking.

Sirius replied quietly, “I know, Moony.  You did well.”

Remus looked up at the staircase leading to your shared room, but he felt as though his feet were made of lead.  A deep feeling of embarrassment anchored him to the ground.  He coughed, and he wiped his face, even though there was no real reason to.

Seeing Remus struggle, Sirius said, “Go.  I’m sure she’s waiting for you.”

“When my father asked if we were together, I – I couldn’t answer properly,” Remus said hoarsely. “I wanted to say confidently, ‘yes,’ but I was worried that if I answered honestly, my father would say awful things about what we couldn’t do together, so I hesitated.  And then he went ahead and said them all, anyways - ”  He cut off suddenly, gripping his hands into fists.

A tad more firmly, Sirius pressed, “You’re not going to make anything better by beating yourself up about this.  No matter what, it’ll be better to go speak with you.  She’s probably worried about you, too.”

Remus let out a harsh breath. “Don’t you get it? That’s what makes it so difficult.  I could take her anger, I’m familiar with people’s anger – but when she cares for me, I can’t – oh God, I can’t - ” He swallowed hoarsely before he mumbled, “She said that if we had a kid, they’d love me.”

“Well, it’s not the craziest idea she’s ever had,” Sirius replied. “After all, you babysat all of us back at Hogwarts.”

“I didn’t,” Remus argued instantly. “I tagged along for everything, and I enabled James’ stupidest ideas several times over.  I’ll never live down the time I taught him the spell to tangle people’s underpants under their pants.  Granted, I couldn’t imagine he’d use it on the Slytherin Quidditch Captain during a match, and that it would twist his underpants around his balls to the point - ”

“Remus.” 

“Right. Sorry.”

A long moment passed, before Sirius said, with the tiniest smirk on his face, “Y’know, we did win the match.” 

Remus stared at Sirius for a long moment before he finally started to go up the stairs.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

You were sitting on the bed.  When the door opened, you immediately leapt to your feet.

Remus walked in.  You watched him nervously as he began to pace back and forth.  You swallowed hard, though you tried to be discreet again.  Oh no, what do I say?  Or should I wait for him to speak first?  I should wait for him to speak first.  Yes.  Oh, but I wish he’d say something. Please, Remus, please.

Abruptly, Remus turned around and looked at you.  Your mouth fell open, for his movement was so quick.  Still, you didn’t know what to say.  For a second, there was only a strange, buzzing silence filling the air.  Finally, you managed to mumble, “How… How are you?”

“I’m fine,” Remus replied. He started to pace again.

“Remus, I’m so sorry,” you said, with the words flooding out of you in a rush.  “I made things so difficult for you down there, didn’t I? Merlin, I don’t know when to shut up! I’ll go to your parents now and apologize, if you’ll let me.”

“They’re already gone.”

“They’re gone? Oh Godric, I’m sorry, Remus, I’m very sorry -  ”

“Lovely.”

You fell silent at once, biting down hard on your lower lip. 

Remus stopped pacing again.  You tried your best to read his expression, but Remus was turned away from you slightly, so that his face was half-hidden in shadow.  He asked you quietly, “Whatever possessed you to say all that to my parents?”

Your face drained of color.  “I wasn’t thinking right, clearly.  I should never have yelled at them like that.  I’m sorry, Remus, I really am.”

“No, but why did you say those things?”

“What – What things?” you said nervously. “Oh God, what did I say?  Did I say something terrifically stupid?”

“Well, I don’t know.” Remus’ voice was quite careful and measured. “I suppose they were foolish things to say, at the very least.”

Your heart dropped to the very pit of your stomach.  Your mind went haywire, as you desperately tried to recall everything you’d said to Remus’ parents.  What did I say?  What was it?

Remus looked towards the window.  In a barely audible voice, he murmured, “You said that you loved me even when I was a werewolf.  Then you said… I couldn’t believe it when you said that if we had a kid together, you didn’t doubt at all that they’d love me back…” 

Clutching your hands together tightly, you waited in agony for Remus to carry on and to finally reveal the thing you’d said to his parents that he couldn’t forgive you for.  Only, Remus stopped there.  Still looking out the window, he whispered, “How could you say those things?”

You paused.  What?  Of all the things I said, why is this what he’s upset with me for?

“You said them with such certainty,” Remus continued, almost musing to himself.  “But you can’t be certain about things like that.”

“Well… Well… But I know you,” you reminded him, the words spilling out of you without hesitation, “and I love you.” 

Remus blinked.  She says it so simply.  As if such a truth were really that easy and clear for her.   In that moment, he finally saw what you had always seen, from the very beginning – that no matter the circumstances, you were going to love him as if it were your heaven-born mandate, even if it was only because you were insensible enough to want him. 

Quite suddenly, Remus grasped your shoulders and then furiously kissed you all over your face.

You gasped, “Remus!” 

“You’re so foolish,” he admonished you.  Meanwhile, he knotted his fingers in your hair, while his mouth crashed against yours in a heated kiss.

“I – ah – mmm!”  Your hands messily patted all over his chest as you tried to find some grip, but Remus was holding you too tightly, so you had to slip your hands around him and clutch onto the back of his jumper.

You barely even noticed when Remus pushed your backwards until you fell onto the bed.  But you certainly did notice when he pinned you down against the mattress and covered your neck with kisses and bites. 

“Remus!” you gasped out again, panting heavily.  Your heart thundered in your chest as Remus dragged his hands down your sides and kissed you all the way down your body, peppering your tummy and hips with sweet, quick kisses.

“What’s love got to do with it anyhow, you silly little thing?” Remus whispered harshly, as he fervently worked his way down your body. “And why do you care about me so much, huh?”

“Ah, Remus…!” You moaned softly as Remus yanked your jeans off of you, only to press his mouth against your thighs and leave hot bites and kisses everywhere.

“Why do you care for me at all?” Remus growled, and he gave you an extra sharp bite on your inner thigh.

You jolted, arching your back off the bed.  “Nngh!”

Then, Remus kissed his way all the way back up to your lips.  His hands found yours, and your fingers entwined together.  Pressing your hands down on the mattress on either side of your head, Remus kissed your lips again.  “You can’t care about me like that,” he whispered furiously, between loving kisses.  “You’ll break my fucking heart like that, Lovely.”

“Mm… But I – I do – mmm.”  Your mind was spinning wildly, and your heart was galloping away in your chest.  You were buzzing with excitement and heat, and you were determined to receive and give back every bit of love Remus was showing you.  However, although you were all too keen to be entirely lost with Remus again, you did wonder if – “But R-Remus, shouldn’t we – mm - shouldn’t we talk first?”

“No, I think we out to make love first,” Remus breathed out at once.  But then, he paused.  Stopping to check on you, he drew away slightly to ask, “No?  You’d rather not?”

In this moment, you finally were able to see Remus’ face and read his expression.  To your utter relief, Remus’ eyes were light and while he wasn’t smiling, there was an evident softness to his expression.  That stray curl had fallen onto his forehead again, and you smiled ever so slightly as you gently tucked it back for him. Realizing that he was all right, you heard yourself say, “Well – Well – I mean, making love with you always seems like a good thing to do, but - ”

Remus interrupted, “Good,” and then you blinked as you felt his warm hands push up your shirt and his hips push your thighs open. 

You gasped, feeling Remus’ hips burrow so nicely between your thighs. 

But just before Remus entered you, you whispered, “Remus?”

“Yes?”  Though he kept himself between your legs, Remus took the opportunity to lean forward and kiss your neck again.  At the same time, he pushed his hand against you and started to finger you gently, making you all warm and wet to take him. 

Feeling his mouth sucking your neck while his hand was slotted sweetly between your thighs, you had to concentrate to pant out, “You’re not – This isn’t you punishing me for being so silly, is it? Because I must – mm – I must tell you that I don’t think it’s s-silly at all. The things I said, I mean.”

You felt Remus sigh against your neck, but then he chuckled slightly and placed a warm kiss just underneath your jaw.  “No, Lovely,” he reassured you.  “I’m not punishing you.  This is me… loving you.”  He lifted his head a little, to kiss you adoringly on the mouth.  You sighed out in happiness as you kissed him back.  However, when the two of you paused, panting, to catch breath, Remus teased you lowly, “But you do realize, don’t you, Lovely, that the fact that you had to ask me that at all proves just how silly you are.”

“Does it?” you wondered.  “I thought it was quite a reasonable question.”

Remus chuckled.  “Let me clarify for you, then.”  He gazed at you solemnly then, as he promised, “I will only ever love you.”

You had already been melting for Remus, what with him keeping you quite warm beneath him on the bed, while he covered you all over with tender kisses and touched you so lovingly everywhere, tracing every curve on your lovely little body.  But hearing that, you became absolute putty in his hands.  You sank back into the bed, while you looped your arms around his shoulder to bring him down with you slightly, and then you kissed his face all over, very softly but very fervently.

Remus smiled and he let you kiss him all over for a moment, while his hands slipped up your shirt and gently massaged your soft breasts.  But then, his hands slowly and purposefully slid down your stomach and then down your hips – making your breath catch a little – and then glided over your thighs, leaving a trail of warmth over your softest, tenderest parts. 

“Lovely,” Remus said, his voice warm and dripping, almost like honey, “can I love you now?”

You nodded fervently, reaching down to gently run your hands over his hair.  “Yes, please.”

Remus kissed his way down your tummy until his lips were grasping at you just between your legs.  You held your breath in anticipation.  Only a few seconds later, Remus pushed his tongue against you, and he felt you jolt softly with pleasure.  He held onto your hips, loving the way his fingers pressed into your soft skin.  You reached down and grasped at his wrists, holding onto him as he made you quite warm against his mouth.

As Remus tasted you, he felt a familiar, intense desire flare up inside of him.  He’d almost always chased it away, but tonight, he didn’t.  As he littered the inside of your soft thighs with kisses, he whispered wantingly, “Lovely, I may be a little rough with you tonight.  Would that be all right?”

You gave him the most perfect answer by breathing out, in the softest, neediest voice, “Yes, oh Gods, yes” and opening your thighs wide apart for him.

Remus ran his hands up and down your thighs and placed another sweet, wet kiss on your pussy, as he whispered, “Mm, good girl.  You get so soft and sweet for me, my love.”

Your heart felt full of love and pride at Remus’ comment.  With a soft cry of, “Please, Remus,” you reached out for him.  Remus came back up to you, falling gently onto his elbows to kiss you quite passionately.  At the same time, you reached down and guided him to you – you both held your breaths – and then Remus pushed himself inside of you.

“A-Ah,” you stuttered out, and Remus hastily captured your lips with his again, kissing you in a way that made drew out your raspy, needy moans.

You and Remus were quite rough with each other that night, but the roughness neither came from nor expressed itself as aggression.  Rather, both of you were overly needy, desiring so fervently to somehow show each other your hearts, bleeding profusely with the utmost love and adoration for each other.  No matter how many kisses Remus gave you – and he gave you many – and no matter how many places he found to touch you and hold you and squeeze you – and it was all over – and no matter how deeply he managed to push himself inside of you – and it was quite deep – it wasn’t enough.  It was the same for you.  No matter how many kisses you littered across his chest, no matter how many times you gripped his shoulders and moaned for him, and no matter how tight and wet you became while taking him inside of you over and over again - it was never going to be enough.  Both of you were beginning to realize that there would never be enough time and space to show each other the depths of your love.  But this realization, while melancholy in its maturity, no longer echoed with the empty promises and decided depression that it once had.  Because you understand now that this was what it meant to be human, to love and live with soft hearts in a considerably fleeting world.  In such a temporary world, with such an unknowable life, you recognized that if you spent a lifetime trying, every day, to find little ways to express your love for Remus – then that would be a lifetime well-spent in all its human glory. 

Remus felt the same – he always had.  But his journey had been different from yours, for even though he realized this truth first, he was later than you to act on it, because of his own fears of what his love meant for you.  Remus fear that any love between the two of you could only result in pain for you, and he had been determined to protect you from that pain, even if it meant ripping out his own heart.  But now, Remus realized that it wasn’t true – that love was a wonderful thing, even for him and perhaps even especially for him, because it was with you.

At one point (neither of you were quite sure when, for when you were together like this, time no longer mattered), Remus gathered you all up in his arms.  Both of you sat up together, with your thighs sitting comfortably atop his, and with Remus holding you to him while you clutched onto his shoulders.  Your head dropping back, you moaned in ecstasy as Remus entered you from below.  When you shuddered, Remus hugged you tighter, providing a safe anchor for you to hold onto as you felt that pleasant, but intense heat burst into flame inside of you, while also keeping you in place as he rutted up into you.

“U-Uh-Uhn…” you stuttered out, while your nails dug slightly into Remus’ shoulders.  Remus gritted his teeth, but less because of your nails and more because your pussy was wrapping around him so fucking perfectly. 

“Mm, Lovely,” Remus moaned with you, his brow furrowing he felt your warm, wet pussy take his cock so sweetly.  You were very tight, barely letting him fit inside you, and yet, like the good girl that you undoubtedly were, your sweet, wet folds slowly let Remus push in, inch by inch, until he was all the way inside that perfect little cunt of yours.  You leaned forward into Remus’ hug and let out a soft sob, right up against his ear, as you took him in all the way.  “Uhn, R-Remus, ah…”

“You’re a-all right, uhn, fuck,” Remus groaned, breathing quite heavily.  She’s so tight and so wet.  And she’s starting to get all soft for me.  Her pussy’s opening up, getting so fucking sloppy.  Oh Godric, she feels so fucking good, taking me so well. 

You held your breath for a moment, and then you moaned, as you released just a little.  “Oh Godric,” you half-whispered and half-moaned against Remus’ neck.  Your pussy became quite soft and hot, with your warm walls opening up just that bit more for Remus.

Remus squeezed you lovingly in his arms, and he gently moved his hips back and forth, easing himself deep inside of you.  “That’s it, Lovely,” he praised you.  “Yes, sweetheart, mmm. Just like that… Fuck, you’re getting wet.” 

With Remus taking his time with you and whispering such soft praise to you, you started to relax.  You breathed out as that indescribable sensation of wonderful pleasure flooded through you, beat after beat after that.  “Mm,” you hummed, burying your face against Remus’ neck.

When Remus checked in on you, asking you, “Does it feel good, Lovely?”, he felt you immediately nod your head against him.  Letting out a deep groan, Remus finally relaxed as well.  He shut his eyes, and he lost himself to this feeling of utter bliss, of being with you like this.  He ran his hands all up and down your lovely little shape, loving how you felt so warm, sitting atop him like this, and loving that he was able to hold and touch you all over as he rocked into you, over and over again.

For a long time, the two of you moved together, holding each other, with you panting softly against his neck and with Remus hugging you to him.  It was such soft, loving, cozy sex, even as Remus was all the way inside of you.  It was because the two of you had finally learned to slow down a little, to learn patience for yourselves and for each other, until you found this sweet, little paradise between yourselves.

But of course, as you became ever warmer and wetter for Remus, and Remus felt himself get almost painfully hard, both of you started to chase that sweet, heightened release together. 

“Remus, I w-want you,” you bleated out, starting to make yourself quite busy by kissing at his neck while softly rolling your hips against him.  “Want you a little h-harder.”

Remus moaned, loving that you were asking for him.  Though still pacing himself, he eagerly started to rock into you harder.  His hands slid down your back and then split to grip your hips, so that he held you down in his lap as he thrust into you from below.

“Ah!” Your kiss accidentally turned into a soft, but sudden bite on Remus’ neck, as you felt him push deeper into you.  Remus hissed lightly, and you blurted out, “S-Sorry!”  You turned your head away from his neck, resting your head on his shoulder and moaning out in pleasure as Remus pushed into you again, a bit more roughly.  F-Filling me up s-so well, like this, you moaned in your head.

“Uh, fuck, Lovely,” Remus breathed out.  He could not only feel your tight folds so sweetly milking his cock now, asking greedily for more, more, more,  but he could also feel your taut little tummy and your soft things trembling slightly against him, now that you were taking harder thrusts from him.   

“Yes,” you moaned out encouragingly, “yes, yes, yes…!”  Wanting even more of Remus’ cock inside of your needy little cunt, you put your hands on Remus’ shoulders and began to bounce lightly on top of him, meeting his thrusts.

Remus groaned heavily, and then he suddenly began panting quite hard, for nothing turned him on quite like seeing you chase your pleasure so openly with him.  Feeling his breath quicken, you worked your thighs and hips as much as you could, pushing your pussy against his cock repeatedly to take him in as deep as you could.  Because nothing, nothing, felt half so good as having Remus inside of you like this, unless it was seeing him pant for you.

Remus’ moan came out half-broken, as he felt your pussy swallow him his cock so greedily.  I swear she’s going to be the death of me, with how perfect she feels, he thought to himself, rather nonsensically.  But, in truth, that was how desperate you made Remus when you had him like this. 

Both of you panting, moaning, and begging to each other in earnest, Remus kept holding onto your hips as you kept rocking back and forth, feeling Remus’ cock tug and pull at your pussyhole with each movement.  As the tension grew to a nearly unbearable point, Remus abruptly wrapped his arms around your waist and then, he thrust hard into you.  “Uhn!” he groaned heavily, as he slammed his cock into you. 

“Ahhh!” you cried out.  Your hands flew onto his chest, as you felt Remus hit up deep inside of you.

“L-Lovely, u-uhn,” Remus breathed out.  “God damn it, you feel so fucking good for me.”

“Ah, R-Remus, ah, yes,” you gasped out.  “For y-you, mm, y-yes, ah!” You shuddered all over him, for Remus kept his cock buried inside of your sweet, pulsing pussy. 

Seeing you come undone for him like that, Remus’ cock throbbed heavily.  For undoubtedly, to be able to see you in this state, you were his woman after all, Remus thought warmly.  Mine to love and hold, mine to treasure, mine to be with… With a soft growl, Remus toppled you both over onto the bed.  He kept his arms around you so that you ended up lying on the bed beneath him.  But then, Remus went right back to pushing your soft thighs open, not even noticing when the blankets slipped entirely off the bed, pushed off by your legs spreading apart.  You hardly noticed either, as the sensation of Remus pushing his cock right back into your waiting pussy made your tummy flare up with that sweet, wonderful heat.

“Ahhh,” you moaned softly.  “Ah, yes, right there, sweetheart.”  Lost entirely in the moment, you didn’t realize that you were arching your back and running your hands over your breasts, squeezing them feverishly to account for that delicious flame burning deep inside of your tummy.

But Remus chose that moment to look down at you, and he blinked quite hard at the sight of you, so completely feverish and soft and wanting.  He remembered, then, how the two of you had once been so very shy and careful with each other about any physical touch, or really, even the slightest indication of the feelings that you had for each other.  He recalled how he’d told himself that he could never wish for anything before the occasional, friendly nap together, and how, after any moment that’d gone further than that, he’d been utterly thrilled about it, but so frightened of where it might go.  You’ve always had my heart, but I never even dreamed we could be together, let alone like this.  But now… Remus felt his heart swell with a deep, almost painful sense of tenderness towards you.  We’re together like this, in the most intimate way possible, and I swear to Merlin that I will never let you go, Lovely. Never, ever.

“Remus…?” you said, blinking your eyes open to look up at him.  Reaching up, you gently touched your trembling fingers to his chest.  “Is everything all right?”

“Yes,” Remus said softly.  “Everything’s perfect.”  He leaned over you again, and keeping you warm and safe under him, Remus began to take you at a steady pace.  He pushed his hips into you quite intensely each time, but more importantly, every stroke was slow, purposeful, and deep.  It felt so good for you, and despite his unrushed pace, everything was fast becoming wonderfully warm, sweaty, and tender.  Your hair was getting quite messy against the pillow, and your face was flushed with a wash of vibrant pink.  Always so beautiful, Remus thought, almost mournfully.  My Lovely… He managed to press his hand onto your cheek.  At that exact moment, you opened your lips to moan, and Remus’ thumb slipped gently in-between your lips.  Remus began to pull his hand away at once, but you bleated out, “N-No, Remus, stay…” and you sucked hard at his thumb. “W-Want you…” you moaned out, with the words slipping out of your soft, perfect mouth as you continued sucking.   

Remus moaned softly, and he pushed into you harder without thinking about it. 

“Mm!” you moaned, with your lips still wrapped around his thumb.  Just then, Remus felt your pussy thump heavily on his cock.  He groaned heavily, and, falling even deeper into the moment, he pushed both his thumb deeper into your mouth and thrust his cock inside of you needily at the same time. 

You moaned out, in a muffled voice, “Mm, mm, mmm!”

“U-Uh, Gods, Lovely, you’re gonna kill me, s-sounding all sweet like that,” Remus mumbled, suddenly all soft and pathetic himself.  You felt Remus press his thumb lightly against your bottom lip, and your lips parted.  You breathed out.  “Hah….!” At that moment, Remus abruptly pulled his hand away, only to lean forward and catch your mouth in a feverish kiss.  At the same time, Remus thrust inside of you, hot and heavy, and his thighs slammed into yours. 

 “A-Ah!” A loud cry wrenched out of your throat as Remus hit up hard, right against your sweet spot.  Your eyes widened, and you gasped loudly against Remus’ lips.  All you could feel, all your mind could process, all your body could take in that moment was a burst of intense, fierce pleasure deep in your pussy.  You naturally made to gasp and thrash out as that unrelenting slam of pleasure overwhelmed all of your senses, but Remus was all around you, claiming your lips as his and pinning you down against the bed, even as he claimed your pussy as his, too.  It was all you could ever want, to be with Remus like this, but your whole body was aflame now, and you couldn’t help but squirm all over the bed. 

“Fuck,” Remus cursed heavily, as he barely held back from cumming.  But, feeling how much you were squirming underneath him, he managed to ask you, though rather hoarsely, “Was I too – too deep?” He quickly drew his hips back a little, and suddenly – that wonderful pleasure pressing right up against your sweet spot disappeared.

“No!” you cried out desperately.  “No, it’s not too deep.  Rem, please keep going.  I need you, I need it – Oh, Gods, please, I want to feel you again, please!”  You reached down and your hands scrabbled all across Remus’ thighs, as you tugged at him, indicating how badly you needed him back inside of you again.

Remus, of course, was all too happy to comply.  With a low moan of relief, Remus fucked his cock back into your pussy and this time, he didn’t hesitate in giving you a deep, steady, and fast pounding.

Slap, slap, slap, slap!  The sound of your thighs meeting over and over again as Remus fucked his cock deep inside of your cunt sounded out, mingling with Remus’ desperate pants and deep growls and your raspy moans and cries of pleasure.  After only a few moments of Remus hitting up against your sweet spot, you felt your tummy go quite tight.  You gripped hard onto Remus, and your toes began to curl.  You suddenly bleated out, in a voice that sounded distant even to yourself, “Oh… Oh Gods… Ahh…!”

Remus glanced down, and even with his cock filling you right up, he could see and feel your pink pussy throbbing all over him, thumping and squeezing away as you were about to cum for him.  Biting down on his lower lip hard to stop himself from cumming too early (yet again) at the sight of you taking him so, so well, Remus thrust his hips forward again.  You cried out once more, and your voice was now definitely all raspy and wanting. 

Yes, take it, and moan for me like a good girl, just like that, sweetheart, Remus moaned in his head.  Mm, your pussy takes me so fucking well.  He was sweating heavily now, as he used his abs and hips to thrust into you messily, while he held himself up over you on the bed.  But he hardly noticed, for all he cared about was how good you felt to him, and how he felt a savage, fervent desire to make you feel good.  In fact, Remus was quite lost in you, so that when he felt your pussy start to clench, he didn’t hesitate at all in gathering your legs up in the air and leaning forward to continue taking you as deep as he could.

“Ah!” you burst out, feeling Remus’ cock slam into the most pleasurable place deep inside of you.  It feels so incredible.  This fleeting, but all-consuming moment of pleasure with him.  And it’s with Remus.  My love, my soul, my Remus.

“Ah, ah, ah, R-Remus!” you breathed out heavily.  Sweat glimmered in the low lamplight on your forehead, too, as you clutched the sheets on either side of you and squeezed your eyes shut. 

Focused entirely on making love to you as earnestly as he could and as he needily as he required, Remus nearly had you folded in half at this point, with your legs high in the air.  In fact, you were only able to take half-breaths, both because you were bending at your hips, but also because, every time you tried to gulp to take a deep breath, Remus had already pushed the breath out of you.  You felt your breasts bouncing softly and your hips and thighs being pushed repeatedly into the mattress as Remus roughly, but lovingly sexed your body right to your limit.  He was growling lowly, loving the feeling of your tight pussy clenching needily all over his cock.  Meanwhile, you were gritting your teeth quite hard, as you felt yourself starting to reach the point of climax… All at once, you trembled all over.  Oh – Oh God, I think I’m gonna - ! You tried to warn him, tried to stammer out, “R-Remus, I’m - !” but your mind blanked as Remus’ cock slammed into your sweet spot yet again, and then, it was too late. 

“Ah, fuck – nngh – AH!” you cried out loudly.  Your hands slapped against Remus’ thighs, but before you could push him away, you were squirting all over Remus’ cock, dripping onto his thighs, as your pussy spasmed all over, cumming and cumming and cumming.  “Ah, ah, ahhh!” You were nearly wailing, as your body let go in a way that surprised even you. 

Remus breathed out heavily in surprise, but, ever the gentleman, hastily held your legs up as they went limp.  Your tummy buckled, and you were panting as if you’d run a hundred miles, and then another sweet, raspy cry left your lips – Remus leaned over, and holding your legs spread wide open in his arms, he kissed you as he fucked you even harder, burying his cock shamelessly into your wet, wet cunt.  This was the moment Remus savored above all else, and now that he had taken you to this point of pleasure, Remus knew he could let go, too.  Feeling you cry out against his lips so preciously and feeling your pussy spasming all over his cock, it felt to Remus as if you were begging, with your entire body, for him to finish for you.  So, with a loud, raspy groan of his own, Remus finally mercilessly chased that release, thrusting inside of your pussy furiously without holding back at all, pounding into you right through your intense orgasm.  His thrusts fast were messy, heavy, and needy, and then, you felt his cock throb heavily inside of you, making you gasp and nearly wince as you felt your pussy squeeze him again and, Remus, moaning hotly against your mouth, came on your tummy, coating your shapely body all over with him. 

“Oh, Rem…” you breathed out, feeling your stomach all warm from being covered in his cum.  “Hah… Ah… Hah…”

“L-Lovely,” Remus stuttered out.  “Uhnn…” Then, letting out a soft, but deep groan, and with his forehead all shining in sweat, his abs burning, and his heart racing, Remus collapsed gently on top of you. 

You could feel how warm he was, all over, and you could feel his heartbeat thumping away so quickly inside of his chest.  Oh, you found yourself thinking, this is the only place I ever want to be. 

For a long time, both of you lay there, gasping for breath.  Finally, you managed to lift your trembling arms just enough to wrap your arms around Remus’ shoulders.  Through your shuddering gasps, you both kissed each other silly, still not entirely finished with wanting each other (you never would be, you realized), and yet, entirely spent from how hard you had taken each other just now. 

After some time had passed where the two of you covered yourselves, Remus lifted himself up a little, pushing himself up onto his elbow.  He softly pushed your hair back from your face, and he kissed you on your forehead. 

You smiled up at him and agreed, in a still slightly breathless voice, “Well, you were right.  That was better than talking.”

Remus chuckled, and he wrapped his arm around you to keep you tucked in against him. 

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

Afterwards, you and Remus lay together on the bed for a long while.  You were lying with your back half to his chest and half on his arm.  When you stretched lightly, Remus traced your arm down to your hand with his fingers and he gently held your hand.  Though he didn’t say anything aloud, you could tell, simply from the way he slipped his fingers between yours, that he had something he wanted to say to you.  So, you clutched his hand back and waited patiently for him to speak.

After a moment, Remus murmured to you, “You were right, you know.  I should have told you everything ages ago.  I don’t know why I didn’t.”

Softly, you asked, “About your parents, you mean?”

“Yes.”  Remus began to speak, and you listened intently.  “The first thing you should know is that my parents love me.  They love me very much, and I’ve never doubted that.  When I became a werewolf, they gave up their careers to give me as normal a childhood as they could.  It wasn’t easy, especially back then, when the Wolfsbane Potion hadn’t been invented yet.  As you know, Lovely, monthly absences are quite noticeable.  People always began to suspect, so we were never able to stay in one place for more than a year.  Still, my parents never gave up on me.  They stayed with me, and they never blamed me for our constantly having to move.” 

Remus took a deep breath, before he continued, “But there’s the other side of it all – my side. I know my parents meant well when they paid for all of those treatments to stop my transformations, but at some point, I felt that they became more desperate for a cure.  I think it was because I was growing, and so was the wolf.  They were scared they might not be able to control me.  The transformations became more painful, too, until my mum nearly went mad every time I transformed because I would howl and cry and scream…” Remus was gripping your hand so tightly that his knuckles were white.  “Until one night, my father put a muzzle on me, to quiet my screams.  And I think – something just – just broke in me - ” Remus abruptly stopped speaking.

You turned into his chest and you hugged him as tightly as you could.

Remus didn’t respond at first, as he closed his eyes to keep the tears from escaping.  But after a moment, he was able to look down and meet your gaze.

“Oh, my love,” you murmured, heartbroken.

Remus tried to smile at you.  “It’s all in the past now, though.  And I know that my parents did their best for me, and I tried to do mine.”

But you saw his pain, and you whispered softly, “You can cry, you know.  You should cry.  It’s the only thing that makes sense in this situation.”

Remus shook his head.  “I’m all right, Lovely.  It’s only that – well, I found myself thinking that if that’s what love is, always such a twisted and painful thing, then it must be better to reject it.  For my sake and for everyone else’s.  What was the point of love, if all it resulted in was dragging everyone down into a hellhole with me?” He paused, collecting himself.  But then, he looked down at you and his gaze warmed.  “Only, I couldn’t seem to chase you away, little fox.”

You smiled at him, but the smile didn’t quite reach your eyes, for you also reached up to tenderly wipe away a stray tear that had managed to escape him. 

“This was all a long time coming,” Remus murmured.  “I should have resolved this years ago.  I should have told you everything about my relationship with my parents before. I’m sorry you walked into such a difficult situation today.”

“No, don’t apologize,” you replied.  “You were holding so much inside of your heart, Remus, and that’s not easy.  You always have been, my love.  And yes, you hold it gracefully, and yes, perhaps you’re finding out how to let it all go, but I would imagine that that doesn’t make it any less painful for you. I understand, and even when I don’t, I’ll always wait for you, my love.” 

Remus hugged you tightly, pulling you into his chest.  The two of you stayed like that, pressed tight to each other.  

All these long years, Remus has been battling with this, you realized, and your heart ached heavily.  No wonder he was always so cautious about being with me.  He couldn’t separate the idea of love from his fears of becoming a burden and feeling humiliated.  And so, he sank into this notion that he didn’t deserve love.  Only, nothing could be further from the truth. 

As the sun sank below the horizon, and the room quietly darkened, you fell deep into your thoughts.  You slowly realized that there was something you wanted Remus to know, only you didn’t quite know how to say it.  Finally, you ventured hesitantly, “There was one thing  I noticed about your parents, Rem, that surprised me a little.”

“Really?”

“Well, I didn’t think about it at all until I saw them, but I think they’re scared, too.”

“Scared?” Remus repeated, puzzled.  “Of what? Of me?”  

You tried to explain. “I see that they love you very much.  Of course they do – you’re their child, and you have that sort-of temperament that’s impossible not to fall in love with - ”

Remus interrupted, “Lovely, that may just be you - ”

“Shush,” you said, “before I bring Tonks up here, or Sirius, or Harry, or anyone else. You can take your pick.”

Remus thought for a moment. “Severus?”

“Oh.” You had to relent, “Well, all right, fair point.”

Remus chuckled.

“But as obviously as they loved you,” you continued, “I think I also saw their hesitance.  I think that, as your parents, they feel they have to say certain things because they’re terrified you might get hurt if no one told you those things.”

“They’ve always been like that,” Remus said quietly.  “Especially my father.”

“Yes, but watching him, I felt like he was equally terrified that giving that guidance might hurt you, too.”

Remus paused.  “What do you mean by that?”

“It’s as if they’re constantly trying to weigh all these different things they want to give you, whether it’s guidance or just pure, simple love, and they’re trying to figure out what’s best for you – only if they give you guidance, then it no longer feels like pure, simple love, and if it’s pure, simple love, then they aren’t protecting you.  It’s like they want to give you the purest world and the safest world together, but they can’t.  I mean, I don’t suppose anyone can.” 

Remus thought about it for a minute, before he admitted, “You may have lost me, Lovely.”

You sat up a little, resting against the headboard of the bed.  “I think what I’m trying to say is – they’re not scared of you upsetting them, they’re scared that they’ll upset you.”

Remus blinked. “Oh.”

You added hastily, “That’s what I thought, anyways.  If that’s not what you think, then please – well, please just ignore me.  I tend to blabber, as you know, and a fair amount of nonsense spews out before I say anything remotely intelligent most times, and I misread situations all the time so… so…” You slowly stopped talking, because Remus was looking at you with fondness for you written all over his gaze.

Oh, there’s Remus again.  My Remus.  Without those cold, distant gates that he puts up to stop himself from hurting others, and too often, to stop others from helping him – Yes, I can see the real Remus, who’s so full of love and kindness and quite a bit of mischief, too… You leaned forward and kissed him tenderly.  “Remus,” you said, and your voice, while gentle, was also fierce in its promise, “you’ve always told me that your soul was meant to house my heart.  But you have to know, you must, that it’s the same for you, too.  Any version of you that has been, is, or will be – it all fits right in my heart, too.  And I’m happier for it, I swear to you.” 

Remus breathed out.  He cupped your face in both of his hands, and he returned your kiss.  It was a long kiss, and it was also a promise and an acceptance of each other.  When the two of you broke apart, Remus leaned forward and rested his forehead against yours.  In a quiet voice, he murmured, “Lovely, I still don’t know about – about kids and all that.  About the future, I mean.  I want to, so badly, but I can’t promise you any sort-of life - ”

“Shush, Remus. I only want this moment, right now, with you.”

Remus paused.  Then, he said, quite softly, “Well, I suppose I can give you that, can’t I?”  With that, he gathered you all up against his chest again, holding you against him.

You smiled as you snuggled into his chest.  Yes, you thought to yourself, with this tender love of yours and Remus’ overflowing in your heart, yes, you can, my love, and I’m so thankful that you choose to give this precious love of yours to me.  How lucky am I, how endlessly lucky am I, to be with you.

Content in Remus’ arms, you fell asleep quickly that night.  However, Remus found himself staring up at the full moon, as he had many times before, when the two of you had just started dating.  You would always fall asleep, just like this, in his arms, and Remus would lie there, battling all sorts of inner demons over the risk of being with you and the sheer exhaustion from always having to hide his symptoms from you.  But even then, holding you as you rested in his arms helped soothe his wounds and calm his anxious thoughts.  Even if Remus couldn’t quite fall asleep with you, your mere presence made the night warmer, lovelier, and softer.  Despite everything that had changed, that aspect had not, so that tonight, Remus found that holding you in his arms as you slept, all of his grief with his parents and his fear that he still might not be able to give you the life you deserved, slowly faded out of his mind. 

At one point, you shifted slightly and mumbled out, “Moon… Moon Rabbit… Why…?” Remus stroked your head lovingly until you fell back into a deep sleep.

Remus blinked blearily, watching the silver moonlight dance lightly against your hair.  Moon Rabbit? …The mythical world… Where the Nine-Tailed Fox originated… Where Artemis went… Where… my werewolf spirit… went…

[randomvarious]

1990s Indie Rock Playlist

Fucking finally! A 90s indie rock playlist for Spotify! I've had a YouTube version of this one for a few years now—and that one is both significantly better and longer—but now you all have *something* that's a whole lot more easily accessible too 👍.

Now, it's not really easy to describe what exactly makes an indie rock song an indie rock song in the first place, but you tend to know it when you hear it; and with this first iteration of a Spotify version of this playlist, we start with a total of 11 songs that run from shoegazey, noisy fuzz to smoother and more melodic power pop-leaning college rock stuff. And we've got a couple very brief explorations of specific scenes here too, with a few tunes from mid-90s Australia and then a handful from late 90s Philadelphia.

Plus, most of these are pretty dang obscure as well, with most selections having play counts somewhere in the low single-thousands; but we kick off with a total, unmissable classic: "Ginger" by Washington, D.C.'s Lilys, a song and band that I first discovered in the most unlikeliest of ways as a completely random bonus track on a retrospective 80s synthpop and new wave comp that celebrated beloved Bay Area radio DJ Steve Masters 😂. This killer 1993 tune is by far this playlist's most popular one, currently sitting at over 377K plays.

This playlist is ordered as chronologically as possible.

Lilys - "Ginger" Even - "Stupid Dream" Flanders - "Shameless" Challenger 7 - "Wait a Lifetime" Transient Waves - "Wavelength" Sunbirds - "Rocket" Line - "Hollow" Photon Band - "Here Comes Some Changes" Intro to India - "The World Is Waiting" Lenola - "Sids" The Asteroid No. 4 - "Tricks of the Trade"

But as I mentioned up top, there's a whole lot more great stuff on the YouTube version of this playlist, which contains more than double the amount of songs that are on the Spotify one, and thus I think really cements its own status as being a genuinely indie playlist, because you can't find most of it on any of the streaming platforms!

With this superior version, we've got tunes from the early 90s, including a much less known version of Brian Jonestown Massacre's "Evergreen," and a great, slow, and heavy one called "Salvation" by Los Angeles' Sacred Miracle Cave. Then we head up to Canada for a bunch of tunes from the Sonic Unyon label, including a few tracks by Treble Charger (aka NC17), whose "Red" has been rated by many as one of the single-greatest Canadian alt rock tunes of the entire decade. And there's a music video in this Canadian section too, for a spacey gem by SIANspheric called "I Like the Ride." 🚀🤘

Then after that, we head down to the mid-90s Philly scene, with the deeply underheard "Calling All Cars" by Slumber, which only has 77 plays, and The Asteroid No. 4's "Car Thief Millenia," which only has 95 plays. And then to close out, we have a couple tunes from Cali label Devil in the Woods, with the catchy, keyboard-assisted "Dirt Bike Rider" by Snowmen, and a rare, live performance of "Snowball" by Modesto's Fiver.

The Charlottes - "Could There Ever Be" Sacred Miracle Cave - "Salvation" Spot 1019 - "HHH" The Brian Jonestown Massacre - "Evergreen Treble Charger - "Red" NC17 - "Cubicle" Sponge - "Colourful Hat" Eric's Trip - "Evie" By Divine Right - "Out of It" SIANspheric - "I Like the Ride" Treble Charger - "Even Grable" The Asteroid No. 4 - "Car Thief Millenia" Slumber - "Calling All Cars" Snowmen - "Dirt Bike Rider" Fiver - "Snowball"

And this playlist is also on YouTube Music.

Now, you've probably never heard of almost any of these bands before, but I promise you that there is a metric ton of gold in this collection of songs. Go and hop in your '94 Taurus and cruise the highway with this thing; you will not regret it.

Spotify playlist is 11 songs and runs for 53 minutes, but the YouTube one is 26 songs and runs for 118 minutes. So if you want more of this terrific indie shit, you know which of these options to choose.

Next week we'll be taking an eclectic trip out to late 90s San Francisco.

Enjoy!

More to come, eventually. Stay tuned!

Like what you hear? Follow me on Spotify and YouTube for more cool playlists and uploads!

[golongbyjoannanewsom]

can u say more about what u mean by time as a symptom of love……abt the beast perhaps but also in general?

hello yes i would love to speak about this more! putting it under the cut because it's gotten quite long...

so the idea of time as a symptom of love comes from the song "time as a symptom" by joanna newsom, the final track on her album divers which explores the connections between love, time, and death. i'm just going to give her explanation here

"I have to admit the fear of loss was behind some of the things I wrote. Everyone’s getting older. When I crossed that line in my mind where I knew I was with the person that I wanted to marry, it was a very heavy thing, because you’re inviting death into your life. You know that that’s hopefully after many, many, many, many years, but the idea of death stops being abstract, because there is someone you can’t bear to lose. When it registers as true, it’s like a little shade of grief that comes in when love is its most real version. Then it contains death inside of it, and then that death contains love inside of it."

so essentially, this idea that the deepest of love is eternally haunted by death because it's the inevitable conclusion, the only possible ending. the passing of time creates this ever present fear of loss. death defines love. but at the same time, love defines death, because we would not fear this passage of time if it were not for the things we love that we do not want to lose. love effects how we view time, without it its passage would be meaningless. in some cases love can even continue to exist beyond time. after one person dies that love is still there, existing in the person who remains, existing in all the people their love may have impacted.

the connections between love and time/death are at the heart of the beast (i'm speaking about time and death as one thing because death is essentially an effect of time). the story touches on a deep, dreadful future premonition of that keeps one from being able to love others. the three timelines we see feature a connection between gabrielle and louis, this love is the common factor that unites the seemingly separate stories. it's implied that there are even more lives in which they loved each other (louis saying they listened to "evergreen" together when it came out). each timeline ends with an act that is in some way related to that love, and the connection between them continues to exist in some way even after their deaths, but whether or not it's strong even to overcome time depends on the character.

essentially, louis is a character who gives into time. in the california section, while he seems to get some sense of knowing gabrielle, and is at first hesitant to hurt her, he eventually decides to continue with his original plan and kill her. similarly, in the future world, he expresses doubts about the dna purification, but succumbs to the process in the end and comes out changed, unable to feel love in the same way he once did, the same way gabrielle still does.

gabrielle, by contrast, is defined by a love that transcends time. she remembers enough of louis in her california life to give him a chance and open the door. it kills her, but she finds him again another life, where her past memories reignite her love. what she feels is strong enough that it can't be "purified" or changed. so she goes to him again, horrified to find that while her love has persisted, his hasn't, not in the same way.

no one is shown to die in the future, but we do see the pigeon, which implies that perhaps someone will as a result of this mismatched love. or maybe it is louis's soul that has already died, even if his body hasn't. love exists beyond time, but it can't stop time or what comes with it. purification is a direct result of the passage of time, a futuristic form of "progress," but it is not without flaws. sometimes, time is enough to rid people of love. but not in every case. there's no real answer to which is stronger, just the eternal question.

[kitschun]

Need 4 Speed: Haknyeon (Teaser)

Summary: Of mangoes and mountain charms, and wrenches and tangerines. Haknyeon spends another night down the mountain roads waiting for your safe return. An unlikely friendship built between a tōge drifter and a mechanic that likes to race the streets. This is a teaser for the Haknyeon installation of my Need 4 Speed series for The Boyz! See the masterlist here or follow to be updated.

Author’s Note: This can be read as a standalone blurb, or as a precursor to my upcoming fic Driving, My Love! Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone!

Tags: Mechanic!Haknyeon x Drifter!Reader, BFF!Haknyeon

Warnings: May contain inaccurate depictions of cars (lol), mention of car accidents

Mountain Pass 1 — 1:10 AM Monday

The mountains were barren of any signs of civilization save for the occasional lamppost that illuminated down its winding roads. Up here, the only company the mountain found itself with were the whispers of a gentle breeze and the offload of dying leaves shed by the evergreen trees. 

In a far distance, the sound of a brazen car disturbed the serenity of the atmosphere. Its modular body slid through a curved road, leaving a nasty skid mark and a ghastly amount of smoke that could haunt a climate change activist in his wake. 

The fragrant scent of Autumn pass was then overtaken by the strong smell of hot, burning rubber. 

“Nice,” A staticky voice spoke from inside your ear.

Above you, a drone was flying closely behind, tracking and streaming your vehicle’s position for the people down the road. 

“You’re acting like this is my first time, Hak.”

You heard a chuckle. 

A small group of cars preceded your position, driving in the same haphazard manner as you did. A gallant dance through mountainous roads fueled by the adrenaline of a perfect drift.

This specific pass was a favorite amongst locals and tourists. The area surrounding the pass itself has been closed off to the general public, having been built specifically for the purpose of tōge drifting by a retired hobbyist. 

Down the winding roads, a graveled patch of land became the communal area for both drivers and passing car enthusiasts. During these grassroots events, local body shops would set up tents alongside their vehicles to advertise their products and services. What’s a better way to sell than to show how your products perform after all?

Small groups of people would also flock into the scene to build connections with other hobbyists. 

You used to be one of those people, and now having conquered the winding roads of this mountain pass numerous times yourself, you’ve managed to garner quite the amount of respect on your own name. 

“Heads up, the last two courses are a tight turn. A civic just crashed.”

You watched as the drone flew ways ahead of you, assumingly to check out the accident. A moment later, you heard the static voice of Haknyeon again. 

“Driver is fine, car is totaled though. Just slow down your speed and keep to your left.”

 “Got it. Thanks, Hak.”

“No worries. Just get down here safely.”

You loosened your press on the gas pedal before shifting gears to ease off speed. Outside, the air was bitingly cold. You wondered if Haknyeon was keeping himself warm.

Before you can think more into it, the sight of two pairs of waving hands caught your attention from the outskirts of the highway. They signaled you to veer away from the crash and you responded by hoisting your arm out of the window and pumping it in acknowledgment. 

Hak was right. The car was completely totaled, but you’re glad to see the driver was doing fine. It’s scary to think that, that could be you under any unfortunate circumstance. A huge risk that always comes with devilishly dancing through the mountain roads. 

You watched briefly as the owner wrestled his damaged fender off his vehicle before laying it against a tree trunk. Once you passed him, you picked up speed again and prepared yourself to approach the last turn.

Down in the flatlands, Haknyeon stood waiting from underneath a tent. A Nissan GT-R Nismo was parked in front of him with its high beams shining down the gravel road. Down under, a set of neon orange lowlights covered the ground. Tangerine—he affectionately called it. The payoff from his hard work, and numerous wins from racing the streets.

“She’s on her last turn.” His friend spoke, tracking your position from the drone he was controlling from a screen.

“Good.”

Haknyeon walked towards the road. A couple of people greeted him with a wave.

Haknyeon was a well-loved mechanic by both car hobbyists and local civilians alike. He was good with his hands, and even better at his builds. So although he didn’t dabble in tōge drifting himself, he still managed to capture the trust of its drivers. 

The sound of a revving engine and the familiar scent of burning black rubber took the mechanic’s attention away to the mountain pass exit. A sleek silver Nissan quickly pulled up gaining the attention of the photographers and videographers on standby.

They ran following the car, pumping their fists up in the air, and were met with the driver revving in response. Shutter speeds can be heard all the way to where Haknyeon was standing, and he made way as the car finally pulled up to the empty lot beside him. 

You unbuckle your belt the moment you parked your car, making a move to remove your safety helmet. Haknyeon quickly opened the door and greeted you by messing your hair up. 

“How was it?”

You playfully swat his hand away. “Fun, as always.”

You finally turned and greeted him with a smile. He returned it, making amends with his earlier actions by tucking stray pieces of hair away from your face. Why was it suddenly becoming warm?

The moment was disrupted by the sound of a pickup hauling the totaled car from earlier. Haknyeon grimaced at the sight of the damage. 

“Ouch. That’s gonna cost a lot.”

“Small price to pay to keep an expensive hobby.”

You walked towards the tent, greeting your other friend with a wave. He nodded back in response.

“Expensive hobby, cars are, huh?”

“Very, which is why you should never get into it.”

“Kind of too late for that now though, isn’t it,” Haknyeon pointed towards his car, “considering I just finished modding my car.”

You burst into a fit of giggles with Haknyeon. You find it funny how the both of you always discouraged the other from getting into the underground racing scene despite the fact that you’ve both been a part of it even before you met. 

Haknyeon reached into his jacket pocket before walking in front of you. You see the glint of your mismatched beaded friendship bracelet illuminated by the faint light of his orange car. 

“Here,” he grabbed your right hand gently, “I kept it till you got back.”

Haknyeon wore the friendship bracelet around your wrist, mirroring the one on his left arm. His fingers were gentle in placing them on you, making a move to turn it to display two little charms that were similar to his own. There was a moment’s pause before he finally decided to put your hand back down. 

The Autumn air was still bitingly cold, so why was it that you felt the tips of your ears getting hot?

You cleared your throat, thanking him. His own cheeks were twinged with the lightest shade of pink.

“Isn’t it kinda insane that we’ve managed to keep this tradition for three whole years now?” 

He laughed. “Yeah, I don’t even remember how it started.”

Haknyeon pulled out a monoblock chair and offered it to you before sitting down on the one beside it. 

“I do. You kept insisting that the bracelet caught onto your gear stick, so you had to take it off before a race.”

“Hey, it really did! And I wasn’t being insistent.”

“Yeah, you were,” you laughed, “it's the whole reason why we have this silly little tradition in the first place.”

Cars were starting to disperse from the area. There was a dwindling down of noise from conversations of a thinning crowd, with hush whispers slowly being swept away into the sleeping mountain. Your mutual friend had also left the tent a couple of minutes ago to fetch his drone from the lot. 

Haknyeon thought back to when this small tradition of yours started. Three years ago, after a slow day at the tracks he called his home, you guys decided to craft these little charm bracelets from a mutual friend’s stash. You made Haknyeon a colorful strand decorated with the charms of a mango and a mountain, a little reminder of you when you’re not around. 

For you, he picked out a wrench and an orange, accompanied by a mismatched color palette of warm-toned beads. It was charming - albeit a little silly, but the both of you have worn them since then. 

Haknyeon will admit that he may have been slightly insistent that the bracelet distracted him while driving. At first, it was true, the little charms kept getting caught in between his hand and his gear stick, but it slowly morphed into a superstitious tradition that he just had to have you keep it for him as an unspoken promise of his safe return. You did the same with yours. 

“It’s a tad bit silly but I like doing it,” he said, “Makes me hold on to a promise that I’ll return back to you safely.”

You hummed. There was something inherently intimate about this conversation.

“Then let’s keep doing it. To promise each other that despite the dangers of our hobby, we’ll always return to each other’s side safely,” You paused, “For the bracelets, of course.”

Haknyeon nodded, fiddling with the charm of his own bracelet. 

“As long as you promise that you’ll always be there when I return.”

“I promise.”

-

[shamandrummer]

Winter Solstice: The Return of the Light

In the Northern Hemisphere, the Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year and the first day of winter. This occurs December 20, 21, or 22, varying from year to year, dependent upon the elliptical path of the Earth around our Sun. Technically the solstice marks the instant at which the Earth's axis stops tilting away from the sun and starts going back the other way. Solstice means "Standing-Still-Sun." At Winter Solstice, the Sun journeys farthest south in its orbital path and for the next three days it rises and sets at virtually the same place on the horizon, appearing to stand still, and then it slowly returns north.

This three day pause in the Sun's movement is a time of inward reflection. We are each given the opportunity to take a peek at what is happening on a heart and soul level. We can reflect on the year ending to see where we have erred and reform those beliefs, attitudes, and strategies no longer applicable to the New Year unfolding. Such a fresh open-minded approach will broaden our perspective and start us out on the right track.

Ancient peoples in our northern climes regarded Winter Solstice as the pivotal time of year. It is a time of transition in the annual cycle when the old year ends and our journey into the New Year begins. It is a sacred time to conduct ceremonies focused on the return of light and warmth. Rituals designed to divert nature from the path toward eternal winter and oblivion to one directed toward light and prosperity. Most cultures planned festivals and celebrations at or around the Winter Solstice to ensure that the Sun would return.

The Pueblos of the American Southwest have honored the Winter Solstice for thousands of years. Zuni Indians celebrate Shalako and Hopis begin the observance of the month long Soyal with rituals to insure victory of light over darkness. Hopi priests wear feathers in their headdresses symbolizing the Sun's rays. Sacred underground structures called kivas let in the rays of the rising and setting Sun and Moon throughout the year. Among the Pueblos, Winter Solstice is an affirmation of the continuation of life; that the cyclical order of time and the cosmos will continue intact.

Fire and light have always played a central role in the Winter Solstice ceremonies. In much of northern Europe people ignited huge bonfires. Lighted candles were often placed on the branches of evergreen trees, which symbolized survival and eternal life. These symbols of warmth and lasting life were lit to hasten the "old" Sun's waning and the "new" Sun's rebirth. People often tied apples to the branches of firs and oaks to remind themselves that summer would eventually return. In the British Isles, mistletoe was placed upon altars. Mistletoe's golden color was believed to store the power of the Sun, especially when plucked at the solstice.

In Peru, the people fasted for three days prior to the solstice. At dawn on the morning of the fourth day, everyone gathered in the public plaza to watch the sunrise. When its light appeared, the celebration began with shouts of joy. At the Sun Temple the rays of the Sun were focused with a mirror to make a fire. This sacred fire was carried to all the outlying temples, where it was kept burning on the altars throughout the year.

In my own solstice celebration, I like to incorporate a sacred fire. Before the Sun sets on the solstice, I will light a large candle or oil lamp, call the spirit of the Sun into that fire, and allow it to burn until morning, when his spirit has returned to the sky.

On the Winter Solstice we are all praying, on some level, for the darkness to end. "Just return the light!" the ceremonies seem to say. As we celebrate the return of the light, we affirm the continuation of life at the very moment of dissolution. To be sure, dark days lie ahead. But contained within each is the promise of brighter tomorrows.

[burlveneer-music]

A new album from Kahil El’Zabar’s Ethnic Heritage Ensemble today as well - "Open Me, A Higher Consciousness of Sound and Spirit"

This is the new offering from Kahil El’Zabar and his Ethnic Heritage Ensemble, in conjunction with the legendary group’s 50th anniversary, Open Me, A Higher Consciousness of Sound and Spirit. Open Me is a joyous honoring of portent new directions of the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble; it’s a visionary journey into deep roots and future routes, channeling traditions old and new. It mixes El’Zabar’s original compositions with timeless classics by Miles Davis, McCoy Tyner, and Eugene McDaniels. Thus, the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble continues affirming their indelible, half-century presence within the continuum of Great Black Music.  Open Me, El’Zabar’s sixth collaboration with Spiritmuse in five years, marks another entry in a run of critically acclaimed recordings that stretch back to the first EHE recording in 1981. The storied multi-percussionist, composer, fashion designer, and former Chair of the Association of Creative Musicians (AACM) is in what might be the most productive form of his career, and now in his seventies, shows no signs of slowing down. Few creative music units can boast such longevity, and fewer still are touring as energetically and recording with the verve of the Ethnic Heritage Ensemble.  The EHE was founded by El’Zabar in 1974 originally as a quintet, but was soon paired down to its classic form — a trio, featuring El’Zabar on multi-percussion and voice, plus two horns. It was an unusual format, even by the standards of the outward-bound musicians of the AACM: “Some people literally laughed at our unorthodox instrumentation and approach. We were considered even stranger than most AACM bands at the time. I knew in my heart though that that this band had legs, and that my concept was based on logic as it pertains to the history of Great Black Music, i.e. a strong rhythmic foundation, innovative harmonics and counterpoint, well-balanced interplay and cacophony amongst the players, strong individual soloist, highly developed and studied ensemble dynamics, an in-depth grasp of music history, originality, fearlessness, and deep spirituality.” With El’Zabar at the helm, the band’s line-up has always been open to changes, and over the years the EHE has welcomed dozens of revered musicians including Light Henry Huff, Kalaparusha Maurice Macintyre, Joseph Bowie, Hamiett Bluiett, and Craig Harris. The current line-up has been consolidated over two decades — trumpeter Corey Wilkes entered the circle twenty years ago, while baritone sax player Alex Harding joined seven years ago, after having played with El’Zabar since the early 2000s in groups such as Joseph Bowie’s Defunkt.  For Open Me, El’Zabar has chosen to push the sound of the EHE in a new direction by adding string instruments — cello, played by Ishmael Ali, and violin/viola played by James Sanders. The addition of strings opens new textural resonances and timbral dimensions in the Ensemble’s sound, linking the work to the tradition of improvising violin and cello from Ray Nance to Billy Bang, Leroy Jenkins, and Abdul Wadud.  Open Me contains a mixture of originals, including some El’Zabar evergreens such as “Barundi,” “Hang Tuff,” “Ornette,” and “Great Black Music” (often attributed to the Art Ensemble of Chicago but is, in fact,  an El’Zabar composition). There are also numbers drawn from the modern tradition, which El’Zabar uniquely arranges, including a contemplative interpretation of Miles Davis’ “All Blues.” As a milestone anniversary celebration and a statement of future intent, Open Me effortlessly carries El’Zabar’s healing vision of Higher Consciousness of Sound and Spirit.   All compositions by Kahil El’Zabar except tracks ‘All Blues’ by Miles Davis, ‘He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands’ spiritual folk by Unknown, ‘Passion Dance’ by McCoy Tyner and ‘Compared to What’ by Gene McDaniels All arrangements by Kahil El’Zabar Tapestry and Art Direction by Nep Sidhu

[melancholypancakes]

No words can express how excited I was to reveal Brienne Velvet in the Butcher AU

For a couple of months I’ve been working on her character and design, at first i wasn’t going to make Brienne in this Dark AU.

Mainly due to lack of fitting her in the AU and the idea of Wally being a cannibal lol

{Warning: this contains gore and disturbing descriptions some people will find disturbing}

Anyway, Meet Brienne Velvet, the Baker and newest neighbor of the neighborhood Home, she moved from Violet Evergreen with her roommate Sally Starlet, a starving actress.

Brienne opened up her own bakery, Baby Doll’s and seemly life was going swell…well until she met her neighbor across from her bakery, the Butcher, Wally Darling.

Well, met is far fetched to Wally…

{In 1958}

Wally was a little boy, abused and neglected by his father, Detleu loved by his mother, Donna until her death by the hands of his father.

Wally was just a boy, hurt, depressed and abused, he felt alone at the park until a young girl with blonde pig tails approached him, she helped him with his bruises and talk to him like a friend.

This girl was Brienne Velvet, she had blonde pretty golden hair at the time, she and wally became the best of friends while growing up in home.

Brienne lived with her mother, Margaret and older sister Brittany. Prior to moving to Home Archie Velvet, Husband and father died in a car crash causing his family to move for a new life.

During Wally & Brienne’s teen years, they gone closer and closer, Brienne was his study buddy and often protected him rather it’d be bullies or his father.

Brienne wasn’t the popular girl, she was pretty but definitely not the dream girl…to wally she was, Brienne was an athlete in women’s track that was rare.

Brienne had a brighter and welcoming family mor than Wally which why he preferred to to hang out with her at her house instead.

Eventually Brienne and Wally started dating in secret mainly from his father, they went on movie dates whether it was the theater or at her place, it took awhile but wally got used to Margaret being nice to him.

It was sweet while it lasted…a cute young couple just in love, blinded by reality and dangers.

{In 1963}

Wally and Brienne were giggling, sneaking into his backyard at night while his father was “asleep”, they talked during the moonlight, gazing at each other with love and kissing without a care in the world.

Unfortunately, that blindness of love was there downfall, deltleu wasn’t asleep but drunk and when he heard sounds in his backyard, he grabbed a shotgun and saw wally with Brienne making out and in his drunken state…

He cloaked his gun casing the young lovers to break away and Brienne gasp in fear as Wally’s father had a shotgun, causing Wally to quickly push her off and made her run.

She ran and panted, scared for her life as she should be, Wally begged his father not to hurt Brienne but he didn't listen and shot, until she collapsed when he finally shot her in the head.

Wally screamed bloody murder, he had lost it, he tried to ran to Brienne’s unmoving body but his father grabbed him as Wally screamed how much he hated him for killing his girlfriend.

Unknown to him, Brienne was alive, barely breathing but unconscious and wolves in the deep woods smelled her blood.

They start ripping her skin and eating her flesh off.

Brienne would’ve been truly dead if it weren’t for two officers finding her in the woods after Margaret was on a search for her missing daughter.

She was missing for three hours and within that three hours she was alive, bleeding from her head and bloody all over her face, the cops rushed the poor girl to the hospital.

Margaret and Brittany were worried, Brienne was attached to wires and a life line.

Brienne was brought to the hospital on time to be saved by chance, a miracle and some would say fate.

Doctors operated on Brienne face, wounds and getting the bullet out of her head.

It took weeks for Brienne to be conscious again but her face was healing miraculously.

However, Brienne had no memories of Wally, no memories of early childhood years just memories of Brittany and Margaret.

That was then Margaret made it a decision as her mother to move to a different town away from here.

She never told briennd the truth, manipulated her, and forced Brittany not to utter a word.

She firmly believed this town was dangerous, although Margaret loved her children, she couldn’t bare to look at Brienne. Her face was gone and she had to wear a prosthetic pin-up doll mask for the rest of her life.

Brienne went on through the rest of her high school years like this with no friends, she cut her hair and dyed it black, she didn’t like looking like her mother who could barely stand her.

After high school, Brienne worked at a Hotel to make money to support herself and make enough money to become a professional baker and to own her own bakery.

She met a woman around her age, Sally Starlet her co-worker. They were both front desk.

Sally's dream was to be an actress. She wanted to star in musicals, movies, and TV. As of now, she was a starving actress.

Once the two individual women developed a friendship, they had a plan to move in together for their careers.

At the end of the year 1985, Brienne moved in with Sally in the neighborhood "home".

Sally would focus on her acting career while Brienne could open her bakery "Baby doll's".

Unfortunately, she would find out that something dark and sinister lurks in the night...waiting and hunting.

She can feel it from the butcher shop across her bakery, her librarian Frank, mail man, Eddie, friendly neighbor Poppy, the comedian, Barnaby, and the grocery store owner Howdy feel it too...

A/n: I had have this character underground for a year and by god, I'm so thrilled I get to show her off!

This is one of my brilliant stories with Brienne and Wally in the AUs.

And yes, people who know the plot love the tragic love story in the butcher wally au :)

Butcher wally belongs to @Meatbag56 on Tiktok

In the butcher AU, I have three endings planned

The true ending/happy ending: Brienne stays in the neighborhood "home" she rekindles her lost love with Wally after talking with him finally and remembers her past slowly but surely.

In this ending a secret path is revealed in the story, Brienne was forced to take medical pills "Alprazolam" to forget her past with wally by her mother.

It is only when she stops taking them everything is revealed to her, also Wally and Brienne end up getting married and having your kids in this ending :)

The bad ending: Everyone is dead, straight up Wally kills the neighbors and Brienne's best friend Sally.

Brienne knows she and wally had a relationship but she was driven with madness and insanity after her friends were killed and her employees.

She wants revenge and instead of running away she confront Wally and makes him pay with his life.

In this ending, she kills Wally with her axe with no hesitation and what reminds her of her psyche is insanity.

The escape ending: This is the neutral ending where most of the neighbors are killed, Sally and Brienne are left to survive and escape the butcher shop.

In this ending, Brienne never rekindles her lost love with wally not remembers him and leaves with sally to LA to start a fresh start with their careers.

I based off Brienne design in this au as sal fisher from sally face as you can tell.

Brienne is a fairy puppet like the rest of her family and she is chubby in the present time unlike in the past

(I can't draw sally I'm sorry XD the includes probably the rest of the welcome home neighbors)

In case no one knew, Brienne not best friends with Julie joyful in the neighborhood due to the canon wise she is dead in the butcher wally au so she never met her and only sally.

The song for Brienne theme are

"The Ballad of Jane doe" from a ride on the cyclone

"cake" Melanie Martizen

"Hayloft 1 & 2" from Mother which the backstory with Brienne and wally love based off.

"Bugambillia" Nasa Histories

"Memories and Dreams" Sally face (Metal cover)

"Monster" Meg and Dia

"The Monster" Rihanna & Eminem

"Monster" Skillet

"Not Gonna Die" Skillet

"Awake and Alive" Skillet

"Anastasia's Villain song, Journey to the past" by Lydia the Bard

[manahilwattoo]

Zero-Waste Living: Simple Steps to a Greener Home

In a world increasingly aware of environmental concerns, many of us are turning to more sustainable ways of living. One concept that has gained popularity in recent years is zero-waste living.

tep 1: Start With a Waste Audit

Before you can reduce waste, you need to understand what you're actually throwing away. Spend a week observing your household trash—food waste, packaging, single-use plastics, paper, and more.

Just as you’d analyze keywords and content performance in SEO blogging to refine your strategy, this "audit" helps identify the biggest opportunities for improvement.

Quick Tip: Keep a journal or use a tracking app. Record what you're discarding most frequently and brainstorm alternatives.

Step 2: Simplify and Swap

Zero-waste doesn't mean throwing everything out and buying new "eco" products. It starts with using what you already have, then making smarter choices moving forward.

Plastic wrap? Switch to beeswax wraps or silicone lids.

Paper towels? Use washable cloths or old T-shirts.

Single-use bottles? Get a reusable stainless-steel water bottle.

Think of these swaps like optimizing blog content. Instead of rewriting everything from scratch, you refine what’s already working and improve what’s not.

Step 3: Buy in Bulk and Choose Reusables

One of the easiest ways to cut down on packaging waste is to shop in bulk. Bring your own containers to stores that offer bulk bins and fill them with essentials like rice, beans, flour, or snacks.

Even in SEO blogging, we often talk about "evergreen content"—something that works over and over again. Reusables are the “evergreen content” of sustainable living. Invest in glass jars, produce bags, and reusable shopping totes.

Step 4: Compost Organic Waste

Food waste makes up a large portion of household trash. Composting is an excellent way to reduce landfill contributions while creating nutrient-rich soil for your garden or plants.

You don’t need a backyard to compost. Countertop compost bins and worm composting kits work great in small apartments. Composting mirrors the idea of link-building in SEO blogging—what you discard can still be valuable elsewhere in the ecosystem.

Step 5: Rethink Shopping Habits

Every item you bring into your home has a life cycle. Ask yourself:

Do I need this?

Can I borrow or buy it second-hand?

What will happen to it when I’m done?

Supporting local, sustainable brands or shopping at thrift stores helps reduce waste and often saves money. Like keyword research in SEO blogging, smarter shopping is about being intentional and informed.

Step 6: DIY When You Can

Making your own cleaning products, beauty items, or even snacks is not only fulfilling but also reduces packaging and lets you control ingredients.

Examples:

All-purpose cleaner: Vinegar + citrus peels + water

Toothpaste: Baking soda + coconut oil + essential oils

Granola bars: Oats, honey, seeds, and dried fruits

In SEO blogging, original content performs best—DIY is your way of creating original “content” for your home that’s low-waste and high-value.

Step 7: Educate and Involve Your Household

Zero-waste works best when everyone in your home is on board. Create a culture of awareness by involving your kids, roommates, or partner in the process. Make it fun: create a zero-waste challenge or reward system.

This is like building a content strategy with your SEO blogging team—when everyone understands the goal, the results are more powerful and long-lasting.

Step 8: Progress Over Perfection

Remember: zero-waste living isn’t about being perfect. It’s about doing what you can with what you have. Every reusable coffee cup, composted banana peel, or upcycled item makes a difference.

If a single blog post can impact thousands of readers, imagine what small eco-friendly habits practiced daily can do for the planet.

Final Thoughts: From SEO Blogging to Sustainable Living

The principles behind successful SEO blogging—intentional action, mindful improvement, long-term strategy—are beautifully aligned with zero-waste living. They both thrive on consistency, thoughtful choices, and a genuine desire to do better.

So, whether you’re optimizing content or your carbon footprint, the most important thing is to start. Your home, your blog, and the planet will thank you.

Article 2: Learning Through Travel: 10 Life Lessons You Can’t Learn in a Classroom

Primary Keyword: Travel blogging Word Count: ~1350

Classrooms teach us about formulas, history, and theories. But some of the most powerful life lessons don’t come from textbooks—they come from experiences. That’s where travel blogging plays a vital role, capturing the essence of these real-world lessons and sharing them with others hungry to explore life beyond the four walls of a classroom.

Let’s unpack ten profound lessons that only travel can teach—and how these journeys are shaping not just perspectives, but entire lives.

1. Adaptability Is a Superpower

Missed a flight? Lost your luggage? Booked a hostel that turned out to be... sketchy? Travel throws curveballs. Learning to pivot and adapt builds a kind of resilience you can’t study—it has to be lived.

For travel bloggers, these moments often become the heart of their best stories. Readers connect most with the real, messy, unfiltered experiences.

2. People Are Fundamentally Good

It’s easy to be cynical when watching the news. But when you’re lost in a foreign city and a stranger goes out of their way to help you, your worldview shifts.

Travel blogging often highlights these human connections—proof that kindness is a universal language.

3. Culture Is More Than a Museum Exhibit

Reading about a festival is one thing. Dancing in the streets of Rio during Carnival or sharing a meal with locals in Morocco is another.

This kind of immersive learning brings cultures alive. Travel blogging bridges the gap, offering readers a window into how others live, celebrate, and love.

4. You Don’t Need Much to Be Happy

Travel, especially budget travel, strips life down to the essentials. A backpack, a good pair of shoes, a journal, and you're set. Materialism fades when you’re watching the sunset over the Sahara or eating fresh mango in Thailand.

Travel bloggers often reflect on this minimalist lifestyle, reminding readers that happiness isn’t about accumulation—it’s about appreciation.

5. Patience Truly Is a Virtue

Whether you’re stuck in customs or navigating a foreign bureaucracy, you quickly learn the power of patience. It’s a mental muscle that gets stronger the more you travel.

Travel blogging teaches readers to slow down, enjoy the process, and trust that not everything must happen on their schedule.

6. You’re Capable of More Than You Think

Climbing a mountain. Navigating a train system in a new language. Solo traveling across continents. These experiences push you past self-imposed limits.

Travel blogging celebrates these triumphs—not to brag, but to inspire. Your story might just be the reason someone else dares to try.

7. The World Is Your Classroom

From cooking classes in Tuscany to meditation retreats in Bali, the world offers endless lessons. Nature becomes your science lab. Markets become your economics class. Conversations become language lessons.

This global education is the heartbeat of travel blogging. It’s about making learning dynamic, alive, and deeply personal.

8. Connection Beats WiFi Every Time

While connectivity is a blessing, travel reminds us of the importance of real human connection—eye contact, shared meals, spontaneous conversations.

Travel blogging may be digital, but its roots lie in genuine encounters that transcend screens.

9. Every Place Has a Story

Whether it’s a quiet village in Laos or a buzzing street in Tokyo, every corner of the world has a tale to tell. The role of a travel blogger is to listen deeply and share those stories with integrity and heart.

Through this, readers not only learn about places—they learn about humanity.

10. Home Is a Feeling, Not a Place

The more you travel, the more you realize home isn’t a static location. It’s comfort, connection, and familiarity—even if it’s in a cafe in Lisbon or a tent in Patagonia.

Travel blogging helps others realize that they too can find pieces of “home” wherever they go.

Final Thoughts: Why Travel Blogging Matters

In an age where formal education is being questioned, travel blogging steps in as a modern mentor. It teaches life skills, emotional intelligence, cultural empathy, and more—through lived experience.

So, if you're torn between reading about the world or living it—choose both. Let the world be your teacher and your blog be your notebook.

[alaminseoexpert]

Amazon Product Research Tips How to Find Winning Products in 2025

If you’re looking to start or grow your Amazon business, product research is where it all begins. Choosing the right product can set you up for success, while the wrong one could tie up your money in unsold inventory. The good news? With the right tools and mindset, anyone can learn how to do great product research.

1. Look for High Demand with Low Competition

The sweet spot is a product that many people are searching for, but not many sellers are offering. This creates an opportunity for you to enter the market and get sales without needing to beat thousands of competitors.

Look for:

Monthly search volume: 1,000 to 10,000 (using tools like Helium 10, Jungle Scout)

Review count: Less than 100 reviews = less saturated

BSR (Best Sellers Rank): Products with low BSRs in their category are selling well

Start with small niches and explore subcategories. Often, big profits are hidden in less obvious areas.

2. Focus on Lightweight, Simple Products

When you’re starting out, avoid heavy, fragile, or complex products. These cost more to ship, are more likely to get damaged, and can result in returns.

Stick to products that are:

Under 3 lbs

Not easily breakable (avoid glass, electronics, etc.)

Easy to understand and use

Examples: yoga mats, silicone baking tools, reusable notebooks

3. Understand Your Profit Margins

Just because a product sells for $30 doesn’t mean you’re making money. Between Amazon fees, shipping costs, and your supplier’s price, your profit can disappear quickly.

Here’s a simple formula:

Selling Price — Amazon Fees — Product Cost — Shipping = Your Profit

Use Amazon’s FBA calculator to estimate your costs. A good rule of thumb is to aim for a 30% profit margin or at least $10 net profit per unit.

4. Read Customer Reviews for Product Ideas

Want to know what people actually want? Just read what they’re saying.

Focus especially on 3-star reviews. These usually contain both praise and complaints. This is where you’ll find opportunities to make a better product.

For example:

“The bottle is great but leaks sometimes.” → Can you offer a leak-proof version?

“Love the product, but wish it came in more colors.” → Can you offer more variety?

5. Avoid Trendy or Seasonal Products (at first)

Yes, trending products can make money fast — but they can also crash just as quickly. If you’re a beginner, stick to evergreen products that people buy all year round.

Examples of evergreen categories:

Home & kitchen

Fitness accessories

Pet supplies

Office products

Once you’re more experienced, you can experiment with seasonal items (like Halloween decorations or winter gear), but only when you understand the timing and risks.

6. Use the Right Tools

Amazon sellers have access to powerful tools that make research easier:

Helium 10 — Keyword and product research, listing optimization

Jungle Scout — Product database, sales estimates, supplier database

Keepa — Price history tracking, BSR trends

Amazon Seller App — For scanning and checking products on the go

These tools show you what’s selling, what’s trending, and what’s worth skipping.

7. Start Small and Test First

Before you invest in 500 or 1,000 units, test the product with a small batch. Order 50–100 units, create a solid listing, and run some low-budget Amazon PPC campaigns.

Track:

Clicks

Sales

Conversion rate

Customer feedback

If it performs well, you can scale confidently. If not, you’ve saved yourself from a bigger loss.

Closing Advice

The key to great product research is this: don’t guess — use data. It’s tempting to sell something you personally like, but Amazon is a data-driven platform. Let the numbers lead your decisions.

Take your time with research. It’s better to spend two weeks finding the right product than six months trying to sell the wrong one.

[thoughtswordsaction]

The Satellite Year Release "Chateau Disaster" Emo Medley

The Satellite Year recently had the honour to write and produce an emo medley for Batti from Chateau Disaster. The new track contains five of the bands favourite emo evergreens for the best emo radio in the world. TSY said “We had a lot of fun and are very proud of the result. Thanks again to our in-house producer Daniel Rimedio who was responsible for arranging, recording, editing and mixing.…

[simmerlovesdogs]

Zombie Apocalypse

2

Ezra finds a lot of fruits and vegetables in the trash. Not of all it is fresh, but he's able to plant it. He gets quite a garden going! He's very proud of his work so far, and so is Elle. She didn't think the trash would have anything.

They don't have much to talk about, besides any potential scavenging spots, but they try to get along. Ezra tries to keep his sister in a positive mindset. He tells her jokes and gives her food, which she accepts with only a little disgust at its origins. Although there isn't much to talk about, there also isn't much to argue about, so they don't fight nearly as much as they did before the apocalypse.

They finally see their first zombie in Evergreen Harbor. They had seen plenty in their last camp, but this new one was oddly quiet. It's only one zombie, a mailman. It wanders dangerously close to camp, and the siblings keep a close eye on it while also staying as far away as possible. The zombie is close to the dumpster nearby, though, so Ezra is limited on where he can scavenge.

Elle manages to find an empty container, which she claims as their base. It's even smaller on the inside than it looks on the outside, but it's shelter, and, more importantly, it's a safe space from the zombie.

The zombie which, while she was getting the base ready, has proceeded to fall over. It does this a lot. When it does, they lose sight of it, so it makes it more challenging for them to track.

Elle finds a magazine on one of her scavenging missions and brings it home. It's not the most interesting thing she's ever read, but it's entertainment, which is something they desperately need. They can only play with the dog so much, after all.

As if the apocalypse wasn't enough of a struggle, Elle dislikes handiness! She tries to fix up a sink that Ezra found, but she thoroughly hates the process. So, Ezra is tasked with repairs from now on. The camp is coming together, although Elle knows there's still a long way to go to make it livable. Ezra assures her that they'll figure it out, but she doesn't feel better about it.

TBC

(There'll be more story later. This is just gameplay right now)

[marketindustrydevopment]

Retail Ready Packaging Market Dynamics: Examining Supply Chain Efficiency, Consumer Demand, and Competitive Strategies

The global retail ready packaging (RRP) market is experiencing robust growth, driven by the increasing demand for efficient and visually appealing packaging solutions. Retail ready packaging, also known as shelf-ready packaging, simplifies stocking and merchandising processes while enhancing product visibility and brand recognition. It is widely used in industries such as food & beverages, consumer goods, and personal care, where quick replenishment and convenience are critical.

 The Retail Ready Packaging Market CAGR (growth rate) is expected to be around 3.92% during the forecast period (2025 - 2032).

The market is segmented based on material type, including corrugated boxes, die-cut display containers, plastic crates, and others. The growing preference for sustainable packaging solutions is fueling demand for eco-friendly and recyclable retail ready packaging options. Moreover, the rise of e-commerce and omnichannel retailing is influencing packaging innovations, with manufacturers focusing on lightweight, durable, and easily recyclable materials.

For In depth Information Get Free Sample Copy of this Report@

Retail Ready Packaging Market Companies Are:

Mondi ,DS Smith ,Packaging Corporation of America ,Crown Holdings ,Smurfit Kappa ,Graphic Packaging Holding Company ,WestRock ,Sonoco Products ,Stora Enso ,MeadWestvaco ,Amcor ,Huhtamaki ,Ball Corporation ,International Paper ,Pactiv Evergreen

Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities, and Challenges (DROC) Analysis

Drivers:

Growing Retail Sector: The expansion of supermarkets, hypermarkets, and convenience stores is driving demand for retail ready packaging solutions that streamline logistics and improve shelf display.

Demand for Sustainable Packaging: Increasing consumer and regulatory focus on eco-friendly materials is encouraging the adoption of recyclable and biodegradable retail ready packaging.

Enhanced Supply Chain Efficiency: RRP reduces labor costs, minimizes handling time, and optimizes space utilization, making it an attractive choice for retailers.

Rising Popularity of Smart Packaging: Integration of QR codes, RFID tags, and augmented reality features enhances consumer engagement and product tracking.

Restraints:

High Initial Costs: The development and implementation of specialized retail ready packaging solutions can require significant upfront investment.

Limited Customization Options: Standardized designs may not cater to niche product requirements, limiting brand differentiation opportunities.

Supply Chain Disruptions: Fluctuations in raw material availability and transportation constraints can impact market growth.

Opportunities:

Expansion in Emerging Markets: The growth of organized retail and increasing disposable incomes in developing economies present lucrative opportunities for RRP adoption.

Innovations in Packaging Materials: Advancements in sustainable and lightweight packaging materials offer new growth avenues for market players.

E-commerce Integration: Retailers are increasingly leveraging retail ready packaging for online order fulfillment, creating new business prospects.

Challenges:

Regulatory Compliance: Adhering to packaging regulations related to material use, recyclability, and labeling can be complex and vary across regions.

Balancing Cost and Sustainability: Achieving cost-effectiveness while maintaining eco-friendly packaging standards remains a challenge for manufacturers.

Consumer Expectations: As customer preferences evolve, brands must continuously innovate to meet demands for both convenience and sustainability.