#I was ready to go full business mode at the start of the year but idk I think I really needed this instead

[therealcocoshady]

Lilly and Marshall go out in a public setting and paparazzi start taking lots of pictures and this has never happened to Lilly before so she’s flipping out and Marshall goes into protective dad mode

Author’s Note : thank you for your request ❤️. I always have fun writing about Marshall & Lily ✨. Here is the fic, I hope you enjoy it !

Protective DILF

Being pregnant with twins wasn’t going to be easy, especially when it’s a « geriatric pregnancy ». That’s what the doctors explained when they told Y/N and Marshall that they were expecting not one, but two babies. And as the pregnancy progressed, it turned out to be true : it was exhausting carrying twins and dealing with the symptoms. Marshall’s wife was told to rest as much as possible, even though it was definitely easier said than done with Lily, who was demanding a lot of attention. They’d been told it was normal, but ever since she learned that she was going to be a big sister, she tended to be less independent, seeking her parents’ help and attention for most things. Thankfully, Marshall kept true to his word to be there for every step of the pregnancy and he was as present as necessary for everyone. Since Y/N was put on bedrest, he was the one dealing with taking Lily to school, picking her, taking her to her various activities, as well as managing the entire household. Thank God Lily was an easy child with a good temper, because he had a lot on his plate. And he definitely didn’t need the drama that was about to take place.

Lily had been pestering him about going to Chuck E. Cheese. It was one of her favorite places and, usually, Y/N went with her, but she didn’t have the energy. Plus, their little one was really into the trampoline section and it was definitely not ideal for an expecting mother. So it now fell upon him and it did take some convincing from his wife and older daughters but he ended up taking her. At first, he considered paying to have the place closed and avoid attention, but Y/N reminded him that the purpose of such a place was for their little girl to socialize with other children. He ended up reviewing logistics with his security team, picking a day of the week where the place would not be busy and agreeing that two guards would be waiting in a car outside, ready to intervene at any moment should anyone discover that he was there. Y/N questioned the need for security altogether but he insisted. Call it a gut feeling, parental instinct or straight up paranoia, but he felt more at ease having security around. He usually didn’t bother being escorted when it came to everyday life, but it wasn’t the usual errands in their neighborhood where everyone knew them, so it actually made sense to him. If it were just him, he wouldn’t care, but he wouldn’t take any risk regarding Lily.

His baby girl had a blast at Chuck E. Cheese, jumping around and playing games. He was happy to see her all giddy and smiling, cherishing the last moments with her as the baby of the household. Him and Y/N would never neglect her for the benefit of the babies, but he knew they would have their hands full and that moments like these would be more rare. Lily was jumping on the trampoline with a few other kids while he was sipping on some Diet Coke, texting Y/N that everything was going great when a Mom came to him.

- Hi, she said with a bright smile. Is the little girl over there yours ?

- Hi, he replied, looking up from his phone. Yeah, actually. Did something happen ? Did she fall ?

- No, relax, she said with a laugh. She’s actually super cute. She’s playing with my son over there.

- Oh, ok, he said.

- I’m Sandy, she said as she extended her hand. Marshall, is it ?

- Indeed, he said politely.

- It’s so nice to meet you, she continued. I’ve been a fan for years. Mind if I take a selfie of us ?

She already had her phone in hand, ready to take the damn selfie before he could even refuse. She was nice and rather polite and, usually, he would oblige, but he was in a Chuck E. Cheese, with his daughter nearby and now was definitely not the time to take selfies with fans, regardless of how nice they were. He immediately stopped her with a move of his hand.

- I appreciate it, Sandy, but I’d rather not take selfies now, he said as he tried to keep his composure. It’s a family place, I’m with my kid, I’m sure you understand.

- Right, she said. Sorry. I didn’t know you had a younger one. Or that you’re married…

She was looking intently at his wedding band. When he made public appearances, he made sure to take it off (in fact, his team had an explicit order to remind him) but, other than that, he wore it all the time. He immediately put his hand in his pocket.

- Well… Privacy, he simply said. That has nothing to do with hip-hop, you know ?

- Your wife is lucky, she said with a seductive grin. It’s a shame that…

- DADDY ! Lily called him, saving him from the interaction that was growing unpleasant.

- Excuse me, he said politely.

He immediately walked over to his little one, thankful that she called him when she did. She wanted to go to the tube and tunnels area with him and he happily obliged. He focused his undivided attention on Lily and soon forget about Sandy. So much so that he didn’t notice her snapping a picture of him, waiting for Lily to go down the slide. About thirty minutes later, one member of his security team came to see him.

- Mr Mathers ?

- Yeah, John ? He asked. What are you doing inside ? What’s wrong ?

- There’s an… issue, the guard said. Someone tipped off the media, there’s about ten reporters out front. We need to leave.

- Fuck, Marshall sighed. Alright. Lily, come here baby, we’re going home.

- No, Daddy, I want to stay here a little longer, the little one said with pleading eyes. We’re having fun.

- I know bug, but we’ve been here for a while now, he said. Time to go.

He tried not to communicate his anxiety to his daughter. He could see the place’s staff at the entrance, no doubt talking about the reporters. The last thing he wanted was to cause a scene. He just wanted to avoid Lily’s picture being taken.

- What do we do ? He asked the guard.

- I took the liberty to call for a couple more colleagues, just in case, John explained. They’ll be here in ten minutes. Once they arrive, I’ll walk you to the car. I think we should ask the manager if we can use the back exit.

- Good, Marshall said. Lily, put on your shoes, ok ?

- What’s wrong, Daddy ? She asked, sensing that he was nervous.

- There’s a couple of reporters outside, he calmly explained. Remember when I told you about people possibly bugging us ? We’re going to go to the car in a few minutes, and I’m going to need you to listen to me, baby. You do as I say, alright ?

His daughter nodded, nervously glancing at the door. There was a crowd, starting to gather, causing panic among the staff, and it was starting to be noisy. He took off his hoodie and his hat and put them on her. He wanted to hide her face as much as possible.

- I can’t see, Daddy, she complained.

- Just keep these on until we’re in the car, baby, he directed.

When John told him they could go, he carried Lily and they attempted to take the emergency exit, though some reporters were there as well. They retreated inside, the situation starting to get on his nerves. John offered to take Lily with him while Marshall walked to the car with another guard but the little one protested. The noise was starting to freak her out and, as soon as Marshall tried to hand her to John, she started crying.

- Daddy, no, come back ! She almost screamed.

- Baby, it’s just for two minutes, I’ll meet you in the car, he said as reassuringly as he could.

- Don’t leave, she cried. Daddy !

She was starting to sniffle and panic and he knew he couldn’t leave her like this. He held her close and tried to soothe her, tracing circles on her back.

- I’m scared, she whispered.

- I know, he said. It’s scary. But I’m taking care of it, ok ?

His team brought the car as close as they could to the exit and he sent one of them to ask the press not to swarm them. They seemed to reach an agreement, saying they just wanted pictures of him and that they would leave his child alone. He hated the idea of being photographed anyway, but this seemed like a decent deal : at least, Lily’s face wouldn’t be out there. He would allow them to take a pic of him once Lily was in the car. They finally managed to step outside as he was holding Lily who was hidden in his hat and hoodie, face buried in his neck. The reporters were asking questions about her, who she was, if he had her with Kim, but at least, they didn’t snap any pictures. He stayed silent, though, refusing to comment. He was strapping Lily in her carseat when he heard a flash. He immediately slammed the car door shut and turned, only to see a paparazzi holding a lens way too close. He instantly grabbed the camera and dropped it on the ground. The man protested, complaining about the price of his equipment but he couldn’t care less.

- I hope you have good dental insurance, Marshall warned.

- You’re not hitting me, the man taunted. We already have pics of your kid, we’ll publish them anyw-

- LEAK ONE PIC OF HER AND I’LL FUCKING DESTROY YOU, he threatened as he grabbed him by the collar. NOW YOU LEAVE US THE FUCK ALONE !

The conflict started to escalade and his bodyguards had to intervene, to protect both him and the paparazzi. He was ready to throw some fists and almost forgot that Lily was able to see the whole scene from the car. John talked some sense into him and he got in the backseat, sitting next to his freaked out daughter, letting his security drive. He helped her take his hat off, examining her tear-stained face.

- It’s alright, babygirl, he said softly. We’re safe.

- You scared me, Daddy ! She said. You screamed real, real loud.

- I know, baby, I’m sorry, he said apologetically. But I’m not letting anyone taking your picture. Because I don’t want anyone bugging you.

She nodded and he held her hand for the rest of the drive, trying to manage his own anger. If Lily had not been with him, he probably would have made a u-turn and broken a few noses. Thankfully, his team was handling everything. When they got home, he let Lily watch some TV while he went to find Y/N, who was resting in their bedroom. He wasn’t too sure how to break the news to her that, nearly four years after he adopted Lily, the press knew he had another kid. However, it seemed like he didn’t need to. She was looking at him with an annoyed look on her face.

- You already know ? He asked with a raised eyebrow. News travels fast…

- I have nothing better to do than scroll on my phone all day, she sighed. Of course I know. How is Lily ?

- Scared but ok, I guess, he said. Managed to calm her down in the car. She’s watching TV now.

- Ok, she said with a reassured expression. And you ?

He didn’t reply, simply shrugged. He wasn’t quite sure how he was feeling. Pissed off, for sure, but also nervous and disappointed. He wasn’t quite sure how much the pictures showed, and where to go from here. How would the public react to him being married, having a secret kid and two more on the way ? Paul would probably advise him to put out a statement so he should think of what to say… he would have wanted to keep his family life a secret longer. The last four years with Y/N and Lily by his side had been so enjoyable and he wanted nothing more but to shield them from his fame. And the thought of the public knowing about his unborn babies made him terrified of the potential attention they would get, too. Honestly, the thought of living his little family to another country didn’t seem so bad. He sighed and sat next to her on the bed, before eventually laying his head on her lap. Y/N gently ran her fingers in his hair, gently scratching his scalp and he closed his eyes for a minute.

- I’m sorry, he muttered.

- Whatever for ? She asked. You’re not the one who tipped the media…

- I failed to protect you guys, he sighed. I failed to protect Lily… you should have seen her, babe… you should have seen them. Hovering like vultures, screaming, scaring her.

- We always knew it might happen, she said. I’m gutted, don’t get me wrong, but we managed to protect her for five years. Married four without people knowing. In hindsight, it’s a miracle people didn’t find out sooner.

- I guess, he shrugged. Still, I’m mad at myself… I scared Lily.

- What did you do ?! She asked, suddenly alarmed.

- I… lost it with a guy, he explained. He tried to take a pic of Lily ! I grabbed him and gave him a piece of my mind.

- So you basically assaulted a man in front of our daughter ?! Y/N asked, starting to get worked up.

- Look, I’m not proud of myself, he groaned. But I wasn’t about to let him get away with that. I simply grabbed him, I didn’t break his nose. No matter how badly he would have deserved it…

- Marshall…, she scolded.

- I know, he simply said. It fucking sucks. I just wanted Lily to have a good time. Now, I’m going to have to call Paul and my publicist… fuck.

- I’m sorry, my love, Y/N said as she kept on stroking his head.

They stayed like this for a moment, enjoying each other’s comforting presence, and Y/N finally went downstairs to check on Lily. She was fine, though she did mention the whole thing was scary. Marshall stayed upstairs for a moment, gathering his thoughts and trying to pace himself before calling Paul back. His manager had tried to reach him ten times in the past hour, leaving various voice messages, urging him to call back. There were good and bad news. The good news was that Lily’s face didn’t appear anywhere, concealed thanks to Marshall’s hoodie and hat. The only thing the media saw of her were her jeans and sneakers. The bad news, however, was that the whole thing had been filmed and that images of an angry Marshall smashing the reporter’s camera were being shared on social media at the speed of light. The response was overall positive and people tended to support him instead of the reporter, who was clearly at fault. However, there was a lot of speculation and even people who claimed to have insider information, making false allegations. They had no choice but to put out a statement. They had a conference call with their publicist, who suggested only giving the necessary information. After quickly consulting with Y/N, he decided not to give any details on Lily, not giving away her name nor her age, as well as avoiding mentioning the pregnancy. The statement would only acknowledge the day’s events, as well as confirm that Lily was, indeed, his daughter and that he was married. To him, that was enough.

« As the result of the publication on social media of a picture taken without consent, today’s events have caused a lot of speculation regarding Mr Mathers’(professionally known as Eminem) family life. Mr Mathers expresses his regret for how the situation unfolded, the altercation with the press having caused distress not only for him but also for the other people present at the location. Mr and Mrs Mathers formally oppose the publication of any media depicting their child and ask for the respect of the privacy of their family life. They also express their intention to sue any individual trying to sell pictures of their daughter, as well as any media outlet who might publish them. »

In the evening, a couple of hours later, the internet was in a frenzy over the whole thing and the confirmation that Marshall was, indeed, married and had a younger daughter. A lot of people were also swooning over the pictures of him holding Lily, obsessing over his strong arms and stern look.

- The internet seems to be obsessing over you again, Y/N mentioned while he was preparing dinner.

- Well I’d rather have them forget all about me, he groaned. I swear, I’m going to retire, just to get some peace. Or move us to the edge of the earth…

- It’s not so bad, she commented. They appreciate how protective you are. Also, calling you the ultimate DILF. I don’t disagree…

- DILF, huh ? He asked with a sudden smirk.

- Look who’s suddenly in a good mood, she grinned.

- I like that you agree with them, he said with a smile. Maybe you could show me how much, later ?

- Gladly, she said as she pecked him on the cheek.

He turned his face and kissed her lovingly. They were interrupted by Lily.

- Mommy what’s that word ? She asked with a raised eyebrow.

- What word, baby ? Y/N asked.

- The one you said. DILF.

- Oh… hum… it’s a word people use when a Dad is very attractive, Y/N explained as she tried to contain her laughter. Like, when they want to talk to him and flirt…

- Like with Daddy and the lady today ? Lily asked innocently.

- Yes, like Daddy and- wait what ? What lady ?

Marshall said nothing and focused on the vegetables he was chopping for dinner, conveniently ignoring the conversation.

- There was a lady who talked to Daddy today at Chuck E. Cheese, Lily explained. She was smiling a lot.

- Interesting, Y/N said with a raised eyebrow. Looks like someone doesn’t need my appreciation…

- Come on, babe. It happens, Marshall hummed.

- Does it, now ?

- All the time, Lily said. All the mommies at my school-

- Lily, baby, how about you go and watch some cartoons before dinner, mmh ? Marshall suggested to cut the conversation short.

- Ok, the little one said with a shrug.

Y/N was leaning against the kitchen island, visibly upset and pouting. He sighed and went to hug her but she turned her head.

- Thought you agreed with the DILF thing ? He asked with a smile.

- They’re allowed to think it, not to act on it…, she groaned.

- No one’s doing anything, he chuckled. Just a couple of smiling, very friendly ladies. What’s up ? You’re usually not as upset when it comes to groupies or fans…

- I know, she said. But this is real life. Now that you’re the one going places with Lily and taking her to school… I hate thinking about all of them making eyes at you. Especially while I’m bored, at home, getting fat.

- You’re not getting fat, he chuckled. I mean, you are, you’re huge, but-

- MARSHALL !!!

- It’s because you’re growing two beautiful babies, he continued. Our babies. No one holds a candle to you. I might be a DILF but you’re the ultimate MILF.

- You think ? She asked with a pout.

- No one ever made pregnancy look so hot, he said lovingly. If you weren’t supposed to rest so much, I would gladly show my appreciation all day, everyday…

- I love you, she chuckled. But im glad that everyone knows we’re married, though.

- Territorial much, Mrs Mathers ? He asked.

- Yes, she giggled. Very.

- I like it, he chuckled.

- You have to protect what’s yours, right ?

- Right. And believe me, I’m going to do everything I can to protect what’s mine, he replied as he put a hand on her round belly.

She cooed and placed a hand over his, when they felt a little kick. They immediately looked at each other and smiled. It was the first time they felt one of the babies move. Y/N’s eyes immediately filled with happy tears and Marshall kneeled to place a kiss on his wife’s stomach.

- That’s right, guys, he said with an emotional smile. I’m always going to protect you.

[futfemfantasies]

One Less Lonely Girl \\ lucy bronze x williamson!reader

Prompt: 21. Reader singing One Less Lonely Girl to _________ on the bus on a long trip from a game to announce their relationship.

Short but sweet one :)

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

"You ready mi amor?"

Turning your head, Lucy leans against the doorframe, muscles on full display in the sleeveless England training top.

"Just finished, let's go before we're late"

Zipping up your England suitcase, Lucy offers to take it to the care while you get your backpack. A kiss on the cheek as a thank you and you quickly get your bag. Lucy jogs inside as you settle in your seat for the nearly 2 hour journey to St Georges Park. Jumping out ouf your thoughts, Lucy opens her door and waves around your white and green predators.

"You're a lifesaver, thanks baby"

This time, a peck on Lucy's lips as a thank you before she starts the car. Lucy's left hand never leaving your thigh tells you something's wrong. You look over at your girlfriend of just over a year until she realises you're staring.

"Something's going on in that gorgeous head of yours baby. What's going on?"

Now it was your turn to put a hand on her thigh. The car slows down to stop at the red light and Lucy looks at you with a hint of worry in her eyes.

"I think we should tell the girls. They're starting to catch on"

Lucy looks back to the road and you stay quiet. Lucy keeps looking over at you every few seconds, worried she said something that upset you. You reassure Lucy that it would be good as you wouldn't have to sneak around at camps anymore and your younger sister Leah is going to burst at any second with the year long secret. As you and Lucy talk about both of your upcoming move to Barcelona, you plan a way to tell the girls and fans.

Lucy pulls up to the familiar training centre and there's a few girls waiting out the front, including your sister. Without saying a word, Leah runs over to you and nearly knocks you over with her power. Not seeing each other for a while makes you miss your best friend, even if you are 7 years older.

After reuniting with your sister, you and Lucy greet your close friends as more start to arrive. When everyone arrives, Sarina calls everyone over to the bus and you get in first securing the table at the back. With Lucy behind you, she slips in next to you, holding your hand under the table. You both are joined by Keira, Leah, Millie, Ella, Alessia and Rachel. After many rounds of cards against humanity and Monopoly deal, you all decide to watch a movie. Ella turns on the tv and it was set to a karaoke mode.

"Karaoke anyone?"

Millie questions and the group quickly agree.

You find the mic so ultimately, you go first. You whisper to Millie the song choice and everyone groans at the familiar 2009 hit.

"...if you let me inside your world, there's gonna be one less lonely girl!"

You look at Lucy like she's the love of your life and no one missed it.

Keira looked at Leah. Millie at Rachel. Ella at Alessia.

No one could believe it. The two most private people on the team are dating.

"Well that's one way to announce it"

Rachel comments as she turns the next song off. The mic goes back to it's original position and you cuddle up to Lucy as the questions stand rolling in.

The bus pulls up to the hotel and Sarina tells everyone their roommates and thankfully, you and Lucy get paired together. You and Lucy high five while your wall neighbours, Ella and Alessia groan.

"We're all happy for you two but no funny business, I mean it"

Sarina warns you two and you both are confused on how she knows but agree anyway. Lucy gets the keys and you both make your way to the room. You flop on the bed and groan about how comfy it is. You feel Lucy fall next to you and you immediately cuddle up to her.

"How about we break the internet and hard launch?"

Lucy suggests, making you sit up quickly.

"Let's do it"

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liked by leahwilliamson, alexscott, lucybronze, milliebright and 27,841 others

y/n_williamson: my yellow person 💛

view all 9,475 comments...

lucybronze: 🥺😘💛

y/n_williamson: mine 💘

leahwilliamson: i love seeing you happy 😊❤️

y/n_williamson: love you lil sis 🥰

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liked by y/n_williamson, jorgebronze, leahwilliamson, keirawalsh and 38,487 others

lucybronze: soft launch who?

view all 10,645 comments…

y/n_williamson: i love you so much angel 💛

lucybronze: my best girl 💛

keirawalsh: you two make me sick, but I’m glad you’re both happy 🫶

lucybronze: was gonna say…

[jamiebluewind]

Warning! Pet illness, xray

A friend of mine a few states away had a pregnant female cat walk onto her porch and decide she lives now. She had 3 kittens. Since my friend/roommate @winterpower98 was looking for her first cat, we (other roommate/bestie, Winter/Gaia, and I) decided to take a trip down to visit and see if one of the kittens would work for her.

The thing is, she did fall in love with one! He's black with white markings, so the 6 year old had been calling him Eclipse. He's, curious, playful, and always trying to get into something. He loves Gaia. I mean LOVES her. And she loves him. Like... emptying her savings loves him.

Right before we arrived, our friend noticed a little lump on his belly. They thought nothing of it. And then, it got bigger. And bigger. And bigger.

After a week, we took him to a local vet to get checked out. He had a umbilical hernia. Luckily it stopped before his diaphragm, but the hernia was severe enough that he would need surgery to close it (a lot of articles talked about smaller ones closing on their own which is why we waited). He would also need special care for IBS symptoms and to keep his hernia from getting injured or obstructed before repair (which couldn't happen until he was big enough to go under anesthesia). He would need to come indoors for his safety and be separated from the others as his sisters pouncing on the hernia was causing issues (a week earlier than the 8 week mark).

I was honestly expecting Gaia to say it was too much for her to handle. Even told her that nobody would judge her for not being ready for that level of responsibility. That we could find an organization that could take him and get him the help he needed and find him a good home. He has two sisters she could consider, there were plenty of shelters back home with cats under a year old, and we could even check the town we were visiting and places on the way back home, so there were options. I knew how much it took to care for a kitten with health issues (my current cat required months of specialized care and there were plenty of scares along the way) and Gaia has no previous experience with cats outside of hanging out with our cats, so that's just starting on hard mode.

After a long serious talk on the responsibilities she was about to take on, she said she knew it would be hard but the thought of giving him up made her sick. That she would do whatever it took to give him a happy life for however long she has him. We aren't rich people, she's going back to college full time, she had only decided on him over one of his sisters that morning, and (again) this would be the first cat she has ever had. She went all in without a second thought.

The original quotes from various vets willing to do the surgery (not all vets can) were pretty insane, but luckily I found a non-profit that did the surgery for about half. My other roommate and I fully support her and chipping in what we can.

Eclipse is 8 week old and his surgery is scheduled in a month, but we are going to call in and check for cancelations since he's reached the minimum weight and age for anesthesia. Winter has been so busy caring for him that she's not had a chance to post about him, so I decided to do it on the drive home. I think the story is important because it raises awareness about an issue most don't know about and shows someone genuinely caring about a pet with special needs. As a disabled person who's went through a lot of ableism and survived abuse, it really hit me to see how much she loves him with her whole chest and doesn't ever approach his issues with anger or blame.

I don't ask for reblogs much, but I wanted to ask you guys to boost this. I linked Gaia's PayPal below if anyone wants to help take some of the financial burden off her, but you can also support her with messages and boosting this and her future post/s about Eclipse (cut her some slack guys, she's currently in tired new mom mode). I don't expect anyone to donate because I know you guys are mostly in the same shape as us, but I think showing Gaia support is just as important.

Now if you'll excuse me, the hyperactive boy got the zoomies and just jumped in the toilet XD

Edit: Late thing to add on, but a few days after posting this my other roommate/bestie Sarah decided to adopt his sister! Her name is Melanite, but her honey eyes have earned her the nickname Miel. Her and Eclipse have always been very close (often laying on top of each other), so it's great that they'll get to stay together.

[boujeeceo]

2023 will be better

Overall (updated)

This is the final year of 'prep'. By the end of this year I'll be in a position where I can move how I've always wanted. I'll be ready to live the life of luxury and power I've always wanted. I'm done living in working class survival mode.

Cosmetic upgrades

Nanobladed eyebrows

Full body hair removal

Base look Makeover

Vitamins

Skincare/Dermatologist approved skincare

New Clothes

Clothes tailored

Financial

Another 15,000$ nest egg saved

Pay off my 2 certifications 3,000$

Get 35 contacts from networking events that I can rely on and that I want to stay in contact with.

Get a job that won't burn me out! Aka a new better job w/better salary. OR get a paid internship. OR work part time for a nice small business.

Start another business!

Hit 200$ a day income

Hit 300$ a day income

Hit 400$ a day income

Hit 500$ a day income

Daily Routine

Workout (no matter what): 18%-20% Body Fat goal

1 gallon water drink

Clean eating + diet breaks

Studying (1hr-2hr) pomodoro style

Vitamins (multivitamins, and collagen powder)

Post 3 videos/pictures to IG, TikTok, or Youtube. (Maybe)

Mental

Find a therapist and Go to therapy

Get my 2 certifications in corporate finance (Harvard goal in 2025)

Read the 100-300 books on my list

Focus on to become intermediate in Violin & Recorder

Focus on to become conversationally fluent in Spanish or Mandarin

Find a new country to live in. (To leave USA in 2026)

Get another (different) certification for my career.

Live my life no matter how much money I don't have.

Fulfill a Teenage Dream

This is a stretch goal, might not happen.

Save 7,000$. And go on a two month long road trip!

Full Reinvention Loading

[letstalkhockey]

jack bringing his daughter to his lake house and his friends finally meet her and they are so shocked at how well jack is as at dad but how much he has changed too

Oh my god, this is so cute.🥺💞

(Reminder to send in any thoughts, quick blurb ideas, or even story ideas for this AU.)

There was no doubt jack had grown and matured ever since his sweet Angel, Sophie, was born. He started making sure to become the best dad for his sweet girl, and no one would convince him otherwise.

As Jack pulled into the driveway of the lakehouse, he took notice of the cars from everyone including his older, and younger brother, and a few of his friends, Trevor, cole, and cam. The regulars at the lake house. Season had just ended for them all, so they were more than ready to start boat days.

Trevor, cam, and cole had yet to formally meet Jacks daughter, Sophie. They would hear all about her, because it’s all Jack would talk about, but they hadn’t met her, nor have they seen a whole bunch of jack in his ‘normal’ space. After she was born just about a year ago, Jack took some time off to be home with his sweet baby. To take care of her and learn how to be her dad, when he had to go back to playing it was about halfway into the season, and it was hard on him, he was busy with taking care of his daughter, but also with his career.

Parking his car in the driveway of the lake house even felt a little different - different than last year, this time, when he was in a complete different spot in his life. It felt bittersweet - almost like he was scared, scared to go in. He knew the boys were already here and expecting him, but he wanted nothing more than to turn home. He was scared, not of Quinn and Luke, but the other three, it would be there first time meeting the absolute Angel jack created, and it would be there first time seeing jack in full father mode.

to say the least, he was nervous.

After he parked, he got out and went to open the back seat, revealing his sweet girl fast asleep, her paci in her mouth, and her arms flailed over the sides of the car seat. What jack hadn’t known was that Two of the boys - luke, and cole - watched them from the front door, cole was so eager to meet his best friends daughter, he was the first to run to the door. Luke made sure to follow, just because he knew cole hadn’t met her yet.

Jack slowly, and gently unbuckled the seatbelt from across her car seat, she was covered up in her blanky, so he scooped her up into his arms so gentle, trying his best not to wake her peaceful state of slumber, while he went onto grab his duffel bag and throw that over his shoulder, as well as the baby bag. With y/n in one arm, and his bags on the other, he made his way to the front door, still not noticing cole or Luke waiting for him, his focus stayed onto his daughter in hand, making sure she didn’t wake up just yet. Not after the morning of crying she went through because she had been awake the entire night.

The other boys were warned by the two other brothers about helping jack out this summer, and they made sure to take note of it, Jack needed it, he wanted to be able to still be his best dad self, but also enjoy his time off with his friends.

“Here, let us help.” He heard Luke say while making his way through the front door, quickly handing off his bags to Luke. Meanwhile cole stood next to him, in complete awe, but also because of how sweet jack seemed towards his daughter. “Is this really your daughter?” Colwsaid, still in shock.

Jack let Luke make his way up the stairs with his, and his daughters bags, while he stopped to talk to cole. Jack looked up from his sweet baby that slept sounding in the comfort of her dad’s arms. With that - “Yeah, this is her,” Jack smiled while he held her out just a little further so cole could get a good look at her.

“She looks just like you,” Cole started at him and his daughter, “I know.” Jack spoke so soft, sophie stirred in his arms and her eyes fluttered. "i still cant believe it," Cole said, "that your a father and all,"

"neither can i most days." Sophie yawned in his arms, paci still in her mouth and her small body moving in the comfort of her dad. Making a small noise in the process. The boys made there way to the living room where Trevor and cam sat, on the couch, rap music blaring, while they cursed and played chel on the tv. When Luke re entered the living room, joining the other boys, he saw the look jack gave him and he immediately found the remote, turning the music off completely.

“Dude, what the fuck-“ Trevor turned his head from the game, cam did too. Both taking notice of jack stood with a baby in his arms.

“Okay what the fuck-“ Cam said, Trevor quickly turned to playfully slap him. Whispering, “stop swearing.”

Trevor quickly stood up and walked over to Jack, meanwhile cam sat, still on the couch, still completely shocked.

-

Throughout the weekend, Jack's friends watched in awe as he effortlessly slipped into the role of doting father. Gone were the late nights of raucous laughter; instead, they shared quiet moments fishing off the dock or teaching Sophie how to skip stones across the lake's still surface.

As the sun set on their last evening together, gathered around a crackling fire, Trevor finally spoke up, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled over them.

"You know, Jack," Trevor began hesitantly, his eyes reflecting the flames. "I never thought I'd see the day when you'd trade in your wild weekends for this... but damn, you're good at it."

Jack nodded thoughtfully, his gaze drifting to where Sophie was curled up in lukes lap, listening intently to a bedtime story.

"She changed everything," Jack admitted quietly, a wistful smile playing on his lips. "And I wouldn't have it any other way."

His friends exchanged knowing glances, silently acknowledging the transformation they had witnessed. The lake house, once a backdrop for carefree escapades, had become a sanctuary where new memories were forged—one where Jack's old life seamlessly intertwined with the new.

As the fire burned low and stars dotted the night sky, Jack found himself grateful for the friends who had embraced his evolution, and for the daughter who had shown him a side of himself he never knew existed.

[thebestofoneshots]

Gilded Constellations | wolfstar x reader

Series Masterlist | Previous episode

Pairing: Wolfstar x Reader Word Count: 7.2 K Warnings: none Prompt: What will happen when yet another full moon approaches, could things start to change? This IS a wolfstar x reader fic, but it's incredibly slow burn. They won't start all dating each other until we're very deep into the story, but I promise the long wait will be worth it.

ANOUNCMENT:

In a couple of weeks I'll make a Q&A to cellebrate Gilded Constellations reaching 100,000 K words. And I'd love for all of you to be a part of it. So send in your questions, they can be anything you want, things like: How did you get the idea? Where does inspo come from? writing tips (I mean I don’t know much but anyway), character design, fancast, fav characters, things about me, about my plot notebook, literally anything you want, ask away (just state: For Q&A event or something) <3

Chapter 13: “Rebel, Rebel.”

October, 22nd (Friday)

A week after the incident, your mom had already sent your old Viper, but the Nimbus company had yet to respond to your letter. You’d gotten used to your older broom pretty fast. Muscle memory must really be a thing, since the moment you mounted it, it was like you’d been doing it forever. 

James was right, the Viper was a lot more stable than other brooms. More than Sirius’ SweepFire, and probably more than the Dark Nimbus itself. But it was slower, you’d already gotten used to the fast accelerations your Dark Nimbus had, and now you had to be extra attentive of the ball so you could make a move before it had enough time to get past you and onto one of the goals. Regardless of the slowness, the Viper was sturdier and heavier, which made it easier to do tricks like the backflip people still wouldn’t stop talking about. Last Tuesday you’d even attempted to surf on it, and you managed to do perfectly fine for a couple of meters until James spotted you and gave you the longest talk about being responsible and not doing stupid things, the hypocrite. But he was on captain mode and when he got on that mood it was absolutely useless to talk him out of it, so you nodded and promised you wouldn’t do it again, even if you probably would at some point. 

You told Lily about dating Sirius as soon as you were feeling better, she asked you so many questions, from how it’d happen to how good were Sirius’ kisses. She had been told he was really good by a girl back in 5th year, and she wanted to know if it was true or if the girl was just obsessed with Sirius like most girls in school. You omitted the fact that you probably were just as obsessed with him as they were and confirmed that Sirius was indeed a good kisser, not that you’d kissed all that many people before, but still. The rest of your friends had slowly found out about your new relationship, be it for the way Sirius sat next to you a lot more often now, because his teasing and flirting had gotten a lot stronger. Or, in the case of Tom, because he’d accidentally found you snogging on an empty classroom, at least he just gave you a thumbs up, a cheeky smile, and whispered something like “Keep it going guys! You’re doing great”.  Both you and Sirius had separated to laugh about it when Tom closed the door. 

“You ready?” Sirius asked with a smile, pulling you from your thoughts.  You looked at him with a daring face. 

You know that thing you were told not to do a couple of days ago and you promised you wouldn’t? Well, that promise lasted exactly 4 days, 3 hours and a couple of minutes. James was busy with an essay he’d forgotten about, and you and Sirius had gone flying together, and unfortunately, neither of you had a clear enough sense of self-preservation when you were around each other. Especially not after someone said, “I dare you to…” 

You were slowly standing over your broom, hands extended to try and keep your balance. Neither of you was flying too high, that way if you fell you wouldn’t get too hurt. Once you had managed to maintain your balance you nodded “Ready,” you said with a wink, and the two of you started broom surfing, picking up speed as you glided through the open fields of the school. As you were about to reach the finish line, you realized the grass was moving in a funny way right in front of you, and you frowned.  

“Hey Sirius I think–“ you started, but it was too late, something had yanked both of your brooms down and caused you to tumble down to the grass. You’d fallen over and rolled a couple of meters while he’d fallen over something, or rather someone. As you looked up you realized he was right on top of Remus, who had popped out of nowhere (probably the invisibility cloak). As the two of them sorted themselves out you stood up quickly and looked around, spitting some of the grass that had gotten inside your mouth. And then you spotted them, Barty Crouch and Evan Rosier, hiding behind a stone wall. You took your wand out and pointed it at them. Evan seemed to pull back but Barty just smiled wickedly “The fuck is wrong with you?” You roared, already walking towards where they stood. 

Barty walked head high towards you too “You saw them fall, Evan? It was hilarious!” 

“Fall? You must be bIoody delusional if you think you’re going to trick me with that! I felt the way my broom was yanked down.” 

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said with a smile “Do you Evan?” 

Evan shook his head, as if Barty needed a sidekick to be vile. 

“You’re begging for me to break your stupid nose again,” you replied as you looked at him impassively. 

“I’d like to see you try,” he said smugly. 

You pointed your wand at his face, but Remus stood in front of you, calmly placing his hand over the one you used to hold your wand and pushing it down a little, to prompt you to do it yourself. 

Sirius stood still next to Remus, looking at Barty with hate, but keeping a strong grip on his wand. 

“Remus what the–“

“–He’s provoking you,” he told you calmly “he wants you to react.” 

“Yeah, well maybe I want to react,” you retorted, now slightly irritated at your friend’s actions. He just looked at you, shook his head calmly and softly ran his thumb over your forearm, still pushing it lightly down. If anyone knew about anger management it was Remus Lupin.

“Hey,” he said softly, looking at you straight in the eye, trying to get you to focus on him, rather than on Barty looking at you cockily from behind “Look at me luv,” he cooed, you looked at him for a second but turned your eyes back to Barty “I’m fine, Pads’s fine, you’re fine. There is no need to fight.” 

“You could’ve gotten hurt, we could’ve–“ 

“–Listen to me. Don’t give him the satisfaction of rilling you up. You don’t want him to be the cause of Gryffindor losing points, do you? That’s probably why he’s–“ 

“–yeah, go ahead (Y/N), listen to your boyfriends, they know what’s best,” Evan taunted from behind, you clenched your jaw. But took a deep breath, finally lowering your wand. Maybe you should’ve put him in his place then and then, how different would things have ended up if you actually had? 

“You know what Barty? Remus is right, you aren’t even worth my time.” You said standing straighter “At least be more creative with your petty jokes next time, all right? Maybe then you’d at least keep me entertained.” Then you turned around and used your wand to pull both yours and Sirius’ broom to your hands and walked back to the castle, lagging just a second so Sirius and Remus would walk by your side. 

“I want to strangle him,” you told them once you thought the two Slytherins were out of earshot.

“You and me both,” Sirius agreed, taking his broom from your hands, but lingering as his fingers brushed over yours “I probably would have, had Remus not stopped me first.” You looked at him for a moment and then recalled, Sirius was still on top of Remus because of the fall when you speed-walked towards the two Slytherin boys.  “And he’s right, the last thing we want is to start an open war in between us and his stupid gang.” 

“But they already started it, we’re just not doing anything about it.” You reproached, still a little riled up, the urge to punch Barty was wearing you thin, “Anyway, I do not want to have detention while everyone’s enjoying themselves at the Halloween party next week.” 

Remus smiled “How do you know about that?” 

“Tom and Beth told me all about the party you guys always plan together, I’m already preparing my costume.” 

“Is it gonna be a sexy Halloween costume, luv?” Sirius chimed in, leaning towards you with a little smirk on his face. 

 You pushed him back playfully “Ugh… don’t be such a dog!” 

Remus laughed at that, “I’m sure you’d look pretty even in a sack of potatoes.” 

“Yeah, in a very short one,” Sirius teased even further. 

“If only my boyfriend was as much of a gentleman as his friend here,” you said with a playful sight.

“You clearly don’t know Moony’s dark side,” Sirius chimed. 

You arched your eyebrows at that “And you do?” 

Sirius was about to respond when Beth showed up, looking a bit agitated as If she had been running “There you are!” She said as she stood in front of the three “Professor Spellman wants to see us earlier today, something about a special announcement.”

You frowned “Right now?” You asked. She nodded. 

“But we haven’t eaten!” Sirius complained. 

“I don’t think it’ll take too much,” Beth said with a shrug, “But it did seem rather urgent.” 

You nodded and the four of you started walking towards the North Tower. When you arrived, you realized they hadn’t exclusively called your class, in fact, the entire school year had somehow crammed inside the classroom. There were barely any sits left, when Tom saw Beth, he quickly waved to her and she went to sit besides him. You scanned the room and found only one table free, you rolled your eyes when you realized Evan and a Slytherin girl from his year whose name slipped your mind were sitting behind it. You looked at Sirius and pointed at the only free spot with a nudge of your head. 

He rolled his eyes but the three of you walked towards the table, the boys pushed the two chairs together and you squeezed in between the two. Leaning ahead a little so they could accommodate their larger backs onto the chair. Sirius had placed his hand on your tight under the table, and you gave him a look, “I’m gonna fall if I don’t grab onto something,” he said with an innocent smile.

“Yeah, sure enough, Puppy,” you replied playfully. 

“Hm… that’s the fifth from this week,” he said as he squeezed your tight.

Then you felt something pull your hair from behind. You turned around pissed and Evan was smiling “What? Did I ruin your cuddle time with your two boyfriends?”

You looked at him, but smirked “Why, you jelly?” You asked but didn’t give him enough time to reply, “You should know by now that my cuddle time knows no bounds. It's an exclusive club with a very long waiting list. But don't worry, I can squeeze you in somewhere between Tuesdays and never." 

Evan’s face turned sour while Sirius looked at you with a proud smirk and Remus laughed, chest rumbling behind you. He was about to retaliate when Professor Spellman walked in. So you decided to piss him off even further “Shh honey…” you said as condescendingly as possible “Teacher’s about to speak,” finally you turned around with a smirk. 

Remus gave you a side eye and placed his hand, palm facing up, just above your lap, raising his eyebrows, you understood what he meant in a second and high-fived him instantly, giving him a wink before leaning over the desk a little, to give the two boys some space. 

When Spellman finally reached his desk, he gave you a stern look “Miss (Y/LN), why are you sitting between Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin?” 

“There was nowhere else to sit,” you replied, motioning to the crammed classroom “I can sit on the floor if you want though.” 

The Professor sighed but nodded, “That won’t be necessary, this won’t take too long,” he said, before waving his wand and letting a long banner unroll from the ceiling over the chalkboard.

It read: The Moon and the Stars

“As some of you who keep up with the astral cycle may know, next Sunday is full moon,” Spellman said, you felt Remus tense behind you, which made you frown, but the professor kept talking, and you ended up shrugging it off “And not only that, but a very interesting phenomenon will also occur, it will be a bIood moon, which makes it the perfect moment for an astrology class,” He said with a proud smile “You will all be excused from today’s class in exchange for 2 hours of your Sunday night.” There was a mix of groans and cheers in the classroom, from those who were happy about not having class, and those who were upset about having class on a Sunday “Class will start at 10 pm,” Spellman continued, not giving the children time to protest “bring your notebooks and telescopes, those who have their own. We will meet in the Astronomy tower. Any questions?” 

A Ravenclaw boy raised his hand “What happens if we can’t make it?” 

“I highly doubt you’ll have anything better to do on Sunday night Mr. Finchley,” the professor responded sassily. Remus, who looked like he wanted to say something, decided to let it go, and sank back on the chair. The professor waited a couple more seconds, to see if anyone else had a question, but upon no one’s answer he clapped his hands together “Excellent, you’re excused now. See you on Sunday.” 

Sirius was the first one to stand up, letting you out through his side, while Remus seemed to be a little troubled. Your boyfriend placed a hand over his shoulder “It’s ok mate, we’ll figure it out,” he told him. You looked at the exchange with curiosity but it dissipated the moment Lily appeared out of nowhere and hooked her arm around yours.

“The girls and I are going to go prepare some droughts at the potions classroom now, hair and grooming stuff, you said you wanted to brew a special something for your Halloween costume, yeah?” 

You nodded, Sirius raised an eyebrow “Special something?” 

You smiled in response “If you guess it, I’ll give you a prize,” you said confidently, he would not guess your Halloween costume, even if he tried a thousand times. 

“Anything I want?” He asked suggestively. 

You laughed in response “Sure Puppy, anything you want,” you told him before walking out with Lily, the girls were waiting just outside the door.

“That was the 6th!” You heard Sirius say from behind. 

Lily raised an eyebrow “What’s that all about,” she asked. You giggled in response “Let’s just say dear Sirius and I have a bit of an arrangement, I can call him Puppy whenever I want, but he gets some kisses in return.” 

She laughed at your answer “Why aren’t I surprised?” 

You shrugged with a smile, finally catching up with the girls “You wanted to make a glow potion, right?” Mary asked, “Like the one Marlene drank on her birthday?” 

“Yup, I think I’ve got all the ingredients ready too,” you told her, checking the little rattan bag inside your backpack where you’d been placing all the necessary stuff. 

Lily gave a small peak to the bag and frowned “I don’t think you’ve got glow-weed yet.” 

Tom, who seemed to have shown up out of nowhere started to walk by Lily’s side “Why do you need weed?” 

You laughed “Glow-weed,” Beth corrected “not weed, weed.” 

“Hmmm… that’s not as fun.” He said, scrunching his nose a little “What for?” 

“(Y/N’s) Halloween Costume,” Marlene answered casually.

“Oh, you’re gonna be a fairy or something?” He asked excitedly.

You paled at that and turned to him wide-eyed “If you tell Sirius Black about it, I’ll strangle you.” 

“Cheeky,” he replied, leaning closer to you, which made you roll your eyes and push him back. 

“Please don’t tell Sirius?” 

“Why?” 

“She promised Sirius a prize if he guessed. She specifically said anything he wanted,” Lily chimed in. 

Tom looked at Lily and then turned his gaze back to you, impressed “So really cheeky then.” 

“Toooom!” You whined. 

“My lips are sealed,” he said, passing a hand over them as if he was zipping them and then placing his hand over his chest. How dramatic, you thought, but then again, you were the one dating Sirius Black, so who were you to judge? 

“Why didn’t you just tell him about your costume?” Asked Beth. 

You sighed “He was going on and on about sexy Halloween costumes, he would not stop bothering me if I did.” You responded simply, by then you were already outside the potions classroom. Professor Slughorn was in his office, and Lily had been the one inside and asked for permission to enter. He was more than happy to let you guys in to practice potions that he even gave Lily the key to the ingredients room, giving you free rein to use whatever you might need. 

When Lily came out, shaking the key in her hand with a smile Marlene rolled her eyes “Teacher’s pet,” she teased. 

“Maybe,” she said with a shrug “but, I just got our hands on the Ingredients Supply, and Slughorn said we could take whatever we wanted.”

“Sweet!” Said Tom as he took the keys from Lily’s hands and led all the way to the ingredients room. He took out a little paper from his pocket and started looking for some stuff, all the while you tried to find some of that glow-weed.  

When you finally found it you looked at the combination of stuff he’d placed in his basket and narrowed your eyes at him in suspicion “That’s not for beauty products is it?” 

He shook his head with a little smirk “I’m working on a little something,” he said, “also for the Halloween party.” 

You raised your eyebrow, looking at the stuff he’d gathered so far “Essence of Laughing Lily, Blissberry Extract, Frolic Fizzweed Leaves, Lavender Essence, are you by any chance making–“ 

He shook his head and placed a finger over your mouth “–Shhhhh! If Lily busts us, we won’t be having any fun.”

You smiled complicity “Well then, keep working on your little magical project,” you said, and then leaned in closer to whisper “If you add Moonstone Shimmer, you can make the potion a bit more potent overall.” You raised your eyebrows and winked before walking back to the table on which you’d be working. Marlene was next to you, and she’d set herself to prepare a special hand cream since the weather was getting colder. 

Beth was working on an enchanting hair serum that she’d run out of. And Lily said she was working on a “perfect curls potion,” also for the Halloween party. 

“Would you mind borrowing me some of that on the Halloween party?” You asked her when she told you what she was working on. 

She nodded “In fact, I’m making a lot extra,” she replied with a smile “To keep a stash on our bathroom.” 

“You’re brilliant!” You told her with a smile. 

“I’m working on some radiant complexion elixir, also for our bathroom,” Mary said. “We’re giving some of our stuff to Beth and she’s gonna borrow some of her hair stuff. We’ll all be stocked up in beauty products?” 

“And you do this all the time?” You asked with a smile. 

“A couple times a year, yeah,” said Marlene from her table.

“Genious, can I help with anything?” 

“I was actually thinking of using some of your glow potion and add it to the one I’m making, for glowier hair,” Beth told you, you smiled and nodded. 

“Oh, that would look amazing!” You agreed, “A bit on the radiant complexion would probably work wonders too.” 

“Yes, it would!” Lily said with a nod. “And what are you working on Tom?” She asked, turning to the boy. 

He turned to her like a deer trapped in headlights, and then crossed his eyes over at you, pleading for help “After shave lotion, right?” You said casually “So that the shave lasts longer, you mentioned?” 

He nodded “Ye– yeah… I heard Remus complain about his freshly shaved face lasting nothing, and I thought, same mate. Decided to do something about it.” 

You kept a tight smile as you gave him a look. Tom was a shitty liar. “Right! I’m sure that recipe James got you from Fleamont will be brilliant.” Tom nodded and went back to his preparations. 

“Why would you need Frolic Fizzweed Leaves for an aftershave lotion?” Lily asked, more to herself than to the rest. 

You shrugged “Must be one of those secret Potter family tricks,” you said with a shrug, and then smiled when you concluded it would be the perfect time to tease your friend “I’m sure if you married Potter your in-laws would be more than happy to tell you all about them.” 

Lily gave you a reproachful look, but Marlene added to the conversation “It’d be great, that way they could get back the potion-making talent they lost on with James.” 

“James isn’t bad at potions!” She said with a shrug, not quite thinking before she spoke.

Your smile grew “Really? Tell us all about your boy’s talents.” 

“He’s not my boy.” 

“Pretty sure he is, at least in his point of view,” added Tom as he mixed some things in his cauldron. 

“Why don’t you guys tease (Y/N) with Sirius instead?” Lily said as she chopped some of her ingredients with a bit of a frown. 

“They’re dating already, what is there to tease them about?” Mary said with a shrug, “If you want us to stop teasing you, you should just date Potter.” 

You all laughed at that, but no one continued to tease poor Lily any further. As you went back to your table next to Marlene, you realized she was already mixing stuff in her cauldron. You figured most of your friends would be done with their potions before your next meal, so you decided to concentrate on your brew. 

Getting the extract from the glow weed, was the most complicated part since it required an intricate spell and some special distillation skills, but you managed to do it after just a couple of tries. Once that was done, the rest of the potion was actually pretty simple, all you had to do was add the ingredients at the right time and mix according to the instructions. When you finished, you had a cauldron filled with glow potion, it had a golden colour, slightly bright, almost as if there was some light source hidden in the inside of it. You took out the crystal bottles you’d gotten for today and used a ladle to slowly pour the liquid onto them, placing some of the potion in a small bottle with a dropper, and handed it over to your friends so they could add their drops on the potions they’d made.

When you were done, everyone was pleased with their own potions, especially Tom, who had somehow managed to finish his mystery potion without anyone else figuring out what he was making, he placed it on a small crystal bottle with a golden cap and a transparent liquid. You all walked back to the dorms together and divided the little vials amongst Beth and your room. She wasn’t all that close with her roommates, so she took smaller, personal-sized potions while your room got the bigger vials and flasks. Once you placed your small bottle on your trunk, next to some of the other stuff you’d already prepared for your costume, you walked downstairs to wait for the girls in the common room, you grabbed the book Nina had lent you and sat on the couch. Tom came down and plopped down beside you minutes later. 

“What are you reading?” He asked taking the book from your hands and reading the back cover “A spicy werewolf novel?” 

“It was recommended.” 

“Yeah, I bet,” he said with a bit of a cheeky smile and started flipping through the pages, stopping in on a page with a drawing of a shirtless man and eyeing it “Damn, he could rile me.” You raised an eyebrow, “Just look at him!” 

You laughed at that “Didn’t know you liked boys.” 

He shook his head “It’s not that I like them,” he said “I just don’t care if they’re boys, or girls, or anything…” 

You nodded, thinking about it for a second “I think I don’t either.” 

He gave you his signature bright smile and placed his arm over your shoulder, bringing you slightly closer to him “Welcome to the club!”

“Are there many others like us in the school?” 

“You’d be surprised, most of them hide it quite well though, you wouldn’t expect it, you know a few, but it’s not for me to tell. We Brits are pretty open-minded you see.” 

You nodded, “Definitely better than in my old school.” 

When the girls finally came downstairs you all walked out of the common room together, and you stayed with them until you had to split ways since they’d taken a different extracurricular. You walked half of the way to your classroom when you spotted Remus walking by himself, who also walked towards the classroom, so you picked up your pace and caught up with him “Nice to see you again, Rem!” You told him with a smile. 

“How did potion making go?” He asked politely. 

“Excellent, my costume is almost ready!” 

“You’re really going big with it, aren’t you?” He asked, raising one of his eyebrows.

You nodded “It’s my first Halloween at Hogwarts, you guys have set the bar pretty high according to Marlene, I’ve gotta match those high standards.” 

“She said that?” 

You nodded “She told me all about your costumes from previous years, how last Halloween you dressed up as the teachers, McGonagall was mortified when she saw Prongs with an exact replica of her green robes.” 

Remus laughed, remembering that moment “Yeah, she did.” 

“What about you? What are you dressing as this year?” 

He sighed, “Frankly, I don’t have a plan yet, last year was Pads’ idea, and we all followed through, but this year he had a pretty rough summer break and didn’t plan any group costumes, we’re all making our own.” 

“I think you should be a pirate!” You told him simply. 

“A pirate?” 

“You’ve got the sexy pirate vibe going on already, why not?” You asked with a shrug. 

“Sexy pirate vibe?” He asked in disbelief. 

You nodded “Ask anyone, they’ll confirm it.” 

“Confirm what?” James asked as he caught up with the two of you 

“That Remus looks like a sexy pirate.” 

James raised his eyebrows at your words, looking a little impressed, and then turned to his friend “Hmmm…. Yeah, I see it.” 

“See? Told you! It was literally the first impression I got from you.” 

“When I went to pick you up at Dumbledore’s office?” He asked, rather confused.

You shook your head “No! When we you bumped into me at the station. I saw you, and instantly came flashbacks of those spicy novels with shirtless men on the cover.” 

When James heard it, he laughed like a madman, you were right, Moony definitely had the type. “Yours would have you, holding onto the ship’s mast with a barely buttoned white shirt, and the title would be something like The Beast Within,” James said in between laughs. 

Remus gave James a warning look, but you were too occupied gasping at James’ boldness “Are you implying Remus is a beast in bed, Merlin! James, I did not expect you to be cheating on Lily with your best friend!” 

Now it was Remus’ turn to laugh, James’ dumb joke had turned on him “Yeah James, please explain how you’d know anything about my nightly activities… I could be a gentle lover for all you know.” 

“I don’t know about that,” you teased “You do give off the beast in bed vibe.” 

Remus gasped “I’m the chillest of the group.” 

You nodded “It’s always the quiet ones,” you said with an air of mystery. 

When you arrived at the classroom, the three of you struggled to gain back composure and to calm down after the fit of laughter you’d caused each other. Remus went to sit beside Sirius, the first thing he did, was ask him what they were all laughing about, and after being told the story he ended up agreeing with you on two of the things said, First: Remus had to dress as a pirate now, there was no other option. Second: Moony would definitely be a beast in bed. 

Saturday came and went, this time you actually got to go to Hogsmeade for the first time, even if it was more of a business run than a pleasure one, the boys were so focused on getting all the stuff for the party ready that you barely even saw Sirius while you were in town. You spend most of the day with the girls, jumping from shop to shop to get some of the last bits you needed for everyone’s costume. Mary was going to go the easy route, she decided she’d dress as a kitten, her plan was to grab some cat ears and a tail, and enchant them to move like those of a real cat would. 

Marlene was going to do a matching costume with Holden, they’d both go as Sonny and Cher from the video “I Got You Babe”. Marlene had even gotten her hands on a long black wig and a small fur coat. And Holden had actually bought a hair-lengthening potion to match the look. You were certain the two of them would look incredible in their outfits. Beth was going to dress as an astronaut since she was very passionate about space exploration and some of the newer muggle technology advancements. Tom was going to dress up as a vampire and had convinced you to help him charm his canines to look like fangs.

James tried to persuade Lily to do a couple’s costume with him, but she refused every single time he asked, in the end, she decided she’d go as Ophelia, from Hamlet. When James found out he asked Remus to give him a short summary of the story and decided he’d be dressing up as Hamlet, to match with Lily even if she wasn’t expecting it. You honestly considered warning him against it, but he seemed so hopeful and they would look absolutely adorable in the photos so you decided against it. Peter said he’d dress as Edmund Pevensie, from  "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe” a book he had read when he took the muggle literature with Remus in 4th year, he’d convinced Teddy Hawthorn to dress as Peter, Annabeth Doxon to be Susan and a girl who you hadn’t met yet to be Lucy.  

Since you didn’t tell Sirius what you were dressing as, he decided he wouldn’t tell you either, so both of your costumes would be a surprise to each other. 

Unfortunately, your visit to Hogsmeade was so hectic, like everyone else’s, that you didn’t even have time to visit any of the restaurants your friends always talked about, you did see the Three Broomsticks from afar, it seemed like a nice and cozy little pub, very English in its type. Tom mentioned they made mean Beef Pasties and even if you weren’t quite sure they were, the way he described them them made them seem utterly delicious. He promised to treat you to some next time you went to Hogsmeade. 

By Sunday, you were all spent, dedicating a good deal of the day to work on your costumes, Hagrid had gifted some pumpkins to Peter and you were carving along with him and Remus in the common room, Beth was gluing some patches to her astronaut costume and Lily worked on adding some details to her dress. James and Sirius were up in their dorm, since James had to work on his secret Hamlet costume, and Sirius on his own secret costume. 

“How does it look,” you said as you turned around your pumpkin for Peter to see it.

He winced when he saw it, but was too nice to say anything negative about it “It’s… a little wonky, it… uh… works with the Halloween theme?” 

You laughed in response and pulled out the book of practical spells Nina had lent you, being sure there had to be something useful there. 

“Want some help?” Remus asked politely, taking your pumpkin and using a small blade to straighten some of your cuts. 

You placed a hand over his shoulders and thanked him before going back to the book, still trying to find a useful spell, but there wasn’t exactly a Halloween section on the index. When you turned back to look at your pumpkin, Remus had already finished up refining it and it looked incredible.

“That’s… Remus, you’re incredible with your hands!” 

“That’s what she said,” Peter said, almost automatically. 

You gasped “Peter!” you said as a little smile drew from your lips. He looked up from his pumpkin mortified, you giggled “Didn’t know you had it in you to make dirty jokes.” 

“You do remember I literally sleep in the same room that Sirius, right? The ability just rubs into me,” he told you with a little smile. You laughed along with Remus. 

You heard some steps from behind and finally saw both Sirius and James walk down the stairs, Sirius casually leaned closer to you and placed a fast kiss on your lips before turning to Moony. You realized he had some glitter on his hair and passed your hand over it to shake it off as he spoke “Ready to go Moons? Pete?” 

Remus checked his watch, and nodded “Yeah, I should probably get going, I’ll see you guys there?”

Peter nodded, “I’ll stay here for a couple minutes more, I want to finish this pumpkin, but I’ll be there.” 

“Excellent, it’s settled then.” 

Sirius finally turned to you, since you were still fluffing his hair “You done love?” 

You shook your head “haven’t seen you much this weekend,” you said with a pout, not quite wanting to take your hands off his head. 

He smiled and tilted his head just a little “Don’t tempt me, I’ll end up staying.” 

You laughed at that, but you knew how important the marauder’s jokes were, so you shook your head “Go ahead trouble, I’ll see you at divinations, yeah?” 

He gave you a look and shrugged with a smile on his face, before giving you a wink and running out behind Peter and James, who had already walked out of the portrait. 

“You’re not planning to skip divinations, are you?” You asked Peter, who gave you an awkward smile in reply. 

“And Remus just said yes?” 

Peter seemed a little nervous at your question, but you didn’t quite understand why he would be “We…. Um— It’s very important business.” 

You frowned, a little unconvinced but nodded, deciding not to question him further, “Ok then, I’ll cover for you lot. I’ll tell Spellman you ate something at Hogsmeade yesterday and that you’re feeling dreadful or something.” 

Peter finally met your gaze “You’d do that for us?” 

“Of course I would!” You said, as if it was obvious “You’re my friends, I’d cover for you any day.” 

Peter smiled “You’re the best!” 

You and Peter cleaned the table and placed the pumpkins near the window before he left. Once he was gone you moved closer to the girls, both Beth and Lily were still working on their costumes, “Need any help?” You asked politely. 

Lily shook her head, but Beth responded “Yeah, can you pass me some of those patches please.” She said as she pointed at the table filled with patches, you carefully picked them up and handed them over. Letting yourself fall on the couch once you were done. You picked up the book Nina had lent you, the spicy novel this time, and finally started to read through it. You’d actually enchanted the cover since clearly it called everyone’s attention with the original one. Now it looked like a copy of a regular old spell book.

“Uh… I’m gonna feel bad if you keep studying while I’m working on a costume.” Lily Pouted from her place on the floor. 

You chuckled “I’m not actually studying though, It’s a spicy romance book Nina lent me, the cover was a bit extra, so I charmed it.” 

Lily gasped, with a smile drawing on her lips as she did. “You sly fox!” 

You smiled at that, laughing as you said “Oh… trust me, you’ve got no idea.” 

“And.. Is it actually spicy?” Beth asked, not looking up from her costume.

You shrugged, “Not sure, haven’t even met the main love interest so far, I’m barely starting the book. But I’ll tell you if it’s good.” You told her before going back to read. Every now and then they would ask you for small favors like holding the fabric for a second or passing something that was closer to you than it was to them. It was nice to just chill with the two redheads for a while. 

After some time Mary and Marlene came from the stairs, you pulled your head from the book and turned to the girls “Is it already time for class?” You asked, surprised.

Mary nodded “9:30, you see?”

“We should probably start walking there, in case the stairs decide to be funny today,” you said as you stood up. 

Both Lily and Beth grabbed their costumes and carefully sat them over a table, you wrote a small note and placed it over them, so that other Gryffindors wouldn’t grab them by accident, or after trying to admire them. Once it was done, you started walking towards the class, Tom caught up with you halfway there, and you all arrived at the astronomy tower with a couple of minutes left. Professor Spellman was already there, and a couple of students were pulling out their own telescopes as well, Tom included among them. The moon was already starting to. fade. According to Tom, who wouldn’t shut up about the way the BIood Moon worked “The moon will almost disappear completely before we can see it again, and when we do, it will turn red.” 

He seemed so fascinated by the event you decided not to tell him you’d read all about it on the pages of the divination book Professor Spellman had you read for today’s class. At some point a Hufflepuff boy walked closer to Tom, smiling brightly as he greeted him “How’s it going Tom?” 

Tom smiled back at him “Brilliant, I was just telling (Y/N) here about the mechanisms of the BIood Moon.” 

“Really? I’d love to hear all about it!” The boy said with a smile. 

You gave Tom a look, raising an eyebrow, he just smiled and winked in return, “Right! I’m sure Tom will know lots about it, I think Marlene’s calling me. See you boys around!” You said, giving Tom a knowing look, and letting the two boys flirt by themselves. 

You were about to walk towards Marlene, when you heard the same howls from the time when you’d gone to the greenhouses with Lily, a lot further away this time, but the same nonetheless. So instead, you turned around and walked to the window closest to the sound. When you reached, you leaned over the edge just a little, to try and see better, but there was nothing but an endless sea of trees, wherever the things making the sound were, they must have been very deep inside the dark forest. Then you felt someone push you over the balcony violently, just to pull you back again with a vicious grip on your shirt “Careful, you may fall,” you heard Evan’s stupid voice as he pretty much pulled you towards his chest, you could feel his hot breath on your neck, disgusting, you wonder how it was possible that you’d considered him attractive at some point. 

You turned around quickly, forcing him to loosen his grip on your shirt “What the hell Rosier?” You hissed. He was not alone either. Severus was on his side and another boy, who you quickly identified as Mulciber. He was taller  with a tank-like complexion, that contrasted with Rosier’s softer looks as water did with oil. You stood your ground, even if you wanted to step back “Awww… did you have to bring your bodyguards along? Too scared to face lil’ old me by yourself?” You mocked, “Don’t worry, I can take Frankestine and Slimmy on any day of the week.”

“What the fuck did you just call me?” Mulciber said, taking a step forward. 

“Offf, sorry! Guess I should have used a reference a little more keen to your level of knowledge.” 

Evan scoffed, “Do you think it’s a good idea to make fun of him?” He said as he tilted his head, pulling back a little and giving the room a once over “especially without your boyfriends here to protect you.” 

“Please, as if I needed anyone to protect me from you lot. Barty’s fan #1, Lily’s simp and Mr. Big guy” you laughed “you’re joke.” Ok, in hindsight, maybe you were pushing it a bit too hard. But you were not going to let them intimidate you.

Evan grabbed you by the collar and pushed you towards the railing again, you grabbed onto the handle, knuckles white with the force you were using, but you eyed him with a bravery you didn’t know where the hell you’d gotten from. You looked around and smiled, people were crowding up around you “You sure you wanna do that, luv? We’ve got a bit of a crowd here, too many witnesses, right? All though, I’m sure you’d fit in perfectly fine in Azkaban.”  He seemed tempted to drop you, but eventually, he let go and pulled back. You smiled and straightened your uniform “Yeah, I thought so.” 

“This is not over,” he threatened. 

“Bring more henchmen next time,” you mocked with a smile. When he was gone, you turned around to the forest again, taking deep breaths to calm yourself down, and looking at the possible fall you could’ve gotten. It would most certainly be mortal. 

Lily pushed through the crowd to reach you, looking at you filled with worry once she caught up “What the hell were you thinking (Y/N)? All that bravado was gonna be worth for nothing had he actually pushed you.” 

“He wasn’t going to push me.” 

“He’s insane, he could have,” she argued.

“Not in front of so many people.”  You insisted, “Not without stupid Barty Crouch around, he’s the only reason Evan’s got anything against me.”

“That was the only reason,” Lily corrected “You insulted them out in the open for the entire class to hear.” 

“They came pushing me into the railing first. I was not going to cry for help.” 

“Ughhh….” She said exasperated, and then pulled you into a bone-crushing hug, “Just promise me you won’t go facing those assholes by yourself. Please don’t be as stupid as the boys.” 

You sighed and returned the hug “I will not  go chasing after them Lily, I promise.” You said, and you really did not intend to do it. 

Series Masterlist | Next Chapter

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Raead more Marauders Fiction

[auspicioustidings]

Closed

Teashop AU

Summary: You get sick, Price gets serious. Words: 2.2k TWs: death of a loved one

“Lieutenant I have a perimeter alarm, go have a look will you?”

Price only got a gruff sound of agreement as Ghost headed out. Owing to it being off the radar their base wasn’t on official records and didn’t have any sort of posted guards. If anything the building probably looked more like a mildly eccentric manor in the middle of the woods, so it wasn’t entirely outside the realms of possibility for folk to stumble upon it none the wiser.

It had only ever happened twice in the past 5 years since they had started using it and both happened within the last 2. Not really a coincidence given that’s around the time Faodail had opened. Not that any of them were complaining, they could redirect a few adventurous walkers away every so often if it meant they got to visit their favourite civilian in their favourite little teashop.

He needed to pay a visit soon. Had it really been two weeks since any of them had seen you? Work had just been so busy and none of them had made the time because they were exhausted. As far as he knew there hadn’t been any out of town visitors either. It must be calm and quiet for you without a bunch of rowdy military folk rampaging around. The thought made him smile. Maybe he should take you on a holiday to give you a full break. Since opening you had worked every day, even the day the shop was closed he knew you were busy getting deliveries, restocking and testing out new recipes.

“Captain!”

Oh Price did not like that tone on his Lieutenant at all. He snapped into work mode, loosening off his shoulders to be ready for a fight as he jogged to meet Simon half way, finding him just coming back into the base. Gaz and Soap came barreling around as well, both ready for whatever they were about to face. Ghost looked, well, like he had seen a ghost. 

“Report.”

“It’s George.”

“Dungeons and Dragons George?” Soap asked, relaxing ever so slightly.

George was a fixture at Faodail, bringing his group to play once a week. He came in a second time a week with his boyfriend as well (a relationship that had been built on months of very bad matchmaking attempts by you before Kyle had stepped in to help). Nice guy, totally harmless but for the obvious crush he had on you. His boyfriend was clearly fond of you and found it very cute. 

“The shop is closed.”

There was a moment of quiet while everyone tried to make sense of what they were being told.

“This isn’t usually the day it’s closed right? Maybe they just need to do maintenance” Gaz said, trying not to overreact to something so small. 

But then why had Dungeons and Dragons George tracked down the base to tell them if it was something so small? You had never shut the shop. It had been open when you had rolled your ankle and could barely walk, it had been open when a snowstorm had wiped out the power and you had to heat water over the fire and bundle everyone in blankets, it had been open when you had such a bad toothache that you were openly crying while making tea (it had been him and Soap there when it had happened and oh boy they had not handled it very well).

“It’s been closed for a week. He said last week they didn’t seem well, and then when he went in on Sunday the place was closed. Agnus brought the doctor around, she said they’ve gotten pneumonia while already fighting off the flu.”

Simon said it very carefully. He had to. He knew that while this was obviously causing him a great deal of worry, it was nothing compared to what Price was feeling. His Captain looked like his heart had stopped. The fury that came over him was sudden and frightening as he silently barged past and to the truck, yelling at George to go home. 

Simon gave the Sergeants a look and a shake of his head that said not to ask before they all went after him, climbing into the truck without a word. 

–

You could not remember ever being this ill. Everything hurt, you couldn’t breathe, you couldn’t sleep for coughing and when you coughed it felt like your ribcage had caught fire. At the start you had kept working, masked up with gloves. Then on day 4 you had woken up and barely been able to move. 

By the time you had walked from your little cottage to the shop you could barely see straight. The sign was flipped to closed and you had staggered back to bed and not left for more than stumbling to the bathroom since. 

Agnus had walked right in, taken one look at you and called for the doctor. You didn’t fully remember the conversation with the doctor, only that she gave you medicine and strict instructions to contact her immediately if it got any worse. You wouldn’t say it had, but it hadn’t gotten better. At least Agnus was keeping you fed even though you really did not want to eat any of the soup she fed you twice a day. She didn’t stay long which you were thankful for, she shouldn’t really be in the room with you at all in case she got sick.

It was the only way you were judging time at the moment, so when you heard someone in the room you assumed it must be evening if she was here to make sure you ate your soup.

“Why the fuck wouldn’t you tell us?”

You cracked an eye open to find John Price crouched by your bed, his rough hand gently pushing back the hair that had become stuck to your forehead and cheek. He seemed so sad. 

“Wrinkles” you croaked, meaning to say a full sentence around that but not managing as you brought your own hand to the furrow in his brow to try to smooth it out. It took such an effort.

“Yeah, wrinkles” he said, sounding somewhat choked himself. 

Even though you sort of hazily remembered telling him he’d get sick, it hadn’t stopped him from staying with you. He fed you, made sure you took your medicine, bundled you up in his arms. You thought you heard movement around the house, other people. There were voices in the doorway to your room sometimes, comforting ones, ones you recognised as yours. 

–

“You’re taking the piss darling.”

You rolled your eyes. Sure the tea probably tasted spicy as all hell with the amount of ginger in it, but it would do him wonders. Predictably, Price had got the flu. Nowhere near as bad as you had gotten, but despite some teasing from his team he seemed more than content to stay in your bed and be looked after even if he was mostly better by now.

It was strange not working for so long. Now that you were on the mend and rebuilding strength you thought you’d be desperate to get back to it, but honestly it was nice to have the break.

“I told you not to stay with me and you didn’t listen, so drink up.”

He rolled his eyes, took another sip and then put the cup down on the bedside table so he could throw his arm out at a frankly alarming speed and drag you down into bed by the waist. It wasn’t that Price wasn’t a touchy feely person as such, but since he had arrived when you were ill he had developed Johnny levels of affection, always as close as he could get to you.

“Not a superior officer on this planet that could order me to stay away from you,” he said, wrapping himself around you and burying his face into your chest.

You played with his hair, feeling such a burst of fondness for him in that moment. You suspected there was a reason he was being like this, but you didn’t want to force him to tell you so you tried the subtle approach.

“I’m sorry if I made you worry…”

His chuckle tickled your chest. Ok, so maybe you were very bad at trying to be subtle and it had very much come out sounding like you were desperate to know just why he was so worried. You never had been any good at hiding how you felt. 

“She’d have really liked you. Would have kicked your arse for not telling us you were sick right enough, but she’d have liked you.”

You could feel tears pushing at your eyes already. He had lost someone and it just broke your heart to think about. You knew in principal that his line of work meant he must have lost so many people, but the way he talked about this one seemed different.

“Her family moved in beside mine when I was 10 and I hated her. She always beat me in any game we played and was the loudest, brashest brat I had ever met.”

“So you fell in love with her” you said with a smile, hearing it in his voice. 

He sighed and moved his head so he could lay facing you, just looking into your eyes.

“Hard and fast. She laughed at me the first time I asked her out on a date and the whole thing was a disaster. It rained, the restaurant was overbooked and the cinema projector broke down. We wound up at a McDonalds” he said, the nostalgia clear on his expression.

“The plan was always for me to work my way to a desk job. I didn’t want to be in active duty forever, just long enough to make a difference before getting into something safer and starting a family.”

“What happened?”

“She got sick. It happened fast, started with the flu and just got worse. I didn’t make it home in time to say goodbye.”

“Oh John, you must miss her terribly” you whispered, knowing you were crying but not able to do much about it. 

He wiped the tears from your cheeks with his thumbs, pressing a quick kiss to your lips. 

“All the time. I didn’t have a reason to get that desk job. Didn’t really want to be home for long either, there wasn’t anything here for me.”

He thought that there was something here for him now. It had been in the back of his mind for a while now, the idea of a future beyond the job. Since he had lost his girlfriend all those years ago, he had just worked knowing as a fact that he’d die in service. But now that certainty was gone. Now he imagined growing old in a little cottage by a charming teahouse. He imagined getting you all to himself for some years before one by one the others would join. 

He hadn’t told anyone, but around a year ago he had started buying up the land surrounding yours, eventually connecting up to the base. He could admit to himself now that in his heart he knew he wanted to make more space for the family that had been built around you. 

“Take a holiday.”

“Hm?”

“Take a holiday with me. Let’s go somewhere warm for a few weeks and soak up the sun.”

You were taken aback by the suggestion. It sounded like a dream, but it was something more serious than stolen kisses and visits to your shop. You had never really thought for too long on what exactly this all was. You loved these people you had been lucky enough to meet. They didn’t seem to mind that you shared your affections between them so you had just let it develop. Did John want that to change?

“I can see your pretty little head working overtime luv. The others will want to take you places too, I know Alejandro just bought a vineyard near his hometown so I wouldn’t be surprised if he steals you away for a while. Should by rights be Soap getting to take you away first, but I outrank him so he’ll need to get over it.”

“I… the shop…”

“You were thinking about hiring help anyway.”

You were thinking about hiring help. You loved the shop and you wanted to work in it for the rest of your life, but it was hard going and you had the money now to afford to get help. Originally you had thought you’d probably find someone in the nearby town, but as if by magic (more likely by sneaky soldiers) you seemed to keep finding CVs from people with military backgrounds around the shop. You’d be lying if you said you didn’t think Mr Sanderson sounded like he’d be a perfect fit for Faodail. 

“Ok.”

“Ok?”

“Ok.”

The kiss he gave you then was toe curling and if it hadn’t been for the fact he was still a little under the weather you did not think you would have been able to leave the bed, but you somewhat dizzily clambered to get out of his hold and tumbled onto the floor rambling about how he needed to finish his tea. 

His laugh followed you to the hallway and you were so flustered that when Johnny immediately caught you and pressed you into the wall to steal kisses of his own, you could do nothing but completely give in and relax into him. 

Maybe getting sick wasn’t the worst thing to happen.

[erathene]

A Fool's Hope

Summary: Aragorn has returned to Helm's Deep, which is rushing to prepare for the arrival of Isengard's Uruk army. Unfortunately, recent events take a heavy toll on the future king of Gondor, and you struggle with your own doubts as you try to pick up the pieces.

Word count: 2.3k

Pairing: Aragorn & GN!Reader 

Warnings: Whump, loss of consciousness, nausea, Aragorn is Not A Well Man™.

Author's note: It has been years since I've written anything, and real life has been extra busy as I'm now a mum to my 16 month old son. Now I'm starting to get some time back for my own hobbies I've started writing a few fics. Enjoy! 😚

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

Thirty sacks of grain, check.

Fifteen barrels of mead, check. 

Ten crates of carrots and twelve of cabbages, check.

Eight bushels of apples, check. 

The scratch of your quill against parchment could scarcely be heard over the hubbub of activity that was swelling through Helm's Deep. The fortress was in full preparation mode, readying for the battle that was to come. It seemed that every citizen had their own duty to fulfil; whether that be sharpening weapons at the grindstone, filling quivers with arrows or reinforcing the main gate.

Things were a little calmer here amongst the supplies and foodstuffs that had been amassed in recent weeks from the many arrivals to the fortress. Crates were neatly stacked one on top of the other whilst large oak barrels lined the thick stone wall. King Théoden had tasked you with tallying all of the rations that had been gathered together and ensuring their safe delivery to the Glittering Caves beyond the keep. To some, it may have appeared a simple task, with no true impact or merit. However, as Keeper of the Granary in Edoras, you knew all too well how plans for a siege could go disastrously awry should there not be adequate supplies to keep the troops fed and watered. The king himself would want to know the exact figures of every product stored, and most importantly how it could be stretched to cover the longest amount of time possible without his soldiers going hungry. It was a crucial part of the battle plans.

Consequently, every note you made on your parchment sheet was checked and re-checked, before the containers were carried off to the caves. The gravity and significance of the task at hand also kept your mind from dwelling on the thought of the thousands of Uruks which would soon be on the doorstep. You were no fighter, and had you not been kept busy with this charge, you might have found yourself completely overwhelmed with the anxiety of the battle ahead. 

"Those three sacks there can go next," you indicated to one of the youths who had been placed under your command for this task. "And ensure they are stored off the ground; we don't want spoiled grain on our hands." You watched as the boy nodded at your instructions and heaved a sack over his shoulder.

You turned back to your parchment paper, studying the values you had written. A few more calculations and you would be ready to present your findings back to the king and his war council, who were due to meet shortly for the final time. Presenting information to all the lords of Edoras may have intimidated some, but to you it seemed wholly insignificant compared to your apprehension of the conflict to come. 

Movement out of the corner of your eye caught your attention and you glanced up quickly. Standing before you was Lord Aragorn, his gaze passing over the various containers that were held in the small area you were working in.

"My lord," you said as you bowed your head respectfully. "Is there something I can do for you?"

This was a paltry suggestion, for the man looked more than worse for wear. You had heard other folk speak of how he had been dragged off the cliff by one of the wolves of Isengard, and how he had ridden day and night to warn Théoden's people of the doom that was marching towards them. Yet nobody had spoken of his impairment. His complexion was pale beneath the dirt and grime of the skirmish and subsequent journey here, which also extended to his hair and clothing. A torn strip of cloth was tied around his upper arm, the crude bandage failing to fully cover an abrasion that was still red and raw underneath. His posture was irregular, likely caused by bruising beneath his garments and a cracked rib or two, and he gripped the hilt of his weapon as an old man would cling to a walking stick. As you took in his appearance, you found yourself morbidly surprised that he was still standing. 

"How are our supplies looking, Grainkeeper?" Aragorn asked, referring to you in the Common Tongue translation of your Rohirric title.

"Satisfactory, my lord," you replied quickly. "We won't be living in luxury, but I believe with careful management of our food stocks, we'll be able to see ourselves through at least a month of war or longer. The majority of the supplies have already been taken to the caves and stored securely. As you can see, we are about to move the final items," you gestured to the remaining crates of legumes and bushels of apples. You reported your findings to him as you would to King Théoden, taking the opportunity to see how the results would be received. 

"Good," he nodded. "That is good."

It didn't escape your attention how his grey eyes became glassy and unmoving as you gave your report, how his hand gripped the pommel of his sword with greater tension than before. "My lord, are you quite well?" you asked tentatively.

Aragorn blinked, returning from his reverie. "Well enough," he nodded with a forced smile. 

You felt less than convinced by his response. Nevertheless, he was a grown man, and it was not your place to fuss over him. With a pretence of curiosity to cover your underlying fears, you asked him about the preparations for the defence of the keep. Truth be told, you had been far too preoccupied in the makeshift open-air storeroom to take much notice of these activities.

"The reservists are being drawn behind the main wall, and archers will be positioned to support the keep," Aragorn said in a monotonous tone, as though he had repeated the battle plans over and over many times already. "King Théoden has sent his scouts to..." His sentence trailed off as he began to blink rapidly, reaching out to steady himself on one of the barrels of mead. Any remaining colour drained from his face as his breath came short and sharp.

Worry surged in your stomach for the man as he swayed dangerously on the spot. "My lord, you really should sit down. Here," you offered kindly, upturning an empty crate for him to use as a makeshift seat. "I'll fetch you some water." 

No sooner had you turned your back, there was an almighty crash as something went tumbling into the awaiting crates and barrels. You spun around on the spot and saw Aragorn sprawled on the floor, surrounded by upturned containers and stray carrots. A few apples rolled past the prone man whose limbs were haphazardly crumpled beneath him. Rushing to his side, you lifted back the mop of dark hair that lined his face; his eyes were half-lidded and his lips parted, as if he were trying to speak but his body was completely betraying him. You called his name, but there was no reaction. Pressing your fingers to his neck, you felt his racing heartbeat echoing in his veins beneath skin that was clammy to the touch. 

You called out to him again, the panic becoming evident in your voice. "Lord Aragorn, can you hear me?" You shook his shoulder vigorously in the hope of rousing him. Just as you were about to dash off to find help, you were rewarded when he let out a low, guttural moan.

"My lord?" 

You could just about make out the "M' fine," he mumbled into the floor. His fists clenched as began to push himself up to sitting, his hair falling over his facial features as he moved.

"Come, rest against the wall here." You gestured a few feet away where there was a gap between the mead barrels and crates. None of the colour had returned to his cheeks yet, and you fretted inwardly about whether he would lose consciousness again as you aided him. Soon enough, however, the man was resting against the cool stone, taking in deep and shaking breaths with his eyes firmly shut. 

You rushed to fill a spare flagon with water from a nearby jug, the liquid sloshing as you hurried back to Aragorn. The man opened one eye as you handed him the cup. "I'm fine," he repeated, seeing the concern etched on your face.

"I'm sure you are, my lord," you said grimly. "But it would lessen my worry to see you drink." 

Aragorn extended his hand towards the flagon, but seeing how he shook uncontrollably, you brought the cup to his lips instead. Slowly, he took a few small sips as the flagon tilted.

"Better?" you asked quietly.

"Aye. Thank you," he said. You helped him take a few more sips from the flagon, satisfied by the colouring that was slowly returning to his cheeks. 

Suddenly, another voice called over the barrels. "Lord Aragorn?"

You stood quickly, and saw the voice belonged to the captain of the king's guard, Háma. He looked slightly taken aback by your sudden appearance from behind several barrels. "Captain Háma, to what do I owe the pleasure?"

"I am looking for Lord Aragorn. King Théoden wishes to see him immediately."

You briefly looked down at Aragorn, who was still slumped behind the barrels. At first he caught your gaze with pleading grey eyes, before his eyelids fell and his head shifted lightly from side to side to convey his refusal. You understood; he wasn't ready, not yet. 

You feigned reaching for your parchment which had been abandoned on top of a nearby barrel, hoping Háma would not be suspicious of your downward glance. "I'm afraid I have not seen him, sir. Perhaps he has gone to the armoury?"

Háma's stern gaze was fixed on you for several moments, before he frowned with disappointment. "I have already looked there, but perhaps we missed each other. As you were, Grainkeeper." He departed the area, his armour and chainmail ringing as he walked.

As soon as the captain rounded the corner, you bent back down behind the storage containers to level with Aragorn.

"Thank you," he breathed. "I am not sure I could have faced the king right now. Not while I have no strength left in me." 

"That's quite alright, Lord Aragorn. Here," you gave him a polite smile before reaching out and offering one of the apples that had been thrown in his fall. 

Aragorn blanched at the sight of the fruit. "I'm not hungry," he grunted through gritted teeth. 

"You said it yourself, you are lacking strength." From your pocket you pulled a small knife, and holding the fruit in your palm you began to slowly remove the apple skin with the edge of the blade. "This should help you recover somewhat." You cut the skinned apple into pieces in your hand, handing the man a wedge. 

Aragorn took the apple piece, but paused for a good minute or two before it entered his mouth. He chewed slowly, grinding the fruit down into a pulp, before he swallowed with a grimace. He looked like he was trying very hard not to vomit. 

You searched for a topic of conversation to draw his focus away from his churning stomach. Unfortunately, the only subject brimming the surface of your thoughts was the feeling of impending doom waiting for the siege to begin; the same feeling you had largely ignored whilst you had been occupied by your work.

You blurted out a question that had been rattling around your mind before you could even consider whether it would be appropriate to ask. "Is it true? There are really ten thousand Uruks marching on us?" 

Aragorn nodded slowly. "I'm afraid so. From the numbers I saw, Isengard is likely to be deserted."

You sighed, unable to mask your pessimism. "Ten thousand against three hundred. So there truly is no hope for us.."

"I disagree," said Aragorn quietly. "We still have hope." 

"Are we not fools to hope at all? Knowing what we are up against?"

"Nay," said Aragorn. "To hope is not foolish. We have a choice; to choose hope over fear. Choosing hope means choosing to believe that there are better days to come, if one has the courage to fight for it. That is not foolish in the slightest."

"No, I suppose not," you said, slightly surprised by the wisdom he demonstrated seemingly beyond his years. 

You suddenly heard your name being called from beyond the barrels. Rising to your feet once more, you saw the young man who had carried a sack of grain to the caves had returned. He stood obediently awaiting his next instructions, but you saw how his eyes curiously travelled around the chaos of upturned crates and loose vegetables that had appeared in his absence. "Never mind the mess now, boy," you shooed him away as soon as he held a crate of cabbages in his arms.  

"I should help you tidy up," Aragorn said firmly. "This is my doing after all."

"Are you sure, my lord?" You worried whether or not he should be standing so soon after his blackout.

"Yes. I insist," he said, slowly rising to his feet.

"That would be appreciated, thank you."

Together, you gathered up the provisions that had been thrown when the man had taken his tumble, and the chaos was soon reorganised back into neatly stacked crates. You looked around to see where you had left your parchment of notes, only to see the man holding them in his outstretched hand. 

"Remember; choose hope over fear," he said, touching your shoulder before taking his leave of you. 

His comment seemed to lighten the very air around you, the weight of complete helplessness clearing from your mind. You turned back to your parchment paper, feeling more resolved than ever to be a part of this final stand against evil, even if it was with a fool's hope.

[quitealotofsodapop]

[Again its very sappy] Very good, very good, very good!

So, to keep everyone from getting cavities, let's move the stage:

A food court in a shopping mall - because I doubt those were a thing 500 years ago and Mac doesn't want to stay at home all day.

A place with actual food and plenty of people to, ahem, snack on - what more could this monkey want?

And with juicy new future food, well, it seems like a good day, especially this thing called a 'burger'-

"Ehem!"

The glamoured six ears twitch at that, and his head swivels to the source of the sound to see...some human woman? He's not too versed on modern days fashion, but the clothing does look nice, Mac supposes.

The women gave them a look of disgust and pointedly asked at the darker monkey, "Should you be eating that with your weight?"

SWK is ready to go on the defensive (relationship in shambles or not, no bitch will be allowed to run her mouth like that at his Moon! Especially when he's pregnant!), but Mac calmly stands up, keeping eye contact with the woman. Then he grabs the big juicy burger and starts eating it in big bites, ripping with his sharp teeth, while still keeping eye contact. Unflinching and steady.

Whatever bravado the woman had was diminishing faster than a whole orchard of heavenly peaches with SWK in the area.

With the final bite down, Macaque then very widely and very toothily smiled.

Ever seen a rhesus macaque's (the species SWK and Mac are based on) chompers?

Mac used Intimidate! Wild Karen fled for the hills.

SWK meanwhile is 1/3 impressed at Mac's self-control, 1/3 amused at the spectacle, and 1/3 In Full Simp Mode.

Oh my, even separated from the au; Macaque really would be taken aback by how much food is available in the modern world. Like??? China has an infamous history of famine, and I could see Macaque not having a fun time roughing it when FF Mountain was burned. But now theres so much food that there's overabundance??

Wukong and Tang are def the ones that drag him to a food court/hawker centre to try out new dishes. Pigsy grumbled ofc cus; "I would've cooked you some if you asked."

Macaque: "But we have food at home???" Wukong: "I mean yeah, noodles. But have you ever tried street food? Or cheese tea? Or- OH man! You don't even know that Peach chips exist!" Macaque: "I once ate flatbread a man cooked using his own helmet. I stayed away from big cities when I could." :\ Tang, eyes already glazed with hunger: "Brace yourself then."

Cue Macaque having a brief sensory overload of smells (everything smells so good), sight (lots of things to look at), and Sound (so loud). Tang and Wukong are able to ground him enough so he doesn't leap away like a startled cat - noise canceling headphones quickly become Macaque's favorite modern tech. They find themselves a quiet corner of the food court to sample the wares of the modern world.

Macaque is cautious to try anything at first, but immediately gets enthralled by a regular ol' juicy cheeseburger grilling on a skillet - think of the burger thay made in The Menu. Meat, bread, and cheese? One sniff and he is off. It's like Homer taking the first bite of the Ribwich.

The other two are surprised how much he gets into it since he seemed to glance over the more traditional chinese street food places. Macaque is too busy having a religous experience with the first burger to realise that dips, sauces and other stuff can be put on them. They all end up campling outside the nearest McDonDons (anime joke) or local burger joint so Macaque can focus on one type of food for his first culinary expedition.

The a group of women sitting a table over make a catty comment about Macaque "not needing the extra weight" + "what is it with demons eating like that?". Tang is uncomfy cus he isn't sure how Macaque reacts to public rudeness, whilst Wukong is seconds away from going into defensive hero mode. Macaque just finishes his burger, teeth bared, without breaking eye contact with the women making the comments. Rude onlookers are terrifed, Tang is giggling to himself, and Wukong is in full "I love my terrifying mate" mode.

It becomes a ritual of sorts for them to take Macaque out for a new food each week as a bonding experience/enrichment. He ends up enjoying most things he can get his hands on, especially if said thing was originally on Wukong's plate >:) - Wukong complains but is secretly very much adores seeing his mate's more playful side. Macaque also develops a weird craving for cheese tea later in pregnancy for some reason.

Pigsy still proudly holds the title for the best noodles Macaque has ever eaten though.

[esshetic]

ARIES SEASON, THE CROSS, THE FINISH LINE, THE BEGINNING

Aries season starts with Mercury in Aries, Venus in Pisces, and Mars in Aquarius. The Moon is hanging out in Leo for the first day of the spring equinox. I foresee warm weather, lighter nights, and a feeling that everything is going to be okay. But why is there so much underlying tension?

The Full Moon eclipse in Libra on the 25th of March why, this is a highly emotional fated time, so whilst things may look good externally there is a sea storm happening with you so you are feeling sea sick. Whilst the storm rages on and it has to, in order to elevate you. I will go into details about the Full Moon in a separate reading, but for Aries Season the Libra full moon sets the tone for the rest of your time during this season.

Moon Square Jupiter and Uranus

Are you taking on the big guys? Do you have what it takes? Do you have the power to overcome?

Let's delve deeper into the season. Aries is fast-paced and busy. The world around you will appear bustling as everyone is busy doing things and going places. The energy is fun, light, and busy. Take things lightly and as they come. You are reaping the rewards of seeds planted six months ago, so this is a time to be in the play and not plot and create. It is about the new, the experience, the present moment.

The Cross, we have Easter weekend, which will come and go. The Finish Line, our Libra full moon, is balancing out power and redistributing it to us, the people. The Beginning is you looking at the next six months towards the end of the season. You will plant new seeds in Taurus season, and also water the seeds that you planted late last year. It's time for you to review your New Year's resolutions

How will Aries Season be for each sign?

Aries, happy birthday, it's finally your season. You may not be in the mood to celebrate the way you would normally celebrate your birthday. We (it's my birthday too) are having a thoughtful, mindful, and introverted birthday. What I mean is, it's not about filling up your schedule with activities. I see a simple, fulfilling day doing something like watching a movie at lunchtime, sitting in your fav cafe spot and sketching away, or looking for something memorable to do - what you REALLY want to do, not what you are supposed to do. Easter weekend is bringing your hobbies alive, your inner child is beaming, or simply, you may spend time around young children which will make you beam from ear to ear. Family and playtime is around you. The Full Moon in Libra is lighting and sending a lightning bolt to your 7th house, it's electric and buzzy. I see partnerships taking form around your work, help being offered to you, and contracts being signed. The beginning Aries, as your season gets going into Taurus season, you are already feeling the lazy, chilling out vibe from your neighbour. I do see things that were planted 6 months ago coming back around. This is around beliefs and dreams.

Taurus, Aries rules your 12th house, therefore Mars rules your 12th and 7th house. Even though it's spring, you guys don't feel the vibes of the season until your season begins. You are still in hibernation mode, running on reserve battery or being on auto pilot. I believe that you want to preserve your energy. It is your power and you, more than anyone, understand the exchange of energy and you're worth. You know how to rest, do nothing, and preserve and store your energy. You know you're worth (you can teach Aries, Virgo, and Cap a little thing about this) and won’t move until you have to, for the sake of it. So yes, it's not time for you to get up so you will enjoy your time where you are. You can lay all day every day without feeling bad. The Cross, Easter weekend feels emotional for you. You are feeling deeply reflective this time and want people to be easy with you as you are in a fragile reflective state. Rest up, it doesn't matter what the world around you is doing, you will know when you feel ready to join the world again.

Gemini, Aries has awakened your feisty side, as you roll your eyes at me for giving credit to another star sign for who you are. I believe that you have been in your plotting and planning phase and waiting for the time to take action. This Aries season is showing you the possibilities if you take that path that seems like lunacy, but this is the only thing that you can think of to do to get you back on the path that you desire. By Easter weekend, you will be in good spirits. I think all the signs will be, to be honest. Something that was causing a lot of pain and anxiety has lightened up, or you have decided to see yourself as bigger than it. So once the full moon comes along and you are provided with choices to make, you already made your decision with your actions and the Universe sees this and allows for things to manifest for you. As we get into April, you are super positive and happy with your new start and choice.

Cancer, the Sun is transiting your 10th house of career, reputation, and public life and is linked to your 5th house of family, romance, and fun relationships. I see a vindication in how those around you see you. Your reputation restored and respect given to you. I see this Spring as a start of a golden period for you. The turbulent times have gone and you are entering a season of enjoyment. Important contracts to sign are coming your way, Cancer. I am seeing imminently. The Full Moon is a smooth journey for you in contrast to the last year's emotional rollercoaster. However, as Taurus season approaches, another hurdle to overcome looms on the horizon as a new chapter begins for you. You have to lean into new learned skills to help you climb this mountain.

Leo, the sun is transiting your 9th house of higher learning, travel, and religion. The sun's transits are always significant to you as you are the sun is your north star and you will always be looking for ways on how to extravert yourself. This transit is an introspective one for you. Maybe you are looking into new religious studies or finding faith, realising that you do not have an internal faith point or compass to lean on and that you rely on your external world to reflect back to you inside. This has been where you have gone wrong as the inside has all the keys. Easter weekend feels like a somber affair. Your inside is somber and sad and you are looking at where this comes from. Don't stop at the sadness, keep going deeper inside yourself. As we approach the full moon in Libra in your 3rd house of community and siblings and with the new year underway, I see new growth taking place as the things that were stunting your growth have been removed.

Virgo the Sun is transiting your 8th house of the occult, emotional depth, and secrecy so what is it shining a light on and reflecting things back to you, this season is asking you to pay attention to those relationships that are triggering to you, what does the person do that reminds you of something or a part of yourself that you cannot see clearly. Easter weekend brings you clarity on a situation where you can finally resolve it within yourself and let it go the Full moon in your second house kicks off a new start and phase, like a health kick or a journal phase or a work out class that you become obsessed with your a new hobby that becomes your personality.

Libra the Sun is transiting your 7th house, where you normally lay your sweet head, but you are in the spot light and its your turn to watch others where you were a few months ago, or even years ago, with enough distance you can now see the past for what is was and forgive yourself perhaps? Easter weekend takes you on a whirlwind of emotions particularly regret and recking your mind thinking of what if, those what ifs will drive you mad if you let them. The full moon is in your first house of yourself, this time you take centre stage with having to make a decision, you know there is only one decision, do the hard thing.

Scorpio your 6th house is being highlighted this season of the day to day living the small, micro which affects the macro, take care of the small things and the universe will take care of the big things. The small things being having 3 meals a day, drinking lots of water this will get you over the finish line. Easter weekend brings showers weather rainy days or not literal its a clearing out and washing away of the old which touches onto the full Moon in Libra arriving in your 12th house more things being illuminated and cleared out where you would not have normally seen it. This is in reference to your physical reality and not spiritual or internal reality but it puts the chips in your hands to make the next move.

Sagittarius your 5th house is being highlighted this Aries season alongside your 12th house which is mars ruled, this season you may feel like you want to get back into the gym or fitness, joining a running club, its time to get physical for you, you don’t want to think or plan or feel, you just want to take action and move all the energy in your body. Easter weekend brings a bit of family stress but it will blow over and the full moon hitting your 11th house of groups and earned income brings a need to balance all the opportunities that are coming in for you, towards the end of the season you feel brighter about your future.

Aquarius this Aries season has you in a happy place, lighter than you have been in a while ( tell cap!) and with the sun transiting your 3rd house and you are feeling chill and happy to be seen to relax to enjoy, no anxiety or doubt. Easter weekend weekend is a good weekend, you guys really feel like you have lit a spliff and are chilling, nothing is phasing you, the waves may crash onto you but you are simply not phased at all. The full moon is in your 9th house but you don’t care lol, you have really hit a sweet spot of calm and this message is affirming your choice of switching off from the noise and just watching everything unfold.

Pisces , last but not least, the whole world in your hands my loves this sun transit is in your 2nd house of your self worth and money earned, you are thinking of ways to really take your creative work seriously in a way that you can build a career in it, you have a lot of rightful fear around it but so what, just try it out it won’t suck that bad if you fail, and failure is really just a learning curve my loves. Finish that painting and get started on the next one, they are eager owners ready to buy what you have created you just have to find them. Full moon is in your 8th house of other peoples money and this is linked to your creative world becoming your work others want to find and buy your creativity do not martyr yourself and give it for free. which ties back to your 2nd house of values and money earned, what are you worth? take that number and triple it. 

[secondhand-snow]

Stalker!Lukas has definitely been on Twitter since day one, and he likes to lurk other profiles even if he doesn't follows them because he thinks knowledge is power, so eventually, one day he's on Stewy Hosseini's page and he's going over his whole feed, because Stewy is a private equity investor and well, you should always follow the money, and that's how he learns about reader, she's barely opened her account and hasn't even been verified, but since Stewy reblogs her and has full conversations with her, Lukas just knows she's well connected. Cut to him actually clicking on her profile and seeing her full name, so, he Googles her, back then he really doesn't know who the Roys are because he's in Sweden and it's a completely different world. Of course he spends the whole night reading about the family and their business. He reads her whole feed and finds every social media account she's ever had and reads everything over a few days, he downloads pictures, videos, anything he can get his mitts on, even content from her friends' accounts. He finds a private investigator in the US to follow her and keep him posted on her activities, Lukas basically puts the PI's kids through college with how much money he pays him over the span a few years. He slowly but surely starts scheming how to approach the Roys, since he had that PI on lock he also has so much info on the family that he knows when to attack and how to make it look like it happened naturally, even getting invited to Ken's party seems like it was not something that was years in the making. He knows he has just one chance to get her, so he makes sure he uses all of his knowledge to make her fall for him

this is so good- literally so accurate to his character

I can just imagine Lukas hunched over his desk in a hoodie going through every piece of information he can find on her for days straight. He makes a ton of dummy accounts to keep things from being traced back to him, he goes far enough to use his technology skills to get into her friends private accounts and get more information that way. He has a whole folder on his desktop full of screenshots and photos and videos and articles. But the folder is just labeled with a heart emoji, not even her name (because he’s already that delusional about her.)

He finds a really well connected PI (maybe pn the dark web lol) to keep tabs on her in person, and he puts this man through the wringer. If he finds out she went to an event and the PI didn’t get pictures of her he gets so upset. Full on “WAKE UP ZOMBIES!!” mode. His obsession just grows and grows, to the point that he starts interacting with entertainment companies in America in order to begin entering the same social and business circles as her. He does it so well that things look natural. By the time he gets the invite to Kendall’s birthday party, he’s more than ready to finally seal the deal.

I’d go as far as saying that even their first meeting is ser up by him. He sees the scene that Roman and Shiv cause at not being let into the VIP area, sees you following Kendall up into the treehouse, and perfectly positions himself in what will be your direct line of sight. And he acts all casual and bored, pulling up the first game on his phone that he can find and quickly drinking his beer to make it look half-full. But when he sees you for the first time in person he’s freaking out internally and having to sneakily hide his growing erection.

[thewordworrier]

If You Look In The Mirror And Don't Like What You See

Word Count: 8,316 words. Notes: ~ Title from: "The End" by My Chemical Romance. ~ Mentions of body image issues, but we don't delve too deeply into that. It's not too descriptive.

[This one got a little long, but never mind.] I think this might be pretty canon. I haven't really decided. My timeline is a little -wriggles hand- wibbly wobbly in some aspects. Anyway: In which an innocent comment from their daughter leaves both parents second guessing themselves a little bit.

~#~#~#~

My Chemical Romance go on a hiatus after The World Contamination Tour. Everyone has other projects that they want to work on; other music and comics for the most part, and, not only that, most of them have kids they want to spend time with. Shelly had Melody towards the end of the tour - she had to miss the last few months of it after all; first because she couldn’t fly while she was so far along (and more to the point, she didn’t really want to because it was exhausting.) And second, because she had a baby! You can’t really travel with a newborn, and even if you could, you couldn’t really tour with a newborn. And, again, she really didn’t want to. She had her husband home for a bit over the holidays, he was also there when Melody was born, and she was appreciative of that. Neither of them really totally liked him having to disappear for a little bit after Christmas, but Gerard and the others still had some shows to play, and she fully supported that. It wouldn’t be fair to the fans if they just… Pulled out of those last shows. She never ever would’ve dreamt of suggesting that, and she most certainly wouldn’t’ve endorsed it had someone else suggested it either - she had still been mentally in manager mode for some of the time; she still thought about the fans while trying to navigate the early days of first time motherhood. After that, they just spent time together, away from the public for the most part, raising their daughter, and Gerard focused on comics until Hesitant Alien happened. Shelly had their son, Zack Anthony during the Hesitant Alien Era. Then after that tour, Gerard returned home, and started to hide away from the public again to focus on his family and their new baby. It was during that time that he fell more into himself, so to speak. He was much less focused on being “picture perfect ready” - clean shaven all the time and in touring shape. Instead, he focused much more on just being a dad and a husband.

[At this point in time, Zack’s obviously not a baby anymore, and Melody is a couple of years older than him.] 

Melody spent one day mostly just staring at her dad. When he was busy giving her brother some attention, she toddled over to Shelly and gently tugged on her clothes.

“Mama?”

“Yes baby?”

“Is daddy magic?”

Shelly stopped what she was doing and looked at her daughter. “Hm?”

“Daddy is magic, isn’t he?”

Shelly glanced over to where Gerard was playing with their son. She smiled. “I’ve always thought so. But why do you think so?”

“Daddy looks like a wi…” Melody paused as she struggled, just a little bit, with the next word. “Wizard.”

Shelly giggled. “Mm! He does, doesn’t he!”

“And they’re magic.”

Shelly managed to pick her daughter up, though that was getting super hard for her now she was getting a bit older, and took her over to her dad and brother.

“Daddy!”

Gerard looked up and smiled. “Hey pumpkin.”

“Daddy I know,” Melody held her arms out for Gerard to take her, and he did. Shelly, meanwhile, picked up Zack, who snuggled into her happily.

Gerard looked curious. “What do you know, pumpkin?”

“That you’re magic.”

Gerard’s curious look softened and he looked at his daughter, so full of love. “I am?”

“You’re a magic wi- wizard, daddy.”

“Yeah?”

“Yeah!” Melody nodded eagerly and planted a big kiss on Gerard’s cheek. “Love you daddy!”

He beamed but kissed her little cheek in response. “And I love you too, pumpkin.”

Shelly watched this interaction while cuddling with their son. She giggled softly and kissed Zack’s cheek.

“Your sister is very much a daddy’s girl,” she said softly to the young boy. “But that’s okay. I think you’re very much a mama’s boy.”

Zack giggled and snuggled against his mother.

“As long as you don’t get bullied for it later on in life,” Shelly mused softly. “I hope I don't end up being an overbearing boy-mom. I don’t want to make your life difficult…”

“Love you mama,” Zack said softly, completely oblivious to her musings. He could just hear the sound of her voice, even if he didn’t really pick up on the words, exactly. Her voice was soothing to him.

“Oh, baby, I love you too.”

Gerard made his way over to sit with his wife and his son. He put Melody down next to her mother before sitting so Melody was snuggled between her parents.

“Hey pumpkin,” Shelly shifted so she could stroke her daughter’s hair with one hand, while her other arm was still around her son.

“Mama!” Melody cuddled against her mom and giggled when Shelly kissed the top of her head. “Mama, are you magic too?”

“Hmm,” Shelly settled with her kids. “I’m not sure sweetheart.”

“Daddy thinks mama is magic,” Gerard said, shuffling closer so he could kiss his wife.

“That’s because Daddy is very biased,” Shelly said, humming as he kissed her cheek.

“Daddy isn’t biased,” Gerard grinned. “Daddy is very right. Mama has always been magic. Daddy has only recently gained his magic.”

“Oh, nonsense,” Shelly shook her head.

Melody giggled at the happy sound of her mother’s voice but then moved to snuggle against her father. Gerard kissed the top of her head.

“I think they might be done playing for a little bit,” Shelly said softly to him. “So maybe it’s time to do something quieter?”

“Mm, we can do that.”

“Though,” Shelly glanced down at her son, who was settled with his head against her chest, clinging onto her top just a little bit. “I think Zack might end up having a nap.”

Almost as if on cue, Melody let out a little yawn, cuddled up against Gerard’s arm.

“I think someone else might end up napping too,” Gerard said with a slight grin. “Isn’t that right, pumpkin?”

“Nuh daddy, I’m not tired.”

“Mm hm, mama believes you,” Shelly glanced up at the clock on the wall before addressing Gerard again. “I don’t think a nap will hurt them later. I could probably do with one.”

Gerard frowned and instinctively checked Shelly’s forehead. “Are you not sleeping well, love?”

“I don’t know, I thought I was.”

“Well, it never hurts for you to rest with the babies,” he said quietly before stroking Melody’s hair. “Pumpkin, do you wanna have a rest with mama? And Zack?”

“Not tired,” she mumbled, sounding very much the opposite.

“You don’t have to sleep sweetie,” Shelly watched Gerard take their son. “You can just lie with mama and have some cuddles, yeah?”

“Okay mama.”

Gerard chuckled and watched his wife rearrange herself on their large couch, making sure that she’d have enough space for both kids to cuddle up with her. It was at times like this that he was glad that he’d gone with her choice of couch. It had been maybe a bit big for the pair of them when they first got it, but now they had kids? It was perfect for them all to sit on and to snuggle up close together. Napping on the couch always felt easier than napping in or on a bed. It felt easier to get up after a nap on the couch.

Once Shelly was settled, Gerard put Zack back down and Melody started to cuddle up against her mother. Or she would’ve done had she not sat back up quickly and looked around as if looking for something. Shelly frowned a little, and Gerard realised what she was looking for quicker; looking over to one of the chairs to find one of her favourite stuffed animals almost hiding behind a cushion.

“Thank you daddy,” Melody took it from him before snuggling down properly.

“Any time pumpkin,” Gerard covered them with one of the blankets they kept on the couch.

“What’re you gonna do, love?” Shelly asked.

“I might potter around a bit, tidy a little.”

“Music please?” Zack asked so quietly that Shelly almost didn’t hear it.

“Daddy, can you put that music on?”

Gerard hummed and went to fiddle with the stereo. Not too long later, one of their burnt cds started playing - some kinda instrumental versions of songs the pair of adults liked that the kids didn’t seem to mind.

“Thank you daddy,” Melody piped up quietly before burying herself under the blanket and against her mother.

“Thanks love,” Shelly hummed as Gerard leant down to kiss her. “You sure you don’t want to join us? We can make room.”

“I’m alright,” he kissed the top of each of his kids’ heads before kissing Shelly’s forehead. “I promise. Is there anything specific that you want me to do while you rest?”

Shelly thought about it before shaking her head. “No, I don’t think so. Maybe just… Don’t stress yourself? Don’t strain yourself.”

“I won’t, I promise.” Gerard smiled down at the kids as they both clung to their mother a bit more, and he lowered his voice. “Sorry. I’ll leave you to rest.”

“You don’t have to avoid the room completely,” Shelly said, her volume matching his, having glanced down as her children had moved. “I wish you were cuddled up with us though.”

“Next time,” Gerard kissed her forehead again and adjusted the blankets some more. “I promise.”

“Hmn,” Shelly yawned a little. “I’ll hold you to that.”

“You can hold me whenever and wherever you like.”

She giggled and shooed him away. He did as he was told, but only after giving her a quick peck on the lips and exchanging soft “I love you”s first. Then and only then did he wander off to go and do some tidying up around the home - that would be something less for her to do when she woke up with the kids. He only ever wanted to help her - he tried to keep their relationship as equal as he could, doubly so when he was home. Even more so if she wasn’t doing too well - if she seemed to be getting a bit run down, or if she was getting sick. Not that she ever told him about that; she’d normally just neck some medication and get on with things. Gerard was sometimes a bit embarrassed to admit that it could take him a day or two to notice if Shelly was getting sick. Especially if she was trying to power through it. But as soon as he noticed, he took over as much as he could.

He enjoyed cleaning up after his family, actually - their messes reminded him of them, that they were there, that they were real. He loved that reminder. Even if that did sometimes manifest in finding a random children’s toy (normally a stuffed animal of some description, because both of his kids had plenty of those. Hell, even his wife had her own fair share) amongst his sheets when he went to bed at night. That animal would then normally be put on a bedside table or quietly taken in to the child who had left it behind. He honestly never minded though.

That day was no exception, actually. He liked tidying up after his kids, because it meant that he could see where their headspaces were - that is, he could tell what moods they were in and what they were interested in by what they were playing or drawing. He could tell similar things about his wife by the doodles she left lying around - either by the phone or on the pad on the fridge, or even by what she doodled when she sat down to draw and/or colour with the kids. Although, most of the time, when he and Shelly settled down in the evening after the kids had been put to bed, she would often cuddle up with him and talk about what was on her mind then. So, in all honesty, he didn’t really need to worry about what her doodling was about. He could guess, but she would normally tell him when she got the chance.

They did have to prompt the kids sometimes though, but that was alright, that was expected. They were both still so young; they hadn’t learnt about any of that yet; about how to properly talk about what was bothering them. But they’d learn, especially with Shelly as their mom. Gerard knew that she was going to raise them so, so damn well. If his kids were even a fraction like their mother… Then he’d be incredibly happy. They were going to be so… Well adjusted. They were going to be such good little humans, being raised with Shelly as their mom.

Naturally, he would do his part, of course he would, he helped make the kids after all, parenting was a joint responsibility. But. He knew that it was more… Natural for children to go to their mom first, for a mom to do the majority of the parenting - especially in regards to the emotional labour. Of course he’d do as much as he could, of course. He loved his wife and his kids and loved raising them. But if they only ever took away traits and habits and advice from their mama… He wouldn’t be mad.

So Gerard pottered around, tidied the house (not that there was an awful lot of mess to begin with, really) and even jotted down a few dinner ideas for later on - he and Shelly would discuss that later. She might already have a plan, he wasn’t entirely sure. And it would be totally okay if she did already have an idea. But, in case she didn’t, he was more than happy to throw some ideas into the discussion pot to help her out. 

Once he had done enough, he found his current read and crept back into the living room to check on his family. They were still asleep, both the kids snuggled up as close as they could get to Shelly, who had her arms around them quite tightly; she was even gripping their clothes a little bit. And that always made Gerard’s heart swell a bit, because she was just so… Protective of them. Which was fully understandable! She had been incredibly protective of them as a band (which was quite delightful, actually. Seeing her go to bat for them was Quite Something Else. It certainly made him feel good at the time). It was more than natural that she was going to be even more so over her own children.

Gerard settled in one of the chairs with his book and some water, more than happy to just sit and read, maybe scroll on the internet here and there, while his family rested.

He was still there when Shelly woke up a little while later. She was normally the first to wake anyway, especially around the kids. She always made some kind of quiet, almost confused sounding noise when she woke up - she always had done ever since Gerard had first been around her in this situation. The noise she made didn’t always sound confused, but it did a lot of the time. Normally because she had to try and remember where she was - and that had been especially true on the road.

Gerard heard his wife make her usual sleepy noise and put his book down to get up and go over to her. She made another sleepy noise when she saw him, though this one sounded happier instead of more confused and he leant down to kiss her forehead.

“Hi,” he whispered.

“Hey,” she murmured.

“You need me to take one?” He nodded to the kids.

“Mm, I think I need to go and pee.”

Gerard chuckled and managed to scoop up their son while Shelly gently untangled herself from their daughter so she could get up from the couch and trot off to the bathroom. Once Shelly had moved, Gerard put Zack back down with his sister before he sat with his kids. He didn’t want to try and wake them just yet, in case Shelly wanted them to stay asleep for a bit longer. And if she didn’t? Sometimes it was easier to wake them together.

“Hi,” Shelly repeated softly when she returned. “They not awake?”

Gerard shook his head. “No, I didn’t know if you wanted them awake yet.”

“I think it might be best to, they won’t sleep later if they sleep for any longer now,” Shelly hummed down at her sleeping children. “I think maybe we can play a game together when they wake, unless they want to do something else that isn’t too rowdy, and that’ll take us up until dinner?”

“That sounds like a good idea, love. We’ll wake the kids now?”

~#~#~#~

Later on when the kids had gone to bed, after an afternoon of some good quality time with both parents (something that they all relished when it happened) Gerard found himself in his office, looking for something. He then found himself face to face with some of the framed record achievements on the walls - which were accompanied by band photos from the time. He frowned a little bit, seeing part of his reflection in the glass.

Melody’s innocent comment came back to him and he frowned even more, looking at the photos of the band - this one was from later on in the Black Parade era. He knew that much because his hair was black again and longer instead of short and platinum. It was definitely before he and Shelly got engaged - he didn’t quite have that… What did Shelly call it? That glow about him; the glow of a man who had finally had all the puzzle pieces fall into place.

Later on, just after Melody was born, Shelly had been looking back on photos of this era - both before and after ProRev - for that was when the glow really was the strongest, and she had lightly teased him about… Something about how it was pregnant women who were supposed to glow? He’d gone on to tease her, gently, right back. It had been after meeting Frank’s twins that Gerard had changed his tune from “I have to marry her someday” to “I have to marry her now” after all. So he’d tease her about “well, it’s close enough! This was when my desire to marry you and have kids with you kicked in so…”

That had always seemed to amuse her.

But, that era? Especially during the ‘suited and booted’ ness of ProRev (Shelly had been incredibly appreciative of his three piece suits around then; of him in suits in general, actually, Gerard remembered that with a smile). That era had been… He’d felt so good about himself, about his career, about his whole life. And about where his life was going, providing everything went to plan (which clearly it did).

It wasn’t that he didn’t feel good about his life now - of course he did! He was married to an incredible, supportive woman, who had given him two beautiful children. He’d been able to make music with his best friends for a very long time, and actually, his comic career was going quite well. It was just… His current self he wasn’t entirely happy with.

That is what Shelly found when she went to find him; him frowning at his reflection in the glass of one of the records hung on the office wall.

“Darling?” She said softly, staying in the doorway.

“Do you still find me attractive, Shell?”

“Do I…?” Shelly frowned, trailing off and sounding confused by the question, and crossed the room to see him as he turned around. “Of course I do.”

“You don’t think I look old?” He looked at her as she made her way over to him. “You don’t think I’ve let myself go?”

Shelly stopped in front of her husband and sort of just stared up at him.

“Let yourself go?” She snorted. “God no. You’re fine, babe. You’re a dad, not a stage persona. It’s okay to look like that,” she moved closer and smiled as he wrapped his arms around her. “You can pick up your children and run around after them to play. You’re healthy, love. That’s all I care about.”

“I feel like I could look better though,” he admitted. “And I’m getting so grey.”

Shelly snorted again and tucked some hair behind his ear. “Not grey. Silver. Silver fox.”

“Melody thinks I look like a wizard.”

“No, Melody thinks you’re magic. And the only thing she associates with magic at the moment is a wizard,” Shelly paused and smiled a little. “Maybe that’s your fault for showing her part of The Lord of the Rings.”

Gerard couldn’t help it. He giggled.

“But it’s a compliment honey, you know she utterly adores you. You’re her superhero.”

Gerard just hummed.

“You have to remember,” Shelly continued softly. “You once thought you’d never get out of New Jersey, you once thought you’d never survive this long.”

He could hear the pain in her voice with those words, and he hugged her tighter. “It’s alright love, I’m alright. I’m so glad I was wrong, because I have you, my gorgeous and tolerant wife, and two beautiful babies.”

Shelly snuggled into him a bit. “The silver is a trophy Gee.”

“Not as much of a trophy as you and the kids.”

She leant up and kissed him, smiling when his hands went to the small of her back so he could pull her against him a bit more.

“I’m so proud of you,” she whispered.

Gerard could feel himself blushing. “No.”

“Yeah I am! Besides, if anyone’s let themselves go a bit, it’s me.”

Gerard looked at her like she’d grown three heads. “Are you insane?”

Shelly rubbed the back of her neck. “Well, it’s true.”

“Shelly, no,” he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her hard. “Don’t be stupid. How can you think that about yourself?”

She whimpered softly. “Look at me, Gerard. I don’t look like the girl you first met, I don’t look like the girl you fell in love with, and I definitely don’t look like the girl you married.”

He held her at arms length and purposely looked her up and down. Shelly tried not to be too amused at this but she didn’t do very well.

“I see an incredible woman,” Gerard said, pulling her back against him. “A stunning, gorgeous, sexy woman. A, to quote Frank and Miss Mercy, a ‘milf’ because they’re absolutely right. You are and I do.”

Shelly giggled, going pink. “Gerard!”

“Of course you’re not the same,” he said quietly. “We’ve had life experiences since we met, since we fell in love, since we got married. Even if we both looked the same, internally we’d be different, and I don’t think that’s a bad thing.”

Shelly thought about this for a moment. “I… I guess not.”

“You haven’t let yourself go honey,” he kissed the top of her head. “You’ve given me two beautiful, healthy children. That’s so hard on the body.”

Shelly leant up on her fuzzy sock covered tiptoes, wrapped her hand around the back of his neck and pulled him down to kiss him hard. This took Gerard by surprise for a second but once he’d recovered he wrapped his arms around her very tightly, almost knocking her off balance.

“Keep talking to me like that and I’ll give you another one.”

He laughed and buried his face in her neck.

“There’s nothing wrong with you Gee,” Shelly murmured before taking a step back to cup his face in her hands. “You are my soulmate Gerard Way. You are almost my whole heart.”

He smiled a little. “Almost? Who do I have to fight?”

“Melody and Zack.”

“Oh. Well in that case, I think I can share you.”

Shelly giggled, leant up and nuzzled the tip of her nose against his. “I love you, in whatever form you want to take. And yes, I’m still very attracted to you.”

He hummed, and it almost sounded like a soft growl. “And I am still very attracted to you, Mrs. Way.”

Shelly went very pink. “Really?”

Gerard nodded eagerly. “Are you kidding me? Of course I am! There is nothing more attractive to me than you, however you are. First thing in the morning with no make-up and messy hair, in mismatched pyjamas? Hell, yeah please mama.”

She giggled and went even pinker.

“Seeing you wriggling into your jeans? I just wanna pull them back off of you and go to town.”

“Oh, stop,” she buried her face in his chest.

Gerard smiled a little and held her really tightly for a few minutes, kissing the top of her head and stroking her hair.

“Shelly,” he gently moved back from her and lifted her chin. “Listen to me.”

Shelly nodded.

“You will never stop being beautiful to me,” he cupped her face in his hands. “You will never stop being absolutely stunning,” he smiled, kissed her forehead and leant his against hers. “I will never stop being completely and utterly, hopelessly in love with you.”

“Gerard.”

That was more of a sigh than a word. Not that her saying his name like that was new to him. In fact, hearing her say his name like that was one of his favourite ways to hear it. It always had been. If anything, hearing his name from her mouth was his favourite thing in any capacity. Although, nowadays, hearing Shelly say his name was closely followed by the way his children called him daddy.

“Mm?”

Shelly sighed again, softly as she stood on her tiptoes again, nuzzling against his cheek. He hummed and turned his head to kiss her gently.

“This is what I’m saying about you, Gee,” she said, standing flat on her feet again. “I’m never going to stop loving you, from being in love with you, from being attracted to you. You’re my one, my other half, you know? I’m not me without you anymore. It doesn’t matter what you look like, as long as you still love me and as long as you still want to be with me.”

“Of course I do. Of course I want to be with you, of course I still love you. That’s never going to change,” Gerard tucked her hair behind her ear. “I’d still feel this way even if we didn’t have kids too.”

“If we didn’t have kids, I might still be in slightly better shape,” Shelly whispered.

“Oh, love…”

Shelly shook her head. “I love our children though Gerard, I wouldn’t give them up for the world. I love being a mama.”

“And you’re so good at it Shell. It’s clear that you were born to be a mother. I love watching you with the kids.”

“I miss the way I used to look a little bit though,” Shelly confessed with a whisper.

“And you know what? That’s okay.”

“Is it though?” Shelly moved away from him to sit on the small couch he had in the room. “I mean, I’d get it if we only had one, but we have two, so anyone would think that I would be used to it by now.”

Gerard watched her as she settled before she looked at her feet. They both stayed quiet for a few minutes before he made his way over to her, sitting on the accompanying footstool, leaning forward and taking her hands.

“Love,” he said softly, as he squeezed her hands. “It’s okay.”

“I don’t regret having our children Gerard,” Shelly said, watching their hands. “I do regret not trying a bit harder to get back to my original shape after I had Melody.”

“Shelly,” he kissed the back of each of her hands. “You didn’t need to do that then. You looked fantastic after Mels. You still look fantastic. You do so much running around after them, and me,” he grinned up at her as he said this, glad that he got a small giggle from her. “That you’re working out without really realising it. Especially when you keep picking the kids up.”

“I need to stop doing that with Mels though I think,” Shelly said with a little wince. “She’s getting so big, and I’m still small.”

“So small, baby,” Gerard leant forward to steal a kiss from her - which she more than willingly gave him. But only after a little pout. “You are. You’re still a tiny, powerful woman.”

Shelly raised an eyebrow at him. “And you’re really into that on several levels.”

Gerard just grinned. “I like being able to manhandle you and move you around a bit.”

“Hmmm,” his wife rolled her eyes and shook her head a little bit.

“So, that’s why I love that you’re small,” he kissed the back of her hands again. “Your smallness also adds to your power, you know? People underestimate you.”

“Well, they used to,” Shelly mumbled.

“I think they still do,” Gerard stroked his thumbs in circles on the backs of her hands. “There’s never really been a power imbalance between us. Yeah, I may’ve technically been your boss, but you’ve always held all of the power. At least, I’ve always thought so.”

“Hmm,” Shelly leant forward to kiss his lips once. “You have always been really good at doing as you’re told for me…”

“Mm.”

Shelly grinned a little bit. “You’ve always been such a good boy for me, baby.”

He swallowed down a soft whine. “Don’t tease me.”

“But you’re so easy and fun to tease,” she pouted playfully at him. “Plus, you tease me just as much, you know?”

Gerard snorted ever so slightly. “I don’t see how.”

“Darling,” Shelly sighed softly. “I love you. You always look good to me.”

“And you always look good to me,” he raised an eyebrow at her.

“Mm, well,” it was her turn to squeeze his hands this time. “I don’t always feel good about myself. And apparently, neither do you.”

“Honestly, today’s the first day I’ve given it much thought,” Gerard admitted.

“Hm…” Shelly glanced around for a moment. “I wanna talk about this more but… Come with me?”

Gerard nodded. “To the ends of the earth, love.”

Shelly kept a hold of his hands and stood up, leading him back to the family room where they settled on the big, comfy couch together. Gerard sat down first, made sure he was fully comfortable and then held his arms out for his wife. She joined him more than happily, getting right up close so she could rest her head on his chest. He hummed, kissed the top of her head and together they manoeuvred one of the blankets from the sofa cover themselves. Naturally, Gerard initially tried to make sure that Shelly was fully covered up, but that left him a little uncovered and she wouldn’t settle for that. After a few minutes of them purposely and playfully only covering the other, they worked together so they were both properly covered and cosy. Once Shelly had finished tucking them both in and had resettled with her head against his chest, he wrapped his arms around her - one under the blanket, one on top of it, and kissed the top of her head again, quickly seeking out her forehead afterwards to kiss that too.

Shelly giggled happily. “Love you.”

“Love you too.”

“So, you were saying?” Shelly asked quietly. “Today’s the only day you’ve really given that much thought?”

Gerard nodded. “Mmhm.”

“Is this because Melody called you a wizard?” Her voice was soft and gentle. “Because you know she didn’t mean it like that.”

“I know,” he nuzzled into her hair with a sigh. “I know she didn’t, but it did make me think.”

“Like I said earlier,” Shelly continued. “She thinks her daddy is magic, and she associates magic with wizards. And you know when she thinks of wizards, she thinks of Gandalf.”

Gerard hummed.

“And you only know that she thinks that because you showed her a little bit of The Lord of the Rings,” Shelly said with a small smile. “But I explained this to you earlier.”

“You did, and I know. The word association is my own fault,” he held Shelly tighter under the blanket.

“Maybe you should figure out some other magical things to show her and see what she says then?”

“I’ll do that,” he raised an eyebrow at her when he felt her gently stroking his beard. Or what of it he had anyway. “Do you want me to shave?”

“Mm, no, not on my behalf. Only if you want to,” she gently tapped the tip of his nose. “I’m not totally against it.”

“I know you never used to think much of facial hair.”

“I was always alright with a little stubble -”

Gerard grinned slightly at her. “Not when it was rubbed against your thighs though…”

Both of Shelly’s eyebrows rose. “Mm! I’m aware. But this is softer now, you look after it better. That helps.”

“Anything for you, my love,” he tilted her chin up before dragging his thumb over her bottom lip.

“Mm,” she leant up to kiss him properly but slowly.

Gerard completely and utterly relished this. He loved kissing his wife in literally any fashion but this… This was a little bit different.

It reminded him of all the times, mostly before they had kids, when they’d already gone to bed, had gone to kiss each other goodnight, but one of them almost always ended up taking it further. Or of the times when they were on tour, after they’d gotten together (obviously), and they’d finally been able to share a hotel room after some time on the road. They would always, always end up having sex, and it normally started with a kiss like this. Or, they would cuddle up together afterwards and she’d end up in his lap, naked, kissing him like this. That would always end up with them going for another round. Of course it did! She knew he couldn’t resist her when she was naked in his lap like that. Hell, even if she made her way into his lap when she was fully clothed, he found it really hard to resist her. Maybe that was because, even when she had clothes on and she ended up in his lap, he pretty much ended up with her boobs in his face. And what healthy human - no matter what gender - could resist that?

This time wasn’t that much different; the kiss was amazing… And she ended up in his lap, straddling his waist and hips. Nowadays, there was a bit more there to straddle, but… She seemed to manage, and she really didn’t seem to mind.

“Shell,” he murmured against her lips.

“Mm?”

“Behave.”

“I’m not doing anything,” she said, as innocently as she could manage, going in to kiss him again and pouting when he gently stopped her.

“Mm hm, I believe you but…”

“You still wanna talk a bit?” She brushed some of his hair behind his ear.

“Yeah, a little,” he glanced down to where she was straddling him. “This isn’t hurting you?”

“No, I’m okay,” Shelly tilted her head slightly. “I’m not hurting you?”

Gerard snorted and shook his head. “You’re not heavy, love.”

This time, when Shelly went in for a kiss, he let her.

“I always worry that I’m going to hurt you,” she whispered, leaning her forehead against his.

“And I worry about that too,” Gerard confessed. “I never wanna hurt you, you know. I’m scared that one day I’ll realise I’ve let myself go too much and it'll have gotten to the point where it disgusts you and you don’t want to be with me anymore.”

Shelly listened to his quiet words intently, and the more he spoke, the more her heart hurt. “Oh Gerard! I could never feel that way about you! There’s no way you’d ever let yourself get into that state anyway.”

“You don’t think so?”

She shook her head. “As soon as it started to affect the way you are with the kids, you’d realise that something was wrong and you’d do something about it. And I don’t think, if it got to that stage, you’d look as bad as you think you would.”

He tilted his head as he listened to her.

“But even then, I don’t think you’d ever get to that stage to begin with, so you don’t need to worry.”

“You really think that, don’t you?” Gerard found himself tucking her hair behind her ears and gently stroking it a bit.

Shelly just nodded. “Of course I do.”

“You have so much faith in me Shell.”

“Duh,” she smiled brightly at him. “That’s what got me into this situation. Believing in a little band from across the pond, from New Jersey. I believed in that band, I had faith in that band, and then I fell in love.”

Gerard couldn’t help but smile. “I’m so glad about that, you know. I can’t imagine doing any of this… Marriage and children thing, with anyone other than you.”

Shelly giggled softly, going very slightly pink. “I feel the same. I can’t imagine anyone else in the role as my husband and as the father of my children, you know?”

Gerard hummed and grinned slightly up at her. “Not even Frank?”

“Rude!” She shook her head. “No, not even Frank.”

“What about if Jamia wasn’t in the picture?” Gerard tilted his head, curiously.

“Um,” she thought about this for a moment before shaking her head. “No, I think… I think I’m always meant to end up with you. As I keep telling you Gerard, you’re my one, the other half of my soul, you know?”

“God, I love you,” he said with a soft, happy sigh. “So much. I’m so, so glad that I met you.”

“And I you, baby,” Shelly leant down to kiss him softly again.

“Are you sure that you still love me the way I currently am?” Gerard asked softly, shyly. 

Shelly cupped his face in the palms of her hands and kissed his forehead, then the tip of his nose and then his lips. Gerard kissed her back, more than happily, his hands resting on her hips and waist.

“Yes, I love you as you are,” she paused before she whispered, her voice so full of shyness and insecurity. “Do you love me like this?”

He almost melted at her question, and the way that she asked it. “Shell! Of course I do! I don’t think there’s anything wrong with you - I still think you’re incredibly sexy. I still love you, so much.”

Shelly hummed softly and buried her face in his neck. Gerard kissed the side of her head and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close and holding her tightly.

“If anything,” he continued quietly. “I love you more now, I’m more attracted to you now, than I have at any other point in our relationship.”

“Oh?” Shelly lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him, doing that cute little head tilt thing that she did.

“Mm hm! I mean,” he tucked some of her hair behind her ear. “I’ve never… Not been in love with you.”

Shelly giggled softly.

“I’ve never not been attracted to you,” Gerard removed one hand from around her waist so he could trace his fingers up her thigh. “And I really do think that I’m more attracted to you now.”

“But I’ve had two kids Gerard,” Shelly said quietly. “I’m not as hot as I used to be.”

His eyes widened so much they nearly fell out of his head. “Are you kidding me? The fact that you’ve had two kids - my kids - is insanely attractive to me.”

“Why?”

“Well, first off, those are my children,” he almost growled. “I did that to you, I got you like that. You loved and trusted me enough to let me do that to you.”

Shelly giggled.

“Secondly, I know what hell pregnancy does to your body. I learnt it the first time you got pregnant with Melody, and then when you were pregnant with Zack, I re-read it to remind myself what you were going through for me.”

“For us,” she corrected softly. “I wanted another baby too. It wasn’t just your decision.”

“Mm,” he tilted his head a little so they could rub noses. “That’s true.”

“I think I propositioned you with the idea, actually,” Shelly couldn’t help it, she grinned at this.

“You’re right, but really, who am I to deny my wife what she wants?”

“There’s just something about you when you go red, Gee,” Shelly hummed, pressing herself against him a bit more. “It just… Does things to me.”

“Which in turn, makes you do things to me.”

They shared a little giggle.

“I didn’t hear you complaining at the time though.”

“Oh god no,” Gerard shook his head. “Why would I do that? Why would I deny you that? You’re incredibly persuasive.”

“Gerard…”

“No, of course I wanted another kid too,” Gerard continued quietly. “I know we wouldn’t’ve continued down that path if one of us had been unsure about it. Even if that person had been me, despite the fact that it was your body it was gonna happen to. You’re so good like that.”

“You’ve always found it very difficult to say no to me though,” Shelly shifted in his lap a little. “I do sometimes wonder if you say yes because it’s something you also want, or if it’s just because it’s something I’ve asked for.”

“I say yes because I want to, because I want those things too,” Gerard gazed lovingly up at his wife, before starting to play with her hair a little. “I normally just wait for you to bring ideas up first, ‘cause, like with the kids, it’s normally you who does the majority of the work.”

“Do you get nervous bringing things up to me?” Shelly tilted her head in curiosity, but hummed as he played with her hair.

Gerard thought about this for a moment. “Not as much as I used to. I used to get super nervous, maybe a little shy, about bringing up new things to you. But now I don’t feel so bad about it.”

“Well, that’s good!” She smiled, leant down and kissed him again. “I would never want you to feel like you can’t talk to me about anything, love.”

“I know. I know I can talk to you about anything and everything. Sometimes it just takes me a little bit to put it into words, or to find the right time to bring it up,” he shifted a little under her - not because he was uncomfortable but because… He had a hot wife and she was straddling his lap. “But I definitely find it easier nowadays.”

“I should hope so,” Shelly tried not to grin too much as she felt him shuffle under her, because she knew exactly why he was doing it. “I mean, we’ve been together long enough for us to be super comfortable with each other.”

“Yeah, I know. I mean,” he grinned slightly at her. “You’ve seen me naked. Many, many times.”

Shelly giggled. “Mm, I have indeed.”

“You’ve seen me naked like this,” he gestured down at himself.

She tutted at him. “Gerard. Stop that.”

“But -”

She cut him off by kissing him pretty hard, cupping his face in her hands again and keeping them there when she pulled away. “Listen to me.”

“Yes ma’am.”

She raised an eyebrow at him, trying to fight back a smile. She lost that fight when he beamed up at her.

“Hmm,” she murmured. “Behave.”

“I’m listening, darling.”

Shelly almost melted. She loved it when he called her that. He didn’t do it often; he normally stuck to love, sugar and babe. Darling was, to quote him, ‘quite British’ - and that’s probably why she loved it so much when he called her it.

“I love you, as you are. However you are. As long as you’re healthy, and I can keep you around for a long, long time,” she paused and took a small breath before she continued. “Because I don’t want to lose you, I don’t want the kids to lose their dad, I don’t want to lose the love of my life. I would never marry again.”

Gerard almost crumpled. “Love… If anything happened to me, I’d want you to be happy. And if that meant you remarrying, I’d be okay with it.”

Shelly just shook her head, her hands slipping to his shoulders.

“No no,” he continued. “I would want that. You have such a big heart Shell -”

“It’s why I have bigger boobs,” she added with a weak smile. “They have to protect my heart.”

“You have so much love to give,” Gerard continued, one hand on her waist and the other gently lifting her chin. “Not just as a mother, but as a partner. As a human in general. I wouldn’t want you to be alone, I wouldn’t want you to have to bottle all that up.”

She swallowed softly. “I don’t think I could love anyone else the way that I love you.”

“Then love them in a different way,” he cupped her cheek. “Just promise me you won’t be alone.”

Shelly shook her head a little, again. “I don’t need to promise you that, ‘cause I’m not gonna lose you.”

Gerard heard her voice catch, and he knew that the topic was getting to her a bit, so he dropped it. He didn’t want to upset and distress her.

“No love,” he said quietly. “I’m not willingly going anywhere.”

“Good,” she whispered.

“And because I don’t want to go anywhere, I think maybe I should work on myself a bit,” he noticed her tilt her head a bit. “Maybe get into a better shape.”

Shelly sat back a little bit, still comfortably in/on his lap, but not far back enough that he had to stop touching her. She looked a little pensive, actually.

“I know you keep saying that you love me as I am, as long as I’m healthy, and I don’t think I’m too unhealthy right now,” Gerard continued, dropping both hands to her waist.

“I don’t think you are either,” Shelly agreed. “I don’t think the doctor had anything too bad to say last time either. But, you’re right. I do love you as you are.”

“And you’re really good at showing that too.”

“I can do that again right now if you want.”

Gerard hummed and he knew his cheeks were going a little pink. “Maybe later.”

Shelly giggled in delight; at his words and at his mumbling.

“But,” Gerard cleared his throat. “I think it might be better for me in the long run.”

Shelly listened quietly and she nodded when he finished talking. “Okay. You know that I have no problem with this. As long as you’re not doing this for me. I want you to be doing this for you.”

“Well, I’m doing this partially for you,” Gerard let her go as she started to shift a little. “I mean, I want to be around for you and the kids for as long as humanly possible.”

“I mean, as long as you’re not doing this because you want me to be more attracted to you, because…” Shelly shook her head and moved so she was sitting next to him again, except maybe more bridal style with her legs over his lap. “That’s just not possible. I’m already crazily attracted to you.”

He sighed happily as she snuggled against him, resting her head on his chest. He fussed with the blanket again so they were both covered before wrapping an arm around her. His free hand sought out one of hers.

“You are so very good at being nice to me, and lifting me up.”

“It’s all true though,” she leant up a little to kiss his cheek. “But, if you want to look into improving yourself love, I don’t have anything against that. In fact, maybe we can look into improving ourselves together?”

Gerard glanced down at her and tilted his head.

“I mean, I could probably do with toning up a bit, getting a bit fitter,” Shelly confessed. “Not just for me, but for the kids too.”

“You know that I don’t think that you need to though, you know that I think you’re gorgeous.”

Shelly went pink. “I know. But I think it would do me good. I think it might make me a bit happier within myself.”

“It might be easier to keep to it if we’re not doing it alone,” Gerard said.

“Especially if we’ve gotta look at food and nutrition,” Shelly nodded. “Easier to make the change as a family than it is on your own. I’m happy to help with that.”

He leant down and kissed her softly. “Are you sure?”

Shelly nodded. “Of course. I’m happy to help you, love.”

“We’ll talk to a doctor, maybe talk to a nutritionist too?” He suggested, watching her nod. “Get some professional help so we can do it right and do it healthily.”

“I just want you to be happy, Gee, and if you want to do this to help with your mental health as well as your physical health, I am fully behind you.”

He couldn’t help it, he grinned. “Shouldn’t I be behind you?”

Shelly pretended to gasp in shock. “Mr. Way!”

Gerard laughed softly and held her tighter, burying his nose in her hair.

“Hmm… Well,” she tilted her head up a bit and felt him kiss her forehead. “That is one form of cardio we’re pretty good at.”

[cowplant-pizza]

hey guys this is a huge personal rant about my irl so if u dont wanna read it just scroll!!

so as some of u will know i am disabled with fibromyalgia, hyper mobility and also depression and anxiety.

i started a small biz to try to help bring funds in as i cant work a proper job (i was even told by my dr that working was out of the option)

im feeling doubly, even tripley sorry for myself rn because not only do i have a disability, but i have it so bad that i can’t even do what most people with this disability can do (work part time or even full time in some cases)

my disability took away my dream from working with animals because its such a labour intensive job

i saw a silver lining in creating my small business because it was something i was really passionate about and was actually doing really well

in 2020-2021 i made £21k which is a reasonable salary for someone with no qualifications (i had to drop out of school due to my disability) and also a small business in their first year of existing

however since covid has “ended”, and lockdown was lifted, my sales have plummeted. the following year i only made £4k

this year i’m sure i’ve made even less

i cant keep up with my business because i’m way too stressed about money. stress makes fibromyalgia waaaay worse for those wondering

i cant sleep at night. i have awful insomnia. but when i do finally get to sleep, i cant wake up. i describe it as a sleep coma. its like sleep is literally pulling a blanket over my head and suffocating me back to sleep. i actively fight with my body every day for the ability to wake up

once i wake up i have minimum energy. this is spent doing small everyday tasks like watering my plants, playing with my dogs, putting away laundry, showering ect. once those tasks are done, i’m spent. i could sleep again. i have no energy or motivation to work on my business

but some days i dont even have the energy to do those small things

i just sort of “zombie mode” along all day. time goes quickly and slowly at the same time

i thought i’d been awake like 30mins earlier but it had been 5hrs and my dinner was ready

i’m basically always confused and not with it. earlier i put a tissue on the side and my mug in the bin (still with cold tea in it) instead of the other way around. i put soap in my hair and shampoo on my body puff

i dont know what to do

i have a drs appointment on 16th but that was booked over a month ago and its only over the phone. i rang today to try and book another one (because you can only discuss one issue at a time), and opted for the callback service (if your past 5th in the queue you press the callback and keep your spot). i was 8th. i never got a call back

i honestly just feel like the entire world is against me

im trying to get an adhd/autism diagnosis because i know something is “wrong” up there but i cant even get a regular appointment let alone a referral

i get no support from my government. no benefits. i scored a 0 on my PIP interview. im going to try for universal credit but someone recommended waiting for my adhd/autism diagnosis to really push them to give it to me but, as i said, i cant get an appointment

im making about 50-100 per month

i dont see anything bright in my future

if you read this far honestly your a gem. im sorry for burdening this on your shoulders. i just needed to write it down and get it off my chest

[fan-art-ic]

I still can't believe Rick did that to Percy that author really kicked the shit out of his oc not even letting him get a full school year of no war drama fucking his life over at age 16. Percy is only fucking 17! He would be learning about trig and failing to read a shakespeare classic in class, if he ever could be in class!!!!! I started this post to re write the hoo events let me re route

This actually got super long so ha! So glad mobile had read mores now

So what I think would have been great is if Rick really had to bring in a Roman camp and all that shit then I would have him START at the Roman camp! The first book should open with Leo, because he's already favored by Hera cuz she babysat him, having a demigod dream around the last day and day after of the titan war, because we are going to start RIGHT AFTER

Leo, however, is missing his memories and is on a bus with Piper, who is a daughter of VENUS (isn't the whole thing with, um not Remus and Romulus but Adonis right? He was a founder of Rome right and a son of Venus? It just works) and the bus is attacked by monsters. Hedge is a faun, he's Roman, and basically calls for back-up, the closest Roman patrol shows up but not before Leo has to fight monsters off himself. He kills one dramatically and Jason is the first/last face he sees

In this, Jason is not Praetor. I'd like to imagine he managed to beg off being made Praetor until he turns 16 next year, because the idea made him want to bite people and he did bite Octavian and Reyna. Reyna, in my eyes, is like 17 going on 18 while Jason is 15 going on 16. Jason has an oblivious crush on her and she likes him as a faithful companion, like if her metal dogs could give tactic strategy feedback and make her laugh with snitty comments. Much more student who is a black belt but not a teacher and then a student who's a brown belt. I don't know back on track that's why Jason is on border patrol and not doing boring Praetor things

Also that nicely sets Jason up to go through the war and come out the other side as the Praetor so he might actually enjoy it this time

Back from that commercial break, the first book would basically be the quest from the lost hero but with changes to suit the divergences I've made but still mainly following that plot. They return to Camp Jupiter and celebrate and Leo finds Bunker Nine, hidden in the San Franciscan hills. I remember reading something about Rome loving Vulcan but could totally be mistaken, but that all would gel really well. On Pipers side of things, Tristan has moved into New Rome after Enceladus concussed him so hard he is blind so the Mist isn't bothering his vision. It's really hard because her father just got horribly injured, but now can be with her more often and not do stupid films, of course he wants to return to Hollywood so it's a lot of tense non arguments and treasured quality time

Book 2 would then open with Percy, the entire book is a classic fully him book like the og series. Something like: Look I don't want to waste my time or yours, we both got plenty to do. You know everything since last summer back. The more recent stuff, this past school year was okay! I got put into a couple of remedial classes, and had to deal with plenty of remedial monsters, but overall August to May? No big problems. Even arriving early back to camp had been no problem. I did it to help all the other counselors and Chiron get camp ready to shift from half-gear/winter mode to full gear/summer mode with easily quintuple the campers ready to show up. As the only Poseidon camper and the living hero of Olympus' everlasting ass, I probably could have gotten away with not helping. Annabeth asked me to, so it was a no brainer. June though? Oh boy."

And in JUNE they get Grover bringing back two demi-gods (usually he's busy being a teenage satyr equivalent lord of the wild [HE IS 28 IN TLT RIGHT BUT THATS SUPPOSED TO BE EQUIVALENT TO A HUMAN 12! HE STILL SO YOUNG]) but he ran into these two and uhuuhhhhh needed to bring them right away. And it's Frank and Hazel!!! I love Frank but the fact that he comes out a somewhat legible and not totally weird character is a miracle. He is the son of a minor god, who didn't want him going to CHB because of the shit conditions for non Olympian kids but then Frank somehow befriended a monster kid but then the monster parents tried to eat him and now that he knows his scent has gotten stronger and just bc demigods can't use phone doesn't mean monsters can't they can text their cousins and be like hey fresh meat coming your way. They probably love playing mobile video games and doing crypto trading. Anyways

On the run, he runs into Hazel. She is our lost Roman! Hera took her time with Leo and unfortunately did a rush job with Hazel. She got memory wiped, but Hera ran out of time to set up her arrival to CHB properly, and just drops her in Frank's path. (Tangent: With Frank and Hazel, I've made my feelings pretty clear, canon ages can't date, at least not till they're in their 20s. Again, like that's not something I have a problem with, bc 3 years isn't enough to really view that younger kid as baby comparatively the age just doesn't match up till their 20s. but.......) given they are demigods, I would space out their relationship the full five years to the end of the second series, so she's 18 at least.

That's right, FIVE YEARS. don't try to fucking do all that shit in one year!!!!! You're saying Gaia is this huge big bad but in a span of ONE year where no one actually fights HER she doesn't seem nearly as good a villain as Kronos! He had the pizzazz!!! The villainous razzle dazzle!!!! Because he was given time (ha...ha). I expect at LEAST as much for a BIGGER BAD. It just fucks with the pacing.

Anyway! Hazel has always had dreams and a connection to the Earth, so she's enjoying the newly constructed Hades cabin (where Nico is really fucking confused but really happy?) And also having terrible nightmares and sometimes sneaking off into the rockiest area of the woods like it's in a stream but huge boulders like st peters village creek and she sneaks off there sometimes but that's only after sleepwalking there after the dreams. She is really worried about this possible...familiar.....danger and protective of her new family so she goes back out there repeatedly to think and try to meditate

Percy, both really enjoying befriending Hazel but also somehow the only one finding her suspicious, is working himself into a tizzy because you know how he is with friends and with Silena's death and everyone else's anniversary coming close he has. A lot on his mind. So one night he's out at the wider part of the creek practicing his 'waterbending' and generally being upset, and he does have a sense for Earth so being so close he can feel the small tremors Hazel is putting put and he tracks her upstream

Confrontation time

Percy is already freaked out and Hazel is already in a weird place so she thinks he's a monster through her earth sense, yes she can have that she deserves it, so with her eyes closed she send a little rock spike at him out of fear, which he thinks is her attacking, so he fights back, Hazel comes to/opens her eyes and gets frightened and accidentally entombs Percy. She's able to bring him back up after a second, but oh man that second was possibly the single scariest second ever completely pressed in by dirt on all sides. Suffice to say he gets more fighty bc that's who Percy is, but Hazel manages to freeze his foot and explain herself and Percy calms down pretty well. Really fucking miffed and still has shivers running down his spine every heartbeat, but he's a reasonable guy, a nice dude. He has also been having visions, and between the two of them, figure that something is going to attack this other camp that exists, somewhere on the West Coast, and by a Giant and it's army

Phew! End scene, sheesh. Can you imagine how fucking long this would be if I actually wrote it out? Christ in hell.

They go to sleep! As all good demigods should at Night. The next day, Percy and Nico shove their tables together and Annabeth crouched in as does Frank, because his parents cabin hasn't specifically been done up yet. Oh hm maybe he could have his mortal soldier (booooo) mom and Nike? Doesn't matter, he still likes archery and still eventually figures out his shapeshifter shit. His candle, I think I want that honestly would work better as like, if Frank chose to save someone and took their punishment and he was given that candle. Or something. So at brunch they figure out the pieces, and then when Chiron comes over they think he's going to reprimand their shitty pavilion tableware manners, but nope he just says Rachel needs to see them in her cave

NOW Rachel gets to make a nice little debut with her cave. I honestly. Honestly. Honestly can't remember how it went it tlh if they went to her cave or the big house. Ik Jason went to the big house at some point but it's not relevant to the current topic. Anyways I get to spend an ungodly amount of time waxing about a the artsy fartsy/hippydippy sacred oracle cave of a teenage billionaire heiress which I don't care if there's a kind of canonical description this is my Rachel's cave now. So that would be like, at least half the chapter, the other half is her giving the prophecy after winning at just dance 3.

Anyways then they have a prophecy so they are sanctioned to go to find new Rome! Given the dreams, Nico Hazel and Percy go on the quest. Originally it was going to be Frank but "There's no way I'm letting you go off on another quest with my sister without making sure she's safe myself". Oof, sometimes I understand what writers mean when they say the characters have their own voice sometimes. So whenever they iris message to camp, Frank and Annabeth will be (not) enjoying figuring out his demigod abilities and just generally Frank gets to enjoy camp a little (but barely because he's very worried about his camp crossing buddy being out there without him, despite being protected by two mega powerful demi gods and being pretty strong herself, he still wishes he could message her every day, but it's not practical. Only when the questers can afford to.)

Now in New Rome: Leo, flames, Jason, wind, Percy, with a real big cool boat, they honestly make short work of the whole Alaska situation. That's more of a side thing that Percy signs himself up to do. I think they get incredibly weird in the way a bunch of future openly bisexual men would as traumatized super powered teenagers with a duty and repression around other teen like them who are also hot. NOTHING really happens, Percy is SOLIDLY dating Annabeth at the time, and Jason is too Roman and Leo is too repressed. But yknow. Solidly gay lockeroom vibes like if any of then ever saw that one id magazine of the jock and skater dude their minds would shut down for at LEAST 2 meals worth of time. But yeah they just have a fun jaunty time freeing Thanatos.

Back to Percy, he is enjoying seeing Nico come out of his shell, but also Nico is acting strangely too, but in a completely different way then Hazel. One is entangled in something dangerous, while the other is withholding something dangerous. It's driving Percy batty because after getting paranoid about Hazel earlier he doesn't want to say or push anything, and Nico is his little brother, and Hazel is his little sister, so this is practically a family road trip as far as he is concerned (he hopes) (desperately) (trying to distract from the alternative). Percy doesn't witness this, but at some point Nico comes out to Hazel and reveals his crush on him, and Percy just picks up on "something" being different. Obligatory questers send off at the Jackson household, filled with cookies and great parenting. Really a good way to lower everyone's guard to all the bullshit about to hit their ass. At this point, they are just trying to get cross country, and trying to link up with the Romans and warn them. They arrive on the same day Leo completes the Argo and Octavian butchers, like, 30 build-a-bears. Special edition ones too. Nico, at this point, has left because Hazel is pissed. She eventually remembered Nico at Camp Jupiter and there's a whole thing about that (fun little throw in about Norse and Egyptian from Percy's experiences in the ensuing conversation) so soon as they arrive safely to New Rom, he leaves immediately back to Camp Half Blood, reports, and, I dislike Nico going to Tartarus and getting captured so for right now he has been locked in his room by Hades for mentioning even doing that and he is a having a gay fume

Back in Rome, Hazel is recalling her life there, she had been there for several years, she had a few friends, and Reyna had begun to mentor her on the horse before Hera kidnapped her. As much as she loved CHB, she had never expected anything else and had put work in to feel at home among the golden hills of New Rome.

Okay also while I'm thinking of it. The fact that older Romans don't serve in the army but all the trick or treaters do? Fucking lunacy. But I want to worldbuild on this bullshit before I yank it out: what if the divinity in a demigod is strongest the younger they are, the closer their share of divinity is to the god. this is how you can get a baby Percy killing a snake in his cradle. But usually this means that a demigods peak years is 5-18, instead of a mortals 18-30. Like, of course just because they get older doesn't mean their power completely fade or anything, and of course in examples of extremely powerful demigods no one knows exactly, but, just spitballing, that's why so many monsters come after the kids, when imo they should be stronger when they are adults. So they are just less tasty as they grow through whatever divinity they were given, like expired jerky instead of filet mignon. So the 15 year old demigod serving in New rome's army is going to be to an aged out demigod of the same parent what Percy is to usual demigods. Just that much more in tune. The alternative is totally keelhauling the system and installing adults everywhere but I'm disinclined to that option

So Annabeth and Frank are in CHB, Hazel and Reyna are in New Rome, Jason Leo and Percy are in Alaska, and Nico is MIA at the moment. At this point, the prophecy of 7 is given by Rachel and after picking up Hazel, the Argo swings back to Long Island and then onto Greece.

Nico pops back up in New Rome, with warnings and looking to apologize to Hazel, but everyone is over the Atlantic. He accidentally ropes himself in to helping Reyna as Octavian is getting unruly. I think my Octavian is a total bastard but he isn't conspiring to get Rome and Greece to fight he is genuinely fucking concerned about them fighting and is acting out

I don't get why Annabeth had to get the Athena Parthenos at the exact same moment the whole Gaia is awakening it seems very stupid of Athena, so unless I'm forgetting something this is my made up reason: Athena gives Annabeth the OPTION of undertaking it at the same time or, if everyone survives, doing it later. It would be best to do it now though because she will already be in the Ancient Lands and then if Annabeth is able to recover the Parthenos it will allow Athena to regain complete control over her Minerva form and then, she SAYS to Annabeth, she would be able to help the questers since she won't be spread in two different directions. THAT is what convinces Annabeth to try and find it because Athena's aid would be invaluable for the rest of the quest

Then, when Annabeth and Percy fall into Tartarus and the Parthenos is recovered, Athena is able to manifest in front of the 7 (five). She is expecting to congratulate her daughter and bestow her blessing upon her and give everyone else a little boon, but then no Annabeth. This actually really pisses her off, and when she notices Percy is gone too and asks and they say he DELIBERATLY went in after Annabeth, well this helps boost the worthiness of the sea spawn in Athena's eyes, although this totally fucks everything up bc those two are basically the power players of the 7.

I'm kind of wishy washy on the minutiae of the of the house of hades, I honestly only gave a shit about the 411 in tartarus so no big change ups for the 5 just generally their shit goes easier with Athenas help

Annabeth and Percy are going through it of course. My personal theory is that the rivers of the underworld mess with peoples mortal souls and bodies when people interact with them. the cocytus leaves a more lasting mark on their psyches, and the phlegethon actually slowly eats at both of their mortality. If a normal person tried to drink from it, their human soul would wither away (like peeing on a flower), but with their divine side much more durable, both Percy and Annabeth's souls are growing unbalanced. Percy even more so, as I think when the Styx blessed him it burned away all but that anchor of mortality, and then when the Little Tiber washed away the blessing (which is BULLLLLLLLLLLSHIIIIIIIIIIIIIT) his mortal soul is already spread thin and that's why when they get to Akhyls, he is able to crack past his mortal barrier and develop his powers in ways he shouldn't be ABLE to. MY Annabeth, also, doesn't have that shitty reaction to Percy SAVING them. Her mortal soul is boiling and releasing steam vapors it will never get back, so her mind has both never been more tortured but also never been clearer and faster in her life. She is able to get Percy to back off, but just so she can manipulate Akhyls properly and get her to actually help them with Percy as the knife to the throat. In/After Tartarus Annabeth is very much the cleaning/sharpening/and polish to Percy's sword edge.

Annabeth also messes with Bob/Iapetus, poking at his memories and paving the way for him to remember Percy, but doing it in a way so that Iapetus which actually like them by the time he remembers. This is mainly to show off Annabeth being different from her usual self, to have a Percy pov of him being uneasy of Annabeths ability to turn someone around and re-arrange their thinking with just some conversation. This is also because I want Small Bob to go up to the surface and be her big murder cat and if Iapetus genuinely liked her I can see him giving them the cat monster as a token of good faith and fRiEnDsHiP but it ends up being something that gives Annabeth part of her humanity back because she realizes the real impact she had on him and now she has a monster pet to take care of just like her boyfriend (this set up parallels very nicely I'm loving this now)

The Blood of Olympus would probably end up being REALLY different just because the canon book sucks so hard. And I think I'd make a plot point of Zeus breaking the Styx promise to free Calypso, I'd have it become that all of this is actually his fault because by not following the promise the consequences were Gaia waking up enough for all this to even happen. Actually this would set up nicely a next series of dethroned Zeus look at how easy that all falls together fuck I love this idea. It would take so long to write though maybe after I retire I could write it. Also how stupid is it for the gods to work with their own kid against the literal BANE of their existence? Fucking switch up the teams!!! It doesn't make any sense to me and then you could get some really interesting fight scenes and dynamics like I would have it so Percy ends up fight alongside Athena and Annabeth alongside Ares, Jason with Poseidon and Hazel with Zeus, Frank with Hades more on and so on

For that last paragraph I wanted to elaborate so I looked up a list of Greek mytho giants, but it had so much more fun info then I was expecting and has lead me to realize that the defeat of the giants should be a collaborative effort between both the Roman and Greek camps and the gods that would truly be the best way to tie up the huge finale of evil bosses, would free up some of the huge hitters to actually fight Gaia directly, and would be a fucking great fight finale that would unite both camps under one banner of the gods and OOOOH THIS is so smart my brain is shaking like a chihuahua

And then yeah! Series wrapped. Take that Rick, longer time frame, more drama, more battles, and doesn't clumsily fumble everyone's character

If you have read this far I am kissing your cheeks and hugging you thanks for having fun with me!!!!

[symmetricalkazekage]

Story time!! I had joined Tumblr years ago after a friend showed it to me, but I never really used it. But then my lovely friend @m1dnyt3-w0lf sent me a tmnt fic and I was swept up (I had fallen in love with tmnt again at this point).

We are currently in the middle of writing our own chaptered stories, beta-reading off each other, but I wrote her this last year for new years, and I just wanted to share it. She gave me her self insert character to use, so I present to you my Leo x OC fic (the first fanfic I've written since 2016 👀).

Feel free to change the name as you read, and please leave me critique.

Also tagging @turtle-babe83 and @thelaundrybitch because I really like your writing and you kinda got me back into writing 😖🙏🏽

The holiday season, Christmas. Just like all the previous years it had come and gone all too quickly. Eventually to a point where you didn’t even feel the holiday cheer anymore, all the while people around you were all festive. Your Christmas was spent working overtime, extra shifts, over 2 jobs. You didn’t really have anyone to spend the holidays with anyway, so you kept your self busy by working, sometimes pulling all-nighters. Everyone, coworkers and customers alike always asked the same question, “Why are you working, it’s Christmas!”; your answer always being that you could use the extra money coming into the new year. You always received pitiful looks, but you were numb to them now.

You were mopping the floors of the diner at your second job, finally closing after the late evening rush. Your mind flooded back to 6 years ago, to when you were kicked out of your home and your family. You were always the odd duckling in the family, but when you started bringing up that you wanted to pursue full time work instead of college, you were immediately thrown out. Everything you owned tossed into the snow, which wasn’t much. A “Good luck” was all you got from them. You had couch surfed for the few months left of high school before you graduated. A month later you landed a job in a warehouse that paid it employees’ good money. 2 years later everyone who helped you was repaid and you had moved into a small apartment somewhere in lower Manhattan in New York. You got a transfer to a closer warehouse and managed to picked up a night job at a diner 2 blocks away from home. It was a struggle at first, but now, everything was so natural to you. You smiled wryly to yourself in bitter triumph.

‘See, I can succeed without college,’ you muttered into the space.

‘Well, you’ve definitely proven that.’

Fight mode kicked in; you spun around swinging the mop with you ready to beat a bitch down! You relaxed when you saw your manager Jenny standing there with a grin and a bag.

‘Oh crap, sorry Jenny!’ you yelled frantically dropping the mop and fumbling with the handle.

‘At ease Ashley, I came to tell you that you can go home now. You’re already here 3 hours passed your finish time,’ she smiled taking the mop from you, ‘and I am more than capable to finish up here.’

‘It’s okay I’m nearly done anyway,’ you said reaching for the mop, only to have it pulled form your grasp.

‘I’m serious, missy. You worked through Thanksgiving and Christmas; its New Year’s Eve and you’re still working!’

‘It’s not a bother honestly!’ You tried to protest, but she just shook her head. You watched her walk behind the counter with the mop, only to trade it with your bag and winter jacket.

‘But it bothers me, do you really not have anyone waiting for you tonight?’ Your phone pinged answering her question. ‘Ah, so there is a someone is there?’ she winked.

You pulled out your phone. ‘Nope, just the phone company letting me know my bill is due next week.’

‘Aw, that’s a shame. You’re such a pretty girl, you really need a boyfriend.’

You just laughed as you pulled your coat on and headed for the door, wishing your boss a happy new year. The cold New York wind hit you as you headed home. Its not like you wanted to be alone, you just kept everyone at a distance for safety. Well, almost everyone. You looked up to the sky, watching the snow begin to fall again. You weren’t surprised when you saw a giant figure bound from roof to roof under the cover of darkness, it also didn’t surprise you when you saw the figure stop on the corner of your apartment building. So, he’s here again, is he?

You walked into your apartment, placing your bag on the couch. You stood there for five minutes before thinking “what the hell” and headed to your window, climbing back out into the frigid air and up the fire escape. You were puffing and heaving by the time you reached the roof, why am I doing this again?

‘Need a hand?’ That’s why.

You looked up to the face of the smooth voice. Of course, he would be here, it had become religious at this point.

‘Thank you, Leonardo,’ you said breathless reaching for his hand. It always astounded you just by the sheer size different. You knew you were short, but standing next to him, definitely made you feel it. And it made you mad. ‘Do you have to be that fucking tall?'

‘Do you have to ask that same question every time we meet?’ he laughed.

‘Yes. I. Do!’

He laughed again, and you melted inside. It was like music, and you felt blessed every time you heard it. And that smile, made your knees weak on sight. He followed behind you to the other side of the building where a table and chairs sat, mainly for those that hung their washing during the hot days. You set your still hot food down on the table top before you turned and leant against it. Looking up, you jumped a little to see Leonardo standing close to you. His brilliant blue eyes glowing in the low light of the night.

‘Why are you here again Leonardo, I’m sure you have better things to do.’ You didn’t mean it to sound so dejected, but that’s how you were feeling.

‘Crime’s been slow since it’s New Years. And how many times have I told you to call me “Leo”?’ he shifted closer ever so slightly.

‘I’ve lost count at this point.’ You turned your head to the side, he wasn’t even that close, but you could still feel the heat radiating off his body. ‘Also how are you not cold, aren’t you a reptile?’

‘Donnie says its because of the mutagen, Raph says its because the stress keeps me running, and Mikey says and I quote “It’s because you’re too hot to handle dude!” so I really don’t know.’ He laughed again, but from the corner of your eye you watched his shoulders slump.

‘What’s up?’ you asked walking around the table.

‘It doesn’t bother you that I’m a mutant?’ he asked.

Not this again. ‘No, it doesn’t.’

‘I don’t scare you?’ his head dropped; he was no longer looking at you.

‘No, you don’t. why are we doing this again?’ food forgotten, your face scowled. You could never understand his self-sabotage. It was completely on accident that you had seen him and his brothers, you were just chilling on the roof when they dropped in. You were surprised at first, but you simply tossed them some chocolate and wished them a good evening before disappearing back into your building. Since then, Leonardo had made it his goal to annoy you, visiting almost every night. Originally, he said it was to make sure you wouldn’t say anything to anyone. But now, he had probably listed every excuse in the book to be where he is now. At first it bothered you, but then, you began to warm up to him. And eventually, you heart had decided that he was the one it wanted.

“…do you really not have anyone waiting for you tonight?” echoed through your mind as you stared at the giant turtle in front of you. The longer you stared, the harder it was for you to hide the blush that was forming; even harder to resist the smile that was forming at the corner of your lips. I actually do this time. You didn’t wait for his answer, you just scooped up the snow into a ball and threw it at his face.

‘If I was scared of you, I wouldn’t have done that…’ you said triumphantly at his stunned face, ‘or… THIS!!’ you threw another snowball at his face, your smile full of sass and devious planning; your heart flipping with glee. New Year’s resolution: be happy for me for once. ‘So, what are you gonna do about it, Le-o-nar-do?’

He blinked before he wiped the snow off his snout, wiping away any self-doubt; replacing it with the most evil grin you’d seen on his face. It made you shiver with delight. He didn’t say anything, he just charged for you at full speed. You dodged him, skidding under the water tank. You quickly made another snow ball ducking out and pegging it at the back of his head. It hit him square, and you watched him shiver; snow must’ve gone down his shell. He turned on you again, giving you no chance to make more ammo. You ducked back under the tank backing out the other end with more snow in your hand. You ran out into the open with the new ball and turned ready to throw; but he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Your eyes scanned every inch of the roof, stepping as quietly as you could with your guard up.

‘Boo.’

You spun and went to throw your weapon, but he was much faster, catching your arm like it was nothing. You dropped the winter ball; time seeming to stop around you as you stood mere inches from each other. The height difference meant you had to crane your neck to see him, but it didn’t seem to bother you this time. He lowered your arm, but his grip didn’t leave you; instead he began to gently massage small circles into your wrist. Those small motions made your heart race as you instinctively moved closer, as did he. You both began breathing heavily, creating smalls could between you from your hot breath. You both just stood there staring, in silence, as the world around you began the countdown into the new year.

‘What’s your resolution?’ you asked.

He smiled, pulling you in with his free hand and slowly dipping down. ‘To make you mine,’ your heart skipped, ‘what’s yours?’

‘To be happy,’ you whispered.

He chuckled softly, ‘Sounds good.’

‘And to kiss you finally.’

Before he could say anything, you reached up on your toes and planted a kiss against his warm lips. He froze for a moment, clearly shocked. You starting to thinking it was a bad idea, but you felt him lean in closer, pulling you flush with him. The world around you was full of cheers and “happy new year’s” as you kissed on the rooftop, feeling the happiest you had ever felt in many years.

When you finally parted, you were both dazed and breathless. He smiled down at you as you shied away into his chest, embarrassed that you had to be the one to initiate. He just laughed at you, resting his chin on your head as he wrapped you in his arms.

‘Happy New Year, Ashley,’ he whispered.

‘Happy New Year, Leo,’ you whispered back.

[petalsfm]

if you’re hearing FREAKY GIRLS by MEGAN THEE STALLION FT. SZA playing, you have to know JORDYN CARTER (SHE / HER; CIS WOMAN) is near by! the TWENTY-SEVEN year old ASSISTANT has been in denver for, like, ONE YEAR. they’re known to be quite IMMATURE, but being AFFABLE seems to balance that out. or maybe it’s the fact that they resemble SAMANTHA LOGAN. personally, i’d love to know more about them seeing as how they’ve got those SMUDGED MAKEUP AT THE END OF A NIGHT OUT, THE CLICK OF ACRYLIC NAILS, A SMILE THAT NEVER FADES, THE THRILL OF SHARING GOSSIP WITH YOUR CLOSEST FRIENDS vibes. and maybe i’ll get my chance if i hang out around the RINO DISTRICT long enough!

STATS:

full name :       jordyn penelope carter nickname(s) :     n / a birthplace :      detroit, michigan date of birth :       07 / 25 / 1996 parentage: sasha carter cousin(s) :      tbd carter , wesley carter (40) , tbd carter , tbd carter relationship status :     single gender identity :     cis woman ( she/her ) sexual orientation :      bisexual faceclaim :      samantha logan

PERSONALITY:

( CANCER + DEATH TW ! ) jordyn is only two years old when her mother dies from lung cancer, leaving her to the care of her aunt and uncle (wesley carter's parents). they were already a big family, but they were very happy to open their homes to one more, even if it wasn't the best financial decision.

being in a family that cared so much about each other definitely shaped her personality in a huge way. they cared for others, and they cared for each other. they taught her to always share what you have, even if you don't have much.

ever since middle school, jordyn has always been the life of the party. it was her goal to be the class clown in every class she was in. it was harder to tell if people were laughing AT you or WITH you.

luckily for jordyn, she was always willing to interact with anyone who wanted to stop and chat. she wanted to make sure everyone felt welcomed around her, which is a value instilled in her by her aunt grace. and somehow, it worked. she was allowed a place at every lunch table, should she want it.

she knows how to sell herself well, considering she became class president her junior and senior years. she's confident, has no problem talking to those she doesn't know, and tries makes everyone feel important. in a school environment, that wasn't the worst type of personality to have.

it worked pretty well for her in college as well, getting her many different friends to keep into adulthood.

( DEATH TW ! ) after her aunt passed away, jordyn spent a few years in michigan alone, to scared to leave. she'd vacationed out of michigan, but she'd never truly lived anywhere else. despite her PERCEIVED confidence, she was truly scared of a real fresh start.

it's been a year since she's moved to denver, and she's slowly developing a sense of normalcy. something she's always dreamed of. she's picked up a job working under lindsey gallagher, helping her build and run a boutique. she can't explain why, but she finds the inner workings of building a business from the ground up very interesting.

she's a natural flirt-- it comes with the confidence. she loves to gossip and just talk about anything juicy or anything drama filled. she's a girls girl! will give her honest opinion on anything-- if that shirt is your color, if there's something in your teeth, etc.

loves a good night out. definitely frequents the bar and clubs of denver. is the one person who enjoys getting drunk and making dumb decisions.

BACKGROUND:

full background can be found HERE ! linked to a /mobile page cus for some reason its hard to read w my theme in night mode kfdghfkjgh

WANTED CONNECTIONS:

gal pals !!! or just anyone to get lunch and share gossip with ugh she loves that. nothing better than a root beer float and even a small amount of juicy gossip

party pals !!! anyone who likes to bar hop or go clubbing w her. they get ready together, pregame together, take care of each other.

ok im so bad at wanteds thats why i brainstorm SORRY I TRIED