#He's supposed to be the Queen of Hearts it's part of the MO

[ariparri]

A New Friend

HPHM Cardverse Masterlist

The Hogwarts Mystery Cardverse is an AU that takes place in a fantasy land called Cinderhaven. There are five regions, four of them representing a suit of cards; Spades, Clubs, Hearts, Diamonds. The final region representing the Jokers.

Warnings: A sassy bat annoying his owner.

Summary: Veruca meets the farm girl that lives between the borders of Spades and Clubs.

Word Count: 2,784

Tag List: @catohphm @lifeofkaze @eternalchaoschocolaterain @oneirataxia-girl @akikocho

If you want to be updated on content for the AU, let me know and I'll put you on the tag list!

Here is how our future queen and jack meet for the first time! Their friendship started off with a runaway Gambat just messing with his owner. Their friendship also eventually leads to them meeting the future King of Clubs but that will be for another chapter.

You can also read it on AO3

• ･❀･ ｡ . ⡀｡⠐❀ ･ ｡ . ⡀｡⠐❀ ･ •

The streets of the country were bustling with activity. The shops were busy and the trolleys were packed with people trying to get to their destinations. Townsfolk were happily chatting amongst each other while going about their day.

"Gambat!" A young brunette girl shouts, running through the streets of the town. Overhead, a brown fruit bat flies, chirping as if taunting the young girl to chase after him. "Come back here!" The small bat chirps again, before flying off further down the street. A frustrated groan came from the girl as she picked up her pace, almost bumping into people, shouting apologies as she goes.

"This was supposed to be easy!" She huffed, holding onto the leash as it flailed behind her. "Taking your pet out for a walk shouldn't be this hard!" She huffed, looking up once more to see Gambat flying in the direction of the markets and shops. "Argh– Gambat, come back here!" The girl pushes herself to run faster, hoping to catch up with her pet. A groan left her mouth, she promised her parents that she would be fine.

~ An Hour Ago - McQuaid Estate ~

Elroy and Wilhelmina stood in the foyer of the estate, watching their daughter come down the stairs with a maid following behind her. "Mo stoirín, are you sure you'll be fine on your own?" Elroy, ever the worrywart over his daughter, was proud that she was being more independent. A nudge from his wife was enough to get him to stop. "Veruca will be fine, love. She's a McQuaid, after all. It's other people that you should be worried about." Wilma mutters the last part to herself. A soft chuckle escapes her husband's lips.

It's true that Veruca can be a bit of a troublemaker herself. After all, she took after her father and brother in that regard. But most people can tell that Veruca was more like her mother. Strong willed, passionate, and easily irritable. A few were unfortunate enough to face their wrath after an incident at her old school where Veruca got in trouble for punching a boy. Well the boy had it coming, he was bothering Veruca after being told to stop multiple times. And Wilhelmina had to come in, telling off not only the headmaster and teacher, but also the parents for allowing such behavior to continue.

"Of course, Wilma. After all, our little Vera has the McQuaid fire burning within her. You are old enough to take Gambat out on your own now." Elroy states, feeling proud at their daughter's upbringing. "Though, it would be best to stay out of trouble." He nods his head at Veruca, giving her a knowing look.

Veruca lets out a huff as she rolls her eyes, "Of course dad, I know already. And I'll be fine, I'll just head to the park down the street and come back. No detours." She turns her attention towards the maid, Jolien. In her hands, a bronze cage holding a small flying fox bat. The young girl lets out her furry friend, holding her hand out for him to hang onto. "Hey there, boy. Are you ready to go out today?" Gambat chirps happily, a mischievous glint in his eyes. Wilhelmina steps forward a small smile gracing her features, "Remember little one, put his collar on before you head out. Gambat may listen to your commands, but he still has the tendency to fly off on his own."

Veruca takes the leash and collar from her mother, "I know, mother, I know. I promise there won't be any trouble." She gives both her parents a confident smile. "Besides, it will be simple and easy." Wilhelmina narrows her eyes, but nonetheless nods at her daughter. Elroy on the other hand looks down at his daughter with beaming pride. "Okay, okay. I believe our girl has had enough of our nagging and worrying."

Elroy guides Veruca towards the door, handing her Gambat's collar and leash, "If anything happens, mo stoirín–"

"Nothing is going to happen, dad!" Veruca cuts him off, taking the items from her father in haste. "You've tagged along on my walks with Gambat all the time. I know what I'm doing." She places the collar around Gambat's scruff before attaching the leash. "Right, right. I'm sorry." Elroy holds his hands up in surrender with a grin. "Go on sweetheart, enjoy your walk."

Veruca smiles up at her father, before turning back to her mother, "Well I'm off! I'll be back later." She exits the estate and begins her trek towards the park. Wilhemina and Elroy stand by the entrance watching their daughter. Wilhelmina straightens her posture before heading back inside. "Come along now dear, let Veruca grow some independence. She's not going to be a little girl forever."

A few sniffles are heard from behind her and she glances back to see Elroy still gazing ahead. "No matter how old she gets, little Vera will always be my little girl." Wilhelmina simply watched her husband cry about time moving by too fast. She let out a chuckle before taking her husband by the arm and leading him back inside.

She knew her husband was right though. Time was moving fast. Coby is now attending college, and Veruca is starting to be more independent. But as her husband had said, they will always be their little boy and girl.

"Oh by the way, dear."

"Yes, what is it?"

"Did you get the new leash for Gambat, like I told you?"

"A new leash…? Shoot. Aha, about that…"

"Mm, so you have set my daughter up for failure."

"Now, Wilma! It wasn't my fault, there was a new set of equipment for the Abraxan Derby!"

~ Present Time ~

As Gambat flies through the air, the metal on his collar shines in the sunlight. Attached to the ring of the collar is a metal latch, part of the broken leash still connected to it. 'This is the last time I let dad do my shopping!' A deep frown settled on Veruca's face. She was too focused on Gambat and her thoughts to notice a wagon cart had pulled to a stop just a few shops ahead. Or the girl getting down from it.

Seeing the girl and a man step down from the wagon, Gambat lets out a loud chirp, getting the attention of the girl. Gambat's chirping had snapped Veruca out of her thoughts and she turned her gaze to see the people in front of her. "Wo– woah, look out!" Eyes wide as she tries to slow down, however the momentum was not enough for her to slow down to a complete stop. The other girl looked to see Veruca come stumbling at her. A look of surprise crosses the girl's face, accidentally dropping the small crate she was holding. Veruca crashes into her, the sudden force of the impact knocks both of them on to the ground. The horse lets out a panicked neigh, standing on its hind legs leaning back with head raised. The man was quick to move in and calm the horse before it tried to run away.

They both let out groans as they untangled each other and tried to sit up. "Ow, ow, ow…" The girl gets up, rubbing the sore spot on her head and Veruca did the same with her arm. "Ouch… oh shite, I'm so sorry about that." Veruca quickly collects herself, scrambling to her feet to help the other girl up. "My pet, ah… his leash broke and he started flying off." The girl waves her hand dismissively, adjusting her glasses. "Oh no worries, my animals tend to run off too whenever we leave their gates open."

"Are you girls okay?" After calming the horse down, the man rushes over to them, checking over the girl. "That was quite the stumble. Rowan, are you hurt?"

Rowan simply smiled up at him, "Don't worry Uncle Ollie, I'm fine! Just a little accident." Ollie sighed in relief before letting out a small laugh. "That's good, can't have my little helper get hurt on the job. Though, that's one crate of produce that won't be sold." All three looked down to see the crate destroyed, some of the fruits were smashed from the impact. Veruca looks to the side a little embarrassed, her fingers subconsciously playing with the ribbon on her dress. "I'm terribly sorry about that. If anything, I can pay for the damage."

Ollie laughed and patted her on the head, "No worries, accidents happen. We still have more produce to sell anyway." Realization crosses his features and he turns to the shop, "Speaking of which, I still have work to do." He gets another crate from the wagon, "Rowan why don't you clean up the mess. I'll take care of things with the manager."

"Okay, Uncle Ollie!" Rowan nods, before turning to Veruca. "You can help out too! That way, you can make it up to us." Veruca looked surprised before agreeing with her. "I think that's fair, though I still feel bad you lost out on some money." Rowan shrugged, "Eh, it happens." As they were cleaning, the two continued conversing. Rowan formally introduced herself as part of the Khanna family.

Her home was just on the outskirts of Spades, lying between the borders of the country and Clubs. Her family runs a farm, they provide many materials and produce from wool, to fruits and vegetables, and wood. Today it was her turn to help her uncle by delivering the products.

Veruca also told a bit about her family, and what life was like being born into an aristocracy with lenient parents who don't like following old traditions. She even explained that she was supposed to take her pet bat out for a walk but the leash snapped along the way.

Rowan smiles at Veruca, and the little bat finally comes down to rest upon Veruca's head. He was tired of flying so he decided to lay flat on his tummy. "So this is the one that caused all that trouble, huh." She states with a mischievous smile. "What's his name?"

The corner of Veruca's lips turned up a bit as she reached one hand up to rest upon Gambat. "This little guy is named Gambat. He usually listens, but he does like to fly away whenever he gets the chance." She takes a piece of the damaged fruit and hands it to Gambat. The moment the fruit is within Gambat's sight, he instantly reaches for it. 

"What a fun little fellow!" Rowan exclaims and Gambat chirps happily while munching on the fruit. Both girls laughed at the little bat and continued cleaning while Gambat helped himself with the fruit. Once they were finished, the crate was placed back into the wagon. Some of the fruit were safe from the fall however the ones that were damaged were given to Gambat who was more than happy to eat them.

"Hm, I still feel bad for bumping into you." Veruca began again, pulling out a small wallet from her dress pocket. She takes out a small card with her family's contact information, courtesy of her mother making her take it wherever she goes, as well as a checkbook. She writes the necessary information on the check before handing it along with her contact info to Rowan. The other girl looks on in surprise, examining both the card and check before turning back to Veruca. "You can already write checks? And a contact card? You're just a kid and your parents already trust you with this amount of responsibility?!"

Veruca frowns at that statement, "It's not that… My mother insists on me learning about money and banking." Her hand subconsciously went back to playing with the ribbon on her dress. "And the contact card is for professional reasons. But this was an accident I caused and damaged your products. If anything, my parents can compensate for my actions." Her voice trails off and she stands awkwardly.

Rowan stares at her before a smile breaks out on her face and she begins to laugh. A young girl of nobility with a bat lying on top of her head looking embarrassed and awkward is a funny sight to behold. Veruca stares at her before her lips quiver into a smile of her own and joins in with Rowan's laughter. Their laughter continued and the people passing by couldn't help but give the two odd looks but continued on their paths.

Soon the girls' laughter died down. Rowan wipes a tear from her eye, "You're funny Veruca! Both you and your pet!" She gives Gambat a small pet behind his ear. Veruca's smiles in return, "Thank you, Rowan." Talking can be heard from within the shop, and the girls looked over to see Ollie and the manager still talking over the products. "Oh by the way," Rowan turns back to Veruca, "are you going to be attending the Abraxan Derby next week?"

"Hm? Oh yeah! My dad and I love the event." Veruca's eyes lit up, "I want to play, but my brother says I'm way too short to get on the horse." Rowan laughs at that, "Well to be fair, the abraxans are huge! They still tower over my parents."

"Aha yeah. My dad and I will be going, we usually reserve a stand so we can watch it better." 

"You reserve a stand!? I wish I could get seats like those, so much better than the main floor." Rowan's shoulders slumped down. To be able to sit in a stand and watch the show from the air is always a blessing. Veruca gazed at her before an idea came to mind, "You and your family can sit with us." Rowan instantly turned to her, eyes wide at Veruca's suggestion. "What, are you sure? I don't want to impose."

Veruca shook her head, "I'm sure. Think of it as another way to pay back for what happened today. Besides, it's usually just my dad, brother and I that attend the event. Mom usually stays home."

"Well if you're sure, then alright! My brother and I love the Abraxan Derby! So I know he would be excited to see the game with better seats."

"Then it's settled. I'll let my dad know and we'll send you the passes." Veruca nods with a look of satisfaction. She takes hold of the leash before turning to Gambat. She ties the end of it to the loop of his collar, "We have to head back home, but first we gotta get you a new leash." Gambat chirps, stretching a bit before flapping his wings and flying off of Veruca's head. "Well, we better get going. It was nice meeting you, Rowan."

"It was nice meeting you too, Veruca." An angry chirp is heard from Gambat, causing Rowan to laugh. "And you too as well, Gambat." A happy chirp is her response. "I'll see you guys later! Have a nice walk back home!"

"Bye, come on Gambat." Veruca gives Rowan a little wave before lightly tugging on the leash. "You've caused enough trouble today." Rowan waves goodbye, the sound of the shop bell ringing as the door opens catches her attention. She turns to see her Uncle Ollie exit the store. He looked around to see the mess had been cleaned up. "Where did your new friend go?"

"Oh Veruca had to go home, but Uncle Ollie, she gave us this check to compensate for the mess." Rowan handed him the contact card and check. He examined the items, the moment he read the text his eyes widened. "McQuaid? The girl that bumped into you is a McQuaid?" Rowan nodded cheerfully, thrilled to have made a new friend. "Yep! And guess what. She even offered to have us sit with her family in one of the stands in the Abraxan Derby!"

Ollie looked at his niece as she rambled on about her new friend. He chuckled and ruffled Rowan's hair, "Well I'll be. All of this excitement in one day." He patted her shoulder before getting onto the wagon, grabbing the reins. "Come on now, we still have the rest of these crates to deliver. You can tell your parents all about your new friend when we get home."

Rowan fixes her hair before rushing to get on the wagon. "Right!" Once she is settled in her seat, Ollie flicks the reins and the horse begins to move. "I can't wait to see Veruca again! Oh Uncle, we should invite her over one day!" Ollie laughs as they ride further into the marketplace, but agrees with his niece. "We should. She seems like a nice girl."

[hummingbird-of-light]

Against All Odds

Part 729

McCoy

“It was a few months of keeping to ourselves before we told our parents,” McCoy said.

“And how did they react?” Amy asked.

McCoy couldn’t help his smile widening.

“Better than I could have hoped. They’ve been supportive of us the entire time, even if it was a surprise. And they’ve been there for us through everything. To join as one big family— I can’t wait.” McCoy squeezed Scotty’s hand.

“You’ve spent lots of time with your families together,” Amy stated.

Scotty nodded, but McCoy spoke again.

“We spent this past summer split between each other’s homes. Then later the entire Scott family stayed here.”

“That’s you and your brother, your mom and grandfather, correct?” Amy looked at Scotty.

“Aye.”

“You were with them during the time of your father’s heart attack Leonard?”

“Yes.” McCoy’s voice sobered. “I was scared, being so far from home, but the Scott’s were wonderful. Francine took care of me like one of her own sons.”

“When your family stayed here, was that when you began to teach Leonard and Queen Eleanor Scottish?”

McCoy saw Scotty begin to blush again and shake his head.

“That was in the summer. Being here after- after what happened was helpful for helping them learn more,” Scotty said.

“I’ve noticed a few things you’ve called each other, I won’t try to get them correct,” Amy gave a light laugh, “but would you mind saying them again and what they mean?”

“Leannan and mo ghràdh,” McCoy replied.

“Mo ghràdh,” Scotty corrected him.

“That’s what I said,” McCoy lifted an eyebrow slightly. Scotty shook his head, but was smiling.

“Fine,” McCoy laughed. “That’s why I like ‘leannan.’ He says I say that one just fine.”

“And they mean…?”

“Sweetheart,” McCoy answered, trying to keep himself from blushing.

“My love,” Scotty finished.

Amy looked between them with a smile on her face.

“Do you mind a few harder questions now? I thought perhaps those together, especially about the kidnapping, while you’re here together.”

McCoy looked over at Scotty and held his hand tighter. His fiancé gave a tiny nod.

“We’ve given our statements at the trials. I’m sure those are on record,” McCoy answered, voice only hinting at a chill.

“Yes,” Amy agreed quickly. “But those are the plain facts. Perhaps you could tell a little about how you felt, what went through your minds?” She must have noticed Scotty stiffening beside McCoy.

“I thought I might lose Len,” Scotty suddenly said before Amy could say more or McCoy could answer. “That’s when I asked him to marry me. I couldn’t be without him.”

McCoy blinked. “He was hurt and I couldn’t do anything to help him. They had threatened to start hurting me and I didn’t care if they did as long as they wouldn’t hurt him anymore.” He swiped a hand at his eye quickly.

He saw Amy make a quick gesture with her hand, and Ms. Gannon nod a second later.

“The recording’s stopped. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“It’s alright,” McCoy said quickly.

“Take a few minutes, please,” Amy said. “We’ll move on to something more pleasant. Your engagement?”

It was nearly lunch by the time Amy decided she’d asked enough of them. Twice more she had signaled Ms. Gannon to stop recording. McCoy’s opinion of her had gone up each time. He had a good feeling their story was in good hands.

“Who would you like first after lunch?” McCoy asked as he led the way back to the dining room.

“Either of you is fine,” Amy said pleasantly.

“You want to go first and be done darlin’?” McCoy asked Scotty quietly.

“I suppose,” Scotty said slowly.

“Then you don’t have to sit dreading it,” McCoy said. “We can have dinner sent up and be alone later if you want,” he said for only Scotty’s ear. “Maybe a swim and relax first? Whatever you want to do.”

Scotty smiled at him, but McCoy saw the anxiety still hiding in his eyes. He wanted nothing more at the moment than for the day to be over.

Part 730

Scotty

The questions in the first interview had become increasingly difficult for Scotty as time went on, and he had been glad when they had finally finished.

But the much more difficult interview was still ahead of him. His feet carried him slowly from the dining room back to the room where the cameras and the rest of the equipment were set up. Francine walked beside him and kept giving him worried looks.

"Are ye okay, sweetie? Did the first interview go badly?"

Scotty quickly wheeled around to his mother and shook his head.

"N-no, it went... well. Very well, actually. Amy is... really friendly and careful with her questions."

Francine nodded in understanding.

"But?"

A sigh escaped Scotty and he shrugged.

"But I'm afraid of the questions that are coming. And of saying something wrong."

His mother smiled gently.

"Oh, Monty. It's going to be all right. I'll be there the whole time, watching what ye say. If I get the impression that anything sounds strange, I'll give ye some kind of sign right away."

Scotty had to smile, too.

"Aye... thanks, a mhàthair."

"You're Francine Scott, Scotty's mother, right?" Amy started the interview with a brief introduction of Francine.

The Scottish woman nodded.

"Aye. I'm here to support my son."

She grabbed Scotty's hand and squeezed it gently.

"I... asked my mum to be there, because i-interviews still make me very nervous."

Amy smiled and nodded.

"I can understand that. You don't have that much camera experience, right?"

Scotty shook his head. True, a few interviews had been done in Scotland back when he and Robbie had gotten the scholarship, but that had been different. And even then, Scotty had been terribly anxious.

"I've seen and interviewed you with Leonard now, Scotty, but I als want to talk to just you about your relationship with the prince."

Scotty blinked. His protective instincts immediately kicked in at the phrase.

"Leonard is not just a prince. He... is far too often reduced to that role."

Amy nodded apologetically.

"Of course, please excuse my choice of words." She waited a brief moment and then seemed to build on that with a good question. "What is Leonard to you?"

For a moment, Scotty just looked up in the air, seeming to ponder the question. Then a smile formed on his lips and he blushed.

"Leonard... is the person who changed me. Because of Leonard, I was able to finally understand what it means to love. He understands me like no one else. He helps me try new things. Leonard doesn't care where I come from or who I am. He loves me for who I am and does everything he can to make me feel good."

Out of the corner of his eye, Scotty saw his mother nodding in support. She was of the same mind.

"There are some rumors circulating about your relationship with Leonard. Do you want to say anything about that?"

Scotty felt his stomach tighten. The question he had been dreading the most was there. It was right there in the room. And he knew he had to answer it.

"I know the rumors. I've heard them, read them, been asked about them. All I can say is that it hurts me to read something like that. I always thought that the universe knows Leonard. That everyone knows how much he loves me. And yet there are voices that want to destroy our peace. But I want everyone who doubts my fiancé to know that I will always stand by Leonard. He is my heart, my soul, my everything. And he has never raised a hand against me. And he never would. He protects me. He loves me. He catches me when I fall."

As he spoke, tears formed in his eyes and he felt Francine squeeze his hand even tighter.

"Mrs. Scott?" Amy seemed to see that Francine also had words on the tip of her tongue.

"Leonard is part of my family. And I know he treats my son the way he deserves. He carries him in his arms and does everything for him."

Several more questions followed, and when Amy finally signaled Ms. Gannon to turn off the camera, Scotty's heart dropped. He had made it.

[hewwocopter]

Irony

Monkey King was always awful at keeping secrets.

Posted on Ao3 as well! (1395 words)

MK caught Monkey King rubbing his left eye. He frowned at the sight of it; it had been itching a lot lately, by what Monkey King had said when MK first questioned him about it.

“It’s no big deal, bud. It’s just healing.”

Healing from what? His mentor had never explained what had caused him to return so late, covered in scratches and minor injuries nonetheless.

What concerned MK the most was that while the simain’s injuries were healing steadily, the nick above his left eye was not. The cut eyebrow refused to grow back, and the line began to form into the beginnings of… a scar.

Now Monkey King was constantly scratching at the eye, rubbing at it in every spare moment he was on the ship.

He wasn’t the only one who had noticed of course, MK had shared a glance with Tang after a particular instance that Monkey King was sweeping the deck of the ship (he was given the job as to not overexert himself, much to his dismay). He had paused and cursed under his breath, and upon the observant looks of Tang and MK, he remarked he had gotten some dust in his eyes.

Yeah, MK snorted in disbelief as the king turned away. For the fourteenth time that day. Tang didn’t look as though he had believed him either, but he chose not to comment. Monkey King was awful at keeping secrets, it would seem.

MK had decided he was finally going to get to the bottom of this, once and for all. By confronting his mentor about the problem at hand.

Before he could do that, however, Monkey King yelled and jumped away from his sweeping spot. The broom clattered to the floor, and in its place a puff of purple smoke erupted.

“It’s Macaque, everyone get back-“ Monkey King started, before he was cut off by snickering.

“Aww, Peaches. You ruined the surprise.” A blurry visage could be seen in the smoke, before Monkey King cleared it with a brush of his hand. “Come on. A little element of mystery never hurt anyone.”

MK couldn’t believe his eyes. Macaque was here on the ship! But how?

Macaque turned over to the boy, ignoring Monkey King. The others began to emerge from different parts of the ship from the noise.

“Uhhh who the heck is that?” Pigsy questioned. “You said Macaque? Who the heck is-“ He was cut off by Mei.

Mei’s priorities lay somewhere else. “Evil Monkey King?”

Tang and Sandy both remained silent, opting to observe the situation.

“Good to see you’re still alive, kid.” The shadow smirked.

“Excuse me.” Monkey King cleared his throat, making himself known. “I’m giving you five seconds to get the hell off this ship before I throw you off of it.”

Macaque finally faced Monkey King, looked him up and down, and guffawed. His lighter counterpart looked rightly offended at the disrespect that the other was showing and snarled.

“Oh, this is rich!” Macaque hugged himself and doubled over in laughter, while the others looked on in confusion. Monkey King only glared. “You seriously think you can take me on right now? Like that? Come on!”

While MK was still a little peeved at his mentor for leaving him on ‘vacation’, he wasn’t angry at him and therefore felt a right to defend him. “Hey! He can kick your a-“ A sharp look from Pigsy cut him right off. “euh- butt- any day of the week!”

Macaque wiped a tear off his face. “Doubt that, kiddo.” He straightened himself, addressing the crew. “Well, not right now at least. I’m surprised he still has enough power to hold up that glamour.”

Monkey King froze.

“What glamour?” Tang questioned.

MK slowly turned to face towards the monkey in question, who in turn slowly began to avoid his gaze.

“Uhhhh…”

Macaque decided to pour more salt onto the wound. “I guess it is sort of… eye-ronic. But also kind of a waste? I mean… you could be saving your powers for something more useful.”

Oh. Oh shit.

Sandy’s brows furrowed. “Monkey King, what is he talking about?”

“I don’t know, big guy.” Monkey King laughed nervously. “I don’t know if you’ve met this guy, probably not, but he’s a trickster. A liar. I wouldn’t trust him if I were you.”

“Oh ho ho, you wound me.” Macaque pretended to swoon, placing a paw over his heart. But his grin remained razor sharp. “Just like your eye. Who did that to you?”

MK’s heart dropped.

His suspicions were confirmed.

All eyes went on Wukong.

“You son of a bitch.” Monkey King growled out. “Nothing happened. Drop it.”

��Can you just give it up already?” Macaque sighed, shrugging. “We already know the jig is up. Gods, you were always horrible at keeping secrets.”

The king didn’t move, insisting on standing in place glaring at the other. The macaque stared back.

“Monkey King.” MK started, causing the older to startle and look over at him with wide eyes. “Please.”

They remained like that for a few moments, before the king finally relented. He sighed, air leaving him as well as a few wisps of magic.

MK knew what was coming, but he couldn’t hold back the gasp at what he saw. He wasn’t the only one either, as Mei dropped her phone and Sandy nearly lost his grip on Mo.

A milky white eye stared back at him. It wasn’t as intense as what Macaque’s had been by any means, but it still sent him reeling. It had healed mostly fine, with only a few blemishes in the skin here and there.

“I didn’t want you to see.”

“What?” MK found that the words tumbled out of him before he could stop them.

Monkey King’s gaze hardened. Even with that one eye out of commission, it held so much emotion. “You’d be discouraged. Right? The amazing Monkey King. Great Sage Equal to Heaven. Half blind. Partially deaf.”

MK’s eyes widened. “Wait, you’re-“

The monkey continued, wiggling his finger. “Can’t use my shapeshifting powers anymore. So, you know, that’s probably a good sign.” He heaved a heavy, self deprecating sigh. “You know when that started?”

Everyone was silent.

“After I gave you my powers.”

What.

Wait, then that would mean...

The simian cut that line of thinking off right away. “I want to tell you this now. This was never your fault, MK. I chose you as my successor for a reason.” Monkey King walked over to the boy and took a hold of the boy’s hand. “This was how it was meant to be.”

“What do you mean?!” MK sputtered out. “You mean that Lady Bone Demon-“

“Well, no! Not her, no! I was supposed to take on anything that you couldn’t handle, I was supposed to be at your side.”

“Holy shit.” Pigsy muttered. “It’s happening. Actual communication.”

Tang hushed him.

Macaque snorted.

Monkey King ignored the three. “But Spider Queen happened. Lady Bone Demon happened. It was a lot more than I thought you could handle, and while I was right, I should have never kept you in the dark about it. I know I’ve been a shitty mentor, but I’m learning as much as you are right now.”

MK nodded in agreement to his words. “So, are you going to teach me more?”

Monkey King smiled. “Of course, bud. Especially more of the fighting stuff. While we can’t really use our powers at the moment… there are other methods we can use.”

“So, like…” MK turned to Macaque, who smirked.

“That’s right, kid. You can never have too many teachers. Right?”

Monkey King started to reply, before Mei cut him off with an inquiry. “Yeah, so uh, who are you? Like a hot version of Monkey King?”

“A hot version of m- excuse me?!” Monkey King squawked in indignation. “I am too hot!”

“I’m not so sure about that Peaches…” Macaque drawled.

Monkey King whirled on the macaque. “You used to date me, so you definitely thought I was hot! So shut up!”

You what?!” MK screeched.

That was the breaking point for the crew. They all broke out in noise, all firing questions at the two.

“Look what you’ve done.” The simian groaned. “I should have thrown you off the ship when I first saw you.”

“Aww, you love me.”

[kaibutsushidousha]

If the v3 cast were Masters, which Servants would they summon who has the highest compatibility with them ?

Akamatsu and Amakusa

Amami and Nursery Rhyme

Iruma and Caligula

Ouma and Nightingale

Ki-bo and Kotarou

Gonta and Bedivere

Saihara and Arjuna

Shirogane and Gilgamesh (Caster)

Shinguuji and Medusa

Chabashira and Xuanzang

Toujou and Queen of Sheba

Harukawa and Jason

Hoshi and Dantes

Momota and Mandricardo

Yumeno and Nagiko

Angie and Douman

Explanations under the cut in case you're confused, because you probably are.

First off, Twitter people might be wondering why so many choices are different from what I chose for this thread. Obvious consideration for who is normally summonable aside, the main thing I kept in mind here is that compatibility summon comes in two flavors. Pattern A is a hero similar in nature to Master (Sakura and Medusa, Ryuunosuke and Gilles, etc), and Pattern B is the hero the Master needs for the personal struggles of their character arc (Pepe and Ash, Erice and Voyager, Elsa and Arash, Jinako and Karna, etc). Pattern B is always more interesting than Pattern A, so that's what I'm using for all my choices. Now let me go over them one by one.

1. I say things will be different from the thread and immediately break the promise with Akamatsu. Akamatsu relied a lot on Saihara's brain to build her plan, but their relationship was never one of mutual trust because she knew Saihara would agree to her harsher and more definitive methods. The hero Akamatsu needs is someone both competent and like-minded. Someone who shares her earnest will to save everyone and willingness to use more extreme methods for it. Amakusa is the Servant for her.

2. For Amami, I'll go with Nursery Rhyme. Much like Raikou got Nursery in the Heian Singularity's Imperial Grail War as the emotional crutch daughter figure she needed, Amami gets an emotional crutch little sister figure to help him reunite with the twelve he lost. This pair would be interesting because it'd subvert Nursery's usual MO of simply forcing others to reconnect with their inner child. The whole reason why he lost 12 sisters is that his passion for seafaring and exploration distracts him from what he's supposed to do. Her role as the villain of the Santa Nightingale event shows she can be harsh when children are being neglected, so Nursery would be the force pulling Amami back on track, but she'd have to balance that with allowing him to enjoy himself to preserve his childish love for adventure. He'd be a tough and delicate case for our Hero of Children.

3. The hero Iruma needs is... anyone who tolerates her, really. My first thought was Karna, but he's about finding value where no one else does, and Iruma has her share of undeniable value, so I think he isn't the best choice. Their pair would be a watered-down version of Jinako's pair anyways. Fate/ actually quite scarce of Servants defined by being all-tolerant because that's a trait they push more on Fujimaru, but two examples that come to mind are Romulus, the man who loved all of Rome (read: human civilization) in both its sins and achievements; and Caligula, the man who went crazy trying to do the same. Romulus is too OP to help Iruma tone down her ego, so I'll go with Caligula.

4. Ouma is a hard case. He needs someone he can absolutely trust and finding one of those is a huge challenge. The only ones Ouma has expressed full trust to were Gonta, because he was unquestionably good and weak-willed enough to never stray away from Ouma's instruction without asking first; and chapter 5 Momota, who was in circumstances so complicated that he wouldn't dare to throw away the chance Ouma's script offered. Ouma is the kind of paranoid control freak who would intentionally go for a Berserker because even the ones who speak are single-minded in a way that makes them easy to plan around. The alternative would be someone so like-minded in methods and standards that he'd probably hate them but still trust as someone who thinks the same way he would, but only BB fits that bill and she's not normally summonable. With that card off the table, the only options Ouma has left are Berserker he can trust to never kill anyone ever, and the only Zerk valuing life this much is Nightingale. BB's fellow nurse, amusingly enough.

5. Ki-bo would be offended with Alaya if he summoned a robot or homunculus just because he's a robot. And he also wishes for a partner that will treat him as an equal without denying what makes him different as a robot. In short, he needs a human Servant that is used to have normal relationships with robots. But Chen Gong or Red Hare because they're too evil, nor Orion because he's too crude. That leaves us with robot Danzou's human son, Fuuma Kotarou.

6. Gonta's wish is to become a true gentleman his human family can acknowledge, and for that, he needs the example of someone who is both well-mannered and of noble heart. Bedivere is an easy choice.

7. As I mentioned a few times before around 2017~18, I strongly think the best thing about Saihara is his interactions with Hoshi. Saihara is a guy feeling eternally guilty because he made one "good guy" murderer pay for his crime and he tries to make up for it by forcefully validating Hoshi's mass-murdering of the mafia. Then in Fate/, we have Arjuna, an all-around excellent man who adamantly believes himself to be evil because he did one dishonorable thing once. Saihara is the stubborn validating Master Arjuna needs to make him understand that he is not the monster he believes himself to be.

8. The first thing about Shirogane is that she really doesn't like reality, especially when it concerns herself. She can't muster any interest in the boring, plain girl she is or the boring, plain world she lives in, so she makes a hobby and a job out of becoming someone else, a larger-than-life figure in a fictional world. She loves all Danganronpa characters but expresses greater adoration towards Junko and Kamukura, the most unreal the series has produced. Enter Gilgamesh, the Hero King with the comically large ego and literally all Noble Phantasm to satiate Tsumugi's craving for a break from reality. That said, Gilgamesh has the recurring hobby of playing therapist to a Master disconnected from their own self and is the franchise's greatest symbol of the willing departure from the Age of Gods into the Age of Man. As much as he fits her tastes on a surface level, he's the guy who transitioned the flashy world of fantasy she dreams of into the plain world she hates, and he'll use most of his free time to the same on a personal level for her. The Caster version is being specifically picked because Archer has childish beef with modernity, and Caster is intentionally making his arsenal more limited and unimpressive, which is self-demonstrative of the points he wants to make to Shirogane.

9. One of his Free Time Events has him explaining why Medusa is his favorite myth, and I definitely can't claim to know this shit better than him. Deep emotional attachment to a story can net you a compatibility summon, as Kiara is there to show, and Shinguuji gets bonus points from how TM Medusa became a monster out of living her life for her sisters rather than for herself.

10. Cute and righteous female Buddhist mentor figure who does martial arts. What else could Chabashira ask for?

11. Toujou takes self-worth from serving big important people with utmost perfection, so she needs her Servant to be a king or similarly important leader. But she also needs it to be a support Caster so can properly invert the Master-Servant relationship and personally fight the enemy Servant for her king. The only characters in the middle of the Venn diagram of kings and support Casters are Medea and Sheba, and Medea wants nothing do with the royalty life anymore, so Sheba it is.

12. The role of the hero Harukawa needs is already properly fulfilled by Momota in the story, so I'll go with Jason because he shares all of Momota's strenghts and flaws. He's someone who'll force her to be part of a team, relentlessly encourage her break out of her shell, and have a shitty personality she can never fully respect, making the relationship balanced. And things would go even smoother with Jason because his summon comes with Atalante, who is someone Harukawa can easily relate to.

13. Hoshi needs someone who would assure him of his choices and make him comfortably reconnect with his past like he did with Saihara in his Free Time Events. As practically the face of the Avenger Class, Dantes defines himself as an ally and guardian to the ones who were wronged and lashed out in less than virtuous ways, so he's a perfect fit.

14. Momota is too aware of himself as the protagonist of his own story to want a hero. He would instead want a loyal sidekick or a like-minded rival. Voyager is a good sidekick option due to his fit with Momota's wish for greater adventure further beyond, and is a Servant Momota mentions in his Free Time Events, so there's the emotional connectional to his story there. For a rival, a big name adventurer like Drake or Odysseus could work, and so could a wandering warrior like Musashi. But there's one option that fits both roles: Mandricardo. Rica has the adventurer experience necessary to eventually compete with Momota, but also Saihara's level of self-esteem, allow him to start on the sidekick role until Momota pulls him out of it and shapes him into a proper rival.

15. Like with Harukawa, the role of hero Yumeno needs is already fulfilled by Chabashira in canon, so we know what she needs is someone with high energy and a deep understanding of emotions. And Fate/'s biggest connesieur of human emotion is none other than our Kiyohara no Nagiko.

16. Angie is a complicated case because she doesn't react well to being disobeyed. My first idea for someone with a functioning partnership with her is a knight, but knights generally work on the premise that their king is selfless and righteous, which Angie isn't. There are people like Lan Ling, Liangyu, the ninjas, Mori or Okita, who submit their lives to anyone's authority, but for that same reason, they wouldn't help Angie improve. What she really needs is someone good at feigning humility, like Limbo. He wouldn't have good intentions for her Master, but by manipulating situations out of her control without letting her feel like her divine words are being challenged, he can force some level of change on her mindset. It's better than nothing.

[samissosexyyy]

Tumblr thought it would be hilarious to delete all my work and not let me answer requests :').

YES I SHALL WRITE THE PLATONIC ANGRY PARENTS-

And thank you-I woke up and was talking to my friend in the morning and my brain just: jojo villain yandere dads. Mudad mudad mudad mudad anger.

Anyways, here they are- Do these even count as headcanons???? I dunno-

Dio, Part 1

Vampire form of course.

First thing first, We all know he'd be a great dad. Protective already, But make him a yandere platonic father? Oh boy, Trust me, You'd be spoiled and treated like royalty.

Now, I'm gonna say in this scenario you were on of his victims child. I'll say you'll be around 5 to eight.

Somehow you managed to catch his eye, Is it because your parent was just as bad as his? You reminded him of his mother? Or maybe you resemble him, and have three moles on your ear. Or, perhaps, A younger joestar? Either way, You somehow had him feeling like a father, and, according to one of my friends, Araki had said DIO would treat his children like they were royalty, And they would be so spoiled.

So, Mudad would end up taking you in, kidnapping, whichever honestly. He'd be holding you like a loving pet owner would, if you got scared, he'd probably be confused. Honestly he'd have you turned into a vampire quickly, as he knew he wouldn't be able to have children as a Vampire.

Truthfully, I think you'd end up never noticing how he'd occasionally pull you closer, or how he'd glare at anyone your age or older going near you. Or how he'd give you some strict rules, Like no dating anyone. E v e r. And why would you ever want to hurt your papa like that?! You wouldn't want to do that, right?! Of course you wouldn't! Dio knew you'd never betray him like that!!

Truth be told, he'd guilt you if you tried to go against his words. But punishments? No no, He'd never actually purposefully hurt you, Unlike his love interest, he'd NEVER want to cause you pain ever. He'd hate himself and wouldn't forgive himself for years. Centuries. Infact, he'd beg for your forgiveness.

The Pillarmen

And satannnaaaaa

First of all, You aren't a pillarchild. You'd most likely be some kind of god, vampire, or a young hamon learner. Or even related to the Joestars or Ceasar.

So, Let's say you're immortal who can walk in the sun. We all know you'd be the joestar side, Right? So, That means you'd end up hating or feeling pity for the pillarmen. First, You'd probably end up trying to make Santana hally when he awakens. Unlike with Joseph, He'd probably know not to attempt to attack you. Let's say you have symbols like Dio Over heaven, We all know how that would work.

You'd end up as a being worshipped by them, probably kidnapped after they destroy the Joestars.

Let's say they defeated Joseph and the others, and you were still a deity, You'd most likely be weaker then them in this scenario. They'd probably treat you like a kitten at first, like a baby before they all felt a connection. As if you were a child of their own, so they'd give you rules. And we all know how rules go with yanderes.

Let's say uh- you fell for a mortal.

"No. No."

[Crush name has fallen from a high place.]

"DADS WHAT THE FUUUUUUUUU-"

"NO CUSSING IN THIS CHRISTIAN MINECRAFT SERVER!"

or something like that :')

Honestly, You'd have bird dad, and a bunch of other dads. Santana would honestly be like the cool big brother honestly. You'd probably want horns too so-

They would totally buy you halloween horns to put on your head so you'd be happy baby

Now, Hamon user? They'd probably find you like a cute animal at first, probably going easy on you like it was a game of tag. Soon, they'd realize how weak and fragile you are, After all, You are just starting hamon. They'd probably kidnap you to spite Joseph and his side at first, before... Well, You didn't expect to become a vampire and treated like royalty when all you've been treated like is uh... Considering Lisalisa is your coach, I'd say you'd be happy if it was someone else doing this for you.

Josephs sibling? WOAH Joseph, When did you get a cute sibling? Pfft, Not your sibling anymore, They just adopted your ex sibling nerd.

But, All jokes aside, They'd probably be surprised that you were more mature then your brother, and...you sorta resemble a certain Coach... Oh, Humans all look the same, haha.

They'd probably kidnap you infront of Joseph just to make him feel guilt and rage, After all, Why not get their prized treasure and make Joseph angry? They'd give you more rules, until Joseph was gone, of course.

And, sadly, Not even you crying would stop them from making you into a vampire infront of your big brother, breaking both of your hearts.

Don't worry you got ice cream later smh.

Ceasars sibling? Mini pancake? Haha, They'd kidnap you as soon as they felt parent like tendencies. No denying them, infact, they'd make sure you saw ceasar get defeated by the ro ck. But don't worry! You have new parents and a brother-! Haha, Poor you.

Part 3 DIO AKA mudad!

Honest to god you'd probably have to be a stand user with a weak or strong stand, or, you were one of his kids he had with a lucky woman who survived and got a naked polaroid of him as a 'wow you lived! Congrats, now go have my kid lmao' gift. Or, Maybe you were a normal kid who was kind to him, even if he,,,,  did some questionable murder infront of you. And maybe you were a young

Now, Let's say you were a strong stand user. He'd end up wanting to use a flesh bud until he realized... He never had a kid, that he knows of, and decided to raise you! At first he'd be upset you had a strong stand like your mudad, but realized you could protect yourself from those dreadful joestars! Congrats, You became a Brando! :) How unlucky, Considering this DIO would probably force vampire masks onto you, or even using fleshbuds as a threat. Either way, You'll always be papas baby!

Yoshikage kira.

Like I said in my first post of this, He'd want to have a nice average life. You having a stand wouldn't be a problem, Since he'd probably convince you Josuke and the others are awful and rude.

Josukes sibling? Well, He'd end up telling you he can help your brother with his murder issue if you come with him. You don't exactly have a choice since Killer queen would easily overpower you if you had disagreed. You'd end up being a normal and peaceful child before long, Infact, He'd have to pretend he had adopted you behind his 'wifes' back.

Hayotos friend he never talks about? Congrats, You are now stuck with a crazy and loving father! And a mother, I suppose. And you get your best friend as a brother! You'd never be able to leave, how sad. But, You'd have your new mom and your dad to talk to-! And killer queen cuddle time.

Now, Let's say you were his own kid. Wowzers! You think its normal for your father to bring women hands home, after all, You are pretty young and your father told you most adults do this. Ah. How enjoyable.

Doppio/Diavolo

Oh dear. You poor child.

Either you were related to trish, and he somehow felt like you wouldn't be a problem before they felt more of a father love towards you, Most likely somehow getting rif of the traitors and your big sister.

"Where's big sister?"

"Don't worry about her, She's spending time with your mother."

Smh quit LIEING you jERK!

But seriously, Doppio would be like the fun mom asking you if you'd like bake cupcakes in his spare time! Read you bed time stories and whatnot! Diavolo would be awkward and "wanna play baseball or whatever kids like to do these days?" Awkward dad alert.

"My kid is fine!"

The kid they kidnapped/raised:

Casually trying to beat another kid with a baseball.❤💚💛

Honestly they'd insult everyone elses kids while here their kid is, casually scared of baseball.

Pucci

Papa priest! We all know he'd adopt you! I head canon him as gay, considering DIO and him were totally a thing.

So, He'd probably have you study Lord DIO bibles, and casually have you hate Jolyne. Probably even give you a stand, And even show you that DIO is the best! Worship! Protect yourself and all that!

Jotaro would probably scare you,  so I can see you holding onto Pucci while Jotaro appears anytime, so pucci would infact love it when you snuggle onto him lime a cute kitten. Hell, you even Sneeze like a kitten!

Honestly You'd be kept under watch 24/7, but you'd think it was normal, after all, Your father would mever do something so awful like Those Joestars claim...right?

Diego

Oh wow- dino dad :)

Let's say you were a big fan of his, Then, Well,You wouldn't mind having him as a dad, Now would you? He is your idol, Right? Yeah. Yeah!

He'd probably carry you around upside down, Hot pants just questioning his sanity as he drops you a million times. Hot pants would probably end up carrying you most of the time.

Mama hot pants and father Diego. Y es.

And, Let's say you were traveling with Johnny. Congrats. You've put yourself in a even worse situation considering Diego would become worried and paranoid over those two idiots hurting you! And he hates the idea of his baby boy/girl/child being hurt by barbarians!!!

Even though he'd probably hurt you on accident if I'm gonna be honest.

Kidnapping isn't a very easy job, so of course he had to knock you out! What was he supposed to do?! Ask you to come stay with him forever?! No! Maybe! HuawhuKaia-

Honestly not too many rules, just don't leave his side ever! Except when going to the bathroom. You'll be tied to his horse. No whining >:(.

Funny Valentine

Honestly what did you think he was going to do? Pick some random child? No no, He'd choose the PERFECT child! You were so lucky! Wow! The daughter of the mos powerful man ever! Lucky you, Right?

No. You don't get alone time unless it's you sleeping or bathing. You wear what he wants, and no.

Dating not allowed. Bad. No no no no no.

"No. No dating. Your lips will fall off."

"but mommys lips didn't-"

"Your face will melt off."

Basically you'd be bossed around and treated like royalty, as long as you listen to you dad!

Honestly I don't know if this is headcanons, if if it isn't feel free to scream at me in the comments-

AND I AM SO SORRY ABOUT NOT BEING ABLE TO ACTUALLY ANSWER, SO I HOPE YOU SEE THIS AND ARE ABLE TO ENJOY IT??? I GUESS???

[onlyanidala]

onlyanidala fic archive

These are fics with titles J-P.

A-D     E-I     R-T     U-Z

searchable desktop version available here

more anidala fics can also be found in our fic tag!

the link for each fic can be found by clicking the title!

Title: just a bliss Author:  stranestelle Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  A lightheaded Anakin Skywalker wakes up to the heavenly vision that is Padmé Amidala. Can you blame the man for wanting to kiss his wife on the spot? Well you can, when the whole thing is witnessed by a room full of senators caught in a hostage situation... and she'd really rather they had waited for later.

Title: just carry me home tonight Author: gemma Status: complete Rating: R Summary:  "I – I didn't mean to, it's only that… Well, the Force, it lets me feel… What you feel, and I know this wasn't exactly what you imagined for your wedding night, so I…" His flesh hand rose to scratch his neck awkwardly, "I suppose I just wanted to make this special for you…"

Title: king of my heart Author:  catiiasofia & misschrisdaae Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  Anakin Skywalker's holiday to the small country of Naboo takes an unexpected turn when he unknowingly foils an assassination attempt meant for Padmé Naberrie, the nation's Crown Princess. Saving a Princess is crazy enough. The only thing crazier... well, actually, there are a few things. Things Anakin is well on his way to experiencing.

Title: lights in the valley outshine the sun Author: elizabeth7 Status: complete Rating: G Summary:  What would happen if Padme survived and Darth Vader finds out? Padme & Anakin Darth Vader.

Title: look into my eyes it’s where my demons hide Author: shelivesfree Status: WIP/Unupdated Rating: T Summary:  Each time he comes back to her, a little piece of him is missing... left out there, in the field, with his brothers. She can see it in the way he smiles and it doesn't reach his eyes. In the way he cries to himself when he thinks she's not awake. And all she can do is hold him.

Title: lost Author: pinkeastereggs Status: complete Rating: G Summary:  “I feel lost." “Lost . . . what do you mean?” Padme couldn’t help but frown, searching for any signs on her husband’s face that could give her an insight to what he meant. But Anakin was just frowning to the side, seeming conflicted about something. He seemed distant, his eyes filled with an emotion that the young wife couldn’t begin to describe. How long had Anakin had this look in his eyes? Had she been oblivious to it before now or was this something new? Anakin and Padme have a heart-to-heart when he admits to feeling lost and frustrated with the Jedi Council. With truths about his relationship with Palpatine coming to light, Padme fights to talk some sense into her husband.

Title: madam president Author: skywalkersamidala Status: complete Rating: R Summary:  Between late nights and headaches and mountains of paperwork and fierce opposition from her political opponents, President Padmé Amidala already had enough on her plate. And then she just had to go and fall for one of her bodyguards, a relationship which would ruin her reputation and his career if anyone were to find out about it. Also, someone's trying to kill her.

Title: make the world a little colorful Author: estrangedlestrange Status: WIP Rating: G Summary:  The morning after meeting her soulmate, Padmé woke up and saw color for the first time. In the midst of a political crisis, Padmé had just met a gungan, two Jedi, and a slave boy and his mother. She, like any rational young woman, assumed the padawan learner was her soulmate. Ten years later, after having accepted that she would never be with her soulmate, Padmé, reunited with both her supposed soulmate and the slave boy, she realized how wrong her assumptions were. The slave boy, Anakin, who had looked at her with wide hopeful eyes and asked if she was an angel, was her soulmate.

Title: the masterplan Author: stranestelle Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  In the midst of the endless galactic conflict, Anakin Skywalker and Padmé Amidala have made a shocking discovery that brings more questions than answers. And maybe, just maybe, an end to the never-ending war. Sequel to Give Me A Signal.

Title: mother knows best Author:  catiiasofia & misschrisdaae Status: complete Rating: M Summary:  A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away.... Shmi Skywalker Palpatine had ruled the Galactic Empire on behalf of her son, Anakin, since the death of his father. For his part, the next Emperor has been content to leave politics to his mother and engage only in military exercises. All that is about to change as Padmé Naberrie, former Queen of Naboo, comes seeking aid for her charity, Amidala's Crusade, and Anakin's long-dormant crush comes surging back. What should be a perfect match is opposed by a mother determined not to lose her son and convinced hers is the only way...

Title: no colors in our skin Author:  JTHM_Michi Status: Abandoned Rating: T Summary:  Anakin grew up knowing that his masters called him the wrong words. They all called him “girl” or “girl-child” and it was just another way for them to dehumanize him. He didn’t know that, of course, not in those words, but it was true enough. His mother was always very clear with him, from the first time he came to her and asked her if she knew which master had taken his “boy parts”, that just because his masters called him a girl didn’t make him one. a.k.a. the Transgender Anakin Skywalker Verse

Title: no heroes on the high seas Author: spellcleaver Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  When Luke's aunt and uncle are executed by order of the Emperor's right hand, Lord Vader, he flees his home to search for his sister and the mother he never knew. But then Obi-Wan Kenobi stows away aboard the same ship, Vader gives chase, and Luke is dragged into a conflict that his family are at the very heart of. Gen.

Title: nos cedamus amori Author: skywalkersamidala Status: complete Rating: M Summary:  Anakin is a gladiator and a slave. Padmé is the wife of the Roman emperor's heir. Circumstances should never even allow them to meet, let alone fall in love.

Title: of mutated worlds Author: gemma Status: WIP Rating: M Summary:  Nobody saw the end of the world coming. It happened overnight, no warning, no escape. They came from the shadows, biting, paralysing, and killing little by little until they were the majority. One day, everything was normal and then, suddenly, Padme Amidala Naberrie woke up in hell.

Title: of options and comlinks Author: estrangedlestrange Status: complete Rating: G Summary:  In that moment it seemed like there were only two options: help Master Windu arrest the Chancellor and secret Sith Lord or heed to Sheev Palpatine’s begging and turn against the Jedi. But then, in a split second, a third option revealed itself.

Title: order 66-S Author: disco shop girl Status: complete Rating: M Summary:  The order was to exterminate all Jedi: Past, Present and Future. Captain Rex has a different plan. Order 66-S: to save General Skywalker.

Title: parent-teacher conference Author: skywalkersamidala Status: complete Rating: G Summary:  Anakin has to meet with the twins' second grade teacher after Leia punches a classmate in the face. But he hadn't counted on Ms. Amidala being quite so pretty.

Title: pas de deux Author:  catiiasofia & misschrisdaae Status: complete Rating: M Summary:  When Padmé Amidala and Anakin Skywalker meet at their mutual friends' house party, the sparks immediately fly, resulting in a one night stand that both of them want to be the start of something more. Except it turns out that Padmé works at the ballet company Anakin just took over. And Anakin is in the middle of a very heated divorce as he tries to gain custody of his daughter Leia. With pressure coming at them from their private and professional lives, making their fledgling relationship work will prove the biggest role of a lifetime.

Title: the path of the dark Author:  catiiasofia & misschrisdaae Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  Vader triumphs. Padmé resists. Series:Three Paths Not Followed. Series: The Darker Path.

Title: perfect Author: skywalkersamidala Status: complete Rating: G Summary:  The war is over, Luke and Leia are five years old, and Anakin and Padmé finally have the peaceful life and big family they've always dreamed of. But their life is about to get a little less peaceful and their family a little bigger.

Title: perfect strangers Author:  catiiasofia & misschrisdaae Status: complete Rating: R Summary:  Anakin Skywalker meets a masked angel at a Halloween costume ball, and the two of them hook up for the best night of his life. But when the morning comes, she is nowhere to be found. Padmé Amidala forgot to get the name of a guy she hooked up with at Halloween before running out for work on November 1. A few weeks later, she realizes she's pregnant. Two perfect strangers, certain their paths are never going to cross again. Oops.

Title: pipe dream Author: skywalkersamidala Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  Padmé's new plumber is the most attractive human being she's ever laid eyes on, so naturally, she keeps faking plumbing emergencies so she can keep seeing him.

Title: pocket full of sand Author: philthestone Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  “I’m Leia Skywalker,” she says, and there is something unfathomably life-changing about that little declaration. “We’re here to rescue you!” Luke remembers the circumstances of his mother's arrest with a frustrating amount of clarity. AU series where Anakin never falls, Padme is a spy in the senate, and the dynamic duo of Force Sensitive twins don't know they're related.

Title: purgatory Author: helent Status: complete Rating: T Summary:  A newly dead Anakin Skywalker wakes in a new world - given the appearance of his 23 year-old self. However, the self-sacrifice that ended his life has also given Anakin an unexpected boon that he isn't sure he can accept. Worse, it comes with conditions that might just be impossible to meet. A moment of redemption is one thing, but a full reformation another entirely.

[lukesperfectharmonyhair]

im rewatching jatp instead of studying for the 3 tests i have tomorrow and i thought i would share my thoughts and reactions with each episode so enjoy!!....

wake up

- hearing the “1, 2, 3″ at the start of the episode gives me more serotonin than my antidepressants ever will

- julie’s slippers...that’s it...that’s the thought

- that dry ass pasta the molina’s are eating for dinner??? someone needs to give my man ray some cooking tips or a cookbook... something

-the looks the boys give julie when she says it was an OLD cd she found. as if they could be old??

-the entire julie and luke kitchen scene i mean there are no words to describe how much i am in love with scene. the banter, the flirting, luke giving this girl he literally just met an actual PIECE OF HIS SOUL so she can get music back into her life. not a single time have i watched that scene and not felt my heart literally grow cause of how cute they are. 

-the entire scene when julie is singing wake up. that scene is what made me literally CRAVE watching the other episodes. like of course i was going to watch them cause i wasn’t gonna just stop watching a show after one episode, and yes the show was good already but seeing the lighting and her voice, and just everything about the scene,,,,*chef’s kiss* 

bright

-flynn drinking seven sodas....SEVEN??? i would be throwing up if i drank more than like 2 and she drank seven,,,no ma’am.

- flynn and her trumpet. talented queen

- “ i wouldn’t have given you the song if i didnt think you were gonna rock it.” lmaooo im crying:)

- i start tearing up every time julie goes to play the first notes of bright,,, and then i’m full on bawling when the guys come in and play with her cause...they weren’t playing to be seen they were playing to be there for her and play to comfort her. pls i love them<3

- nick vibing in the front row

- the tech guy deserves so much more praise

flying solo

- reggie’s little butt shake or whatever you wanna call it!!

- julie’s little laugh when she yells at the guys to stop it

- “and we’re on the runway again” GENUINELY one of my favorite lines of the whole show pls i love luke’s humor

-this is the first time i noticed this but reggie’s face after alex says “DONT TELL ME HOW TO GHOST!”

-WILLIE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE YOU<3333333

-the slow mo helmet take off,,,,me too alex me too

-willie’s little giggles:))))

- “oh-oh!”

- “no clue” alex i love you baby<3

- next season better give us a scene of flynn throwing eggs at someone’s house because i think it’s safe to say we were robbed of that experience. 

- the flying solo performance is just amazing

i got the music

- just the whole opening scene is so cute ....the dancing, singing, happiness RADIATING from julie 

-nick in an all white suit and fedora

-WILLEX MUSEUM DATE YEAH BABYYYYY

- carefree skateboarder bf and anxiety ridden drummer bf

- yelling. in. museums. 

-alex thinking he’s literally dying again because of the salt... zero braincells in this band.

- another scene we were robbed of that i need to see in season 2...reggie singing “home is where my horse is” while alex and julie sit patiently and attentively listen to him but luke looks like he’s about to commit murder

- i get SO MUCH second hand embarrassment for julie when she looks through luke’s songbook and says “ wow luke I didn’t know you were such a romantic” julie baby i love you but...eekkkkk

- “he looks like a substitute teacher”- where did he come up with that like so many other things he could be compared to but a substitute teacher??

- “luke introduced you to rock” heck yeah it did.. literal soulmates

- would like to see a picture of the raccoon in Flynn’s backyard

- wee woo wee woo police sirens://///

- julie’s outfit ughhhh i love it

- the poster that im pretty sure says “sexiest role” behind caleb... why was that necessary 

the other side of hollywood

- THE ENTIRE PERFORMANCE OF THE OTHER SIDE OF HOLLYWOOD 

- i lose my absolute shit over this song omg literal chills

- the cape grab i cannot physically do this rn

- willie being so excited the entire performance and looking over to see alex’s reaction

- reggie being in awe everytime one of the girls performing does something.. me too reggie

-”well i wouldn't really call it mAAgiCcCC bUT”

- nick and his fedora again

- alex has a crush, alex has a crush on.....WILLIE

-the boys eating food for the first time in 25 years is honestly so realistic

-alex shoving a whole slice of pizza in his mouth

- lukes ‘OH MY GODDDDD’

- reggie kissing his meatball sub that looks painfully dry but also delicious 

- the continuation of the other side of hollywood performance and everyone dancing

-reggie imitating caleb’s evil laugh and owen trying so hard not to break

-me getting mad at the boys for not showing up for julie and being sad with her but at the same time i’m obviously not mad at the boys just...disappointed?? idk 

finally free

- how did julie get to the school if she missed the first three classes?? wasn’t she still at flynn’s house from the night before cause she slept over so did she walk to school or was she just sitting in flynn’s house by herself and one of flynn’s parents was like you gonna go to school or???

-dance class with nicky poo<3

-reggie fixing his amp in the rain

-julie’s blue dress outfit in this episode is my ABSOLUTE favorite 

- the birthday candle scene makes me sob like a little baby,,,and rightfully so

- julie smart, smart to be taking calculus as what a sophomore??

- all eyes on me yes queen iconic

- alex dancing is how i dance in my brain whenever the song comes on 

- finally free as a song is NEVER given enough credit and why not?? it’s my favorite song they do as a band AND the madison’s vocals and the echoing part omg i loveeeee

- and the whole performance with luke’s heart eyes. i count this performance as the moment luke like fell in love with julie...like full on just blown away with how much awe and admiration he has for her in that moment and all the time.

 - julie and luke singing “and you’re a part of me” while staring directly into each others soul,,,yeah that’s love kids

edge of great

- carlos being the ghost hunter he is and tía being done with him

- luke’s pouting face 

- reggie and ray making breakfast together is so wholesome. reggie really loves and seeks comfort in ray and i love that

- luke just waiting next to julie’s locker and his little “hey”

- the first time i watch this scene i thought charlie was from new york cause of the way he says “ i can't do this without you” and then i watched the cast interviews and just realized he is somewhat joey tribbiani 

- jealous luke hehehehehhehehe

- “well dont you look shARrP”- yes he does luke thank you very much

- “uh oh i think someone has a crush on julie” yeah you do you little shit,,, now admit it to her

- the proud look on luke’s face when he realizes julie is still paying attention to HIM even though she’s supposed to be having a full on conversation with nick

- the shoulder push ( as someone who has had their own shoulder pushed in the middle of a high school hallway as a weird way of flirting,,,,i can definitely somewhat attest to how luke is feeling in that moment and i too continued to flirt with the person who shoulder shoved me while we were still standing in the hallway)

- the flow from whatever the hell dance nick and julie are doing and the perfect harmony dance is so special to me and i love it

-ADOANCLOBNAOVBCOAB THE HAIR PLSSSSS

- EVERYTIME THE SCENE COMES ON AND I SEE HIM WALKING THROUGH THE MIRROR I HAVE TO PAUSE THE SHOW FOR LIKE 10 MINUTES WHILE I DIE LAUGHING BECAUSE THE HAIR IS SO BAD EVEN THOUGH I SHOULD BE USED TO HOW IT LOOKS AFTER WATCHING THIS SHOW LITERALLY 30 TIMES

- i think people see my username and assume i like his hair in this scene but...ummm fun little fact i do not like it

- the dance is so good though ugh my babies

- the hair

- madison is gorgeous 

- another season 2 scene i need: julie teaching this dance to luke and they perform it in front of alex and reggie so they can see luke roll on the floor like that

-the hair

- the lift i loveeee

- the voices at the end of the song *chef’s kiss*

- the way julie spins out from luke and into nick omg so good

- “thAnKs pArTnER”

- luke denying his feelings for julie,,,babe pls

- the whole edge of great performance is so good and beautiful and the colors are SPECTACULAR 

-julie avoiding luke’s gaze lolz

- can't believe my mans really tried to deny he didn’t have feelings for julie like 5 hours earlier even though he’s getting upset because she hasn’t looked at him in 2 minutes

- THE. GUITAR. RIFF. SOLO.

- when i finally learn how to play the electric guitar well enough to learn the guitar solo... it’s over for everyone

-nick just came to watch the girl he likes perform not watch her flirt with a hologram plssss can we give this man a break next season.

- “we have to say goodbye to julie”- that’s literally more important to luke than not playing music anymore because julie is music to him now

unsaid emily

-already crying and the episode hasn't even started

-willex in the orpheum

- alex literally being OVER reggie

- nope too emotionally unstable to watch this scene right now

- my therapist will be hearing about this tomorrow

- show us the baby picture of luke cowards

- this is such a beautiful song that makes me cry every fucking time gosh damn it

- everytime i watch the flashback scene of luke on his bike i think of “christmas song” by phoebe bridges and i cry even more

- i tried to learn how to play this song on my electric guitar (because i dont have an acoustic guitar) and i ended up crying half way through so i do not think i will be playing it anytime soon:/

- the harmonies *chef’s kiss*

- THE POLICE LIGHTS ....i cry

- FAT tears rolling down my face

- there's literally not a moment i don’t cry during this episode

- interesting little relationship :0

- when i played percussion in 7th grade i used to lay down on the couch in the practice room at school ( which god knows what people did on that couch...ew) and stick my drumsticks up my nose too,,,, just another similarity between alex and i 

stand tall

- willie really drove a bus 200 miles into the desert for his crush

- WILLEX HUG 

- i love willie no last name so much,,,i just wanna hold and protect him

- alex’s ballerina dance

-julie’s overall outfit i love<3

- “im swimming”

- the way carlos hangs up the iPad on tía makes me CRACK UP he’s just lmao bye girl

- another julie outfit i love

- “anything julie. you know that.” AHHHHHAASIDSJFPACISN love bitches

- the suits

- luke’s hair in this episode is so much better than the perfect harmony hair pls

- YOU GOT NOTHING TO LOSE

- the way luke looks so restricted and confined in his suit... but at the same time he looks like a 10 week old puppy

-luke’s AGGRESSIVE but small foot tapping leading up to being on the stage

- the solos:)))))

- crying again over julie’s monologue to her mom

- julie really was brave enough to be ready to perform by herself

-the way Trevor looks at carrie when she says “been here before”

-ALEXXXXXX

-REGGIEEEEE

-luuukkKKKEEEEEEE

- this performance makes me cry

- especially the first time when i saw luke flickering...sobs

- he finally looks free in his suit:))

- alex’s solo is so pretty i love him

- reggie’s solo too 

- nick just straight up vibing the entire performance

- alex and luke holding hands...hehehe cute besties

- “thank you, guys” NO THANK YOU 

- the way julie begs for them to do something about the jolts for HER cause she knows luke would never say no to her

- “no music is worth making, julie, if we’re not making it with you,” I JUST SCREAMED AND IM PRETTY SURE I WOKE UP MY ENTIRE HOUSEHOLD...whoops

- going back to that line i could say so much about it but....for someone who’s life was literally MUSIC for the 17 years he was alive, and after finding out he could play music again even though he was dead and saying it made him feel alive, he would give that up- he would give up playing his guitar, playing in a band with his friends, give up writing and singing music- if he wasn’t doing that with julie. that’s more than saying i love you,,,that’s literally like saying i’d give up my ENTIRE LIFE and what i love to do if i dont get to do it with you

- i just made myself cry with that description...wow

-the hug<3

-also imagine how luke felt in that moment,,, hearing this girl, once again that he would give his life up for, saying in his ear that she loves them. i would motherfucking glow too, luke

- *passionately but gently holds each others faces*

-HANDS OFF MY BABY NICK, CALEB

- caleb’s outfit is....something

- the head turn plssss

this was so long and i am so sorry but if you read this far.....leave some of your own reactions or thoughts:)))

k goodnight im gonna, ugh, finally go study ://

[weilongfu]

Inspired by this idea by @theleakypen

There are clouds in his dream, Wei Wuxian realizes with joy. 

White and fluffy, floating, drifting, without care across a sky so pale, it could be completely white but for the shadows of said clouds. Still, the pale blue remains like a reminder of the cold mountain air. Wei Wuxian exhales, pleased to be able to see his breath hang in gossamer mist. As his lips curl into a smile, the sound of a guqin resounds sharply in the still air.

Wei Wuxian turns in circles, hunting for the sound. Another note cuts through the air and Wei Wuxian runs off. Branches part for him, leaves flutter by in gentle caresses, and the notes continue. 

A tune that has scratched at the insides of Wei Wuxian’s skull since his pre-teen years begins to assemble itself. Wei Wuxian knows this song. Has heard this song before. 

He holds each note close to his heart.

He runs faster and faster. The trees around him thin and part until he finds a snow-covered clearing. 

Dressed in robes that match the snow around him is another young man. His long dark hair bound with a silver hairpiece and a single white ribbon-like headband across his forehead. His skin is pale like white jade and his expression as stiff and perfect as if it was carved from it. But Wei Wuxian knows that if he were to touch such cold skin, there would be a surprising warmth beneath it. 

The young man continues playing, unmindful of Wei Wuxian’s approach. 

Wei Wuxian reaches out, wanting to touch that jade like countenance just once, before the world tumbles around him and he finds himself blinking blearily at his ceiling while his part-time servant, part-time assistant, part-time student, Mo Xuanyu, glares down at him.

“Get up!” Mo Xuanyu fervently tugs on Wei Wuxian’s arm. “You have a meeting with the king in an hour! And you know it takes that long just to shove you into appropriate dress, much less stuff some food down your throat.”

“Hah?”

------

“Your majesty, we really must insist...” Wei Changze sighs as his advisors all bow and beseech him once more. “Crown Prince Wei has been of age for so long now. Surely it is time...”

“I can no more force my son than any of you. As well you know.” Wei Changze sets down his teacup with a bit more force than necessary to sell the point. 

“Her majesty is set to return from her travels today, is she not? Perhaps if you both together-”

“Will do no such thing,” Baoshan Cangse says as she gracefully strides in, still dressed in more worn traveling clothes, but looking no less regal and royal. “Now, what prompts such disregard for the wishes of our son?”

“It is not that we dare go against your son or your wishes, your majesties.” One advisor steps up to replace the other that has been scared into submission. “But we must think of the stability of the family. Surely, it must be time for Crown Prince Wei to start thinking about it...”

Baoshan Cangse looks to her husband and her gaze is returned. The two nod and turn back to the advisors. “We will inform our son that he must pick a suitable partner,” Baoshan Cangse says. All the advisors sigh in relief. “However...” The room grows still, realizing the double edged sword they are about to be handed. “We will allow our son to pick the qualifications of his partner. No more, no less.”

“I’m allowed to pick what?” Wei Wuxian walks in as Mo Xuanyu tugs on his sleeves.

“You’re supposed to let yourself be announced!” he hisses as Wei Wuxian waves him off. “You’re not the king or the queen!”

“I’m the prince, it’s the same thing.”

“Oh good, you’re here. It saves us time from trying to chase you down.” Wei Changze waves his hands and the doors to the meeting room are closed with the audible click of the lock which makes Wei Wuxian’s eye twitch. “Your mother and I have decided to heed the words of our advisors. You must get married.”

“What?! I’m still plenty young!”

“And... You will be allowed to choose the criteria of such a desired partner. But you must announce it publicly so that all potential suitors of adequate rank may have a chance.”

“Father, mother, why must you be so cruel?”

“How is offering you the choice cruel?” Baoshan Cangse’s tone is polite, but Wei Wuxian sees the mirth in his mother’s eyes and knows that she anticipates his answer.

“Why, it is cruel to the people who seek to be chosen!” Wei Wuxian turns to face the advisors. His parents hold hands, hiding them behind Wei Wuxian’s back. “Great advisors to my family. I am honored that you are so concerned for me. So... Allow me now to announce my criteria.”

“Crown Prince, have you decided already?” Murmurs and whispers go up. “Have you been thinking about it?”

“Mm... Perhaps...” Wei Wuxian bites his lip and waits for the whispering to die down as a means to stall for thinking of his criteria. He already feels the glare of Mo Xuanyu on the back of his head. His young charge already knowing too well that his claim was more boldness than sense.

“In my youth...” Wei Wuxian starts slowly. “I once heard a song. To this day, I remember it still.” Wei Wuxian looks out the window to the mountains in the distance. “The one who brings me this song and plays it correctly, I will marry them.”

Wei Wuxian smiles openly as the entire room is thrown into an uproar. His parents squeeze each others hands, a smile without smiling. Mo Xuanyu groans, knowing his next, most arduous task, is the sorting and cataloging of all the songs his master will soon receive.

------

A year passes slowly and yet quickly.

Piles upon piles of music sheets are presented to Wei Wuxian, and as Mo Xuanyu had predicted, his task, thankfully with the aid of others, is the sorting and cataloging of them all. All of them are filed away in a room which quickly becomes two rooms. Then four rooms. Then an entire library. 

The music collection of the Kingdom of Wei expands by the day.

But none of the songs are the one Wei Wuxian remembers. Hundreds of thousands of suitors all come and are just as quickly dismissed. Word gets out that perhaps it is a song on the guqin for those are the ones upon which Crown Prince Wei lingers the most. But none of them are satisfactory either. 

At least, until one day...

------

“Ah! Look!” A young woman points with glee at a figure on the road. “It is the Second Prince Lan! Returned from his journey abroad!”

Lan Wangji rides on without acknowledging the fuss as he enters the capital of the Kingdom of Lan, Gusu. No servants accompany him, no excess of chests or goods do either. But all part way in respect and quiet dignity, short of some admirers who would rather break rules to cheer him than to stay quiet.

“Welcome home,” says Crown Prince Lan Xichen with a bow and warm affection. Lan Wangji’s expression does not change.

“Hm.”

“Much has happened while you were away.” Lan Wangji only raises an eyebrow before waving off the stablemen who have come to take care of his horse. “Perhaps you will have heard on your way back. Do you remember Crown Prince Wei from ten years ago when the Kingdom of Wei had come to visit for the summer?”

Lan Wangji’s hands still as he removes his things from his horse. “Hn.”

“They say he is accepting suitors at last, after so long.”

Lan Wangji says nothing, but his motions are sharper and just a hair quicker as he unbuckles the saddle from his horse.

“Oh don’t be upset, Wangji.” Lan Xichen smiles. “He hasn’t picked one yet.”

“He... has not?” 

“More like, none have fulfilled his criteria.”

Lan Wangji continues his work before starting to brush down his horse. “Which is?”

“A song.” For the second time, Lan Wangji freezes. “A song he remembers from his youth. The one who presents it to him is the one he will marry.” Lan Xichen’s smile grows a fraction wider. But even though Lan Wangji cannot see it, he feels it in his gut. “Some even say.. it is a song played on a guqin.”

“Brother.”

“Do not fret. There is still time. Wash the dust from yourself. Rest well. And then... If you dare to risk it, make your way to the Kingdom of Wei. I think you’ll be well received.”

“Brother, please.”

“Don’t worry. I will discuss it with Uncle.” Lan Xichen places a gentle hand on Lan Wangji’s shoulder. “You know... It means he remembers you.”

“We must not lie.”

“I’m not lying.” Lan Xichen walks away. “But you might be lying to yourself.”

------

Despite Mo Xuanyu’s hissing, Wei Wuxian continues to slouch in his seat as he dismisses another musician. “Do I have to listen to the next one?”

“It’s your challenge and criteria!”

Wei Wuxian turns to the side where his mother sits with her court and laughs. “Mother?”

“Stay put, my dear,” Baoshan Cangse says without looking away from the attending ladies. “You did ask for it.”

“You told me to do it!”

“Hush, the next suitor approaches. And sit up.”

Pouting, Wei Wuxian sits up all the same and closes his eyes. He does not see the bright white robes. Nor does he care for the gasps of those also in attendance.

“For the Crown Prince,” is all the suitor says. His voice is deep, cool and calm with no inflection but at the end, as if he had bitten off one last word. 

Wei Wuxian waves his hand and when the first note is struck, Wei Wuxian knows it is another person who thinks just playing the guqin will do. But then comes the second note. The third. And by the tenth, Wei Wuxian’s eyes fly open to see Lan Wangji. His robes the same brilliant white, edged in blue and silver. His headband still perfectly straight and even across the exact middle of his forehead. And the elegant white wood guqin of his memories laid out before him with gentle, but powerful fingers picking out the tune of ages ago.

Wei Wuxian sits in stunned silence for the whole of the song. And before he can say anything, Lan Wangji picks up his guqin and moves to leave.

“Wait!” Wei Wuxian says as he nearly leaps out of his seat. “Lan Zhan.” The tittering of the court increases at Wei Wuxian’s informal address. “It really is you, Lan Zhan?”

Lan Wangji turns to face him and bows. “Wei Ying.”

“Your song...” Wei Wuxian curses his disobedient tongue which fails to find words at this most crucial moment. “What is the name of your song?”

Lan Wangji blinks slowly. “If it is the song you desired, I will tell you the name.”

“If it is not?”

“Then... Wei Ying should forget about this song.”

 Wei Wuxian bites his lip. “It is the song I have searched for.” A thousand excited whispers go up. Baoshan Cangse clears her throat only once for the hall to fall silent. “Your song is the one I have searched for.”

Lan Wangji tilts his head. “My song, it’s called Wang Xian.”

“Wang Xian...” Wei Wuxian’s lips curl up in a smirk. “Did you really... Even all those years ago?”

Lan Wangji looks around at their audience and nods. “Mm.”

Wei Wuxian turns to Baoshan Cangse. “Mother... I-”

“Oh of course it’s fine,” she snaps. “The Second Prince of Lan no less! I’d love to see the look on that old fuddy duddy Lan Qiren’s face right now... No! I will see it!” Baoshan Cangse stands up. “Prepare my traveling clothes! I will go to Gusu myself to announce it! My son has chosen Lan Wangji, Second Prince of Lan, to be his husband!”

Over the cheers and shocked gasps, the eyes of Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian meet once more. And despite all the noise, the only thing they both hear is their heartbeats in tune to the song of their youth. 

[pparkerpoetry]

Face Reality (Part 11)

Title: Control and Loss (the past comes knocking)

Summary: Ranboo runs into Phil and Techno. They've messed with something they shouldn't have, and he wants to let them know that.

Sam is struggling. His creeper side is getting more powerful, and soon his past catches up to him.

Maybe there's hope for the server, yet.

- Chapter One - Chapter Twelve

Masterlist

_____

Have you ever felt loss? No, really, have you ever felt a loss so deep in your soul that you cried out in pain because something was wrong, something was bad, but you had no idea what? Ranboo could answer yes, because he’d really just been drying dishes, trying to avoid the water that dripped off of them, when he crumpled to the ground in anguish.

 The pain he felt was intense, and he felt it right next to his heart. The cry that he’d let out wasn’t human, not even remotely, it was Ender- and he had no idea why it hurt so much.

 Until he figured it out a few days later, completely by accident.

 Ranboo was… mad. Livid, you could say. He really had no business to be, but, well… well actually, that was a lie.

 You see, it had started when he ran into Techno and Phil. Now I know this sounds concerning, because it was, but they had claimed that Tommy hadn’t been to see them in a while, and they were worried. They decided that their worry was enough to warrant a visit to Sam’s house uninvited, and while Ranboo really didn’t care about their presence much, he had noticed that Techno wasn’t wearing a chestplate.

 When Techno turned a little, he found out why. A silky purple pair of wings rested on his shoulders, but they hadn’t been grown. They’d been stolen.

 Ranboo’s eyes narrowed. “That’s a nice pair of wings. Where’d you get them?”

 For once, Phil looked a little nervous. “Well, we couldn't help but notice that the end portal was open, so we figured we would explore it a bit. Found those, but since I already have wings, I figured Techno could use them.”

 Now, Ranboo knew how you got elytra. Endermen were supposed to guard the treasure in their cities with their lives, so he could do that math. “How many stacks of ender pearls did you get?” He asked nonchalantly. “I hope this round of mass murder was more fun than your last one.”

 Techno coughed. “No need to get hostile. We didn’t kill any endermen.”

 “Besides,” Phil mentioned, “Even if we did,”

 “What?” Ranboo asked, leaning against the doorframe. “They’re less than human? Their lives don’t matter? Just like how mine didn’t when you wanted to use me as a weapon?”

 Phil recoiled. “I didn’t mean it like that-”

 “But it’s your honest opinion.” Ranboo shrugged. “Not much I can do about that. Tommy’ll be over in a few days, I think. He was helping Sam with something or other, or maybe he’s watching a movie with Fundy.”

 “Fundy’s here?” Phil asked.

 “Yeah.” Ranboo said, not saying anything as the two others stood on the doorstep. When they turned away, Ranboo said, “Why’d you lie? You think I don’t know everything about the End? I know that you have several other elytras in your hold. I can sense them. They call to me.”

 “What’re they saying?” Techno asked, almost doubtful.

 Ranboo grinned. “You don’t deserve them. They want me to kill you.” Then his grin dropped. His mind had made the connection. “When did you go to the End?”

 Techno shook his head. “You’re gonna say that and then expect answers?”

 Ranboo growled, low and soft. There was nothing soft other than the volume of it, though. Everything in it meant harm. “When did you go to the End, Technoblade?”

 “Geez, I dunno. A few days ago. Why?”

 “You didn’t happen to come across an island,” Ranboo stepped forward, towering over Techno as he felt his posture grow, “With tall, black towers on it, did you?” The dark part of his face inched past the line across the middle of it, “You didn’t happen to find a dragon there, did you? You didn’t happen to kill said dragon, the Queen, would you?”

 Techno shook his head. “Nope. No dragon.”

 Ranboo’s jaw unhinged a little more. “Good,” He said, “Because those types of actions, should you be lying, like I know you are, would have dire consequences. I can’t just let the murder of my Queen go unpunished, now, can I?”

 Phil stepped forward. “Hey, are you threatening him? Just because you’re young doesn’t mean I won’t hurt you.”

 From behind Ranboo, Sam stepped forward. “And just because you’re old doesn’t mean I won’t fight you for hurting my son. I’m having a thin day, Phil. I’d stay away. My temper isn’t the strongest thing right now.”

 Ranboo had no idea what a thin day was at that moment, even if it was explained to him later, but Phil did. Techno did. Nearly every hybrid did, so it was an effective threat. A thin day- a day where the hybrid part of your brain is in more control than your human side. In Sam’s case, a thin day could be deadly for everyone around him.

 Sam had woken up and knew it was a bad day, so he called Puffy to hang around. If he completely lost control, he’d need someone to take care of his boys. Puffy had helped him through many thin days, so he trusted her. 

 He’d spent the whole morning mad at every little thing, biting his tongue so that he wouldn’t yell at his sons. They didn’t deserve to be yelled at. Phil and Techno, though? They were people that he could lose a little control around and be fine. They wouldn’t expect it, but they wouldn’t be offended. His rage at them was justified, and they knew it.

 “Go inside, Ranboo.” Sam said, staring Phil in the eyes. “Don’t look out of the windows. I’ll be back soon, to help you calm down.” He hated how the promise was so similar to his mother’s. 

 “A thin day? You’re gonna threaten us with that?” Techno droned once the door had closed.

 Yes, the voice said eagerly, blow it all up. Kill them. They deserve it. Make them burn. Burn it all.

 Sam hissed, the air around him smelling of gunpowder. The bitter taste of it was rising up his throat, begging to be let out, but he couldn’t- “Look me in the eyes, Technoblade, and you tell me if I seem like someone you should mess with.” He snarled, and when Techno obeyed, he saw nothing but fire and flame. Everything he loved, burned, and at the center of it all, was Sam, undamaged and furious, grasping a handful of singed grey feathers.

 It was a moment before Techno dared to speak up again. “Let’s go, Phil.”

 “Leave the End alone.” Sam said. “You’ve done enough damage. I’ve got no doubt that Ranboo knows exactly how many lives you’ve ruined. Some day, I’m not going to prevent him from losing control, and that’s a fight you won’t win. I suggest you tread carefully around us.”

 Phil saluted, but it wasn’t out of respect. He knew that his father hood over Tommy had been stolen by Sam. “Will do, Sam. Try not to lose it today, will you?”

 “Low blow.” Sam called back, before he went inside.

 No, the voice scowled. You have to explode.

 “Not today. Not now,” He whispered to himself. Ranboo needed help.

 The day went from okay to bad, for Sam. He’d tried to hold his shouts back, but once he got a headache, it was much harder. With the pounding in his head begging him to just ruin everything, he could barely hold back his harsh words.

 Puffy approached him when he was in the kitchen making lunch, trying to escape the pressure of interaction. He just wanted her to leave. 

 “Hey, Sam, are you doing okay?” Her voice was soft, and comforting, and he hated every syllable.

 “I’m fine.” He ground out, palms digging into his eyelids. 

 Puffy tilted her head. “Are you sure?”

 Sam huffed. “I’m fine! It’s just all a bit much. Drop it.”

 “Okay, but I think you should maybe talk about it with the boys, so that they know. They can tell something’s off.”

 “Just drop it.” He growled, straightening his back to continue making lunch, trying to ignore the voice.

 Kill her. Stain the walls with-

 Her footsteps echoed as she left.

 The footsteps came back. 

 Let out your frustration. It will feel better, I promise it will feel better.

 “I thought I told you to drop it!” He yelled, turning around to meet- Tommy’s eyes. Tommy’s very, very terrified eyes. Sam sighed as his eyes filled with tears, turning back to the counter and leaning his elbows on it, tangling his fingers into his hair. “I’m sorry, Tommy. I didn’t mean to yell.”

 “It’s okay, Sam.”

 Kill him. Burn it all. Yell. Scream.

 Sam winced at the use of his name. “No it’s not. I shouldn’t have lost my temper. I just-” Quick, make up an excuse, don’t let him think you’re weak and undeserving- “I didn’t get enough sleep last night.”

 Tommy shrugged. “I don’t really mind, I’m used to it. You don’t have to, but if you ever want to tell me the real reason that you’re all pissy today, feel free.”

 Sam went to apologize again, but Tommy was gone, and he just felt worse than before he had yelled. Outside, it started raining, reflecting the tears that fell down his face.

 It had been raining for a while, and it was when everyone was together in the living room that everything started going even more wrong.

 “How are you holding up?” Puffy asked Sam, eyes concerned. She was worried about how he was suffering, trying to suppress his instincts.

 “I-” He didn’t get to respond, because outside, a loud clap of thunder made itself known.

 “Guess we’re not going outside,” Tommy sighed, wrapping a wing around Tubbo, who curled up. “The weather probably won’t get any better for a while.”

 Sam winced as another lightening flash lit up the room. “Puffy, I-” He coughed, trying to push down the need to blow it all up.

 “What? What is it, Sam?” Puffy asked, putting a hand on Sam’s back. It was far too warm.

 Sam’s eyes were glazed over. “I need to go outside. Please. I need to- I need-”

 “Alright, alright, but are you sure?”

 “Yes,” Sam whined. “I need to go outside. I know how it ends up, Puff, but please.”

 Puffy didn’t have the heart to stop Sam as he stumbled out of the door. “Come on,” She sighed, noticing all of the boys’ confused looks. “I’ll explain on the way.”

 It was pouring outside, and creepers were everywhere. The thunder was loud, and more than one of the group flinched at the loud noises. 

 “What are they all doing?” Fundy gaped, turning to look at the group of light green mobs, Sam included.

 “Trying to get charged,” Puffy sighed again, “Sam’s creeper half usually can’t overpower him when it starts to thunder, but he’s having a thin day today. I’ve never seen him this weak against his instincts, so we need to be here in case something happens.”

 No one mentioned how ‘something’ was Sam exploding.

 They all knew it, anyway.

 Ranboo’s hair flopped in front of his face, but suddenly, a large flash occurred, and he squeezed his eyes shut at the bright light. He didn’t see what happened, he didn’t know what was going on, all he heard was Puffy yelling at them to run.

 _____

 Sam felt alive. 

 He’d never felt this powerful, ever. Then again, he’d never gotten charged, either. But when that lightning collided with his body, instead of hurting him, it circled around him. It was warm, comforting. It called to his creeper side, called at him to burn it all to the ground. 

 He’d been chosen to- to what?

 When he looked up from where he’d been knocked to the ground, he saw some players. He didn’t recognize them. Part of him did, but not the part that mattered. Not the part that held control. Not the part that could stop his explosions. 

 His eyes were wild, crazed. His hair whirled in the slight wind that the lightning around him made, and he breathed softly. A smile crept its way onto his face, and his hand formed a fist as he got up. Now was the time to strike- a whole group of people that he could hurt? He could kill? He’d been presented with a unique opportunity.

 Wonderful. Kill them. Feel the heat of the blast.

 He stalked towards the group. They called out his name, but he didn’t hear it. All he heard was ringing. All he felt was heat. Power. The call of the explosion that had formed itself in his stomach. It needed to be let out. It was far too late to stop it.

 The players ran from his glowing form, but one stumbled and fell. The lone victim, evidently.

 When the person (was it a person? It had wings- surely- why did those wings seem so familiar?) turned to look at him as he scrambled backwards, something lurched in his chest. He needed to gain control again. That was Tommy, Tommy, Tommy-

 “Tommy.” He croaked. “I can’t stop it-” The gunpowder rose up his throat, there was no time to prevent the explosion, there was no time to escape the blast zone, there were only two options.

 Kill Tommy, or,

 “I’m sorry.” He whispered, crouching down as the lightning swirled around him.

 Internalize it. Something he’d never tried. It was better than nothing, though. Better than the death of Tommy.

 The pain was something he’d never felt before. The blast had always pushed away from his body, not towards it, and he couldn’t tell if the screams he heard were his own or those of his family. Either way, he figured he wouldn’t be the one to deal with the aftermath. He was going to be dead, most likely.

 _____

 Sam wasn’t dead. He wished he was, because the burning on his skin hurt like he’d been run over by a trail made of scorching-hot embers, but he wasn’t. He was still alive, which was some kind of miracle. His eyes weren’t opening, which was slightly concerning, but he was alive. That was a starting point.

 It took a few minutes for him to be able to pry his eyes open. He was met with a blue sky and several heads staring back at him, all mouthing words at him. Why weren’t they talking?

 He stayed in one spot, too sore to move. His eyes looked from one spot to another, realizing that his hearing was slowly fading back from nothing but a low drone. The voices started to make sense to him.

 “Sam? Sam, are you okay? Never do that again,” Puffy cried, leaning into Niki’s side. When had she gotten there?

 “Dad? Why aren’t you responding?” Tommy panicked, carefully touching Sam’s hand. Sam tried his hardest to speak, but he couldn’t. Instead, he managed to move his fingers into Tommy’s hold. “Dad?” He asked hopefully, and Sam nodded slightly.

 Ranboo moved over. “I, uh, I got a totem from my enderchest, because we couldn’t move you inside. We’ve done our best out here, but we’re all soggy now.” Ranboo had several cloaks piled over his head, protecting him from any rain that fell from the trees nearby.

 “I’m back,” Purpled said, and he was holding a glass of water. “Is he awake yet?”

 “Just woke up,” Sam heard Fundy say from somewhere, then the glass was held to his mouth. 

 He drank the water slowly, until his throat felt a little better.

 “What happened?” He choked out, coughing a little. 

 Puffy frowned. “You ran outside and ended up getting charged, then you went… you went a little crazy. I think your creeper side managed to take control, at least until you almost- you almost-”

 “Blew up Tommy?” He croaked.

 “Yeah.” Puffy smiled weakly. “Then, I dunno, you blew up, but not as big as it should have been, and then you looked almost dead, if not completely mauled,”

 “I imploded.” Sam sighed, closing his eyes. “Didn’t wanna- didn’t wanna hurt ‘im.”

 “I appreciate the sentiment, Big Man, but you didn’t have to.” Tommy said quietly. Too quietly. 

 Sam nodded. “I did. I’d be a shit father to kill my own son, huh?”

 It was quiet as the irony in the words sunk in. “Yeah,” Tommy winced. “I guess you would be. But… Why'd you keep all this a secret? Everyone has thin days.”

 “No one gets as bad as I do,” Sam sighed, choosing his words carefully, “I… I didn’t want you to see me so weak. In such little control. I’m supposed to be strong for you, for all of you.”

 “But you are!” Tommy insisted. “I think all of us are strong for dealing with what we have. It’s just like you’re always telling us, we shouldn’t be ashamed to ask for help when we need it.”

 Sam smiled. “Yeah. I guess I should take my own advice, huh?”

 ___

 They all waited out with Sam for the night, and most of the next day, sometimes taking breaks to go inside. This went on until Sam could move inside as well, which was sped up with potions and various other things. Puffy had been sent home, along with Niki and Eret, since the others insisted that they could handle it.

 Sam was draped over Ranboo, and the others stood by for support if they were needed. Just as they were about to move, a voice shouted from nearby.

 “Hey, stop right there!”

 Tommy turned around. He saw a large group of men there (could they fight them off if they needed to?), and he thought about what the appropriate response was. “What do you bitches want? How’d you even get on this server?”

 “Well,” said one of them with a wicked grin, “The admin in charge, while one is in prison, is currently being held up by a kid. It didn’t take much work to force our way in. Speaking of that admin, by the way, we’re really good friends, and I was hoping I could take him back home?”

 Purpled squinted at the man and his weapons. “He is home. Why do I doubt your relationship with him is good?”

 “Ah,” The man shrugged, “It was worth a try. Guess I’m gonna bring in…” He counted in his head while he stared at the ragtag group of people, “Three hybrids instead of just one.”

 Tommy stepped forward and unfurled his wings in a protective manner. “You better not be the hybrid hunters that he told us about. If you are, we’re gonna have issues.”

 “Four, then.” The man considered, admiring Tommy’s wings in a way that made him want to hide them again. “And, we are. After years of tracking creeper hybrid explosions- a very difficult piece of code, by the way -we saw the largest one ever. It could only be the little shit that’s been avoiding us since he was a tiny kid. He’s my life’s work, and I’m bringing him in, then I’m going to retire with the biggest paycheck of my life.”

 Ranboo slowly lowered Sam to the ground. “That’s not gonna happen.” He growled, letting his height grow as tall as it was supposed to be. The line on his face blurred, and this time, he felt in control.

 Purpled unsheathed his sword. “I’d really hoped to not fight again, but if it’s for him, then I’d do it any day of the week.”

 “Oh,” The man said, eyeing Purpled, “You’re the kid that Lucas was talkin’ about before he was killed. I wonder if it was this creeper that managed to finally off him. I’m surprised you didn’t, what with your reputation as a stone-cold murderer.”

 Purpled flinched, but Fundy wrapped a tail around him. “We’re not letting you take him.” Fundy figured it’d be best to not mention Sam’s name.

 “As if a fox could stop us. We’ll bring you all in, I’m sure the regular kid’ll at least serve as leverage instead of being utterly useless.” The man motioned to Tubbo.

 “Tubbo isn’t useless.” Tommy snarled, wings fluffing furiously. “Bring it on, bucko. I’ll fuckin’, I’ll kill you all for even stepping foot in this server. We’re all non-human here, pretty much, so you best believe we’re not letting you leave alive.”

 “Can confirm!” Tubbo said cheerfully, “I’m messaging everyone now!”

 It really wasn’t a fair fight, at all. Not when Puffy, Niki, and Eret came rushing back with their weapons sharpened and ready for blood. Not when Jack showed up, hands blazing, because after all of his rage he needed to be there for those that lived on the server. Not when the rest of the Badlands showed up, not when Karl and his group showed up, not when Techno and Phil showed up because they knew they’d be hunted next. Not when everyone banded together, because after everything that the server had gone through, they were still connected. They still cared, deep down, maybe not very much for some, but they did.

 It was a fun fight, to be honest. Quackity marveled over Tommy’s wings with many others who were seeing them for the first time, people caught up for the first time in ages. Even if the fighters that broke would have to be put together by their own individual families, there were no wars on the server for a very long time. Not when they saw the past of just one of the members.  Not when they realized that the only thing that mattered were the relationships that had been shattered by time. 

 Even if Tubbo went back to Snowchestire, even if Fundy moved into the castle with Eret, even if Puffy visited less because she and Niki were thinking of adopting, even if everyone else moved out down the road, Sam still had his family. It had grown, if anything, to include the rest of the server in some capacity. They weren’t all forgiven, not completely, and the deeds of the past certainly wouldn’t be forgotten, but they were on the road to recovery. Even if it took years, they’d make it to the end, eventually, and maybe they’d get the happy epilogue they deserved the entire time.

[pomegranates-and-blood]

ἀλήθεια (Chapter 3, Vοσταλγία AU)

ἀλήθεια Masterlist

Pairing: Freydis/Reader, Ivar/Reader (past)

Word Count: 2.1k

Warnings: The usual. My endless swooning over Freydis.

A/N: So, writing the next chapter of Nostalgia is proving harder than I intended it to, so I’m not sure I’ll be able to post it this weekend. I’ll try my best, but I’m slowly getting back to writing, I’m not at my usual speed yet, so I’m still struggling. I’m also working on a few 500 Celebration thingies, so I hope to post those soon too. In the meantime, hope you like this!

Freydis is pondering on the why you insist on speaking Norse with Galla when she is around, asking herself whether it is because you don’t want her to feel like an outsider, or because you want to remind your lifelong friend of the outsider amongst you.

She sits by the fire, working on stitching together a torn cloak, as you pace around the room, arguing with Galla.

“I’m not letting you do this.”

“Letting me?” Your laugh is mocking, arrogance lacing your words when you taunt, “You’ve forgotten a lot, my friend, if you think you have any say in what I do.”

“That is not what I-…” A sigh, and Freydis hears Galla bite back her anger. “I speak their tongue. I can do the talking, and you stay safe.”

“Why does that sound like an excuse to-…”

“I’m not trying to chain you, you know that.”

Freydis knows how much you hate being interrupted when you’re talking, so she is sure the other woman does. She cannot help but wonder if she does it on purpose.

You scoff, “I’ve heard that before.”

“I am not some Varangian that tr-...”

“Tis better you don’t speak of what you don’t know. I never meant my husband,” You interrupt, eyes blazing. Galla’s eyes give away the recognition, and full lips form around a word that once was a name. Freydis remembers the way you spoke of the man you led to his death with promises of love, she remembers that you being able -being willing- to do something like that was the first moment she felt she could completely trust in you. You take a deep breath, “We need to get to that city, it is safer if I go.”

“Safer? What happens if you are found?”

“What happens if you are?”

“I get killed, you do not.” Galla states, an uncomfortable stillness falling over the room at her words.

A sigh, and then, “Kattegat had a funeral for me, Galla. They don’t know I’m alive, no one has any reason to think I’m…h-his wife.”

You haven’t said his name ever since you left Kattegat, and with each passing day the jarring manner in which you go out of your way not to say Ivar’s name becomes more and more apparent to Freydis.

“Yes, of course. A Greek trading and trying to buy passage to the Mediterranean, who would think it has anything to do with Kattegat’s queen?” The other woman teases, but there is a concern in her honeyed voice that Freydis cannot help but feel all the way through her body.

“I can do it,” Freydis interrupts, stepping forward and letting her gaze jump between you and Galla. “They will think nothing of me, just another…Varangian.”

“Hm,” Galla states before you can say anything, dark eyes surveying Freydis slowly before full lips pull into a smile, “You’re a brave one, Freydis.”

She tells herself she shouldn’t feel so emboldened by the slight praise, but it makes her feel stronger, it makes her feel like she is reclaiming a part of herself, by letting herself do this, be this.

____

“If they so much as whisper my name, you get out. Promise me, Freydis.”

She frowns, but acquiesces with a smile, “I promise.”

You swallow, hesitate for a moment before your hand reaches for hers. It is warm, it reminds her of that particular kind of fear of that first night she was a free woman, and yet it reminds her of that particular kind of warmth of the first time she had something to call her own. The touch is soft and light, but it tethers her more than she would like to admit.

“Don’t leave me alone.” You ask her quietly, big eyes boring into hers. She nods her head, but doesn’t say anything else.

Galla puts a hand on your arm and brings you to her side, murmuring something in your own tongue that makes you smile, even if it is still tinged by anxiety and more than a tad of fear.

Freydis finds herself wanting to know what she said to you, just as she usually finds herself wanting to know what the Greeks say that makes you grow a little colder, wanting to know what the soft songs they sing at night mean to you, what the tongue of your Gods and your people speaks of.

And as Freydis makes her way through the port, she starts thinking of what it would be like to speak your tongue, share something more with you, find something other than you speaking her language that makes her belong at your side.

In a few words, she manages to sell the few trinkets Galla had stolen, and with the coin heavy in the pouch hanging by her belt, Freydis sets of to speak with one of the boatbuilders.

The conversation is short and to the point, and the man doesn’t hesitate to tell her all she wants to know, judging by the purposely meek posture and adverted eyes that she is a thrall doing as she is told. It is remarkably easy, to pretend, to lie and make them do as she wants them too.

Freydis dares think she understands a bit better why you chose to chain yourself to that Greek. She also -much to her chagrin- understands why you refused to do the same to Ivar.

As she takes her leave she sees some unrecognizable faces carrying recognizable shields. A part of her almost wants -though she knows it is impossible, though she knows even if it weren’t it would end badly for her- to see Ivar with them, to have him see her.

For all the times he took you from her side without meaning to, for all the cruel smiles he granted her as you held his hand and left her barren, for all the ways he took things from her -and for all the things he could have taken, had the tale been other-; Freydis wants to face him one last time. To prove to him that a king, a famous man, a monster, wasn’t enough to keep you with him, but her, a liar, a former slave, a woman, was enough.

Before she can ask herself whether it was the years that made her cruel or she was always this way, she recalls every time she was left starving while others feasted, and finds she does not care.

____

It is only a fortnight later that she manages to return to the camp and announce there has been set up safe passage for you and most of the Greeks back to the Mediterranean -Crete, you tell her with a blinding smile, as if she is supposed to know what that is. She still smiles back-, alongside Arab merchant vessels.

Freydis does know how to lie and play pretend around her countrymen, and she still holds on to the warm and encompassing feeling of pride that being responsible for arranging for the ships with the builders at the docks brought; but she finds herself uncertain as to how to interact with these Arabs, with their strange garbs and their stranger customs.

You, though, you breeze through conversation with them, you laugh and smile as if you can forget what brought you here and that all that surrounds you still is death and cold. And Freydis doesn’t bother looking away.

They speak their own tongue, that you share in short bursts, but they also speak Greek with you, even if theirs is choppier than yours of course. They meet you somewhere in between worlds, and the women of painted skin and covered hair make your eyes shine with warmth; and you make their laughs delighted and fascinated; as if you share more than just words, as your language and theirs mix and match.

When the night starts to set and the people -Greeks, Arabs, Vikings- set of to sleep in every nook and cranny of the wooden ship they can find, you find your way back to Freydis’ side, sitting next to her and sharing the warmth of your cloak as you set it over both your legs as if you don’t even have to think twice about it.

“Did you ever think you’d one day part from this land, Freydis?”

“No,” She offers sincerely, looking at the distant and dark sea. “Being a slave didn’t leave much time to hope for traveling.”

“And after that?”

“Kattegat was safe, familiar,” Freydis takes a breath, closes her eyes for a moment. “It was just another set of chains, maybe.”

“Those are familiar too,” You state, saying the words she cannot. All the answer she offers is a nod. You sigh, and give away a confession of your own, “Neither did I.”

“All you wanted once was to leave these lands.”

“Yet I never believed I would leave alive, not truly,” A chuckle leaves your lips, but it is biter, “I am still not convinced I am not dead, but I always thought death would feel more like…home.”

“Your…Underworld?” She asks, and you nod your head mutely.

You once told her of the creatures and Gods that inhabited that realm that you Greeks go to once you die. You told her of a king with a crown that makes him invisible, you told her of a queen that trusted and thus was condemned.

You told her of those creatures half-monster and half-woman, that punish those deserving, that drive men insane, that topple kingdoms with a word, that end battles with their presence alone.

Erinyes, you’d told her they were. They had names, but you keep those secret too, just like you kept your own once.

When she turns to look at you, her gaze lingers on the faint shine of the moon that makes your eyes glimmer, and in all the anger and the grief they harbor, there’s warmth. Too alike the warmth of fickle embers, waiting for the right breeze to burn it all again, but it is warm, and it is familiar to Freydis.

She wonders if there was more than stubbornness keeping you from giving away your name then, she wonders if the otherworldliness of you is not because of who your people are. Because Freydis looks at you, and there’s that seed of awe and fear that tugs at her heart, there’s the faint quickening of her breaths and the urge to never look away and learn each and every quirk of your mouth and shade of color in your eyes; and she wonders if you are something more than human.

You have to be, she reasons. Something more than her, more than him, more than any other. The curve of your smile isn’t like any other’s, the sound of your voice is familiar and fascinating at the same time, the way you dance easily between cruelty and gentleness is both terrifying and fascinating; you cannot be just a mortal like her, like them.

“Lord Hades saw her in that field, and fell in love,” You tell her, eyes absently travelling over the crowded room. Your smile is nostalgic when you continue, “Love made out of a God nothing but a man.”

“Careful, witch. That means love can make out of a man a God.” Valdís says, hiding a smile behind the horn from which she takes a sip, keeping clear eyes on you and giving you both a warning and something else.

“I want you to teach me your tongue.” Freydis tells you quietly, heart thumping a little out of rhythm when you turn to her with barely-masked enthusiasm, and a spark that she feared you had lost.

“Very well.” You muse, a serene smile on your lips.

You start pointing at the sky, and teaching her how to repeat the words you say. A part of her knows this isn’t how one is supposed to start learning a new language, but she loses herself in the low cadence of your voice and the lull of the ship, and finds not wanting anything to be any different, even if this doesn’t help her understand Greek any better.

It is a start, and that is all she wants. To find a way to meet you halfway between the two worlds that want you even if you don’t belong fully to neither. Freydis can learn to live in between realms, that is how she has lived most of her life: a woman when they wanted and lusted after her body, but not a woman when they refused her the chance to tell them no; someone loved when you smiled at her, but not the one you loved when your eyes met his.

But you have learned to live there too, she knows. His wife and their ‘daughter’, Kattegat’s Queen and Attica’s Anassa, yourself and what they want you to be.

Maybe, she dares think, you can both live there, in between worlds, in between places to belong to. Because even if you both belong to nowhere, you belong together.

____ ____ ____

Thank you for reading! Hope you liked it!

Taglist: @youbloodymadgenius @heavenly1927 @toe-vind-ek-jou @xbellaxcarolinax @pieces-by-me​ @angelofthorr @samsationalwilson @peachyboneless @1950schick @punkrocknpearls @ietss   @itsmysticalmystery @revolution-starter @chibisgotovalhalla @the-a-word-2214 @fae-sedai @crazybunnyladysworld   @funmadnessandbadassvikings @stupiddarkkside @aprilivar @msrawog  

[blackhakumen]

Mini Fanfic #692: Teenagers React to Everyone Losing in Mario Golf World Tour (SSBU)

Mario

Mario gets hit by a Green She'll and turns into his little self on Screen.

Futuba: Wait. (Eyes Widened in Complete Disbelief at the Screen) THAT CAN ACTUALLY HAPPEN TO HIM!?

Ren: We've seen this man get stabbed, detonated, and knocked out many times than any of us can count. And none them ever resulted him into being little.

Lavenza: Perhaps it's the Green Shell's doing......(Place her Hand on her Chin and Starts Thinking) Hmmmmm.........

Futuba: (Turns to Lavenza) Anything on your mind, Lavvy-chan?

Lavenza: This might be hunch, but....How about we try devising a plan? Where we can try hitting Mario with a Green Shell ourselves.

Futuba: That way, we can see if he can turn into a small plumber or not. (Smiles Brightly and Excitedly) That's GENIUS!

Ren: (Has a bit of a Curious Smirk on his Face) Wouldn't mind being a part of that plan myself. I think my throwing skills has gotten better overtime.

Futuba: Mines too!

Makoto: (Immediately Gives the Trio Her Signature Cold Niijima Glare) We are NOT throwing a Green Shell at Mario.

Ren: There it is.

Futuba: (Starts Giving Makoto a Disappointed Pouty Face) Makotooo.....

Lavenza: (Genuinely Shocked and Disappointed) But why ever not, Ms. Queen?

Makoto: Because it's very rude and completely uncalled for. I mean seriously, what would Peach say if she saw you three going through with plan? She would be very disappointed. As I am with you three for even thinking about doing this.

Futuba: Come on, sis! Can't we just-

Makoto: (Stares Piercing her Glare) The answer's no and that's final.

Ren/Lavenza/Futuba: (Straighten Themselves Up in a Bit of Fear) Yes, ma'am!

Lavenza: (Genuinely Surprised) Goodness! I have no idea the Queen could be so terrifying....

Futuba: (Starts Shrugging) That's Makoto for ya. Her glares and motherly attitude are completely outmatched in our ragtag group. You know, besides Haru.

Haru: (Happily and Gently Scratches Under Morgana's Chin While He's Sitting and Purring onto her Lap, Causing her to Giggle Softly Altogether)

Lavenza: I see.... So I suppose nothing could ever try and faze her in some occasions, yes?

Futuba: For the most part.

Ren: (Smirks Like a Love Struck Dork) That's one of the million reasons why I love that beautiful woman after all~

Makoto: (Pouts at Ren) Stop trying to flattering me, Ren-Ren!~ The answer's still no!

Ren: (Chuckles Lightly) We know that already, 'hon~ I just wanted to tell you how much I love you is all~ (Kiss Makoto on the Cheek)

Makoto: (Lays her Head on Ren's Shoulder Once She Begins to Blush) Dummyhead~ (Hugs Ren Afterwards) Love you too~

Futuba: (Puts on a Deadpinned Look on Her Planned) Unless your name is Ren-Ren and try making her blush like a strawberry.....

Lavenza: Fascinating.....

Coco: (Writing Down Somthing on her Notepad)

Tails: Writing down possible theories and methods of any of this makes sense?

Coco: Yup!~

Luigi

Luigi sadly slouches down onto the floor and gets licked by a Boo on screen.

Yoshi: I dunno which is sadder.... Seeing my Luigi being sad or seeing him getting licked by a random Boo.

Pit: (Starts Shrugging Slowly) At least he didn't call himself a loser that time.

Yoshi: Yeah.

Peach

Peach dramatically faints, with heartstrings playing in the background, on screen.

Sonic: ('Sigh') There goes mom being dramatic again.....

Amy: (Happily Resting her Head into Sonic's Shoulder) I feel like you've gotten that from her as of late.

Sonic: ('Heh') Yeah right. Like I can be a drama as well-

Amy: Ice cream on Chili Dogs.

Sonic: (Eyes Widened and Gasps Loudly From his Girlfriend's Sudden Words and Dramatically Points at her) How DARE YOU say those words in front of me!? Your own BOYFRIEND!

Amy: (Giggles Softly at How Adorable her Sonic is Being Right Now) I rest my case~

Yoshi

Yoshi went into his egg in a very sad manner and starts rolling around the area before falling down on screen.

Ann: (Place her Hands onto her Mouth) Oh my gosh! This is so hard to watch!

Shiho: (Hugs Ann's Arm) This is so sad....

Haru: And so adorable at the same time!~

Morgana: (Sighs While Rolling his Eyes)

Futuba: (Raise her Hand) All in a agreement to hug Yoshi later on, say aye!

Ann/Shiho/Haru: (Raises Their Hands as Well) AYE!~

Lavenza: (Raises her Hand as Well) I would also like to join in this event as well!

Dark Pit: (Smirks Smugly at an Already Annoyed Yoshi) Guess who's back on his cuteness bullshit?

Ryuji: (Chuckles Lightly) Yeah.

Yoshi: For the love of...(Gets Up From his Seat) Why does everyone in this room thinks I'm cute?

Ann: Because you are-

Yoshi: Okay. I get. I flutter jump, I turn into an egg, and I admit, I do have a cute face. But for GOD SAKES, I know Kung Fu! I-I know how to drive a car with little to no problem! (Got Out his Trusty Nunchucks) I even learned how to use Nunchucks and everything!!!

Ryuji: Come on, man. You're overreacting.

Coco: Yeah. There's nothing wrong having a little cuteness in ya. (Happily Gives Yoshi a Thumbs Up) I think it suits you perfectly well.

Yoshi: (Turns to Tails) See, even your girlfriend thinks I'm cute, Tails!

Tails: (Eyes Widened at What Yoshi Just Said) Wait.....

Tails/Coco: WHAAAAAAAAAT!!!!!?

Coco: (Starts Blushing Herself) B-B-But weren't not dating! We're best friends!

Tails: (Starts Blushing as Well) E-Exactly! A-And besides.....(Chuckles a bit Lately) I-I'm pretty sure Coco wouldn't really be interested in dating someone as boring as me-

Coco: ('GASPS') (Pouts at Tails) Miles Tails Prower, how could you!!?

Tails: (Taken Aback by Coco's Sudden Change of Attitude) What? W-What did I say?

Coco: How could you say that about yourself!? You are absolutely NOT boring to me at all!

Tails: Y-You think so-

Coco: (Grabs Tails' Hands and Gently Squeezes Them) I KNOW so, mister! You're the most smartest, brilliant, precious little cinnamon roll I've ever met and anyone who thinks otherwise are dumb and stupid!

Tails: (Almost at a Loss of Words) Coco.....

Coco: I mean it, Tails! I don't EVER wanna see you put yourself down like that ever again, you hear me!?

Tails: I won't do that anymore! I promise!

Coco: (Stares at Tails For a Brief Second Before Sighing) Good. (Gives Tails a Loving Hug) I'm glad we come to an understanding. I love you, bud.

Tails: (Chuckles Lightly While Hugging Coco Back) I love you too, Coco. Thank you.

Almost Everyone: (Stares at the Best Friends Hugging Each Other) (Yeah. They would SO be cute couple together.)

Amy: (So CUUUUUUUUTEEEE!!!~)

Daisy

Daisy tries calming herself down before taking one look at the camera and starts angrily stomping and looking away on screen.

Ryuji: Sheesh. Even when she try to calm down, she still gets angry....

Yoshi: That's my mom for ya. Always a low-key bad sport.

Donkey Kong

Donkey Kong starts slapping the ground angrily before a random barrel came down and hit his head, causing him to fall down unconscious on screen.

Yusuke: That has to be a painful experience to go through.

Futuba: Tell me about it. I highly doubt that any normal human could survive a random barrel falling down on their heads.....or their entire body.

Ryuji: I envy that gorilla sometimes....

Diddy Kong

Diddy Kong lazily eats his banana, throws the peel on the floor beside him, gets up, ,immediately slips on the peel and fell on screen.

Ren: Yeah. No. He had that one coming.

Everyone: (Nodding and Completely Agrees to What Ren was Saying) Yeah./ Very True./ Uh huh.

Wario

Wario gets struck by lightning on screen.

Ryuji: (Eyes Widened in Complete Shock) JESUS! Where the hell did that lightning came from? It's not even raining outside!

Yusuke: Perhaps there's more to this universe than we originally thought....

Waluigi

Waluigi starts acting dramatic to losing before falling down into a black hole, that suddenly appears out of nowhere, on screen.

Futuba: Wha-Wha- WHAT!? How is even possible!? W-W-WHERE DID THAT BLACK HOLE EVEN CAME FROM!?

Morgana: (Shakes his Head Slowly) I don't even know anymore, Futuba....

Futuba: Damnit! (Looks Up Into the Ceiling in Anger) NONE OF THIS MAKES ANY SENSE!!!

Lavenza: There's a lot of things that doesn't make sense, Big Sister Futuba.

Bowser

Bowser angrily punches a camera on screen.

Ryuji: WOAH WOAH WOAH! What the hell was that all about!?

Ren: A evil, giant turtle getting mad over a simple game of golf....Kind of sounds a lot sadder when I say it out loud.

Ryuji: Right!? It's just a frickin' golf game! Why do they have get so hell-bent over it everytime they lose!?

Ren: I don't think anyone really knows at this point, man.

Bowser Jr.

Bowser Jr throwing his usual temper tantrum on screen.

Morgana: (Starts Sighing While Rolling his Eyes) Here comes another Bowser Jr's cuteness hour.....

Futuba: (Teasingly Pokes Morgan's Cheeks) Getting jealous there, Mona?~

Haru: (Immediately Pulls Morgana into a Loving Hug) Oh my sweet, little Mona-Chan!~ Please don't be jealous of Bowser Jr-kun anymore! I promise I love you with all of my heart!~ (Begins Kissing Morgana's Cheek)

Morgana: (Starts Getting Ticklish by Haru's Kisses) Haru! Come on! I believe you already! Really!

Lavenza: (Turns to Futuba) What exactly is happening here right now? Is Mona-Chan really jealous of this Bowser Jr character?

Futuba; (Simply Nodded) Oh big time. He thinks Haru thinks that the little guy is more cuter than he is.

Lavenza: ('Gasps') That is crazy talk....(Turns to Morgana) Mona-Chan!

Morgana: (Turns to Lavenza) Huh? What's wrong, Lavenza?

Lavenza: (Gently Grab Both of Mona's Paws) There us no need for you feel any jealousy towards Bowser Jr. While it is true that his overall appearance is cute to look at, you are and always will a precious feline in my very eyes!

Morgana: (Eyes Widened in Genuine Surprise While Blushing) Y-You.... really mean that, Lavenza?

Lavenza: Why, of course I do. (Joins into Morgana and Haru's Hug) I wouldn't be here, telling you this if I don't.

Haru: Lavvy-chan is absolutely right on this, sweetheart. You're a lot more precious than give yourself credit for. So please don't be jealous anymore, okay?

Morgana: (Sighs While Being Overwhelmed by the Group Hug) I'll try not to....(Smiles a Little) Thanks, you guys.

Futuba: (Smirk Softly at the Trio While Silently Taking a Few Pictures of Them ('Heh Heh') Dorks.

Rosalina

Rosalina faints....and accidentally fell down on the Lumas, who were trying to help her up, on screen.

'Thud'

Most People in the Living Room: Oh!

Yoshi: That has got to leave a mark.

Pit: I know. I kind of feel bad for those poor little Lumas....

Dark Pit: They're floating, magical stars with eyes, Pit-Stain. They'll be fine.

Birdo

Birdo angrily shoots eggs at the camera on screen.

Ann: (Really Glares at the Screen) Really?! What is with these people and breaking camera screens!? Do they honestly even know how much those things cost!!?

Shiho: (Simply Shrugs) I guess they really can't stand the fact they've lost a game golf.

Ann: Right!?

Toad

Two Toads tries to cheer up the main Toad by cheerleading on screen.

Ren: Huh. Cheerleading Toads.... That's a new one.

Makoto: It's cute how they try to do whatever they can to support each other.

Ren: I agree. It's also ironic how this is the most normal reaction of losing out of everyone else we've seen so far.

Makoto: ('Sigh') Yeah.....

Nabbit

Nabbit hides under a bag....only to get eaten by a Piranha Plant on screen.

Dark Pit: Alright. I'm about to lose it in a matter of seconds, if someone in this room don't tell me why in the hell does that dumbass thought that having a Piranha in his bag was even remotely a good idea!

Ren: ('Sigh') Yeah. I think we're done here.

..............................................................

Sonic: Sheesh....That was a lot more insane to watch through than I thought it would be.....

Yusuke: Not the most cringe worthy event I have ever seen so far, but it was still rather.... interesting to watch, to say the least.

Amy: I know..... I had no idea they would took golf so seriously...

Ryuji: You're telling me. I mean, really, I can't believe these guys were making a huge deal about losing one single game of golf! GOLF!! Probably one of the most boring sports in all of the frickin universe!!

Ren: Well, knowing Mario and the gang, I'm pretty sure they found a way to make the sport more fun to them.

Ryuji: That might be the true, but that doesn't make what we just saw, any better, bro!!

Ren: ('Sigh') Yeah. It.... really doesn't.

Futuba: (Found Something Interesting on his Phone) Huh.

Pit: What you found, Futuba?

Futuba: (Shows Everyone Beside her Phone) It says here that Mario and the others are hosting an all new golf tournament next month. It's called the "Mario Golf: Super Rush Tournament"

Yoshi: (Takes a Look at Futuba's Phone) Yep. Seems pretty legit to me.

Everyone: (Nodded in Agreement)

Makoto: They're going to embarrass themselves in that tournament, are they?

Ren: I'd be surprised if they didn't.

Makoto: You're gonna record the whole thing, are you?

Ren: (Chuckles Lightly) Oho yeah.....

@keyenuta

@26shann

@princekirijo

@cyber-wildcat

@albion-93

@lovekittynoir

@italian-love-cake

@ma-lemons

@craftyfreakdragonuniversity

@caleb13frede

[hummingbird-of-light]

Against All Odds

Part 847

Leah

Leah couldn’t concentrate.

How was she supposed to work on analyzing previous years trade growth when she knew Robbie would be arriving any time? Mother had refused to tell them when exactly the shuttle would be getting in. A sigh escaped before she could stop it.

“Princess?” Dr. Boyce asked from the seat next to her.

“Sorry,” she murmured.

“I know,” the doctor said kindly. “Analysis seems a boring thing in comparison to preparing for the wedding. But it serves its purpose and is necessary.”

“It’s not the work,” Leah said. “It’s just not knowing when they’ll get here.”

“Your mother does like a surprise,” Dr. Boyce smiled.

Leah nodded, and drew a deep breath. She blew it out slowly and turned back to the analysis pages in front of her. She would turn all her focus to it and then the time would pass faster.

A quiet chirp brought Leah up from her notes. Sarek had brought his comm up and was listening to a report from some other security member. Leah’s heart quickened its pace. Sarek said nothing, but returned his comm and went back to the work in front of himself. Leah stared at him, willing him to say something. She knew it had to be Leonard and the Scotts arriving.

She looked back down at her own work but couldn’t keep a grin from her face.

When a knock came at the office door Leah could barely keep herself from jumping out of her chair.

“Look who I found,” Eleanor said as she opened the door and entered. Leonard and Scotty followed behind her, then Francine and Alasdair.

The king stood up behind his desk and crossed over to hug Leonard.

“Your flight was good?” he asked.

“Yes,” Lenny answered. “They’re getting easier.”

David greeted Scotty before turning to give Francine an embrace.

“You look wonderful,” the king told her. “And all better?”

“Aye,” Francine answered with a light blush.

Leah hugged her brother and Scotty as she greeted them, but was looking over their shoulders the whole time. She moved to Francine and Granddad but couldn’t keep it in anymore.

“Where’s Robbie?” she blurted out.

“Right here,” the voice of her boyfriend said and he stepped into the office next to Eleanor.

“Mo chridhe!” Robbie grunted in surprise as Leah threw herself into his arms, before pressing her mouth to his in what was surely a manner not befitting a future queen.

“Gross,” she heard Lenny say behind them.

“Oh Len,” Scotty chided him gently.

Robbie’s face was bright pink when Leah pulled back to look at him and her own face was warm.

“Well,” David said. “I suppose we can take the rest of the afternoon off. Why don’t we finish up here and you can all go get settled, then we can have tea out in the garden?”

“Sounds like a plan lad,” Granddad replied.

Leah twined her fingers with Robbie’s and pulled him quietly out the door.

“Hey Leah!” “Your highness.”

Leah looked at Jim and Spock. Jim was grinning at her and Robbie.

“Hello.”

“Go on,” Jim said with a knowing smile. “Don’t let us stop you.”

Robbie flushed more next to her and nervously laughed. Leah’s own face warmed again as she looked back at Jim.

“As if I need your approval,” she said in her best haughty royal voice. She only kept her face straight for a moment before grinning back at Jim.

“Leah…,” someone called from in the office.

“Come on!” she hissed at Robbie and began to pull him up the hallway.

Part 848

Scotty

They all couldn't keep in a laugh when Leah and Robbie disappeared out of the door. Even David calling out his daughter's name didn't stop the lass from hiding with her boyfriend.

The king let out a sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. Eleanor gently placed one hand on her husband's arm.

"You know her, darling. And... they are young and haven't seen each other in quite some time."

"It hasn't been *that* long," David tried to speak up, but his wife only chuckled softly.

"Don't you remember when we were young? Everytime we were apart, you always said that time was moving far too slow. And... we couldn't get enough of each other."

"Woah, no more details, please," Leonard quickly said, a disgusted look on his face and Scotty laughed out loud when another voice joined them.

"No, no, please go on. I want to know more!"

David let out another sigh as he looked at the two people who were last to join them.

"Hello Jim. Spock."

The Vulcan bowed down politely in front of the royal pair.

"Your highnesses."

Jim only waved his hand with a grin.

"Hello."

"It's nice to see you," David said, though he raised an eyebrow at the blond boy. No respect.

"Well then... let's get ready for some tea," Eleanor said with a smile, clapping her hands.

Georgiares was as beautiful as ever. Scotty enjoyed the smell of peaches in the air and the warm sun. It wasn't too hot yet so even a Scotsman could stand it well outside.

He took a look around at all the pretty flowers and trees. He had missed this garden, even though it wasn't his own.

"So, there's still some planning to do for the wedding," Eleanor reminded them and both Leonard and Scotty nodded.

"Aye."

"We know, Mother."

But even before Eleanor could start talking about all her ideas and plans, her husband placed one hand on hers.

"But that can wait until tomorrow. For now, you all just settle in."

"Of course. That's most important," the queen agreed and everyone turned their heads when Jim let out a laugh.

"I guess someone's settled in quite well," the blond said with a grin and Scotty had to smile too.

His brother and Leah slowly walked over to them. There was still a heavy blush on Robbie's face. Leah, on the other hand, moved quite light-footedly.

"Oh, so you finally decide to join us too?" David asked, but his face revealed that he wasn't actually too serious in his strictness.

Leah and Robbie took the free spaces and the crown princess nodded with her most royal smile.

"Of course, Father. It only took some time to unpack Robbie's personal belongings."

"Of course it did," David retorted with a knowing smile, "well, we are glad that you found the time for some tea. It should be served any moment now."

The king was right. Soon enough they were all sitting together, chatting away happily, drinking their tea. It was a really nice afternoon.

And Scotty was finally able to relax and let go of all the stress of the last days. Not too long until Leonard and him would officially be husbands. He couldn't wait for it.

[madeofsplinters]

for the symbols ask, would you mind all of them that you havent yet done for vader? you have very good opinions on him and i would like to hear them

Aw, thank you! Although man that is A LOT of Vader headcanons left to do :D But I like writing random stuff about him, soooo... Sad:

Vader still remembers all the Jedi younglings' names.

Angry/Violent:

I mean, what in Darth Vader's life *isn't* angry/violent? Lol. The particular way that he uses the Dark Side produces a really fucked up feedback loop: he's angry and in various forms of pain all the time, which produces an energy he can channel into violence, which produces self-hate and further pain, which produces more energy. Lather, rinse, repeat.

A lot of Palpatine's work with Vader is simply about managing this loop and adjusting as necessary. Giving him enough outlets for his rage that he doesn't just combust where he stands and start breaking things he isn't supposed to; tormenting him enough, and giving him the tools to self-torment, so that it never quite subsides into peace.

This isn't the only way of using the Dark Side, but it's a common one for Sith warriors; both Maul and Kylo Ren use something similar.

Sex:

Disabled people can, too have sex - it just takes a little more creativity. Vader has plenty of creativity, as well as magic super powers. If he doesn't indulge in such things - which, honestly, in canon he probably doesn't - then it's due to psychological factors: a conservative upbringing and ascetic lifestyle, unresolved grief for his wife, self-hate, depression, not wanting to let anyone in that close, etc.

Anyways if I see one more "BuT hIs DiCk DoEsN't WoRk" post here on Tumblr dot com, as if that body part is all that sex boils down to, I may actually scream.

Living Quarters:

When he's meditating in his stupid lava fortress, Vader senses the Dark Side nexus underneath him as if it's a living being, a kind of elemental lava spirit. Sometimes he talks to it in his head. (Is it "really talking" back to him? Is he just carrying out a strange symbolic drama in his own head? Don't ask - if you don't intuitively understand how a spiritual experience can be both these things at once, then you're not on Darth Vader's level.)

His favorite thing about the lava river is that it isn't Palpatine. Vader of all people knows how destructive lava is, but lava is direct and straightforward. It doesn't lie to him. It doesn't play games on purpose just to jerk him around. It just flows on and burns what's in its path, and there are days when Vader finds that both relatable and soothing.

Romantic:

Vader has a weakness for partners who are older than him, brave, smart, outwardly stable (the insides may vary), have a cute accent and strong negotiation and leadership skills, feed him attention in measured amounts, and are convinced they know better than him about everything. Padmé and Tarkin (and Obi-Wan, for that matter) all fit this type...

Friendship:

I mean, Vader doesn't really have friends, though. He is capable of forming really intense attachments to a few specific people, and tolerating others because of their competence, but anything in between those ends of the spectrum? Doesn't really compute. Vader does not chill or hang out or make pleasant conversation, not a lot of room for friends here.

Even as Anakin, he was a little like this. It was harder to tell, because his social circle was a lot bigger then - there were way more people in the "would die for them" circle, and way more who he went out of his way to be nice to, even if they weren't exactly close. But all of these social relationships involve some kind of power relation. Anakin has masters and fellow generals and an apprentice; he has favorite loyal troops and a favorite droid; he has a Supreme Chancellor who is being very nice to him for some reason. These are all people he works with, or who want something from him; he doesn't really have anyone he hangs out with just for the sake of hanging out with them. Padmé is the closest he gets to that, and even with her, he’s acting out a romantic role in the way that he thinks is expected of him so that he’ll deserve her love. (And doing a bad job of it, because Anakin is awkward, but never mind.)

Anakin has a huge heart and many attachments, don't get me wrong. But I don't think he's ever fully grasped the idea of a social connection that doesn't revolve around one of the people involved being useful to the other.

Quirks/Hobbies:

(I already did a “workshop/tinkering” one, so here’s a “flying” one...)

Vader's special experimental prototype TIE fighter is in constant need of repairs because of how recklessly he flies. It's not even that he crashes into things - it's just wear and tear because you're not actually supposed to yank the throttle that hard every damn time you turn the ship, Lord Vader, seriously how are you not passing out from those g-forces.

Vader is genuinely confused why the techs keep complaining. Podracers are used to having to rebuild their entire pod after every race. By that standard, he's doing great.

Childhood:

Tiny little bb Anakin wasn't actually any angrier than normal, at least by the standards of traumatized child slaves. Like, he was about at par. There were plenty of angrier ones. You couldn't have looked at him, in comparison to the other child slaves doing similar jobs in Mos Espa, and said "oh yeah that one in particular is gonna have anger and attachment issues."

He did stand out from the other kids, though, on account of just being a weird little nerd. He built a whole droid and a racing pod by himself and his master didn't even make him do it! He keeps talking about how he's going to be a Jedi and fly all around the galaxy and save the planet and marry a queen, when everybody knows there are at least three good reasons why that's wrong. He thinks random customers who come into his shop are his new friends! Anakin is just... weird. Off in his own little world. The other local slave kids know not to be too mean to him because he will always help you out in a pinch, and he is really good with machines, but other than that, I dunno, would you wanna hang out with Mr. I’m Gonna Be A Special Jedi?

Shmi sees this dynamic happening, but there's not much she can do, except to give Anakin all the love and reassurance that she wishes he was getting from his peers.

Cooking/Food:

Idk the Wookieepedia says that Vader can eat nutrient paste out of a straw in his mask if he wants to, but he doesn't want to because it tastes awful. So my questions here are (a) considering everything else they have to do, how can the suit's recesses possibly fit enough nutrient paste inside them for Vader's needs, and (b) seriously we're how many years in the future and we can't even make a nutrient paste that tastes good? We haven't even hit on "bland"? For the Emperor's chief enforcer, whose personal care budget is virtually unlimited? Yeah no, I'm calling canon error on this one. He can't eat, or it's too much trouble to get food into him with the other life support, so he's tube-fed. That's my headcanon.

Appearance:

Vader is very muscular. (This isn't really a "head"canon? He's literally played by a bodybuilder? But some fans disagree, so, eh.) He was already tall and strong when he was Anakin, but the suit adds height and it adds a LOT of extra weight that he has to be able to carry around with him literally every time he moves.

His recovery process after Revenge of the Sith involved having to learn how to move again, with new prosthetic limbs and horrifying new chronic injuries, basically from the ground up, and having to do it well enough that he could sword-fight Jedi Masters to the death, and he had to put on a ton of muscle in order to do that.

Palpatine was very strict in the nutrition and exercise regimes he imposed for this purpose. I have a sneaking suspicion that steroids were also involved.

[thompsborn]

sorry for anyone who doesn’t love parksborn but not really because i love parksborn and decided to write them a little thing

—

harry always says his full name.

eight years old, on the playground of a public school in queens because emily osborn wanted her son to have as normal of an upbringing as possible despite their wealth, holding hands under the slide so that no one can see and whispering, like it’s a secret, “you’re my best friend, peter parker.”

ten years old and blinking back tears in an airport because emily is no longer in the picture and norman osborn was never equipped to be a father, hugging each other and gasping for air when it feels like their chests are caving in on weakened lungs and crumbling rib cages and repeating a mantra of, “i’ll never forget you, peter parker,” and “i’ll always come back.”

eighteen years old and wearing a pair of sunglasses to hide the way his eyes are shining with so much emotion that he feels like he’s choking, forcing a cool tone after the shaky question of when did you get back? and responding with, “yesterday,” before putting on a believable grin and adding, “been a while, peter parker. you got taller.” and rejoicing in the sound of peter’s spluttered sort of laugh.

nineteen years old, norman is gone, and spider-man is a thorn in his side but under the mask—

“peter parker,” harry breathes, horrified, even as he pressed peter against the concrete and stares down at those tear filled eyes that are pleading with him, blood trickling from a broken nose, black eye already forming. “you...?”

and peter tries to shake his head but his entire body seems to be trembling with some sort of heavy, suffocating kind of dread. “harry—you don’t—you don’t understand, okay? i—!”

harry presses peter down harder, sucks in a rush of oxygen that burns his lungs, then flees, ignoring the desperate call of his name.

twenty years old and drunk off his ass and trying to run a company and pretend he’s managing it well when he isn’t because there are so many things—so many things, all the time, never a moment of rest—and, in a drunken moment of despair, throwing pebbles at a second story window until a random elderly man opens it and yells at harry to leave and he does, stumbles down the street and around the corner and pulls out his phone and dials that number that he’s sure will never answer his call but he should never assume because—

it rings—rings, and—

“harry?”

and it’s that voice that he hasn’t heard in so long because he’s avoided it ever since finding out who spider-man is and just that one word, his own name, spoken in a quiet question of disbelief and hope and—

god, harry just—he just—

“someone else is in your house,” is what he slurs out. it’s easier than the truth, anyway.

a short pause, a lapse of silence that stretches on just long enough to make harry fear that peter hung up entirely, until there’s a puff of air that’s almost a laugh and peter is telling him, “yeah, well, we moved. a while ago.”

harry sits on the curb, legs extended in front of his and shoulds slouched. “but—that’s your house. that’s always been your house.”

“harry, may and i moved when we were fourteen.”

another lapse of silence, this time heavier on harry’s part, before— “no, i—i would have known that. why wouldn’t i—how do i not know that? i would—peter, i would know that.”

the sad smile is almost audible in peter’s voice when he says, “it was after we stopped sending letters, and when you got back to new york, you were so caught up in everything else that you just didn’t—didn’t realize, i guess.”

“but i—i always realize stuff when it comes to you. i always—i always—always—”

“it’s flattering that you think that,” peter says.

harry doesn’t know what to say to that, so he simply leans back until his upper half is on the sidewalks, legs stretched into the street, staring up at the clouds. “why?”

there’s shuffling on the other end of the line, a distant voice and a muffled reply before footsteps and a shutting door. “why what?”

“why did you move?”

it’s not what harry really wants to ask, but it’s close enough, he supposes. “couldn’t afford the house anymore,” peter replies. “after ben...”

harry wets his lower lip and says, “oh.”

“yeah.” peter clears his throat. “why are you—i mean... you’ve been ignoring my existence for over a year, harry. why are you...?”

peter asks the questions he means to ask. harry blinks away tears while staring at the sky in a random street in queens because he didn’t know life long best friend moved six years ago. something about that makes the honesty bubble out of harry’s chest in the form of a very quiet, very broken, “i miss you, peter parker.”

this third silence is filled with something indescribable that feels almost electric even through the phone, tingling the palm of harry’s hand. then, softly, like he’s almost afriad to admit it— “yeah. yeah, i—i miss you, too.”

twenty two and in their shared apartment that’s halfway between oscorp and stark industries because they both decided they don’t want to live where they work and despite having other friends in the city, there’s just no one else they can imagine rooming with. harry is on the sofa and watching a random movie on netflix with all the lights off and a bowl of popcorn in his lap, a light breeze blowing through the room, when peter suddenly tumbles in through the open window and lands on the floor with a thud.

“oh, shit—!” and harry is on his feet, bowl of popcorn a last thought as he shoves it onto the coffee table and leaps over the back of the sofa to skid on his knees by peter’s heaving form.

“hey—ow—” peter tugs off his mask with a visible wince and offers harry a sheepish kind of grin that’s somehow still endearing with the blood on his teeth and the several rips and tears in his suit. “it’s not—not as bad as it looks.”

harry glares at him, reaching over to grasp him by his upper arms and helping him to his feet. “bathroom,” he says, tone clipped and to the point, leaving no room for argument.

peter shakes his head. “no, i’m—”

“if you try to tell me that you’re fine when i can literally see you bleeding all over our expensive carpet then i will personally kill you with my bare hands. and i know your weak spots.”

“that’s—” peter stops, brows raised high. “okay, that’s kinda—kinda terrifying, actually.”

harry grins, even as he leads a staggering peter down the hall. “good, it’s a threat.”

“you’re not supposed to threaten me,” peter pouts. “you’re my—my, um—my harry—”

a laugh pushes out from the center of harry’s chest, loud and unabashed, though peter looks flushed and embarrassed when harry lowers him to sit on the closer toilet lid. “your harry?” he repeats, incredulously. “that’s what this is?”

“no, i—i mean—”

“you’re an idiot, peter parker,” harry tells him fondly, trails gentle fingertips down the side of his face while peter stares up at him with sparkling eyes. he taps his thumb against peter’s chin and matter of factly says, “but i’m not kissing you until your busted lip is healed.”

twenty five, twenty six, twenty seven—the years kind of blur together when you don’t really bother to keep track of time. their apartment is now a penthouse because peter has a high enough position at stark industries (“that i earned,” peter says, defiant and defensive even though harry has always known that peter always earns what he has. “mr. stark didn’t just give it to me. i started at the bottom and i worked my way up without his help.”) and can afford half of the rent without relying at all on harry’s endless fortune. oscorp is finally partnering with stark industries because of a late movie night somehow turning into an idea dump and then becoming an all nighter of blueprints and planning and creating theories. it’s slow dancing in the kitchen and proofing each other’s work and kissing on the balcony when they decide to watch the sunset.

twenty eight and morgan stark is only a year and a half old and when tony and pepper decide to go on vacation, they trust peter and harry to watch her, and she—she is delicate, precious and fragile and beautiful and breakable and peter is terrified of doing something wrong. he’s held her before, played with her and knows her and grins when she recognizes his face, but he has never taken care of her like this.

“you won’t hurt her,” harry assures him, lightly bouncing morgan on his hip with a kind of natural ease that is almost scary. morgan giggles and grabs harry’s ear to yank on it before reaching her other hand out towards peter, who hovers a few feet away, his heart thudding heavily in hard to explain fear. harry smiles softly. “see? she even wants you.”

peter swallows roughly and takes a shuffled step forward before taking two large steps back. “i can’t,” he murmurs. “i just—i can’t.”

there’s years upon years of trauma packed beneath those words and harry knows it, but he doesn’t point it out, just makes his way forward and watches as morgan happily grabs at peter’s shirt as soon as he’s within her reach, eyes warm and fond and soft. “you’re amazing with her. she loves you, okay. you gotta know that.”

“but i could—accidents happen, and i’m not—”

morgan gurgles and lurches forward in harry’s arms, clearly too impatient to sit there while the adults talk. peter reaches forward just in time to catch her, his eyes reflecting how terrified he is as he swoops her in his arms and hugs her to his chest, curls around her protectively. harry’s heart is beating far too fast from the fear of morgan getting hurt, but he reaches forward and settles his hand on peter’s shoulder and shakes him, just a bit. “you see that?”

peter is breathing heavily against the top of morgan’s head. “oh my god,” he rasps. “mo, you can’t just—oh my god—”

“she’s fine,” harry reassures him, moving closer until they’re a little bit of a huddle, morgan curled up comfily between them. “that’s you, okay? she’s fine because you caught her. even when accidents happen, you’ll keep her safe.”

“but—”

harry tucks a stray curl behind peter’s ear and tells him, “you’re so good, peter parker. when are you gonna catch up with the rest of us and figure that one out?”

peter rests his forehead against harry’s shoulder and lets out a shaky breath, but he doesn’t respond.

(at the end of the night, morgan is snoring on peter’s chest while the heffalump movie plays on the tv. harry is curled into his side and watching the movie and idly comments, “you know, we’d be pretty good at this whole thing.”

peter looks at harry. “what whole thing?”

“the—y’know, kids. having them. taking care of them.”

peter blinks at him, seemingly speechless, at least for just a moment, before he lets out a little laugh. “did you just casually put becoming parents on the table? we’re not even married.”

“yet,” harry says with a shrug. “pretty sure it’s obvious that it’s gonna happen, though.”

“still,” peter says, “that’s a big step. are you—i mean, are you sure? kids? with me?”

harry lifts his head and presses a kiss to peter’s lips and lingers there, lets them both enjoy it for a moment before pulling back with a smile and bumping their noses together. “it’s you,” he murmurs. “why wouldn’t i be sure about you?”)

[teacupfulofstarshine]

pattonella part 9: virgil sweetheart PLEASE learn how to read the room i’m begging you

cw: mentions of injury, mentions of death, nightmare, anxiety attack, mild angst

part 1 // part 2 // part 3 // part 4 // part 5 // part 6 // part 7 // part 8 // read it on ao3!! 

“can i please be cleared to read books on my own now?” logan says. “because i love the sound of virgil’s voice, but i’m sure he has better things to be doing than sitting here reading to me at all hours.”

“shut up, there’s nowhere i’d rather be,” virgil says. he flushes immediately, but logan just smiles and reaches for his hand. remy rolls his eyes and peers into logan’s eye. 

“you were nearly killed by a horse, prince logan, i think you can afford to relax just a little.” logan huffs, sounding very much like a small child, and virgil smiles. “still, it’s been about a week . . . i suppose i can clear you. but no strenuous activity, and the second you start feeling any pain or discomfort or anything out of the ordinary you come and tell me, you understand?” 

“crystal clear,” logan says, sitting up a little too fast and wincing. remy glares suspiciously at him, but doesn’t offer any additional commentary. “i am looking forward to the ability to walk around without you two constantly hovering over me as though i am made of spun glass.” 

“maybe if you would stop running into danger,” remy mutters. he reaches out and ruffles logan’s hair softly, and the prince doesn’t immediately bat his hand away. “i’m still sending healing potions with your meals, and you will drink them all.” 

“yes, mother,” logan huffs playfully. remy rolls his eyes again and flounces out of the room. virgil has never seen a real human flounce before, but there truly is no other word to describe what remy is doing. 

“i bet you’re happy to be off bed rest,” virgil says. 

“ecstatic,” logan sighs. virgil stifles a yawn behind his fist, but logan immediately picks up on it. “what was that?”

“uh . . . a yawn?” 

“why are you yawning? has your sleep not been optimal?”

“not really . . .”

“why has it been -” logan’s eyes widen in recognition, and he frowns. “oh . . . i - i apologize, virgil.”

“why?”

“you have been awake because you were taking care of me. you have been foregoing sleep and tending to your own health because you have been so concerned for mine. i am so sorry, virgil, i did not mean to make you think that you had to -”

“shut up,” virgil interrupts. “you honestly think i would have been doing that shit if i didn’t care about you? if i didn’t give a fuck i would have fucked off and let someone else do it. i lo - i - um - i care about you a lot.” 

logan looks at him, hair adorably ruffled, eyes wide and pretty, face flushed pink from being buried under mountains of thick, warm blankets in the sunshine, and virgil immediately shoves a pillow into logan’s face to cover his massive blush. “shut up!” 

logan laughs softly, putting the pillow on the floor, and reaches out to take virgil’s hand. virgil huffs irritably, but he lets logan take it. “come and lay down, virgil. you are clearly exhausted. you must rest. you have dedicated your entire life this past week or so to caring for me, and that cannot be easy.” 

“it’s not work,” virgil says, remembering an old sappy book he’d read once. “not to me. not if it is you.” 

“i know,” logan says softly, “but you are tired. sleep, my dear. please? for me?” 

logan gently tugs on virgil’s hand, virtually no force behind it, and virgil topples onto the bed. he shuffles around, keeping his face pushed into the duvet, and manages to settle laying on his side, staring into logan’s eyes. this close, he can see all the freckles that cluster around logan’s nose and eyes. 

“you have stars on your ceiling,” virgil says, “and they’re on your face, too.” logan’s face turns a little pinker, and he smiles, reaching up to tuck a curl behind virgil’s ear. 

“you’re not sleeping,” he says. 

“how can i sleep when i’m looking at you?” virgil says. he bites his lip immediately, he can’t believe he said something so sappy and gay to the prince, but logan smiles and gently drags his thumb across virgil’s mouth. 

“don’t bite your lips,” he murmurs. “they’re so soft. i love to kiss them.” he leans forward and gently pushes his mouth against virgil’s, and virgil closes his eyes and exhales into the kiss. 

“here,” logan hums, carding his hand through virgil’s hair. virgil snuggles up to his chest, draping an arm over logan’s hips as he slots his legs in between his. “when i was small, before -” his chest hitches slightly under virgil’s ear. “- before my mother died, she would sing to me, and thomas used to sing it for roman and i. perhaps it will help you. i can put no magic in my voice, but i can sing.” 

“whatever you want,” virgil murmurs. “i’m sure your voice is beautiful.” 

logan takes a few deep breaths, inhales, and begins to sing. “A naeoidhean bhig, cluinn mo ghuth Mise rid' thaobh, O mhaighdean bhan . . .” 

virgil is so taken with the beauty of logan’s rich voice that he isn’t sure how he manages to fall asleep at all. 

*~*~*~*~*

everything is black, and suddenly remy appears, shining a small light into logan’s eyes to assess the severity of his concussion. past. 

everything is black, and suddenly logan appears, stroking his hand through virgil’s hair, mouth open, eyes half-shut as he sings. present. 

everything is black, and suddenly roman appears, sword raised in front of his chest, blocking one, two, three blows before an arrow pierces his shoulder, his chest, his stomach, his neck. 

future.

*~*~*~*~*

logan is half-asleep when virgil bolts upright, eyes flaring purple, screaming. “virgil -”

“something is wrong, something is wrong with roman!” virgil shrieks, voice warped and distorted and strange. logan feels his heart turn to ice and drop into his stomach. 

“what is wrong with my brother?” 

“i had a vision, he was fighting, he got pierced by arrows and he went down and something is going W R O N G logan!” 

before logan can stop him, virgil is on his feet, scrambling out of bed so fast he almost faceplants onto the ground. he’s out the door before logan can stop him, but he’s on his feet almost immediately to chase him. 

*~*~*~*~*

“are you sure this is a good idea?” claire says. her hands are clasped behind her back as she studies the map roman has spread out on the table. it’s covered in red x’s and dotted lines, surrounded with candles, with a dagger sticking out of a particular clump of trees. 

“we know that’s where they’re hiding,” roman says. “they won’t attack this village as long as we’re here, they’ll wait until we decide to ‘abandon’ these people and then they’ll raze it to the ground. we have to strike at the root of this issue, and that means attacking their hideout. we ride at dawn.” 

“prince roman,” claire says, “you know that i am your most loyal advisor. i would request permission to speak freely.” 

“granted, claire, always granted.” 

“prince roman, i think this is foolish. they let us find that base easily, too easily. i suspect it is a trap.” 

“they’re probably setting one,” roman sighs, pushing a hand through his sweaty hair. “but what do you want me to do? not attack? we know that they’re there, we know that they’re planning something!” 

“wait a day or two,” claire says. “take some time to plan a strategy. send a scout to see if there are any obvious traps that we can plan for. we have to play this smart so that we don’t end up losing soldiers.” 

“so we don’t end up losing me, you mean.”

“you are the prince of our kingdom, prince roman. you have two brothers waiting for you at home, not to mention the newly-discovered lord sanders. we cannot risk bringing you home as a corpse.” 

“you don’t have to coddle me, claire, i’m not made of glass!” 

“i never suggested as much, prince roman,” claire says coolly. “i am merely reiterating that you should remember that you cannot throw yourself recklessly into danger with no consideration of those waiting for you at home. i will leave you to your thoughts. should you choose to march in the morning, we will of course support you, but i suggest you reconsider this plan.” 

she ducks out of the tent, and roman sighs, running his fingers over the depiction of the sanders manor in the corner of the map. “patton . . . i want to come home to you . . . but i have to free these people. how do i balance this?” 

he pulls the dagger out of the map and twirls it around in his hands. he has a lot of thinking to do.

*~*~*~*~*

“i’m not sure this is okay for me to do,” thomas says, looking hesitantly at the dais. the king’s throne stands tall and regal, with the queen’s throne smaller but no less regal beside it. 

“you are the crown prince,” joan, the advisor beside him, says. “it is your right.” they hold out a small velvet pillow with the circlet of the crown prince resting on it, opal gleaming rainbow in the morning sunlight. 

“i’m not the crown prince,” thomas protests. “roman and logan aren’t married yet, i can’t legally be named the crown prince, and i’m not allowed to wear that or - or sit on the throne, or do any of this!” 

joan sets the crown on the dais and reaches out to gently take his hand. “prince thomas . . .”

“dad is still alive,” thomas says, eyes watering. “he’s weak, and he’s sick, but he’s not dead yet, i’m not - i don’t have to replace him yet . . .”

“i’m sorry, prince thomas,” joan murmurs. “i didn’t realize that it would affect you like that, i -”

“it’s not your fault,” thomas sniffles, wiping at his eyes. “i know you guys don’t think about it like that, but - but it’s my dad, you know? i know the kingdom is going to lose its leader soon, but - but i’m gonna lose my dad, you know?” 

joan nods, squeezing his hand and offering a handkerchief from their pocket. thomas takes it, dabbing at his face. “thank you, joan.”

“of course, prince thomas. you can stand on the dais if you want, since you still have to receive -” 

the door to the throne room slams open, wood ringing against stone, and thomas whirls around. before he can even reach for the hidden dagger he carries on his person always, before joan can step in front of him, virgil is speeding across the room. there are two guards behind him, trying to catch him, but virgil is outpacing them rapidly. 

“virgil?”

once he gets closer, thomas gasps, taking in details. his hair is unkempt, his clothes are askew, and his eyes are glowing solid purple. “crown prince thomas,” he says, and thomas winces at the distortion of his voice. “i have had a vision that must be brought to your attention immediately.”

“you can see the future?” joan gasps. 

“what did you see?” thomas asks. 

“prince roman is in danger,” virgil says. “there will be an attack, and he will be killed by arrows. we must aid him immediately.” 

there’s a watery noise from behind virgil, and he spins around to see patton standing behind him pressing his hands over his mouth. “roman - roman is going to die?” 

the purple in his eyes flickers away. “wh - patty?” 

“roman is going to die?” patton repeats, hurrying forward and grabbing virgil’s hands. 

“not necessarily,” virgil says, putting a hand to his head and beginning to sag forward against patton. “i - the vision showed him dying, but it also showed that giant horse killing logan a week or so ago, and he’s still alive.”

“we have a chance to stop it?” thomas says. virgil turns to look at him. 

“i - yes, your highness, i think there is a chance to save him.” 

thomas nods. “are you sufficiently prepared to travel?” 

“i can be in an hour at the least.”

“good. take a party of guards and go after roman.”

“i’m coming too,” logan says, striding through the doors. “remy cleared me from my concussion earlier, i’m going.”

“me too!” patton says. “i’m going with you, if roman is in trouble i have to help!” 

“i can’t risk you both,” thomas starts, but logan glares at him. 

“are you telling me that if father was well and running the kingdom, you wouldn’t be grabbing a sword and riding after him?” thomas winces, and logan lifts his chin victoriously. “exactly. i am going with virgil, and so is patton. roman is worth the risk.” 

thomas exhales. “go and pack, then. meet me here in an hour with a plan.” logan nods, whirls around, and hurries out of the room with virgil and patton on his heels. thomas hums, turning to joan. “i need you to bring me a specific volume of the history of the kingdom from the library.”

“of course, your highness. may i ask what for?” 

“i think i just found logan’s loophole.” 

[primeemeraldheiress]

2, 5, and 15 for the fic asks?

What is your favorite snippet of dialogue?

I don’t think I have a single snippet. There’s too many exchanges I like... So have a smattering of my favs.

From Cry ‘Havoc’

“My queen.” The figure in black stood in front of the glowing ray shields. Unmoving and deadly patient.

“Did you mean it?” The words ripped themselves out of her mouth before she realized she was going to voice them. She almost wanted to take them back but it didn’t matter. At this point, nothing mattered.

The helmet — the visage of nightmares to many of her man, the herald of death to even more — tilted, confused.

“Every word I have spoken since we were trapped within the temple has been sincere.”

The air around them rang with truth. She didn’t understand how she knew that; she didn’t even care anymore. Something loosened in her chest and she could breathe again. She hadn’t even realized she had been struggling, her chest heaving as she took her first full breaths since the had news come in.

Her fist slammed into the panel next to the cell, bringing the shields down. Setting him loose. Her other hand curled around a blade, still humming that mournful — frighteningly familiar — tone.

“If you meant it,” she bit out, furious at the pirates, at the situation, at him, “bring them back.”

“I am yours.”

From The Corner of Divinity

“Your enemies are my enemies.” The man said, his voice rough. “I have brought you your most hated foe to do with as you will. A gift in good will; in greatest care.”

“My greatest monster.” Jason stated, a tremble in his voice.

“Your greatest fear.”

“My greatest fear.” Jason agreed as he slowly took the blade, examining it. He tested its weight and balance. Tested the sharpness of the blade. Each part of this ceremony was important. Carried weight. Meant something. From the quality of the blade to the gift presented. Not that he ever thought Deathstroke himself would deign to own a substandard weapon. He hesitated just a moment. Only a moment. Then, he took Slade's hand back and placed the hilt of the knife back into it.

Staring into Slade’s eye, he voice low with intent he asked him, “Destroy it for me?”

From As Long As You Learn

“Master Yoda is right. We’ll do better this time, padawan.” Anakin slumps, falling back on his heels. “Come get your kid, Kenobi.”

From Pull Back The Curtain

“You can’t tell me, your majesty, that you don’t know what you’ve done.” He pinches the bridge of his nose and the cup he was holding clatters on the saucer as it’s placed back on the table.

“At least,” he says, a little more gently, “you were kind. I do have to thank you for that.”

Obi-Wan looks up at her, grief in his eyes but jaw clenched with still present fury. He tips his head at her in mock deference, “Thank you for being kind when you took my padawan to bed, Senator. No one else has been as conscientious.”

Her heart beats a frantic tattoo in her ears. What?

“What?” She croaks. Anakin... no one else... gentle? Separately, the words make sense but strung together she can’t parse their meaning. She doesn’t understand but the words that Obi-Wan is saying, everything he is implying, makes her think she’s supposed to.

Makes her think that all of this is supposed to be common knowledge.

What is she missing? What does everyone else know? Who should have told her?

Icy fingers crawl up her spine and her stomach turns. Something is very wrong.

Obi-Wan chuckles but there is no humor in the laugh. It is a dark thing. Almost poisonous as it leaves his mouth.

“Surely you didn’t think you had been the only one.”

There is something low and unpleasant threaded through his voice now. Something hateful. Padmé wishes for the restrained fury from before. Even though it had been directed at her then. Even though this hate now was not.

“Anakin has been a favorite of the Chancellor for several years now.”

From Best Laid Plans Not Sober

The boy’s grew wide and he looked at Jason in confusion, “I thought Alfred was our grandfather.”

“He is.” Jason affirmed.

He saw the older man place a hand to his chest out of the corner of his eye and his heart ached. He wanted to go to him... but making sure Damian understood was more pressing.

“Then why is he serving, akhi?” The boy demanded. “He should not be lowering himself to such a position!”

“Alfred serves because he loves us.” Jason explained patiently, cheeks still a swath of red but slowly fading. “He wants to take care of us and make sure we’re healthy. It’s how he shows his love.”

Damian tilted his head in thought. “Like when you killed the lion.” There was a sharp intake of breath from the table. Tim. Jason felt the flush renew. Great. That was the last piece of information he needed floating around the manor.

“Like when I killed the lion.” Jason affirmed with a resigned nod. “I’m a protector, like Dad. Alfie’s a carer. People have different ways of showing their love. It’s not the only way they show it, but typically it’s what comes more naturally.”

“I understand.” The boy lowered his head. “I am sorry.”

“It’s not me you need to tell.” Jason chastised softly, “Either way, even if Alfie was staff and not family, I know I taught you better manners than that.”

“But Mother-”

“Is not here.” He stated firmly. He knew what kind of image they had to keep there. Knew what Talia said. “This is not Nanda Parbat. You do not have an image to uphold.” Jason continued, “Even when you do, manners are not a detriment to that image. Do you understand?”

“Not entirely.” The boy admitted. “But I’ll try.”

“That’s all I ask. I will never demand more than your best effort.”

What’s your favorite headcanon you use in fics?

I have a whole host of them, actually. Though, some of them I only use for certain fics. I have a whole file on Tatooine worldbuilding that I’m slowly introducing to different verses. They’re getting a lot of screen time in Kidnapping AU, actually. I have headcanon reasons for Anakin wearing black and background info and ideas. I don’t actually want to give too much away, here, but I’d rather see you guys slowly be like “... O.O ThATS SO COOL” when you read it. 

And, I mean, Eli and I are now collaborating on a whole series of one of my favorite headcanons, Shmi had a wife. 

OH, WAIT --  my absolute FAVORITE headcanon that seems to make its way into everything is that the marble of the Temple feels warm to the touch if you’re Force sensitive. Due to all the thousands of years of positive emotions -- of family, and love, and home -- that have seeped into it. 

I haven’t seen anyone else use this so I think it’s mineminemine! :)

Give us a snippet of something from your WiPs!

Hmmm... What do I have that isn’t super spoilery or that I’ve given before...

They were hunting him.

He could feel them move through the halls. Sweeping rooms, their minds intent. Searching.

He needed to hide. He needed to get away. Until it was dark. Until it was safe. The night was safety on Tatooine, as the Three Sisters rose in the sky and the Masters slept. A time when the slaves could gather and tell stories. A time when they could slip their chains for a few hours and breath together. Laugh together. Love together.

A time to run.

Darkness meant safety. Meant the cooling air after the deadly heat of the day and freedom from the master’s gaze. Darkness meant the embrace of family.

He needed to find the dark.

He could feel it. Beneath his feet. Beneath the Temple.

It called.

On silent feet, he ran, pressing himself to walls when he felt the brush of another mind. The intent of the hunt around him. The marble of the floor was warm against the soles of his bare feet as he crept through disused halls.

He was stepping through the alleys of Mos Eisley. Silently, on the heels of his mother as she left to attend an illness in the slave village. Then, he put a foot down and it was on the dusty duracrete floors of Watto’s shop. The Toydarian sneering at him, hand raised in threat.

Anakin cowered.

Then, it was the gravel of Gardulla’s slave quarters, watching as his mother dragged away. Before he’d learned that crying was a waste of water.  

When the Temple came back into view, Anakin didn’t know where he was, but it was dark, and it was cool, and it was safe.

It must be safe.