#//i'm going through the old trial of 'i want to keep my secrets but also i want to tell them to every person i see' again loll

[keeps-ache]

s. sob

[caineinthecorner]

Languages (The Others)

★ Based on my language general hcs + the brothers' hcs.

Hi I am sleep deprived. Behold part two of my shitty hc delusions wooooo.

"Caine you missed some" yeah I'm lazy (+ don't know their characterization well enough). If you want to add hcs for the guys I skipped you can but in the meantime I'll go with the basic bitch options

Gentle reminder I make shit up. (⁠◕⁠ᴗ⁠◕⁠✿⁠)

★ Solomon.

Okay so like I said with Asmo he knows french (and they're both nasty with it)

Basically he rizzed up Asmo in french

Using the dude he was in based out of he also knows English (native probably), Welsh, German, full-ass Demon Tongue and like some latin for magic bs. Idk

(bcs the guy lived nearby those countries in ye old Europe(tm) and something something immortal so why tf not learn languages while at it)

(also of course he learned demon tongue. He wants to rizz up demons and what better way to do that)

He learned demon tongue from random demons and a lot of trial and error

Plus he knows japanese if we are under the pretense that mc is japanese.

So like Solomon tries to use language rizz to get close to you as the other human student in Devildom. So basically using the Asmo trick with you.

... He's kinda painfully obvious with it

(how tf did Asmodeus fall for this shit?)

If you don't speak any of the languages he is fluent in his ass will ABSOLUTELY pick 'em up and be like "hey I want to learn:)"

He uses language as a tool to get what he wants basically

No wonder him and Asmo get along

If you know a language that is not loquar-translatable and he speaks it as well prepare to get secret-talk'd a lot.

Not having people spying your convos is a incredibly valuable asset in Devildom

Especially since you're around the brothers almost 24/7 and they're fucking VIGILANT

Oh also he 100% knows that Asmo fakes being shit at English.

But he's a simp so 乁⁠(⁠ ⁠•⁠_⁠•⁠  ⁠)⁠ㄏ

★ Luke.

FUNNILY ENOUGH. Two things:

Yes he doesn't need Loquar to communicate with you since he's an angel BUT

For some reason (cough your heritage cough) he keeps messing up in which language speak to you with.

Angel instincts are telling him to just use whatever language with you but the thing is that You Don't Know Whatever Language

Which is odd because that's something he only does with fellow angels????

But you are human so

He doesn't think much of it. He's probably just confused because he's around mean demons! >:T

(His basic subconscious instincts are harder to control since he's low ranking and his Angel brain is going "You = angel = language doesn't matter")

But since he keeps somewhat messing up around you he decides to gesture to hell when talking to you just in case

so you get the gist through his mannerisms in case his words get fucky

His least favorite language ever is Demon Tongue. Even outside of Not Liking Demons he doesn't like how throat-y and intensive it is.

↑ that is a popular Angel opinion btw. Demon Tongue in general is just annoying to use for them and barely any Angels use it outside of in-the-moment communication with Devildom natives.

If you ask him his preferred language he'll say some form of Latin since it's the preferred language of most high ranked angels, as well as Michael's.

But it's actually English.

★ Simeon.

Since he is was a high rank angel, he doesn't mess up what language speak to you with. He has real good control of stuff like that that comes with experience and age.

(in fact he's very confused why Luke keeps messing up so bad around you but doesn't think much of it since Luke is technically still a fledgling)

I already said this but yeah his preferred language is Archaic Latin (shared it with Lucifer pre-fall).

Ever since Lucifer's fall he switched to plain English and that's the answer he'll give you if you ask.

Only Angel that isn't bothered speaking demon tongue and will do so at his own leisure.

If you try to learn the demon language he is unironically so helpful because he isn't a spiteful bitch like Lucifer and actually teaches you shit without throwing you into the wolves

In fact Simeon is amused as hell over the fact that Lucifer is making you learn the hard stuff first. That is so him.

He's like the good cop of the learning dynamic. Cool substitute teacher vibes

Simeon finds accents to be the cutest thing ever since it is an inherently odd concept for someone fluent in Everything Ever

He has (jokingly) cooed over Luci's accent when he speaks Latin nowadays. Lucifer is not at all amused.

★ Barbatos.

He knows every language.

... Yeah that's it that's the list

Look at me dead in the eyes and tell me this motherfucker does not speak Sumerian

Ofc he knows every human language ever. And Devildom's. He knows™.

Funniest thing is that he doesn't even need Loquar to talk to you. He just deadass speaks your language with full fluency and you Never Notice

You only notice one day while having a normal convo with him and then Diavolo walks in speaking full deadass gibberish somehow and you're like ????? and Barbatos says "oh apologies I forgot to apply Loquar to you here you go"

Like deadass he would fuck with you so hard when it comes to languages.

Do not go to this man for language advice he will teach you proper stuff in the most incorrect way possible

(Probably! Or probably not! It depends! On what? Who the fuck knows™!)

He's deadass a roulette of proper, legitimate advice or literal shitposting

He wrote the Voynich manuscript. It was a housekeeping journal he was keeping in a dead Devildom idiom that ended up in the human realm by accident

He didn't retrieve it solely because seeing humans go insane over it was funny as hell and he has a secondary copy anyway. That book has nothing relevant in it besides like two recipes.

He did go to check back on it once to write down a meat pie recipe Diavolo's father liked bcs he didn't have on the copy

Barbatos is the definition of "wtf what language was that" "yes."

He and Lucifer have random days where they just pick a language to speak to each other. It helps to maintain fluency.

Barbatos jumpscared Satan once by going, full ass unprompted mid convo, "Oh right you speak Tagalog."

He knows what languages everyone speaks like a white girl knows zodiac charts

★ Diavolo.

Ok so he probably knows English since it is Solomon's native and humanity's current universal(ish) language

Like of course he wants to communicate with humans! Of course he'll learn their language!!!

Unlike Barbatos and Lucifer who are very impressive Polyglots he's realistic in his language stuff. The more down-to-earth of the three

His English is hilarious

Not particularly because he says things wrong but his accent and tone just makes it sound incredibly funny

He sounds exactly like a dubbed-over superhero doing a friendship monologue At All Times

He is so earnest with it that you don't have the heart to explain why you're laughing

Anyhow fun fact:

Loquar for some reason translates what he says in Demon Tongue the most literal ass sense possible for literally no reason

Which is odd(tm) but mostly just funny as all hell

Everyone has been troubleshooting whatever the fuck happens to Loquar Ad Vos with Diavolo but no idea so far.

The phrase "have you tried unpapplying it and applying it again" has been uttered more than once unironically

The working theory is that since Diavolo is royalty and Loquar Ad Vos was created with the sampling of normal demons it works wrong on him since there's something different(tm)

Reverse engineering the Loquar spell to work on him has been in the works for a while. Loquar is drafted like shit since it is an old human-oriented spell (Basically like spaghetti code needing to be rewritten), so it proves a bit troublesome.

You later find that Diavolo speaks in a very uniquely pronounced manner

↑ Think of it like Devildom royalty has a very distinctive Way Of Speaking. Like an accent but also not. Probably magic related in some way(?)

"do you want to consume nourishment" ← Diavolo's ass getting mistranslated

So yeah Barbatos or Lucifer kinda have to lend a hand when you two communicate.

If you're English speaking then you two kinda communicate that way sometimes. You reassure him on his accent and help him along if he gets anything wrong.

(he's fluent-ish in Japanese as well if we are running in the assumption that the reason why MC's canonically japanese is because they needed someone who A) speaks a language translatable by Loquar Ad Vos B) is also a language Diavolo knows and C) is not of the same social background as Solomon)

He will get so unapologetically excited when you start learning demon tongue. You two can!!! Communicate even more!!!!!

Demons will be genuinely mortified if you gain Diavolo's accent while speaking demon tongue. Why does this random ass human speak like royalty ತ⁠_⁠ತ

Very (un)subtle way to tell everyone that you're besties/partner/whatever of the literal prince of Devildom.

Something something dragon being possessive something

[jelzorz]

The Crack Quartet Timeline BC I'm sleep deprived and obsessed. Some housekeeping before we get into it:

For those unaware, the canon crack quartet, as @raayllum and I like to refer to them, is rayllum and the following insane trio of ships: claudiez, sorpeli, and corterry

You read that correctly

I got dragged onto this boat unwillingly so now all of you have to suffer too.

These are my hcs and I've already written some of it into fic (linked for convenience). Some of these @raayllum and I share but they also have their own separate ones and these are specific to what I've written already

It's important to note that the crack quartet can only ever take place 10-15 years from the end of canon. Everyone involved by this point is a fully consenting adult. Please keep this disclaimer in mind before you all start coming at me.

Now that that's out of the way

Some of you may have read the seed, so you may know already that I hc Soren and Corvus to be pretty steady at least until the end of the war, where the trauma is too heavy for both of them to be healthy about it. Soren ends the relationship and Corvus informally leaves the council. He's always preferred the serenity of the forest to the hustle and bustle of the castle anyway, and he returns every now and then to give Ezran reports about how things are going among the surrounding towns. It's on one of these journeys that he meets Terry, and their passing knowledge of each other is what gets them talking over a drink in a tavern. Corvus is doing his job and listening for gossip. Terry wants know if he's heard anything about Claudia. All the drama aside, it's nice to see a familiar face and to talk about old times.

In Katolis, Ez and Rayla bully Opeli into taking self defence lessons with Soren after she insists Ez keeps up his swordfighting lessons when she herself has never touched a weapon in her life. If you haven't already read the seed, this is how sorpeli starts. Soren and Opeli have been p good friends for years now, and he has never considered her a mother figure the same way Callum and Ezran might have. He was essentially an adult when everything started so he hasn't ever really needed that guidance, but he's always had a ton of respect for her too. He is 24/25ish when he realises he's caught feelings. He asks her to dance at Callum and Rayla's wedding. He starts having tea with her in the mornings and walking with her to Temple Hill (ia163a)

Claudia tries to leave but the other medics beg her not to. They need her help and her knowledge of medicinal herbs and potions. There's no one to replace her. She stays for a little longer, intending to leave the following week when a cart arrives bearing equipment and support and the king's seal. There is also a letter addressed to Lissa. In it, Ez promises her that her secret is safe, and that she will always have a home in the castle if she wants it.

The month before Callum and Rayla's wedding, the kids are called away to a skirmish in a little town near the border. Ez goes for a wander through town to assess damage and how much they'll need in funds to repair everything when he finds a small clinic that desperately needs financial support. This is where he finds Claudia. She is tending to the medicinal herbs in the garden when he rides past. She's been going from town to town trying to make up for all the trouble she caused by assisting in their clinics and apothecaries under the name Lissa. Ez recognises her immediately. He knows he should tell the others. He does not. He is 14/15.

Callum, snake boi that he is, is Not Having It. Claudia is thrown into a cell on arrival and he insists on exiling her as a minimum but Ezran, who's been in contact this whole time, knows she's been trying to make amends for her mistakes. He demands a trial on her behalf. Soren agrees. Opeli, as a stand in for Justice, argues that a trial is the fair thing to do. Rayla looks at Ezran, realises something else is going on, and agrees that a trial is the better way to go. The sentence her to service within the castle. Callum is Not Happy about it. (ia165)

For a while, everything is fine. Callum and Rayla get married, and castle life is pretty stable in amongst the political squabbles and the trips to quell conflicts in the surrounding towns. Soren hangs out with Opeli pretty regularly. Ez is writing letters to Claudia and personally funding the clinic she works at. Callum and Rayla start trying for a baby. Rayla falls pregnant three years after their wedding. She is 20ish weeks along when Claudia comes home.

This is one of the biggest disagreements Ez and Callum ever have. Rayla does her best to placate them both but she is also pregnant and doesn't want to deal with it. Frustrated that his brother won't trust his decision making and keeps treating him like a child, Ez spends more and more time with Claudia, who trusts him and treats him like an adult, until they're courting in all but name. Callum HATES this but reigns it in for Rayla's sake who's stressed enough. She goes into labour at the end of that summer and suffers a post partum haemorrhage so bad that the only thing that can fix it is Claudia's knowledge of Xadian herbs. The midwives kick Callum out of the room to let Claudia in and Ezran lets them. Rayla and the baby are both fine thanks to Claudia but Callum is FURIOUS with Ezran for allowing it to happen.

Opeli miscarries. She collapses during a council meeting, and it all comes out while the castle doctor and Claudia are attending to her. Callum and Ezran realise how stupid they've been because of the way they hadn't even noticed and they are speaking to each other again by the time Opeli is in recovery. Callum accepts Ezran and Claudia's courtship and does his best to process both this and Soren and Opeli (ia164) and things settle down again for a little while. Opeli resigns from her post as High Cleric and attempts to do the same from the council but Ez refuses her resignation and keeps her on informally. Soren and Opeli are married in a quiet ceremony. Opeli finds herself pregnant again six months later.

They're so caught up in the drama that no one notices Soren and Opeli having drama of their own. They are now having secret, hurried meetings in each other's quarters, knowing how absolutely Forbidden it is, especially for Opeli, both because of her age and her position as High Cleric, but they can't stay away from each other until Opeli starts throwing up in the mornings and she breaks it off in her panic. Rayla is the only one who notices and goes investigating. She is the only one Opeli allows to know of the situation. Rayla goes to Claudia to find the appropriate herbs to help Opeli with her Dilemma, and Claudia figures it out on her own 1) because she knows her brother, and 2) she's not an idiot. Rayla takes the opportunity to thank her properly for saving her life and their friendship begins here, while the boys are still at odds with each other. Opeli does not take the herbs in the end. (the fruit)

Viren returns to the castle that same year. It's Claudia's return all over again: Callum demands he be executed on the spot. Ezran wants to give him a trial. Claudia begs them not to kill him through her courtship with Ezran, her relationship with Soren, and her friendship with Rayla. Soren votes no, for himself and for Claudia. Rayla votes yes because, tentative friendship with Claudia aside, she can't trust Viren, especially not with her and Callum's little one running around. Ezran votes no because he wants to be a better king. Clio, the new High Cleric, Opeli's old 2IC, votes yes as the stand in for LJ. Barius, too soft hearted, votes no. Opeli is the deciding vote. She also votes no and all hell breaks loose all over again. (the snake).

Anyway, this is where we're up to. Obviously there will be more as I update the snake but I don't wanna give anything away BC hooo boy that drama is a doozy. I know, okay, these ships are Insane but the extrapolation you can do is just so Delicious and the drama is absolutely *chef kiss*

Now with part 2: electric boogaloo

[totkdaily]

Day 53: The All-Clucking Cucco, and Koltin

The researchers at Foothill Stable are grateful to be clothed again. Jora says he still can't find his friend Dillie - they lost track of each other round Rebonae Bridge, near Wetland Stable to the south west. From what Jora says, it sounds like Dillie might have fallen in a cave. I'll keep an eye out, but I'm not headed that way for a while - I hope he's got rations. 

The korok up the hill by the stable is trying to reach a friend who's basically on the way to Akkala, just up the road. I hitch up Peaches to the stable's cart, load up the korok and set off. 

The old monster camp by the Akkala Road is empty - because they're on the bridge now!! Good grief. I charge Peaches through and we race for the stable. 

We reach South Akkala Stable just as a storm blows in. I give Addison a hand. 

Jana in the stable is preoccupied by a drawing of a beast on the wall. It's supposed to be this mystery beast I've heard about once or twice before. I don't know what to make of it.

Jana also mentions that her little sister Gleema is fascinated with a cucco oracle - whatever that is. What is it with this family and creatures - last time I was here, I think it was Gleema who wanted a bunch of dragonflies. 

Dmitri, who runs the stable, wants a picture of the Unity Bell in Tarrey Town. There's a tradition that two people who ring it will be together forever. His four daughters would love it - and I'm headed there.

Kaifa is another of his daughters, caring for the sheep. But she's lost a cucco - not the prophecy one, apparently - and it won't lay eggs unless one of the family is nearby. 

Penn is here! He's got no leads, and he wants to try the cucco prophecy to get some - or at least interview the people who come to see it. 

Kaifa's cucco is in the well - but I can't figure out how to get her out. 

Tenne is taking care of the horses - she wants to go to Tarrey Town one day and order a dream home. But first she wants a partner with kind eyes who knows how to bake - she hopes hanging the Unity Bell picture will help her dating life. Sweet.

After beating Parcy in an ore-smashing contest, I head up the hill to this cucco oracle. 

Gleema says horseys, not bugs, is her new interest. She wants to ask the All-Clucking Cucco if she'll be a horse one day, but the line is too long. 

Fashionista Falmark says he heard Cece was influenced by someone in Tarrey Town - maybe Hudson's wife? He stopped here to see the oracle, and the cucco told him there was treasure on a remote island in the northeast. He hopes this means clothes, but I think clothes being treasure is specifically a Misko thing. Unless this is a lead to one of Misko's chests? It's such a vague clue.

Lonnie is the only person still in the queue, but she needs more time to think and lets me go first. 

The cucco knows my name, and that I'm seeking Zelda, but that's hardly a secret. It says I will face many trials - the first of which is to get to the top of the Stable.

It takes me a second to find a place to ascend, but I do, and reach the top.

The second trial is… bring logs.

And the third is - the Yiga Clan! It's been so long! I'd almost forgotten about them, I can't believe they're still knocking about. I survive the ambush, and agree with Penn's assessment - the All-Clucking Cucco was nothing more than a Yiga scam. I wonder what it was supposed to achieve… 

It's pouring down. I think about heading into the stable for the night - but then I turn to check the skyline and see the familiar glow of Kilton's balloon, just past Ulri Mountain Skyview Tower. Except that he gave it to Koltin, didn't he? If that guy's still looking for bubbulfrog gems, I have plenty for him. I run and glide through the rain, ignoring the tower for the moment in case I miss the window and Koltin picks up for the night. I'm not sure what his schedule's like.

He gives me a moblin mask and tells me he can sense nearby bubbulfrogs now he's eaten some of their gems - strange that he still can't seem to catch any of them himself. He gives me three hinox toenails, the mystic robe, eight fire keese eyeballs, a lizalfos mask and five ice-breath lizalfos tails before I run out of gems for him.

I can see Tarrey Town from here. And it looks as though another town has sprung up on the banks of the lake below? 

I head back to the tower as dawn approaches. It would be silly to be so close and not to activate it.

[neo-axe-oc-thoughts]

𓆝 AU NOTES - Guppy 𓆝

Hi, I put together some notes / added on to the timeline. It does focus a bit more on how I'm fitting in Black Ops 1, 2 (Flashbacks mainly), and Cold War. I've change a bit how Guppy Joins TF141, but I'm still working on how I want to zir to interact with the others in the task force .

/ / word count : 733

In this AU Bell survives the final countdown mission and is found by Mason and Woods who take them in. Both are unaware that Bell was brain washed, and thought they were helping of their own volition. When they find out about MK-Ultra they are pissed at Hudson for hiding this from them especially after what Mason has been through.

Whilst Bell starts to figure out who they are / who they were, they help take care of Mason's son David who is 2 or 3 years old. (Bell is about 23 at this point, and slowly starts to view Mason and Woods as their Uncles and David as their nephew.)

Operation Just Cause does happen but Woods doesn't end up killing Mason, just injuring him severely causing him to be hospitalised and put in a medically induced coma for a couple of months. Woods retires, and so does Mason soon after he wakes up.

Both talk about their feelings and feel like they are more then friends but not lovers. (Queer Platonic Relationships my beloved) They focus on taking care of David and Bell. David turns 18 and enlists into the US navy, Bell decides that they're going to leave the country and heads to Australia.

Guppy is born in 1997 and is named Harlow Rayner by xyr parents. Bell and Guppy first meet in an all ages Auslan class, Guppy becomes attached to Bell. A surprised to zir parents and others.

By the time Guppy is 10 Bell has become their baby sitter, taking better care of them than Guppy's Parents; who "struggle" raising an autistic kid. Guppy starts going an interest into puzzles and mysteries, after seeing some puzzle books around Bell's flat.

Soon after Guppy is introduced to Mason and Woods accidentally, when they surprise Bell with a visit. Both 100% think Guppy is Bell's kid at first and tease Bell about keeping Guppy a secret from them. Bell does explain that Guppy isn't their kid.

Mason and Woods share a look, before anything more can be said Guppy starts asking questions about them. Woods does most of the talking sharing stories to Guppy about them, Mason watching fondly as Woods does this. Guppy eventually has to leave, but Mason and Woods promise to stay in contact with xem via Bell.

Time skip as Guppy goes through the rest of Primary and Highschool, deciding they want to be like Bell, xe study 2 course in Uni for the next two years before joining the AUS Navy as a Intel Analysis. This is where Guppy and David meet professionally for the first time.

Guppy send 4 years in the Navy before switching to the Aus Intel Corps, getting the nickname "Guppy" for being a fish out of water. This is also where xe meet Laswell for the first time, helping her out with some missions she needs info for.

Modern Warfare II takes place and Laswell suggest to Price about adding another member, Price after seeing Guppy's file agree to a 3 month trial period. Guppy joins TF141 mid November, a couple of jabs at Guppy's nickname; but they seem to except xem pretty quickly.

Guppy spends zir first couple weeks helping with the cluster fuck that was Shepherds betrayal, not having a lot of free time to hangout with the rest of the task-force. Gaz and Price go on a couple day mission to help Alex and Farah out. (Atomgrad Raids)

After this Gaz and soap drag Guppy to the closest bar wanting to get to know zir better, the rest of the task force is also there. Whether by bribery or because they wanted to. Even though Guppy doesn't usually go out drinking they do enjoy xyr time out with the rest of the task force.

Mid December rolls around and the team gets a one week break for Christmas, Guppy stays at Base with Price and Gaz; Soap dragging Roach and Ghost to Scotland. Gaz eventually convincing zir to come to Urzikstan with him to meet Farah and Alex, who are basically unofficial members of the 141.

Guppy makes ANZAC biscuits before they leave hoping that Farah, Alex and the ULF soldiers might like something different from the usual rations. The couple days spent in Urzikstan are spent helping out Farah's forces rather than celebrating Christmas. Gaz does give a couple small gifts to Alex and Farah though.

/ /

This is all I have so far, hope you enjoyed reading it. I also just realised that Mason and Woods would be Great-Uncles, since Bell is basically Guppy's parent.

Small Note: The WW1 recipe for ANZAC biscuits last for up to two months, which is why I have Guppy baking them for the ULF.

[thekidsarentalright]

hi atlas!! if you’re comfortable with answering (if no I get it, gotta keep something secret yk) I was wondering how do you make your posters ?? im curious because the editing is so cool

hi!!! i'm happy to share somewhat how i make them for sure! im afraid i cant give like a fully comprehensive tutorial Because a lot of what i do is so trial and error, but i can give some basics!! (under the cut so this isnt super long on the dash fjrnd)

so, firstly, i use picsart to make them! also, i find a majority of the images i use from pinterest, though if there's a specific image i want i'll just look it up (like in the example below i Knew i wanted to use a png of old school headphones, so googled that, but for the paper background searched for crumpled paper png on pinterest till i found the one i used)

the most important tools i use for making the posters are (as pictured below):

- remove bg: pretty self explanatory, i use this to remove the backgrounds of images i use and make them transparent. sometimes, it doesn't remove the background properly/as i want it so i Also use the app magicEraser. this is, like, the most vital thing so make all assets of a poster blend together

- effects: also relatively self explanatory? but i use this feature to add a lot of the coloring/textures that you see on the posters. below this i'll show an example of a poster with and without the effects to show what these effects can do. they're especially great because of the variation of filters they have, and how you can mess with every aspect of them (hue, noise, fade, etc)

- mask: my absolute beloved and favorite tool. what differentiates this from effects is that effects are more filters that change color, these masks are textures/visual additions that change the entire composition of a design. this is the tool i use that adds the crumpled/folded paper textures all of the posters have. similarly, you're able to change the intensity of the mask, as well as have some control over where the visual falls on the image.

example: this is the tttyg poster before i added any of the effects or masks!

the biggest thing, and why i cant be more specific about What effects or What masks to use to make posters is just that. it depends on what you're trying to accomplish and what you're going for. i always start with picking what the base will be, for these posters that's what the base paper png will be, then what imagery matches the vibe i'm going for to make transparent, then the font that goes with the album, and then once all of the pieces are together (as seen on the left with the tttyg poster), i add the effects and masks to finish the poster fully. for the tttyg poster, i knew i wanted it to look accurate to the time (2003), like it Was 20 yrs old, and i wanted to really make that turquoisey color prominent, so i chose filters and masks that accentuated the turquoise, and added in the most realistic texture. the goal for each poster is different, so what i do on each is different.

hopefully this helps at all! never really written any sort of tutorial or tips for my process because, as i said, i truly just go through trial and error to figure stuff out but this is what i've found are the most helpful tools!

[sdarbvtterfly]

Two Letters: The Sent One

I can't even begin to describe how I felt when I learned that there was an international letter waiting for me. After all these years, you were probably the only one who remembered me – well, half the blame lies with me, but you did find where I am in the end, didn't you?

As for me, I'm fine. America is an amazing country. You can always find kindred spirits here. In fact, when I received your letter, I had just returned from Niagara Falls, which you don't see that big ones in London: it was as if ten million white birds were struggling to fly down, and the cool mist of water flooded in a roar. I was standing right at the edge of it, thinking that even the best Quidditch player couldn't fly over it. There are plenty of waterfalls in this country, and Yosemite's is beautiful too, just not as spectacular as this one.

I'm already a professional traveler, Blaise. And I'm planning to do a trip to Antarctica – not this year, of course. It's already August, and I have to prepare for that for at least three months. Then it is September. September, you told me your kids are starting school, I believe. My Lyla is nine years old. She's a clever girl, but unfortunately she's nothing like me, except for her serene black eyes. Her nose is a bit like my mother's, and I guess she got her slightly dark skin from her father (I'll have to include a photo for you).

Okay, let me be honest. None of us saw Lyla coming. But she's very talented, and I believe her father was probably a brilliant wizard in disguise. Does that offend you, Blaise? If it were a few years ago, that might have made me ashamed for a while, but now? I'm half a muggle now, Blaise. My wand makes me weak. I can't keep myself from remembering how many unforgivable curses shot from her tip. And my hair is mostly white – that beautiful black hair that even you weren't fastidious about. I try to blame all this on the war, but I am also guilty. It was me who screamed that "Harry Potter" in the Great Hall, and also me who chose to flee the battlefield. I chose to avoid this trial…I waited for fate to claim its price from me.

I'm going to send Lyla to Ilvermornyin the future. Hogwarts is not for her. Lyla is too obsessed with magic, like a child obsessed with toys. And magic is more than toys, isn't it? Also, I'm sorry, Blaise, it's a little hard to talk about, but it does exist. My feet are afraid to set foot on the land of Britain. Like a deserter who doesn't want the scars on his back to be seen, I am afraid to face my former friends and professors as I fled timidly while they drew their wands to defend Hogwarts. On top of that, we Slytherins – and how evil should we be portrayed? No one can forgive us, Blaise, especially me.

I am still thinking, still resentful. I sink into the memories of the past. I dreamed of Hogwarts again and again, dreaming of us walking through the old and strong corridor, of the sunlight enveloping us like the fog in the dark forest at night, of the gentle, sad eyes of the women in the portraits. How can you smell the so-called ambition in these dreams and bad memories that have passed like water? All my secret thoughts are only about another person, who alone makes me sigh with no resentment…

I miss you so much, Blaise. If one day my destiny reaches its end, the only one worthy of my smile will probably be you, old friend. I often think of our first rafting trip on the Black Lake. D, Goyle, Crabbe and I were in the same boat. You and Theo's boat was next to ours. I was thinking what an arrogant and insolent brat you were, but I didn't think you would be a faithful and reliable friend, just as I didn't realize that the moonlight that night was one of the rare times in my life pure and bright.

Your sincerely,

P.P

Included: a stilled photo

[lurking-latinist]

(also I’d I’m allowed a second ask, I have to once again be predictable and query about the Aftermath Of Trial Story With Brax. because that sounds like a GREAT premise.)

no you may NOT make my askbox more interesting. HOW DARE. lol.

ok so this would be a sort of thematic sequel to The Wrong Idea, my fic about Brax during Invasion of Time. That one's all about Brax thinking the Doctor is a genuine traitor (and probably the real Deadly Assassin) and getting an entirely, well, wrong idea about who he's become.

(The Gallifreyan outsider's POV of the Doctor's career is fascinating--we get a bit of it with Spandrell and Engin in Deadly Assassin, but there's lots more potential. He's a well-connected ne'er-do-well who made the planet too hot to hold him in some unspecified way and fled. Arrested, tried, and convicted, he definitely cuts some kind of secret deal with the CIA [Season 6B]. He eventually leaves them--but does anybody really leave the CIA? they continue to use him for odd jobs--undergoes his sentence and becomes a mercenary. [I mean what would you call working for an alien paramilitary organization in exchange for nice clothes and fancy cars? Even if you don't technically draw a paycheque.] Having regenerated again he is arrested for the murder of the President, for which he gets off by the skin of his teeth, through the most transparent of legal fictions. We've all seen the way he behaves in IoT, even though it's unclear how much of that is eventually remembered. He runs off with the heiress of Heartshaven and apparently misplaces her in a different universe--for which he doesn't seem the least bit sorry. His public reputation, at least among those in the know, is a little better by Five's era, when at least they apologize for trying to execute him for no fault of his own, and he does some national heroics in The Five Doctors and ends up as President again. But then they depose him in absentia and he ends up on trial for his life again. He's a criminal turned the shadiest possible kind of politician turned public figure turned criminal again. Bear in mind that Brax is the respectable one.)

Sorry. Digression. What was I saying?

Oh, yeah, that was all of the misread-backstory that I'm not explaining. I really only have the concept of a scene from this that I'd like to build around. The only way I can make sense of Six not going back to look for Peri is if he tries, and there's some kind of temporal cordon around the whole space-time area that stops him getting there. He keeps getting stopped by CIA agents--proper ones, in uniform--and he's getting very frustrated. He makes a scene. Several scenes. Which reach the ears of Braxiatel, and even though he hasn't actually been part of a We Need To Do Something About Theta conversation for several centuries, he decides that we do, in fact, need to do something about Theta and goes off to find him and give him a talking-to about the terrible mess he's made of his life.

A bunch of old misunderstandings get hashed out, and this is how Brax and the Doctor get from where I left them at the end of The Wrong Idea to, you know, being able to speak to each other in the VNAs.

Oh yeah, I also wanted to do a scene set earlier, during Trial, during the court recess between Mindwarp and Vervoids, where Brax tries to convince the Doctor to accept a court defender. That scene would be a failed attempt at a reconciliation--from Brax's perspective he's trying to help save his thoroughly undeserving brother's life, but from the Doctor's he's just trying to get him ensnared in Gallifrey. And the Doctor, who doesn't know that Brax believes his adventures are those of a professional mercenary and paid agent, has no idea why Brax is treating him with ill-disguised contempt.

[musingsofabookworm1]

My Last 11 Reads

The blog takes a backseat again. This school year is exhausting. But I have found a little more time to read as I had a student teacher last quarter. Here are the good and of the last two-ish months:

Quarry Girls by Jess Lourey - 4 stars - I've read two other books by this author that all take place in Minnesota rating one a 5 and one a 3. This one goes right in between. It takes place in 1970s St. Cloud where some girls up end up missing and, consequently, dead. Protagonists Heather and her friend Brenda stumble upon something in the tunnels under the city that they swear not to tell but might solve the mystery. I liked this book, but the mystery wasn't much of a mystery. Hence, 4 stars.

Light to the Hills by Bonnie Blaylock - 4 stars - If you liked The Bookwoman of Troublesome Creek, this is similar. 1930s Kentucky is the backdrop for single mother and packhorse librarian, Rye. She grows close with a family on her route which brings up a secret from her past. Took a bit to get going, but it was a solid read.

The Gunners by Rebecca Kauffman - 4 stars - Mikey Callahan is struggling with macular degenration at age 30 when his high school friends come back to town for the funeral of a friend who committed suicide. That is all laid out early - no spoilers. Secrets of their childhood relationships and of the deceased are revealed as they reconnect. Good read!

The House Party by Rita Cameron - 2 stars - A big group of high school students decide to party at a newly constructed house. A girl is sexaully assaulted. The house is destroyed. Who is at fault? If you want to find out, lessen your curiousity. This book was not worth it.

Fairy Tale by Stephen King - 3 stars - Since I really enjoyed The Institute a few months back, I thought I'd give this one a shot since everyone was raving about it. It wasn't as much for me. A seventeen-year-old boy grows a bond with an elderly neightbor with a secret. This secret involves being transported to a different world through his backyard shed. No shocker that this book is long, but it was too long to keep my interest throughout.

The House of Ever by Sadeqa Johnson - 4 stars - This is from the author of the acclaimed Yellow Wife (which I also enjoyed). This book tells the story of Ruby, a teenager in Philadelphia, and Eleanor, a college student in DC whose stories eventually collide. But the collision was much too short for the lenght of the buildup. I wish the end could have played out just a bit longer.

The Education of Dixie Depree by Donna Everhart - 2 stars - The title character is 11 years old living in Alabama in 1969. Her life is full of trials. But the writing is simple, and the plot is extremely predictable.

Betsy and Lillibet by Sophie Duffy - 2 stars - Betsy was born on the same day as Queen Elizabeth II. The summary made me think that I'd be reading a novel with intertwining stories. However, the "story" for the Queen was just quotes which matched up with Betsy's plot. Disappointing.

The Light Pirate by Lily Brooks-Dalton - 4 stars - This one had comparisons to Station 11. Now nothing is going to be Station 11 for me, but this was a good book. And the comparison makes sense. The book takes place in the not too distant future where the climate has dessimated parts of the country. The book takes place in Florida and opens with the story of protagonist Wanda's birth and continues with Wanda as she grows and her home is endangered. Strong characters.

A Lullaby for Witches by Hester Fox - 3 stars - Augusta takes a job at a historic house in Salem and begins to research the mysterious Margaret Harlowe. I'm a sucker for a witchcraft book : especially Salem. But this one as just average.

The Love Songs of W.E.B. Dubois by Honoree Fanonne Jeffers - 3.5 stars - I had this one on my Kindle for awhile and figured that our trip to Memphis was the best setting to start this 800-page tome. Though this book is a sweeping family epic (of epic proportions!), the clear protagonist is Ailey Garfield. She is raised in the North (in the 80s/90s) but spends her summers in Georgia with her mother's family. Dealing with trauma along the way, Ailey researches the story of her ancestors. And there a lot of them to keep straight. The writing was excellent. The length was a bit much. The structure did not work for me. Skipping around in time hundreds of years did not make for the most pleasant reading experience. But I do not regret my time spent with this book. I love the parts of Ailey and learning of how her family line led to her.

[bellarkeselection]

Ch 17 - Legal Battle

Part 18

@stellarosedutton co author

Falling for my Bestie

Jamie’s pov

Jamie was sitting on the couch, looking over the papers "legally he can't do that, because Kayce signed the birth certificate and has the rights to Tate. I'm gonna fight this for you, and make sure that Tate stays with you both. I'll represent you in court on Monday, and I'm not gonna stop until you have your son safe with you at home." He says, reading over the papers carefully and inspecting everything that is written. "Monday morning, be dressed accordingly and presentable for your court hearing. We are Duttons, no one is gonna mess with us." He says, knowing that he was the best damn lawyer in the state of Montana and he could win easily. 

Kayce's POV

Fighting with my tie for about two more times I run my hands down my face until Y/n enters the room wearing a flowered shirt and a skirt with some boots she borrowed from Beth. “I don’t you strangerling your tie baby is gonna make this go away.” I sigh, dropping my hands so she can fix it the right way. “This is stupid. I already signed the papers. He’s legally my son.” She rests a hand to my cheek, her eyes locked on mine. “I know that as does everyone else in this family. But….he’s also legally his father too.” Taking her hand in mine we headed to the truck with my dad and Beth following behind us. Jamie is already at the courthouse waiting for us. Grabbing my black cowboy hat from the dash I put it on walking to my brother. “My future with Tate is all up to you.” He nods showing me his folder with documents. “I’ll ensure you get to keep him. You have my word.” The five of us entered a large courtroom. Walker and his lawyer at the left table. Y/n and I sit down with Jamie at the right table. The judge sits down announcing to the room. "We are here for the trial of custody over Tate Dutton!" Y/n grabs my hand under the table whispering in fear. "Kayce, I'm scared." Those words send shivers down my back. She's said those once before when we were teenagers in high school. 

"Thanks mrs. L/n. I have an idea of where she is." I tell her mother through the phone riding on a horse out to our secret campsite. Y/n had gotten rejected by a guy she had a crush on for a year today during lunch. Dismounting my horse I push through some leaves finding her in our little clubhouse. Her knees hugged to her chest, lightly sobbing. "Ka - Kayce?" I crawl over to her sitting beside her. At age 14 she shouldn't be feeling like this. Staring at my bestie I clutch my hands into fists wanting to punch the stupid guy that did this to her. Y/n sniffs laying her head on my shoulder. 

"What if I don't find a guy who likes me?" Turning my head down to her I wipe away her tears. "That's ridiculous Y/n. You're an amazing person." She sniffs her cheeks red from crying. I put my light brown cowboy hat on her head, weakly smiling. "Thanks Kayce, you're a really good friend. I'm - I'm scared..." Brushing her hair from her face she shivered causing me to wrap my arms around her. "It's okay, I'm right here. I'm always here."

Y/N’s POV

Y/N gripped Kayce’s hand, slightly nervous as she watched Jamie stand up as she squeezed Kayce’s hand tightly as she saw Walker sitting on the stand as she held Evelyn who was sleeping in her arms while Tate was sitting next to them at the defendant’s table where Jamie had gotten a hold of Walker’s prison records and everything that he had been arrested for as she swallowed slowly while watching Walker get antsy in his seat as she knew that Jamie was gonna defend them, and make sure that Tate remained with his parents and sister as she sat in the chair and hoped for the best outcome of the trial for their 9 year old son who was just as nervous about this. She was on the edge of her seat as she awaited the judges’ decision to be decided as she continued to watch Walker as he spoke his piece as she held Kayce’s hand calmly

Tate’s POV

I don't want to be here. People are staring at me while the man in the big chair keeps mentioning bad things about the guy at the other table. My mom told me that my real dad lived nearby but I don't know him. I know who my dad is, Kayce. Little Evie is asleep in my mom's arms. Wrapping my arms around myself I just want to go home. The ranch is fun and not scary like this place is to a nine year old. "We will have a short lunch!" The big guy bangs something on the stand. Dad picked me up carrying me out as I saw my uncle Jamie flipping through papers. "Daddy, when can we go home?" He sighs whispering to me while mom stares at grandpa and auntie Beth. "Soon son. Hopefully real soon."

Y/N’s POV

Y/N noticed the upset in our son’s voice, looking at him as she was fighting back tears as she looked at our son “come here son, come sit with your mama. She has some stuff to tell you about your real father, stuff that i figured you should know about now that you are old enough to understand it” She says, her eyes filling with tears as she took a deep breath “you’re real daddy is a bad man, and he went to jail. So you have only known Kayce as your daddy, and that’s how i had hoped to keep it but now your real father wants full custody of you, and mama is fighting so hard to keep that from happening because you have loved living on the ranch and i want you to live there. You belong there, with your pony and your grandpa. This is our home, and we aren’t gonna stop fighting till you are home with us”

Kayce’s POV

Reentering the courtroom for the trial the judge decision is announced. "Hearing all the evidence it is clear that Tate Dutton belongs with his rightful father…" Y/n squeezes my hand tightly and Tate does the same to my other one. "His rightful father is Kayce John Dutton. Let us recognize that Walker is also his father by blood. This trial is dismissed." I feel my shoulders drop in relief picking Tate up smiling and he laughs alongside me. "Grandpa, auntie Beth!" He races hugging the pair. Y/n wipes away happy tears until I hear loud footsteps coming towards us. "You're no better than me Dutton. You've done things that would put you in prison if it weren't for your brother!" Spinning on my feet I see Walker who throws a punch but I block it. He tried hitting me again so I twisted his arm behind his back. "Picking a fight with the Livestock commissioner isn't a good choice Walker. Besides, I fought for this country!" I growled until he elbowed me hard in the rib making me drop. "Walker quit it!" Y/n cried pushing in between us but he threw her backwards making me punch him in his jaw. He grunts, tackling me onto the floor punching me in the nose. Jamie tried breaking up the fight but Walker grabbed his briefcase from his hands hitting me in the head. I hear a loud ringing in my ear and my vision blurs seeing Beth kick Walker in the nuts before security arrives. Y/n rushed over tears in her eyes. "Kayce, Kayce!" But I close my eyes, the pain being too much.

Comments welcome 🤗

[hotchscvm]

thank u, next (ft. loki)

Warnings: angst, swearing, jealousy, mentions of sex

Word count: 4.5k

Summary: A new team member in the group shakes things up for the super soldier.

Or: In which Steve casts you aside for a Carter only to regret his decision when he sees you with the God of Mischief.

"Yeet."

Swiveling your chair, you saw the empty pint of ice cream hit garbage can, bouncing off the rim and dropping on the floor with a light thump. You looked at Tony, shaking your head. "You've been hanging out with Peter too much."

"Why, thank you." Tony replied, smirking at you. "So, tell me, you sexy vixen, how do you feel with Thor bringing Loki? You were quiet during the whole argument that almost ended with Barton ripping out his eye."

You shrugged, the heels Tony had bought earlier drawing your attention to your feet. "I'm fine. I don't really care, I mean, I wasn't with you guys when New York happened so I don't really think I get to have an opinion about whether the mind-controlled God of Lies gets a spot in the team."

"You realize your on the team, right? I'm pretty sure your opinion matters especially with the mass murderer joining." Tony replied, accidentally hitting himself with the candy cane in his hands. "I really thought you were going to side with Cap on this one. You always do."

It wasn't a secret that Steve Rogers wasn't completely on board with the plan. That was pushing it; in other words: Steve Rogers despised the plan. If he could kill it, he would've. When Thor had proposed the plan to bring Loki on the team (a punishment from Odin himself)—trying to convince everyone he was "good" now—less than a handful had let him continue speaking. The rest wanted to riot. You had just sat there, a smirk on your face as you watched the six of them fight with each other while Fury shook his head, looking like a disappointed father.

When everyone had came to an agreement on Loki's trial period, there had been pages of rules on what he was restricted on doing including magic and stabbing. Of course, it was very specific so even the God of Mischief couldn't find a loophole. Maybe he could if he tried, which he probably will.

Clicking your tongue, you shrugged, ignoring the little pang in your chest. "Not on this. I'm smart enough to see that there's more reward than risk to have Loki on the team. For example: he's not bad to look at."

Tony choked on his candy cane, coughing up a large piece. With wide eyes, he studied you in silence, trying to figure out if you had been joking. "Are you serious? We should bring you to Helen so you can get your head checked. There's a chance you might have a concussion from the last mission."

"You have eyes, you can see how regal he is despite not genuinely being born royal. And those cheekbones..." you trailed off, biting your lip at Loki's handsome features. Tony raised an eyebrow, slowly shaking his head. "Not that his perfect bone structure justifies all the people he's killed. I'm just very observant being an avenger and all."

"Uh-huh, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure." Tony mumbled, leaning back on his chair, his eyes narrowing after your confession. "Ms. Natalia Romanoff didn't get the chance to tell me what happened between you and old Capsicle."

Rolling your eyes, you spun around in your chair, facing away from the nosy billionaire. "There's not that much to tell. We talked, we liked each other, then the sun came up and reality set in as the form of Sharon Carter. It didn't take long for him to ditch me to go for Peggy's niece. Anyways, been there, done that. People change."

"You're not the same girl I met." Tony stated. "On that note, Rogers' old brain is still defrosting and he's getting older so I don't think he knows how stupid he is...yet."

"And I'm not going to wait for him to find out." you muttered, a loud sound coming from the big yard. Looking through the garage window, you saw the blinding light before two figures in different colored capes appeared, the blinding light ruining the fresh-cut grass. Beaming at Tony, you got up. "Want to plan a party with me?"

"You say that like I'd have the ability to say no. Tonight?" Tony replied, grinning at thought of loud electronic dance music and booze.

Getting up, the stilettos clicked on the floor, your perfect pedicure peeking through the hole. Smiling, you walked towards the door. "Well, we are in the presence of two Gods. I think it's only fair we celebrate like it."

"I'm putting Party in the USA on the track-list!"

Rushing to the lawn where the rest of the team gathered, your mood was lightened by the sight of the golden haired retriever in disguised as a jacked God. Ignoring the others, you threw yourself at Thor, the God of Thunder catching you, arms tightening around your body. You let out a breathless laugh, momentarily forgetting your idiotic plan to avoid Steve. "Thor!"

Thor guffawed, lifting you off the ground, shouting your name in glee before letting you breathe again. "My favorite avenger! Miss me?"

"Duh." you responded, glancing at Loki, who had magically changed into an all-black suit, his shoulder length raven-colored hair slicked back. His eyes narrowed slightly at the team who had defeated him. He looked even better in person. "So, that's Loki."

Natasha spoke up before either Asgardian could. She stepped closer, observing him with you. "Not sure. He isn't as smug as before—"

"And he's missing those horrendous reindeer horns he was wearing." Clint chimed in, crossing his arms. His hate for Loki—which had increased when he found out the man who once controlled him was coming to the team—was almost as deep as Steve's. "He looks like a witch in that black suit."

Thor snickered, releasing Loki from the handcuffs that held him. "As you all know, my adopted brother's punishment from Father is to help Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Loki understands all the rules, and he will so follow them accordingly. Isn't that right, brother?"

Loki rolled his eyes, sighing before reluctantly nodding. "Yes, I will."

"Let me make this clear, Loki." Steve stepped up, Sharon right behind him, face composed. You had to fight the urge to roll your eyes at the couple. "If you break one rule, no matter how small, you will be sent back to Asgard and face Odin's alternate punishment. Just so you're clear, we won't hesitate to send you back."

The God of Mischief smirked, feeling smug knowing he could push the super soldier's buttons. "Of course, Captain. I wouldn't dream of breaking the rules enforced."

Everyone could sense the sarcasm and mockery in his voice, all of them tensing. Thor sighed, clapping his brother on the back, the force making Loki take a steps forward. "Come on, brother. I'll show you your quarters before you get punched by Lady Natasha."

Without waiting for Loki to answer, Thor practically pulled Loki's arm off, pulling him towards the building, crossing the ruined lawn that Tony would bitch about later. Everyone followed them, staying a few feet back, wary of the new team member. You noticed Steve stealing glances at you, quickly moving away from Sharon's side and made his way to you.

Without being too obvious, you squeezed your way between Bruce and Natasha, snaking your arms between there's, hoping it would give Steve the impression not to talk to you. Ever. Natasha threw you a sympathetic smile, squeezing your wrist while Bruce raised an eyebrow, clearly confused.

Thor continued talking about the new compound, leading his brother to the entrance while pointing out installments that would've seemed impressive to a simple "midgardian."

He might've unconsciously murdered people but he kinda thicc.

At that exact moment, Loki turned around, his piercing blue eyes meeting yours. His smirk grew, glancing between you and Steve before turning back. It had been so quick that you weren't sure it even happened. The group scattered as soon as they stepped a foot inside; Bruce heading to the lab, Steve following him while Sharon split and headed up to Medbay, Natasha hitting the gym with Clint, leaving you alone with Thor and Loki.

Unfortunately, Thor's room had been across yours, the empty room next to yours becoming Loki's so both a spy and a god could keep an eye on the trickster. Both Tony and Steve had fought on that, Steve concerned about your safety while Tony argued back, telling him you could keep yourself safe. If not, Thor was there. That had angered you; Steve didn't think you were capable of fighting off Loki if it came to it, and that made you roll your eyes at him, exiting the room.

"...and this will be your quarters. Decorate it any way you want, just no magic." Thor continued, reaching the area of your rooms. It was a big arc, the area looking like a semi-circle with three doors spaced evenly out. "My chambers is across Lady Y/N's, so we won't have any problems. She's a smart one, brother. Anything else to add, Sunshine?"

You ignored the nickname, eyes narrowing at the black-suited man. "There's a party tonight 'celebrating' the addition to the team. It starts at 8 so don't be late or else Tony will have your head. Also, if you wake me up before seven in the morning, watch your back 'cause I hold grudges."

Giving Thor a smile, you head to your room, closing the door with a sigh. On the other side, you heard Loki chuckle once. "I like her."

"She's serious. She almost ripped my heart out the one time I accidentally woke her from her slumber." Thor added, the clap on his brother's back loud. "Get ready for the party, Loki."

Loki had been forced in his room by his brother, the door closing after him. He listened carefully, hearing you plop on your bed. He bit back a smirk, a plan unfolding in his brain. With a swift gesture of a finger, the room had been decorated, the hideous white theme changing into an exact copy of Loki's bedroom in Asgard.

The day went by fast as you wasted it away planning the party with Tony, who had, in no way, helped. You had ran off to your room once the people Tony had hired came, setting up everything in the main room. As you walked to the three-bedroom wing, you saw Steve rocking back and forth in front of your door, his hands in his pocket while Thor gushed about his flying hammer.

Relief washed over his face as soon as he spotted you, and you almost turned around, wishing you had gone to Natasha's room to get ready.

Steve called out your name, abruptly ending his conversation with Thor. As you walked closer, you could see the concern etched on his face. "Hey, are you okay?"

Thor watched your reaction, your face fighting the urge to make a face at America's sweetheart. Maneuvering your body, you slid between the two men to get to your room. "I'm fun-fucking-tastic. Thor, remind Loki about the party. I didn't spend the whole day with Tony for Loki to miss his own party."

"I'll be there, darling." Loki chimed in, his head poking out of his bedroom. Everyone turned to look at him, seeing the not-so-subtle wink he gave you.

Ignoring Steve's clenched fists, you moved past them, entering your room. Before closing the door, you said, "Tony requests the presence of all three of you, by the way. There's no way you're getting out of this. See you at 8!"

With a sighed of relief, you closed the door in Steve's face, the loud slam cutting off whatever he was about to interject. He could talk to Sharon about whatever shit he was dealing with, the girl he chose. You were no longer someone he could vent to after the shit he pulled, leading you on before leaving for Sharon Carter. It was then that you came to the decision to not love so easily.

Getting ready for the party took longer than you thought it would, the hot shower burning your skin to the point your skin started to redden. Your mind wandered to Loki, curios about the wink. Maybe it was his way of messing with people, a loophole that had not been included in the agreement. Realizing how inappropriate it was to think about the God while showering, you quickly turned the water off and stepped out.

Knowing Natasha, she's be disappointed if you didn't dress up like your inner slut, the one that got fucked up in Tokyo, and the petty hoe who would do everything to make Steve Rogers regret his decision. Well, you weren't going to let your sestra down.

The sultry, tight red dress was almost too short to be considered decent. With it's low cropped top, your tits we're begging for attention, the bra non-existent. Your new motto: protect the city, free the titties. The matching red stilettos would've been a pain if you hadn't started wearing them so early in your life. You let your hair down, running hand through it before slapping some natural makeup on your face, trying not to look desperate for attention.

It was around 8:15 when you finally finished, already exhausted by the amount of work you had to put on for others, but mostly for yourself. Either Tony or Natasha would come barreling through your door if you were going to be any later. Rushing, you took a quick look in the mirror before opening your door, nearly bumping into the God of Mischief.

He was dressed in a black buttoned-downed dress shirt with matching dress pants. Like before, his hair was slicked back, the shoulder length, raven hair looking silky and sexy. You both eye each other, eyes appreciating the sight in front of them. It wasn't until you finally met his eyes that he cleared his throat, a smug smile covering half his face.

"Would you mind accompanying me to the party, Lady Y/N? My brother is an idiot and cannot give a proper tour with his minuscule organ that he calls a brain. As of that, I do not know where this celebration is held." Loki explained, holding out his arm, waiting for you to take it. He raised an eyebrow while you hesitated. "If not, I could just follow you and everyone would assume I'm planning to have your head."

"Jesus Christ, you and Thor are so fucking dramatic." you grumbled, taking Loki's arm, your arm snaking around his. "Must run in the family, huh?"

"I'm adopted."

"I don't care."

Loki darkly chuckled, feeling your warm body against his, letting himself grow closer, enough that he could feel more of you but not enough that you would've noticed. "I sincerely hope you don't take this the wrong way, but you look rather ravishing, darling."

"Have you ever thought of cutting your hair?" you replied, loving the way Loki's smug expression wavered—probably expecting a compliment—before composing himself. "You'd look less like Johnny Depp from Pirates of the Caribbean."

"I don't understand." Loki said, leading you towards the elevator. For someone who claimed they didn't know where they were headed, he had the sense of knowing where everything was.

You waved the pop culture reference away, pushing the elevator button. "You wouldn't. Is Thor already at the party?"

"I'm quite positive."

The rest of the walk to the main room was quiet, neither of you making small talk as you led him. More like, he led you. You were suspicious he had stayed back and faked not knowing the compound in order to mess with you. But you waved that thought away, focus on getting distracting yourself from Steve.

You could hear the party before seeing it, the big room had been half full, not too much, not too little, yet you had been surprised considering how extra Tony could be. Letting go of Loki's arm, you walked to the bar where Natasha was sipping a glass of whiskey, ignoring the rest of the party. She pulled out a bottle of gin as you arrived, raising an eyebrow at your accompanied date.

"Before you say anything, he didn't know where the party was so he asked me to guide him. Nicely if I might add." you said, pushing back the bottle, settling on a bottle of water instead.

Natasha smirked, watching Loki interact with his brother, a frown deepening on his face. "He knows where everything is, Thor gave him the whole tour while you were with Tony. Can't believe you took the bait."

"Ugh." you grumbled, wishing you could forget about tomorrow and drown your problems in alcohol but the last hangover nearly killed you.

"Stevie doesn't look to happy with you showing up with Loki." Natasha noticed, the smirk widening as she watched Steve's glare grew more lethal as Loki's grin got bigger. "This is so much better than America's Next Top Models fails. Do you wanna bet that one of them will punch the other before the party is over?"

"Daddy, chill." you mimicked, turning to see how enraged old Capsicle is. But with the blonde besides him, looking up him in both wonder and worry, he had no right to be angry at Loki for attending a party that had been thrown for him, despite the many people he murdered—while being controlled. "He can't seriously still be sour about Loki joining."

The redhead giggled, a little drunk from the amount of alcohol she already consumed. "I don't think that's what he's so broody about, not anymore at least. He was smiling until he saw you on Loki's arm."

"Ain't my fault he chose Peggy's niece over me, meaning he doesn't get to be jealous whether Loki is my date or a walker for these killer stilettos." you muttered, secretly loving and hating the jealousy that oozed out of Steve Rogers. Even his blonde date had noticed. "Look at these heels, aren't they gorgeous?"

"Almost as gorgeous as you." Natasha replied, winking just before she drowned the rest of her drink. She winced a little at the taste.

"How many of those have you had?" you wondered, eyeing the spy. After the worst hangover of both your lives, Natasha had made you swear to never let her get that drunk again. Although with the rate she was going, you feared you had been too late.

She shrugged, taking your bottle of water. "Four. Oh, look, here comes Steve."

Before you could ditch, Steve leaned against the counter, his blue buttoned down shirt matching his blue eyes. Natasha not-so-subtly walked to the other side of the bar, motioning for Bruce to keep her company, although knowing her, she'd listen to every word.

"Rogers," you greeted coldly, looking everywhere but him. He tensed at your cold greeting, the frown looking permanently pressed on his face. "Enjoying the party?"

"Yeah."

Lie.

"Good."

You sat there for a good two minutes before he cleared his throat, shifting his weight nervously from one foot onto the other. Steve coughed in his fist. "So...living near Loki isn't too much trouble, is it? He causing any trouble, yet?"

"Sweet as an angel." you replied sarcastically, wishing you were anywhere but here. Loki caught your eye, raising a hand to wave and the group that had been brave enough to be near him, gasped in shock, the noises audible across the room. Their reactions made you chuckle.

Steve cleared his throat, this time louder. "Would you like to dance?"

"Ask your girlfriend." you fired back, satisfied by the hurt on his face. After the stunt he pulled, leading you on only to stomp of your heart, you wanted to be selfish and make him suffer just a little bit. Thankful, Loki came to your rescue.

Ignoring Steve, he held out his arm once again, a smile playing on his lips as he took in the tense situation between you and Steve. But before he could utter a single word, Sharon decided it was the perfect time to come looking for Steve. She assessed the situation, awkwardly noting Loki's presence.

"Er, hello." Sharon said, standing in false bravery. She wouldn't admit it, but she was afraid of the God of Mischief.

Loki gave her a curt nod and held out a hand to you instead, easily fitting yours in his. He murmured your name, softly kissing your knuckles. "Would you like to dance? This is the first song that came on that has not made me want to tear my ears off."

"Why, yes, I would." you agreed with a grin, moving your body close to Loki as you reached the unofficial dance floor, everyone's eyes on the both of you, with shock and slight fear. You would've cackled at their reactions—and it looked like Loki wanted to, too—if you hadn't been raised with manners. "Thank you."

Loki raised an eyebrow, surprised by the words. "For what, if I may ask?"

"Saving me back there. I don't need that kind of drama in my life. Not anymore." you explained, drinking in the warmth of his arm wrapping around your waist as you both slowly swayed to the slow song.

The raven-haired God smiled—not the smug smirk he wore, but a genuine one that Thor hadn't seen his brother wear for a few years now. "My pleasure. A lady like you deserves someone who'll give her his undivided attention. Any suitor would be lucky to have a tenth of your attention."

A coping mechanism: you rolled your eyes but you couldn't help the small smile that forced itself on you lips. You bit it back, hoping no one had noticed.

Loki had. And he meant every word he said.

By the end of the night, you found yourself naked, against the wall and legs wrapped around Loki's waist. Lips crashed against one another, soft kisses trailing down necks, leaving little love marks that would surely be dark. But at the moment, you didn't care. Not when Loki whispered sweet nothings in your ear as he took you from behind, above, underneath, and even on the side. You had both been teasing each other at the party and now you had given in, no matter the consequences.

—

Annoyed Steve had missed the date he had asked you on, you walked up to his room, heels clicking. You had waited for him for over two hours, texted him and getting no replies, leaving the restaurant with the humiliation of being stood up.

But as you neared his door, you heard crying. But it wasn't Steve. Peeking inside, you saw Sharon. Pretty, talented Sharon. Her eyes were red, tears steaming down her cheeks while Steve hugged her shoulders, resting his chin on her head as he comforted her. Jealousy and hurt knocked the breath out of you.

You waited.

And waited.

And it happened. Leaning in slowly, he kissed her. Softly, like he had kissed you. And she kissed him back, finding comfort in the kiss.

Heart breaking in two, you left, leaving the door open. The couple broke their kiss long enough to see you walk away through the slit of the door. Steve hung just head, feeling terrible. But Sharon had helped him as he had. This time, they hadn't stopped at kissing, forgetting the girl who had her heart broken by the man who claimed he would never hurt her.

Steve knew it was over between you two, but he could focus his attention on caring as much as he wanted to when Sharon kept kissing him. He did try to apologize only to learn you had went to visit Thor in Asgard, leaving him to feel sorry for himself and his decisions. Yet, he still found temporary comfort in Sharon's arms.

—

You woke to the warmth of Loki's arms around you. Opening your eyes, you found yourself tangled limbs with the God of Lies, your hair a mess, a hand over his chest and a leg over his waist. Your cheek rested on the crook of his neck, fitting perfectly as if he was made for you.

"Good morning." Loki whispered, stroking your hair with one hand, the other softly massaging your thigh. "Sleep well?"

Nuzzling into his neck, you snorted at the irony. "Don't know, considering we didn't do much sleeping."

Loki chuckled, pressing a soft kiss on your head. "Touché. It would only be fair of me to apologize for the love marks I left on your soft skin last night. Forgive me but I could not help myself."

Gasping, you jumped up, looking at the vanity mirror across your bed to find your collarbone, neck, and the top of your breast covered in Loki's hickeys. He looked rather proud of himself than sorry. "Loki!"

"Please note my apologies are genuine when they are directed towards you. Although, I have to admit, I'm quite proud of myself. It's my best art." Loki announced, bringing himself up on his elbows, eyes ravaging your naked flesh, littered with his marks.

Noticing the difference between your bodies, you quickly turned around to see the reflections had been right; Loki's body remained unmarked. "I swear to god I left hickeys and bite marks all over you last night."

"You tried but got rather mad when my skin healed itself." Loki explained, pulling you back in his warm arms. The soft gesture surprised you, the whole situation coming into light. You had slept with Thor's murderous brother. Loki read your thoughts. "Don't be like that, love. What what I can remember, you enjoyed yourself last night quite immensely. If it will make you feel better, I can show all the love bites you made the night before."

Thankful you hadn't drank anything last night, you had been so happy to not wake up with a hangover and Loki. Turning to face him, you raise an eyebrow. "What?"

With a smirk, his chest gleamed green for a second before it uncovered layers and layers of hickeys, and reddening bite marks. It was identical to yours. You gasped in shocked while Loki stared at you in amusement, his arms tightening. "You did a little bit of damage. I'm proud."

"Holy shit—" you were cut off by Thor and Steve bursting into your room, the sudden motion making you cover up your naked chest with a shriek. The two men's jaws dropped as they took in the scene, Loki's bare chest covered with the evidence from last night, his arms wrapped around you while you stared at them with wide eyes. "Knock, goddamnit!"

Both of them stood in silence, their brains not processing what was in front of them. Steve's eyes had mirrored yours from when you caught him kissing Sharon, eyes watering, you could see his heart breaking just by making eye contact. But at that moment, you couldn't find yourself to care, not with Loki's arms around you.

"What—" Thor began.

Loki smirked, kissing your bare shoulder. "Hello, brother."

next >

[lizacstuff]

Your thoughts on the first episode of the new season? And can we talk about all those parallels? Also I'm loving the summer vibes!

I'm LIVING for the summer vibes! Doesn't everything feel like a breath of fresh air? I definitely feel like new life has been injected into the series. And that new location is so beautiful, I LOVE IT.

As for the episode, I thought it was masterfully done. You could tell Ayse was back and bringing the perfect mix of comedy, romance and drama. And the sparkle! The show sparkles again. The almost two and half hours flew buy, I was on the edge of my seat, and the performances from Hande and Kerem were amazing. Plus I just adore every moment between Serkan and his new nemesis (aka his secret daughter).

On the sober side, I don't care how jerky Serkan got while battling cancer, or how he may have pushed her away, nothing they've shown us so far even begins to justify Eda not telling him about Kiraz, and it certainly doesn't justify her continuing to lie when he's standing right in front of her making overtures (and her daughter is clearly longing for her father). Obviously, there are still many things we don't know and I'm sure there are many flashbacks to come, and Eda has been though so much, but still...I don't see how they will thread that needle and have Eda come out unscathed.

That being said, with this first episode they executed this story so well and it really does give new life to the series, so I won't dwell on the fact that Eda never would have done this. Never. We just have to move past it, accept that it's a soap opera plot device designed to give us an amazing second season packed with all sorts of amazing scenes and just enjoy every minute while it lasts.

(More under the cut)

I'll get to more on Edser later, as for everyone else... silliness abounds.

First... Erdem cheated on Leyla? WHAT!?!?! With whom? But I guess that was a clean way to explain Leyla leaving.

Engin and Piril, I love that Engin is staying home with their son, and that young actor is a cutie! As for Piril... GRRRRRR... she is still on my shitlist. Last time it was for betraying Eda (and Serkan) by enabling Selin's reign of terror, this time it's by betraying her friend and business partner Serkan! Good grief. If Piril just found out recently at the start of this project I could accept on her holding off because it's not her secret to run off and tell, but what I can't accept is her actively working against Serkan finding out. Even if in this episode she had gently said to Eda... "do you think maybe it's time you told him?" it would be a lot easier to swallow... but nope! She's acting like it would be the end of the world if Serkan found out. I sincerely hope that when everyone finds out and Engin finds out Piril knew, it causes problems between them. She deserves that.

She remains my second least favorite character. Who was my least favorite character this episode? Oh you know! Awful Ayfer is back! We got a reprieve from her in the last arc, but she's back to her annoying, controlling, Serkan-hating ways. Eda is a mother, an international award-winning landscape architect and business owner and she still has to lie to Ayfer because she's such a pain-in-the-ass? Watching her is going to be a trial.

Even though it feels like both Aydan and Ayfer were reset to zero character development, and Aydan has done worse (keeping the fact that Serkan was alive from Eda) I still find her a much easier character to take. Probably because Neslihan is a much better comedic actress, so she's a lot more entertaining. But... Aydan's been with Kemal for 5 years and hasn't told Serkan? WHY? I can't believe Kemal didn't give her an ultimatum years ago. I was loving, however, Serkan being in the way for both Aydan/Kemal and Engin/Piril. GOOD. Those people caused problems for him at one point or another or were in the way, it was nice to see him return the favor. I like Kemal and am still hoping they'll do a parallel "not knowing your father thing" and reveal he's Serkan's bio dad while Serkan is finding out he had a child he never knew about.

Melo and Seyfi were their awesome supportive, funny selves. It was great to see both of them, I'm so glad they stayed.

As for the new characters, love the kids. The new hotel manager is apparently ditzy and starstruck over Serkan, and I don't really understand how she's going to be integrated into the cast, but I love that she was used as a device to show us that Serkan has zero interest in any woman who is not Eda Yildiz. Eda's assistant seems like he'll be a fine side character. As for Burak, he seems harmless, obviously he has feeling for Eda that she does not reciprocate (fuck off Ayfer trying to push her on him) but hopefully they don't make him a psycho like Deniz. I did think he was a bit out of line to Serkan. Isn't that his cafe? And a customer has his glass spilled by a child in his care, and he insults him instead of apologizing? That is the worst customer service I've ever seen! He's a character that could wear on me quickly, we shall see. Kiraz can't help but be sassy because of genetics, but some of the adults in her life seem to be modeling rude behavior!

Now on to Eda and Serkan, I can't say enough about Hande and Kerem's acting in this episode. Phenomenal! They were both brilliant. Plus both are doing a great job working off of Maya (especially Kerem) those scenes were priceless. I don't often enjoy kids on shows, but so far I'm loving this dynamic.

As for Edser, while we don't know everything yet it feels like Serkan got to a point where he couldn't stand to see Eda in pain and putting her life on hold, he outright mentioned that she might not have graduated if they'd stayed together, and so that was part of the reason he reverted to his robot self and pushed her away. I'm going to guess she tried and tried and he was just unyielding. Saying he didn't want to get married or have kids in the harshest way possible. Perhaps even she went to tell him that she was pregnant and he went off on not wanting kids before she could even tell him. Time will tell.

At this juncture, my best guess is Eda's fear is rooted in rejection. It can't be that she thinks Serkan is a terrible person that doesn't deserve to know his child, or would be detrimental to Kiraz. However, she knows what it feels like to be rejected by Serkan, I'm sure she was beyond devastated, so I'm guessing now she's bent on protecting her daughter from feeling that same rejection. She fears if he found out, but wanted nothing to do with her, it would feel worse than him not knowing. She's not thinking clearly and perhaps it hasn't even occurred to her that the man she fell in love with is still under there and that man is fully capable of opening his heart wide to their child.

The fact that this child, a stranger to him, already has him wrapped around her little finger to the tune of being late to meetings while he waits for her to pick berries, speaks volumes.

The lies that Eda is telling Kiraz though... there is a fairy tale poetry to Eda saying her father is among the stars... but there was no way this would ever end well. Such a bad idea. Eda.... has made mistakes.

As for Eda and Serkan, their reunion was so bitter sweet. The way Serkan was sure he was hallucinating her and couldn't believe she was real, speaks to the fact that his thinking he saw her that morning was not an anomaly. It must happen all the time. She's never left his thoughts in 5 years. Especially since Engin makes it clear that women throw themselves at Serkan all the time, and he never bites. That's a lot of years celebrate, pining after a love he lost through his own actions. Though it's not that surprising that he didn't pursue other women, as he's never been a character who was motivated by sex. Which makes it hilarious that during his presentation that's where his mind was at, remembering their intimate times together. Serkan Bolat is an Edasexual.

Serkan seemed to want to brush past what happened between them, how they ended, but from Eda's pain, it's clear it was gut-wrenching and tragic and that's something he's going to need to recon with in the coming episodes. But how refreshing that they actually talked! That Eda actually expressed her pain to him! Wowza, that's a change from recent episodes when they didn't even have a proper conversation after he got his memory back.

The flashback scenes were a combination of pure brilliance and pain. Just rip out my heart why don't you. Serkan's angry reactions seem very believable for someone suffering what he was going through. I think it's typical to lash out at the person closest to you. And their fear and pain, their commitment to getting him better and seeing it through... those scenes were made all the more heartbreaking knowing that they didn't make it out the other side intact.

On a lighter note, I loved how even despite their intention and best efforts to remain closed off to one another, and away from one another, they couldn't. Physically, Serkan couldn't stay away, and every time Eda was in his presence you saw her resolve slip and her start to feel that old pull towards him. The fact that Eda thinks there's any way to keep this secret and get rid of him, she must just be in full panic mode and not thinking clearly. She's never going to shake him.

Thank goodness Serkan came back and actually issued a sincere apology for what he said at coffee. He definitely owed her one, but what was extraordinary is that it showed that the growth he went through when they were together didn't regress. He was able to apologize and explain that he was angry and hurt and that's why it happened. If you remember from the first time around, saying sorry was something he was just unable to do, so this felt big to me. He's not the same robot Bolat, she left an indelible mark on him.

As for him making her present her proposal, it's really not out-of-line for the professional relationship, however, we all know he did it just so he had an excuse to be around her. That man will take any excuse, plus he likes to get a rise out of her.

The dinner scene was breathtaking. How beautiful and achingly romantic was that setting? Wowza. And what a roller coaster of emotion those scenes were. It was great to watch them talk and laugh. Who didn't swoon when he deveined her shrimp and when she gave him fries? But we had to know it wouldn't last. Eda's speech had me breathless. Serkan had that coming, it hurt but it had to happen. What a relief to see them get things out in the open. Now I hope we get to see them really talk about what happened and why. Explain yourself Serkan!

As for the next episode, I was so hopeful that the Kiraz secret would be out after the final scene, but the first fragman makes it look like that's not going to happen, at least not at the start of the episode. My fear is that if Eda outright lies to him that just makes everything worse. The longer she keeps it from him, when they're back in each other's orbits and it's clear he's not running away, it makes her more and more at fault.

In any case, it looks like we're in for some fabulous scene so I look forward to the second episode!

[nervousladytraveler]

"it's our anniversary and i don't want you to see what i've planned so i'm going to lead you into the kitchen blindfolded but i'm going to place a kiss on your head because you're confused about what's happening and it's adorable" slightly strange request, but can you write this one in the Distance between us universe? Feel free to ignore if you aren't interested. Thanks!

Thanks so much for this! Of course if it's an anniversary in the Distance AU, Ross and Demelza aren't celebrating alone.

---

“Ross?”

“Just give me five more minutes,” Ross called from the kitchen, hoping he could actually accomplish his mission in that time frame.

The commotion coming from the other room told him he was on borrowed time.

She deserves something elegant, he thought wistfully.

Demelza, his wife of three years, was always such a good sport, and from the day he’d first met her, she’d taken whatever setbacks life handed her with a shrug and a smile. Thankfully any recent trials or tribulations they’d faced together had been minimal, and it was just the day to day burdens of parenthood that seemed the worst of it now. Mucky nappies, runny noses, sleepless nights, picky eaters--still, Demelza never complained even when she was cleaning sick from the nursery floor or replaying the same Peppa Pig video for the 11,000th time.

“Please don’t put yourself through too much trouble,” she laughed. Her voice seemed to be coming from the hallway--she wasn’t peeking was she? He had so wanted this to be a surprise.

Today was their anniversary, and Ross was determined to start an entire day of celebration off on the right foot. He was preparing Eggs Benedict, a favourite of hers and one that held special meaning for them both. It had been a while since he’d last made it--as a parent of young children he’d just been too fuzzy headed in the morning to manage crisping the bacon, keeping the toasted English muffins hot, perfectly poaching the eggs, while also pulling off an unbroken Hollandaise sauce. Today he was sure to drink an extra cup of coffee to help his focus and as he moved around the old farmhouse kitchen, he went through the check list in his head to make sure everything went according to plan and was done at precisely the same time. Ross had also scrambled an egg very plainly for their two year daughter, Julia ,who was going through a particularly fussy stage.

It was Julia and her toddler energy that was adding another layer of complication to this morning’s endeavour.

Of course she was rubbish at keeping secrets--what could one reasonably expect from such a small child, really?--so she needed to be distracted and kept from the kitchen. Every now and then she’d come scampering in with a mischievous shriek and Ross would have to scoop her up and deliver her back to the living room where a suspicious--or at least curious--Demelza waited.

And all of them needed to stay quiet so that the newest Poldark, two month old Jeremy, wouldn’t wake from his carefully timed early morning snooze.

Usually, whenever Ross or Demelza implored their little JuJu not to wake her baby brother, she’d immediately practice her best banshee wail or slam a door on purpose.

"Juju, are you tryin' to wake Jeremy?" Demelza would ask gently.

"Yes, I want him to play with me," she explained in her half-formed logic. It wasn’t naughtiness, just an exploration of boundaries--and her lung capacity--as she settled into this new reality of sharing her parents.

Again, Demelza’s patience with a two year old’s developmental stages was extraordinary and Ross liked to believe he’d learned a lot from following her lead.

Yes, this morning she deserved perfection.

After Ross sprinkled the chopped parsley across her plate, he stepped back with a sigh. Maybe not perfect, but it looked pretty damn good. He decided to wait until Demelza was in the room to pour the prosecco so they could all enjoy the pop! together--that wouldn’t be so loud it would wake the baby, would it?

“Okay, I’m going to put this on you,” Ross explained, holding up the blindfold. At one time it had been a silk necktie but Ross rarely wore one any longer so his once impressive collection had been repurposed into all manner of decorative and practical items.

“What? This is really…” she laughed then seeing she should play along, nodded her head with a smile. “Yes, Ross.”

“Mumma?” Julia asked. “Daddy tied Mumma!” Both parents held their breath to see if she would scream with fear or delight but thankfully she only giggled as she poked at Demelza’s covered eyes with her stubby fingers.

“JuJu, you have to be Mumma’s guide okay? Can you hold her hand and help her to the dining room?” Ross asked, hoping it was a straightforward enough task.

It was almost beyond the little girl’s abilities but she only led Demelza into a wall twice. Ross finally intervened to help his wife find a chair.

“Uh uh uh,” he scolded as Demelza started to remove her blindfold. “Not yet.”

But when she heard the unexpected pop of the cork she jumped in her seat with a start.

“Ah! What the fu..!” Demelza caught herself just in time but her outburst was enough to inspire a tirade of squeals from Julia who then crawled into her mother’s lap and wrapped her arms protectively around her neck.

“It’s okay, Mumma. I’m here,” Julia said and kissed her sloppily on the cheek.

“Well, thank you. I’m not scared at all then,” Demelza laughed and discreetly wiped the slobber away. “Ross, please tell me what is goin’ on?”

Ross poured out the prosecco and chuckled, amused by her adorable confusion. He placed a much tidier kiss on Demelza’s head but sensing the joke of the blindfold was losing its charm fast, he slipped the tie off at once.

“Happy anniversary, my love,” he said and kissed her again, this time on her lips. Then he ruffled Julia’s dark curls and lifted the girl up into his own arms so Demelza could enjoy at least one meal unencumbered by children.

“Ross--it looks brilliant! Oh, thank you!” Demelza turned to him with shining eyes, then looked back to the exquisite plate in front of her, unable to contain her eagerness to tuck in.

“To my amazingly wonderful wife--Cheers!” Ross said, raising a glass.

“To my amazingly attentive husband,” she winked back. “Oh wait, someone else needs a drink so she can toast her parents. Would you like that, Juju, my love?”

“Here you are then,” Ross said rather pleased with himself for pouring orange juice one-handed while still holding the girl.

“Cheews!” Julia sang and slammed her cup as hard as she could into Ross’s glass. “Happy Birfday!”

“No, love. It’s an anniversary. This is the day I married Mumma. Because I loved her so much.”

“Oh Ross,” Demelza whispered. “Come sit down and eat with me. It will remind us of the first time you made Eggs Benedict for me.”

“I seem to recall we didn’t do much eating that day, Demelza.” He laughed at the memory. It was the first time they kissed, the first time they held each other, and the first time they went to bed together. The beginning of their journey together, it was another anniversary they still acknowledged.

Over the baby monitor they heard the quiet little mewling coming from the cot upstairs. Demelza began to rise but Ross stopped her, catching her hand in his. “Wait...” he said softly. Just as he predicted Jeremy settled back down. They could probably enjoy another five minutes before one of them would have to attend to him.

Ross kissed Demelza’s hand, still in his.

“I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be,” she said looking around her.

He had to agree.

“Happy Anniversary, my love.”

[saranghanuuu]

PERKS OF DATING A YOUNGER GUY I LEARNED AFTER WATCHING CHINESE DRAMA FIND YOURSELF + REVIEW!

1. He has less baggage

This means that he has more time to attend to your needs and wants unlike an older guy with a demanding schedule and lots of responsibilities at hand.

2. He's more open-minded and adventurous

They are open to having new experiences and won't judge you for veering off the path you should stay on.

3. He's infectiously energetic *ehem*

Need I say more? A younger guy's youthful sense will surely find unimaginable ways to impress you!

4. He puts you on a pedestal

A younger man will appreciate your maturity and experiences and will admire you for it. They're also most likely take advice from you without letting it bruise their ego.

5. He'll make you feel young

Be prepared to relive the fun parts of your younger years with him.

It's not so wrong to say that the May-December relationship is taboo, especially among Asians. Most people I know had this inkling that when a younger guy hooks up with a woman way older than him, it could prolly mean one of two things — the guy's a paramour or she's a sugar momma. I'm honestly not a fan of it either on the premise that women mature faster than men. Let's be real, an immature relationship is a disaster. But now that I'm in my late 20s, and a hopeless romantic single at that, I kinda pondered over this. It suddenly occurred to me, what if one day I’m caught up in the position of being pursued by a younger man? Will I let the stigma affect me emotionally? Or will I take the risk ‘coz all is fair in love? I still don’t have a definite answer to this question. However, watching Find Yourself served as an eye-opener for me to look at things from a different perspective.

Find Yourself is a 2020 Chinese drama starring Song Wei Long and Victoria Song. It tells the story of a 32-year old Executive Director who never *even once* experienced dating. Given her age and career stability, she receives constant pressure from the people around her to find someone to marry and has since frequented blind dates arranged by her family, friends, or colleagues. But this girl is just someone who swears by the "spark" - no spark, then no point to the relationship. She may be old for fantasizing over first love and such, but she still yearns that it'll naturally come to find her someday. Until her thirst for real romance is quenched by a 22-year-old guy who started working as an intern in her company at his brother’s request.

Although hesitant at first due to their huge age difference and the societal views, she went out with him on the condition that they'll keep it a secret for the first 3 months. If everything went well, she agrees to publicize her relationship with him.

Let’s start off with the good things...

I just can't with this drama...! This so beautiful, cute, relatable - especially for a woman in late 20s like me. 

Plot-wise, it was well-imparted and makes perfect sense, touching a looooooot of relationship aspects in 41 episodes. Not only did I enjoy the happenings between our main couple, but our side couples' stories are very interesting too.

This drama pretty much straightened out my prejudice about age-gap relationships.

Light-hearted, just the way I like it! Every episode will make you smile and/or laugh hard.

Sexual tensions overload and superb kissing scenes! Let those hormones rush in. Not awkward to watch 'coz They. Did. Not. Hold. Back. Ack! If you're single, be prepared to feel MORE SINGLE watching this drama.

Well-written lines that will make you feel real emotions. The words will shoot you straight to the heart.

Acting-wise, the casts, from the mains down to the sides, did a super fine job in conveying the sentiments of their characters. My highest admiration goes to male lead Yuan Song, not (only) because he’s young, hot, and handsome, but because his youthful vibe made me reminisce the paradox of my early 20s awww. Anyways, in the beginning, I am sort of confused why (of all girls) he fell head over heels with our female lead He Fanxing who's obviously out of his league. I even suspected him of taking advantage of her naivety in matters of the heart. But as the drama went along, our dude proved himself genuine... That he's sincerely just a guy who's deeply in love with a woman... That indeed, true love can exist in this kind of relationship. Both Yuan Song and Fanxing emotionally benefited from each other and it's so lovely seeing that.

⚠️ AND SORRY BUT THIS IS A SPOILER ALERT⚠️

Halfway through the drama, our main couple called it quits. I'm somewhat grateful that it happened. Their break-up scene is just so powerful I had to rewind it many times. Not because I liked seeing them suffer from the consequences of their incompatibility. Rather, I loved it 'coz it became the turning point of their relationship.

Their love is premature, to begin with — trust isn't mutual, commitment is one-way, only showing each other's good sides in fear of the relationship turning sour, one is willing to compromise while the other wants to avoid responsibility, filled with doubts and insecurities. During this break-up phase, we were shown the difference between how kids and adults behave and decide in a dilemma. I suddenly remembered this one line delivered in the drama which I agree with — "Only kids would choose one or the other. Adults find solutions". The break-up also served as our main couple's period of contemplation about who and what they want in life. It taught them how to fully embrace their offbeat romance against the norms. Fortunately, things wrapped up into a sweet end.

And of course the bad...

Hmmm... Maybe I'm just not used to it but am I the only one who thinks that this drama is quite lengthy? Yes, I enjoyed it but it's not a good one to binge-watch. It took me almost a month to finish this I nearly drowned haha. Honestly, there were parts they could've just compressed instead of dragging it for too long. One example is Ye Luming and He Fanxing's relationship trial. Ooohhh I hate this part it brought shivers down my spine ugh. Well truth be told, Luming and Fanxing are compatible and better off as friends. They jive so well, and I give it to them that they're both adults who can only understand adult things.

But when Luming all of a sudden became a sneaky character to an intolerable point... Ah, I don't know anymore! Seeing how compelled Fanxing is to being Luming's girlfriend got under my skin. Although these ugly parts eventually became a good contributory factor to Fanxing's realization of her true feelings towards Yuan Song, but still...! I also hated Fanxing at one point for being so gullible in love. But yeah, I had to swallow it because that's her character setup in the first place. It should be expected of her to be hasty and dubious about it.

On the other hand, I wished they've been generous in showing us more about how Yuan Song and Fanxing's relationship is going after the public reveal. I've been waiting for this the entire time (they could've done so much more in 41 episodes' length!) so I'm quite disappointed.

After watching the second season of Well-Intended Love, I admit I lost interest in Chinese dramas. So watching this restored my faith in them. I even have a list of C-dramas lined up now! But I have to move on from this one first before I start another. It's not as easy as I thought ㅠㅠ

What do you think about this drama? Are we on the same frequency? ❤️

If you haven't watched this yet, watch it now. As in 지금부터 RIGHT NOW. Highly-recommended!

[lovecolibri]

I didn't particularly want to see Malex date other people, but if it had to happen, I wish they would have fully committed to the whole let's try to date outsiders who don't come with a ton of baggage thing. Maria kept being positioned as the easy option, but that was based on her being clueless about alien shenanigans, something that was almost immediately changed in s2. Now, Alex is involved with someone he has to keep a ton of secrets from, when he could have had something fun with a rando, and it's going to be weird when Forrest suddenly disappears. I'm glad Alex had some support in the offscreen year, but still.

I know, the whole thing is a mess. There wasn't really a good reason for m*luca to happy but Liz was banging her old hs BF, and Max was banging his partner, which each come with their own baggage, but my issue is they were very clearly shown not to be serious, which we ALSO could have had with m*luca since m*ria even says they are on a trial basis and she's not bound by exclusivity, and michael refers to bwf, but then they had to draaaaaag it out forever and suddenly it is made out to be this whole serious thing without any of the groundwork! And now Alex with Forrest is going to be another whole year-long thing when he was JUST singing about asking Michael to meet him in the middle and come home. Plus he just went through some major trauma, there is no reason to think he's just peppy and fine and ready to hop into a deeply committed relationship with a total stranger that he is keeping a MASSIVE secret from. Which was also a major issue with m*luca too. It's just exhausting, and dumb, and seriously undercuts how important Malex are to each other after telling us 10 years and hundreds of thousands of miles wasn't enough time or space for them to move on.

I think we are going to get some really good Malex content this season, and I think Chris and Co. are trying their best to work with the dumpster fire they got left with, but I'm not as excited to see these first few episodes especially if we're dumped into the middle of Alex in a domestic happy relationship that we get to watch blow up in his face given that Forrest doesn't seem to be sticking around.

Just....enough with this bullshit.

[hypnotica-ships]

I've been so overworked lately, and to relax a bit I'm going to finally give some more info about Heinrich/Henry, my fanchild. Both good and bad.

While Holger and my S/I, Crow, were serving in the Air force as mercenaries, during one of the many mandatory checkups, they had 'blood tests'. Unbeknownst to them, their blood was used in a secret government experiment to try an make super soldiers/clones.

They weren't very successful, only 6 of the subjects managed to survive until the secret project was found out...nearly 10 years after it began.

Even though the experiment was going o for 10+ years, the surviving subjects were closer to babies then 10 year olds. This is due to the extremely long process of making sure the 'embryos' were stable enough to continue on with a normal life cycle.

Thanks to each of the subjects, named Units 01-06, being extremely well documented, it was easy to find out who's DNA was used in which subjects. Effectively giving each 'Unit' a set of biological parents.

Unit 01's document was a bit different than the others. This one seemed to be the best and most successful one of the group, having little to no trouble in the process. It was noted that there were some abnormalities, but they were proven not to be a detriment in his growth, so they were not mentioned too much in 01's document.

Major Guile was made aware of this experiment's discovery. Who after getting all of the details, had to make a very important phone call.

Unit 01's DNA was made via blood samples taken from both Holger and Crow.

As soon as Crow got the very vague phone call from his uncle, he and Holger rushed to the base.

They were greeted by Guile, and then ushered them into a make shift nursery.

Neither one of them were expecting to be introduced to their new son. However, once the initial shock passed, they were accepting of him and immediately gave him a new name. Heinrich, or Henry for short.

Ok, now that that part is out of the way, here are some more randomish ones, not really in a linear story like the above ones.

Pre-Crow's Death and the Events in SF3 (around ages 0-5ish)

His Papa, my S/I, gave him a sunflower pin to wear, since his Pa always calls him his little sunflower due to his brown roots of his blonde hair. Henry calls it his 'lucky charm', and is almost always seen wearing it.

When he gets a bit older and starts to ask questions of where he came from, his parents try to avoid it at first, but eventually explain it to him. They extremely sugar coat it, and make sure that even though he's different, he's extremely loved.

While he's young his hair is pretty flat and straight. His Vater, Holger, likes to keep his hair short since it's a bit easier for Henry to manage at such a young age, but won't stop him from growing it out when he gets older if he wants. He eventually chooses to keep it short when he gets to that point, but his hair starts to curl a little at the ends. This is because his Pa's hair, who usually keeps it long, curls when it gets cut short, so Henry is taking after Crow in this regard.

Post-Crow's Death and During/After the Events of SF3 (mostly in his teenage years)

For some extra info on that, check out this post.

After one of his many training sessions with his Vater, he starts to snoop around the house, due to him trying to find a disguise for when he enters the the tournament. He stumbles into a hidden room with a suitcase filled with Holger's old army gear...and a respirator?

He brings this up to Holger who immediately denies any knowledge of it, until Henry threatens to ask Guile. As soon as Holger is done explaining his past, Henry is angry and confused about it all and storms out of the house. He tries his best to forgive his Vater for all of his crimes, but their relationship is a bit strained for now.

Doesn't stop Henry from stealing some of the before mentioned equipment to use in the tournament.

He has a hard time with controlling his powers. No one but his Pa really understood how they work. It takes a lot of trial and error by himself to get to point where he can consider his powers 'useful'.

During one of said trial and error attempts, he almost blinded himself. He had to get his eyes checked, but he was overall fine.

He frequently blames himself for his Pa's death. 'If i stayed out of the forest, Pa would still be here, he'd still be alive...it's all my fault!' He doesn't let anybody know he blames himself this much though, but anybody who's close to him notices it through his actions.

He has a form of ADHD. He also suffers from a mild delusional disorder, due to the shock and stress he went through when he was present in his Pa's death. (I also read an article that certain disorders like that can be passed genetically. I and my S/I have a very similar disorder, on top of others. Holger definitely has had some type of psychosis as well, among other things. So if I"m to believe said article, those may be factors as well.)

Some point in the future, his close friend and cousin Amy encourages him to find the other Units from the experiment that created him so that he can have some new possible friends. He's against it at first, but it doesn't take long for him to find an ulterior motive in finding them.

Since he accused the wrong man of killing his Pa, maybe one of the other units could help him find the actual murder.

He manages to convince all 5 other units to form a team with him, and hunt down his Pa's killer.

That's all for now, but I'm sure there'll be more in the future. Also sorry this got long, I don't know how to not make things long.