#‘why do you read so much ya lit’ I am a ya librarian

[bumblepuppy]

YA novels for girls are similar to shounen manga in that they will accidentally make the friendship between the leading girl and her bestie way more romantic than the relationship between her and her love interest.

[bluebrine]

it’s still... odd to me that other people had such different experiences growing up with this series than i did. i had such a personal relationship with it... seeing others talk about the sequels, what they liked and disliked for the series- and it’s like, really? we had very different childhoods (...story of my life, ha).

in my elementary school, our library only had one of the books- Dealing With Dragons (the one with this delightfully cheesy cover by Tim Hildebrandt lol).

(also, please note, there is no indication here that this is the first book of a series. just..... keep that in mind.)

haha, what if 🤭 ..... i was beautiful princess, and you were a dangerously charming dragon 😜 ..... and we were both girls? 😳💦 

good god, little me LIVED for this book. i checked it out & reread it over and over again- the librarian must have got sick of me at some point but i didn’t care lol. i stayed up too late reading it with a flashlight under the covers, i read it during class beneath the desk (i was not... particularly stealthy. they kinda just let me think i was getting away with it lmao).

i know every young kid likes books with fantasy and magic to make their boring lives less lame, but the way i buried myself in this one was... 100% pure escapism. (pour one out for all the weird kids who had no friends outside of books, am i right ladies?) 

the story has a theme of just..... running away from it all, cause everyone else apparently knows so much more about what’s Right for you- what interests are Right for you, what clothes are Right for you, what boys are Right for you, everything! everything was chosen for you, no dystopian YA lit required! 

(CAN YOU POSSIBLY GUESS WHERE THIS IS GOING?)

i didn’t know what the concept of a lesbian was or why no one else thought it was weird that you couldn’t have interests that were Not Like Other People (the Right People), but that’s what this book meant to me. the entire core of the story was showing kids that you could pick your own hobbies, your own home, your own family & friends and it wasn’t up to the Right People to decide that for you.

fuck ‘em!!! run off to the mountains! live in exciting domestic bliss with a giant, well-read, protective dragon lady who can breathe fire and loves to eat your cherries jubilee every night (ABSOLUTELY NO METAPHORS HERE NO SIR)! back home your family is freaking out (but kinda relieved)- cause this is crazy, dragons are dangerous and ruin the women they steal away (where have i heard this before?), but also your family doesn’t... really miss you. they don’t actually want you back- as you were, anyway. once the prince sweeps you off your feet and away from the dragon’s evil clutches and properly marries you, oh sure, then you’re welcome back with open arms! (but that will never happen.)

fuck ‘em!!!!! make cool friends with other misfits and live a life full of adventure with the family you found along the way! there’s witches who live in eccentric homes with 50 cats, there’s neighborly old dragon grandpas who love chocolate pudding, there’s other girls who don’t think you’re weird and like to hang out and read magic books in the library too! you can make friends and be happy! it IS possible!

and that meant so much to me as a kid. i never fit in (i wonder why), i never seemed to like the Right stuff (I WONDER WHY), and for the things i did care about, i went about it wrong- according to the Right People, who didn’t much care about what i thought at all.

...anyway Dealing With Dragons is an allegory about the power of lesbian escapism & independence and i love it very much. i still love it, over a decade later. it’s a fun, captivating, whimsical little tale that means more than childhood nostalgia to me. i spent hours daydreaming about the story in elementary school, content with the characters and setting in a way that just... settled something in me. 

but then i read the other books.

because there were... OTHER BOOKS!? WHAT??? (again, i never knew it wasn’t a stand-alone story lol).

when i got to middle school and had a whole new library to consume, i naturally looked for my fav type of books- those with cool fantasy ladies with swords and dragons on the front (that’s a genre, right?). and, lo and behold, there were more parts to my favorite story!!! lads, i lost my goddamn mind. there were THREE MORE? WHAT??? utter batshittery. how had they kept this from me? i had to read them immediately. 

what would the stories be about? i saw Cimorene on the covers, sword-wielding and pants-wearing (’fuck yes’, said little me). what adventures would she get up to with Kazul, now that she was king of dragons? what would life in their new home be like? the new libraries and treasuries and kitchens would be massive- what secrets would they discover? what was living in dragon society like, now that they sat at the top together? what new recipes would Cimorene cook with her friend??? (that one was very important to me lol).

i checked out all of ‘em at once, and channeled deep into the obsessive focus that only a truly lonely middle school girl can attain. I was SO EXCITED for this. 

-- and got my heart ground to dust under Patricia C. Wrede’s heel.

...because, see, i hadn’t known there was an Enchanted Forest Chronicles. i hadn’t thought about what that actually meant. it, as inevitably as the tides, meant the incoming of the one thing that made me truly hate reading sometimes- romance. cause these books weren’t about Cimorene and her friends or Kazul at all. they were about a sudden love interest and the child Cimorene had with him cause of course that’s what fucking happened. what else was i expecting? what else could stories possibly be about? i read through all of the books, feeling a little more like somebody shot my dog with each chapter, and could only feel sick when she got married & pregnant at the end. i was 11 years old and i knew something was wrong but not why.

(aaand looking back now, was that baby’s first taste of queerbaiting? does it count if you do it to yourself?? ah, youth. i don’t let myself get my hopes up anymore.)

for a very long time, i hated the idea of love (...quite the oxymoron, that one). cause it always, always meant that the people i cared about changed in ways that i didn’t understand at all. what, some boy you’ve never met before shows up, and suddenly your important quest and friends and family are... an after thought? why? don’t you care about them? don’t you love them too? why does this always happen? why is there always a boy and love and babies and nothing else? (why, why, why indeed? and yes, i was one of those kids who got fucking mean when their friends started only looking at boys, how’d you know?)

anyways. i hated it. i couldn’t possibly have articulated why back then, but it always made me so mad, despite the fact that the words on the page were telling me that this was the best thing that could ever happen in life. that just made it worse, cause why am i getting so upset over this? it’s a good thing, objectively- they’re in love. they’re happy. why is it making me feel so fucking angry instead?

this series doesn’t really... deserve any of the repressed vitriol it made me feel, though. Cimorene’s love interest that appeared in book two, Mendanbar, is actually a pretty cool guy! he has an innate, natural connection to his magic forest kingdom. he’s sick of fairy-tale tropes, he has a sweet anti-wizard sword, he’s very kind and brave- and i fucking hated his guts (...lmao, sorry dude).

there’s nothing actually wrong with this series’s romances. the couples care about each other and support each other well. i’m glad for all the kids who got to see some happy romances, i truly am. but god, that wasn’t for me, and it probably wasn’t for the other lonely kids who picked up a book about running away from what the Right People wanted for them either. 

for a series about rejecting what society tells you is the Right thing to want, the characters just... end up wanting that exact same thing anyway. oh, the thought of marrying a man and spending your life with him, baring him heirs until you die, sounds unappealing? so distressing, in fact, you’d literally rather get eaten by dragons? WELL DON’T WORRY, this one particular guy is actually good! of course you’ll fall in love with him! you’ll want to be pregnant forever with his horrible frogspawn! you’ll be happy! 

...what do you mean this is what you were running away from?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

i spent... an inordinate amount of time as a child reading Dealing With Dragons. while i cannot possibly blame the author for my individual experience with their work, which WAS written as a series (the finale was written first, actually! way back in 1985), the fact remains that my interactions with them were... soured. 

in a way that was out of the author’s hands, really, but i just don’t know how to think about this series without that bittersweet hurt in my chest. i cried like, twice, writing this stupid, rambling essay thing, and i don’t actually know how to look past that. i suppose the tried-and-true method of just... rereading the first book and pretending everything’s fine always works lol.

i own a few different versions of these books. there’s a full set i was gifted later in middle school -the nice glossy ones, with Peter De Seve’s lovely cover art! -which i have never once reread. they’re in immaculate shape, really.

i also own an absolutely, completely beat-to-shit paperback copy of the same version i must have read a hundred times as a kid. its cover is creased and peeling, there’s a bunch of weird stains and rips and dogears, and i adore it. i picked it up this year at a used book place, and every time i look at it i can see some small, desperate kid who doesn’t even know they’re lonely but still curls up around that book again and again. 

[crossiantgay]

Ch 1 of the Logince Princess and the Frog au!!!

This is my biggest fanfic by f a r . Hope you enjoy!

Warnings: voodoo, frogs, brief mention of food

Words: 5049

“Now here I’d like to tell you a story. A story that takes place right where we are, in the Big Easy. Down here in Louisiana, there’s a city you may have heard of, way down by the River. Does New Oreleans ring a bell? The place where jazz is always playin’ and you’re always guaranteed a good time. The lifestyle we live is as slow as the Mississippi. But you’ll have a treat down here in New Orleans. Oh, you haven’t lived if you haven't had a good bowl of gumbo with some grits. Or hear that smooth jazz that just sweeps you off your feet, mm, that’s the good stuff. If you want to truly live, come down to New Orleans to do it. We’ve got magic, sure do. Good and bad in New Orleans. Give ya what ya want but take what ya have. My dream since I was a youngin’ was to see New Orleans. You know, everybody got dreams. Rich people, poor people we all got dreams. This story I’m about to tell you focuses on one boy’s dream and the unusual way it comes true. Oh, this is a story of magic and love, plain and simple. The weird ways fate ties us together. Alright, I’ll stop stalling. You ready?”

“Please, I’m going to get the funds, I swear-” Logan begged to the bankers. 

“I’m sorry, where do you expect to get all this money? We can’t offer you a loan until we believe you can get the money to pay us back” They said, not budging a bit. 

“But-”

“We have made our decision.” An attendant escorted him to the door.  He gruffed and walked out. 

He had been saving up for so long for this library and a building finally opened up that he could buy, only for some big wigs to come in and make an offer higher than he could bid. This was his mother’s legacy, his dream. He just had to get this library, he didn't know what he’d do if he didn’t. He sighed, walking to his work at the school. He picked up a paper on his way to teach science at the Middle School in the area. It didn’t pay much, but it was the best job he could get. The paper’s headline was 

“Prince Roman of the Carnacty family coming to New Oreleans!” Logan sighed. Always ex-celebs who run out of luck coming to all the big cities to get their name in the headlines. He walked in the front door, greeting the attendant lady. His kids were already in the classroom, patiently waiting. Their mouths were going a mile a minute, he was trying to just get a snippet of the conversation. One kid said kind of loudly,

“I can’t believe he’s coming to New Oreleans! A real prince!!!” 

“Well he’s gonna marry me, I can already tell” One of the girls scoffed. He tried his best to stifle a laugh. It was well known the prince wasn't exactly into the princesses. Well, neither was he for that matter. Women were just so… dramatic. They all stopped talking as the bell rang, piercing through the room. Announcements crackled over the intercom, telling the kids that Math Club had been postponed and the basketball game tonight. He stood up from his desk, highly caffeinated and began teaching the kids. Amelia and Lucas raised their hands several times to ask questions during the lecture as expected. He let out a sigh of relief as the bell rang once again, signaling the end of school. He filed out quickly after the kids. He was supposed to meet with his dad today, one wednesday a month they got together to talk. God bless his father, when Logan was a child, he tried so hard to support Logan financially he rarely got a chance to spend with his son. But now that Logan was off on his own he and his father had some more time to spend together.  

He met his father on the block they’d agree they’d meet. He wanted to show his father the building he had his eye on for awhile. Technically they weren’t supposed to be there but oh well. He walked up the dusty stairs and pushed open two heavy dark oak doors to reveal an empty building with a staircase leading up to a second story. There were big french-style windows on the walls, illuminating the dusty room with a beautiful golden-white light. The building itself was made of bricks that were painted over a creamy tan color. Logan’s mind flooded with images of neat rows of bookshelves, with fluffy pillows and seating arrangements scattered around. The floors, polished to a shine and half of the upper floor dedicated to an information area and classes, taught by anyone who wanted to volunteer. But best of all, there would be a plaque on the back wall, visible right when you entered, saying “Dedicated to Mary L. Berry”. He would make his mother proud, do something right for once. He snapped out of his thoughts as his father said, 

“Sure is a fixer-upper” His dad chuckled a bit. 

“Well of course. I would rather add my own furnishings and make it my library than buy a dollhouse. There is so much room for improvement!” He walked towards the center of the building, getting bathed in light. 

“Isn’t it just astounding?” There were stars in his eyes. 

“Well, sure is… something.” HIs father tentatively walked towards Logan. The light died in his eyes. 

“...what? Is it not adequate?” The light died in his eyes as he turned towards his father. “If there’s anything you don’t like about, we can fix it” Logan’s father sighed and put a hand on his son’s shoulder. 

“Bub-” Oh no. His father only called him bub when something was wrong. “You don’t get money like this from teaching- or for waitering for that matter, either. Maybe something a bit smaller?” 

“It’s for mom though- it’s what she would have wanted” 

“First of all, she only wanted you to be healthy and safe. Second of all, you should be doing this for you, not to rekindle the embers of your mother’s dying dream.” Logan sighed. 

“I want to be a librarian though- It’s my dream, too” His father looked at him worriedly.

“If your heart’s in the right place, bub… either way, how are you going to get the money? People like us can’t afford such a lovely place.” 

“You like it?” Logan said excitedly. HIs father shot him a pointed look. 

“I’ve been saving up. I have enough to meet the market price” His father knew he wasn’t telling him something but he let it go. “I have been waiting so long for this, and it’s finally in my grasp. I just have to work a few more overtimes and I’ll-” His father cut him off. 

“Woah woah woah. I asked you before if you had the money. Do you or not?” Logan looked to the side. 

“There’s a higher bidder” 

“Oh…” 

Logan sighed and walked over to the door and opened it, rising up a cloud of dust. 

“We should go, we’re not supposed to be here anyway…” Logan’s dad gave a curt nod and tipped his hat. His father hailed a cab and hopped in. 

“See you soon!” He hollered as the driver took off. Logan nodded and waved as his father disappeared down the street. He sighed and let the tears that he was holding back roll down his cheeks as he looked to the building. 

“I was almost there…”   

(------)

One of his coworkers taunted him. “C’mon, the Mardi Gras party held by Charlotte every year is tonight. You guys grew up together, you should go!” He rolled his eyes and straightened his tie. 

“Mardi Gras parties are frivolous events where people get dressed up like little kids and get drunk on mimosas. Does that sound like something I would enjoy?” 

“Aww, you’re no fun.” His coworker whined.

“I am plenty of fun!” He huffed and put his hands on his hips. 

“Well if you were really fun you’d join us.” 

“Fine… I’ll go to your little party or whatever.” His coworker smiled.

“I knew I could convince you! It's a costume party, so dress up!” His coworker hollered from down the hall. He sighed. What had he gotten himself into? 

(~~~~) 

“C’mon Remus! We’re finally here! There are places to go, people to meet! Hurry up!” Roman hollered from up the street. Remus huffed as he adjusted to the bags he was holding. Roman’s bags. While his brother was what, talking to one of the locals? His brother never helped with anything. It was always up to Remus. 

“If you could maybe help I wouldn’t be so far behind” 

“ALL I HEAR IS EXCUSES, BROTHER! LET’S GO!” He didn’t know why Roman insisted on calling him ‘brother’. The way he treated Remus was as if he was a servant, not a royal. But of course, because Roman was first in line for the throne, nobody really cared about Remus. Was his name in the papers? Nope. It was just Roman’s. Everything was Roman, Roman, Roman. Remus grudgingly quickened his pace as he followed his brother. 

“Isn’t this a lovely city?” Roman stretched out his arms. 

“Yeah…” Remus mumbled. 

“...is there a problem, brother?” Remus rolled his eyes. 

“No, everything’s a-ok” Roman sighed. 

“What is it, and let’s not let your terrible mood leave a stain on this vacation” Remus did his best not to punch his brother in the face. He sighed. 

“Nothing…” Roman smiled. 

“Then let’s go, see the sights, eat the food!” He sped ahead and Remus sighed. He watched his brother talk to another shop owner. He looked up and Roman was being escorted into the man’s shop. 

“WAIT-” Remus rushed in behind him. He turned a corner into the entranceway for the shop his brother went into. He looked up as he left the bags outside. The sign on the top of the door read 

“Dr.Janus’s Fortune Tellings and Palm Readings” This was insane. Stick it to his brother to get his fortune read. You stay rich and Mom and Dad make you marry. You inherit the crown and you live happily ever after. It didn’t take a genius to know that was what would happen. Well, he had the money to spend. He sighed and walked into the building. The ‘shop’ had a high ceiling and dust coated the floors. The place was very poorly-lit, the only light in the building coming from a few lamps hung from the walls. Speaking of the walls, they were a dark mauve. They were ordained with intricate-looking masks, of every color and shape. 

“SSSit down, gentlemen.” The lean man ushered them to a dusty and old looking circular brown table. As the man turned to them, he saw half of the man’s face appeared to be covered with scales. 

“Welcome, you’re in my world now, not your world. I’ve got friendss on the other sside.” The man’s voice was slippery and he was drawing out his s’s. Roman faked a smile and nodded. He didn’t want to be rude but this was creeping him out. 

“Sit down at my table, Put your minds at ease, if you relax it will enable me to do anything I please.” The man’s long tailcoat swished behind him as he turned and smirked. 

“I can read your future, I can change it ‘round some, too” Roman’s disgust soon turned to awe.

“Really?”

“Really, yes.” He smirked and grabbed a black top hat from one of the hooks on the wall. 

“I'll look deep into your heart and soul,” he looked to Remus and nudged him. “You do have a soul, don’t you, Remus?” Remus sat back in his chair and raised an eyebrow. 

“How do you know my name?” 

The man, who he assumed to be Dr.Janus, turned over his shoulder. His light brown eye almost seemed to glow yellow as sunlight caught it. 

“I have my wayss…” He glanced over at his brother and his brother was wiggling in his seat, Roman looked as if he was about to watch a magic show. Dr.Janus pulled a deck of cards out of his sleeve and placed them on the table. He pulled out some other things, a ragdoll and a pendant.

“I’ve got voodoo, I’ve got hoodoo, I’ve got things I ain’t even tried,” He ran a gloved finger over the designs that were etched into the wood pendant. 

“And I’ve got friends on the other side.” Roman looked worried. 

“Hey, Remus, maybe we should go, we have that um, royal thing we have to attend. Remus caught his arm and pulled him down back into the chair. 

“C’mon, brother, right when things get interesting you wanna scatter?” This act had piqued Remus’ interest. “You always tell me to be brave, why not take some of your own medicine?” Roman looked to his brother and sighed. Dr.Janus swallowed and began shuffling the cards. 

“The cards, the cards, the cards will tell, the past, the present and the future as well.” He laid down three cards to demonstrate. 

“Thesse are Tarot cards, cards that have a deep connection with the other side” Remus thought he was seeing things as a red light flickered in the ‘eyes’ of one of the large masks on the back wall. “The cards, the cards, just take three. Take a look into your future with me” He fanned out the cards face-down and displayed them in front of them. Remus eagerly grabbed three cards and Roman tentatively followed suit after. Dr.Janus motioned for the boys to flip the cards over, grinning.  Roman flipped the first one over, first. It read ‘the sun’ and had a very detailed gold inking of the sun in the center. 

“You, young man, are from across the sea,” Dr.Janus began. “You come from two longs lines of royalty.” Roman flipped the other card over. It read ‘the hermit’; with another gold design on its ‘face’. “Your lifestyle’s high,” Dr.Janus turned the card upside down. “But your funds are low. You’ve got to marry a little sonny who’s daddy’s got dough” Roman raised an eyebrow and Remus laughed.

“Really? Ol’ Mommsies and Popsicle cut you off?” Remus laughed and clutched his stomach. Roman elbowed his brother. 

“I understand. You just wanna enjoy life, be free. Hop from place to place. But freedom takes green.” Dr.Janus rubbed his fingers. “It’s the green, it’s the green, it’s the green you need.” Dr.Janus flipped over the next card. “And in your future it’s the green that I see” The card read ‘ten of pentacles’ on the top of it and a gleam flashed in Roman’s eye as he grinned. Dr.Janus turned to Remus. 

“On you, young man, I don’t want to waste much time, you’ve been pushed around all your life,” Remus scowled and Dr.Janus flipped over the first card. The card read ‘justice’ on the top and was upside down. “You’ve been pushed around by your mother and your father and your brother,” Remus knitted his brows. “And even if you were the best you can be, you’d still be pushed around” Dr.Janus turned over the next card and it read ‘the fool’, also upside down. Remus glared at Dr.Janus and Roman held Remus back from lunging at Dr.Janus. Dr.Janus, however, was unmoved. 

“But in your future, the you I see,” He turned over the final card. “Is the man you’ve always wanted to be” This card read ‘chariot’ and was upright. 

Dr.Janus took off his gold gloves to reveal scaly hands. He extended a hand out to each of them. 

“Shake my hand, c’mon boys, won’t you shake a poor sinner’s hand?” 

Remus eagerly shook his hand quickly and Roman hesitated before giving a strong shake of Dr.Janus’s hand. 

“Yessss,” The man hissed and his right eye glowed yellow. Smoke filled the room. 

“Are you ready? Are you ready?” There was a strong beating noise, almost sounding like footsteps or a heartbeat. Roman felt his forearms tighten and he looked down as two golden pythons twisted themselves around his arms, pinning him to the chair. Weird shadows danced across the walls and Remus thought he could almost hear other voices. 

“Transformation central,” Dr.Janus hissed as he held up the wooden pendant.”Transformation central,” He walked over to Roman, unfazed by what was occurring around them. His scales on his face and hands glowed yellow in the shift of lighting and the smoke.

“Transformafication central, can you feel it?” Roman yelped as something pricked his finger. Smoke filled the room up to their heads and the boys’ vision was obscured. 

“You’re changing, you’re changing, you’re changing, all right,” The man’s yellow eye and scales were the only things visible to the thick fog encompassing them. The beating grew steadily louder as Remus felt a pendant slip around his neck.

“I hope you’re satisfied. But if you ain’t, don’t blame me,” His eye and scales glowed bright yellow, almost blinding them.  “you can blame my friends on the other side” And as Dr.Janus uttered that last word, the beating stopped and everything became encompassed in darkness. They could still see the aftershine of the man’s eye and scales long after it faded out. 

(~~~~)

Logan hovered by the snack table, not wanting to get dragged onto the dance floor and be made a fool of. Patton hurried over to him, in a baby blue dress. 

“Isn’t this just amazing? And rumor is Prince Roman’s supposed to get here soon! Imagine us! Meeting a real prince!” Patton’s golden curly hair flew up as he jumped in excitement. Logan smiled and toasted a glass. “By the way I love your prince costume You see, Larry and his wife are a horse over there, lovely costume. And your coworker, Daisy is dressed as a- I’m not quite sure. Anyway, I’m going to go see if the prince is here yet!”

“Knock yourself out, Pat” Logan forced a smile and watched as Patton hurried out to the dance floor. 

(~~~~) 

Remus awoke groggily. He sat up slowly and looked down. 

“Wha-” He sat up and looked at his hands. They didn’t look like his. These weren’t his clothes, either. No- he couldn’t- He rolled up his sleeve and his suspicions were confirmed. His brother had a scar on his bicep, from when they got in a swordfight as kids. 

“Who did this?” He yelled. 

“I see you’re up,” Dr.Janus hissed from another room. 

“What did you do to me?” He shakily stood up and gripped the side of the chair. He felt like he was walking in too-big shoes. Dr.Janus walked out of his office and stood beside Remus.

“Now, what you’re going to do is you’re going to go to the party tonight. There’s a boy, Patton Hudson. His father is the richest person in New Orleans. If you’re able to woo him, you’ll be rolling in the dough. You’ll be more famous than even your brother. Doesn’t sound spectacular?” Remus nodded and Dr.Janus placed two firm hands on Remus’ shoulders.

“I can do that,” Remus nodded, now sure of what he had to do. 

“Good boy. One thing, however.” Dr.Janus placed his hands on the necklace and lifted it up. Remus shuddered as he looked down at his hands again. Callused and worn, unlike his brother’s smooth ones. 

“Don’t take this necklace off or the illusion will fail. Alright?” He slipped the necklace back around Remus’ neck and he nodded. He smirked and ran a hand through his brother’s soft, brown hair. 

“Let’s do this.” 

(~~~~) 

Logan sighed as he rested his hands on the balcony railing. He watched as a glowing prince made his way down the stairs to the partygoers. Of course, once he did, Patton was the first to greet him. Logan sighed. He didn’t get the obsession people had with this prince. 

“I know. I look absolutely hideous in that outfit.” Logan jumped back as he looked to his left where the voice came from. 

“Who said that??” he looked around worriedly. All he saw was a frog sitting on the balcony railing. 

“Over here, monsieur.” Logan looked at the frog. 

“I need to sit down. I think there was something in that drink. There is NO WAY a frog is talking to me” Logan gripped the railing as he appeared to turn a bit pale. 

“Well think again. It is I, Prince Roman” The frog hopped closer to Logan. 

“No- the great Prince Roman is out there dancing with Patton Hudson.” 

“Pfft! That is not I! That must be someone else.” Logan scoffed. 

“Well then who is it?” 

“I’m not sure. I should have never talked to that man. Now I am a slimy frog while someone is using my body. And they say fairy tales aren’t real-” Logan turned to Roman. 

“Wait what man?” He raised an eyebrow. 

“It was Dr.- something. He had a black hat and yellow gloves-” Logan’s eyes widened. 

“Don’t tell me you’ve been messing with Dr.Janus. Nobody messes with the snake man- everyone knows that.” Dr.Janus had dark magic. You didn’t mess with him. Of course Logan had heard the rumors of strange and unworldly things happening to people that talked to him. 

“Well I just got here 2 days ago and I guess I must have missed that on the brochure.” Roman snapped and  Logan sighed. 

“I feel bad for you, but what can I do about that?” Roman looked down and Logan raised an eyebrow. 

“... you could kiss me. I know it sounds insane, but if this is anything like that children’s story, I need to be kissed to be turned human.” Logan jumped back. 

“You mean that fairytale, the Princess and the Frog? Those are fiction books for children!” 

“Well then do you have a book detailing what to do if you get miraculously turned into a frog by any chance?” Logan sighed. 

“Either way, I’m not kissing a frog. No way Even if you weren’t a frog I wouldn’t kiss you. I just met you.” Roman let out a scoff. 

“I am not that ugly!” 

“I never said you were ugly.” Logan said flaty. 

“So you think I’m cute?” Roman wiggled his eyebrows and Logan felt a heat rise to his cheeks. 

“No-NO- I never said you were cute either-” 

“But you think it,” Roman smirked. 

“You are really arrogant, you know that?” Roman blinked. “And stupid, too. It means self-centered.” Roman mouthed an ‘oh’. 

“I am not arrogant! I am gorgeous!”

“Well if not that then you sure are stupid. I’m not the one that got myself turned into a frog.”

“Speaking of that-” Roman cleared his throat. 

“No, for the last time I am not kissing you.” 

@subtlereferencetomyinterests

[mirthless-misanthrope]

Earl Grey (Jotaro Kujo Imagine)

A/N: oh boy, this is probably the longest imagine i’ve written for jotaro so far! it’s nice and angsty, because I decided to consider reality today. relationships aren’t all fluffy like fanfics can say sometimes, so i decided to write about the first big argument in the relationship.

however, today’s prompt was “coffee and/or tea” so i tried to incorporate that too whoops

Trigger Warnings: angst!!!! argument, swearing, hopeless thoughts, self-blame, self-worth issues, harassment, jotaro feels guilt :0

Enjoy!

...

Living in Japan, I’m accustomed to drinking tea with almost everything. That’s… not even because I’m in Japan. I just love the scent of tea, no matter what kind, and I somehow managed to get used to the taste of certain blends. Earl Grey is my personal favorite. Bergamot mixing with the general aroma of black tea always soothes me whenever I’m upset or stressed out.

In this case, Earl Grey is the only thing keeping me from doing anything rash. As miserable as I am after such a harsh argument, the steam hitting my face reminds me that there’s more things to life than love… but are any of them really worth it? I suppose that’s the question of the night. 

Wisps of fire burn in the fireplace beside me, similar to the frustration Jotaro threw at me before storming out: fiery, heated, bitter… just thinking about the words he said sends me into a crying fit again. Salty tears fall into my cup of tea, ruining it, but I don’t care. Nothing matters to me at this point. God, I sound like Jotaro right now…

Why should I care though? Looking back, I didn’t do anything except try to help him tidy his office… He just exploded for no reason. His words hit me like a train as he mocked every single one of my insecurities out of nowhere. And yet somehow, I feel like this is my fault anyway. No matter how much I try to convince myself it’s his fault, I just… can’t. I know he’s been stressed since finals are next week and he has research papers due soon, and to me, it seems I’ve made him more stressed. 

Heart throbbing in agony, I wander to the kitchen and pick up our shared notepad, scribbling an apology for him to read if he comes back home… I don’t think he will until I head to work. Regardless, I’d forget if I didn’t do it now. Once the note is done, I pour the cold, ruined tea down the drain of the sink. It’s mesmerizing to watch the dark liquid swirl around in circles like this… but I have to sleep. I know I don’t want to, but if I’m gonna work tomorrow, I’ll have to, or else I’ll fall off the ladder we use to put books back on shelves…

Sleep doesn’t come to me. It’s been hours since I first laid down in our bed, but it feels so empty that my heart won’t let me sleep. Lucky me, I know where Jotaro keeps his dolphin stuffed animals that I keep getting him, and so I throw myself out of bed, heading towards the closet where each dolphin is. Pushing the door open, I observe the different shades of blue and gray fabric around me for a moment before deciding to take as many of the dolphins as I can carry, bringing them to the painfully empty bed and filling Jotaro’s side with the soft plushes. That solves one of my issues, but… there’s still something missing.

Realization dawns on me as I look at one of Jotaro’s hats on the wall. So… despite my internal embarrassment, I go to his closet and pull out one of his giant coats, pulling it around me like a blanket. That’s better, I think to myself, maybe now I can sleep. Jotaro’s lingering scent on his jacket brings more tears to my eyes, and I cry myself to sleep for the first time in months, wishing Jotaro was with me as weak sobs leave me. Arms wrapped in a vice grip around the largest dolphin I brought with me, I curl up on top of the blankets and sheets, not even bothering to dress down into pajamas. No, I pass out under the fabric of Jotaro’s coat, feeling worthless and guilty, which leads to endless nightmares.

… I’m already in deep sleep when Jotaro walks back into our apartment and sees the state I’m in. And so I don’t know that he finds out about just how hard his words hit me. He leaves without a word as soon as he sees the pile of dolphins on his side of the bed, the coat draped over me, and the tear tracks on my scrunched up face. He doesn’t want to mess this up even more.

…

8 A.M. sharp and I’m walking into the library for my shift. I don’t know why they decided to give me the earliest shift today, but I suppose it doesn’t matter. The library is quiet at this hour. I have some time to think… and consider everything. The note on the counter wasn’t messed with, and the dolphins were all still there, so… Jotaro must’ve stayed somewhere else. Probably with Kakyoin. I thought I heard someone come in at some point, but all those dreams might’ve been fucking with my head. Besides, he had no reason to come home. It’s not like he-

“Yo, librarian,” a voice sneers in front of me. I recognize the voice. Damnit, not this kid again… “Whatcha thinkin’ about over ‘ere? We’ve been callin’ your name for the past half hour, so what’s the big deal?” His tall, lanky form leans on the desk in front of me, attempting to intimidate me and it only reminds me of Jotaro yelling at me, oh god, what did I do now-? “Whoa, holy shit, why’re ya cryin’? I didn’t even say nothin’ to ya yet! Geez, ya can’t even hold yourself together… Ya look like complete shit.” His buddies behind him cackle, but I don’t hear them. I only hear Jotaro’s words: “Jesus, woman, why can’t you stop cryin’ for two fuckin’ seconds? Pull yourself together. Yare yare, what a fuckin’ pain in my ass you are.”

A brittle shriek pierces through the air. It takes me a moment to realize it’s coming from me. My eyes notice the boy’s hand inching towards me, and I cry out in agony. “Don’t-Don’t touch me-! Please, I… just leave me alone for today, okay? You can bother me all you want on any other day, just - please not today,” I beg, eyes pleading the boy to just leave me alone…

I never get a response. The boy goes flying across the library before he can make a sound, and Star is puffed up in front of me, in a protective stance. It’s too bad nobody else in the library can see him though, because now it seems like I’m insane as I freeze in place, my shaky voice piercing the silence. “S-Star... What are… you doing here…?” Sniffles and hiccups take over me as I see Star look at me, utter sorrow painted on his angular face. I’ve never seen him so distraught… so when he comes closer to me and pulls me away from the desk, I let him. 

“Ora…” The stand before me makes sure nobody is around before picking me up off the ground, cradling me close as he starts to cry. Stands… can cry? Does this mean Jotaro is crying too? Shoulders shaking, Star refuses to let go of me, as if I would die if I left his hold. “Ora ora,” he cries to me, and I figure out what he’s trying to say: “We’re sorry.” That realization takes the breath out of me. Jotaro… is sorry about what happened? But… it was my fault, wasn’t it?

A deep baritone voice breaks me out of my thoughts. “Yare yare… So this is where Star Platinum went. What a pain.” There stands Jotaro, and holy shit he looks like a zombie. Dark circles showing his lack of sleep are the most prominent blemish on his skin, accompanied by a bit of red (perhaps from crying and rubbing at his eyes). His eyes are more dim than usual. And as soon as I see that, I know he’s been feeling as much pain as I have. “You look like shit. You shouldn’t be working.” He takes me from Star’s arms, the stand whining at him but not making a move to fight back. “I already called your boss. Said you’re sick and can’t come in. I would’ve left you here but that boy pissed me off.” And with that, he turns and walks out of the library, carrying me bridal style down the street towards our apartment. 

The walk is dead silent. Neither of us say a word. Not even Star dares to break the silence… and somehow, I appreciate it. Reading Jotaro’s expression turns out to be a soothing action - almost as soothing as the scent of Earl Grey tea - as I decipher a few emotions. I can tell he feels guilty (or did feel guilty, anyway) but his eyes are lit up now that he has me in his arms. His hands that grip my body are firm, yet gentle, leaving no marks but ensuring I don’t disappear. Really, the way he holds himself during the whole walk makes it clear that he’s glad I’m there. Nothing could possibly distract my soft gaze from observing his lips twitching every few seconds. He wants to say something… but he’s hesitating. It must be important if he’s thinking about it.

To my disappointment, we get to our apartment before he says anything, and I assume it must be insignificant when he sets me on our couch and walks away. Tilting my head, I hear him rummage around in our room, the sound of a closet door opening and closing, and footsteps as he returns to me. “Had to clear the bed,” he grumbles, “we’re going to sleep.” Tugged up by his strong arms, I follow him without a word, plopping onto my side of the bed and seeing the dolphin I had cuddled last night still resting on Jotaro’s side. Confusion must be on my face, because Jotaro scoffs and settles into his side of the bed. As his arms pull me into him, he allows me to clutch the dolphin plush to my chest. It’s comforting for me to feel the soft fabric, as well as his warmth, so I’m sleepy as soon as he has his arms around my waist. “Hey. I… said a lot of shit last night.” These words make me perk up. “I… Yesterday was rough. Stressful. I didn’t mean to… I took it out on you.” Tears gather at the corners of his eyes, causing my eyes to widen and tear up as well. “I’m sorry. I love you. Never meant to hurt you like this,” his thumb brushes against my cheek, “and never meant to make you cry yourself to sleep like that.” He… did come back?

“JoJo, I… I know,” A hiccup causes my words to get stuck and I lose it, sobbing into his chest. “I know you-you didn’t mean it, but I-I’m sorry. I pissed you off again, I should’ve known not to mess with your office-”

“Yare yare, woman. Stop apologizing and go to sleep. You didn’t do anything, so stop looking at me like a guilty puppy.”

So much for that moment of being soft. 

Listening to his heartbeat, I drift off, mind filled with dreams of affection from the man laying with me. And he falls asleep as well, murmuring the sweetest nothings he can think of until his breathing evens out. 

The entirety of the day is spent napping and cuddling. Jotaro is so much more affectionate and clingy as usual, but I don’t mind. He spends all day making it up to me by showering me with compliments (in his own way) and keeping me in his arms (except for when I use the bathroom, of course). Sweet kisses are shared throughout the day as well, sealing our unspoken promise that we will be okay.

[lokispettigerr]

Broken Boundaries: Jotun!Loki x Female Reader SMUT (NSFW)

Fic Summary: Female Reader just got back from traveling on a business trip, and hasn’t been able to see Loki in three weeks. He sets boundaries upon seeing her because he doesn’t think he will be able to control himself if he doesn’t. Unfortunately for him, his attempts at creating boundaries are futile, and he quickly is unable to control himself with Reader. His inability to control his appetites awakens his Jotun form. Super, glorious, Jotun!Loki smut.

Word Count: 3,359

General Taglist: @njavezan @arttasticgreatnessoftheawesome77 @avenging-blackwidow @lovelyxserpent-br @kamaroon @britkane-shsl-librarian

Taglist: @someonewithadirtymindsstuff @livicat1 @fan-girlygirl @unhealthyobsessionwithmarvel @shockwavee @bluestaratsunrise @marikochi @alexcornerblog @inumorph

A/N: I have only been in an airport twice, so actually don’t know how to correctly describe it as I can’t remember the two times I went. Hope what I have works. 

Oh, how I missed Loki. I had been away on business in Detroit for three weeks, and being away from him for this long-- for any amount of time really, was hard for the both of us.

I walked off of the plane, following the winding, windowless hallway to the seated waiting area, where I knew Loki sat. I exited the hallway and saw him. Loki was sitting with his back facing me and his head down, his soft black curls falling around his face. He loved to read and made a point to do so any chance he got. Last night we spoke on the phone, (something he absolutely loathed but did it anyway because he loved talking to me), and he told me he had been close to finishing “The Picture of Dorian Gray” by Oscar Wilde-- a book I had recommended.

I quietly approached him from behind, my hands coming out to cradle each side of his head, and I slid them around and over his eyes. I bent down My hair falling and mingling with his own. “Guess who...” I said in a whisper, my lips caressing his ear.

I could feel his cheeks come up in my hands as he smiled. Loki lifted his chin so his head could fall back, and looked at me through his bright green eyes. I was wearing a low-cut shirt and the top of my prince’s head tickled the sensitive skin above my breasts.

“Y/N, my pet, I missed you” Loki crooned, his voice sounding like music to my ears.

I looked at him, wondering why he remained sitting. “Don’t I get a hug from my favorite person?”

“Your favorite God.” He corrected me, chuckling, “But for you, anything”…. He paused, looking down, his brows knitting together in a worried look.

“What is it, my love?” I asked concerned. “An old wound paining you?”

“Something pains me, but not a wound”, he mumbled, as if he was speaking more to himself than to me. Louder now, “In a minute—I just need a minute”.

“Sure baby, whatever you want.” I said in a sultry tone. My arms were still hanging around his neck and I rubbed my hands on his chest. He wore a black button up shirt, and I stuck the tips of my fingers in the gaps between the buttons, tickling his skin.

As soon as my hands began rubbing his chest, he cleared his throat. “Ah, Y/N, please can I—just a moment”.

It was unusual for Loki to not form complete sentences. His silver tongue always worked in his favor, but now it seemed it was failing him.

My lips parted, my pride wounded and I huffed removing my fingers from within his shirt and my hands from around his neck. Why didn’t he want me to touch him? While PDA was not something he was entirely comfortable with we had been working on it. He had quickly discovered that he enjoyed having me publicly touch and cuddle him, and him be able to do the same to me. He loved seeing other men envious over him touching me, and it made for some fun for the both of us later on.

Loki cleared his throat again, his fist coming up to cover his lips. He took a deep breath and stood, his hands resting in front of his belt buckle.

My face lit up, “hug now?”.

“Well how could I ever turn you down like that?” he smiled, throwing his arms open wide.

I threw myself into his arms squeezing him, and he held me, like divine vice of steel. I felt his head tilt down and he buried it in my hair, his chest moving as he took deep breaths-- breathing me in.

I felt something then, hard and long, pressing against my lower abdomen, and my eyes grew wide with recognition. Loki’s arousal explained why he was unable to stand up sooner.

I pulled back to look up at him, a smile playing on my lips, “Happy to see me are you?” I asked.

“Oh you noticed that did you, Y/N?” Loki grinned, his arms still around me.

I rolled my eyes, “Loki, how could I not notice that?”. I continued, “As much as I am enjoying this, are you ready to go? I want to go home to see our babies”. He knew I was referring to the cats we had together. “Oh, and I need to get my luggage!” I said quickly, releasing him.

He grabbed my hand before I could walk away,  and turned his body to the side trying to obscure his sexual excitement for me that was restrained within his pants. He looked down again. “I need, another minute.” he said through clenched teeth. His face seemed to be turning red.

“Okay my love, take your time. Want me to grab my luggage?” I asked.

“No, no” he clipped. “No need, it has been taken care of…” he took a deep breath, his chest stretching out, “Ready now” he said, accentuating his “n” like he did.

I grabbed his hand, dragging him down the hallway of the airport.

“Whoa, Y/N, what is the rush?” he asked, startled, his long legs putting up some resistance.

“Cats” I said, “Now”. I was practically bouncing with excitement, eager to see our fur babies.

He nodded, not saying a word, and we continued out of the airport towards our car.

Loki drove with one hand on the wheel and one hand in my lap, while I traced the lines on the palm of his hand. We were only a couple of minutes from home when he glanced at me momentarily before returning his eyes to the road. “You’re sure you want to go straight home, Y/N?” He asked, his eyes meeting mine again before returning to the road.  

“Yes Loki, why wouldn’t I?” I asked him, suspiciously, he seemed to be going through a lot of effort to keep me from going directly home. “I haven’t been home for three weeks, ya know?” I asked hoping he would justify my desire to go home.

“Of course, my love.” He replied, looking straight ahead, his mouth in a tight line.

I studied his face, trying to read what I could in the set of his mouth, his jaw, and his eyes. He looked worried…

Loki pulled into our driveway, his hand quickly and smoothly maneuvering the car into a parked position.

“Wait here.” he said as he got out.

He walked to the passenger side and opened the door for me, “My lady?”, He said, extending his hand for me to take.

I smiled, “Thank you, my Prince”.

We walked up the steps to the door, holding hands. We had not been able to stop physical contact since our meeting in the airport.

He had the keys, holding them up to his eye level with his free hand, and they jingled as he searched for the house key.

He unlocked the door, gently kicking it open as he swooped into the threshold, leading me in as he held the door.

I entered, squealing, and immediately fell to my knees as our three cats bounded up to me, purring.

Loki shut the door quietly, leaning against it, his hands behind his back. He looked down at me and smiled. “They missed you tremendously”, he said as I sat in the floor petting them. “None of them wanted to eat-- spoiled, over-sized rodents”. He continued, laughing, “I had to sit in the floor with them to get them to eat”.

Picturing Loki, The God of Mischief sitting on the kitchen floor coaxing the cats to eat was such a funny mental image. Often times, he pretended he didn’t like them just to annoy me, but they knew, and I knew, that he loved them deeply.

Loki pushed off of the door, bent down and scooped our cat Jessica up. “This one cried for you each night.” he said, holding her close to his chest with one arm. He looked at her smiling, scratching her behind the ear as she leaned into it, “She couldn’t bear being without you...neither could I”. He said, looking at me, his eyes smoldering.

“Loki, you know you can always call me…”I said, my voice trailing.

“Never.” He said, smiling with his eyes, “I care more about you getting sleep than me, Y/N.”

I got to my feet then, standing on my tiptoes to give him a kiss. He deepened it, parting my lips with his tongue to swirl around my own. He pulled me back. “Let’s-- sit...Shall we?” He extended his arm, gesturing towards the chairs in the living room.

Before I could sit, he grabbed my hand and steered me to a chair opposite him.

“Er, you sit here, and I will” he looked around, uncertain about something, “uhhh,-- sit here.” He backed awkwardly to the chair and sat down.

Loki licked his lips, nervously, his eyes scanning the other pieces of furniture in the room. He grabbed at the coffee table, his body stretching out, and slid the table across the floor to sit like a barrier between us.

“Lovely” he said, smacking his hand lightly on the table. “This’ll do”.

I watched him, my eyes following his every movement, entertained as he tried desperately to set boundaries-- not something a God known for breaking boundaries is good at.

“Loki,” I called out to him, “why are you doing all of this?” I swept my hand out, gesturing to the table and our awkward, distant positions in the room.

He chuckled and smiled at me darkly sending chills up my spine. “I want to just talk with you for a bit, and give myself some time to acclimate to being in your presence again, Y/N.”

I laughed in response, shaking my head.

“What?” He asked, my laughter triggering a confused smile on his face. “I can be a gentleman.”

“Oh, can you now?” I asked, my eyebrows shooting up in question.

“Of course I can!” he opened his mouth, pretending to be shocked. “So,” he drew it out, “how was your flight? Tell me about your trip, the climate, the people...anything.” Loki prompted.

“You mean anything other than what I have already told you each night I was away, or weren’t you listening?” I asked, mocking him now. “Okay,” I paused, thinking on what I hadn’t had a chance to share with him yet, “Marcus, you know Marcus?” I said, waiting for his response, he nodded. “Well, yesterday was our day to just have a bit of a break, and all of us went down to the pool…” I started laughing, unable to finish momentarily, “he coaxed me into going, and when we got down there he picked me up and threw me in the pool.” I paused momentarily to lift my pants leg to show a bright red cut, “Unfortunately, I got a little scraped up in the process”.

Loki’s eyes darkened, and the smile faded from his lips. “He did what?!” I could see anger brewing in his green eyes.

I put my hands up in defense, “No, no Loki, it was fine, all fun and games. Everyone thought it was funny.”

Loki stood, towering over me from across the table. “How dare he lay his filthy hands on you!” he spat, venomously.

“It’s fine, really Loki, I--”.

Loki growled, and threw the table to the side. He took one step, reached down and brought me to my feet. His hands gripped me around my hips tightly. I could see anger and hunger in his eyes.

He looked me up and down, “And, how brazen and careless of you to mention another man, when I am this…” He paused, licking his lips, and I felt a shudder go through his body, “lascivious towards you”. His greens eyes glimmered with his lust, and he bent down to whisper in my ear, “I need to be inside you, Now” he crooned. “The things I could do to you, Y/N”.

I melted, closing my eyes, tilting my chin up to give into him.

He knelt down and began to kiss me, passionately, his body rocking against me, moving us back and forth.

I could feel him pressing into my lower abdomen, the heat from his length igniting a fire of desire within me.

He pushed his tongue between my lips, and I swirled my own around his, before gently sucking on his tongue. This sent him over the edge, and he moaned into my lips.

He backed me down the hallway, removing my clothes as he did.

At last, the back of my legs touched the bed, and he pulled away from me, grasping my arms. He tilted his head down and gazed determinedly into my eyes, looking through his dark lashes. “Are you sure?” he asked in a dark whisper.

I nodded my head vigorously, “I want to feel you Loki, inside me”, I replied as I began to undo the buttons on his shirt.

He flashed his teeth at me in response, lifting his hands from my arms to help me finish unclothing him.

“At last” he sighed, relieved, “I can see you, Y/N, all of you”.

He picked me up, throwing me on the bed, “only I can do this to you”, he said more to reassure himself.

I laid there, sliding my hand across the mattress, reaching for his own, beckoning for him to join me.

“Wait, my pet,” he said with a pleased smile on his lips, “I want to take all of you in for a moment”. He stood there, and placed his hand on my thighs, tracing his fingers back and forth. A quiet moan escaped my lips.

His eyes moved from where his hands were to my face, “Oh now, you shouldn’t have done that.” he said menacingly, “Now I must take you”. He slowly bent down, pushing the back of my thighs as I slid higher up the mattress.

His face rested between my thighs, and he smelled me, his eyes closing, lids fluttering. My scent drove him wild, and he looked at me his eyes glowing with excitement and arousal.

The God bent his head down and let his tongue taste me, moving back in forth in gentle, light circles around my clit.

I sang out, ecstasy falling from my lips. Every now and again, he would pause to look at me, watching me in awe as my legs shook and my back arched, then he would continue, his hot tongue causing my clit to swell. With one hand he would reach up to grab at my breast, and with his other, he took two fingers to rhythmically pluck at my g-spot.

I was begging for him to be inside me, “Ooo, Loki pp-please.”

He played the fool, “Please what, my pet?” he asked, crooning.

“Please, I need--” I stopped unable to finish, as he surprised me by pushing himself inside me. A loud moan pushed out from the back of my throat in response, intense pleasure washing over me.

“Is this what you wanted my pet?” He asked, as he took a deep breath. “Ahhh” he let it back out, his mouth opening and his eyes shutting momentarily.

I couldn’t speak, instead I nodded.

He slowly pulled his hips back, removing most of his shaft, only his tip remaining. “I didn’t hear you my pet, was this what you wanted?” He asked, “should I stop?” He said, smirking.

I opened my eyes wide and found my voice, “No!” I said, loudly, “Don't stop, please.” I begged.

He chuckled, slamming back into me, and I let out a gasp.

His lips touched my ear, “I have been waiting for this--” he paused as he thrust deeper into me, moving his hips back and forth, “ungh, for so long.” he finished.

He drew his head back to look into my eyes, then glanced down, gazing hungrily at my body.

I began to move my hips off the mattress, swirling myself around him, bringing him in and around me. His eyes closed shut tightly, “So hot.” he breathed out, followed by a deep moan, and I chuckled. His eyes opened again, and he continued to drink me in, watching my hips thrusting and turning-- watching me take his length into me. He vehemently watched where we were connected.

His arousal became to much for him then, and his hand shot down to my hips, pushing them into the mattress. “My love,” the words left his lips quickly, in a rush, “stop, stop!” he pleaded. “Stop!” He said louder, his eyes shutting tightly again, his body ceasing to move with my own. “I’m close,” he said, grunting after, trying to stop his orgasm from erupting.

I stopped momentarily, and groaned, frustrated.

His eyes shot to my face, “Don’t” he breathed, shaking his head slightly.

He was still looking into my eyes, trying desperately to communicate to me to stop moving. Then suddenly, beyond his control his skin began to turn. He had mentioned his Jotun form to me before, but I had yet to see it. Intricate ridges arose on his skin, everywhere. His eyes snapped shut momentarily, and when they opened again they were deep, maddened red. He was losing control, and knowing this sent my body reeling. My body rolled in response to his changing, my chest bucking up and my back arching.

“Ohhhh” his mouth fell open, his red eyes closing, and suddenly he removed himself from inside me quickly. I looked at him, able to see him fully now, his pale blue skin with its intricate ridges fascinating me.

“Don’t look at me--” he paused searching for words, “I am a monster”.

He could never be a monster, I shook my head weakly. “You are a god, my prince, and I worship you” I said quietly.

I edged towards him, still on my back, moving my hips to take him in.

We sighed together as I took him in, feeling each other, seeing each other entirely.

I began rolling my hips again, keeping my eyes on him, captivated by his alluring beauty, as he went from glancing down to drink in my body to closing his burning red eyes tightly.

Again, he grabbed my hips, and ordered me to stop, but I was past the point of being able to. I tried momentarily, but I couldn’t control my body, my hips began bucking. He took one  arm pinning my hips down again, “Don’t move!” he whispered, coercing me with his glowing red eyes. I couldn’t stop, I looked into his eyes. I was enthralled by him, and he was bewitched by me.I began moving, “No!” he shouted, “Please, a moment.” he pleaded. I knew he was trying desperately to last longer for me.

I stopped moving as commanded, but my breath was still coming in quickly, my breasts rising and falling, my nipples grazing his flesh. I could feel a feverish swell burning inside me, “Loki I-- I’m cuming”. The combination of my words, my eyes on his own, and my panting breath was enough to finish him.

He thrust into me, moaning loudly, calling out my name, and we came together, while he pounded his cum deep inside my belly.

We laid there, embracing each other, silent for several moments. I cuddled up next to him, resting my head on his chest, and began to trace and study every line on his pale blue skin, until they faded away from view.

BONUS because I love y’all: 

I really hope you all enjoyed your time with Loki here in this fic, and your glimpse of him in Jotun form-- more where that came from! If you like the fic please please leave me some feedback and/or reblog. Reblogging really helps get my art out there and encourages me to write more lascivious, lovely Loki fics! 

****If you would like to be on the general Loki taglist or taglist for any particular future fic please drop an ask in my ask box. 

I have Ko-fi and venmo

Thank you for reading! 

Peace friends,  Loki’s Pet Tiger

[peachesandfiction]

It’s only the beginning

Pairing: Succubus Rosé x Female reader

word count: 1.6k

You stretched your arms high above your head as you closed your eyes against the bright light of the morning sun. Letting out a deep breath, your eyes scanned around the bedroom with clothes and a few papers scattered across the floor. Just as you were about to lay back down and instead let the comfort of your warm blankets steal the productivity of your day, there was a loud knock at your front door.

You groaned into the tingling palm of your hands as your body started to wake up more. Slowly, you slid off of the bed, your feet landing on the cool ground as you run your hand down your face. The knock came again, louder this time. “I’m coming,” you yelled before hurrying through the hallway and to the door.

Opening the door, you were met with the kind, warm smile of your friend. “Good morning Y/N. I’m sorry to bother you but I found this book during my shift at the library and the librarian said she had been trying to get rid of it,” she held out a dark leather-bound book towards you. The title had been carved into the cover of the book, it’s was in a language you haven’t seen before.

You let your eyes slowly find their way back to your friend’s, confusion playing within them, “what is this book?”

“I’m not for sure,” your friend dropped the book into your hands, its weight causing you to slouch. She waited for you to skim through the book. The pages’  edges were roughly cut as they slipped between your fingers. As they fell back into place, you saw small flashes of each content the page held. It looked like the type of book you would see in old fantasy movies. As if a wizard had own this and filled it with personal spells.

You let the cover close before tucking the book back under your arm, “alright, I guess I’ll check it out and just tell you what it’s about.”

“Awesome, well, I have to go now! Saturday is still on, right?”

You waved at her as she started walking away, “Yeah! Have a good day!”

Turning back to the door of your house, the inside looked dimly lit and held an ominous feeling. Squeezing your eyes shut, you shook your head before finally going inside and letting the door shut behind you. You made your way to your room, letting the book bounce ontop of the bed as you flipped through the pages a bit. Most of the language was hard to decipher, but there was one page that had familiar words. You read them aloud, before leaving the book alone.

“I should get ready for today,” you tell yourself as you force your legs over to your wardrobe. Shifting through shirts, you hadn’t notice the light starting to emit from the strange book yet. Your fingers slipped under the fabric of your shirt before you lifted it and pulled it off of your torso. It hung from your fingertips as you began to reach for another shirt.

“Well, hello there,” came a soft, seductive voice. You pulled both of the shirts in your hands over yourself as you turned to find a girl with light orange hair and a sweet smile lying over the rumpled covers of your bed next to the book. Quickly, she flipped around, her hands and knees pressing into your soft mattress as she started to lean towards you, “need help there, cutie.”

You were still quiet, unsure of what to do as the girl slipped off of your bed and towards you. Your eyes couldn’t help but watch her long legs as they grew closer to you. Letting your eyes slide back up to the girl’s, you realized how close she really was now. Just as her hands reached for the shirts in yours, you pulled away, falling into your wardrobe full of clothes, causing them to rain down on you and the floor, “st-stay back.”

“Baby, no need to worry. You summoned me, let me pleasure you as much as you need,” the girl started to lean down to help you, but the exposure of the top of her breasts caused you to try to back pedal, banging your head against the wooden door behind you.

“Sum-summoned,” you could feel the panic rising in your voice as the girl continued to get closer to you.

“Yeah, I was trapped in the page of that book for centuries, and then you freed me,” she smiled, her hands sliding down your exposed arm, “so,” she leaned close, her whisper tempting, “how would you like me to please you?”

Consternated, your hands shook as they pushed the girl away before you scrambled back up. Your feet hurried towards the door, but the girl beat you, shutting you off from your only escape.

Her legs slinked while her hips swayed towards your confused figure. Your feet bounced as your eyes scanned for anyway else to leave, but then the girl’s fingers were around your chin, lightly guiding your eyes to her, “how about I introduce myself first, and then we can discuss my duties.”

“Duties,” you asked as you slipped on a random shirt in your hand.

“Well,” her voice grew deep, “you are my master now, so I have to tell you how I can satisfy you.”

“Master,” your eyes grew wide.

She laughed, “Yes, master. And I am now your loyal, lovable succubus, Chaeyoung.”

“I’m sorry, what now?”

“I’m a succubus, my job is to-”

“I know what a succubus is. What do you mean you are one?”

“… that I am one? I can prove it to you,” Chaeyoung said all to eagerly as she bounced closer to you.

You shook your hands and head at her, “no need to!” Then your phone alarm started to go off behind you. Your eyes glanced towards it, seeing it was your reminder to go pick up you friend from her class. Swiping up your phone and your car keys, you rushed over to the door, “well I have to go.”

Without looking behind you, you hurried out, throwing open your car door before slamming it shut and shoving your keys into the ignition. Once you were down the road, you let out a sigh of relief.

“So, where are we going,” Chaeyoung’s voice asked.

She appeared in the mirror, causing you to swerve. Straightening the car, you yelled, “how the fuck are you here?”

“We are tied together now. You are my master, and wherever master is, I follow.”

“You have got to be kidding me,” you slumped in your seat as the car sat idled before the red light.

Chaeyoung giggled, her hand running up and down your arm, “I can flirt, but I can’t tell a lie.” Her fingers pressed lightly into your shoulder, causing her to gasp, “wow, your shoulders feel so tense. Don’t worry I can help.”

Chaeyoung’s fingers slipped from your shoulder towards your leg, inching towards the top of your pajama pants that you hadn’t changed out of yet. From the sudden touch, you hips bucked before you pushed her hand away, “stop that.”

“Your body wants it though,” her lips pouted but you kept driving, trying to pretend that she wasn’t there.

The car finally pulled up to the library. Your friend hurried from the steps towards the car, throwing open the door, he smiled, “yo, thanks for the rides again. They finally got back to me about my car.”

“How is everything going with that,” you asked, waiting for him to buckle up. Your eyes darting between the mirror where Chaeyoung still pouted and then back over to your friend.

“It’s starting to se-” The car behind you honked, interrupting your friend. “I think maybe you should start driving.”

Shaking your head to focus, you pulled away from the library curb and back towards the road. Once things settled down, you asked again, “so they are able to fix your car?”

“Yeah, it’s gonna cost quite a bit, but my dad said he can help me pay for it if I help him with building a treehouse for my little sister.”

“That’s cool,” you remarked, turning onto the street your friend lived on.

“Yeah. I was worried that I would have to drop college and get a second job. I’m so close to finishing my degree.”

“I’m glad that you don’t though,” you told him as you pulled up to his place.

He started to get out fo the car, but then he stopped and leaned back in, “are you free tomorrow?”

“I think so, why,” you asked, surprised.

“I was wondering if you would like to go bowling with me?”

Smiling, you nodded, “I’ll let you know how things go tomorrow, alright?”

He nodded, “Cool, yeah. Well, see ya.”

The door closed and you watched him to make sure he got inside. Chaeyoung now slipped from the back seat and into the empty passenger seat, her thighs pressing against you for a moment before they were firmly in the seat. She leaned across the console, her fingers playing with the end of your shirt, “now that he is gone-”

You shook your head, “no. Please, just. Stop touching me.”

Chaeyoung pulled back, surprised, “what?”

“I don’t like close contact with people,” you told her, pulling back into the street one more time, “you are making me uncomfortable.”

“I am not meaning-”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Will you let me know what makes you comfortable,” Chaeyoung asked as she leaned towards you again.

You just stayed silent as you made your way back towards your house. Parking the car, you leaned back into the seat.

Chaeyoung asked again, “what makes you comfortable?”

“Silence,” you whispered, somewhat tiredly.

She nodded before asking, “is flirting okay?”

“Flirting?”

“yeah,” she smirked.

You sighed, feeling your body sink more into the seat of your car, “fine, I guess. Just stop trying to touch me.”

Chaeyoung nodded her head quickly, “you got it… master.”

You could feel your cheeks heat up followed by Chaeyoung’s laugh.

“This is going to be fun.”

[tommyquackson]

The Plant That Grew From the Root of All Evil |P. Parker| Part 2

summary: you’re no good girl, no you’re quite the opposite, chaos itself even, yet somehow, he still affects you // in which a villan and a superhero cross paths

warnings: murder, violence, witchcraft and possesions?, cursing of curse, and torture (lowkey intense) 

pairing: peter parker x villan!reader

authors note: this isnt exactly a love fic?? cause like it was more about their lives than eachother.. but idk i may change the last part and have them end up together, let me know though...

“Hey Pete, we still going to Mays for sunday dinner?” Ned asks his best friend and roommate. Peter is jolted out of his deep thoughts and research.

“Oh uh yea, text may and tell her we’ll be there in like in like 30 mins. I’ll text Tony.” He says finishing up reading the article he was on.

“What’re you working so hard on? Like we just finished midterms.” Ned walks behind peter to see what he’s reading.

“It’s just, some girl. You know Angel?”

“Angel....Oh! The badass lady villain you’ve been fighting?”

Peter gives his best friend a look of confusion.

“Uh..I mean, that bad criminal that’s wreaking havoc and that the amazing spider-man is gonna take down?” Ned corrects with a guilty smile on his face.

“Yea, well i found out she’s got, like i don’t know powers? I guess”

“What kind of powers?” Ned pulls up a chair to sit.

“I’m not sure” Peter rubs his face in thought. “Like strength and speed but it’s not like crazy noticeable. She-she-her eyes like glow? yea they glow like red and it’s creepy and I have no idea where she even came from.”

“Why don’t you ask that girl from high school? Remember everyone said she was like a pagan or something and she practiced dark magic and stuff. Maybe she knows something about it. What was her name? Something like-“

“Y/n!” Peter knows exactly who that is. She’d always been extremely quiet. She stayed in the library most days and seemed to always be studying dark magic and weird stuff like that.

How was he supposed to find you though, you’d dropped out of school 2 months before graduation. You didn’t have any friends and no one knew anything about you.

“I have no idea where she could even be” Peter says defeated.

“Oh she works part time at the library next to the little park. It’s just a train ride away. Can’t take more than 10 minutes.” Ned says moving to pull up the place on Peters laptop.

“Ned, you’re the best man in the chair a hero could ask for” Peter says winking at him, making ned swell with pride. “We can go tomorrow after classes, now come on. May and Tony are waiting”

Your day job was nothing short of fairly boring, you worked at the library near a small community college so you really only had to deal with students trying to study and little kids reading picture books. The library was fairly big so each librarian handled their own section. You handled the history and “magic/religion” section. But since that section was usually only littered with students trying to write a history paper, you stayed at the front desk on your floor.

Today, you’ve been at work since 9am and it’s already 3pm. You don’t get to leave until 8. You’re sitting at the desk, filing through the books that are recorded as late. You hear the door to your section open and you look up to greet whoever’s there.

“Hello, welcome to Green Acres, History and Magic/Religions section what can I do for you?” You speak kindly to the 2 college aged boys who walked in with their backpacks.

“Hey, this is probably super weird, but we actually wanted to talk to you” The smaller, white one speaks as he gets to the desk.

“Umm-“

“Sorry my friend Peter, made that seem really weird. I’m Ned, we went to high school with you. We just had a few questions and we figured given your occupation you’d be the best to help us” The larger one says stepping in front of “Peter”.

How’d they know you worked here, you haven’t talked to anyone from high school. Which occupation is he talking about, do they know about your secret identity. If so, how you’d been so careful.

“Okay...well what’d ya wanna know?” You relaxing into your chair a bit.

“We have questions about like powers... A friend of mine, she um, well they started behaving strangely and I was wondering if you could help figure out what was wrong?” Peter says tapping his long fingers on the desk.

“oh, sorry i’m in the magic and historical and section you’d be better off asking Mrs. Alice in the health and personal care section.” I say wondering why this boy would need my help. I’m not a doctor.

“oH! Yea I know, but my friend, we uh, we suspect that it has something to maybe do with possible magic?”

“You think you’re friend has gotten in to magic?” You raise your eyebrow.

“I know it sounds crazy but please you’re the only person i could think of to help me”

“Why because everyone at Midtown thought I was a dark and evil witch” You speak standing up from your desk and walking towards the shelves.

“No! No- I just, you used to study witchcraft and i figured since you work in the history section you could tell me if this has happened before. I didn’t mean to imply your a witch, that would be rude but I-“

“Who said they were wrong” You wink before guiding the boys towards a dimly lit section. “So, What’s happening with your friend” You say pulling out your favorite books.

“Well, she uh she’s much stronger than she was before, and she’s faster and more agile. She also has this um, this like type of glow around her? It’s like black and then her eyes glow red”

“Mhm, whole eye or just the iris?” You speak turning to one book.

“iris”

You look at the pages that detail when spells go wrong. Nothing describes the right situation. You turn to entities that may be possibly possessing the friend.

“I’m not seeing anything, wait, you said she has a glow around her kinda like an aura right?” You slam the book closed and move to this super large book about entities and witchcraft.

“Yea..”

“Holy fuck. Your friend, might just be the Grand One. The Grand One is someone chosen by the evil sprites to possess the grand power. It can be anyone, or anything at anytime for any reason. But they tend to sway towards people who have practiced and studied dark magic. If this chick gets anymore powerful, which i’m assuming she will, if you’re telling me the truth, she can wreak extreme havoc on New York. But that’s all if you believe in that mumbo jumbo anyway.” You slam the book closed and put it back on the shelf before walking away to your desk again. It was different outside, you could see through the large windows that the atmosphere had changed.

“Um. Thanks y/n, you helped out a lot” Peter and his friend Ned smiled as they left my building, whispering to each other.

You’d forgotten about the Grand One. It was simply just a dream you’d had when you were little. Telling you what would become of you. The people you would hurt and the chaos you’d reign. You thrived in chaos, reveled in it even, but it was a certain chaos. It was the frustration of everyone around you, knowing they’re just not smart enough, or strong enough not worth enough. It was the slow, dark, treaterous journey to the depths of hell that got your blood really moving.

At least, that’s how it was in the dreams. In real life, you weren’t exactly sure what was going on. You were too busy living day to day hoping that it’s all gonna be enough one day.

But what if, no, she wouldn’t have chosen you, she shouldn’t have chosen you. You weren’t meant to be the one to destroy the city. You weren’t Loki, you were just Hells Angel, low-level villanary. So why was the world trying to make you more powerful. It’s not what you wanted. But who dares be ungrateful when the gift of the Grand One is bestowed upon them, it certainly was quite a gift.

You shake your head and get back to work, waiting until it’s time to go home. When the time does come for you to go home, once again the atmosphere of the world has changed. It seems almost, sinister in a way. Like everyone knows it’s all ending tonight, they’re just not sure how or why.

You step through your house and hear thunder begin to roll outside, Shovel darts across the room and behind your legs. You weren’t expecting storms tonight, just then a strike of lightning lights up the entire room and you hear Eddie flip out upstairs.

fight

destroy

You spun your head around to see who could possibly have whispered that in your ear. You grab a knife you have and slowly inspect your room and apartment, you find nothing.

take

kill

THERE IT WAS AGAIN! A whisper, barely there but still strong enough to have you almost trembling in fear.

y/n

“who are you? what do you want” You felt so cheesy yelling those cliche lines.

you

Suddenly, you’re pushed down to your knees, when you look up you see her. She looks just like the picture in the old book you’d shown Peter and Ned just hours before. Her old face clouded in a dark fog like aura. Her eyes were red and empty, her long boney finger reached for you.

i have traveled years

to show you your destiny

my fate is now yours

Was this bitch really speaking in haikus right now? And what was she talking about? She continued to repeat her haiku from hell and seemed to get closer to you.

“If you’re the Grand One, does that mean i’m the one who you’re gonna possess?” You ask at her. She doesn’t answer just gets louder and closer.

You get a splitting pain in your head, it feels like someone is driving a knife between your cranium. You scream out and cover your ears as the witch gets louder and louder.

Then everything is silent, the witch is gone and so is the pain in your head. You look around and you feel normal. You sit on your bed in shock.

Was she in you now? Were you possessed? What would happen now?

you’ve always been possessed

i’ve been here for some time now

you recognize that voice! That’s Hells Angel, her voice drops am octave lower than yours and she speaks slowly but more confident. You’re going crazy.

You hear a knock on your door.

“Y/n? Are you okay? It’s Eddie, We-uh- I heard you screaming”

You stumble to the door and rip it open trying to fix your hair.

“Eddie, hey. Yea i’m fine. Just got a little frustrated with um, the TV. You know how Family Fued can get” You out on your best fake smile and lean against the door frame. Trying not to let Shovel out. “Are you okay? I know you don’t like storms and that lighting was weird” You speak trying to change the subject.

“Oh yea, just uh, caught us, me. It caught me off guard. Well, just wanted to check on you. So uh, goodnight y/n. Let me know if you need anything” He bods before sticking his hands in his hoodie pockets and walking up the stairs at the end of the hall.

You shut the door and walk back to your bed, ready to just go to sleep. You settle in and close your eyes almost asleep.

tonight’s the night 

“oh for fucks sake”

taglist: @detroitconnorfangirl @unicorn-sparkles123 @shallowshawn

[mariequitecontrarie]

People Will Talk: Part 2

Summary: Atticus Gold and newcomer Belle French have developed a relationship no one in Storybrooke approves of, and people make their opinion known in small-minded, small-town fashion: he’s too old for her, and the pretty young librarian needs to find friends her own age. When Gold ends the relationship to protect Belle’s reputation, the town turns on him again. To make matters worse, his friends and family are mad at him, too. But as we all know, love wins in the end. Chapter Summary: Gold hasn't seen Belle in two weeks and Alice is not happy with him. Belle gets an unpleasant surprise. Rating / Word Count: T / 3000  A/N: Continuing Marie’s Three-Year Writing Anniversary Rumor/Assumed Fake Dating/Family AU that no one asked for. @maplesyrupao3 -- bless you!

On AO3

Part 1 on AO3 | Part 1 on Tumblr

Two Weeks Later

“Alice, why are you looking at me like that?”

Gold held his breath and waited, cursing himself for asking. He was guaranteed not to like the answer, but anything was better than the silent treatment.

Alice stopped dusting the cabinet of china dolls to fix him with another poisonous glare. “Because you’re a horse’s ass who has more money than brains.”

“Noted. Can you at least keep up with your duties while you insult me? Time is still money, dearie, even here in the barnyard.” Squabbling, at least, was familiar territory.

Gold waved a hand around the tidy pawnshop, wondering who worked for whom. He owned the store, but Alice called the shots. Sometimes it seemed like his only job was bankrolling Alice’s Amazon Prime spending sprees while she worked her way through Storybrooke College.

The only person he knew who shopped more than Alice was...no, he wasn’t going there.

Still glowering at him like he was something she scraped from the bottom of her shoe, Alice worked her way around the perimeter of the shop with her feather duster. He had to admit she did keep the cobwebs at bay and his stockroom organized, even if she annoyed the hell out of him in the process.

He glanced at the restored cuckoo clock on the wall. It was almost lunchtime, and Alice had been scowling at him since she’d shown up for work this morning. Trying to ignore her, he eased behind the counter and opened the books.

She fell silent for a short, precious moment, then slapped her hands on the countertop.“Ha! I know what your problem is. You’re in a foul temper because you haven’t seen your sweetheart. Belle hasn’t popped in for two weeks. What’s wrong? Lovers’ quarrel?”

“Beg pardon?” he asked, pretending to study his ledgers.

Feigning ignorance never worked on Alice. So like a Jones. Stubborn and mouthy, just like her father. She continued to bore holes into the top of his head, muttering to herself about how he was apologizing to the wrong person until he looked up with a long-suffering sigh.

Talking, talking. Why was the girl always talking? An ocular migraine threatened to form, sharp and urgent above his nose. Tiny sparks exploded in his peripheral vision, and he pressed his fingers against his forehead.

He supposed he could send his little conscience home from work to get her out of his way, but she was more than an employee—she was his goddaughter—and he’d promised Hook he would keep tabs on Alice while he was at sea. Killian “Hook” Jones’ career as a Naval officer meant lengthy tours of duty up to six months, and he knew Alice and her papa missed each other dreadfully while he was away. Guilt poked his conscience; he hadn’t emailed Hook with an update in at least two weeks. But he knew his oldest (and only) friend would question him about Belle, and he was neither willing to lie nor ready to confide. Besides, he reasoned, Alice could text her papa anytime she wanted with her smartphone thingy.

“If you’re not going to work, why don’t you study?” he murmured, trying to concentrate on his July sales numbers. “Isn’t there a women’s lit paper due tomorrow or something?”

“Books!” she shouted, making him jump. “That’s it! Why don’t you take these books back to the library for me?”

Alice plopped a pile of novels on top of the financials, jarring him from his thoughts. He pinched the bridge of his nose hard. Now he would have to rework the column of numbers all over again.

“I was hoping to get advice from Belle on a dress for my date with Robin on Friday, but this’ll give you an excuse to see her instead.” Alice grinned, delighted with her solution.

He shoved the books aside with a huff. “I’m not looking for an excuse.”

“Why the hell not?” Abandoning the pretense of working entirely, she dropped the feather duster on the floor and hoisted herself up on top of the counter.

He set his teeth on edge. “Belle and I aren’t friends anymore.”

“Friends?” She smirked. “If you’re friends, then I’m straight. Hate to break it to you, Uncle Atty, but you two have never been friends. She’s in love with you! And you love her, too.”

“What makes you say so?” he asked carefully, looking at his nails.

“Oh, I don’t know. The dark circles under your eyes. The constipated look on your face. You look like a saggy, twitchy, miserable old man.” She held up a brown paper bag. “Want a sandwich?”

He turned around, assessing his appearance in the antique mirror that hung on the wall behind the cash register. “I am a saggy, twitchy, miserable old man,” he snapped. “And no, I’m not hungry.”

“When Belle’s around, you look all soft and floppy and happy, like Rabbit does whenever I come home.” Alice smiled another cheeky grin.

He smiled back at her in spite of himself. “Well, I’ve been called worse, dearie, but If you’re expecting to bring me to heel like that stupid old dog of yours, it’ll be a cold day in hell.” He slammed the ledger closed and headed for the workroom. The girl trailed after him, still clutching her paper sack.

“I have egg salad,” she teased, shaking the bag. “Your favorite.”

It used to be. He shuddered, his stomach lurching. Eggs were a definite no. Now whenever he saw any sort of egg concoction, he thought of Belle’s pinched, white face on that hot July afternoon thirteen days ago when he ended their friendship. Not that he was counting the days since they’d been apart.

“I don’t eat eggs anymore,” he said. “Too much cholesterol.” No one knew his house had been egged besides Belle, and he wasn’t going to whine about it to Alice. He still had some pride. “You don’t like eggs, you don’t like Belle.” Alice spread her hands wide and twirled in a circle. “What do you like, Sam-I-Am?”

He pulled a face. “Peace and quiet. Both seem to be in short supply.”

Laughing at his sour expression, she plopped down on one of the stools at the work table and dangled her sandwich in front of his nose. “How about marmalade? I’ll trade ya.”

Alice was volunteering to eat the egg salad and offering her favorite lunch. Things really were as bad as they seemed, then. “Fine.”

Resigned, he sat down beside her, accepting half of the sandwich. He took a small bite to stop her prattling, but he had no appetite. Food had no flavor, the whole world drained of color and light without Belle. He missed her; her laughter, her touches, her insatiable appetite for stuffed crust pizza.

“Eat,” Alice insisted, clucking over him like a little mama.

He swallowed the bite of sandwich and forced himself to take another. “So, did you choose a dress for your date?” he asked, attempting both to change the subject and rejoin the land of the living. “Where are you and Robin going?”

“It’s just Tony’s.” Alice shrugged like the occasion was no big deal, and took a massive bite of her sandwich.

A six month anniversary is an important milestone.” He took out his pocket square and folded it into a perfect crown, trying not to be hurt that she hadn’t asked his advice. “Your father wouldn’t know style if it bit him on the arse, but I know my way around a clothing boutique.”

“I know,” she said around a mouthful of egg salad. “But I was kinda wanting the opinion of another woman. No offense.”

‘Another woman’ meant Belle. He cleared his throat. “None taken.” Not for the first time he was reminded that walking away from Belle didn’t only affect him. Alice looked up to Belle like an older sister, and he hoped his relationship failings weren’t driving a wedge between Alice and Belle, too.

Poking at the crust on his sandwich, he wondered what Belle was doing right now. She was probably balancing a book on her lap while she ate, dropping sandwich crumbs between the pages and... no. Gold mentally slapped himself. Cutting a person out of your life meant giving up the right to wonder.

Alice polished off the first half of her sandwich and started on the second. “Belle was at Granny’s the other night,” she offered slyly, employing her uncanny knack for reading his mind.

He choked on the sticky bit of bread in his mouth. “Oh? With anyone?” Ugh . When it came to the people he cared about, he was terrible at nonchalance.

“Yeah. Tall bloke with sparkling blue eyes and a strong, lean jaw.” She batted her eyelashes. “Didn’t recognize him, but it looked like a date.”

Date? Belle had gone on a date? He would find out who the bastard was and he would crush his windpipe with his cane. Gold looked down at his hands. They were coated in marmalade, the mangled sandwich crushed between his palms.

“Way to play it cool, Uncle Atty.” Alice smirked and he rose to wash his sticky hands. “I’m kidding. But I wouldn’t have made a joke if I knew you were this upset. Belle was at a booth with some other people. Ruby, Mulan, and Mary Margaret. Waved at me once, but she was picking at her food and staring at the wall whenever I tried to catch her eye. It’s obvious she’s missing you. Can’t you fix this?”

“I couldn’t possibly be intelligent enough to do that,” he said, grateful sarcasm was there to cover his relief at Belle not being on a date after all.

“Mmm, I see.” Alice rolled her eyes. “She’s the first woman who saw through your little act, isn’t she? Now you’re grouchy because you’ve gone and screwed up the best thing in your life because some Granny, Marco, and some other ignorant busybodies have their noses out of joint. Since when are you afraid of them, anyway?”

“Afraid? Ha!” He flashed his gold tooth in a warning snarl. This conversation was ridiculous.

“Cripes, this place can be so backward. Even the clock doesn’t move here.” Alice gestured down the street toward the clock tower, which had been stuck at 8:15 for twenty years. “I’d say we’re living in a land time forgot, but it’s been a common practice in most societies for younger women and older men to marry for generations.”

“Marry?” He sputtered. “Who said anything about marriage?”

“Obviously not you!”

He crossed his arms and grunted. “Reverse psychology doesn’t work on me, child. I used to change your nappies.”

“That’s right, you did. So why are you pretending I don’t know you?” She swallowed the rest of her sandwich in a gulp and chased it with half a can of Dr. Pepper soda. “People whisper all sorts of wicked things about me. Some of them are true and some of them are outright lies. We’re alike in that way, you and I. So what? If I paid attention to what everyone said, I’d never leave the house.”

“I know, honey.” He smoothed his hands over the smooth grain of the worktable, ashamed of himself. Alice had more than her share of bad days, days when she couldn’t come into work. Times when she came to the shop and wandered around as though in a dream, trailing her fingers through cabinets coated in dust, a faraway look in her eyes. What he suffered was nothing in comparison, and yet he couldn’t seem to ignore the thick fog of prejudice and judgment that suffocated him whenever he was with Belle.

“People talk no matter what we do; doesn’t mean we have to listen.” She patted his shoulder. “You sure as hell don’t listen to me, and I talk your head off every damn day.”

He gave her a fond smile and kissed the top of her head. “Don’t remind me.”

Day after day of pretending she was fine was exhausting, but Belle had been doing a fair job of holding herself together since Gold had unceremoniously dumped her on his front porch. She wasn’t sure it counted as a dump if you only fantasized you were a couple, but according to the ache in her chest, it was real.

The busier the day, the better. If she kept moving from task to task, she could ignore her shattered heart. She showed up for her library shifts without fail, she checked books in and out, and chattered with people about their lives. Today she had even helped several eleventh graders with their Marie Antoinette biographies. Staying busy was working until the last hour of the day when the flow of patrons slowed to a trickle and she sat down at her desk to open the mail.

She quickly sorted through the typical bills, catalogs, and overdue fine payments, arranging them into piles. A plain, clean white envelope addressed directly to her stood out from the rest of the mail, and she saved it for last. There was no return address, but the faint scent of antiseptic clung to the crisp envelope.

Belle ripped the envelope open and a drawing sketched on a piece of ruled notebook paper floated to the floor. What she saw made her bite down on her lip hard, the metallic tang of blood filling her mouth. It was a crude illustration, but she could make out the Beast from the movie Beauty and the Beast , drawn wrinkled and old, wearing a suit and tie and clenching a cane in his gnarled claw. He was ogling a young woman who was reading a book. The woman wore a version of movie Belle’s famous golden dress, but the skirt barely grazed her thigh and the bodice dipped all the way to her navel. Clearly, the image was meant to be of her and Gold.

She stared down at the crude representation, then crumpled it in her fist. It was a cheap attempt at an insult, drawing her to look like some sort of slutty temptress and Gold as a dirty old man. Rage ripped through her in a white-hot streak, and her mind narrowed to a singular purpose: finding out who had done this. Tonight.

Belle shot to her feet, knocking over her chair.

Granny’s Diner was the social hub of Storybrooke, and the best place to get to the bottom of nonsense, but she was far too impatient to wait until the library closed. She chased the last few stragglers out of the library and slammed the door behind her, jamming the key in the lock with shaking hands until it clicked. With frayed nerves, she stomped all the way to Granny’s, the drawing clutched in her closed fist. The early August evening air was warm and humid, and sweat trickled down her back as she marched down Main Street. While she hurried down the sidewalk, she tried to puzzle out who had drawn and sent the picture and why. Rumors and innuendo aside, there was something perplexing about caring so much for Gold and yet holding physical evidence that other people couldn’t see the tender, handsome man she knew.

Small towns produced small minds.

The tables at Granny’s were packed. It was Thursday during dinner rush—the most popular night—and people clustered inside the front door and on the patio outside, waiting for the chance to sit down. All the barstools were occupied, platters and baskets of food sitting in front of every person. Good. Belle wanted a large audience for what she was about to do.

She toed off her heels and climbed up on the counter. Mr. Clark from the pharmacy stared at her in horror, then sneezed and wrapped an arm around an enormous, sauce-covered square of lasagna, drawing it closer for protection. Ruby stood frozen at the cash register, and Ashley Boyd narrowly missed dropping the tray of dirty dishes she was carrying, almost colliding with town psychiatrist Archie Hopper as she narrowly saved the plates from slipping to the floor.

Behind the counter, Granny made an outraged, sputtering noise, the heat of her glare rivaling the sizzling grill. At the moment, it didn’t matter if Granny never sold her another hamburger or slice of chocolate cake for the rest of her life, Belle was getting some answers tonight . She turned around and faced the crowd.

“Who did this?” Belle called out, looking down over the sea of faces. She held up the drawing, still clenched in her shaking fist. The noise continued to drone on around her, the clatter of forks against plates, the townspeople oblivious to anything but their meals and their conversations. “I said who did this?”

“Look, Mommy!” yelled a blonde girl with curly pigtails. “That lady is fifty feet tall!” A hush came over the diner in a languid wave and all eyes turned to stare at Belle standing on the counter. Forks were laid down on plates with a quiet clatter. Time seemed to stand still and no one appeared to so much as breathe.  

“Does anyone want to confess?” she asked, shaking the drawing in her fist and glaring around the restaurant with narrowed eyes.

When no one stepped forward or admitted guilt, she dropped the drawing on the counter and ground it into the tile with her bare heel. “You’re all a bunch of cowards, you know that? Mr. Gold and I are friends, and it’s no one’s business but ours what we do. Your problem isn’t that he’s befriended a woman a few years younger than he is. Your problem is you’re a classless bunch of small-minded prigs.”

Jaws dropped and they gaped at her like fish in an aquarium, then fell back to their eating and chattering as though people stood on top of Granny’s counter raving like lunatics every day of the week.

Her limbs shook with anger, and she caught the sympathetic eyes of Mary Margaret and David Nolan. One minute they were sitting at the counter holding hands and sharing a basket of chicken fingers and the next thing she knew, they were flanking her, standing one on each side, like a pair of orderlies preparing to strap her into a straight jacket and wheel her away.

“Okay, Belle, that’s enough now, honey.” Mary Margaret’s voice was quiet and soothing, and Belle felt her knees begin to give out.

[clown-bait]

Paranormal Journeys Part 7 (Monster Roommate AU)

WOW I FINALLY DID IT. So I started a new job and things have been NUTS but this fic is not dead and I am determined to finish it. And dont you worry folks I’m a stubborn ass who does not quit. So here it is the next chapter. Leech gets tortured a bit and Penny visits an old friend. Hope you guys like it!

Ch 7 Mike Hanlon gets a Visitor

A screech echoed though the old barn of the former Hanlon sheep farm. Leech glanced furiously around the stall she was in. A moment ago she was full and happy then suddenly a cloth was pressed to her mouth and a bag over her head.

“WHO THE FUCK IS THE IDIOT THAT CHLOROFORMED ME!!” The vampire roared “CAUSE I’D LIKE TO KNOW WHO’S HEAD IM RIPPING OFF FIRST!”

Her head snapped in the direction of footsteps and she tried to charge with supernatural speed but felt a short chain attached to her neck snap tight. The nosferatu snapped her jaws in frustration.

“Ok guys get everything ready make sure the cameras are rolling and somebody wake up Chris.” Zander shouted as he approached the struggling vampire.

“Don't worry we’re going to help you.”

“BITCH THE ONLY HELP I NEED IS FINDING SPACE TO STORE YOUR LEFTOVERS!!” She snapped.

The ghost hunter pulled a cross from his coat and held it out at the nosferatu who began to hiss loud and sweat. He quickly put it away at her reaction.

“She's possessed all right, did you see how much she recoiled in terror? this is definitely a powerful demon were dealing with here”

“Demon?! Motherfucker I'm friends with demons, you wouldn't know a demon if it came up and bit you in the ass.” Leech spat and pulled on her chain.

“Note the foul language and denial. The creature that has ahold of her is definitely scared and trying to protect its self.”

“Protect myself from what? This shit show excuse of a reality tv exorcism? Tell ya what, if you free my hands i’ll spew pea soup at big boy over there and speak latin backwards. These shackles are tight as fuck can’t a girl get a little comfort?”

“Gosh its foul mouthed.” the bigger ghost hunter said to the team.

“Yeah thats how they are bro it's definitely going to try to provoke us. Whatever you do don't engage.” Zander said to his team mate while placing different items on a table

“You started it.” Leech mumbled. “What are those?”

“We're going to force you out of this poor girl.”

“AH! So its to be torture! I can cope with torture.” Leech flashed a cocky grin and wiggled her eyebrows expectantly.

“Did you…. steal that line from Princess Bride?” the bigger ghost hunter Rick asked her.

“Eeeyyy! Someone finally gets my references! And to think I was gonna eat this guy first!”

“RICK don't engage it!” Zander hissed

“Found our villain! Now tell me do you have six fingers on your left hand or am I gonna be calling you Humperdink”

“I think it was the right hand” Rick interjected

“Huh no shi-OW FUCK JESUS CHRIST!!!” Leech screamed as holy water was flung at her face by the lead ghost hunter. A cluster of painful burns began to bubble on her skin where the water had landed. “RUDE!”

“Silence demon!”

“I’M NOT A DEMON! GOD you are like the biggest edge lord! What’s next? You gonna start shouting bible verses too like they do in the movies?” she snarled as Chris walked in the room.

“Z I had the weirdest fucking dream.”

“Not now bro we’re doing the exorcism.”

“Yeah poorly. Bet you dickbags got all your training from bad horror movies and porn parodies.”

“Sheesh that thing is nasty” Chris winced

“Demon Dick 5?” the Rick asked as his companions glared at him in shock and annoyance.

“One of my favorites Rick. I like this guy have him do the exorcism!”

“We've already wasted enough time!” Zander shouted and picked up a book from the table he began to read a passage and Leech dramatically pretended to hiss and writhe her tongue lolling out of her mouth. “Hahaha Man oh man if Phil could hear you guys talking about him like this he'd be laughing with me just as hard! Shit wait somebody text him for me!”

“Why would we do that? Also who's phil?”

“Oh right, Phil is Satan we used to play poker together before my boyfriend banned it from the house. Not my doing for once lets get that clear.”

“Don't listen to a word its saying guys”

“Aw come on Humperdink let me just text my buddy once” her eyes flashed white over in Rick’s direction before being splashed with holy water once again. The nosferatu’s skin sizzled and steam rose from her burns. “J-just….text…LOL getting… a half assed….exorcism…hit send…. mph there.”

Chris glanced over to Rick who’s eyes had rolled up into his head he was holding her cellphone which just buzzed with a notification. “RICK SNAP OUT OF IT!” he shouted and turned to the grinning vampire pelting a rock at her face. “LET HIM GO”

Leech spat as the stone broke her nose and looked back up sticking her tongue out through the black ichor dripping down her face.

“CHRIS! Control yourself!” Zander shouted and Leech winked back at the two.

“Read it Ricky!” she smirked.

“I-it says R-O-F-L cant be there, at yoga getting this ass….its a picture of a goat and a woman’s back side” Rick’s eyes rolled back down and Leech vomited a small amount of black goo onto the barn floor. “Phew that took more out of me than I thought” she muttered and panted.

“RICK!”

“I'm sorry she did something to my head!”

“Ok but can you at least show the picture though?” the vampire asked looking up from her now bruising eye and nose.

“NO!” the other two ghost hunters turned and shouted.

“OH COME ON! I wanna see that booty”

“WOW this thing is terrible!” Chris glanced over at Zander who was prepping to try another round of bible verses.

“I know bro this is one of the nastiest ones we've dealt with! This is pure evil we’re dealing with here.” The lead ghost hunter clapped his friend on the shoulder reassuringly.

“Aww I'm blushing! you really mean it?!” the vampire shouted to them

“Bro hand me my rosary.”

“What are those? Anal beads? So you HAVE seen Demon Dick 5!”

Zander got close and began to shout “IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST I COMMAND YOU TO GET OUT OF THIS WOMANS BODY”

“Hahaha that was totally a direct quote.” Leech laughed again but was cut short when the silver cross dangled in front of her face “FUCK GET IT AWAY!” She hissed and the ghost hunter dangled it closer to her. Leech could feel her skin burn with heat where it drew close. The ghost hunter threw another wave of holy water at her and she hissed in pain face turning skeletal for a second as her skin sizzled. “A-all right if were gonna get straight into the kinky stuff we should at least have a safe word. Mine’s usually Float.” she tried to joke through the pain. Her skin was on fire with the crucifix being so close.

“Z I don't think she's a demon” Rick said tugging on his leaders arm

“Rick I’ve been at this way longer than you I know a demon when I see one”

“Bullshit you're doing this all wrong. Plus Im not a demon I can prove it too if you hand me that orange.” Leech panted.

“I don't know Z this could be a trick” Chris said with worry.

“Look have you ever seen one do some of the shit she just did? Just hand her the orange”

“Fine Rick. Fine. We’ll humor you but if nothing happens we’re getting right back to the exorcism.”

Zander rolled the fruit over to the vampire who glared up at him from her knees “You gonna undo my hands so I can eat this?”

“No.”

“Weeeelllll fuck you then! So much for what’s left of my dignity.” she grumbled and bent down to the floor biting into the fruit as best she could to suck out the juice. “Ahm hoing to rerhet hiss ho huch…” she said while her fangs sunk in. Leech came up with a weak expression on her battered and burnt face looking nauseous and dizzy. “You're all gonna wanna stand back when I- HURK!” the vampire suddenly lurched forward and spewed out blood and guts onto the barn floor in an inhuman amount. She kept going for a solid five minutes until Leech was slumped over supported by the chain around her neck. “Huh, is that an engagement ring? Shit I need to chew my food.” she wheezed before emptying the rest of her stomach contents.

“WHAT THE FUCK?!?!” all three ghost hunters screamed in unison.

“Yeah lets see Pazuzu pull that shit!” Leech grinned declaring victory before shouting at some unknown force in the ground “YOU HERE THAT ZUZU I JUST OUT WEIRDED YOU! WHATCHA GONNA DO NOW BITCH!? PEA SOUP GOT NOTHING ON ME!”

“Zander! If this is not a demon then what the hell is she bro?” Chris turned to his leader in a panic

“Nosferatu.” a vaguely familiar female voice said walking into the barn “What you're dealing with is a nosferatu.”

leech sniffed the air and snarled in disgust.

“Fuck.”

———————————————————————-

Somewhere in the town of Derry, Mike Hanlon was laying in his bed coming down from another high. It was time to turn in for the night but with all that had been going on the last couple days the librarian needed a fix…. just a quick one to calm the nerves. His night would be anything but calm when two glowing yellow eyes lit up his room like the obnoxious christmas lights his neighbors had set up.

“Mike” something whispered in the dark “Mike! Help us!” came another disembodied voice. He knew them all too well. The librarian sat up in his bed glancing around his room unaware of the creeping fingers clawing up his mattress. Burnt hands wrapped around the terrified man pinning him down while a disheveled looking monster from his childhood nightmares stepped into the moonlight.

“Thought you could trick me did ya Mikey? Thought you could fool Ol’Pennywise by taking what he loves most. Stupid boy! Stupid, stupid, stupid! No one fools me. no one.” the clown began his voice shaky and dangerous trying to mask the obvious panic behind it as he paced. The creature’s posture and gait reminded him of a nervous caged animal unpredictable and dangerous. Something was very wrong with IT.

“Y-you? W-hy are you here?” the librarian asked cautiously.

“TELL ME where she is SHEEP BOY. Tell Penny where his peachy is and he’ll make it much much quicker for you. Yes! A quick death or a slow one pick your path!” he snarled as Mike was trying to decide if he was still high.  

“A-are you real?”

“REAL? Real THIS ISNT REAL ENOUGH FOR YOU MIKEY?”

Mike’s stomach flip flopped in realization of the little reminder of all those years ago. IT had to be real and now IT was in his bedroom.

“Penny knows you need time, yes iIknow you haven't figured out that stupid reptile’s riddles. Don't you fret sheep boy I am just here for her this time. Bring her to me, bring me my mate and you can go back to trying to understand what mortals cannot.” IT was frantically babbling around his room pacing like a tiger in a small cage looking almost fearful its self. Mike remembered that look well the last emotion he saw on ITs face before it vanished down that hole. Something was very, very wrong.

“A mate? …You?!” he asked trying to keep the creature talking to piece the situation together as best he could.

The clown shot him an unamused look as if this was far from the first time someone has asked that. “Where is my Leechie!? I am the questioner here!”

“You're talking about Lucy right? Something’s happened to her?”

“Lucy… Lucy yes, yes her human name. Don’t play games sheep boy release her to me!” Pennywise snarled while he stalked beginning to impatiently kick things over and sniff items of clothing desperate for that sweet smell of blood and ashes.

“Even if I did know where she is, why would I help you?”

The clown roared and charged forward coming in close to the trapped man on the bed fangs bared long and needle like. IT spat in Mike’s face drool and bits of flesh hitting his skin as it spoke. Something was very off with IT more so than usual, as if possessed by some sort of ancient instinct overriding its usual demeanor.

“You want to stop me don't you? I’ll let you live Mikey! Yesss I’ll let you try! One free shot! Just give me my Peachy!” IT was bargaining now just like it did in the cistern 27 years ago. The clown must be desperate.

“I don't have her” the librarian spat back at the clown who snarled and grabbed his throat. Suddenly Mike felt searing pain in his mind as IT forcibly invaded his thoughts its eyes blackened on the edges pupils drifting off into different directions till he found what he was looking for and returned them to focus. IT’s face changed again from rage, to shock and finally to embarrassment. In IT’s hate fueled assault on its enemy IT had made a grave mistake. Mike had nothing to do with his precious mate. In fact all Pennywise had done was just reveal his greatest weakness to his greatest enemy. IT had messed up and it had messed up bad.

The clown released the librarian and awkwardly backed up off the bed eyes large and wide. Wordlessly, IT glanced over to Mike’s bedroom door and without breaking eye contact opened it while silently slinking out like a dog with its tail between its legs. The hands around the librarian vanished into smoke and everything became calm and quiet around him. “What the hell just happened?” he asked the empty void not expecting to get a response and not sure if he wanted one either.

———————————

Pennywise returned to his home to find his…..friends? Seated on his couch awaiting the result of his hasty impromptu rescue mission. That, and they were probably mad that he tore Freddy’s head back off in rage. Even his cat seemed a bit upset with him.

“Well? Did you embarrass yourself?” Chucky asked him taking a drag from one of Leech’s joints.

“It…..it wasn't the librarian…” the clown muttered.

“Oh yeah he embarrassed himself.” Freddy laughed still applying a few more staples to his neck.

“Hey if Fangs doesn't come back can I use her room? Thinkin’ about making it into a nice man cave” Chucky boldly asked earning him a death glare from the distressed clown.

Penny snarled and shooed everyone away from his couch snatching up Church to absentmindedly pet as if the cat was a coping mechanism for his current state. What if she doesn't come back? There were emotions he was feeling he didn't think were possible. His new strange instinct to protect driving him to near insanity as he was currently in a constant war with himself to drive the feeling back. Nature and ego raged war inside the eldritch being.

His inner thoughts were interrupted when the door to Neibolt House creaked open the residents all took their leave except the owner who still sat on his couch stroking his cat not wanting to put any effort into this one.

“H-Hello?” a voice called out. “Uh clown? Pennywise?” Mike had never actually called the clown by name before it felt weird on his tongue.

Something appeared behind the librarian blocking his exit.

“What do you want” IT hissed low and in a whisper. Mike turned to see the god of fear its self looming behind him with a plump dirty grey cat tucked under its arm. The two stared at each other in hatred and confusion. The librarian looked at Church and back to the clown.

“Is that a cat?”

“Possibly..”

“Are you going to explain why you have it?”

“No.”

“….what the hell happened to you?” Mike whispered half to the clown half to himself.

“Why are you here?” pennywise snarled growing impatient.

“I cant believe I'm saying this but I'm here to….help.”

“YOU WHAT?!” the house shook with the inhuman roar released from Pennywise’s throat.

“LET ME EXPLAIN HOLD ON!” the librarian put his hands out in an attempt to calm the savage beast who had nearly thrown the animal in its arms.

“You have five seconds human before I tear out your eyes.”

“Look you want your…uh girlfriend or whatever she is back. I need more time to figure out how to kill you.”

“Is this a bargain?” the clown raised his eyebrow suspiciously.

“Whoever has her is most likely trying to get to you and will try to harm you as well. We both know all they will do is send you back to sleep and if that happens I can’t stop you and you lose the girl. I can help you get her back. I have a way into the farm, and I can distract whoever has her as a friendly face. Then we can go back to trying to kill each other, business as usual.”

The clown glared at mike with a fury that made the librarian tremble with fear. This had been a mistake he was going to die and everything will be ruined on this stupid risk.

“You dare assume I cannot solve my own problems sheep boy?? What’s to stop me from tearing you apart right now.”

“That.” Mike pointed behind the clown. Pennywise slowly turned to see a box with a balloon tied to it specifically just to mock him. The clowns eyes grew wide as he sniffed the air and saw the black ooze leaking out of the corner of the cardboard. With careful claws he opened the lid and peered inside letting out one of the most horrifying sounds Mike Hanlon had ever heard in his life. The box was thrown to the floor and an object rolled out of it. It was a cold pale finger tipped with a sharp feminine nail and the blood that leaked from it was black.

-------------------

Uh oh what did Leechie do this time? Poor clown be going NUTS over all this. Im so excited to do some frenemy shit with Pen and Mike like Ive been DYING to get here. Also its Leech’s turn to meet an old enemy. Wonder who it is?

[clownsgobeepbeep]

High School Blues

@post-itpenny @grotesquegabby @lizzy-chan24 :D :D :D 

Hope you like ^^

The time on her watch read 7:53 am, and she groaned loudly before turning her head back with furrowed eyebrows and a frown to look at the one steering the bike she was currently.

"Because of you, we're going to get late to class!"she shouted out as her brother let out a small pant.

"Coral I'm sorry! I couldn't find my homework and-"

"That's why you pack everything the night before Roger! Not right when we're supposed to head to school!"she exclaimed before turning back to the front with her same mad expression. Although, her expression lit up once her eyes had landed on the school building and she felt her brother pedal his bike faster. Coraline gripped onto the bike under her before it finally made it to the grassy area on the front.

She hopped off of the bike and fixed her bag before running off to the front door.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you Roger, thank you and I'll see you later!"she shouted before she disappeared into the building, and her brother sighed to himself as he chained his bike to the bike poles. He stood up and fixed his backpack to then turn and face the school, sighing as he now walked up the stairs while his hands clutched onto the straps.

Roger walked through the now empty hallways which resulted in the echoing of his shoes to sound as he looked around and he finally found his homeroom class, so he gulped before he shut his eyes and opened the door. He knew he was in for something because he was late again, unlike his sister who probably barged into her class announcing that she was not late.

His hand slowly pushed on the door as he was careful to not make any sound, and he opened his eyes to see the class filled while the teacher's back was facing the front. He let out a quiet sigh of relief as he slowly shut the door, right before he sneaked behind the last row of seats where his own seat happened to be.

Roger carefully slipped his backpack off as his eyes remained on the teacher's back and soon enough, he sat down on his chair which let out not sound thus resulting in a satisfied smile as he placed his hands on his desk. His eyes glanced to the side diagonally from him and they landed on a waterfall of beautiful locks that belonged to his one and only Bella.

He slightly gulped as he leaned his chin on his open palm, and he let out a dreamy expression as he took in the features he was able to see. Beautiful, big eyes, little nose, rosy cheeks...oh how he was practically melting at this point!

And he melted even more when he saw her turn and hell, he almost fell off the desk due to the daze he was in. In just a moment, his eyes met up with her own and for once, he didn't turn away with a red face or scared eyes because of how nervous she made him. She looked at him but did not smile while-

"D'Vitt."

Roger gulped as he now felt his eyes widen because he now realized that one, Bella was looking at his goofy expression and that two, how did the teacher get from the front to his desk?

"Y-yes?"he said as his eyes glanced up to the adult who looked more than upset.

"Office. Now."

The male blinked with an open and almost confused mouth and before he could say anything, the teacher extended an arm out that pointed towards the door. Roger stood up with a sigh and he picked up his backpack that he instantly slung over his shoulder before walking around his desk to leave.

He heard a plethora of snickers, giggles and laughs as he did his walk of shame, frowning before he turned his head to look at the class. Although almost as if on instinct, his eyes landed on Bella's own which resulted in a red blush to spread across his face as he froze in place.

Unlike the rest of the class who smirked and laughed, she gave a quick flutter of her eyelashes as she also smiled sweetly at him before giving him a small wave. He didn't know what to do and merely gulped as his heart beat increased, and soon enough his palms became sweaty.

"D'Vitt, stop slacking or you're also going to be late to the office."said the teacher which made Roger snap out of it, and he snapped his head to the door before he fast walked out as Bella could only see him leave, though she turned back to the front as she held a pink note in her hands.

She smiled down at it, reading the words she received the previous day which had been attached to a pink box adorned with a white bow.

"I donut know what I'd do without an angel like you, so please donut ever let me go."

The clock on the hallway wall now read 10:59 am meaning that there was one minute left of third period. Maggie swung her keys on her finger as she walked around the hallways, barely having left the auditorium after she caught sight of somebody that made her choke while she had been whistling to herself.

Speaking of whistling, she had been currently doing that as she took a stroll without a care, her eyes glancing to the side before she stopped twirling her ring of keys to then place them inside her pocket. Once she heard the school bell ring, she turned her head to the side and she shrugged it since it now meant it was lunch. Although, wasn't she having her own lunch during third period?

She giggled to herself as she remembered accidentally scaring her friend earlier once she saw that he had gotten out of class with a gloomy expression, obviously because he had arrived late to class.

Maggie turned the corner and placed her hands into her pockets, one of them feeling the cold metal of the keys while the other felt a little wrapper that she pulled out. She lifted it up to her face and grinned when seeing that it was a cake pop she had gotten earlier. Well, it was given to her by her previously mentioned friend who told her that his sister would have given it to her herself but could not wait.

Maggie admired the treat and pulled out her other hand to take off the fake seashell that held the cake and was wrapped. Tucking the seashell away, she looked at the pop and giggled when seeing how it clearly resembled a pearl. She smiled and took a small bite out of it, right before an idea came into her mind.

As always, the library was dead quiet and Maggie slowly walked in after opening the door as carefully as she could. She threw her wrapper away before putting her hands back into her pockets and she scanned the area for no real reason, though her eyes did land on a person that held onto a few books as he neatly placed them into the book shelves.

She smirked to herself as she silently snickered, though she did not do anything and walked through the tables so that she could get to her current destination. Maggie avoided each seat and thankfully nobody since the library was a bit empty at the moment, but she shrugged it off before her eyes caught sight of a girl sitting on the table that was practically in the isolated part of the library.

She walked a bit faster before pulling out one of the chairs to then sit down with a casual smile.

"Hey there sweetie."Maggie whispered which made the girl turn around to reveal a stoic faced Coraline who now smiled softly as she saw her closest friend.

"Hello there, darling."she replied quietly before sliding her bag to the opposite side so that Maggie could place her own things on the spot. "And what may you be doing here?"

Maggie shrugged before grabbing one of the many books that surrounded her friend, and she opened it to a random page.

"Not much, just felt like checkin' up on ya."she said before reading aloud, and it literally was a bit too loud. " The sea is so big and so are some of its creatures. The blue whale is the largest animals ever to live on the planet with a maximum length of about 100 feet and a maximum weight of about 200 tons. Geez Coral now that I read about size, this book is a lot smaller than what you usually read!"

"Maggie quiet down, they're going to kick you out for being so loud."Coraline said before snatching the book away with a small smile. "The size doesn't matter, as long as it contains good things."

"Well now that I think about it, size really doesn't matter considering how you didn't go for a tall person like Abraham or even Harley. And you always said you would go for a tall person!"

Coraline furrowed her eyebrows as she looked at Maggie, who stared at her with a mischievous smirk as her eyes darted to the side. Coraline turned her head and felt her eyes widen when they landed on the male Maggie had seen once coming into the library, and her cheeks turned red before she snapped her head towards Maggie.

"No, no, no. I do not-"

"Hey Coral! Sea life is so interesting! Tell me more about it!"Maggie practically yelled out before her friend pulled her down with a now worried expression.

"Maggie! Shut up or-"

"Or what? Lennie the Librarian's gonna come over here and tell me to quiet down?"Maggie said, now in a whisper as Coraline's blush only darkened.

"W-why would I care if he comes over h-here?"she stuttered out, and that only made Maggie smirk widely as her eyes glanced to the side, seeing that said person had taken a quick look at the friends before turning away to pay attention to his book shelving.

"Because you're my best friend, and as your best friend I know about your little crush on Lennie."she whispered slowly which made Coraline quickly push her chair back to stand up in a flash as she now clutched onto a single book.

"I do not like him nor do I know anything about him."she said, never realizing that it was a bit loud and had gotten Lennie's attention. And what she also had not realized was that Maggie had looked behind her, noticing him looking at them which made her look up at Coraline before she stood up with her.

"Are you sure you don't?"

"Of course I'm sure!"Coraline shouted with a heated face, though she cooled down after she swung her arm out that caused her pile of books to topple down to the ground. They both looked down at the scattered books before Coraline quickly scrambled down to pick them up as quickly as possible.

She never looked up and tried her best to quickly pick up the books as she dreaded picking out far too many, and right before Maggie could get down to help her, somebody else had already leaned down next to Coraline.

"Well thank you Mag-"Coraline said before stopping herself as she turned her head to the side expecting to see her friend, but her eyes widened when they had landed on none other than Lennie who also turned to look at her.

"You're welcome!"her friend said as they stared at each other for a moment.

"Maggie-"

"Oh would you look at the time! It's 10:13, so lunch is over!"Maggie exclaimed and right before either of the two could correct her, she finished as she dashed away. "Time to go to class!"

Coraline's mouth fell agape when she saw Maggie run off...leaving her alone...with Lennie.

She turned back to him and saw that he quickly looked down at the ground so that he could pick up some of the books, so she did the same as a blush formed on her face again. Soon enough, they had picked up all the books without a word and held them stacked in their arms before they stood up and now looked at each other.

"Um...thank you."Coraline whispered before clearing her throat, and Lennie let his eyes wander to the side as he blinked a few times.

"It's no problem. Just doing my job."he told her as she set down her stack of books on the table."If you're done reading, I can take the books for you."

"Oh! Um...yeah sure, I think...yeah, I should get going already..."she started though she quickly took out a pen and a small notepad. "Let me just take a really quick note and...I'll be on my way."

Lennie nodded and saw her open the top book the stack she had previously placed down and she quickly wrote something before putting her supplies away and shutting the book.

"T-thanks a lot..."she said with a very small smile, and she pat the book she had opened and she waved at Lennie before turning to walk away. He didn't wave back due to the fact that he was holding the other stack of books, but he let out a small smile before glancing at the book where he saw the note she had written.

"She forgot her-"he started but then cut himself off once he read the words on the paper.

"The name's Coraline, we should dolphinately talk some otter time ^^"

"Aw look at that pretty face, such beautiful eyes and look at that smile..."a charming voice said right as its owner's fingers held onto a girl's chin, the thumb running across her skin as she lovingly looked up at the person. "You know, I've never seen any lips much prettier than these."

The person, a young man, brought his thumb a little higher so that it could rub her soft lips as they let out a giggle, a flirty yet shy one as the male leaned down very close to her face.

"Oh Stellar...you're such a charmer..."she whispered as she leaned her head up, trying her best to lean in closer to his own face.

"Me? Why sweetheart if anybody has the charm, it's you without a doubt."the male said as his other hand came up to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear, and the other hand went down to gingerly hold her waist as he smirked down at her. "With those pearly teeth and stars in your galaxy like orbs."

He pulled her waist so that he back was no longer on the lockers, but so that her body was slightly pressed against his as he leaned down even more in a teasing manner.

"Stellar?"

"Hmmm?"

The girl brought her hands up and threw her books to the side before placing her hands on his shoulders using them to lift herself a bit more as Stellar discreetly lifted his head up. The girl closed her eyes and soon puckered up her lips which resulted in Stellar to put up a face of disgust as he didn't know how to stop this, but he soon heard somebody clear their throat.

The pair turned to the side to see a blonde girl stand with crossed arms and a stern look, though it was mostly directed at the girl who tore herself away from Stellar.

"Scram."she said with a strict voice and expression, and the girl nodded quickly before ducking her head and scurrying away, careful not to get near the other girl.

"Thanks Coral, now I won't get my english homework done."Stellar plainly stated as he crossed his arms and harshly pressed his back against the lockers which resulted in a loud crashing sound. "Oops."

"I don't give a damn about your homework, you should have done it when you had the time instead of procrastinating with your video games."his sister said. "Now, have you seen Roger? I heard he got sent to the office."

"Does it look like I'm constantly monitoring this idiot? No, I haven't because I have other crap to do."

"Like flirt with all these dimwitted girls? I thought you would have much high standards than to flirt with airheads."

"Well they're not all stupid, some of them actually have an advantage to them and you know it."he replied. "Besides, don't you have anything else to do besides scold me?"

"You're right, I do."Coraline stated before fixing her bag's strap that hung over her shoulder."Thank you for that unnecessary reminder. I'll be on my way as you should be on yours or else."

Stellar furrowed his eyebrows as his frown grew.

"Or else, what, Coraline?"His sister leaned in with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"Or else you're about to see your little doll friend, Nat."

Nathalia walked through the hallway, clutching onto her binder and a few loose papers in her arms as she heard a brief conversation near the corner she was about to turn. She bit her lip and stopped walking when she heard the sound of footsteps and soon enough, she saw the one called the princess walk right in front of her before she noticed her.

"Nathalia, how do you do?"Coraline asked before the girl grinned and shrugged.

"I'm doing well! Thank you for asking Coraline. How are you?"she replied before Coraline shrugged as well.

"Things could be better."

"But they also could be worse."Nathalia said with a smile which made Coraline blink a few times before smiling and nodding.

"You are right about that."she said before giving her a small bow. "I'll see you around, little doll."

And just like that, Coraline walked away as she held onto her bag's strap. Nathalia smiled to herself before she took a few steps to then turn the corner, and she immediately stopped once she caught sight of Stellar.

She gulped to herself before taking a breath and began walking, acting as casual as possible while he walked in the opposite direction that she was.

"Hi Stellar."she quietly said as she stopped walking, and he stopped himself as well before he looked her up and down. For a moment he stared at her face, until he twitched his nose and turned his attention to the hallway before cracking his neck, then walking away. Nathalia's eyes slightly widened as she looked at him walk away without a care and somewhat...angry and offended?

She felt a prickle in her eyes as she looked down at the ground, now blinking hem rapidly to prevent anything from dripping from them. The girl then let out a semi loud sniff before looking up, now clutching onto her belongings a little tighter as she walked across the hallway until getting to her locker.

Meanwhile on the same hallway she had been before, Stellar had pressed his back against the lockers as he covered his face with his hands.

"Fucking idiot...you can't do anything right..."he muttered into his hands as he felt them burn with his red face, although he stopped once he heard footsteps nearby. He immediately fixed himself so that he was now casually leaning against the lockers, though he sighed when he saw his brother wave at him.

"The hell you want now?"

"Oh, nothing! I was just walking to...the auditorium..."Roger said with a pink hue on his cheeks as he nervously laughed. "And what have you been up to?"

"None of your fucking business, that's what."Stellar said before he got off of the lockers and walked past his brother who merely sighed and shrugged to himself, being used to the acts his brother always put up. He shrugged again and smiled to himself before walking again, ready to turn the corner before he pulled himself back.

Roger slowly peeked out and saw the girl sigh before she reached into her binder, then carefully pulling out an ivory envelope. She then took out a sheet of what appeared to be stickers before she took one off and used it to tape the envelope onto the locker.

Nathalia let out another sigh before she smiled softly, then placing a kiss onto her fingers that she gently pressed against the envelope before she turned and walked away in the opposite direction.

He scurried over to the locker, nearly tripping over himself before he caught himself by placing his hands onto the lockers next to his brother's. Roger stood straight and looked up, then seeing the little envelope have the word Stellar written on it in a very neat and pretty cursive print, just as it was held up by a sticker in the shape of a heart.

His face immediately lit up before he carefully removed the envelope and held it in both of his hands, then jumping around excitedly like a rabbit would before he turned and dashed down the hallway as he shouted out his brother's name. Oh how Stellar's day was about to be made, just as little Nathalia's eventually would.

[adapted-batteries]

And the Hidden Amulet

Fandom: The Librarians

Rating: General/sfw

Relationship: Jassekiel

Word Count: 7017

The Library sends the LiTs and Guardian off to Colorado, where an ancient cave suddenly revealed itself, complete with markings that make the LiTs nervous. Body swapping doesn’t really help matters either.

Also posted on my Ao3.

This is a continuation in the Land Pirate AU I’ve written in before. While it’s not exactly necessary to read the previous stories, some things will probably make a lot more sense if you have. “You Sultry Land Pirates Ruined My Dig!” is first, and “The LiTs Go Clubbing” is second, which this story follows.

This is the last fic I’ve got for the shipathon. The past two months have been great, and I’m super glad I participated.

-----

It had been two months since the Club 10 incident. Morgan Le Fey went off the radar again, or hid her tracks better than last time at least; Jenkins made it his priority to keep an eye out for anything of her handiwork. For the most part, the clippings book and their ongoing investigation on Dulaque had kept them busy, so when nothing rattled the clippings book and they had no progress on what Dulaque was up to, the LiTs grew somewhat restless.

“Jacob...what are you wearing?” Cassandra asked as Dr. Stone walked into the Annex.

“I figured I should find somethin’ to compare with your edgy wardrobe that didn't scream cowboy,” he replied, fiddling with the taupe scarf around his neck. He’d found a cream long sleeve shirt, some olive green pants, and grey work boots.

“I think it's an improvement,” Ezekiel quipped from his relaxed position, feet up on the desk while he scrolled on his phone. “A Nathan Drake vibe beats hick from Oklahoma any day.” Stone gave Ezekiel a confused look but paid attention to the pair of eyes currently on him.

Cassandra had been looking him over methodically. “You need more...leather. Maybe a splash of color too,” she commented, turning on her heel to make a quick trip to the costume room. Stone looked to Ezekiel, who just shrugged at him.

“Cassandra knows how to pick wardrobe, trust me,” Ezekiel said. He then looked up at Stone, eyes focusing obviously on his pants. “That being said, you look a lot more ‘edgy’ with fitted pants like those. A good looking ass and killer legs are always assets, mate.”

“You just want me for my body, don’t ya,” Stone teased, purposely jutting his hip out as he folded his arms across his chest.

“You know it,” Ezekiel chuckled, waggling his eyebrows.

A minute later Cassandra returned with things in hand. She laid them on the desk Ezekiel had claimed, then started handing items to Stone and giving him instructions. “Push your sleeves up, it highlights your biceps more, makes you look slightly more intimidating. The leather cuffs break up your arm while adding a rogue aspect to you. The shirt by itself is bare, so the leather straps are both practical for holding things and cool looking. The light blue cloth necklace adds a bit of color, and it looks like something you wear for personal reasons, giving your character more depth.”

Stone fiddled with the accessories for a moment. “Better?” he asked no one in particular.

“Definitely,” Ezekiel said with a smirk. “Now you look like our hired muscle.”

“When Colonel Baird isn't around then I technically am,” Stone added.

“Speaking of that, how is your training with her going?” Cassandra asked as she sat on the desk.

“Pretty good. I'm getting to the point where she doesn't kick my ass quite so much,” Stone replied, rolling his shoulders like talking about training made him suddenly sore.

The clippings book shook on its stand, catching all of their attention. The three crowded around the large book on its stand.

“Rock-slide reveals ancient cave, hikers discover hidden cave, mysterious drawings found on new cave walls...they’re all dated for tomorrow. Sounds like we need to check out this cave,” Cassandra said.

Stone studied the newspaper clippings. “These are all from Colorado, but Native Americans didn't make cave paintings, so either someone else did it or they’re-”

Colonel Baird walked in just as Stone got towards the end of his sentence. “Magic? What does the clippings book have for us today?”

Stone looked up at her, startled. “How did you-”

“Ezekiel texted me the highlights, and I was on my way back anyway,” she answered, gesturing with her phone as she came to stand next to Ezekiel to read the clippings. “Looks like we’re going spelunking,” She glanced at Stone, mildly amused, “and Stone here is ready to go.”

“I wasn’t...ugh,” Stone huffed, crossing his arms. He glared at Ezekiel and Cassandra who were both restraining giggles. “Go on and get ready.”

“Be back in five!” Cassandra said, giving Stone a kiss on the cheek.

Ezekiel slipped around Cassandra to do the same. “I think you look pretty sexy,” he not-so-quietly whispered into Stone’s ear, giving him a cheeky pat on the ass for good measure, then offered his arm to Cassandra. The two sauntered off to find some hiking gear.

“Cassandra help with the outfit?” Colonel Baird asked, trying to hide the smirk on her face.

“Uh yeah, I only managed half of this,” he replied, fiddling with the leather cuff on his wrist to hide the blush Ezekiel caused.

“Hey, that’s progress,” she said. She gave him a friendly punch in the arm then started heading out the doors for her own gear. “There should be some backpacks in the supply room for us.”

“I’ll go get ‘em,” Stone said, following after her.

---

Jenkins sent them to a visitor center in the forest. It was fairly crowded, people taking advantage of the last few days of summer before the fall rolled in, but no one paid them any mind as the group stumbled out a side door marked “Authorized Personnel Only.”

“Alright, the cave was on Logan Peak Trail, so we need to find the trail head,” Colonel Baird said once the group regained their footing.

“Got it,” Ezekiel said, casually sliding a map out of an unsuspecting tourist’s back pocket as they walked by.

“Dude, seriously?” Stone scoffed, rolling his eyes at him.

“What? She didn’t say how she wanted the information,” Ezekiel countered, opening up the folded paper.

Cassandra scanned the map for a moment before pointing at a spot. “There’s roughly where the cave is, so the trail itself should be right...here,” she paused, looking up to match the map to the various paths branching from the parking lot. “There, to the north, next to the bus.”

“What’s the rating on that trail?” Colonel Baird asked while she watched people coming and going from every other trail but that one.

Ezekiel flipped the map over to the trail listings. “Um...it’s an expert level, complete with steep inclines, some rock climbing, and the loop itself runs almost twenty miles, and connects to others,” he answered, not looking as thrilled as he had before.

“Based on the satellite images, the cave is somewhere between miles four and five,” Cassandra added, poking Ezekiel to flip the map back over. “We might have to scale a small cliff face about two miles in, but I don’t remember seeing anything else on the way.”

“This is why I had you guys get good hiking boots,” Colonel Baird said, turning towards the trail in a much more excited manner than the rest of the group. “Librarians, let's get our hike on.”

The group met her excitement with various grumbles and mumbled words.

---

Three sweaty hours later, the LiTs and their Guardian saw the freshly revealed cave, set into a steeply sloping rock face that softened as it joined the trail. The mouth was five foot wide at most. Boulders and rocks were scattered about, but none covered the trail itself.

Colonel Baird started up the slope to give the cave a look, but the others staggered over to a flatter boulder to rest. “It slopes down towards the back, but I can’t see anything once it curves,” she stated, flicking a beam of light from a flashlight around the walls of the cave. “We just need to take it slow, be careful...guys?” She turned around, not having to search hard for them.

Cassandra noticed Colonel Baird. “Can we have like, five minutes?” Ezekiel and Stone both looked up at her, guzzling water with pleading eyes.

Colonel Baird sighed, knowing she wasn’t going to get them moving any faster. “Fine. Five minutes, then we go inside.”

Even though they knew she was going to give them precisely five minutes, they still groaned and grumbled up the slope to the cave entrance. The complaints stopped once they went inside, replaced by their footsteps echoing down the tunnel. With the curve, the floor grew more jagged, becoming a set of large, shallow steps that opened to a larger chamber fifteen or so feet across and deep, and twenty feet high.

The walls, where they were smooth enough, had white symbols all over them that eerily reflected their LED flashlights. In the middle of the room was a four foot tall pillar of rock with a rounded top that jutted up from the ground, but otherwise the room was empty.

“Any idea what these symbols are?” Colonel Baird asked the room. The LiTs had gone in, but she stayed at the entrance, keeping an ear out for anyone coming in the cave.

“It’s not Native American. In fact...it looks similar to what those kids had on the floor in the basement of Club 10,” Stone replied, lightly tracing one of the symbols with his fingers.

“Do you think she came here?” Cassandra asked from the other side of the room where she had been looking for anything suspicious with Ezekiel.

“If she did, it would’ve had to 've been a couple centuries ago. That I can tell, the paint is a mix they used in early to mid 19th century America,” Stone said.

“You know that by just touching it?” Ezekiel said, glancing over at Stone dubiously.

“I wasn’t diggin’ in the sand in Iraq ‘cuz I didn’t know my stuff,” he retorted. “And while you guys were gettin’ ready, I checked into any literature related to this park and area, and didn’t find any mention of a cave. The oldest item, a diary, was dated eighteen forty three.”

“Okay, we get it, you’re a history nerd,” Ezekiel mocked, walking over to Stone to check out his wall for anything suspicious. “So secret cave that’s been sealed for at least a hundred and fifty years, with symbols that look a lot like what we saw with Morgan Le Fey, and a weird pillar thing in the middle. Any guesses?”

“Whatever it is, it can’t be good,” Colonel Baird said. “Stone, do you know what these symbols mean?”

“After our run in at Club 10, I read through all the Library had on magic in Europe in that millennium.” He paused when Ezekiel dropped his jaw slightly. “Yes...all. Reading is literally what I do,” he quipped, shaking his head to get back on track. “As far as her specific style, there wasn’t much I could find. She’s good at coverin’ her tracks, but what she was teachin' those kids cropped up a lot in several areas over a few hundred years.” Stone had been flicking his flashlight around the room, but suddenly stopped on a particular symbol. “There, something a lot like it came up a lot in the Celtic stuff. It was a ward, a symbol of protection. What exactly it did depended on who wrote which book, but everyone agreed it was part of a ritual for protection.”

“But not all these symbols go with that ward,” Cassandra started, flicking her hands in the air in front of her. “I remember looking over your shoulder when you had a book open, I’ve seen, well not the symbols specifically, but variants, similar patterns.” After swiping at nothing, her face lit up in recognition, then she swiped the air in her grand gesture of dismissing what she saw and aimed her flashlight at another symbol. “That one, it’s really close to the one I saw for detecting beings in an area, but it’s not the same.”

“Okay so someone was setting up magical security...but for what?” Ezekiel abandoned the wall for the pillar in the middle. “Something could have been here, if someone took it before we got here.”

“No, there weren’t any prints in the dust at the entrance. The rock slide happened recently, and the park rangers haven’t gone in yet, otherwise there would’ve been a notice at the start of the trail,” Colonel Baird explained.

“Then whatever they were protectin’ is still here,” Stone concluded, deciding the pillar needed more of his attention. “These wards, they were some top level stuff. Only a trained practitioner did them. Whoever painted these walls could have easily magically hidden whatever it is.”

Light tapping echoed around the room; Cassandra had pulled out a magical scanner she and Ezekiel had built together, and was waving it at the wall. “Did anything you read say anything about the wards regenerating, or if they decay?”

“That was another point people liked to argue on. Some said they were one use things, some said they regenerated the next day at sunrise, some said that they had to be recharged by a person after use,” Stone replied, eyes still on the pillar.

“Well whatever theory is correct, these wards have no magic in them,” Cassandra announced, pivoting towards Stone and Ezekiel. “The only reading I get is from the pillar, and it’s strong, like artifact level strong.”

Ezekiel had been feeling the base of the pillar for a trigger mechanism, so Stone touched the top, which shifted with his push, suddenly tumbling to the ground on the other side. The inside of the pillar had been hollowed out about six inches deep, housing a small, ornate wooden box. “I think I found what was givin’ off readings,” Stone said, gingerly lifting the rectangular box out of the hole. “This, the style, it’s old. Traditional carvings from thirteenth century France.”

“Cool box...so what’s inside?” Ezekiel said, standing up next to him.

Stone had to restrain himself from yelling about how rare a find like this was. Instead he focused his energy into carefully opening the box. A gold amulet about half the size of his palm sat inside, the red gemstone set in the middle reflecting light off its multifaceted surface. He pulled the necklace out carefully, intently studying it.

Ezekiel looked like he hadn’t been expecting jewelry. “Fancy looking necklace...okay. When’s it from?”

After some sniffing, and a lick, Stone replied, “It’s as old as the box, if not older. I’d put it at…”

Something felt weird. He looked up; the room was off slightly, something changed. He still had the amulet in his hand, but now the gem was green, and he was on the other side of the pillar, alone. He shook his head and continued his statement.

“Uh, yeah, I’d put it at late twelfth, early thirteenth century, the gold from the mines of the Mali empire probably.”  Stone ran a hand through his hair. His wrist felt bare, and when he brought his arm down he noticed the leather cuffs Cassandra had given him were gone. In fact, his whole outfit looked more like his normal clothes, not the outfit he’d been working on before they left.

“What, suddenly self-conscious mate?” Ezekiel quipped, drawing Stone’s attention to him. Stone could’ve sworn Ezekiel had a light grey shirt, but now it was much darker, a navy, too much to be a trick of light.

Stone shook his head, deciding to play off his confusion. “Nah, I already know you want a piece of this,” Stone said, waggling his eyebrows.

“Uh…” Ezekiel looked really caught off guard, and Stone wasn’t sure why. They did this flirting thing all the time. He glanced to Cassandra, who was also giving him a funny look, in a light green shirt, not the blue she had been wearing.

The amulet, it must have changed something, his perception maybe, or it transported him somehow, to somewhere. Maybe they’d understand him…

Stone’s voice faltered mid sentence. He looked around, not quite sure where he was. Ezekiel was suddenly next to him, and he’d somehow gotten on the other side of the pillar without noticing. He still had the amulet in his hand, but it was red, not the green he remembered seeing just a moment ago.

“Um...uh,” Stone lost his words, his train of thought completely derailed.

“It’s alright if you don’t know the time period, we can look it up when we get back,” Cassandra said, walking up and putting a reassuring hand on his arm.

“No, I know, it’s gotta be early thirteenth century, gold from Mali most likely,” Stone confirmed, shaking his head. He glanced to his wrists; when did he put on those bracelets? Wait, his whole outfit was not what he walked into the cave wearing.

“Are you alright?” she asked, looking at him with concern.

“Uh...I don’t...um, didn’t you have a green shirt?” Stone stammered, eyes flicking around to Ezekiel. “And you had a navy shirt, for sure.”

“Nope, I definitely walked into the Library this morning wearing this shirt,” Ezekiel said, looking at him with concern as well. “You sure you’re feeling okay?”

“I think so,” Stone mumbled.

Ezekiel offered his hand to Stone. “Here, let me have a look at the amulet.” Once the amulet touched Ezekiel’s hand, Stone shuddered. It was slight, but Ezekiel caught it.

“Now why would Morgan Le Fey, or someone she worked with or trained, hide this here?” Ezekiel thought aloud, looking at the red amulet in his hand, hoping to move past whatever had just happened to Stone...

Ezekiel had been watching Stone ever since he picked up the amulet. Stuttering while doing his history nerd thing, that wasn’t normal at all. Neither was forgetting what clothes they had been wearing all day, and looking around the room like he didn’t know how he got there. Except now he felt the same way. That amulet had definitely been red just a moment ago, there was no way he could have confused that with the green it was now.

Everyone was looking at him expectantly, but why he didn’t know, since he just asked them a question. Maybe he hadn’t actually said it out loud? Guess it wouldn’t hurt to repeat himself. “Uh, so why would they need to hide this amulet?”

Apparently they hadn’t been expecting him to ask that. Cassandra raised an eyebrow at him. “Well, it must be valuable, whether monetarily or magically,” she suggested. “We just don’t know what it does, yet anyway.”

Ezekiel glanced back at the amulet. “With the wards, it’d have to be magical. Maybe whatever it does is controlled by a command.”

“That’s an idea, though what would activate it we have no clue,” Cassandra started, eyes focused on the amulet for a moment before she turned to look at the box, sitting unattended on the pillar top. “Stone, is there anything on the box that might help us?”

Stone grabbed the box, holding his flashlight close to it. “I can certainly look.”

Something about Cassandra seemed different, Ezekiel couldn’t quite put a finger on what though. It was like she hadn’t been hardened by years of thievery with him. She reminded him more of what she was like when they first met five years ago; innocent, a bit naive, too trusting for her own good, determined to convince him that she was worth opening up to.

Apparently that meant he was looking at her with a face that revealed he was thinking about how he low key had a crush on her for a while (guess that happens when you start actually trusting someone), complete with biting his lip.

“Are you alright Ezekiel?” Cassandra asked, snapping him back to reality. If there had been more than just flashlights for light, he could confirm his suspicion of her blushing under his gaze...

Stone was being really odd. Flirting with him was not a normal thing at all, nor looking at himself like he forgot what clothes he put on this morning. Ezekiel hadn’t paid a whole lot of attention, but he for sure didn’t remember Stone looking like he belonged in a video game a second ago, and the amulet was not red either.

“Wasn’t the amulet green?” Ezekiel said, looking from the necklace in his hand to Stone’s weird wardrobe change. “And you definitely hadn’t been wearing those pants when we walked in here.”

“What? I’ve been wearing ‘em all day, and ya even said ya liked my ass in ‘em,” Stone retorted, looking at him with concern. Stone put the back of his hand up to Ezekiel’s forehead for a moment, then switched to cupping the side of his face. “Are ya feelin’ alright?”

The sudden tenderness from Stone was too much for Ezekiel. Instinctively he backed away a few feet, eyes wide, not a clue why Stone was being this way like it was normal.

Stone looked at him with even more worry. “What’s wrong?”

“You wouldn’t do that, you don’t…” Ezekiel stammered, not really processing what was going on very well.

“I don’t what?” Stone said, keeping his distance even though Ezekiel could tell he was restraining himself.

“You’re straight!” Ezekiel snapped, not really meaning to be so loud, but his nerves were very on edge.

Stone looked at him, more confused now than anything else. “I dunno what happened to you...don’t you remember kissin’ me this morning?”

Ezekiel’s jaw dropped. What Stone just said made absolutely no sense; he definitely didn’t do that today, that wouldn’t be something he’d forget easily at all.  “...what? I didn’t...”

Cassandra knew something was wrong with Jacob and Ezekiel, like they weren’t quite who they should be. Jacob stuttering mid-sentence, saying she had been wearing a green shirt when she definitely wasn’t, could’ve just been some odd memory loss, but Ezekiel suddenly thinking Jacob was straight was the thing that made her realize there was a problem.

“Are you two alright? You’ve both been acting weird...did something happen?” she asked. Stone looked like he was thinking, and Ezekiel responded with confused noises more than words. On a hunch, she took the amulet from Ezekiel’s loose grip, and saw him shudder. “Okay, where were you just now?”

Ezekiel shook his head, looking around the room, before answering. “I was here, but not quite. It was like you didn’t remember us at all, our past, and Stone changed his clothes…”

Ezekiel’s clothes changed, his shirt going from the grey she just saw, to a navy. He’d been mid sentence when she arrived wherever they were. “...and you said I kissed you this morning?”

Stone, definitely not wearing the cream shirt and olive pants anymore, made a noise that was part amused, part disbelief. “You definitely didn’t do anything like that.”

That gave Cassandra the information she needed. “I think I can explain that,” she started, getting both of their attention. “We must be shifting universes, and you guys are a parallel universe to mine. Everything’s mostly the same, but not quite, like the amulet. Where I came from, it had a red gemstone, but yours is green, and my Ezekiel had a grey shirt, but yours is navy…”

Cassandra figured out why Ezekiel was so freaked out about things Stone definitely didn’t do. When she took the amulet from him, she went somewhere, to the place Ezekiel had been describing, confirmed by Stone’s obnoxious looking adventurer's outfit. They’d been swapping universes via the amulet, its red-gemmed counterpart currently in her hands where the green one had been just a moment ago.

“...Ezekiel had said you somehow changed outfit,” she continued, looking at Stone with mild amusement, “which at first didn’t make sense, but I can’t deny what I see in front of me.”

“So have we been teleporting?” Ezekiel asked.

“Not exactly. The amulet must link the consciousness of the person to their counterpart in another universe, but only if both are holding the amulets,” she explained. “Our Ezekiel came back rather freaked out...what happened over here?”

Stone bit his lip before answering her. “I told him that he kissed me this morning, which ours did.”

“Oh...well that I know of our Stone and Ezekiel’s relationship is not that, well at least not yet anyway,” Cassandra replied.

Ezekiel was looking at her again like he had before he presumably returned to this universe. “What about us? Me and you?”

Cassandra couldn’t help the blush that came up from his gaze. “Uh, well personally I don’t feel that way...and I have Estrella now…”

“Who’s Estrella?” Stone asked, giving her a curious look.

Cassandra felt the smile before she even said anything. “My girlfriend. I guess me here hasn’t met her.”

“The name doesn’t ring any bells. Maybe she met her before you...she became a thief with me,” Ezekiel said.

It took a second for Cassandra to process that last bit. “I became a thief?”

Now it was Ezekiel who was smiling wistfully. “Yeah, just over five years ago.”

“Sounds like she had quite a life before the Library. I was just a janitor,” Cassandra started, not quite sure if she wanted to go back to what she had been wanting to ask. A few moments of awkward silence helped push her along. “So, Stone and Ezekiel, and me and Ezekiel…”

Ezekiel snickered faintly before clarifying. “It’s kind of a polyamorous relationship.”

“Kind of?” Cassandra asked, not sure what he meant by that.

“We’ve been busy, not exactly had time to explore anythin’,” Stone added.

“You know, just some unknown impending doom from Morgan Le Fey and Dula-” Ezekiel said nonchalantly, but Cassandra cut him off.

“Wait! Don’t say anything. If we gain information we otherwise wouldn’t have by ourselves, we could end up damaging our own timelines, or create new ones. We already know there are other branches from our reality.” Cassandra paused, motioning to Colonel Baird still standing near the entrance of the cave. “Our Eve traveled through them a couple years ago. I probably should go before I have a chance to say anything else.”

Cassandra was about to put the amulet back in the box, but Stone stopped her. “Hold on. Before ya go, I wanna test somethin’.” He slipped his backpack off and dug around for the scarf he’d taken off before they hiked. “Here, grab the amulet with this. I wanna see of skin contact is what activates it.”

Taking the scarf, Cassandra wrapped the amulet in it, nothing seemingly different. “I’m still here, which tells me it’s using my electromagnetic field, my aura, to connect. It was a good idea though.”

“Would it still connect if it was in the box?” Stone asked.

“No, it shouldn’t. In the top of ours anyway, there is a cancellation ward,” Cassandra explained, holding the box so they could see, “though your symbol looks like what our Stone drew to compare our symbol to.”

“Whoever put the amulet here must have been from your universe,” Ezekiel suggested.

“It could explain why there wasn’t any magic in our wards here,” Stone said.

“Our wards didn’t have any charge either. They symbols might not be compatible with your magic, but they should still cancel the amulet’s effects since it leaks our magic, and vice versa, to connect,” Cassandra theorized. She knew it was nearing time to leave. “I’m sure your Cassandra has put two and two together. It would be best if I return to my universe.” Stone gave her a nod.

“Have a nice...trip?” Ezekiel said, not quite sure what phrase to use.

Cassandra couldn’t help but laugh a bit. “Good luck on your mission,” she said, looking at all of them.

“You too,” Colonel Baird replied.

Cassandra placed the amulet back in the box, closing the lid softly. Her eyes unfocused for a moment, then she looked up at everyone. “Oh good, I’m back. So much unresolved tension.”

Ezekiel snorted. “Apparently not for you though. Do you know an Estrella?”

“No, but apparently she’s my girlfriend over there,” Cassandra replied.

“Alright, We can chat about relationship differences back at the Library. Let’s get heading back,” Colonel Baird said before the conversation could go any farther. After all the sort of teleporting, everyone happily agreed with her.

---

Exhausted and sweaty, the Librarians and their Guardian stepped into the Annex. Jenkins, who they had called minutes before to activate the backdoor, was in the process of organizing the perpetually cluttered main table. “Welcome back,” he greeted. “I assume your mission was successful?”

Colonel Baird slid her backpack off and carefully took out the box. “I’d say so.”

Jenkins stared at the box with a face that was even graver than the when he found out Morgan Le Fey was active two months ago. “You...found it.”

“Yeah...whatever it is,” Ezekiel said, not thrilled with Jenkins’s expression.

Jenkins opened the box, confirmed the amulet was there, then closed it again. “It is one of a pair, the amulets of world switching...sounds more intimidating in Latin. The amulets, if worn by the same person in each universe at a time that lines up, allows the consciousnesses to switch.”

“Yeah, we figured that out…” Cassandra said, glancing to both Stone and Ezekiel.

“So your counterparts were sent to retrieve their amulet too...Morgan must be on the move,” Jenkins added.

Stone looked at Jenkins, confused. “How do ya know it’s her?”

“She was looking for our counterpart, oh, early Renaissance. There was rumor she found it, but nothing came up that I recall. I can check the previous Librarians’ diaries and logs. Perhaps one of them prompted her to hide it for safe keeping,” Jenkins replied.

“But the paint of the cave, it was two centuries old at most,” Stone said.

“It’s plausible that she had it with her until then, or moved it then,” Jenkins suggested.

Ezekiel had been trying to piece it together, but there was still a part he didn’t understand. “The symbols, they weren’t from our universe.”

Jenkins glanced to him, more helpless than exasperated. “I do not know everything, Mr. Jones. Perhaps her counterpart and she were working together.”

“Do you think she caused the rock slide to retrieve it?” Colonel Baird asked.

“Not likely,” Jenkins answered. “If she had, you wouldn’t have found anything.”

“Then why didn’t the Library send us out earlier, before she had a chance to go back?” she further questioned.

“Nothing notable regarding the cave would have come up in the local papers, thus the Library had nothing to send you to. It’s also possible that the rock slide activated the wards, I assume she had them there,” Jenkins paused to get the nods of confirmation before continuing, “and once used, the amulet was no longer hidden from the Library. For now, we can prevent anyone from using the amulet. I’ll go find a place for it.” Taking the box in his hands as if it was going to disintegrate if he gripped too hard, Jenkins strode out of the Annex.

Not more than a second after Jenkins left, the backdoor glowed, and a battered Flynn holding an expensive-looking china teapot under one arm stumbled into the Annex. Colonel Baird immediately went over to him. “Welcome back...rough trip?”

“You could say that,” Flynn panted. “They did not want to give up their magical healing teapot.” He looked around the Annex for a moment. “Where’s Jenkins? Ah, I can take it to his lab. Hopefully he can fix it up, I could use a drink.” After pointing to the side at a thin line in the ceramic, he limped off to the same door Jenkins had went through.

Colonel Baird watched him staggering off. “I’ll brief him on what we found while I patch him up,” she told the LiTs before striding after him.

“Don’t have too much fun,” Ezekiel snickered.

“Speak for yourself,” Colonel Baird replied without looking back. She caught up to Flynn as he stepped through the doorway.

Cassandra, Stone, and Ezekiel awkwardly stood around, no one making any move to leave. If the Library had crickets (that weren’t contained in the bug room), they would perfectly accent the tension in the room.

Stone was the one to break the silence. “Kinda feels like we’re putting off the inevitable.”

Cassandra shrugged. “We have been busy…”

“This whole mess with Morgan and Dulaque, it’s been two months. We don’t know how long it’s gonna take, and we can’t guarantee we all make it through,” Stone continued.

“Way to rain on the parade,” Ezekiel quipped, not enthused with the serious route it was going.

“No,” Cassandra started, glancing from Ezekiel to Stone, “he’s right. What we’re going up against is big, and dangerous.”

Ezekiel folded his arms across his chest. “So what, are we just a thing now?”

“Well we kinda already were,” Stone said.

“We could...make it official, clean up then go get dinner?” Cassandra suggested, looking at the both of them. Stone gave a “sure,” and Ezekiel gave a “yeah,” with no suggestions. “So...what sounds good?”

“...pizza?” Ezekiel suggested after no one said anything. Cassandra and Stone looked at each other in amusement; they expected nothing less from him.

“Pizza it is then,” Cassandra confirmed.

---

An hour later the freshly-showered LiTs arrived at a local pizza joint they frequented. The sun had started to set, and the dinner crowd filled the restaurant.

“But how is the seating arrangement going to work?” Ezekiel said as they walked up to the front door. “A booth means someone gets left out, or all of us have no room whatsoever.”

“We could get a table, one of the square ones with a chair on each side, then it’s more evenly spaced,” Cassandra suggested.

“I guess that will work,” Ezekiel decided, smirk growing on his face. “We can save the cuddling for later.”

Stone looked at him, an eyebrow raised. “Later?” Cassandra was busy talking to the hostess to get them a table, no help to explain what Ezekiel meant.

Ezekiel left him hanging until they were seated at their table. “Yeah, We have a great couch at home, Cassandra likes the super plush ones. And courtesy of me, a nice flat screen and netflix,” Ezekiel finally explained with a menu in hand.

Stone peered at him. “Are you wantin’ to ‘netflix and chill’?”

Cassandra attempted to hold in her laugh, but failed. “What?” she said through giggles as Stone’s gaze zeroed in on her. “I knew he was going to try it.”

Stone huffed, but he playfully kicked at Ezekiel’s feet under the table. Once the pizza was ordered, and later arrived, the table grew silent (besides moans of cheezy satisfaction, mostly from Ezekiel) as the hungry LiTs devoured their food.

---

“What’s this couch made of, clouds?” Stone asked, somewhat seriously as he seated himself in the middle of the plush couch at Cassandra and Ezekiel’s apartment.

“For all I know it is,” Ezekiel said from next to the tv as he fiddled with the dimmer switch on the lights.

“It’s great, isn’t it?” Cassandra said as she plopped down next to Stone after setting some drinks on the little coffee table in front of them.

“I don’t know how you stay awake on this,” Stone replied, stretching his arms across the back of the couch.

“Here, watch this.” Cassandra leaned over Stone, shoving her hand into the gap between seat cushions. Stone figured out what she had been digging around for when his feet suddenly came up with what he had assumed was the non-reclining middle seat of the couch.

“Woah, even better,” Stone said, settling back into his newly reclined position. Cassandra gave him a goofy smile as she pulled her own lever, reclining her seat.

“What do you wanna watch? Action, drama, sci-fi,” Ezekiel offered as he sat down on the other side of Stone with a controller in hand.

“How ‘bout a documentary?” Stone suggested jokingly.

Ezekiel had been settling in, about to make his seat match theirs, but the question made him sit up and stare at Stone in disbelief. “How dare you suggest that in this house,” Ezekiel scoffed, hand on his chest.

Stone decided to push further. “Oh I know some good social ones, or there’s a bunch on all the art periods too. One of my favorites is on the-”

Ezekiel cut him off by putting a finger to Stone’s lips. “One more suggestion of educational television and you won’t be coming back here.”

Cassandra leaned against Stone’s side. “He’s actually serious about that. Ever since we started at the Library, he deemed home a strict relaxation zone,” she whispered, not intending to be quiet. Ezekiel took his finger away, but kept it pointed at Stone.

“Well, after today’s hike, I can’t say no to that,” Stone replied.

Ezekiel kissed Stone, then settled back against his side. “Good answer.”

---

Cassandra ended up picking Back to the Future when Ezekiel scrolled through options, with no complaints from the other two. Stone hadn't been expecting Ezekiel's extensive surround sound setup, but of course shouldn't have expected anything less from him. It reminded Stone of seeing it with friends when it first came out in theaters all those years ago, minus that characteristic theater smell, way too buttery popcorn, and well worn seats of the little theater in his hometown. He definitely preferred the cloud couch and the two ex-land pirates pressed into his sides.

None of them intended to fall asleep mid-movie, but the LiTs were more tired than they realized. Cassandra was using the left side of Stone’s chest as a pillow, his arm draped loosely around her shoulders. Stone had his head back against the couch, mostly kept straight by Ezekiel’s head, whose forehead pressed right above Stone’s ear. Stone’s other arm was smushed between him and Ezekiel, hands still intertwined.

If it weren’t for the loud thunder in the scene where Doc and Marty are preparing to return to 1985, they probably would’ve stayed asleep. Instead, Stone flinched, jostling the other two awake.

“Sorry,” he said around a yawn.

Ezekiel had sat up, looking entirely too cute after waking up. “It’s fine. At least we can watch the end now.”

The tinny thunder cracked again; this time Cassandra jumped a little. “I’ve never liked storms in the older movies, too sharp and crackley.”

“All those movies used the same sound clip, ‘Castle Thunder,’ which was originally recorded for the nineteen thirty one Frankenstein film. When the film industry went digital, they quit usin’ it,” Stone explained, earning a look from both Cassandra and Ezekiel. “What? I took a film course in college for an elective.”

“No, movie nerd is my spot, you get art and history,” Ezekiel said, waggling his finger at Stone for effect.

“Don’t worry, the class was a broad overview, and I took it in the nineties,” Stone replied, ruffling Ezekiel’s already messed up hair. “You can still one up me.”

Ten or so minutes later the end credits rolled. Stone got up with Cassandra, collecting the drinks that didn’t really get consumed like intended while Ezekiel powered down the console.

“The couch may be comfy, but the bed is better for the back,” Cassandra said after they put the drinks back in the fridge.

“Thanks for havin’ me over, guys, it was nice...including the falling asleep,” Stone said, intending to head for the door.

Ezekiel hesitated for a moment before preventing Stone from leaving by kissing him. “You could stay over, if you want,” Ezekiel said once he pulled away.

“Uh, I mean, if it’s not any trouble,” Stone said, mildly dazed from the kiss. “The couch won’t hurt me.”

“Nonsense,” Cassandra said. “The bed will easily fit all of us.” Stone hesitated, glancing from her to Ezekiel and back, which Cassandra took as reluctance. “That is if you want to, or you can stay on the couch if you want, whatever you’re comfortable with.”

“Oh, no, bed’s fine, it’s just, um, well,” Stone stammered, suddenly feeling embarrassed, “it’s just I kinda spent the past two months wonderin’ what it’d be like to...um...not that we have to do that-”

Cassandra cut off his rambling with a kiss of her own. “You are adorable. Not that we haven’t been thinking the same thing, but I think we can all agree that we’re exhausted from today. We can...explore that...some other time.”

“What are you guys, teenagers? You can say ‘sex’ in this house. I’m all about clear communication and consent,” Ezekiel said, clearly too tired to do any awkward skirting around the point. He only barely held back the laugh that tried to free itself when both Cassandra and Stone looked at him with wide eyes and red cheeks. “Oh my god you guys are dorks. Come on, I’ve got some pajama pants that should fit you, Stone.” He grabbed Stone’s hand and gently tugged him down the short hallway to the bedroom.

Cassandra was right; the king size bed was clearly big enough to fit them all. It took up half the room easily. Ezekiel dug around in one of the drawers in the dresser, triumphantly pulling out the pants and tossing them to Stone. Cassandra, who had disappeared for a moment, reappeared with a toothbrush still in its packaging, and handed it to Stone.

Not even ten minutes later, everyone had done their before bed routines. Ezekiel had given him an appreciative look over when Stone walked into the bedroom shirtless. He wasn’t sure how Ezekiel knew he didn’t tend to wear a top unless it was cold; more than likely Ezekiel just wanted to see him with his shirt off, he figured.

They opted for a similar order as they were on the couch; Stone in the middle and Cassandra and Ezekiel on either side. Stone found his eyelids drooping as soon as his head hit the pillow. “G’ night,” he mumbled, giving each of them a kiss on the forehead.

By the time he heard her reply, an echo of his statement around a yawn, he was almost asleep. He thought Ezekiel was already off in snoozeland, but just as Stone slipped into unconsciousness, he heard a faintly whispered “love you” in his ear.

Maybe he just imagined it, but Stone was sure he fell asleep with a smile on his face.

-----

Post Notes: Stone's outfit is the outfit he wore in the alternate universe where he was the Librarian in “And the Loom of Fate.” Also the Library having backpacks prepared for them comes from @hamelott ‘s fic which I thought was cool. That I know of, Logan Peak does exist in Utah, but in Colorado I don’t think there is one, at least that’s what google told me.

If the perspective switching tripped you up, the order it goes in (separated by italic paragraphs) is: AU Stone, canon Stone, AU Ezekiel, canon Ezekiel, AU Cassandra, and canon Cassandra. Before Stone grabs the amulet and after cannon Cassandra returns to her universe is omniscient third person narrator, mostly centering on Stone. The idea was cool in my outline...but a lot harder to write in a clear enough manner, so sorry if it was a bit confusing.

[dazzledbybooks]

The sun of the Chicome people has been destroyed six times. First by water, then by storm, fire, famine, sickness, and beasts. After each apocalypse, the creator goddess allowed one of her divine children to sacrifice themselves to save civilization. The gods paid their blood as the price for the lives of the people, and the people owed them blood in return.Mayana is a noble descendant of the water goddess and can control water whenever her blood is spilled. She has always despised the brutal rituals of her people — especially sacrifices. She can’t even make it through a routine animal sacrifice without embarrassing her family. Prince Ahkin has always known he would be emperor, but he didn’t expect his father to die so suddenly. Now he must raise the sun in the sky each day and read the signs in the stars. But the stars now hint at impending chaos and the sun has begun setting earlier each evening. Ahkin fears he might not be strong enough to save his people from another apocalypse. And to add to his list of worries, he can’t truly become emperor until he selects a wife.Mayana and six other noble daughters are sent to the palace to compete for Ahkin’s hand. She must prove she is a true daughter of water and face the others who have their own magical gifts from wielding the elements to the control of animals, plants and healing. And in a society centered on rigid rituals, Mayana must conceal her traitorous beliefs because if she doesn’t make Ahkin love her, she will become a ceremonial sacrifice to bless his marriage. But darker forces are at play and it won’t matter if Mayana loses if the world ends first…Rich in imagination and romance, and based on the legends and history of the Aztec and Mayan people, The Seventh Sun brings to vivid life a world on the edge of apocalyptic disaster. The Seventh Sun (The Age of the Seventh Sun #1) by Lani Forbes Publisher: Blackstone Publishing Release Date: 18th February 2020 Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy Links: Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44100454-the-seventh-sun Amazon: https://amzn.to/2rcbsQF B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-seventh-sun-lani-forbes/1133399303?ean=9781982546090 Bookdepository: https://www.bookdepository.com/The-Seventh-Sun-Lani-Forbes/9781982546090 Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/gr/en/ebook/the-seventh-sun-1 Google Play: https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/The_Seventh_Sun.html?id=aIqtDwAAQBAJ&redir_esc=y Favorite Quotes: “A solitary flash of red splashed against the blue of the sky and distracted her from the twitching shadows of the birds. It looked like a comet, barely visible on the horizon but with a tail that glowed the color of blood.” “This will not be the last time we see each other,” he told her. “And when I see you next, I will be even more proud of you than I am now. Your compassionate heart may hold you back at times from doing what is necessary, but it is also your greatest fight. You see what others see, you feel what others feel. Use that, Mayana. It can be strength if you let it.” “Their attitudes will get us all killed by the gods, if you ask me. Sanctimonious fanatics. I hope the marriage arrangement they announced with the prince’s sister will do something to help smooth the tensions.” Yemenis shook her head slowly back and forth. Review: The Seventh Sun by Lani Forbes is unique in the fact that it focuses on South American cultures. It has a bit of Mayan, Aztec, and Egyptian cultures within it. I found that to be quite fascinating. This book starts off with a very dramatic bang. Ahkin’s father has died. Ahkin’s mother is off to kill herself per the tradition of their culture. His mother kills herself so that her son is able to marry and the new wife will be the next incarnation of the goddess. I mean what a way to start the beginning of a novel. Ahkin has to find a wife before he can inherit the title of emperor. Wow! There are so many rules for finding a wife. They have to be of noble descendant of one fo the gods. These gods are continually worshiped for the sacrifices to keep the people alive. The woman must prove themselves worthy of the marriage. The women that are not picked are sacrificed as a ceremonial blessing for the emperor’s rule and marriage. Quite intense right? Then we have Mayana who doesn’t believe in tradition and rituals. The beliefs she has about these traditions and rituals could get her killed if anyone found out. Mayana is an empath. She has a hard time with the sacrifices both human and animal. She doesn’t want to do them anymore and she questions why they are being done in the first place. All she truly feels is that she is letting her father down all the time because she has such a chard time with their way of life. I really liked the magic system in this book. I thought it was fitting. In order for someone with magic (or power) to be able to use it, they have to first cut themselves and spill their blood. There is also a fine line because they can’t spill too much blood or they will die. I feel like this book covers a lot of ground. You have Ahkin looking for a wife. You have Mayana falling in love with Ahkin but being conflicted due to her beliefs. You have conspiracies and traditions. So much information is dumped on you. This book is very hard to put down. It goes by fairly quickly. The Map: About the Author: Lani Forbes is the daughter of a librarian and an ex-drug smuggling surfer, which explains her passionate love of the ocean and books. A California native whose parents live in Mexico, she now resides in the Pacific Northwest where she stubbornly wears flip flops no matter how cold it gets. She teaches middle school math and science and proudly calls herself a nerd and Gryffindor. She is also an award-winning member of Romance Writers of America and the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Links: Website: https://laniforbes.com/ Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/18903487.Lani_Forbes Twitter: https://twitter.com/LaniForbes Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laniforbes/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorLaniForbes/ Giveaway: Prize: Win (1) of (2) signed hardcover of THE SEVENTH SUN by Lani Forbes, a Worry Doll, a button and a bookmark (US/CAN Only) Starts: 12th February 2020 a Rafflecopter giveaway Tour Schedule: https://fantasticflyingbookclub.blogspot.com/2019/12/tour-schedule-seventh-sun-age-of.html February 12th The Unofficial Addiction Book Fan Club - Welcome Post February 13th Belle's Archive - Review + Favourite Quotes Story-eyed Reviews - Review Happily, Hedy - Review + Favourite Quotes Fanna Wants The World To Read - Review Dazzled by Books - Review + Favourite Quotes February 14th Artsy Draft - Guest Post biblioxytocin - Review + Favourite Quotes Book Briefs - Review Cluttered Books - Review + Favourite Quotes Popthebutterfly Reads - Review February 15th Kait Plus Books - Interview @onemused - Review Sohinee Reads & Reviews - Review Kati's Bookaholic Rambling Reviews - Review Bookablereads - Review + Favourite Quotes February 16th NovelKnight - Guest Post KookBookery - Review + Favourite Quotes Whispers & Wonder - Review Sometimes Leelynn Reads - Review + Playlist + Dream Cast Foals, Fiction & Filigree - Review + Favourite Quotes February 17th bewitchingwords - Review + Playlist L.M.Durand - Review Shelf-Rated - Review + Favourite Quotes The Reading Corner for All - Review + Playlist + Favourite Quotes mabookyard - Review + Favourite Quotes February 18th Bibliobibuli YA - Interview The Reading Chemist - Review Ya It’s Lit  - Review + Favourite Quotes For The Love of Fictional Worlds - Review Jheel - Review + Favourite Quotes Instagram Schedule: February 12th TUABFC The FFBC Tours February 13th Belle's Archive Story-eyed Reviews Happily, Hedy Dazzled by Books February 14th Book Briefs Popthebutterfly Reads February 15th Kait Plus Books @onemused Kati's Bookaholic Rambling Reviews February 16th NovelKnight Whispers & Wonder Sometimes Leelynn Reads Foals, Fiction & Filigree February 17th L.M.Durand Shelf-Rated The Reading Corner for All February 18th Ya It’s Lit The Reading Chemist Jheel

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