#Luke hasn't noticed that yet

[jedidryad]

I shall endeavour to mind my own business, Master.

Mara's first evening at the academy does not bode well for her future training, and then even her escape plan is taken away from her. This chapter is a long one. Lightsabers Are Always Loaded: Chapter 18.

[cynthiav06]

I cannot believe how this hasn't been addressed in the PJO Fandom yet but does no one notice that the books, Rick himself glosses over or downplays the fact that PERCY FUCKING JACKSON GAVE UP IMMORTALITY!!!

And in reason as to why Percy gave up immortality?

The Percabeth stans are only too happy to make "Oh Percy gave up immortality for Annabeth." The hell he did. Have we read the same books? Are you really demeaning the importance of what Percy did. Cause here's what happened, and here's why it's so important:

PERCY GAVE UP IMMORTALITY SO THAT GODS COULD CLAIM DEMIGOD CHILDREN EARLY SO THAT THEY DO NOT REMAIN DEFENSELESS.

Furthermore, he did it so CHILDREN OF MINOR GODS COULD HAVE A PLACE TO BELONG TO, TO HAVE IDENTITY OF THEIR OWN, SO MINOR GODS THEMSELVES CAN BE PROPERLY ACKNOWLEDGED.

Similarly, he further added that CHILDREN OF HADES SHOULD NOT BE OSTRACIZED, THEY AS WELL AS HADES DESERVE TO BE WELCOME INTO OLYMPUS AND INTO CAMP , DESERVE PROPER RESPECT.

What ticks me off the most is how such an important sacrifice such an important change is never addressed again to the extent it deserves.

Cause this is not a surface level thing. This is going to change and better the lives of all demigods that come after or even demigods who were wrongly forced to remain in Hermes Cabin. A safe, more respectful, more meaningful environment for all demigods no matter who their godly parent is.

Are you telling that children of minor gods don't literally worship Percy for doing all this? Don't wholly completely feel grateful at least that he voiced out for them over his own difficulties? That he made a safe place for them happen?

Are you telling me that Minor Gods themselves don't feel at least a little grateful and respect Percy who did this of his own volition without having even met many Minor Gods. That he voiced out for their own children when they couldn't?

Are you telling me that Travis and Connor or any other demigods and cabin counselors don't automatically rave on about the greatness of Percy Jackson to any new arrivals in Camp Half-Blood?

Cause we were robbed of this of a proper homage to the sacrifice other demigods, Luke himself and Percy himself made to make it happen.

Piper, Leo , and Jason all seem so ignorant to it. Even newer demigods in Chalice of Gods or other books seem ignorant to this, and that's so against the usual canon representation of Camp Half-Blood as a community.

We should have seen it in Lost Hero, should have seen it in Chalice of Gods, should have seen it acknowledge repeatedly. You know why?

Yes, Percy didn't want immortality, but don't you know that deep down Percy knew exactly what immortality meant? Eternal protection from his father in his realm. No Gods bothering him, no more sacrifices or death quests. Freedom to do what he wants. To be able to spend time with his family as long as he wants without the worry of risking their safety. And he gave it all up

NOT EVEN IMMORTALITY. GODS WOULD HAVE GRANTED ANY WISH. HE COULD HAVE WISHED ANYTHING. FOR HIM TO BE PROTECTED? NO MORE QUESTS? FOR GODS TO LEAVE HIM ALONE? HE GAVE IT ALL UP, ALL OF IT.

Perseus blood Jackson made happen what no one in the History of Camp Half-Blood has ever done. He managed to make Gods change their ignorant ways. He dismantled a culture of neglect and abuse.

And the fact Rick himself let this happen, let all this gloss over, and the fact that Percabeth stans have the AUDACITY to insinuate that he did for Annabeth and demean Luke's sacrifice, Percy's sacrifice is beyond me.

[kastalani123]

I think we should talk about the fact that satyrs age at half the speed that mortals do??

Grover was 28 in The Lighting Thief, physically 14, so...

Grover was 23 when he found Luke, Annabeth, and Thalia, and physically 11/12. Presumably mentally to some extent as well, considering, y'know. He doesn't exactly act like a 30 year old in the series.

He was older than Annabeth.

He was the same age as Thalia.

He was younger than Luke.

I wonder if Luke looked at this boy, seemingly the same age as Thalia but technically so much older, and seethed. Or maybe he couldn't bring himself to, because Luke hates, he hates so much, but it's a little harder when the face he tries to hate is round with baby fat and overtaken by teary eyes it hasn't quite grown into yet. It's a little harder when the face he tries to hate shares so many traits with the face of his best friend.

I wonder if Annabeth looked at this boy, once so much bigger than her, and realized that they could go to the same middle school class and not be questioned. That they could wear the same size now and it would fit — or hers might even be a bit bigger, really, because he's always been so scrawny.

I wonder if Thalia looked at this boy, fresh after her resurrection, and noticed that– well, he's not unchanged, he has grown, but it's not Luke-is-an-adult or Annabeth-is-a-teen grown; it's the same grown she sees in the mirror, maybe two or three years worth of it. And it's odd, because everyone else is so much older, but it brings her to tears sometimes, because at least someone is the age they should be, relative to her.

(She gets more used to it, once she halts her aging herself, but it's still something she clings to in those first days-weeks-months of her revival)

I wonder if Percy looked at this boy, his best friend since middle school, to see him becoming younger and younger. He was a little older than him, at first — by the time he's twenty, though, the roles have reversed. The gap only gets bigger and more noticeable with age. Grover never seems like an actual kid next to him, not the way Thalia does, but Percy is thirty and Grover hasn't even hit twenty-five. He tries to ignore it; he doesn't like to think much about his mortality in the face of everything, not after he was forced to do so every day of his teenage years.

I wonder if Grover ever looked at this boy in the mirror and compared himself to his friends, to the kids at Camp that were still missing their front teeth when he met them but now look so much older, and thinks about how painfully mortal they are in spite of their divinity.

[the-newlymadeweeb]

Sacrifice

Luke Castellan x female!reader

Percy Jackson & female!reader

Description: Set after Titan's Curse before BoL, you rendezvous to meet Percy before heading back to Luke and he contemplates the intensity of your love and sacrifice.

A/N: I read the books like 7 years ago so I'm not super duper canon compliant

Percy notices the grey in your hair first and a phantom pain rushes through him. It's more discolouration than either he, Annabeth or Luke has and it's striking.

It aged you so much and he wonders how long did you hold up the sky? Why did you hold up the sky?

But your fatal flaw had been self-sacrifice. You'd given yourself up before anything, before Luke would be forced to take Atlas' place.

And the sky lay on your shoulders for days before Luke realised that the plan was going slower than expected and he needed to give you some respite.

That's why he thought of Annabeth, that's why he took on the sky as a trap. And the only reason you didn't push her out of the way and take the burden was because you spent much of those days unconscious, drained.

Percy thought he should hate you.

But his own flaw was loyalty and for so long you were running interference, a buffer, to slow down Kronos' ambitions. And you were too devoted to Luke to leave him behind just yet.

Anyway, your decision to play double agent was riskier still and here you were. Sacrificing. Again. The other side could find out, and the consequences would be gory and painful but you came to meet Percy, to prepare him.

And all he could look at was how grey your hair was.

A vainer person would've coloured their hair.

Your eyes are tired, entire body tense as if preparing for sudden attack. But you smile bravely at him, and Percy gets whiplash with how weirdly similar you resemble his mother back when she was alone and suffering bravely for him.

"You don't have to go back, you know," He suggests.

It's a bad idea and you both know it. But

"We could keep you safe."

"You've gotten quite the growth spurt recently," you say instead, "thank you Percy, but I'm meant to be at his side in battle. I promised him that much."

Is it worth it though? He thinks bitterly.

You love him so much, it's going to kill you.

But Percy has yet to realise that you're counting on that. That you will die at his hand, and Luke who'd burn the world and destroy all souls for you might finally see the destructive nature of his ways– see clarity through grief.

It's horrible plan.

Or maybe he does realise it but hasn't truly understood.

Regardless, he moves forward and pulls you into a hug. His first sister, his crazy friend and foe. Gods, he's as tall as you now.

Your hand brushes the grey locks on his head and you slowly back away.

"See you around Percy. Take care."

*****************************************************************************

[srvbryn]

Luke Castellan. Night

Loser!Luke Castellan X Ares!Daughter!Reader

summary: Luke's first time kissing someone

THIS KNE IS SHORTnz$!$!!##!nnn

a/n: "loser" as in he hasn't had his first kiss yet , he's so embarrassing gosh

You and Luke Castellan have been going on secret dates in the middle of the night for several weeks.

Going to the flower field created by Demeter's child to gaze at the stars, swimming at a beach far away from the camp and away from prying eyes, spending time together at Cabin 5 while your half-siblings are away for campfire, you get the picture.

Nobody knows you were a lover; not even Annabeth notices how you both keep looking at each other with longing gazes while eating at the Dining Pavilion.

You guys continue your routine,

In front of the other campers; fighting and teasing (flirting)

Behind their backs; having dates in the middle of the night

It was the middle of the night, and you and Luke were on your usual secret date, this time directly behind Hermes Cabin. It was risky, but you desperately wanted to see your boyfriend.

"I am going to kiss you," you whisper softly.

I'd like you to imagine (Name)'s face coming close to his, her sleepy eyes closing, her medicine-sweet lips puckering up, and all the other sounds of the world going silent — the rustling of their dresses, everything — all silent as (Name)'s highly educated lips met his.

With your hand lightly tugging on his curly soft hair and his mouth directly on yours.

Not a thump, exactly. Not even a leap.

However, there was a swish, similar to a frog kicking off from a muddy bank. His heart, that amphibian, was oscillating between two states: excitement and fear.

He tried to pay attention but (name) was way ahead of him. She swiveled her head back and forth the way actresses did in the movies.

He started doing the same, but out of the corner of her mouth she scolded, “You’re the man.” So he stopped. Luke stood stiffly with arms at his sides.

Finally (name) broke off the kiss. She chuckles at him softly for a moment, and then responded, “Not bad for your first time.”

[animeniac-writings]

The Seven Deadly Sins And The Common Cold

Getting sick at the HoL and sending almost everyone you know into sheer panic.

You're laying in bed feeling like shit trying to sleep off a cold, sweaty and clammy and moaning trying to get comfortable, unaware of the many fretting around you.

Demons hardly get sick, and with everything in Devildom that's already dangerous for humans, medicine they'd have would surely kill you.

Solomon is far less helpful than any suspected, also concerned that you will now die. As much as he frequents the human realm, relatively up to date on the world and trends and a good amount of media and fashion, he hasn't paid that much attention to medical advances in the last few hundred years.

Satan is the only one who MIGHT have semi-useful knowledge from some caring-for-your-sick-lover trope stories he's read.

Belphie is in a deep sleep with one wrist around your ankle, laying at the foot of your bed and determined to will you good dreams in your 'last moments'.

Asmo cries because he truly notices how much your sickness has effected you, anyone can see you're sick but he pays such close attention, with spa days and finding the best products and applying them himself, to seeing how miserable and unhealthy your are he is distraught. He does his best to try and make you more comfortable, and tearfully demands Solomon do something.

Mammon has gone to beg the witches to save your life, he'll owe them whatever they wish if they will help you (luckily he gets a call to come home before he signs his immortal life away)

Beel wants you to eat, he always makes sure you have enough, and this morning he was worried from the start when you told him there was no way you could stomach anything.

Lucifer has given up trying to calm everyone else down and called Diavolo about your state, admitting failure on his lack of knowledge already a feat and anyone can see how affected he is by his disheveled appearance and how frequently he goes to your room to check in on you.

Diavolo is worried as soon as he hears you're sick, and the well concealed strain to Lucifer's tone when he tries to sound level listing what ailments he can tell. Another demon advisor points out how terrible it would be for the program if their human were to die, and he glares at them with hellfire's fury in his eyes. He's concerned for you, and would be heartbroken if anything happened, he will visit you as soon as he can.

Barbatos calms his worries and tells him you will be fine, he had picked up some human realm remedies in advance for when the time came and will take you a special blend of safe and effective tea. If he couldn't see the future, he would be much more worried. Though he still feels guilty you have to suffer through it.

Levi is a wreck. He blames himself, he blames everyone else, if you had just stayed in, stayed in his room especially, this never would have happened. You never would have went out and got sick- he spends much of the time in his tank for comfort and pleading with Henry 2.0 that you don't die. It doesn't help that you rejected his offer to watch anime with him this morning- despite the look on his face you just couldn't accept.

Solomon at least has the hindsight to bring the angels in on this. Even with similarly lacking knowledge on human sickness, they are known for healing abilities even if that's not their specialty.

They arrive as soon as they're contacted, Luke with tears in his eyes and hugging your stomach tightly as soon as he reaches your bed.

Satan is already there, having woke you and forcing you to stay awake long enough for him to spoon feed you some of the (slightly questionable) Devildom equivalent of "chicken" soup he made. It smelled delicious, and not at all like chicken soup, was slightly purple and would be very tasty, yet you're woefully unable to discern either of those.

Simeon, though not adept in it, gives you a healing blessing. The moment his lips touch you overheated forehead you breathe a sigh at the bit of relief he brings. Your sore throat eases, the congestion in your chest lessens, and the migraine dissipates at his touch. You take a deep breath (through both nostrils!) and nearly ask for him to do it again.

But you're exhausted, significantly relieved, and the call to sleep fueled by Belphie's touch pulls at you, unable to resist.

You vaguely register Mammon bursting through your door in the last moments before you drift to sleep, he's hushed by Asmo who busies himself changing the cool rag on your forehead and trying not to bite his nails. Luke quietly asks Simeon to teach him how to heal like that, and makes him assure you will be better soon.

And you finally receive some well needed, actual rest. Despite some of their shortcomings on the matter, you have so many that love and care for you making sure you will be better, and have many a caretaker prepared to tear apart the realms for you if need be.

[gwenllian-in-the-abbey]

Not fluent in English. 

Please tell me I’m not the the only who noticed that team green characters in the show aren’t allowed to hate team black characters. 

Like Aemond can’t even hate Lucerys for cutting his eye and disabled him for life. 

And Alicent can’t hate Viserys for marrying and gr*ping her and forcing pregnancies on her, even though he have no intention to name any of their sons his heir, and treating her mostly like a caretaker and concubine rather than his lawful wife and the mother of his legitimate children. 

Aegon and Helaena aren’t even allowed to hate Daemon the man who ordered the death of their Son.

Like why??? Why aren’t they allowed to hate them???

Hi aleksandra! You make a good point! I think there are a few things going on here.

For one, I think the writing is incredibly inconsistent across the board this season, and there are a lot of dropped plot threads. Some of it is intentional (like, I do think B&C was deliberately downplayed and undermined so that Alicent could have that Dragonstone scene, more on that in a bit), some of it I think is just bad writing and a kind of ... well, look, I can't speculate as to what goes down in the writer's room and have no idea what their workflow looks like or what processes they follow, but a problem going back to S1 is that characters and dialogue vary a lot from episode to episode. I don't think it's all that normal for a fandom to be concerned ahead of time about which writers will be writing which scenes and which episodes, but with HotD there seem to be huge differences in how each writer interprets the characters. Having worked on OFCIR collaboratively with @aifsaath, we work really hard to make sure the chapters are relatively consistent. I gave our first few chapters to my critique partner for original fiction, a guy who knows my writing inside and out, someone I've worked with for about 6 years now, @theravenpiper, and he could not actually tell which scenes were written by me, and which were written by Aife, which I took as a big complement to our collaborative process, and to our ability to edit to a uniform standard. Now I'm not saying we do it better than the HotD writers, but I do think that there is something missing from their collaborative process that makes the entire thing seem disjointed.

I do not think it is entirely that the whole of team green is not allowed to be angry at team black, although that is part of it, some of it is part of an overall bigger problem where major events are not allowed to resonate across the story, and I chalk some of it up to simple bad writing. Rhaenyra is apparently over Luke's death enough by E3 that she can seek out Alicent for some kind of vague "let's stop this madness" ploy, but still conveniently needs "a son for a son" in E8. Although Rhaenyra is negotiating from a position of power in E8, there was no reason for her to feel so desperate as of E3, when Rook's Rest hasn't even happened yet, that she would set aside her grief and anger and go seek peace. Peace was offered in E10 of season 1 and Rhaenyra turned it down after Luke died, so what has changed besides Rhaenyra's own husband beheading a toddler? Other events happen too and have little or no consequence. Rhaenyra and Mysaria kiss in E6 and it's entirely forgotten by E8, with zero follow up. Criston Cole is brought to his knees by the sight of Aegon lying injured by his dragon, but never even visits his bedside. Gwayne never interacts with anyone aside from Alicent and Criston. Rhaenyra sends her younger children to the Vale and never mentions them again (she is shown looking wistfully at a box of toys), nor does Jace. Laena in a vision berates Daemon for not looking after their girls, but does he ask after them when Broome shows up directly from Dragonstone? I could go on. Events just happening and then never really mattering again is a consistent problem throughout the season, which makes it hard to tell when it is happening deliberately and when it is happening because the writers can't get on the same page.

There are two things I do think are deliberate, however, one of them being the scrubbing of Viserys' image. While audiences loved Paddy's performance, a lot of viewers did pick up on how Viserys played favorites and neglected his sons, and I think when the show decided to switch up Alicent's motivation from "she wants to protect her children and knows they will face the sword if Rhaenyra comes to power" to "she misheard Viserys' last words," they knew that the natural question is, "why should she care about Viserys' last words?" A lot of the immediate feedback about that episode involved how Alicent was stupid for not knowing Otto planned to have Aegon take the throne, and a lot of people didn't think that Alicent (or Aegon for that matter) really believed that Viserys changed his mind, but apparently that was the writers' intention, that Alicent truly believed it and managed to convince Aegon (there's a lot I could say about how they could have included this deathbed misunderstanding into the plot without having it replace all of Alicent's other motivations, but they did not do that). So in order to drive home the point that the whole entire war is being fought due to this misunderstanding, they have to make sure the audience is clear that all of these characters considered Viserys a good king. Even if he was Alicent's rapist. Even if he was a deadbeat dad. Even if he was a terrible husband. We are meant to believe he chose Rhaenyra not because he was playing mindgames or out of guilt over Aemma's death, no we must believe he chose Rhaenyra because he was good and wise and to convince us he was good and wise we have to have the green characters reminding us constantly that things were so much better when Viserys was around, that Aegon is inferior to Viserys, that Viserys' wishes are all that matter. Nevermind that it goes directly against the book, never mind that it's not even a particularly powerful or interesting change, it's what enables Rhaenyra and Alicent's relationship to continue. Because here's the thing-- if Alicent put Aegon on the throne because she felt it was the only way to keep her family safe, and because she feels that law and tradition ARE on her side, and because absolutism isn't good (!!!) then there's no chance for her and Rhaenyra to ever reconcile. These are irreconcilable differences, not misunderstandings. And so the show has to glaze Viserys otherwise the basic reasoning falls apart.

And the second is the events like Luke's death, Blood and Cheese and Rook's Rest come in, events in which the greens or the blacks harm and traumatize each other directly. It is not that the greens are not allowed to hate the blacks, it is that Alicent is not allowed to hate Rhaenyra, and by extension, the people who Alicent cares about are not allowed to hate her (I would argue that Aemond is allowed to hate Luke on screen, he literally murders him, and I don't think the scene with the brothel madame is an expression of true remorse, it's more "I'm kinda sorta sorry there were consequences for my actions."). Alicent cares about Helaena the innocent, and therefore Helaena cannot be allowed to hate Rhaenyra (note Phia Saban's many interviews about how apolotical and neutral Helaena is). Aegon, on the other hand, can be affected by B&C because he is allowed to hate Rhaenyra. In fact, his hate for Rhaenyra puts him at odds with his mother, which is what the show wants. Aegon is gravely injured at Rook's Rest, but good thing Rhaenyra's forces did not cause the injuries, Alicent herself drove him to battle with cruel words, and Aemond burned him, which puts him at odds with Alicent too (and Helaena is allowed to express ire at Aemond by extension). If you look at S2 as an exercise in driving a wedge between Alicent and her family and downplaying what happens to them in order to justify their decision to have Alicent seek out Rhaenyra and surrender Aegon's life, it makes a lot more sense.

The thing is, it still doesn't work. Their efforts are much too transparent and require characters to act in ways that are simply not within the realms of how normal human beings would react to these situations, much less the characters established in S1. There is a twitter user, and I'm so sorry that I can't remember their name at the moment, but I've seen them express the sentiment several times that Alicent's character this season made them aware, in a way that a viewer should never be aware, that these are scripted lines coming out of her mouth. That is, a lot of the characters in S2 do not feel like actual people. Aegon is such a fan favorite this season because he feels real. Alicent garnered legions of fans last season because her struggle felt real, even if we didn't agree with it. She felt like a character who inhabited a quasi-medieval world, bound by restraints we are not bound by, but nevertheless a human with human reactions who had to make difficult choices and persevere through them. And any human would be angry beyond comprehension at Blood and Cheese, would lose all faith in Rhaenyra, would know that there can be no peace if she is ruling with a man that ruthless at her side. If she thinks her sons are devils (and mind, so far as king Aegon's most egregious action is executing a handful of ratcatchers after one of their number murdered his son, whereas Rhaenyra burned about 65 peasants alive in a quasi religious ecstasy-- will Alicent ever find out about that, I wonder?), they are at least the devils she knows. Better they all die than end up in Daemon's hands, surely? And so OP, you're right, they are not allowed to hate each other when naturally you, and many others, feel like they should. That is because they are writer creations who would never do such things as what happen in the books in the first place, acting out plot points of entirely different characters (their book counterparts).

[pomplalamoose]

mkay soooo what if when the rebellion was living on hoth u and (like late anh!luke or esb!luke both would be cute lwk) went to a more tropical planet w lots of beaches tghr whilst looking for more possible bases and of course you guys just happen to get stranded n day a few vacation days on the beach!

but since luke is from tatooine n there’s barely even water in the AIR he’s never seen in a girl—specifically you, in a bikini. and since you guys have been on hoth for a time he’s never even seen you in a t shirt. like you just “what’s wrong” n he’s as red as a tomato.

anyway what i’m trying to say is you two making out in the beach n then leads to beach sex please please please oh my god. and don’t hold back on the gross details

18+ !!!

cw: a little bit of pining, a little bit of fluff, eventual smut, like seriously, mdni!

• initially you think nothing of it when the unbearable heat forces you to remove your jacket

• too great is the relief of feeling the gentle breeze cool your sweaty skin that you fail to notice the way your exposed arms seem to impact Luke

• Luke who is trying his hardest to be respectful, who is giving his best not to stare

• Luke who fails spectacularly

• Luke who, upon you sensing his distress and turning around, turns beet red and wide eyed, looking away immediately

• "it's just a pair of arms", he tries to tell himself staring down at his feet in the sand

• this certainly is nothing he hasn't seen before

• Force, he intimatedly knows what a person looks like naked and you are nowhere even near that state, he needs to get it together!

• though no matter how plausible he makes it sound in his head, the reality is, in fact, a lot harder to deal with

• because it's not "just" a pair of arms

• it's yours and he can barely tear his gaze away

• he can't quite recall the moment in which he first let his thoughts wander and they settled on you, doesn't remember when it was that he first started wondering how you'd look under all that thick winter clothing necessary to survive on Hoth

• only, that he never got the chance to hold your hand in his without those damned gloves on

• that it was never a possibility to even touch your face

• that your body was nothing more than an illusion he made up for himself during his countless daydreams

• only, that he half-feared you'd simply disappear into a cloud of cold air without all those warm layers keeping you tightly wrapped together

• but now, sitting before him, is a picture he'd nearly didn't dare to hope ever laying his eyes upon

• there you are, in nothing but a T-shirt and pants, and so close, so real, he desperately wants to reach out his hands

• he longs to finally find out how you feel

• he wants to trace his fingers up and down your arms for no particular reason, wants to touch every single freckle and mole he can find

• is your skin as soft as it looks?

• is the fine hair he sees shimmering in the sunlight when you move a certain way?

• when you raise your arms to fix your windswept hair, so does the hem of your shirt, revealing a sliver of your mid-riff and Luke nearly explodes

• he's at a loss for words, completely helpless in light of your beauty

• there's nothing more except the need to latch on to you and never let go again

• of course, at this point, you would eventually come to realize your appearance's effect; Luke is not being what one would call subtle and the love-drunk look in his eyes is hard to miss

• "have you been to the water yet?" you ask gently, feeling a little shy at being gazed at so intently, hoping to focus his attention on something else

• it works

• Luke, absolutely clueless and very happy to follow you everywhere you want to go is concerned immediately

• "wait, wait...do you know how to swim?"

• of course you do and he's so relieved until he remembers he can't

• imagine his face when he eventually admits to it

• the slight crease between his eyebrows, his unhappy, nearly upset frown

• how is he supposed to keep up with you now?

• how is he supposed to keep you safe?

• imagine his smile returning like the sun rising in the morning when you assure him you don't mind

• you only want to dip in your feet, would he not like to join you?

• imagine his eager nod, the delight in his eyes at the foreign sensation when he's finally standing beside you

• imagine the giggle that escapes him at how the water draws back and returns swiftly with every gentle wave

• at how it washes around his feet, how it feels when he wriggles his toes in the wet sand

• imagine Luke's surprise, the light shock, when you splash him, the droplets suddenly raining down all over him

• then his delight, the childish excitement

• he wasn't aware this was something you, and he too, could do!

• before you know it he's chasing you down the beach trying to get back at you

• with his long legs and ability to move over sand much faster than you are, you don't stand much of a chance

• though of course this doesn't stop you from fighting back as soon as he gets to you and it's not long after that both of you are sopping wet

• imagine him laughing freely, something you don't think you've seen him do before

• your heart beats faster

-

• it's when you're both out of breath, staring each other down to gauge your next movements, that the mood, so playful before, switches

• you can't put your finger on when it happened, can't explain how, but the dynamic between you has changed

• like your little game helped Luke make up his mind, emboldened him even, his blushy look and adoringly shy eyes are no more

• instead you're faced with a determination that raises goosebumps all over your skin, as he slowly makes his way towards you, his strong thighs parting the water with every step

• you don't know where to look

• not when he's suddenly this close to you, so close you can smell the salt on his skin and the wind in his hair

• carefully, as if afraid to scare you away, he reaches out, starts to run the fingers of his right hand up and down your left forearm

• you let him

• his gentle touch makes you shudder and unbelievably so he moves even closer, drinking in your subtle reactions

• "Luke I-"

• your voice is breathy, a little unstable

• but when you turn your head aside in embarrassment, he's quick to reach for your chin

• for a moment it's quiet, words simply eluding you in the face of your confusion and desire

• it's Luke who finally speaks again, who voices aloud what you had been thinking about, secretly hoping for, all along

• "please, may I kiss you?"

• and then, nearly inaudible, with such longing that it makes your heart ache, "just this once?"

• and all you can give in return is a nod

• imagine the light in his eyes, brighter even than the most radiant of stars, as he cups your face in his large hands and touches his lips to yours

• imagine how he slowly, so very slowly, pulls back, clearly not wanting the moment to end already

• imagine the look in his eyes, a look that seems to silently plead for more

• and the relief when he finds the immediate answer in yours

• imagine the gasp that escapes you when he finally, unabashedly, dares to take initiative and pulls you flush against him with a jolt

• imagine the pure joy that arises at being kissed like this, with such fervor and enthusiasm it weakens your knees, for once silencing your mind

• imagine the deep sense of peace that comes with being held so closely in strong arms as if they never plan on letting you go again

• you feel safe

-

• the persistence and thoroughness with which Luke continues to explore your mouth surprises you

• he kisses like he's starving, like he can't get enough

• like he may never get the chance to taste you again

• like he's afraid you're going to stop him any moment now

• meanwhile nothing could be further from your mind and it is without hesitation that you follow his lead, that you let him place you down upon the warm sand as if on the softest, most luxurious bed made just for you

• quickly his lips are on yours again and it's not long before they start to wander, to explore your features and limbs as leisurely as his hands do

• mesmerized, like in a trance, Luke traces the lines of your body, peppers kisses to every inch of you he can reach, his excitement at the ability to draw soft sighs and moans from you palpable

• soon unintelligible pleas start to spill from your lips as your arousal heightens with every passing minute

• you're growing desperate, are aching for more, for his deft fingers between your thighs

• but despite Luke's hardened length pressing insistently against his wet pants and repeatedly brushing along your upper legs, he makes no move to fulfill your wish nor to sate his own desires

• not even when you experimentally roll your hips upwards in hopes of gaining at least a little bit of friction

• he's not done exploring yet

• his attention focuses on your chest instead and you have no other choice but to continue clenching around nothing as he tentatively licks and, at length, begins to suck your nipples into his mouth until you're ready to cry out in frustration

• covered in sweat, the sand has begun to cling to your skin, rubbing against you with even the smallest of your movements and you're not sure what to make of it

• you're overwhelmed, helplessly overstimulated, almost wishing for it to stop

• though when Luke presses his knee in between your legs, giving you the chance to grind against him, it's suddenly not enough

• it's not nearly enough and your impatience finally exceeding your shame, the urge to beg becomes too strong to withhold

• for his touch, his fingers

• his cock

• "please Luke. Please just- just fuck me already"

• this catches Luke off guard though he remains silent, takes time to observe your shaking legs, your flush, quivering skin, the quick rise and fall of your chest, your wet eyes

• it shakes him out of his revery, like your words only now led him back into the present moment, made him realize for how long he's been toying with you

• how painfully desperate he is to seek his own release

• truly, he has no intention of leaving you like this, on the brink of an orgasm and close to tears

• but he's stalling, he knows, holding back, unsure of how to proceed and afraid to hurt you

• what if you're not ready to take him yet?

• lost in thought his fingers move gently along the waistband of your underpants until they dip lower in wonder, his knuckles slowly grazing over the wet spot where your dripping arousal has soaked into the fabric

• he is the reason for this, the reason for your pleasure, he realizes

• and he wants you, has wanted you for a very long time

• having made up his mind he carefully pushes a finger deep inside of you, pleasantly surprised at how easy you allow him entrance

• "no", he breathes when you try to strip off your panties to better grant him access

• "I want you like this"

• Luke makes you cum several times before even considering to free his cock from its confines

• too deeply does he enjoy your cries and twitches growing in intensity to accept for pleasure of his own to distract from it

• too hypnotizing it is to watch his fingers disappear into you again and again until they're deeply coated and practically dripping with your arousal

• too satisfying are the obscene squelching sounds that arise, louder and louder the faster he drives into you

• if it were up to him he would continue like this forever, unbothered by his own urges, content to simply watch

• though as you grow tired he eventually takes mercy

• he fucks you until you're close to passing out with pleasure, your face held tightly between his hands

• until your back is sore with being rubbed over the sandy ground over and over and over again

• until there's sand everywhere, in places you don't even dare to think about right now, and your legs are quivering from how long you had to keep them this far apart

• until he is panting, ruthlessly chasing his orgasm with hard, fast thrusts that shake your entire body and cause your eyes to roll into the back of your head

• until tears are streaming down your face and not even the sounds of the crashing waves are able to drown out the wet slapping noises when his hips meet yours in a near frenzy as he buries himself balls-deep in your throbbing heat

A/N: I'm so excited I finally, FINALLY had the time to work on this request!! Really, I couldn't get it out of my head since you first sent it in and not being able to write it all down immediately was pure torture😩

Thank you for your patience! I hope you don't mind the way this turned out to be a little fluffier than anticipated, I just couldn't help it. I love my Luke being desperately head over heels for the reader <33

[my-pjo-stuff]

So, has anyone ever noticed that Luke only really seems to have done really BIG things personally when Percy was around (as in, at Camp)? Which was like, a pretty small amount of time all things considered? Now I know that logically that's only because Luke is the antagonist and Percy is the protagonist, and as such Luke has to make his moves when the protag is around for the story to function.

That's boring though so here's my personal headcanon of why that is:

Luke was just- chronically overworked to the point of just not having the TIME to deal with shit personally most of the time.

Like genuinly do you all know what sort of WORK goes into forming and sustaining armies like that? Resources, supply lines, allies, logistics, strategy- that all needs to be handled and organized! And we all know for sure Kronos wasn't the one dealing with that, and certainly no monster either. So who does this leave? RIGHT, our favorite little depressed big brother figure Luke. You think that Percy and co. are Luke's main problem? HA, he wished. Luke during every one of his appearances post TLT is just high of his ass on caffeine with a mountain of paperwork on his desk waiting for him. Sorry Lord Kronos I can't do anything against camp right now, I need to do the paperwork for the supply line proposals and then I have a meeting with our strategists to plan for our assaults.

The reason he's so downright evil in SOM? He just came out of a HORRID four-hour meeting trying to figure out how to make functioning communications work while also attempting to smooth over the bureaucracy of a functioning chain of command.

Alabaster has seen him eating raw coffee beans on multiple occasions, no one questions it anymore at this point.

We all thank Silena for managing to hide those grand canyon eyebags the guy has with make up.

Chris SWEARS that he saw Luke chugging three packs of monster energy before suddenly passing out and flatlining for a good minute and getting up and about like nothing happened seconds later. Luke's health is a minefield, the guy doesn't even know where he is half the time on the Princess Andromeda. How hasn't he died of exhaustion yet? No one knows.

Leading theory is that he lives off of spite.

[sobfultoast]

Hi! I read your Careful Touches and was wondering if you could do it for the sides too if it isn't too much? If not that's okay! Also I love how aesthetic your blog is ☺️

Thank you :)

•~°★ Careful Touches ★°~•

Prompt: MC touches their demonic/angelic features for the first time.

Characters: Diavolo, Barbados, Simeon, Luke.

You have rarely seen their true forms in the past. At least, compared to the brothers. So whenever they do let their true form shine, you stand in awe. They look astounding.

You just had to say something...

"They're just so beautiful... Can I touch your wings/tail?"

• ~ ° ★ ° ~ •

Diavolo

"Haha! Of course you can!"

Not any one would have asked the young prince if they could touch his wings, in fear that it could be seen as offensive to their beloved ruler. Any one but you. Diavolo loves that about you. So honest with him. You treat him like you would with everyone.

Diavolo's wings are grand and regal, as majestic as a dragon's. Fit for a king. Each wing is bigger than you, almost twice the size. Your hand is so very small in comparison. They feel rough but are nothing like leather. They're stronger and smoother. The power you feel from this beast from his wings alone is magnificent.

The golden parts of his wings and horns may look like jewellery but they are actually embedded into his body. It's done to every royal member of the monarchy of Devildom. Their version of a crown, something done as soon as their birth. That is the only part Diavolo won't let you touch. He doesn't swat you away or raise his voice, he just simply takes your hand and moves them away. "I know you're curious, but it would be rude," he informs you.

What ever you doing, Diavolo is wearing a massive grin throughout the whole experience. Such a goofy expression compared to his demonic form. You just look so cute with that fascination in your eyes. How could he not smile?

You can touch his wings whenever you want to, Diavolo loves this affection. Although every demon in the room hold their breath when you do.

Barbatos

"... Well, I can't see a timeline where you don't."

Barbatos hates his tail being touched because of how sensitive it is. If any living thing accidentally brushes against it, even for a second, his tail will flinch. The reason for this sensitivity is because it is made to feel the miniscule movements in the environment. Be it physical, magical or spiritual. It's perfect for a being made to foresee events. Unfortunately, it also makes him feel overwhelmed when just anyone will grab it and it frustrates him. Mammon learnt the hard way.

Barbatos naturally says no to these questions but like he just said, he can't see a timeline where you don't touch it. Perhaps he trusts you in every single one, he doesn't specify.

Barbatos braces himself as you lay your palm gently on his tail. It's smooth and slimy, your hand can easily glide across it. The longer you hold his tail, the more your fingers begin to tingle with an magnetic feel; Your hair stands on edge. It's strange.

It wasn't as bad as he thought it would be if he was honest. Although it's still making him shake. He feels vulnerable which hasn't happened to him in eons. It's shocking to feel that emotion again. He's glad he can trust you in that state.

Barbatos is much calmer with you near his tail. It has started to lean against you now, with no hesitation and minor shakiness. He will still jump if you just grab it though, give him a warning beforehand.

Simeon

"Beautiful? Aw, thank you, MC. Of course."

Simeon has one pair of white wings although they aren't as glorious as one would expect from such a saint. They aren't as thick with feathers as Lucifer's or as fluffy as Luke's. They're simple, modest, and humble. Yet you gave him a reaction he'd expect from someone seeing Michael's wings. He's flattered.

The first thing you notice as you hand strokes his wings is how warm they are, like a cozy cottage fire. You could hug them for hours... When you do hug it, Simeon laughs and folds the wings to pull you closer. Such bliss.

Simeon happily hugs you with his wings from now on. Holding you on his lap and his wings wrapped around the both of you while reading a fairytale.

He used to believe his wings were never special and that never bothered him. Now, however, you think they are. Now they feel magical to him, thanks to you.

Luke

"Thank you! Normally I'd say no but since it's you, you can."

Luke is very pleased you like his wings! You're one of his favourite people and your opinion matters to him more than he thought it would.

Big and puffy, the purest white is the only way I can describe his wings. Petting his wings is like petting a fluffy puppy. So soft. They're also really warm, like a soft hot water bottle.

They show that a lot of care has been put into his wings which makes sense considering that an angel's wings are seen as a gift from god, and he has three pairs of them!

Luke's wings are comedically large compared to his size. Almost every demon in RAD pointed this out immediately and made laughs about it, telling him not to trip on them. Simeon says that he'll grow into them eventually.

If you bring up the fact that he let you pet his wings, especially to one of the brothers like Lucifer, the teasing will get worse. "MC said your wings were soft, like a tiny dog. Is that right, chihuahua?" 😡

•~°★ Have a lovely day ★°~•

[shatcey]

My fiancé has become a child (Licht)

Luke Licht Nokto

This event is incredibly sweet. What else can you expect from a combination of twins, Yves and a little girl? And Licht, as always, is endlessly adorable. He constantly remembers himself from before Belle, but somehow it doesn't seem as sad as with Luke. I was so very happy for my baby Licht, who has changed so much.

So as not to confuse myself and others with names. I use "Emma" when I talk about little Emma, and "Belle" when I talk about big Emma, the real one.

Licht wakes up, but Belle is nowhere to be seen. He went to the flower field to look for her and found… a little girl.

I think this is the first little Belle to behave like this. She's not usually this carefree…

He assumed that she was just the daughter of some nobleman who got lost and ended up on their land. After all, there are no guards there. He asked her if she had seen Belle. And she replied that she had not seen anyone. And then he asked her what her name was.

You're so clever! I'll never get tired of praising you.

He asked her if she knew about her parents, but she doesn't remember anything. I was secretly hoping that the devs would tell us about Belle's parents, but this particular Belle doesn't even remember Akatsuki. How dare she?!? But… maybe he hasn't adopted her yet… hmm… How old is she here?..

Oh, honey...

Licht thinks her family is probably worried about her, so he decided to go to the palace to ask if somebody were looking for a missing child. Emma was extremely pleased to learn that they were going to the palace.

No, really, she's too emotional. Maybe she's 3 years old after all…

At the palace, she got excited again and ran. What else to do in long empty halls. I understand her so well.

Oh, no, daddy Licht. I'm not ready for that…

And, of course, at the next turn, she bumped into someone. I prayed it was Sariel. I imagined such a vivid picture… Alas, it was Yves. (Daddy) Licht told her not to run, and she obediently comply.

Nokto was with Yves, and he joked that Licht was only helping the girl because she looked like Belle. Yves corrected him: this is Licht, he will help anyone in need. Emma imitates angry Yves.

Okay, okay, brother is part of JP's way of talking, I know that. But I see that she sounded like a mother who tells her child, "Be nice to your brother!". So I'll leave it as it is.

Nokto laughingly obeyed her. Yves said he was making sweets for the tea party and asked her if she would help. The girl gladly agreed. Licht was delighted because he didn't know what to show the kid in the palace.

In the kitchen, Emma helps Yves decorate sweets. And Yves is absolutely fascinated by this child. Nokto seems to be enjoying this situation as well. But Licht is not…

For a moment, I was even worried…

Normal

Awww… You're so sweet. You're just meet her and you already wanna be the best for her.

So he decided that he would watch how Yves and Nokto did it and learn from them. They finished making sweets and went to the garden for a tea party. Emma gave Licht the fork with undeniable hint: "Feed me".

I like that expression of his. In fact, he spoiled me a lot at this event.

He feeds her, and she looks so happy that Licht smiles. Licht noticed that the brothers were looking at him and asked why.

I'd say like daddy, but okay… I know I can't stop thinking about this daddy thing. Don't judge.

Licht was embarrassed and decided to… go check the reports. But Emma didn't want to leave him and go with him. They asked knight, but there were no reports of missing children yet.

Emma asked Licht to play hide-and-seek with her. She was hiding, and he needed to find her. After a while, he became worried because he couldn't find her.

Oh, no, I like that expression as well. It's easier to say which expressions I don't like. None. I like them all. He's too precious.

He even called and said he was lost, just to get her to show herself. But she didn't do it. Some time later, he heard faint crying and was finally be able to find her. She was in the basement in a box.

They went outside. Emma apologized for worrying him. He apologized for making her cry. But she explained hirself. She was crying because she was away from Licht for too long. And he… he always makes her so very happy.

He suggests that they play hide-and-seek with Yves and Nokto so that they (Emma and Licht) can hide together and she wouldn't feel lonely. He remembered that he used to think that he couldn't make anyone happy, but now he doesn't think that way anymore.

Premium

They decided to relax in the common room. Emma happily said that it was fun to play, but she wants to play more. Licht asked what she wanted to play. The girl seems to think about it too long, and he remembers what he played as a child.

Oh, no… They were inseparable… I forgot. It's so sad…

He asked if she could think of something, but she disagree. She just wants so many things that she can't choose. Licht told her that everything could be done in order. And they started playing house.

(hysterical laughter) This reaction is priceless!

They pretend to cook. Emma asks if there is anything he doesn't like to eat. He (obviously) replies carrots. Emma sadly answered that she already puts in a lot of carrots. Licht thinks it's very sweet of her to think about his preferences, even when they're pretending…

I took a screenshot when he was in the middle of blinking, but decided not to fix it. It must hurt him so much to even mention his mother… that's why his eyes don't shine as usual.

Elbie, honey, take a deep breath. It's okay… They don't have your ability.

Finally, she asked to play a horse. Licht pretended to be a horse and rode her on his back. So cute, I want this picture!

They finished playing. She thanked him for having so much fun and caressed him (I didn't take a screenshot, probably to his hair) and…

Belle does the same thing. So his guess was correct. This is little Belle. He thinks he doesn't know what happened or how to get her back, but he's very grateful to meet her.

That's extremely sweet...

I have a thought.

As I said at the very beginning, this Emma is very different from the others I've read so far. And considering that this situation can't be real, it must be a dream. The story is being told from his point of view, so this is his dream. And, like all of us, he most likely imagines Emma as himself when he was little.

Seriel mentioned that Licht was very emotional as a child… "easy to laugh and easy to cry". And this Emma is exactly like that.

But if it really happened, and it's really little Belle, it just proves how similar they are. Even when they were kids, they were similar. So cute!

I decided that I will read Nokto's story next. But time is almost up… I'll probably only be able to read the normal ending. Yet again… if I find it interesting, I'll make a summary.

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

🔝 Start page 🔝

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

[starsandhughes]

Summer Lovin'— Quinn Hughes

request: "for Quinn's beautiful Monday Y/n has been best friends with Jack for years and was always invited to the boys' parties and summers at the lake house. She and Quinn were never close, he only saw her as his younger brother's best friend, but now, this summer at the lake house, Jack invites her over to catch up on their homesickness. Quinn hasn't seen Y/N in a couple of years (she's in college) and is amazed at how beautiful, mature, smart, and sarcastic she has become. I imagine them flirting as a joke, him trying to win her over AND Jack being jealous of his best friend"

warnings: none that i can think of!

word count: 2.3k

MASTERLIST

HAPPY QUINN HUGHES MONDAY <3

You hadn’t been to the Hughes family lake house in a while. This summer will be the first time in three years due to moving away for college in California. You’ve seen Jack a few times, obviously, since he’s your best friend. But the rest of the family? It’s been a while.

You arrived an hour early, so the boys and their friends are still out on the boat. You took the time to catch up with Jim and Ellen, telling them all about your life in college so far.

“I better see a graduation invitation in the mail!” Ellen said, pointing her finger at you.

“You will!” you laughed. “I can’t graduate without my second family there!”

The boys, them being Jack, Quinn, Luke, Trevor, and Dylan, got back to the house about an hour and a half after you arrived. Jack definitely spotted your car parked out front, because he bursted open the door.

“Y/N!” Jack yelled excitedly.

You turned around with a big smile on your face and ran straight to your best friend. You practically jumped into his arms and he spun you around in a giant hug, lifting your feet into the air.

“I’ve missed you so much!” you said when he put you down.

“My turn!” Trevor announced and pulled you in for a hug. “I’ve never missed someone so much!”

“I see you all the time,” you rolled your eyes jokingly. “I’ve enjoyed my space.”

“Rude!” Trevor gasped.

After you pulled away from Trevor’s hug, you spotted Quinn. He looked different than the last time you saw him. Really saw him, since you watched all of his games over the years. He looked good. Really, really good. You were never that good of friends, since you were mostly just with Jack. Quinn had gone to NTDP and college and then the NHL, so you didn’t really have many good opportunities to get close.

“You cut your hair,” you smiled at Quinn. “It looks good.”

Quinn blushed and pulled you into a hug. You suddenly noticed your heart beating a little faster at his touch. Which is weird because you’ve never experienced that before around him.

“I’ve cut my hair lots of times over the past three years,” Quinn laughed.

“Yeah, but it’s different than when I last saw you on my TV! Can’t even take a compliment,” you tutted.

“You… You watched my games?” Quinn asked, clearly flustered.

“Every one,” you told him with a softness in your tone. What was going on with you?

Quinn and you stared at each other a little too long, but Luke stepped in before it got too noticeable.

“Hey, I missed you, too, you know!”

“Moose!” you said with glee. “Look at you! Look at how much you’ve grown!”

You played catch up with everyone. From the NHL seasons, to college, to injuries. You caught up with every single little detail. The details you paid the most attention to? Quinn’s. You talked about how hard some of the trades this season were, and how much he does love his new teammates. Jack inched closer to you every time you said some harmless, yet very flirty, comment at Quinn.

“I was dying at your fight in one of your last games! You took him down real quick, it was pretty entertaining,” you told Quinn.

“Entertaining?” he asked, laughing.

“Oh yeah; I would’ve loved a front row seat to that. It was kinda hot,” you said, putting your elbow on the table and resting your head in your hand.

Jack shot a look at Trevor, silently begging for him to do something.

“What about my fights?” Trevor asked, copying your pose. “Were those hot?”

“No, because you whined like a baby to me after about a bruise! And I’m not sure that any of your game time extra curricular activities classify as a fight! You’re just a professional nuisance,” you laughed, shoving your hand in his face to make him lose his balance.

“You’re a professional nuisance,” Trevor grumbled.

You fake gasped and put your hand over your heart, “How dare you! I’m an angel. Right, Quintin?”

“You’re alright,” Quinn said, sending you a wink. You couldn’t help but smile at him. And Jack couldn’t help but be practically glued to your hip and sending Quinn a look.

“See? I’m alright,” you smirked.

Quinn couldn’t keep his eyes off of you. You’ve grown up. He never noticed how beautiful and mature you’d gotten, while still keeping true to your joking and sarcastic self. He told you you were alright, but to him, you’re much more than that. He thinks you’re amazing. He thinks you’re mesmerizing.

Jack wasn’t a fan of how cozy you and his brother were getting. You used to barely talk to him growing up, and suddenly you think his fighting is hot? And he’s winking at you? You’re his best friend. Not Quinn’s. He didn’t even mind how close you and Trevor have gotten due to you going to college near where he lives. You two have always been friends. That isn’t new. This is.

Trevor, however, was all for this new flirtationship. He was enjoying watching it, much to Jack’s displeasure. You all decided to play Sorry, and by that you mean that you begged to play it and everyone would be in pairs. Trevor immediately called Jack as his partner, so Quinn took his chance to ask if you wanted to pair up. That left Luke and Duker as partners, and Jim and Ellen would play as the fourth pair.

“I’m going to whoop your ass, Hughesy,” you said, talking to Jack.

“Who’s ass? My ass?” Quinn asked jokingly.

“Maybe later,” you said, now sending him a wink. “But I meant Jack! He’s partnered with Trevor, so I’m elated for their downfall.”

“We could’ve been the dream team!” Jack protested.

“Yeah, you’d like that, wouldn’t you?” you teased. “This is much more fun.”

Luke and Dylan ended up winning first place, but you all continued to play for second, third, and fourth place. The parents got second, so that left you, Quinn, Jack, and Trevor playing for third.

You stood up and got behind Quinn when it was his turn to draw. You needed a two to win. You reached over and tapped twice on the deck and then put your hands on Quinn’s head. You leaned down and whispered into his ear, “You will draw a two! You hear me, Quintin? A two!”

You dramatically placed a quick and hard kiss on the top of his head and ruffled his hair for good measure for “the maximum good vibes.”

Quinn slowly picked up a card and hid it from everyone’s view, including your eyes. He sighed, acting like it wasn’t a good card.

“Sorry, bro,” Jack tutted. “We can’t all be winners.”

“That’s true,” Quinn agreed. He placed the card down, revealing it to be a two, “But not us.”

You threw your hands in the air and cheered, making a show to place your final piece in home. You hugged Quinn from behind and squeezed really tight making him laugh.

“That’s what I’m talking about! Suck it!”

“I think you’re too excited about third place,” Dylan laughed.

“I’m excited about Jacky and Z losing, Duker!”

After everyone called it a night, you followed Jack into his room instead of going straight to yours.

“Alright spill it,” you said as you sat down next to him on his bed. “You’ve been surgically attached to my hip and glaring at everybody since I got here. What is up with you?’

“Wouldn’t you rather be talking to Quinn?” Jack asked passive aggressively.

“Aww,” you cooed, wrapping your arms around him and resting your head on his shoulder. “Are you jealous, Jacky?”

“No! You’ve just been all over him today,” he grumbled, but accepted your hug.

“Don’t worry, Jacky, you’re still my number one guy. You’ll be my maid of honor at my future wedding!”

“It would be my honor,” Jack joked.

“That is in the title, so I sure hope so,” you said. “Why do you have a problem with me talking to Quinn?”

“You’re not just talking! You’re flirting and winking at each other and kissing him. It’s weird! You two have never been close.”

“It’s not like we’re making out! What’s wrong with being close to your family? It’s basically mine, too.”

“Do you like him?” he asked quietly.

“We’re adults, J,” you said low.

“That doesn’t answer my question!”

“I don’t know! Okay? This is new to me, too.”

Jack turned away from you and you sighed. You moved to be in his view again. You grabbed his face in your hands, “I don’t know if I like him or not. Everything just feels… different. And I know I like that.”

Jack said nothing. He looked deflated. He loved you, as his best friend, and he obviously loves his brother. But you two together? He didn’t love that at this moment.

You kissed his cheek after a long period of silence, giving up on him saying anything.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen this summer, but I hope I’m still your best friend at the end of it. Because you’ll always be mine.”

You got up and walked to his door to go to your room when the sound of his voice stopped you.

“You’ll still be my best friend. No matter what,” Jack told you. You turned back around and sent him a soft smile, “Goodnight, J.”

The next few weeks consisted of more flirting and teasing between you and Quinn, more bullying of Trevor, scolding the boys whenever they teased Luke and Dylan because they’re your “precious and innocent babies.”

The sexual tension between you and Quinn grew tremendously every day. You were now completely sure of your feelings and it was driving you crazy. Summer was almost over, and you decided to be a lot more bold with Quinn in hopes that he would catch your endless hints.

You were all around the bonfire that night and the spots were limited for some reason. Trevor rushed ahead of you and placed himself right next to Jack, the last actual seat, and tossed his legs over to lay in Jack’s lap. He motioned to you towards Quinn, and you knew what he was doing.

You walked over to Quinn, “Do you mind?”

Quinn heated up, “No! I mean… I don’t mind. You can sit.”

You breathed out a laugh and shook your head as you sat down in his lap. You grabbed his hands and put them around your waist and leaned back against him.

“You’re quite the comfortable seat, Quintin! Ten out of ten, would recommend to a friend,” you said.

“I try,” Quinn said back.

You looked over at Jack with an almost pleading look in your eyes. You would back off if he really wanted you to. Trevor smacked Jack’s shoulder to make him look at you. Jack sighed, but gave you a slight nod. What you didn’t catch was Jack giving the same nod to Quinn.

“Hey, do you two want to head inside and grab some beers?” Jack asked, directing his question to you and Quinn.

You hopped off Quinn’s lap and made your way inside with him to the kitchen.

“You didn’t have to come,” Quinn said. “I can handle the beers and I got you some Smirnoffs that I can–”

“Quinn!” you cut him off.

Quinn turned around and looked at you confused.

“You called me Quinn,” he said. “You haven’t called me Quinn all summer.”

You stepped closer to him, “Tell me you’ve caught on to what Jack and Trevor are doing.”

Quinn smiled and took a step closer to you, bringing you inches apart from each other.

“I like it when you call me Quintin,” he whispered.

“And I’d like it if you kissed me,” you said boldly. “Quintin.”

Quinn didn’t waste a second. He spun you around and pushed you up against the fridge. He had one hand pressed against it and his other on your waist, slamming his lips against yours. Your hands reached up and tangled themselves into his hair, opening your mouth to let him in. It wasn’t a typical soft and slow kiss. This was rough and raw. It was filled with everything that has built up between you over the last few weeks.

You two pulled apart, breathing heavily.

“What’s it gonna take to get you to come to Vancouver for some games?” he asked breathlessly, still inches away from your lips.

“Kiss me again and I’ll go anywhere for you,” you said.

He did. You didn’t think it was possible for the kiss to get even hotter, but you two needed each other. Bad.

“What’s it going to take to get you to go out on a date with me before you go back to Cali?”

“Kiss me again and I’m yours.”

You heard the door open and you two quickly pulled apart. It was Jack and Trevor.

“We were wondering why it was taking you two ten minutes to grab a few beers,” Trevor smirked. “Now I see why.”

Your and Quinn’s faces turned bright red. Quinn ran a hand through his hair and you tried to fix yours as well.

“We were just–”

“LA LA LA LA LA I don’t wanna hear it!” Jack cut you off. “Just don’t do it in front of me.”

You two moved out of the way and let him grab the drinks.

“Have fun you two!” Trevor called out as him and Jack made their way back outside.

“Not too much fun! I expect to see you both back out here tonight!” Jack shouted.

“Don’t listen to him! Have a lot of fun!”

You tilted your head down and stifled a laugh, “Who do you want to listen to?”

Quinn moved back in front of you and closed the space between you.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Trevor.”

“Yeah? You gonna kiss me like that again, Quintin?” you teased. “Or do you wanna go up stairs for some… extracurricular activities?”

“I vote the second one.”

“Good,” you said, biting your lip and running your fingers through his hair. “Lead the way.”

[tossawary]

So, I don't really like the characterizations in this "Star Wars: Shadows of the Empire" novel. They're serviceable for the most part? They're mostly fine. There hasn't been a "yeah!!! THAT'S the character I know and love!!!" moment so far for me, but there have been a few "ohhh nooo, HARD disagree on this characterization choice" moments. This following passage from Leia's POV is one of the paragraphs that wrinkled my nose the most with its baseline heteronormativity / amatonormativity / sexism:

(CONTEXT: Leia and Luke are on the Falcon with Lando, Chewie, R2-D2, and C-3PO, on their way to try and get Han back from Boba Fett, who has not yet delivered Han to Jabba the Hutt. Luke and Leia had actually separated after the events of Ep5, briefly, so that Leia could try to track Boba Fett and Luke could build himself a new lightsaber, but they have met up again for this mission.)

"She turned and watched Luke as he cleared the micrometeor dust from Artoo. Luke wanted to rescue Han as much as she did. Which was interesting, given that she'd felt the competition from them for her attention. A lesser man than Luke might take advantage of a rival's absence, but so far he had not. That was the thing about Luke. He wanted to win, but he wanted to win fairly." (pg55)

I don't like this. At all.

Where to start? I resent the fact that this is a thought being put into Leia's head as a character. A lot of Leia's thoughts in this novel are too focused on weighing the men around her as romantic partners for my taste, though this is partially because the book keeps having them hit on her. Like, yeah, she's thinking about Han all the time because she loves him and they're trying to rescue him from Boba Fett, but I feel the text could be flavored more with her also occasionally thinking about the loss of Alderaan or her career in the Imperial Senate or her work for the Rebellion, anything to remind us that Leia as a female character has a lot more going on in her life and past besides her male love interest(s).

"Luke wanted to rescue Han as much as she did. Which was interesting, given that she'd felt the competition from them for her attention."

Leia thinking it's "interesting" that Luke wants to rescue Han is a weird fucking choice. Luke and Han have been friends for a couple years at this point, working in the Rebellion together. They're FRIENDS. In the films, Han saves Luke's life once during the Death Star run in "A New Hope" and then again on Hoth in "Empire Strikes Back", so Luke also owes Han a couple life debts. Han was also only targeted and captured by Darth Vader because Vader was after Luke, so Luke is likely to feel partially responsible for Han's capture and wants to fix it. Of course he wants to rescue Han.

"A lesser man than Luke might take advantage of a rival's absence, but so far he had not."

Like, I understand that this is Leia thinking that Luke is DIFFERENT compared to other guys; this passage isn't suggesting that Luke Skywalker would ever leave a friend behind due to something as selfish romantic jealousy. Leia is thinking poorly of OTHER MEN not known to us, sure. But the fact that this is Leia's POV means that it's LEIA noticing again RIGHT NOW, years into their friendship, that Luke is a Nice Guy, and it just contributes to the problematic pattern of having Leia always weighing the men around her romantically. The particular timing of this passage makes it feel like Leia IS a little surprised here and now that Luke would weigh friendship over trying to "win" her attention away from a "rival", and that's a shitty thing to have Leia think at all about Luke and the other men in her life.

Leia's surprise implies to me that, while Luke was getting his robotic hand, they never had a normal fucking conversation about what had happened to Han and what they wanted to do about it. Like, framing him as a "competitor" suggests to me that she doesn't know Luke fairly well by now? Luke and Leia are ALSO FRIENDS, in my mind, but the poisonous "men and women can't ever be friends" mindset is insidious. If I was writing fanfiction here, the recovery post-Ep5 would be the perfect point to have a scene of Luke and Leia grieving together, even if they don't actually talk about it, so it's weird to me that that didn't apparently happen. Like, sure, maybe neither of them had a full emotional breakdown and talked about all of their feelings for hours, fine, they don't know they're siblings yet and their feelings for each other are weird, but I don't think it's OOC for Luke to have said something like, "This is my fault. Han saved my life and I owe him. Leia, we'll get our friend back, I promise."

Like, damn, just let them be friends. Friends who have confusing Force feelings about each other sometimes, sure, but still friends first and foremost rather than "woman" and "suitor". The way that Luke and Leia act in "Return of the Jedi" always suggested to me that Leia had flat-out told Luke by then that she's in love with Han and Luke was cool with it; honesty cutting through any more potential love triangle nonsense. There's no "competition" anymore!

"That was the thing about Luke. He wanted to win, but he wanted to win fairly."

Again, I DO NOT like Leia framing herself as something to be "won" at all. Gross. This is just... a weird thing for anyone to think to me, especially Leia, who has a thousand other things to think about in the fight against the Empire besides love. If Leia didn't come up with this thought on her own, then someone else must have said it or something like it, and I really don't like the idea that it might have been Luke, who ALSO has a thousand other things to think about in the fight against the Empire. I don't like this characterization.

Of course, this is one small passage, not written with bad intentions, and I can admit that I am not reading it with generosity. But the way Leia's POV scenes up until this point have largely prioritized potential romantic connections as the central thing she's thinking about has been really annoying, and this passage is where that pattern gets concentrated into something even more direct, so it annoys me even more than it might have on its own. I do kind of enjoy that most SW relationships are a hot, confusing, poorly defined mess on a good day; their lives suck a lot of the time. I do not need the story to be purely about THE POWER OF FRIENDSHIP where no one is motivated by romantic love.

But I do wish I could ban anyone writing Leia's POV from ever having her think about the men around her as "rivals" for her attention. No. Bad. There's a fucking war on. Her parents are dead and planet is gone. Give her A SECOND THING to think about besides love, please, since apparently it's too much to ask SW that Leia (or Padmé after her) is regularly given another female character to talk to.

[luke-hughes43]

luke hughes request

luke and reader grew up together as their parents are best friends, playing on the same hockey team together being best friends, but being the youngest of jack and quinn and the reader having no siblings, luke and the reader were the babies of the family. Reader and luke went to umitch together and played hockey together there too, reader and luke both got drafted in 2021 only one pick form each other but also meaning then went to diffent teams as well something they weren’t very happy about about. luke and reader have always acted like best friends so no one thought they would be anything different than that but when they went to collage the two saw each other different and started dating each other and quickly realized they worked perfect dating just as they do best friends. so maybe they haven’t told anyone and they are going to home to the lake house for the 23 season and maybe one day they are on the boat and luke takes his shirt off and he just has scratches and hickeys everywhere. and the boys are all the boy/(like jack and quinn’s friends since all luke and reader friends know about them) are shocked that luke would have that on him, and jack is like how did you sneak someone in and quinn noticed the blush on the readers cheeks and when she turned her head he could see a hickey on her neck and quinn quickly figured it out and maybe jack and quinn are just shocked and idkkk what to do for the ending so you pick :)

oooo i love this idea!

so reader and luke are besties and inseparable and so she goes 3rd to the ducks and obvi luke is excited for her but is a little sad bc they'll be on opposite sides of the country when she signs.

they go to umich together and after a fun night out at a party, they drunkenly confess their feelings to each other and start dating a few days later after realizing that they both meant what they said. all of their friends at umcih know that they are together and their parents know but it hasn't quite come up to jack and quinn yet.

the summer after luke signs (summer of 2023) is the first time they really get to have a summer with each other since they both had a bunch of hockey stuff going on.

reader spends the whole summer attached to luke's side which jack and quinn don't bat an eye at.

what they do notice is during the first week or so, luke takes his shirt off to get in the lake and it's scratched up to all hell. thankfull jim and ellen weren't with them. quinn is the first to notice it and his face twists in disgust as he instantly knows what it is.

jcak notices is after and calls luke out, "lukey, what the hell happened to your back? you look like you got in a fight with a thorn bush and lost?"

luke blushes and makes eye contact with reader who also blushes. jack then says, "who could've even done that? did you like sneak someone in without us knowing?"

jack is obviously oblivious to reader's face. quinn, however, is not. quinn notices the blush on her face and even sees a small hickey on her neck and quickly puts the peices together. luke sees the gears turnign in quinn's head and glares at him before sitting enxt to reader and putting an arm around here.

quinn comments, "jack, are you that fucking stupid?"

"what?"

"him and y/n are fucking. he didn't sneak anyone in. it's him and y/n."

"ohhhh. that makes a lot of sense actually. wait, gross! i share a wall with you guys! are you at least wearing protection?"

reader def gets embarrassed and hides in luke's chest who tightens his grip on her. luke snaps at jack, "yes we're being safe jack. and i really don't think i need to be having the safe sex talk with you of all people jack."

quinn snorts and keep his comments to himself. he trusts luke more than he trusts jack anyways. so now they're just shitting on luke for having a girlfriend and being in love.

[greenqueenhightower]

Another Daeron mention in this episode.

Any time someone mentions Daeron they make it a point focus on Alicent and she has these micro nervous reactions that she hopes nobody notices. Seems like Alicent is very protective of him like she is with Helaena but with Helaena she feels that she needs to keep her close to protect her, while she saw agreeing to send Daeron away as the best option to protect him. Now him and his Dragon have been repeatedly mentioned lately and she just wishes they would leave him out.

So curious to see his POV though, he was kind of a Mama’s boy in the book but I wonder does he have any resentment towards her in the show? (Of course he will, it’s Alicent and the writers have to make her relationship to all of her children difficult)

I wish they would give us something more on him but it seems like the writers still don’t know how to introduce in to the story or what to do with his character or how he fits within the family. Seems like they are already distancing him even further from his Targaryen side already. Why has he not ridden Tessarion yet??

In the book, he claimed Tessarion and she was an young adult Dragon. In the show apparently Tessarion hatched for him but shouldn’t she be big enough to fly already? Especially since she isn’t growing up in a Dragon pit. He’s younger than Jace but should be in the same age range as Baela, Rhaena and Luke:. He’s had her for around the same amount of time that Baela and Luke have had their Dragons and both are/were able to ride them.

Unless they’re making Daeron a few years younger than them, then it’s like, how old is Daeron?? Was he sent off to ward before he was even potty trained? He can’t be that young since he’s marching to war or are we going to see a 7th grader riding a dragon no bigger than a horse get Knighted and go on to do as much damage to the blacks as he did in the book?

Hi anon 💚

I’m so happy Daeron finally exists in the hotd universe! Also Tessarion 🫶🏻

You’re making an excellent point about Alicent’s reactions to the council or Otto mentioning Daeron and how he might serve their cause… she really doesn’t want him to take any part in all this and be yet another pawn. Maybe that’s the reason he was sent away in the first place. But now we are told by Gwayne that he enjoys fighting? This must be concerning to Alicent because Daeron is her baby… and he’s so far anyway she can’t make sure of his safety personally.

I think he might hold a grudge for Alicent because he grew up far away from her but maybe he also understands her and the circumstances surrounding her decision. I'm excited to see their dynamics next season. Their relationship will be dysfunctional for sure because that's the Hightower curse I guess. It still is so interesting to me nonetheless.

I'm also confused about how young Daeron is supposed to be since we never saw him and we now learn that he was a young dragon… he could be a little older than Helaena’s and Rhaenyra’s kids… so maybe 10-13? That could explain how he is getting military training but hasn't fully become a dragonrider yet. I have no clue, really. He could have been sent to Oldtown just before Helaena gave birth to the twins so around the age of 6-9.

[royal-husbands]

After the last post, we obviously need something good. So...

At the first meeting of Lucerys and Jaehaerys, the former gives the baby his horse to calm him down. They quickly find a common language because they both like horses, and Luke explains very gently that they're now in a safe place. Where there is no war, where no one is hating each other. Where they can do whatever they want, because: "Consider it Old Valyria. You know the stories about her, right? The sullen and annoying maester was clearly babbling about it. Well, we can say that we are at home."

When Jacaerys joins them, Luke can't figure out how to react. Because he's aware more than little Jaehaerys, and conflicting feelings overwhelm him. He is happy, because they haven't seen each other for a long time, but also, realizing that under what circumstances his unchanged brother could be here, he is sad. Jace has to calm two people at once: as soon as Luke got upset, Jae got upset after him because he became attached to the elder.

The last to appear is Maelor, whom Jaehaerys recognizes faster than Velaryon brothers, so he immediately runs to his terrified brother to hug him tightly. Of course, Jaehaerys liked spending time with adults, but seeing someone from his family "at home" is much more pleasant.

So, Lucerys plays with little Jaehaerys, and Jace carries Maelor on his shoulders because he likes to be somewhere on top. They don't know who else they'll meet on the way, but they're ready for anything, because they have each other.

Bonus: Joffrey forces his brothers to fight with him with swords from time to time, because he likes to get new knowledge from them, while Jaehaerys and Maelor eat sweets prepared by a caring mother.

Bonus 2: Jaehaera appears last. She doesn't notice any of the boys who found her, because she hasn't yet fully realized that she's not "there". The girl comes to life the moment she hears Jaehaerys' voice and feels his strong embrace. He looks younger than she does, and that's probably why Jaehaera immediately recognizes him as her brother. This is her first reason for smiling. The first, but not the last.