#LETS FALL INTO DELUSION TOGETHER MY SISTERS

[oshiawaseni]

Japan’s concept of confession and why Ochaco might not confess

“Confession” is a big deal in a country as subtle as Japan. Not all people have the courage to confess, but when starting official relationships confessions are often expected. This is what I know confessions to be like in the world of manga: Person A talks alone with Person B and shares with them the secrets of their heart. “I like you please accept my feelings.” This usually ends either with them going out or A being rejected by B. The usual reason for the rejection is “I like someone else.”

I’ve been having some more ideas about the day Izuku fell into Kacchan’s arms and how what Kacchan did for him was almost confessional in a way. He told Izuku what was in his heart, why he bullied him and that no matter how much he tried, he just couldn’t escape him. He called him “Izuku” and we saw the impact this had on Izuku’s face. 

Izuku just couldn’t believe that Kacchan was calling his name properly for the first time in 12 years, it completely shocked him, and after apologising for everything, he told Izuku, “Come home, let’s do this together. We need to help each other in this fight against AFO.” 

The conclusion of this confession was that Izuku acquiesced to 1-A’s request for him to return, but it was only really possible because his attachment to Kacchan triumphed over his motivations to stay away. It was Kacchan who broke down his walls with his apology. It was Kacchan who filled him with hope that things would be better, and Kacchan who finally hammered into Izuku how important it was for him to be part of the collective. That his inclusion was very wanted and needed, and that he in turn can rely more on everyone as well. That together, they can push forward, trusting in and helping each other.

I think what hurt Izuku the most during his solo arc was being away from his friends, but especially Kacchan. Because that day in the rain, he literally gave up on his solo vigilante mindset for him. After hearing Kacchan’s unbelievable words he had patiently longed to hear for years, it was impossible for Izuku to stay away from him any longer. As he passed out, he stumbled a few steps towards Kacchan who, without missing a beat, caught him in his arms and gently held him. This embrace told us “From now on it’ll be different. I’m gonna be here for you, Izuku.”

So to recap all of that... Kacchan became vulnerable and spilled what was in his heart, Izuku accepted his desires, with it all culminating in them becoming closer. Which is just like a successful romantic confession!?

I think after watching this all go down, something inside Ochaco clicked. A lot of the class are rushing over to Izuku when Kacchan catches him because they’re just so worried about him, but a few of them, Ochaco included, stay standing back. It doesn’t make much sense at all. But we’re given a zoom in of her without knowing any of the thoughts going through her mind.

They got Izuku back, but she doesn’t really seem all that happy. Momo says to her “this is just the first obstacle we aren’t done yet” and she agrees. Ochaco knows that there’s still more they as a group need to do for Izuku to make his return happen. But the fact that there’s a few panels dedicated to zooming in on her staying put, her almost emotionless face (mirroring Shoto’s) while she’s watching Kacchan save Izuku and his new unbridled intimacy he has with him - could be telling us that there’s something else she’s processing.

Is this moment somber for her because she realised the person Izuku needs the most is none other than the person he has openly admired since she first met him? The very same person who always bared his fangs at Izuku because he was scared him getting close?

Was Ochaco witnessing the beginning of something new between them and suddenly finding herself sidelined as a contender for Izuku’s affections?

Somehow… this could be what it was all about. And that’s why I think there’s a good chance Ochaco gave up her crush on Izuku for good when she witnessed Katsuki return his love and embrace him after that emotionally-charged apology. After this, a more defined distance between her and Izuku appears visible in their next scene together. A respectful distance of Izuku’s own choosing.

It was like a definitive line had been drawn out that can’t and perhaps shouldn’t be crossed. Maybe they both understood that the person Izuku wanted close by his side has always been Katsuki. That desire wasn’t simply a pipe dream to Izuku anymore, it had become reality. And who is Ochaco to get in the way of that?

And then it’s almost like she is bookending Katsuki’s confession to Izuku with a confession of her own about Toga, putting a close to the Izuocha chapter and she makes a comment which feels double in meaning. “I guess that means we are the same.” or You love a boy, just like I might love a girl. (To put it bluntly)

And Izuku remembers this line again after he gets separated from Kacchan and Ochaco is telling him to go. Go back to Tenko. Go back to your Kacchan.

The concept of “knowing how someone feels because you love them and always watch over them” comes up from time to time in manga. In a way, that’s also a reason why Kacchan and Izuku understand each other as deeply as they do and they aren’t afraid of showing it off. They were always watching each other from a safe distance and learning things about each other in this way. I think during chapter 322, this concept is what was happening to cause such a realisation in Ochaco. (And it’s also for this reason Tsuyu, who never had feelings for Izuku, still doesn’t get it.)

It was hard for her, knowing everything she does about Izuku’s deep attachment to Kacchan, to learn that Izuku’s affections for him weren’t one-sided and they were now closer than ever before… That’s why I don’t think she’ll want to get in the way by confessing anymore. If Kacchan’s apology was intended to be compared with a romantic confession, then Ochaco is probably aware that Izuku already “has someone he likes”… and that person isn’t her.

[leviathanspain]

why didn’t i do it for you

cassian x reader

synopsis: you knew you weren’t his mate, but why did it hurt so much to realize that she was

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

ever since feyre’s sisters were made, your life as a part of the inner circle was harder. an illyrian warrior like cas and azriel, you were given the task of babysitting the sisters like they were children. you had complained to rhysand to give you something worth your time, but the high lord had only rolled his eyes.

sitting with amren after a long night of playing nesta’s keeper, you shouldered a bottle of wine. amren was sitting across from you, drinking away at her cup of blood. you shrugged, “it’s not that i don’t like them-“

“you don’t like nesta.” she interjected, and you nodded, “i just wish rhys would stop seeing me as the weak illyrian girl from the mountains.”

you hadn’t been always on the easy path of life. your wings were destined to be cut, only to be saved from the sword last minute by rhysand, who had defended you, taking you away from your abuser to be safe. rhysand hadn’t known why he chose to save you, but as the years went by, you were considered a huge asset to him, and especially as part of his inner circle.

it was only luck that brought you to cassian and azriel, who treated you just like any other male warrior.

amren looked at you with those silver eyes and raised her eyebrows, “how’s cassian?” she changed topic and that made you even more upset. you took a huge swig of your wine and sighed, “being cassian.” you didn’t ever know how to respond to that question, “he’s been distant lately. making excuses to run off to the mountains. i would go with him but-“ amren nodded reassuringly, “it’s just hard because it’s been decades that we’ve been, ‘a thing’, but decades that i’ve never really known where we stand.”

you pondered off, “like, are we together? and if we aren’t, why did you get so upset when helion asked for me in the day court? or when i went out for drinks with azriel, as friends, but still decided to have a brawl with him?” you asked as if he was in the room with you and sighed, “it’s so hard, and i know you don’t care but i can’t tell mor, she’d tell me all the things that i want to hear and delusion is not what i need right now.” you closed your eyes.

amren sighed, “that’s true. i don’t care, but surprisingly, i care about you, warrior.” you opened your eyes to see amren gazing at you, “cassian has told you that you aren’t mates, the bond has never clicked in the last century so why would it ever? leave him.”

the ‘encouragement’ from amren only put you in a worse sour mood. leaving for the townhouse, you had made it without stumbling. only when you reached the door, did you nearly fall.

the door tore open and cassian was on the other side. he raised his eyebrows at you and shook his head, “where have you been? rhys said that your shift with nesta was over three hours ago!” 

you shoved past cassian and stumbled inside, “sorry general. i didn’t know that my lack of communication would get me into such trouble.” your sarcasm was one of the things cassian loved, when it wasn’t directed at him.

when it was, he was more than upset.

cassian grabbed your arm, “really? you come home drunk and don’t think i deserve to know why?”

you rolled your eyes, “don’t do this, not right now.” you tried to shuck him off but cassian was incredibly strong, and you weren’t sure why you acted like he wasn’t.

cassian looked at you with even more anger in his eyes. and that only set you towards the stairs, away from him.

cassian was relentless, and so he followed you.

the only good thing about the townhouse was that there was always extra rooms that you could sleep in. so you let yourself wander into one of the empty rooms and shut the door. you had barely made it to the bed when cassian slammed the door open.

“y/n. i asked you a question.” he was practically foaming at the mouth with rage, he was going to snap at your disrespect.

“it’s you! cassian, you are the reason why i feel like this! im sorry that you and i can’t share our problems so i drown them in drinks. and i’m sorry i ignore you because i’ll cry if i don’t.” you felt the tears well and you looked down, “please, just, leave me alone.”

cassian was speechless, and for once, he slowly stepped away, and closed the door.

you hadn’t left that room for days. at least, it felt like days. you had ignored every one of your friends.

even feyre had come to see you, and when she tried to ask what was wrong, you shook your head, “this isn’t a burden that’s yours to bear.” was all you could say as you shut out yet again, another person.

on a particularly bad day, you waited for rhys to make his round of begging for you to return to society.

“i want to leave.” as you said the words, you could only feel the shattering of rhysand as he looked at you.

“what?” the words didn’t even sound real as he heard them.

“i need to leave, rhys. i cant be here, with him, i-“ you shook your head, “im going back to the mountains.”

“no.” rhysand’s voice was full of anger as he said that, “anywhere but there. i will not let you go back there y/n.” he knew how much the illyrians had hurt you. wanting to return meant a genuine struggle.

you sighed, “the day court.” you looked down at your hands, “helion has been asking for me back, and you know he’ll take care of me.” rhysand nodded reluctantly, “are you sure? i can talk to cassian and-“

you held up a hand, “rhys. you are my brother, and i love you. but this is something that you can’t fix, not as rhysand and definitely not as a high lord.”

rhys nodded, holding out his arm, he smiled bitterly, “let’s go.”

months had passed since you ceased communication with the night court. it was for the best, you had told yourself. even when rhysand had begged you to change your mind, you had realized that you needed a change. you couldn’t be kept in velaris with cassian, always fighting and always arguing.

although you missed your home, you didn’t miss the suffocating feeling of knowing you weren’t his, and he wasn’t yours.

helion had healed your pain. he wasn’t your mate, hardly was he even more than just a fling, but he was a friend.

as you walked through one of the many libraries in the day court, you realized that you weren’t alone. a small shadow coasted the line of your back and you turned to see azriel fading in front of you.

you smiled at him, and azriel gave a small smirk, “still always on guard.” he whistled.

“always.” you remarked, “what brings the shadows to the day court?”

azriel looked down slightly before looking at you, “rhys asked for you back. he wants to have dinner, as a family.”

you looked at azriel with raised eyebrows.

clearly there was something else az wasn’t telling you. but as you landed on the roof of the house of wind, you didn’t even need to ask questions.

the smell, you could smell it as you flew above but it was driving you crazy, who was it? a smell between only mates, rhys and feyre reeked of it, but this was someone else.

as you walked inside, azriel just ahead of you, you realized with a deep sinking of your heart who it was.

before you could even react, mor ran up to you and engulfed you in a big hug. her squeal of happiness couldve rattled the house, “y/n! oh my warrior princess how i’ve missed you!” she looked you over and still smiled brightly, “the sun in the day court must be different. you look amazing.” you blushed at her compliment, “my, oh my, legendary mor falling in love with me. what an honor.” you joked and mor nudged you softly with a laugh.

rhysand was next to hug you, “i’m surprised you didn’t fight azriel on the way here. i had sent him with extra knives just in case.” he winked and you shoved him, “whatever rhys. why am i here?”

“y/n.” cassian walked into the dining area and it was then that it all clicked for you. he was different. he looked the same, he’s always looked the same. but his gaze towards you wasn’t the same anymore.

“cassian.” you looked him over and realized that he was the smell. newly mated, you realized with a pang.

rhys stepped away from you and the tension in the room was suddenly at an all time high just as nesta shuffled in.

the smell got stronger and your pain became more apparent.

“oh.” the words were lost on you as you stepped back slightly. mor, amren, feyre, they all looked at you with sympathy as you looked away.

cassian called your name but you couldn’t be there any longer.

you ran back to the roof and let your wings do the work as you threw yourself into the air.

the soft snowy base was the first thing you felt. you had been flying for what felt like hours. you had abandoned the dinner, it was as if your worst fear had manifested.

cassian and nesta?

the tears were hardly an expression to how you truly felt.

but it got worse as you heard the flapping of more wings.

cassian landed on the mountain just a bit aways from you and you took a deep inhale, “go away, cassian.” you said sternly, but realized with panic that you were getting teary.

cassian stalked over to you and shook his head, “i’m sorry.”

“how could you do this to me, cassian? why would you humiliate me in front of them? why couldn’t you have a written some bullshit letter about how it isn’t me it’s you?!” you sobbed now, finally letting the gates that held back your tears go, “i loved you! cassian, mother, how i loved you.”

cassian shook his head, “you left me! you ran away to the day court and thought i would wait for you? i told you, and we both knew we weren’t destined to be together, we aren’t good for each other!”

“but nesta archeron is? the woman you swore was so uptight and horrendous that i got stuck babysitting her?” you balled your hands up in fury, “that’s your mate?” your voice broke suddenly and you stepped back, “how long did you know?”

cassian shook his head.

“how long, cas?”

cassian looked at you, “the day she was made. the day she came out of that cauldron, i was hers.”

you nodded, “i hate you.”

cassian looked at you in disbelief. he knew you were hurt, but hurt enough to say you hated him?

he’s spent the better part of his life loving you, devoting himself to you, and you thought you were the only one who was hurt?

cassian sucked in a breath, “don’t you think that it hurt me too that you weren’t my mate? i denied myself her, i denied the bond, everything. i wanted you, i wanted to choose you.”

you shook your head, “don’t lie to me. it’s the one thing you promised not to do.”

cassian was at a loss for words, “why did you come here?” he looked at the mountain and realized that this was the first time since rhysand had saved you that you returned.

you shrugged, “the place where my life began, and where my life with you ends.” you looked at cassian and walked closer to him.

cassian smelled of her, and it was hard to even be near him. and the confusion crossed his face as you reached up just behind his ear. but you knew what you were looking for. and you grabbed a lock of his hair and yanked it.

cassian hissed and looked at you as you held the lock of your hair that he had knotted with his own, and threw it to the ground.

as you walked away, cassian pulled you back, “why do you care so much? you cant say you love me anymore, fate won’t let you.” you whispered, and cassian let you go, a broken heart displayed on his face as you flew away.

[dumbass-duo-showdown]

DUMBASS DUO SHOWDOWN ROUND 1 BATTLE 14

Jedward (irish music history/eurovision) vs Min-Gi Park & Ryan Akagi (infinity train)

reminder to check out the propaganda before voting! It is under the cut!

Jedward

You say you're on it but you just don't know You're spending money like you're on death row You must have been mis-educated By all the guys that you dated You think I'll take the bait but I don't think so Ohhhh Am I headed for a car crash? Ohhhh I'm just about to meet my match, she takes the Ohhhh I'm about to fall in head first Sisters let me tell you how it works HEY! She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Oooohh, Oooohh You look at me and I got you in mind I come on over see what I could find No appetite for delusion I could've win what I'm losin' You're saying yes when it is no, no, no, no Ohhhh Am I headed for a car crash? Ohhhh Is this about to be my next, she takes the Ohhhh I'm about to fall in head first Sisters let me tell you how it works HEY! She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey It's not that I don't wanna play (play, play) And then I didn't look your way (way, way) It's not like every girl's the same (same, same) You gotta know just how to treat this miss Or she will be dismissed Heyyyyy She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Here I come Here I come Dum da dum da dum da dum Here I come Here I come Dum da dum da dum da dum Hit and run Hit and run Dum da dum da dum da dum Then I'm gone Then I'm gone Gone, gone, gone, gone She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey She's got her lipstick on Here I come, da da dum She's got her lipstick on Hit and run, then I'm gone Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey Check my collar, collar, hey, hey, ey

Feral twin(k)s who hold a special place in the hearts of many eurofans. They sang abt lipstick once. They used to have huge hair and dress up like popcorn boxes or sweet dispensers or Pikachu. Nowadays they emerge every so often to make unhinged Tiktoks. I have an entire doc which is just quotes I've collected of them over the years (mainly Edward ngl)

They walked to Markus & Martinus could waddle, stumble down the chairs, Jedward could've made Eletrik but Markus & Martinus could not have made lipstick

Min-Gi Park & Ryan Akagi

These two were childhood best friends who dreamed of starting a band and traveling together. They went their separate ways after high school for Ryan to try to get Min-Gi to rejoin the band. They ended up on a magic train together bickering like an old married couple and for some reason sticking with a magic service bell named Kez who did nothing but get them into trouble. They also annoy a sentient castle by playing a song they wrote as kids about putting various animals in a toque.

Like they are basically gay and in love except 1. the big guys upstairs wouldnt allow it and 2. They are too much dumbasses to like even confess properly let alone actually communicate. It took a therapy train and a sentient bell named Kez for them to actually realize how much they care and how much they wanna achieve their dream of being in a band together (which gets realized and its so great i love my gays who play music)

[cyberneticlagomorph]

You don't know how you got here.

You don't know what happened.

Zebede's eyes are wide with fear, his hands smeared with your blood. He looks so pale and sick you can see the veins winding under the skin of his eyelids.

Your hearts hammer in your chest, a rattling staccato panic that struggles against the blade in your chest.

Vorpal is buried deep in your flesh, erupting from your back in a spray of blood and pain that floods your senses with the sticky revulsion of butterscotch.

You try to breathe but inhale a lungful of blood instead, you cough and the resulting spray paints Zeb with tiny blue stars.

The Vorpal blade, oh creature of bone and abyss and hate, how she wishes to wet her lips with the blood of the Jabberwocky. Instead she is drowning in her fated bearer.

It hurts.

It hurts to think

To breathe

To be

Oh my sweet stupid thing... Vorpal, like her sister Excalibur, was meant to slay beasts magnitudes Higher than you. Terrible, often divine things.

Dragons, gods, monsters and worse.

In the grand scheme of things, you are nothing. A misplaced idea neck deep in delusions of grandeur.

You are nothing.

You are a mistake.

Vorpal cuts through You and all that You Are as easy as anything.

It cuts Beyond Flesh and Bone.

Your hearts break in awful unison, blood turning black as it pours from your wound in impossible amounts, quickly lapping at Zeb's knees. He's too afraid to move and you're just dead weight he's pinned like a bug. Words churn in the growing sea of ink like froth and foam, strings of gibberish and spoilers swirling together into waves and whirlpools that tug and tear and scream.

'When was the last time you'd cried? How old were you when you stopped? '

Zeb lets go of the blade and you tip forward, falling to your knees. Your eyes meet his for just a second before the ink swallows you whole and the world goes black.

[lpsgirl109]

INFO DUMP ABOUT X MEN OC SBN OW

AAAAAAAA OKOK

This is gonna be just the most basic rundown of all of them cause there's many and if I went in detail about them we'd be here forever

Alkali Ashford

Alkali was my first x men OC. Her ability is turning into dinosaurs. In her regular form, she has stripes and a tail, so she needs one of the camouflage watch things. She's besties with Kurt, but her arc is sort of opposite to his in the sense that while he wants to fit in and hide who he is, she wants to stand out and let the world know who she is. She's very fun I love her. Also fun fact this is the character that got me in trouble in that one rp server I mentioned a few nights ago, where they yelled at me because they decided shapeshifters aren't allowed only after I submitted her. They hate her because she's too swag for them to handle

Milo

This guy and the next character are basically recycled versions of ooold old OCs of mine. Milo has two water serpent things that he can control. He starts out kinda scared of them because, unlucky for him he has a fear of water due to almost drowning as a child. But overtime he learns to appreciate them

Marigold

Other aforementioned old recycled OC. Her mutation is physical in the sense that she has cat ears and angel wings, so she also needs a camouflage watch. However unlike Kurt and Alkali, she never really faced a lot of discrimination growing up because her mutation is considered beautiful by most (There's lots of angel devil comparisons with Marigold and Kurt it's so fun it's so fun). She's known Milo since they were kids because she is the one who saved him from drowning. They're dating now. Ew romance

Peter Maximoff

"Peg that's not an OC" yeah so I made an Evo version of Peter because I was STUPIDLY obsessed with this man in like 2021 idk what was wrong with me. Anyway he's the twins' half brother and I have yet to figure out what happened between Erik and his mom. He has a really dumb rivalry with Pietro its so funny

Ezekiel

Or Zeke for short. His thing is seeing and talking to ghosts. Lance recruits him to the Brotherhood for all of two seconds before Zeke befriends Kurt and jumps over to the X Men instead. He also dates Kurt later so i can live in my RogueKitty delusions but shhh

Indigo

These next few are part of the new mutant squad. Indigo's power is bringing drawings to life and she has a fun sibling relationship with Peter. They're also a little bit Too wiling to commit murder

Niko

Also a recycled old OC. He has a snake that sticks out of his back. Not much more to him yet, he just has a snake

Ozzy

Cool guy who turns into a fish person when in the water. May or may not have been inspired by Luca. Also for anyone who knows my habit of making Harry Osborn inspired OCs and naming them Ozzi. This guy is not one of the Harry clones, he came way before the raimi fixation attacked me and dragged me to hell

Markus Lang

Member of the X Men and one of the mentors alongside Ororo and Logan. He can turn into a dragon. He might end up dating Logan idk I think they'd be silly together

Gwen Ashford

Alkali's adopted younger sister who has rock powers. She's part of The Brotherhood and she is an absolute menace to society

Wyatt Elsher

This guy is able to turn into like a goop furry thing and I'm being so honest to god I based him off the fucking Transfur Outbreak game on roblox. Embarrassing. Anyway he was childhood friends with Marigold and lived in her old neighborhood, and I imagine initially his mutation was just becoming some sort of werewolf thing. Then he got sent to this lab place that claimed they'd 'cure' him but ended up fucking him up. So now he's goop. He also joins the Brotherhood and has a rivalry with Marigold

Harper

Regular ass human girl who Alkali meets at a party and falls head over heels in love with her. She also sort of adopts Kurt into her friend group after the mutants get exposed, seeing he's alone now and wanting to help him. She does guess he's also a mutant, but she's fine with it

Thats all of em!! It's entirely possible I'll make more soon, but this is who I got right now. I also have like the crumbs of a fic for these guys on wattpad but it has like one chapter that was written in 2021 and also features very shitty old art. If yall want it though I'll link it. I do plan on working on it again eventually

[aphantpoet]

In the ATLA fandom there's been a lot of discussion about the new Azula Comic. personally, I haven't read it yet but I was inspired by some of the interpretations I've seen about the characters, interpretations that I believe to be in bad faith. That is not to say that there aren't criticisms you can have about Azula's actions but it is to say that the fandom often focuses on the wrong things in regards to her character. many of these interpretations paint her as bad not because of what she did but because she was angry and mean. So, in dishonour of this criticism I've compiled a list of girl characters that I think would get the same criticism if their shows of movies came out today.

General Leia Organa (Star Wars, OT): Princess Leia was fierce and not afraid to sass back, she was capable and, in some ways, ruthless. She was willing to let Han and Luke be gentlemen and open the door to her cell but she was an active participant in her rescue. If the OT came out to day I have no doubts that her comments like "Someone as to save out skins" and "I don't know where you get your delusions laser brain" would be whines about insistently by Toxic fan boys. Considering the amount of misogyny in the Star Wars fandom and the reaction to little Leia in Kenobi, this one's basically a freebie.

Brandy Silvers (Detentionaire): For a synopsis on the series just look at any of my posts under the Detentionaire tag. Brandy Silvers starts off as a comedic annoyance of a character. She claims lee Ping as her boyfriend after his newfound popularity. She's obsessed with status and materialistic. Despite this, Brandy is capable and attentive; being help on a few missions and remembering Lee Pings favourite dessert. Her character gets better after they "break up" , she gets together with his friend Cam and chooses not to break up with him after he's ousted from his presidency, her hidden vulnerabilities are shown and she becomes a pretty good person. Still, I think the kinds of fans I'm taking about here wouldn't care about those facts and would only focus on season 1 Brandy, who can be a mean girl and a drag as a character.

Sue Ping (Detentionaire): Lee Ping's scary and sweet mother. Sue Ping is a capable and mercurial. despite how harsh she can be with her son she genuinely loves him, this is seen in in moments like when she gives lee one night off from his year of grounding so he can go to the fair and where she gets into a clog gun fight with the new principal who was using a sweatshop as a detention. Once again. I do not think the kinds of people I'm critiquing would care about that nuance and would only focus on how she is loud and harsh with her son, like when heis sabotaged by a classmate with a pen that fades and it causes him to fail a math test.

Tina Kwee (Detentionaire):Tina Kwee is Lee Pings capable and idealistic love interest. When her little sister claims the fall for the big prank Kwee is quick to suspect that lee put her up to it and is very angry with him, she searches to prove her baby sister's innocence and is rude to Lee in the process. Tina is capable and not unwilling to ask hard questions. She gets mad at lee when he puts hi s foot in his mouth on several occasions but she's ultimately vital to stopping the conspiracy.

Angelina Demartinez (Detentionaire):Cam, lee's best friends, bratty little sister, Angelina is initially presented as a terror. Angelina has only three apperances; A background mention in the after math of one of her pranks, a photo of her punching her brother after he gets her a backpack and an actual episode. In the episode she is initially confirmed to be bratty and easily bored, she goads her older brother to watch a horror movie while he is babysitting her. Though the siblings to bond a little bit after after the horror becomes a reality. This one is also a freebie; fandom misogyny+ a kid acting like a kid.

Princess Ursa; Lets face it, looking at Ursa in the comics, if she wasn't Zuko's idealised mother she would be lambasted. Azula is basically a dark version of her mother. The only real difference is that Ursas parents were free to tell her that hitting people's not okay while Azula's weren't and didn't want to. My sympathies to Ursa for her abusive situation but, if she wasn't shown as Zuko's soft mother, she would be basically forgotten at best.

[inherstars]

When we first started dating, my husband told me a story about his Mom and his sister.

His sister, in every way a good girl and a good student, had made some small teenage slip-up of smoking a cigarette or maybe having a drink with her friends, and her parents found out.

Their mother took her out of school the next day, and they went out to get their nails done, their hair done. They had a nice lunch together, she took her out and bought her a cute outfit. Afterwards she sat her down and said, "Did you have a nice time today?" When his sister agreed that she had, their mother said, "Good, I'm glad. You can either have it this way, and enjoy nice things, or you can keep drinking / smoking, and you won't have these things anymore."

Sister decided that nice things and nice days out were the way to go, and it was never a problem again.

When we moved my parents here, I feel like this is the conversation I should have had with my mother.

When we moved them here in the summer of '18, my Mom was still all-in on a steady diet of Vicoprofen and some kind of anti-depressant that I don't remember, the combination of which alternately turned her in a zombie or a rage monster, and had some other unpleasant physical side-effects as well.

It took a good year to get her off of both these drugs. It helped that our area has a huge opioid problem, and doctors are gun-shy about prescribing unnecessary narcotics. Not that she didn't put on a VERY good show. Every day she was wincing and sucking her teeth over some new excruciating pain -- her hip, her back, her shoulder, whatever. When one failed to illicit the reaction she was hoping for, it miraculously got better and something else would start to pain her.

It also helped that when I would take her to these appointments, I would pull the nurse aside and let them know that she has a history of drug and alcohol abuse that she will not personally disclose.

She went through a LOT of doctors those first few months. You could tell the instant she asked for narcotics and was denied, because it was immediately a snappish declaration of, "I don't like this doctor, I don't think he knows what he's talking about."

Eventually all that shit got out of her system. The pains all suddenly went away, no more ooch'ing and ouch'ing, no more falling asleep slumped over her chair, no more shitting herself constantly and losing her dentures constantly.

For a long while, in fact, everything was fine. Which isn't to say she was always pleasant, because she's often still miserable and ungrateful, but she definitely became more tolerable. And for a while we had a pretty decent relationship.

I would take her out shopping, and introduced her to stores that she'd never been to before, and enjoyed. I would bake things for her and buy her little gifts. We would send each other memes and funny cat videos back and forth on Instagram. It was probably as good as it had ever been.

The problem is, I let my guard down. And that's where I fucked up.

She had an unrelated medical event (unrelated, although directly caused by her love of self-diagnosing and self-medicating herself, this time incorrectly), which landed her in the hospital, and which she managed to parlay into two separate prescriptions for Oxy, plus some muscle relaxers, plus some barbituates.

Suddenly she was spending all day slumped over her chair passed out, waking up only to argue with me or her husband, or shit herself.

I called her newest PCP, who -- surprise! -- had no idea that she had ANY history of substance abuse, and prescribed Narcan. Then we had a fun trip to the hospital, where we got to spend a fun 4 hours of her alternately vomiting into an emeses bag, howling that she was in pain and that everyone there was an idiot, and insisting that she hadn't taken a single pill that she shouldn't have in the past 27 years.

The level of delusion is astounding. Addicts live in their own reality.

All this to say that it's been a rough month or so of ER visits, hospital visits, rehab visits, medical ups and downs, caring for her and my stepfather while trying to also hold down my regular full time job and not just come home at 8:30 and immediately go to sleep.

She was released from the nursing facility on Wednesday, and immediately got snippy with me, demanding to know where her fucking pills were. Because I guess she assumed I'd just... what, leave them behind?

Right now, tentatively, she is back to taking care of herself and her husband, and I'm trying to get back to what was previously my normal life. She still can't drive, so anything beyond puttering back and forth is still left to me, but at least I don't have to make the trip there twice a day, and get an eyeful of my stepfather's naked 90-year-old ass and balls, because he refuses to wear pants.

But she's also doing things like sending me memes and funny cat videos on Instagram. And it's clear... she wants that back. She wants to have it both ways. I think she thinks I'm "mad at her" and that's why I'm not responding, that's why I'm going through the motions and doing what needs to be done, but declining to hug her or send her heart emojis or be her friend.

I don't want to be her friend. She had the choice of the good life -- shopping trips, little gifts, day to day conversation -- or drugs, and at the very first possible opportunity, she decided she wanted drugs.

I'm not sure if she'll ever ask, but I'm trying to formulate in my head how I'll explain to her, if I need to, that it's over now. The station is closed, the lights are off, the train doesn't stop there anymore.

You had a choice, and you made it, and you are already way, way past your lifetime allotment of do-overs.

[divinityunleashed]

"Epic Rap Battles of Divinity!"

"Purple Heart!"

"VS"

"Goku Black!"

"Begin!"

BGM: Hyperdimension Neptunia V - One, Two, Three

"You're seriously approaching me, mortal? You're worthless even with your return, you were just second rate trash try to mess with this divinity? It's pointless when all you seem to know is how to chug pudding like a fatass."

"It's crazy to think that you used to be the mascot for this writer I didn't need to transform into a Super Saiyan in order to beat you four against one yet still you went down, it's honestly appalling that despite all your accomplishments you still excel at losing."

"How's the sister doing? Oh wait, she vanished trapped in a pocket of reality that you sent her to, how tragic and now you claim you're back to normal but clearly you're damned so get on with your verse before your presence leaves me bored."

"That's right, I was the mascot for our writer, well before you without me, he wouldn't of thought to come back to present you they don't call it Neptunia without 'Neptune' and that's the truth to think you can just walk in unannounced is so uncouth."

"You claim that you didn't need to transform to beat us yet you needed it to beat the one whose body you stole, hilarious you're all talk, you claim to wield the power of the gods but couldn't get your boyfriend to preserve the goods."

"Now run on back to Zamasu like an obedient pet because let's be honest, you beating me is an impossible bet declaring your project to destroy all mortals in the universe yet only one was all that was needed to guarantee your erasure."

"How about this, the beautiful colour of a true god!"

"My very being towers above all, all things, the whole universe! while yours is nothing more than a tantrum, not even worth. you should learn when to quit while you're ahead because after I'm finished here, you'll be left with immense dread."

"Now stay still and face your demise at the hands of divine fury and have a taste of divinity so rich you'll fall prematurely!"

Goku Black fired a projectile towards Purple Heart and engulfed her in smoke, but when she was revealed, her Next Generation form took her place.

"Sorry, but I'm not about to lose to someone like you."

"I'm next generation, the future of games in every world and now I'm about to send you back to the otherworld with the power of my friends besides me, I will prevail but all you will do is succumb to fate and fail."

"Together with the wishes of the people of Gold Third I will defeat you and ensure that peace is preserved now it's time to win this battle and deliver retributions and destroy all of your delusions."

[simp2537]

Fairy of Monsters

Chapter three

Kalopsia

(n.) the delusion of things being more beautiful then they really are

As Vanessa and Mike compliment the world around them Alastaria took in a shaky breath. Alastaria scolds herself for staying up so late but after everything that had happened how could she sleep.

I’m one night she had to make a choice that would define her future. Her sister’s future, and all she wanted was to ensure Bloom would be safe in this new world.

“Hey, it’s like there’s an invisible wall. I can’t get through.” Mike says breaking Alastaria’s trance. Mike and Vanessa both attempt to go through but are stopped.

“Where is it I can’t feel anything, are you guys pulling my leg?” Bloom ponders while walking where her parents couldn’t. Kiko grabs at Alastaria’s pant leg and pulls her next to Bloom.

“Come on mom and dad even I could walk over here.” Alastaria sighed.

“No honey, moonflower honestly.” Mike explained confusion as why he couldn’t move forward.

“Stella did you do that by any chance?” Bloom asked.

“No, Bloom it’s a protective barrier, it keeps non/magical creatures out of Alfia. I’m afraid you can’t go any further.” Stella informed.

Bloom ran to her mom while Alastaria went to her father. Vanessa began to speak softly and warmly to Bloom ignoring Alastaria. Use to the treatment of her mother Alastaria turned to her father hoping for words of encouragement.

“Moonflower, I’m sure you’ll do amazing.” Mike praised. Tears threatened to fall from Alastaria’s eyes as she hugged her father. Mike softly pet his daughters hair and pressed a soft kiss to her head.

“It’ll be okay Alastaria. I’m sure you’ll make new friends and have an amazing time.” Mike reassured. Alastaria nodded and went over ti her mother. Bloom had moved away and Alastaria hugged her mother.

Vanessa merely hugged her back, no real kindness in the hug. “I love you mom.” Alastaria mumbled.

“I-I love you too.” Vanessa fumbled.

“Kiko you keep an eye them.” Mike told the rabbit.

“Don’t worry they’re in good hands. Come on we gotta go.” Stella said to the girls. Bloom turned away from her parents and began to walk with Stella.

“We’ll be home for a visit as soon as we’re able.” Alastaria told her parents.

Stella begins to speak but Alastaria just stares at her father. For as long as she can remember it’s always behind her dad picking her up. Helping her, teaching her, protecting her. Now it’s was her turn, to protect someone.

And that someone was Bloom. Mike sent her daughter one last encouraging smile and mouthed I love you. With that her parents were sent back home.

…………….

Finally entering the castle Alastaria held onto Kiko and her bag looking around. The castle was pink, blue, and tan. It’s was beautifully built.

“Who is that lady over there?” Bloom questioned.

“Griselda head of discipline. It’s okay to let her distract you.” Stella smiled.

As the top talk Alastraria takes in her surroundings. Many fairies stand around the courtyard smiling and talking with each other.

Alastaria feels hopeful that she will make some friends. Alastaria didn’t have many friends back home. Not after the incident anyway. But this was a new place with new pro who knew nothing about her.

“Come on Alastaria don’t fall behind!” Bloom glared. Bloom roughly grabbed onto Alastaria’s arm and began to drag her toward the tall, slim, and well put together women.

“Good morning miss Greiselda.” Stella greeted. Even with Blooms deathly grin Alastaria sent her a cheerful smile.

“Well if it isn’t Princess Stella of Solaria, I never thought I’d see you here after what happened last year. I’m surprised you’ve chosen to grace us with your presence once again.” Greiselda mocked.

“I don’t give up that easily you know.” Stella smiles.

“Right, and who are your friend’s ?” The teacher questioned

“The Princesses of Callisto.” Stella informed.  Alastaria was quickly confused at being call princess.

“Miranda, and Monica Callisto.” The teacher sighed remembering the names.

“Yea that’s us.” Bloom said confidently. The trio enter the school with Bloom pulling  Alastaria’s arm no doubt leaving a bruise.

……………

“This school will be your home for the next five years, but this home can cease to be yours at any moment! This rules of this institution are based on discipline. Disregard these rules and I’ll personally escort you to the front gate! This is not a magician’s school you’re not here to learn hocus pocus! Consequently you may not use your powers in the hallways or other common areas. In fact the only places where you may display your powers is in your classroom under teacher supervision. Is that clear Princess Stella!” Greiselda informed.

As Greiselda continues Alastaria’s looks over at the girl next to her. She had brown skin, brown hair with lighter highlights in the front, and green eyes. The girl sends Alastaria a friendly smile.

“Sorry I’m late I hope you’ll excuse me.” An older women says.    

“Ladies here comes your head mistress. Attention!” Greiselda scolded.

“oh really there's no need to be so stodgy i hope miss griselda hasn't frightened you too much.” The lady smiles.

“Welcome to Alfia, the best fairy school in the whole of magics. Mind you it’s also the only one come on in ladies.” She smiled opening the door to the school.

………….

“The school is incredible. I’ve never felt so welcomed.” Alastaria laughed.

“Then you’ll like headmistress Ferraganda. She always says the same things buts she’s really nice. “ Stella gushed.

“Who are the witches of cloud tower?” Blood asked.

“Magics had three schools. Ours is one, they’re the red fountain school of specialists that’s where the squad guys go. Finally there’s the witches school of cloud tower.” Stella says.

Bloom nodded and a question pops into Alastaria’s head. Witches were all that bad. Sure some were gonna be bad but some should be good. Like everything they’re a good side of it and a bad side.

Arriving at their apartment the girls enter.

Stella points out her room which shrek share with Bloom and Alastaria shares a room with someone. Bloom steps into a vine and the plant bag in to cry out in pain.

“What is that!” Bloom yelled.

“Oh excuse me. I just got here and I left my thinks all over the floor. This is a talking plant. One of creations.” The same girl from before informed.

“My name is Flora.” Flora introduced. As her plant falls over Alastaria goes to help.

“I’m Monica, nice to meet you.” Alastaria introduced herself with a smile helping Flora with her plant. Bloom backs out of the room trying to remember her fake name when another girl makes herself known.

“Callisto fourth world of magic realms upper ring wow. That’s quite a ways away. Hi my names Tecna.” Tecna says. All the girl go and greet Tecna while Tecna tured to Stella.

Another girl enters and makes a joke about Stella blowing up the potions lab.

“Hey I’m Musa.” Musa smiled at Alastaria.

“Monica, nice to meet you. I like your pants. Alastaria compliments.

“I like pendent, wait no your amulet. It’s so cool, I’ve never seen anything like it.” Musa smiled.

In Flora and Alastaria’s room Kiko screams while being held by Flora’s plant.

“Bad plant! Put him down right away!” Flora scolds her plant. Alastaria runs her tired eyes and grabs Kiko away from the plant.

“Don’t yell at the plant. I wouldn’t be surprised if Kiko was trying to eat it.” Alastaria sighed. Flora giggled lightly and grabs a bowl.

“You hungry little bunny, here.” Flora said while pour some seeds into the bowl. The seeds quickly grow into carrots and Kiko grabbed one. Bloom marched up to Alastaria with a fierce glare.

“ I can take care of my own pet!” Bloom glares at Alastaria. Flora sent Alastaria a worried expression at Blooms harsh treatment. Bloom gripped onto Alastaria’s arm over the bruise she had made.

“Speaking of food what do you say we eat out tonight. It’ll be our way of celebrating the new school year.” Stella suggested. Bloom pulled Alastaria next to her and nodded her head.

“Great idea, that’ll give us a chance to get to know one another.” Flora says with a smile. Musa looks over at Alastaria and takes in the dark circles under her eyes.

“Anyone for pizza?” Bloom suggested when she noticed the girls eyes on her. Bloom let go of Alastaria and wrapped her arm with hers in a sisterly way.

“What’s pizza?” Musa asked no longer sending Bloom an odd look.

“Yeah what is it?” Flora pondered still feeling odd about Bloom.

“It’s the national dish of Callisto, more or less.” Bloom lied.

………….……

The girls sit down and and Tecna examines Blooms phone.

“This is horrible how am I supposed to call my boyfriend!” Bloom growled. Alastaria looked down at her lap at the mention. Flora and Musa share and look of confusion.

Tecna also send an odd look to Alastaria.

“Is there a pay phone we can use? I want to call our parents.” Alastaria asked the girls. The girls nod and point Alastaria and Bloom to a pair of phone booths.

“Hello Bloom?” Vanessa asked.

“No mom it’s me Alastaria. How’s everything going?” Alastaria mumbled. Alastaria scolds herself internally. She wished her dad had picked up but it was unfair of her to not want to talk with her mom.  It was probably her fault their relationship wasn’t as strong as Blooms after all Alastaria manly talked with her father.

“Where’s your sister? You left her didn’t you! I swear Alastaria if you left your sister!”Vanessa starts but Alastaria quickly interrupted her mom.

“No mom I didn’t leave Bloom. She in the phone wi-with her boyfriend.” Alastaria’s voice quivered at the mention.

“Oh she on the phone with Andy. Well then no worries. I trust your classes went well today.” Vanessa says. Alastaria beams at the thought of her mom wondering how her day was.

“We actually didn’t have class today. We start tomorrow, but I promise I’ll do my very best. And o won’t stop practicing my sports or anything don’t worry!” Alastaria beams.

Knut the troll passes by Blooms booth and she quickly exits her booth.

“Mom I need to go my friends are calling me. I love you.” Alastaria explained quickly.

“Okay tell Bloom I love her.” Vanessa says.

“Okay, bye mom!” Alastaria says happy she had a successful childhood conversation with her mother. Alastaria quickly leave her booth pulling out the card Musa let her use.

Finally finding her sister Alastaria gasped. Her sister was encapsulated in ice. She fail to protect Bloom. Her one job she fail.

The witch’s turned their gaze to Alastaria and the leader gasped in shock.

“Her highness.” The white haired witch said.

“Let my sister go!” Alastaria ordered. The three witch exchanged looks unsure of what to do. The leader witch walked forward.

“I’m Icy, this is Darcy” Icy said point at the brunette “And this is Stormy.” She said pointing at the purple haired girl.

“We are the Trix, it’s nice to meet you?” Icy asked.

“Im not a girl who enjoys repeating herself. Let my sister go!” Alastaria glares. The witch smile at Alastaria impress by her.

“Okay, don’t tell us your name. But we’re not just gonna let her go. Knut show use what she can do.” Icy ordered the troll. Knut fumbled at the thought of attacking Alastaria but complied.

As Knut attacked Alastaria she dodge every slow attack. Finding a pipe next to her Alastaria uses it to block Knuts fist.

“Oh come on! Use your powers!” Stormy groaned.

“ Patience sister, I don’t think she knows.” Darcy mumbled softly. Icy rolls her eyes and throws and ice spell at Alastaria. Alastaria drops her pipe and throws her hands up. Black oozes from her hands and forms and protective shield around her body.

“That’s all we needed.” Icy smiles. As the other girls appeared Alastaria fell down exhausted from the sleeplessness night and fight. Stella pulled out her staff and the group escaped.

………….

As Stella comforted the freezing Bloom Flora, Tecna and Musa helps the exhausted Alastaria up from the ground.

“I take it your name is Monica of Callisto is it?” Flora asked softly holding Alastaria. Alastaria could only nod her head.

“I’m sorry I lied. My real name is Alastaria, and I’m from earth.” Alastaria admitted.

“Why did you lie.” Tecna asked.

“Me and Bloom didn’t sign up for the school year so Stella had us lie. I’m sorry.” Alastaria apologized. As Flora confronted Stella about the lie Musa tapped Alastaria’s shoulder.

“It’s okay I’m not mad or anything. I think Alastaria is a much better name then Monica is.” Musa smiled.

Alastaria weakly smiled as the group began their way to Alfia. Flora helped the exhausted Alastaria walk while Musa guilted the pair.

“Alastaria stop being dramatic. Girls she’s fine I promise.” Bloom says not liked the attention Alastaria was getting.

“No Bloom she’s not. She’s exhausted from fighting the Trix.” Flora argued defending Alastaria.

As the girls make it onto campus the lights flood their faces. At the girls get scolded for their tardiness the girls secret is revealed. Alastaria to tired to say much just drops her head in defeat not wanting to go back home.

“Please don’t send us away. I understand we lied about who we were but we can’t go back now. Bloom’s always wanted to be a fairy and know she can be.” Alastaria pleaded with Ferraganda.

Greiselda and Ferraganda share and look about what Alastaria had said. When she was pleading to say she spoke of Blooms wishes not her own. Alastaria begin to fade out and fells herself being to walk.

Alastaria opens her eyes to see Musa and Flora helping her walk to the apartment. At the apartment the decide to call themselves the Winx. Bloom pulled out a small logo and are please with the name.

Fumbling into her room Alastaria rips off her clothes in front of Flora. Flora gasped at the scar over her arm and the other small scars over her body.

“Sorry I forget not everyone is okay with just stripping.” Alastaria realized quick putting on a simple grey nightgown with a small bow at the top.

Flora goes to speak but the words won’t leave her mouth. She wants to asked about the scars but it’s not her place.

“Do t worry about it. Your nightgown is very cute, where’d you buy it?” Flora pondered.

“I made it.” Alastaria smiled. As the girl got into vet they made light conversation about random topics. The girl finally shut off the lights and Alastaria began to drift to sleep.

Unknown to her she would have a restless night as a man watched her from Demore.

[dfroza]

the path of the Son was first revealed to and through the Hebrews (Jews)

as an ancient “Root”

Today’s reading of the Scriptures from the New Testament is the 10th chapter of the letter of 1st Corinthians:

I wouldn’t want you to be ignorant of our history, brothers and sisters. Our ancestors were once safeguarded under a miraculous cloud in the wilderness and brought safely through the sea. Enveloped in water by cloud and by sea, they were, you might say, ritually cleansed into Moses through baptism. Together they were sustained supernaturally: they all ate the same spiritual food, manna; and they all drank the same spiritual water, flowing from a spiritual rock that was always with them, for the rock was the Anointed One, our Liberating King. Despite all of this, they were punished in the wilderness because God was unhappy with most of them.

Look at what happened to them as an example; it’s right there in the Scriptures so that we won’t make the same mistakes and hunger after evil as they did. So here’s my advice: don’t degrade yourselves by worshiping anything less than the living God as some of them did. Remember it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink and then rose up in dance and play.” We must be careful not to engage in sexual sins as some of them did. In one day, 23,000 died because of sin. None of us must test the limits of the Lord’s patience. Some of the Israelites did, and serpents bit them and killed them. You need to stop your groaning and whining. Remember the story. Some of them complained, and the messenger of death came for them and destroyed them. All these things happened for a reason: to sound a warning. They were written down and passed down to us to teach us. They were meant especially for us because the beginning of the end is happening in our time. So let even the most confident believers remember their examples and be very careful not to fall as some of them did.

Any temptation you face will be nothing new. But God is faithful, and He will not let you be tempted beyond what you can handle. But He always provides a way of escape so that you will be able to endure and keep moving forward. So then, my beloved friends, run from idolatry in any form. As wise as I know you are, understand clearly what I am saying and determine the right course of action. When we give thanks and share the cup of blessing, are we not sharing in the blood of the Anointed One? When we give thanks and break bread, are we not sharing in His body? Because there is one bread, we, though many, are also one body since we all share one bread. Look no further than Israel and the temple practices, and you’ll see what I mean. Isn’t it true that those who eat sacrificial foods are communing at the altar, sharing its benefits? So what does all this mean? I’m not suggesting that idol food itself has any special qualities or that an idol itself possesses any special powers, but I am saying that the outsiders’ sacrifices are actually offered to demons, not to God. So if you feast upon this food, you are feasting with demons—I don’t want you involved with demons! You can’t hold the holy cup of the Lord in one hand and the cup of demons in the other. You can’t share in the Lord’s table while picking off the altar of demons. Are we trying to provoke the Lord Jesus? Do we think it’s a good idea to stir up His jealousy? Do we have ridiculous delusions about matching or even surpassing His power?

There’s a slogan often quoted on matters like this: “All things are permitted.” Yes, but not all things are beneficial. “All things are permitted,” they say. Yes, but not all things build up and strengthen others in the body. We should stop looking out for our own interests and instead focus on the people living and breathing around us. Feel free to eat any meat sold in the market without your conscience raising questions about scruples because “the earth and all that’s upon it belong to the Lord.”

So if some unbelievers invite you to dinner and you want to go, feel free to eat whatever they offer you without raising questions about conscience. But if someone says, “This is meat from the temple altar, a sacrifice to god so-and-so,” then do not eat it. Not so much because of your own conscience [because the earth and everything on it belongs to the Lord], but out of consideration for the conscience of the other fellow who told you about it. So you ask, “Why should I give up my freedom to accommodate the scruples of another?” or, “If I am eating with gratitude to God, why am I insulted for eating food that I have properly given thanks for?” These are good questions.

Whatever you do—whether you eat or drink or not—do it all to the glory of God! Do not offend Jews or Greeks or any part of the church of God for that matter. Consider my example: I strive to please all people in all my actions and words—but don’t think I am in this for myself—their rescued souls are the only profit.

The Letter of 1st Corinthians, Chapter 10 (The Voice)

A note from The Voice translation:

One of the strengths of the Jewish people is their corporate identity that comes from belonging to a unique, suffering people deeply loved by God. The tendency for the new, non-Jewish believers may be to create a new identity among themselves because they lack the sense of belonging shared by Israel’s descendants. A new day is dawning, a day when all may come to God regardless of ethnicity, locale, or social class. Believers in Corinth are not part of a new movement; they are a fresh expression of the historic movement of God.

The twenty-first century church needs to hear this truth today as much as the church in Corinth did two millennia ago. The world has changed drastically since the times of Abraham, David, John the Baptist, and even Martin Luther. In the midst of radical economic and technological advances, some within the church are embracing new or contemporary practices and regarding them as somehow superior to ancient and historic practices. Paul is challenging this idea and calling all believers to see themselves as a part of the local, global, and historic church.

Today’s paired chapter of the Testaments is the 11th chapter of the book of Jeremiah:

The word of the Eternal came to Jeremiah.

Eternal One: Tell the people of Judah, and specifically those who live in Jerusalem, to hear the terms of our covenant. Tell them this is what the Eternal, the God of Israel, has to say: “Cursed is anyone who ignores the terms of this covenant. All of this was laid out for your ancestors long ago when I first delivered them from slavery, rescued them from the fire of Egypt. I told them, ‘Hear My voice, and do all that I command you. This way you will be My people, and I will be your God.’ I wanted nothing more than to keep My promise and to bless your ancestors with a land flowing with milk and honey—the land of promise on which you stand today.”

Jeremiah: Yes, O Eternal One! Let it be.

Eternal One (to Jeremiah): Now it is time to announce My message in the villages of Judah and on the streets of My city, Jerusalem. I want them to hear this: “Listen to the words of this covenant, and start doing what it says. I sternly warned your ancestors when I rescued them from Egypt, and I’ve repeated that warning many times, even today, saying, ‘Listen to My voice, and do as I say.’ But they didn’t listen, and they didn’t obey Me. Instead, they deliberately chased their own dark desires, ignoring Me at every turn. So I enforced the terms of our covenant, including the curses that came from refusing to do that which I had commanded them.”

The people of Jerusalem and all of Judah conspire against Me. They have gone back to the sins of their ancestors, who long ago ignored My words. They have chased after other gods and worshiped them. Do you not see how both the house of Israel and the house of Judah have violated the covenant I made with their ancestors? This is why I, the Eternal, declare that I will bring disaster upon these rebellious people. And they will not escape what awaits them. They will beg for My help, but I won’t listen to them. Let the citizens of Judah and Jerusalem run to their precious gods for help. Let them burn incense and pray to their detestable images when trouble comes. Those impotent idols will not be able to save them, no matter how many they have to choose from! For you have as many gods as there are towns, people of Judah—as many altars to burn incense to Baal as there are streets in Jerusalem. Don’t pray for these people, Jeremiah. Don’t bother making any pleas for them, for that time has passed. I will not listen when they call out to Me in their time of trouble.

What right does My beloved have coming into My temple, having done such vile things with so many? Do you really think that animal sacrifice is going to make this all go away? Will you then be able to rejoice? The Eternal once proclaimed you a lush olive tree, full of beautiful fruit. But all that has changed. With the roar of a violent storm, He will now strike that tree—leaving it battered, broken, and burned. Now the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, has decreed disaster against you, the same tree He planted—all because of the evil done by the people of Israel and Judah, all because they provoked Me by worshiping and sacrificing to Baal.

Jeremiah: The Eternal revealed to me the plans of my enemies.

Then You showed me what they wanted to do.

I was like an unsuspecting lamb led to its slaughter.

I had no idea they were plotting against me. They were saying,

“Let’s cut down that lush olive tree and destroy all its beautiful fruit.

Let’s cut him off from the land of the living.

Let’s make sure no one even remembers his name.”

But You, Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, You who judge fairly,

You know the heart and the mind.

Let me see Your vengeance exacted against them;

I am entrusting my cause, my future to You.

This is what the Eternal, Commander of heavenly armies, has to say regarding your men back in Anathoth who are threatening your life and saying, “You will die by our hands if you do not stop prophesying in the name of the Eternal.”

Eternal One: Look, I will soon punish them! The young men will die in battle; their sons and daughters will starve during a famine. In the end, no one from Anathoth who schemes against you will remain, for I will bring disaster upon these schemers when the year of their reckoning arrives.

The Book of Jeremiah, Chapter 11 (The Voice)

A note from The Voice translation:

At this point in the prophecy, Jeremiah reveals a bit of his private struggles. Because he has faithfully delivered God’s messages to the nation, people from his hometown are scheming against him. They would like nothing better than to silence God’s mouthpiece . . . permanently. God, however, lets Jeremiah in on the plot. Wisely, Jeremiah puts his trust in God to protect and defend him.

A link to my personal reading of the Scriptures for monday, September 11 of 2023 with a paired chapter from each Testament of the Bible along with Today’s Proverbs and Psalms

A post by John Parsons that faces fear:

The devil wants you to be afraid, to be very afraid, and indeed, inciting fear is the primary weapon he uses against us... The devil understands that fear profoundly affects the way the human brain processes images and messages: Fear colors the way we see and hear things. And since the mind and body are intricately interconnected, fear is the root cause of many physiological problems such as heart disease, high blood pressure, clinical depression, and other ailments. Left unchecked, fear can be deadly...

Most of our negative emotions come from fearful thoughts, including anger, frustration, and rage. On a spiritual level, fear and worry can cause people to question God’s love, to doubt His promises, and so on. The devil knows that frightening people causes them to be unsettled, off-balance, and therefore vulnerable to all sorts of sickness, manipulation, and deception. Living in fear is a form of slavery (Heb. 2:15).

Logicians call illegitimate appeals to fear argumentum ad baculum, or the “appeal to the stick.” When someone plays on your fears, it is wise to discern whether there is any basis in reality for the supposed threat, or if the appeal is simply a rhetorical scare tactic intended to persuade (coerce) you to accept some sort of conclusion. Unscrupulous people such as advertisers, politicians, dictators, community organizers, social activists, and so on, regularly use fear to manipulate public opinion, of course, and they are only too glad to tell you exactly what you should fear. They are delighted to prey upon your anxieties and then offer you their supposed “remedy.” You know whom they serve, friends...

The war for truth began in the Garden of Eden, when Satan lied to Eve by saying that she would not die if she disobeyed God (Gen. 3:4). Satan cunningly played on Eve’s fear of being deceived to persuade her to disobey. Fear, then, is the emotional center of sin and the opposite of faith. The fearful are referred to as the “unbelieving” and those who “love and make a lie” (Rev. 21:8, 22:15).

God repeatedly tells us not to be afraid – not of man, nor of war, nor of tribulation, nor of various plagues, yea, nor even of death itself (Rom. 8:35-39). Indeed, one of the most frequently occurring commandments in Scripture is simply al-tirah, “Be not afraid.”

But how do we overcome our fear? How can we live our faith in the midst of a worldwide cultural slide into deception and insanity? How can we walk in peace while a worldwide tyranny is crafting a globalist police state wherein no one will be able to buy or sell if they are not wholly subservient to the dictates of an unseen power elite? How else but by wholeheartedly trusting that God is with us? The LORD will never leave nor forsake us, even if we are faced with difficult circumstances. The antidote to fear is heartfelt faith in God’s love for us (1 John 4:18). God saves us from our fears (Psalm 34:4, 2 Tim. 1:7). When we trust that God personally cares for us, we find comfort and courage to face life without fear.

[ Hebrew for Christians ]

========

Psalm 23:4 Hebrew reading:

https://hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/psalm23-4-jjp.mp3

Hebrew page pdf:

https://hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/psalm23-4-lesson.pdf

9.10.23 • Facebook

from yesterday’s email by Israel 365:

When we put all of our energy into work, we can achieve a lot. But it’s easy to lose sight of what really matters. The constant hustle can consume us, leaving us little time and energy for our family, community, and spiritual pursuits. The Sabbath makes us stop and refocus on what’s really important. Refraining from work doesn’t just allow us increased leisure, rather it creates a space to reflect on our values. This way, we stay connected to what truly matters in this world.

That’s why God designed a system in which the world gets a fresh start every seventh day. He wanted us to be continually connected to higher ideals. Creation was limited to six days. The cycle of creation was intentionally set to conclude after day six, ensuring that the Sabbath arrives as a timely reminder to keep us from straying from what truly matters. It is this time of reflection and refocus on the purpose of creation, and what is really important in this world, that allows for its continued existence.

Today’s message (Days of Praise) from the Institute for Creation Research

September 11, 2023

A Response to Threat

“He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor the arrow that flieth by day.” (Psalm 91:4-5)

Today we remember the unprovoked attack on America by Muslim terrorists. Despite attempts to make the country more secure, the threat remains scarcely abated. What should the Christian’s response be? In our text above, we see we have no cause for fear. The physical danger may be real, but our Lord promises protection in tender words likened to a mother bird’s care for her young. Our ultimate deliverance is guaranteed by His sure promises. Trust in His power and truth sustains us as surely as a shield and buckler.

Our hope cannot rest in military might. God does not promise temporal safety to all, for millions have succumbed to undeserved violence. Our last hope is of a different order, firmly grounded in “the LORD, which is my refuge” (Psalm 91:9). He responds to our trust and worship with the promise “with long [better translated as ‘eternal’] life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation” (v. 16). Much more interested in our response to troubles than in our deliverance, He desires us to believe and serve Him, trusting Him even in perilous times.

A New Testament application of this principle is in 1 Peter 3:14: “If ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled.” The remedy? “But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear” (1 Peter 3:15).

Jesus Christ is our example and inspiration. “For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds” (Hebrews 12:3). Fixing our eyes upon Him, we have no cause for fear. JDM

[myblissfulness]

Triduum of Prayer to the Blessed Martyrs of Compiègne  - 02

Scripture Psalm 62

For God alone my soul waits in silence;    from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation,    my fortress; I shall never be shaken.

How long will you assail a person,    will you batter your victim, all of you,    as you would a leaning wall, a tottering fence? Their only plan is to bring down a person of prominence.    They take pleasure in falsehood; they bless with their mouths,    but inwardly they curse.

For God alone my soul waits in silence,    for my hope is from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation,    my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my deliverance and my honor;    my mighty rock, my refuge is in God.

Trust in him at all times, O people;    pour out your heart before him;    God is a refuge for us.

Those of low estate are but a breath,    those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up;    they are together lighter than a breath. Put no confidence in extortion,    and set no vain hopes on robbery;    if riches increase, do not set your heart on them.

Once God has spoken;    twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God,    and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord. For you repay to all    according to their work.

Reading To Quell the Terror, Chap. 4 Abbé de la Marche, a refractory priest exercising a clandestine ministry in Compiègne, counseled Blessed Constance of Jesus, the novice and protomartyr of the Blessed Martyrs of Compiègne during the months that followed their expulsion from the cloister

“My daughter, are wounds inflicted upon your ear when your sisters speak of the guillotine?”

“No, Father. . . .”

“Now I’m going to imagine that they come to take you to prison. . . .”

“Ah! please Father!”

“But come on now—do you really suffer from that?”

“No, Father. . . .”

“Well, next they lead you to the Revolutionary Tribunal where you are condemned to death; do you feel any pain?”

“No. . . .”

“They order you up the steps of the scaffold—does that hurt?”

“No, Father. . . .”

“Well, finally they place you under the blade and tell you to lower your head—is that a torture?”

“Not yet. . . .”

“Then the executioner lets the blade fall and you feel your head separated from your body and you enter paradise—are you happy?”

“Yes, Father . . . I’m no longer afraid.”

Blessed Constance of Jesus (Marie-Geneviève Meunier), novice

Prayer for the Canonization of the Martyrs of Compiègne

Lord our God, you called the sixteen Blessed Carmelites of Compiègne to show you the greatest witness to love through the offering of their blood “so that peace may be restored to Church and State.” Remember the heroic and joyful fidelity with which they glorified you. May your goodness manifest their favor at your side, by granting through their intercession the grace that we ask of you in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary. (mention here) Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

https://carmelitequotes.blog/

[animeyanderelover]

Tw: Yandere themes, unhealthy mindset, unhealthy relationship, possessiveness, obsessiveness, delusions, paranoia, overprotective behavior, clinginess, stalking, worshipping, jealousy, threatening, kidnapping, death

Yandere Demon Slayer Hc’s

Kocho Shinobu

🦋Despite the easy-going smile on her face and the calm attitude she always displayed, Shinobu is way more possessive than the viewer would expect. Her past is mainly to blame since she lost too much already. Her parents, her sister, her students and many more. She can't bring herself to not be possessive and protective if it means that her s/o gets to live a safe life, one that won't be destroyed from demons. The Hashira is one who is aware of her obsession but is ready to act on her darker side if it just means that you will stay alive. The lady is manipulative and uses her cheerful play against you when she sees fit and as someone who observes closely, she knows at one point what strings she needs to pull. Belongs into the category of a stalker since she follows s/o sometimes without them really knowing.

🦋Stalking is reserved for times when she can't be right next to you for whatever reasons, Shinobu is actually the type of girl that prefers to spend time directly with you. Why? Because you make her genuinely happy. Her whole behavior is at the end of the day just a mask to hide the immense hatred inside of her and her slight inferiority complex since she knows that she is from a physical point of view the weakest under the Hashira. With you on the other hand she feels the sparkles of love and joy, she finds herself completely lovestruck whenever she's with you.

🦋I wouldn't call her someone who gets jealous easier or at the very least she isn't someone who shows it very easily. Sure, she is a possessive person but also knows who her allies are or not. The girls in the Butterfly Mansion for example are people she never feels jealous about and even if the Hashira are mostly safe as well, they occasionally get to experience her jealousy. She appears rather playful at first with all of her teasing and the still prominent smile on her face. We do know that her teasing reaches almost a sadistic level with the way she picks on someone. How much she ends up bullying someone is decided by how good she knows the person or by how far the person pushes her temper. Mark my words though, her blade isn't the only thing she laces with poison.

🦋She is merciless since she has sworn to eradicate anything that brings harm against her precious darling which makes it especially bad for demons. Not that they deserve much mercy in her eyes anyways, her combined hatred with her strong love for you only worsens her aspect though. She doesn't even attempt to get along with them if they tried to attack you in any way, it's just a straightforward kill from her side. Humans 'enjoy' the easier treatment which consists of her sadistic remarks and teasing and in the worst case poison. Shinobu isn't unreasonable or anything, her possessive side is a small obstacle from time to time though and if someone triggers her protective side it's even worse.

🦋Putting all of her possessive attributes aside, I don't think that Shinobu would be someone to kidnap her darling for no good reason. She'a able to rationalize that much and holds herself in that aspect back. Surely she does take delight in teasing you and causing you to be all flustered and embarrassed, she would never do something to hurt your feelings or your body. Never. So she knows that being kidnapped by her would most likely only upset you which would upset her in return so she reserves that option for the worst case scenario. Since her body isn't the tallest or strongest she is much more content with using some drug if it comes down to it, letting you fall into a deep sleep which would make things easier for her. Shinobu keeps her s/o most likely busy in the Butterfly Mansion anyways where they work together with her other apprentices.

🦋She would be extremely sceptical and hesitant if her darling would be a Demon Slayer themselves since she can fall into a habit of overthinking what might happen and that has her going paranoid from time to time. She wouldn't say anything against her darling wanting to defend mankind, would prefer it though if they would work together with Aoi and the other girls in the mansion instead of fighting on the front lines. Loves calling you all sort of sweet nicknames that come to mind and she adores it when she can reduce you to a flustered mess with her teasing. What the Hashira appreciates the most is that she can simply be herself around you. She doesn't have to fake her smile anymore since she is able to give a sincere smile and just by knowing that you are safe, she feels at ease.

Kanroji Mitsuri

💓We are talking about the Love Hashira herself here, a jovial and very passionate girl just as much as lover. Mitsuri adores her darling more than she should to the point where she might just come over as a small worshipper. That is simply the case because she loves everything about her darling, even the things that might flaw them or they are insecure about. She is also a very affectionate person. The girl just dotes a lot on you and is constantly showering you with compliments and her affection, PDA is expressed very often if you are fine with it. She might be overbearing, due to her being very considerate about your own preferences and wishes Mitsuri rather prefers to work on a way where she won't just blatantly ignore your opinion though.

💓She is probably delusional, though there is a sprinkle of awareness somewhere. She's sworn to never resort to manipulating you since she only wants to be genuine with you and she has also sworn to never upset you in any way either. That doesn't keep her from dreaming about a happy marriage and a happy life with you together, even if the looming shadow of the demons still dangles above both of your heads. She's due to her affectionate side rather clingy as well and if she isn't on missions, she is almost always with you. A very open girl who wants to be introduced to all of your family and friends and in return introduces you to all of her friends as well.

💓It is maybe thanks to her being so open and understanding that she actually gets so rarely jealous. Her clingy and affectionate nature makes it even to a obvious person clear in just what type of relationship she is with her darling and she is friendly to almost everyone she meets. Her innocent demmeanor shouldn't be taken advantage off since she is very fierce and ready to step up whenever someone makes her darling uncomfortable and doesn't stop. She's most likely open about the whole thing though and lets her darling know that she just felt jealous and you might keep it in mind since Mitsuri isn't the type to get jealous over nothing. Despite that she never expresses any rudeness against the person who made her feel jealous unless they were to be rude.

💓Never spills the blood of a human, though she makes it obvious that she won't just stand on the side lines to watch if someone were to hurt you. If a human has her doing something it will be for a reason that everyone will be able to understand since she acts more on a rational protective side of hers, a toxic person who uses you or someone who harrasses you would be good examples. You don't really know how strong she actually is and I bet such people would be stunned as well, even if she never really harms them. Demons are yet another story since even the Love Hashira doesn't show mercy against a demon in either case, but especially if it involves you.

💓Not one to kidnap you, though she does hope that one day she will live together with you in the same house. Mitsuri might just be one of the very few Yandere who might never resort to kidnapping. Her infatuation is far too strong to ever do anything to upset her beloved darling. Sure, she has her emotional breakdowns if her darling would stumble into a really dangerous situation and end up getting seriously injured, it never keeps her from trying to stay positive and happy so her darling feels better and more encouraged. Mitsuri knows that she can rely on her friends as well and since she shares especially close bonds with Obanai and Shinobu, she never shies away from asking one of them to look a bit after you if she isn't able to do so.

💓One of the tamer Yandere to have and a genuinely sweet one to have as well. Mitsuri is just so extremely happy to be with the person she truly loves and cherishes and plans to spend the rest of her days with you. She knows that this might not be the case since the dangers of dying aren't unlikely with her being a Hashira, she hopes nevertheless. Some of her old insecurities about being too strong that it might scare you or her large appetite might resurface, if she notices that you still love her since this is her true self, she'll be flying on the highest clouds of love. The woman can become rather bashful whenever her darling does something cute and sweet in which case a pretty pink will color her cheeks.

Iguro Obanai

🐍Despite his harsh and strict appearance with everyone else, Obanai displays a high level of insecurity when it comes to his darling. He loathes himself, feeling like his clan is still staining him and for that goes as far as seeing himself as impure. Darling on the other hand might as well be a literal angel in his eyes which makes him the more obvious worshipper in comparison to Mitsuri. Maybe that is why he can't even bring himself to show himself in front of you since he fears to creep you out with his appearance, he's not even talking about the covered half of his face yet. He's the embodiment of a stalker though since he is almost everywhere where you are, watching, protecting and adoring.

🐍He's very protective over his darling to an extent where it might come over as ridiculous sometimes since he even displays distrust against your own family and friends in certain cases. A secret admirer who constantly leaves small presents like flowers, food or clothing behind and he'll be overjoyed when he sees that you're happy with what he's gotten you. Obanai is even possessive despite his insecurities about himself and absolutely forbids any sort of admirers to get close to you which he does by threatening and blackmailing behind the scenes, his overprotective side plays in it as well. You're too perfect for anyone, even if he is in a relationship with you he still feels that way which fuels his possessive side only more due to paranoia.

🐍Obanai is actually a jealous person. He acts on his possessive and protective impulses very often since no one is in his eyes worthy, a part of him does feel like there are still persons better than himself outside there. If he should happen to cross paths with such a person and if they should be someone you know as well, his jealous and possessive sides spike up a lot. He's quite harsh with his words and his actions whenever he is forced to interact with them, his snake shows the same dislike as his master. His eyes always seem to follow the person whenever they do as much as step a bit closer to you and he's happy to point out whatever he notices about them to not be perfect according to Obanai's expectations since you only deserve the best and more. He even stalks them and will be very willing to threaten someone to stay away as well.

🐍Demons are never to be spared from his wrath whenever he gets to know that you caught even as much as a glimpse of one. Obanai wants to spare his darling from a world which tends to be so cruel and bloody, wants to protect you from any sort of harm and is for that more than willing to get rid of every possible danger in your surroundings. This can even extent to humans as well since hurting you is a literal crime in Obanai's point of view. He goes with blackmailing and threatening before things escalate, once they do escalate he is prepared to snuff the life of a human out as well. Literally everything to keep you away from experiencing pain in whatever form.

🐍Kidnapping is the last act out of desperation which would be your life being in serious danger. The only time where he won't crumble and beat himself up because he can't imagine continuing his life without his s/o still being alive nor would he ever forgive himself for not being with them and protecting them. He might just have dubbed you, sweet and beloved you, as the heart that beats outside his chest, the heart that makes him feel alive and human. If he would lose you, he'd lose his purpose and reason of life and that mere thought terrifies Obanai.

🐍Kaburamaru is very fond of Obanai's darling as well and just as possessive and protective as Obanai himself. The Hashira fears immensely that you will fear him for his connection with snakes or that you will be disgusted if he should ever show you his whole face. He feels ugly and tainted and the insecurities of not being good enough plague his mind quite often, specifically when you're not around. When he is with his darling and they shower him in more affection and love than he deserves, he tends to forget all of his insecurities and misery. Surprisingly touch-starved. Mitsuri is a very big supporter of Obanai x darling and let's be honest, even if she is a bit clueless about love, she probably tries her best to set you two up and will be ecstatic when she finds out that you two are in a relationship.

[versadies]

Hey hey!! I've been following you for a while now and I love your work sm aaa

Saw the event, I love soulmate au's 😩‼ as a gemini, may I request a gemini prompt + kaeya? Up to you who the enemy is, I trust you ^ ^

-🦚 @pavo-ocell-me

someday, one day (hc scenario)

penpal: omg hi !! im glad u love my work, i hope this is to ur liking 🙌

prompt: gemini the twins, enemy-lover soulmate au

pairing/s: kaeya x gn!reader

sypnosis: when you thought he was your enemy but is actually your lover.

includes: spoilers on diluc and kaeya's backstory, spoilers on genshin's official webtoon, violence, physical pain, burns, arguing, enthusiastic!diluc (pls take note that its canon that he USED to be like all the other pyro characters b4 his father's death.),

when you first met diluc, it felt like he was your knight in shining armor.

the first time you two met was when you accidentally fell down from your balcony after leaning too much on the railing and diluc managed to catch you bridal-style whilst he was on patrol around the city as a knight.

it truly was romantic– and a near-death experience for you.

so when you found out that his name is imprinted on your wrist, you felt ecstatic, and so did he.

since then, you two were known as the youngest soulmates who had found each other in mondstadt, people admiring your relationship with envy and happiness.

of course, you and diluc were a happy couple. although you would be lying if you said diluc is overall your type, you managed to find yourself falling in love with the man.

when crepus, diluc's father, found out about diluc's once-in-a-lifetime moment, he simply laughs and pats you and his son by your backs with a proud smile.

"by the time my son turns 18, we better make arrangements of your wedding! it's a ragnvindr tradition, after all." he comments eagerly. you honestly weren't sure if the man was joking or not.

it didn't take long before you meet his dear brother, kaeya.

when you find out his brother's name is the same as the one that's imprinted on your other wrist, being surprised is far from your reaction.

"don't worry about it, y/n." diluc reassures you one night as the two of you stroll around the city together. "i'll make sure nothing will go wrong between you and my brother. besides, you always have me, right?"

if diluc hadn't tried what he said, perhaps things would've gone differently than now.

in fear of being enemies with your future brother-in-law, you decided to avoid kaeya like a plague, giving the young man apologetic looks whenever you walk away from his presence.

as much as you're avoiding the man, you couldn't imagine hating on kaeya. every night, you always think of what can make kaeya your enemy. what is there to hate him? he's funny, chivalrous, everything that screams your type of men.

wait.. type?

your heart drops from the moment you started thinking romantic things about diluc's brother, looking behind you to see your soulmate sleeping soundly with a frown plastered on your face.

is diluc really your lover?

doubts started to cross your mind. what if diluc isn't your soulmate? what is there to prove that kaeya is your enemy? are you just overthinking things?

"i can't think about this." you murmured to yourself, pulling up your comforter before laying back down on your bed and try to fall asleep.

"i have a wedding to worry about next year."

just as you said, you did try not to think about the possibilities you have with the two brothers, distracting yourself with tasks and dates with your lover, who's quite oblivious to your problems going on inside your head.

unnoticed by you, you weren't the only one who has been burdened with your thoughts.

by the time diluc's birthday has arrived, the two of you started to get excited from your future wedding, excited to finally marry each other after years of spending your adolescence together.

you didn't expect an inconvenience during diluc and crepus's trip.

you didn't expect crepus trying to save diluc from a monster using something that no one but snezhnaya has ever heard of.

you didn't expect crepus asking diluc to put him out of his misery.

you didn't expect diluc to come strolling back to your shared home with blood stained in his clothing at a late hour.

you never, ever, expected your lover to fight his own brother when he took a visit.

and you did not expect your lover to plan on leaving you and everyone.

"what do you mean you're... you're leaving?" you ask in disbelief, staring at diluc as though he has two heads. "can't i go with you–?"

"no, this journey will be too dangerous for you–"

"this applies to you as well! you're not an immortal or some god–"

"i can do this on my own, y/n." he says with his eyes narrowed. you couldn't help but scoff in disbelief. this isn't the diluc you know and loved.

"but diluc.. isn't this too much? your father... i know crepus's death is too much but, why can't you stay?" you whispered, cupping his cheeks. "what about our wedding? the life you and i planned after your bi–"

"my father died and you're seriously thinking about our wedding?!" diluc forces your hands away from his face, glaring at you. "why can't you understand that i'm trying to find out the truth on this delusion–"

"i do understand!" you yelled out. "i do understand that you want to do this for him but what about monstadt? the knights? what about your brother–"

"HE'S NOT MY BROTHER!" he yelled, lashing out at you as you screamed in surprise when you saw fire in front of you, immediately covering your face with your arms out of reflex.

you didn't notice how your lover's eyes widens on what he did,

you couldn't notice him, not when you're too focused on the huge burns on your arms.

"oh my god..." diluc murmurs, slowly taking a few steps back as he takes a look of what he did, ignoring the sudden presence of adelaide and elzer, who both gasped from the scene.

your eyes starts to water from the intense pain, trying not to cry out and scream your heart out in fear of making your lover feel regret. you could honestly care less on what diluc is doing, all you could think about was the intense burns from your arms.

suddenly, the door was slammed open by kaeya– who was wet from the rain outside.

"what the hell did you do to them?!" kaeya exclaims, running towards you with a shocked look on his face. "i'll take you to the cathedral alright? the sisters will heal you." he whispers, wiping off the tears from your face as he wraps his arm around your shoulder and takes you towards the doors.

before diluc could let out a word from his mouth, kaeya gives him a glare.

"you may hate me for what happened," kaeya says.

"but for celestia's sake, don't ever come to them or call them your lover ever again."

that was the last time you saw diluc.

you eventually find out from the chattering nuns that the man had already left monstadt with no news of when he'll return, causing everyone to pity you and for diluc about what happened.

you were thankful that no one except the nuns found out about the incident of your arms.

throughout your stay in the cathedral, you usually find kaeya beside you, keeping an eye on you with a concerned look on his face. you honestly couldn't imagine what would've happened if the man didn't storm inside dawn winery. would diluc actually try to help you later on and leave? would you have suffered more with your injuries as he stands by watching you in disbelief?

whatever outcome you could think of, your heart ached from them all.

would diluc stayed had he been the one who tries to take care of your injuries?

either way, you knew the man is no longer the one you fell in love with from those years ago.

as years grew by, so did your friendship with kaeya.

although it was awkward from the start, you eventually warmed up to the man who you thought is your enemy, feeling more comfortable with him than before.

the two of you started having careers by then, with you having a successful career whilst kaeya becomes the calvary captain of the knights of favonius.

although the two of you are busy, you agreed to always meet each other at night in angel's share, where you drink the night away and talk about anything that comes out of your minds.

there wasn't a day when you thought about diluc.

thankfully, your burns weren't too severe and is slowly fading away throughout the years. but that doesn't mean the memories you had from it disappeared as well.

ever since that dreadful night, you started having nightmares about the incident, always finding yourself sitting up from your bed with a scared look on your face.

you wished you didn't want to see diluc this way, but you honestly couldn't bare to face him if he ever comes back to the city.

you don't see him as a lover or a friend. all he is to you at this very moment is your nightmare.

your nightmares simply washes away when kaeya comes up in your mind.

whenever you think about your so-called destined enemy, you felt comforted and safe. it was understandable really! you were touched by how he took care of you regardless of you being his "enemy".

however... now that you could think about it, the calvary captain has a lot more common with you than diluc himself. the fact that his brother made you laugh a lot and supported you in many ways made you started thinking that maybe diluc really isn't your destined lover.

your heart skips a beat from the thought of kaeya being your true lover, the smile you wore never fading away.

perhaps when you're finally starting to move on from the relationship you had with diluc, maybe... just maybe, kaeya could be the one you've been hoping for.

you started to sleep more peacefully, excited for the future that awaits.

somewhere in the calvary captain's home, the man is dreaming and hoping of you too.

[the-broken-truth]

Can I request RE8 women (Lady D 、Donna...etc,you can pick who you want to write!)be protected by a human who wear full Knight's armor,use sword and sheild to fight,and they think that knight is a man.

But one day, that knight take off the helmet,and they are wrong,the knight is a woman.👩 ⚔

Sorry if I misspelled something, English is not my first language.

Broken Truth (Sharpening my sword): Hm, Dimitrescu or Donna... Dimitrescu or Donna... Hm... Why not both? Let the words weave together!

[Mother Miranda's Chapel - During A Lord Meeting]

"Thus, it would be better if you all were to... Alcina!" The Raven Winged Woman yelled out all of a sudden, causing the regal woman to jolt in her seat and almost drop her cigarette.

"Huh?! What?! Yes, Mother Miranda?" She asked as she looked at the woman in the golden mask.

"In case you forgot where you are - we are in the middle of a meeting and you are allowing your mind to wander instead of remaining focused. Care to explain why you are so distracted?" Miranda asked as she folded her arms with a glare under her mask.

"Please, forgive me, Mother Miranda - I was still...trying to analyze something that happened yesterday. You see - a few of the village's man-things decided to attack my castle." Alcina began.

"What's new about that? You report an attack on your castle once every two to three weeks; what makes this one so different that it's distracting you from the meeting?" Miranda asked.

"Well, Mother Miranda - It wasn't the event itself but the person who came out of nowhere and slaughtered all of the opposers." Alcina said with a slight blush on her face.

"Person? What person?" Miranda asked.

"Well... A Knight."

[Flashback - The Day Before - Attack On Castle Dimitrescu]

Once again - the reckless males of the village gathered again to attack the residents of the grand castle that overshadowed their home, but there were more of them than last time. The full moon shined over the castle, lighting the area around the - there were at least 50 or 60 humans there; armed with farming equipment or small handguns. Alcina and her Daughters were standing before the grand door of their castle - claws and sickles ready - the first man who held a pitchfork made a dash for the eldest daughter but before he could even get close to her, the silhouette of a caped figure shrouded the light of the moon before the figure came crashing down in the middle; acting as a bridge between The Dimitrescus and the Opposers.

The figure rose to their feet and the light of the moon made their features known to all. They were tall - at least 7 feet tall - dressed in a black metal armor that bore wolves on the shoulders and in the chest plate, the eyes of the wolves had rubies for eyes; even the helmet was in the likeness of a wolf and the back of the legs had a tail made of fur - was it real or did the wearer hunt down a beast and take its tail as a trophy. By their side, the pommel of the sword shined in the moonlight and even that was a wolf.

"Who the hell are you?!" The man said.

"Silence, you waste of flesh and blood." A deep voice came from the helmet, making the man flinch - a male was in that suit? That would explain the height. "You dare rally drunken minds to harm your masters? You have no honor and thus no worth, therefore..." His hand came over his side and wrapped around the handle of the sword before slowly pulling it out of its case, "You have no lost your privilege of life for even having the thought of harming House Dimitrescu!" He howled as he darted at the crowd of men with the speed of a beast on the hunt.

With a single swing of his sword - the first 10 men were killed. Alcina and her daughters watched in awe as this armored man slaughtered men who harm on the Dimitrescu Family. With another slash of the massive blade, 8 more were killed. He kept at it until the last man - the one who poisoned all the others to fight a losing battle; he was shivering and dropped his weapon as the tall man walked over to him, his armor and sword dripping with the blood of his lackeys.

"You are the orchestrator of this madness - the one who weaved chaos and delusion into the hearts and minds of these men." He growled as he raised the bloody blade over his head. "It is your fault that wives have become widows, children grow without parental guidance, and fathers...bury their sons; let that weigh on your mind...as you face your creator for judgment." The sword came crashing down upon the man - slicing him right down the middle.

"That...THAT WAS AWESOME!!" The excited cry of the youngest Dimitrescu Daughter as she buzzed over to the knight and began asking him questions: Where did he come from? Where he learned to fight like that? Where he got his sword and armor? If he could teach her how to fight? The Armored Man just stared at her.

"Daniela, that's enough." Alcina said as she cleared her throat and walked over to her daughter and savior, "I thank you for your but assistance but my daughters and I could have handled them." Alcina said.

"A Lady of your stature doesn't need to sully herself with dirt - it's not worth your time or the time of your daughters. Your time is precious and should be wasted with trivial matters such as this." He said before turning on his heel and jumped so high that he was once again cast in the moon's shadow before he fell in the forest somewhere, leaving the daughters and Lady of the castle just standing there...with a light blush on the lady's face.

[End of Flashback]

"HA HA HA HA HA! Lady Super-Sized Bitch has a crush! Oh, this is so rich!" Heisenberg laughed to the point he almost fell out of his seat.

"Silence, you stupid man-thing! You're just mad that he is more of a man than you will ever be!" Alcina roared at her brother who was going to shout back when...

"Hold on, ya talking that a tall dude - black armor with wolves all over it?" Angie asked from Donna's Lap; Alcina looked at her confused.

"Yes, that's my knight." She said.

The doll burst out laughing.

"Your Knight?! That's Donna's Knight! He saved her just last week!" Angie smiled.

"WHAT?!" Alcina yelled - jealousy clear in her voice.

"Yeah - it was late one night; we were looking for a plant that grew on the edge of the valley wall when..."

[Flashback - The Valley of Mist]

"AHHH!" The Dollmaker cried out as the rock under her feet broke away and she began to fall down into the misty darkness of the valley she called her home - tears in her eyes, reaching for the growing moon in the sky that seemed to get smaller and smaller with each second. She closed her eye, waiting for the sudden impact that would end her life of misery when she felt another force - an arm secured itself around her waist and she was pressed a cold chest, she kept her eye closed until she came to a stop and slowly opened them when she came face-to-face with a metal face in a wolf snarl.

"Are you alright, my lady? That would have been quite an unpleasant fall." The deep voice spoke from the metal wolf's locked jaws - Donna's eyes widened at the shining [E/C] eyes that looked back at her from the holes in the helmet.

"I...I am alright." Donna's voice came in a whisper.

"That is good to hear. Now, let's get you back to your companion." The Wolfish Knight said as he looked up and lunged himself up the wall with one clawed hand while holding Donna with the other, refusing to let her go. The moment they reached the top, Angie ran up to them.

"Donna! Are you alright?" She yelled.

"Worry not, Little Angel; your mother is safe, I was not going to let anything happen to her." The Knight said.

"Who are you?" Angie asked.

"I have no name, Little One." The Knight said as he held his hand out to Angie, "Now, take my hand and I'll get both of you back home, it gets rather dangerous around her at this time of night." He said.

Angie looked at the black clawed gauntlet for a moment before she took it and was pulled into an embrace and sat in her mother's lap before the knight rose to his full height and carried the woman bridal style before jumping into the trees - leaping through them like a Forest Cat - before falling to the ground in front of Beneviento Manor and sat them both on their feet. The knight gave them a nod before turning away and leaping away once again - gone from their sight.

[End of Flashback]

"Well...Just because she knew him first doesn't mean that she can have him." Alcina said.

"And what makes you think you deserve him? He saved us first and Donna even saw his eyes; you didn't have a decent conversation with them." Angie said.

"He is my knight and I shall not let anyone take him from me, not even my little sister." Alcina growled at Angie.

"Hey, you can't claim him for yourself if he doesn't want you!" Donna said as she rose from her seat.

"And what makes you think he wants you, little dollmaker?" Alcina smirked.

"I don't know what he wants but if he were here, I would as him!"

Oh, fate - how you be a lady.

The Window above Mother Miranda's head caved inward and two figures came crashing into the stone floor of Mother Miranda's Chapel - the first being one of Karl's Massive Lycans - The Varcolac - and...

THE KNIGHT?!

He was holding the beast by its head as it tried to sink its teeth into his armor. The Varcolac's hand lashed out and knocked the knight into one of the stone walls - making a large hole in it.

"My Knight!" Both Alcina and Donna yelled out before glaring at each other, "Your Knight?!"

A flash of black bolted out of the hole and metal arms wrapped around the beast's neck before twisting - snapping its neck. The Knight dropped the dead creature and exhaled before the wolf face he wore began cracking and broke away: revealing [H/L] [H/C] hair, [E/C] eyes, [S/C] skin with a scar across the face and...

A feminine face?!

THE KNIGHT WAS A FEMALE?!

The knight looked up at Miranda and the other lords before bowing in apology. "Forgive me for this interrupting, this beast attacked my home and I had to put it down." She said. Alcina was quick and was at the knight's side with her hand on the knight's shoulder.

"It's quite alright, cavalerul meu (My Knight). You had to do what needed to be done to keep your lady safe. If you wish, I can bring you to Castle Dimitrescu for a meal and a safe place to recover; it's the least I can do, Darling." Alcina blushed at her words while the woman in armor just looked at her in confusion before she was pulled away from Alcina.

"Hey, Tall One! It's been a while! Thanks for saving us from that thing. Sorry about your mask, Donna and I can get it fixed for you and you can stay with us while it gets fixed." Angie said while Donna smiled.

"Excuse me?!" Alcina said as she marched up to her little sister, the knight moving back. "I was the one who invited my knight to stay at Castle Dimitrescu while she heals, you can't roach on my bonding time with my future partner!" Alcina yelled at the veiled woman.

"And who said she wants you, Alcina?! Didn't you see if was uncomfortable with the way you were touching her?! It's clear she doesn't want you!" Donna yelled back.

"She does! Don't you, cavalerul meu?!" Alcina turned to the knight...only to find her gone. "What?!" She looked around, "Where did she go?!"

"She jumped back out that window while you two were arguing. Looks like she doesn't want either one of you." Karl smirked.

"SHUT UP, KARL!!!" Donna/Alcina/ and Angie yelled at him.

[End]

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

Fully Completely 1

Warnings: non-consent sex and rape (series), attempted violence, mutual irritation.

This is dark!Loki x reader and explicit. 18+ only.  Your media consumption is your own responsibility. Warnings have been given. DO NOT PROCEED if these matters upset you.

Series Synopsis: There’s a new face in Birch and he’s come to haunt your door.

Sister series to Smalltown Bringdown, When the Weight Comes Down, and Little Bones

Note: I did not plan to get the first part done so soon. I will probably be setting time aside as I write this to also work on some original stuff. When it comes to that, I’d love if y’all might let me know what you think would be a better medium to release it? Kindle, Patreon, etc. I’m really not sure but if it was Patreon it would like be two series running at once with a chapter of each a month + Q&A and maybe some bonus materials? I am a noob at this shit and it wouldn’t be for a while yet.

Anyways, I’m rambling...

Thanks to everyone for their patience and feedback. :)

I really hope you enjoy. 💋

<3 Let me know what you think with a like or reblog or reply or an ask! Love ya!

Chapter 1: She simply slammed the door

💀💀💀

The garage smelled like oil and snow. The cold air seeped under the closed metal door as you sat on the low stool and affixed the new headlight to the propped up Harley. It was only the start of an impractical rebuild; your brother wanted everything metal replaced with chrome. You thought it was obnoxious but the parts were paid for and you could never complain for money.

You were funded exclusively by the town’s club, your garage not far from The Asp where the members hung out and revved the engines you found yourself looking at more often than you liked. You were good at what you did though and privileged for it. You had the protection of the club without having to devote yourself truly to its bounds.

You checked the wiring and rolled away from the bike to change the station as the radio crackled. The snow kept setting the speaker to static and the noise was driving you mad. You flipped the switch to play the cassette stuck in the drawer, the old stereo beaten up and filthy. Springsteen’s gristled tones filled the shop and you wheeled back to your brother’s ride.

With the storm would no doubt come more work. Your fingerless gloves itched more than they kept you warm. Your fingertips were numb as you touched the frigid metal and the sweat of your palms made the fabric uncomfortable. You were used to it, rather tolerant as your task kept you distracted.

You were interrupted as you bent to look under the tank and get a good look at the exhaust and the rest of the beast’s entrails. You had the new pieces still wrapped and didn’t intend to do it all at once. Jerome could wait for his tacky redesign.

A loud banging came at the metal door and you glanced over in irritation. Anyone in Birch knew to come in the painted door to the left and not hit the large one. You huffed and stood with a groan, your hips sore from the low stool. 

You fixed the front of your fleece-lined denim jacket and pulled the tail of your plaid shirt from inside your jean pocket. You’d been hunched over so long you were all wrinkled. You went past the large door and into the small entryway off the left of the garage and opened it with a tinkle of the rusty old bell above.

You stuck your head out into the gales as the snow continued to fall and squinted at the man in his thin jacket. He stood beside the long luxury car as another man with wild orange hair remained in the driver’s seat and blew into his hands. They were out of place in the small town and you could tell by the way the man scowled at the door that he knew it.

“Hey,” you called to them, “there’s a place down the street. I don’t do walk-ins.”

“Oh, hello, Miss…” he let his voice trail off as he neared and you stared at him rather than provide your name. His accent, his attire, the curl of his lip, it was clear what he thought of you and the bodunk town, “actually I was referred by an acquaintance. One, James Barnes.”

“Bucky?” you furrowed your brow.

“Mm, yes, that one,” he said, “my car will need detailing. We had some difficulties on the motorway.”

“Right,” you tried not to scowl, “well, if he sent you, I guess I can help.”

You left him and the door clattered behind you. He followed a few steps after as you went to the switch and pushed it to raise the wide door of the garage. You waved in the driver of the car and he carefully pulled in beside your brother’s bike. 

He got out and you were surprised by his size, he was taller even then his companion and wider; neither could be described as short. You lowered the door as the thinner man walked along the shelves and the long table along the other side of the garage. The bigger man stood by the car and tucked his hands in his pockets.

“Not much better in here than out there,” the dark-haired man turned back to you, “you have heat in here?”

“You need a better coat,” you said as you rounded the back of the car, “and some boots.”

You glanced pointedly at his leather shoes and bent to reach under the table. You pulled out the space heater and plugged it in as you set on the wood. You cranked it up and smiled at him tritely.

“So, what’s the damage?” you asked as you looked to the other man.

“Headlight, maybe,” he said in a peculiar accent, “some scratches. We had a bit off a run-in.”

You neared and bent to examine the front of the car. You sighed as you tilted your head and clicked your tongue. It was easy enough to beat out the dents and buff out the scratches with a quick refinish. The headlight would need to be replaced and you knew they didn’t carry anything for that model in town. No one there was pretentious enough to drive it.

“If you want the headlight done before you leave town, it’ll take some time to get the replacement,” you warned.

“Oh, and how do you know I’m leaving?” he taunted coyly.

“Well, I know you’re definitely not sticking around,” you scoffed.

“Why wouldn’t I? A quaint place like this, I’m sure there is so much to explore,” he said dryly.

You had no delusions of what Birch was but it wasn’t the part of outsiders to deride the dead end. You stood straight and put your hands on your hips.

“You can go back to your castle, my lord, but you will have to wait out the storm,” you sneered. “Two days for the scratches. If you want to take it back after that and wait for the headlight to arrive, that’s fine with me.”

“Two days for the scratches? Surely you could do it before the morning,” the black-haired man insisted.

“I could but I have other work to do,” you replied, “so you can be patient and take your turn in line after all the hicks who live here.”

You went back to the table and grabbed your phone from where you tossed it earlier. You unlocked it and searched the model of his car and scrolled through the parts list. 

“You’re Bucky’s guest so I’ll send the bill to him?” you asked, “though you do look to be able to afford it yourself.”

“You can invoice him directly,” he assured, “so you’re one of them?”

“One of them?” you repeated as you focused on checking out. The damn internet kept cutting in and out.

“My brother, those men in this town, I never knew a woman--”

“I’m not a biker. My brother is in the club,” you assured him, “so that big blond dope, he’s your brother?”

“Regrettably, yes,” he slithered, “Loki Odinson,” he introduced himself as he rubbed together his hands, the leather gloves doing little to protect his fingers, “my driver is Korg, and you’ve yet to tell me with whom I am trusting my property.”

“Again, there is a shop down the street. Prices aren’t bad,” you finished up your purchase and tucked your phone in your jacket pocket.

He met your eyes as you turned to him and he looked down his nose. You kept on and brushed past him as you went back around the car and sat by your brother’s bike.

“Sorry about the boss,” the other man, Korg, intoned, “he can be a bit--”

“Don’t apologise for me,” Loki snipped, “I needn’t atone to her.”

You rolled your eyes and wheeled around the side of the bike, “if that’s everything, you two can head back out. I’ll let you know when the car’s ready.”

“We might wait for the snow to calm,” Loki suggested.

“I close in an hour, you’re not staying here all night,” you sniffed.

“Trust me, I have no special desire to spend more time with you than necessary,” he retorted, “I don’t think I’ve ever met a woman so volatile as you, dear, and I’ve only just met you. I never expected you people to have very many manners but perhaps what I did presume was too much.”

You bared your teeth but kept at your work. You would worry about kicking him out when you finished the wiring.

“To be fair, had you not spoken first, I might’ve assumed you were a man,” he added.

You paused and glanced down at the open tool box. You weren’t unused to the comments, you weren’t girly in any way but it wasn’t like you were trying to be a man. You wore what was comfortable and in your work, practicality prevailed over aesthetic. Yet, your years of ridicule as a kid made you less tolerant of the comments and those had stopped long ago because you made sure they did.

“Oh, darling, have I upset you?”

“Don’t call me that,” you said as you reached into the toolbox.

“Well, you’ve not given your name and I’d hate call you what I truly think of you--”

The wrench flew from your hand as you stood and spun to him. It barely missed his head and bounced off the wall and plunked onto the table beside the heater. His eyes rounded and the other man looked at him. There was a thick silence as you glared at him.

“If you weren’t a friend of Bucky’s, I wouldn’t’ve missed,” you hissed, “now I will kindly, before I reach for a bigger wrench, ask you to leave.”

He pushed his shoulders back and tilted his head as his lips thinned dangerously. He swallowed and beckoned the other man with two fingers. His cheek twitched as if he would grin and he nodded subtly.

“Well, darling, how amusing you are. These brutes must adore you,” he snarled, “the exterior does indeed say it all.”

You bent and reached for another tool blindly. He blinked and quickly dodged as you flung the next wrench and he followed his henchman to the entryway. Your temper was a match for many men. It kept you safe.

“Barnes did not say his mechanic was a madwoman,” Loki called back as the bell rang.

“What, are you going to tattle on me?” You stormed towards the doorway, “you precious little princess?”

“Princess?” he met you in the doorway as Korg behind him held the door open and the snow blustered in, “I know Barnes will do me no other favours, but do you think he’ll do you any?”

“Get out,” you spat and shoved him, “I don’t need men to take care of me and I have no problem in proving that.”

He bit the inside of his lip in a crooked smirk and winked before he turned away and strutted out into the snow, shielding his face from the wild winds. Korg trailed behind him and the door sprang back into the frame. You crossed your arms and glared at the peeling paint. 

You were tempted to tow his car out and let it weather the storm but you were smarter than that. If he was doing business with Bucky, you would be a fool to get in the way of it. 

💀

The snow dwindled to a lazy dusting, the ground thick and treacherous. That day, you started early and around noon, you headed across the street to the diner for your usual lunch of a club sandwich and black coffee. You didn’t have to order as all the waitresses knew what to expect. You weren’t unfriendly but your association made many standoffish.

You tapped on the lip of your mug with your thumb, fingers hooked through the handle. The sleepy town felt dead in the winter. You were used to the dullness of Birch but tolerance was hardly happiness. It was home, where you’d grown up and you had no certain desire to get out, but you wouldn’t mind a little more than what was expected.

You yawned and gulped down the last of your coffee. It was bitter and left a few grounds on your tongue. You leaned back and grabbed the monthly newsletter from between the salt and pepper shakers. You read through the fun facts which weren’t very fun or even new. They were copy and pasted out Guinness and Reader’s Digest.

You looked up as you sensed someone approach your table but it wasn’t the waitress. The man from the day before slid coolly onto the seat across from you at the booth and smirked over the table. You raised the newsletter again and folded it backwards to read about the weekly knitting circle down at the rec center that was also the library.

“Good afternoon to you too,” Loki said, “it must be fortune I ran into you, I was hoping to inquire after my car--”

“I told you, two days,” you said tersely as you continued onto your horoscope …‘a new force will bring change’... You hated this tripe. You swore, every month they just switched the blurbs under each sign and hit print.

“So be it,” he cleared his throat and you lowered the paper as he shrugged out of his jacket.

“What are you doing? I eat my lunch alone,” you said.

“Well, to be frank, I was pointed here on the promise of some famous cabbage soup,” he explained as he folded his jacket over the seat next to him, “you looked like you needed company.”

“I don’t,” you assured him.

Kimmie came over and set down your sandwich. She greeted Loki and you saw the way she eyed his tailored suit. He stuck out in the town of flannels and denim.

“Hello, sir, can I get you something to drink?” she asked.

“Tea, English breakfast,” he ordered smoothly.

“Oh, sorry, we only have um, um, sorry, peppermint, earl grey, ginger lemon, and green,” she listed off as she tried to remember them all.

“Earl grey,” he sighed, “and a menu.”

“No, no menu,” you insisted, “and you can take his tea to another table.”

“And when we’re through, I’ll take the cheque,” he ignored you and snickered under his breath.

“Kimmie, can I get a to go box?” you asked as you shimmied off the seat and snatched up your coat, “I have to get back to work.” You took out your wallet and counted out the usual amount plus a tip, “thanks.”

“Of course,” she smiled awkwardly and glanced between you and Loki.

She scooped your sandwich back up and scurried away with it. You felt him watching you as you walked away and went to stand by the till as you watched Nora flit into the kitchen. She packed up your food and returned with the box. You took it and headed for the door, ignoring the arrogant out-of-towner on your way.

“Wait,” Kimmie called out your name and you turned back as she held up your keys, “you dropped these.”

You met her halfway and took them from her with a mutter. Again, he was watching you… or still watching you. She spun and promised she’d have his tea shortly.

“Hmm,” he hummed and you head to the door again, “interesting, I never would have put the name to the face.”

You pushed out into the snow and gritted your teeth. You thought of getting the work on his car out of the way quickly so he would leave you alone but your spite made you want to put it off entirely. Whatever. He’d be gone soon enough.

[dreamwritesimagines]

Twisted 25 - The Family Dinner [Spencer Reid x Reader]

A.N.: Thank you so much for your wonderful support my loves! Here’s the next chapter, I hope you will like it as well, and please let me know what you think of it! ❤❤ Ily, kisses! ❤❤❤

Series Masterlist

Warnings: Murder, serial killers, violence, manipulation, mentions of sex, drinking, smoking.

Word Count: 5300

Summary: Family time can be chaotic.

Sharing secrets was difficult, but sharing secrets about one’s past was quite possibly one of the most difficult things that a person could do with who they loved. You knew how difficult it was for Spencer to talk about his past with you, but he stood by his word and told you absolutely everything, with nothing to hide. By the time you finished that conversation, it was almost dawn and yet you didn’t feel tired at all.

After that night, something changed but it wasn’t a bad change like Spencer feared.

You felt even closer to him, if such a thing was possible. In the following week, your relationship was better than ever-

Well.

Until now.

“I don’t believe this,” you shook your head, “I just… I refuse to believe this. After everything we’ve been through, I don’t even want to believe you’d put yourself in harm’s way and betray me like this. I get that you have no regard for your happiness, but doing this?” you ran a hand over your face, “This is too much, Spencer. You have no idea what you’re walking into, what kind of danger that’s going to be waiting there to ruin you!”

Spencer just raised his brows, then looked between the two ties he was holding up.

“So that’s a no to the blue one?”

“No to this whole thing!” you let out a groan, falling back to the bed, “No to this dinner with my family nonsense!”

He chuckled at your dramatics as you huffed out.

“Don’t you think maybe you’re worried about the wrong thing?” he asked, “You’re also meeting your father today.”

“But we know my father is a sadistic cruel demon sent to earth to make everyone’s life miserable,” you pointed out, keeping your eyes on the ceiling, “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but my father isn’t the only dangerous person in my family.”

“It’s just a dinner.”

“No, that’s what they want you to think,” you insisted, sitting up in bed, “Before you know it, they invite you to our place by the lovely countryside, and you’ll walk in thinking it’s just like any other place, there are wolves howling outside and-“

“Why are you giving me the plot of Dracula right now?”

“Because that’s what they are!” you exclaimed, “They’re like vampires! Have you ever wondered why my sister was named Mina? Dracula’s Mina!”

“Your mother loves horror books?”

“Spencer you can’t ignore the signs!” you insisted as he started tying his tie, a small grin pulling at his lips, “They’ll- they’ll suck the life out of you! By the time the dinner is over, you will be begging to see the sunlight again, and you will never be able to. Figuratively speaking.”

“Sweetheart, I’ve already met all of them,” he said patiently and you felt your heart melt, “In case you forgot.”

“Yes, and do you remember how that went?” you asked, “Nolan threatened you, my mother treated you like she was going to hire you and questioned you about everything, and Mina… Mina is a warning by existence.”

“Kenzie was nice though.”

“Yeah, she’s the only good person in our family,” you muttered, then turned your head when you felt his glances on you. “What?”

“Nolan is a part of your family?”

“Ugh, don’t remind me,” you scrunched up your face and grabbed your lip liner and lipstick to walk to the mirror, uncapped it and started applying it, “I’m going to have a billionaire stepfather who looks like a puppy around my mother— that’s not the point.” You put the lipstick into your purse and went to sit down on the bed again while he ran his fingers through his curls as if trying to keep them under control, “I just don’t want you to change your mind because my family doesn’t know how to act normal.”

“Change my mind about what?”

“About this,” you motioned between you and that was more than enough to make him turn his head, his brows furrowed. “I love them, but they’re going to be overly prying, overly dramatic, overly….everything and the next thing we know—“

“That’s never going to happen,” he approached you to crouch down so that he could look at you better, then reached out to entwine his fingers with yours, “That’s why you were so nervous about this?”

You pursed your lips, heaving a sigh and shrugged silently.

“Do you remember what you said to me a couple of days ago, that night?” he asked, “How trust works both ways?”

“You already know almost everything about my past.”

“That’s not it,” he shook his head, “This is about our present, and future.”

“Or lack thereof,” you commented dryly, making him chuckle.

“Do you seriously believe that?”

“They can be a little intimidating.”

“I’ll be fine,” he assured you, “And no matter what happens tonight, or on dinners to come with-“

“Social vampires.”

“With your family,” he corrected you, “It won’t change anything. I promise.”

You cupped his cheek, running your fingertips over his slight stubble and he turned his head to place a kiss into your palm, nuzzling there.

“Fine,” you murmured, “Let’s go see my sadistic demon father then. Should be enough of a practice for tonight.”

                                              ***

When you and Spencer got to the prison your father was held in, Luke was already by the hallway, waiting for you.

“Hey,” he said, “He’s going to be ready in five.”

You nodded, “Okay.”

“And don’t worry, after you guys are done here, I’m taking him to bullpen and he will leave at 7 p.m. latest. Rossi promised, even if there’s a dead body he’s gonna attend the dinner tonight.”

You looked up at Spencer, “Wait, there was a possibility of you not attending if someone ends up dead?”

“I mean if there’s a case…”

“Please don’t kill someone so that you guys can avoid this dinner,” Luke pointed out and you made a face at him, “We took you off our suspects list way too soon.”

“Hilarious,” you deadpanned and one of the guards opened the door.

“He’s ready.”

“I’ll be behind the glass if you two need anything.” Luke said and Spencer squeezed your hand as if trying to assure you everything would be alright.

“Come on,” he coaxed and you nodded, then took a deep breath and entered the interrogation room, Spencer following you. Your father looked up, then raised his brows.

“Oh look at you two, together again,” he said and you rolled your eyes, trying your hardest not to show how nervous you were. You took your seat across from him beside Spencer, and crossed your arms.

“John.”

“Dr. Reid.”

“So that’s why you haven’t had the time to come and see me lately,” your father motioned between you, “I can hardly say I approve but…”

“Oh that’s good. I’d probably kill myself if I did something you’d approve of.”

“Honey, you’re surrounded by CEOs and businessmen, and you went for an FBI agent?”

“What the fuck does that have to do with-”

“How much do you make monthly?” he asked, turning to Spencer, “I mean, I need to make sure-“

“Oh shut up, will you?” you cut him off, “He’s going to be hearing all that nonsense and more tonight, I don’t need this from you too.”

“Tonight?”

You and Spencer exchanged glances and he shrugged slightly, as if telling you to continue. A small smile pulled at your lips and you turned to your father.

“We’re having a family dinner tonight,” you said, “Naturally it doesn’t include you, so there’s one good thing about this bullshit, I guess.”

“Well, if it doesn’t include me you could hardly call it a family dinner.”

Your smile widened and you clicked your tongue,

“Nah, Nolan is going to be there so we’ll be fine. The whole family is there.”

Your father frowned, “Nolan?”

“Yeah,” you said, “Yeah, mom’s boyfriend.”

A silence fell upon the room as he stared at you for a couple of seconds,

“Your mother has a boyfriend now?”

You hissed in a breath,

“You’re right, boyfriend doesn’t exactly cut it,” you said, “He’s going to propose, so I guess we could call him mom’s future husband-“

“You’re lying,” he cut you off and you tilted your head.

“Am I though?”

“She wouldn’t get married,” he shook his head, “No way.”

A laughter escaped from your lips, “Why not?” you asked, “Because she loves you?”

“Yes she does.”

“The last time I checked, she called you a monster and was hoping you would die as soon as possible,” you stated, “Barely a love story.”

“Of course you wouldn’t understand,” he said through his teeth, “Your mother and I were in love, Petal. We still are, regardless of divorce, or this.” He motioned around the room and you blinked a couple of times, trying to wrap your mind around it.

“Jesus, you really are delusional.”

Spencer muttered your name to remind you to be careful, but you shook your head, keeping your eyes on your father.

“I’m pretty sure Nolan could buy this whole prison,” you motioned around, “I should suggest that, as a wedding gift.”

“They won’t get- hold on,” your father said, “Did you say Nolan? Nolan Yates?”

“Mm hm.”

“Nolan fucking Yates is going after my wife?”

“Ex-wife who hates your guts,” you corrected him and he gritted his teeth.

“I knew it,” he spat, “The first time I saw him at that gala, I saw the way he looked at your mother. They’re not getting married.”

“Okay then you lunatic,” you scoffed “I guess you need something to have delusions about while we’re out there moving on—“

It happened in a flash. One second you were talking, the next you were cut off as your father jumped on his feet, Spencer pushing you out of your chair to behind him almost automatically.

Then, something in Spencer’s eyes shifted.

He grabbed him by the arm, twisted it and slammed him down to the table in front of you, making you cover your mouth, your heart beating in your throat as the door opened with a bang and Luke and two guards came in.  Luke was the first to pull Spencer off of your father, telling him to let go while one of the guards grabbed you and pushed you out of the room before he made his way to your father still trying to get out of the handcuffs and lunge at them as if he was a man possessed. They dragged him out of the interrogation room to what you assumed was the hall that led to his cell while you stood still by the wall, trying your hardest to snap out of it but your mind was almost foggy.

“Excuse me,” you managed to say as you made your way to the bathroom, your hands still shaking. Thankfully no one was there, so you rested your palms on the sink, taking a deep breath before you turned on the tap, holding your hands under the ice cold water.

“Okay,” you muttered to yourself, “It’s fine. You’re fine. It happens, you have a fucked up family.”

You rolled your shoulders back, that crazy light in your father’s eyes flashing in your mind before you shook your head, exhaling slowly.

“Y/N?” Spencer’s voice reached inside as he knocked on the door, “Can I come in?”

Your heart was still pacing in your chest but you cleared your throat.

“Yeah,” you called out and he stepped inside, his lips pulled into a thin line as he offered you a small smile.

“Hi,” he said gently, still keeping his distance, standing by the now closed door. “Are you okay?”

You nodded, crossing your arms, adrenaline still pulsing through you, “Yeah, of course.”

“I’m sorry,” he said and you pulled your brows together.

“Huh?”

“That you had to see that,” he said, “I know I shouldn’t have slammed him down like that, but when he lunged at you, I just…. I saw red. I understand that it was hard to watch and I apologize—“

“Hold on,” you cut him off, gawking at him “You’re apologizing because you stopped that psycho from lunging at me?”

Spencer frowned as if he was confused at your own confusion, and nodded.

“Yeah. Human mind is very complex, so even if you think you hate him, it could’ve been difficult for you to see him hurt, not to mention it was me who did that. Jung has a theory that states—“

“Spencer,” You interrupted him again, “Lock the door.”

His frown deepened but he did as you asked, but he didn’t get to ask why when you walked to him and pulled him into a kiss, wrapping your arms around his neck and standing on your tiptoes. His hand cradled your head, a sigh of content escaping him but he pulled back when you grabbed his tie to loosen it.

“Wait, here?” he asked, “Y/N, this is a bathroom.”

“Yeah, I’m aware?”

“Do you have any idea how unsanitary this place probably is?”

“Oh, very unsanitary,” you stated, “On the other hand, though…”

You shrugged your shoulders and pulled your silk blouse over your head, so that he could see you in your bra. He stared at you for a moment and he swallowed thickly, his eyes snapping up to yours when you giggled.

“You make a good point,” he muttered before he pulled you into a kiss and walked you back to the sink.

                                                ***

Unfortunately, the rest of the day wasn’t that fun, especially when it was time to get to your mother’s house for the family dinner. You had insisted on picking Spencer up from work after you were done at your work, so that you would at least try to change his mind on the road again, but when you actually arrived to your mother’s place, he still looked like he wanted to do this.

“Last warning,” you said as Spencer looked up at the house, then twirled the flower bouquet in his hand, “Not too late to change your mind professor.”

“I’ll be fine, come on,” he offered his free hand and you took it, then both of you climbed the stairs to the front door.

“I’m a little nervous, in case you couldn’t tell.”

“You hummed the Darth Vader theme for the whole road,” Spencer reminded you, “I had a feeling you were nervous, yeah.”

“Abandon hope all ye enter here,” you quoted Dante as you both reached the door and Spencer scoffed a laugh.

“Ah we went from the den of vampires into the gates of hell, then?”

“Yeah! As Dante would put it, to a place we come where nothing shines.”

“I doubt he envisioned this when he was talking about the circles of hell.” He rang the doorbell and you let out a small whine, looking up at the dark sky.

“There are worse people than me out there,” you said as the footsteps came closer, “Why am I being subjected to—“

“Spencer!” your mother greeted him as she opened the door and you frowned.

“Since when do you answer the door?” you asked and she shot you a look before smiling at Spencer.

“Hello Ms. Knight.”

“Welcome, both of you!” she gasped at the flowers, “For me?”

“Oh—yes, of course.”

“They’re lovely, thank you!” she said and took them from him, “Come in, come in!”

“No I’m serious, did something happen to Tina? You never answer the door.”

“It’s nice to see you too sweetie, I see we started our dramatics on the way.” she kissed your cheek and you smiled.

“Hi mom.”

“Let me put these in a vase.”

“Spencer!” a gleeful scream rang in the hallway as your mother went to the kitchen and Lily threw herself at Spencer who crouched down as soon as he saw her “Hi!”

“Hi there! Whoa, you’re very strong!”

“Just in time for bedtime,” Kenzie walked into the hallway with a wine glass in her hand, “Hi guys.”

“I told mommy you’re a magician! And grandma, and Nolan too!” Lily counted with her fingers, “And I told them- I told them you can make coins disappear, and that you can do magic with paper, and then—“

“Bug, breathe,” you said, “Also, where’s my hug?”

Lily hastily rushed to you to hug you, then turned to Spencer as if she wasn’t interrupted while he just watched her with a fond smile on her face, listening intently to everything she was saying, and that warm feeling spread through your stomach again.

“And then I told Bobby I know a superhero, then he told me superheroes can’t be magicians but he’s wrong! Do you use magic to catch bad guys? Because if you do, I can help you with your superhero name!”

“Alright, auntie time.” you lifted her up into your arms as Spencer straightened up, “Sorry about that.”

“No, don’t,” Spencer shook his head, still smiling, “Please, I… she’s amazing.”

“Lily,” Kenzie said, “Bed time, come on.”

“Can you show me a magic trick please and thank you?” Lily said breathlessly and Spencer let out a laugh before turning to Kenzie.

“Is that okay?”

“Sure thing.”  

Spencer took out a coin from his pocket and held it in her sight, “Alright Lily, this is just a coin, right?”

“Don’t let him trick you,” you whispered to Lily who giggled, then nodded fervently after checking the coin.

“Yes.”

“Okay, keep your eyes on it,” Spencer showed it to her one more time before he put it into his palm, closed his palm and when he opened it, the coin was nowhere to be seen. Lily gasped, her jaw dropping and you couldn’t help but smile at her expression, her eyes shining with awe. You pressed a kiss on her cheek as Kenzie took her from you, and she let out a whine.

“But you all will have fun here!” she murmured, pouting and you heaved a sigh.

“Lily I can assure you, no one will have fun here.”

“Don’t be like that,” Kenzie shot you a look and smiled at Spencer. “She didn’t intimidate you, did she?”

“She tried,” Spencer said as you wrapped your arms around his torso and he kissed the top of your head, “Didn’t exactly work though.”

“For some reason,” you grumbled and Lily waved at you.

“Night night!”

“Good night!”

“I’ll see you later bug!” you said and entwined your fingers with Spencer’s, then pulled him to the dining room where Kenzie and Nolan were talking. Before you could even greet them, the sight of the dinner table caught your eye and you gawked at all the food there, your mother was definitely out of control and this was the proof of it.

There was enough food for a small army.

“Oh God please don’t tell me we’re going to have live music too,” you muttered and Mina raised her brows.

“Yeah, you might want to lower your expectations,” she shot a fake smile at Spencer, “But then again, that seems to be the theme of tonight. Hi Dr. Reid.”

You gritted your teeth, glaring at her and of course the jab didn’t escape Spencer’s attention, but he chose not to respond with the same sarcasm.

“Hi again.”

“Welcome, Dr. Reid,” Nolan smiled, “Y/N.”

“Hi Mr. Yates.”

“Nolan.”

“So this is where you grew up?” Spencer asked you as you led him away from them towards the library, and you nodded.

“Yeah,” you said, “Right over there me and Mina got into a fight and she pushed me into a vase.”

“Ouch.”

“Spent the next ten minutes begging me not to tell mom. Over there,” you pointed at the corner, “Used to be this huge Christmas tree every year.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, and we used to have another room next to this, dad’s study, but after he was arrested and we all figured out how evil he was, mom grabbed a sledgehammer and smashed the—“

“Dinner is ready!” your mother called out and you heaved a sigh.

“Just saying, we could just tell them there’s been a murder.”

“You don’t give up, do you?” he smiled at you fondly and you shook your head, Kenzie entering the living room again.

“I’ve been called stubborn before.”

“Can’t imagine why,” he joked as he kissed you on the forehead and you turned to your family who was slowly taking their seats around the table, then both of you approached the table to sit down as well.

“I’m so glad we decided to have this dinner,” your mother clasped her hands, “It was about time, wouldn’t you say?”

Spencer smiled at her after thanking the maid who was filling his glass, “Thank you for inviting me Ms Knight.”

“Y/N was trying to make him change his mind,” Kenzie sang and your mother tilted your head.

“Spencer, I promise you we’re not as bad as my daughter tries to make you believe.”

“I’m not saying you’re bad,” you defended yourself, “I’m just saying you might be a little too much.”

“Define too much.”

You gawked at her and motioned at the table, making Spencer chuckle silently beside you.

“I really appreciate the effort you put into this,” he added, making your mother smile.

“Why thank you, Spencer,” she said and turned to Nolan, “Honey, Spencer works for the BAU as you know, you should introduce him to your friend.”

“Your friend?” Kenzie asked.

“The head of FBI,” Nolan said, “That’s a great idea. He might also help you in any position you want in the bureau.”

Spencer blinked a couple of times, as if he was at loss for words, then cleared his throat.

“Thank you,” he said “I already- I already have the position that I want though.”

“Ah for the future,” Nolan waved a hand and your mother sipped her drink.

“Yeah, now that it came up,” she said, “What are your future plans?”

“Mom,” you said warningly and Mina leaned back, looking between you with a smirk on her face.

“It’s just a question, don’t be so nervous,” she commented and Kenzie arched a brow at her.

“Mina.”

“No it’s okay,” Spencer pushed his hair behind his ear, “I um… I think I’d like to focus more on teaching.”

You lowered your glass, “Hm? Really?”

“Yeah,” he nodded, “I mean I do love BAU, they’re my family but seeing murders every single day, seeing all those victims, it becomes too much sometimes. But I love teaching already, so I think I will do that. In the future, I mean.”

“Oh how lovely. How about something other than your career though? In your future, would you say you’re planning to have chi—“

“New topic,” you cut her off quickly, “I saw dad today, and he knows you two are dating now.”

Your mother frowned but Nolan reached out to squeeze her hand, “It’s okay, he would learn eventually.”

“He actually thinks he is in love with you,” you told your mom and she scoffed.

“Please don’t say that, we’re eating,” she said, “I don’t want to feel nauseous.”

“It’s actually understandable that he’s under that disillusion.” Spencer said, making all of you turn to him, “Especially people in his situation, they feel this need to hold onto some outside world that’s waiting for them to get out of their minds. In a way, he hopes that because if he feels cut off from here, he will probably crash down. It’s very common in people who are imprisoned.”

“Well he can hope all he wants, I never want to see him again.”

“I’m sure Y/N doesn’t want to see him again either, but she’s not that lucky, thanks to FBI. What do you think about that, Spencer?” Mina asked, and Spencer looked at her.

“I think that’s a decision left to her.”

“Is it though?”

You narrowed your eyes. “Mina I need you to remember what I was like when we had dinner with Kenzie, and return the favor.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It means shut the fuck up.”

“Y/N!” your mom gasped and Mina tilted her head.

“Ah well, excuse me if not all of us are in a forgiving mood unlike you.”

“None of that!” your mother said, “Both of you, honestly…”

“Spencer, you strike me as a whiskey guy,” Nolan said, attracting his attention, “I purchased a bottle of limited series in an auction in London the other day, would you like to try it after dinner?”

“Sure,” he nodded fervently and you held up your hand.

“I want to try that too. And what about that rum you were talking about the other day? Is it here too?”

“Sure thing.” Nolan snapped his fingers, “In fact, I know a great distillery, why don’t we visit there after dinner?”

You lifted your head, “That could be fun. Where?”

“Costa Rica.”

Spencer looked between you, “You—um, you want to go to Costa Rica after dinner?”

“We could take the jet. We’d be back before the dawn, obviously.”

“People,” you cleared your throat, “Has no one read the normalcy manual I e-mailed you the other day?”

“Yes but the manual said we could talk about drinks.” Nolan said and Spencer turned to you, frowning.

“Normalcy manual?”

“I just thought it’d be useful for tonight.”

“Oh it was very useful,” Mina commented, “Especially the footnote about murders, even if it was unnecessary. No one will joke about murder Y/N, we don’t want your boyfriend to arrest you again after—“ she was cut off as Kenzie kicked her leg under the table, and Spencer pursed his lips, as if he still felt guilty about that.

“I wasn’t in the city,” he said calmly, looking her dead in the eye, “I came back as soon as I heard, I was trying to get her out when you got there.”

“You don’t have to explain anything,” you said, “Mina , stop it will you?”

She didn’t even look like she heard you, “Get her out? Ah so that’s why I walked into that interrogation room when she was being hounded by your team?”

“Okay!” Kenzie said loudly, throwing the napkin on the table, “I’m so sorry, I just remembered something about Lily’s school that we missed. Babe, can you come with me to the kitchen for a moment please?”

Mina huffed out and put her glass down, then pushed her chair back and followed Kenzie to the kitchen.

“Honestly….” you downed your drink and motioned for another one but then Spencer squeezed your hand under the table, as if trying to assure you.

“I bet you miss the serial killers right now huh?” you mumbled and he tilted your head, humoring you.

“Drinks are better here,” he admitted and you tried to smile before you grabbed your cigarette pack from your purse.

“I’m gonna go to the backyard for a moment to smoke,” you said and your mother shot you a look.

“It’s dinner time, Y/N.”

“It’ll take like five minutes, tops,” you said and pushed your chair back, “I need some fresh air anyway. Spencer?”

“Sure, I’ll come with you,” he said and followed you down the hall until you reached the door to the backyard, opened it and stepped outside.

It was a silent night, as silent as it could be in the middle of the city. You looked up at the stars as you lit your cigarette, then heaved a sigh and leaned back to Spencer’s chest when he wrapped his arms around you, resting his chin on top of your head.

“I apologize on her behalf,” you said and he shook his head.

“You don’t have to,” he muttered, “She has a point. I should’ve… I should’ve been there, in that interrogation room.”  

You looked up at him, then reached up to run your fingernails over his slight scruff while he lowered his head to press his nose into the crook of your neck, nuzzling there.

“Spencer, you need to stop blaming yourself,” you said slowly, “I mean it. I don’t blame you for that at all— and….you know Mina. She just turns into someone else when it comes to protecting the family. She doesn’t mean it, not really.”

He nodded silently and you combed back his hair with your fingers, making him heave a sigh.

“This is nice,” he muttered and you let out a small laugh.

“So are you ready to admit that I was right?”

“Hm?”

“I said you would regret it, do you regret it yet?”

“The dinner?”

“Yeah.”

He shook his head “No.”

“Why not?”

His arms around you tightened and he pressed a kiss to your neck, “Because you’re here.”

You closed your eyes for a moment, enjoying the warmth of his body against yours and you stubbed your cigarette before you turned to him. He smiled at you and you couldn’t help but stare at him under the dim lights of the backyard before you stood on your tiptoes and brushed your lips against his.

“God, I love you so much,” you said, making him smile, “Thank you for being here and… I don’t know, going through this absolute torture. I know it’s a lot.”

“Hey,” he cupped your cheek, running his thumb over your cheekbone, “I need you to listen to me, okay?”

You nodded, looking up at him.

“There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you,” his voice was silent, almost hesitant, “To make you happy. You know that, right?”

You could feel the burning in your eyes and you sniffled, your heart skipping a beat before you wrapped your arms around his neck, burying your face into his chest. The rest of the world felt like it disappeared as you swayed from side to side, inhaling his scent and you pulled back.

“I know now,” you wiped at your nose, clearing your throat and he pushed your hair behind your ear.

“Good,” he grinned, “Glad we cleared that out.”

Someone knocked on the door and you turned your head to see Mina as she opened the glass door.

“So about earlier,” she leaned sideways to the doorframe, “Apologies and remorse, etc.”

“That means she’s sorry for what happened earlier,” you said helpfully and Spencer scoffed a laugh, shaking his head.

“You don’t need to apologize,” he said, “I get it. Trust me, I felt exactly the same when I saw the tape, but I was trying to get her out with minimum damage.”

Mina nibbled on her lip, eyeing him up and down.

“I guess,” she said, “But just so you both know, mom and Nolan are actually planning a weekend trip to Costa Rica. It’s like what happened with Kenzie all over again, only there’s two of them now.”

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” you muttered and Mina nodded at Spencer.

“Yeah so you might need to tell them you have murders to solve during the weekend Sherlock, because they’re not going to listen to us.” she said and Spencer looked down at you.

“I’ll be there in a second,” you said and he pressed a kiss into your hair before making his way inside. Mina lingered there for a moment, inspecting her fingernails in a complete nonchalant manner.

“I guess I could trust you to know what you’re doing,” she said, “Just make sure he doesn’t screw you over, okay?”

You raised your brows, then clicked your tongue.

“Kenzie said no sex unless you apologize huh?”

“She meant it too!” Mina whined as you walked past her, letting out a laugh.

“Unbelievable,” you shook your head with a smile, making your way to the dining room. “All of you.”

Chapter 26