#I loved when he decides that he doesn’t have to follow his grandmother and says that she has to live with herself.

[insaneillusionist]

Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani is an incredible movie and I recommend you all watch it, and they have the perfect usage of a sequin shirt.

[mountainsandmayhem]

Aisle Amore

Pairing: Marcus Pike x Female Reader Summary: You truly never know who you might meet in the grocery store. CW: no smut, all fluff. Flirting, mention of divorce, talks of food, more adorable flirting. Word Count: 3.4k AN: I've gone soft!! I couldn't stop thinking about how the couple in Wonderful Tonight and Netflix & Chill met and even though no one asked, this is exactly how they met. I worked in a grocery store for almost 15 years and I can tell you right now that I would to SPRINTING to the pasta aisle. Special thank you to @mermaidgirl30 for beta reading and both her and @littlevenicebitch69 for helping me come up with a title. Dividers by @saradika-graphics

To you, there’s nothing worse than asking for help. You’ve been fiercely independent your entire life, and these snapped ligaments have been testing you. Your friends say they don’t mind helping, but YOU mind them helping. The pain in your ankle has finally subsided enough that you can put a little weight on it and only use one crutch.

Freedom! 

You shut your laptop at 6 pm, change into something that isn’t pyjama pants and begrudgingly put on a bra. The first stop on your newly found freedom tour is the grocery store. Thirteen year old you would be appalled at how excited you are over this. You jot down all the ingredients you’ll need to make homemade pasta, marinara sauce and meatballs. 

Living in downtown DC has lots of perks, one of them being you can walk to the grocery store that’s just around the block. After gingerly testing your ankles a few times you decide you can walk there. Your dad’s voice echoes through your head, “This family doesn’t cry, take care of yourself, don’t depend on anyone but you”. 

The walk there is easy, it feels good to be out in the summer evening sun, soaking in the vitamin D that you’ve been missing out on the last few weeks. You grab one of those small baskets with wheels and head into the store. It might be dramatic, but it’s been almost three weeks since you’ve been out on your own and you feel that same hyped elation you had at 16 when you got your license and your parents allowed you to go out on your own the first time. Except at 16 you picked up your friends and went to the record store, you were much cooler in your youth. 

“Stick to the list,” you say to yourself, realizing you’re slowly becoming just like your mother. That’s fucking depressing. 

The first items are olive oil and flour, you crutch along, the sounds of metal clicking and the rubber bottom squeaking following you as you move along the shiny white tile floor. A song you vaguely remember hearing during your childhood plays overhead, Eric Clapton singing about a woman looking lovely. The bakery must have fresh bread, and the delicious scent of it makes your mouth water. 

Focus! 

As you turn down the pasta aisle, you brush past a man in a suit who’s looking at the canned pasta sauces, poor sap, and stop about ten feet away from him. The small bag of flour you need is on an easily accessible shelf but of course, there’s only one left and it’s all the way at the back. 

Marcus holds up a jar of canned marinara, silently humming along to Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton. He swears he hears his grandmother on his mother’s side rolling in her grave. She wasn’t Italian, but owned a restaurant and was definitely looking down at him ashamed that he was BUYING something she taught him to make.

Sorry grams, he thinks, just as someone hobbles past him, vanilla wafting behind her, temporarily replacing the scent of the fresh bread he’s also going to pick up. His grandmother might come back just to slap him for this dinner tonight. Granted, he did just return from seeing his ex and her new boyfriend so maybe she’d take pity on him. Bake him those gooey chocolate chip cookies he loved so much. 

As he turns to head toward the pasta he sees a woman who quite frankly takes his breath away. She’s so beautiful that he almost can’t take her all in at once. Her bare legs are toned and tanned, wrapped in long black biker shorts, paired with a plain grey t-shirt and unzipped black hoodie. One high top converse laced up on one foot, the other in an uncomfortable looking boot. Her hair is in a low messy bun with almost too perfectly placed pieces along her neck and face. She seems to invade every ounce of him, until all he can see is her and all he can smell is warm vanilla. His mouth goes dry, and his heartbeat fills his ears. 

This next bit happens so quickly that he doesn’t have time to even think about it. But you would later describe it as not one of your finest moments, and he would describe it as the moment that changed his life. 

He watches as you reach above your head, raising up on the tippy toe of your good foot. As you lean forward, your hollow aluminum crutch slips out from underneath you and falls to the ground. An echoing tinny bang startles you and you stumble, putting too much pressure on your broken foot. The sweetest sounding “Ouch! Motherfucker,” leaves your pouty pink lips as Marcus rushes to catch you. 

“Whoa,” he says as he reaches out to steady you, one hand wrapping around your hip, the other cupping your elbow, helping you off your injured leg. “Are you ok?” 

Your cheeks flush as you look up at him. “Sorry, thank you.” 

Your bright blue eyes wash over him, and something tugs behind his heart. Eric Clapton singing "Oh my darling, you are wonderful tonight" as he stands there temporarily stunned, unsure of where he is or what is name is. It's just you.

It doesn’t make any sense, you could be married for all he knows, but something about you draws him in. He didn’t think he’d feel this way again for a very long time, but he needs to find a way to keep talking to you. 

“Let me get that for you,” he says, his hand moving from your elbow, reaching up and easily plucking the flour off the shelf. 

“Thanks, I could have gotten it.” You say and he fights to stop from laughing. He can tell that you’re not someone who asks for help. No, you’re independent and strong willed. And fuck if that doesn’t just make that tug behind his heart pull that much harder. 

“I know you can, you just scared me.” He looks down at you softly as you stare up at him. 

He’s suddenly very aware that he still has one hand on your hip. Your shirt had ridden up as you wobbled, and the skin of your hip is soft and warm against his palm. He finds himself wondering if the rest of you is just as comforting. Just as an inviting. The light scent of your vanilla perfume fills the small space between the two of you. 

“Look,” he says, finding it inside himself to peel his hand off you now that you’re steady, placing your flour in your basket and bending to grab your crutch. “My grandma is already cursing me from heaven for buying canned sauce and boxed pasta. Can you please let me help you?” 

You open your mouth and then close it, almost like you’re trying to come up with a reason to not let him, so he quickly adds, “For my sake.” 

You laugh through your nose, shaking your head and taking your crutch from this incredibly handsome stranger. 

Please don’t be married. Or a total creep. 

“Smooth,” you say teasingly. 

He tugs at his white button up shirt collar. “Is it hot in here?" He fakes a dramatic cough, "I swear - she’s watching me.” 

You look up at the white painted ceiling of the grocery store. “OK, grandma. Chill. I’ll let him help me.” 

When you look back at him he’s smiling from ear to ear, and if you thought he was handsome before; well, fuck, there’s not even a word to describe how unbelievably charming he looks right now. 

He looks down at your basket before saying, “Do you have a big list?” 

“Umm,” you say holding out the special lined paper you have to make grocery lists. “I have a few things, ya.” 

His thick fingers brush lightly against yours as he takes the list. You can’t help but notice that he’s not wearing a wedding ring, score, his nails are trimmed short and his cuticles are nicely manicured. You assume he must have some sort of fancy office job, like a lawyer or an accountant. He seems to radiate stability and you didn't realize you could be so aroused by fingers.

“Are you making pasta? And sauce?” He asks as his brown doe eyes scan your list. 

“I am,” you say proudly. You might not be a world famous chef, but you take pride in your cooking abilities. 

He smiles back at you again. “Stay here,” he says softly, “I’m gonna grab a cart.” 

As he turns to walk away, taking your basket and his sauce with him, you notice the way his grey suit jacket clings to his broad shoulders. Accountant by day, muscle model by night? Muscle model? Great, he’s broken your brain. 

It doesn’t take long before you hear the distinct rumbling of the plastic wheels of a shopping cart heading your way. Just as your handsome stranger comes back into the aisle “At Last” by Etta James starts to play. 

“I’m Marcus, by the way,” he says, grabbing a box of pasta on the shelf and sitting it next to his sauce in the top part of the cart. 

You say your name and notice the tiniest glint in his eye as the sound of it wraps around him. “Well then, we’d better get going on this list.” 

He moves slowly, allowing you to set the walking pace. He’s taken your list and the entire thing feels almost too domestic, like you can envision yourself doing this every weekend with him for the rest of your lives. Maybe there would even be a kid in that little part where he puts his boxed pasta and canned sauce. 

“Alright, so we covered names and who grew up where. So, what do you do for a living?” You ask, snatching a bottle of olive oil off the shelf. 

“I - uh - I work in law enforcement,” he says. 

You look at him, then his tie, then back at him. With a hint of amusement in your voice you say, “Pretty fancy dress code. What are you? Like FBI or something.” 

“Yes, actually. And now that you know that, I miiiight have to kill you.” 

You laugh, “Sure know how to put a girl at ease, Agent Pike.” 

The way you say agent, all teasing and flirty, goes straight to his cock. He’s been called Agent Pike thousands of times over his career but it’s never sent a shiver down his body like that before. 

He runs a hand over his patchy scruff. “I’m kidding. About the killing part, not the FBI part.” 

“Thanks for clarifying,” you laugh.

Whitney Houston’s voice floats across the store, singing about dancing with someone who loves her. 

Neither of you is particularly paying attention to your list or what aisle you’re in. You snake up and down each aisle, both of you occasionally grabbing something you need. 

“What about you?” He asks. Something about the way he asks a question seems different. It’s like when Marcus asks something he’s genuinely asking, not just trying to force conversation. With every answer you give his eyes focus on yours, he nods and seems curious and excited to hear what you have to say. 

The bar is truly in hell if I’m turned on by a man who’s just treating me like a human. 

“I run a small online store for my, umm, for my designs.” This part is always awkward, men change how they treat you once they find out what you do for a living. You avoid his eyes, he’s so goddamn handsome and you’re already disappointed that he’ll soon give you an ick with how he’ll respond to your career, how all men respond. 

“Your designs? Are you an artist?” His eyes light up and he stands a little taller when he asks, he must love art. He’s going to be thrilled to find out your best friend owns a gallery, and probably even more thrilled when he learns you hurt your ankle falling off a step ladder she had you posing on as she painted you, and yes, you were completely nude. 

“No,” you laugh. “I design clothing. Sort of.” You continue avoiding his eyes and chew on the inside of your cheek as you grab some dried oregano and place it in the basket. 

“Hey,” he says softly, stopping by the spices, “You don’t have to tell me something you don’t want me to know.” 

“It’s not that. It’s just,” you stop, glancing up at his warm chocolate brown eyes. His Adam’s Apple bobs as he swallows, and you have the sudden urge to sink your teeth into his neck. “Men just usually treat me differently once they know.” 

He narrows his eyes at you and his lips curl into a tight lipped and curious smile. “That’s clickbait. Now you have to tell me.” 

“Or you’ll kill me?” You laugh. 

“Yes, FBI remember,” he says sarcastically. 

You take a deep breath through your nose before you begin. “Ok, I design and sell lingerie.” You try to sound as casual as possible, smiling sweetly at him before you start walking again. 

Marcus doesn’t follow along so you look over your shoulder at him. Is he blushing? 

“Well,” he says, clearing his throat and avoiding your eyes. “I don’t see how that would make someone treat you differently.” 

“Then why are you blushing, Pike?” You flutter your lashes at him as he catches up to you in the aisle. 

The pink of his cheeks deepened, “I’m not blushing. Pretty sure I got a sunburn when I grabbed the cart.” 

“Ah, yes. I’ve heard that being indoors during sunset is a very dangerous UV time.” You joke. 

He laughs, “You’d be shocked how many people don’t believe it.” 

You both laugh as you head towards the produce department for your tomatoes and onions. Elvis’s ‘Can’t Help Falling In Love’ comes over the speakers, and even though other people are shopping, it feels like it’s being targeted at just the two of you. You pluck a few tomatoes from the shelf and he opens the little plastic bag for you to place them in. 

He takes a breath to start speaking and you brace yourself for the inevitable. All men do it. They all either ask what your company is called so they can look up your Instagram later or they’re bold and flat out ask you to model some of your designs for them. 

“Where’d you learn to make pasta?” He asks, his voice quivering at the closeness of your body to his. 

“Umm, I sort of did an Eat, Pray, Love thing recently.” You say quietly, smiling up at him. It’s the tiniest movement, but you swear his eyes flick to your lips as your hand brushes against his while you reach into the bag. Your heart is pounding behind your ribs, it’s almost unfair how handsome he looks under these fluorescent lights. 

“Oh? Like you went to Italy?” His voice is low and nervous as he watches you picking up tomatoes, squeezing them gently and smelling them. Carefully choosing the best ones. 

“Yes. Without spilling my whole life story, I got married young and then divorced a few years ago. I just kind of needed a hard reset on myself.” You drop two more tomatoes in the bag and then side step, or more more like side hobble, to the onions. 

“Huh,” he says, “I can honestly say that I know exactly what you mean by that.” 

You both smile at each other, you swear you can see his pulse flutter in his neck before he says, “Unfortunately, I think we have everything on your list,” he finishes off his sentence by saying your name and it sends an explosion of butterflies in your lower belly. You don’t know if you’ve ever met someone who makes you feel like you have somehow known them for your whole life but is also brand new. 

“Sorry. You probably have places to be and I’m -“ Your voice trails off when he slowly steps even further into your space. 

“That’s not what I meant,” he says softly, his fingertips brushing against yours causing a buzzing up your arm. Just then ‘I knew I loved you’ by Savage Garden rains down from the speakers. Marcus laughs gently and continues, “Is it just me or has the music been interesting in here tonight?” 

You move your pointer finger just a hair so it brushes against his, “ya, sounds like the crab from The Little Mermaid is in charge.”

A laugh from his stomach passes his lips, it’s joyous and melodic and even though you’ve just met him, you want to make him laugh like that for the rest of your life. He’s smiling so big that you can see all his straight white teeth. His head tips forward slightly and the skin around his eyes crinkles. You’re both so close, he smells like mint and a new book and everything around you seems to fall away, blurring around the edges. It’s overwhelming. Dizzying even. He’s the one. You can’t explain it, but you were meant to be in this grocery, with this annoying boot and crutch. 

“That’s not quite the comparison I would have used, but yes.” His eyes dance around yours, still laced with amusement and happiness. “Is he a crab or lobster?” 

“I think he’s a crab,” you say, pulling your hand back from his to stop yourself from leaping off that cliff and into his arms.

“I think he’s a lobster,” he counters, stepping back but never breaking the connection of his eyes with yours. 

As you head towards the checkout you glance towards the shopping cart nervously, remembering that you walked here. 

Both of you pay for your groceries in a comfortable silence and he scolds you teasingly for trying to grab your bags. “Grandma is still watching.” 

The two of you head for the exit. “Did you park somewhere?” 

“No. I can take them from here,” you’re not going to let this man drive you somewhere or walk you home. That’s ridiculous. You are strong and you’ve already impeded his life enough. 

He lifts his eyebrow suspiciously and turns just a touch so you can’t reach your bags. “You walked here, didn’t you?” 

“It’s really fine, Marcus. It’s not far. Thank you for your help. You didn’t need to do that.” 

“I have an apartment that way,” he says, nodding his head in the same direction you need to go.

“Oh that’s very forward of you, but I know better than to go to a secondary location with a stranger.” And he does it again, that beautiful, happy laugh. “I’m in the same direction.” 

You walk down the quiet street. People always say they wouldn’t want to live downtown because it’s too noisy, but truthfully, after the work crowd disperses for the evening and the dinner rush parts, it’s quite peaceful. 

“How sure are you that he’s a lobster? Willing to make a bet?” 

He looks over at you cautiously. “Alright. I’ll play along. I’m 100% sure he’s a lobster. What’s the bet?” 

“Wow. Marcus Pike, does the FBI know you’re such a risk taker?” 

He says your last name and follows it with, “Quit stalling, what’s the bet.” 

“Ok ok. Once I’m off all the painkillers. If he’s a crab, I make you REAL pasta. If he’s a lobster, you take me out for real pasta.” 

You both stop at the same time in front of the same building, “This is me. So is it a bet?”

Marcus pulls a key fob out of his pocket, “This is also me. And yes, we have a bet.” 

You cross the lobby together, you select your floors and exchange phone numbers on the way up and then he finally gives you your bags. 

“Thank you,” you say, smiling at him sweetly as the elevator approaches your floor. “I appreciate you using your grandma to help me.” 

He covers his heart with his hand. “I would never!” 

As the elevator comes to a halt he glances up at you sheepishly and your heart almost breaks open right then and there at how devastatingly handsome and heart meltingly adorable he is all at the same time. 

You smile like a damn fool the moment you’re out of that elevator. Of all the ways you thought your night was going to go, it did not involve a very charming stranger making you all nervous and delusional. 

The second you get inside your apartment you fight the urge to prove yourself right and cash in on our dinner, but you already miss him, so you text him. 

Tag list:

@corazondebeskar @hiddenbabynyc @rainstorms-library @smutsmutslut  @sullyrocky44 

@keylimebeag @pimosworld @casa-boiardi @pedritoferg @paleidiot

@lorilane33 @pansexual-potatoes @jessthebaker @jasminedragoon @koshkaj-blog

@pedroswife69 @strawberri-blonde  @none-of-this-makes-any-sense @iloveenya

@javierpena-inatacvest @blazeflays @akah565 @pinkiec6-rubi @pedroshotwifey

@iluvurfather @ashleyfilm @mermaidgirl30 @untamedheart81 @littlevenicebitch69

[magpiesandcrows]

My headcanon for Horangi and also some ideas for his backstory:

• He actually grew up in a religious household. His father was a pastor at the local church and his mother regularly held events that would donate its profits to charities.

• Due to this he couldn’t do a lot of things and learned to be sneaky. This lead to him being a daredevil as it gave him this rush that made him feel so good.

• In school he was a massive jerk. He was fairly popular and his friends weren’t the best influences. He often found himself bullying other students and taking this piss out of them just for a quick laugh. Horangi is very ashamed of this when he looks back on this

• After school he genuinely didn’t know what he wanted to do. He had spent most of time messing around and any time teachers tried to sit down with him. He would bush them off. So he spent most of his time picking up random jobs.

• When Horangi started to gamble, he couldn’t describe everything he felt in that moment. It was like he was living in a dream.

• While gambling, he did a lot of substances. He believed it gave him an ‘edge’.

• Horangi definitely has Collection of magnets, it started of with konig giving him a magnet from Austria and ever since. He just keeps getting it from konig and slowly the other members saw this and decided to help him with his collection.

• He spent every summer as kid at his grandparents. He has good memories of his sisters and him sitting in the garden while his grandmother tended to the garden.

• He firmly believes his mother cooking was the best and sometimes wishes that he got some of his mother’s recipes.

• He Never got to meet his nephew. When he was deep into his gambling addiction and debt. His sister tried to make him visit her but he kept saying he would but he never did. He regrets this as he never got to be the uncle he promised to be.

• He is the youngest and this is why he was able to get away with most of his behaviour in school.

• Horangi is actually a big Michael Jackson fan. His favourite song is Heaven can wait. He will randomly break into song when hanging out with his teammates.

• Him and his dad are actually close but started to grow apart when he found out Horangi stole the church money to gamble.

• He has a tiger tattoo on his back and this was essentially him signing himself away to his addiction but instead of being ashamed of it now, it makes him feel better that he has gotten this far.

• Horangi got humbled when he joined the army. He was skinny and lanky. He worked his ass of to get to his position. This made him believe firmly in tough love.

• Horangi hates fish. He can’t describe how much he hates it.

• Horangi is still quite religious. He doesn’t say he is though. He doesn’t follow it much like his parents but he still prays before he eats and before he sleeps.

• He has really bad back pains and often goes to chiropractor.

• He has beauty marks all over his face and he hated when he was growing up but now he thinks it was stupid he was ever insecure about something like that.

• Isn’t a cat person. He actually hated cats a lot but since he got his nickname he warmed up to them.

• He loves strawberries, reminds him of summer breaks with grandma.

Anyways, this is all I have! I definitely have more but I will come back when I remember them 😭

[artdcnaldson]

okay sooo, i've been thinking about art's sister au and also how it doesn't really have a plot right now but also all the potential... so any who trying to come up with some plot details

So when Art finds out her convinces you that it is just another fling for Patrick (and I mean that's your big brother and he knows Patrick better than anyone..so you believe him), and you're the one to break it off with Patrick (no explanation provided)...angsty

Art says something to Patrick that really drives the notion that he's not good enough for you in his head and Patrick breaks it off. Completely avoiding you....angsty again

Regardless Art says something to get one of you to break it off with the other....and maybe reader decides the whole thing was a mistake. The traveling. The trying to find herself. (and i'm gonna borrow a bit from the patrick's sister au here) and she goes back home to live with your grandmother (no stroke yet!) and finds a nice Christian boy who' your family would approve of and gets into a relationship with him. it's so booooring, he doesn't even seem that interested in you beyond the fact that you're the type of girl his family would want him to date...but oh well...you're better fit here than with patrick...well at least you tell yourself that

AUUUUURRRRRR

It’s so yummy if Patrick cuts things off. Art clocks him so easily, he knows that Patrick’s lusting after his little sister, and he’s not going to fucking let it slide. He tells Patrick that he’s his best friend, that he loves him, but his sister deserves better than to be some conquest on a shitty hotel bed, that he’s watched him chew girls up and spit them out for years, that you’re worth than that. That Patrick might be a crush, but he’ll never make you happy, that he’d just break your heart because he can’t give you what you need.

And Patrick should fight back, right? He knows he wants you more than that. But maybe Art’s right. Maybe he’ll fuck you, then get bored after the tension is gone, after there’s nothing more to yearn for. Maybe you do deserve better than that uncertainty.

So next time you come into him, when your fingers try to tangle with his, when you’re smiling and looking at him all sweetly, like you want him to kiss you or profess his love, he has to just let you down. He tells you he doesn’t want you like that, that he still only sees you as Art’s kid sister, that if you’re looking for some perfect boyfriend to sweep you off your feet, you’re looking in the wrong place. That he let it go too far but he can’t let it keep going anymore.

And you’re devastated. Of course you are. But you smile anyway, tell him you understand even while you’re crying. Maybe you were an idiot for thinking there was more— maybe you’d imagined everything in your head. Maybe you were the one pushing him.

You head home instead of following them to the next city for the tour. You stay with your aunt near your grandma’s retirement home, get a summer job at the country club.

And you meet a fucking tennis player.

[bellatrixobsessed1]

I Am Blackened Bones (Part 21)

Today I learned that a group of penguins can be called a waddle. 

Katara inhales sharply, her lungs are refreshed by cool, clean air. If she breathes deeply enough she will inhale little flakes of snow. And those flakes fall in abundance today. Wind comes in light, loving gusts that welcome her home. Her tummy flutters with the falling snow; she hadn’t realized just how much she had missed home and it’s blustery weather until she hears the shifting of the snow beneath her feet when climbs down from Appa’s saddle. 

Sokka follows her down and Aang follows after. Toph lands in the snow next to him and Zuko lingers with Azula. Azula who is peering over the saddle with an expression that is both curious and skeptical. 

“She’s never seen snow before.” Zuko remarks. 

“The spirit Azula or the human Azula?” Toph asks.

“Both of them.” Zuko replies. “I don’t think that human Azula wanted to see it, she never liked the cold. Not even the idea of it.” 

Spirit Azula is a different matter altogether. That look of trepidation fades and with remarkable enthusiasm she leaps right off of Appa. Her landing is nimble and agile, so graceful that Katara thinks that human Azula has decided to make another appearance. 

But the smile on her face is much too cheerful to not belong to the spirit. 

Any trace of her prior suffering seems to be long gone and if the long nights they had put in, in order to get here in a timely manner have left her tired and drained she certainly doesn’t show it.  

“Welcome to the Southern Water Tribe.” Sokka announces. 

“Maybe we should start our welcome with getting some proper winter clothing?” Zuko wraps his arms around himself. Between he, Azula, and Aang, Katara can’t tell who is shivering the most intensely. “After that, I have to write a letter to Mai, she’s probably tearing her hair out and contemplating a divorce.”

“Yeah.” Katara agrees. “We’ll stop by our home, greet Gran Gran, and then we can find some warmer clothes.”

“We can get a bite to eat too.” Sokka declares. 

“And you can get started on your letter.” 

.oOo.

“Stubborn one, that one is.” Gran Gran remarks of Azula. Katara  has spent the better part of the morning and continues to spend time trying to convince her grandmother that the princess is quite harmless at the moment. She can only imagine how the rest of the tribe is going to react when word spreads more fully.

“She’s just not used to having to wear so many layers.” Katara says. And from the disgruntled look on her face, the crease between her brows and that soft pout on her lips, the waterbender would wager that she finds the layers to be restrictive and uncomfortable.

Getting the Azula bundled up is probing to be quite a task. The spirit wants to throw herself face first into the snow, chase the penguins, watch the ice-fishermen load their supplies into their canoes, ride in a canoe for herself…anything but sit still and wait for Katara to finish buttoning her coat and tying her scarf.

“Don’t tell me that you aren’t getting cold.” Katara tries. “Doesn’t it hurt to not wear gloves?”

Azula shakes her head. “I’m used to it.”

“Used to it?”

“It feels sort of like the fire did but cold and less painful.” Azula replies. 

“You know that it isn’t a good thing when your hands and feet get so cold that they feel like they are burning. That means you’re going to get frostbite.” Katara cautions. 

“Frostbite?” 

Katara nods. “Your fingers will turn this black-blue color and then we’d have to amputate them to save the rest of your hand. It isn’t pleasant. Gran Gran can tell you!” The old woman gives a soft grunt. Katara frowns to herself. “And I saw it happen once when I was a little girl; these fishermen got lost in a blizzard. One of them had holes in his mittens…” she shudders. “I don’t want that to happen to you, you’ve already been through a lot, okay.”

“Okay.” 

“So let me finish helping you put your coat on and be careful.”

“Okay, Katara.” She smiles. “You’ll take me to see the penguins and the boats after this, yes?”

Katara returns that smile in spite of the unease creeping back in. Azula’s voice is pleasant, it always had a soothing lilt to it a softness. But hearing her speak so sweetly, so innocently chills her more deeply than the most desolate parts of the tundra could. And that she is so unsettled by Azula speaking kindly brings about a greater sense of unrest; to know that Azula hadn’t known warmth or kindness until after she had disappeared. 

Katara pats her shoulders. “You’re good to go.”

Azula takes her hand and gives her arm a good tug. “Well let’s go then, before the penguins fly away!” 

“Penguins are flightless.” 

This stops Azula in her tracks. “But they are birds? Correct?”

“They are, yes.” Katara nods. “Flightless birds.”

“Flightless birds…” Azula repeats. “Well what is the point of being a bird if you cannot fly?” She pauses. “I’m like a penguin.” She concludes after an extended period of thinking. 

“How do you figure that?” Katara inquires as they approach the waddle of penguins.

“Penguins are birds that can’t fly. I am a firebender who can’t bend fire. I am a penguin.” 

“You’re like a penguin.” Katara corrects.

“Mmm hmm, yes, I just said that.” Azula nods. She gives Katara’s arm another pull.

“We have to approach them slowly if you don’t want them to waddle away from us.” She mentions. But Azula has already dropped her arm and is rapidly but quietly approaching one of several penguins. Once again, Katara’s tummy flutters. It reminds her of Aang, when they still had some room to be goofy kids. When his eyes were still full of unabashed optimism and untainted by the grimness of a war that had stolen all of their childhoods. Before they had fallen in love and then out of it. 

Sometimes she misses being the Avatar’s lover, his playful spirit and the late nights that she spent cuddled in his arms. She misses the way that he could always get her to try something new, experience something delightful for the first time. The way that he used to beam at her and how his eyes always closed when he grinned wide enough. 

The way that Azula looks at her now. “I caught one, Katara!” 

She shouldn’t be surprised, Azula has always been swift and efficient. The penguin that she holds up is a small one. Just a baby. 

“I think that that one is too small for penguin sledding.”

“Penguin…sledding?”

Katara’s stomach drops and her cheeks flush. “It’s…it’s just something that Aang and I used to do. Nevermind.”

“I would like to know what that is.” Azula requests, a hint of authority slipping into her voice. Katara shudders. But Azula hugs the penguin to her chest and coos at it and Katara’s dread dissipates. She thinks that spirit Azula doesn’t even know how intimidating she can be when she uses Azula’s voice the wrong way.

“It’s like regular sledding but you do it with a penguin.”

“What is a sledding?”

“Sledding is…well you find a small hill or slope and then you slide down it on a sled. Sokka and I always made ours out of wood, but you can make one with other materials. 

Azula’s eyes absolutely twinkle at this prospect. “Can we go regular sledding?”

“I thought that you wanted to pet the penguins.” 

“They have been pat.” Azula declares. “This one has anyways. Now I would like to sled. Without the use of penguins.”

“Oh alright.” Katara sighs. But only because she knows that soon they are going to have to have a few more serious talks. She might as well let Azula enjoy her time here before they delve back into what to do about her predicament. The one that she seems content to ignore now that it is not causing her physical distress.

.oOo.

It had been quite daunting at first; everything is so open and vast. It is still at least a touch disquieting in its endless spaciousness. She has no trees to hide behind should she finds herself afraid, no roots to nestle in nor mosses and moist dirt to inhale the scent of when she could use some comfort. 

Azula finds that Katara is right, the cold does start to hurt after a while. It is getting nippy with her cheeks. Cheeks that are now a vivid red. Her nose is growing sniffly too. And there is a tingly throbbing in both her nose and cheeks that is different from any other sensation that she has felt thus far. 

Tapping into her counterpart’s memories does not serve her well this time. And conversing with her, unhelpful at the best of times, is entirely useless. She only offers a half-hearted shrug and a, “better you than me.” 

“You’re getting cold, aren’t you?” Katara asks.

Azula nods. 

“We’ve been out here for hours, I’m surprised that you didn’t ask to go inside sooner.” 

“I didn’t ask to go inside.” Azula laughs. “I want to go down the hill again!” She finds that she quite likes that little flop that her stomach does when the sled reaches its fastest speed. That little spike of adrenaline that comes with thinking that she is going to fall and the larger rush of it that takes over when she does get thrown from the sled. She has fallen four times now and each time she forgets, for a fragment, that the landing doesn’t hurt. Snow, she finds, is quite fluffy and inviting until it finds its way into her shirt and pants. Then it make her jittery until it melts and the cold subsides some. 

“You’re red as a Fire Nation flag, Azula!” Katara tells her. “I think that it’s time to get you inside. You’re not accustomed to this weather.”

“I like the snow.”  Azula informs Katara. She also rather likes spending time with the waterbender without all of her friends around. Mostly she is glad to be away from Sokka and his disapproving stares. “Will you go on the sled with me?” She asks. “And then we can go inside?”

“Do you want to be in front?” 

“That depends, do you want to fall?”

“Alright, I’ll go in front.” Katara takes her seat. Azula wraps her arms around her and rests her head on her shoulder. “You ready?”

Azula squeezes a little tighter. “Yes.” Katara leans forward and the sled begins its gliding descent. Azula gives a little yelp of surprise as they pick up speed. Now and then a rock or a raised patch of snow gives them a little jostle and her chin lightly knocks against Katara’s shoulder. A particularly large bump has the sled hovering above the ground that comes with that tickle in her belly. That flopping sensation that only settles when the sled comes to a stop. 

The both of them stumble off of the sled laughing. Azula flops backwards onto the show.

“How was that?” Katara asks.

Azula flashes her a grin, “it was perfect.”

[1nsan3]

hey!!

hope you’re doing well:) just wanted to ask if your river content was coming along — the start of season 4 has reignited my love for him & you’re little excerpt was so. good.

can’t wait for it to drop!! 💗

Thank you so much!! It's coming along nicely! The goal is to have it finished before I go back to college so it should be done in a couple weeks. In the meantime, here's another snippet.

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

River is clearly nervous as you drive, despite the alcohol in him. His directions come late and he won't stop fidgeting. 

“River, I'm sure he’s fine.” You get a hum of recognition and nothing else. Sighing you pull off on the exit he tells you, cutting across a truly dangerous amount of lanes. Thank god there’s almost no one else on the road. After you leave the motorway the streets get even quieter, the sounds of the country surrounding you. River gets quieter too, his worry palpable. The silence isn’t awkward, but tense. You try to stay calm, for River’s sake. He won’t tell you what’s wrong with his grandfather, but experience with your own grandmother can give you an idea of what he’s up against. You pull into the driveway and River almost jumps out of the car, slamming the door just a bit too hard. The front door has been left open and clearly it’s commonplace because River doesn’t even stop to acknowledge it, just walks in and calls out.

“Granddad?” His voice rings out in the house and you step beside him, looking around concerned.

“In here.” A voice calls from further inside. You can see River’s shoulders sag with relief and he removes his shoes, motioning for you to do the same.

It’s awkward, being in the house of your fuck-buddy’s grandfather, but River is almost a friend of yours and it’s clearly been a stressful night for him so you’re willing to stay. You follow him into the kitchen where an older man is standing over the stove looking puzzled. 

“Who’s this you’ve brought with you? Didn’t I tell you to come alone?” River freezes, seemingly forgetting that you’re a stranger to his grandfather. “She’s a colleague of mine, and you didn’t say to come alone. You just told me to come. Is everything alright?” You and his grandfather share introductions – David, he says – and he’s clearly enjoying making his grandson squirm which you think is a bit mean but it’s not like you don’t do a fair bit of tormenting River yourself. 

“Has he dragged you all the way out here to meet me?” he asks you, and without stopping turns to River, “I thought you weren’t with anyone?” You and River share a twin flush which is so embarrassing you try immediately to forget that it happened. “Ah, I see. Well, come, sit down. I had only called to ask you to drive me to M&S, I can’t seem to find my car.” You move to sit, ignoring River’s exasperated expression that he’s doing an awful job hiding. “We sold your car, don’t you remember? We decided it’d be best if you don’t drive anymore.” 

“Bollocks. I would never say that. I’m an excellent driver.” David says indignantly. You find it hard to believe that a man this full of life is having trouble remembering things as big as a car. River sighs again and after several attempts, gives up trying to explain the situation to his grandfather any further. 

“What do you need from M&S Granddad? I’ll just run and grab it.”

“Lemons, and milk. If it’s not too much of a hassle.” River nods and then realizes that you drove him. Holding his hand out he wordlessly asks for your keys, his eyes giving away his nerves. You’d put up more of a fight but you can see the stress working its way into River’s shoulders and your heart clutches with sympathy. 

“Go,” you wave him off, “I’ll stay here and have a drink with David.” River’s posture relaxes imperceptibly, your easy agreement giving him a modicum of comfort. It’s only when he leaves that you realize his relief calmed you as well.

[rookfeatherrambles]

I am feral about two things: Hunt!Jon/Land!Selkies and Vast!Jon/Winged!Jon and I wrote a thing about Jon with wings so here you go

Many lifetimes ago, the gods gave people wings, with the caveat that one day, they’d take them back. I have wings, and I don’t want them to disappear, even though everyone says they’re bad luck. My Grandmother says they’re a curse, not a blessing, and that my destiny is on the ground, like a normal person, but I hear the stars singing every night, and I have to know what they’re saying. If you’re reading this, Grandma, I’m not sorry. - Jon

The cliffs are quiet. They usually are, but Jon doesn’t find the silence creepy like nearly everyone else in Bournemouth. To him, they are a refuge from the whispers he has to hear when he goes farther than his gate, or the fascinated, horrified staring of the other children. People muttering prayers under their breath and turning away from him as he passes, or outright refusing to sell to him when his grandmother sends him on errands out into town. Even she, his guardian, looks at him with something approaching wariness and disgust. She doesn’t say anything when she finds the loose feathers scattering the house, but she tightens her lips disapprovingly every time as she sweeps them into the bin and then tells him to bind his wings tighter. Nobody likes the cliffs. They say they’re a haunted, cursed place, full of ill-omen and mischievous spirits. Perfect for a bad - luck child to spend his time in, then. Jon clambers up onto the temple ruins, hopping daringly from stone to stone. At the base of the rocky structure, he’s got a pack full of bread, some cheese and fish, and his favourite book. That should be enough to keep him going, wherever he’s going. The sun dips low on the horizon, and Jon stops his cavorting and turns to watch. Its orange eye casts his dark skin into light and shadow, reds and golds. His irises are a rich honey colour in the glow of the last day-light’s rays.  He sits and watches until the sky goes red, then mauve, and finally, a deep clear blue. A breeze comes from somewhere beyond the cliffs, and it smells like fresh rain and something spicy, like a cooking hearth on the wind. Jon pulls off his shirt, then, as the stars start to blink into existence one by one like distant, observing beings opening their eyes. He reaches over his shoulder to unbuckle the leather harnesses holding his wings closed, one after another. When the bands fall away, he groans, and bites his cheek as first one wing shudders and shakes open, and then the other follows, the tension barking deep into his back from muscles taut and muscles knotted. He almost wants to cry from the pain, but his grandmother always told him that if he was to be a boy, boys never cried. Jon thinks about that now, then gives in and sobs into his fists as his wings tremble, shake, and twitch involuntarily. The tears glitter in the last light as they fall to the stone at his feet, but don’t last long. Jon breathes a sigh of relief when the cramping feeling eases, when he can stretch and twist and flap without pain. His wings should be malformed, and patchy, and basically useless by now, and if his grandmother and the townsfolk had had their way, they would be. Bound and compressed until they grew in on themselves, became shapeless lumps of feather and flesh that could be hacked off when he was older. His bad luck over, his shame removed at last. But Jon loves his wings, always has and against his grandmother’s wishes, or even her knowledge, he’s been using them. He’s been practising. And today, he will fly, and he will leave Bournemouth and all the superstitious people he’s grown up with behind. He is eleven, for goodness-sake. And he’s made up his mind to run away. The cliffs are still quiet, when Jon decides it's time to go. He’s stood on the edge many, many times, and peered down to see if he can catch a glimpse of what’s down there, but there’s been a thick fog that covers everything since before he was born, and as he looks now, it's no different. Well, one thing is different. The stars are singing again. Jon tips his head up to catch the melody, but it's so faint as to be ethereal. Jon walks back over to where his pack is, tying it to his chest, securely. He tugs on the strap a few times, just to see if it’ll go anywhere. With that sorted, Jon looks back to the edge of his known world. He could go home, he could have his wings surgically removed when he’s older, and he could live a normal life. Normal’s never appealed much to him, though. With an air of a person who’s decidedly late for an appointment, he strides towards the cliff edge.

He pauses, just for a moment, to look up at the sky again, and then he spreads his wings and throws himself into the nothing. Jon falls without a sound, and the fog swallows him and leaves no trace. If anyone misses him in the coming days, they don’t say a thing. Even his grandmother doesn't go looking for him. She simply carries on as she always has. Just like that, Jonathan Sims, the tragic, unfortunate cursed child, is forgotten. And life goes on. 

[rendy-a]

Hope you’re having a lovely day! Could I ask for cooking with Vil please?? Tysm!

This one took me a long time to finish but it's finally done! Thank you for requesting. My 50 follower event is almost wrapped up but I'll have one or two more.

Cooking for Vil

The beautiful dorm leader of Pomefiore had caught your eye.  You admired the way he smiled, walked, talked and just about everything else.  You were fortunate enough to have made his acquaintance during the VDC, which granted you a small opportunity to talk with him when you visited Epel over at their dorm.

“Potato, are you here studying with Epel?” you hear Vil’s melodious voice say.   You smile up at him and reply, “Yes!  We have an exam in Professor Crewel’s class.”  Vil gives you a nod of approval, “Potions are a basic foundation of many things.  You do well to improve yourself there, Spudling.”  You wish you could forgo all the potato comparisons, but it was nice to have a small amount of the busy dorm leader’s time.

The material for the exam was complicated.  You studied with Epel right up until curfew before hurrying down the staircase to the exit of Pomefiore.  It was late, so you were focused on being quick but quiet as you descended the stairs and that is why you were so startled when Rook turned the corner to greet you.  “Trickster!” Rook says as he puts on a feigned look of surprise, “You are out late tonight.  Would you like an escort home?”  You smile at the gentlemanly offer.  “No thank you.  I’ll be fine.  I am surprised to see anyone else up this late.  You should head to bed yourself!”  Rook gives you a small smile before saying, “Do not worry about Moi, Trickster.  I am often accompanying beautiful Vil into the late hours.”  With an incline of the head, your gaze follows along the path of Rooks nod to notice the light that pools from the door to the lounge. 

“Vil is still working this late?” you ask Rook.  He gives you a small chuckle.  “It is a rare day indeed that Vil does not work late.  He embodies the virtues of the Beautiful Queen; always working diligently to improve himself and the dorm.  His beautiful spirit is très bien!”  You look at the closed door and wonder to yourself, does Vil ever take a break for himself? 

It’s a thought that stays with you.  As you lay in bed that night, you think about what you might be able to do for him to encourage him to rest a little.  Finally, you decided upon a plan; you would bake him a treat so he can take a small snack break to enjoy it.  You learned to bake with your grandmother and feel like your small skills might be enough to tempt him. 

The next day, you arrive back at Pomefiore with a slice of lemon cake.  You linger in the hallway, hoping to see Vil.  You are fortunate that, after a small wait, he does walk by.  “Vil!” you call him anxiously, “I have something I wanted to give you.”  He raises an elegant eyebrow and comes over to speak with you.  “What’s this, Potato?”  You bashfully hold out the slice of cake.  “I thought you could use a break, so I baked you some cake to have later!” 

Vil gives you a cold look.  “Do you imagine I eat cake everyday and look like this?”  You hadn’t considered the strict diet he was likely on.  “Well…maybe you can save it for a cheat day?  I think I want to leave it here for you, just in case?” you finish in a lame voice.  Vil sighs at you and tells you to set it in the kitchen.  “I don’t believe I’ll be eating this, Potato, but I’ll allow you to leave it there.” 

The next day, you came back to Pomefiore for another study session with Epel (exams are coming!) and see that Vil has not eaten your cake.  You are crestfallen just looking at the abandoned sweet.  You decide to leave the cake until after you study session.  Maybe tonight will be a cheat day?  You looked one last time at your lonely slice of cake and resolved to eat it yourself if it remained at nightfall.  If Vil doesn’t appreciate quality cake, that is his problem!

After studying, you head down to the kitchen to check if your cake was still there.  It was.  You pick up your poor neglected cake and take it back to Ramshackle with you.  Sitting in the common room, you eat your cake while thinking of Vil.  What was his issue with cake?  The more you thought about it, the more you decided not to let it go.  You would bake him a new slice tomorrow and the next day and the next.  You won’t give up until you make Vil take a break and eat your cake.

When you arrive back at Pomefiore, you hear Vil’s voice in the lounge.  You march straight in and confront Vil with your cake.  “Oh Vil, I made you a new slice of cake.” He gives you an amused look.  “Potato, I don’t think I’ll be eating the cake this time either.”  You smile smugly back at him, “Well then, I guess I’ll just keep bringing them to you until you decide to have one.  After all, everyone needs a break sometimes.  I’m sure it will fit into your busy schedule sooner or later.” 

It becomes a nightly ritual for you to visit Vil at Pomefiore before going to your study sessions with Epel You cheerfully greet the busy dorm leader and attempt to get him to eat your sweet.  Each day, he offers you a biting comment about your attempts but allows you to leave your baked good in the kitchen.  And each night, you return to collect the uneaten treat before taking it back home to Ramshackle to eat and plan for the next night. 

Over time, you notice that Vil’s comments become no less harsh but seem to shift from taunting you on your silly quest to commenting on you yourself.  “Potato, your skin is looking tired.  Perhaps you need to eat more fruits.”  Another day, “Spudling, your eyes look so dull today.  You need to make sure you are staying hydrated.”  It’s annoying but you can’t help but be secretly pleased that he takes the time to notice you.  It’s like a sign that you may be growing closer to the strict Pomefiore dorm leader.  He still doesn’t eat the cake though. 

You take tonight’s abandoned offering (strawberry cream cake) off the counter and head to the lounge to say goodnight to your upperclassmen.  Just as Rook told you all that time ago, he and Vil are awake and working on business long into the night.  You’d come to realize that Vil works harder than anyone you know.  If anything, your admiration for him has grown from something superficial to a deeper feeling when you think of how dedicated and resolved Vil is.  He is more than just a beautiful face, he is someone who cares deeply about his goals, dormmates and (dare you think it) you.

You enter the lounge and take a bite of your cake.  “Guess I’m eating tonight’s cake too,” you cheerfully say as a greeting.   Vil looks up from a stack of papers and says in a disapproving tone, “Potato, you are going to break out if you keep eating so much sugar.”  You give him a mischievous grin and reply, “You could save me from myself if only you’d eat the cake.”  Vil throws you a mirthful grin before declaring, “I’m the queen here, shouldn’t you be the one saving me?”  You both laugh at that. 

You stand up to go and say, “I’ll see you tomorrow with...hmm…chocolate cake, I think.”  Vil gives you a look.  “Honestly, Potato, how long do you intend to keep this up?”  You call over your shoulder, “As long as it takes.  I’m not letting you chase me away.  I’m going to stick by your side until I see you smile after eating my delicious cake.  Then you’ll be like, Oh Prefect, it was so amazing.  I, the beautiful Vil, cannot express my gratitude enough.  Swoon.”  Vil seems highly amused by your mini monologue.  “Your acting needs work Prefect, surely I swoon better than that.”  You smile as you head out the door and are halfway to Ramshackle before you realize he called you Prefect instead of Potato. 

Exams are over, you really don’t need to return to study with Epel for a few more months now.  Only, your steps still take you on your usual errand to Pomefiore.  You arrive earlier than normal and head to find Vil.  Instead, it is Rook who finds you.  “Bonjour Trickster!” Rook greets you jubilantly.  “I see you have brought another offering for our beautiful queen.  Your dedication is très magnifique!”  You smile indulgently at the odd vice warden.  “Hello Rook.  How are you today and do you know where I can find Vil?”  Rook gives you a sharp-eyed look before replying.  “Trickster, I thought you’d know.  Vil isn’t in residence at the moment.  He has an important audition tonight.” 

You were taken by surprise; Vil hadn’t mentioned anything like that when you’d spoken last night.  Rook can see your confusion and elaborates, “Vil has been trying to break away from his villain persona but the part of the hero always seems to elude him.  Quelle dommage!”  You look down at your hands, “But if he didn’t mention it does that mean…”  Rook smiles gently, “Yes, even Vil has his insecurities.  He doesn’t wish to mention the audition in case he fails.”  With that, Rook takes his leave, and you are alone in the entry of Pomefiore. 

You gaze sadly at your cake, which it now seems has even less chance of being eaten than normal.  Somehow, it feels like a waste to just leave now.  You walk into the lounge and look at the peacock throne Vil can usually be found inhabiting.  You can see him in your mind; cool, composed, and confident.  It’s hard to imagine him being unsure of himself and you worry that he chooses to endure that feeling alone.    

Really, you just can’t accept it.  You haven’t spent all this time proving your devotion to Vil to just leave him alone now.  You march your cake straight into the Pomefiore kitchen and set it on the counter before taking a seat yourself near a window that overlooks the entrance to the dorm.  You’d wait for Vil to return tonight, no matter how long it takes.  Then, you can give him your cake in celebration of an audition well done!

It took three hours of waiting before Vil returned to the dorm.  During that time, you read your magical history textbook in the kitchen of Pomefiore.  You had been tempted to spend that time on your phone instead, but you could just imagine the voice of Vil berating you for not taking the opportunity to improve yourself.  How deeply he has integrated himself into your life, you feel his influence upon you even while he is gone.

Your thought is interrupted by the sound of the door opening.  You turn to see Vil enter the kitchen, but a Vil like you’ve never seen before.  He must have sat outside for a while; the evening dew had dampened his platinum locks and left a sheen across his face.  He looked as terrible as someone as beautiful as Vil could look.  He gives you a once over before saying in a dazed voice, “Potato, what are you doing here?  It’s far past curfew.  I suppose I should scold you, but I can’t find it in myself to care right now.” 

It's disheartening to hear such a vibrant person as Vil speak in such a defeated way.  “Rook told me about the audition.  But you could still get the part…don’t give up!”  He sighs at you, “That just shows how little you know about attending auditions.  Believe me, Prefect, I did not get the part.”  You don’t know what to say to that, so you say nothing.  You simply walk over to him, grab his hand, and drag him over to the window seat you were previously occupying.  There, you both sit, side by side, and gaze out at the moon. 

After a time, Vil finally breaks the silence to ask you, “How long do you intend to hold my hand?”  You hadn’t realized you were still holding his hand and dropped it in a sudden rush.  “Ah sorry!” you say, “I didn’t mean to overstep.  I just want to be there for you, the way you are aways there for everyone else.  You know, like the dorm students, the school, your friends, and me…just everyone.”  You realize you are rambling and snap your mouth shut. 

The diffuse moonlight falls over Vil’s features, giving him an otherworldly look.  In his silent contemplation of you, he looks more like a work of art than a student.  You are sure you do not give off the same impression as you still nervously chuckle at your embarrassing outburst.  Finally, Vil asks, “Is that my cake?”  It’s so shocking to you that you do a double take, glancing at the slice of chocolate cake and back at Vil before answering.  “Yes, it is.  I made it just for you.  Like I do every day.  It’s for you.  Always for you…”

Vil stands and walks over to retrieve the lone slice of cake.  “You never give up, do you Potato?” he says with a small smile.  You watch with immense satisfaction as Vil finally takes a bite of the cake.  The grin that spreads across your face is as bright as the moonlight streaming in the window behind you.  Vil carries the cake back to your side and has another bite.  “Thank you, for not giving up on me.”

You turn your head up to answer him, but no words emerge before you find yourself the recipient of a kiss from Vil.  His lips were soft and his kiss tastes of chocolate from the cake.  It was the moment you had persevered for months working toward.  In the end, as you feel his lips against yours, you know it was all worth it.  It was a sweetness worth being diligent for.

[iloveavatar]

Hey hey lovie!

I have a request for a neteyam x reader. (Already established relationship if possible)

So, reader is an orphan from a traumatic experience, and Jake and neytiri raised reader as one of their own.

But, because reader was on their own for a while before being found by jake and neytiri so their fiercely independent and doesn’t really have l a regard for their own life and is often reckless. One day reader almost dies on a mission bc of their recklessness and neteyam finds out, freaks out, cries, begs them to take care of themselves and reader is like “I don’t care about myself” or “who cares if I get hurt” neteyam reassured them and it’s just fluffy comfort?

(Holy crap I’m sorry it’s so long I just have it so planned out In my head 😭)

i’m fine!

this is so amazing. i LOVE THIS IDEA SM. i’m so sorry this took so long💀

obv neteyam x fem!reader (already in a relationship)

neteyam has known the feeling stress from lo’ak. he knows the pain of that gut feeling tell him that something has gone wrong.

however it’s different when it’s her.

he has never felt this kind of stress before. it’s similar to lo’ak… except if you were to ask anyone how neteyam is handling it, they would tell you he’s not.

he’s not handling it well at all.

y/n brings neteyam a whole new feeling of stress. he deeply cares for her.

why wouldn’t he care about the woman he’s with?

now let’s just explain how neteyam got in this situation first yeah? yeah.

he was around 4 years old, he was hanging out with his grandmother. however when neytiri was out by herself she heard a baby crying out in the middle of the beautiful forest. obviously she followed the sounds, because who would leave their child here?

she ran into a young na’vi who looked around neteyam age.

long story short neytiri decided to take y/n (which is what the little na’vi said was her name) home and have her stay with the sully family.

when little y/n went home with neytiri, she was introduced to jake. she was nervous seeing all these different people and the couple took notice.

neytiri gently asked her, “is something wrong little one?”

y/n timidly shook her head “no ma’am! i’ve just never seen so many people before…”

the couple exchanged a look of confusion. there was only neytiri, jake, and y/n in their tent so far… what did she mean ‘so many people?’

“y/n… who are your parents? do you remember?” jake gently asked while sitting down.

y/n looked at the rug that was sprawled across the floor of the tent. tears started to rush to the surface of her eyes. she huffed because she hated crying.

“ive never met my dad… and my mom left me. she said i wasn’t useful enough for her to love me… so i want to become the best hunter i can!” y/n started out with tears, but then ended her sentence with a determined, stubborn look.

the couple felt their heart breaking at the reveal. they then made eye contact with one another, almost having a conversation with their eyes.

neytiri would help raise y/n and train her to become a hunter like how she wishes.

years later and neytiri stuck to her word. y/n eventually became such an amazing hunter that the clan looked up to her. she became an expert at such a young age due to neytiris help.

y/n having such an independent, strong, fierce personality and mindset, is exactly what made neteyam fall madly for her.

if you were to ask neteyam who was the best hunter in the clan… he would say y/n. after saying his mother of course.

and he wouldn’t just say this because they were dating… but because it’s true.

y/n climbed the ranks of being an amazing hunter so fast it could give someone whiplash.

y/n was so stubborn to prove that she was the best. she would train nonstop, barely sleep, and never ever ask for help.

that being said… y/n was so reckless because of her stubbornness.

neytiri and jake, even neteyam have tried to tell her that being reckless can lead to consequences in the future if she’s not careful.

she would also argue that “she’s fine” and that “she’s got it under control”.

as much as everyone loved her… they all thought she was stupid for risking her life nonstop.

this said reckless behavior is what has neteyam stressing in the first place.

y/n was out on a hunt with his mother to feed the clan, and neteyam was in charge of keeping an eye on lo’ak while they were out.

everything was going well until neteyam heard his mothers war cry.

his head whipped around to see his mother carrying someone else on her ikran.

it was y/n.

she had scratches up and down her body, blood seeping through and making her look like a bloodied mess.

neteyams heart stopped.

he got up and sprinted towards the crowd of na’vi that had eventually ended up forming. except when he finally pushed past everyone, he noticed the back profile of his mother running towards his grandmothers healing tent.

he started to sprint.

his heart was racing in fear.

once he made it to the tent, he found his mother and father waiting outside.

“you cannot disrupt your grandmother neteyam… let her work” said neytiri gently stopping him from entering the tent.

“what happened.” neteyam demanded. his voice came out strong, which was unintentional but his parents knew it was out of worry.

“we were hunting, and per usual she was amazing. however that being said, she was also being reckless once more. she inched closer to her target… something from behind the herd made a noise and they ended up running towards her direction… “ neytiri started to form tears in her eyes

“ i called out for her! i heard a sickening snap and everything else didn’t matter anymore. i tried to get there in time i swear my love…” she cried while taking neteyams hands gently.

“once i made it to her… her bow was trampled on, completely shattered. her body covered in marks and blood. bruises were already starting to form.” she sobbed.

neytiri felt awful. she saw y/n as one of her own. she thinks that she failed to protect y/n. she blames herself.

neteyam tightly hugs his mother with his own tears in his eyes. “it is not your fault mother. please do not put the blame on yourself.” he took a breath. “do you think grandmother will be able to fix her?” he hesitantly asked.

jake jumped into the conversation, “of course she will. y/n is stubborn as hell either way. if mo’at won’t heal her, y/n will find a way to do it herself!” he lightly joked, trying to take the tension off the mother-son duo.

the three of them lightly laughed.

they then waiting for about a half hour until mo’at came out of the tent.

“she’s healed. she’s getting some rest so you can come in and see her in a little while. stubborn one that girl! i thought she wasn’t going to make it through but she proved me wrong once again!” she praised with a smile on her face.

neteyam then waiting an hour or so to walk into the tent.

his parents figured it would be best for neteyam so see her first when she was awake.

he walked into the tent slowly, scared of what he might see.

he saw her laying down with multiple bandages on her body. tears instantly formed in his eyes.

y/n heard the sniffles and slowly opened her eyes. she turned her head gently towards the source of the sound. it was neteyam.

“oh ma teyam…” she softly started to say. “it’s ok! i’m fine..” she whispered.

“no it’s not ok! you’re too reckless… it’s like you don’t even care about your life anymore!!” neteyam shouted with a shaking voice. tears started to fall from his eyes now.

y/n gasped at his sentence.

“i- i don’t care about my life… it’s worthless!” she stated with a strong voice.

neteyam was shocked at the reveal. “h-how could you not care? i care for you. my family cares for you. everyone in the clan cares for you!” he loudly said with a broken heart.

“well clearly not everyone! if everyone cared then my mother wouldn’t have left me!!” she shouted with tears in her eyes.

“… she would’ve loved me..” she whisper while crying.

neteyam felt his heart shatter even more. he didn’t realize that she was still holding onto such sorrow.

neteyam rushed over to give the woman he loves a gentle hug, careful not to open her wounds.

they both sobbed in each other arms.

“y/n…” neteyam started out in a whisper. “you don’t need your mother to love you..because i love you.” neteyam stated sincerely. he looked into her teary eyes to show just how much he was being serious.

y/n started to sob.

“i-im sorry ma teyam!” she wailed. she finally felt the pressure of sadness she has been holding, break down and flow out like a river.

neteyam takes her in his arms again and doesn’t let go. he whispers sweet nothings in her ear until she slowly stops crying and falls asleep from exhaustion. neteyam feels his eyes slowly close and let’s sleep consume his body.

a couple hours later, neytiri walked into the tent to check on y/n. she noticed her eldest and his soon to be mate fast asleep cuddling one another.

she smiled at the sight and slowly backed out of the tent letting them sleep.

from that moment on… y/n was more careful with her life. she finally had something to live for. she didn’t care about her mother anymore.

she saw neytiri as her mother now. she wanted to live for her new family.

she wanted to live for her mates family.

she wanted to live for neteyam.

with neteyam.

from that moment on she had something and someone to live for.

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

i’m so so sorry this took so long!! i’ve been on my period and i literally avoided everything and anything.

hopefully this is ok!!

if there’s any mistakes please lmk.

~S!

[ganonfan1995]

I've thought it through, and I'm not really sure when I'm going to pick NHFOM back up.

I really wanted to see it through, but if I'm being honest, it was a project I started during a point in time where I was feeling 100% myself (both mentally and artistically) 2022 really slonked my shit stupid style, and recovering from all the trauma and misery has been a long loooong journey for me. Trying to revisit it now, while I still love the characters and the AU I built up around it, has been really complicated for me. On one hand I still think the material holds up, but on the other hand I've really lost a lot of the jokes and I've been struggling to connect with them. (maybe it's the depression, maybe its maybelline)

While I've been doing a lot better in this year, 2023, the further I move away from NHFOM the more I feel a bit alienated from it? I'm not sure how to describe it, it feels more like an obligation rather than something I'm excited to do.

That's all to say, is that I'm going to post the outline I had written back in 2021 for the first chapter of NHFOM. I might still pick this back up, but it feels weird to let it just rot in my google docs, unread and unloved. So if you're curious as to what Link and Ganondorf get up to, it'll all be under the cut. NOTE: The way I write comic outlines is VERY bare bones. These are mostly quick ideas and lack any sort of dialogue/structure outside of general pacing and ideas.

NO HYRULE FOR OLD MEN

Aryll’s Birthday:

Link convinces Ganondorf to allow him to send a letter to Aryll for her birthday.

The Soup:

Link tries to recreate his Grandma’s soup, destroying Ganondorf's kitchen in the process.

Heroes Clothes:

Ganondorf convinces Link to dress in Time’s clothes. They do not even remotely fit.

Link of the Past:

Ganondorf and Link drinking and reminiscing over OOT events, Link is trying to play along.

Thank god they’re both trashed. 

The Bandana: 

Ganondorf reprimands Link for being so careless about his appearance and asks him to get a haircut.

It’s revealed that Link has MPB and Ganondorf shares a culturally significant hairstyle w/ him in solidarity. 

Miniblin:

Link befriends a Miniblin? I don’t have a joke for this one, it’s just cute.

Ganondorf’s Day Out:

Link discovers the portal Ganon uses to teleport between worlds, he follows him in disguise and learns about his “secret hideout”

Therapy:

Ganondorf is having his monthly therapy session with a bokoblin, distressing over Link and contemplating why he’s different now.

Link is fishing naked w/ Miniblin

Helmaroc King:

Aryll discovers that Helmaroc King loves fish and forms a bond with the giant bird. She breaks a deal to send letters to Link once in a while in exchange for a tuna.

The Boat:

Link notices a weird red boat with a face hanging out around the tower. He and miniblin decide to take it for a joyride.

Hero in Training:

Sick of his devil-may-care personality, Ganondorf convinces Link to take up some serious training. Link immediately throws his back out upon lifting a mock master sword.

Princess Zelda:

Upon learning more about the Triforce, Link purposely misleads Ganondorf in his quest to locate the third Triforce…Because he doesn’t want to move out.

The Desert:

Ganondorf recites his “my country lay in a vast desert” speech. Link interrupts to ask what a desert is. 

Family Dinner:

Link makes dinner, Ganondorf is late and Link chews him out for his lack of appreciation towards him.

Ganondorf feels bad and surprises him with breakfast in bed. (this one is just gay)

Daddy Issues:

Ganondorf inquires about Link’s family, Link reveals that he never had a father and was raised by his grandmother. Link is surprised to find out they both have that in common.

The Boat Pt. 2:

King of Redlions stressing to Jabun that he thinks he may have discovered the Hero Reborn who has since been captured by the Demon King himself. Also tries to explain that…maybe it’s okay actually.

Cutaway to Ganondorf and Link playing a drinking game?

Aryll’s Visit:

It’s Link’s birthday this time, and Helmaroc King has a surprise planned for Link on Aryll’s behalf.

She reprimands him for still not changing his outfit.

Queen of Pirates:

Following rumours of a sunken kingdom, a mysterious Pirate Queen finds herself lost in Hyrule. Link scrambles to get her to leave, but she threatens to return and rob him and his ghostly king blind.

Minitime:

Link doing some introspection, discussing w/ Miniblin that, even though he’s evil…Maybe Ganondorf isn’t all that bad?

General Malaise:

Ganondorf has locked himself in his room for far too long, Link busts in to give him a heavy hitting pep talk.

Poetry Night:

It’s poetry night in the Tower, and everyone has something to share. Link prepares something that leaves Ganondorf legitimately moved.

Blinded with Science:

Ganondorf tries some new spells out to see if he can relieve Link of his triforce…prematurely. It does not work.

Accidentally Holding Out For A Hero:

Link follows Ganondorf to his hideout again to find the place besieged by the Pirate Queen’s crew. Link accidentally does something heroic to keep Ganondorf from harm and Tetra out of his grasp.

Streetwise Hercules:

Ganondorf finds himself in emotional turmoil after Link’s show of heroism, the urge to utterly crush him returns. Ganondorf is in an oddly optimistic mood. 

Tennis Practice:

Link is in his weekly training w/ Phantom Ganon, Link has a lot on his mind. He questions his attractions to his captor while beating Phantom Ganon effortlessly.

Adventure of Miniblin:

Caught unaware, Ganondorf vents his emotions over Link to Miniblin. Miniblin is later found by Link who does the exact same thing. Miniblin is not capable of common speech, and is sick of the lack of communication between Link and Ganondorf.

The Duel: 

Ganondorf approaches Link and passes him a note that says: “Do you wanna spar? Y/N”

The Duel Pt.2:

Link and Ganondorf find themselves evenly matched, both exhausted from age and lack of physical activity. Link convinces Ganondorf to join him in his weekly training sessions w/ Phantom Ganon.

The Duel Pt. 3:

Ganondorf joins tennis and finds the activity to be actually kind of fun and quite the workout. Admits he might not have given Phantom Ganon enough credit and offers him an additional day off from his duty.

The Outfit:

Aryll sends Link a new outfit, Ganondorf finds it to be too titillating and begs Link to change back.

The Nightmare:

Ganondorf is plagued with bad dreams and has difficulty falling asleep, Link offers him a homemade remedy, Grandma certified. (It’s 1:5 warm milk and rum)

The Boat Pt.3:

King of Redlions approaches Tetra, he has devised a plan to “rescue” Link from the demon king but he needs her help.

Miniblin Musing:

Link, playing with miniblin, asks Ganon where these things come from anyway. “I am not explaining the Dark World to you right now.”

Namesake:

Link has to explain that “Link” is just a really common hylian name. Some famous dead guy or something.

[mortallyclearwonderland]

Ruby Gillman: Teenage Kraken

We’re getting a trailer for the movie in about a week.

Who made the movie?

The film, which had been made under the working title of Meet the Gillmans, is directed by Oscar-nominated filmmaker Kirk DeMicco (Vivo, The Croods, Space Chimps) and produced by Kelly Cooney Cilella (Bilby, Trolls World Tour). Faryn Pearl (storyboard artist on The Croods: A New Age, Trolls World Tour) is co-directing.

I know those movies aren't most populations favorites but I'll wait for the trailer. I expect it to be on a funny and silly side.

Voice cast:

Lana Condor (She was in those terrible To all the boys movies.), Toni Collette (I haven't seen anything she was in.), Annie Murphy (I haven't seen anything she was in.), Sam Richardson (A comedian actor who was in so unfunny productions like Velma and HouseBroken.), Liza Koshy ( I know nothing about her or her work.), Will Forte (Again, I know nothing about him or his work.), Colman Domingo (He's fine. I never watched anything he was in.), Jaboukie Young-White (He was in the Disney's Strange World as a token gay.), Blue Chapman (Blue is a trans boy who is best recognized for his role in the series Council of Dads where he plays a transgender character named JJ. By the way he's only 13 and was way younger when transitioning! I don't care if it's offensive to you. It is creepy and wrong!), Eduardo Franco (He's an actor known for his comedic roles and being in Stranger Things. I haven't seen anything he was in.), Ramona Young (I haven't seen anything she was in.), Echo Kellum (He's apparantly a comedian and was on Arrow. You know, that terrible CW show.), Nicole Byer (Unfunny comedian I've never heard before with a terrible book.), and Jane Fonda (The bitch who called for the murder of Pro-Lifers.).

So what? The voice actors are their own individuals with their own opinions. Just because an actress is a piece of human garbage doesn't mean the whole company shares her views. And it's not like a movie will be talking about her political opinions.

It's a great opportunity to see if those people are any good. It's the script that matters! But the history of the cast isn't getting my hopes up or fill me with any excitement. As long as they'll say their lines and won't be too annoying it will be fine.

I want to say this. Even though I'm pro life and don't agree with transitioning kids who are way too young to know the consequences of their actions I would never call for murder or any harm for those people.

What's the story?

The story follows a shy 16-year-old named Ruby Gillman (Condor) who learns that she is the next in a legendary line of royal sea krakens. Despite her lofty destiny, all Ruby wants to do is fit in. At school, she falls for a skater-boy that she’s tutoring who shows no indication of feeling the same way about her. Ruby struggles even more to fit in because her mother (Collette) forbids her from going to the beach with any would-be friends. But when Ruby decides to disobey her mom’s instructions, she learns that she’s descended from the warrior kraken queens and will one day ascend to her grandmother’s throne (Fonda) as the Warrior Queen of the Seven Seas.

In the film, the krakens are a race sworn to protect the world’s oceans from the vain, power-hungry mermaids, and the two sides have been battling for eons. The generational confrontation comes to a head when a popular mermaid named Chelsea enrolls at Ruby’s school.

I really hope this movie won't go the ''Pretty girls are mean and superficial. I'm shy and not like the other girls. That boy just has to learn to not judge by the appearances.'' I believe that Dreamworks is better than that and will make great deconstruction of that trope. In The Croods New Age they had the chance to make stupid love triangle drama but didn't.

I'm worried about the lack of male characters. The plot only talks about female mermaids and queen krakens. No mention of males even in art. I hope it won't be the case that males don't transform because that would be such a waste.

Here is the link

https://www.cartoonbrew.com/feature-film/teenage-kraken-dreamworks-kirk-demicco-226970.html

I hope it's reliable. But if it's just some fun made think and I got played well I guess only time will tell. And if that's the case I will just make another post.

[schrijverr]

Life Is Ours, We Live It Our Way 16

Chapter 16 out of 18

Genderqueer Stevie with platonic soulmates Robin and Eddie living their best queer life.

In this chapter, Robin finally moves in and Stevie fully comes out to Wayne, while Robin comes out as a lesbian to the party and Eddie as non-limerent.

On AO3.

Ships: none

Warnings: less than great parenting, outing (Wayne sees the vanity and makes some connections, it's all good), nightmares, and homophobia mention

~~~~~~~~~

Opening Up

On Monday after spring break, Robin gets her acceptance letter to IUPUI. She has a full ride and can start in the fall.

When she finds out, she forces her mom to drive to Stevie and Eddie’s place and barges the door down to bring the news. They pull her into a celebratory hug and cheer for her as she rambles on excitedly.

Her mother cautiously follows after her. Stevie is glad that they did the picking up yesterday and that she has warmed up to Eddie, who charmingly greets: “Mrs. Buckley, welcome to our humble abode. Would you like something to drink?”

“No, I’m afraid we can’t stay long, isn’t that so, Robin-darling?” Mrs. Buckley replies pleasantly, as she looks around the house for flaws. “We are taking Robin out for a celebratory dinner.”

“Of course,” Eddie smiles. “She definitely earned it.”

“Yeah, we’re so proud,” Stevie grins, hugging Robin again. “Full ride. I wanna say I can’t believe it, but you’re so smart, Robs.”

“Ahw, dingus, you’re warming my heart,” Robin exclaims, playfully swooning.

“You are more than welcome to come along, Steve,” Mrs. Buckley offers, charmed by the ‘couple’ before her.

They both send a covert look at Eddie, who gives a subtle nod. They’ll celebrate this success in their own way with the three of them later, now Stevie has to play perfect boyfriend and Robin the good daughter.

So, Stevie puts on her most charming smile and says: “I’d love to. Thank you so much, Mrs. Buckley. I can go put on something more formal right now or meet you there?”

“I’d say meet us there, Robin still has to call her grandmother,” Mrs. Buckley tells him. “We’re eating at Enzo’s, be there at seven?”

“Sounds perfect,” Stevie says.

With that settled Mrs. Buckley starts saying goodbyes for both of them, hurrying Robin out the door alongside her. She keeps on waving as she gets dragged along into the car, calling out that Stevie can’t look better than her.

Once they’ve left, Stevie jumps up and down and squeals: “I can’t believe she did it!”

“You’ve been holding that one in, sweetheart?” Eddie asks, but he’s mirroring his bounce and grinning like a madman.

Then the realization hits and Stevie says: “Oh my god, Robin is going to move away.”

“We’ve got the whole spring and summer before the fall semester starts, don’t worry, princess, she’s not gone yet,” Eddie assures her, slinging his arms around his shoulder. However, Stevie can hear he’s also torn up about it. Both of them love Robin and are so happy for her, but it will hurt to see her leave.

Stevie leans his head on Eddie’s shoulder and asks: “Do you think tonight will be the night I’ll convince them to let Robs move in?”

“You can always try,” Eddie shrugs, but Stevie can see the excited gleam in his eyes at the possibility. Now that it’s confirmed that Robs is going off to college soon, they both want to spend as much time with her as they can.

She’s their soulmate.

It’s always going to be Stevie, Eddie and Robbie, the three idiot musketeers. They’re a matching set, not to be separated.

So, Stevie decides that she will charm the pants off the Buckleys again tonight and try his goddamn hardest to bring Robin home. To have her as a permanent inhabitant of the house as long as they can manage.

He puts on dress pants and a dress shirt, but no tie. His longer hair is more difficult to style in a manner that is acceptable by the average conservative inhabitant of Indiana, but he tries his best. And before he knows it, he’s on his way to Enzo’s.

Honestly, these days Stevie doesn’t really think of her parents often. They left her behind and didn’t look back. By the time they did so, Stevie had already made peace with the fact that they didn’t love her, because she already found better people by then. It was kind of underwhelming when it finally did happen.

However, as he’s seated with the Buckley family at a restaurant, celebrating Robin’s acceptance to college. He can’t help but be faintly glad at how well his parents trained him to play being a delightful and polite boy.

At some point, the conversation turns to what Robin’s life at college will look like. Her mother worries: “God, you hear all sorts of awful things about girls being allowed on their own out there, thrust into life without a guiding hand. You’ll be careful, won’t you, Robin-darling?”

“Yes, mom,” Robin sighs and Stevie can tell she’s fighting an eyeroll.

Stevie jumps in: “I’m sure she’ll be fine, Mrs. Buckley. I- I actually wanted to run something by you, that might soothe your worries?”

“Oh?” Mrs. Buckley replies, interested.

Robin also sends her a look stuck between interested and ‘what are you doing???’ He starts: “I was thinking quite similar things. Those dorms don’t seem like something I’d want my future daughter thrust into without any preparation.”

Beside him, Robin starts to make an offended noise, but Stevie stomps on her foot under the table to get her to shut up. He might be laying it on a bit thick, but Mrs. Buckley is nodding along, obviously touched.

“So I was thinking about letting Robin move in with me,” she says. “That way she can continue to build an independent foundation, but also have you to visit when she finds things she finds hard in running her own household.”

Mrs. Buckley’s eyes light up at the words ‘running her own household’ leave Stevie lips. Robin notices too, her eyes flicking between the two. Then she nods: “Oh, dear, how wonderful that you look out for me.”

“Of course, baby,” Stevie smiles, hoping it doesn’t come across as awkward as they both feel. “I just want you to be safe.”

“Gosh, you’re just so cute together,” Mrs. Buckley gushes.

Mr. Buckley is not that easily convinced, however, but looks softened up as he replies: “We’ll talk about it.”

Stevie smiles pleasantly: “Of course, I wouldn't expect you to just let your daughter go. She is still your little girl.”

“Oh, you just get it,” Mrs. Buckley coos. “You’ll be such a great father.”

And Stevie desperately wants to be a parent, so despite the whole father thing, the grin on his face is very genuine. As he replies: “Thank you, Mrs. Buckley. Though, let’s focus on Robin getting through college first, not to mention that I want to be married before having kids. And I think Robbie thinks the same.”

Robbie doesn’t want to get married (it is illegal for her, though she does like the idea of marrying out of love) nor has she ever mentioned wanting kids. But they’ve both become great liars.

She clings to his arms, sending him a fake sweetly look: “You’re so good to me, dingus. Always watching out for me and my virtue.”

“I just want you to be safe, darling,” Stevie has to fight a laugh. “If you want to wait until marriage, I respect that.”

Robin blushes and ducks away, Stevie is pretty sure it isn’t played, but it helps selling it to her parents. If Robin moves in, there won’t be sex. That is technically a lie, but the sex will be between Stevie and Eddie.

So, they eat the rest of the dinner while laying it on a bit thick. Robin has realized that this is the last step in the weeks long plan of trying to convince her parents, so they’re on top of their game all throughout the night.

And Stevie is pretty sure it’s working, because Robin comes home with her at the end of the night instead of leaving with her parents.

When they come home, Eddie is playing his guitar. He stops when he hears the door, looks up and grins when he sees who just walked in. “Hey, how was dinner?”

“Oscar worthy,” Robin grins. “We killed it! Stevie is a charmer.”

“Well, I knew that,” Eddie says, also grinning widely, while Stevie blushes.

“But you should have seen him,” Robin exclaims, falling on the couch next to Eddie. “Apparently Stevie is really concerned about my virtue and surviving college. We’re waiting until marriage and then having kids, you know. She just wants me to be independent while also close to my mother as I learn how to run my own household.”

It sounds ridiculous if you have the whole context and Eddie rightfully bursts into laughter and doesn’t stop giggling for a while.

While Robin dramatically recounts their night, Stevie grabs three beers. He stopped being a drinker in general, but for a toast, he wants to do the stupid college age thing and cheers with beer. So, she hands them out and says: “To Robbie going to college! I’ll make your favorite for dinner tomorrow.”

“I’m keeping you to that,” Robin cheers, clicking her bottle against Stevie’s.

“I’ll do the dishes tomorrow,” Eddie offers with a smirk.

“You already do those,” Robin says, pushing him over after clicking her bottle to Eddie’s too. “But I won’t refuse.”

“And that will change when you move in,” Eddie assures her cheerfully.

“Booo,” Robin heckles, but she’s laughing too.

They’re all in high spirits, celebrating Robin going to college and likely moving in with them. She and Eddie drink a few more beers, while Stevie sticks with coke. They play a few card games and just have fun, talking deep into the night.

The last decision is one they all regret in the morning, as they all stumble through breakfast and out the door to work.

With the kids back at school, work is less eventful than over the break, but it gives Stevie and Robin a chance to walk through last night, analyzing their chances. As well as talking strategy when Robs goes home tomorrow, because Tuesdays is her standard night at their house.

And so the week goes on.

There is a slightly excited energy that lingers in the air after Robin getting accepted and slight anticipation of whether Robin’s parents will say yes. But overall life is normal. They’ve found a comfortable routine.

Though, on Friday, DnD night Stevie notices that all the kids behave slightly different. It’s not that obvious, but when they refer to him they only say Lady Stevie or just Stevie. It’s sweet, like they talked about and decided to do this little thing to make her more comfortable. Sometimes Stevie is overwhelmed with how much he loves these kids.

When he brings Will home, he softly says: “Mom and Hop think it’s sweet that you want to make sure Erica isn’t alone and having fun. They were cool.”

“Oh, ah, thanks,” Stevie awkwardly says, unsure how to act now that the elephant in the room has been pointed out, making her feel a little like a deer in headlights. While also wanting to be relieved that Joyce and Hopper at least don’t hate him.

“No problem,” Will replies as he slides out of the car. “Have a good night, Stevie,” he shuts the door and walks to the house.

So, Stevie just sits in the driveway for a second. Until that moment, she hadn’t realize that he send the ball rolling. It’s happening. He’s putting something in the world that is going to brew until he addresses it, whether to confirm or deny. It’s going to stay.

It’s a little terrifying, if she’s honest. And he decides in that driveway, that he is going to ignore this for a little while longer.

However, he can’t deny that it’s nice that everyone – including Joyce and Hopper – refer to him with Stevie the next movie night. Eddie and Robin notice too, sending her soft smiles and holding her tight as they all share their seat like usual.

Stevie feels really loved in that moment.

Then on the 13th of April, two weeks after Robin’s acceptance letter came in. She’s looking bouncier than normal, but she doesn’t say why until they’re all sitting around for dinner. Then, she raises her glass, making Stevie and Eddie pause.

“To me officially moving in,” Robin grins, looking as their blank faces morph into excitement as the message sink in.

“Holy shit!” Stevie yells, getting out to hug her, though Eddie beats him, nearly bowling Robin over as he exclaims: “Let’s fucking go, Robbie!”

The two of them basically hoist her on their shoulders like basketball players after a game, cheering like madmen, but none of them care. Robin is going to move in. They’re going to be living together, the three of them!

Robin and Stevie take Thursday off (to Keith’s chagrin). Robin has been putting all her stuff in boxes ever since she got the news, so it’s mostly driving between the houses and moving a little bit of furniture that will fit in their house.

There isn’t much that will fit, but Stevie – well, honestly, the two had Eddie install some book shelves the day before. Then they take a bunch of Robin’s pillows and her desk and desk chair, which they’re going to put in the guest room to replace the shitty one they found at the side of the road.

A lot of Robin’s possessions had already made their way over to the house, but now the final of her clothes and book collection also get moved.

When Stevie takes the last box, Robin just looks at her empty room and sighs: “It’s weird. I’ve lived here forever. And now it’s like a hull, like I’ve gutted myself. But not literally of course, but metaphorically. I suddenly sounded like a novel and that was weird, but I did also mean it. Am I making sense?”

“Yeah,” Stevie says, moving the box to one hand, so that he can put her other hand on Robbie’s shoulder.

“I am excited to leave,” she assures him. “It’s just weird.”

Stevie nods and gives her a moment. He didn’t feel very much when he left his house. Though, for him, her room never was a spot of comfort. Robin had a pretty okay relationship with her parents outside the gay-thing and the slight overbearing judgment, and they let her have free reign over her own space. Her room had been a safe space before she escaped to their house. For Stevie it was just finally leaving and having nothing to leave behind.

So, Stevie lets her say her goodbye and have a moment, not pointing out that she’s moving a fifteen minute drive away.

Then they unpack, which means that Robin fusses over her books and leaves Stevie to fit her clothes in the part of the closet that they have allocated to her. Then Stevie moves the old desk out, before putting the pieces of the desk Robin’s dad took apart in the guest room for Eddie to put together when he has the time.

When she’s done with that, she stands in the kitchen and crosses her arms and raises a judgy yet fond brow and asks: “Work hard there, Robs?”

She turns around, not even looking guilty as she grins: “The authors are grouped together and then it’s color coded.”

Her enthusiasm softens Stevie (who wasn’t mad in the first place) and he says: “It looks very nice.”

“I live here,” Robin tells him giddily, like she still can’t fully believe it. “This is our house. Like fully our house.”

“It is,” Stevie confirms, equally giddy.

They just stand in their living room grinning at each other, before Robin jumps in place and squeals, before grabbing Stevie’s hands and twirling him around. The two of them just jumping and spinning around as they laugh.

The moment is broken by Eddie coming in and asking: “Am I interrupting something?”

Stevie and Robin pause, then Robin lets Stevie go and bounces to Eddie as she screams: “I’ve moved in! We’re living together.”

“Yes, you did,” Eddie laughs, letting her drag him over to Stevie and pulling him into the celebratory jump circle.

At some point they’re all tired of the jumping, so they break off. Eddie gets a book tour from Robin, exclaiming excitedly when she has titles he wants to read but hasn’t gotten his hands on yet. Stevie just listens fondly to the two of them nerding out, while she makes dinner.

Eddie has set the table and Stevie is finishing up dinner when Wayne knocks at the door. Robin skips over and throws the door open, cheerfully greeting: “Hi, Wayne, welcome to our humble abode.”

Wayne looks bemused and replies: “Hello there, Robin. What’s got you in such a good mood?”

It’s only then that Stevie realizes: “We haven’t told anyone that Rob moved in.”

Indeed, Wayne’s eyes widen in surprise as the three share a look at their own stupidity in forgetting to share. They’ve just been so caught up in getting it done and getting Robin moved in as quick as they could that they haven’t thought to share the news.

“Well, congratulations,” Wayne breaks the silence, clapping Robin on her back as he walks by her into the house.

Stevie puts the pan of soup on the table and asks: “So are we just going to tell them? I think El and Max will be there tomorrow for DnD night too, we can just say that Robs moved in, right?”

“Dustin is going to have something to say about not telling him,” Eddie points out.

“Dustin will have plenty to say about it in general,” Stevie groans.

“I- I mean, he won’t if I- if I come out,” Robin says, sounding hesitant in the way she never does about her words.

“Are you sure, Robs?” Stevie asks. “Because I can deal with Dustin being nosy and a bit too invested if you’re not comfortable.”

“No- I mean, yeah. I want to. The kids are cool, I know that and now that I’m not longer dependent on my parents, the risk of it coming back isn’t really a problem, because they can’t kick me out and I don’t need them with my scholarship,” Robin says. “And as much as I like having girlfriend privileges, I want to be honest with them.”

“That’s great,” Stevie smiles. “I’m glad you feel comfortable and safe.”

“Hell yeah, Robbie,” Eddie grins.

“Thanks,” Robin blushes and ducks her head.

“That’s a really brave decision, I’m proud of you, kid,” Wayne says gently, oozing the parental comfort and acceptance and understanding all three of them can use so well. And indeed Robin beams at his words as she continues to eat.

Eddie suddenly gets up and runs to their bedroom, before coming back with the polaroid, pushing it into Wayne’s hand and demanding: “We have to document Rob’s first official night here.”

The three of them lean over the table, Robin in the middle, both Stevie and Eddie throwing an arm over her shoulders. There are big grins on their faces and they look a bit like idiots, but they don’t care, telling Wayne to take two. One for the fridge and one for the album.

When he’s done, Robin takes the pictures with a grin, writing on both of them: ‘Hawkins 16-4-‘87 Robin’s first night home’ before they go back to eating.

Once dinner is done, Robin washes the dishes, while Eddie and Wayne get some tools to put together the desk. Stevie tries to help with the dishes but Robin send her back to her chair, sternly stating: “You worked all day and you already cooked. You don’t need to be useful, so go sit, dingus.”

After a bit, the other two join him again and they set off in pleasant conversation. At some point Eddie goes out to smoke, but Stevie and Wayne decline. Stevie is trying to lessen his smoking, but he’s a bit surprised by Wayne declining, sending the man a questioning look.

“Stevie,” Wayne starts, surprising Stevie not just by the name but his tone too. Whatever he is going to say, it’s serious and Stevie feels his heart rate go up a bit.

“Yes?” she anxiously replies.

“Don’t worry,” Wayne soothes, hearing her tone. “I just want to tell you something and you don’t have to reply or you can tell me it’s none of my business or that I’m seeing this wrong, but just listen for a second, alright?”

“Yeah, alright,” Stevie squeaks, not entirely sure where this is going.

“Did you know I was in New York in 1969?” Wayne asks and Stevie shakes his head. “Well, I was. I had a boyfriend there, great guy, sorely missed.”

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Stevie whispers.

“Thank you, it’s too common,” Wayne replies, sounding deeply sad when he does. “I wasn’t at Stonewall where it started, but Eddie mentioned he told you two about it.”

“He did,” Stevie confirms.

“Well, so, I wasn’t there, but that spread like wildfire through the streets and I was right in the middle of it,” Wayne says. “I met all sorts of people there. Great people. People I didn’t know existed before then. Taught me a lot.”

Stevie isn’t sure where this is going, but she’s nodding along.

“Now, I notice when my nephew starts behaving different,” Wayne tells him and for a moment Stevie thinks Wayne thinks they’re dating and not telling him and she panics on how to not out Eddie as non-limerent if he hasn’t told his uncle while also denying it and not being weird about it, until Wayne continues: “So I notice when he changed how he spoke about you, kid.”

“Oh?” Stevie says thinly, swallowing harshly.

“And I’m sure he didn’t think when he asked me to grab something from your room while we were setting up the desk,” Wayne continues. “You have a nice vanity in there.”

She can feel her heart drop out of her body. Wayne has seen the pictures Stevie doesn’t want the whole world to see. Has seen Princess Dingus, Stevie posing in full makeup, Stevie half-asleep on Eddie’s chest.

Wayne knows.

He isn’t sure if the fear shows in his eyes as he freezes, but Wayne goes on: “Like I said, it might be none of my business, but if there is something you want to tell me, know that I’m here for you and I accept you. You’re family now, kid. Nothing is changing that.”

Of course. Wayne has been their biggest supporter, even in his silence. Their rock. An example that you can grow up and still be gay. Still be alright. He wouldn’t judge Stevie. Not for this.

The relief that courses through him brings tears to his eyes. She can’t stop them, they just start to fall, her shoulders shaking as she tries to gasp through them so that he can reply to Wayne, but it’s useless.

Luckily Wayne doesn’t seem to mind, moving to the chair next to Stevie and slinging an arm over his shoulders and pulling him close. He rubs Stevie’s arm and whispers: “It’s okay, kid. I’m here, just let it out.”

All of this, is noticed by Robin, who asks: “Is he okay?” as she cautiously moves closer, looking unsure of what to do.

Naturally, Eddie comes back from his smoke break too and sees the whole thing as well, mortifying Stevie more than she is already feeling.

Eddie rushes towards them and asks: “What happened here? I swear I was gone for five minutes. Are you okay, sweetheart?”

“I- I’m okay,” Stevie hiccups, wiping her eyes roughly, hoping that the tears will stop as she makes vague gestures to convey her okay-ness.

“I think Stevie here is a bit overwhelmed, that’s all,” Wayne assures the others as Stevie nods, confirming it.

He sees Eddie squatting in front of him, hand on her knee as he smiles up: “Okay, just take your time, Stevie.”

“We’re here,” Robin assures him too, hand on Stevie back.

Stevie takes a few shuddering breaths, gets herself under control and slowly wipes his tears away, before looking to Wayne. It’s still scary, but he goes on despite that and says: “My name is Stevie and I’m not a- a boy or- or a girl. I- I think I’m transsexual or transgender, I don’t know what’s the right word, but I know that I don’t want to be either,” he chuckles bitterly at that. “I’m fine with he and she, just- just don’t call me a man or woman or something.”

Eddie and Robin look flabbergasted at his coming out. Neither of them heard the conversation he had with Wayne before he started crying, so they’re stunned to silence.

Wayne, however, squeezes her arm and warmly says: “Thank you so much for trusting me with that, Stevie. I will try my damn hardest to make you comfortable. And you don’t need language to describe it to be respected, you hear me.”

“I do,” Stevie says softly, a small smile on her face.

That turns Eddie back on again, because he rushes to hug Stevie, hauling her out of his seat as Eddie twirls him around in the air. He exclaims: “Oh my god, Stevie! I’m so proud of you.” Yelling a bit, because he just seems to need to make some noise at what just happened.

Once Stevie’s feet touch the ground again, Robin is hugging her and rocking her feet, obviously excited for him as she also tells him how proud she is.

While Robin is hugging her, Stevie sees Wayne placing a hand on Eddie’s shoulder and softly tell him: “I know you didn’t mean to, but you got careless in allowing people in your room, kid. If it was someone else who saw that mirror, tonight could have been very different.”

Color drains from Eddie’s eyes as he realizes how his uncle knew to start a conversation with Stevie, so when Robin lets go, he immediately comes up to Stevie, remorse obvious in his face as he says: “I’m so so sorry, Stevie. I- I could have hurt you. I didn’t think. I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Stevie shrugs, not mad.

“You don’t have to forgive me like that, Stevie,” Eddie says. “I know it was stupid. You don’t have to take my feelings into account. You’re allowed to be upset.”

Stevie knows Eddie wants her to think about this, so she does, before she repeats: “It’s okay. I’m not mad. Sure, you slipped up, but that could have happened to anyone. And I know you’ll think about it in the future and that you’re sorry. It’s okay.”

“You sure?” Eddie checks.

“I am,” Stevie replies.

“Thank you, princess,” Eddie smiles, hugging Stevie again. It’s an apology hug, but Stevie isn’t going to call him out, because he likes getting hugged no matter the reason.

Stevie feels great that evening. He’s come out to someone again and it went well. Wayne knows her fully now and that’s nice. It gives him hope for the future, for different reactions. He isn’t ready to tell the kids yet, but feels that when she does, it’ll go well. For now, he just has another person he doesn’t have to take into account when dressing herself.

At some point Wayne does have to go to work, but he hugs Stevie tightly before he goes and ruffles her hair.

He’s practically floating the rest of the evening. Both Eddie and Robin give him fond smirks, but neither of them comment on his mood, happy to let him have this without teasing.

However, good moods can’t always save you from your own mind and before long Stevie finds herself upright in bed gasping around a dying scream. In her mind’s eye the scene of Eddie bleeding out while Dustin accuses him of not being there, of not doing enough still plays.

Fortunately, Eddie is right there, rubbing Stevie’s back as he whispers: “It’s okay, sweetheart. It’s okay. You’re alright. It was just a dream. Just a dream.”

Stevie clings to him, tears falling down her face as she gasps: “You- You died and I- I wasn’t on time and I-”

She breaks down into sobs again as Eddie holds her tighter, rocking her gently back and forth as he whispers more soothing comforts. Robin has also woken up and is rubbing his back, always unsure of what to say in these moments, but happy to let Stevie know she’s there and alright.

So, Stevie grabs her other hand and clings to it, slowly trying to fight the tears and come down from the spike of terror.

Once he has stopped crying and is breathing normally again, Eddie suggests: “How about I make us some hot chocolate, how does that sound?”

“That sounds nice,” Stevie whispers.

“Alright, then I’ll get on that, you and Robs follow when you feel up to it, okay?” Eddie tells her gently.

“No, we’ll go,” Stevie says, panicking slightly at the idea of Eddie being out of sight after he watched him die in his dream.

“Okay,” Eddie nods, no judgment in his voice, only understanding.

“Come on, dingus, hot chocolate awaits,” Robin says, bouncing off the bed and offering Stevie her hand to pull her with her.

He gladly lets her pull him up, only to be surprised by Eddie coming up behind and throwing him over his shoulder. She yelps, getting startled, but the disorientation distracts her from getting scared as she figures out what just happened. When she does, he rolls his eyes and whines: “Eddieee.”

“We’re going on an adventure!” Eddie exclaims back, ignoring him as he walks to the kitchen with her slung over is shoulder.

Robin only giggles at his misery and doesn’t help at all. Quite the opposite, she just slaps his ass then skips away, chanting: “Hot chocolate! Hot chocolate! Hot chocolate!”

“You’re both the worst,” Stevie complains, but the grin on his face bleeds into his voice and Eddie and Robin can hear it.

Eddie is gentle with her when he ploinks her down on a chair, kissing her forehead, before going to the stove and pulling out what he needs to make hot chocolate.

Stevie just watches Eddie move around the kitchen, seeing him as lively as ever, breathing, humming and stirring dramatically. Robin’s head is leaning on his shoulder, acting as a comforting weight and grounding him.

Slowly, the last dredges of fear leave her as she leans into the soothing warmth of the kitchen, where a gentle atmosphere is created by the low lights, the smell of chocolate and the sounds of the night and his soulmates.

Soon, Eddie is sitting down with three cups of hot chocolate.

Robin attacks hers, humming happily as she takes a sip, before she burns her tongue. Eddie laughs at her and impishly scolds her for being impatient. Stevie only smiles and blows on his own hot chocolate, never a much of a talker after a nightmare.

Neither Robin nor Eddie mind and they fill the air together, discussing if Robin needs to make her coming out to the kids serious or funny, and then what the funniest way would be.

When the hot chocolate is gone, Eddie asks: “You think you can fall asleep again, sweetheart?”

Stevie is honestly feeling pretty tired again, her eyelids feeling heavy and her head slow. So, she nods: “Yeah, think so.”

“That’s good.”

They make their way back to bed and get comfortable. Eddie’s warmth is reassuring, while Robin’s grip is a comforting presence. Without them, Stevie is sure he would have paced the whole night, getting the nail bat that he has finally managed to leave in the closet.

“Thank you,” she softly says, snuggling closer into the mattress as her eyes slip close.

“Course,” Robin replies, squeezing his hand.

“Always,” Eddie assures him, nuzzling in her neck.

And with that, Stevie drifts off into the darkness. She doesn’t get the most restful sleep, consciousness staying close to the surface, but it’s better than nothing.

Still, it means that he’s a little tired for the rest of the day. He whines when the alarm goes off, wanting to disappear, while he’s usually up and chipper. That alerts Eddie to his mood – as well as Robin even if she hasn’t lived there for longer than a day, but she knows him. Soulmate bond. But it’s Eddie, who cards a hand through her hair and whispers: “Take a couple extra minutes, sweetheart. I’ll do breakfast.”

“Hggn, I love you, my hero,” Stevie mumbles, hiding her face back in the pillows as Eddie chuckles a soft: “Love you too, princess,” before his warmth disappears from the bed.

Stevie doesn’t fall back to sleep, but lays there, snorting as Robin whispers: “You think Keith will be mad if we stay here?”

“Probably,” Stevie says, opening one eye. “But I think we can take Keith.”

They’re just about to make a pact to stay in bed and where they could hide Keith’s body if he came for them and their job, when Eddie calls out: “I have coffee, chop chop!”

Both of them groan, before rolling out of bed, neither of them bothering beyond a hand through their hair, looking a mess.

Eddie laughs at them, which earns him glares, however, he is forgiven when he hands them mugs of coffee. Only to be immediately hated again when he picks up the polaroid camera they left there the night before and snaps a picture of Stevie and Robin next to each other, both looking at the lens with sleepy glares and massive bed hair.

“This is just beautiful,” Eddie exclaims cheerfully, ignoring their hate in favor of writing: ‘Hawkins 17-7-‘87 Robbie’s first official morning’ with a flourish and sticking it on the fridge, which is already a huge collage.

“This is homophobic,” Robin complains.

“I’m also gay, Robs,” Eddie rolls his eyes.

“Then it’s transphobic,” Stevie backs her up.

“You’re both being dramatic,” Eddie tells them. “I have breakfast for you and this is how you treat me?”

The breakfast in question is a bowl of cereal, but Robin and Stevie take it gratefully, because they’re tired and once they see it, the photo is pretty funny.

When they get dressed, Stevie is craving comfort. Agonizing in front of the closet to find something work appropriate that’ll also make her feel good about herself.

Robin is running around trying to find where Stevie stored her clothes, but Eddie is quick, having slid into his overalls and one of his dirty work shirt. So, he notices Stevie looking and asks: “Are you okay there, sweetheart?”

“I- I-” Stevie struggles, hating how something like this can decentralize him, because his voice wobbles a bit as he says: “I don’t know what to wear.”

And both Eddie and Robin love to tease Stevie for how much effort he puts into her look, however they also know that sometimes it’s sensitive for him. Luckily, Eddie picks up that it’s sensitive now, so he just nods understandingly and asks: “Do you know what you don’t want to wear?”

“Uhm, a- a polo?” Stevie suggest, wiping unshed tears away.

Behind them, Robins stumbles as she pulls on pants, brow furrowed as she asks: “Are you okay there, dingus?”

“I got him,” Eddie assures her.

Stevie nods and give her a tight smile, turning back to her closet. Eddie also turns his attention back to Stevie’s clothing crisis. Removing polo’s removes quite a bit of Stevie’s choice, but Stevie still doesn’t know what else to pull out.

“How about pants first and going from there,” Eddie suggests gently, when Stevie stays quiet, knowing that Stevie has a few pants he always wears to work.

“Pants, pants,” Stevie repeats, going through his pile and finally deciding on a light-wash pair of jeans that she often wears.

“Hell yeah,” Eddie says, taking them as he asks: “Sweater or shirt? Robs what’s the weather like in Family Video?”

Robin laughs at his wording, before replying: “I’m wearing a shirt, but taking a jacket. Keith loves his AC. But Stevie runs hot. My personal furnace.”

“You only love me for my body,” Stevie pouts, feeling more grounded as his friends talk him through picking clothes. It should honestly be a bit weird, but they’re already too close for normal friends, so Stevie doesn’t care.

“Noo, Stevie, you means so much more to me,” Robin says, dramatically falling against him, only the muscle memory catching her. “Like your money.”

“We work the same job, moron,” Stevie laughs, feeling fully relaxed now.

“Yeah, but you pull off the minimum wage better,” Robin cheekily grins, before pulling out two of her own shirts. They’re same style, but different colors. One is a light blue and the other a soft yellow. She hands the yellow one to Stevie and says: “Here, we can match.”

The shirt feels soft under his hands. It isn’t very feminine, but it’s Robin’s and Robin wears comfy clothes and this one was bought with her mom, so the neckline is a bit more girly, but since it’s Robin’s, it isn’t too obvious.

All in all, it’s perfect.

He grins, rubbing the material between her fingers gently, before slipping it on, smoothing it over her chest, before softly saying: “Thanks.”

“Course,” Robin smiles back. “Now go do your hair, Coifty McCoifterson. You’re my ride.”

“Blah, blah,” Stevie says, plucking his pants out of Eddie’s hands and hurrying to the bathroom to do her hair as fast as she can, doing a softer version of what Robin did when they had their first makeup evening.

Then, they’re all off to work, singing along to the radio and clocking in with soft resistance. Adult life is truly something, Robin commenting: “I don’t love school, but going back again for a bit will be nice.”

“Better you than me,” Stevie says.

“You never wanna go?” Robin asks.

“Maybe if I find something I’m passionate about,” Stevie shrugs. “But I was never really made for school, you know. I don’t mind doing what I do now and honestly, doing school again sounds terrible.”

Robin is quiet for a second, then nods: “Yeah, okay, I get that.”

Stevie still feels the nightmare throughout the day, but it fades over time and by the time they’re clocking out, she feels much better and centered. Sliding into the car and driving to pick up the kids he was meant to.

Eddie is off a little earlier today, so he’s already home with his chunk of the kids, who are already at the point that they just make themselves at home.

El and Max are also there, Stevie notes happily that they’re talking with Erica, leaning over a magazine and giggling, before Erica gets dragged into a discussion between Lucas and Dustin, who have just entered with Stevie and Robin.

They also picked up Mike and Will, who have been talking the whole drive and just continue on. It is nice to see that Mike isn’t just making moves as a rebound from El, a split that went very amiable despite Mike’s dramatics. But Stevie sees that Mike is making an effort to get closer to Will. And Will is soaking up the attention. It’s cute.

But they don’t get to chat for long, once Stevie and Robin have arrived with the rest of the gang, Eddie quickly demands everyone’s attention and they get back to their game.

Stevie is slowly getting the hang of playing Lady Stevie. It’s a lot of fun, actually. The character she’s created has just broken free from her family, so she’s trying all sorts of new things, meaning Stevie can do so as well.

She is a badass in fights and she has anger for many things. But there is a little innocence and wonder to her that Stevie really enjoys, because it’s something he doesn’t experience often. A thing that was taken from him. This is like reclaiming that.

It’s also nice to play more with Erica.

When Stevie made his first character, it was to back up Dustin and it has been a lot of fun to play alongside Dustin. However, Erica is also a ground fighter and Stevie can help give her sneak attacks and have fun role playing moments.

He can back her up now, like he couldn’t when they were fighting Vecna. He can be here for her emotionally. Make her feel less alone. And that feels good.

The campaign itself is also amazing. For all Eddie complained that he had little time to prepare, the story he’s weaving has already captivated them all and the way he has expanded the world gives them so much new stuff to explore.

It’s also so much fun how he incorporated their old characters back into the lore and how the world now interacts with Lady Applejack. Eddie truly is a master at this. Stevie wonders if he ever thought about writing a book.

Robin has changed into pajamas and is reading on the couch, leaning against Eddie, since she can see the campaign notes without spoiling it, because she’s not playing.

El and Max have taken over the kitchen table and are making bracelets with pop and snap beads. It is a tactile thing and therefore easier on Max’s eyes and El loves making pretty things, so they’re as happy as can be.

At some point, Eddie realizes he has forgotten a figurine and curses, not wanting to dislodge Robin, who has fallen asleep. Apologetically he asks: “Can you grab this box of figurines, princess? They were on the old desk, but I think they’re in ou- your room now.”

“Yeah, sure,” Stevie smiles, starting to get up as Will offers: “I don’t mind getting them.”

Eddie freezes a bit, likely remembering what happened yesterday, but Stevie just assures Will: “I don’t mind,” and hopes nobody noticed them both tensing.

The door to their room is locked, something they’ve gotten more lax about in the past few months, but as Stevie expected, Eddie scared himself a bit with what happened with Wayne and is back on high alert. The thoughtfulness makes her smile.

When he returns, he gives Eddie the box and calls the pizza place as Eddie roots around for the figurine he needs. Fridays are always a little expensive, but neither Eddie nor Stevie mind. They’d do a lot more for the kids.

They asked Robin about it, but Robs just shrugged: “They’re part of the soulmate package, I knew that when I signed on. Besides, they’ve grown on me. But you can’t tell them that. I swear all of them are equally insufferable and they all get it from you two.”

And it is when the pizza’s have arrived that someone finally notes that Robin is now a permanent resident of the house.

Naturally that person is Dustin, who goes to grab more to drink when he sees the new pictures on the fridge. He shrieks: “Robin moved in? And you didn’t tell us?”

“Uhm, yeah, she did,” Stevie says a bit awkward at the intensity. “It was a bit short notice and it kind of slipped everyone’s mind.”

“To be fair to us, she only moved in yesterday,” Eddie adds.

Hell breaks loose for a little as all the twerps let them know they don’t appreciate being left out of the change and that they should have said something when they got there. Then they also congratulate them on it, of course.

As the three of them predicted, Dustin muses out loud: “Aren’t you supposed to get married before you move in together?”

Robin rolls her eyes and says: “Me and Stevie are never getting married, dingus Junior. And you don’t have to worry about unplanned pregnancies either.”

A few of the kids gag at the image of Stevie and Robin having sex, but Dustin frowns: “Why? Did you two break up? Did something happen? You seem friendly with each other. Hell, Robin moved in. So why?”

Stevie will never admit it, but she’s touched by Dustin’s concern.

However, she’s currently more focused on Robin, who takes a deep steadying breath (no matter how confident you are in a reaction, it’s still scary) then says: “Because I’m a lesbian. Stevie here is acting as my beard.”

At this point, the kids are pros at reacting to someone coming out as their friend group slowly turns more queer. So, they all ensure her that they’re accepting and proud of her, thanking her for trusting them with that.

“Thanks for being cool, you guys,” she smiles. “Also, I don’t care if you tell Joyce or Hopper and Jonathan and Nancy, but try not to go around town telling people. I know you won’t, but my parents aren’t very cool, hence the me and Stevie dating story. We’re keeping that up.”

They all nod very seriously, promising they won’t tell anyone outside their Upside Down group, some even making ‘my lips are sealed’- gestures.

Then Dustin suddenly exclaims: “You never had girlfriend privileges!” earning more squawks from those who had been overruled by Robin, who cited girlfriend privileges.

But Robin just sticks out her tongue and says: “I have soulmate privileges, you little shitheads. So, you don’t have anything on me. Hah!”

“Oi, if we’re doing soulmate privileges, I wanna cash in too!” Eddie buds in. “This whole thing is unfair otherwise.”

“Fine by me,” Robin shrugs, turning to Stevie.

Stevie just rubs his brow and sighs: “Sure, if that makes you two happy, go nuts.”

Eddie and Robin cheer while Dustin pouts that it’s unfair and Erica tries to start child privilege, which catches on quickly between them until they’re all chanting.

“God, all of you stop,” Stevie rolls her eyes, laughing slightly. “All of you get privileges, therefore none of you really do. Now shut up and eat you pizza.”

That does the trick and they’re all quiet for a second, before El asks: “What is a beard? I thought it was hair that grows on a person’s chin, but you used it differently. What did you mean?”

“Oh, it’s- you know how me and Stevie are pretending to date in front of everyone, so they don’t question our sexuality as anything other than straight?” Robin asks and El nods. “Well, that is being someone’s beard. Pretending to date to hide sexuality. It’s a slang term, mostly used by queer people.”

El nods seriously: “That does make sense. Thank you.”

Everyone is quiet again, before – surprisingly – Will breaks it, by stuttering: “Uhm, this- you don’t have to- You have two bedrooms?”

“We platonically sleep in the same bed,” Stevie shrugs.

“Stevie runs hot and I get cold,” Robin adds.

“Oh, okay,” Will says, sounding a little disappointed, which makes Stevie frown.

“Why?” he asks, unable to help her curiosity in what’s bothering Will.

“It’s- It’s a bit stupid,” Will deflects, cheeks pinkening.

“You don’t have to share,” Stevie assures him, still feeling curious, but not wanting to push Will when it looks like something small.

“For a moment, I thought you and Eddie might be together,” Will admits softly. “You’re just very close and he always calls you sweetheart or princess, so I guess my mind went there, but I guess not if you’re sharing with Robin, right?”

“I mean, I also sleep there,” Eddie pipes in, all eyes whipping to them, because the group is following the whole thing closely.

“You do?” Lucas asks.

“Yeah,” Eddie shrugs. “Like Robbie says, Stevie runs hot and it gets cold out here.”

“Then why is one room decorated by you and very Eddie?” Max asks.

“To keep up appearances to people, not that anyone ever comes to visit, but just in case,” Eddie shrugs and Stevie is glad he’s leading the conversation now.

“So you and Stevie are dating?” Erica asks.

“No, as much as I love my princess, I’m afraid not,” Eddie shrugs with a grin.

“He didn’t love you back?” El gasps.

The comment makes Eddie snort and shake his head, laughing: “No, no, not like that. I am just non-limerent. I can’t.”

“You can’t?” Dustin asks as a confused El repeats: “Non-limerent?”

“It’s not a well known term outside involved queer spaces,” Eddie assures them. “It means I don’t develop romantic attraction to people. So no romance novel stories for me.”

“But I thought you were gay,” Will frowns and for a second Stevie is scared it’ll be a repeat of the DnD game when the kids found out he was ‘dating’ Robin.

However, they have all grown as people and Eddie stubs that in before it can grow as he grins: “Non-limerent is about romantic attraction, I said nothing about sexual. And trust me when I say I experience plenty of sexual attraction, very homosexual sexual attraction.”

“Iew!” “Ahw, gross man!” “I don’t want to think about you fucking anyone!” the kids exclaim as they gag, the whole atmosphere in the room lightening up again.

Will checks: “Is that something we can mention to people who already know you’re gay or something you like to keep to yourself?”

Eddie shrugs; “I don’t mind the people who already know, knowing. I usually don’t mention it, because it gets tiring to explain it. But if you want to talk to your mom or someone about it, go nuts. I don’t care.”

“Okay, cool,” Will nods, then he seems to remember something, because he gets the bag he brought and gets out a stack of paper, giving it to Stevie as he says: “I have the zines you lend me last time. Thanks for letting me borrow them.”

“Ah, thanks!” Stevie takes them back. “You want a couple of other ones to take with you? We’ve got quite the selection.”

“That would be nice,” Will says shyly.

“What are those?” Dustin asks curiously.

“Zines,” Stevie answers, Robin adding as explanation: “They’re homemade and self-published magazines about things that don’t really get printed in the normal press. You know how society gets about certain topics. We have a friend in the city, who sends up queer zines so we’re in the loop of what’s happening in the community.”

“Can non-gay people read them?” Lucas asks.

“Sure,” Eddie confirms easily.

“Can I borrow one?” Lucas asks.

None of them inquire about his sudden interest. Luckily he doesn’t stay singled out with Dustin jumping on it too, since it’s his new years resolution and he is genuinely interested in being there for his friends. With it being okay, Mike also asks for one, a bit softer. Max also wants to check one out, while El and Erica both say they’ll lend them from their siblings.

“I’ll go grab ‘em real quick,” Stevie says, returning to their room and looking through the stack, one of her first additions to her shelve. It is out of sight here, of course, their living room made acceptable for unexpected, unaccepting visitors.

Stevie is careful in his selection, picking pieces he thinks the kids will be interested in based on what she’s seen.

For Will, he grabs a few of the latest ones, since he just wants to be updated. Though he makes sure to put one in that had more about being non-limerent, since El always wants to learn new words and Will wants to know more about queerness in general.

But for Mike she picks one with a few articles about bisexuality and how to navigate that. The boy hasn’t said it in as many words, but it’s obvious on his mind and he is the kind of person who would feel more comfortable reading than talking about it.

In the Sinclair pile he puts pieces with general glossaries, not sure where Lucas lies exactly and what he is looking for when asking for it. Maybe it’s curiosity, maybe something more. Whatever it is, Stevie wants him to find it. But there are also a few that focus on women’s issues, because Erica will be reading them too.

The same type is added for Max, though she makes sure the ones for her are easy to see and have pictures, not wanting to frustrate her when she can’t read it.

On Dustin’s pile, he adds one with an article relating to Star Wars and gender, as well as one focusing on allyship that’s in there. Plus a few more general overview types they have.

He returns back to the group, handing all of them their pile and telling them to be careful with them and that she wants them back in one piece. Adding: “If you think you’re parents might destroy them if they find them, make sure to hide them away. Don’t take them to school to hide there. Do you all understand?”

All of them nod silently and solemnly.

Dustin breaks it, saying: “Every time I’m reminded that not everyone is cool, it sucks. You guys shouldn’t have to deal with that.”

“I know,” Eddie smiles sadly, ruffling Dustin’s hair. Then turns his voice dramatic and more fun as he exclaims: “But now, we shall feast on the remnants of our pizza and return back to our adventure!”

That cheers all of them up again. It’s a talent Eddie has. He can make anyone feel welcome and change the atmosphere in any room he’s in. Stevie thinks that’s what makes him such a good DM and performer.

Indeed, despite all the revelations about the relations between Eddie, Robin and Stevie, everyone gets absorbed into the story again, completely forgetting about it. They all have fun, whining when they have to go back home again.

However, parents expect their kids, all of them having a curfew, especially Erica, the youngest of them all.

So, Eddie takes the Sinclairs and Mike and Dustin, while Stevie drives Will, El and Max home when they’re done.

As is customary, Joyce is waiting in the doorway for her kids, this time joined by Hopper who is smoking on the porch and keeping her company. He extinguishes the stub when the car rolls in the driveway and Stevie watches fondly as the two race to the door after saying their goodbyes, hugging their parents.

After everything that happened to them, these people truly deserve to have their happy family. At that moment, Joyce calls out: “Don’t forget to come to the movie night tomorrow! Say hi to Robin and Eddie from us.”

“I will,” Stevie yells back, waving as he drives off. She is starting to get comfortable with the idea that she deserves to belong to the same happy family.

When she gets home, Robin is on the phone. He raises a brow and Robin answers: “It’s Joyce, apparently it’s customary to tell people about life changes. I’m getting my scolding now, but you and Eddie are getting it tomorrow.”

“Tell her I’m sorry and plead for my mercy,” Stevie requests with a grin, before going to change into pajamas, the good mood after tonight not leaving.

Later Joyce also tells Robin how proud they all are that she came out, which makes her cry a little, but that’s okay. At this point all of them have cried a bit about Joyce’s easy and loving acceptance of them. It’s a badge of belonging.

They have people now that they are slowly letting into their life. Opening up about how they live and who they are. And every time they’re being met with love. It’s beyond their wildest dreams and makes them hopeful for the future.

Stevie will come out fully at some point, he knows that. It’s just a matter of hyping himself up at this point.

All in all, life is really, really good.

~~

A/N:

The fact that I’ve managed to keep a consistent timeline throughout this fic is something I’m very proud of y’all.

Btw, I imagine Lady Stevie a bit as Adora just broken free from the hoard, you know?

Also im assuring you now, next chapter won’t be: and it all goes down the drain, pinky promise!

[lenaswritingandstuff]

Losing Game [Antoine Griezmann x fem!OC] (Chap. V)

Requested: No​

Pairing: Antoine Griezmann x OC!Gabrielle Darian; more to be added.

Warnings: English is not my first language!

Wordcount: 3.5K+

A/N: LMAO I got confused with latin numbers while editing the last chapter and I put 9 instead of 4, SORRY!! Therefore this is the fifht chapter. Thank you for still reading! GIF IS NOT MINE. Enjoy!

Previous chapter

When I wake up, Louisa is already up, sitting in the kitchen with her eyes focused on a lesson. We both have finals today, and to say we’re stressed wouldn’t do it justice. She raises her head towards me and smiles to me, and then puts her attention back on her paper. I’m not really hungry but I force myself to eat something with my coffee, so I don’t pass out during the final. Louisa goes to the bathroom to get dressed up, and she comes back when I’m done eating and reading today’s news. She walks to the entrance to leave but I call her back.

“Lou’, wait!”

I gesture her to come back in the living room.

“You’re gonna nail it, okay? You’re the smartest girl I know, and you will succeed. I have the utmost faith in you. Okay?”

She hugs me tight and I think for a second that she’s gonna start crying.

“Thanks, honey. You’re gonna nail it too, I’m sure.”

We separate, and she leaves. I quickly get ready, and then leave too. The finals take place in a college for obvious reasons, but since I never went to it – and knowing me – it’s very possible for me to get lost. I leave early to arrive early. We never know.  After thirty-five minutes, I get in a parking lot and I see a building with a lot of windows. I check the time, and see that I’m thirty minutes early, and also see that I’ve got a message from my maternal grandmother, Marguerite.

“Hello sweetie, I hope you’re well. I wish you good luck for your finals, I’m sure you will do well. Love you.”

Her message really touches me. My grandma and I have always been close, and I would always go on vacation to her place in Nice, in the South, during summer break when my mother wanted to basically get rid of me. Not a word from my parents nor my brother, but I expected it. My mother must think I’ll fail – that’s if she even knows my finals are today – and my father would be able to tell which course I took. As for Noah, I can’t recall the last time he said a nice thing to me. My level of stress raises up, if it’s possible, and I take the time I have left to study one last time. I send a last message of encouragement to Louisa, answers my grandma, and then it’s time to go. I enter the college’s courtyard and follow the signs that indicate where I’m supposed to go. People around me seem rather calm – how? – even though I see some worried faces. The subjects are given I pray the God of Studies that it doesn’t go too bad for me. After making a draft, I write my essay, and I’m surprised to see that I have finished fifteen minutes early. I put my work on the wooden desk like the others and leave the room, which leads outside. It feels good to have some fresh air. I search for my phone in my bag when I feel a small paper touch my fingers. I take it out and observe the number and the letter – a simple “A.” – written on it for a while, and then I do something I never thought I’d do.

“Hi, it’s Gabrielle, I hope you’re good – and that you still remember me. We could decide on a day to see each other if you’d like?”

I send the message, praying not to look like an idiot. I stay here thinking about a potential answer when I notice some students walking to another room. I check the time and see that it’s already time to go. I’ve never been good in Linguistic class – heaven knows I tried to study it hard to get better – and I have to stop myself from laughing when I see the questions of the finals. I do my best to focus but having the face of a certain football player on my mind instead of my classes doesn’t not freaking help. I let out a sigh, and when I raise my head up to drink some water, seeing the other student write long answers makes me want to scream. After an hour, I finally give up and give back my final. I quickly walk to the door, and I barely have a foot out of the room that my phone is already in my hand. I hesitate to look at it to see if he has answered and look at the black screen for a moment. Oh, screw it. I turn it on and see I’ve got two messages. The first one is from my mother, who orders me to come work this week-end. The second is from the contact I saved right before the final.

“It would be my pleasure, just tell me which me days suits you :) ."

“IP.S: I don’t know how I could forget about you.”

I jump around and let out a small scream of joy without realizing it and I look around to make sure nobody saw me. That’s the kind of behavior my mother hates. I get a message from Louisa telling me she’s waiting for me in front the college’s main entrance, and I walk to her. I see her from afar.

“Oh my God, Gaby, it was hell!” she exclaims. “I don’t even know how that teacher could think of that kind of questions, he really is a- What is that smile for? No, wait, don’t tell me,” she says before I can answer, “We’ll find a place to eat, you’ll tell me there.

“Alright.”

We easily find a little place to eat, we order and Louisa leans towards me with a curious look in her eyes.

“So, what caused that idiotic smile on your face?” she asks.

Without a word, I take out my phone and put it in front of her. She looks at it, frowning, and then looks back at me, shocked.

“No way!”

“I know.”

“You finally decided to move that ass,” she says with a satisfied smile. “How come?”

“I don’t know,” I answer honestly. “I found his number in my bag, and send him a message without thinking.”

“You were right to do so. What are you waiting for? Answer him!”

I answer Antoine that I’m free on Thursday night – since I don’t have any final on Friday, a true miracle – if it works for him too. The waiter gives us our orders when I get a message from Antoine. Hell, do this boy ever work? He says that Thursday is “perfect” and that he can’t wait. I show it to Louisa, who does a little dance of joy and excitement.

“He’s so into you,” she says. “And if you tell me he’s just being polite, I swear I’ll stab you right here right now.”

We laugh and then Louisa suddenly gives me a serious look.

“You’ve got a date.

“I’ve got a date.” I repeat, looking at nothing in particular.

I’ve got a date.

*-*

“How did it go?” Louisa asks the moment I get home from work.

I take off my shoes and my jacket.

“Not too bad,” I say, joining her in the living-room.

It’s a lie. My last final of the year did not exactly go as planned, mostly because my brain was actually thinking about a certain tricker with blue eyes – and the date night ahead of us – instead of thinking about the paper in front of me. As for Louisa, she has had her last final the day before, and was now spending her free time making me try different outfits for my future date, but I didn’t like any of them so far – and neither did Louisa. I should feel relieved that my finals are over, but the stress of the exams switched into stress about my date. One could wonder if I’ll be one day in peace.

I sit on the sofa besides Louisa and we talk while watching something a bit idiotic on TV. She tells me she already has started to search for a job this summer – maybe even longer than that, because even if her parents pay most of her expenses, she’d like to be independent – just like I do. I promise her to talk about it to my mother tomorrow, maybe the company is looking for interns. She thanks me, and then proposes we go on vacation, either in the South of France – where my grandmother lives – or even in another country.

“It seems like a good idea to me,” she says. “But we’ll have to look the date of the Word Cup Final, if the Bleus go so far into the competition,” she ads in a teasing tone.

“You mean if-”

“If you and Griezmann start a great love story, yes,” she laughs.

I roll my eyes and decide to back to the vacation topic. Louisa doesn’t know that Antoine and I have been talking via messages basically every day since I send him that message and have been calling each other several times. And what she also doesn’t know is that after only a few days, I feel like I’ve known Antoine since, like, years.

“I’m gonna have to ask my mother,” I say. “But we know how she is.”

My mother rules almost everything that happen inside the company, including the employees’ vacation – and even the things that she doesn’t decide must be approved by her before putting in place. When we see the list of the things that depends on her, you could wonder how could my father and my brother be possibly useful.

“Since you work there, you’ve taken vacation once. You deserve to get some rest.”

“Well, let’s hope my mother agrees with you. I already ask her for some days off for the exams, I doubt she’ll accept to give me a vacation.”

The moment where I think it’s a lost cause, I get a message from Antoine asking me how did my final go.

*-*

When I leave to work the day after, Louisa is still sleeping. I’m afraid I’ll arrive late because of traffic – which would take away the already slim chances I have for my mother to give me some vacation – but it would seem that miracles happen, because I manage to arrive in time. I pass the front door and walk to the reception secretary.

“Good morning, Miss Gabrielle, she says. “It’s good to see you here.”

“Happy to be here,” I answer. “Is my mother here?”

“Yes,”

“Do you mind calling her to ask her if I can meet her in her office?” I ask. “I need to talk to her.”

It’s better to use the “official way” and arrive with a head down than to just go for it.

“Of course. Is it urgent?”

“No,” I say, “but I’d like for this to be settled quickly.”

“Your mother has an appointment right now but as soon as it’s over I’ll call her and I’ll let you know what she said.”

“Thanks a lot.”

I’m heading for the fourth floor, thinking that my mother will probably refuse to see me and tell me to ask for what I want via her assistant. I say “hi” to my coworkers, who ask how the finals went, and when I come near my desk I see a little note telling me I’m in charge of organizing the next gala, and that I got an email will the information I might need. Oh, kill me. But weirdly, the note is not from my mother or even my father, but from my brother. I let out a sigh and decide to start working on it immediately. The sooner it’s done the better. I quickly answer a text from Antoine and sit behind my desk. Like last time, I decide from an appropriate – and cheap, obviously – place for the gala – and then pick a caterer. I start to write the invites for guests I haven’t picked yet – and by “I” I mean “my mother” – when I receive a call from the reception secretary, who tells me I can go see my mother anytime I like. Well, that’s a first. I thank her and use the elevator to go on the last floor of the building. Walking near my brother’s office, I hear giggles behind the door, which opens at the moment I walk pass it. My brother appears, a blonde girl – another one – following him closely. They are both wearing a jacket and she has her purse. Apparently they’re planning on going for a walk.

“Oh, hey there,” my brother says, giving me a big smile.

Is he high or something?

He walks in my direction and his new girlfriend smiles at me too.

“What’s up?” my brother asks. “That’s my little sister,” he adds to the blonde.

“Oh, nice to meet you.”

“You too,” I say politely.

“What brings you on this floor?” he asks me. “It’s rare to see here.”

“I have to ask our mother for something,” I say, a bit in a defensive spirit.

“I’ll wait for you outside, Noah,” the young woman tells him. “It was nice to meet you.”

Another girl who won’t know that my brother will have a new girl in his bed in three days.

“Do our parents know you’re brining girls here?” I ask once the girl got in the elevator.

I include our father in my question, as he already scolded Noah for having one of his dates come here when he was supposed to be working. It was one of the rare times where I saw my father disagree with my mother with it came to Noah. My brother put his hand on his neck, feeling a bit awkward.

“Hum, nah, not really. But since you’re in charge of the next gala, I don’t think my presence here is necessary. You did a good job last time, there’s no reason why it should be different this time.”

I think that’s the first compliment I’ve heard from him in at least five years. I’m so taken back that I don’t know what to say.

“Well, I shouldn’t make Lea wait. See ya, sis.”

He gives me a shy smile and heads for the elevator. What do I do now? Watching him leave, I wonder if he expects me not to tell our parents about his little evasion – if we consider they would scold him if they knew. A bit confused, I walk to my mother’s office, where her assistant let my mother know I’m here.

“You can come in.”

I push the door and I’m surprised to see that my mother isn’t alone. Sat behind her desk, she’s turned towards my father, standing on her left, his hands on the desk.

“Hello, Gabrielle,” my father tells me with a small smile. “You look great.”

I nod, and my mother barely looks at me.

“What is it now?” she asks, finally looking at me.

“I’d like to talk about my vacation,” I say, trying to ignore the self-confidence leaving my body.

My mother remains silent and raise an eyebrow to tell me to continue.

“Well, I’d like for us to determine when I can have them.”

“No problem,” my father says. “How many weeks?”

I’ll admit I didn’t think of that one. Louisa and I talked about destinations, not how much time we would spend away.

“I don’t know,” I admit, a bit embarrassed. “A week or two, I guess.”

My father turns to my mother.

“After the next gala, we won’t held one until the end of July or even the beginning of August. You can have three weeks, or a month if you want.” he adds for me.

“I was planning on holding one in the middle of July, actually”, my mother retorts.

“You can still do it,” my father answers softly, not at all impressed. “But the little one deserves a vacation.”

That what my father always called me, for as long as I can remember. The little one.

“And you owe a vacation to me,” I add to my mother. “It’s the law.”

My mother gives me a cold look before sighing.

“Fine. The gala is next week, you can go on vacation after.”

“Alright.”

It gives Louisa and I some time to decide where we’re gonna go, even though I know she’ll hold a little campaign for us to go to Russia if – if – it somehow works between me and Antoine.

“Anything else?” my mother asks, already eager for me to leave.

“Are we looking for interns or something like that? Louisa would like to have a job this summer. After our vacation, I guess.”

This time, my mom doesn’t seem to protest.

“I’ll contact her.”

“Thanks. Well, hum, bye.”

“I’m gonna go too, I have work to do.” my father says. “See you tonight, Anita.”

He opens the door for me and we both leave my mother’s office.

“So, how is college going?” my father asks, almost as awkward as usual.

“My finals are done.”

“There is no reason why you shouldn’t succeed.”

Then why did you ignore me my whole life? He heads for his office, on the other side of the corridor, and I go for the elevator. He waves at me and the elevator’s door close.

Once my day is done, I come home to announce to Louisa that not only my mother will hire her but that we’re going on vacation. These good news make her smile after the apparently chaotic moment she spent with her parents. We sit on the sofa and she tells me what happened.

“I thought my parents were gonna make an effort,” she says, and I can tell she’s very sad and disappointed. “That’s why I accepted to have lunch at their house when they said Tatiana would be there too.”

Louisa’s family – her parents in particular – are very conservative and very religious. It had never been a problem – they’ve been nice to me and they are generally generous – until the day Tatiana came out as gay. She was nineteen, Louisa was seventeen. They threw Tatiana out and Louisa never forgave them. And their parents, who had never showed any favoritism toward any of their daughter immediately started to spoil Louisa and started to want to be much closer to her. They even were way warmer than usual towards me, as if they wanted me – and Louisa agrees on this – to take Tatiana’s place. I’ve always felt sad for her, no one deserves to be treated this way by their family. We took her in until she was ready to live alone, but I know it was hard for her too. Thankfully she’s better now.

“At the beginning it was rather good,” Louisa says. “Even though my parents would always give her mean remarks and I was given a hundred compliments per minute. But at one point Tatiana said she hadn’t come alone, and I saw in my parents’ eyes that they hoped it was a man. But when Lyse arrived, my parents got angry as usual and almost insulted Tatiana.”

My heart breaks for Tatiana. She probably had hope that her parents were finally accepting her as they should, only to get rejected again.

“I got mad and the three of us left. I even think I broke a glass when leaving, whatever. Lyse is so cool, and my sister deserves to be happy.”

“Of course,” I say in a voice I hope is comforting. “She must know that she’s not the one that needs to change. And if your parents don’t want to change, well, too bad for them. Sometimes you have to detach yourself from family. Neither you nor her need them. If your parents can realize they have badass daughters, screw them.”

She smiles at me, and I propose to have Tatiana and her girlfriend come diner soon.

*-*

We invite Tatiana and Lyse on Wednesday night, and it goes so well that I almost forget about the stress of my date the day after. I don’t sleep well that night – like every time I stress – and have such awful nightmares that I screamed in my sleep and Louisa had to wake me up. I only work the morning and I thank heaven for that, as it will allow me to take a nap and get some sleep back in order not to look like a zombie for my date with Antoine. Heck, it’s the first time I care that much about my looks. The morning goes fast, too fast, and I think several times that I’m more stressful about that date that I’m excited. And even though I love Louisa, her teasing does not help. Antoine sends me a message so we can decide on the place and the time, and he immediately accept the hour I propose – homeboy isn’t difficult – adding he can’t wait to see me. To say I’m not looking forward to it as well would be a lie, but to say I’m more stressful about this date with Antoine Griezmann than I’ve ever been in my entire life, that’s the real truth.

NEXT CHAPTER

Want to be tagged? Just use my Ask-Box!

Masterlist

[dreamingsushi]

Till the End of the Moon - Episode 19

Last episode, we finished the painful dream arc, which produced a big change in the dynamic our main couple. I don’t like thinking of them as a couple, there’s just too much toxicity in their relationship for them to actually fall for one another. Not in a healthy way. But before worrying about their love story in this life, I think we should focus on the last bit of information that we received: Tantai Minglang is still alive and has every intention to make his brother pay for what he did to him. I think he might get us side tracked for a while, his masks resembles the one that the demon god was wearing, so you know. So far, they did good with all the objects they introduced. I have expectations.

They finally arrive to Jing. Ye Qingyu takes Ye Xiwu to see her father and grandmother. He was however kicked out of the family for betraying their country. Pianran takes him shopping in the capital to comfort him and convince him that he didn’t make the wrong choice by deciding to follow Tantai Jin. Chuntao tells Ye Xiwu that it’s weird how before no one really cared about Ye Bingchang, but then a few years back, all the men started to care about her. Talking with her older brother, she also hears that Tantai Jin was the one to welcome them to Jing and that he even sent doctors to take care of them, even though her father turned them all down. When she goes to the palace, she thanks Tantai Jin for taking care of her family and she kissed him on the cheek. At first he seems happy about it, and it even creates a nail out of the pearl Susu collected from his tear, but then it’s night again and he kicks her out.

Tantai Jin doesn’t really understand why he got angry at her, since making her happy by seeing her family was the objective. He decides to let Nian Baiyu go back home to visit his family. Instead of learning the etiquette of the palace as a maid, Susu is reading love stories to learn how to seduce Tantai Jin. But no matter what she tries, she always ends up in trouble. I think Tantai Jin is playing a little hard to get. And he’s having a little too much fun teasing Ye Xiwu.

Pianran is exhausted from all the work and gets to have half a day off if she goes to get rid of monsters. On her way out, Susu begs her to teach her how to seduce men, now that she tried everything in her books and nothing worked. Pianran demonstrates on Ye Qingyu, but Susu doesn’t feel comfortable doing so. So Pianran asks her what she’s really bad at and Susu says she’s a really bad cook. Pianran tells her that the best way to win a man’s heart is by feeding him. The nastier the better. It’s a little revenge she’s getting.

When Susu is coming over to give him the food she made, he’s reading some stuff alongside with Nian Baiyu. Seeing her, he makes him leave first and she tries to come closer to have a look on the characters. It’s ancient text from the Yue clan, so it’s normal that she doesn’t understand. She asks about characters and then she offers him some food, saying it’s the first she ever cooked for someone. The food is disgusting, but Tantai Jin eats it with bravery. Seems even though it isn’t tasty, it made him somewhat happy, since the pearl is heating.

Some disgusting plotting from Xiao Lin’s dad and Tantai Minglang. These are really bad people.

Pianran suggests that Ye Xiwu stop going to see Tantai Jin everyday since she’s not making any progress. And of course it works, he wonders if she doesn’t come anymore because she doesn’t like him any longer. He also asks Pianran for guidance. She’s going to be this ship leader. Because they both seem to at least somewhat like each other sincerely. She tells him that if a girl doesn’t come to see him anymore, maybe he should be the one chasing her if he likes her.

And that’s it for episode 19. It was a nice break from the very heartbreaking past few episodes. I love the dynamic between Tantai Jin and Susu, the way it has evolved. Also, I think we should spend more time on Pianran, she’s hilarious, I love the way she speaks her mind and then goes back to a smoother her. I want a little break from all the people trying to kill each other out of jealousy and have little peace. But without angst this time around.

[dantekidd]

[thomas doherty, male, him/he ] - was that dante kidd i saw by the lighthouse today? i heard that the twenty nine year old who has been in nightrest for most of their entire life and works  as a musician has a reputation of being sweet, but also vulnerable. they reside in low point & people in town usually associate them with playing instruments at the park, helping elders cross the street, and a billion dollar smile. let’s hope the killer doesn’t go after them next.

Name: Dante Kidd Pronouns: Him/He Age: 29 years old Birthdate: June 12, 1994 Place of Birth: Nightrest, Salem Occupation: Musician/Songwriter Sexuality: Pansexual

Dante had been born to parents who cared nothing about him. His mother and father had been drug addicts who had him more for the money they could get from the government and not exactly because they wanted a child. He learned from a very young age to look after himself in ways that no five year old should. That lifestyle did not last long though as when he turned six his parents had overdosed with him in the house. It took a total of two days for anybody to become aware of the situation and call the police as Dante had seen them passed out so often that he had simply assume that they were asleep.

His grandparents took a hold of his guardianship from then on, and to say that it had been a blessing in disguise was an understatement. Living with them had changed Dante's life so much that he was able to finally act like a child his age should. He was able to hang out with friends form school, and his other cousins whom his parents had never let him be around. Dante excelled at everything that he put his mind to through out his high school experience, ending up as the valedictorian for his graduation class.

By his high school graduation, Dante couple play six instruments and he practiced long and hard enough to have gotten a full scholarship to Berklee College of Music where he excelled and was offered multiple positions on different orchestras around the country. Although he began by playing the piano at professional theater performances, Dante would soon attend an open mic night out in LA where he performed one of his own songs on guitar and the audience loved him.

With this new found joy in his life, Dante took to performing at different functions and events gathering a good following of supporters who traveled with him from state to state. It wasn't until three years ago when his grandmother passed away that he decided to come back home so he could take care of his grandfather. For the past three years he has continued to perform at different local spots, but nothing as thrilling as his previous life. On the side he also writes music which he sells to record labels and uses that money to help evolve and renovate historical places throughout the town.

ESTABLISHED CONNECTIONS

Arabella Reyes - babymama (he don't know)

Grayson Kidd - cousins

CONNECTIONS WANTED

best friends

ex girlfriends

childhood friends

family friends

current lover (fwb)

[hunter-clarke]

Chapter 6: Surprises

Continued from Chapter 4. Based on @jojo56830's Linked Universe.

Chapter 6: Surprises

When they arrived at the lab, they were greeted by a young girl in a lab coat with pigtails. "Hello there!" She said, "You must be Princess Zelda! Do you remember me!?! I'm Purah! The Silent Knight pulls through again does he?"

Zelda was taken aback by Purah's appearance. "Oh my goodness, I didn't realize you were so young now! What happened?" she exclaimed.

Purah giggled, "Yeah, well, I had a little mishap with one of my experiments, and now I'm stuck like this. But don't worry, it's not so bad once you get used to it."

Link and Zelda spent some time catching up with Purah and learning about her latest tech projects. "I've been working on some new enhancements for the Sheikah Slate," she said. "I think you two are going to love them."

Suddenly she notices Wolfie sitting outside the tech lab.

“What’s with the large dog?” asked Purah.

“Large dog? Oh, that one. I think he’s a friend. Other than being a wolf, he doesn’t do much other than teleport. We call him Wolfie,” said Link.

“Teleport?” asked Purah incredulously.

“Yeah, teleport. He becomes a bunch of tiny squares and flows up into the sky. Sort of like how I go from shrine to shrine!” said Link.

Purah found a strange device. “Here's a laser cutter to get that thing off his foot if he’ll let you.”

“Thanks, Purah! See you again soon!”

After their visit with Purah, Link and Zelda continued on their journey. They decided to visit Zora's Domain to check in with Prince Sidon.

As they made their way through the domain, they caught a glimpse of Prince Sidon swimming in the distance. "There he is," Zelda said. "Let's go say hello."

As they approached, Prince Sidon noticed them and swam over to greet them. "Link! It's so good to see you again," he said. "Who is this fine lady you have with you? Wait, don’t tell me. Oh, Goddesses! He saved the princess! My goodness, you must excuse my ignorance, your Highness, it has been a long time indeed. So the Silent Knight pulls through again, does he? My fellow Zora! Tonight we shall have a feast, celebrating the return of the Princess!"

They feasted and spent the night at Zora's Domain. The following day they said their goodbyes to Prince Sidon and continued on their journey.

Their next stop was Kakariko Village to see Impa. As they arrived at Impa's house, they were greeted by a young girl with dark brown hair and a shy demeanor. "H-H-H-Hi there, I-I-I'm Paya," she said softly. She looked like she was trying to hide from Link.

“Is your grandmother home?” asked Link politely.

Paya nodded. "O-O-Of course, she's inside waiting for you. Please, come in."

As they stepped inside, Impa greeted them warmly. "The Silent Knight pulled through again, does he?" she said softly. "The Princess has returned to us."

“Hi, Impa. It has been a long time indeed,” Zelda said quietly, tearing up.

Impa noticed Zelda's tears and put her arm around her. "It's alright, my dear. You've been through a lot," she said softly.

"I still can't believe it's real," Zelda said, wiping away her tears. "After all these years, I'm finally back."

"You're back because of your own strength and determination," Impa said proudly. "You have always been strong-willed, my Princess. It's just that the circumstances didn't allow it to show before."

"Thank you, Impa. That means a lot to me," Zelda said with a smile.

As they left Impa's house, Link noticed that Zelda was still looking sad. He decided to change the subject and try to cheer her up. "Hey, have you seen Wolfie around?" he asked.

"No, I haven't," Zelda replied. "I hope he's okay."

Click to read Chapter 7!