#I was raised as a middle child (2nd of 3) but I have three much younger half siblings (as in the oldest is 12 years younger than me)

[famulusmox]

Astra lore video of the 3 royal siblings when they're younger compared to present day ❤️ this took a while but I'm very proud of it, I also have rendered art of each one which i will post in the next few days :)

Bit of royal siblings lore summary below, not every single detail cuz gotta make it interesting yknow ✨️✨️✨️ suspense ✨️✨️✨️

King Orion, the prior king of the planet Solus, and Queen Nebula, his wife and also the ruler of Solus, had 3 kids together. Their oldest, Sirius (pictured last in the video), the middle child, Amun, (middle of the video), and their youngest, Nebula II/the 2nd, later known as Venus, which is the name I will use cuz clarification between them (first shown). Queen Nebula passed away during Venus's birth, leaving Orion to parent all three of them alone, which he did not do very well, meaning Venus was mostly raised by her brothers. This meant they grew very close as siblings, with especially Amun being a parental figure to Venus while Sirius had to focus on royal studies.

As Sirius grew up, he, as the eldest, had to prepare for when he would become king. This involved him going on missions to other planets to recruit them under Solus's empire, first to the planets Ophidia, Umbrose, and Scrow, and later to the planet Hadal. Along with Sirius, Amun would join the expedition to Hadal as a sort of rite of passage when he turned 25.

The expedition to Hadal ended horrifically. The planet was left in ruins, and Sirius was killed during the expedition (there's more to this but, summarizing). Amun survived, and came back to Solus. This would leave Amun as next in line for the throne, which eventually, with Orion's death, would come about, also leaving Venus and Amun as the current only living individuals of the Solion royal family. Amun and Venus continue to have a close bond, yet Venus cannot shake the feeling that Amun is hiding something from her, which slowly forms a rift between the two.

There is much more about Amun and Venus's interactions after Sirius's death, but perhaps I will go into that another time. Crazy!!!!

[dandydemidoesfandoms]

Between Us Pontification - Episode 10

Ok, ya girl has had a little bit of time to sleep and rewatch Episode 10.

(Am I still miffed, yes. To the ends of the earth.) And here are my thoughts...there are a lot.

However, I think it's important (and other tumblrs have likened to this already) to keep in mind that our beautiful idiots, so full of love that they throw at others, leaving nothing for themselves, do not know how to ask for what they need; What they want and also believe that they deserve it.

Team is dealing with basically a decade of untreated survival guilt and in some ways is afraid that his love for Win is a projection simply because Win is good to him and makes him feel wanted, precious, and loved. Especially when his Aunt still grieves (and also needs some damn therapy) and probably has made way too many comments about what could have been her son's life. Team is living for two people, not even content to do it, but as a kind of forced repentance for something we all know is not his fault. And his self-loathing is manifesting as insecurity, low esteem when it comes to worth, and pushing Win away to stop himself from loving any harder, deeper, or truly in fear of loss and disappointment. But with Win, he needs certainty, clearest of day level clarity of how their relationship is defined.

And then there is Win. Sweet little competent middle child king. As someone who is also the 2nd sibling, I am painfully aware of how much pressure, expectations, and loneliness is wrapped up in it. How the only way to remain sane is to be useful and self-sufficient. Wiew is baby but a fiercely loyal one (as he should be, I love that precious nugget), and Waan is crumbling under the suffocating role he is being forced to play by his crappy workaholic father who has lost the plot in more ways than one. He needs to give that man a raise and a 3-week long vacation (with Tul there to just smile at him and play video games) and stop yelling so damn much. These three need a hug, a nap, and a break. But I digress.

Back to Win, he is a giver. Hyperindividualism manifested as the kind mediator, the soft but strong protector. He sends out all the love he never gets to keep for himself and doesn't expect anyone to stick around. He has crafted this self-fulfilling prophecy and doesn't hold tightly to anyone. Waan has even mentioned to him that his kindness could turn into something that hurts him and the ones we love, which is what we end up seeing in Episode 10. Because with Win, what he needs is someone who looks at him and tells him that he is loved not for what he provides but for just being him. Someone who wants to refill the empty cup he has been pouring from.

This is a story about reciprocation and fear of abandonment. A song of isolation and anxiety.

The confession scene for many of us was not what we wanted because we have the sweetness in UWMA that we know is on the horizon. Death by a thousand cuts, is what we are getting. But the point of Between Us is to show the complete road of how our boys with horny hearts of gold go from being in two very different types of emotional exile to a supportive and loving relationship. And I would be remiss if I didn't remind myself and others that this is their FIRST serious relationship. These boys have little to no previous experience with big feelings and taking that leap and hoping the one they love is jumping with them and simultaneously catching them at the same time.

Its a terrifying and heartwrenching saga to go through in the best of scenarios and there is so much hurt, unsureness, and need to be wrapped up and it can be scary if you are waiting for the other shoe to drop while, in tandem, praying for it not to. And in a way, both Win and Team need this kind of tension and to be forced to make solid steps forward.

Unfortunately, Win must have a moment of fear, of being confronted by the consequences of the cavalier nature he has curated. His coolness, the aloof cat-like humility that makes him so darn unattainable. He has to be vulnerable instead of hesitating and testing the waters again. He must cannonball into the depth. And Team, in direct parallel and in some ways opposition, must learn to accept that he is loved and is worthy of love. To not be afraid of being too much, of burdening someone he finds important with his affection, of handing over his feelings and feeling the reciprocation. He must trust that someone swimming with him isn't going to end in pain and loss again.

And that brings us to the emotional rollercoaster at the end of Episode 10. This is called the Black Moment or the Defining Moment when we look literarily at this story arc. Internal conflict must be confronted and we all must accept that we are gonna get a whole lot of big feelings in the last two episodes.

Have faith, intrepid travelers, and keep your arms and feet inside the vehicle at all times.

[nellygwyn]

I thought I would share some portraits/info about notable black men and women who worked and lived in Georgian Britain. This is not an extensive list by any means, and for some figures, portraits are unavailable:

1. Olaudah Equiano (1745-1797) was a writer, abolitionist and former slave. Born into what would become southern Nigeria, he was initially sold into slavery and taken to the Caribbean as a child, but would be sold at least twice more before he bought his freedom in 1766. He decided to settle in London and became involved in the British abolitionist movement in the 1780s. His first-hand account of the horrors of slavery 'The Interesting Narrative of the Life of Olaudah Equiano' was published in 1789 and it really drove home the horrors of slavery to the general British public. He also worked tirelessly to support freed slaves like himself who experienced racism and inequality living in Britain's cities. He was a leading member of the Sons of Africa, an abolitionist group, whose members were primarily freed black men (the Sons of Africa has been called the first black political organisation in British history). He married an English woman, Susannah, and when he died in 1797, he left his fortune of roughly £73,000 to his daughter, Joanna. Equiano's World is a great online resource for those interested in his life, his work, and his writings.

2. Ignatius Sancho (1729-1780) was a bit of a jack-of-all-trades (he's described as an actor, composer, writer, abolitionist, man-of-letters, and socialite - truly the perfect 18th century gentleman). He was born in the Middle Passage on a slave ship. His mother died not long after they arrived in Venezuela and his father apparently took his own life rather than become a slave. Sancho's owner gave the boy to three sisters living in London c. 1730s (presumably as a sort of pet/servant) but whilst living with them, his wit and intellect impressed the 2nd Duke of Montagu who decided to finance his education. This was the start of Sancho's literary and intellectual career and his association with the elite of London society saw him ascend. He struck up a correspondence with the writer, Laurence Sterne, in the 1760s: Sancho wrote to press Sterne to throw his intellecrual weight behind the cause of abolition. He became active in the early British abolitionist movement and be counted many well-known Georgians amongst his acquaintance. He was also the first black man known to have voted in a British election. He married a West Indian woman and in 1774, opened a grocer's shop in London, that attempted to sell goods that were not produced by slave labour. Despite his popularity in Georgian society, he still recounts many instances of racist abuse he faced on the streets of London in his diaries. He reflected that, although Britain was undoubtedly his home and he had done a lot for the country, he was 'only a lodger and hardly that' in London. His letters, which include discussions of domestic subjects as well as political issues, can be read here.

3. Francis 'Frank' Barber (1742-1801) was born a slave on a sugar plantation in Jamaica. His owner, Richard Bathurst, brought Frank to England when Frank turned 15 and decided to send him to school. The Bathursts knew the writer, Samuel Johnson, and this is how Barber and the famous writer first met (Barber briefly worked as Johnson's valet and found him an outspoken opponent of the slave trade). Richard Bathurst gave Frank his freedom when he died and Frank immediately signed up for the navy (where he apparently developed a taste for smoking pipes). In 1760, he returned permanently to England and decided to work as Samuel Johnson's servant. Johnson paid for Frank to have an expensive education and this meant Frank was able to help Johnson revise his most famous work, 'Dictionary of the English Language.' When Johnson died in 1784, he made Frank his residual heir, bequeathing him around £9000 a year (for which Johnson was criticised in the press - it was thought to be far too much), an expensive gold watch, and most of Johnson's books and papers. Johnson also encouraged Frank to move to Lichfield (where Johnson had been born) after he died: Frank duly did this and opened a draper's shop and a school with his new wife. There, he spent his time 'in fishing, cultivating a few potatoes, and a little reading' until his death in 1801. His descendants still live at a farm in Litchfield today. A biography of Frank can be purchased here. Moreover, here is a plaque erected on the railings outside of Samuel Johnson's house in Gough Square, London, to commemorate Johnson and Barber's friendship.

4. Dido Elizabeth Belle (1764-1801) was born to Maria Belle, a slave living in the West Indies. Her father was Sir John Lindsay, a British naval officer. After Dido's mother's death, Sir John took Dido to England and left her in the care of his uncle, Lord Mansfield. Dido was raised by Lord Mansfield and his wife alongside her cousin, Elizabeth Murray (the two became as close as sisters) and was, more or less, a member of the family. Mansfield was unfortunately criticised for the care and love he evidently felt for his niece - she was educated in most of the accomplishments expected of a young lady at the time, and in later life, she would use this education to act as Lord Mansfield's literary assistant. Mansfield was Lord Chief Justice of England during this period and, in 1772, it was he who ruled that slavery had no precedent in common law in England and had never been authorised. This was a significant win for the abolitionists, and was brought about no doubt in part because of Mansfield's closeness with his great-niece. Before Mansfield died in 1793, he reiterated Dido's freedom (and her right to be free) in his will and made her an heiress by leaving her an annuity. Here is a link to purchase Paula Byrne's biography of Dido, as well as a link to the film about her life (starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw as Dido).

5. Ottobah Cugoano (1757-sometime after 1791) was born in present-day Ghana and sold into slavery at the age of thirteen. He worked on a plantation in Grenada until 1772, when he was purchased by a British merchant who took him to England, freed him, and paid for his education. Ottobah was employed as a servant by the artists Maria and Richard Cosway in 1784, and his intellect and charisma appealed to their high-society friends. Along with Olaudah Equiano, Ottobah was one of the leading members of the Sons of Africa and a staunch abolitionist. In 1786, he was able to rescue Henry Devane, a free black man living in London who had been kidnapped with the intention of being returned to slavery in the West Indies. In 1787, Ottobah wrote 'Thoughts And Sentiments On The Evil & Wicked Traffic Of The Slavery & Commerce Of The Human Species,' attacking slavery from a moral and Christian stand-point. It became a key text in the British abolition movement, and Ottobah sent a copy to many of England's most influential people. You can read the text here.

6. Ann Duck (1717-1744) was a sex worker, thief and highwaywoman. Her father, John Duck, was black and a teacher of swordmanship in Cheam, Surrey. He married a white woman, Ann Brough, in London c. 1717. One of Ann's brothers, John, was a crew-member of the ill-fated HMS Wager and was apparently sold into slavery after the ship wrecked off the coast of Chile on account of his race. Ann, meanwhile, would be arrested and brought to trial at least nineteen times over the course of her lifetime for various crimes, including petty theft and highway robbery. She was an established member of the Black Boy Alley Gang in Clerkenwell by 1742, and also quite frequently engaged in sex work. In 1744, she was given a guilty verdict at the Old Bailey after being arrested for a robbery: her trial probably wasn't fair as a man named John Forfar was paid off for assisting in her arrest and punishment. She was hanged at Tyburn in 1744. Some have argued that her race appears to have been irrelevant and she experienced no prejudice, but I am inclined to disagree. You can read the transcript of one of Ann Duck's trials (one that resulted in a Not Guilty verdict) here. Also worth noting that Ann Duck is the inspiration behind the character Violet Cross in the TV show 'Harlots.'

7. Bill Richmond (1763-1829) was a prize winning bare-knuckle boxer of the late 18th and early 19th century. He was born a slave in New York (then part of British America) but moved permanently to England in 1777 where he was most likely freed and received an education. His career as a boxer really took of in the early 19th century, and he took on all the prize fighters of the time, including Tom Cribb and the African American fighter, Tom Molineaux. Richmond was a sporting hero, as well as fashionable in his style and incredibly intelligent, making him something of a celebrity and a pseudo-gentleman in his time. He also opened a boxing academy and gave boxing lessons to gentlemen and aristocrats. He would ultimately settle in York to apprentice as a cabinet-maker. Unfortunately, in Yorkshire, he was subject to a lot of racism and insults based on the fact he had married a white woman. You can watch a Channel 4 documentary on Richmond here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

8. William Davidson (1781-1820) was the illegitimate son of the Attorney General of Jamaica and a slave woman. He was sent to Glasgow in Scotland to study law at the age of 14 and from this period until 1819, he moved around Britain and had a number of careers. Following the Peterloo Massacre in 1819, Davidson began to take a serious interest in radical politics, joining several societies in order to read radical and republican texts. He also became a Spencean (radical political group) through his friendship with Arthur Thistlewood and would quickly rise to become a leading member of the group. In 1820, a government provocateur tricked Davidson and other Spenceans, into being drawn into a plot to kill the Earl of Harrowby and other government cabinet officers as they dined at Harrowby's house on the 23rd February. This plot would become known as the Cato Street Conspiracy (named thus because Davidson and the other Spenceans hid in a hayloft in Cato Street whilst they waited to launch their plan). Unfortunately, this was a government set up and eleven men, including Davidson, were arrested and charged with treason. Davidson was one of five of the conspirators to not have his sentence commuted to transportation and was instead sentenced to death. He was hanged and beheaded outside of Newgate Prison in 1820. There is a book about the Cato Street Conspiracy here.

9. Ukawsaw Gronniosaw (1705-1775) was born in the Kingdom of Bornu, now in modern day Nigeria. As the favourite grandson of the king of Zaara, he was a prince. Unfortunately, at the age of 15, he was sold into slavery, passing first to a Dutch captain, then to an American, and then finally to a Calvinist minister named Theodorus Frelinghuysen living in New Jersey. Frelinghuysen educated Gronniosaw and would eventually free him on his deathbed but Gronniosaw later recounted that when he had pleaded with Frelinghuysen to let him return to his family in Bornu, Frelinghuysen refused. Gronniosaw also remembered that he had attempted suicide in his depression. After being freed, Gronniosaw set his sights on travelling to Britain, mainly to meet others who shared his new-found Christian faith. He enlisted in the British army in the West Indies to raise money for his trip, and once he had obtained his discharge, he travelled to England, specifically Portsmouth. For most of his time in England, his financial situation was up and down and he would move from city to city depending on circumstances. He married an English weaver named Betty, and the pair were often helped out financially by Quakers. He began to write his life-story in early 1772 and it would be published later that year (under his adopted anglicised name, James Albert), the first ever work written by an African man to be published in Britain. It was an instant bestseller, no doubt contributing to a rising anti-slavery mood. He is buried in St Oswald's Church, Chester: his grave can still be visited today. His autobiography, A Narrative of the Most Remarkable Particulars in the Life of James Albert Ukawsaw Gronniosaw, an African Prince, as Related by Himself, can be read here.

10. Mary Prince (1788-sometime after 1833) was born into slavery in Bermuda. She was passed between several owners, all of whom very severely mistreated her. Her final owner, John Adams Wood, took Mary to England in 1828, after she requested to be able to travel as the family's servant. Mary knew that it was illegal to transport slaves out of England and thus refused to accompany Adams Wood and his family back to the West Indies. Her main issue, however, was that her husband was still in Antigua: if she returned, she would be back in enslavement, but if she did not, she might never see her husband again. She contacted the Anti-Slavery Society who attempted to help her in any way they could. They found her work (so she could support herself), tried tirelessly to convince Adams Wood to free her, and petitioned parliament to bring her husband to England. Mary successfully remained in England but it is not known whether she was ever reunited with her husband. In 1831, Mary published The History of Mary Prince, an autobiographical account of her experiences as a slave and the first work written by a black woman to be published in England. Unlike other slave narratives, that had been popular and successful in stoking some anti-slavery sentiment, it is believed that Mary's narrative ultimately clinched the goal of convincing the general British population of the necessity of abolishing slavery. Liverpool's Museum of Slavery credits Mary as playing a crucial role in abolition. You can read her narrative here. It is an incredibly powerful read. Mary writes that hearing slavers talk about her and other men and women at a slave market in Bermuda 'felt like cayenne pepper into the fresh wounds of our hearts.'

[illyaana]

Hey... Could you maybe... Could you make a oneshot consisting of Bakugou's older sibling reader (I'd prefer it to be gender neutral with a more masculine style, however you prefer) x Midnight? 🥺🥺 I love her so much and Horikoshi did her dirty. You can do whatever oneshot that you want/comes to mind, I just want something fluffy. Thank you UwU

Udk how much I squealed getting this as my first ask!

(also whoever you are you made my day/week/month (｡･∀･)ﾉﾞ)

I agree, Horikoshi did her dirty. She had some moments but that was IT. I tried my best, hope you like it!!

(it's more of a you being a hero and being in a relationship with Nemuri rather than a one-shot surrounding your relationship, but there's a bunch of fluffy stuff at the end, so gehe-)

Tags: Midnight x Bakugo's Older Sibling! Reader, Binaural, Fluff, Minor Cursing, Mentions of Blood

Your Quirk: Liquid Maker - You conjure a liquid in your hands (smtg like sweat) when you want to and it can become anything. Name it, you got it hun <3

Synopsis: You are a hero (obviously gehe-) and you were catching some villains. Suddenly a huge explosion came from the middle of Musutafu and you headed straight to the crime scene.

Word Count: 2163

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You woke up to the sweet smell of smoke coming from the living room. Groaning, you got off your comfortable bed and raced to the living room to stop Bakugo from his daily antics.

"You really got to stop doing this in the morning, Katsuki," you told the younger male, "It's literally," you looked at the clock, "8 am in the morning and my half-asleep self could've gotten hurt stopping you from breaking all hell loose."

Katsuki scoffed while looking at you. "Why aren't you at work yet? As you said, it's already 8 am."

"Later shift today! I only start at around 10 am."

"Wow, aren't you lucky?" Katsuki said as he walked towards the stove, "I'm making pancakes, but I won't make even one for you until you go bathe. You look disgusting."

"Okay, okay." You say, raising your hands and rushing to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

After bathing, you head back into your room and began to wear your skin-tight hero suit.

You groaned slightly as you slowly pulled the form-fitting clothing up your body.

"I swear to God this isn't getting easier."

"You are literally a fatass, so I'm not surprised," you heard Katsuki scream from the kitchen, "I pity Midnight. The fact she needs to be around a literal piece of garbage who doesn't even look good."

"At least I have someone, unlike your childish ass."

"I am a child," he retorted.

You sigh as you open your room door and head back to the kitchen.

"One day, you're going to wish you were nicer to the people around you."

"Maybe," Katsuki said while passing you a plate with a stack of three pancakes, "...but I am pretty sure you aren't going to be one of them, judging by how much you baby me."

"But you are a child! Didn't you say so a few minutes ago?" you say as you pinch his cheeks, earning a growl from him, "Woah, calm down dog."

"Shut up and eat, fatass."

You chuckle at his words and proceed with the order given by your younger brother.

You loved getting later shifts on Fridays. These were the quieter days in the Bakugo household. Mom usually took her extra days off on Fridays like today, extending her weekend. Dad left for work earlier on Fridays but he'd always buy some spicy thing for Katsuki and you to have in the morning. Something to wish us a good day, I presume. And to top it all off, you and Katsuki would have these "sibling" moments, which mostly consisted of you annoying him to the point he'd lash out at you.

"You're a really good cook, Katsuki. These pancakes keep getting better!" you compliment the 10-year old.

And there it was: you entertainment of the day - Katsuki trying to say thank you but failing miserably thanks to his own pride as a "man".

"T-than- that's obvious, isn't it?" he ends, a blush present on his face, "I make pancakes every single time you have a later shift because you like it. If I'm getting better, that means you've been getting more later shifts. That means you've been slacking off, you stupid Pro Hero!"

"...how did you even get to that idea?"

After calming down a raging Katsuki, you put on your gear and head to the entrance of the house.

"Have a good day at school, Katsuki. Don't do anything you'd regret," you playfully warn him before leaving the house.

The streets of Musutafu were usually peaceful. Ever since All Might became the Symbol of Peace, the crime rates have dropped extensively. Yet, there are always one or two little naughty kids that wanted to play with their quirks - or in simpler terms, people who act like kids and try to do minor crimes using their quirks.

Using the liquid formed in your hands, you aimed at the legs of the two running males in black and wrap their legs together. Within a second, the liquid instantly formed into a rope and bounded their legs together, forcing them to fall face down.

"You both gave me a good morning run, thanks for that!" You say as you place two handcuffs around their wrists, "But you should seriously think about another hobby besides stealing."

From afar, you heard a loud boom coming from the middle of Musutafu.

In an instant, you formed another bunch of rope and tied the two males around their waist and pushed them to the corner of a building.

"Run away and you'll get more than just jail time," you say as you rush off to the scene.

The minute you reached the scene, your eyes widened in fear.

Endeavor was the reason behind the whole catastrophe here?

From behind, you felt a pair of soft hands touch your shoulder.

"I know what it looks like, but trust me it isn't," Nemuri started, "A villain that has a mind control quirk is controlling Endeavor from a distance. I've been trying to locate them, but no luck."

You smiled, looking at your girlfriend.

"You managed to get all of that in a few seconds?" you ask, amazed, "I got a good one, didn't I?"

You felt Midnight pinch you from behind.

"As much as I appreciate the compliment, now isn't the time to flirt with me," the female hero said.

You nod, washing away the playful smile.

"You get all the civilians out of here and contact the heroes through the network. I'll try to get him down and knock him out," you say. Nemuri nodded and began to gather the civilians away from the scene.

"Now," you turn to face the 2nd best hero, "How does one take down someone much, much more stronger than you?"

You slowly gathered your liquid in your palm, allowing the fluid to grow in volume.

"You defeating Endeavor would be a sight to behold, not going to lie here," the villain said through Endeavor, "But I am willing to test out that theory."

You lunged at the fire user while creating a fire-resistant rope to tie him down in your hand. In the other, you managed to conjure a Haladie sword - a sword you've trained with ever since your days in UA.

Using the sword, you managed to propel yourself above Endeavor and cut his back. Using the momentum you built, you used both your feet to hit the back of Endeavor's knees, forcing him to kneel.

You immediately stabbed his dominant hand, preventing him from reacting quickly.

With a snap, the Haladie sword transformed back into its liquid state and wrapped around his left hand.

"I was never planning on defeating Endeavor but merely securing him, dear villain of mine," you say as you transformed the liquid around his left hand into a quick-cancelling glove, "It’s one point for Y/N, right now. No point for little Mindy over here."

You began to build up more liquid in your hands to hopefully form another Haladie sword or at least a blade.

The controlled Endeavor began to get up slowly and turn to face you.

"I didn't peg you to be a dumb one, Y/N."

You felt a blade pierce through your stomach.

A civilian sobbed as they pressed the blade deeper into your body, your blood dripping onto their office coat.

"I can't believe you let your guard down so easily. It was your fault to assume I could only control one person at a time, little hero," the controlled civilian said midst crying.

"And that will be your downfall," Endeavor said as small flames began to grow from the palm of his right hand.

The knife that once was in your body was violently ripped out of your body by the controlled civilian and then used to kill themself by piercing their heart.

Tears fell as you saw the now lifeless male bleed to death right beside you.

"Oh don't worry," Endeavor said, "I'll make sure you also go with him, too. That small wound won't kill you, I know that."

You saw Midnight running towards you along with Eraserhead and All Might.

"You know, I always pictured you crying over a dead Nemuri Kayama whilst bleeding from your stomach, have you?"

Your eyes widened at the statement.

There was no way you were going to let that villain kill her.

"Eraser," you screamed, "Erase his quirk and get Midnight out of here."

'Please don't fail on my now, buddy,' you told to your body as you ran towards Endeavor, 'You still have to live for the people you love.'

You quickly formed another Haladie sword and vaulted from the floor towards Endeavor.

You managed to grab the hand aimed at Midnight and pushed it towards you. Using the remainder fluid you had, you formed another quirk-cancelling glove on Endeavor's right hand.

You could hear a sigh of relief from both Nemuri and Shouta, making you smile.

From afar, you heard All Might saying that he caught the villain that was controlling both the civilian and Endeavor. You were shocked when you heard the number one hero's laugh of victory.

You were amazed at the skill the male had.

A villain that took two people to search for was found by him in a few minutes.

Soon, the wound formed by the dead civilian began to take effect as your vision became hazy.

Before you could lose consciousness, you felt Nemuri's hands wrap around you, catching you before you fell.

When you woke up, you heard the sound of hospital monitors beeping. You felt a small hand gripping around your left hand.

"Why did you let them stab you, idiot," you heard your younger brother say, "Don't go teaching me a lesson with your death - it won't work."

You chuckled, looking at the younger blonde. "If this doesn't work on you, I don't know what will."

Katsuki began to sob on your blanket while gripping on the four fingers his small fingers could grip.

"It's okay, Kacchan," you saw a green-haired boy patting his back, "He is here and he is alive. That is all that matters, okay?"

You smiled, looking at the greenette.

"What's your name?" you ask him.

"I'm Izuku Midoriya! I'm friends with Kacchan," he says with a beaming smile.

"Kacchan, huh?" you tease, "You are really close friends with Kacchan, aren't you?"

Before Izuku could reply, you felt Katsuki pinch your leg.

"I don't even know why I care for you, you fatass."

"Oh, how you wound me," you feign sadness as the ten-year-olds left your room.

You smile at the sight of the greenette consoling your brother as they walk out of the room.

You look up to the ceiling, sighing.

"You are a bit too young to be sighing so loudly, Y/N," Nemuri said as she slowly opened the door, "I saw what you did there. Don't tease Katsuki so often, he is quite mature for his age, you know?"

You smile, looking at Nemuri with her hands on her waist.

"He's growing too fast. I need small moments like this to remember how innocent he is before he becomes the raging little twit I know he'll become."

"Woah, Woah, Woah," she says, laughing, " 'Raging little twit'? You really are a bad brother."

You begin laughing, "I have to be the playful one or else the Bakugo's would be a family of three brooding people and one peaceful man."

"True."

Your eyes widen.

"You aren't supposed to agree, you know?"

"My mother taught me not to lie," she says, smiling.

"Well, white lies aren't bad."

She sits beside you and holds your hand. Tears slowly escape her eyes as she looks at you.

"You are okay, right?" She says, sniffling.

You slowly wipe off her tears and put the palm of your hand on her cheek.

"I'm fine, Nemuri."

You slowly move towards her and place a kiss on her forehead.

You pat the empty side of your bed, "Want to join me?"

She slowly nods as she walks to the empty side of the bed and gets in. Her legs immediately wrap around your left leg as she places her head against your chest. Her left hand extends around your waist and hugs you.

"What are you, a koala?" you joke.

"What can I say? You are a comfy tree."

"Well, I am glad to be of service."

Soon, Nemuri goes to sleep. Soft snores can be heard from her as she rubs her head against your chest.

'The koala became a cat,' you thought to yourself.

Your right-hand goes to the top of her head, ruffling her hair.

"I love you so much, Nemuri Kayama. I always will. If I had to, I would gladly lay my life down so that you'd be safe. I know you're asleep and probably can't hear this, but you are the most important thing in my life - don't forget that," you tell her sleeping figure as you fall asleep.

[oneshotnewbie]

I hope the Danvers sisters are reunited in Chapter 3 of the Missing for A Decade fic. I just finished the 2nd chapter and it was good. I also hope that her sisters give her kidnapper hell.

A/N: Nope, they are not reunited yet. But maybe in the fourth Chapter! ;) --- By the time Maggie pulled up to the street, she saw the two patrol cars and the police tape that kept the onlookers and news people distanced from the house. Inwardly she cursed incessantly; how did they know more quickly than she did? Who or what had told them that they had found the girl who had been missing for several years? She was beside herself with her anger, but quickly evaporated through the lump in her throat and the pounding of her racing heart.

The brown-haired detective got out of her car with shaky legs and, with the request for space, squeezed through the crowd that turned into a thick wall around the house.

She knew she had to hide you as best she could from everyone else so that the press wouldn't have anything to popularize. She wanted to keep it a secret, especially since she didn't know what condition you were in and didn't want Kara and Alex to find out through the screen that you were still alive.

She wanted to tell them herself, she owed them that.

She waved her badge to the two police officers and the young brown-haired rookie pulled the tape up so she crawled underneath and thanked him.

The door was wide open when she came to a standstill in front of it to take another breath. All the years in which you disappeared where pure hell for her too, she lost almost everything.

She lost you and her relationship with Alex broke, through the psychological and physical strain of finding you, she almost broke under the pressure and got fired if she wouldn't have pulled herself together. She had lost herself in alcohol after blaming herself for not finding a single hot trail in the first 48 hours that has since been colder than Antarctica, but she caught herself every moment she thought of you and about that you could never forgive her if she got drunk instead of looking for you.

She pushed her thoughts away and took a step over the threshold. The stench of unventilated space and fermented wood stung her nostrils, but she didn't care, she finally just wanted to be able to hold you in her arms again.

She walked down the long hallway which had old, stale wallpaper that was already hanging down and looked scratched off. On the way, following the voices, she also passed the kitchen and a storage room that contained a mattress and a thin wool blanket.

Images settled in her head and the thought of you lying there, trapped in a less than three square meter room and slowly losing hope that you would ever come out alive again gnawed at her inside and made her eyes water.

Finally she arrived in the living room and stopped at the sight.

A starved body stood with the back to her in the middle of the room, holding a little girl. The clothes were dirty and full of holes, parts of the arms and legs that she could see were covered with bruises, scratches and old scars. Your hair was disheveled like a bird's nest and your skin was paler than she remembered it.

"Y/N.." Maggie whispered, hardly believing that she would ever see you again.

Turned around, you stared at her. While your brain told you to run to her immediately and don't let her go again, your body literally defended itself against it like a protective mechanism, that you actually no longer needed. "Maggie."

Your trembling and slightly scratched voice made her stomach upset and sick. 10 years in which she slowly forgot how you sounded and now she believed that she was completely in a dream because she not only heard your voice again, but you stood in front of her.

As if you had grown into the ground, you didn't move an inch. You couldn't, your body simply didn't respond to anything anymore.

Maggie too, was in a rigidity from which she could only find her way out with great difficulty. She ran up to you and hugged you as tightly as she could without hurting the little brown-haired girl in your arms. "It's you. It's really you!"

Tears formed in your eyes and you digged your fingernails tighter into her sweater with your free hand while you buried your face into her chest.

An insane burden fell from her and she too could no longer keep her emotions under control. You both stood there in the middle of the room and took in this moment to the fullest, as if you could both beathe again and drop a load off your shoulders.

Paramedics and forensics, who were notified before they even entered, stood around you both and applauded. It was not often that a missing person, especially a teenager, could be found after years, at least alive.

"Mommy, who is that?" the little one interrupted this moment and Maggie let you go involuntarily.

Her hand found it's place on one of your shoulder blades, the brunettes confused look always alternating between you and the little girl in your arms while she slowly understood and again tears welled up in her eyes. "Mommy?"

You nodded in confirmation.

"This is my daughter, Grace." you smiled at her before you lowered your head to the little one and smiled at her too. "Grace, this is Maggie. She is the wife of one of your aunts."

"One of the good guys you told about?" she asked while she played with a strand of your hair and stared at Maggie with big, hazelnut brown eyes.

"More than that, my darling." you sobbed. "Family."

"Wow!"

The little childs fearful look turned into shining eyes and a big grin as it conjured one on Maggies lips as well. She still couldn't believe what was going on in front of her. You had a daughter that no one knew about. You had no one to help you raise her. Kara and Alex had no idea about their niece, hell, they didn't even know that you were still alive.

Her thoughts drove her from grief to total anger at the bastard who did this to you and tore you out of your environment and your life. Inwardly she vowed to bring him to the grave by hand.

"Detective Sawyer?" she was torn from her thoughts. "We will bring them both through the back door into the ambulance and then to the NC hospital where they will be checked and treated."

"I come with you. I won't let them out of my sight again." she spoke coldly and shortly before the paramedic nodded and went on with a few other police officers to the back.

She felt a pull on her sides and watched the little girl clasping her tiny little hands at her black leather jacket. She smiled again when she noticed that Grace spread her arms and wanted to being held by her. "C'mere little Y/N."

Despite the fact that she probably had to watch bad things and was also trapped, she was still trusting. Probably because you told her too much good about the world, your family and about strong fighters that the bad couldn't be outweigh.

The brunette took your daughter tightly in her arms and clasped her before you leaned in her side. She out a protective arm around you and accompanied you to the ambulance with the help of a paramedic.

You were a fighter.

[darkdevasofdestruction]

The Tigress of Wrath and the Golden Dragon ~ Yin Zhen x Reader

This is a little fic in which the reader is a girl whose father is an important War General for the Emperor Kangxi, and since he has no sons, and the girl shows great aptitude in fighting and strategic thinking, he chooses to present her to the Emperor and requests to treat her as a man and use her skills accordingly.

When she was a child, she got along well enough with the 3rd and 4th Princes ( Yin Zhi and Yin Zhen accordingly ) yet, due to her more tomboyish personality, and the legend of a Tigress Warrior, they nicknamed her "The Tigress" both as a nickname, and a teasing too, as she seemed to be terrible at being feminine as well, as we know how life was like in the 17th-18th century.

Just like the 14th Prince, she was then taken by her father to train in martial arts and returned to the Palace many years later, when she was of age, and to prove herself, she has to go through some challenges…

---

"Father...? Do you think...Those two will remember me? It's been so long, and I've changed so much and...I don't know." the girl asked her father awkwardly, as they walked casually towards the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the place where the Emperor would talk to the people requesting an audience, and solve paper businesses. "Y/N, dear, you may be scared that they won't recognise you, sure, but remember that you are about the same age, and if you've changed so much, imagine that you may not recognise them either. You know very well men change quite a lot when they grow. You were taller than them when you were a little munchkin, but now, I'm sure they will be towering over you." her father chuckled, seeing the horrified look on her face, only to pat her head reassuringly. "That's...So not cool...I'm sure that, with my eternal luck, I'm going to pass by them, and not realise who it is...Ah, father, look at that boy over there, in the red outfit! Do you think it's one of them? Yin Zhi used to like red, that much I remember! Ha, and he didn't grow up too much, I'm sure he's around my height!" the girl grinned triumphantly, her chin held high, which made her father laugh even more mirthfully. "Why don't you go ask him, then? Who knows, you may just be right!" he encouraged her, and with a smile on her face, she ran up to the boy with no inhibition whatsoever, convinced she was talking to her old friend.

"Hello! Sorry to bother, but are you, per chance, the 3rd Prince? I haven't been in the palace since I was very little, so I'm trying to find my friends." she asked the boy in the most carefree manner possible, only to have him chuckle at her and shake his head. "You're about 11 princes down the line, sorry to disappoint you, miss. I'm the 14th Prince, although, I have to say, I'm rather surprised to hear that my brother actually had friends. He's not the most sociable, as far as I'm concerned, but I'll give you a little tip on where to find him. Both him and the 4th Prince are busy devising some kind of plan or something with our Father, the Emperor, so that's the safest bet if you want to find him." the boy explained, as the cricket in his little cage made a cute, almost happy noise of confirmation. "...Yin Zhen is there too...? Oh boy, that's very exciting...Well, thank you for the information, Prince, I appreciate the help. See you around." she bowed quickly to him, in a manly mannerism, which confused the boy garbed in red, yet didn't quite question anything, as she bolted off to her father's side, quickly telling him what she found out.

And so, they arrived in front of the doors, and the Eunuch announced their arrival, allowing them to step inside and kowtow to the floor to greet the Eye of Heaven.

"May the Emperor live eternally." the two chanted in unison as they bowed down in reverence. "General Nian, I pray you have arrived safely. And I see you've finally brought your daughter with you as well. Just as expected, she grew up a real beauty, just like her mother."the Emperor smiled at them, as they nodded their heads as a thank you. "Your Majesty is kind and benevolent above all, yet I dare not receive just praise." the girl raised her sight so she could look at the old man, feeling awkward, yet unstoppable. "A humble one she is, General, you've raised her well. As I see it, she is of age. Are you here to request a good marriage for her? Perhaps with one of my sons?" the Emperor asked, earning a silent yet startled gulp from the girl. "Your Majesty, I dare not. My daughter, bless her soul, is not the most feminine one, yet, since she left the palace, she showed incredible aptitude in martial arts and fighting, and her teachers deemed her intelligence above average. While she is hopeless with a needle, I can proudly say that she can stab with a sword infinitely better than many of our soldiers. If you may have it in your heart to forgive such an obvious stray-away from our usual traditions, please consider using her skills, for she learnt a great deal and she wants to serve our country and the Emperor with her very brain and life.” her father pleaded, and it seemed like the Emperor was actually considering this move. “Very well, I understand your wish, and it makes sense, however, you will have to prove yourself in front of everyone. There are prejudices everywhere, and close to nobody believes in the resurrection of someone like Princess Pingyang or Lin Siniang. Should you prove them wrong, I shall grant you the title of Apprentice Detective. I believe you remember my sons here, the 3rd and 4th Princes – They, too, were here to volunteer to help solve a case in a province away from the palace, and you may join them.” The Emperor explained, making both the father and the daughter bow gratefully. “Your Majesty is kind and benevolent above all. I shall prove I am worthy of this position and make you and my father proud.” She spoke, and thus, the Emperor raised. “Today, you may rest, as you have come here from a long and tiresome journey, yet tomorrow, you shall be fighting the soldiers in training at the Academy, and depending on your performance, I shall make a decision.” Was the last thing the old man spoke, and then, he dismissed the young ones, as he wished to talk about the situation of the Army in the North-East province.

And so, the Eunuch guided them outside and guided her to the Palace of Everlasting Wisdom, which was awfully fitting for her, but she thought nothing of it, instead, quickly befriended the maids and had them tell her anything of relevance about life in the Palace.

But…Those two Princes…The Emperor said they were her old friends…But they were so grown up and looked so sharp and mature! How could that have happened? She still looks soft and youthful, while they look like hardened adults! How is that fair in any way? Not to mention…They’d be working together? On a journey, away from the palace? That’s insane! So exciting! …Hopefully.

That night, she slept like a baby, both eager and anxious for the next day’s challenge, whatever that may be…After all, she MUST get everyone’s respect, should she wish to have a nice life in the palace and not be constantly pressured into marriage or into becoming a concubine.

Y/N dressed in a nice, light blue dress, like those worn during the reign of the Empress Wu Zetian, since she found those kinds of outfits the best for martial arts, and styled the top of her hair in a simple bun tied in a blue ribbon, letting the lower part sway with the wind. Taking her sword in her hands, she unsheathed half of it, seeing the reflection of her beautiful eyes in it, and grinning, to hype herself up, she slammed the sword back and put it at her waist, rushing to the fighting area.

In the middle of the court, she bowed to the Emperor, who was there to watch the show, yet her gaze was nowhere close to him, but her eyes caught Yin Zhen’s ebony eyes watching her, and she could only smirk, very smug and proud of herself.

As she kneeled like a warrior in front of the Emperor, her eyes averted to His Majesty, as he started explaining what she had to do, as a few boys who must have been fresh out of the Academy, went on either side of her, in perfect sync, 3 on each side, 4 meters apart from her.

“I am aware that one must carry a sword to protect themselves and their allies, yet today, you must show that you are capable of doing so without using your blade in such a manner. Discipline, strategy, reflexes, wit and martial arts shall be what you will be tested on today. You may begin.” As he rose from his throne, he extended his hand up in the air, then abruptly let it fall to his side, as if to highlight the beginning of an entertaining show.

As soon as the loud “BEGIN” was heard from the echoing voice of His Majesty, the girl quickly made a few backward tumbles in a way to get out of the men’s way of harm, then got in a fighting stance, ready to take everyone out. The first 3 were easy to defeat, and ultimately, she grabbed the 2nd one’s arm and swung him around, kicking him into the 3rd, making the three of them fall to the ground – But then she got ambushed by the last three, and as she felt herself get grabbed by the light jacket over her blouse, she quickly twirled around, letting the attacker remain with the jacket in his hands, while she dropped to the ground, sweeping her leg over his own, making him fall to the ground. As she finished the 4th, she twirled around again, kicking the 5th in the jaw, then taking out the ribbon from her hair and choking the last one standing, and thus, she was standing tall surrounded by a pile of beaten up men who stood no chance.

However, no day is short of surprises, as she notices Yin Zhen’s sword get unsheathed and him walking towards her with an amused smirk, and she could only tsk in annoyance – This game of proving the others wrong seemed rather unfair all of a sudden – Going against a sword barehanded? Not exactly wise, she reckoned – And thus, she took out her own sword from her waist, extending it for the Prince to see.

“I believe what you are doing will go against the rules set by the Emperor, Y/N. Are you willing to point a sword towards the Crown Prince?” the 4th Prince chuckled very amused, but now, it was the girl’s turn to grin. “Who said anything about a sword? The Emperor told me not to use a blade, and as far as I’m concerned, I’m merely using its scabbard, correct?” she continued parrying the Prince’s swings with perfect accuracy, but she knew he wasn’t actually going full strength on her, she could feel it in the force behind each strike. “I’m not sure if I should be offended that you’re not taking me seriously in this fight, or if I should be concerned about the gold possibly getting whisked away.” She laughed merrily as they continued to dance the waltz of swords, each strike going harder and harder. “If it does, I will make sure the Imperial Blacksmith forges a much better sword for you, and the scabbard will be embellished fit for an Empress.” Their weapons were crossed while their faces were so close to each other that they could almost feel each other’s breaths, and their words, merely above a whisper, needn’t be any louder, for their conversation was meant to be intimate and away from anyone’s ears. “I’d be much happier if it was fit for a Prince.” She laughed in his face, ready to prepare for another strike, but somehow, the Prince’s hit made the scabbard fall off and rotate far away from their positions, looking at them as if mocking. “How rude and unfair of you, Princeling! How am I supposed to fight you now that I can only use the sword’s handle?” she shook her head in mock annoyance, as he sheathed his sword and stepped in front of her. “I win.” He spoke in a simple, teasing manner, flicking her forehead – An endearing and affectionate habit he used to do only to her when they were young and would sneak out of the palace to play around in the Plum garden. “You win nothing, Yin Zhen.” She scoffed, only to notice a glint of silver sparkling in the Sun, and realizing what it was, she jumped, twirling the sword around to pick it up by the blade’s edge, and stepping on his chest, she propelled herself in the air, hitting away a flying arrow sent into the Emperor’s direction. “…Was that planned too?” she asked, not even noticing the running blood coming from her hand. “No, it wasn’t. Father, are you alright?” the Prince ran to his father’s side, while the girl looked back in the direction from which the arrow was sent flying. “The five of you, don’t move! Guards, keep them still!” commanding the royal guards who obeyed her orders, she examined each of the protesting men who either cried out their innocence, or hollered it out. “You were the one who sent the arrow flying. You have a horizontal line across the middle of your fingers, which means you didn’t use a bow, since it would have attracted attention, but instead, most likely, a mini crossbow that many assassins use – Which makes sense, considering how the arrow is about half the size of a normal one. And the two of you are accomplices. You have the crossbow under your clothes – You’re not actually fat, you just stuffed your clothes to appear so, and you provided the arrows, there is a fragment of a coloured feather part which is used for arrows to fly properly.” She explained with ease, which made the Emperor and the other Princes gather around behind her, listening to her reasonings. “Yes, very well, that does make sense. Yin Zhen, Yin Zhi, what do you make of this situation?” the old man looked at his two Princes, who seemed to ponder the situation over, but came up with no other solution by the end of their brief investigation. “It seems to me Miss Y/N came up with the right solution, Father.” The 3rd Prince answered quickly, not wanting to stay there more than needed, but also being rather intrigued by what was happening. It wasn’t often that a court case would find itself before their very eyes so easily. “Very well, very well indeed.” The Emperor nodded in agreement, stroking his beard. “Father, if I may – I wish to express my opinion on Y/N’s

arrival here, at the Palace. I believe she will be the perfect Detective Constable. She expressed skills in combat, intelligence, tactics, wit and charm – I believe men will find it easier to confess to her, should they be found in a precarious situation. It will prove to be very useful in our mission in the Jiangnan province.” Yin Zhen’s voice snapped her out of her thoughts and spoke without realizing. “Jiangnan? That’s pretty close to Hunan, where I spent most of my time. I heard it’s a rather interesting and developed city. What’s the problem there?” she asked, and it was then that the Emperor truly decided to assign her the case. “There has been a string of rather bizarre murders, Young Detective, and I would like you and my sons to go investigate and put a stop to the injustice taking place. You will be on the road tomorrow, these two will show you the book with the written statements about each singular crime that took place. Rest assured, I will inform your father of your departure, and later tonight you will be provided with the imperial token and any weapon you may be in need of.” The Emperor told his scribe to write the declared Royal Decree and had his personal eunuch give her the Imperial Token that will ensure her access to any place or information that she may otherwise have difficulty reaching. “Your Highness is kind and benevolent above all. May Your Majesty live eternally.” Young Y/N kowtowed in front of the old man, who chuckled and patted her head before leaving the place, and with him, the rest of the crowd…Sans the two eldest princes. “I thought tigresses would grow with time, not regress so much. How amusing.” Yin Zhi chuckled, making light of the height difference that was now reversed. “It’s not my fault I was born in the wrong body, is it now? No matter now, I can accomplish the same things with no difficulty or impediment. A tigress will forever be a tigress, be it a cub or a celestial one.” She smirked at the older prince, who could only scoff and walk away. “Great seeing you again, Y/N. As annoying as always.” He grumbled, leaving his brother alone with her. “It may be my imagination alone, but I believe he became grumpier than ever – Correct me if I’m wrong, though.”Y/N shook her head in disbelief, only to get her forehead flicked once again. “And you are as reckless and airheaded as always. If I don’t take care of you, you’ll die before you realise. The Palace life is a harsh one, especially for a woman, be it one in the harem, or merely one with ties to anyone from the Imperial family. Don’t be foolish thinking you are exempt from harm.” Yin Zhen warned her with a sharp and serious tone – She almost couldn’t recognize him, remembering how much of an air head HE used to be, and she had to scold him every time he’d get hurt by being careless and falling down a tree, or falling in the lake. “You don’t have a fever, do you, Yin Zhen? I don’t recognize you! Since when have our roles been reversed, anyway? Besides, what’s the harm done to me, considering I could prevent any from coming to you and your Imperial Father?” Y/N shrugged simply, before getting her hand taken in his and realizing his concern – Her hand was actually slashed and bleeding from when she held her blade tightly in her hand to deflect the stray arrow ready to claim an important life. “You, dummy. Good thing I learnt from the Tigress how to take care of my cub, otherwise, this little kitten would have been much tamer in the future…And that wouldn’t be fun, would it?” The prince took a handkerchief from his pocket and held it tight against the wound, waiting like that until it stopped bleeding altogether. “Marigold ointment will take care of it. Hopefully, no scars either.” She muttered, looking down at her hand with resentment at the idea of scarring. “Even if it does scar, it won’t take away your beauty and worth in this world.” This comment – so charming, spoken in such a suave way, as he drew closer to her – Made her heart beat like never before, and she was sure her face must show the warmth she felt. “I

didn’t realise you’d become such a smooth talker. Little Yin Zhen sure grew a lot since we’ve last seen each other. Undoubtly, you must have a lot of ladies swooning over you. Ladies with skin as smooth and pale as milk, that is. You don’t have to make me feel better, I am aware of this society’s beauty standards, and how people look down on women with scars. But thank you. I will be going now. Make sure you are well rested for tomorrow’s journey…It will be a long one.” With a small smile, Y/N drew back her hand, taking the handkerchief with her as well – She couldn’t possibly return it all bloody, right? – And went back to her assigned palace, not giving the prince any chance to speak back or refute in any way. How could he possibly find the woman he’s been pining over for so many years – In any way, shape or form – Disgusting, just because of some scar? He knew – It was true – He knew how people were…But not him, and not when it came to her. For so many years since she’s been gone from his arms, he’s been thinking of her and her alone. He wasn’t like his elder brother, so dissolute and indulging in his own pleasures, as far away from the Imperial family as possible, while also ensuring his favouring to their father…But He was different. Yin Zhen WAS going to be the next Emperor, and he WAS going to marry Y/N, no matter what. He just got her back…No way in hell was he going to let her go again.

When he saw her again, he couldn’t believe his eyes – She grew up so much, she looked so beautiful, like a woman – It was only now that he saw her with different eyes, it wasn’t just the old fondness from their childhood…But now, his heart was beating faster looking upon her face.

Stars were twinkling brighter in her eyes, than on the bright sky of Summer, her gorgeous visage rivaling even the Moon Goddess Chang’e – And she was as stubborn and nonconformist as always, wearing dresses from so far back – The Tang dynasty, ages ago – And they suited her so well, he was mesmerized watching the loose fabric fly around her so graciously as she spun around so gracefully, swinging her sword and taking down her enemies with perfect precision and stance…

And her expression…Gods, her expression…

It reminded him of his own.

She oftentimes looked to be ruthless, stoic, sharp and unforgiving…And yet, every so often, when not surrounded by people, he would see her eyes soften to the littlest of things, be it a beautiful flower, or a cute puppy yapping at her, wanting to be petted and played with.

He saw her that night – She couldn’t sleep, perhaps? Or maybe it was the night coming faster, awakening the lovely moon, in her honour – She saw her next to the lotus pond, bathing in the silver light of the Deity, as her finger so gracefully glided over the strings of the zither that she played with such nostalgia, that he felt his own heart weep.

Why was she so sorrowful, he wondered. No person who lacks a certain degree of a broken heart would be able to play with such vibrating emotions the instrument that holds the soul of the player, and of the listener. The fourth prince felt connected to her – A heart to heart and soul to soul connection – Solely through the sounds coming from every pinch of the strings…

He knew he would never again feel something so powerful with anyone else. It was his mother who once told him so many tales of heroes saving princesses and falling in love, and yet, those stories never explained in such detail what either of them felt. It was clear to him now that those authors were never actually in love to begin with. God forbid men feel or act with any vulnerability towards the woman they vow to protect and cherish for the rest of their days.

He wanted – Oh, how much he needed – To go to her, to accompany her melody by playing the flute, for those songs are meant to be played together, as a couple, in perfect harmony – And yet, he was afraid that, as soon as he’d approach her, the little tigress would flee from him. He was aware of how frail and afraid she was of admitting she held a more romantic side, and yet, this very fear of her was what was causing her so much distress, even if she was aware of it or not.

Perhaps, this woman wasn’t just a tigress, but a fawn as well, choosing which side of her to show to the world, depending on what her heart and mind dictated…In a world ruled by men, being a deer would only get you to become dinner, so play the role of a fiery tigress and make everyone flee in fear.

It was the perfect strategy, clearly, and yet…

Yin Zhen never showed fear.

“I never imagined my first case would involve something so complex.” Y/N spoke, almost without realizing, as she went over the case file once again, bouncing absent-minded in the horse saddle. “We immediately sent word to the constables in Jiangnan so they won’t touch the body more than needed. Congratulations, your first case will have you look at something gruesome.”Yin Zhi mocked her, and yet, he was shocked hearing her laugh lightly. “That’s gonna be fun!” she grinned, trying to imagine the way she’d find the bodies and whether she’d be able to make heads or tails of everything. “I hope all three of the bodies will be left in perfect shape, otherwise it would be such a pity, don’t you think?” she mused, a confident kitten-like smile creeping on her face. “Any man who hears you speak with so much glee about dead bodies will flee for you. I’d be more careful about what I’d say out loud before it’s too late and I end up all alone, old and ugly.”The 3rd prince’s comment made his younger brother frown in anger, shooting him a warning look. He didn’t want the girl to become even more sorrowful than she already was. Not being the stereotypical feminine woman wasn’t as popular now as it was hundreds of years ago, when the bravest women were, in the end, praised and beloved by everyone, going down in history, tales of their bravery being sung at events all over the country. “Then…Think I’ll find a pretty woman? If I can’t find a man to love me, protect me and cherish me, like in those nice stories our mothers told us when we were young, then might as well become the warrior seeking a beautiful, young maiden who would willingly sooth my soul and tend to my wounds. Doesn’t sound half-bad, does it? Women are very beautiful, maybe I can find the appeal a man feels when seeing one, if I imagine it long enough.” She chuckled carefree, but the prince knew that, deep down, she was used to such harsh comments being made about her, and in her heart, she held no hope of a future with someone by her side. “As if that would happen.” The prince scoffed at her breeze-like comment, only for her to laugh at him, tauntingly. “What is it, Zhi Zhi? Afraid I’m going to be more popular with the ladies than you? With how rude you are, I think it’s safe to say I would win, if that were the case.” A tigress, a fawn…And a smirking fox. Yin Zhen wondered whether he would come to discover more spirit animals residing inside her heart – He was fascinated, and also, satisfied with how she turned around to taunt back his brother with such perfect ease, that it angered the elder one. “We shall see…” oh, look at that, the 3rd Prince actually took that as a competition starter – How very serious of him! “Enough bickering, you two, we have arrived.” The 4th Prince scolded those two as they trotted inside the city of Jiangnan, admiring the provincial beauty and simplicity of the place, until they were greeted by the main constable of the place, who guided them to their quarters, offering them information about each case, only for then guide them to each of them, in the order they were done.

“Good golly, I never would have imagined a human could end up so fat!” the girl exclaimed, her jaw dropped in horror at the mountain of a man that sat in front of a table, his upper body engulfing the wooden furniture with the layers of fat as he was hovering over it entirely. “Be more respectful of the dead, Y/N…”Yin Zhen sighed softly as he went ahead to look around the room. “I’ll wait for you outside.” The constable muttered, doing as he told.

The girl then put a veil on her face to cover the bottom half of it, protecting herself as much as possible from the possible diseases and, most of all, from the stench of rotten food and flesh. With help from the two imperial brothers, she had the corpse lay on the floor completely, so she could perform an autopsy and see the cause of death – Not only a failing heart, as it was completely engulfed with a scary amount of fat, but…His stomach was burst open, and a concoction of digested and undigested food was disgustingly splayed all around his entrails.

Clearly, he ate himself to death, and yet, she wondered how come the constable didn’t deem this simply a heart failure, considering his appearance? Perhaps signs of forced entry would explain everything – But why would this one be killed in such a way? Wouldn’t it be more satisfying to have such a glutton starve to death? P’haps, even more…Cruel?

Maybe it wasn’t a hate-crime after all, but a way to teach this one that gluttony wasn’t, in fact, good…A twisted way to teach someone a lesson – Don’t steal away the starving people’s food - Y/N realized that, what he may eat at one meal, would be something she’d need for a whole week, and the thought of it had her stifle her chuckle at the irony.

Glutton…Gluttony…Interesting concept. Truth be told, she never met anyone so unhealthily, so morbidly obese – Especially for food was scarce in many provinces, and while there was abundance at the Palace, not even there, did she see anything more than slightly chubby.

Perhaps people who stood out with their wrong-doings were to be eliminated. This one was already an outcast from the rest of the citizens of this place, nobody would miss him, so he was a fair kill.

“Did you find anything relevant around the room?” she asked as she got up and went to wash her hands from the disgusting body juices she had to dig into. “No signs of forced entry, however, the culprit was definitely sitting in the chair opposite of him. What did you find from the body?” the younger brother asked as they all left the room. “Mr. Constable, have you seen anything out of the ordinary in this city lately? A new person, an event, uhm…People acting weirdly, or I don’t know, anything that would stand out from the usual.”She asked, not yet answering the prince. “Nothing that I would think from the top of my head, no…Things have been normal for the past weeks…Until these tragedies started happening, so quickly, one after the other…” country constables really are useless, the girl realized, as she merely smiled at him and put her hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, we’ll bring justice to the victims and this city. Until then, stay vigilant and tell us should you find out anything new.” Saying that, she decided to go on ahead to the next victim’s house, letting the running thoughts take over her mind.

Hurrying down the busy streets of Jiangnan, they found their way to the second house of the day – Once again, no signs of a forced entry – Yet this body was different. This man was built normally, so the chances of an accidental death due to natural causes was out of question. He was sprawled over his bed, his clothes dyed with his own crimson blood, his hands and feet impaled with golden ornaments, as melted gold was poured over his face, melting it, and in turn, killing him in such a gruesome way…And piles of golden ingots, silver taels and jewellery were piling over the rest of his body, almost suffocating him.

There was nothing to dissect here, the cause of death was obvious, so the last thing to wonder about was the reason for this atrocity.

So much wealth put everywhere on display…If this was the same person, then maybe…The lesson they wanted to teach this man was humility? Or…Altruism? Temperance? To give away his wealth to those less fortunate?

Perhaps this culprit thought he was trying to protect his city from these people who may taint it. Those who are too…Greedy…

Gluttony…Now Greed…

I wonder what the next lesson taught will be – Y/N thought to herself as she searched around the bed, throwing away all the riches from it, then finding a small, yet fat book that held stray specks of gold on its cover.

‘Bible’ it was called.

“I found one like this at the fat guy’s house, on the table. It certainly is the same killer, then.” Yin Zhi said, taking out the food-stained book from under his clothes. “…I’m onto something. Let’s go to the next one.” Y/N muttered, slamming open the door and bursting through it, going to the 3rd house.

This one, instead of being piled up with the obvious signs of their addictions, it was…Empty? Completely empty?

The victim was laid on the ground, on what looked like a comfortable bed with a pillow, but upon closer inspection, the person was heavily malnourished, looking like a rotting corpse, with its skin barely there anymore, and…

Hold up…

The corpse…Has a pulse…?

As Y/N touched her fingers to the veins on its neck, the corpse’s eyes shot open – They were blood shot, desperate, in complete agony - The girl let out a startled yelp as she fell back on the ground as she watched the…Victim’s chest heave up and down, a guttural scream let out as…The sown-together lips were torn open to allow the man to yell out his pain.

“What do we do?!” Y/N looked back and forth to the brothers, as Yin Zhen knelt and quickly slit his throat, making him go quiet. “Any complaints?” he muttered, watching the girl quickly shake her head. “What the hell was that…? Didn’t the constable say he was definitely dead? That means no pulse, no heartbeat, no vital function…Nothing! This wasn’t nothing!” putting her hand to her chest to calm down her breathing. “Someone wanted us to see him in this state. To act as a warning to us. They knew the constable here was good for nothing, and the culprit wanted to scare us away from this city. Too bad this won’t have the effect he so desired.” Yin Zhen scoffed as he brought his hand under the pillow, finding another book with the same name. “What a sadist…Whoever the killer is…Is sick. Very sick.” But…Why was this one killed? He was humble enough not to lavish himself in riches, not wasting food, or objects…Maybe his behaviour to other people was bad? Maybe he was a jerk? “Any idea about this one?” the 4thprince asked, as the girl shook her head. “No…This time, no idea. Let’s go out, I have to think.” She muttered, going out of the house, looking up at the bright sky and watching the fluffy clouds go by which way the wind wants them to. “I keep thinking on this…I have a feeling that…I read about this somewhere…Some long time ago. Someone is trying to teach these victims a lesson. Don’t be a glutton. Don’t be greedy. But…I can’t figure out what this one did…What did he do so wrong that he had to be induced in a coma and suffer so long…You could see his muscles, and they were in such a horrible state, from not moving…How could he have ruined this city that he deserved this punishment-lesson?” she tried to think out loud, hoping that somehow, the answer will come by itself.

As she walked down the cramped streets of this place, the two princes trailing down behind her, trying to make out their own theories, she got snapped out of her mind palace by the angry shriek of a woman, fighting a weird-looking man in front of a big house.

“You will never get us out of business, so leave already! Spread your mindless indoctrination in another city, you’ve already angered everyone else in this one!” the woman, very beautiful, despite the twisted expression of rage on her face, shouted at the man, who, instead of having matching anger…Looked rather…Serene? “Miss, what is the problem, please? May we help you in any way?” the girl rushed to the woman’s side, holding onto her to calm her down, which worked well. “Ah, yes, you can help me by getting that stupid foreigner out of our city! We never wanted him, but those useless constables let him spread the word of his false God around this place, and now, look at him! Walking around as if this is HIS country! The audacity!” she scoffed, before shaking her head and inviting the trio inside, which made Y/N realise this house was a brothel – In fact, a pretty rich one – “You three are new here. What brings you to our city? The blooming cherry blossoms, perhaps?” the woman, Ying Yue, asked them, as she poured tea for them. “We came here to investigate the series of peculiar murders that took place in this city…But I never imagined, in my life, I would see a foreigner in the flesh! My father and the professors I learnt under wanted me to keep a broad mind, so I am somehow familiar with some literature from Europe, and yet…This man looked…Out of it.” Y/N explained, taking a sip from the aromatic tea, as her eyes were fixated on the visage of the beautiful matron. “Ah, yes, him. His name is…Difficult to pronounce. Alexander, he insists on calling himself. He is from a different religion, worshiping this Deity called ‘God’, and he wants to convert us. He is truly shameless…He keeps preaching how we are all sinful and need divine retribution. Honestly, I don’t understand him at all…Sometimes, he starts talking in a weird language, and waves around that wooden cross of his. He’s creepy. And he’s trying to get our brothel to close down and all the women become nuns and repent.” She shuddered with indignation as Y/N gasped in realization. “Oh…Heavens…I think I know what’s going on…He carries around a book with black leather covers called “Bible”, correct? Does he have any copies?” the girl asked, feeling the fire of understanding surging through her bloodstream, remembering the three booklets found at each scene of the crime. “Gosh, yes, he does. In fact, he spent months translating it in Chinese and handing out copies to every household, and all that. We tossed it into the fireplace, but…I believe there are some who still have it.” The matron explained, and just then, Yin Zhi pulled out the three books from his bag. “Like these ones?” The prince handed the woman the books, but she refused to touch them, disgust splattered all over her face. “Yes, like those. I don’t know what written in them, as I said, I never bothered with them, but hopefully, they will help you in some way.” The matron sighed, as she heard many of her girls giggling, and looking back, they were on the floor above, leaning on the bannister, looking down at the two men bashfully. “You two, it seems my girls have taken a liking to you. Why don’t you go have some fun? It’s on the house. Miss, if you want, we have a few men too, very handsome.” The matron rose from the table, trailing her hands down the men’s shoulders, trying to allure them in. “Not bad…” Yin Zhi muttered, looking up at the beautiful young girls waving at him. “Ah…Hahaha…U-Uhm…Thank you, I’ll pass. Thank you for the offer, I-I have to go now. I’ll see you two at the inn. Bye.”With that, the young girl didn’t wait to see whether the 4th prince accepted the offer or not, instead, she bolted out of the brothel and continued walking around the city, admiring the light from the many colourful paper lanterns hung around the place.

Instead, for the remaining of the evening, and dead into the night, she hovered over the book, skimming through it, this time, more attentively for any key word, or phrases that may get her to understand what was going on.

And then, she remembered her own words – Sinful, gluttony, greed – she said to herself, and there, she found the meaning of those words.

The Seven Deadly Sins.

Pride, Greed, Envy, Wrath, Lust, Gluttony, Sloth.

That means…

The fat guy was forced to eat until his stomach exploded – That was Gluttony. The rich guy was literally buried under his own wealth – That was Greed The coma guy…He had nothing in his home, except for a bed…And he didn’t move for months on end… - That must be Sloth.

Pride, Envy, Wrath and Lust remained…

Lust?

LUST!

The brothel!

That’s why the Christianity envoy wanted to shut down the brothel! God didn’t see lightly any sin committed, and lust was a sinful indulgence!

She had to warn them!

As she ran out of her room, back to the brothel, she noticed smoke rising from it, as it was engulfed in flames… Shocked, Y/N ran inside the burning building, covering her face with her long sleeve so she won’t breathe in the smokes and die while trying to make rescue attempt. She bolted up the stairs, searching every room and evacuating the fainted women who didn’t have the time to leave…But did she really want to see them fainted, on the ground? But maybe seeing them would bring her a certainty that at least they aren’t in a place even more dangerous than this one.

But he saw them, and all her worries were bundled together in the pit of her stomach – The closest escape was through the window, even thought it was to far up, she was confident she could manage to drag them somehow, despite how heavy they were, to safety, outside.

Thank goodness I learnt martial arts – She thought to herself – As she picked the 4th Prince first, jumping down the window, then climbed back up for the 3rd prince to bring back to safety. She hovered over both of them, trying to find out if they breathed in too much smoke, since they passed out like that, as she coughed a bit to eliminate the smoke she inhaled, and thought how Yin Zhi seemed to be okay, but…Zhen Zhen wasn’t doing as brightly…He was barely breathing… So she attempted a procedure she learnt from the monks – To press on the chest at a patterned pace, and the lift the head up a bit and breathe air into their mouth – If it was a different circumstance, she would have been very flustered, considering their lips would touch, but now, she had no time to think twice, as she took deep breaths and exhaled, praying to the Heavens for him to wake up already.

And after a few procedures repeated, he slowly opened his beautiful dark eyes, and Y/N could only sigh, collapsing on his chest, breathing in relief.

“Thank Heavens you’re awake…I thought you were going to die…” she muttered more to herself than to him, before feeling a hand on the top of her head. “Thanks…” the prince spoke out in a tired voice before he, with some help, got in a sitting position. “Your clothes are ruined. And you’re covered in ashes. Come here.” Taking out a napkin once again, he cupped her cheek as he gently cleaned her face, as she looked away awkwardly. “What happened? Neither of you would get caught in a burning building. You could have jumped out of the window. I know you, of all people, wouldn’t get distracted by anything.” She asked, frowning and putting one of her hands over his, stopping him from moving his hand – And he did, shifting his gaze, looking right into her eyes – He could see the worry, the gentleness, the wonder…The love and relief – And the lingering feeling of her soft lips on his own was worth everything, and yet, he’d have rather taken the initiative and kissed her in a more fitting place. “The sake and tea we got served was drugged. We didn’t realise until it was too late. We thought at first it was only the alcohol, but the girls fainted faster than either of us. By the time we felt hazy, we thought it was from the alcohol, Yin Zhi is much more of a lightweight than I am…But when we smelt the smoke, we tried to get up, but found out we couldn’t. But how did you get here? I was sure you’d stay at home and analyse that book the whole night.” He spoke, and the girl cleared her throat awkwardly, chuckling and scratching the back of her head. “So, uhm…That’s what I was doing…And then I realized what the crimes meant. All of them represented one of the seven deadly sins from the Christian Bible. Gluttony, Greed and Sloth being the ones already committed…And, well…Lust was one of them, and I remembered the missionary trying to close down the brothel. And since you were here, I was afraid the perpetrator might try something, attempting to get rid of his pursuers…And when I came by, the brothel was already aflame, neither of you was anywhere to be seen, the matron and many of the citizens were just standing by, screaming, but nobody was trying to put out the fire…I had to do something, you know.” She explained, unconsciously putting a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Give props to the tigress to figure out something like that and to be brave and reckless enough to risk her own life to save a bunch of people that don’t have anything to do with her.” The prince chuckled, only to see the girl’s brows furrowing. “You’re making it seem as if I did a bad thing. Besides…Don’t just say there were people who didn’t have anything to do with me, as if we are strangers to each other. It’s rude.” She muttered, getting up and turning to his brother and slapping his face. “Get up, Zhi Zhi. I know you woke up by now. Don’t just eavesdrop on people’s conversations, you, jerk.” “At least don’t hit so hard, damn…Don’t hit your future husband like that too, he’ll leave you.” The 3rdprince rubbed his now red cheek, only to have the back of his head slapped by his brother as well. “I don’t need to bother with a husband, anyway.” She muttered, walking ahead at the front of the brothel where the matron sobbing, hugging her girls who were crying as well – But at least they woke up, all alive and well – Unlike the crumbling building that couldn’t resist the forces of nature…Induced nature, that is.

The women jumped on their saviour, praising and thanking her for saving their lives, but Y/N’s eyes were glued on something else – The foreigner holding a Bible and a cross in his hands, as his eyes were fixated on the fire while his lips were constantly moving – Was he preaching, she wondered?

No matter – Her rage was bubbling inside her heart so badly that she pushed aside the women and stomped to the foreigner, yelling at him and picking him up by the neck of his shirt, shaking him roughly.

“HOW DARE YOU TRY TO BURN PEOPLE?! HOW DARE YOU KILL THOSE OTHERS JUST LIKE THAT?! YOUR RELIGION IS SUPPOSED TO BE ALL ABOUT LOVE AND CARING FOR YOUR PEERS, NOT ABOUT KILLING AND OPRESSION!” she screamed in his face only for the man to blink in confusion and fear, but…He didn’t seem…Guilty…?? “M-Miss, I’m sorry, I know I am a foreigner and I’ve been trying to convert people and show them how great our religion is…But I’d never kill! The Lord is against harming others, at all costs!” the foreigner tried to explain himself to the girl, but she didn’t stop until she punched him to the ground, only to stop abruptly. “…So…You’re claiming you are innocent? For all 4 crimes? Even though the concept of seven deadly sins is a Christian thing?” she muttered, looking down at him. “Yes, miss, yes! After all, everyone in this city could have read the Bible, I translated it in many books, and delivered them to all households. I made sure to do that for all of them!” Alexander explained himself, and the girl could only nod, seeing the innocence in his eyes. “…If that is true, then, you have my apologies for misjudging you and accusing you of such atrocious crimes. I am sorry that some evil-doer is using your religion is a misguided way, and speaking your God’s name in vain. I don’t believe there is any believer in any faith that would appreciate their belief being treated this way.” Sighing, the girl helped the man up, only for him to take both of her hands in his, looking up at her with delight in his eyes. “Miss, you understand what my religion is all about! I am so happy to see someone so open to new things! Miss, wouldn’t you consider converting to Christianity for the greater good? I would gladly guide you through the path of redemption and make sure no trace of wrath lingers in your blood!” the girl’s first thought was to snatch her hands away – Touching was an intimate thing only lovers should do, not someone like him! – And yet…Her mid was somewhere else, and it wasn’t until Yin Zhen came to slap away his hands that she came back to. “Don’t touch other people so lightly, foreigner, especially women. It’s an act of intimacy in our country, and it shouldn’t be engaged in unless both parties are familiar with. Better get more accustomed to our ways before you decide to act so freely.” Poison dripped from Zhen’s words as he put his arm protectively around the girl. “Well, what do you expect from foreigners, any way? Especially one so outspoken? They come here, trampling our lands, as if they own the place, then they take away our lands, our women, and then will demand to be kings. Tsk.” Zhi spoke, which made the girl snap her head up at the foreigner. “Alexander, I need your opinion! Just now, you said wrath lingered in my heart, correct? Other than wrath, there is only Pride and Jealousy left. Do you think there is any possibility that either of these two would be a victim to the Seven Deadly Sins criminal?!” the girl’s voice was evidently worried, thinking back at the brothel incident. “The culprit could have put the brothel on fire at any time, and yet, they waited until both Yin Zhen and Yin Zhi were there, and they were drugged, along with the girls. This can’t be just a coincidence, can it?” Y/N spoke out, worried for her two friends. “Miss, this one here reeks of pride and vanity, that much is obvious, while this one’s jealousy can be seen from miles away. Maybe people from around are used to such behaviour, it may be normal for you, and yet, from someone from abroad, with a different kind of lifestyle and society, everything is different. If you think either of you may be in danger, then please, do be careful, and please protect this city. It’s a beautiful place with beautiful people, but it’s been tainted by this killer’s darkness.”With a small smile, the foreigner left the place, as the girl’s hand fell to her side. “…Well, future Emperor, how does it feel to have escaped your first assassination attempt?” she asked dryly, walking back to the inn, while the other two were behind her. “Tsk, are you really going

to listen to that guy? Who does he call vain, anyway?” the 3rd prince scoffed, only for the other two to look at him with a bored expression. “Honestly…” they sighed in unison, not wanting to address the Envy part on Yin Zhen’s side – Why would he be jealous, anyway? And the foreigner only said that after the prince pushed him away from her…

The room was silent for the longest time, and they were ready to go to sleep, until the girl decided to go on the roof of the inn and look up at the moon, as she felt it helped her think better. Being alone always made her feel much better and to think clearer. The moon was full, and she could even see the bunny of Chang’e, the Moon Goddess, and she smiled, resting her chin on her knees.

“You shouldn’t be out alone.” The familiar voice of the 4th Prince came up from behind her, but she could only shrug simply. “I can take care of myself. You’re the one who got drugged and almost died. You were careless and distracted.” She didn’t look at him – In fact, she didn’t shift her gaze from the moon at all. “I admit my mistakes. I was careless. I hoped that I would find out vital information on the people around here – Brothel girls are always the best people to ask for dark secrets, since men are intoxicated and speak freely around them – Alas, all I found out was that the constable is a frequent guest there…But never as a client. They said he was concerned about their well-being. They also said the ones who died deserved to die, since they were dead beats. And the last victim was a lazy who never in his life worked, so his lesson was to contribute to society in any way.” The prince explained, but the girl already figured out as much. “You would know best about being intoxicated and being vulnerable around women, wouldn’t you?” she muttered softly, but her mind was in a complete other place. “Do you blame me for remaining there with my brother?” he asked, sitting down next to her. “No.” her answer was simple and blunt, but he could tell, it didn’t come from the heart. “You should.” He admitted his mistake without a second thought. “…You’re a man. That’s what you do. Besides, you should get used to having lots of beautiful women around you. You’ll be the Emperor one day. You have no choice.” She said in a cold, rather impersonal tone, not wanting to dwell further into this awkward and tragic discussion. “One man can only love a woman alone. His heart is his own, while his body is the country’s. Men who truly love more than one woman are feeble, and should not be trusted.” He explained softly, but the girl didn’t spare him any glance. “In Europe, a King has only one wife, who is the Queen…Only their child is legitimate and the heir to the throne. Any…Mistake the King might do is swept under the rug, and the bastard is hidden from the world, or even killed. And the Queen…The poor Queen is all alone. Her sole role is to bear children and continue the lineage. They are not allowed to do anything, while the country abuses her body and soul, but the King can do anything he pleases, for the whole power is in his hands. Meanwhile…Here, the Emperor is forced to have multiple women as wives, and all can bear legitimate heirs…And yet, ask any woman, and you will see just how lonely and desperate for affection they are. They are not truly loved…But the Emperor goes to them when he remembers them…And sometimes, doesn’t even stay the night. The visits are brief…And when she grows old…She is forgotten, just like a wilting flower. I wonder…Which fate is more cruel? And also…Why should it be cruel at all? The Sun and the Moon are both beautiful, and yet, all alone. Maybe it’s better to be alone than heart broken.” She sighed, getting up and turning to leave, only for the man to stop her by embracing her from behind. “Y/N…Can you feel my heart beating? This heart belongs to you and you alone. It has been that way since we were children. I won’t deny, what you said is true in its whole entirety, but I never felt and thought the same way about a woman as I do for you. I am a man of my word, Y/N, and I vow to you – I vow on this country, and on my name as the next Emperor, that to me, there will never be anyone more important to you. So please, allow me to protect your heart, and I shall gladly give you mine for you to hold. Please trust me as much as you did when you let me catch you whenever you’d jump from the top of a tree, or when you’d find out a secret from your spying around the palace, and you couldn’t help but tell it to me, and me alone. I am yours for the rest of my life…So in turn, be mine, and mine alone.” His embrace tightened, and the girl felt hotter and hotter, her face became flustered, and she could feel her heart beating faster from emotion…And worry. “You are asking a great deal, you know, don’t

you? Something like this can’t be given away so lightly. It’s my heart, and I have only one. Only I know how to protect it…If I give it to you…Any wrong move can make it fall to the ground and shatter. And trust me, there is no remedy for a broken heart. What will you do then…My dear Zhen Zhen?” the term of endearment that she hasn’t used since they were children…How melodious and loving it sounded…The little fawn came back to him. “I would never let that happen. If it falls, I will fall with it, so I can catch it before it reaches the ground. If water rains on it, I will cover it with my own self, so it won’t get wet. If it’s too hot, I will fan it myself, and if it’s too cold, I will make sure to warm it until it’s not trembling any longer. So trust me, just one more time, and I promise you, you will never regret it.” He kissed her temple softly as his hands reache her own, intertwining his fingers with hers – He could feel her trembling softly – He knew the effect he had on her, and of her conflicting thoughts. “…Let me think on it, and I will tell you my answer by the time we reach the capital. Until then…Let’s catch the culprit and be rid of this pestilence. Actually…Let’s visit the constable, for a change. I believe that…He is not as innocent as he seems…And his uselessness may be just an act. If you can’t trust a constable, then who can you trust, the saying goes. So, what do you say? Are you in?” she turned around, failing to meet his eyes, but she could see his smile…As beautiful and confident as ever. “Let’s catch him.” He nodded, and together, they went around the house, their sword in their hands, carefully, and they were going to meet at the back of it, while they investigate every little bit of it – And yet, by the time the prince got to the back…There was no sign of the girl at all. “Y/N? Where are you?” he tried to look around for her…And yet…The only clue that indicated the girl was ever around this place was the blue ribbon that used to hold her hair up.

However, the darkness of the night became an even darker abyss for the prince as well, as he was hit in the head with a metallic object, which had him hazy enough to be dragged into the warehouse just behind the constable’s house. There, he got tied to a chair in the back, as the place was illuminated by a bunch of paper lanterns – And then he saw her – In the same state as him, only she seemed much…Out of it?

“What did you drug me with?” her voice sounded like a drunk man – Slurred and groggy – And yet, his eyes were only set on the small, shiny object in the constable’s hand. It was foreign, and strange…It was…Weird. “It matters not what I did to you, Miss Detective. What matters is that here, you and your dear Prince will face your demise!” the constable, Rui, grinned creepily at her. “…A constable from hell. How unlucky for the people here. Why bring us here?” she continued asking, trying to keep a grip on reality. “Once the verdict is done, I will execute the law. Imperial Detective Constable Y/N. You protect the law. But what have you done wrong? Go on, tell me. I know you know. That friendly foreigner already told you.” He insisted, crouching down to her level. “…My heart is filled with Wrath.” She muttered, feeling her head swimming and spinning in a vertigo mixed with a hurricane. “Yes, good, good, the sinful wench acknowledges her evil-doings! Then, you know that I have to kill you, just as I killed the others! They only brought misfortune to our beloved city! And you…You are the worst of them all. Wrath is the reason everything good gets destroyed. Women, of all people, should be gentle, calm and understanding. You? You behave like a mad war criminal who seeks blood alone!” he screamed in her face, as she could only roll her eyes at his stupid allegations. “Oh, spare me the bullshit. You are the one who bent the law, punish yourself first. You are stupid.” She groaned, feeling a headache creeping. “SHUT UP, BITCH! Who do you think you are, speaking like that to me?!” he said, slapping her face and snatching away the Imperial Token given to her by the Emperor. “You think if you have this token given away from that conceited fraud you call an Emperor, you will be protected from anything? NO! In fact, you and your two silly princes just signed a death sentence coming here! But, alas, I couldn’t do away with them when I wanted to, you just HAD to folly my plans! Very well, then, I shall do away with you first, while he watches you physically feel the very same wrath you inflicted upon this world!” and thus, he took a syringe and, despite all her struggling, she was still bound to the chair, and he had no problem injecting her with more of whatever that horrible liquid was – It made her even hazier than before, and her vision became blurry – Not even by straining, could she see well in front of her anymore – And it made her panic, trying to breathe faster, as she felt the cold metallic barrel of the weapon placed cruelly on her forehead – It only made her skin feel even hotter than it already was. “So, I’m guilty…For being alive. For trying to save people. And you…You are…Innocent. You are a hero…For killing. You are no God. You have no right to take away the lives God gave to those people. You are not the Judge, nor the Executioner. If you so firmly believe in Christianity, you would know that God hates no one – In fact, he loves all he created, equally – And would never approve of such senseless killing. You just chose to pick apart a few paragraphs that suited your narrative… And you went with it, using a foreign Deity as your scape goat. You are absolutely pathetic and a sorry excuse of a man and a constable. You should be ashamed of yourself.” Her words shocked the prince, but also made him afraid for her – Unlike her, he could see the twisted look of anger on his face – And he could anticipate his next move – As he saw the culprit strike down the girl once again, with such force that the chair tipped over and she fell on the ground with it. “I shall now pass my verdict to this witch! Those who are foolish and arrogant are unreasonable. It is from excessive arrogance, for deceiving the holy court and committing falsehood…I declare Y/N, the Imperial Detective Constable, to be executed at exactly 2:00 in the morning.” He declared, looking at the sand falling down in an hourglass, and leaving the room just briefly. “Yin Zhen…Is there any way out for us?”Y/N asked, hoping she was loud enough for the prince to

hear. “Yes, there is. I just need a little more time. Y/N…Do you know what that metallic object was?” he asked, trying to cut away the ropes with a stray nail he found on the chair. “It’s a gun. Horrible European invention. Honestly…I’m so tired. I just…Want to rest for a while…And get this over with…I want back home…I want to see the mountains in Hunan again…And the flowers bloom. I want to play in the river and catch fish…And pick fruit from up the tree…And make wine and cakes…And have them with you….Yin Zhen?” she let her head back on the chair’s seat, looking up at the wooden ceiling, as she sighed deeply. “Let’s get the hell out of here, I’m so done with sins and whatever.” And thanking herself for training to be flexible, and that the ropes were tied as neatly as they should have been, she bent down enough for her tied up hand to reach into her hair and pull away the hair ornament that had a very sharp needle, so she could cut away her restraints with moderate ease.

However, as soon as she got up and tried to take a step forward…She stumbled and almost fell down. “Is this what it’s like to be drunk? Because if it is…I hate it.” She groaned, gripping her head, as everything began to spin in around her at an even faster pace, so badly, that she had to catch onto something. “Y/N, look out!” the prince yelled at her, as the constable came back, ready to pounce on her, but she turned around, slamming her needle hand into his flesh, as she tried to pull away his gun-hand from her as much as possible.

However, the needle was very old, and it broke from all the commotion – Her drugged self was none the better either – And with just a bit more strength put into it, the constable wrenched his gun arm from her grasp and he punched her to the ground, knocking out the air from her lungs. It really pissed her off, and she wanted to rip him apart limb from limb, but the drugs were too strong still to allow her to do anything that she wanted to do.

As she struggled to get up, she heard the unfamiliar sound of the gun cocking, and then, a demonically loud explosion – Was that the sound of the gun shooting? She wondered, and yet, why didn’t it hurt her? Why didn’t she feel anything? She was sure that, should he shoot, he would shoot her – He wanted her to be in pain and feel the physical consequences of implied wrath.

“Y/N, are you alright?!” ah, that’s Yin Zhen calling out her name like that! And he was struggling…Yes, he must be wrestling the killer. “Yeah, I’m good, but be careful with that gun! One shot and it could kill you!” she called back, and got on her knees as soon as she heard the sound of the heavy, metal object fall to the ground.

As she heard the two men struggling to take the other down, she searched around almost blindly for the gun, and after some time, she finally managed to catch a hold of it, and with shaky hands, she properly held it in her hands, the barrel pointing forwards. The killer was dressed I dark colours, while Yin Zhen’s whole outfit was a bright gold, so, as Y/N strained her eyes to see better, she took a deep breath and pulled the trigged – And then static – Her ears were ringing, and she groaned, the gun falling from her hands as she gripped her head, covering her ears, hoping the horrible ringing noise would stop already.

“Yin Zhen, are you okay?!” she called out, struggling to get back to the shaky reality, hoping the drug’s effect would go away faster already. “…Yeah. You killed him. It’s finally over.” He sighed, going to her side and picking her up bridal style, leaving the place and going back to the inn. However, instead of going back inside, the prince made a detour, and chose to go to the highest hill, where the flowery trees were untouched by the city. “How did you know where to shoot, despite being drugged and not seeing well?” he asked, very curious, as they sat down on the grass, at the bottom of a tree. “…I may sometimes make fun of you for wearing such bright and colourful clothes…But if it was Yin Zhi, I wouldn’t have been able to pick apart the two silhouettes. So, to answer your question…Pure luck, I guess.” She shrugged, sighing and leaning her head on his shoulder, looking up at the moon, seeing it fall down, as the dawn was beginning to come, and the sky was painted in the most beautiful colours there were – And even better, her vision was beginning to clear up. “Let’s hope we won’t have to deal with anything foreign again. This was more of a drag than it should have been.”The prince said, and the girl could only grumble in agreement. “Ah…Right. Uhm…This…It broke. I don’t think it can be repaired anymore.” She muttered sadly as she took out the broken hair pin from her pocket. “This…I didn’t realise you still had this. It’s been so long since I gave you this pin.” He gingerly took it in his hands, but it wasn’t sorrow on his face – No, instead, he was smiling, realizing the feelings she had for him were as strong as ever. “…It’s the only piece of jewellery I wore since then.” Her voice was soft, the little fawn was brave, and speaking. She was honest with herself, with her heart…And with him. “No matter. I can give you any jewellery you want. This was old and I’m surprised it lasted as much.” He chuckled lightly, but the girl shook his head, confusing him. “…I don’t want any jewellery, Yin Zhen. You don’t get it. This…You picked this, thinking of me. You wanted this hair pin to be mine. To wear it. You thought it suited me. You thought it would make me think of you…And it did. And I only wore this one, and every day. I knew it would keep me safe…So I put it on again just before approaching that house. Guess your heart will always protect me. So, you understand? I don’t want just any jewellery. I want a piece of your heart, soul and thoughts to be in anything you give me, otherwise, it’s completely worthless to me.” She explained, snatching back the pieces of the broken accessory, making the prince smile fondly at her. “Very well, I understand what you mean, and I know just what to do. So, for the first gift I will give you…Have this jade pendant. I had it made for me a long while ago. It’s been mine, so, it’s a part of me. And now, I give it to you, to watch over you and protect you. I held it on my sword’s scabbard, I think it suits the black and gold of it very well…And so will yours.” He declared, taking both his and her swords, and trading the two pendants on each sword. “And I shall take yours, as a gift, so I can have a piece of your heart with me as well, wherever I go and you’re not next to me.” His teasing smile crept on his face as he heard her chuckle, snatching her pendant from his hand, tying it to his sword by herself. “That’s much better. It counts when the other gives it to you themselves, dummy.” She let him hold her to his side, as they watched the sky in silence.

When morning finally came, they got up, ready to wake up a very grumpy 3rdPrince, then went to the brothel matron to tell her they will be leaving, and who the real killer was, so they can find themselves a new law enforcer…This time, not a homicidal one.

“Are you sure you won’t be staying one more night, cutie? I mean, we didn’t even have the time to get acquainted with each other…It’s pitiful.” The woman whined, but the prince was indifferent. “There is only one woman alone who owns my heart.” He chuckled, waving the girls goodbye as they got on their horses and went back to the capital. “Very smooth, Princeling.” The girl laughed at him, kicking the horse to go faster, almost as if she was challenging him for a race. “I know what I want in this life.”He declared, and for the remaining long journey, they’ve been teasing each other enough for the 3rd prince to curse them regularly…More so than usual.

“I am very proud of the three of you for solving such a horrible crime. And to think the constable himself was the perpetrator all along! To attempt to commit such a horrible act of regicide…I am glad he got killed by his own weapon.” The Emperor sighed, stroking his beard and shaking his head in disbelief and disappointment. “Father, without Y/N, we couldn’t have done it. She played the crucial role in all the mystery-solving and having the courage to fire such a dangerous and strange contraption. It was lucky she was versed enough in foreign culture and literature for her to pick up on the hints given by the killer at each crime.” The 4th Prince praised the Detective girl, who merely cleared her throat awkwardly. “Your father will be very proud of you when I tell him of your brave deeds! I will have to think of a reward for you, but if you have something in your mind, do tell, and anything shall be granted.”The Emperor spoke, dismissing them. As they bowed, ready to exit the room, the girl smirked, turning around playfully. “I want to marry your son.” She laughed, running away from the Palace of Mental Cultivation, back to her own small place, leaving the two princes and the Emperor to blink and gasp in shock at her boldness. “About time.” Yin Zhen huffed, smirking, as he rushed to catch up with her as well. “Those two are such idiots…But I guess…Together, they will be good rulers in the future. Don’t you think, Father?” the 3rdPrince smirked in amusement, looking out at those two. “This youthfulness and open-mindedness is sure to be a great addition to this country in the future. Until them, let them be children at heart, for just a little while longer.” The Emperor chuckled whole-heartedly, closing his eyes and reminding his own youth, as it was so long ago.

Back at her palace, she hid behind the heavy drapes as she quickly and very skillfully fidgeted with a red rope – She’s been practicing it for a long time, and by now, she could say she was sort of an expert at this – And before she realized it, the drape was strongly pulled away, and in front of her, an amused prince towered over her, not caring about the poor maid’s pleas to get out.

“Found you.” He watched carefully as he noticed her face raise, and her eyes directly look into his – She got more courage, this fawn – He wondered if she really was just a sweet fawn anymore, or if another spirit animal found its way inside her heart. “Found me.” She mused, holding up the red knot for him to take. “This…This is the Love Knot, isn’t it? I’ve never seen it before.” He spoke, taking it from her hands. “And now, you give it to me. When did you even have the time to make something so intricate and complex, anyway?” he asked, looking at it with adoration. “I practiced it a lot when I was in the mountains, training. And besides…You sure took your sweet time getting here. Were you really so stunned by my statement that it took you so long to move?”she teased him, only for the man to quickly cup her face and kiss her – Her lips were as sweet as the last time they touched, and yet, now it was a proper kiss, and now, he felt her slender, small hands over his, as she deepened it with even more love, not wanting to let go of him any time soon. “I’m not the only one who loves to surprise.” The prince let out a soft, content breath, as he watched her eyes sparkle brighter than the moon itself…And she looked very much kissed – And her lips…They were plump, and in very need of more attention. “Clearly.” The corner of her mouth sprung upwards, very amused by his statement. “So, princeling, if your Father decides not to kill me after the stunt I pulled at the palace…Then, you got your answer. But, be very aware, I am not afraid to commit regicide on you, should you be a jerk to be at any time, understood?” she glared at him, more or less seriously, as she grabbed the front of his clothes, dragging him down to her level. “Crystal clear, darling.” He chuckled, nodding in understanding. “Good. Then, kiss me again.” She ordered, and he could only comply. “Any time, Y/N. Any time.”

[vtmb2s]

Past 1, 3, 6, 8 for Jason my beloved and Present 5-8 for Jenny annnd Future 2, 5, 7 for Helena! 😏

─ JASON

1. Briefly describe the way their parents grew up, and how it affected the way they raised them.

Both his parents were two regular middle class new yorkers, Frank (his dad) grew up in New York's suburbs and had a very conventional upbringing, he was the middle child of three siblings and thus kind of ignored so he usually just minded his own business... that very much carried over into adulthood, he was very reclusive and didn't really bother spending much time with his family -_-

Jason's mom, Gina, was a 2nd generation italian-american who grew up in a huge family with a billion siblings and cousins who are all very different from her husband. She liked it in the beginning but she became more and more unhappy and kind of underwhelmed. She really projected all her dreams of ever becoming someone on her kids that failed with her because she was stuck in a boring marriage with the most unambitious and boring man ever 😑

3. Describe their family. Who raised them, and who had the most impact on them? Did they have any siblings? Who were they closest to? What were the family dynamics like?

This ties in with the previous question but Frank was a bit of a loser, not particularly attractive and more timid & shy.. he was a very unambitious guy who worked a boring office job all his life without any intention of climbing the ladder. He really spent most of his time off work with his boring little loser hobbies :/

Gina was a much more spirited and lively person than her husband, Jason takes a lot more after her than his dad. She wasn't a great mother by all means due to the fact that she was unhappy in her marriage and with her life and kind of took that out on her kids, in a way where she placed certain expectations on them which Jason never really met. They weren't particularly close due to Jason's more.. rebellious nature he had as a kid, which in turn made him cause more trouble because that was the only way his parents gave him any attention at all :/ He also has an older brother, Richard, who their mother very obviously favored. Frank didn't really give a fuck about either of his sons -_-

He had a very close relationship with his mother's family though, particularly with one of her brothers. Carlo (said uncle) was a lot like him and never had any kids on his own so he became somewhat of a father figure to Jason :-)

6. Did the location they grew up in affect them significantly? Do they still go there?

He grew up in some little house in New York's suburb, not the prettiest house there because they didn't make enough for one of the nicer looking ones. He's not that fond of the boring suburbs (even in Boston), he spent more time in the city with his relatives and preferred that over his actual home. Other than that it didn't affect him much 🤷‍♀️

8. What was their childhood/teenage bedroom like?

A small little room with an ugly sports wallpaper that his parents never bothered to replace as he got older. It always looked a little messy and had a few mismatching mid-century decorations and furniture in there. As he grew older he started to cover the walls with random posters he had, to hide the ugly baseball wallpaper.

─ JENNY

5. What kind of people do they usually interact with? Who are their friends, the people they look up to/trust, and who are their “associates”?

She interacts with all sorts of people in New Bordeaux' criminal underworld - if you do anything illegal chances are you'll know Jenny. As for her actual friends, she's friends with the 3 other criminal 20 year olds in town, Danny, Lincoln, Ellis, unfortunately Giorgi (frenemies would be more fitting) and Lena. Her closest and best friends would definitely be Gavin (of @dannyburke fame)and Juliet (of @jennystahl fame) though, they're also pretty much the only ones who would fall into the "people she trusts" category... they're the only ones she'll have long weed induced therapy sessions at 1 am while the monkees are on tv.

6. What is their current relationship with their family?

Complicated... the love is there and all that, it's more of a business relationship though rather than a parent-child thing, especially with her dad. It's nothing that she ever questions (until aforementioned therapy sessions with her friends), she grew up in an environment where affection isn't really something she sees often and almost all her friends have messed up relationships with their parents too so while there is some resentment she never really questions that the way they raised her might not be ideal :c

The relationship with her siblings is complicated as well, especially because they're both a LOT younger than her. She was an only-child until the age of 13 and moved out of her childhood home when they were eight and six years old so there's this weird disconnect but there's a relationship nonetheless, which is weird. Eldest daughter AND only child disease 😓Not to mention that her parents are looking to make her little brother head of the family because he's a boy or whatever.. drama!

7. Do they have a partner? How did they meet, and what’s their relationship like now?

Yes.. she and Ellis met on some random job in the Hollow in 1963 that her dad was taking her along with (he and Sammy did random deals together and were also good friends 😌) and Jenny was like wow how boring. What if I just talk to this this guy's sons instead.... she thought he was some annoying teenage guy and only really talked to him whenever necessary (when her dad's business trips to Sammy's got REALLY boring). She forced herself to hang out with him more after Lincoln went to Vietnam and realized he's not so bad so they became friends :)

In actual game canon nothing really happens because he dies, Jenny just becomes sad that her friends were killed (him, Danny, Sammy and maybe Michael too because of Juliet connection.. she doesn't give a fuck abt Giorgi anymore that little rat can die) and wonders if she liked that goofy little guy with the ugly shirts, but in any case it's too late now.

We're doing au's here though (also this is as of '68) so in the good timeline they get together in 1968.. sort of. It's not a friends with benefits thing, more that sort of relationship that you know will end sooner or later for various reasons, so you're kind of living in the moment and have fun while it lasts. It IS genuine and not just about hooking up from time to time of course, it's just not the kind of thing that was built to last because it's based off of a dumb 20 year olds friendship and one of them (Jenny) doesn't really plan on sticking around in New Bordeaux. But well, who knows what will happen 😏

8. What hobby or pastime of theirs do they consider most important to them and why?

Well, she's big on making music, she plays the guitar and sings (she has a pretty nice voice c: ), she grew up in a pretty fucked up environment so that was her sort of escape in her youth, to be a normal kid who's playing the guitar very very badly. She doesn't play it badly as a 23 year old anymore of course and it's a little thing she shares with her best friends so that means a lot to her 😳

─ HELENA

2. Are they content with their future situation? Is there anything they would change?

Well, she's certainly not happy with the whole vampire situation - her dreams of becoming famous for acting were pretty much ruined, now she's legally dead and nothing more than a photo on true crime blogs and conspiracy theory websites... Famous but for the wrong reasons, in a way she's more bitter about "dying" before she had the chance to become famous than about the whole vampirism thing herself. There would have been something incredibly poetic about a beautiful young actress dying at the height of her career, now she's just some random nobody :/

It could be worse though. She's known among L.A. vampires for her lack of loyalty to any of the factions (despite her working for the Camarilla earlier) and her just helping whoever she feels like which is fine to her, most of them will just leave her alone. In any case, she's not in Los Angeles anymore after the events of Bloodlines!!

5. Did they get married or have a family? Why? If otherwise, why not?

See she would like to get married eventually, making a promise to love someone and be with them for eternity (literally... because... vampires) is incredibly romantic and she would love that (THIS is her wedding... not really because she's not that cringe but also.. yeah), so who knows what might happen.

Family though, no!! Starting one isn't possible, at least not with biological children since she's a vampire. It doesn't bother her that much, she always did envision herself with one child in the future but she's not desperate to be a mother anyway so she doesn't beat herself up about it. She does wonder what it might be like to have children and laments it from time to time (she's a little overdramatic) but overall she doesn't mind that much.

7. Are their friends still a part of their life? Are there people they are no longer in touch with, or newly important people?

Yes, sort of! As I mentioned before she's not in L.A. anymore post-bloodlines and she never had many friends there to begin with so she keeps in touch with the few she has there. She miiight make a few new (or old) connections once shes out of Los Angeles too, who knows!

[mrsrcbinscn]

Baby Hour || March 3, 2021

Takes place March 2-3, but it’s been done for over three weeks and I’m posting it early just so it can be here

feat. @laszlowrobinson​ and old Petunia and Cornelius

cw: childbirth, not super graphic but like, discusses what you’d expect

-

March 2nd, 2021

5:03 PM

FRANNY:

 One thing nobody tells you about being pregnant is how difficult it got towards the end solely on account of your own head. Franny could deal with the discomfort and having to pee nine times an hour, because ultimately, that was nothing compared to the waiting. Franny was counting down the days until her March 11th due date and it had long since stopped being a fun, cutesy thing to post on Instagram. 

 Now she was just mad. She wanted to hold her baby already!

 Sovanna had been considered full term for like a week! It’s been safe for her to come out so why not hurry up and be born, huh? 

 Franny sat at the breakfast nook, sipping at some orange juice, and running a hand over her belly. God, she couldn’t see over this thing almost. She couldn’t wait to feel sexy again and not like Saturn. Still, she couldn’t say she was exactly miserable. Even at her advanced maternal age (hey, only forty-one!) her pregnancy had gone well and both she and Sovanna were in excellent health. Beyond excellent, even! Dr. Leonard even said that despite the initial concern for a c-section being required due to her lopsided uterus, Sovanna was positioned right where she needed to be for a vaginal delivery to be possible. 

 She’d done it— almost. After twenty years of trying and being heartbroken when her body refused to begin to or continue to create life, her second child was coming. Soon, she’d get to cuddle her little girl to her chest and let her suckle at her breast and she would get to watch her second little baby grow. 

 How lucky she was to get that privilege again so long after Wilbur had been small. 

 “Cornelius, will you tell her to hurry up?” Franny whined. “Maybe she’ll listen to you. She’s being stubborn and not just being born already.”

 CORNELIUS:

Cornelius had taken a few months off. A few months being, the first half of this whole year. It had come sudden to those he worked with, but the transition itself had been smooth thanks to his team. Honestly, a lot smoother than his anxiety filled brain had thought it would have gone. But he was pleased. And they kept him updated if there was an emergency of sorts that might need him.

 Thankfully, there had been none.

 He’d been using the time to continue to prepare for the baby, but to address his lackluster job as a partner and father. He was trying to spend more time with just him and Franny before they had a crying baby on their hand, but also with trying to reconnect with Wilbur. 

 Honestly, it was nice to take time off. Really, take that time. He didn’t realize how much he needed it.

 Infact, he was catching up on some reading he’d put off for years now when Franny spoke. He looked up, and smiled fondly. “I’m sure I can’t exactly make the call on that,” He laughed. “But - alright. Sovanna, don’t you want to join us already? Your mom is getting impatient.”

 FRANNY:

 When Franny didn’t immediately feel any sharp pains in her sides, she took that as a resounding no from the little one. 

 She chuckled and smiled down at where miss stubborn was hiding and shook her head. “That’ll be two middle fingers up from her, Dad.”

 With a sigh, Franny stood from her chair and reached up to tug her hair out of its ponytail. She’d taken a shower this morning, but even in March she felt burning hot at all times, and sweat enough to need at least two showers a day. Today, probably three.

 “I’m going to hop in the shower. Then I’ll figure out what to do for dinner.”

 Franny winced as right as she was finishing up her shower the now familiar ache in her lower back began to bother her. Sovanna must be beating up her sciatic nerve again, she thought. Pregnancy was much more painful that she’d ever anticipated. The discomfort was a known fact, the ouch was just a mean surprise nobody prepared you for. 

 As she dried off best she could with her nine months pregnant limited range, her sciatic nerve made sure to send occasional reminders that there was a baby in there making it very unhappy. Jesus, what can she do about it, huh? Not like she can command Sovanna to be born. Childbirth wasn’t like crying-- nobody can do it on cue.

 5:45 PM

 “I don’t know what to do for dinner. I’m not hungry at all.” She complained, flicking up the kitchen faucet’s handle and sticking a finger under the flow of water to wait for it to warm up. “Maybe I’ll do something with the butternut squash we’ve got. That requires effort.”

 Franny’s back, feet, and every other bit of her was telling her to sit down, relax, don’t bother with dinner.

 She made to turn back to Cornelius after washing her hands to start cooking when the dull pain in her sciatic nerve spread to her sides...and as she winced and gripped the countertop, she thought maybe it wasn’t her sciatic nerve at all. Franny’s eyes met his and she just muttered, “Back pain.”

 Probably, right? She wasn’t due for another week. Wouldn’t it hurt worse if it was actually time? And shouldn’t her water break?

 They probably still had a few days to go.

 CORNELIUS:

Cornelius was focused on his book, highlighting a couple of lines that stuck out to him. Maybe Wilbur would enjoy this, he thought to himself. They could go back to discussing robotics more like when he was younger. He’d like that a lot…

 A smile came to his face as he played back the memory of him and Wilbur in the lab, trying to keep up with his son's questions. He wondered for a moment if Sovanna would have any interest in science. He glanced up after another stroke of his highlighter with a hum. “You know, you don’t have to worry about dinner. The twins are offering to make…”

 He didn’t finish though. He trailed off as the words died on his tongue and his brows raised curiously at Franny. Back pain was usual, he learned, with pregnancy. In fact, a lot of pain was usual. But how she was now gripping the countertop and looking at him...the way her brows furrowed together…

 Something was nagging him in the back of his mind, but everything he’d read or seen talked about water breaking and - and wouldn’t you know if it was time to have a baby? He was a man, after all, so he wouldn’t know that feeling. But he assumed a woman would know - right?

 “...are you sure, dear? Maybe you should sit down.”

 FRANNY:

 Franny exhaled heavily and nodded, resting a hand over her belly. Yeah, sit. That was probably for the best. She really didn’t need to be super wife right now, not when she was bound to birth a baby any day now.

 “I’m fine. I think, anyway.” She smiled, though it wasn’t quite convincing. “I’m going to try and get comfortable on the couch, I’ll shout if I need anything.”

 She pressed a kiss to Cornelius’ cheek and wandered into the living room and unplugged her phone from where it had been on the charger, only to change her mind about checking e-mails. Her brain was taking maternity leave early, thanks.

 After a good twenty minutes of trying to get in a comfortable position, Franny threw her hands up and accepted her lot in life as an uncomfortable pregnant lady. And for a minute or so, that was fine. Until once again the pain she’d felt in the shower and in the kitchen struck again.

 “Fuck,” she hissed, clutching her side. “Ow.”

 PETUNIA: 

 Petunia had been doing her best to be a mediator in the house as of late, a funny idea if you asked her. What with Wilbur going through so much at school and needing a shoulder to rest his weary head upon and both Franny and Cornelius definitely needing someone to talk to about pregnancy and childbirth, she found that it was.. kind of nice to be needed this way. She certainly couldn’t complain.

 Petunia had been watching a stupid house renovation show just to have some noise on in the background while she texted Seamus about what he and the boys were up to for the weekend. She thought it was rather amusing, watching him run around with those youngsters. Lachlann certainly helped both sides with how charmingly youthful he seemed.

 She’d greeted Franny with a small smile when the woman had first sat down but, now, after twenty minutes of her niece-in-law’s fussing, Petunia was rather curious as to what the young woman was doing. Certainly, pregnancy had been uncomfortable once she’d grown about as large as Franny was but it didn’t usually--

 Oh.

 “Franny, dear, how frequently are your twinges acting up?” Petunia asked, attempting for nonchalance. “Have you been keeping track?”

 FRANNY:

 “Jesus, Petunia!”

 Franny damn near jumped -- see, a part of Franny’s brain registered Petunia’s presence ages ago. A part of her brain waved in greeting before she sat down. Most of her brain already forgot.

 “Uh, what?” Franny thought about it for a moment as she nervously played with her hair and frowned at her split ends. Christ, she needed to get Petunia to fix that Yesterday. “I don’t know.”

 There was the shower, after the shower, in the kitchen, and now...about an hour and fifteen minutes had elapsed from the first one until now. (Granted, Franny can’t do math so she was just guessing.)

 “A few times an hour, maybe?”

 PETUNIA:

 Petunia smiled gently when Franny jumped, attempting at not laughing. She knew she tended to sneak up upon people at times. It was a big house and people expected not to run into people not too terribly often despite the number of people living there.

 She mulled over the information, recalling how often she had been encouraged to wait before heading to the hospital. She’d been told about five to ten minutes between each contraction. If it was a few times an hour Franny probably still had more time, should her hunch be correct.

 Of course, these could always be Braxton Hicks contractions but better to go in than pretend they weren’t happening.

 “Well, dear, we need to start timing them. They’re going to need to know at the hospital, after all.”

 FRANNY:

 Timing them, why? Franny almost asked.

 Instead she said, “At the hospital? Why would I need-- oh. Oh. Wait, you don’t think…? Do you?”

 Her water hadn’t even broken, isn’t that like, sign number one you’re in labor? Then again, didn’t some women say the doctor had to handle that at the hospital? This was too stressful, why can’t the baby just manifest into her arms like Christians teach their kids babies do.

 “Should we tell Cornelius now or wait? He’ll want to go to the hospital right away, I think he’s more worried about me than I am.”

 PETUNIA: 

 Watching Franny’s realization was, well, funny. Petunia certainly hadn’t watched that many ladies go into labor since she had well passed her own carrying age. When her friends back in L.A. or New Zealand had done so everyone had been freaking out and screeching and making a huge deal of it... only to be sent home because they had gone in much too early and the moment had been ruined time and time again.

 She would try not to do that to Franny.

 “It’s entirely possible, darling. A week or two early is rather common, after all, and if they’re coming as frequently as you claim then.. I imagine you’ll be seeing little Sovanna rather soon.” Petunia shrugged. As excited as she was to meet the little one, she knew that she had to be the calm one since, well, she didn’t imagine Cornelius was about to be.

 “I would say we need to start the timer now and, if it’s in ten minutes, we’ll go grab Cornelius. I don’t want to cause any unnecessary trips or any unnecessary fussing. Believe me, the trip home because you’re not far enough along is rather irritating.” She’d been so disappointed when that had happened with Laszlo.

 FRANNY:

 “You think? It might be baby day? Oh, I hope so. I’d hate for Cornelius to spend his birthday at the hospital tomorrow.” Though, if it was spent at the hospital waiting for Sovanna, maybe he’d forget it was his forty-fourth birthday at all.

 God, she hoped they got to meet Sovanna soon. She’d been pregnant long enough! Now she just wanted to hold her baby and feel her warmth in her arms. It’s been baby o’clock!

 “I just want to cuddle her to my chest already, it’s been long enough. Too long, if you count how long we’ve wanted her.” All the pain she put herself - and her husband - though over the years, finally, was paying off with their second child coming.

 She waited, tapping her foot with nerves the entire time, as they waited for the next twinge of pain. Ten minutes came and went -- but not fifteen. Twelve minutes after Petunia set her phone timer, Franny inhaled sharply and nodded as if to say ‘there it is!’ 

 PETUNIA:

 “Darling, I think Sovanna’s decided it’s time and she’s trying to steal daddy’s spotlight for birthday excitement,” Petunia teased. Certainly sounded like a Robinson with that go-getter look-at-me spark. They weren’t exactly a subtle crew, Cornelius being the most subtle of them all and still managing to be the center of attention.

 Petunia squeezed Franny’s arm as they waited, her eyes flickering back and forth from the timer to the pregnant woman before her. Ten minutes passed and Petunia nodded solemnly. So not quite the time, yet. Once they hit twelve and the surge began again Petunia stopped the timer and stood up.

 “Alright, you tell me when it stops so I can start again. You’re doin’ great, sugar.” She knew it wasn’t easy to wait, Petunia’s patience had always been thin even before the curse. “I think little Sovanna’s gettin’ ready to meet you.”

 FRANNY:

 “Am I? I feel like I’m --- I should be losing my mind right? Why am I so calm I mean, I’m shaking a little, my hands. But other than that.” Was she somehow not taking this seriously enough?

 Should she be shouting and demanding to go to the hospital?

 No, reasoned the logical side of her brain. Petunia had two babies, she’d kick you out the front door herself if she thought it was time to get doctors involved.

 “...okay, it stopped.” Franny said through partially grit teeth.

LASZLO: 

Being the irresponsible person that he was, Laszlo had come home from school and promptly crashed on his bed for a nap. Because at any given opportunity to sleep, he was going to ensure to take it. 

 When he woke up, with blurry eyes and wrinkled clothes, he shuffled down stairs. His first stop had been the kitchen to grab a glass of water, chug it, and then refill it before ambling off to figure out where everyone else was. 

 This didn’t take too long. But in a house with this many people living in it (even if the place was huge) it never did. Unless they were all trying not to be found for one reason or another.

He sat down with Franny and his mum— oblivious to whatever it was they were doing. His attention was what was on the television, watching as some person with good teeth was talking to the camera about...what? Cabinets?

 “Which one is this?” he asked, gesturing to the screen with his glass full of water that lapped worryingly at the sides. 

 PETUNIA:

 “Truthfully, Franny, it’s not all that exciting until you are actually at the hospital. This part, the less frequent surges --because people call them surges now to sound more positive-- is the boring part. You’re also probably in shock.” Petunia patted her shoulder, glancing over at her son that had joined them. He seemed.. out of it, seemed as though he were a little sleepy.

 Petunia set the timer again at Franny’s announcement, setting the phone back onto the table with an encouraging smile. “You’re doing great, sweetheart. It’s almost time.” She knew that it was scary, her proof that she could point to was just beside her as she spoke.

 She reached out to touch his hair gently, just as she had done so frequently as he’d grown up. “You need a haircut again,” she mused. “It’s a house flipper or something,” she answered his question with a roll of her eyes. “Surprised you’re not more excited about Franny right now, love, or is this a brave face?” The question was posed with a quirk of her brow.

Must’ve been a long day.

 FRANNY:

 “Oh, well it's hardly exciting at this point. They could just be a false alarm too-- my water hasn’t even broken yet.” 

 Franny had a habit, or, a talent perhaps, of saying things right before they ultimately did happen. ‘At least it’s not a tornado warning’ Franny said when a tornado watch flashed across the TV screen in high school; only for sirens to go off minutes later and her whole family huddled in a bathroom. ‘At least Wilbur didn’t catch the flu’ she said more than once, after she, Cornelius, and his parents all battled the seasonal flu, only hours before Wilbur finally showed symptoms.

 ‘My water hasn’t broken yet’ Franny said, right before she got the feeling that she’d just peed herself right on the couch. She blinked, gasped ‘oh’ and looked up at Petunia.

 “I...either I peed my pants, or...I spoke too soon.”

 LASZLO: 

Laszlo hummed, eyebrows furrowing as he tried to understand why everyone was so up in arms over a certain type of granite that was out of stock. This same confused expression held at his mum’s odd question. Brave face? Why would need to have a brave face? 

 It was a Tuesday evening. There didn’t seem to be anything special about that. 

 But before he could ask what it was she meant, Franny spoke, making Laszlo choke on the sip of water he’d just taken. He sputtered, sitting up to try catching what liquid his coughing fit was trying to expel. 

 “I’m sorry, but what?” His head went back and forth between his mum and Franny, as if they were in the middle of a tennis match, before stopping to stare straight ahead. “Which one of you wants to try to explain what I’ve just walked in on? Because I’m assuming it’s not to do with redecorating!” 

PETUNIA:

 Ah, Franny had jinxed herself and Petunia, who was sharing the space on the couch grimaced as the world decided to choose irony for them. She scooted half a spot away and tried to assess the situation. So the surges were about twelve minutes apart and now her water had broken. She hummed as she mulled over the information. The question was whether or not she was going to be rushing this.

 As Petunia opened her mouth to respond --though what that response would be she did not know-- Laszlo finally seemed to grasp what was going on around him for half a moment. She couldn’t stop the laughter that bubbled from her lips at her son’s antics. She didn’t mean to laugh at him, didn’t mean to embarrass her sweet baby like that, but he certainly had been slow on the upkeep.

 “Franny’s in labor, Laszie,” Petunia explained gently. “Her water’s broken, we’re recording the time between surges, it seems little Sovanna’s on her way.” She sighed, turning her attention back to the woman in question. “Deep breaths, darling, and I know a lovely shop in NTO that’ll be able to clean the couch.”

 FRANNY:

 Right, so Franny was going to ask Petunia to go and grab Cornelius soon anyway. It’s not like she was going to exclude her husband from his part for much longer, she just knew how much he worried over her, and loved her, and cared about her. He would have wanted to go to the hospital right away and like Petunia said, they could always tell you to just go home if you weren’t far enough along.

 And Franny was much too pregnant and far too uncomfortable to climb in and out of a car multiple times today, thanks.

 But then her water broke on their relatively new couch (less than two years old meant new) and Laszlo was there and if Laszlo was up to speed, Cornelius should be too. 

 “Um, Lasz? Can you...grab my husband? He’s reading a book at the breakfast nook.”

 LASZLO

For a few moments all Laszlo’s mind consisted of was a flurry of rapid: ohmygodohmygodohmygod— then it settled and focused in on the fact that the baby was coming!

 Which alerted the part of his brain that said people need you to not be a clown right now, pack up the court jester bells for tonight. Jokes would only be used when necessary from this moment forward! ...probably! 

 “Right! Yeah! I can—“ He stood, circling around in one spot like a dog as he tried to work out what to do first. Walk? Set down water? Say?? Words? Laszlo put the glass of water down, giving it a loving tap that told it he would be back for it sometime in the future before taking off to go get Cornelius. 

 Then he stopped, turned right around, and made his way around the back of the couch so he could grab Franny’s head and place a kiss on the crown. “Thank god she’s early, I dunno how much longer I could have held out.” 

He went to leave again, giving his mum two thumbs up before disappearing in the right direction this go around. 

 Moments later he slid on the tile, catching himself with both hands on the table by Cornelius. He plucked the book from his cousin’s hands, tucking it under his arm. “Good news! Franny’s in labor! Bad news! Well—Franny’s in labor. So come on, let’s go, up and at ‘em! You get your wife and I’ll get everything else.” 

 CORNELIUS: 

Cornelius had actually just finished his book. It had been a good read. He was glad he hadn’t forgotten about it after all these years when he added it to his reading list. A list he had assumed he wouldn’t touch until retirement. But now, he had time. He had a lot of time. So much so, he almost didn’t know what to do with it.

 Little did he know that maybe the rest of that list would have to wait for retirement.

 And when he was contemplating what to do next, which was maybe head to the lab, Laszlo literally slid in, giving Cornelius a start as he snatched the book from him. “I - what?” He started, the words storming his mind like knights storming a castle.

 And then, they broke in. And then - it clicked!

 “Shit! Franny!” He said, jumping up, knocking over his cold coffee in the nook without noticing and moving towards the door - then running back in to lean in the doorway. “Where is she?” He asked frantically, his eyes searching his cousin as if the answer was written on him. “And where - where’s Carl?”

 “Here! Laszlo and I will get the baby bag as I call the doctor!” The noodly, yellow robot said as he seemed to appear from the other end of the kitchen, wearing an apron with cleaning supplies stuffed in the pockets. “I’ll tell Wilbur too!”

 FRANNY:

 “I knew that’d be the reaction,” Franny said, chuckling as she looked over at Petunia. “Oh, Wilbur won’t want to know he’s- well, I suppose you should. I’m fine! Uh, I mean, it’s really not that ba--aaaad, okay, I lied.”

 As another contraction hit, this time it was properly painful, Franny clutched the arm of the couch with one hand and tried to make herself stand up to make for the car. She was not going to pull a Seth Myers’ wife and accidentally have this baby at home, nope. Franny gripped Petunia and Cornelius’ arms to steady herself to make it to the car.

 “Uh, Petunia. I think it's best you drive. These two are losing it and I’m in labor so that leaves you.”

CORNELIUS:

“I’m not - I’m not losing it,” Cornelius sputtered. But that was wrong. He was. He was unraveling, unsure what to do despite having read up and prepared for this moment for some time now. All that mental training and preparation had gone out the window. “...but yes. Petunia. You drive.”

 And she did. There was no time to call anyone else to do it, and she was the most level headed person here. So they piled into the car, Cornelius doing the only thing that could keep him calm and counting between Franny’s contractions. Her face twisting in pain every time definitely made his heart leap into his throat, unsure what to do.

 Except counting. Even now, numbers were his friend.

 The trip to the hospital of course was short and they quickly got Franny admitted, Cornelius following along wherever the doctors wheelchaired his wife too.

FRANNY:

10:15 PM

 “Four hours. Four hours we’ve been here and the doctor is telling me I’m only four centimeters?” Franny hissed as she paced the room. “Ouch!”

 No, she wasn’t bitching about a contraction, although, that wouldn’t be far behind probably. That yelp was because she was gesturing far too wildly and she smacked her hand right into the cabinet where her personal items were kept.

 “That’s not even halfway.” She whined, and was about to keep bitching until another contraction hit, making her gasp in pain and lean against the wall. “Fuck,” she grit her teeth and dug her nails into the palms of her hands, as if that could possibly trick her brain into focusing on that pinprick pain than the pain of labor.

 Cornelius asked her once an hour so far if he needed to call the nurse for an epidural.

 If my mother could have me at home without one, I can do it without one, she’d said the first time.

 Slowly that confidence was waning. 

 CORNELIUS:

Cornelius jumped up - he’d been rather jumpy since they’d gotten to the hospital - and rushed to her side to check her hand. “Please, be careful, dear…” He said, flipping her hand over before looking at her. “Why don’t you sit?”

 Then she made that all too familiar face. It was the one she’d made with each new contraction, bracing herself against the pain, but it was always unexpected. It made him pull his own concerned face, looking to her stomach. Then back to her eyes.

 By the second hour, he’d learned to stop asking if she wanted a nurse. He knew she’d be very vocal when she wanted one.

 “Come on, sit,” He encouraged, trying to usher her back to the bed. “You may as well get comfortable. I don’t know how long we’re going to be here…” 

LASZLO 

With the news all settled into everyone’s heads and the baby bag with the parents of said baby that said bag was prepped for, Laszlo knew he had nothing more to do. Which was awful. He was so terrible with waiting. Usually he would pass those times by simply sleeping it away. This was different though, since his excitement and worry made him all jittery. He couldn’t even sit still in the waiting room. 

 And even though everyone had said it would probably be for the best that he just wait it out at home, come when t he knew he would just be doing the same thing there. At least at the hospital there was some sense of comfort at being in the same building. He’d walked the halls (that he was allowed into) a few dozen times, had spoken with several other people waiting for news or an appointment, and gone through at least 100 levels of Unblock Me on his phone. 

 At the next hour mark he popped up from his seat and slipped passed to go find Cornelius and Franny’s room. He gave the door a little knock before opening it wide enough to stick his head and arm through to wave. 

 “Hi. Sorry to bother, but um— well can I get either of you anything?” Laszlo looked back and forth from his cousin to Franny and back again. “Anything at all? Even if they’ve already forbidden it? Maybe especially so, then it might give me more of something to do than wear holes in their floors.” 

 FRANNY: 

 Franny reluctantly agreed to sit down, biting back a comment about how there was no such thing as comfortable right now. 

 Another thirty minutes passed, her general discomfort periodically interrupted by contractions and Franny would grip the bed or Cornelius’ hand and hiss. 

 Laszlo poked his head in right in the middle of one and Franny just snapped, “Drugs! One of you get me the goddamn drugs or I swear to god Cornelius, I am never having sex with you again!”

 She grit her teeth as the pain began to subside — for now. 

CORNELIUS:

Cornelius looked to Laszlo when his head popped in, ready to ask for maybe a coffee from downstairs to keep his younger cousin busy, when the grip on his hand grew vicious. He jumped, and looked to his enraged wife, eyes widening. His head then turned back to Laszlo.

 “Uh, yes - I’ll go get the doctor, dear,” He said, quickly standing up and walking to the door, looking back to her then Laszlo before shoving him lightly towards her. “Here, take a seat with her for a moment, I’ll be right back!”

 And then he made a mad dash around the halls to find their doctor.

March 3rd, 2021

2:40 AM

FRANNY:

 “Eight and a half centimeters.” Dr. Brenneman had said when he checked thirty minutes ago, and Franny breathed a sigh of relief that there was only a centimeter and a half to go until it would only be a matter of minutes until she got to hold Sovanna.

 He sent the nurse who’d accompanied him to tell the rest of the delivery nursing staff — and the two medical school students Franny had agreed to observe her labor and delivery — to come back in the room. With Cornelius holding her hand and Laszlo and her brothers huddled together against the window, offering moral support from a safe distance, it all felt realer than ever had before. 

 Franny laughed and, courtesy of the pain meds, forgot all her inhibitions when she said, “You know, I should be really embarrassed that like six strangers have stared at my vagina in the last seven hours. But I don’t care!” She clapped a hand to her mouth and chuckled behind it. 

 “Ten centimeters.” Dr. Brenneman announced, unphased by Franny. “Okay, once the baby crowns you can start pushing, I’ll tell you when.”

 CORNELIUS: 

With Franny medicated now, Cornelius could stress and panic enough for the both of them. It was really happening. Sovanna was about to be here any minute and he still felt so nervous. He glanced up to the window, getting a nod and a thumbs up, before looking back at Franny.

 “It’s all medical, dear, no need to worry anyway,” He said. “Nothing really to worry about…” He said, patting the hand he held gently. Quietly wondering if it was about to have the life squeezed out of it. His heart was pounding, and when the doctor gave the update, it seemed to get louder. 

 Could anyway else hear that?

 He looked to Franny then the window then the doctor. Then once again, back to Franny. “Ready, honey?”

 FRANNY:

 Ready?

 It was such an innocent question and until Cornelius asked, she would have said yes. Yes of course she was ready. She was ready to hold her baby, and ready to not be pregnant anymore, and ready to be the mom of two awesome kids, she was ready. And she also wasn’t ready. She wasn’t ready to bring her sweet little baby into a world that could be as cold as it was wonderful, she wasn’t ready to face the reality that eventually her daughter would grow up just like her son and eventually go into the world all on her own.

 Franny didn’t answer and instead lightly shook her head, about to mutter about how she wasn’t sure, but then the doctor told her it was time to push and her body somehow knew exactly what muscles to focus on and there was nothing at all on her mind except channeling her strength where she needed it.

 Dr. Brenneman coached her through a few attempts, until Franny began to cry tears of frustration.

 “I’ve been doing this forever!” She hissed, flopping back against the hospital bed. The epidural took away much of the pain but the discomfort of having part of a tiny person pokin’ outta you was still present.

 “Pushing is a one step forward and two steps back situation, Miss,” said one of the delivery nurses, a tattooed young man from Ireland named Sean. “You’re going great!”

 “It doesn’t feel like it. Cornelius-” Franny actually didn’t have anything to say after his name. She whined her husband’s name all pitiful and defeated, like she was about to beg him to do something, anything.

 As if he could. Childbirth was a wild ride.

 “Come on, we’ve got part of her head, we just need to get the shoulders and we can pull her out.” Dr. Brenneman urged. “Push!”

 Franny’s deathgrip on her husband’s hand grew ever tighter and she followed the doctor’s command. One more, one more, she told herself -- over and over. 

 “I c-- I can’t, I can’t.” Franny said at one point, but Sean pouted and clapped back, ‘yes you can! Are you a badass or not?’ “Watch it young man, I’ll kick your ass!”

 “Gotta push that baby out first.” Quipped one of her brothers -- she didn’t know which -- from their spot over by the window.

 “Fuck you, Art!” She decided it was probably Art.

 A beat.

 “One more push, come on, you can do it!” Said Dr. Brenneman.

 Franny closed her eyes, sat up at a different angle that just felt like she’d be able to focus on those muscles better, and after that she didn’t remember anything else until she fell back hard against the pillows and a froggy cry broke through the excitement of the room.

 “I’ve got her!” Exclaimed Sean the Irish nurse.

 CORNELIUS: 

Cornelius almost toppled over from Franny’s grip on his hand. When had she gotten so strong? And would he be able to use this hand after this? Both of those questions would have to wait for later though, because right now he had to focus on his wife, trying to soothe her and encourage her to keep going.

 “Almost there...almost t-there!” He said, his voice rising on the last word from another strong squeeze from her grip.

 It felt like forever, but when he heard the cry, the scream, he sighed in relief before his heart soared. That was her. Sovanna. And she had a pair of strong lungs on her it feels like. He moved closer, wanting to get a look at his little girl as the umbilical cord was snapped. And then she was handed off to Franny - still a mess, but there.

 She was there, after all this time.

 Something in his heart squeezed. He looked up to the window, then back to Franny. Then to his daughter, realizing just now that he was crying. “Hi...honey. Hi, Sovanna…” He said, his voice hoarse from tears as he leaned over them. 

 FRANNY:

 Sovanna was placed in her arms and Franny felt the warmth of the little human that had been tap dancing on her bladder for the last nine months. Her crying quieted a little, to softer, small sounds of ‘what the hell, did I just do a getting born?’ and she wiggled as if to try and get closer to her mother. 

 A sob caught in Franny’s throat as she cradled her daughter to her chest and gazed down at her, still a mess because she’d only just come out of her. That’s her! The little human Franny had been growing inside of her for most of 2020, here she was. Now Cornelius could experience everything that she got to and it wasn’t from the outside as her partner anymore. 

 Franny turned to kiss Cornelius’s cheek before she kept staring at Sovanna. “She’s so little, I — are these even hands? Look how small these fingers are. That’s such a cliche thing to say, toes and fingers...but look! Cornelius, she’s here.”

 By the time she finished, she was crying too. 

 Messy as Sovanna still was, she couldn’t help but kiss a spot on her head that looked pretty clean even before Sean the nurse had time to move in with a towel to dry the baby. 

 “She’s breathing just fine,” Sean explained. “So we don’t have to take her to assess her, she can stay right here. Do you plan to breastfeed?”

 “Uh, yes?” Franny only sounded uncertain because she was still wrapped her head around the whole Sovanna was just born thing. 

 “Have you before?”

 “Our son is adopted, no.”

 Sean suggested Franny open her hospital gown so he could explain to her how to get Sovanna to latch once she got hungry and reminded her to just call for a nurse if she was having trouble. 

 “She’ll wiggle her head from side to side probably when she’s hungry. That means she’s looking for where the food is. Watch out for that, and that’s all you need to hear from me.”

 Someone promote that young man, Franny thought. 

 After the medical staff cleared the room and Gaston gestured for Art and Laszlo to follow him out to give them a minute, Franny did as nurse Sean suggested and laid down to just let Sovanna lie on her stomach with her gown open for skin-to-skin bonding time. 

 Eventually, Sovanna did start to wiggle about and inchworm her way to Franny’s breast for a snack. 

 “Oh, sweetheart, I was just about to tell your father to hold you,” Franny said, chuckling as she helped her latch on. “Fine, but don’t make him wait too much longer. Daddy loves you very much and is anxious to hold you and kiss you.”

 As Sovanna snacked, Franny finally began to feel tired and also process what just happened. 

 “I just had a baby,” she laughed, pointing down at Sovanna. “We made and my body grew a whole baby, and she’s right here. God, birthing a baby is exhausting, zero out of ten stars. And— oh! Cornelius, it’s your birthday! It’s March 3rd. Oh, she was born on your birthday! Hear that Sovanna? You’re Daddy’s birthday present this year.”

 Sovanna must not have been very hungry because after a short while she decided she was full and went back to quietly lying on her mother’s chest, just staring wide-eyed at nothing. 

 “You wanna say hi to Daddy? He’s been very patient. You’re gonna like him, he’s the best and your mommy loves him soooo much.” Franny tapped Cornelius’s hand and whispered, “I think you’re good to hold her now.”

 She waited for Cornelius to take her and ran her other hand over the light wisps of hair Sovanna had been born with and chuckled when she realized they were curly. “Aw, I think she’s going to have your messy curls. Look.”

 CORNELIUS: 

Franny just had a baby. 

 And was somehow still forming full sentences like it was nothing. Along with jokes. Somehow, she was still surprising him to this day.

 But nothing could surprise him more than actually seeing his own child in her arms. Wrapped up and resting quietly. Very different from the bloody, crying image she’d first been when brought into the world. Then again, he supposed they all looked like that in the beginning.

 That was not the point though, Cornelius.

 Franny held her out to him. He took her into his arms. His daughter. It felt like when he first held Wilbur. Tears and all running down his cheeks as he stared into her little, peaceful face. He saw mostly Franny, but the curls were definitely his.

 “Sorry, Sovanna...I know those are going to be annoying…” He sniffled out, barely able to keep it together.

 FRANNY:

 Franny was not a sympathetic crier, not usually, but A. she just had a baby, and B. Cornelius rarely cried, but when he did, Franny did under the most normal circumstances, let alone right after giving birth to their second child. Her eyes watered as she watched her husband meet their daughter. Just like when they first got to hold Wilbur she thought, he’s going to love her so much.

 As if he didn’t already. Sovanna already had that man wrapped around her tiny, tiny finger. He was doomed.

 “I could just stare at you two forever.” Franny muttered with a tired chuckle. “You’re head over heels for all 46 centimeters and 3.2 kilograms of her.”

 She tried to sit up but winced as she felt just enough pain to tell her to not even try. She had, she reasoned, just given birth and did deserve to just lay down. 

 “I can’t wait until we can take her home and I can hangout with both my babies at once.”

 Because yes, even while experiencing this big emotional Sovanna-centric moment, she was also thinking about her son and how much she loved him and loved being his mother. Franny was starting to worry she might realize his fears of loving Sovanna differently since he insisted that it would be so. Now that they were holding their little girl, however, Franny could say with confidence that holding newborn Sovanna felt just like meeting Wilbur. The only difference was how they came to be in their arms. 

 “Happy 44th birthday darling, enjoy an entire baby.” Franny joked, barely stifling a yawn. She pouted and whined, “I wanna stay awake and admire my hard work, but I’m so tired. How’re you awake, little lady? Ain’t bein’ born exhausting?”

 Sovanna did not understand English yet so she only responded by staring up at her father and making a couple content baby sounds. 

 “Mm, yes, that’s fair. Gazing lovingly at your daddy is my favorite hobby too. He’s very easy to look at.” Franny winked at him — oh? We’re flirting not an hour after giving birth? Okay pain meds, go off. 

[mimi-sanisanidiot]

Love is wild sometimes, ain't it?

Do you ever feel like you're in love with someone that you can't have?

I am, more often than I'd like to admit.

I'm in love with my best friend. And I can't have her. Because she's in love with our other best friend. And it hurts. So damn much.

Hi, my name's Mimi and I'm a fucking dumbass, welcome to my tedtalk!

For the sake of anonymity of my friends, I'll refer to them as Bean, and Mochi. We're all female so here we are.

I met both Bean and Mochi in my first year of highschool. I met them separately in mutual classes and I found out we're all mutal friends. Bean was in my art class and we were on opposite ends of the room, but always in the view of one another. When I first saw Bean, she confused me so much. Bean is rather tall for a girl and has a slim thick frame, due to her androgynous style of clothes and fluffy short hair, she's often confused as a boy. Which works for her style. At the time, me being a still blind lil gay in the making, couldn't tell if she was a boy or a girl due to being so far away. But honestly it never bothered me. Still Bean confused me so much!! One day she'd be in baggy male clothing and the next she was in a crop top with a skirt and knee high socks! Either way she made my heart race! I didn't care if she was a boy exploring her style and identity or a girl having fun with her outfits or anything in between. So one day, I gathered the courage to finally walk up to her and complimented her My Chemical Romance t-shirt that she wore often, after class. I was never the kind of girl who made friends easily but could make conversation with any stranger if I truly tried to.

So saying that, you can obviously see that I as a new freshman tried to become friends with this beautifully intimidating human being by pointing out the most teenager angsty thing a teenager can wear to show how angsty they are! The cliche of teenager angst, My Chemical Romance!!! That aside, this would be my first official real conversation with her, aside from the shy hi's and nervous excuse me's that we often exchanged when we passed by and bumped into each other during class in accident. So you can see where this is going. I obviously made a fool of myself trying to speak clearly and loud enough for her to hear me as I walked by her on the way out of class, keep in mind most kids were trying to leave and they were quite loud since the door was near her desk. She hadn't heard me so she asked me to repeat myself, while I was panicking on the INSIDE! I did repeat myself, while stuttering a bit and my subtle lisp wasn't so subtle anymore! I was dying.. I wanted to bolt out that door and hide in my corner and never emerge again. But she was so nice.. She just smiled so sweetly and so kindly at me seeing that I was freaking out about my inability to speak properly at the moment, it surprised me honestly. No one other than my parents had looked at me like that but my parents hadn't comforted me about my stuttering since I was a child. And here she was, this awkwardly shy giant was smiling at me, making me feel so much better and still making my heart race. I felt myself smile back a bit and nodded and turned to make my way out of class. But she stopped me, she had then complimented my Attack on Titan button and my Spirited Away button my backpack, which made me so happy! She knew who these characters were and she complimented me on them. No one, not even my friends, said anything about them. They never noticed them, nor did they like anime. So to have Bean notice them and say she liked them, made my day.

Soon after that, I asked her if she'd like to join me for lunch and she did.

We hit it off immediately! We're both dorks and nerds about different childhood shows and random nerd stuff. Not only that, we both looove food! And we also connected on the fact that we're huge romantics and are girls on the slightly heavier and tall side too. We became close friends and hung out at lunch almost everyday. Up to this point, I was always by myself at lunch since all my other friends had 1st lunch and Bean and I had 2nd lunch. I was alone and then, I wasn't. Bean had made me her friend and that made a difference in my life for the better. I had dealt with a traumatic incident in my last year of middle school so i don't doubt that Bean practically saved my life my freshman year, even if she doesn't realize that but that is a story for another time. She also introduced me to some of my closest friends now. So I have her to thank for that. I soon realized that I had a huge crush on her that I feel like was really obvious but not to either of us. But that doesn't matter, since I never confessed and she had her boyfriends and people she dated as we grew closer. Although it hurt me, it made me happy just seeing her happy. And I was there to help her feel better when things didn't work out in the end. And that made feel happy just knowing she was happy and that I made her feel comfortable enough to come to me for help. So I too had dated a few people and had my heart broken quite a few times but my heart had always beated a bit faster when I thought of her.

My love for Bean only grew as the years pasted. But as did the growing friend zone between us. So I pulled an Angelica Skylar and was just happy that I could keep her in my life.

My bond with Mochi had also grown throughout the years despite us being different in multiple ways. Mochi sometimes gets overly comfortable sometimes and it ticks me off sometimes but she means well. The three of us have late night adventures and loads of sleep overs and have fun gushing about music and cute people, both male and female and nonbinary peeps! It's fun.

Back to my main simp story and not my sad friendzone gay shit.

The three of us are quite open with our sexuality and feminine charms, ya know? We flirt with each other often, it's always been part of our banter. We also playfully grope/fondle each other when ever we're together. The fondling occurs more often than not when we're with Mochi. Sure we all initiate it at some point but when Mochi is hanging out with either of us, she's the main instigator. We're all chill about it cause titties are nice, and so are soft thighs and love handles! We all like the soft plush!! We all drink body appreciation in this household!!

Mochi is fantastic! I love her so much! But she also becomes unresponsive to group moments sometimes.. Like we would all be chilling watching a movie or something, like maybe having a conversation and then she'd be off by herself always on her phone and never reacts to anything we say. When she stays over, she sleeps way in, past what we decided, and is inconsiderate of if either one of us have any other plans that day. We plan to have a sleep over of one day and she stays for 3. I can never ask her to leave cause I was always raised with my home is open for those who need it but one can also overstay their welcome. And I absolutely despise confrontation. It makes me uncomfortable and makes me feel like I'm the dick, even when I know that I'm in the right.

But that's besides the point. I love them, I truly do. I'm just weak against my friends when it comes to my own comfort sometimes. That's something I'm working on currently.

So you see, these are my best friends, yes they are flawed but so am I. Yet I absolutely love them.

Mochi had invited both Bean and me to a whole weekend trip with some of her friends that she wanted to introduce to us. Sadly I couldn't attend having already used my day out of that week the day before she had asked. But Bean went. They had a blast, drinking and going out to the shopping district of the beach town they went to. Not in that order obviously. They were safe and locked themselves in their hotel room when they began drinking and hadn't went out once they began. I'm not going to lie here, it hurt not being able to go because I was excited to meet Mochi's friends and hang out and have drink to let loose for once, you know?

But when they came back, Bean had kinda went off the grid. She wasn't responding to group chats nor private messaging. At first I thought, oh she's busy and she'll get back to me later so no sweat right? Wrong.. She never did. And when I'd check out our messages, she only left me on seen and that's it. Then I'm like, did I do something wrong or is she doing okay? Turns out, she's fine. But I wouldn't have known that if it weren't for Mochi. Mochi had told me something that broke my heart more than it did finding out Bean was in love with a toxic manipulating piece of garbage with mommy issues and she was sacrificing her own mental well being to help a human dumpster fire. Again that's another story for another time.

So this is it, it hurts to know the person I've been in love with for almost 6 years, had kissed my best friend and has admitted to a stranger, while drunk, about how much she wants to get with said best friend. Never.. Never did it occur to me, that she ever felt that way towards Mochi, and that she also kissed Mochi while Mochi was and still is with her boyfriend.

I don't know what hurts more, the drunk confession to a stranger, the kiss or that she didn't tell me her feelings for Mochi.

I know that I'm not entitled to her feelings nor her explanation nor ever lil detail of her life. Because that's not healthy nor is it right. I know that the only person at fault here is my own toxic mentality. But I still worry sometimes okay..?

I was worried that she was having a bad time and she was by herself.

I was worried that something had happened to her.

I was worried that she had had enough of me, and was simply trying to figure out a way to end our friendship without trying to be mean about it..

I was worried that she simply hated me and wanted me out of her life for good and was simply ghosting me until I got the hint...

Maybe that I had done something to have upsetted her..

I just guess that Bean didn't need my prying and needed time to collect her thoughts.

But at the very least, she could have done was send me a message. Like "I'm fine, need time to collect myself, ttyl" or something...!

My own intrusive thoughts are bad enough, but worrying about whether or not, my best friend is alright is too much!!

I dont even know! Maybe I'm the ass in this scenario! With my own toxic pensive ideals and my overbearing personality. Maybe I shouldn't project my feelings towards my best friends and maybe just fucking grow up and move on from something that will clearly never happen!!!

Maybe I should simply get over it..

But it hurts, so much..

Because maybe I missed my shot at ever being able to confess to Bean.. Because I'll never know if she ever felt the same, that I'll never know if I had a chance at all... All because I was too scared to lose my best friend...

Now I might lose both of them if they don't work their feelings out... Maybe I'm just a pathetic piece of garbage.

I have no clue how I'm supposed to act anymore. Mochi is still with her boyfriend, Bean is in an emotional limbo and needs to collect herself and I'm an emotional mess.

If anyone has any advice on what I should do or how I should proceed, please let me know.

I have dinner with them in an hour, and I'm scared.

Thank you if you made it this far, I appreciate that you're willing to read a strangers love life or the lack of one and follow their rant. I hope you all have a great day, evening, or night, stay hydrated and tell your loved ones that you love them before it's too late.

Please learn from my own mistakes. If anyone likes this, then let me know and I'll tell you more about my pathetic love life stories and my pining over my best friend.

[caustic-curses]

HPHM Profile: Seth Drystan

Thanks to @hogwartsmysterystory​ for the profile!

IDENTITY

Name: Seth Abraxas Drystan

Gender: Cisgender Male

Age:  15

Birth Date: 4/10/1973

Species: Wizard (Half-breed Werewolf)

Blood Status: Half-Blood (MuggleBorn)

Sexuality: Bisexual

Alignment: Lawful Evil

Ethnicity: English

Nationality: British

Residence: Bristol, UK

Myer Briggs Personality Type: ISTP - The Detective

THE MAGE

1st Wand: Hornbeam| Dragon Heartstring core | 12in length |  Pliant

Hornbeam selects for its life mate the talented witch or wizard with a single, pure passion, which some might call obsession (though I prefer the term ‘vision’), which will almost always be realized. Hornbeam wands adapt more quickly than almost any other to their owner’s style of magic and will become so personalized, so quickly, that other people will find them extremely difficult to use even for the most simple of spells. Hornbeam wands likewise absorb their owner’s code of honor, whatever that might be, and will refuse to perform acts – whether for good or ill – that do not tally with their master’s principles. A particularly fine-tuned and sentient wand.

Dragon Heartstring: As a rule, dragon heartstrings produce wands with the most power, and which are capable of the most flamboyant spells. Dragon wands tend to learn more quickly than other types. While they can change allegiance if won from their original master, they always bond strongly with the current owner. The dragon wand tends to be easiest to turn to the Dark Arts, though it will not incline that way of its own accord. It is also the most prone of the three cores to accidents, being somewhat temperamental.

2nd Wand: Cedar | Rougarou Hair core | 10 ¾ in length | Supple

Whenever I meet one who carries a cedar wand, I find the strength of character and unusual loyalty. My father, Gervaise Ollivander, used always to say, ‘you will never fool the cedar carrier,’ and I agree: the cedar wand finds its perfect home where there is perspicacity and perception. I would go further than my father, however, in saying that I have never yet met the owner of a cedar wand whom I would care to cross, especially if harm is done to those of whom they are fond. The witch or wizard who is well-matched with cedar carries the potential to be a frightening adversary, which often comes as a shock to those who have thoughtlessly challenged them.

Rougarou hair: It was rumored to have an affinity for Dark magic, like vampires to blood.

Animagus: Asil Rooster 

Misc Magical Abilities:  Above average Legilimens but average at occlumency

Boggart Form:  Himself fading into nothingness (being forgotten)

Riddikulus Form: A tap-dancing sparrow

Amortentia: It’s the scent of a blend of Mysore sandalwood, ambergris, violet leaves, French verbena & Florentine iris-translated into the following; the scent of smoke after a fire, woods in autumn, bittersweet chocolate

Amortentia:  He smells laurels and orchid blossoms, the scent of parchment, and a faint hint of smoke mixing with iron. (Penny Haywood)

Patronus:  Hippogriff 

Patronus Memory: Asking Penny out on their first date and how much her eyes shone, smiling, as they danced.

Mirror of Erised: Being married to Penny whose 6 months pregnant with her second child, both of them happy as they hold the hands of their son.

Specialized/Favourite Spells: Impervius, Protego, Obscuro, & Finite Incantatem

APPEARANCE

Faceclaim: Gino Pasqualini

Game Appearance: (edited from a Slytherin chara, pretend his tie is red and gold)

Height: 5’9

Weight: 150

Physique:  Mesomorphic

Eye Colour: grey eyes (C40 on 1998 eye color chart)

Hair Colour: Originally it was a dark red but a prank dyed it black.

Skin Tone: Ivory

Scars: Seth has 3 deep scars starting at his shoulders to his mid-back, he is self-conscious regarding them. He wears long sleeves due to some scarring on his forearms.

Inventory: Red-tinted glasses, a ring on either middle finger, and his lucky quill.

ALLEGIANCES 

Hogwarts House: Gryffindor- current

Ilvermorny House: Wampus -former Organizations: Death Eaters and the Drystan family

Professions:  Upon graduating-- Surveillor of Activity/ Investigator

HOGWARTS INFORMATION

Class Proficiencies:

Astronomy: ★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Charms: ★★★★★★★☆☆☆

DADA: ★★★★★★★★☆☆

Flying:  ★★★★★★☆☆☆☆

Herbology: ★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

History of Magic: ★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Potions: ★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Transfiguration: ★★★★★★★★☆☆

Electives:

Care Of Magical Creatures: ★★★★★☆☆☆☆☆

Divination: ★★★★☆☆☆☆☆☆

Quidditch:  Member of the Audience (he failed the tryouts)

Extra-Curricular: Dueling Club & Potions Club

Favorite Professors: 

Professor Sprout - Not only is she kind, warm-hearted, and gentle in her guidance, but she is genuine in her teachings. It is obvious that she cares about the subject. Her careful tending and motherly focus has made her a favorite teacher for Seth. He regards her as if she were a favorite aunt and heeds her guidance with the same respect.

Professor Flitwick- What he lacks in size, he makes him in his determination, heart, and ambition. Seeing that there was potential in Drystan, he motivated the Gryffindor towards success. Sure, his focus may seem a bit wavering at times, he means well. As he endeavors his students towards their personal best, he appreciates his sort of instruction.

Least Favourite Professors:

Professor Rakepick- Her teaching methods are a bit reckless and overambitious. She seems driven to prove something but he’d rather it not be at his expense.

Professor.Kettleburn- This instructor is a reckless idiot and he is amazed that he isn’t dead yet.

RELATIONSHIPS

Brother: Kain Daws Drystan | (17yo) 02/14/1971- Aquarius

He is proficient in nonverbal magic although he keeps this as a well-guarded secret

His distrust and blatant dislike of Seth are obvious in their interactions. 

He aspires to be an Auror rather than a politician

Brother: Amos Jorah Drystan | (17 yo)   02/14/1971-Aquarius

He is aware of Seth’s conflicted orientation but has, in a roundabout way, offered support and understanding

Desiring to be a professional philosopher, Amos delves into its study. Get too close and you’ll become the subject for evaluation

As a secret arsonist, he is responsible for setting fire to the small shed when they were children. Seth has yet to forgive him and isn’t sure if he ever will.

Adoptive Father: Judas Irah Drystan |  (41 yo) 10/15/1947 -Pisces

Hogwarts Alumni: Ravenclaw

Is involved in the political agenda of the ministry though such details are kept secret

He is a polyglot: English, Spanish, Russian, and Danish.

Biological Father: Kaizer James Messere |  (43 yo) 03/18/1945 -Pisces

Yale Alumni- operating as a prosecuting attorney

Taxidermy hobbyist

He is aware of the magical community and is envious (Squib)

Biological Mother: Moriah Eden Drystan| (38yo)  09/18/1948 - Virgo

She is a Stanford University Alumni (yes, she’s a muggle)

While her wedding may have been a shotgun wedding, she always loved him and continues to do so.

She is a werewolf having been turned when she was only nineteen

Adoptive Mother: Liesl Nicola Wilde| (38yo)  06/22/1948 - Cancer

Ilvermorny: Horned Serpent Alumni

She adores the performing arts and is obsessed with quidditch

She has only been married for ten years but she’s close to calling it quits

Love Interest: Penny Haywood

Best Friends:

Rowan Khanna

Andre Egwu

Charlie Weasley

Rival:

Laurent King

Diego Caplan

Enemy: Hector Silva, Samuel Gabehart

Dormmates: 

Hector Silva

Adrien Reyes

TBA

Pets:  Hoodini- Female Barn Owl

Closest Canon Friends:

Rowan Khana

Bill Weasley

Hagrid

Murphy McNully

Closest MC Friends:

Dahlia Goldman

TBA

TBA

BACKGROUND/HISTORY

Seth was only two years old when his family life erupted into chaos. It was during a family outing to stargaze when Moriah’s new reality began to set in. As her limbs contorted in pain, Kaizer grabbed his toddler and ran to the car. There they waited out the gruesome terror until Moriah was herself once more. Fearing what this would mean, Kaizer devised a plan to fake Moriah’s death. As his finances began to spiral out of grief, he was forced to give Seth up for adoption. The result was the placement in his uncle’s house.

At the age of twelve, he began to feel a similar attraction to boys as he does with girls. It was slight confusion but he paid no attention to it. It wasn’t until a few months later when he began to develop a crush on his best friend that he realized something might be ‘wrong’ with him. He took a risk with his friend and found such affections returned. However, this wasn’t to be a happy occasion as his father beat him severely upon finding out.

He has dated Corbyn Reyes (ages 14 and 15, respectfully). This only lasted for 3 months as their personalities continued to clash. It was intense, explosive and with a force of wills to match. It didn’t help that they didn’t share similar moral values or understand each other’s signs of affection. They broke up on hostile terms.

The drama involving the Silva’s and Drystan’s have been carried down through the centuries with most of it being forgotten by the Silva’s. The Drystan’s, however, maintain that this feud was the result of Silva greed and impotence. No one really knows the story. With the somewhat-recent history involving the Silvas, the members of the Drystan family are assured in their ascension to surpass them; as is their right.

PERSONALITY

Charismatic:  Sociable and somewhat understanding, Seth prides himself on the ability to win over almost anyone. It helps that he can read a person generally well.

Condescending. This is a part of his arrogance as he tends to talk down to those who he believes to be inferior to himself. This is obvious in his actions but, more often, it is evident in his manner of speech.

Diplomatic: This comes from being raised by a politician. He is sensitive (only to matters that counts) and is able to deal with the general public effectively and efficiently. This is provided nothing bigoted leaves his mouth.

Hedonistic: The finer things in life were made for him. Check the receipt. He was created for a lavish lifestyle. It may be a weakness but he’s fine with that.

Prejudiced: Muggle-borns and werewolves. There are probably more but these are the most common. He isn’t a fan of half-breed creatures and considers them to be revolting.

MISC

Likes: Potions, Dueling, Whittling, Astronomy, and cats

Dislikes: being surprised, pranks, indecisiveness, and windchimes

Hobbies: Playing the violin, wizarding chess, gardening, and dueling

[hubrisandapathy]

Imma Talk about my Garbage Kids

I’m just gonna start chatting bout my Dragon age ocs first… then might move to different fandoms/groups depending on my mood… this is probably all gonna be text so feel free to just move past it without a second thought these are just my garbage children, and yes I realize most of them are women, I don’t have a problem playing as male characters I’m just gay and I tend to fall for the girls I build and get distracted.

Dragon Age Origins

Roslynn Cousland- Shes this strong smart steadfast woman, a warrior, she romanced and married Alistair, and they rule fereldan together, she leads the warden team situation

Elizabeth Amell- Shes motherly and persistent, once she sets her mind to something it must be completed, she's a mage, became a warden to get out of the tower and see the world and to help, she fell for Leliana, and she fell hard.

Rayne Amell- shes a lot like purple Hawke in terms of her personality, she is an apostate, and joined up with the Troops at ostigar as a warrior and offered herself to the wardens to help the war effort she joined up with Roslynn and the others at lothering after escaping the battle and managed miraculously to capture Morrigians heart.

Alim Surana- outgoing and charming he’s Maria’s elder brother, he joins the wardens with Elizabeth, sires Kieran for the ritual and spends however long he has left traveling the land killing dark pawn, bitter about what happened to his sister.

Shaewyn Ashanyla- stubborn, Melancholic, persuasive. She is formerly of the clan Ghilain and joined the wardens after contracting the blight through accidentally swallowing Darkspawn blood, she was a big help to the team and after the blight ended she was around Perelman helping people recover for about 3 years before she was sent on the road where she met her apostate wife.

Nyani Mahariel- Stubborn, free-willed and adventurous she was a great warrior for her clan till of course she contracted the blight and became a warden, she loved Tamlen more than she loved anything and never really got over him (and for Au purposes they became wardens together but in terms of canon game…)

Tatiana Tabris- Shes a stubborn strong-willed thief from denerim, she fell for Zevran and never ended up becoming a blight carrying warden but she was a great help to the team

Maria Surana- a shy, nervous, anxiety-ridden friend to Amell and Jowen. Though she was supposed to face her harrowing it didn't come before the whole thing that happened at the tower and in her fear of becoming tranquil she escaped in all the fuss and turned to blood magic on the road defending herself from wolves, she was eventually hunted down and made tranquil. Elizabeth took her in as an assistant when she found out about what happened

Kya Aeducan- a stubborn, but Charming dwarven princess who would stop at nothing to avenge her elder brother and claim what was rightfully hers, she's a warrior, and she ended up kindling feelings for Natia Brosca while she traveled with the Wardens.

Natia Brosca- slippery sweet-talking duster, she was conscripted into the wardens but never officially joined… slippery and all that, she stuck around at Kya’s promise to get her back to Orzimmar, back to her family, eventually she caught feels for the future Queen of Orzimmar (personal au and all that)

Dragon Age 2

Marian Hawke- purple verging red for personality, she was the warrior champion and is the oldest of the four of the siblings she supports her teammates and cares for all of them… maybe not Sebastian… he just rubs her the wrong way… she and Anders got together and she would do anything for him

Garrett Hawke- purple-blue Marians younger brother, friendly with everyone including Sebastian, he's a mage and he managed to capture Fenris’ heart

Lana Pentaghast- shes devout and kind, she related to Cassandra obviously and she got with Sebastian, she was in Kirkwall for reasons I haven't decided yet and joined the champions merry gang of misfits because well over anything else they *were* helping people even if the methods were unorthodox

Dragon Age Inquisition

Lydia Trevelyan- Sweet, clever, stubborn, Lady mage inquisitor and herald to Andraste, she brought the world to its knees with charm and wit and built an army to kill a god, and she romanced Cullen.

Jacob Trevelyan- he's charming and funny and genuinely based off Alistair for personality, he's formerly a templar, and is a warrior, Lydia’s older brother he helped in her endeavor to heal the world and found love in Cassandra

Leros Lavellan- witty, persuasive, charming, he's the oldest of his right knit siblings and the first to his clan he found himself charmed by Dorian and at Lydia’s side as a close friend.

Elissa Lavellan- strongwilled and caring with a bit of a temper she's a middle child with a sword and shield and is close with both of her siblings, she found affection in Solas and would listen as he spun tales of the old days to her and she was absolutely heartbroken when he left.

Lyna Lavellan- outgoing adventurous bad for her brothers health she is the youngest of the three lavellan kids and is quite skilled with a bow, she tends to be the glue that holds her siblings together because though Elissa is the second she has the protective nature of a first child which she shares with Leros and their stubborn natures tend to but heads, she fell into Seras arms romantically at the end of it all.

Persephone Adaar- oldest of the Adaar siblings and a mage she takes care of her siblings more as a mother than a sister seeing as they were raised with mercenaries. She fell for Iron bull in the end and travels with the chargers.

Freyja Adaar- she and her twin Tyr have considered 2nd cause none of them are really sure who was first. But Freyja’s fast hands and quick tongue land her in more than enough trouble with Perse and pretty much everyone else she ans Josie are happy together.

Tyr Adaar- hes tired and protective of his siblings, he would’ve made a fine agent of the qun had his parents not defected.

Eir Adaar- youngest of the bunch and the only one that is only half qunari her father having been an elf, she tends to be shorter than the rest of her siblings and has a… particular outlook on life not shared by many.

Opal Cadash- shes a sweet-talking fast-fingered surface dwarf with strong Carta presence shes the oldest child, she fell for Blackwall

Amber Cadash- Opals younger take no shit warrior sister.

[blankdblank]

Anaticula Pt 49

- Borrowed a quote from Tolkien for 2nd Prophecy -

Pt 1 - Pt 2 - Pt 3 - Pt 4 - Pt 5 - Pt 6 - Pt 7 - Pt 8 - Pt 9 - Pt 10 - Pt 11 - Pt 12 - Pt 13 - Pt 14 - Pt 15 - Pt 16 - Pt 17 - Pt 18 - Pt 19 - Pt 20 - Pt 21 - Pt 21b - Pt 22 - Pt 23 - Pt 24 - Pt 25 - Pt 26 -  Pt 27 - Pt 28 - Pt 29 - Pt 30 - Pt 31 - Pt 33 - Pt 34 - Pt 35 - Pt 36 - Pt 37 - Pt 38 - Pt 39 - Pt 40 - Pt 41 - Pt 42 - Pt 43 - Pt 44 - Pt 45 - Pt 46 - Pt 47 -

Raised safely in Neville’s arms you were aparated home again straight to your room where across a towel you were laid for Remus and your father to inspect the wounds on your middle as Regulus inspected your slowly bleeding burn scars after laying Harry beside you. In a hurry the others rushed off for supplies and snacks for you and Harry as Percy rushed in to your side, “Jaqi! Harry!”

Slowly your eyes cracked open and you flashed him a weak grin, “Hey Perce.”

Carefully he brushed your hair from your face eying your still bleeding scar, “What happened?”

In a weak chuckle you said, “I slapped him.”

Percy looked up at the others and Ron by Harry’s side chuckled saying, “She slapped Riddle across the face.”

Percy looked down at you, “You’re alive…”

You giggled again then winced at your father dripping more Phoenix tears onto your bleeding burns healing them one at a time, “Sorry Pumpkin, few more.”

Remus caught Percy’s eye saying, “We’ll show you the memory later.”

Regulus, “It was remarkable. One on one with him. Never seen anyone match him like that before.”

Turning your head you caught Dumbledore’s eye saying, “Professor.” Moving closer to your side his hand folded around yours.

“Yes child?”

“I’m sorry, about using your wand.”

He shook his head and patted your hand, “No, no, no. Don’t you concern yourself about that. It was a spectacle in the most wondrous of ways. I see you’ve been able to study my dueling memories somehow?”

A smirk eased across his lips and you replied, “The wand showed me how you moved. Let me see a few counter curses, really old ones.”

Deepening his smirk, “A good thing about an old wand, old memories. And very loyal friends. If you know how to listen that is. I would have no other wielding it.”

Regulus dabbed your cheek again asking, “Does your scar hurt?”

“It’s sort of burning, not as bad as before, but not when you touch it.”

Remus, “Do you still feel the link?”

Lowering your gaze you closed your eyes then nodded when they opened again. “It’s there, it’s weaker, but it’s there.”

Dumbledore’s head cocked to the side, “Weaker?”

You nodded, “I could feel it, withering, no, not withering, but, when our minds linked and I pushed him back, part of it seemed to go back with him.”

Dumbledore nodded and is eyes scanned over the floor releasing your hand to stand and start pacing, your father said, “Perhaps it might be too hard for him to control how much of himself he takes back after severing off so many pieces.”

Remus, “I can’t imagine it is easy to measure out your soul.”

Ron looked between you, “What’s this about souls?”

Looking at Ron you said, “There’s a way that Riddle found in a way to make himself immortal,” in a roll onto your side allowing them to start healing your back you winced then continued as Regulus kept your stained hair out of your face he was still tenderly cleaning, “Horcruxes. Pieces of a soul kept in an object or living being.”

Ron, “How would you even make pieces of a soul?”

Sirius, “You have to kill someone.”

Ron, “So you’re saying, you said, your scar. You’re a horcrux?”

You nodded, “I was before too, before I went to Azkaban, but the Dementors ate the first one.”

Ron nodded, “And now he’s back, and you are one again.” his eyes dropped to his lap then rose again after wetting his lips, “Then all we need is a Dementor again. Maybe you can call one of those foxes, the one that brings them so you don’t have to link minds with him again.”

Your head tilted, “Only thing, Novem seems to be off exploring with his friend, left Newt’s some time ago even the dragon and birds are lost to where they went to.”

Ron, “We’ll find a way to get one. Any others?”

You shook your head, “Other than a snake he hasn’t got anymore, we found the rest, he just doesn’t know that yet.”

Tilting your head more your eyes closed at the closer to your nose Regulus got while Harry stirred and sat up with Ron’s help, “Hey there Harry. You all right?”

His head tilted to the side, “Not the worst I’ve been.” Before long he left with Ron and the twins to all get some food as Percy took Dumbledore to answer a call to the Ministry.

Alone in the room a soft sniffle from you stopped Sirius and Regulus. Over his legs your father crawled at your hand covering your eyes to lay out and hold you against his chest. Tightly in his arms you sobbed through his low assurances he wouldn’t go into any traps or battles without a double again, and when you calmed you shifted back onto your side letting them finish healing your back as you summoned a fresh shirt from your closet to change into. Tossing your bloodied shirt away you asked, “Did you hear anything? At the arch?”

Regulus, “Heard your Mum,” you all looked at him, “Telling me to keep you away from it.”

Sirius, “Did you hear her?”

“No, I don’t know who I heard. It said, ‘I am here. Not yet. Balance the scales. Trust. Hope. Love.’ What’s it supposed to mean? I don’t even know who said it.”

Remus, “Balance the scales, clearly it has to do with the war.”

Regulus, “What about that Prophecy?”

Sirius looked you over, “Prophecy?”

“Right.” Leaning back you reached into your pocket pulling out your enchanted pouch from which you pulled out hearing its soft whisper.

‘Child of four pillars blessed by Dragons old, no kindness may yet find you yet your heart will never cold. A shield for all forgotten, Monster to Man’s eyes. In place of the Dark Lord they will set up a Queen. 

And you shall not be dark, but beautiful and terrible as the Morning and the Night. Fair as the Sea and the Sun and the Snow upon the Mountain! Dreadful as the Storm and the Lightning. Stronger than the foundations of the earth. All shall love you and despair. 

Fires and turmoil shall pave your road to return upon my call. Always watched and guarded, blessed be your reign. Queen of scales balanced wrongs righted and glorious tales. Of all those sent wandering our light inside you grows. Soon you’ll be returning to paths you shall not know. Hold fast as darkness finds you, near light it ever grows. The path goes ever onward, when I call you, you will know.’

Teary eyed you looked at the trio in various stages of rubbing their faces while you floated the orb to your dresser to sit on a stand you made for it. Sniffling softly you said, “Well that certainly wasn’t cheerful at all. Is it mandatory for all prophecies to be death sentences? No kindness may yet find you, very hope inducing.”

Remus, “Someone’s calling you. New ally maybe in the war.”

Regulus, “One of your blondes, or their friends you keep dreaming of?”

You shrugged, “Who knows. Closest I’ve come to a date is something about my birthday, and apparently there’s a morpher baby in my future.”

Your father’s lips parted and you called your dream journal over showing the sketch of you having tea with the blondes and a group of their friends in some garden courtyard they all looked over. Wetting his lips your father asked, “Any clue on a name?”

“In the snippet I called him Teddy.”

Remus, “I always wanted a son named Teddy.”

“Maybe he’s yours and I’m babysitting? I’ve had other dreams where you’re with the dark haired guy in this one. He looks, maybe at least a year, so nine months to have him, another year to get that old, two, three years till we meet them? Just long enough for the world to go to hell.”

Regulus tapped your arm in the image, “Your mark. It’s showing, meaning Riddle’s dead. That’s a good sign at least, even if none of them are smiling.”

Remus looked you over saying, “I’ll get you some soup.”

Leaning back against your pillows you grinned at your father in his move to snuggle up against you nestling you in his arms to flip through your dream journal inspecting each sketch. The one with Sebastian on the Daily Prophet however stopping him at the smudges from your tear drops as it read he was engaged and expecting with one of the Bulgarian Team’s Veela cheer squad. Softly he mumbled reading the date as set for this July, “Oh Pumpkin…” Leaning in he kissed the top of your head folding his arm tighter around your back, “We’ll find your soulmate. We’ll find them.” Kissing you again.

..

By the hours end the teens were back at school and you were down in the sitting room with the twins, your father and uncles while over the radio hearing that you, Dumbledore and Harry were publicly apologized to for all the slander Fudge sent out about you and your family. Of course the larger story being that he had resigned and Umbridge was being suspended and removed from Hogwarts to St Mungos after having been freed from the herd of Centaurs by Dumbledore, who was being returned to his rightful place as Headmaster.

By nightfall Trelawney and Hagrid had been welcomed back into their old positions while you, Fred and George eyed your letters clearing you of all restrictions and lifetime restrictions Umbridge had given you with a full welcome to return for your final weeks of the first term and the rest of the second until you graduate in June. Staring at the letter over dinner George was the first to speak, “Well, if we do go back now we’ll be in time for the Ravenclaw match.”

A grin split across your face, “True.”

Fred, “Plus, you could actually get to put that Head Girl title of yours to good use.”

At the doors Sirius entered the sitting room with your trunks stacked in the doorway alongside your owls eager to be back to use with Tulip peeking inside, “If you hurry you can make it to supper.”

On your feet you all walked over to the trio hugging them tightly then pulled back. Looking over your father’s face he smiled at you cupping your face, “Enjoy your last term. I love you Pumpkin.”

Stealing another hug you mumbled back, “I love you Dad.”

Fred and George closed in around him too making him laugh, “We love you too!”

“I love you too boys.”

Strolling around them you called your door and levitated your things back to their places in your dorm, inside which Cedric popped up from his desk and just about tackled you all in a tight hug onto the benches, “You’re back!” He pulled back then said, “I mean, we knew Dumbledore would bring you back, but, you’re back!” he looked you over taking in the bruises around your neck and knuckles before stealing a glance at your darkened scar, “You ok? We saw the picture, Ron and them made copies for the paper. He was strangling you, and that slap!” Your brow inched up at his hands gripping your shoulders, “You slapped, him, across the face. And lived!!” At your awkward giggle he paused then asked, “What’d it feel like?”

Your head tilted to the side, “I mean, I was sort of in an adrenaline rush from dueling my aunt, but, stung a bit.”

He laughed, “It was a hell of a slap.”

Your heads turned to the door that crept open with gasps rippling on the other side before you were pulled through to the common room with echoes of ‘you’re back!’ rippling around the room. All until dinner they asked for a full recap of what had happened, in which you conveniently forgot a few names, same as Harry forgetting Lucius after having his sticky spot explained more in detail by Barty and Snape upon their questioning him for his status and especially yours.

Slytherins were first to spot you rippling echoes of their gasps and growing questions for you until finally the main hall opened up and everyone seemed to stop and turn to greet you three personally welcoming you back again. Steadily they trickled into the Great Hall after doing so and the rest having missed it fell silent when you entered, the giddy squeak from Minerva sounded and shifting into her cat form she hurried under the table between you and down the steps shifting back a few feet away widening your grin as she said, “There you are!” Hugging you three as tightly as she could manage then pulled back looking you all over. A gentle shift of your bangs showed the still darkened scars, “Does it hurt?”

“Only when I let my mind think about it. It’ll pass.”

She cupped your good cheek, “Oh,” shaking her head, “You slapped, him-,” shaking her head again, “Oh.”

Behind her Barty strolled up smirking alongside Snape, the former who looked to the twins, “Marvelous combusting buffer charms, Neville showed us the pictures from the scuffle,” he shook his head exhaling in a short puff, “Wow.” He looked to you, “And you, simply marvelous.”

Claiming a hug of his own while Snape stated, “I possibly cannot fathom which of your parents you could have inherited that idea from. To slap the darkest Wizard of our age.” Students readied to jump to your defense until he said, “True no other bloodline could muster the sheer audacity and effort to do so, and quite justly too. None deserves such a bold action as you, or could have managed to live through it, I am surprised you returned tonight I imagined there would be a celebration of some sort from your father at least. He is well?”

You nodded with a teary gaze he answered with a tight hug of his own, “12 parts foolish and four parts bravery, what your mother always said,” you pulled back nodding as he added, “Solves any problem and the key to her success. Of course quadruple the foolish and you have your father’s. For now, eat up. Exam tomorrow.” Making you three chuckle and nod moving to take your seats at the table catching the smiles and grins from the rest of the DA and your family in doing so, once there Dumbledore stood tearing Harry’s eyes from you in your battered state.

“As it is clearly obvious our Triplets have been fully cleared of any punishments and expulsions that were so wrongfully bestowed, further on that, any wrongful punishments in the past term will be expunged from all records and we will start afresh. Again I will be taking over Umbridge’s courses, for those sixth and seventh years willing to return to it after your strike. Further more, on punishments, all bans and restrictions for all clubs, including Quidditch teams are lifted, our usual Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff match will be on schedule if the weather allows. As for the Prefects, each and every one of you are being reinstated to your positions if you care to accept them back again, kindly stand,”

Around the hall all the Prefects stood accepting the badges floating to them they gladly pinned onto their robes again through the sea of cheers. While you and Topper waited a moment then joined them as he said, “And of course our Head Boy and Girl. The pair of you have continued to show the qualities instilling our faith in you that our student body will be led in the proper path we should tread. If you would please stand at your acceptance.”

Two pins floated back to you both that you added to your robes then looked up at him again when the second round of cheers died down, “These truly are troubling times, but in these times each and every one of you has given me hope. Hope that we can overcome anything, by banding together. You defended this school, you all saw a tyrant and when the Ministry refused to act you did, blocking all you could without resorting to violence. We will need that, loyalty, trust, love of one another on a human level to bind together for a peaceful future. Tomorrow classes start up as usual, you can be students again, but kindly, do not forget what you have done and what you can do to change the world. All it takes is one no, wavering or firm, one no and others will stand with you against tyranny and cruelty. Please take your seats, and let us feast with a toast to a brighter future, shaped by each and every one of you.”

…

Breakfast brought with it the papers. All showing copies of the pictures filling the issue with most focusing on your slap used for a story apologizing to you for everything from blaming your family for the escape of the Death Eaters. Up to them finally admitting your supposed ‘boggart induced accident’ in the Triwizard Tournament was indeed from a Death Eater so far from imagined up with proof Riddle was indeed back. Somehow though in the whirlwind downfall Fudge was in it left you all wondering who was following the buffoon up to bat and what they would unleash upon the Wizarding World.

Yet all the same as soon as breakfast ended you were up and on your way off to Herbology a nice and simple jump back into class for you three to melt back into it. Through the aid of numbing creams for your bruised knuckles you added your gloves brought from your assigned cubby complete with set of tools to return to tending to your assigned plants other Puffs had been taking turns tending to and collecting from. 

Gathering all the collections Professor Sprout grinned at you all and brought out your next subject, a giant molting pineapple looking bulb needed to be cleared off and properly tended to, a task taking you all to handle it properly in the allotted time before it would bloom with either a waft of citrus or rotting garbage. Thankfully it was the former and once it did you all collected the seeds from its slime filled center you couldn’t but help to gag in collecting your share.

Magical Creatures came next with your aiding a band of Acromantulas to collect some of their venom and help clear a few minimal sores after having encountered a magical weed they had a bad reaction to.

Double Potions came next, eased onto your desk was a small cylinder of cream from Professor Snape for your bruised neck and hands. Generously you applied it and used an enchanted quill to take notes in his explanation of the potion you would be brewing through the week, each day adding a new supply of ingredients or sifting and straining in various stages using the shivering cauldrons you had been instructed to purchase for this year followed by an exam to fill the rest of the time.

Double Charms was followed by RoR then lunch. While Cedric hurried off for a Puff Paper meeting you headed down to the Chamber in which Tulip had been settled again and you, Fred and George started up on the next batch of products for your shop that Oliver had been handling the day to day minimal orders while the majority of all your orders were being handled by mail. The few days it sat open Oliver would be in charge with the rest of the week free built around his team practices and games he would have to travel for.

A pattern he hoped you all would be joining him on once you graduated. Hopefully joining him on the Kestrals Team, who had been readying to lose their best four players. Full invitations to warm up with them through August were offered and enthusiastically accepted by you all, especially Cedric who was also taking an internship with the Quibbler over the summer. Plans were being made and as painful as it all seemed to leave school you were eagerly hoping that it could lead to new beginnings that once this war had been ended you could fully enjoy the freedom of it.

Again out of habit your hand rose to fidget with the chain on the necklace from Sebastian you had long since removed from over the summer after the dream you had about him clearly moving on. Simply rubbing the back of your neck you sighed and stared at the letter you were drafting to your aunt Petunia about inviting them to Christmas to share what was coming, a suggestion your father and uncles agreed to, especially as the spell protecting them and Harry would be breaking soon.

Transfigurations came next with two breaks leading to dinner followed by Ancient Runes and History.

By the end of the week you had settled into the groove of it again and were relieved to head back to Hogsmeade where you could have a bit of retail therapy. Gladly bundled up in the increasing snowfall between Snape and Barty you strolled though each shop chatting with the pair who couldn’t be happier to spend all the time they could with you as the other students went a bit crazy at their first trip back to the shopping center in so long.

.

Quidditch came early the next day after the mini blizzard through your shopping spree and even after the break you were right back at it and through the usual head to head battle it was another stolen victory from Cedric followed by a consoling cup of cocoa for Cho followed by a sharing of sweets from the trip the day before.

The following week you sat for the exams they had and you were content on your final evening to relax before the train ride home again. “Scrimgeour?” Looking at the Prophet front page reading the name of Fudge’s replacement Fred asked. “Isn’t he just another Fudge?”

Cedric nodded, “Dad says that’s close to what he is, always on about how supportive to Fudge he was past the attacks on you. Never outwardly denied Riddle, but no doubt he’d hoped it was lies.”

“I doubt anyone wanted it to be past lies. Aren’t we supposed to have a vote for Minister? Does it say if he’s a temp?”

George, “I doubt they would want a temp.”

Fred nodded, “Probably have too much doubt in a vote right now too.”

“Great.”

Cedric, “Look at it this way, even if he is another Fudge he wouldn’t dare play the same games as him. He can’t be that daft when you’re on every paper.”

With a sigh you settled back in your seat and looked out the window making Fred ask, “Petunia answer you yet?”

You shook your head, “No, Harry said something about Marge visiting for early Holiday. Maybe she’s just busy.”

George chuckled, “Hopefully he doesn’t blow her up again,” Softly you chuckled though even under your hat the darkening of your roots slowly faded through to the end of the braid being smoothed between your fingers.

“Hopefully.”

Pt 50 

[the-empress-of-nothing]

The full story

(Heya all! This is litteraly the full story of Maeddrona up till the point im rping her, I just kinda took this moment to word vomit everything I made for this character, she’s been developing in my mind for about six months, So, yeah. OOC super Long post under the break!)

Maeddrona is a literal incarnation of the void, previously I mentioned it being old, but the void is old and a God actually looked around as the universe got more and more busy and full- It just kinda.. stopped. Once humans became a thing it looked at mortal life and envied humans for achieving so much with so little time, it looked at the smaller picture of happiness humans could carve for themselves amidst a bloody history. So it just kinda, gave up it’s greater power and sentience, it’s essence possessing humans every once in a while.

These humans would usually barely live passed the age of 15, their lives being ended by some odd coincidence one way or another. It seemed as if dark reality had no place for hope and optimism. There was one that lived to be older, in about the 2nd Millennium *cough*  but she was murdered but someone very close to her.

Now, Maeddrona was growing up on her planet of Fortuna a little bit before Emps has started his rise on Terra. She reaches about age 35 and is the first Void-Born to awaken to her powers.

The entire planet is wiped clean of animal life and the planet itself is shrouded in an odd bubble-ish thing of space so warped you can look at it and see the stars behind you. This is only an illusion, and a result of the explosive amount of power awakening her, but she is left alone on this planet and with the isolation of the Age of Strife, no-one’s gonna show up. (if someone did show up, it would look almost like a black hole might be there, and they’d turn right the fuck around, because whatever that is, we’re not fucking with it)

So Maeddrona, now awakened to her void powers, realizes she... can make things happen by thinking about them on the Planet. Nothing big or overly huge- but time seems to have stood still since she gained her powers, but if she focuses on a plant growing and producing fruit, that’s what that one plant will do until she stops thinking about it. So she can at least survive- just, things are... wrong here. She also begins to have dreams, memories of each past life. Not movie-style, i mean boring, day by day, feels like real time dreams until she wakes up. It it does feel like she is this person, not like she’s watching from outside. She doesn't quite understand what these dreams mean. but she begins to write them all down in a journal.

Though, with Maeddrona being void, have discovering she can utilize a pocket dimension of just empty space, and that putting anything besides herself in there will slowly desolve it. A being with power like this and also who just caused an entire planets worth of population to die would be very interesting to atleast one God i can think of...

So Tzeentch enters her head, uninvited, occasionally, and tries to find out what the fresh funky fuck is happening in THIS corner of the galaxy! Maeddrona is convinced she’s going crazy and the eldritched fuck is all for it. Eventually Maeddrona says something like “prove to me you’re a god of knowledge and not my mind going mad, give me the knowledge I need to escape this fucking planet.” So she stands there, waiting for her mind to suddenly ascend with understanding and learning.

Then a book drops to the ground next to her.

Then another.

Then it starts RAINING BOOKS and she just runs to hide in a building, Fully believing a god was in her head now.

So, now, she starts reading and begins making a ship. It takes her the better part of  50 years (when she awoke to the void her body stopped aging, but more as a “she is nothing, neither alive nor dead” kinda thing) with non-stop work and learning and failures and dedication to get SOMETHING functional. (Thankfully she has an entire worlds worth of resources all to herself) Then she starts fucking with how to FTL travel- because she doesn't have a warp drive. She couldn’t actually make one- so she fucks around with the void, and finds she can travel trough the void while going through the warp as a bit of a substitute. (Its similar to how the Tau FTL travel) So she ends up getting to another planet! But she enters in so close to the planet that she kinda crashes. not far from her crash she finds a few dying people- she (correctly) assumes this might be her fault and tries to fix it, attempting to do something with her powers to save them. She saved one. She makes the first Void-Touched. The void changes her hair, and it tells her a name that she likes far better than her own, and is so grateful to Maeddrona that she wants to follow her when she leaves. Maeddrona isnt alone anymore

(at this point I should mention I take a lot of things from Warframe- specifically names, weapons, frames and abilities. I just love it so much!! but that’s all I really take.)

So for the next long while Maeddrona flies about space, making another deal with Tzeentch to get dreams from people dying that are compatible with the void (she doesn’t question how he knows who is and who isnt, he’s a God *shrugs*) and gets about 30 people in her little family. Occasionally they run back to her Fortuna because it’s their planet now and no-one else knows its there. (Yes, i have all of these as OCs, i know all their plots and stories;;;;)

Then one dream leads her to Terra, where a small boy is dying. Foolishly, she goes. She has much better control over her powers now, masking the ship with the same warped gravity look to try and mask their presence as they go to the biggest hornet nest in the galaxy.

And she is not surprised when the warmongering ruler of the planet does interrupt her in the middle of saving a child. He questions her, and she answers honestly. But her soul just feels... wrong. off. like it’s not there, but obviously something is!

She smiles, and offers her greetings. She does not prostrate herself before him, does not whisper rumors and legends and feats of his beings.

She smiles and patiently waits for him to respond. through their conversations an interest grows. Both are old souls and both hold immeasurable power.

And both consider themselves human.

When she says she is void, he asks if she is Chaos, ready to destroy her if needed. She gags. As by now she knows the intentions of the voice in her head, He and the 3 others have stolen a few of her Void-touched. “I am no God.” would come her reply, Honest.

He would then decide, though not entirely honest, she is no threat, And that these powers she speaks of are interesting, He asks if she would mind being studied,

of course she says yes

the fool she is

Eventually a relationship does form, and while their views are fairly different on many topics (read: most if not all) they balance each other out when they are willing to listen to one another, as both are incredibly hard headed and stubborn. He lets her in on the Primarch project, wanting her insight on raising children as she has been motherly to most if not all her Void-touched.

And he even offers they should make a child from her genetics, to raise along with the Primarchs. She will be human- or Void-born as Maeddrona would call her. But she loves the idea.

Then, tensions rise a bit. the primarchs are still being developed, but Emps wishes to increase the reach of his Imperium a bit as well. there is a system he wishes to acquire- and Maeddrona offers her and her children to do so instead, they can get there faster and her children are very effective with their abilities and such. But he refuses.

This is not the first time this has happened, she thinks he is afraid of the Void, afraid that it is too similar to chaos to be fully trusted on battle. And then, Tzeentch speaks to her once more, agreeing with her, She’s right! Of course she’s right! She should just get there first and do it before he arrives anyway. Show him he’s wrong, give him undeniable proof.

So she does. And... the conversation she has with the Emperor is less than pleasant, It is long distance, but he has been aware of Tzeentch talking to her for some time, he was growing worried that she wouldn’t shoo him away and would sometimes humor his asinine conversations. But now

Now she’s starting to listen to Tzeentch.

He tells her they will have a talk when he arrives, and plans to give an ultimatum as she is so close to falling and she doesn’t even know it. While waiting for Emps to arrive Maeddrona makes a discovery that she is pregnant, this being incredibly exciting news as she believed the void made her infertile.

When Emps finally arrives and she is sent for, and he feels something is wrong. When he sees the presence of two souls, though masked and hard to make out from the void, his mind is not on pregnancy, it is on her fall. He assumes she has allowed Tzeentch to at least semi-possess her and makes a decision, he grimly faces her smiling self and names her an enemy of the Imperium.

At first she is stunned into immobility- but then he begins approaching her, and she flees. She uses the void to go back to her ship and tells all her family that the Emperor is going to kill all of them- So she uses her power and uses escape pods to put them all in Void-stasis (it’s like a Schrodinger's box really, while it’s closed, whatever’s inside of it does and does not exist at the same time until someone opens it and everything exists again. So, they arent even sleeping, just not existing.) and sends them out, one by one, because she doesn’t understand and thinks he’s here to slaughter them because of the void.

She then send out two pieces of equipment, a head accessory known as the “Halo of the void”, and her giant two handed long sword, the “Blade of void.” She then separates her soul into three pieces among herself and these things, using her emotions  as separation points.  Her confusion and shock go into the Halo, her anger and feelings of betrayal go into her sword, leaving her with her fear. Her incomparable fear. She sends these two pieces out into their own pods

And the Emperor boards her ship. It is quiet, eerie as he walks. It is not a warship. This is their home. This is where they lived, had comforts and hobbies. The walls are lined with pictures and drawings, many areas are made to be comfortable lounging areas, doors are stuck open from the commotion, leading windows into shared rooms of her children.

This was their home. And he must walk through it to get to where Maeddrona is hiding. And when he does she is a mess, curled up on the ground and sobbing uncontrollably. It’s too late for words as she approaches her, but he stops. He cares for her enough to want a near painless death for her- but curled up like this she has made it impossible, so he contemplates how to go about this,

His pause gives her hope, and she uncurls for a moment, bleary eyes looking up at him,

And she says his name. She says his name. She knows his name yes of course she knows his name. Spoken with hushed voice only to him in their moments of privacy and passion.

Now said breathlessly

As his sword is already plunged through her.

As this happens, Limbo, the first Void-touched Maeddrona ever made, enters, trying to save Maeddrona and escape together. And she screams. Rushing to her mother’s side, crying, bawling, and screaming at the Emperor.

He leaves, he does not need to kill her child- then she screams about what Maeddrona was going to tell Him.

About her pregnancy.

And he does stop in his tracks at that, the truth of the second soul’s presence now dawning on him. But he only stops for a moment before continuing back, through the halls of a ruined home, with his mistake and his mistake alone.

He then returns to Terra to find the Primarchs scattered.

And that’s where this story turns, The Emperor basically dies with the Heresy, his soul shattered. Then one small part, one tiny bit, that loved Maeddrona, that never stopped loving Maeddrona, finds her small soul in the warp. As the void is like permanent marker- you can never really get it off once it’s on something. So he finds her, attaches his soul to hers and uses what of his power he can to give her a stable body in the warp.

And that is the Maeddrona I have as my muse :)

[amyure]

Interview with Takai Maika [Harumi Kajika, Complete Music File]

Translated by @eshtarwind, edited by @inkuii

~~~~~~~~~~~

Harumi Kajika voice actor: Takai Maika (Mausu Production. From Tokushima prefecture. Born in august 18th)

Third live is the performance that made me think that I really was standing on the Start Line.

- What do you like about your character? What I like about Kajika is how she can always positively believe in everyone and work hard. She has doubts, but because she believes in everyone around her, you can feel her kindness in her positive mentality. In the scene, you can see how just by those words she can ease the tension off the shoulders of everyone around her and reassures them... I think? Also, the fact that she gives energy and courage.

- What do you hold strongly in particular while recording? The thing that I hold on to during performance and recording is to believe in the people who came to watch and support us. On top of it, while treasuring my own feelings and emotions I felt onstage, I consciously think about how Kajika-chan would express those emotions. There are times where I felt, be it way of singing or interpretation, Kajika-chan is expressing my feelings.

- With all releases and lives, are there points of growth? I can now dance...?! I think (LOL). Also, when I watched the live footage, other than my performance, I am able to rethink the condition of everyone I saw onstage, to see Shihainins' faces calmly, and I may have the composure to look at my surroundings, I guess...?

- Is there anything that left a deep impression on you while working? The first event I had with Nanasis is Kadokawa-san's Game's Dengeki Thank You Matsuri 2015 held in Akihabara, by Nanasis corner's try out gathering. There I wore a fisher apron and gave my greetings as Kajika-chan. A lot of Shihainin came by and each one of them said, "Please take care of Nanasis!" It was so exciting, I had fun!

- Is there anything in the recording up until now that left a deep impression on you? During the test recording, Motegi-san always told me "Please sing freely". But after a while, "Please let Kajika-chan descend" the "evocation" began (LOL). In my case, until the recording, my head was often so full of the scores and lyrics, that things like character's view points or details are often decided during the recording.

- Please tell us of some interesting events as a unit! Our characteristics is to go on our pace no matter when! since I can feel assured whenever the three of us are together, to be unfazed by others' antics is Sanbon Ribbon's strength. Also, I think we have a lot of eye contact!The other two's kind gazes tell me, "It'll be alright", which is why I can do everything with fun!

- What kind of live was 3rd live? For third live, from the moment it was announced, to training, and even during the live, everyone said things like "It's a milestone~" and stuff. Personally, I managed to get over many things during 2nd live, there was indeed that feeling of "Well from now on is Third!" but, I have this lonely feeling coming from the heat gap out of the big word of "Accomplishment". Everyone was having so much fun and so did I, I managed to feel that sense of unity for being able to experience the live together on my skin. For me, it's a live that made me feel , "so this is what it means to stand on the Start Line".

- What in 3rd live that you remember? During "Harukaze ~you were here~". the falling Sakura landed perfectly and got stuck in my hair! We were talking like, "What if you get Sakura stuck on you backstage? No way it would happen!" and yet we had perfectly raised the flag and triggered it (LOL) [1]. It's a good memory we can laugh at!

- What kind of songs are in 777 Sisters' single [Start Line/Stay Gold]? when I got the sample, I first thought, it has the same atmosphere as the BGM that plays along with the announcement on Third Live's encore. That said, the one composing was the same composer (as the announcement), Naoki-san. Then I saw the title and the lyrics. There are so many parts that linked to the emotions I felt during 3rd live, my willpower just burst out (LOL)! I already loved piano rock, so the recording was also so fun. It maybe hard to find in the perfected song with everyone's voice combined together, but please find Kajika-chan who sang with so much passion at end of the lyrics (LOL)

-What would you like to do next? Any dreams while in Nanasis? Let's make the dream big, abroad it is! I want to go! I request France or Europe!  I want to go to France's "Japan Expo"!

-Please give a message to shihainin! I think there weren't that many chances to push on someone's back with songs, until I was allowed to sing as Kajika-chan's voice in Nanasis's songs. I received many messages and gratitude from a lot shihainin, thus I managed to know that I, even with a small presence, can also make someone smile and put so much into music. Thank you very much! I will try hard from on, so please, I will be happy if you would look after us as we grow in Nanasis.

*Favorite Song 1. Harujika (Chiisana) - Haneru I listen to it a lot and it's a song that I practiced dancing really hard on! I'm excited to know what will Shihainin-san feel when they see Kajika-chan, who flew beyond her unit of 3 sisters, at the live!

2. 777 sisters - Stay Gold To run after your dream is a bit suffocating , I love this song, which even if painful, looks ahead positive with all its might. And I'm sure we'll be able to communicate with the audience during the live!

--Character Profile Harumi Kajika The 14 year old middle child of the well establised fish shop, Uoharu. According to herself, she is a girl who is energetic, polite, and caring, but somehow a bit careless at the same time. She loves sweet things, but even though she is the daughter of the owner of a fish shop, she dislikes raw fish and can't stand sashimi.

Back to summaries

[1] Takai Maika (whichever is her surname) is referring to event flags in video games, where certain actions will lead to an event flag and eventually trigger it.

[abs0luteb4stard]

My spiritual war began half a lifetime ago. And I will carry it on even after I'm dead one day. Ω

Most people are raised with a religion or beliefs.

Some of them lose faith. Some become atheists. Some stay where they are in believing.

I I suppose I haven't fully stopped believing in a spiritual power/experience.

Call it the "God Gene" (VMAT2) or illogical stupidity, But I just can't purge that notion from my head.

According to the God Gene Hypothesis: "Spirituality is supposed to provide an evolutionary advantage by providing individuals with an innate sense of optimism."

I do not feel that optimism that there is a God or sentient universe out there. Or that "God has a plan".

I feel unspeakably betrayed.

When I was a young kid. I think I was very well behaved. I cared. I had a great heart. If that wasn't good enough for any god. Then they don't follow their own teachings.

When I got to middle school. I was scared. Three local schools were merged all my friends were lost in the shuffle. I thought it'll be difficult to make new friends, but I had hope.

Well, that hope wasn't lost. It was gouged out and raped from my spirit. Not just spiritually but my spirit of hope caring and goodness.

The bullying. They called me faggot, poor boy, foreigner (born here but was given a "foreign" name) on and on. They spit in my books. They knocked my books out of my hands everyday, between every class. Choked me, beat me, spit on me. There wasn't just a group, the group spread rumors and enlisted others in their attacks on me. Even my old friends from elementary school abandoned me because association with me was repugnant to their social standing. I once saw a buddy from elementary and said hello at his locker only to be ignored like I didn't exist.

Those 2 years of middle school left me completely empty. I remember I went to sleep every weeknight praying to die in my sleep. Ashamed at how that would hurt my parents if it came true. Then I would be woken up for school the next morning secretly crying because I was still alive and had to go through another day.

If there was a gun I would have gladly killed every one of those motherfuckers who were bullying me.

Especially Chas. He was the one who got the ball rolling on my destruction. How a dickhead who was seemingly proud of his failure of the 7th grade the year before I came there had such social clout with these pieces of shit I'll never understand.

High school was hell, but it slowly matured. Not without its own degrading moments where I was bullied or attacked or pushed down or spit on. But I think those who were there were preparing for their college or next step.

My grades were average. My spirit was broken already. My hope was nowhere. I was lucky to graduate probably.

I'm no longer normal. Those years of abuse at school changed me irrevocably. Everyday for 2 years. Non-stop. Physical, emotional, mental, pen tips pressed into the back of my neck till a bled. A pen cap pushed into my ear luckily it didn't hit my ear drum.

Principals, counselors, nobody did anything. Anything they did do was either a warning or giving me a punishment for retaliations.

I was punished for someone abusing me.

So I dropped out of local community college after a spotty 2 years. Continued schooling just came with anxieties and fear. I'd already had my life's share of that. I needed surgery and after I just let go of further education. Of a career of any kind.

Now I'm 33, soon to be 34. And these things that have effected me since half my life ago still affect me today. Call it C-PTSD or anxiety or trauma, social phobia, agoraphobia. It's all the same to me.

The bullies are gone but make no mistake theyre haunting me.

So where the fuck was God?

Where was his miracle for me?

Why didn't he spilt the red sea for me? I'm not as important as Moses. Where was his warning that I should build a boat like Noah?

No burning bush, no "hey Abraham, go kill your son", nothing. Not from this god or any fucking god.

Not once.

But some stupid genetic marker (VMAT2) anchors me to believe?

In the years since school I went through the divorce of my parents which was particularly hard if you knew me you'd understand.

My dad needed a 2nd open heart surgery which led to a big stroke from a clot that broke off. His arm and leg that were effected mostly came back. But his mind was effected permanently. The parts of the brain that were injured left him with memory problems. He couldn't live on his own, he'd already come back home with my mom and me before that to live with us after a hard hip replacement surgery.

Then I went through my mother's surprise lung cancer diagnosis, surgery, and so far no signs of it returning. Luckily it was found early after she had a cold and cough they wouldn't go away and got a chest x-ray.

Now my dad 4.5 years after his stroke and ongoing memory problems, he woke up yesterday the happiest man who ever lived, he had so much love and kisses and hugs to give.

But shockingly he completely forgot who I was. He thought I was a visiting neighbor. He forgot who my mom was. But he was happy to meet his son and wife for the first time again in this new place (it's the same place and the same people he'd always known before).

But I am crushed. I'm so deeply affected. He's happy and jolly enough for 3 people to meet us...

But my mom and I are very sad. It's such a shock. While he is thankfully happy and comfortable with his 'new family' that we are. I've cried more than my muted emotions have let me cry in the last 15 years.

He told me he's sorry that he missed being part of my life before now. Nothing cut my heart up quite like that. He apologizes for not knowing or recognizing me.

I've been betrayed by God all my life or at least that VMAT2 gene chemically telling my brain there's a higher power.

I'm just not important enough. No miracles to help me get out of this PTSD or my other medical issues. No reprieve from these life threatening illnesses my parents got one after the other. And now my father doesn't know who I am anymore.

Maybe god like those bullies just hate me too? If were created in his image then he's as capable of hate and torturing as we his human creations are.

After all he made a bet with the devil that Job in the bible would keep the faith in God no matter what god did to him. He gave him diseases, killed his livestock, killed his family with sickness, and burned down his house. But the dumb motherfucker still loved god.

He gave him all be house, animals and family after the ordeal, but the other wife and children didn't deserve to die for a bet. "But they went to heaven". They still had potential energy, lives to live grow old and have their own families, but "God" killed them to prove he was right in bet to the devil. That an idiot would still love him after all that.

So maybe I can't stop believing in God, or have some leftover spirituality.

But I'm not as fucking forgiving ad that dumb motherfucker Job. But I'm also not willing to just walk away from God's game. I'm more than ever cemented my hate for God. I'm giving the devil sympathy or joining his side. If there is such a thing.

I'm instead giving God - ALL MY HATE.

I've got infinite amounts of anger and hate in me. For every millisecond of my torture in school I hate those pieces of shit, at one point that was all that kept me from killing myself. I'm filled to overflowing.

Now there's nothing and no one I hate more than God. I don't care about abortion, I don't care about pollution, I don't care about animals raised in cages and mutilated.

My dad is apologizing to me for what his stroke did to make him forget me. He's apologizing to me with regret, shame and love in his eyes for something that's not his fault.

WHERE IS GOD!? hmm? His love and miracles? His bullshit?!

God. Guardian Angels? Any God or Goddess. Any religion, pagan gods, gods that we don't even know existed. Where are they? Spirits? Demons? Satan himself? Useless.

I have declared a war on God deep down in my soul. I'm not here to preach or change your religion, make you an atheist or garner views or to promote the devil.

But rest assured I am going to kill God. My determination is absolute.

Not in a social or political sense, I'm not going to become Nietzsche 2.0.

I'm going to prepare my heart and soul. My physical body, my mental attitude, my spirit, my soul. My life might go until I'm 120 years old and I'm fine with that.

But God will know fear because I will teach it to him. God has a death wish and I'm that wish come true.

You think Abu Ghraib looked terrible? What I do to God will make that seem like a Kumbaya summer camp.

I don't know what god is, what makes a deity, fucked if know if such a thing even exists. But I will torture, maim, and kill God.

These neo-pagans with their "All Gods are one God."

That's fine by me. Get the all Gods in one place so I can kill that motherfucker with a smile on my face. Even if he's holding the universe together, like Atlas holding the world. If it means the end of all things then I'm more than satisfied to end reality.

If there's a physical aspect to him on some spiritual realm or whether it's simply a psychic thought of the living mind or some genetic predisposed delusion. Maybe I've lost my mind too, maybe there's nothing left but my madness.

My wrath makes God in the old Testament look like a spoiled 3 year old child. God will get what's coming to him.

He is mine and I am his.

·

"Nor sleep, nor sanctuary, being naked, sick, the prayers of priests, nor times of sacrifice shall lift up their rotten privilege and custom against my hate to Martius. Where I find him, were it at home, upon my brother's guard, even there, will I wash my fierce hand in his heart."

—AUFIDIUS; Shakespeare's "Coriolanus"

·

·

"I'll fight with none but thee, for I do hate thee."

—Caius Martius Coriolanus; play of the same name.

[theoldestweasleygirl]

Underage Champions

This is the first fan fic I started writing back in 2015, so far there are 4 chapters,  w ho knows if I will go back to writing it, I hope so. Any constructive criticism is appreciated. First chapter shown, rest are under the cut.

What if the Goblet of Fire had really messed up? What if, not only were there two Hogwarts Champions, but they were both underage? Fred's name is called as the Hogwarts Champion. Mix in an angry girlfriend and a twin who was left out of the plan, and you're in for a hell of a ride.

Chapter 1: A Little Background First

Not officially part of the story, but just a little background information to get you started. (Some of this information may be repeated through the story but I felt needed to be introduced to start as well) Written through the eyes of the main character.

My name is Dallas Millicent. I am a fourth year Gryffindor at Hogwarts. Growing up I lived not too far from the Weasley's. Since I had no siblings of my own I spent nearly every waking moment at the Burrow, sometimes for weeks on end without going home. My parents and I have never had a good relationship, and as I got older, I stopped going home all together, and to be honest I don't think my parents have even noticed.

The dynamic between me and the Weasley's is sometimes hard to wrap one's head around, but I'm really one of the family and honestly considered to be the 8th Weasley child (Or 6th if you wanted to get technical, being as my birthday is a few months before Ron's) and I fit right in with my (hair dye induced) red hair. Strangers have honestly mistaken me as one of the family. But anyway, Ginny and I have always been extremely close (being the only girls in a house full of boys will do that to you!) but no friendship rivals the pranking trio of Fred, George and I. Which is why, when the pair left for school, it was so hard on me. I knew that I'd see them at Christmas, and they'd be back for the summer, but I couldn't help but feel as though I'd lost my two best friends. And knowing that they had a whole nother year after this one before I'd join them killed me.

I had always been close to both twins, hell I’d been practically raised a Weasley. Growing up, it was always the three of us, locked in their bedroom, scheming up new pranks and reeking havoc on the house, laughing hysterically when someone was unfortunate enough to be caught in the middle of our mischief. Molly had joked that, despite the 2 year age gap, I was the third triplet who had been separated at birth. And although Fred and I’s relationship took a romantic turn, I would still always be “one of the guys” in the sense that we’d been best friends for over 10 years, and nothing about our friendship changed except now Fred and I were more than friends. I really am the third triplet in a sense, I consider George just as much my brother as he is Fred’s. Which is part of the reason some people find it so weird that I'm dating Fred Weasley. I'll admit I'd always had a teeny crush on Fred, but I'd never admit it, not even to Ginny! When we were younger, George used to tease us both, insisting that I had a crush on Fred, and vice versa. Me, being "one of the guys" and not knowing how Fred would react, would simply roll my eyes at George and deny that the idea had ever crossed my mind. Fred too, had blatantly denied the idea and threatened to hide a dung bomb under his brothers pillow if he ever mentioned it again.

On the train to Hogwarts my first year I, unsurprisingly, found myself in a compartment with Fred and George. It was then and there that Fred, looking more red and nervous than I had ever seen him, asked me to be his girlfriend. I was shocked, but truthfully excited and I happily agreed. George just smirked at us and replied knowingly with, "Told you so." Ever since then, the two of us have been dating and the three of us have been reeking havoc across the school. Filch, needless to say, was less than excited (to put it nicely) at the addition of a third member of the pranking troublemakers.

Chapter 2: Finding Out

Fred's name is called as the Hogwarts Champion. Mix in an angry girlfriend and a twin who was left out of the plan, and you're in for a hell of a ride.

Dallas POV

It was Halloween, and this year the Halloween Feast was also the time when the Triwizard Champions would be chosen from the Goblet of Fire. I hadn’t been paying much attention up to this point, I was more focused on my boyfriend and my food (my food is very important to me). Fred’s arm was wrapped around me and I was nuzzled beside him as I ate my dinner, laughing in amusement at George’s look of disgust as Fred leaned down to plant a soft kiss on my lips. “Oh stop” I laughed rolling my eyes at him from across the table as George began to mime gagging. I knew he didn’t mean it, he’d been the one practically telling us to date since I was 7 and they were 9. He stuck his tongue out at me and Fred smirked, tossing a bread roll at his brother.

“And now, the Hogwarts champion,” Dumbledore’s voice roared through the hall, and I turned to look just as the flames of the Goblet once again turned their glorious shades of red and shot a charred scrap of paper from the flames. Dumbledore smoothed the paper in his hands and read the name “ is Fred Weasley!”

I pulled back, looking at him as a million different emotions flittered through my body, anger, confusion, sadness, hurt... Time froze and what must have been seconds ticking by felt like hours. I looked at him with complete shock on my face and without even thinking, grabbed the plate nearest to me, and smashed it with surprising force against the table as a wave of anger took over. And with that, I stood up, turned on my heel, and walked out of the Great Hall, my thunderous footsteps echoing against the star studded ceiling, and the eyes of every person in the hall boring holes into my back.

As I stormed up the stairs I heard the footsteps behind me, and I knew before he even grabbed my arm who it was. He spun me around to face him and I shot daggers from my eyes as I turned. “Let. Go.” I growled trying to keep my voice from cracking, and I pulled my arm free continuing my thunderous exit.

Just as I was about to reach the common room, I heard footsteps behind me for the second time that night, and spun around to see the same face as before staring back at me, only this time it was a completely different person.

“He didn’t tell me either..” He choked out, and I saw him visibly cringe as his voice cracked despite his efforts to be angry. I knew that of all people, George knew exactly how I felt in that moment. He too felt the waves of emotions crashing over him as he tried to process what had just happened. Fred had always told me I was his #1, but I knew that in reality I was 2nd only to George, and I was okay with that. But this was also part of the problem, we were arguably the two most important people in his life, and he’d left us in the dark about such a big, what do I call it? Accomplishment? Mistake? Decision? Whatever it was, it was something he should have shared with us.

George must have seen how defeated I looked, or maybe how downright miserable, and he opened his arms and without even hesitating I found myself wrapped in them, sobbing into his robes as he did his best to hold back his own tears.

Most people would think it was strange, the way I wound myself into George’s arms just as I would Fred’s, but it was just our group’s dynamic. Others could never differentiate and on more than one occasion had seen the way I was with George and had started a rumor about how I was secretly playing both twins, much to all of our amusement. We’ve even played along with it before, pulling off one of Hogwarts’ “greatest scandals.

George and I made our way into the common room, sitting beside each other on the plush couch, and sat in silence as we both tried to process what was going on. We sat there, waiting for everyone to return from dinner, but nobody came, and hours after dinner the common room was still empty with the exception of us two. They must have had a celebratory party in the Room of Requirement. It was moments later that Fred finally appeared through the portrait hole, and you could tell that he knew what was coming for him.

Chapter 3: Confrontation

Fred faces the wrath of his twin brother and his girlfriend who are madder than he’s ever seen either of them before.

Fred POV

I stepped through the portrait hole and sure enough, there they were, sitting silently beside each other on the common room couch. It reminded me for a moment of the looks on my parent’s faces after they had discovered one of our tricks and were waiting to confront our trio about it. Somehow though, I knew this would be much worse than that, and if you’d ever seen Mom mad, you’d know that was saying something.

I took a deep breath and before they could even open their mouths I just crossed my arms and stood in front of them, knowing there was no use in trying to avoid them.

“Have at it, I know you two’ve got something to say” I sighed waiting for them to start firing questions at me. And sure enough, as soon as the words were out of my mouth, Dallas blew up.

“How could you fucking do this?! Sign yourself up for a tournament you very well could die in? Without even telling either of us?!” She shouted, springing to her feet, each word pelting me like a bullet.

I looked past her to my brother, still sitting on the couch, in a state of complete confusion. The hurt and confusion so plain on his face hurt me more than the venom behind Dallas’ words.

“I.. just...how? Why? Without me?” he finally managed to choke out, cutting me deeper with every word.

I sighed, defeated, and finally addressed them both. “I fucked up, okay? Plain and simple. I fucked up. I was just testing out a theory, and it was a long shot, more so than the aging potion, but somehow, it worked, and by that point, I was so confused myself that I didn’t know how to tell either of you..”

I knew from the moment I decided to do it that I should’ve told them. But George and I had already tried, and failed, to trick the age line with an aging potion, and I didn’t want to get his hopes up when, I thought, that my idea was even more of a long shot than that had been. And how could I tell Dallas, who disapproved of our schemes to enter the contest from the very beginning, and had been so relieved when our best bet had failed us? I didn’t want to worry her any more than was necessary and I didn’t want to get George’s hopes up only to crush them again.. and by the time it was done, I was so astounded that I couldn’t find a way to tell them then either, and then before I even had a chance to tell them, my name shot out of the goblet.

I saw what was coming next before the words even left her lips...

“That’s not an excuse Fred!” she shouted steam practically shooting from her ears. “Don’t you even have a brain in that big head of yours?! How could you even think to enter a competition that very well will kill you?! Forget the fact that you excluded the two arguably most important people in your life from the decision.. Don’t you understand? This isn’t a game Fred! You can’t just joke your way out of it!”

I did not, however, see what happened next coming. As I opened my mouth to reply, I was interrupted.

“Take a deep breath. We’ve all got a lot to say, there are lots of emotions here, but for the love of Merlin just quit shouting!” George yelled. He had hardly said one sentence this whole time, and George, the least confrontational of the three of us, had just actually yelled, at me and Dallas of all people. We both stared back at him, wide eyed, and he simply motion for us to both sit down. Dallas sat down beside him on the couch, and I pulled up an armchair so I could properly face them both. Once we were seated, my brother motioned for me to continue.

“Yes love, I realize it’s no excuse. I knew from the moment before I even did it that I should’ve told you two, and as I said, I simply fucked up. I realize that this isn’t a game, and I realize the danger i’ve just put myself directly in the middle of. But I never meant to hurt you, either of you.” I added glancing toward my brother. “You know you’re the two most important people in my life.. and that’s why I’m going to need both of your help if I’m going to have any shot at surviving this thing.”

Chapter 4: The other half

What does George think of this whole business? We’ve peeked through Dallas’ and Fred’s eyes, but what about the more quiet of the trio?

George POV

I hadn’t meant to shout at them… and you could tell they weren’t expecting it. They shouldn’t, I’m always the peacekeeper between the three of us, I almost never yell, and certainly never to my two best friends, but sometimes, the peacemaker has to yell. I couldn’t take another minute of the two of them screaming at each other like a couple of banshees, it wasn’t getting us anywhere. I knew Dallas was hurt and angry, and so was I, but Fred would never get a word in edgewise if I’d let her keep shouting at him like that. Did it hurt that he hadn’t told me, his twin brother, his best friend, the one he told everything, and I mean everything, to that he’d found a way to get his name in the Goblet of Fire? Of course it did! I’d never felt more betrayed in my life. I wanted to scream at him too, right beside Dallas, but I knew that that would do nothing but tear the three of us apart, and I’d never let that happen.

My brother may have just made the most bonehead move he’s ever made, which is saying something, but it was my job as twin brother and third member of the trio to keep the untamable wildfire that was Dallas under control. Don’t get me wrong, I love her as if she were my own sister (she practically is in more ways than one) but she’s been known to find the weak spot in any opponent she takes on, and using it to her advantage. And in that  moment, her target was good ole Freddie and she had one hell of an advantage over him, we all knew what, or rather who, his weak spot was, and I feared she’d use that advantage as she would with any other opponent. That would be a disaster of brand new proportions, the end of the trio, Fred moping around, paying no attention to the tasks he was about to face. Fred needed us now more than ever, and I needed to make sure nothing got in the way of that.

I was still sore about the fact that he had left me out of this decision, but I could tell by the look on his face that he felt absolutely awful for the way everything happened, and I could see the pure terror in his eyes, no matter how hard he tried to hide it. Dallas was right, this wasn’t a game, there was real danger here. “I’m in.” I stated matter-of-factly looking my brother dead in the eye “We’ll find a way to get you through this, won’t we?” I added looking over beside me.

“Of course we will” She sighed suddenly deflated. “You’re not getting out of this that easy Fred Weasley” she added, a smirk spreading across her face, the teasing tone returning to her voice.

“Now kiss and make up you losers” I laughed, glad a complete disaster had been averted.

“Oh now you want us to kiss?” Fred laughed, referencing my gagging earlier in the Great Hall.

“You’re right, I take it back. Too much PDA from you two.” I laughed shaking my head. Fred gave me a look and I knew just what he had in mind, I nodded in agreeance.

“TWIN ATTACK!” We shouted lunging to wrap Dallas in a group hug, laughing as she squealed in protest as Fred started to tickle her while I held her arms back. In that moment, we were all back to normal, and nothing was wrong.