#Elixir assignment help

[malleleothreesome]

Azul Ashengrotto x afab Reader - Aphrodisiac + Breeding

💜 summary: After an alchemy accident, you and Azul end up covered in an aphrodisiac potion ༶༶༶ 💜 warnings: afab reader, smut, LOTS OF BREEDING KINK, pregnancy mention, porn with plot??? ༶༶༶ 💜 word count: 8.4k words I DON'T KNOW HOW THIS HAPPENED ༶༶༶ 💜 song: Vapor - 5 Seconds of Summer "I wanna feel you in my veins I want to breathe you in like a vapor I want to be the one you remember I want to feel your love like the weather, all over me" ༶༶༶ 💜 inspired by: this ask thank you! ♡✧*:･ﾟ

As a magicless human, Alchemy had always been your favorite class at Night Raven College. Despite lacking an innate aptitude for spell-casting, mixing and crafting potions was an artform that didn't require magic in order to bring spectacular effects into the world. Alchemy classes provided a refuge—a safe space with no barrier for entry where you could excel instead of feeling singled out for being an oddity in a sea of talented mages. You relished in the opportunity to learn about new components and elements, excitedly observing as volatile chemicals bubbled in heated pots to produce glowing, glittery pastes.

Much to your suspicion, Azul had always been particularly enthused to help you with potions, boasting how he was the most adept in the class due to his academic proficiencies, and that he was certain you'd find success with his aid. He took special interest in mentoring you, watching your delicate, nimble movements as you worked, walking you through procedures and detailed steps, and speaking knowledgeably about the ingredients in a tone that oozed expertise. His tutelage had helped you reach impressive grades on even the most challenging assignments. It wasn’t long before you found yourself spellbound by his charming intellect, deceivingly sweet demeanor, and the addictively intense gaze of his unique blue eyes.

There was always a subtle mischief hidden behind the smiling eyes and the easy charisma that suggested an ulterior motive lurking beneath his silver-tongue. Based on your observations of his interactions with other students, you assumed this was a ploy in hopes that if you had taste of the sweet, intoxicating elixir of power and success, you'd become desperate for more of his help, consequentially making you subservient and open to the idea of contracting yourself to him. In defiance of your paranoia that his motivations are not entirely altruistic, you did always feel an odd prickle in the air when he stood right behind you to monitor your actions. That sensation, a fiery buzz that hummed in your lower abdomen, always gave your heart flutters and kept you on edge as Azul's calm breaths ghosted against your hair and sent ripples of warm pleasure tingling through you. Your breath hitched in your throat as his large, gloved palms gently guided you through your motions, brushing over the bare skin on your knuckles or arms, leaving electric jolts where you felt his warmth. He smelled crisp like ocean breeze, an inviting fragrance that enveloped your mind and wrenched you out of reality and into his heady fantasy—a scene in which all you can taste are the thick, sweet notes of his dark intentions, and all you could do was choke on his cloying, dominating allure. He didn't ask permission to touch you or indicate an appropriate method to teach—no, his hands simply snaked around your waist and ran along your curves, slowly learning the feeling of your soft flesh through his gloves. Each time, you couldn't help but sink a little closer to his chest, instinctively chasing the seductive ambience radiating off of him, drowning in his captivating presence as though he was the tide pulling you under. There was no denying it—you wanted more of him.

Today's lab was no different, the air was tense and thick with charged attraction, filled with sexual tension so palpable it could be cut with a knife. The assignment was to experimentally combine various liquids, mixing and adjusting for better consistency, until you found a formula to concoct a viable, bountiful healing potion that would greatly ease the effects of injury. This assignment was a notoriously difficult, energy-draining procedure that required extreme vigilance to avoid an adverse chemical reaction that would result in a completely different type of potion, although Crewel didn’t elaborate on the exact details. After carefully pouring two compounds—one a milky white, and the other a vivid magenta—into a tall, cylindrical flask, Azul cautiously peered over your shoulder to check your concoction's progress as you stirred them. With one arm outstretched against the table to secure a good vantage point, he rested his other on your waist and leaned in closer as he studied the bubbling pink mixture. After adding an infusion of ground powder, a burst of sparkles clouded the interior of the flask, a telltale sign you were on the right track. This is the portion of the experiment where you needed to take extra caution to mix the elements together in perfect precision without faltering or taking your eyes away from your project, a delicate operation requiring the utmost concentration. Suddenly, Grim barges in and jumps on the lab station in excitement, yapping about how he wants to help, despite you and Azul explaining multiple times he has a proven history of destroying your projects.

The moment the little cat-monster attempts to extend his claws into your precious potion, Azul reacts automatically with surprising speed, his hands fly in a frenzy to scoop Grim away from your chemistry equipment. "Get off that this instant, Grim! You have no business here! Get your little paws out of that glassware this instant before you ruin another assignment! Do not interrupt us! Get away from there immediately!" Azul scolds him repeatedly while chasing him around the room, attempting to steer him to the door. "Why you foolish beast! You're far more of a liability than an asset! This experiment requires extreme care and concentration to avoid failure—a common result of your erratic, clumsy behavior!" His expression hardens with anger, eyebrows drawing into a line as Grim hisses defiantly. The little monster still hasn't relented, his hind legs clumsily scrabbling and slipping in Azul's grip as he tries desperately to cling onto the edge of the lab table, hoping for a quick paw-hold. A heavy, frustrated sigh escapes Azul's nostrils, his face morphing into one of desperation, pleading with the troublesome cat-creature to just leave you to focus your project in peace.

"How very annoying... To think he would willingly place himself in danger without even stopping to consider the consequences... what a foolish and irresponsible creature," he exhales irritably, struggling to wrestle Grim from his precarious position as his composure begins to slip, agitation creeping through his voice and shattering his typical polished and suave illusion of unflappable equanimity. He continues to scold Grim as he chases him around your station, gritting his teeth and losing his cool as the monster's cries of distress and denial ring through the entire room. Grim is an unrelenting little bastard who won't quit squirming. There isn't the slightest semblance of remorse or pity on his stupid, feline face, and Azul feels his resolve crack as he becomes utterly fed up with this spoiled brat's behavior. Grim continues to kick and howl his way through Azul's grip, determined to aid with your Alchemy project, but his clumsy movements start causing your potion to bubble and ripple in an unsettling manner. You shriek his name, begging him to just settle the hell down and be a team player.

It happens in a matter of seconds—a fizzling sound grabs your attention. You turn back around quickly and notice your reaction beginning to froth violently. Your eyes widen in horror and your mouth drops in disbelief. Azul notices your fear-wide eyes and immediately stops his futile efforts to reprimand Grim. In an instant, his gaze reflects the alarm in yours and the blood drains from his already pale cheeks. Grim runs out in a screaming huff as he exits in a frenzied flurry, knowing when to take a hint and make a clean getaway. At this point, the compound is pouring heavily from the top of the flask, spewing out onto the heating device and coating the table below. The chemical reaction is completely beyond your control now, its speed increasing exponentially, bubbling and exploding, kicking out thick, unmanageable clouds of murky pink and purple fumes. Within seconds, it covers the lab tables in an almost misty haze as you choke and sputter in a coughing fit, Azul gasping and choking right alongside you, panic flashing across his face. An eerie glow seeps through the thick liquid as a swirling mist appears from inside the glass. Without warning, it erupts directly toward the two of you before either of you have time to take cover—shattering the flask and showering the fronts of your faces and bodies in its noxious, intoxicating fluids. Both you and Azul choke out muffled yells and groans, the sticky, glittering mixture clinging to the fabric of your clothes and the exposed skin on your faces.

The next thing either of you register is Crewel's obnoxious bark as he spits out sharp commands to open the windows and clear out all the air from the room. Coughing, you gasp for fresh oxygen, suddenly becoming very aware of how fast your heart is racing. It thumps so hard and so forcefully inside of your ribcage that the noise reverberates loudly in your ears, overwhelming your senses. However, no amount of labored inhaling can free you from the toxic, vaporous gas; every molecule in your lungs has already been bombarded and completely overcome by the potion’s effects. As its intoxication takes hold of you, a wicked fever seems to roar within you, followed by a horribly slow heat that makes your limbs ache. Every orifice of your body is saturated by the miasma—liquid slips between your lips, gushing down the front of your body to coat your exposed neck and chest. You taste the surprisingly sweet potion on the inside of your mouth; its taste lingers sweet and tacky on the flat of your tongue, coating your throat. You'd panic that you just consumed some horrific cocktail with traces of corrosion or stomach-rotting acid, if it weren't for the fact that Crewel seems more frustrated than concerned for your well-being. Rather than damaging you, whatever substance was expelled seems to be having quite the opposite effect; you feel your body becoming more energetic, your head becoming lighter, and a bubbling rush of warmth seems to radiate all over from the inside out, changing your physiology into a fertile garden in need of sowing. Adrenaline rushes through you and awakens your basal instincts, forcing you to acknowledge every excruciating detail of your body in an erotic manner. Arousal slithers through your veins like venom, poisoning all remaining thoughts and rationality, as a throbbing, almost blinding wave of pleasure overtakes your body. You become intensely, achingly aware of your physical needs, and all those needs center upon an impassioned desire to be filled, stretched, and seeded full—the frantic urge to be bred nearly splits you in half and makes your lower belly cramp in a hot flash of want. For a second, you hear Azul stutter something to you, his voice wavering on the verge of cracking with the desire that the aphrodisiac had triggered. You lock eyes with Azul, pupils blown wide as lust makes his oceanic gaze shimmer. The front of his slacks have grown embarrassingly tight with the straining girth of his aroused cock. You meet his clouded eyes, almost embarrassed by your wanton thoughts and the desperate throbbing between your thighs.

It is only a split second of recognition, a blurry, sweaty haze of unfathomable passion, before your shared moment is interrupted. Crewel shouts at you to look him in the eyes, snapping you out of your sexual frenzy, even if only for a split second. He stares at you, his gray-streaked hair framing the contoured features of his face as he cocks an eyebrow. The elder gives your flushed skin and trembling body a once-over.

"Just as I thought. It's a dopamine-based aphrodisiac. At least nothing fatal or life threatening, but enough to send you both into a delirious, euphoric-fueled rut," he assesses calmly, unfazed. "What's more, the way the explosion altered the structure of the compound has made its properties even more potent and uncontrollable. In terms you incompetent pups will understand, we're past the stage of antidote or reprieve, and you both have mere moments before the hormones will reach maximum capacity and you two will need to find some private location to release the effects..." He trails off. From his expression, you can tell there is more he would like to add to the situation, yet a worrisome crinkle furrows his brow as his eyes remain on Azul, as though assessing whether the situation is really as under control as he wishes. "Both of you bad dogs listen carefully. Do not even dare to even breathe a word of what transpired here—you are to wait in isolation for five to eight hours until its effects wear off. Under no circumstances should you share physical contact with anyone else for the remainder of the day." He holds Azul's gaze longer than necessary, silently threatening him not to take advantage of this situation—but Azul seems far too caught up in the spell and too infatuated by the burning image of you, sweating, panting, and splayed before him.

"Should anyone at all realize that the two of you have taken any sort of love potion or been afflicted in this manner, it could create a massive scandal, and I'll punish you both so mercilessly for causing such an indiscretion, you'll be licking my boots in front of the entire school!" his deep voice booms in threat. "Have I made myself understood, dear pets?" Crewel snaps, the sting of his whip making both you and Azul wince and nod profusely. He leads you and Azul to the decontamination area of the lab, ushering you two into separate stalls so you can change into fresh, dry garments and wipe off the evidence of the explosion from the potion. When you both emerge, it takes Crewel less than a second to glance from the massive bulge straining against Azul's clothing, to where your heaving, quivering chest is spilling over the low neckline, your nipples hard and pressing obscenely through the thin fabric. He glares down his nose at the two of you in distaste.

"Five to eight hours," he hisses, eyes narrowing, almost sizing you and Azul up like he's waiting for one of you to give in to the pressure of the aphrodisiac. He throws open a back door, gesturing for you and Azul to disappear. Azul leaves first, a flushed, jumbled mess of conflicting emotions that are only intensified as he can feel every agonizing beat of his aroused heart pulse in the heat of his hard dick. You follow closely behind, but before you can cross the doorway, Crewel shoots his hand out to grip you by the upper arm, turning you to him as he towers over you, giving you an intense glare before sighing and pulling a small vial of bluish, iridescent potion from his bag and thrusting it into your hands.

"Since I know you won't be able to resist such a delectable temptation from that damn fishy bastard," his words drip with annoyance as he continues, "at least be safe, Pup. Go have a nice screw if that's what you really desire. The serum I just gave you is a contraceptive—just one sip and you will have full reproductive control, in case Azul isn't a decent man about his desires." You blink up at him in utter bewilderment. "Under no circumstances will I allow my star pupils to fall prey to the temptations and consequences of unprotected intimacy in the midst of this reckless hormone rush... I can't allow something like this to affect you or your ambitions. My students can only go to greater places." You feel his eyes burning with concern as he brushes your cheek, sending you a warning in his eyes and urging you to please think it through and consider it. "You are interested in Azul, are you not? I won't allow you to get involved in anything you don't consent to. If you don't feel safe, I can escort you straight to Ramshackle dorm and I will handle Ashengrotto myself." His stare, once cold and imposing, is now warm with protective care, as he looks you up and down with a gentle softness you didn't expect from your professor. The paternalistic expression on his face strikes your soul and pulls on your heartstrings a bit. After all, it's the type of support you feared was lost to you once you found yourself trapped in Twisted Wonderland with no hope of ever seeing your family again. With all the gentleness of a father, he squeezes your shoulder and gazes deeply into your eyes. You assure him that it's okay, you trust Azul. Nodding, your professor finally allows you passage out the door.

You had barely made it beyond the courtyard doors before Azul approached you with a sickly sweet, almost giddy look on his face. His steel-blue irises burned bright with anticipation, accompanied by a hint of something dark and salacious flickering in the shadows. The corners of his lips pulled taut, curling upward in a devious smile. A tremulous shudder passed through you and prickled up your spine at the thought of those hypnotizing eyes studying you while you lay enraptured beneath him, completely at his mercy. As he takes a few tentative steps toward you, his right hand glides and rests softly on your hip, making you gasp with surprise, your heartbeat fluttering and pounding deafeningly in your ears. Azul leans close to your ear, his breath coming out in hot, rapid pants, a carnal excitement that threatens to spill over and devour you whole. You swallow in nervous expectation, hardly daring to look into his lustful gaze. With his elegant index finger, he lifts your chin up and you are left gasping and flushed beneath him, lips parted to beg him for more as his gentle caress lingers. He flashes a devilishly handsome smile before tracing your lower lip with a seductive slowness. "Please, allow me to escort you back to Octavinelle where I can properly tend to you and your condition," the breathiness of his voice and his lack of composure cause your clit to throb, your inner walls pulsating, pleading to be stretched and ravaged. His lecherous advances and insinuations combined with the aphrodisiac coursing through your veins is making you so aroused, even standing close to him is threatening to make you cum. The very fabric of his essence seems to burn a shade darker—there is a terrifying intensity to his ardent desire for you, yet also a rawness and exposure you hadn't seen on his usually suave and polished facade.

Your whole body flushes when your gaze lands upon the size of his aching erection, an impressive tent straining tightly against his immaculate slacks, begging for attention through the dark material of his trousers. There is a manic, primal gleam that's spreading rapidly across his entire visage; he looks rabid with uncontainable greed, and you shudder at the thought that Azul will use your body to satisfy his own dark and twisted curiosities. "Please... It's the least I could do. After all, our most unfortunate situation is all due to my own recklessness," Azul pleads. His tone of voice is unwaveringly convincing in its sweet charm, yet you cannot escape the licentious twinkle that betrays his intentions, eyes ablaze with passion and lips quivering at the thought of making you his forever.

"Please... Just let me serve you and tend to your every whim," he begs. Even though the tone of his voice suggests innocence, you're reminded once more that Azul Ashengrotto believes the true intent in a plea is only to benefit his own ambitions—how ironic, then, that you find yourself overwhelmed with the desire to listen to the velvety cadence of his whispered sweet-nothings until you orgasm multiple times around the girth of his hard dick. Before you can speak, he reaches out and threads his fingers between your own. It was impossible to say no to the lilting honey of his tone, nor was there any will to fight as his firm and commanding hands ushered you towards the teleportation door. He practically pulls you into the mirror with him, and with a twinkly, delighted laugh, his covetous hand grasps you harder than ever as the portal draws closer, his eyes and touch almost reverential—eager, desperate, craving. The surface of the mirror swallows both of you up as the shadows distort the edges of your vision. The whole world spins around you both before the smell of the sea overwhelms your senses—the crispness of ocean air fills your lungs, and a feeling of cool relief washes over your flushed skin. In seconds, Azul is shoving you into an elevator and hitting the button to his suite. When the metal doors slide open, he gently shuffles you forward as he urges your body closer and closer toward his bedroom.

After his dorm door slams shut, your bodies mindlessly work to free the other's of their pesky and offending clothing, eager and restless fingers tearing and ripping at each article as though your lives depended on it. As each piece of clothing is discarded on the floor, new heated skin presses desperately into another as your erotic moans reverberate through the air. It feels electric, the way your sensitive, exposed bodies seek each other out, pawing and grasping at any available flesh and kissing any naked skin you can reach. Your hot, yearning mouth hungrily seeks Azul's for an urgent, feverish kiss—it is sloppy, desperate, almost savage as you share the intensity of your lusty feelings, gasping into each other's mouths, sucking, nibbling, tasting the sweet and sticky aphrodisiac concoction still lingering on both of your tongues. When Azul finally sheds his trousers, his painfully erect member juts out, throbbing and eager, bouncing happily and proudly as it quivers with eagerness. His knees weaken at the sudden release of the tension he'd suffered since the accident, the air a bit brisk against the heat of his erection, which begs to nestle itself securely into an inviting heat and fill your womb with the lusty seed it desires to spurt forth. His cock is ruddy and reddened, and his sack hangs swollen and tight with pent-up pressure. He doesn't think it possible for it to throb and swell even larger, yet its angry head and veins grow dark and twitch from his hot blood pumping. His hand mindlessly falls to his cock, and at the first stroke to his aching member, a needy whine catches in his throat. There is no time for shyness or apprehension. Whatever spell you were both under was driving you forward—like two planets caught in the gravity of an irresistible force, each gravitationally pulled toward the other with no means to stop. The rational part of his brain has been overwhelmed by an urgent instinct. Azul knows without a shadow of doubt that the only cure for this overwhelming haze of sexual depravity is to thrust himself deep inside the hot, velvety cunt of his precious lab partner.

Next thing you knew, you were pushed roughly, falling backwards before connecting against the smooth, luxurious blankets covering his mattress. He follows eagerly, letting his entire weight drop against your form and trapping your supple body beneath his. It was then, right then, when Azul found that the feeling of his aroused cock pressing against your thigh was unbelievably divine—a warm and pleasant tingling sensation spreading all over his hot, hard shaft and emanating out from his loins. With a contented hum, Azul can't resist the urge to buck his hips against your warm skin, stroking his arousal a little further, groaning at the exquisite friction. What a delicious sight you are—all nude and aroused—splayed and exposed across his bed. The effects of the potion have left you looking thoroughly wrecked, legs open, dripping and hot with an aroma so alluring, it nearly knocks the air out of his lungs. You are positively lovely, just as he'd always dreamed, with your petals unfurled and beckoning, enticing him further and drawing him in as your soft moans coaxed his cock in closer. To see you writhing and panting, the flush of your skin as you burned with longing for him...it was exactly as he'd always wanted it, almost as though someone had crafted the perfect image just to fulfill his darkest wishes. A surge of erotic fantasy comes upon him, and Azul's breath hitches in his throat as he ponders, briefly, about your womb filled with his seed, his beautiful angelfish round with child. He wants nothing more than to unceremoniously bury himself as deep within as he can, to push his thick, pulsating shaft as far as you could manage and stay buried to the hilt for days. His body quivers with excitement as a particularly vulgar dream reenters his mind. He had longed, always, to possess a most lascivious power over you—the power to make you writhe and squirm in bliss, and more importantly, in total and unbreakable dependence and submission for him—the neediest, sluttiest mess imaginable. Perhaps he'd have to thank Grim later for consequentially bringing about this fortunate chain of events.

Azul begins stroking himself fully, unabashed in his view of the sight before him. You don't protest the show. In fact, a high pitched, whimpery moan escapes you as you bite into your thumb to stifle the volume, but the sound is not missed, the harsh pang in his cock proof enough. After some thought, he realizes that he much preferred when you had been writhing and moaning quite uninhibitedly a moment earlier. You shift uncomfortably underneath his heated gaze as his eyes drink in every little curve, every little wrinkle and fold of your dripping pussy. Your toes curl inward and the ache deep within you demands attention. "You're so perfect, my little angelfish. Your body is exactly as I imagined," his saccharine voice admits as he leans forward, letting his fingers dance across the swell of your breasts. His left hand cradles your jaw and throat as his right continues its delicate massage across the plush pillow of your breasts, toying with the perked nubs of your nipples as his thumbs swirl small circles against the delicate flesh.

Azul's gentle touch ignites flames under his fingertips that follow his descent down to the juncture of your legs. The first brush against your swollen bundle of nerves and slit has your spine arching upwards, making his cock throb even more painfully, stiffening under the visual of your trembling body. A whine escapes and your hips grind involuntarily, the heat building intensely as his fingers begin to experimentally spread your folds slowly, running the tip of a finger from your core to the hood of your pearl. Without warning, Azul swipes upwards, expertly pulling back the hood and exposing the raw, sensitive flesh of nerves underneath, pinching down on the fleshy bud and causing you to yelp loudly in shock. With a satisfied grin, his forefinger begins to toy and tweak the hardened bud, rubbing gentle, rhythmic patterns over and over against the bundle as a chorus of delightful, high-pitched squeals fill his dormitory. After a few more ministrations, his hands continue down, delving his fingers straight into the moistened and heated opening, swiping up the slick mess you had coated his palm in. Two long fingers deftly slip right between your folds, caressing their way around your labia, your wet walls clenching around his fingertips desperately. "This wetness, for me?" Azul chuckles wickedly, crooking his fingers upward and brushing your g-spot with a knowing curl of his fingers, sending you spasming, gasping, and writhing in ecstasy, eyelashes fluttering wildly. "Oh, my dearest—so precious, my angelfish. That's it, so beautiful, just for me..." His voice drips with lecherous intent, his body moving without even the slightest hint of hesitation as though you were merely an extension of his own and not even a separate entity. Your wetness coats his fingers easily as Azul keeps sliding his fingers into your wet heat until the pads of his fingers touch all your deepest, hidden places, causing more sweet moans to fall from your lips and echo through his room. He scissors and curls his digits inside, stroking you slowly as though wanting to feel every bump, crease, and ridge along your walls, claiming his ownership over your deepest parts with a sinister delight.

A pressure builds and teeters precariously right at the precipice—the curling of his digits work feverishly to milk every drop of pleasure he can from your shuddering body, the warm flood of wetness drenching his eager fingers and making his head fall back with a sensuous moan. He continues with his relentless assault against your pussy, whispering filthy compliments about how badly he wanted to fuck you and how sexy it is when you take his fingers so well. Your legs flutter open wider, inviting his slim and nimble digits deeper within you, fucking them vigorously as your release begins to pool, rising closer to the boiling point. The aphrodisiac grips its poisonous talons deeper into your mind, warping and bending everything into an unshakable desire to submit yourself and your pleasure to the hands of the devious sea creature above you. He leans down, his silvery eyes roving over your face in an intense appraisal, his features drawn in with concentration, mapping out how to unravel you—there wasn't an emotion or micro expression that slipped past his vision as he carefully considered all the factors of how best to please and overwhelm your body with incomparable rapture. There isn't anything else beyond the present—no outside forces, nor worries about the consequences of being intimate. There's simply no room in your mind to think at this point, the cloudiness of the effects rendering your body vulnerable—you give yourself up entirely. He drinks up every breath, every shake and shiver, as he continues calculating your climax, relishing in each tiny noise or action he drew from you, meticulous with the acquisition of your bliss.

"Yes. Give in." he laughs maniacally, his face fully consumed in the intense madness of his lustful insanity. "Give in to every sensation. Let me drive you wild... Do as I command and cum," Azul demands you through his laughter, his breathing rapid and heavy as he watches your eyes rolling back. He moans in awe as the loud, slick sounds of his hand filling your soaking cunt meet his ears and a deep flush travels across his collarbones. His own needy cock leaks, eagerly anticipating what's next as its engorged state bulges obscenely, its every vein throbbing with virile desperation. Your high-pitched moans continue for some time as his pace stays fast, until you can finally feel your entire body tensing up, the fire coiling inside your gut ready to explode any moment. Everything builds higher and higher to the peak, every muscle and nerve fiber in your body primed to receive that last push that would send you catapulting over the cliff. As he feels your walls tremble, Azul moans along with your high-pitched wailing. A deranged smile stretches across his face and his silver eyes fill with amusement and fascination. 

Azul leans into your ear, whispering sweet nothings mixed with commanding, demanding words to finally succumb, "That's it...Let go..." He twists and digs deeper, stroking the perfect places inside you, hitting the correct spots relentlessly in an overload of mind-bending, debauchery-fueled, electric-spark pleasure, forcing your senses to dissociate from reality. His thrusting hand matches the frantic racing of his own heart, unable to keep the carnal fever down. "Give in... submit yourself fully, and surrender that orgasm. It's mine. I've worked for it, and now it belongs only to me." He whispers in a devilish growl, nibbling on your ear as his strokes become rougher, harder, faster—you can hardly stand the overwhelming force of your pleasure before its sweet relief crashes like waves. A broken moan leaves your mouth, a pure exaltation of uncontrolled passion. Noises come tumbling out and spilling over until you finally dissolve into a messy orgasm, shrieking his name in pleasure as his hand slows its motions but doesn't stop, keeping its pressure steady and rocking the whole of your existence until your mind goes blank. "Such a good, obedient angelfish, giving me all of your sweet, succulent cum... all for me, yes?" Azul hums sweetly, teasingly. "Oh, this is so precious," he sighs, feeling the quaking and trembling of your fluttering walls. His expression melts into one of deep satisfaction and pride.

"There you go, my lovely angelfish. Just as I said I would," Azul croons. Without another word, his hand, wet with your desire, abandons its ministrations, pulling from your depths with a slick pop, leaving your empty cunt to tremble from his absence. Azul brings his fingers to his mouth for a lewd taste test, licking the juices from his hand as a self-indulgent smirk plays upon his lips. As he rolls the digits around his tongue, sampling the essence of your cunt, a sharp groan rumbles deep from within his chest, the vibration coursing down his spine and directly into his throbbing member. Even as his breath grows heavy from the feeling of his needy cock, the smug, triumphant smirk doesn't disappear. He enjoys the honeyed, tangy sweetness and savors the lingering sensation on his taste buds—another string attached, making it utterly impossible for him to let go. A low chuckle is heard from deep in his chest, dark and hauntingly mirthful. From his pleased sigh, you could easily read the insatiable hunger growing within his gleaming eyes—clearly the lust in his loins has only been ignited further—a starving, manic beast hungry for even more from your yielding form, an insatiable craving that can't be satiated so easily. His cock visibly twitches, begging for him to mount you and thrust his painfully aroused length as far as he can manage deep into your eager, spasming pussy. The aphrodisiac courses through his veins with all the potency of a tropical storm, whipping every nerve into a frenzy as the instinct takes hold in Azul's most primordial thoughts and drives all those cravings with an irrepressible urgency—he simply has to get your pregnant. Azul's cheeks flush with a reddish-pink shade as he fixates on you, the hunger in his gaze absolutely feral, filled with a single-minded lustful determination to breed you.

When your eyes meet his maddened, love-struck stare, you are overcome with the same desperation radiating from your womb, urging to be stuffed and claimed by his thick load. At last, the two of you had connected in this all-consuming fire—a conflagration of desire so severe and a love so encompassing that both of you could do nothing more than dance on the ashes and burn with the flames. In that moment of recognition, an irresistible, bewitching aura emanates from him and mesmerizes you as the air of mystery dissipates from his visage, the eroticized specter of the fearsome and dangerous, devious mogul melts away to reveal the raw intensity of the young man underneath, exposed in all his ardent, unfettered passions. Here stands Azul, naked with vulnerability, desiring only a love that no other has been able to truly give. He's always tried to prevent access to his real emotions, afraid of the kind of cruelty they would reap upon him if they were found. He didn't believe himself to be worthy of their regard, let alone capable of receiving someone's genuine affections. With you, though, there were none of his signature theatrics, no polite deflection, nor charming evasiveness; he gave you full permission to view him and all of his repressed feelings on full display. An open book, Azul trusts you enough to expose his heart fully, so transparent in his neediness. Since he brought you to his bedroom, there was never the slightest hint of deception in his tone—not once had he attempted to distract you, nor used a tactic or trick. Perhaps his true intentions for getting close to you were more admirable than you thought, his desperation to get close to you was merely just a pining for your love rather than a sordid trick. His earnest, loving gaze, combined with the grip of your desire, makes something finally shift within, like the turning of the tide—a sense that it was fated for you to fall and crash so desperately, madly, and completely for him—a long-awaited inevitability, just as he had already done for you long before this Alchemy accident. Azul was an adoringly gentle yet brutally powerful force, a pillar in your life you can lean into without hesitation. All of your fears, worries, and frustrations are suddenly null, evaporating into the thin air of Octavinelle, carried into the gentle waters outside the window and disappearing into the seas.

Nothing is more erotic than seeing his carefully maintained veneer crumbling before you and letting himself fall apart at the seams. No longer hiding his desires or his ambitions for you, Azul's lusty hunger has you excited, aroused, and turned on like never before. You return his lustful, hazy expression and Azul is drawn right into the softness of your inviting stare. Your mouth parts to allow a needy moan to pass as you buck your hips slightly, inviting him to finally claim your body as his, a beautiful sacrifice you're eager to make for a beautiful siren such as him. With a deep, lewd groan, Azul pushes off your trembling body, propping himself onto his knees and groping at your chest, making you mewl. There's no trace left of the smooth businessman persona, not even a hint of it lingers when his wet mouth kisses at your mounds and his large hands explore the contours of your curves, his fingertips desperately memorizing the way you're put together, tracing every bit of available flesh. His eager tongue swirls at your peaked nipples, moaning in appreciation and delight. Your mind is being swallowed by a bubbling wave of bliss that has no end as his hand trails across your hips, his touch is as gentle as a ripple in the water. With a shyly embarrassed flush and a sigh of wanton abandonment, you surrender entirely to him—letting the sea creature drown you in ecstasy, deeper and deeper, into the endless ocean. He caresses your stomach gently, the calloused pads of his fingers exploring the sensitive skin where he knows your womb lies. Your heart stumbles as his lips twist upward in an impish smirk at the thought of all the cum he's soon going to pump straight into the cavity. He palms your belly, which would soon carry his progeny as an inevitable result of this union, imagining his angelfish's stomach rounded and taut with his unborn child, perhaps, even more than once—Azul's thoughts are full of fantasies about filling you and fucking your pretty little womb over and over until he succeeds and you're blessed with his babies. Azul hums at the image of your pregnant body, worshiping the slope of your thighs and rubbing his hands up your waist and the undersides of your breasts. Azul knows that even if it doesn't work right away, he is more than prepared to breed you again and again as many times as necessary. He is more than certain you'll eventually give him a consortium of little octopus-human hybrids. After all, you'd offered yourself up in the end. Who was he not to take what was freely given?

He grasps the back of your knee to prop up your leg in the air, shifting closer. In one fell swoop, your tender thighs are flung open, revealing your glistening cunt. Azul moans, running the rough pad of his finger right up the slit of your lips. You're already a mess, his slick hand had not been able to satisfy your heat at all, it only created a further yearning deep within that could only be satisfied by his aching cock. Azul settles against the fronts of your thighs, letting the stiff heat of his bulging erection nestle against the dripping lips of your cunt, already poised and eager for insertion. The anticipation causes the two of you to tremble slightly at the intimacy, your lips wet and sticky as they run against the length, his cock drooling freely from the tip and leaking beads of sticky, precum fluid right across your folds. With one more affectionate, sweet peck against the corner of your lip, and another one right upon your forehead, Azul slowly glides inside. A shared cry of euphoria leaves your mouths simultaneously as Azul buries the full length of his throbbing cock into your sopping entrance, thrusting powerfully to hilt balls-deep. The pure, erotic rapture of finally consummating your love floods both of your veins. His dick is filling you in the most indescribable way and stretching your cunt so deliciously that stars appear behind your eyes. A glorious symphony of relief sings in your blood while his hard girth massages your innermost walls as though he were meant for no other—like he was perfectly made to be the puzzle piece filling your immaculate pussy. You both gasp sharply in unison as the sensation sends tremors down his shaft. Every vein, ridge, and inch of his length drags deeply with each thrust as he grinds you thoroughly, bringing your clits into tantric connection and rubbing the sensitive bundle of nerves back and forth in perfect time with the rocking motion. Each snap of his hip makes the two of you share a joyful sob as he pleasures you in the most divine manner.

A low and sinful groan passes through your lips as your hands grip him tighter, begging him to increase his momentum and pace. Azul's hands clutch you in a tight embrace, his chest to yours with every inch of his hardness fully embedded into your velvety passage, sending white-hot sparks of pleasure shooting to the deepest recesses of your innermost being, triggering the sudden rush of a climax that is starting to rise to its precipice. Azul groans as your juices run down his balls, pooling around his sack and providing more lubrication for his relentless drive inside of you. You clench and flutter around him, squeezing your inner walls with every desperate urge for friction and movement, drawing Azul's eye right up to yours in a lusty daze. His body is coiling for release, ready to cum, and there's a glitter of utter happiness in his expression. His lips quiver with desire and he smirks as he feels you clamping and spasming around his rock-hard dick, begging him to breed you like the little slut that he secretly knows you are, all while knowing deep down you'd get so unbelievably plump and swollen with his hatchlings, he'd hardly be able to move his tentacles with all the kids crawling over him.

It's more intense, and far more electrifying than the filthy fantasies that had invaded his sleep every lonely evening whenever he gave in to his insufferable yearning for you. He'd envisioned this, over and over—what it would feel like to make you orgasm, just how satisfying it would feel to cum with you at the same time, and how heavenly it would be to stretch your cunt so snugly—and yet, in this moment, it surpasses his imagination exponentially, eliciting a complete flood of sensual pleasure all throughout his senses. Not even his wildest wet dreams had prepared him for the heady intoxication and undeniable high he experiences with you—being passionately and physically intertwined, wrapped around the most sublime euphoria that was possible—a wave so dizzying that there's absolutely no going back to life without the other once your bodies have succumbed and reached that ultimate, highest peak.

When Azul hits the point of no-return, his legs start shaking as though his limbs were going to fall off. His fingers tangle roughly in your hair as he drags your mouth closer to meet his. With each heavy thrust, he swallows every moan that erupts from your throat. His movements become less coherent, rougher, and disjointed as the strength of your cunt's embrace pulses tightly around his shaft and urges him toward the edge. Suddenly, an intense wave of satisfaction takes hold and shoots to the tip of his cock, pulsating violently in need to release its seed. Azul can't help but groan loudly into your ear as he slams his cock into you with ferocious strength, fucking the life and soul right out of your being while a high-pitched scream accompanies the splash and squelching noises of your pussy. Your mouth has gone slack, jaw dropping as you cry out his name and climax with such power that it whips you into a complete frenzy of desperation, sending your vision dancing with lights. You quake and shiver under the force of his fervor and ecstasy, writhing on the mattress and throwing your head backward to soak in your overwhelming, toe-curling rapture. He buries his face into the crook of your neck, pounding you fiercely as you wail and shatter with a rush of emotions so intense, you don't know if you will ever put yourself back together. A strained whine and a few sharp pumps later, a surge of hot, wet euphoric heat shoots from Azul's balls and spurts out in ribbons of his own spent climax as he spends his load of pearly cum directly into your waiting womb, splashing your tight channel with a continuous stream—painting every crevice of your silken, fluttering, vice-like depths a glossy white. Azul is unable to help himself as his hips start grinding into yours with slow rolls, fucking and stuffing every drop of his sticky cream deeply and ensuring it remains securely nestled in your folds. Every remaining bit of sexual tension floods out as though you'd been submerged in the most heavenly waterfall of pleasure imaginable. Azul whines weakly into the pillow and your moans join, eventually dissipating into a heavenly silence as you sink heavily back to reality.

Time slows to an almost stop and your vision gets a bit hazy and bleary as the aphrodisiac magic completely pulses away. You two lay side by side on the soft blankets, still in the bed and soaked with sweat. Neither of you move for quite some time. Just in the wake of your post-orgasm, everything becomes intensely surreal. You try to breathe quietly so Azul doesn't hear and as his head rests on your breasts. He, too, is heaving with difficulty, each inhale is a conscious decision. He clings tightly against you, hands threaded together like a lifeline, afraid to let go. One last sentence leaves his mouth—a whisper that could have easily been missed by anyone except for you. It was a question.

"Are we both in love?" Azul asks with such hesitance, you think maybe you've misheard his inquiry. He is lying right by your side. His face is dangerously close to yours, and the way his stormy, ocean azure eyes reflect every emotion swirling inside allows you to see the years of hurt that's plagued him. He's absolutely enchanted, like you are the perfect dream come true—everything he'd ever imagined in one living, breathing, precious human body—a lover so magnificent he could hardly comprehend. He studies your expression with awe and reverence. A look so intensely raw it burns right through your heart and lights up the space in your soul that you never before realized was reserved just for him. "Because I love you... Truly and deeply. So much that I don't know how it was possible, even," Azul admits freely, without the least hint of apprehension or nervousness. You can feel the intensity and honesty of his words radiate through his trembling fingertips, through the places where his naked skin touched yours—he doesn't try to mask the pure unadulterated warmth and delight that leaks through the shaky but firm expression on his flushed face.

A wide, cheerful and genuine grin breaks out against your features as you nod enthusiastically, and it is almost as though a heavenly, soothing light has poured over his entire world. It feels like a dream, a fairytale that is too good to be true. Yet here you both lie, doused in the magic of the concoction, clinging to each other and to that euphoric elation after giving in to the passions and the chemical bonds. It felt incredible, it felt natural and familiar and right. This wasn't anything artificial, rather the long overdue acknowledgement of feelings that were there all along—a kindling of romance that was never forced, but rather fanned to life after many days spent as Alchemy partners. After seeing each other every day, getting to know each other's quirks, and learning of each other's daily habits, the intimacy had bloomed and nurtured into something tender and real. The closeness the potion provided simply allowed the two of you the confidence needed to step across a boundary and pursue things.

"This won't be something short lived... you understand what I am saying, yes?" His tone has a tinge of fear creeping in and you can't help but stroke the outline of his cheekbones. This feeling will not end with a simple fuck, you knew that deep in the marrow. There will be more of that to come. In fact, the thought of it has your cunt pulsing, your sex aching at the idea. "I simply won't have you anywhere else but with me, and here in my dorm. I just won't be able to be happy otherwise..." Azul's voice quivers as the vulnerable sincerity flows.

"Yes, Azul. Yes, I understand and I feel the exact same," you chuckle and cradle his head. His blue eyes crinkle slightly from the beam across his lips, and Azul can't resist pulling you in for a feverish kiss, groaning from the rush. That familiar, sinfully blissful high is starting to take hold again, the rush of the aphrodisiac stirring something fiery back into a pleasant burn. The chemical’s grip on the two of you continues. After all, nothing will stop the magic from bringing you closer together. He murmurs a seductive promise into the curve of your throat that he won't stop until his load drips and slides right out of your swollen cunt—he's going to breed you the rest of the night and spill as much of himself deep within as he can. He has no doubt you're going to give him a child that will cement this loving bond permanently.

Listen I don't know HOW this HAPPENED, I DON'T understand how I wrote this much. I am DELIRIOUS and I need to go pick up some pizza for dinner, so I wish I could say more here but I can't right now. I'll update this part when I get back home. I just needed to get this out into the UNIVERSE. THANK YOU ALL!!! HOPE YOU ENJOYED!!! <3333 Erica Malleleothreesome

[thecouchsofa]

You might be thinking, Tee, in your 2023 AO3 wrap up post, you said you wrote a ridiculous amount of HP fic this year - but what about reading? Well, thanks for asking, imaginary audience – as a matter of fact, I did indeed read a lot of Drarry fics this year. A fucking horrendous number of Drarry fics, in fact.

Below the cut are some of my favourites that were published in 2023, arranged by word count.

But first, a note: there is truly an overwhelming amount of talent in this fandom and this list only scratches the surface. These fics all gave me something that I was looking for and were my favourites for a number of different reasons. I hope you can find something new to love here (or reconnect with an old favourite), and that you enjoy these stories as much as I did!

If there’s a fic from 2023 that isn’t here but you really enjoyed, chuck it in the replies section so we can all see it!

🌸 AITA for being "obsessed" with my childhood nemesis? – @rainstormradish (4k, M) 🌸

Alrakis I [24M] attended a small boarding school in the UK. There was a boy in my year, a couple of months younger than me, and he became my nemesis after we developed an intense rivalry. My friend [25F] told me recently that our dynamic was "weird back then" and that "it’s even weirder" that I still think about him today. She argued that I talk about him all the time, but I believe the amount I talk about him is reasonable. AITA?

prongymcprongface i completely get what you mean. i had a nemesis (like a school one, separate to my other nemesis) and we had a dynamic super similar to what you are describing. having a nemesis is a very cool and normal thing dw about it. NTA

In which Draco asks the internet if he's being reasonable. Only one commenter is sympathetic. They start talking.

Read for: unique fic idea with a cool layout, humour, boys being idiots

🌻 Snug – @moonflower-rose (6k, E) 🌻

Potter can't keep his hands off himself. Draco can't look away.

Read for: Draco being Obsessed with Harry(‘s cock), Humorous Writing Style

🪻 Birds Behaving Badly – @peachpety (10k, E) 🪻

For eight years, Draco has been content living a quiet life of anonymity in Brighton, dodging pesky seagulls and enjoying the ephemeral boys of summer. And if these summer blokes just happen to resemble Harry Potter, it’s a mere coincidence—despite what his friends say.

But when a repeat one-night stand challenges him to face his desires, Draco thinks he’s finally over his years-long crush.

A seagull named Kevin thinks otherwise.

For: Unleashed!Fest 2023

Read for: hidden/mistaken identity, summer vibes, Kevin the seagull

🌸 Under the Confetti Mist – @azalealarae (12k, E) 🌸

Harry and Draco stay up late working on a Potions assignment in the poorly ventilated eighth-year common room, unaware that disinhibition is a side effect of the elixir’s vapor.

Read for: Sex Pollen, Drarry as Potions partners

🌻 Hellos, goodbyes, a thousand midnights – newskyillusion (13k, M) 🌻

The world, as Harry knew it, has ended.

At least he has a garden.

OR

Harry and Draco live through the apocalypse

For: Drarry Let’s Play Fest 2023

Read for: body horror, cosy vibes (just trust me, lol), Harry gardening, Powerful Harry, Harry and Draco relying on each other.

🪻 Amorous As This Lovely Green – @annanother-thing (14k, E) 🪻

Harry hates being a celebrity. Draco cannot find a single model that fits his vision for his latest line. They both make the debatable choice of trusting one PA extraordinaire/best friend, Pansy Parkinson.

For: Harry/Draco Career Fair 2023

Read for: Harry modelling lingerie, Hot Harry

🌸 Help! I'm a Hopeless Romantic! – @peachydreamxx (14k, M) 🌸

Draco turns from the bar, eyes latching onto Harry. He surveys him, one brow lifting, and Harry, like a deer in headlights, throws his hand up with the world’s most awkward wave. Draco just weaves out of sight, and Harry’s face burns as Ron pats him on the shoulder, then steals a chip. “He gave you a look, didn’t he?”

~ how to get over your crush

~ places that sell cake after 11pm near me

~ how to tell if someone is playing hard to get

A year in the life of Harry's shared moments, and private thoughts

For: Wheel of Drarry Mini-Exchange Secret Santa 2023

Read for: Harry’s Google Searches, Humour

🌻 Cool About It – @oflights (M, 16k) 🌻

Harry is so excited for his first date with Draco. But what follows isn't so much a date as it is an all-night odyssey including a malevolent lift, a Gringotts heist, a Sleeping Curse, a trip to the kebab shop, a lack of dancing, a Muggle drug, a rooftop pool party, a black eye and, eventually, a sunrise over a Quidditch stadium.

Read for: Humour, idiots in love, first dates

🪻 The Eighth Sin – @thehoneybeet (16k, E) 🪻

When Draco is sentenced to five years of house arrest, without magic, alone, the only person to visit him is Potter. But Draco’s beginning to doubt whether Potter is really there at all.

For: HD Wireless 2023

Read for: dreamy/sad vibes, caring Harry, a beautiful exploration of a relationship

🌸 What’s Mine is Yours – @fluxweeed (17k, E) 🌸

Harry loses something important. Malfoy helps him get it back.

Read for: smut so hot it’ll light you on fire

🌻 O Come, All Ye Faithful – toomuchplor (19k, E) 🌻

Aunt Petunia died, that was what began everything.

Or rather, Aunt Petunia was dying. In the act of dying.

In which Draco finds faith in the church, and Harry finds faith in Draco.

Read for: Vicar Draco, Harry’s Vicar Kink, Beautiful Writing, Draco’s Hard Sanctified Cock

🪻 The Boys of Summer – @saxamophone (19k, E) 🪻

It's summer, and they're spending it at a lake, far away from everything. There’s swimming and a floating dock, cracked and warm in the sun. Fizzy drinks and fireflies. Sticky strawberry ice lollies and beach towels tangled under them.

Harry’s golden skin and love for The Grateful Dead and Fleetwood Mac.

Draco Malfoy is doomed, but what else is new?

For: HD Wireless 2023

Read for: delicious pining, summer vibes, beautiful romance, nostalgic vibes

🌸 Nature pricks them on to ramp and rage – @goblinmatriarch (E, 21k) 🌸

Lord Draco Malfoy may be a young man spending time in Dumbledore’s summer court, but that does not mean he needs to succumb to its licentious frivolity. He carries the burden of his lineage, the shadow of rumours, and the dignity of his betrothal to a good match. He is certainly not fool enough to be distracted by the dark curls and ready grin of the court’s stableboy, who seems to have taken up with every courtier who looks his way.

For: HP Bodice Ripper Fest 2023

Read for: Historical AU done right, Draco in a codpiece, more riding euphemisms than you can count

🌻 True Love Gave To Me – @epitomereally (23k, E) 🌻

It’s the first of December, and all Draco wants to do is make Christmas lovely for Scorpius. But then Harry Potter shows up, asking him to save the world, and it turns out they’ve almost saved the world a couple of times before. One-hundred and forty-four times, to be exact.

Or: what happens after the time loop?

For: H/D Erised 2023

Read for: time loop shenanigans, cosy vibes, adorable Scorpius (and his geese)

🪻 Nothing But You On My Mind – @moonflower-rose (29k, M) 🪻

Potter has been in Australia on an internship for almost a year, and Draco cannot wait for him to get back home. They'll finally have a chance to talk about their feelings for each other. What could possibly go wrong?

Loads, as it turns out.

For: HD Wireless 2023

Read for: Angst, Draco/Ron/Hermione Friendship, idiots in love

🌸 who will receive you in love's offices – @jtimu (30k, E) 🌸

A year in the life of Draco Malfoy, increasingly derailed by Harry Potter.

In the aftermath of it all, Draco opened an antiques shop. Sort of. Mostly, though, what he did was repair work. People brought him their grandparents’ charmed silverware or a pocketwatch which was meant to show the stars at your birth but now only held the time, and he would fix them. It was quiet work, a little lonely, but for the repeated intrusions of one Harry J Potter.

Read for: brilliant deep dive into magical theory, smarty pants Draco, enemies to friends to lovers (emphasis on the middle step), poetry references by the bucketful, a version of Draco that lives rent free in my mind

🌻 Half Sick of Shadows – @starquestingfordrarry (39k, E) 🌻

Harry and Draco have been sleeping together for months, and it's fine. It's enough for Harry.

But when things finally start to feel like the more Harry's been hoping for, a strange tapestry project has him worrying he won't ever get the chance.

Or: the one with sheep, dragons, and a whole lot of weaving metaphors.

For: H/D Career Fair 2023

Read for: Alvin the ram, Harry carving wooden dildos, magical tapestries, atmospheric vibes, an artfully created world

🪻 Now I Know In Part – @dodgerkedavra (39k, E) 🪻

Harry Potter is the savior of the Wizarding World. Draco Malfoy is a reformed Death Eater turned Ministry Curse-Breaker. Five years after the War, they're brought together by another mysterious curse.

Only this time, Harry's the one who needs saving.

More specifically, he needs Draco.

They have one month to break the curse, and the clock is ticking.

Read for: Draco taking care of Harry, Cottagecore vibes, bucketfuls of sweetness, great smut

🌸 Nothing Gold Can Stay – @moonflower-rose (40k, E) 🌸

One summer evening, Harry Potter vanished in the middle of dinner with his friends. Four days later he came back. Sort of.

Draco Malfoy is on the case.

For: H/D Erised 2023

Read for: Alternate Universes, Married Draco/Harry, Non-Painful Angst

🌻Sharper than a Sea Serpent's Tooth – @goblinmatriarch (40k, T)

Draco expects his research trip to Crete to focus on the ecology of ward design, with perhaps some cheeky visits to the elusive sea serpents and the odd sleepy beach day. Instead, he encounters a Past he's spent over a decade trying to outrun, and a familiar scowl under glasses and a scar. Featuring just so much imagining being on a hot, sunny beach for your winter pleasure.

For: H/D Erised 2023

Read for: Magical Creatures, Greek Mythology, International Location (Crete), Atmospheric Writing

🪻 LA, Who Am I To Love You? – @epitomereally (42k, E) 🪻

Harry’s summer in LA is not going as expected. Pansy Parkinson keeps inviting him to parties in the Hollywood Hills and harassing him to finally go to the physical therapist, Blaise Zabini keeps slipping new strains of his company’s magical weed into Harry’s pockets in hopes of an endorsement, and Draco Malfoy keeps having sex with everyone but Harry.

For: HD Wireless 2023

Read for: Werewolf Harry, Incubus Draco, Acquaintances to Friends to Lovers, Interesting Location (LA)

🌸 A Pulled Down Shade – fast_brother (43k, M) 🌸

Harry does not like Draco Malfoy, not even one bit. Never did and never will. That is, until he finds himself married to him.

For: HP Soulmates Fest 2023

Read for: HUGE Grounds for Divorce vibes! Angst, Harry working through trauma, Harry fighting for Draco

🌻 The Waiting – @oknowkiss (43k, E) 🌻

It’s been almost ten years since Draco Malfoy disappeared during a routine Curse Breaker training exercise. Harry, his partner in more ways than one, is determined to figure out why. As the past resurfaces and the present fades into confusion, Harry discovers the only thing more unreliable than memory is love.

For: HD Wireless 2023

Read for: Curse Breaker Partners, Angst, Secret Relationship

🪻 The Unplottable Time Conundrum – @writcraft (45k, E) 🪻

When the past starts bleeding into the present at Grimmauld Place, an old academic article pulls Draco Malfoy out of his life of luxury. Haunted by the memory of a fleeting post-war kiss and thrust into the ghostly spaces inhabited by Unspeakable Harry Potter, Draco’s easy life is about to get a whole lot more complicated.

For: H/D Erised 2023

Read for: House Magic, The Order of the Pheonix, Haunted House vibes, Drarry in their 30s

🌸 Our Objective Remains Unchanged – @citrusses (46k, E) 🌸

Harry Potter, returning member of the Oxford University Boat Club, has two goals for the spring of 2005: beat Cambridge, and beat Draco Malfoy. Perhaps not in that order.

Read for: Muggle AU, Sports AU, Competitiveness, Damn good writing

🌻 Everybody Hates a Tourist – @wolfpants (51k, E) 🌻

On a stag do in sunny Brighton with the Gryffindor lads, the last person Harry expects to run into is Draco Malfoy. After a glimpse of Malfoy’s Muggle life in Britain’s gay capital, Harry’s curiosity gets the better of him and he finds himself returning to the seaside again and again, drawn to the city, drawn to this new version of Malfoy that Harry barely recognises from school.

Meanwhile, Draco’s just trying to live his big and best queer life: working for the weekend, chasing hot men, getting lost in Brighton's nightlife, and making friends with the neighbourhood cats. Why does his former school rival and crush have to show up and spoil everything?

For: HD Wireless 2023

Read for: beautiful relationship building, Harry finding himself, Draco living his best life. I won’t lie, I’d read the back of a cereal box if wolfpants wrote it – do yourself a favour if you haven’t already

🪻 from love, obviously – bizarrestars (52k, M) 🪻

"I just mean, doing the right thing because it's right is better than doing it because…"

"What?" Draco challenges, amused. "Better to do it because it's right as opposed to doing it because it's not wrong? Please enlighten me on what the difference is."

"You're the difference," is Harry's answer.

(Or: Draco Malfoy comes up with a plan, drinks a lot of tea, and fails to fix a clock. Somewhere along the way, Harry Potter falls in love with him, which wasn't a part of the plan at all.)

Read for: Unhinged Draco, Harry being resigned to Draco’s antics, Weasley family feels, fast pacing

🌸 Terrible People – @getawayfox and @wolfpants (52k, E) 🌸

What happens when Harry and Draco end up on the same Muggle gay cruise? They certainly didn't plan for it to happen (but their friends might have). They're stuck with each other for a week, they might as well make the most of it, right?

Featuring a holiday-long game of Truth or Dare, a very ill-judged FWB proposition, decades-long pining, lots of gin, and a small pair of green swimming trunks.

Read for: Gorgeous Art , RomCom vibes, Gay Cruise, Friends with Benefits to Lovers

🌻 Nights With You – @the-sinking-ship (58k, E) 🌻

Draco is mortified when moments prior to departing for the most anticipated destination wedding of the year, he is cruelly dumped. But when he learns that Harry Potter has, at long last, split with his horrible boyfriend, Draco is certain his luck has changed. Never a man to squander an opportunity for revenge (and what would probably be a spectacular shag), Draco vows to make Potter his for the weekend.

Now all Draco has to do is convince him.

Read for: Fake dating, mild size kink, international location (Italy), mildly unhinged Draco, hot Harry

Note: This is the fic that made me set up a Doc for everything I’d read to make sure I wouldn’t lose it to the wide realm of the internet.

🪻 Rookie Moves – peu_a_peu (75k, E) 🪻

Aurors Potter and Malfoy crack the case.

Read for: Humour, Enemies to Coworkers to Lovers, Unhinged Draco

🌸 How To Train Your Malfoy – @fencer-x (93k E) 🌸

Good manners dictate that, when one’s best friend Apparates onto one’s doorstep holding the unconscious, haggard body of the schoolyard bully and begging for sanctuary, one ought to invite the two of them in for a cup of tea. Harry Potter sometimes wishes he weren’t so polite.

For: H/D Erised 2023

Read for: Dragon Animagus Draco, Harry taking care of Draco, brilliant writing, a funny as fuck premise – I wanted Draco to stay in his unhinged dragon form forever

🌻 Symptom of Your Touch – NoxNoir (115k, E) 🌻

St. Mungo's Healer Draco Malfoy is used to being pushed to his limits when providing aide to the ailing, but when an unexpected encounter with an out of character Harry Potter throws his life out of balance one night, he is forced to ask himself how far he's willing to push his own levels of discomfort to be of aid to a man in need of help that only he can provide.

Read for: Draco taking care of Harry, Pining, Unrequited love, buckets of sexual tension

🪻 Recursion – Tessa Crowley (132k, E) 🪻

A process is recursive when it defines or contains itself; e.g., the Fibonacci sequence, which determines the next number as the sum of the previous two.

But not all recursive processes are mathematical. Recursion can happen in a temporal context when, for instance, the powerful magical force that is true love drags you back in time so it can create itself, endangering the fate of the Wizarding World—not to mention the very fabric of space and time—along the way.

Read for: Canon Retelling/Divergence, time travel, Slytherin Harry, a truly insane amount of physics/magical theory/intelligence. This fic was too smart for me in the best way. If you liked Chaos Theory read this – it’s even better!

🌸 Cut From the Sky – @mallstars (150k, E) 🌸

"I'm stuck in a time loop, reliving November 2nd. This is the 111th time I've lived through today."

Draco stilled. His moody eyes, the tension in his hands where he gripped onto his umbrella, the careful mask of blankness flickering over his face — everything about him was so difficult and so very dear to Harry.

"Ah," said Draco, "and?"

Note: no rec list for this year could be considered complete without including this one.

Read for: Harry at his most loveable, a relationship story told a hundred different ways, atmospheric worldbuilding, Trans representation.

🌻 In the Blood – BiscuitBrunch (225k, E) 🌻

Harry Potter thinks Draco Malfoy is a slimy git of a defense lawyer, who couldn't care less about doing the right thing.

Draco Malfoy thinks Harry Potter is a filthy pig of an Auror, who couldn't care less about doing the right thing.

They fight, fuck, fall in love, and fight some more.

When they're on the brink of getting their shit together and starting a family, a blood curse surfaces that threatens the lives of Draco and their unborn child.

Read for: badass lawyer Draco, deep exploration of a relationship, working through trauma, slice of life, mpreg

[rottenpumpkin13]

We covered Gen’d be a brilliant chemist, but what would the other boys have done if they didn’t join SOLDIER?

Genesis: Besides being a chemist, I think he'd thrive being an agriculturalist** just dropping this in here.

Angeal: Farmer, florest, something that lets him work with the earth, hands in the soil, watching things grow and thrive.

Sephiroth: Would've ended up in something helpful and intellectual—professor, researcher, historian.

Zack: Anything outside, anything active, anything that lets him help people. Lifeguard, park ranger, firefighter. He just wants to be moving, doing something good, making sure everyone's okay.

Lazard: Has a headache because they all still act like this in SOLDIER. A slow day where no one has assignments lined up, and training and paperwork have been dealt with looks like a war zone, because that means everyone has time for hobbies.

*Lazard makes the mistake of passing by the lounge, where a tiny, suspiciously well-maintained herb garden now exists*

Lazard: Angeal, I hate to bring this up, but do you think this is an appropriate place for a vegetable garden?

Angeal: Huh? This isn't a garden. This is a mini learning experience. A garden would be the 12-by-12-foot plot I've set up on the roof without anyone noticing, where I'm currently cultivating tomatoes, carrots, pumpkins, and, experimentally, a small orchard.

Lazard: EXCUSE ME???

*Genesis strolls by, wearing a lab coat and holding a tray of flasks filled with ominous bubbling liquid*

Lazard: Please tell me those aren't explosives.

Genesis: Oh, relax. I'm merely perfecting my Banora White Soda recipe. I've been using advanced carbonic acid fermentation techniques to infuse the extracted Banora White essence into a fizzy, ethereal apple elixir. I'll create a drink so divine, lesser men will weep.

Lazard: That was too much science for me to feel safe.

*Genesis saunters off just as Sephiroth approaches, engrossed in a massive legal textbook*

Lazard: Sephiroth, please knock some sense into these men. SOLDIER is not a place for extracurricular chaos.

*Sephiroth calmly flips a page*

Sephiroth: According to Shinra Corporate Code, Section 7, Subsection 3b, employees are permitted to engage in personal hobbies on company property so long as they do not interfere with mission efficiency or pose a direct hazard to personnel.

Lazard: …Since when are you a lawyer?!

Sephiroth: I wouldn't call myself a lawyer. But it is good to be informed. I have spent too long in ignorance. If knowledge exists, I will learn it.

Lazard: That sounded ominous but okay.

*An earth-shattering explosion shakes the entire floor. Smoke billows from the materia room. Genesis staggers back into the room, covered in soot, coughing*

Genesis: Good news! I've invented a new kind of explosive!

*Before Lazard can even process that, Zack bursts into the room, fully decked out in firefighter gear*

Lazard: WHY

Zack: I'm a firefighter!

Lazard: Where's your hose??

Zack: Angeal, Genesis and Sephiroth are standing right there.

Lazard:

[smehur]

HP Rec Fest 2024 Summary

This event was delightful! I didn't have a rec for every day of December, but I did for most, and a good portion of the recs were for fics that aren't on any of my previous rec lists. I wanna list them all here for ease of reference, but also because:

✨ The artwork in all the banners is my own! ✨

It's scanned watercolor or acrylic on paper, all made in the last several months, mostly while listening to podfic :D

👉The pictures link to the original rec posts. Enjoy!

Albus Potter and the Elixir of Erised by @bettsfic

After dropping out of Hogwarts, Albus moves to London and deals an addictive potion to Muggles. Now the most wanted wizard in the country, he goes into hiding at Malfoy Manor, enduring terrible withdrawal which renders him powerless in the hands of his best friend's father: Draco Malfoy, the only man willing to help him.

Then Comes a Mist and a Weeping Rain by @faith2wood

It always rains for Draco Malfoy. Metaphorically. And literally. Ever since he had accidentally Conjured a cloud. A cloud that's ever so cross.

A Present by @faith2wood

Sometimes you just have to give yourself a present and kiss Harry Potter.

Draco in Darkness by plumeria47

Following an accident in his seventh year, Draco loses his eyesight. After Harry elbows his way into Draco's dark world, both boys find themselves in a strange new friendship, and they each learn new ways to see each other … and themselves.

The Sin in Your Grin (and the Shape of Your Mouth) by @xylodemon

The Order needed Sirius, but he doubted they'd mourn him very long when he finally disappeared.

All Life is Yours to Miss by Saras_Girl

Professor Malfoy's world is contained, controlled, and as solitary as he can make it, but when an act of petty revenge goes horribly awry, he and his trusty six-legged friend are thrown into Hogwarts life at the deep end and must learn to live, love and let go.

Running on Air by eleventy7

Draco Malfoy has been missing for three years. Harry is assigned the cold case and finds himself slowly falling in love with the memories he collects.

Alphabet Soup by @phoenixortheflame

Harry Potter, investigative reporter for the Daily Prophet, leads a perfectly adequate life. When he’s not trawling back-alleys for a juicy story, he’s playing tea party with his favourite niece or eating curry with his former house-elf. Draco Malfoy, renowned chef in muggle Paris, was perfectly content living a life of obscurity. But when his mother’s health begins to fail, he must return to wizarding London and face his past. When Harry gets an odd assignment to interview the enigmatic chef of the new muggle-wizard restaurant Le Cerf, he’s reunited with his childhood bully - and is reminded just how much a person can change in ten years. Hijinks, mystery, and food-related dirty talk ensue when Harry receives an anonymous tip of a blackmarket dragon trade and enlists Draco to be his concierge into the shady underworld of the wizarding elite.

Twilight Eternal by @hsvh-hp

Wherever Draco is, the sun sits eternally on the precipice of setting. His father feeds his peacocks on the manor grounds. Harry is the only one who can communicate with Draco. A malevolent force haunts the house, nipping at Draco’s heels. Draco intended for himself to come to this place. He only wishes he could remember why.

A Doll's Tale by @faith2wood

Harry/Draco, as observed by Draco's childhood doll. Please note, this doll is very self-absorbed.

Per my last letter (I hope you choke on it) by @fluxweeed & @lastontheboat

Dear Mr Potter, The answer is, and will remain, a no. Sincerely, Draco Malfoy Accounts Manager, Phoenix Press Or: the one where Harry has writer’s block and Malfoy isn’t helping.

Turn by Saras_Girl & podfic by Queenie_Mab

One good turn always deserves another. Apparently.

The Boy from the Piano Shop by @soliblomst

After going blind in a reckless attempt to avenge Ginny's death, Harry battles with severe depression. One day, he stumbles upon a quaint piano restoration shop in the heart of London and meets the owner, a kindly old man, and his introverted young apprentice, whose voice sounds strangely familiar. As Harry and Draco slowly reconnect through private piano lessons, the small workshop becomes Harry's refuge, offering him a glimmer of hope in a world without eyes. (Set five years after the Battle of Hogwarts)

A Dark Place in Time by Leporella

What on earth was her son thinking, falling for Harry Potter of all people, Narcissa wonders. But after the death of her husband, she finds him useful in many, and sometimes surprising, regards.

vapour by @yiiiiiiiikes25

Draco's getting cruised. Isn't he?

Probationary Action by @toomuchplor

As part of the terms of the probationary contract, DRACO LUCIUS MALFOY shall submit for inspection his WAND on the last day of every month, such inspection to be carried out by a duly registered and fully qualified AUROR in the employ of the MINISTRY OF MAGIC, and such inspection to include a PRIORI INCANTATEM spell to ensure that no PROHIBITED MAGICS as heretofore described have been practised by the aforementioned probationer.

The Illusion that One Can Get Things Right by umbrellaless22

Blindsided by Ginny's sudden departure from his life, Harry struggles to care for his family—replete with a new baby. The situation plummets from disarray to pandemonium just as Draco Malfoy arrives to drop Scorpius off for a visit, because of course it does.

Glory by @mintawasalreadytaken

Every boy at Hogwarts knew about the hole.

A Case of You by @epitomereally

Draco was doing just fine working as an Unspeakable in Paris, hanging out with his living and ghostly pals, inventing new spells, and definitely not thinking about Potter. Then, Lucius just had to break out of prison and turn his world upside down. Now, Draco has to return to England, where he is forced to confront how family ties bind us—and one infuriatingly fit Harry Potter.

with a fabulous Podfic by @cailynwrites

You can also see all my HP Rec Fest 2024 posts here. 👈

[lancermylove]

Owl Beast Curse (HC)

Fandom: Twisted Wonderland, the Owl House

Pairing: Leona, Malleus, Riddle, Vil, Kalim, Azul with gn!Reader

Warning: None

Requested by: Anon

Prompt: Can you do twst dorm leaders(except Idia) with a gn s/o who has the owl beast curse? How they react the side effects(easily detachable limbs) and their sister is the one who cause it

A/N: Thank you for including the link to the wiki! Hope you like it.

———————————————

Ah, siblings. He hates them. Leona is not surprised that your sister cursed you, as he knows family does more harm than good. He is pissed off at your sister, to say the least, and doesn't care what excuse your sister has to curse you. Her actions are unforgivable.

Leona feels a twinge of sympathy for you, especially since you didn't deserve what your sibling did. But he doesn't show you pity, nor does he feel sorry for you because, in his eyes, you are strong. To be able to handle a curse, and that too, one inflicted by a family member, must be pain, both physically and mentally. Leona respects you more than he did before.

Leona is not a fan of you detaching your limbs to play pranks on him or who off, especially not your head. Whenever you do, he blankly stares at you.

Once he learns that the curse is triggered due to stress, he tries to help you maintain your stress, even if he doesn't show it outright.

Are you stressed because you have an overload of homework? Leona will sit next to you and practically tell you all the answers so you can finish the assignments before your stress levels get out of hand. Are your friends stressing you out? He will stand behind you and glare down at them until they shink and run away.

Once you tell Leona about the elixir, he will make sure you take it daily. The last thing he wants is for Crowley to learn about your curse. He doesn't trust the head mage, who is anything but benevolent.

Malleus never told you this, but he had detected the curse on you since he first met you. However, the prince figured he would learn about your curse eventually, so he didn't try to pry any information from you.

However, when he learns the details about your curse, Malleus feels a wide range of emotions, from concern to anger. How could your own blood curse you? He wonders if this kind of occurrence is common among humans.

When he sees your owl beast form, he remains unfazed and finds it fascinating. He is not afraid in the slightest, as Malleus knows if you try to attack him, he has the strength to hold you back.

The prince is very concerned about your ability to detach your limbs. Does it cause you pain physically? He is a bit relieved to know you are not in pain from it, but Malleus still doesn't want you to pull your limbs off, not even as a prank. The only exception is Halloween.

The prince wants to track down your sister to learn why she did this and hold her accountable for causing you pain, but first, he wants to focus on finding a way to help you. All the mages in Briar Valley are attempting to find a way to get rid of your curse and, if you sympathize with the owl beast, a way to save it as well.

Kalim will be taken aback if you tell him about your curse. However, if you don't tell him and accidentally transform into your beast form, Kalim will be shocked. Though, if anyone tries to attack you while you are in that form, he will protect you.

When he learns that your sister is responsible for cursing you, Kalim has difficulty wrapping his mind around it. Just the thought of your own family going against you is devastating to him. He has many siblings, and they all get along well, so he can't fathom there are families in which siblings can be enemies to this point.

Kalim is willing to do anything and everything to help you. You are his s/o, so he is responsible for helping and supporting you through thick and thin.

He also goes out of his way to ensure you are not stressed. If Kalim sees you stressing out, he immediately distracts you with his cuteness, hugs, kisses, or taking you on a magic carpet ride. He also enlists Jamil to help with your stress management.

When Kalim sees your limbs detach, he experiences a wave of emotions. First, shock. Second, discomfort for you, thinking you are in pain. Third, sadness. If you even remotely joke that the detachment causes you pain, it will draw tears to his eyes, as if he was filling the pain himself.

Family members can be...a pain. He understands this, but to think they would go as far as to curse you. Riddle is angered by the thought, but his concern for your well-being overshadows his anger.

He is startled and a bit fearful when he sees you in your owl beast form. Even then, he stands his ground, knowing that he has to help you through this. However, when he sees/learns about your easily detachable limbs, Riddle is creeped out. If you try to detach your limbs in front of him, he will get angry. In fact, he wants to add a rule to the book of rules saying you are not allowed to take detach your limbs.

Like Kalim, Riddle enlists the help of his dorm members when he learns stress is your main trigger. When he is not around, Cater, Ace, Trey, and Deuce are responsible for helping you calm down.

Riddle is relieved that Ace and Deuce are in the same class as you so that they can keep an eye on you to prevent any incidents from happening on campus. Riddle worries that someone on campus might try to use you as a test subject if they learn about your unique curse.

If possible, he even learns how to make the elixirs you drink so that you never run out of them.

On many occasions, Vil feels like you are hiding something from him. Then, he sees you drinking an elixir daily and knows for sure you have a secret. Part of him wants you to tell him when you are comfortable, but the other part knows he needs to know, especially if it could pose a danger to him and the other students.

When he sits down and talks with you, you detach your limb to show him the side effects. Vil immediately grosses you and gets upset with you. NEVER do that again in front of him. Even if it doesn't physically pain you, it hurts him to see your limbs not attached to your torso.

Vil asks another question: Why didn't you tell him about the curse earlier when the two of you started dating? Were you afraid that he would judge or leave you? He assures you he will not leave or judge you for being cursed; if anything, he wants to help you find a way to lift the curse.

The moment Vil learns your sister was the one who cursed you, he sympathizes with you but is angered beyond belief. His need to seek justice kicks in, and Vil's first instinct is to track down your sister and confront her. At some point in the future, with your permission or against your will, he will find your sister and confront her.

Azul already knows you are cursed even before he sees you transform into the owl beast. Once he saw you drinking the elixir, he took a few drops from one bottle to test it. Though he couldn't find what the elixir was for, he found similar ingredients to a recipe in their world that is used to keep curses at bay.

Though he doesn't show it outright, Azul is deeply concerned about you. He doesn't confront you about your curse and waits for you to tell him or for the curse to take effect.

He is not surprised when he learns your sister is responsible for your state. He has firsthand experience in seeing the dark side of people around him. Azul focuses more on finding a cure to your curse rather than the past - for the time being.

He won't admit it out loud, but Azul finds your curse fascinating and wants to learn more about it. Even when he finds a way to separate the owl beast from you, Azul plans to keep the beast alive. Something tells him that you don't want the beast to be harmed, but more than anything, he wants to learn about the creature as there are no creatures like the owl beast in their world.

At first, Azul HATES it when you detach your limbs in front of him. Eventually, he gets used to it, especially with you and Floyd pranking everything with your detached body parts. Even if he walks into his office and finds your head on his desk, Azul will sigh, shake his head, and focus on his work.

———————————————

➣  Please visit my website for the full masterlist!

[hanlimz]

[midnight thoughts: park jongseong + end of beginning]

rando posting on a thursday night bc this has been in my drafts 4ever. no summary you die like men. maybe i'll write a part 2. maybe.

whether the guitar is a meager subject bending to his will or an extension of his very own body, you are unable to decide. enveloped by the dim lighting and clouds of cigarette smoke, the black stained alder wood manages to melt into the obsidian of his leather jacket. the angularity of his face cuts through the darkness; the length of his nose is perfectly straight, the slant of his jaw is sharp enough to cut, and his eyebrows are two, thick lines of focus. he plays with so much precision that it almost makes you overlook the way he still purses his lips when he's concentrating—a habit he was never able to shake. it transports you back to a simpler time in which he wasn't a rockstar. instead, he was a college student studying business management who had a silly band on the side. he was a college student who never planned to make it big, who never planned to leave.

a break in the set forces you from the depths of your memories. he is almost unrecognizable as he works the crowd; a sea of people at this intimate show are screaming for him, begging for his attention, and you can't help but laugh to yourself. years ago, he used to play for you. with a timeworn guitar and a handful of hope, he shared his musings of the future. they were long-shots, pipe dreams, fantasies he entertained when his assignments proved too difficult and his imagination too wild. his voice was sultry as the nimble tips of his fingers waltzed over the fretboard; the melodies he created were happier than the ones he sings now. his stories chronicled a life with you, but now they're bittersweet—tales of olde, reminders of the past.

the show is coming to a close; the throngs of listeners are beginning to thin out. minute by minute, there are less bodies to hide behind, less background to blend into—but, you can't seem to make yourself leave. there's a part of you that wants to be seen, to be noticed by him once more. turning to the bartender, you order an elixir to forget. before you can take the first sip into oblivion, however, a shadow sits down next to you. he smells familiar—amber, sandalwood, a dark thicket. he orders a whiskey sour, and it reminds you of the first time you met. like an aged souvenir, you hold the memory delicately in the palms of your hands.

"what does it feel like, hm?" there's a momentary pause, then you hum into the thick, musky air, "to be a star?"

he takes in a labor-ridden breath. when he lets it out, it seems like more than air escapes him; the heavy exhale is almost painful as he ponders the question. a minute passes, and the quiet is stifling. "it feels good, at first. everything you want, anytime you want. but, it becomes hollow after a while—all the drinks, all the blurry faces, all the memories melting together," he admits. "it's like i'm floating, y'know ... aimless, in space, millions of miles away."

"is it lonely up there?" you ask.

"most of the time, yeah," he answers, stopping for a few seconds to think. "but, it's what i wished for. it's what i wanted."

glancing over at him out of the corner of your eye, you see he's still nursing his drink. the fingers of his left hand trace circles around the rim of the glass while he itches at his wrist with his right. the blonde streaks in his hair are tousled with a mixture of gel and sweat, and the darker parts fall forward to shield his gaze from yours. remnants of the boy you used to know, used to love are resurfacing from the deep recesses of your mind—where you had kept them hidden for years.

"you're still a terrible liar," you say.

his body tenses at the comment. as his muscles remain rigid, he scoffs, disbelieving and defensive, "what do you even know about me, anymore?"

"nothing, really ..." behind your blasé facade, there's a particular ache. his words cut you, a serrated blade shoved between the gaps of your ribs; it hurts because you know he's right. he is no longer yours to know, no longer yours to love. soon, you fear that he may not even be yours to remember—disintegrating, falling, lost to the sands of time. "i knew who you were, though. kind and gentle, the guy who would buy me flowers for no reason. every day, you would call me to tell me you loved me. you would cook dinner, light candles, wash my hair ..."

it grows quiet again; the only sounds filling the air are a symphony of closing ambience. dishes are clattering, glasses are clinking, and chairs are scratching against the floor. this time, however, the silence is not deafening. in a way, it is almost familiar—reminiscent of spring nights spent in the diner close to campus, faces full of pancakes and hearts full of joy. but, this quietude—while being peaceful—also breeds cruelty.

"i'm sorry," his voice pierces through the wisps of smoke and the faint scent of burning incense off in the distance. he leaves the rest unspoken—for leaving, for not saying goodbye, for not giving you an answer. but, you hear it. in spite of it all, you hear it. the words don't penetrate the toughened shell around your heart; instead, they echo in your mind. everything you wanted but nothing you needed.

you hesitate, "i don't know if i can believe you."

"why did you come then?" he asks, voice solemn.

pins and needles prick at the skin of your cheeks as the question makes the tips of your fingers go cold. it's almost unreal. he shouldn’t have the right to question you like this, to interrogate you like you’re the criminal—like you’re the one who left. his words make slow work of you like a bullet to the stomach. as you pour out everything for him, you come to the bitter realization that it ended this way all those years ago. it would always end this way. you, dead on the floor; him, gun in hand. “i wanted to see for myself, i guess—” you spit, “if it was all worth it.”

turning towards him, you break down the wall that time and distance had erected between the two of you. there's a ferocity that shines in your eyes; it makes them glow with a certain conviction. he avoids your pointed stare, instead choosing to swirl his watered down drink. only now do you allow yourself to take a closer look at him. his skin is pallid, a ghost of the deep, tawny beige you used to run your fingers along; the dark circles under his eyes accompany sunken cheeks and slumped shoulders. fatigue seeps down to his very being, and this life the has managed to sap the life from his veins.

"was it worth it, jongseong?"

hearing his name fall from your lips seems to send a bolt of pure lightning down the length of his spine. no one has called him that in years; the thought makes you wonder who else he left behind. the corners of his eyes crinkle as he shuts them tight, trying to be anywhere but squirming under the weight of your gaze. after a few moments, he shakes his head. it starts slowly, a gentle back and forth movement before it becomes violent and erratic. when he stops, the man finally connects with you.

his rich, umber eyes are the one of the only things you still recognize. behind the severity of his face, there is a softness dancing within them; at his waterline, tears twinkle like diamonds under a jeweler's light. jay has never cried, never felt the touch of someone who loves him for who he is—but, jongseong? jongseong misses that feeling. the freedom of being loved unconditionally, the all-encompassing warmth of not just being seen but being known.

"it wasn't worth you."

[cyberrose2001]

Hi, hope you’re having a good day!

Could I request a masc human!reader x tfp!ratchet where the reader is a classical musician. I could definitely see it help him calm down, and having a human who doesn’t talk all the time would be a welcome breath of fresh air for him.

TFP Ratchet x Masc Human Musician! Reader

Hi! Thanks for the request! Reader uses He/Him pronouns, can be read as platonic or romantic

thanks to @uselessmacrowave for helpin me out <3

Warnings: None, SFW

Word count: (will update soon)

Ratchet’s optics felt heavy, straining against the glow of the bright blue data pad. He glances at the time on the pad and sighs in frustration. He’d tried a couple of different ways to lull himself to sleep. One was a soothing and warm energon mix, light orange in colour, and gave a gentle glow to the darkened room while he sipped on it. But it was starting to cool off; he’d left it on the table too long.

He tosses the data pad next to him and stretches, old creaky joints moaning as he does so. Standing up, he takes the mug and swishes what’s left of the energon mix. Its glow has dulled, way past its primetime, and he can’t help but compare himself to a dull cup of energon.

He can’t help being old and irritable. It’s just part of aging, he thinks. Or that’s what he tells himself to justify his cold nature. He doesn’t mean to be, though; sometimes, he wants peace and quiet. Away from the war, away from his work and away from the bickering humans.

Most of the humans, at least.

He wanders off to the makeshift ‘kitchen’ area of the base, close enough to the main area so he can sneak off and concoct his energon mixes. He dumps the remainder of his cold drink and goes to pour himself another when he hears the gentle, long-winded notes of an instrument, causing his audial receptors to tune in. Ratchet hadn’t heard anything like this before, and it had a soothing, methodical flow to it, much different to music on Cybertron.

“What on Earth?” Ratchet questions to himself, glancing over his shoulder to find the source behind him. It sounds so close it may as well be, or maybe Ratchet is so sleep-deprived that he's finally at the audial hallucination stage. Probably not, but for his mental clarity he better check just to be sure. He finishes pouring his elixir and quietly treaded to the central part of the base. He wasn’t sure what he was expecting to find around the corner, but what he finds is somewhat pathetic but endearing.

Alone on the platform of the many catwalks was his human, one of the less irritable ones Ratchet was assigned. He’s seated on an old chair that looks like it could collapse under him at any moment, complimented greatly by an equally more dusty piano with the dust half hazard wiped from it. It’s not elegant, that’s for sure.

But there's something so charming and different about this music. Usually, when the kids play instruments, Ratchet is the first to book it out of there; the ‘fine art’ they 'perform' is worse than the ear-splitting grinding of a starved scraplet. But this time, he walks closer as if his pedes have become part of a flowing river. The sound isn’t overbearing, and the notes are light and gentle; it’s as if his human is playing as delicately as possible not to wake anyone up.

Ratchet creeps closer, standing just outside of his humans field of vision, “What are you-”

“GAHH!” Y/n jumps out of his skin, causing him to slam on the keys and nearly fall off the chair. Ratchet flinches but keeps his composure, managing not to spill his drink.

The human places a hand over his heart and whips his head around, sighing in relief as he realises its his guardian, "Jesus, you should come with a bell."

“My apologies,” Ratchet murmurs, pausing momentarily, “I was curious where that noise was coming from.”

Y/n looks towards his guardian with worry, knowing how horrible his sleep schedule is, “I didn’t wake you, did I?” He whispers.

“No, no,” Ratchet sighs, placing his still full cup on a nearby bench, “I’ve been awake for… quite sometime now. Don't concern yourself with me," The bot leans against the railing, "The question is, what are you doing awake?”

Y/n glances at his phone, two-thirty am. He should be asleep but can’t convince himself to crawl into bed. The deafness of the night is too enticing, “I like the quiet.”

Ratchet nods in all-too-familiar understanding, grazing his optics back to the old piano, “I see… so what’s this then? It’s certainly more quiet than the ones I see Miko playing.”

“It’s a piano,” Y/n smudges the dust off one of the keys before wiping it on his jeans, “And it can be quiet or loud, depending on how you play it.”

Ratchet hums, shifting on his pedes slightly to lean against the railings, “Interesting, you never mentioned being a… musician, if that's what you call it.”

“I don’t like the attention it brings me, but I found this piano in one of the old storage closets and dragged it out… couldn’t help myself.” Y/n titters and positions his fingers over the keys, “You wanna listen? I mean, if you’re not busy, that is…”

“I suppose, if you don't mind an audience this time.” Ratchet casually says, making himself more comfortable against the catwalk, again ignoring his energon drink, "Show me your secret talent, kid."

The first light chords drift through the deafening silence of the room like a soft breeze. Ratchet observes his human, eyes closed and focused. How his hands float over the keys mesmerises Ratchet and reminds him of a well-trained pair of servos similar to his own.

"Sounds...nice..." Ratchet blinks his optics slowly, stifling a yawn. He should probably sit down, but his aching joints say otherwise.

Before long, he feels his optics becoming more and more heavy. The sweet song beckons him to stasis, but he stays put, his hefty frame rocking slightly. The gentleness of this new music is how Ratchet imagines what a warm hug would feel like or that first sip of energon mix after a long day.

Y/n pauses on a long chord to look at his guardian. He’s fallen asleep against the rail, arms folded with his chin tucked to his chest, and Y/n can’t help but smile at the rare sight. Ratchet rarely gets to rest, but managing to put him to sleep is another secret talent he can tick off the list.

[maralarsen]

He is my misfortune 🎀

~Lorenzo Berkshire x reader~

WARNING: cursing

°Nepriateľ milovníkov°

Fluff

Summary : You unhappily end up tutoring a boy who brings you more misery than life itself

• |Reader is in Hufflepuff

• | I plan to make another part/parts. But I don't know if you will like this part, so I'll see 🎀

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lorenzo Berkshire. A lot of people think of this name as a smiling face of a boy who is always positive, laughing and sometimes even kind. The only thing that comes to mind with this name is disaster. Everywhere he goes something always goes wrong. Either I'm unlucky with him or I really don't know anymore.

For example, my Hufflepuff friends and I were in Hogsmeade. It was cold, so we went to the Three Broomsticks to warm up like every student at Hogwarts. A pleasant atmosphere prevailed there, at least I felt pleasant until I saw his face. At that moment, I sighed and realized that another problem was on the way.

We sat down at the table next to his. And why ? The reason was clear. Berkshire wasn't sitting there alone, he was there with his crew. For my friends, it was literally a feast for their eyes. I don't understand what they like about guys who just drink, smoke and change girls like socks.

That's not my type at all. I'd rather have some nice boy who likes to cuddle, go on cute dates, buy me flowers and..."What the f*ck?!" I was snapped out of my reverie about a boy who might not even exist by the boy who was the most annoying to me. nerves. "Sh*t Berkshire watch out! Great, I'm all wet now," oh of course who else but Berkshire could have tripped over his own feet and spilled butterbeer on me. "I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to, this really wasn't on purpose," Berkshire apologized with a smile on his face.

I heard how his friends started laughing in the back, especially Malfoy, another icon of the school. I wanted to cry. I don't understand why he always has to do this to me. "I said sorry, don't be so relational, it's just beer, it will dry out," I looked at him in disbelief.

"Yes, it will dry out. But it's your fault that it's wet!" I stood up and left the room. Why does he always have to do this to me? Fool. I got on the first carriage I saw and went back to the castle.

This happened about a month ago, I'm currently sitting in the library completing an assignment on herbology. I really don't enjoy this subject, but somehow I still manage it. Unlike Berkshire. Whatever he is, I feel sorry for him. He's been sitting here in the library since lunch, and I can see he's still doing the same thing, with a herbology book spread out in front of him.

During that time, I managed to make elixirs, astrology and now also herbology. Maybe I would help him, but that's what he needs. Unfortunately, the butter beer cannot be washed off. He's lucky he covered my old sweatshirt and not a new one.

Curfew is in a moment. I pack my things in my bag and I look at Berkshire, but he is already looking at me. Why is he looking at me? Better do your homework, moron. I smirk, take my bag and leave the library.

The next day I enter the greenhouses, as I expected, I had a good homework and so did the others except Berkshire. "Mr. Berkshire, I don't want to worry you, but you're failing Herbology," Mrs. Sprout said sternly. Berkshire didn't say anything, just stared blankly at the ground. "Are you going to do anything about it, Mr. Berkshire?" the teacher asked him. "

Well...I...I don't know..." Mrs. Spraut just sighed and announced: "Mr. Berkshire, I suggest that someone tutor you. He will tutor you for 3 weeks, 2 times a week. And I already know who ." She suddenly turned her gaze to me. Wait. NOT. He probably can't be serious. After all, one more moment in the same room with him, and that boy will set my hair on fire with his happiness.

"M...Mind..Mind me?" I stammered back to her. "Huh? Do you have a problem with that Mrs. (y/l/n)???" "Um, no?" I replied, more of a question than an answer, "excellent! You can leave at the end of class!"

What on earth did she dip it in, and why me? I ran out of the greenhouses into the corridor to make it to the next class. "Hey! Wait!" "oh god what do you want?" I turned to face Berkshire. "Wouldn't you like to go...ah!" I reached for his shirt and pulled him to the side "You were standing in way, Lorenzo," "Oh, thank you." So wouldn't you like to go for a beer with me? We could..." "No! There's no way I'm going anywhere with you anymore. The last time you had a beer in your hand, it ended on me. So no!" I said even before he could finish the sentence and I turned to leave "Jesus, you're terrible," he said with a laugh in his voice "but I still don't like you!" I said and went into the corridor.

As I expected, it happened. He chased me. "Why are you following me like a lost puppy?" "I was waiting for you to calm down," I looked at him in disbelief. "You're kidding, aren't you?!" "When was I kidding," he replied with a grin. I swear if that boy was closer I would slap him. "Oh well, well. So what do you want so urgently that you're chasing me," "I just wanted to ask about the date of the first meeting," he said quietly. "Why didn't you ask right away?"

"Because you didn't let me talk you into it?! Did you!?" that bastard... "When is convenient for you?" I asked him with a sigh. "Whenever you want, I can do it any time," "Then Wednesdays and Fridays. I want to have peace from you during the weekend," "Mrs. (y/l/n)'s order!" he turned and left. Oh god it's going to be a month.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

• | This is my second story so I apologize for any mistakes + English is not my first language ✨

[monstersdownthepath]

MONSTER MAN* HELP ME SETTLE AN ARGUMENT:

If you're trans and you get brought back via Reincarnation, Resurrection, or True Res, do you come back as your assigned gender or your true one?

*I'm sorry if you're not actually a man!

------

This ask got buried in my askbox so I apologize if you've already settled this a long time ago!

With Reincarnation, it'd be your true gender. Reincarnation forms a completely new body to house your soul, so this body would likely reflect the shape of your soul. As for the latter, the waters are a little murkier; the spells both take pains to restore the body to its prime condition as it was in life, and would thus likely form the body into the shape it was born into... unless the body was entirely destroyed, in which case the spell may grant some leeway into how it's recreated.

Given that Rez and True Rez often come from a divine source, the deity granting the magic could probably be convinced to fudge the spell's rules a little, especially if theyre Good-aligned. However, if you're after magical HRT via high level spells, Polymorph Any Object can trans your gender (and make up entirely new ones) permanently for free without requiring death! And in lower-level campaigns, the Elixir of Sex Shifting costs around 2,000 gp and is also permanent.

[macabresymphonies]

Are we dealing with alchemists looking for The Philosopher's Stone?

(I will be referencing partially to the ARG, most importantly to the so called Klaus sheet that has german version on categories the OIAR team is using, and some light spoiler to The Magnus Archives, so beware).

We're four episodes in and cross-referencing each episode so far, there seems to be few things that connect most of them:

an orchestrator

a medium

an obsession

a transformation

Each episode so far mentions some type of third party being involved in the incident: Harriet Winstead mentions a "consultant" that was supposed to help her see Arthur, RedCanary mentions getting harrased by an anonymous stalker, Daria commissions Ink5oul for a tattoo, Dr Samuel Webber mentions seeing his dead wife "Maddie" who stops him from tampering with the transformation (could be a hallucination, but could also be somebody using his delirioum to impersonate her) and today we've got a mention of a "giftgiver" who gave The Violinist the Violin.

Additionally each incident mentions some type of specific medium the characters came into contact with: The Box, The Violin, The Ink (cross referenced in Klaus sheet from the ARG), The Garden (as in plants in the garden). The exception being the Harriet, but we don't know yet what "caused" ressurection of Arthur. This is important, because in TMA items and "mediums" weren't actually all that common, it was very often stressed that relics were medium for the fears to use directly (with people only doing their bidding), not to be handled by others as a medium.

Lastly each episode talks obsession and/or transformation and oh boy, let me tell you about bunch of guys historically obsessed with tranforming stuff through different mediums:

"It's not very suprising, alchemical symbols are everywhere throughout the podcast!" you might say. True, but let's take into consideration, what excactly is a goal of an alchemist? Well the answer is quite simple and there is actually three of them. The Three Goals of Alchemy are:

To turn base metals into noble ones

To discover the recipe for a Philosopher's Stone

To find the Elixir of Life that gives eternal youth and defies death

All of them refer to some type of recipie of method, so where are the recipies? Under our own noses. The recipies are the DPHW catalogue and the database Freddie is sending the incident reports to is an alchemical cookbook! Each entry is categorized something like that:

CAT$$$R&&#### - theme (specification) -/- subtheme [medium]

Some specifications:

$ - are a conbination of numbers 1, 2 and 3. They do not always appear in threes, sometimes it's just 3, sometimes 12 (as in 1 and 2) so forth. These has been widely theorized to be related to the The Tria Prima, a group of three materials which occupy a position of prominence in alchemy: Sulphur(🜍), Mercury(☿) and Salt(🜔) or as they are also characterized Soul, Mind and Body. If we assign each of them a number with 1 being Soul, 2 being Mind and 3 being body, they so far align with the main "components" of each incident or realms they deal in.

R - either appears or not, it was theorized this is a RANK and that previous files were simply misfiled by Sam, but to me it also could be REGIA as in Aqua Regia (🜆) where we are to assume the R was added to the previous element (Aqua (🜄) + Regia (R)). The meaning behind assigning some some incidents the rank of regia has yet to be explained though.

& - these are letters C, BC, B, AB, A and S signifying a rank (or rang in the Klaus sheet) . Lets ignore that S for a second, but they seem to be stages and half stages, well there can't possibly a concept of four stages in alchemy? Let me introduce you to the Magnum Opus (Great Work). Basically each alchemical project went through four stages: nigredo (black), albedo (white), citrinitas (yellow) and rubedo (red) with rubedo specifically signifying a great discovery was made and Magnum Opus was a success, but it does not necessairly mean an alchemical goal was reached.

To summarize, numbers one C-A signify stage of the project, with S, that appears once on mostly redacted cell in the Klaus sheet, signifying that not only the final stage was reached, but the project has been a success.

This could mean a finished Magnum Opus is out there, developed in the field of the Soul and related to the mysterous Mr. B.

# - these numbers are still a mystery, I do have some theories myself, but to summaries I think they are grades and some type of combination (I think it's either 9999, 0000 (as in all 10s) or perhaps 7777 (7 being the most important alchemical number)). Basically a specific combination could imply the specific discovery could be categorized as a Philosopher's Stone. What that could mean for the narrative? We will see, but I suspect it's an alchemical equivalent to an eldritch nuke in this universe.

Last thing to support my theory, the OIAR logo. The lion and the unicorn are obviously symbols for the United Kingdom, as this is a government office, and the words undearneath are "we will not falter" (probably reference to the paranormal incidents they deal with) the rest though?

Alchemical symbols for Salt, Mercucry and Sulphur are right there, all encompassed by an upside-down version of The Philosopher's Stone symbol; The Greatest Magnum Opus:

As to what the Magnum Opus are in TMAGP, each incident has an item associated with it, I noticed that the characters do not get corrupted by people directly this season, but through the use of items like ink, instruments, plants.

[marshmallowprotection]

About Bad Ending 3, Yoosung Route

Where do you think the Unknown is with Yoosung? He says, "My savior has forgotten about me, and all the disciples too... I practically don't exist." Do you think he still lives in the old Mint Eyes building? (I assume Rika changed Magenta's location and left Saeran behind)

Given the brief dialogue that you're referring to in this bad ending, I can confirm that they are no longer in the original location for Mint Eye.

There are a few endings in the game where we are informed that there are safe houses and routes put together as the contingency plan if the cult goes down.

We don't have too much information about these places, but we know they exist.

Since he said that Luciel has been working hard with assignments (We can assume the agency and trying to backtrack to find Yoosung because he's not gonna leave him there after what he sacrificed for him) and the RFA is barely holding themselves together; My best bet is Unknown took Yoosung under his control and didn't tell Rika about that.

Now, I bet you're gonna ask, "Hey, wait! She has him under lock and key, how would she not know about that? Isn't her plan to bring all of them to the cult in the first place and make them hate Jihyun and side with her in the inevitable confrontation?"

Correct! However, you also have to remember that by that point in the timeline, she cannot stand Unknown. She purely hates him and is looking for any opening she can find to get rid of him for good because she doesn't like the "nuisance she created."

She doesn't see him as a son anymore, nor does she carry a weight on her back about it. She just wants him to do his job and as long as he does that, she can tolerate his existence. The reason why they would have had to move bases would have been because of him and I can't see her being too happy about that.

She put a lot of time and money into building that place. I don't think people realize how much she had to manipulate and coerce people to do that. It took a lot of manpower to do that because she's not rich like V or Jumin. She can't do that without the help of people who are determined to benefit from her choice. That was all RFA embezzling and knowing how to sweet talk people.

THAT is why I believe the dialog said, "Rika and the guards can't stand me". That's why he's using Yoosung like a glorified stress ball, too.

I don't think Rika would've let him do that if she had been made aware of it. You have to remember the goal was to capture her group and convince them to stay with her forever in paradise with no way out because they could never abandon her if she didn't give them a choice the moment she revealed "her devil."

We could argue day and night if she wanted to give them the elixir or what have you, but I just can't see her letting Yoosung be treated like a stress ball. She may not have truly valued his admiration of her or the relationship they had as family because she was too afraid to be honest with him about her feelings and insecurities, but I know that what she was trying to build with the RFA wasn't a means of torture for the sake of torture.

I don't think her hands would have been clean in that regard with her former friends but I do think that her idea of torture only comes with a specific brand of intent. She needs a reason to torment you and for the outcome to be in her favor. She's not going to dispose something she fought hard to get her hands on unless she thinks it's worthless to her now.

She can't just abandon Unknown. Even if she wants to get rid of him, she needs to use him for what he's worth because that's all he is to her. Why would she throw away something that could still be useful? She's not wasteful even if she can't stand his "failure".

So, yeah, I don't think she abandoned him, I think he's just hiding his new toy away from prying eyes. They couldn't stay in that building because the RFA would get them and that torture wouldn't last. But I will admit there's a lot you can play with narratively with some of that.

[emeritusemeritus]

Just wanna bewitch you in the moonlight. Pt 5.

[Fred Weasley x reader x George Weasley]

Part 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Title: Just wanna bewitch you in the moonlight.

Pairing: Fred Weasley x Reader x George Weasley

Timeline: Predominately set between GOF and OOTP (some canon has been altered to fit the story)

Summary: Both twins like Gryffindor!reader. Reader likes both twins. How will she decide who to chose in the end? Amortentia might be able to help, or not.

Warnings: Smut, mentions of sex, established relationships, threesomes, friends to lovers, all the good stuff. NO Twincest. Mentions of illness, Brief mentions of vomiting. Tiny bit of angst, possessiveness, talk of kids. Mentions of dominant behaviour. Snape has a soft spot for reader. Love potions? But none are actually used.

Potions lesson’s with Snape, what could go wrong? 🥀

You held back a shiver as you took your assigned seat in the potions classroom, cursing the fact that the dungeons were always at least 10 degrees colder than anywhere else in the castle, so much so that you could almost make out your own breath in the chilly room.

Despite the fact that it was Monday morning and you were absolutely freezing, you actually enjoyed potions class, as much as Snape made it somewhat intolerable for most students. In your multiple years at Hogwarts, you'd proven yourself to be a competent student in potions, consistently achieving high grades and maintaining your spot as top of the class. It wasn't pure, natural talent per se but rather a profound interest in the subject that began in your first year and had developed into a pasable skill.

"Turn your books to page 634," Snape orders as he crashes into the room, the heavy wooden door slamming shut behind him with a resounding bang and distinctive rattle of the bolts and metal hinges. He flourishes his wand and the shutters to the small windows slam shut as he takes his place at the front of the class, beside the chalkboard. One window illuminates the entire classroom, enough to see your own workstation and the raised level where Snape stood, but not much else.

"Today's focus will be on Amortentia; one of the most dangerous and powerful potions in existence. It's very purpose is to deceive and ensnare the mind, you will be wise to not underestimate the dangers of this particular elixir."

The word 'Amortentia' is written in chalk upon the blackboard as you cast your eyes down to the textbook page which details the recipe and method of creating the potion.

"Can anyone tell me what this particular potion is commonly known for?" He asks, glaring out into the class as he looks upon the faces of the students. He gives a harsh, solemn nod towards a girl in the back who had shakily raised her hand.

"It's a love potion."

"Love is a misguided term, but nevertheless it is grouped as so," he huffs, both confirming and rejecting the girl's answer. "Love in it's entirety of unconditional and eternal attachment cannot be brewed nor recreated even by the most skilled potioneer. Of all the love potions created, Amortentia is the most powerful of all, known to create an instantaneous, obsessive infatuation in the drinker so infallible it is near impossible to detect until the effects ware off."

He suddenly closed the book he was reading in his hands with a slam and placed the book onto his desk, looking out towards his students.

"Who can tell me what distinctive qualities define Amortentia from the other infatual potions?" He almost sneered when no one raised their hand until you reluctantly did so, trying to temper him. He gave you a nod, selecting you to answer. You noticed that the nod he had given you was in stark contrast to the one he had given to the other student.

"The pearlescent shine, spiralling steam helixes and the subjective scent. It smells different to everyone as it's based on what we find most attractive, even if we don't consciously know or acknowledge those feelings," you explained, pulling your knowledge from the book that Snape had given you to read over the summer to advance you in preparation for the year and for your NEWTS.

You swore you could almost see Snape's mouth shift into a very slight smirk, or at least move from its near constant downturned fixture.

"Very good miss y/l/n, 10 points to Gryffindor," Snape said, acknowledging you before turning back around to scribble on the chalkboard. Hushed whispers of surprise murmured around you at Snape's generous praise; he had frequently removed house points but never once had he given points, especially not to Gryffindor.

Katie whispered a kind well done in your ear as she nudged your shoulder which made you quietly giggle and try to hide your slight blush at the response you'd received.

Snape continued to outline the dangers and general uses for Amortentia and the larger group of love potions until it was time to collect ingredients and begin brewing. With an uncaring wave of his wand, all the flames under the small cauldrons in the classroom ignited, ready for brewing.

You gathered your ingredients and laid them out responsibly in order according to when you would need them, trying to be thorough in your method.

You began by bruising the peppermint flower heads in the pestle and mortar rather than fully crushing them as the recipe specified, something that Snape had shown you privately the previous term, before adding them into your simmering potion water and then adding the leaves as a whole

You stirrred gently and began sprinkling in the moonstone powder one teaspoon at a time before stirring until you had used enough. Whilst the potion was stirring itself you added the rose thorns and immediately snuffed out the flame to let the potion simmer with only the residual heat of the bunson burner.

Snape stalked between the students as he made his rounds, observing the other students in their attempts at brewing an advanced potion. You'd absently heard him calling out a few students for their lack of effort, attention and overall helplessness but you'd paid it no mind, focusing on the tempestuous potion below you.

Once it had thickened to your desire, you began adding the ashwinder eggs one by one, allowing them to dissolve into the mixture without any assistance of your stirrer. You turned back on the flame only very gently, enough to keep the heat of the cauldron but not as to increase it and finally allowed yourself to stir it once, checking that no ingredients were sticking to the side and potentially spoiling the potion you'd put so much effort into.

You sat back on the stool as you observed the potion, making notes of your findings into your notebook after glancing at the clock, when you saw something in your peripheral. Steam, spiralling steam.

You leapt off your stool and stood before your cauldron as you looked upon the potion that had gained a beautiful mother of Pearl iridescence of pink and white hues which made your heart leap at the very sight.

Curiosity overcame you and within seconds you leant down gently to smell the effervescent potion below, trying to get an idea if it actually worked.

Sweet, earthy hues of Dandelion and Burdock immediately filled your senses immediately knocking you off guard, instantly mentally winding you as you considered the implication. As you began to pull away in shock, the scent changed in your mind to the sickly sweet, alluring tang of toasted marshmallows which lasted only a second and then adapted once again, the smokiness that lingered in the back of your mind becoming the only thing that filled your head. You knew that scent anywhere, it was the specific scent of the settling smoke after a series of whizz-bangs had been set off.

Fred.

Your mind raced as you tried to work out of there was anyway that George was included within those smells, or if you'd perhaps confused it but it was impossible, all those things were specifically and undeniably Fred Weasley.

Your stomach dropped as you stood frozen in place, guilt and shame immediately overwhelming you as you considered what this meant. Your feelings for Fred were stronger, so much so that a potion had revealed your uttermost secret, illuminating your true feelings until they were staring you right in the face.

Fred filled your mind as the lingering scent of him consumed you, the last notes of the potion haunting you as a reel of Fred played in your mind. His laugh, his voice, his gentleness and his teasing make butterflies erupt in your stomach, though it wasn't enough to quash the uneasiness and guilt you felt.

You thought of George, and the guilt felt crippling. You thought of the night you'd spent together just days ago, the wonderful night spent stargazing on the balcony at the burrow wrapped in blankets and in each other, George giving you his sweater to wear in the chilly night air, making love under the stars and sharing stolen treats afterwards. You thought of how gentle he'd been, how tender and romantic it all was and how much effort he'd gone to just to spend some time alone with you. He'd never once pressured you into choosing between the brothers, even when you spoke of your futures and your dreams, he had been gracious and selfless, which only make you feel worse.

A foreboding popping noise brought you out of your daydream and you leapt forward to snuff out the flame, praying that your careless daydreaming hadn't ruined the brew as it had began to pop and broil under the heat.

You looked down to examine it and were immediately drawn to the spiralling steam which rose up and filled your nostrils again. You prepared yourself to smell the delicious mixture of dandelion and burdock but when that never came, you stood dejected, realising you had ruined the perfect batch you'd created.

Immediately you froze as the scent surrounded you, only it wasn't the sugary sweet scent you had expected, it was something entirely different.

The scent of pumpkin spice filled your mind instantly, the spicey sweet blend making your mouth water for a second before the scent changed to something that made your heart soar and the lead weighted feeling in your stomach disappear; the scent of freshly washed wool that mixed with a woody scent as if a garment had been stored for a while. The scent was soapy and fresh but not overly so and was a distinctive blend of scents and oils that gave you an immediate complete sense of comfort. It couldn't be mistaken for any generic brand of detergent as the complex mixture of smells was too distinctive; it was Mrs Weasley's famous homemade blend. George's sweater. The scent then changed so quickly you couldn't fathom when exactly it did, but the third scent was all too familiar to not recognise instantly, causing a pained laugh to bubble up in your throat at the irony. The Smokey smell of the aftermath of a whiz bang- exactly the same as his brother.

George.

You stumbled back slightly at the implication and the notion of your discovery. Before you could process or ruminate on the changing scents, Snape suddenly stood before you staring down into your cauldron with an unreadable expression.

He suddenly looked up at you with eyes that implored your own, effectively silencing your spiralling thoughts from what had happened as you watched him stand with mouth agape, looking between yourself, the cauldron and your open notes page.

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a lilyfig leaf and drops it into the potion, watching with astonishment as it dissolves entirely in seconds.

"It appears Miss y/l/n has perfected Amortentia, I'd like you to all gather around and see for yourselves the impeccable sampling she has managed to conceive," He says loudly, addressing the entire class as they huddle forward to gather around your now settled potion.

A few excited murmurs fill the crowd as they look on, each of the girls trying to edge forward to see and smell for themselves but Snape quickly puts a stop to all of this as he explains the qualities of the potion, able to now physically show the class with the specimen in front of them.

Usually you would feel a sense of accomplishment at what you had created, especially after receiving praise from Severus Snape but the previous encounters with your own potion had made you completely conflicted, knowing you must have done something wrong.

You couldn't even bring yourself to listen to Snape or the other students around you, feeling like you were trapped in a bubble, your ears hearing nothing but static as your thoughts drowned out all of your senses.

How had the potion changed? How had you so specifically smelt Fred and then later George? You were certain you'd never heard of such a thing happening- perhaps your heart was just as conflicted as your mind when it came to your feeling for both the brothers, perhaps you would never know who you desired the most.

You were distraught at the conflict it had raised in you, feeling sick to your stomach as you considered the implications and the further questions it had raised.

Did you love Fred?

Did you love George?

Did the potion get it wrong, or did you mistakenly identify the scents?

Did the potion changing to George mean that it was him and not Fred you had larger feelings for?

You reasoned that the potion only changed after you thought of George and the most recent night you'd spent together, did that impact it? Was Fred the right answer because it had shown him first, even when you weren't thinking of him?

"20 points to Gryffindor," you finally heard, the roars of excitement from your house peers sharply pulling you back from your spiralling thoughts. Katie and a few of your fellow Gryffindors around you reached out to pat you on the back as you forced a smile onto your face, turning to look at Snape who looked relatively pleased.

The loud chime signalled the end of class and each student flocked to their workstations to clear away their work, disposing of their mixtures and collect their items ready for the next class.

"'Miss y/l/n," Snape called out from the front of the room, beckoning you with a simple pull of his index finger. You turned to Katie who was waiting for you and she nodded gently, turning to wait just outside the door for you.

"Well done miss y/l/n, your predisposition for potions has once again come to fruition, never once have I seen a student create such quality drafts that potion masters would be envious of," Snape says, his eyes looking into yours with a softness you had rarely seen. It looks as if he is just as uncomfortable with the words as you are, but you had to commend him for trying.

"Thank you sir," you replied though it was only half heartedly mumbled, the conflict within you not allowing you to accept the praise.

"You are doubting your abilities?" He asks sharply, reading your downtrodden expression as his eyes squint in questioning.

You quickly debate wether or not to bring up the mysterious situation that happened earlier, now knowing wether it was a fault with the brew or yourself but you quickly decide not to speak of it, knowing how little Snape cared for trivial matters of his students. Perhaps you could use that to cover your steps.

"No sir," you say, trying to exude a little more confidence than you felt. "I'm just a little... conflicted by the outcome of the potion scenting," you said trying to imply that the scent was not what you expected it to be, knowing that Snape would dismiss you immediately at your personal matter.

"Oh," he says, recoiling ever so slightly with awkwardness, just as you were hoping. You waited for him to make a snide or harsh comment but it never came, much to your surprise. "The mind is a complex and many layered thing, not always does it connect to our hearts so transparently, no matter how desperately one tries," he says, his eyes lingering at the desk as he absently tidying up a few stray quills that litter the wooden table.

His words sink in immediately, leaving you a little breathless as he seems to summarise your feelings in one fell swoop. You nod your head gently as you consider his words, realising that he must have spoken from a place of knowing, a pang of empathy running through you at the notion.

"Sir?" You implore after a moment, seeing that he hadn't spoken again, addressed nor dismissed you. He gazed back at you and straightens up, his show of vulnerability dissaperating instantaneously as he falls back into his usual emotionless self.

"You are excused from the homework this lesson as an accolade to your achievement," he says in his regular tone, "I anticipate my expectations to be met if not exceeded again next class, you are dismissed," he says, the usual downturned mouth frown lifting gently to almost be a smile.

"Thank you sir," you said quickly, turning to exit before you paused, turning back to him with the need to show your gratitude, feeling a sort of even footing happening between the both of you, "the potions book you leant me last term has been invaluable, so I only have you to thank."

You didn't wait around for his reply as you walked away and out of the cold room. You spot Katie waiting for you in the hallway and offer a wince of remorse at keeping her so long but she simply shrugs it off and instantly sprouts into an excited monologue about her love potion identification, which closely resembled her long time crush, Oliver Wood.

As much as you wanted to listen to your friends outpouring of emotion, you were bitterly conflicted and exhausted by the emotion turmoil you endured at the events of potions class, as well as the surprising turn with Professor Snape.

"Are you coming to lunch?" Katie asks as you make your way up through the corridors and to the main staircases, feeling yourself get warmer and warmer with each step, feeling as if you were finally defrosting from the temperature of the dungeons.

You pondered briefly, considering your options. On one hand you desperately wanted to hide away in your dorm, avoid Fred and George at all costs as the feelings of uneasiness lingered within you but you also simply wanted to eat and allow your friends to hopefully provide relief and distraction from your destructive thoughts.

"Yeah," you said absently, following her lead to the great hall. Your conversation with Snape had delayed you slightly and so most of the students were already seated and digging in to the feast.

You huffed out a breath as you spotted your group in their regular positions high up the table, with Hermione multitasking at trying to eat and read at the same time whilst also chastising Ron for shoving so much food into his mouth he could barely chew. Harry and Ron were conversing about something as Ginny looked on, listening but not speaking. Your eyes closed as a pang of dread filled you at seeing the only vacant seat available from Neville down to Seamus was placed between Fred and George, which you knew would not be a coincidence.

As you neared the group, Fay Dunbar and Carl Hopkins suddenly stood up from their place at the table and began clapping with a little cheer as you made your way over, a sudden onset blush staining your cheeks. Cormac looked over from his place at the top of the table and stood up immediately, ushering his friends and joining in the cheering, no doubt for the points you'd been awarded in class, which had pushed Gryffindor to the top of the leaderboard, the flags in the main hall all shining with red and gold.

"Here she is, Hogwarts' new potion master, or mistress I suppose," Carl says from his place beside Neville, a sarcastically elated grin spread across his face as he continues clapping.

"Shove off," you said without any conviction as you laughed, moving to walk behind George as you take your place, allowing your hand to graze his back lightly as you climbed onto the bench.

"What have we missed?" Harry says suspiciously as you take your seat, your face no doubt bright red from the attention as you attempt to hide behind your hair. Fred's arm moves instantly behind your back to rest on the back of the bench, securing your place between your boys.

You can feel the stares of the people around you as they wait in anticipation of explanation for your reception, the stares of George and Fred in particular feeling hot on your skin but you hardly look up to meet anyone's amused gaze.

"Snape awarded her 30 points in class!" Fay, who was in your potions class, spoke up whisky pointing her finger at the totals displayed in the main hall.

"She was bloody brilliant, Snape said that he'd never seen a student create such quality drafts and that that potion masters would be envious of of her!" Katie excitedly chattered as she made her way over to her usual place with the Patil sisters.

Ron and Harry immediately quietly cheered and Hermione seemed to throw out a flustered congratulations though her tone couldn't quite hide the tinge of underlying jealousy.

Fred nudged your shoulder playfully with his own and leaned in to whisper in your ear, "well done Princess." His whispering voice so close to your ear made you fight back a shiver of arousal. The cheeky sod knew exactly what he was doing.

George leaned over towards you just as Fred pulled away and brought his hand up to criss cross over his brothers to rub at your back, suspiciously just below your bra strap. "Yeah well done angel." He lingered just a moment and you could tell that he wanted to kiss your head, just as he always did in private but thought better of it.

"What were you brewing?" Hermione asks, pausing her reading to ask, her voice breaking you out of your little internal monologue.

"Amortentia," You replied, shrugging gently.

"But that's advanced level!" Hermione states with a mixture of outrage and bewilderment. Once again you shrug and reach forward to pick at a chicken leg sat in front of you, choosing the side closest to you so you don't touch anything Ron might have had his grubby hands on.

"Oooh love potions Eh?" Ginny smirks, wagging her eyebrows at you, which you counter with a sarcastic smile and glaring eyes.

"Should we be worried?" George teases quietly, leaning in again, just loud enough for you and his twin to hear. You elbow him playfully earning a synchronised laugh from the twins. Fred chooses that exact moment to readjust his arm to bring it forward underneath the table to rest on your thigh.

"I think someone slipped Snape some, he seemed awfully smitten with her, I'm sure he nearly almost smiled," Katie says loudly as she tucks into her lunch. Fred and George cast a glance at you which you know resembles slight jealously mixed with amusement at the very notion someone else would be interested in you.

"Yeah that was my master plan all along, seduce Snape into giving me good grades, maybe next year I'll try Mcgonagall," you said sarcastically, earning a laugh from the people around you.

"Georgie, why have we never thought about that?" Fred asks faux-distraught as he turns to look at his twin over your head.

"I don't know Freddie, maybe we should try it on Flich and work our way up," George smirks, playing along. "Y/n/n here can brew for us and we'll go into business, Weasley and Y/l/n incorporated."

"No way are you dragging me into your sadistic schemes," you retort, turning to face George who gives you a smile with a wicked glint in his eye, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

"Name's too long, it should just be Weasley incorporated; one of us will just have to marry her so she can join the family business," Fred says, shooting a wink in your direction as you choke on the sip of water you'd just taken at his words. Both the twins laugh, eyes shining as you squirm in your place, heart leaping at hearing those words.

"Well in that case I choose Bill," you joke, circling back to the joke you made yesterday, earning a swift attack from Fred who lunges for you and tickles your side at your audacious claim. George attempts to pin you down once again to allow Fred's attack and you can do nothing but try to hold in your squeals as Fred's long fingers run up your sides, tickling wherever he can reach.

"Alright enough enough!" You wheeze still laughing at the sensation as Fred and George pull away, smirking down at you.

The rest of lunch carried on as usual and was largely uneventful. Hermione and Ron were squabbling, Harry tried to keep out of it, Ginny remained quiet with frequent stolen glances in Harry's direction and the twins schemed secretly. Both of them were trying their luck with teasing you, littering your body with little secret touches and gestures which had you flustered the entire time.

You couldn't shake the lingering guilt and unease that you felt from your discovery that morning, the moment and the smells replaying in your mind like a broken record. You tried your hardest to push down the feelings, trying to appear normal to the twins and the people around you but in all honesty you just wanted to crawl into bed and be alone with your thoughts to try and process them. The conversations happening around you where causing you to feel massively overstimulated and agitated, like a constant buzzing in your ears as you tried to focus on a single thought.

Being sat in between the two boys you were trying to chose between was the worst possible situation right now and you felt helpless. They were usually your comfort blanket, always there for you when you needed them and grounded you when you were feeling out of control, but now the problem was them and you had nowhere to turn as you couldn't tell anyone what had happened earlier that day.

Instead of going to transfiguration next class when the bell chimed, you made your excuses, slipped away from your classmates and retreated to your dorm. You passed Ron on the way to the common room and forced out an excuse of feeling ill, hoping he wouldn't question you further. Luckily, he didn't and you were able to avoid anyone else as you climbed the stairs.

As soon as you stepped through the portrait hole, you felt an instant wave of relief at seeing the common room empty and quiet. You walked up to your dorm and instantly began pulling off your uniform and changing into something more comfy, trying to soothe yourself in any little way you could.

You must have sat there for an hour at least, trying to work out in your head what had happened earlier that morning.

In the months that you'd been seeing both George and Fred, you never knew who you liked more, not truthfully. Fred had always been the one you fancied, the one you were slightly closer to and he was the most openly flirty and affectionate through your friendship. The flirting and the banter between you both had grown stronger and stronger over the years to the point neither of you could deny feelings for each other.

But George had surprised you. You never realised that he too had feelings for you as he was much quieter and shy than his brother, both in life and in your friendship. It had monetarily knocked you for six when you found out about his feelings, most of all because it made you confront your own.

You'd spent so long fancying Fred that you hadn't realised how incomplete you felt when George wasn't around. Never wanting to make them think they were a package deal like so many others, you'd never asked where the other was or seemed like you were disappointed by only having one near you but you couldn't deny that everything was better with the both of them there, like you were finally at peace. You'd pushed down your feelings for George and deflected them into Fred because of how taboo it was to like both brothers at the same time but with this whole new arrangement, you couldn't deny it any longer. How were you ever going to be able to chose between the two brothers? If Amortentia couldn't even show you your true desire then how the hell would you be able to decide yourself?

A gentle knock on your dorm door sprang you out of your thoughts and you quickly wiped at your eyes before swishing your wand to open the door.

George.

"Angel, Ron said you weren't feeling well," he says stepping towards you with a face of concern as he moved to sit on the side of your bed.

"Its just a headache Georgie, I'll be fine," you replied with a small, shy smile, hopeful that he wouldn't see that you'd been crying. He lifted his hand to touch the back of your head to check for a temperature but when he found none he simply smiled and looked you in the eyes for a second before standing up off the bed.

"Want some company?" He asks, beginning to tug at his tie, "no doubt Fred will be along soon, soon as he hears you aren't well."

You nod enthusiastically and open up the covers for him as he quickly shucks off his shoes and climbs into get beside you, instantly reaching out to pull you towards him and into his chest.

You sigh a breath of relief at the contact and the familiar smells of George, thankful that for now it's just him and you don't have to split your affections.

It lasted all of 10 minutes before Fred barged into your room, not even bothering to act as if he knocked as he came barrelling towards you both in the bed.

"Princess, are you okay? Ron said you skipped class, you're not feeling well?" His worrying was awfully cute and you couldn't resist the smile that hung on your lips as he climbed in bed beside you so that you were now sandwiched between the pair.

"You know if Errol ever croaks, Ron could take his place," you mumbled into George's sweater, realising that Ron had alerted both boys and no doubt numerous friends to your absence. Both boys chuckled as George pulled you closer into his chest, whilst Fred placed his arm securely around your waist.

Instead of the intense conflict you'd felt earlier in the day, you finally felt at peace between the brothers, with both of them by your side.

[twistedminutia]

A Million and One Minutia: The Solar System

The Ramshackle prefect teaches ADeuce and Riddle about the solar system. Crossposted to AO3 here.

Getting thrown into a parallel universe naturally involves a bit of a learning curve. No getting around it. Even when a universe is superficially close to your own, there’s always some change, some difference that you have to adjust to. (I assume. I’ve only ever been thrown into the one.)

Everyone assumes, in Twisted Wonderland, that the thing I’m struggling to adjust to most is magic.

Which isn’t to say that it’s not an issue. Primarily in classes. Even Grim, who falls asleep two minutes into lectures and acts as though cracking a book will kill him, has a basic understanding of magic. I, meanwhile, feel a little more like I walked into algebra before I learned my times tables. Except the times tables will explode if you do them wrong. And also everyone around me has a natural affinity for them and can intuit that three times two is six while I sit around trying to make those grids out of blocks and count them all up.

So. Not a fun experience. But it’s hardly the worst issue in the world. I don’t know what Crowley told the other teachers, but they’re aware I’ve got no magic and have the decency to dumb down the work I have to do, or give me alternate assignments when I can’t complete the practical work. The thing with magic is that it’s obvious, especially here at magic school, and there’s a billion and one resources to learn about it with. I know I need to learn more about magic and I do, all the time.

It’s just that sometimes, I forget magic isn’t the only difference between my world and this one. The little differences, those are the ones that get to me. It’s like walking into a room after someone’s moved around your furniture. Yes, it’s annoying that your bookshelf’s on the other wall now, but you can see that one plainly and adapt. It’s a lot harder to stop tripping over the couch that was only moved an inch to the left. It’s blindsiding.

Usually, I study in Heartslabyul- it’s more convenient for Ace and Deuce, who will only study if I’m there to force them, and Ramshackle is, well, ramshackle enough that it’s not totally comfortable. Grim is okay with it because he can beg food off Trey. And Riddle’s at least mellowed enough that he doesn’t immediately snap at us for wandering off topic and getting a little too loud.

Deuce and Ace are flipping through a set of books on Alchemy- we have a quiz in a few days on restoratives, and they’re trying to figure out the most efficient way to craft an elixir of power. Grim should be doing the same, but he’s half-asleep, crumbs of a tart surrounding his mouth. For my part, I’m trying to memorize the list of restoratives and common ingredients between them. The practical portion of the quiz is a bit of a weird spot for me- technically I can measure and portion ingredients, but Grim needs to be there to infuse the entire mixture with magic. The last time I talked to Crewel, he was still debating on whether I should work with Grim on the potion and our grade should be combined, or if it would be better to make Grim do the practical portion on his own and have me take an extra-long written portion.

In truth, I don’t care what he chooses. I just wish he’d chosen sooner, because now I have to study both a larger chunk of information and the actual way to make the potion itself. I know for a fact that if Grim and I take the practical together, I’ll end up carrying him. Then again, if I’m not there to help, he might blow something up. Win some, lose some.

I lean my head back against the wall behind me and close my eyes for a moment. Alchemical symbols swirl behind my eyelids. Grim gives a particularly loud snort and rolls over. I open my eyes just in time to see Riddle fixing us with a venomous glare from across the room, barely visible behind a stack of books. I nudge Grim awake.

“Myaah? …Cut it out,” Grim mumbles, lazily waving a paw in my direction. I pinch him and he tries to scramble up to retaliate. Unfortunately, his paws land on a small stack of paper, which slips out from under him and sends him sprawling to the ground with a thump and a shriek.

“Shhh!” Riddle hisses from across the room. I make an apologetic gesture and gather Grim up.

“We should go back to Ramshackle,” I say. Grim squirms in my arms, grousing about being carried.

“You’re leaving already?” Deuce asks, finally looking up. Ace yawns, leaning over to stretch his back.

“It’s already past seven,” I say. I think. I don’t have a phone or a wristwatch, and some of the clocks in Heartslabyul are set wrong. I asked Riddle about it (if he likes punctuality so much, why is he making it harder for people to know the time?) and he threw out some rule about having to keep some clocks on alternate times that I didn’t really listen to. But the correct clocks tend to agree, and two clocks in this room point to seven ten as the current time. The darkness outside seems to concur.

Deuce leans over to glance outside. His expression sours upon seeing night has mostly fallen. “I didn’t realize it was so late. Are you going to be okay going back in the dark?”

“I’ll be fine,” I say as Grim starts puffing himself up in my arms.

“Yeah! Nothing out there could be a match for the great and powerful Grim!” I don’t roll my eyes. Barely. But I don’t.

Ace abruptly launches himself to his feet, sending the book on his lap spilling to the floor. Another furious ‘SHHHH!’ comes from Riddle’s corner of the room. “No, no, Deucey is right,” he says, lowering his voice enough that Riddle is mollified. “You can’t walk all the way back there yourself. I’ll come with you.”

I narrow my eyes. “You just don’t want to study anymore.”

Ace frowns. “Hey! I’m just worried about my friend walking back to her dorm all by herself-”

“We could use a break,” Deuce cuts in. “We’ve been studying for hours.”

Eh. He’s right, and it’s not like I don’t appreciate the company. “Thanks, then,” I say. I lift my voice and direct it towards Riddle. “And thank you for your hospitality, Housewarden.” Riddle glances up and acknowledges us before ducking back down to his work.

Together, we organize our materials and head for the front door of the dorm. I open the door, pausing to let Ace and Deuce don their scarves- it’s started to get cold at night, and there is a bit of a hike to get to Ramshackle.

While waiting for them, I take a moment to look up at the sky. It’s dazzling here- so many stars. Maybe they’re brighter in Twisted Wonderland, or maybe light pollution just works differently, because despite electric lighting of the dorm, I can see an enormous smattering of stars across the sky. It’s not quite as full as some photos I’ve seen of clear night skies, but it’s close.

I’ve never been good with stars, but I turn my gaze toward the one celestial object I’ve always known how to find- and pause. It’s not there.

“Are you coming?” Ace asks. I blink. He and Deuce have walked past me and are now waiting on the steps of the dorm. I’m still dithering in the open doorway.

“Sorry,” I say, giving one more glance up at the sky. “I was looking for Venus. I guess the sky’s different here.”

“What’s Venus?”

I look at Deuce. He blinks back at me, expression perfectly bewildered. The thing with the chickens in the eggs was one thing, but this is another. I look over at Ace, hoping to see the grin he gets when he’s ready to tear Deuce a new one, but he is staring at me too.

“It’s probably a constellation,” Ace says with a shrug. “Don’t ask me where it is, though. I’ve never been any good at that sort of thing.”

“No,” I say, a little incredulous and a little trepidatious. “It’s a planet.” Nothing. “The planet Venus? Second in our solar system? Only planet named after a woman?” Nada.

Deuce’s face scrunches a little. “I’ve never heard of it.” Ace shakes his head.

“You’ve never heard of Venus?” Maybe if one of them hadn’t heard of it, I would have brushed it off. But given that both of them are giving me looks like I’ve gone bonkers, I’m starting to get a little nervous.

Okay. Third opinion. I turn to Grim. Wait. Maybe a third opinion from someone who isn’t an idiot. I head back into the dorm, stirring up shouts of horror from Deuce and Ace. I ignore them and march straight back to the common area.

Riddle looks up as I walk in and his face immediately goes tomato-red. “Why are you wearing your shoes in the dorm?!”

“Riddle. This is important. What’s Venus?”

He sputters for a moment. Long enough for Deuce and Ace to come scrambling into the room behind me. “Wh- I- The painting?”

“No!” I half-yell, throwing my hands up. “The PLANET!”

Riddle looks around me at Ace and Deuce. “Is she… all right?”

“I dunno,” Ace says. “We were just heading out and then she started getting all weird about the sky or something? Asking where Venus was?” He looks and Deuce, who nods along.

“The only Venus I know is the painting,” Riddle says. “It’s of a goddess of the same name who was worshipped a long time ago.” He peers at me uncertainly. “I don’t know of a planet called Venus.”

I take a deep breath. “I need to see what the solar system looks like.” The three boys and Grim look at each other. “Please.”

Riddle pulls out a blank piece of paper and rapidly sketches something, then slides it toward me. It’s a simplified diagram of the solar system, as seen from above.

There are only five planets.

I look over it a few times to make sure I’ve got it right. It’s a pretty simplified diagram, but Riddle’s drawn it clearly. Five planets. And the second-closest one to the sun is labeled ‘Twisted Wonderland.’

I stare at the paper for a long time. Five planets. Caselotti is the closest one to the sun. The furthest out is Arendia. Walten comes next, and the third furthest is Olead.

“Um.” Deuce clears his throat. “Gray? Are you…?” He trails off, glancing at Ace and Riddle. Both of them look equally nonplussed. I can’t imagine how insane I look right now, storming in and demanding a drawing of the solar system. Even Riddle’s staying silent, though I’m sure he’s ready to explode about my shoes touching the dorm’s carpets.

I feel somewhat stupid now. Obviously the planets wouldn’t be the same here. The stars aren’t the same either, probably. I’m in a totally different world. It makes sense that the solar system would look different.

Somehow, though, it just… never occurred to me. A weird emotion twists in my gut, like I’m dropping away from the rest of the world, further away from anyone than I’ve ever been. The realization that even the sky is different here feels like something fundamental has been ripped away from me. Something I never even considered important before.

“Huh. Y’know, it looks different where I’m from,” I say. My tone’s as deliberately light as I can make it. “I guess I never considered it before.”

Ace and Deuce are silent, still looking mildly concerned. Riddle arches an eyebrow at his drawing. “In your world, you mean? The place you’re from?” He’s been the most curious about where I’m from since I told the Heartslabyul crew about how I got here. He’s also generally too polite to push about it, but I can see the interest in his eyes. “How different?”

“Well, for one, there’s nine planets,” I say. “Actually, there might only be eight now. I was never clear on what happened with Pluto.”

“Pluto?” Ace repeats, his face scrunching. “That’s a dog’s name.”

“It’s a planet name where I’m from,” I say.

“And Venus is too?” Deuce confirms. I nod.

“Sorry for kind of freaking out a little there. I guess I was just surprised it’s so different.”

Grim huffs at my feet. “Are we going to head back to Ramshackle or not?”

“Sorry, Grim.” I bend over to pick him up so he can see what we’re doing. “I just… wanted to check something. We’ll head back.”

He’s already distracted, staring at the drawing on the table. “What’s that supposed to be?”

Riddle looks offended. “It’s the solar system.”

Grim nods. “What’s that?”

There’s a moment of stunned silence. “Oh yeah,” I say. “I always forget you never attended actual school before this one.”

We all pitch in to try and teach Grim the basics of the solar system, though we keep having to detour to explain concepts like ‘gravity’ and ‘planets.’ Eventually, Riddle remembers that I’m still wearing my shoes and pitches a fit, prompting Grim and me to retreat back to the mirror, and leaving Ace and Deuce to whatever lecture Riddle is sure to give.

[moonbeam-dragon]

June Doe 2025 - Day 12 - Alternate Universe

I am so sorry this is late, but I have been traveling back from a trip the last few days. Catching up. Fantasy AU with this picrew: https://picrew.me/en/image_maker/111486 because I refuse to sully my reputation with my attempt at drawing.

Also this is PolyChoir because I said so. Wherein their polycule centers more around Ricky, but everyone has some level of relationship with everyone. Except Noel isn't romantically involved with the girls ofc.

Also ScriptSnips because yay

Ocean:

Part elf on her father's side and part human on her mother's

Serves as personal advisor and assistant to Prince Richard

Conditioned to believe he isn't strong enough to rule

She does care very deeply about him and is concerned for his health and safety

Would help him by any means necessary, even if he doesn't like it

He still loves her, though, because even though she has to speak for him in court and certain meetings, she has been careful to never misrepresent him

(And also she's totally weak to his flirting and he finds it cute)

Has a dove as her familiar (I know the picrew has a white raven-)

Came from a small society of mad elves and humans who do dangerous experiments with raw magic and materials

Severely overcompensates out of embarrassment of her family

Has the power to cast spells on peoples' minds via song

Will not manipulate her partners with it other than keeping Misha from mauling people-

Struggles with her power and tries to make it up by understanding non-musical charms

Noel:

Full elf

Personal bard and caretaker to Prince Richard

In practice is less his caretaker more his overly anxious boyfriend

Helps manage the prince's medicines and baths but really doesn't fawn over him like Ocean does

Very prideful in his poetry and music, as he is exceptional at these

His familiar is a raven

Born to a skilled nurse/midwife and a man who frequented the group of raw magic users

Unknowingly Ocean's half brother through their father

Also has powers musically

Can also manipulate scent but never really has to use it

Was hired to entertain Ricky with his singing and now entertains him as a devoted lover

Misha:

Beastkind (Mixed Wolf and presumably Bear)

Personal guard and guide to the prince

Quickly realized that Ricky was really powerful but is now overprotective out of love

Aware of how strong and dangerous he is physically, so he is very gentle with his partners

Short temper and will crush bones on command

Can control the level of beast physicality he presents (i.e. extending fangs, claws, fur, and animalistic noises) and tries to remain as human-like as possible most times

From a nation of beastkind who are brave and hearty people

His mother got him an apprenticeship at the palace when she was sick so he'd be stable after her passing (like in Johnny Tremain)

The king and queen personally assigned him to protect their son partially because he was trustworthy and partially because he didn't get along with other soldiers well

Has no magical powers but is super intelligent

Has lots of scars from rough training

Tattoo symbolic of his home on his right shoulder and chest

Ricky:

Mostly mage but part beastkind (Lion)

Prince of the kingdom I have yet to name

Sole heir to the throne

Not familiars, but he has a ton of cats

Has been training academically and politically to be king

Their parents are ashamed of their illness and searching for a cure before they have to take the throne

Is pretty hidden from the kingdom because of it

Recently started taking experimental elixirs to combat his sickness

They boost his system as much as possible and give him abilities he wouldn't otherwise have

They still have to use mobility aids, struggles to eat, and cannot talk on his own

He speaks with crystals on a necklace that amplify his voice

Has a lion-like form but isn't allowed to use it as it draws from his body's energy a lot

Can perform some magic but is also not supposed to use that

Is very insecure about his condition because of his parents' shame

He gave himself that scratch on his cheek messing with his powers

The tattoo is a park of royalty

Constance:

Birdkind (Common Blackhawk)

Personal cook to Ricky

Also helps to make his elixirs

Has no magic powers but is adept with potions and elixirs

Has so much control over her dangerous qualities that people don't realize she could crush someone's throat with two fingers

Files down her talons so she can work with her hands

The only one to have a normal childhood

Grew up in the palace kitchens helping cook and clean

Has had a crush on Ricky since they were little

Snuck him snacks growing up

Was Ricky's first official partner

The scar on her face is from being in the wrong place at the wrong time when the palace was attacked

The one on her shoulder is from burning herself on a tree

Penny:

Part mage and part beastkind (Bighorn Sheep)

Princess Pennylaine Emily Lorraine Shelley Elizabeth Cady of Elysium

Married off to Prince Richard in hopes she could provide a healthy heir

Ended up with four other partners

Just kind of wanders around with their partners or brother, reads, or collects cursed jewelry and weapons as a hobby

They have issues, okay?

Has yet to conceive a child and really has no desire to until Ricky actually talks to her about wanting kids

Has a mouse that follows her around but nobody knows if its her familiar

They're really quiet and pensive, but a loving wife and partner

A generous princess who quietly does all she can for the people

Does have magical powers that she manages with her mind, but has never done so in front of anyone but Ezra

Jane Doe:

Mysterious being that shows up during Count Dogulous' revolution to protect the civilians

Ezra:

Part mage and part beastkind (Bighorn Sheep)

Prince Ezra Ginsburg Martin Luther Woody Guthrie of Elysium

Legally had nothing to do with the marriage but refused to be separated from Penny

Was happy to give up royal duties and expectations so they could study philosophy, curses, and potion making

Does experiment in raw magics but is safer about it

Has a shapeshifting familiar named Afenschwanz

Is well-versed in curses and potions, but really just keeps it in their lab

Has two partners among the staff but is careful to conceal their identities (consensual polyamory but is also secret from everyone else)

Is helping research elixirs for Ricky's illness

Corey:

Part dragonkind and part beastkind (but it's not enough to recognize)

On the palace guard

Was left to be trained as a warrior after his mother passed away

His father is alive and just doesn't care

Good friends with Misha

Scars are from Astrid during a sparring match

Forced to get the tattoo by his father but has changed it to his tastes

Astrid:

Part elf on fathers side and part dragonkind on her mother's

Not biologically Ocean's cousin, but are dear friends since child hood and call themselves cousins because found family is what matters

Also on the palace guard

Doesn't really know anyone but her partners and cousin but anyone her cousin loves is worth her respect and protection

Scat on her eye is from Corey during sparring

Scar on her chest of from fighting a bear

Hank:

Literally the only full human in the main cast

Grew up on the palace staff

Mostly works from the backrooms but not out of shame (it's just hard to get around the palace with so many stairs-)

Also uses crystals to talk

Is in a pretty good condition compared to Ricky

Is on less experimental elixirs but still takes his own

No powers but can play the guitar

Also can pull any bad bitch he wants

Has a pigeon companion, but its not his familiar

Trishna:

Fae

Triple threat on the staff: Cook, maid, and undercover guard (can kick ass, but hides it in case she's the last defense)

Is also secretly part of an alliance treaty between the queen and the forest fae

Can communicate with and summon insects of any kind

Can manipulate wind and plants at will

She's like three feet tall and freakishly powerful

Those dots on her cheeks are eyes

@june-doe-2025

[wakayama-division]

A Day in the Life: Luna Coven's Workplaces

As an onmyōji, Kurai navigates the intricate interplay between order and chaos, tirelessly seeking balance in existence. His daily routine involves studying heavenly signs, interpreting old manuscripts, and creating charms to uphold the harmony of yin and yang energies. The evenings find him immersed in ceremonies and thoughtful divinations, anticipating the twists and turns of destiny while skillfully redirecting its course when needed. Whether he is expelling harmful spirits, safeguarding Wakayama's hidden thresholds, or assisting lost souls, his thoughts remain in constant motion.

Kikyo is the owner of her establishment, "Izanami's Infusions," where she skillfully crafts potions, elixirs, tonics, and various brews that offer an array of effects. Each morning, she traverses the wild landscapes, gathering unique herbs and blossoms with experienced hands and a determined stare. While her stern attitude may initially intimidate clients, they inevitably come back when health issues arise or when fate seems harsh, because her remedies truly perform wonders. The reasons behind her venture into this line of work remain a mystery, but one thing is clear: she possesses an unparalleled understanding of nature’s power.

Rin attends high school as a first-year student. Enrolled by Kurai and Kikyo, the girl's parents hope that it will help her interact with humans more and help to unravel the mysteries about herself. However, rather than actively participating, Rin finds herself in a role more akin to that of an observer. During lessons, she sits quietly, taking in information without truly interacting, as if she were a mere shadow rather than a part of the vibrant learning atmosphere. While she manages to complete her assignments and maintain satisfactory grades, these achievements feel hollow to her, reduced to mere duties devoid of genuine significance.

[jadedrrose]

𝐀 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐓𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐧'𝐬 𝐇𝐨𝐩𝐞

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐓𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞: 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐭

art/other info is available on my masterlist.

The clan was beyond delighted to learn of Rose and Sooga’s return. Unbeknownst to them, multiple groups had been sent out in search of them, but due to the vastness of the Faron region combined with the storm, nobody had been able to find them. From what they’d been told, Master Kohga himself had been pretty distraught. 

Once one was finally available, a medic had checked over Sooga’s stitches, and Rose was delighted to hear that she’d done a fairly good job. And with the help of her healing teas and elixirs, Sooga was doing much better now.

Now, two weeks later, they were finally getting back into a normal routine. Rose had resumed her training, but with how quickly she was progressing, Master Kohga had decided to assign her to some missions. Her first one would be later that night. She’d be joining a small group on a stealth mission to Gerudo Town, where they were going to attempt to gather information on some sort of artifact Master Kohga wished to get his hands on. While Rose didn’t feel too keen on helping him steal something, she figured it was just another thing she’d need to get used to. 

However, there was still a lot of time left before she’d be embarking on the mission. They wouldn’t be leaving until sunset, and it was still pretty early in the day. 

At the moment, Rose was listening to Sooga explain one of his quote-unquote ‘easier’ training routines. With the injury the lynel had given him, he was unable to participate in most practice fights. Though fortunately, it seemed he was nearly ready to get back to those, along with going on missions. But the routine he was talking Rose through had absolutely nothing to do with fighting. In fact, it was probably the wildest thing she’d ever heard of. 

Running through the Gerudo Highlands, where it snowed year-round, already sounded crazy enough. But on top of that, Sooga would wear as little clothing as possible in order to deeply feel the freezing air around him. He’d explained that it helped sharpen his mind, while still serving as a good physical work-out. 

“I’d like you to join me,” he offered.

“What?! Sooga, that sounds… dangerous!” Rose cried, unsure if she’d be able to handle what he’d described.

“I shall transport you back here should anything go wrong. And, you grew up in Tabantha Village, no?”

“Well, yeah,” she sighed. “But we wore multiple layers of clothes! We weren’t nearly nude.” 

The thought then entered her mind; would Sooga be almost naked? What did he define ‘as little clothing as possible’ to be? Face burning, she looked away from him. 

“I only ask that you try it this once,” he then said. “If you decide it isn’t for you, I won’t hold it against you.”

“…fine,” she agreed, before nervously asking, “Um… what do I wear?”

“The base part of your uniform will do,” he answered. “No gloves or your… er- stockings, though.”

She could feel his eyes glancing down to her legs, mostly covered by the stockings. Why did the way he’d said that feel so… weird, though? Brushing it off, Rose nodded. “Shoes?”

“Your sandals should be fine.”

With that, Rose headed into her quarters to quickly change. Removing almost every piece of her uniform, she was finally left in just the light-red top and shorts. Putting her sandals back on, she re-entered the hallway, waiting for Sooga, who had also gone to change.

Only, she wished she hadn’t. As she waited, a blademaster entered the adjacent hallway. Unfortunately for Rose, he was able to see directly into the smaller hall that contained her and Sooga’s quarters. The man paused, clearly looking her up and down. Even through the mask, the way he stared made her uncomfortable. Maybe cropping her undershirt wasn’t the best idea…

Feeling utterly embarrassed, Rose crossed her arms over her chest, subtly trying to pull her shirt down. “I-I’m joining Sooga for his run into the highlands,” she stuttered, attempting to explain herself. But would the blademaster even believe her?

He only nodded slowly, before taking off. 

A moment later, Sooga returned. Hearing the door close, Rose turned around to face him, relieved her face had stopped burning before he’d exited the room. Except now, she had an entirely new reason to be blushing for.

Sooga had forgone his shirt, completely exposing the upper-half of his body, save for his face. The only things he wore were his mask, sweatpants and a pair of boots. Quickly turning away, Rose clasped a hand over her mouth as she contained the gasp she’d nearly let out. Of course, the uniform he usually wore didn’t hide too much, but seeing him shirtless was entirely different than seeing the outline of him through clothing. 

“A-apologies for not warning you,” he muttered, awkwardly. 

Rose slowly turned back around, doing her best to contain whatever the hell it was that she was feeling. Heart hammering against her chest, she waved him off. “No worries…” Her gaze then fell on his right arm, where a prominent scar was now visible. Somehow, she felt guilty about it.

“Shall we go, then?” He asked.

She could only nod, tearing her eyes away from the healing wound, looking over his toned chest again. Feeling herself swoon at the sight of him, Rose thought back to what he’d mentioned about sharpening his mind. Hopefully this run through the highlands would distract her from the terrible thoughts that were running wild within her mind…

—

She didn’t last even ten minutes. 

They had gotten pretty high up, but Rose had realized fairly soon into the run that she wasn’t cut out for this sort of thing. With her arms wrapped around herself, she stood in the snow, trembling all over. 

Thankfully, Sooga was quick to notice that she’d stopped running alongside him. 

Backtracking a few feet over to her, he put a hand on her shoulder. Shivering, her eyes widened. He was incredibly warm, but how? Her body decided she didn’t need an explanation though, and she instinctively fell forward, leaning into his warmth. 

“Rose, are you alright?” He asked, hesitantly wrapping his arms around her.

“Too… cold,” she said through chattering teeth, “can’t… keep going…”

“I’ll take you back to the hideout at once,” he then said, now holding onto her more tightly. And with the blink of an eye, she was back in the warm, cozy hideout. 

To her relief, Sooga had brought her straight to her room. As he gently let go of her, she instantly leapt over to her bed, kicking her sandals off and hastily tugging many layers of pink-colored blankets over herself.

“Forgive me, Rose,” Sooga then apologized, bringing more blankets over from a basket she kept in the corner of the room. “I shouldn’t have pushed you to accompany me.”

“N-no, it’s… alright,” she said, still shaking. “At least I… tried.”

Laying the extra blankets over her, Sooga kneeled beside her. “I’ll go make you some tea, alright?”

She nodded, muttering a quick “thank you”.

—

Much later into the day, after warming up and eating an early dinner, Rose was getting ready for her mission. Though she was having a slight dilemma over her uniform. She’d prepared a full-coverage version of it, but hadn’t realized that her hair might be an issue. 

Not many women in Hyrule had waist-length deep brown hair, and she didn’t need to be identified so soon into her Yiga career. Sitting in front of the mirror in her room, she tried various styles. A bun had been her first idea, but she quickly realized it was nearly impossible to get such a large amount of hair into a single bun, and not have it fall out within five minutes. Then she tried braiding it, but found that she was terrible at that. Maybe she should just stick with the ponytail, then? Huffing, she brushed her hair out again and left it down for the time being. Maybe she’d ask Sooga, considering that his hair was fairly long, too.

Leaving her room, Rose began searching for said man throughout the hideout. 

It didn’t take long to find him in his training room, with four other blademasters present, too. He was watching them spar, with his arms crossed in front of his chest. 

Upon entering the room, though, they all froze, faces turning to look right at her. She could hear some whispering among them, but not exactly what they were saying. 

“Continue with your training,” Sooga commanded, before heading over to meet her at the doorway. “How are you feeling?”

“Warmer,” she smiled. 

“I’m relieved to hear that,” he said. “Did you need something, Rose?”

“Uh, yeah…” she felt her face grow a bit warm, embarrassed. “You see, I don’t really know what to do with my hair for this mission.”

“Oh?”

“I don’t want to be identified from it,” she explained. “But I can’t figure out how to style it… I thought maybe you could help?” 

Sooga paused, before looking back to the four other men. “You’re all dismissed.”

“Huh? So soon?” One said, as the others made other confused noises. However, they didn’t question Sooga, and they all walked past him and Rose, out the door.

“Meet me in my room,” he then muttered, before disappearing.

Rose did the same, transporting herself directly into his room. He’d already pulled out the wooden chair at his desk, and was waiting for her behind it. Sitting down, Rose watched as Sooga removed his gloves, setting them down on the rather neat desk. It seemed he didn’t use it much, as aside from a few small items, it was empty. Picking up a brush from his bathroom, he walked back over and began brushing through her hair, hands gentle and light as he worked his way through the length. 

“I’m going to try braiding it,” he told her.

“I figured that would be best,” she said. “I tried it, but… I’m awful at braiding,” she weakly laughed.

“Did anyone ever teach you?”

“…no,” she replied. “My mother always did it for me…”

“I’ll show you, then,” Sooga offered. 

“Thanks,” she smiled. “But… probably not tonight, I’m supposed to meet with the others in about thirty minutes.”

“Alright. Just let me know when.”

With that, Sooga finished brushing through Rose’s long hair, and began sectioning parts of it around her head. He kept her middle part, but took the majority of one side and began braiding it from her hairline. Leaving her long bangs out, he kept the braid tight to her head, but loose enough so that she wouldn’t be uncomfortable. 

“How did you learn?” she then asked, watching his hands closely in the mirror.

“My mother taught me,” he said. “My hair has been long since I was a boy, so she had me learn in order to keep it neat.”

“That’s sweet,” Rose gave him a small smile through the mirror. “Was it her idea to keep your hair long?”

“At first, no,” Sooga answered. “But she grew fond of it.”

“I can see why,” Rose began to say, “I find long hairstyles to be-“ she trailed off, realizing what she was about to say. Attractive. 

“What?” He demanded.

“Cute,” she blurted. It was partially true, but not what she really meant, so that she wouldn’t sound as though she were flirting with him. 

He didn’t reply for a moment, before asking; “has your hair always been this long?” 

“Well, not as long as it is now,” she clarified. “It’s always been long, but it’s only been at this length for maybe, six years or so?”

“I see.”

When the braid reached the top of her head, Sooga brought it a couple inches back before taking it off from her head, the rest of the braid becoming a loose one that hung freely. He then repeated the same with the other side, and pulled what was left-over up, tying both braids and the remaining hair into one ponytail. Securing the white ribbon, similar to the one he wore, his arms fell to his sides as he gazed at her through the mirror. 

“Oh, wow,” she stared in awe, moving her head from side to side, watching as the braids and small ponytail swayed around her, “it looks perfect.”

“The braids help your hair appear shorter,” he then explained. “And with the head cover and mask, nobody should be able to see your bangs.”

Turning to face Sooga again, she smiled. “Thank you.”

He gave her a slight bow. “Of course. Shall I see you off?”

“Uh, sure,” she replied. “Let me get my things…”

Heading over to her room, Rose slid the head cover on, pulling her hair through the hole in the top. Next she put the mask on, and then she secured a demon carver onto her belt, one that she was borrowing until a weapon that would be more fitting for her could be made.

Looking herself over in the mirror, Rose ensured she had everything she needed for the mission. With a confident nod, she left her room, meeting Sooga out in the hall. 

Though she couldn’t physically tell with his mask, something about Sooga’s gaze gave her the feeling that he was smiling. “You look like a real fearsome warrior now,” he said with pride.

She smiled in return, though her face was covered too, now. “You think so?” 

“The mask adds an element of mystery. It’s good for striking fear into your enemies.”

She nodded, understanding what he meant. “Well, I better get going.”

He placed a hand on her shoulder, giving her a firm squeeze. “Be safe, Rose.”

“I will,” she promised. “I’ll come find you when I return, and tell you how things went.”

“Alright.”

Waving goodbye, Rose then turned on her heel, heading for the entrance to the hideout. 

—

The desert was incredibly cold at night. As the group she’d been assigned to headed out into Karusa Valley, that became extremely clear to Rose. Her uniform did help to keep her warm, but she was certain it wouldn’t be enough, especially once they were out in the open. Luckily, one of the other soldiers had brought some spicy elixirs, one for every member of the group. 

And much like the chilly air, one particular person within the group was acting quite cold. Uki, was her name. Once Rose had joined up with the group at the entrance, the woman had given her a suspicious look. 

Rose knew why, though. As soon as she met the younger woman, she instantly recognized her energy. This was the soldier who had been spying on her before she had decided to join the clan.

Unintentionally, Rose had said so aloud. The others chuckled, but Uki seemed unimpressed. Now, as Uki walked a few feet ahead, she could see that the trained spy was sending suspicious glares back at her.

As they finally reached the end of Karusa Valley and came to the mouth of the desert, the group leader, a captain footsoldier, passed out the elixirs. “You can take them now or when you feel the cold’s become too much to bear.”

Rose decided to take hers right away, recalling how quickly she’d frozen up earlier in the day during her run with Sooga. Although, the mental image of him shirtless was enough to heat her up. Shaking the thought away, Rose continued on with the group, far out towards Gerudo Town.

When they were about halfway there, Uki broke the silence. “So, Rose, you’ve sort of… grown close with Lord Sooga, yeah?” She had a higher-pitched, girl-ish voice, to Rose’s surprise.

What was she trying to accomplish by asking such a question? Why did it seem as though the whole clan were obsessed with her and Sooga’s friendship? 

“Uh, I guess so?” Rose answered. “I mean, he is my mentor, after all.”

“Ah, I guess that makes sense,” Uki shrugged. “I think everyone’s just wondering if… you know…”

“Wondering what?” 

“Uki,” another soldier cut in. “Shut up. It’s none of your business.”

“Ugh, maybe,” she scoffed, “but I am the best spy in the clan. I’m supposed to know these things.”

“I’m not sure what you’re alluding to, Uki,” Rose said, “but I don’t think it’s anyone’s business. Can we just focus on the mission?”

“Fine.”

Shaking her head, Rose wondered why Uki was so wary of her. Perhaps she resented her for having to spy on her for so long? Rose didn’t know the exact amount of time, but she did know that Uki’s presence was one she sensed quite often. She could only hope that the younger woman would get over it with time.

—

Nearing Gerudo Town, the group slowed their movements, put out any lanterns they’d brought, and grew entirely silent. 

It seemed they had soldiers standing guard at every entrance of the town. However, there was no entrance on the south side. Presumably, there would be no guards there. And so, the group crept around to the back, transporting themselves over to the south side, to avoid being spotted by the Gerudo woman who sat by the western entrance.

When they finally all reappeared at the southern end, Rose and Uki were sent to try and get as close as possible to the chief’s palace. 

They’d have to climb a bit, but luckily, the back end was open, giving the two women a good chance at overhearing information on the item they were after. Supposedly it was called the thunder helm, a heirloom that gets passed down to every chief of the Gerudo. One of the others in the group had explained that it grants the wearer the ability to deflect lightning, and could give them extra strength as well. That’s why Master Kohga wanted to get his hands on it, apparently. 

Staying hidden from the eyes of any of the Gerudo in the small palace, Rose decided it would be best to simply listen for now. From what she could tell, her and Uki had started eavesdropping in the middle of a conversation.

“With that out of the way… If you could send out this letter, it’s for the princess,” someone said. Her voice was loud and clear, whoever it was.

“Of course, Lady Urbosa,” another said. So the other voice belonged to Urbosa, chief of the Gerudo? “I’ll take it straight away.”

“You have my thanks,” she replied. “I think I’m going to head up for the night.”

“Alright. Goodnight, Lady Urbosa.”

“Goodnight,” she said, followed by the sound of heels clicking against the floor, growing fainter by the second. 

Glancing over to Uki, Rose noticed that the younger woman was now peeking her head over the edge of the wall. When she didn’t retreat, Rose decided to look, too.

The throne room was empty. Scanning her eyes across the whole room, Rose then spotted it; the thunder helm, sitting up on a pedestal. They had the location of it, now. So they were done here, right?

Preparing herself to slide down the wall and back onto the sand, Rose took in a deep breath. But out of the corner of her eye, Uki moved. Turning to directly look at her, Rose’s eyes widened in horror as she realized Uki was beginning to climb over the wall. 

“Uki,” she whispered. “Don’t-“

“Shut it,” the other woman’s head snapped to Rose. 

“We’re only supposed to be gathering information, not stealing-“

“I’ll do what I deem best, Rose,” Uki snapped. “Go running back to Sooga if you don’t like it.”

“Excuse me?” Rose was whisper-yelling by now, though still afraid of getting caught. 

“You heard me,” she said, clicking her tongue in annoyance, resuming climbing over the ledge. 

Cursing, Rose didn’t know what to do. Should she jump down and see what the others thought? Or wait where she was, and see if Uki could actually pull off stealing the artifact. Before she could decide, Uki disappeared over the wall.

Heart hammering, Rose listened, terrified Uki would get caught at any second. For a moment, there was silence. But then the sound of heels clicking against the floor returned, and Rose’s eyes grew wide as she realized Uki was definitely not getting away unseen.

“Another pathetic attempt to steal my heirloom?” Urbosa’s voice rang out. “I’d suggest you put that back, footsoldier.”

Uki said nothing. Which was usually advised to the regular soldiers, so that they couldn’t be identified. But still, the silence made Rose even more anxious. What was Uki thinking, disregarding orders?

“Fine. Don’t say that you weren’t warned,” Urbosa threatened. Then, Rose heard the sound of fingers snapping. Was it some sort of way to call her guards? 

With a loud clash and roar, lightning struck where Uki was standing, followed by the sound of someone falling to the floor. Did… Urbosa kill her?!

Unable to stay frozen any longer, Rose leapt over the ledge, dashing over to Uki’s body. She could hear Urbosa gasp, but she ignored it. Taking the helm and tossing it away, she scooped up the younger woman’s body. She needed to get Uki out of here. 

To her relief, Rose found that Uki was fairly easy to hold over her shoulder. She was quite smaller than her, after all. Running back over to the ledge, Rose closed her eyes and jumped without a second thought.

But as smoke puffed all around her, Rose opened her eyes and found that she’d transported herself and Uki to the ground. As she regained her footing, she was amazed that she’d actually transported herself and another person. Still, there was no time to celebrate. 

“We need to leave,” she muttered to the rest of the group, not wasting a second as she continued running. 

“Guards!” Urbosa’s voice boomed. “Yiga on the southern end! They’re headed west!”

Shit. Even if they all ran, the Gerudo soldiers would still block the route they’d come from. 

Stopping abruptly and spinning on her heel, sand flew around her legs as Rose looked at the others. “Can you all transport yourselves?”

They stumbled into each other, but nodded. “Then transport back to the hideout. Now!” Rose demanded.

Almost all at the same time, the rest of the group formed the transport technique hand sign and disappeared one by one, leaving her and Uki’s unconscious body alone. The Gerudo were now running towards them, beginning to surround the area she stood in. Taking in a deep breath, Rose focused her energy, imagining herself back in the hideout. Closing her eyes, she then vanished, leaving nothing but smoke and prayer tags behind.

With his daily tasks all finished and out of the way, Sooga found himself feeling rather restless. He couldn’t help but worry over Rose. Yes, it was only a stealth mission to gather information, but Uki had been selected to go as well. And it was a well-known fact throughout the hideout that, even though she was an excellent spy, Uki tended to get reckless at times, especially if her temper ran short. Hopefully, this would be something she’d grow out of. She was still quite young, after all.

Needing something to ease his mind with, Sooga had decided to head down to the library and continue searching for any information on Rose’s family. They’d made quite a bit of progress in the last couple of weeks, but still hadn’t found anything. There were only a couple of shelves left, though, giving him hope that they were close to learning the truth.

He started where he’d left off the last time he’d been down there. The section was mostly books and archives about ancient Sheikah technology. Not remotely related to what he was searching for, but it was fascinating information, nonetheless. Unfortunately, it seemed that with so many centuries passing by, the ability to create such technology was lost to the world. 

Moving on from the technology archives, Sooga began to look through the next and final bookcase. This one was hardly organized, with papers, scrolls and books all shoved into the shelves, seemingly without care. He briefly wondered who’d been at fault for the mess. 

As he looked through all the pieces of information within the disorganized shelf, Sooga came to the realization that everything within it was fairly recent. A lot of the reports dated back less than fifty years ago, some even being closer to twenty years ago. Was he close to finding answers? Calming his mind, he continued scanning through every piece of paper, not wanting to get ahead of himself. 

It was then he found it. A small wooden crate, containing tons of loose papers that had been shoved into the box. They were all clan records, listing every member’s name, ranking, and any important information that needed to be recorded. 

Pulling a yellowing page free from the box, Sooga found that it was from thirty-five years ago. Almost. He then gathered a group of the papers, skimming through each one until he finally spotted the correct dates. Twenty to thirty years ago.

On the oldest record, he looked through the names, skipping down through the alphabet. And there it was, the key to everything he, Rose and Master Kohga had been contemplating.

‘Okuda Hanako. Rank: Blademaster. Age: 33’

And underneath, it read;

‘Siora Hanako. Rank: Nurse/Healer. Age: 31’

Staring at the paper in shock, Sooga couldn't believe that he’d finally found answers. Surely, the two people listed had to be Rose’s parents. The family name and timeline were correct. 

Setting the page aside, Sooga then kept looking. Hopefully there would be a more detailed report on them. And surely enough, there was. 

‘Official Clan Retirement Report: Okuda and Siora Hanako have recently left for Tabantha Village, retiring from their duties as clan members. Okuda is more hesitant, as he comes from a long line of blademasters, including his sister who retired young due to an injury. Mrs. Hanako is supposedly with child; their reason for leaving the hideout. They have agreed that when the child comes of age, they shall join the clan and begin their training. Until then, Okuda and Siora shall do simple work as spies.

Signed: Head Blademaster, Asano’

Instinctively, Sooga wanted to report his findings to Master Kohga right away. Grabbing the other paper, he began walking to the stairway that led back up into the hideout. But, he paused, becoming unsure of what he was about to do. This was going to change things for Rose, and there was no way to foresee how she’d react to or be affected by the information. So, he figured that this was something that she needed to know about before anyone else.

He’d tell Rose as soon as she returned from her mission. With that decided, Sooga folded the two papers and headed back up, going straight to his quarters. 

After getting Uki to the infirmary and ensuring she wasn’t about to die, Rose decided to go back to her room before doing anything else. She was exhausted, and desperately needed a bath after the long mission across the desert. Taking her mask off, she held it within her left hand as she headed for her quarters.

But, before she could even enter her room, the door to Sooga’s opened, and he hastily stepped outside.

“Rose, I must speak with you at once.”

Raising an eyebrow, she looked at him with confusion. “Did something happen?”

He hesitated, but gave her a nod. “…yes.” 

An anxious feeling hit her, filling her with dread. “O-okay…”

“Come,” he then retreated back into his room, standing beside the door to allow her inside. Following, he firmly shut the door behind her.

“Rose, while you were on your mission, I decided to continue searching through the library for any information on your family.”

Her eyes instantly lit up. Did he mean…?

“I found records of your family,” Sooga revealed. 

Gasping, Rose clasped a hand over her mouth. She almost couldn’t believe it. But who exactly in her family? She needed to know more. 

“Can I see them?”

He nodded, picking up two sheets of old, yellowed paper from his desk. He then held them out to her. Feeling as though her entire life were about to change, Rose cautiously took the papers into her hands, finding that she was shaking. 

The first page was a list of clan members. It was then that she saw her parents’s names. Her mouth fell open, and she felt she was beginning to tear up. Her father had been a blademaster, and her mother was a healer? Bringing the other paper above the other, she then read over its contents.

It was a report of her parents’ retirement from the clan. The reason they’d decided to leave was because of her. It also read that her father came from a long line of blademasters, which included her aunt. Shaking her head in disbelief, Rose blinked away the tears that threatened to spill.

“Rose… are you alright?” Sooga asked, his voice soft and low. 

Trembling, she bit her lip. As she gripped the papers between her hands, they began to crease and crumple. A tear slid down her reddened cheek, falling onto the top page.

“Rose,” he called her name again, placing both hands on either of her shoulders. “…I’m sorry you had to find out this way. I don’t understand why they never told you-“

“I’m fine,” she choked out, sucking in a sharp breath after the words left her lips. “Just… a little shocked.”

“Are you sure you’re alright?” He asked again.

Wordlessly, she nodded. 

Hesitantly, Sooga let go of her. “We’ll have to inform Master Kohga soon. Not tonight, though. I want you to get some rest.”

“…yeah,” she breathed. “Um, I’m gonna go shower now. And then sleep, I guess.”

“Alright. If you need anything, please come to me.”

“Okay… goodnight, Sooga…”

“Goodnight, Rose,” he replied, still sounding unsure. Perhaps he could tell that she’d lied, that she was certainly not okay.

Still, she left his room, going into her own and locking the door behind herself. The crumpled pages were now crushed in her hand, as she approached the floor-length mirror. She stared at herself; no longer a half Sheikah woman who’d thought she’d live a simple life had her parents not perished. Now, she stared into the tear-stained eyes of a Yiga woman, one who had come from an ancient bloodline of assassins. 

Despite nothing physically changing, Rose couldn’t recognize herself.