#THANK YOU FOR THIS ASK BTW!!! I love babbling about my silly

[sketchy-tour]

Helloo! My name is Lyla and I like your concept of Dandy! I would like to ask, did anything inspire them? Also, which gender are they? (IMO, they look like a girl to me....😊 but if you think otherwise, that's fine❤)

OH HELLO!!! Thank you I'm so glad that people like Dandy so much, it makes me so so giddy!!! Um, Dandy is inspired by a lot of things! Lots of my personal interests soaked into Dandy when I was designing them.

If you don't mind me rambling a little about Dandy's process, Dandy took me 3 months to make! Give or take at least. And they went through three other revisions before I was happy with their look!

THESE WERE ALL THREE GOING TO BE DANDY! I was a little directionless when I made these three. I just knew "flowers" and that was...it. But otherwise I was kinda just throwing things at a wall and seeing what sticked. The last one is the closest to what Dandy ended up as but still wasn't quite right! Eventually I had to put these away and make a sort of inspo board, look at colors and clothes and puppets I liked. BUT YES there is one BIG MAIN INSPIRATION that really cemented Dandy's silly look. And it's THIS GUY!

Boober from Fraggle Rock! Like when I saw him I realized I remembered the show growing up and I just... AUGH it filled me with joy to remember so I picked him up, picked up some color palettes I liked, picked up some clothes images, and ran with it. Eventually they ended up as the little goober we all know today!

OH RIGHT! GENDER! yes yes um. Dandy is androgynous! On purpose! They're inspired by characters I grew up with, like Crona from Soul Eater, where no one could seem to agree what pronouns to give them. So Dandy is meant to be a character the writers couldn't seem to agree was masculine or feminine so the show and physical illustrations flip flopped between he and she. That is to say, all are correct! Dandy goes by any! I use they/them to try and be consistent but otherwise you may call them what you wish! So you may use she/her when addressing them if you so wish!

[heaven4lostgirls]

hi!! i was curious if you would write something that starts out with barty x reader and evan is just friends with both of them before feeling like he’s impeding on their relationship (a little bit angsty if you’re comfortable with that) but barty and reader tell him that he’s not impeding at all and they’re actually very interested in him joining their relationship (totes no worries if not!!)

pairing: poly!rosekiller x reader

summary: request above!

word count: 1.8k

a/n: thank you for your your request, this somehow came much easier to me than i thought it would? (i’m blaming the fact that they have been consuming my every thought since last week) not proofread btw

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evan’s not sure when it started, when it started feeling less like evan hanging out with two of his close friends and more like evan third wheeling two of his closest friends.

he dislikes it, the change. it makes him feel silly, why does he want to spend this much time with two people who obviously have no obligation to him outside of friendship? (and why does he wish that would change?)

he watches you and barty stroll ahead of him in the streets of hogsmeade, inhibiting himself from increasing his walking speed to catch up to the two of you, to join in the boisterous laughter that you two share.

instead, he lets himself watch longingly of what he so wishes was his future. his eyes travel along the landscape of the small town, always finding his eyes making their way back to your shared figures ahead of him.

your hair catching the orange glare of the setting sun, comparable in brightness to the smile on barty’s face as he listens to you babble nonsensically about a novel you had been reading.

evan allows himself only a single moment to mourn, mourn a love he had never really had in the first place, but nonetheless mourn the loss.

he knew he could never tell either of you of his feelings, he had watched the both of you fall in love, the shared glances, lingering touches and lovesick gazes.

all of which he longed to experience yet knew that neither of you would ever reciprocate his feelings. so he tortured himself in spending his free time with you both, to limit suspicion, but ever so slightly, pulling away, tending to walk behind the both of you, instead of with, sitting behind the two of you in class but always paired with another classmate for projects. studying with the two of you in the library, but always leaving early with one or more excuses.

barty and you had noticed, of course you had, but chalked it up to evan only adjusting to the shift in dynamic between your trio. you both missed him dearly but never asked for him to stay in fear of pushing him further away.

and thus, in a viscious cycle, the three of you drifted further apart than ever before, each party too afraid of admitting that they missed the other and impeaching on unconscious boundaries.

however, as you and barty walk down hogsmeade, evan trailing behind the two of you like a glorified guard dog rather than your best friend, you murmur to your lover, “we need to talk to him” with a sad look.

barty turns to you with furrowed eyebrows, “what if he doesn’t want to talk?” he says and you can’t help but turn and pitifully look back at evan’s bored yet slightly sad expression.

“we have to try, i-we can’t lose him” you emphasize and barty nods in understanding before placing a hand on your cheek.

“we’ll talk with him when we reach the castle, okay angel?” he says with a soft murmur, pressing a soft kiss on your forehead. you hum in acknowledgement before closing your eyes.

evan’s heart clenches at the sight of the two of you, so perfectly fit together, how could he ever compete? not that he wanted to, but he knew deep down that he would never be what either of you wanted nor needed and it was better to cut his losses than to have his heart broken unexpectedly.

as you reach the castle, you all make your way to the slytherin common room and up to barty and evan’s shared dorm. evan is about to make an excuse about studying in the library to avoid being alone with you two but before he can make his escape, your voice breaks the silence in the empty dorm.

“evan.” your tone is soft and calming, yet evan’s heart drops to his stomach, clenching painfully as he closes his eyes in an “oh fuck” moment.

he turns to you with a fake smile, beckoning you to continue, hoping whatever you’re going to say, it isn’t what he thinks it is.

“what’s going on?” so it’s exactly what he thinks it is, he doesn’t have to play into this, he doesn’t have to give you the answers you seek- “what’s what?” he asks as he shrugs, faking nonchalance at the situation.

you and barty share a look that has evan clenching his jaw, “you’re pulling away from us!” you accuse him. the silence that follows is defeaning, the only sound is evan’s sharp intake of breath.

“we don’t have to talk about this-“ evan says quickly as he looks alarmed at the both of you before barty scoffs.

“yes we fucking do” and there’s a ‘don’t argue with me’ tone in his voice. evan only avoids his gaze as he looks at his shoes and shrugs once again.

“it doesn’t matter-“ he says again with an avoidant tone, barty only growls in annoyance. “yes it fucking does evan! we miss you!” barty states loudly and evan can’t help but flinch as he meekly looks up and meets barty’s gaze.

you clench your jaw in hope that it stops the tears from welling in your eyes. “did we do something? to-make you uncomfortable?” your voice breaks midway and evan’s wide eyed gaze jumps to yours in alarm and worry at the tears in your eyes.

“no!-no.” he shakes his head with wide eyes, “fuck.” he says as he looks down again and blows out a breath as he rakes a hand through his messy blonde hair.

“it’s just-“ he blows out a frustrated breath. “i can’t do this” he shakes his head as his voice wobbles, you look at barty whose gaze is swimming in worry.

“evan” barty starts softly, in the same tone he uses just for you, evan flinches as he hears it and shakes his head again, this time more frantically as he pulls at his roots.

he looks at barty in an almost manic movement, looking comparably to a rabid animal backed into a corner. “don’t-“ he starts as he chokes up, “don’t use that fucking tone” he says as he wraps his arms around himself. “not-not when you use it with her, not when i know it doesn’t mean the same as thing” he stammers out as he backs himself more into the wall.

“evan” barty’s eyes soften and you look at him again before deciding to walk closer to evan, “is that what this is about?” you ask softly, your heart clenching as he withdraws from you further, not letting you come any further towards him.

“what else could it possibly be about!” he cries out and looks at the two of you, gaze jumping from both of your figures as tears fall steadily past his pale cheeks.

“i’m sorry, i didn’t mean for it to happen, it just did-”

“evan..”

“-and i tried to pull away but it just kept getting worse and you guys started noticing but didn’t say anything-”

“evan.”

“-i was trying to get over it, it was only a small crush! i would have never broken that boundary between the two of you-”

“EVAN!” the yell breaks evan out of his rambling as he looks at barty in shock.

“why didn’t you tell us?” you ask softly as your lip wobbles, your arms finding their way around your midsection in an attempt to self soothe your anxiety.

“tell you?!” evan cries incredulously as if the idea was implausible. “yes” barty says stiffly. “because you two are together?! and you don’t feel the same! which is understandable because i’m not really anything you should want but!-”

“who said we didn’t like you?” barty asks sternly and evan’s almost ramble is cut short as he looks at barty dumbfounded before turning his gaze to look at you as if to ask ‘did you just hear what your boyfriend just said or am i going insane?’ to which you look pointedly at him.

“well?” you prompt with a quirked brow, still somewhat shaking from the fear bubbling under your skin.

“well- i mean- nobody? but it’s implied when two people are in a committed relationship that they’re not really on the market anymore-“ evan starts before you butt in,“we’re not.”

you say helpfully before evan nods in acquiescence, “see!-so you would never-!”

“that doesn’t include you love” barty says with a huff, but you can tell by his voice there’s a small smile on his face as he watches evan struggle to come to terms with what your boyfriend is saying.

“you-? you two- want me?!” he asks, eyes widening and posture tensing. barty and you turn to each other with shared smiles before you turn to evan with a small shrug with a grin blooming over your face, “always have” you admit shyly and watch as evan blanches.

“uh-“ evan looks between the two of you, speechless.

“i’m going to walk up to you now love, i’d appreciate it if you’d let me hug you love, because if you don’t it might just break my heart” barty jokes with smirk before taking slow and cautious steps towards evan’s figure in the corner of the dorm.

evan allows himself to be comforted by the familiarity of barty’s arms around him, he melts into the hug as he exhales a breath of relief. he opens his eyes to meet your gaze behind barty’s back as you watch the two of them with a gentle smile on your face.

evan taps barty’s shoulder in a gentle touch to ask if he can let him go, barty pulls away slowly before looking into evan’s gaze, “i’m not good with communicating what i want, for that i’m sorry, but as far as i’ve been concerned, you’ve been mine since fourth year.” barty admits with heat in his gaze and evan’s mouth drops open as the other boy pulls away nonchalantly and walks back over to his bed on the other side of the dorm.

“you like me” evan states dumbly as he looks at you and you can’t help but have a small laugh at his expense before walking over to him in less cautious steps in comparison to barty, “seems so” you murmur as you stand in front of him with a small smile, letting him have the freedom to make the first move, should he choose to.

he blows out a breath before nodding and placing a hand on your cheek as he gazes into your eyes with adoration, leaning down and pressing his forehead to yours. he closes his eyes and breathes in deeply before you’re pulled into a comforting embrace. you slowly wrap your arms around his waist.

you both stand in a comfortable silence before barty’s voice breaks the silence, “can you two come and do that on the bed before i go and complain to regulus about being neglected?” he complains from the middle of his bed.

you two pull away and share a humorous glance before you walk hand in hand to his bed.

[daydreamingqueen1]

spencer gifting reader w lingerie for the first time and being all flustered giving it to her???

Lingerie

hi, love, thank you so much for the request, sorry it took so longg <3 Congrats on being my first request btw

Pairing: Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader

Warnings: fluff, suggestive, reader in her underwear, nothing explicit, no y/n.

Word count: 1.3k

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"It's creepy right? Who does this? Why did I buy it?!"

Spencer had been home for about fifteen minutes before he went and hid inside the bedroom. It took you another twenty before you ventured into the hallway quietly and heard him talking to himself in progressively more panicked whispers.

This was not normal but maybe it had been a bad case. However, when that happened, he was usually inclined to cling to you in silence until everything felt a bit less, not hide away.

This is not it.

"God, I'm a pervert!"

Okay, that's enough. You need to intervene. You give a few overtly loud steps to warn him of your presence.

Spencer is pacing the room back and forth, a black bag in his hand. He flies to hide the bag behind his back the moment you walk in, a blush spreading through his cheeks.

"Spencer? What's going on?" You ask cautiously.

He gives you a reassuring smile, a poor attempt at one at least, "Nothing! Nothing, everything is completely fine."

You arch your eyebrow, "Really?"

Spencer presses his lips together in a line and nods way too quickly.

You sigh, torn between amusement and slight concern, "You know you are the profiler of the two of us, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Then you shouldn't be this bad at hiding something, Spencer." Your deadpan look only manages to turn him redder.

Staring back at you guiltily, he gulps. "I– I'm sorry, sweetheart."

You give a few tentative steps closer to him, your expression turning more worried by the second, "What's wrong, Spence? Did something happen?"

He's quick to shake his head and reassure you, "No, no, nothing like that, everyone's fine."

You exhale a relieved breath.

"It's just... silly." Spencer finishes, shifting uncomfortably on his feet.

Closing the distance between you two, your hand comes to rest over his chest, "It's okay, you deal with my silly all the time," you give him a small encouraging smile, "What does the pretty doctor have in between hands?"

"I–" he hesitates again before sighing and mumbling like a child, "I bought you something."

"Oh?" you truly didn't expect that answer, surprise flooding your features, "Why are you so flustered then? Can I see it?"

The crimson color returns to his cheek and you think he's a second away from bolting out from the room. He hangs his head in defeat and finally relents, revealing the mysterious black bag from behind his back.

Giving him a quizzical look, you take it in your hands. You're almost apprehensive as you pull out the silk paper from the top and discover a small nondescript box inside. The cardboard feels expensive against your hands, you shoot your nervous boyfriend another glance before finally opening it.

"Oh."

Silence fills the room for the next few seconds. You're about to open your mouth when—

"I'm sorry!" Spencer's nervous energy snaps and he starts babbling out an apology, "You don't have to wear it. I shouldn't have bought it without asking you first. I– I can't return it but we can just toss it and forget about it. I'm sorry, really, please don't think that I'm a creep."

You can't help it, you laugh at his frantic response, "Calm down, Spencer, you're not a creep. I love it."

Spencer seems about to go off into another lengthy apology before your words register on his brain.

"...What?"

"I love it." You smile genuinely at him before looking down at the contents of the box. Inside rests a set of lovely purple lace lingerie. Your hand reaches for the material and your smile widens even more at the luxurious feel of the fabric.

You launch yourself to hug him, "Thank you!"

"You're not mad?" He asks as if he was expecting you would slap him rather than hug him. You feel the heat of his flushed cheeks against you.

"Why would I?" You take the garments between your fingers and appreciate them closely. Taking pity on his nerves, you give his shoulder a comforting squeeze, "You're allowed to buy sexy underwear you want to see your girlfriend in, Spencer."

"Am I?" he says incredulously.

"Yes," You respond, chuckling and then grinning excitedly, "I'll go try it on!"

His eyes widen comically and before he can say anything else you run with your new set to lock yourself inside the bathroom.

You shed your clothes and put on the lacey bra and matching panties, critically observing your reflection on the mirror. It's a really pretty set. The lace feels soft and expensive against your skin, Spencer must have spent a considerable amount on it.

The lingerie set it's not even that risqué to have put Spencer at the edge of a panic attack, you think to yourself with amusement, you've seen more provocative stuff in department stores.

Trutfully, it's perfect. The bra hugs your breasts, pushing them up and leaving the top prettily displayed, the panties frame your bum flatteringly and cinch around your hips perfectly. Plus the color contrasts nicely with your skin tone, though you suspect that's not the reason why he chose it.

Giving one last appreciative glance to your figure, you fluff your hair before exiting the bathroom.

You find Spencer sitting on the side of the bed, playing with his hands like he always does whenever he's nervous. His head immediately snaps up at the creek of the door.

Gathering all your courage, you put on a show, walking through your room with an enticing sway of your hips, your eyes staring directly at him.

Humming the tune of that one sexy song, you give a slow and playful turn to let him take you all in. You stop when you are facing him again, your hands resting on your hips and your eyebrow raising expectantly, "Well? How do I look?"

Spencer is too stunned to speak, his mouth parted in a dumb expression of wonder. It gives you an incredible rush.

"Sweet heavens," he exhales, you don't think he knows he's saying it out loud.

Under his admiring gaze, you become suddenly shy, your hands crossing over your middle, not knowing how to deal with so much of his undivided attention. "Oh, um... it fits."

"It certainly does," Spencer whispers in that airy tone again, his fingers stretching towards you and delicately tracing the edge of the lace panties. Goosebumps erupt all over you.

"Didn't think you'd know my bra size," you comment, desperately trying to stop your heart from wildly beating inside your ribcage.

"I didn't," He pulls you closer and you fall onto his lap, your arms instinctively closing around his neck, "I calculated it based on my memories."

"So you've thought about me naked while you were buying it," you say, regaining some of your confidence.

That seems to pull him out of his indulgent trance, his ears turning a bit pink, "Well... yeah, but just because they said I couldn't return underwear and–"

You stop him before he flusters himself again, "I'm just teasing you, Spence. You are also allowed to think of your girlfriend naked."

He looks up at your face and his lips curl in an uncharacteristically smug smirk.

"Not now!" You exclaim chuckling and slapping his shoulder playfully, "I guess that eidetic memory can serve naughtier purposes."

Spencer huffs out a laugh and closes his arms around your waist, pecking your lips sweetly, "You liked your present then, sweetheart?"

"I do, it's lovely," You pretend to go for another kiss but instead push his chest, making him fall back on the mattress.

“Hey,” he protests weakly, looking up at you with adoring eyes.

You lean forward, caging his head between your arms, a coy smile forming on your face, “Let's give that wonderful brain of yours a fresh memory to relive, eh?”

Let's just say the lingerie set doesn't stay on for much longer after that.

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I'm shamelessly peaking my head in here again, sorry for taking so long without posting, life has been having fun kicking my ass but luckily I'm on vacation now so I'll be more active yaaay

♡, reblogs and comments are appreciated <3

Requests are open!!

hope ya liked it, byebye

my masterlist

[vampmama]

Hey I saw in your into post that you were willing to do head cannons. Would you be willing to do some for regressor Ellie from the last of us? Thanks either way. Btw I love your regressor will head cannons a lot.

Hi anon! Thank you so much! Of course!

Here are some regressor Ellie (TLOU) headcanons <3

🦕 Ellie is a huge dinosaur lover when regressed! She probably has a little collection of dinosaur toys she’s picked up from different houses on her journey.

🦕She’s very boisterous, pretty loud when she plays and possibly loves physical games like tag. She likes to explore the woodland where it is safe to do so!

🦕Typically, her regression outfits consist of jeans or shorts and comfy sweaters, graphic t-shirts, and hoodies. She loves picking out shirts with silly pictures or slogans on the front!

🦕She loves jokes. She’ll babble random ones to her CG and adores watching them laugh at them with her. Tell her a joke/pun and she’ll think you’re the coolest ever.

🦕Typically regresses to about 4-8, with some wriggle room depending on circumstance. She prefers to be mostly independent, often doing things and shouting “look at me!”. She will accept and/or ask for help if needed though.

Hope you like them, anon!

My requests are currently open! Feel free to take a look at my fandoms and request moodboards, headcanons, etc. for characters from the listed fandoms!

[dino-boyo-agere]

Hai 🦈

I'm Nathan, but u can call me Nate or Dino 💖

I'm a 25 year old trans guy from Germany and this is my age regression blog. 🏳️‍⚧️💞 My little age mainly moves between 3 to 6. Lately I feel like I'm permanently slipping or at around age 10 or 12 mentally.

My birthday is on August 15th!!

I love Dinosaurs, coloring and crafting! 🦕🖍️

╰→ klick here to find out what my favorite dinos are!!

I'm a primary colors enthusiast!! 💛💙❤️ My favorite colors are green & blue. 💚💙

I have several disabilities & disorders (ADHD, Dyslexia, birth defects, other stuff) ♿🧠

I'm incontinent, so I have to wear diapers. 🚼

I'm in lots of fandoms (Stranger Things, Criminal Minds, Supernatural, etc.) 💫📺

My CG blog: @silly-baba

I have an AgeRe YouTube channel btw!!

I made a Spotify playlist with my favorite songs!! - it is not agere themed tho lol

I only have nine fingers, if you're interested in knowing why, → here ← is the story of how I lost one of them. (!cw! obv. It's a little bloody!)

╰→ someone uploaded my story to YouTube, if you would like to listen to it, instead of reading! <3

DNI: nsfw, ddlg & variants, ABDl & variants, kink of any form... 🚫

Indicator if I'm:

big → 🦖

slipping → ☁️

small → 🧸

I'm a flip, heavily leaning little!

DMs are open, but I hate smalltalk. So, please just get right to the point when u wanna message me for/ about something. (It's completely fine if you just wanna chat, obviously!) Same goes for questions, no need to ask "Can I ask you a question?" Yes, you can! Just go and ask ahead right away!! <3 - Thank you for understanding!!

Also, lil tipp: every time a colored text in my posts has a white underline, it has a link in it. It's a little harder to see now, since Tumblr also ads underlines to each colored text, but it's still visible if you know what ur looking for! They changed it back, yayy!!

I have memory issues, so I'll probably reblogg some things multiple times or forget to answer questions/ do requests. Don't hesitate to remind me, but please be patient & don't pressure me, thank you! <3

If you're interested, → here ← is my cg application doc form, I'd absolutely love to have an online cg!! 💕

I made a list of YouTube channels to watch when regressed, some are themed around regression and some are just fun!!

I also made a little list for people who want to educate themselves about regression, what it is, why people do it ant what it's for!!

.ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ☆↓ My AgeRe ID ↓☆ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ.

If you want to make ur own ID → here ← is a link to imgur!

.ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･.ﾟ»･⁠°✧↓This is me!↓✧°･«ﾟ.･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ.

.ﾟ.* ｡×ﾟ｡･* ﾟ☆↓My Tummy-Puppy↓☆ ﾟ*･｡ﾟ× ｡*.ﾟ.

.ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ✧↓My doggo, Miles↓✧ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ.

Rest in peace, little buddy [21.09.2024]

.ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ☆↓I like crafting!↓☆ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ.

･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･ﾟ»･⁠°✧↓My little sona, Spots↓✧°･«ﾟ･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･

You can learn more about him → here, ← if you want to.

｡. ×ﾟ･.»･⁠°☆↓My AgeRe Sona, Toggy↓☆°･«.･ ﾟ× . ｡

You can learn more about them → here, ← if you want to.

･.｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･ﾟ»･⁠°✧↓My cg sona, Loo↓✧°･«ﾟ･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡.･

You can learn more about them → here, ← if you want to.

I have a furry blog but it's not super active <3

.*.･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･.*.ﾟ☆ ↓My hashtags!↓ ☆ ﾟ.*.･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･.*.

Fanfics: #nates fanfictions

Head Canons: #nates headcanons

When I'm in my CG headspace: #baba space

AgeRe OC's: #nates little ocs

Arts & crafts: #nates drawings & #nates crafts

Sewing: #nates sewing

YouTube Videos/ Channel: #nates youtube

Other stuff I created: #nate makes

Banners: #nates banners

AgeRe outfits: #nates outfits

Answers to asks: #nates answers

Asks of mine that got answered: #nates questions

Textposts: #nates babbling

Memes I made: #nates memes

Ranting/ venting: #nates vents & #tw: vent

Anything dinosaur related: #nate loves dinos

Anything Tummy-Puppy related: #tuppy

Recommendations: #nates recommendations

╰→recommendations for YouTube, Music, TV, Movies..

.ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ✧ ↓ Info & DNI ↓ ✧ ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ×ﾟ｡･*.ﾟ.

I created this blog on November 9th 2022.

[cyaino]

Omg I pulled an all nighter reading your fic, it’s SO good!? I remember reading through the first chapter thinking how amazingly floored I was, then I was completely sucked in entirely. Oh the comforts of my bed, a day off from work/school, enjoying an amazing Star Wars fic is the best way to re-energize.

I love love this fic so so much: How you fleshed out different characters that I could tell apart their traits for who they are—you giving each character their own spot light to shine and balancing out their interactions with other characters—it makes the world feel more lived in and lively: Obiwan being a sweetheart, Ahsoka being her silly self, even making more OCs up with Emma!!!, etc., how there’s actual support for/from other women characters (makes me so sad whenever anakin fics paint Padmé as just an obstacle), the writing style is such a wonderful mix of gorgeous, serious tone settings and also humor (I can’t count how many times I giggled and kicked my feet with what transpired), and I just LOVE the first few chapters so much with the plot of language barrier. I think it’s such a compelling story arc where the characterization is only through physical movements and tone; forced to be in the same helpless state as the Reader being confused about the newness of it all—the misunderstandings, the desperation finding different methods to communicate, body language/facial expressions. SO SO GOOD!!! AND YOU STILL PORTRAYED THEM SO WELL!!!

The plot is so interesting too with how much mystery shrouds—I came up already with so many theories of why things are happening/how they’ll end (really hyping myself up for Anakin/Padmé/Reader endgame); I won’t add it though cause this ask is already so long/don’t wanna accidentally spoil newcomers T_T but I love when fics work out storylines in a multidimensional way with it’s varying complexities of “what is going on…”

Chpt 12 was so beautiful too with how you described the setting of the foliage and lighting, ooooh I am living within your fic!!

I can’t wait to see more of your future chapters and where you’ll lead the story—I’m so so excited (for more horrors Reader will face LMAO) 💗

Btw! Do you have any fav Star Wars x Reader fic recs (LOL recs autocorrected to Rex’s)

AAAAAA omg i had to read this like four times cos i kept getting flustered, thank you for such lovely long messages <3 I always come back to these when I'm feeling lost while writing

It's hard to talk about without spoiling because I have so much planned out already, but it's so cool to see reactions as things develop. i need to write faster so I can babble about things that haven't been revealed yet

I'm particularly excited to develop the love triangle (more of a web tbh) and see people's reactions.

I'm so happy that the mystery is coming across too! It's so hard to balance the right amount of clues without being too vague or too forward ;; This is my first multi chapter fic, so I'm learning as I go, but it's been a lot of fun :D

Unfortunately I haven't been in the fandom very long, so I don't have any recs but i'll try to post about them when I do !

Again thank youu, sorry I take forever to respond, I'm a busy-adhd-bee but i appreciate it so much <3

[barbwritesstuff]

I know you get a lot of Sergei love, but I just really wanted to add my own to the pile. I think I've been following you and playing the demo from the start, and hadn't even thought of him as an RO cause he wasn't presented that way. But then the asks started up and you mentioned considering adding a route for him and I got so excited.

I'm 40, you see, and while it's very fun creating a cute 20 something stray and getting to run around in their shoes, the younger ROs don't resonate as much with me personally cause old. They're all adorable and i love them so much (so so much!), but romancing Sergei just added so much more immersion for me. You did an amazing job writing a route that I wasn't sure would work with his trauma, but it's beautiful and messy and perfect and so very human. And very respectful of his experiences.

I'm babbling and i know it but you're a lovely person who deserves to feel more confident in your writing, so i wanted to tell you how much it means to me and to let you know that you have already had more reach than perhaps you realized.

You're good at this and you deserve success. Don't worry about responding unless you really want to, I'm on anon cause I'm hella shy so there's zero pressure. Plus I'm probably being weird idk, I just thought you might need to hear some of this.

(Oh yeah! Side note! And btw you can totally use renpy to make text only games if you don't wanna deal with sprites. It's a little more involved than twine to learn, but it's very stable and has a wonderful and helpful community. I'm so glad you're giving it a shot!)

Thank you so much for sending this message, anon. I know I've been posting a lot of silly stuff recently, but it's really nice to get such positive and genuine feedback. I'm really glad you like Sergi. As an older character, he does bring something quite special and unique to the table, which is a big part of the reason why I decided to go ahead and make him an RO. It's really great knowing that he feels genuine to you, especially with the trauma he experiences in the story.

Also, thanks so much for being here and supporting my writing. I am still self conscious about my writing but sharing Blood Moon both here and on the forum has been a HUGE step for me and has made me feel way better both about my writing, and about myself. Back in 2020, if someone had told me I'd be publishing a massive Choicescript game, plus running a tumblr blog, and a KoFi account in a couple of years, I would not have believed them. It's been amazing. I hope I can keep learning and growing this way for years.

Also! Yeah! I noticed there is a way to make ren'py display as something closer to a novel rather than a visual novel. I'm really excited to play around with that more. I think ren'py is a really good tool and I love how functional things like the load/save function is (which seems silly, but coming out of Choicescript, that's a huge plus). I'm really hoping I have time to explore more with it this year and maybe write another couple of short games to share.

[mitamicah]

For the ask thing: 8, 13 (I know you do but I wanna know), 104.

Right, let me see

8. What is the best compliment you have ever received?

Oh

Eh

I'm already failing at this x'D

Gah, I am so bad at remembering things :'D - I think it might be the one compliment that made me want to actually pursue a singing "carreer" (or more like ... actually sing in public x'D):

For context I come from a family where neither my mom, dad or grandparents are big singers and so I also thought I was bad at singing growing up especially after my sister filmed me singing along to music with headphones on and it sounded horrendous because I couldn't hear myself :'3 Then at high school at around 16 years old I'd lent a cd to a friend where we bonded over liking this one song but for some reason in the moment my friend couldn't recall the name of the song so I sang a bit of it to figure out if we were thinking of the same song. Then from behind a third party friend popped in and said:

"Shut up, you said you couldn't sing that was a lie!!"

And here we are today - me going to musical summer camp in three days using one week on singing rock and pop cover songs and the week after that recording my own music ... oh and I plan on going to karaoke tomorrow x'D

13. Do you have any tattoos? If yes what do they mean?

You have chosen all the ones I am good at babbling about x'D

I do have a tattoo, just one tho on my forearm/shoulder. It is Flapjack (a cardinal bird from the cartoon series the Owl House) holding a handbrush in his beak :3 It symbolises a few things - the upper most layer is that the cardinal is somewhere seen as a newly deceased soul visiting their loved ones so having Flapjack on my arm symbolises my grandmother that passed away last year and that her soul is still with me (the brush is a silly little extra story I can talk about another time if anybody wants to hear it x'D). Yet on a deeper level the bird being Flapjack specifically is due to the fact that just after having cried my eyes out to the first episode of season 3 of the owl house titled For the Future (everybody in the fandom knows what I am referring to with this episode and the character of Flapjack) I got the call that my grandmother was at the hospital. The day after having just rewatched the episode I got the call that she was dead. So because of this Flapjack and my grandmother sort of mixed together in my mind giving my grandmother a spirit animal to take with her up to Heaven.

Now I also find it hilarious given that in april when the finale hit everybody (in the show and out of it) wanted Flapjack tattoos so for once I felt ahead of the curve x'D

Btw this is the tattoo :3

104. If money were no object, where would you like to go on vacation?

My Lord of the Rings heart is longing to visit New Zealand :'D that or Finland because of a certain brainrot x'D

Thank you for the lovely questions 🥺💚

[mackenzielovee]

Hi! Can I please request a fluffy blurb #6: 'best I ever had'. Where, one day rafe is just staring at the reader in awe and says that shes the best hes ever had, and she thinks he means seggsually but he really means, like in general coz no ones ever made him feel so loved and validated and he tells her he loves her for the first time. (I had more but I forgot lol. Or is this enough??). Thanks xx. Btw, love your writing.

a/n: hey bestie! I wrote this in like 15 min so hopefully you like it lol i love this idea when i read it i had to write it right away! ily thanks for your support!

Warnings: swearing, mentions of sex

Word Count: 944

my writing

best i ever had - rafe cameron

"Is this real life?"

You turn your head and look up to your boyfriend of four months, his chest sending vibrations through your temple as he speaks. Your naked bodies are tangled under the sheets, his cheeks still slightly red from how hard he worked to get you to come twice in twenty minutes. You laugh and lean up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"That good, huh?" you smirk at him, watching a grin grow across his lips.

"Well, yeah," he blushes, "But that's not what I'm talking about."

You furrow your eyebrows and adjust your body so you're more comfortable, your chin resting on his sternum so you can stare up at him. The movement and the look on your face is enough to get this man hard again.

"Then what?" you ask.

He picks up a strand of your long hair and twirls it around his fingers, watching it spring and then fall back to your shoulder.

"It's silly," he teases you, bringing his eyes down to meet yours. You smile at him, making his heart skip a beat.

"Tell me anyway," you insist.

Rafe pauses, bringing his hand over to your shoulder now. He uses the base of his pointer finger to trace around the skin on your shoulder and back, loving the feeling of your soft skin running underneath his fingers. His favorite thing is knowing that he's the only person who gets touch every square inch of your body.

"I just," he hesitates, then decides to continue when he sees your puppy dog eyes, "You know, the sex is amazing and everything, and I know it's the best sex I've ever had-"

"Me, too," you agree, "But it seems like you really hyped up that statement just to say that."

Rafe shakes his head, almost as if he's still trying to figure out what he wants to say. You decide you won't interrupt him anymore, because he's clearly trying to find the right words to express how he feels.

"And," he speaks up after a second,"I just feel amazing when I'm with you. You know, I have trouble with my family and shit so when you come over here, I just feel... better. I feel like I finally have someone who actually loves me for me, you know?"

Your eyes flicker up to his quickly, trying to see if he realizes what he had just said. It takes him a second, but then he looks up to you in sheer panic. You two have not even said the big L word to each other, and now he's just casually mentioning it in a sentence. Of course, you love him. But you've been too afraid to say anything about it because you haven't been sure how he feels.

"I, um," Rafe tries to figure out how to cover up what he had blurted, "Babe, I... you know what? Fuck it."

You move off of him as he sits up, pulling you into his lap. Naturally, you straddle him and grab onto the sides of his face, staring into his eyes as he finally says the words you've been dying to hear.

"I love you, all right? Is that okay? I mean, it fucking better be okay. I just know I love you because of the way you make me feel. And I've never felt that with anyone in my life, okay? I feel safe with you and you always seem to know what to say, and-"

"Rafe," you stop his babbling, "It's okay."

He takes a deep breath and nods his head. He swallows down his worries about you not loving him back by the way you haven't gone running away from him.

"Is it okay if I love you, too?" you tease him, smiling widely at him when he grins.

"Yeah, that would be okay," he nods, but really, his heart is doing cartwheels in his chest.

"I'm really glad about that," you laugh, feeling his lips as they begin to attack your cheeks, neck, and lips with kisses.

"God, I love you," he whispers against your skin, "Thank you, baby."

"For what?" you ask him, relaxing into the feeling of his lips attached to the skin on your neck.

"Validating me. Loving me. Wanting me," he lists off, leaving a kiss on your neck after each one.

You can't help but feel your insides turn, in a good way, at his words. He's making you wet again, and he knows it. But he can't help it. He just loves you so much.

"I have never felt this way about another person on the planet. And I never want to," he tells you once he moves up to look at you again.

"Me neither," you nod.

You shift your weight on him and suddenly you can feel him on your leg, getting hard. You smirk at him, watching his cheeks redden once again. To retaliate, he silently snakes his fingers down below the sheets and into your center, smiling at you when he feels how wet you are again.

"Hmm," he hums, "Seems like we both have a problem the other can solve."

You laugh and lean forward, giving him a kiss, "Seems like we should get to work then."

Rafe grins triumphantly as he tosses you down on the bed and climbs on top of you. He quickly throws the sheets away and buries his face in your neck, kissing your sweet spot and making you moan.

"Round two it is," he whispers in your ear, and then adds, "I love you."

You smile and say it back just before he enters you, and somehow, you know this is where you belong for the rest of your life.

blurb list here please send requests to my ask box!

[taetaespeaches]

I remember you once got a question about how the couples handled being separated due to tours, so based on that, what do you think would be the first thing each couple do when the boys return from tour and how would the girls receive them? Btw I loved your last Jimin fic, it was really cute! Have a nice day :)

Hi love! Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed the fic <3 I seriously love this question so much, the idea of bts coming home to you after being away for so long is just :(( soft. So I decided to turn this into a bulleted type of reaction thing, I hope you enjoy.

p.s. this is completely unedited so please forgive any errors <3 

Seokjin: 

Probably yells some dorky thing like “Honey, I’m home” when he walks into apartment

Poopsie comes running through the place and jumps into his arms almost knocking him over

She’ll tease him by asking “What did you bring me?” 

And he responds with “My handsome face” followed by a squeaky laugh

As she’s rolling her eyes but laughing because she genuinely loves his lame jokes, he finally he kisses her

She probably has a fuck ton of food prepared for him

But the food has to wait because as she goes into the kitchen to show him everything she made, he’s watching her and realizes how fucking much he’s missed this woman

Ends up hugging her really tightly and silly Jin is gone for a moment

Grateful happy Jin is here and he just wants to show his Poopsie how much he missed her and loves her

Ends up having sex in the kitchen and then eats all the food afterwards... sanitary

Yoongi:

He’s way too excited to see Kid but heaven forbid he let her know that

This honey boy probably tells Kid his flight lands later than it does and tries to sneak inside to surprise her- but in a cool way- but the door is unlocked so he ends up cursing her under his breath “how many times do I have to tell her to lock the fucking door”

She’s in the shower and he finds himself making a bee line to the bathroom

Popping his head inside, he casually scolds her as if he wasn’t gone on tour for MONTHS 

“Did you lock your door once while I was away, Kid?” 

Kid jumps and lets out a small scream of surprise before poking her head out of the shower to see Yoongi standing there with an adorable pout on his lips and fuck she missed that pout

The words “What the fuck are you doing here?” are out of her mouth before she even knows she’s saying them

And he can’t help but flash a gummy grin because it’s such a Kid thing to say 

“The door was unlocked so I thought I’d just let myself in” 

“Shut up and take your clothes off, Min” and Yoongi thinks of making a smart mouthed comment back but instead he just sheds his clothes before making his way to her 

As soon as he reaches the shower their arms are wrapped around each other and she’s kissing all over his face, giving special attention to his lips

So many I missed you’s and I love you’s

Kid probably tells him how happy she is to have him home and he just feels so comfortable and happy and fuck the dude is SO IN LOVE

And they’re naked and in the shower, so might as well fuck I guess 

Hoseok:

He’s letting Petal know the entire trip exactly where he’s at so by the time he arrives home, she’s waiting at the door

As soon as the door opens Petal is throwing herself at him and Hobi is struggling to hold all his bags as she attacks his face in kisses

As they kiss, Petal is bitching Hobi out for leaving like “I missed you so much, you’re never allowed to leave again, do you know how hard it is to be in this apartment without you?” and Hobi is giggling against her lips as he agrees to never go away again

She finally let’s him inside fully inside the apartment and they sit on the couch and Hobi talks about all sorts of stuff from tour

He’s babbling away excitedly because so much happened and all he wants to do is share it all with his favorite person (even though he already told her everything as it was happening)

Petal keeps stealing kisses as he talks and eventually he just says fuck it and pins her down on the couch

Goes from talkative and cute to heavy and sexy real fucking fast

Namjoon:

He steps inside and Daisy’s sitting on the couch reading a book and he’s like ?? that’s rather calm but ok

And she looks over the book and goes “Well hello stranger” 

And he’s like “What are you reading, Babe?” all casual as he sets his bags down at the door

And she’s like “I’m not, I’m just trying to look nonchalant” and then she throws the book over her head and it lands somewhere on the floor and Joon smiles his stunning dimply smile and runs towards her all dorky like- you know the one 

Probably dives on top of her and she’s thinking oh fuck ok dude I know you’re a child trapped in a man’s body but you’re like massive chill but she doesn’t say any of that and instead just laughs and wraps her arms and legs around him like a koala 

So much kissing

And giggling

And they have sex almost immediately 

And then afterwards they cuddle and hold each other and they just stay there for a couple hours because wow they missed each other a lot

Namjoon probably talks and talks and talks about tour and Daisy loves every second of it because he’s so happy

Jimin:

He steps inside the apartment and Dear is waiting at the kitchen island with a bottle of wine and she has a playlist of their favorite songs playing and he almost cries immediately and she’s sitting there trying to hold her own tears back

And she just says “Welcome home, my love” and he smiles at her and that at the same time they hurry toward each other and meet in the middle and they just hug for a really long time

Like one of those massive tight hugs where they’re swaying their bodies and they’re probably both tearing up and confessing how much they love and missed each other

Keep in mind tours bring out some anxiety for them for a good while because of that time Jimin kinda sorta broke up with Dear while he was on tour

Therefore, when they get reunited, it’s emotional

Probably the one couple that doesn’t have sex super soon after he arrives

Instead they do their favorite pastime- drink wine and slow dance around the apartment

He talks about tour and she listens to every word in awe

She talks about what she’s been up to and he acts as though it’s just as exciting as his tour stories because to him it actually is

They’ve both already heard all of the stories but they’re retelling them because why not

He says something like “As much as I love tour and seeing ARMY, being here with you is the best feeling in the world” 

And she’s like ok well I’m madly fucking in love with this guys and she just kisses him so goddamn passionately and then they finally get it in

Taehyung:

Look, Peaches had a plan

She was going to greet him at the door with a lingerie set on and they were going to fuck on every surface of the apartment

But his flight landed a little early and quite frankly she lost track of time anyway

She was probably cleaning and got distracted by an old photo album or some shit- you know how that goes- and all of a sudden her front door opens and she’s like “oh fuck” and looks at the lingerie set sitting on the bed like well shit because she’s just sitting on the floor of her bedroom wearing an old t-shirt from high school and sweatpants 

She calls out for him and he follows her voice and as soon as he sees her he’s just overwhelmed with emotion because PEACHES

He strides across the room as soon as she stands to greet him, he wraps his arm around her waist and kisses her so deeply and passionately that she nearly loses her balance

Pulling away to look at her, his gaze is intense as he observes her features, taking in every detail because fuck he missed her

And she’s just like “Do you know how much I missed you, Dearest?” and that has him smiling as he throws her onto the bed

And that’s when he notices the lingerie and he’s like “oh?” and she apologizes for losing track of time

And that’s when Tae finally smiles so fucking big and chuckles boyishly and her heart melts because goddammit she hasn’t seen that boxy smile or heard that adorable laugh in person in SO LONG and she pulls him into a kiss 

She promises she’ll put the lingerie on for round two and Tae is giggling as he starts taking her lounge clothes off

Because as much as he appreciates the effort and though of the lingerie, he’s just so fucking in love with Peaches and he missed her even more than he realized

Jungkook:

The man gets his damn romance movie kiss ok? ok. 

They have no chill

He texts her to let her know he just pulled up and she runs outside to greet him

As soon as he’s out of the car she’s running at him and he catches her and lifts her and kisses her deeply with her legs wrapped around his waist

Probably sets her on the hood of the car and continues kissing her for a moment

When they finally decide like hey we should go inside and stop making out in front of anyone and everyone, she insists on helping carry his bags and he’s whining about how he doesn’t need help and she’s waving him off

As soon as they’re inside, he has her pinned against the back of the door

“You’re such a brat, I told you I could handle the bags”

And she rolls her eyes and he kisses her deeply

And just as it’s getting heavy, she whispers, “I’m so happy you’re home, baby, I missed you more than I thought was even possible” 

Well shit, now Guk is S O F T and he’s pressing his forehead against hers and tears form in his eyes

They just stay like that for a moment, taking in the feeling of being together again after so long

Jungkook probably decides in that moment that he’s going to marry this woman some day because anyone who makes him feel so welcomed and loved and appreciated and comforted and happy when he gets home from tour has got to be worth spending the rest of his life with

What probably was going to be rough sex turns into the most romantic passionate sex they’ve ever fucking had

Afterwards Holly’s like “fuck, you should go on tour more often” 

and Kookie is giggling like “yeah? well too bad, good luck getting rid of me ever again” 

[prettybiching]

well since requests are open for John King 👀👀 (i’ve never actually requested anything so don’t judge) what if the reader is somehow introduced to him through one of his co-anchors (who knows the reader has a crush bc of all that glorious election coverage), and we see what would happen maybe on a first date?? it doesn’t have to be smutty but i certainly wouldn’t be opposed..i love your writing btw!!! blessing us in this (small) John King fandom

Dessert

Pairing: John King x fem! reader Warning: 18+ mature scenes (oral f receiving), swear words and sexual innuendoes. Viewer’s discretion is advised, you’re responsible for your media consumption. Word Count: 2.5k words Note: I changed it up a bit, hope you don’t mind :)

Anderson Cooper, ever the stoic news anchor loved to play matchmaker for his friends. It was a trait Andy had managed to rub off on him, but he enjoyed it more than he'd like to admit.

Y/N had involuntarily become the latest victim of his match-making tendencies.

She didn't mean to babble out her newfound infatuation with his colleague, John King, to him but Anderson and Andy had managed to get her drunk, absolutely wasted. Before she could stop herself, she was slipping out all the unholy thoughts she'd been dreaming since election week.

The teasing that followed was relentless. It didn't help that Y/N had preliminarily promised to accompany Anderson to DC. She just hoped she wouldn't have to face the silver fox himself.

-----

She knew something was terribly wrong the moment she saw the wicked smile etched on Anderson's face.

"Uhm, why are you smiling like that?" she asked, her eyes wide with trepidation as Anderson let himself into her hotel room.

"You, young lady," he trailed, heading straight for the unpacked suitcase that laid on her bed, "have a date tonight."

Her mouth hung wide open in disbelief and horror, "What?!"

"Yup," he answered, not bothering to turn around, ruffling the contents of her luggage, every so often examining the articles of clothing.

"I don't wanna go on a date," she whined, throwing her head back. Dragging her feet to where Anderson stood, making an absolute wreck of her belongings, she plopped herself on the bed, tugging out her lips and staring at him with pleading eyes.

At last, he halted at his action, clumsily throwing the blouse he had in his hands in the briefcase before turning towards her. "Trust me, you'll make me the godfather of your future children after tonight."

"T-tonight?" she sputtered, jolting out of bed. There was no way she was going on that date now, she didn't even know who he was!

"Anderson, I love you, but a heads up would've been nice," she sighed, placing her hands on her hips.

Anderson stroked his chin for a second, in thought before scrunching his face, "Nope, where's the fun in that?"

Y/N gave him a deadpan look, slumping her shoulders. She knew sooner or later, she'd have to accept defeat. There was no way she was winning against Anderson Cooper. "Will, you at least tell me who it is?"

He smirked, mischief was written all across his face as he shook his head, "You already know what I'm about to say."

She groaned, taking a few steps towards him before clumsily planting her forehead on his shoulder. "You're the worst!"

Wrapping his arms around her figure, he let out a laugh, his body vibrating beneath her. "You know you love me."

"No, I don't."

------

After Y/N's long foreseen defeat, Anderson dragged her to go shopping with him stating that her limited clothing 'just wouldn't do'.  She went along without a fight, admitting that she didn't pack anything she could wear on a date.

Despite going along with her best friend's words and having full faith in his match-making abilities, she wasn't sure how much of a success the night would be. Not when her mind could only fixate on the image of a certain news anchor between her thighs.

However, she didn't want her silly fantasies to get in the way of her actual love life and with the help of Anderson's picky taste, decided on a dress for the evening. Although the black half-slit bodycon wasn't something she'd usually wear, she felt confident in it, and that was all that mattered.

As she was on her way to the outdoor French restaurant near Washington Harbour that her date had picked for the night. She knew the restaurant was fancy from all the reviews she'd seen online.

As the uber driver drove closer and closer to the destination, Y/N was a bundle of nerve. She didn't know what to expect, hell, she knew nothing about him at all aside from Anderson's confidence that the night would go well.

The car came to a screeching halt in front of the park-like restaurant, fairy lights and intertwining vines of leaves decorating the area. 'What's the worst that could happen?" she let out a sharp breath, trying to calm her nerves as she exited the vehicle.

She made her way to the reception, her eyes advertently scanning her surroundings to spot a familiar face. "Hi, my name's Y/N L/N, I believe I have a reservation?"

The receptionist gave her a practised smile before leading her to her table, "right this way, Ms L/N."

Y/N followed her lead, her steps being clumsy from the knot of nerves forming in her stomach and her heart stopped when she saw the man standing up as she made her way towards him. John fucking King.

She was going to kill Anderson.

Unable to move a muscle, she froze at her feet as he approached her. He had a crisp perfectly fitted black suit on and a warm smile on his lips that had her knees buckling. She just hoped she didn't look like a lunatic in front of him.

"You okay there, Y/N?" he mused, flashing his teeth.

Crossing her arms across her chest, she opened her mouth, trying to form a coherent thought. "I- yes, I'm okay," she stammered, squirming under John's unmoving gaze.

She had met John a couple of times in the past, none of the interactions was long enough to be considered memorable. She was always afraid of making a fool out of herself. Seemed like she was compensating for all of those in one go.

John didn't look convinced but didn't push her on it any further. Instead, he extended his elbow towards her with a quirk of his brow, "shall we?"

Awkwardly she interlocked her arms with his and followed his lead, all the while making sure she didn't fall face-first onto the floor.

They stopped in front of a table in the back corner of the patio; mostly hidden away from plain sight. Y/N smiled, knowing Anderson must've told him that she preferred such setting.

John quickly untangled their arms, preventing her from moving further as he pulled out a chair, gesturing towards her to sit. She flashed him a grateful smile, overwhelmed by all of his efforts. Was she ever going to stop smiling in front of him?

Once she was seated, John took his place across from her, fixing his suit jacket as he did. She tried her best to divert her gaze from his hands, but it seemed near impossible. She was sure she'd faint before the night came to an end.

Finishing his task, he turned to face her, his entire focus towards her.  Clearing her throat, Y/N shifted at her spot. "how awfully did Anderson bully you into this?" she chuckled, trying to soothe her nerves.

Squinting his eyes, he tilted his head sideways before shrugging, "he didn't bully me at all really. He merely put forth the suggestion, and I was down."

Pursing her lips, she paused for a moment before shaking her head, laughing. It wasn't until she took in John's earnest expression did she realise he wasn't joking. "Seriously?"

He nodded. "However," he began, a slight remnant smile gracing his lips as he wriggled his index finger at Y/N, "I did tell Anderson to tell you, but he was insistent, and you remain oblivious about our date."

Her mouth hung open in disbelief as she leaned back into her chair, muttering through gritted teeth, "I'll kill him."

John let out a laugh, his eyes gleaming with amusement as he insisted, "Please don't. I have much to thank him for."

She tilted her head towards him in confusion, waiting for him to continue.

John averted his gaze, a nervous chuckle erupting from his throat, "I might've never had the courage to ask you out without his meddling."

She blinked, her eyes widening slightly at the revelation. "Y-you wanted to ask me out?" she sputtered, leaning forward.

As if her words had flicked a switch in him, he straightened his back, the earlier nervousness was long gone as a smug smile took over his features. "Also..." he trailed, interlocking his hands on the table.

"He may or may not have accidentally spilt that you have a crush on me?"

"No." "Yes." "No, shut up."

"Truce?" he quirked his brow, reaching his hand across the table for hers. Y/N eyed his hand warily before letting out a sigh and giving in. "Fine."

"I can't believe you two were basically conspiring against me this whole time," she whined, her lips tugging out into a pout.

She should've known Anderson wouldn't be able to keep his mouth shut for too long. However, she couldn't believe her own eyes that the gorgeous man in front of her reciprocated her feelings.

Unaware of the butterflies fluttering in her stomach, John cooed squeezing her hand, "but wouldn't you say it's come to a favourable conclusion?"

She couldn't deny that everything had worked out in her favour. Without her best friend's meddling, she would've never gotten the courage to admit her feelings for John.

Once the pout disappeared from her face, John reclined back into his chair, her hand still in his. "Now, how about we get started with some wine?"

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

The date was a definite success, she would say. After the initial awkward passed, with some alcohol in her system, she found herself more comfortable around John. Not to mention that he was effortlessly the most charming man she'd ever encountered.

She had tried to restrain herself from staring at him when he made the smallest movement, but it was near impossible. She was completely enamoured by him. All the flirty smiles, casual brushing of their legs, teasing touches and lingering glances didn't help either. He knew what he was doing, that smug bastard.

John was in the middle of an amusing story, something that had happened at work that week. Y/N wished she could say she was listening, but she was far more distracted by his hands that he sporadically used as he spoke.

"Y/N? he called her name, snapping her back to reality.

"Yes?" she answered, tugging in her bottom lip as she stared at him with round eyes.

He smirked, having caught her not-so-subtle gaze. "I said, I was hoping to have some dessert if you would allow it."

Her lips twitched, not missing the mischief behind his eyes as he spoke. She would've missed it if it weren't for the way his pupils dilated as he uttered the words.

Wordlessly, she leaned forward, reaching her hand out to touch the side of his face. John tilted his head, kissing the inside of her palm as her fingers hovered over the dip of his jaw, the scent of his aftershave making her heart pound a little faster.

"Yes, of course," she murmured, almost inaudibly, her eyes locked into his aquatic ones. "Although, it'd like for you to have it elsewhere."

On cue, John pulled his hand back and fixed his tie before calling out for their server, asking for the bill. The two bickered for a moment, Y/N insisting they split the bill, but he was having none of it, ending the argument by saying she could pay for their next date.

Yes, the next one. There was going to be another one after this evening. It made Y/N smile more than it should've.

He drove the two back to his place, the car ride going painfully slow. Neither of them spoke during the journey. Instead, John kept his hand on her thigh, the hand sliding closer to her heated core throughout the ride.

As soon as the door to John's apartment closed shut, his lips were pressed hard against hers as he led the two towards the dining table. She felt the table dig into her hips from behind as he hovered over her. He wasted no time in grabbing her by the waist and lifting her up on the surface, moving his lips down to her jaw and neck as he hummed against her skin.

She ran a hand through his hair, breathing in as his other hand ghosted over her hip, running down then back up before it made its way underneath her dress, tugging at her panties. “Are you fond of these?”

“Yes,” She breathed out, her eyelashes fluttering, “Don’t destroy my clothes.”

John smirked, then leaned over her, kissing her again as he focused on pulling the tie open as he pushed her back flat against the cool wood. There was no barrier but her dress between the two. He quickly unzipped the back of her dress before she shrugged it off her body and threw it to a corner. Grabbing one of her thighs, he pushed her legs up and apart. He dropped down to one knee between her legs, hooking his arms under her as he pulled her closer and dropped his head to kiss her thigh slowly, tongue darting out onto her skin.

She was already breathing hard, her mind a little fuzzy from the wine, skin burning with every touch. John was overwhelming, in an incomprehensible way, and she lifted her hips as he rid her of her underwear in a flash, fingers sliding across her slowly.

Moaning, she slid her hand through his hair, falling flat on the table as his tongue wandered over her skin, teasing and sliding until he pushed a finger into her slowly and buried his face between her legs.

“Darling,” He urged her, looking up briefly as the vibrations of his words made her moan again. “Feel free to be loud.”

Her eyes rolled back into her head as he began to move his finger, adding a second one as his tongue moved against her clit, pressing against her as his hands expertly moved against her skin, pulling her closer and then pressing a hand against her stomach as the pressure began to build. She rolled her hips forward on the table, breathing harder and harder as she tried to hold back, but the noises kept getting louder as she pressed against him and softly whispered his name.

He was relentless as he moved faster, jerking her hips almost fully off the table as he groaned against her, sucking on her clit harshly and moving his fingers faster, curling them up and angling his wrist. Her other hand jerked down, grabbing onto his hand as she gasped and arched off the surface, the other hand tugging on his hair as she jerked against him, feeling the waves of warmth and overwhelming shock as her orgasm hit her hard enough that he turned his head and bit down on her thigh, prolonging the aftershocks.

When he pulled back, he moved his hand, sliding it out of her and then bringing it up to her mouth, pushing her lips open. Obliging, she took his digits in, moaning as she tasted herself, her eyes fixated on his intense gaze. Pulling them out, he closed his eyes, licking his fingers clean and looked up at her with a smile.

“Would you like to stay for the evening?”

As if there was any doubt.

[twoidiotwriters1]

Happy Birthday, Sirius! (Sirius Black x Fem! Reader)

A/N: Happy birthday to my favorite marauder ever! 

Request: by @siriuslysirius1107​ :I saw that you are taking asks and I was wondering if you could do a Sirius Black fic since it's his birthday. Maybe where he just got a letter for home or something?

btw, thank you so much for request this

Words: 1,587

Music comes from every corner of the Gryffindor common room, no students are in their rooms, even some from other houses are gathered to celebrate the birthday of Hogwarts most famous marauder.

His best friends were in charge of organizing the best party of the year, and although now it got out of hand, they don’t give it any importance. James laughs at a joke some sixth-year boys tell him, wrapping an arm on his girlfriend's shoulders as he staggers a bit from the drinks they got.

Remus is not far behind and in no better shape than his friend. In honor of Sirius, he promised that tonight he would have fun and drink a little, although James saw to it that that little became a lot.

Peter’s in one of the corners talking to a girl who seems to be interested in everything he says, but no one can be sure.

Three marauders in a fun, laid-back habitat while others make fuss and eat cake like nothing else matters.

But where’s the birthday boy?

"Lily!" Y/N yells, drawing the attention of the redhead, who laughs slightly.

"Hi!" She yells back. Y/N notices Lily smells a bit too much like firewhiskey too, but she ignores it.

“Where’s Sirius?"

Lily shrugs and turns to her boyfriend, but then jumps in place.

"He came out and had a piece of paper in his hand, I don't know if he's here or outside, or eating or drinking, but you must listen to this, you’ll die laughing!"

"Maybe next time…”

Y/N leaves the common room, meeting more people wanting to enter the big party.

"Hey, have you seen Sirius?" She asks them, but no one has.

She thanks them and walks through the dark corridors of the school until she hears sobs coming from a corridor. Y/N approaches and just below a window that overlooks the gardens, there he is hugging his legs.

"Sirius?" She asks cautiously and walks over to sit across from him. "What happen?"

His body tenses, but he quickly recognizes her. Sirius sighs and wipes the tears from his cheeks, then turns his head up and sees the girl.

"It's nothing, I'm just sad because James said I'm old, don't worry, love," He says feigning indifference as he takes a cigarette out of his pocket.

She crawls to be next to him, they both lean against a wall.

“He's said worse things to you…”

The girl doesn't buy the poor excuse, but she doesn't want to push him either. Sirius laughs, shrugs and brings the cigar to his lips.

"He's an idiot, he knows I always get sensitive on my birthday.”

They are silent for a few seconds, simply staring at the wall while the cigarette smoke rises each time the boy breathes it out.

"You know you can tell me anything, right?" She starts.

“Yes. I uh, I just didn't expect you to find me…”

"Surely someone would come looking for you at some point.”

"No, I made sure the three of them had enough drinks, even Lily." They both laugh.

"Why don't you want them to see you?"

Sirius drops his shoulders.

“Everyone will want to know what's wrong with me.”

“Like I’m doing?”

"Exactly."

Y/N bites her lower lip. “Then I better go…”

"No! Wait–” He stops her. "It's not that you bother me, it wasn't what I wanted to say…”

"It's okay, Sirius. I understand that sometimes we want to be alone. I just wanted to let you know that, whatever happens, I’m right here.”

Sirius has always been used to these situations and when his friends ask, he's told them that, on this date, there’ll be a moment when he’ll want to disappear for a few hours. They never insist.

"I know,” He smiles sweetly.

The boy’s never had the courage to confess, although he knows they were suspicious every year. But with Y/N, it could be different. He sighs, showing the crumpled piece of parchment with his shaking hands.

“Every year…” He says, throwing his cigarette on the floor. “Since I started school, my parents send me a letter for my birthday. And over time their words have turned into complaints,” the boy's eyes water again. “I know what you thinking… I must not let that affect me, they’re bad people, but…” the lump in his throat stops him. “But I no longer live with them, I didn’t expect a letter and, even so, they wanted to ruin my day. It’s stupid and cruel, I don’t understand... after everything that's happened…”

The girl doesn’t hesitate to surround Sirius's body in a strong hug and he responds by hiding his face in her neck. Y/N holds him, strokes his hair and whispers little 'it's okay', 'I'm here,'everything will be fine’…

After a few minutes, Sirius calms down, but his head rests on her shoulder.

“I know that even though you no longer live in the mansion, they want to hurt you in some way. Maybe you’re not angry because they ruined your birthday, but you’re angry because they still have some power over you…”

“Maybe…” he whispers.

"I'm not sure how I can help you with that, but you don't know what I would do to make you no longer feel pain, to make you forget all the bad things they caused… I can't do it and I know that It sounds horrible or weird, but thanks to everything you've been through, what you've lost, you’re here.”

"What?"

"We don't know what your life would be like if your parents had treated you better or if you had been sorted in Slytherin…” He makes a face making her laugh. "What I'm going to say is, if everything had been different, maybe you wouldn't have James, Remus and Peter as friends,” She takes her hand. “Maybe we wouldn’t be together…”

"I'd be with a group like my little brother's" He says horrified and she nods. Sirius looks down and notices their clasped hands. "I think I would at least flirt with you,” He jokes

"I don't think so, but we'll never know,” Y/N smiles and raises her free hand, touching the boy's cheek to bring him closer. “The important thing is that you’re here, you have the best friends, you are popular, one of the best in the class, surprisingly,” She jokes. “You have me… We can’t change our families, and I know it will always be a sore spot for you. But you’re lucky to have something better, Sirius. A real family.”

The black-haired man genuinely smiles and thinks about everything his girlfriend has told him.

"How did I not win you over before?" He says raising an eyebrow.

She lets out a laugh and shakes her head.

“You were too busy distracting yourself with other girls. And you can't say I made it easy for you.”

He winces as he remembers all the effort it took to even go out with the beautiful girl next to him.

"It was worth it,” he answers, kissing her gently.

Sirius throws away the letter from his parents and then deepens the kiss, placing his hand on her cheek. However, the beautiful moment is interrupted by the exaggerated screams of a rather drunk James. The poor boy with glasses staggers until he falls in front of the lovers.

"Sirius!" James gasps. "I've looked everywhere for you! I looked for you in the bathroom, behind the tables, next to the bottles, under the chairs, in Remus's sweater– but you weren't there!"

Sirius and the girl try their best not to laugh.

"Sorry, mate. But you already found me, what wrong? " Sirius says, helping James to sit up.

"I forgive you because it's your birthday, old man,” He chuckles, then he gasps again. “Sirius, it's your birthday! Y/N, we haven't given him his gift!"

She laughs. "That was about to get done, silly.”

Sirius frowns.

"But you both already gave me gifts…”

James rolls his eyes.

"No, Paddie, we have a better gift,” he searches in his pockets and panics. “I can't find it– Y/N I lost the letter! I’m the worst friend in the world!”

"James, lower your voice,” Sirius laughs.

“I have the letter, James. Calm down,” She rolls her eyes, takes out an envelope and hands it to Sirius.

"What is this?”

She smiles.

"Walburga and Orion are not the only ones who wanted to send you a birthday letter.”

“It's a letter from my parents! Do you remember them, Sirius? They gave you permission to stay in our house,”adds James lying on the floor with his head resting on one of Sirius's leg.

The black-haired man looks at the girl still confused.

“Euphemia and Fleamont wanted to congratulate you. I don’t know what that letter says, but I can assure you that it is much better than the one you received a while ago.”

"Yeah, it's better," James babbles.

"Do you want to be alone to read it?"

Sirius nods, but now the need to be alone is different.

“Okay," She kisses his lips chastely. "Come on, James. Lily must be looking for you…”

James lifts his head and stands up awkwardly.

"Lily flower?"

Y/N shakes her head laughing, kisses Sirius's cheek and then stands up. "Happy Birthday, my love.”

Sirius watches as his girlfriend helps his best friend to walk. Only when he is alone does he see the fine print on the envelope in his hands and he can’t help but smile at the written words.

'For our son, Sirius.’

[kingreywrites]

With a little luck

@runningracingdancingchasing​

Fandom: Tangled

Word Count: 2308

16. “I’m trying to cheer you up.” (prompt list)

Summary: Flynn Rider didn't have bad days. He was always charming, always confident, and never ever worried about any kind of consequences. At worst, Flynn disappeared for one or two days, but no one could actually attest of any bad days being had. It was a question of reputation, and all that. Eugene wasn't so lucky, in that regard - oh, he was still charming, still confident, quite funny and dashing if you asked him but he cared.

Note: Thank you for the prompt!! I had trouble settling on one story for it but I hope you like this! Btw, this is set pre-series but post-movie, because I’ve been thinking a lot about Eugene and Rapunzel’s early relationship since i read here in this light by Hannamoon, so I can only recommand people check out this incredible fic!!

Read on ao3

Flynn Rider didn't have bad days. He was always charming, always confident, and never ever worried about any kind of consequences. At worst, Flynn disappeared for one or two days, but no one could actually attest of any bad days being had. It was a question of reputation, and all that. Eugene wasn't so lucky, in that regard - oh, he was still charming, still confident, quite funny and dashing if you asked him but he cared. A lot more than he let on to most people, but Eugene cared, it was in his nature, and Flynn had only tried to bury it. And, as such, Eugene had bad days, and he couldn't even hide out until it passed. Thankfully, along with being Eugene again, he had found a family - and he had found Rapunzel. Eugene's bad days were always better than Flynn's good days when she was here.

Didn't mean he had to like them, though.

It had started easily enough. He was bantering with Cassandra, as they always did - he had even started it himself, so really, he shouldn't be complaining - when she said something. A little jab, in the middle of so many others, nearly nothing really.

"Keep going like this and you'll end up all alone, Fitzherbert."

It had struck a nerve. Eugene had faltered, for barely a second, then had kept going as if everything was fine - and it was, really! But he couldn't get this sentence out of his head afterwards. It was silly, and he knew it - Cassandra had said worse. Come on, he had said worse to her, that was nothing!

But it wasn't.

He had talked more at lunch, because he was nervous and nervous Eugene babbled, and he saw clearly the annoyed glances that Frederic threw his way. Even Arianna, as serene as she always appeared, advised him once or twice to take a little more food, the closest she ever got to outright telling someone to shut up. The problem laid with the fact that Eugene was very good at talking with his mouth full, which garnered another scowl from Frederic, but a giggle from Rapunzel, so he kinda won anyway.

Ending up alone. As a kid, it never made sense to him how that could be a shared fear for orphans - they were already alone, weren't they? He wasn't scared of that at all, he would proudly claim to whoever was willing to listen (mostly Lance), because he never had anyone to begin with and that meant he didn't need anyone. (Except you, Lance, he would add back then.) And all his life, he had tried to prove it, had tried to show that he could do anything he wanted to without help, had dreamt of ending up alone and rich, far away from everyone on an island of his own. He had left the orphanage behind, had left Stalyan behind, had left Lance behind, because he was Flynn Rider and he- he-

Flynn Rider didn't get lonely. (But Eugene did. Eugene was vulnerable and he had hated it, hated the emotions he couldn't stop from flooding him, and his only solution had been to stifle them until he could pretend they didn't exist at all.)

After lunch, Eugene had fled the table in a haste, muttering an excuse he didn't even remember now. He knew Rapunzel still had a lot of activities scheduled, being a Princess and all, and that he had nothing else to do but mope. It was weird, to be so inactive now. As a thief, every day had been a new challenge - he had to keep moving, to keep stealing if he wanted enough money to live. Being able to stay idle was both a blessing, and an incredibly strange feeling at times. It gave him more time to mull over his feelings, in any case. More time to really live through his bad days, without any alcohol to distract himself with, for sure.

Cassandra's remark shouldn't have hurt like it did, because it was illogical. He knew he wouldn't end up alone now - Rapunzel loved him, just as much as he loved her, and- and they were each other's dream and he knew it.

He knew it.

It was simply hard to remember sometimes, because feelings didn't care about logic. He… Had experience in being abandoned, but he had thought that he was done with this feeling at 12, when he decided that he didn't want to be adopted anymore. Eugene was terrified that everything he had gained these last months, everything he had built back for himself once he let go of his life as a thief, would end up disappearing in seconds. All his life, having something meant being prepared to inevitably lose it, but he didn't want to lose this - he didn't want to lose Rapunzel.

He knew who he was when he was all alone, and he didn't want to be that person anymore.

He nearly went to hide out in the library, but he heard voices inside and he was not in the mood to speak to anyone. Especially not to another fancy person that would look at him as if he was nothing but a thief - he knew his presence in the castle wasn't accepted by everyone, but he hated being judged that way. He hated how it reminded him of the way adults would look at him when he was an orphan, hated the pity and the disgust that came with those stares, hated… hated that, at best, he was only Rapunzel's saviour, but not anyone worthy of their time for anything else.

Nowadays, Eugene knew the castle's layout by heart, always quick to remember a place just in case he needed to flee it - and stealing the crown had certainly taken a lot of preparations on its own, so really, it had no mysteries left for him. Especially one perfect, always empty and quiet spot: the roof. It didn't take long for him to go sit on his recently self-designated hideout, all of Corona seemingly under his feet. The fresh air and the silence were a welcome distraction from his thoughts, and a welcome distraction for his over dramatic reaction too - he had spent the last decades avoiding to wallow into his 'sad orphan backstory', and he had no reason to stop now.

Well. Rapunzel would want him to be honest with her about what he was feeling. But this was stupid, and she was busy with all the Princess' activities her dad had been pilling up on her recently, because of her upcoming coronation. There was no need to bother her with it, and she would totally understand that he didn't tell her - right?

Right. He could totally get over it by himself.

Keep going like this and you'll end up all alone, Fitzherbert.

"Thank you Cassandra," Eugene grumbled, kicking his feet in the empty space beneath them, "couldn't you have just insulted my nose or something?"

He would have gasped and defended himself, but at least it wouldn't have put his insecurities at the forefront of his mind. He was doing a good job of ignoring them before, thank you very much. Sighing, Eugene realised he couldn't even manage his fake-anger at her, because he was… tired. Tired of his bad day, already, even if it was barely one, tired of being scared, and tired of dwelling on something that he considered to be ridiculous. He wished he could convince himself that this new life was permanent, that Rapunzel would always love him, but it was hard. Dangling his legs, he decided to count all the houses he could see in front of him, until he was bored enough to go back inside.

He was halfway through a second round in Italian, to spice things up, when a noise on his right startled him.

"Hey," Rapunzel said, her brown hair glowing in the setting sun. He hadn't expected her to find him here, but some part of him wasn't surprised that she did anyway - because of course she would. Her hands were behind her back, and she quickly skipped over to him, always graceful.

"Sunshine," he smiled because he couldn't not, no matter his mood. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, the man I love disappeared on me, after spending lunch looking absolutely miserable," she answered gently as she sat next to him, handing him a cupcake that she had been hiding. "Of course I wanted to find you."

Eugene took the cupcake in both hands, and hoped that the blush he could feel creeping on his cheeks wasn't too noticeable, but something told him he wasn't so lucky.

"A cupcake?" he laughed.

"Hey, I'm trying to cheer you up! What better way than a cupcake?" Rapunzel said teasingly - but she also put her hand on his knee, and looked at him like he was the most precious thing in the world.

How he had ever managed the reputation of a tough guy was beyond him, Rapunzel only needed a few words to undo him completely.

"So," she said, once it was obvious that he wasn’t about to say anything else, "do you… Do you want to talk to me?"

He didn't, really. But he took her hand in his and squeezed it, hoping that she would be patient while he gathered himself. Eugene knew how comforting people was sometimes stressful on Rapunzel. At the very beginning of their relationship, he had quickly understood that her only experience with it was trying to please Gothel after an argument, which involved a lot of gifts and apologies. They had discussed it together, trying to separate what was unhealthy from what Rapunzel actually enjoyed doing - for example, gifts were one thing that she didn't want to give up on, but she was glad that it wasn't mandatory to the process. She was still anxious, though, that what she was doing was wrong, or at least not enough, and while she wouldn't ask for him to comfort her when she was trying to comfort him, he still tried to be mindful of her fears.

"I…" he tried, before cutting himself off. How could he begin to explain all the contradictory thoughts in his mind? Start from the essential. "I love you."

"I love you too, Eugene," Rapunzel answered easily, her skin warm against his.

She was close enough that he could count every freckle on her skin, even the most hidden one, sitting right under her eye, beneath her lashes. Faced with the prettiest view of Corona one could find, Eugene only had eyes for her. He loved her. And he was terrified, at the same time.

You'll end up all alone, Fitzherbert.

"Sometimes I'm scared that I'm gonna lose everything," Eugene blurted out, before cringing. "I mean, I know that you love me, of course I do but- I-"

"It feels too good to be true, somedays," Rapunzel finished softly. She lowered her eyes, and put her head on his shoulder.

"Yeah," he breathed, putting his arm around her shoulders. "A castle I could understand, but getting to be loved by the most wonderful woman in all the seven Kingdoms?"

"And getting to be loved by the most incredible man in all the seven Kingdoms?" Rapunzel echoed with a chuckle. "Impossible."

"Ludicrous."

"Oh good word."

There was a beat, and then they were both laughing, and holding onto each other.

"I love you," Rapunzel whispered again after a while, "and I know that being scared doesn't always make sense, but I promise that I'll never leave you."

Eugene's throat felt too tight after this declaration. It… It meant a lot more than he thought it would, because as much as he loathed admitting it, he was terrified of losing everything. As a kid, ending up with nothing had seemed inevitable; but he didn't want that, he didn't want to accept this future, he- he wanted to be happy. And he couldn't believe he got that chance with Rapunzel.

"I promise I won't leave you either," he answered, because he wasn't sure how to even voice the gratitude gripping him. "You're the best thing that has ever happened to me."

"Same goes for you." Rapunzel shifted, so she could take his hands in hers, and look straight at him again. "You don't have to hide from me when you're upset, I… I always want to be there for you. And as you can see," she smirked, gesturing to their predicament, "I'm not afraid to follow you in the weirdest places if I need to!"

Eugene laughed. "How did you even find me here?"

"I've got my secrets," she said playfully, "and they may involve remembering that one conversation where you talked about how we should hang out on the roof so my maids couldn't find me." Her brilliant smile made him fall in love all over again.

It also made him remember the cupcake that he had put aside. The frosting had melted a little, and he didn't look as good as earlier, but the sentiment it carried was still the same. Most of the time, he was the one bringing Rapunzel's cupcakes, but they meant as much to him as they did to her. It was one of the first things he bought after being a thief most of his life - one of the first things he bought for her. This cupcake was proof that he wasn’t the same man, that he was neither sad orphan Eugene Fitzherbert nor careless thief Flynn Rider.

He was just Eugene, and he had found a family now - he had found Rapunzel. And having bad days wasn’t so bad, when they ended with sharing a cupcake with his new dream, alone on one of the roofs overlooking the entire Kingdom of Corona, his new home.

[randomguywithwords]

Thanks For The Assist: Chapter 2 (Itsuka X Neito Story)

AO3 Link: Here

Chapters: 1

Chapter 2: Acceptance

––––––––

“How was the test?” Father asked as the three of them sat at the dinner table eating. 

“Ok, I think I did fine,” Monoma said as he picked up a slice of meat.

“How were you graded?” Mother said. 

“Fought some robots. You get points the more you destroy. The harder the robot, the more points you get. The field was massive, pretty much a life-size city, and I think they had at least 3.” Monoma explained with patience, though he suspected this expositioning was boring the other audience with information they already knew. 

Mother hummed her assent. “I’m not surprised. U.A has a ton of money. More money than they need, really…” She ended her statement in a mutter. It sounded like constrained resentment to Neito. It probably was, but understandable. 

“Isn’t the ministry diverting more money towards your school, dear?” Father said. 

“Yes, I suppose. After years of appeals by the school committee. Hopefully I can obtain better equipment to teach those kids.” Mrs Monoma sighed, looking back towards Neito. “But I hope you get in, Neito. I have to admit, it’s really once-in-a-lifetime, and U.A will make you a fine hero.”

“Thanks, mother.” Neito smiled. A fine hero. The phrase did not apply to him, not in the societal nor linguistic sense of the word. A hero relied on himself to get the job done, at the end of the day. With what he had, that was an impossibility. 

“None of the other kids gave you trouble, did they?” Father asked, and Monoma winced on the inside, thinking about the events transpiring just after the test. 

“No, they were nice people,” He said. It was no lie, by technicalities. There was that girl, after all. Kendo, was it? She was nice. 

Father seemed to perk up at his answer, gladdened. “That’s good,” He gave an approving nod. “I’m glad they weren’t like your schoolmates.”

Neito waved his hand like an aristocrat at a banquet. “Nah, I think maybe those guys were just ––” He struggled for the proper word. “Lame.” He ended, and grinned internally at the apt description of his dialogue. But that smile died in the next instant when he thought about what he had wanted to say. 

Flat characters. A character with one dimension, owning a singular character trait to serve a purpose in a story. That’s what he called them, but not Mother. 

“About time kids your age learned some maturity,” She said, her ‘teacher’ side emerging. “Not you, Neito – of course. You’re a sensible boy. Apart from your silly theatrics, but you’ll grow out of it.”

There it is, He sighed, on the inside – or, aside. That was how the plays would state inner actions on the script. But Mother doesn’t like plays, does she now? 

“Neito, tell us about the fighting,” Father interjected with a smile that was a bit too wide, “What quirks did you use?” 

Neito gave a response, but his heart was no longer in the conversation, having been chilled by Mother’s own lovely warmth that she had no idea she was radiating. 

–––––

The letter came a week later when his parents were at work. Neito opened it up in his room. After all, where else would he? Only in his room could he find solace. And on his bed, comfort, so he plopped himself down and opened the envelope. 

The contents contained a disc. A holographic. Taking it out and laying it on his bed, he pressed the blue button in the centre, producing a video on the wall.

It was the scene of an office, with a mouse sitting on a chair and a cup of tea on the glass table. He recognised the principal of U.A himself.

“Neito Monoma! Very good afternoon, or morning, or night, to you – depending when you see this, of course. On the off chance you are unaware of me, I am Nezu, principal of U.A High. This video is approximately 5 minutes long, but I will save you the suspense. You got in. Congratulations.”

His heart soared, and he pumped a fist in the air, breathing a sigh in much-desired catharsis. Had he been holding that in since the beginning? 

“You are, both celebrating – I would hope, and also wondering what the remaining 4 and a half minutes are about. Please do not ignore the rest of this video, because I want to review two things: your performance at the entrance exam, and your quirk. Take a look at this.” 

The video showed clips of Monoma from a birds’ eye view, running around and using his borrowed quirks, as well as him tapping random strangers. He noted how a lot of them turned their heads in evident surprise and puzzlement at him patting them on the shoulder or arm. And then the clip played of him taking a couple of points away from those guys. 

Nezu clucked his tongue. “Many in society would deem that as ‘un-hero-like’ behaviour, as it can be interpreted as stealing, or taking what does not belong to you. Criminal acts indeed, if the deed is severe and the stolen thing valuable. But, your quirk acts on that very principle of taking what does not belong to you.”

The (overwhelmingly intelligent, Monoma realised) mouse continued, “I’ve taken the liberty of reviewing your application and academics. You boast admirable grades in your middle school, and your form teacher commented that you were a highly observant, smart and mature student. I could go on, but you know what you’ve submitted. I will continue with that presumed knowledge.”

“You must have realised by now, or very early on in your career as a hero aspirant, that your quirk is unorthodox, having no use on its own. You require allies, or foes who you can lay a finger on, to fight. And even then, you must hastily adapt to whatever quirk you have under your control, for a period of time. Lots of limitations, Mr Monoma. A lot of challenges you have faced, are facing, and will face. And when you are initiated into my school, expect more.” Nezu took a sip of his tea.

“That’s not to say you will face difficulties many would describe as ‘hell’ at U.A. And neither does my previous statement imply U.A is not ‘hell’.” He paused. “Do excuse my roundabout mannerisms of speech. It is a bad habit of mine.” Nezu chuckled.

“Simply put, I have taken a personal interest in you, Mr Monoma, for your cunning, your intellect, and your quirk. Report to me after your first day of school. We will talk more then. Congratulations once more. Another letter will arrive tomorrow to inform you of the minutiae regarding your inception into U.A. Good day, Neito Monoma.”

The holographic faded out, and Neito was staring at a blank wall for a few seconds trying to process whatever Nezu had said.  

A buzz from his phone pulled him out of his hazy thoughts. He is...really smart. 

It was from Kendo. “Hi, Monoma, It’s Kendo! The girl with big hands. Wanted to ask you whether you received the letter from U.A.” 

He typed a response. “Yeah, I got a letter. What’s your verdict?” 

Fingers crossed. 

She responded, “I got in. >< You?” 

A smile spread across his face. “Same, that’s awesome. Congratulations.”

“YAY! :D We both did it! Congrats too! And I was so shocked that All Might was in the video! I nearly cried. Or maybe I did, idk. Sorry, I’m babbling at this point, but I don’t have anyone else to tell this to until my parents get home and I’m so hypeddd”

Huh? All Might? So Nezu specifically…

He typed, “It’s ok, I’m excited too. Though I don’t express it over text that much.” 

“Haha it’s ok. Can’t wait for the letter tomorrow. There’s so much to do! Hero costume, uniforms, books, all that. And term starts a month from now. Can’t wait!” 

“Wow, how’d you know all this?”

“Mainly from the internet. I was that hyped, y’know?”

He cracked another smile from her enthusiasm. It was oddly contagious, and he found himself more zealous to go to school. That was a statement he’d never think he could formulate in his mind. “I see. That’s cool.”

“Btw, if you wanna go celebrate with your family or friends, go ahead! I don’t wanna hold you back.”

“Nah, my parents are at work and I’m basically alone at home. Same boat as you. So, fire away.”

“Ah, ok!” 

The conversation continued with Kendo gushing about their new life, and Monoma passively followed along, inserting a few comments here and there. But he didn’t feel like he was stuck at a family reunion forced to endure his grandfather’s stories with a placating smile and affirming nods peppered in occasionally. She was actually interesting, and amusing, in a good way. 

The topic was centered around school and academics, with little butting into personal lives, and Monoma didn’t pry. She was still a stranger, somewhat, albeit she would be his new schoolmate – and perhaps classmate. He crossed his fingers again, hoping that Fate would tap him lightly on the head once more with her providence. 

He smiled when Kendo typed, “Hope we become classmates :D. Apparently there are always 2 first-year classes. So it’s basically a coin flip.”

“Heads.” 

“Rly? Do you always choose heads?”

“Yeah.” 

“I’m more of a switcher.”

“How do you decide when to choose heads or tails then?”

“Coin flip.”

“That made me laugh, thank you.”

“Why do you need to thank people for making you laugh? It’s a spontaneous thing.”

“That’s...oddly profound.”

“Or just a dumb statement made to sound fancy. Ah, sorry, I have to go now. But thank you for your time. It was great chatting :)” 

“Why do you need to thank people for chatting with you? It’s a spontaneous thing. Joking aside, thank you too.”

“Nice haha” Was her last message. Neito turned his phone off and lied down on his bed. A moment passed, and Neito took a coin from his study desk. It was a silly thing to do, but his room was his stage. He was performing for himself. 

He gave it a toss and caught it. 

Seeing the result, he grinned.

–––––––

Yeek, this took longer than it should have, sorry. Had a bit of writer’s block when it came to planning this thing and I wasn’t sure how to move on. Also the tone of this is especially terrifying for me because it’s definitely going to be (ironically) more light-hearted, with Monoma’s dramatic language and (side thoughts) occasionally inserted, but that brings the challenge of need. When to do that, when not to. This story is a personal challenge to change my narrative style just slightly. 

Anyway, I hoped you MonoKendo ppl liked it. A lot of people have told me it’s unfortunate the ship lacks content and I couldn’t agree more. But then again, that’s about 75% of the ships out there. (Fk it, 90%). So, here’s my contribution, alongside some other one-shots. 

Feedback’s appreciated :D

[kingofthewilderwest]

Don't worry, I take over my sleep time to read and write fanfictions. I wouldn't have time otherwise! I have an entire Word page with only links to fanfictions I still have to read! And it's all right to not read fanfictions if you don't want to. It's just an hobby among others. Anyway, you wrote fanfictions?? Now I'm curious, could I have a link, if you don't mind? Have a good night too and sorry for my grammar mistakes, english isn't my first language (btw, thank you for the likes

From this. Sorry I’m slow replying!! thanks for your wonderful messages! :)

No worries about grammar! Your English is great, and even if it weren’t, that’s no bother to me either. :) The fact that you’re communicating in a language that isn’t your first… just means you have extra skills and are even more awesome! :) 

I love how dedicated you are to looking at others’ fanfictions, even creating a Word document page to make sure you remember them. That’s beautiful and cool. And I’m getting curious about what you’ve written, too! 

Thanks so much for asking about my fics - this touches me! Sure, I’m happy to share! I tend to post all fics on tumblr and FFN, with FFN being my primary hub. On tumblr I use the tag #my fanfiction and tag all stories by their title. My FFN profile is kingofthewilderwest.

I’m so so so so so SO touched when anyone reads or interacts with my fics (though since I write casually, I ask no constructive criticism

THE VIGILANTE’S WAR

HTTYD. YEAR: 2014. LENGTH: 57,110 WORDS. A mysterious, antagonistic dragon rider dubbed “the Vigilante” crosses paths with Hiccup, and her increasingly violent actions appear to be leading to war against Berk. 

He tightened his hands, loosened them again. Breathed in, breathed out. He could feel himself stooped in the dirt, his shoulders hunched over his head, his knees buried in the ground and tucked underneath his torso. His neck was bent low close to the earth, providing him a good view of his hands and the ground and nothing else.

Well, and the blood.

That can’t possibly be all mine.

- PROLOGUE: FROM OUT OF THE HAZE

HTTYD 2′s original drafts had Valka as the main antagonist. I found this so interesting that I decided to rewrite HTTYD 2 - with a few of my own spins - on this concept. One of my most well-known fics, “The Vigilante’s War” is where I’ve gotten the most thorough reviews and most emotional reactions.

THE VIGILANTE’S LEGACY 

HTTYD. YEARS: 2014-2016. LENGTH: 20,546 WORDS. There’s been four years of war between three factions. Drago’s army. The Vigilante and her dragons. Berk and their allies. But now, Chief Hiccup believes there’s a way to end the conflict. Sequel to “The Vigilante’s War.”

Hiccup spoke up. Cleared his voice. Tapped his pointer finger apprehensively on the cell’s iron door. “You said we were making a mistake.” Might as well speak straight to the point of his visit. “Something about ‘you and every one of your warriors are making a mistake’ or – or something like that.”

For a moment Hiccup wondered if Valka actually would reply. The calculating gaze she gave him from the corner of her prison certainly did not seem a positive sign. However, then, with a steady, lilting cadence to her voice, she succinctly affirmed, “I did.” Just those two words. Nothing more.

- VIII. THE MISTAKES OF WAR

It’s unfinished; I haven’t updated because I ran out of steam and didn’t receive enough reader feedback encouraging me to continue. Though I did have a very vivid final chapter in mind… that I still love… which I never got to…?

MEMOIRS

HTTYD. YEARS: 2015-2016. LENGTH: 44,289 WORDS. My ongoing collection of drabbles for HTTYD. Angst, pain, comfort, humor, crossovers, crack, it’s all there. Favorites include “Family Portrait,” “Stubble,” “Buffcup the Brawny,” and “Remember When.”

He held her hand softly, one wrinkled hand laid gently on top of another. It was just her and him now in the house all alone – for their children had left on a voyage with the grandkids, and would not be back for a week yet, if even two. It evoked the quietness of the old days, back before they were old, back during the times when they were newlyweds and younger even than their grandchildren were today. Oh, but the smell of her hair was just as refreshing now as when it was blonde.

- REMEMBER WHEN

DINNER AT DRAGON’S EDGE 

HTTYD. YEAR: 2015. LENGTH: 5,452 WORDS. The gang’s settling in at Dragon’s Edge. To make sure everything operates smoothly, Hiccup suggests a chore rotation system. That means everyone has to do their fair share of the cooking… but it doesn’t mean everyone is a fair cook.

“Oh my gods, is this dinner or what the rats threw away?” Snotlout exclaimed, terrified at the Unidentified Edible Object before him.

Tuffnut picked it up with one experimental hand and held it out before him at a safe distance. People would have held poisonous snakes or bloodied torture devices more cheerily. Squinting his eyes and peering carefully at the peculiar specimen pinched between his fingers, rubbing under his chin with his other, free hand, Tuffnut remarked, “Looks something like what Barf and Belch poop out after they get sick and…”

- 1. ASSIGNING JOBS

This humorous fic I think is where I do best capturing HTTYD character personalities and interactions.

[SUPER]HERO THE HARD WAY 

HTTYD. YEARS: 2014-2017. LENGTH: 86,566 WORDS. In a modern world where Berk is full of superheroes battling the League of Outcasts, power-less Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third struggles to receive appreciation for who he is. Through his crime-fighting journey, Hiccup learns that, while he might not have powers, he can become a Hero the Hard Way.

“I wasn’t born with anything. Don’t have anything. I’m the son of Chief Stoick “Skullcrusher” and I don’t have anything. Not even a superpower to turn objects purple. Which frankly would be completely pointless but at least it would have been something.“

He realized he was babbling and promptly shut his mouth. He looked over at Fishlegs, who appeared to be wordlessly processing the information. The teenager appeared baffled moreso than anything else, which at least meant he was not outright rejecting him.

“So you’re going to train to be a superhero… and you don’t have any powers? I got that right?”

“You got that right.”

“Wow.” Fishlegs said.

Hiccup waited for more.

“That’s actually really cool.”

- CHAPTER THREE: SIDEKICKED

This started as me intending to write one crack chapter. It turned into me envisioning a ROB / DOB modern AU where all characters were superheroes. The final product became a retelling of HTTYD 1′s basic concept: Hiccup gaining his peers’ approval despite being different. Somehow, despite me 70% adlibbing by the seat of my pants (should I be admitting this?), I had great fun. And it brought in the most reviews, follows, and favorites of any of my posted stories! Thanks for the reads and support, everyone!!!

RESET OR RESUME 

UT. YEAR: 2016-2017. LENGTH: 85,841 WORDS. Gaster’s research unlocks the secret of time travel. After the Royal Scientist’s untimely end, one of Gaster’s colleagues - Sans - finds himself with the power to Reset. Confronted with unpleasant timelines and dangerous choices, Sans must decide how to navigate through time… if it’s worth resetting for a better future, continuing with hope for the present, or simply giving up.

No longer timid and silent, the human happily babbled all sorts of nonsense to Sans, everything from how to bake snow pies to how weird Sans’ skull looked to how beautiful the ribbon in their hair was to their opinions of Papyrus’ ‘battle body’ to how their mom didn’t like the color black to their personal opinion of ferrets to a long narrative of their encounter with a snail-loving old lady they met on the other side of the Ruins door. Everything could be the topic of a conversation. There was no filter and even less sense of restraint for this child.

“How are you a SKELETON?” their happy little high-pitched voice squeaked. They flew gallantly over a twig that rested, flat, on the surface of the snow. Powder flew everywhere as they landed heavily into the snowbank. “That means – that means you should be DEAD, you know!”

“who says i’m not dead?” Sans trolled with a wink.

With a shrieking giggle, they exclaimed, “Don’t be silly! Only ghosts are dead!”

“i could be a skeleton ghost.”

“No you – no you can’t.” The human seemed to be quite confident about their knowledge in paranormal metaphysics. “You can be a skeleton. You can be a ghost. But nobody – NOBODY – can be a skeleton ghost.”

“is that so?”

“YES so! You CAN’T be both. That would be wrong.” Maybe the human mentally categorized skeletons and ghosts as separate Halloween creatures, ensuring they were mutually exclusive concepts. It was always challenging to comprehend a child’s train of logic. “Except…” and now the child paused, leaning down and tugging at the sleeve of their sweater. Something thoughtful – at least as much as one so young could be thoughtful – passed over their eyes. They cocked their head to the side and stared at Sans. In the same sort of innocence with which they had talked about ferrets, the human inquired, “…can ghosts also be dust?”

- 5. KNOCKS [[File 5.2 IH-20150701-3-3]]

I have particular fondness for this fic. I spent more energy and care with this than any other I’ve posted. Drenched it through with UT lore. Edited and revised thoroughly. Had two beta readers examine my ASL for accurate representation. I wrote extensive outlines that were several page long color-coded charts, had all this meticulous structuring going on…

The problem was, this was an impossibly ambitious project. Life got in the way, too. The 85,841 words here aren’t close to the end of Part 1. The final two Parts were going to explain the weirdness within Part 1 (the story doesn’t begin in chronological order - it gets pieced together like a puzzle). What I planned to write would have included a complex characterization arc for Sans, every human child that’s visited the underground, and multiple resets containing main character deaths… until the story would end with Sans confronting Frisk in the Genocide Route.

Hopefully, despite the incompleteness, this is enjoyable from its comedy to its angst! I would at least encourage people to read the first few chapters! Or “Socks” - an entire chapter devoted to Sans and Gaster pulling sock pranks on each other.

SOMEHOW THEY’RE STILL OFFICERS

FMAB. YEAR: 2018-2019. LENGTH: 6,036 WORDS. Ahhhhhh yes. Team Mustang. The hand-selected, elite group of military officers who effectively spend their time… doing nonsense. 

Everyone was scrambling at once. Mustang rushed forward to greet their guest, perfect composure only broken by the fast pace at which he moved. In fact the colonel’s posture was almost a proud enough display to make his lack of shirt go unnoticed. But Falman chucked his cards away at the same time he tried to salute; Breda was ducking from Falman’s sudden card shower; Fuery was launching pants and underwear in Havoc’s face; and Lieutenant Hawkeye, obviously abashed to be in this room at all, was covering her eyes with her hand in what was either her life’s longest sigh, or a pathetic attempt to hide her face and identity.

- WE WERE JUST PLAYING CARDS

My collection of FMA drabbles, particularly stories of Team Mustang shenanigans. Prompts / requests welcome for more adventures!

I have a few other drabbles posted, too. I also have unfinished chapters of Voltron fanfictions on my computer that I could share, too? Maybe I should? I’m currently working on several Royai fanfictions, other FMA drabbles, and a longer Deponia fanfiction.

Thank you again for being so nice and connecting with me over fanfiction and fandom and FMA and more. You’re a really wonderful and cool person and you made my day.

[mrevaunit42]

Marco’s Corpse Bride (Starcoween, Corpse Bride AU)

Hello everyone! Mr.E here with the first of my starcoween stories (Starcoween was a holiday event i made up to write slightly darker stories during Halloween but i missed it this year and i still wanted to write some so here we are). Today’s story is the winner of the poll and inspired by @disney-n-stuff corpse bride au drawings. if you have not check them out, you should they are awesome!

So it’s the corpse bride. I mean it’s not a one to one. I cut off some parts, rewrote dialogue, added my own stuff and fit as much of Disney-n-stuff’s version of the story in here as I could. Also this is not the full version. I purposely left out the ending so you all could fill in how you want to this story to end and I won’t be giving this a proper end either. I mean I kinda hinted at an ending where jarco and starco both win but like i said, i wanted you to fill in your own ending. 

So that’s it aside for a very special thank you to my good friend @hains-mae who really did something amazing for this story. She made one epic cover page that is featured below (she’s taking commissions people *cough cough* just saying) that I am really grateful for. Thanks mae!

That’s it for me, I need to go work on the next nova chapter and Monster Hunter au part 1 which was the second highest voted from the straw poll (thank you so much for voting btw I really appreciate the help) have an awesome week and I hope you enjoy the story!

Notification squad: @artgirllullaby @ladyxgilex @hipster-rapunzel @thefandombytes @minthia-ren @isolated-frequencies @nerdymetalhead

Marco sighed tiredly, the muffled yet thick twangs of an out of tune piano floated sadly from beyond the door frame yet sleep eluded the young man.

He rose to a sitting position and folded the moth eaten blanket that his hosts so graciously gave him to sleep with. It was faded and worn with the odd hole here and there but Marco was grateful for it all the same. Once upon a time it must've been so elegant, so revered among its owners. Marco's family would've had saved many months to purchase such a treasure but down here it was as unnecessary as it was old.

The dead had no need for such things....

Marco stood, the guilt weighing heavily on his shoulders as he began to pace the room anxiously.

If you had told Marco that in one day's time (Oh lord it had only been a day hasn't it?) he would've been betrothed to his childhood crush without warning, foolishly wandered into the forest as a queasy and rather humiliating mess and subsequently asked the hand of a corpse bride in marriage accidentally only to be whisked away to the land of the dead.....well he would've called you a rather loony lot.

Yet that is exactly how the still living young man's day began and has currently ended.

Marco awoke the same as he did every other day: Cranky, sleepy and cold.

The Diaz's were a simple, humble middle class family. They lived within their means and the trio were content if not comfortable. Marco's father Mr. Diaz worked as the owner of a modest shop in the heart of town and while the larger, more well off family held an iron grip on the market, Rafael still made reasonable profits. Marco's mother Angie was a seamstress and thanks to a vast network of friends and friends of friends, she often patched and sewed for those who were not afraid to part with their money.  Marco himself had just turned 18 a few months ago and while his parents hadn't spoken of it, he was expected to seek his fortune and secure his future...by the way of marriage.

Marco felt ill at the idea of marriage. It wasn't that he didn't want to get married. The problem, rather, was he pinning for a specific woman to marry. A woman he had never even spoken to in his entire life: Miss Jackie Lynn Thomas.

Miss Thomas was the daughter of a local fisherman and a baker. She was a few months younger than Marco (Her birthday had been yesterday if he recalled correctly) though her family was marginally better off than Marco's (only by slim margin).

He known of her since childhood and while the two would occasional cross paths within the city and attended the same events, Marco could not bring himself to speak to the lovely Jackie. The few times he attempted such a thing either ended in an awkward, tense silence or him droning and babbling about nonsensical topics that ranged from the differences between a major and minor key to the rather disgusting digestive systems of livestock.

Needless to say Marco's chances with Miss Thomas were looking rather grim and while there were several other wonderful women in town, none carried the spark that lit his cheeks ablaze like she did.

Marco groggily made his way downstairs, the dreary weather of his beloved hometown the same as it had been 95% of the time: Cloudy, cold and bleak.

Marco sensed something was off when he found his parents speaking in tense, hushed voices as he approached the kitchen. When he entered the room, the conversation died at once and their gaze shifted from each other to squarely on him, their smiles well meaning but tight. Bad news it seems and bad news that would directly affect Marco.

“Morning” Marco muttered carefully, eying their uneaten food warily “Is something the matter? You both seem rather.....serious.”

“Mijo” Rafael began quietly “We have some news to share...with you.”

Marco nodded like he understood (he really didn't) “I see. And what news is that?”

“As you know mijo my shop has been getting a lot of new customers.”

“Mhm”

“And I thought” Rafael went on sheepishly “It might be wise...to...merge my business....with someone else's....”

Marco blinked in confusion, unsure where this conversation was heading. Initially he was under the impression someone in the family had died but this wildly veering off into  a rather surprising turn of events.

“I...see?” he was unable to keep the confusion out of his response.

Rafael fidgeted guiltily though his son was still unsure why. His father was expanding his business, that was good news....right? Then why were his parents acting like they were planning for his funeral?

“What your father is trying to say” Angie spoke up “is that he has found someone who is willing to cooperate and share resources...under...a certain condition.”

“What condition?” Marco asked slowly.

Marco stood before the altar, still awestruck and dazed from the sudden revelation that he was to marry his father's future business partner's daughter.

The church was drafty as always with its muted unassuming gray brick walls and pale brown pews.

Marco was dressed in his Sunday best: an old, elegant black suit once owned by his abuelo and handed down from Diaz to Diaz for special occasions. Marco himself added a pale, faded white collared shirt with a dark red vest and the most valuable of his possessions, a jet black ascot tie tucked perfectly within his outfit.  

His parents were more informal in their choice of attire but that was only because today was the rehearsal rather than the actual wedding.

Marco tried to keep his breath steady but his stomach churned unhappily. The ground swayed uneasily under his feet. The walls seemed to close in on him, the air stale and stuffy despite the frigid weather that always blanketed the town as the realization that he was to be married to someone he's never even met! HE WAS GOING TO MARRY SOMONE HE HAS NEVER EVEN LAID EYES UPON!

The old church door creaked as an icy breeze filled the halls for brief moment before slamming closed with a dull thud.

Marco could hear his parents gleefully greet the bride's family, content tones and friendly banter filling the once silent halls.

The unexpected groom tried to will his body to follow his parents example but his nerves were frayed and despite his best attempts, he simply remained frozen in fear as soft, timid footsteps approached him.

He could feel the presence of someone behind where  he stood, waiting and watching for his greeting though if it was his future wife or his future in laws the young man couldn't hazard a guess.

Marco gulped down as much air as he could. He breathed slowly, rigidly turning in an attempt to make up for previously rude behavior.

“I am very sorry” Marco apologized, pivoting on his heels with all the effort he could muster “It's a bit drafty you see and I....I...I....I....”

His heart skidded to halt, his cheeks burned with an intensity that matched the glow of the sun as his eyes laid upon the last person he ever expected to see and the one whom he longed for.

Miss Jackie Lynn Thomas stood there, hair wrapped up in a neat yet enchanting bun (her blue streak visible) and a gentle smile danced on her lips. She wore one of the simple dresses she preferred when attending to errands in the city (Evidently it seems Marco was the only one who did not receive the notice that casual wear was allowed for the rehearsal) but to Marco she was as breathtaking up close as she had been from afar.

“Good morning Mr. Diaz” Jackie gave a polite curtsey.

Marco chuckled dumbly in reply “Oh it's just Marco. Mr. Diaz is my father.”

Marco mentally flinched upon realizing the words that escaped his lips but his ears only grew red when he heard Jackie giggle in response.

“As you wish...Marco.” She answered playfully.

Marco rubbed the back of his neck nervously, his anxiety growing each passing moment “Did you know that owls are often considered an ill omen in many cultures?”

“I did not”

Marco gave another timid laugh “yeah...it's silly really. I mean they're just birds! They go hoot, you know? Hoot hoot!”

Marco died the moment he began flapping his arms. He wish he could slap himself but he was afraid to appear more crazed to his future spouse than he already was.

But Jackie nodded as if it was the most interesting thing she had heard all morning “How fascinating Marco.”

“R-really?”

Jackie gave him a soft smile while she nodded in agreement.

“I see everyone is present?” The dull, gravelly voice of the priest snapped everyone out of their respective conversations

“Si” Rafael quickly made his way to the young couple's side “ everyone is present.”

“Then shall we proceed?” The priest looked thoughtfully towards Marco and Jackie.

“Of course Father” Jackie said respectfully.

“proceed?” Marco questioned “Proceed with what?”

“The rehearsal” The priest replied “You do know the vows, correct?”

“I...umm vows?”

“Yes” The priest continued “The traditional vows that every groom speaks to their brides. The vows that bind you to each other as husband and wife. The vows that are spoken at every wedding. Those vows.”

“Riiiiight” Marco chuckled “Of course you meant those vows! I confused myself for a moment, believed you were speaking about some other...umm vows! But yes I do remember the vows. The vows I must speak as to marry Jackie...the vows I shall speak after I...I....I receive the ring! Oh no!” Marco's face fell into mock worry “Darn, I must've left the ring at home! Clumsy me and my forgetfulness. Drat, I suppose we'll have to postpone the rehearsal. Can't practice my vows without a....”

Marco sighed as his father produced a ring from within his vest pocket

“Thanks dad” Marco said with the most deadpan voice he could muster.

“Anything for you mijo.”

“Now” the priest loomed over the young man menacingly “The vows.”

“R-right...” Marco coughed timidly “The...vows....I.....Marco Ubaldo Diaz.....”

The old rotten trees of the forest swayed back and forth as a chilly breeze howled through, the crunching of the dried dead leaves filled the air as Marco angrily and embarrassingly stomped his way deeper into the woods.

“I didn't know the vows” he scolded himself, pulling at his neat hair in frustration “of course I didn't know the vows! How could I know the vows when I barely found out I was getting married 10 minutes before! And dad had a ring?! DAD HAD A RING!? How long had they known about this little arrangement?! Why couldn't they tell me ahead of time?”

Marco let loose his emotions into a powerful yell but hardly a sound was heard as his voice was swallowed whole by dense forest.

“Okay Diaz” Marco told himself, taking a deep breath to relax himself “You're getting married to the girl of your dreams and you are utterly confused by this strange turn of events. That's okay! That's...normal? But you will make the best of it! You messed up the rehearsal but not the wedding! That's...something.”

Jackie's smile flashed into his mind.

“Vows...” Marco whispered as he pulled the ring from his coat pocket “Vows....everyone knows them. They are spoken at every wedding....”

Marco closed his eyes, clutching the tiny band tightly in his grasp.

His mind began to fill with thoughts of the wedding, of those who would be attending: His parents and Jackie's would be there because they had to. Ferguson and Al, two of Marco's best friends, would no doubt show though he was certain the promise of free food would lure them, not the actual event itself. Janna may catch wind of Jackie's attempt to marry her favorite target though he suspected she would behave herself for the sake of her best friend. And Jackie.....Jackie would be there, looking as lovely as the day Marco first laid eyes on her.....she would be waiting by the altar, patiently for him....

the young man took a breath, his nerves calm and steely as the words poured of his mouth.

“With this hand, I will cut off your...” Marco flinched “no no, that's...that's so wrong. Umm with this.....candle? Was there a candle? I'm remembering a candle but I do not remember why I am remembering a candle. Why is there a...am I suppose to light her candle with mine? I am almost certain the ceremony involves a....OH! Yes, there is a candle. Umm with this...candle? Candle. Candle! I shall....light...light.....light...your mother ablaze? That's more than likely....”

Marco opened his eyes as a sigh escaped his lips. The trees towered over him, swaying back and forth under the gentle yet cold breeze while their shade basked him in darkness.

“With this hand” Marco gestured high into the air “I will lift your sorrows. Your cup will never empty for I will be your wine.”

Marco strolled confidently over to the nearest tree trunk, bowing respectfully towards it “Mrs. Thomas, you look absolutely lovely this evening”

Marco nudged at another tree with a sly “What's that Mr. Thomas? Call you dad? Well I suppose if you are alright with it.”

“With this candle? Candle!” Marco repeated, tearing a branch off to use as a makeshift prop “I will light your way in darkness.”

“With this ring” Marco glanced at the simple, plain brand that lay in the palm of his hand “I ask you....to be mine.” and in one fluent movement, he slipped the token of his love onto a finger-like branch.

The wind moaned softly yet Marco made no motion to retrieve the accessory, uncertainty and fear swirling about his head: were the vows correct? They must've been because those were the only ones he could remember.

"Okay" he told himself with a nod " That was perfect and all I have to do is perform it the exact same way with Jackie.

Jackie....

Marco let out a terrified whimper

Marco groaned loudly, clutching at his hair tightly "What am I thinking?! I can't do this in front of Jackie!

Marco sighed disappointingly " She's...she's...and I'm....and I.....I talked about owls! OWLS! I hooted. Who does that?!”

Marco caught the dull gleam of the ring as it swayed teasingly in the breeze, the solitary  cawing of a crow echoed throughout the empty forest.  

“And give me back my ring tree branch!" Marco tugged at the ring but the branch refused to let go, its gripped tight and firm.

“I'm losing to a tree” Marco murmured sadly “I am losing to an inanimate object.....This can't get much worse....”

A chill ran down Marco's spine as, without warning, the branches curled around his wrist.

“Oh? The branches seem to be grabbing at me.” Marco laughed for a moment before the weight of his statement hit him full force “THE BRANCHES ARE GRABBING ME!?”

Marco pulled away but the branches held fast, its grip on the young man growing tighter and tighter with each moment.

“LET ME GO NATURE!” Marco shouted as he frantically tugged at his wrist “I DID NOT MARRY YOU! I WAS JUST PRACTICING annnnd I can't believe I am actually having this conversation....”

The trapped young man planted his feet firmly on the dusty forest floor and prepared to throw his weight backwards in an attempt to free himself when the branches snapped and freed their grip Marco who was thrown back full force.

Marco tumbled to the ground, his suit torn and ripped from the various roots and low branches that littered the forest floor.

“Well that was unexpected.” Marco muttered to himself, rubbing the tension out of his neck.

He rose to his feet, wiping the dirt and any leaves that managed to glue themselves onto his clothing. This was absolutely disastrous. There's no way he could....

Marco felt his blood chill as the earth before him cracked open and without warning, a thin, pale blue bruised arm reached upwards, its hand grasping wildly at the air.

“Oh dear....” Marco murmured, his stomach groaning unhappily as a skeleton arm reached out from the depths of the earth itself and planted itself firmly on the dirt covered ground “Yeah, I think it's time I call it a day.”

The terrified man broke into a fevered sprint, wincing in pain as he collided with the odd branch and tree trunk in his mad dash to freedom.

“the church” he comforted himself “the church is nearby! If I can make it, surely I'll be safe.”

Fear bit at his resolve as the trees seem to elongate before his eyes, towering over him in strange, unnatural angles.

North was West, East was West, South was North. Despite the countless times he had ventured safely into the forest alone, in this moment he had never been so lost and confused. the soft crunching of dry leaves could be barely heard over his heavy breathing as something closed the distance between itself and him.  

Marco flailed wildly in surprise as his foot caught a tree root and he suddenly tripped forward, tumbling and skidding across the ground. Everything ached but terror and adrenaline dulled the pain. He scampered to his feet, unsteadily swaying back and forth as he saw the old stone bridge stretched out before him and beyond the lonely church beckoning him in the distance.  

Marco hardly crossed the bridge when the soft patter of footsteps filled his ears and despite the fright that enthralled him, curiosity called to him. He paused and turned to gaze upon his purser.

He was unaware of the gasp that escaped his lips as he found himself staring at the figure of a woman no older than he....maybe.

Her long flowing blonde hair was done up in an elegant pun with blue butterfly clips and a wedding veil adorning her head. Her eyes were a pale sky blue that seemed to pierce past his mortal shell and into his very soul.  Her outfit of choice was a torn, ripped strapless sleeveless wedding dress with white roses that had seen far better days The skirt split open at the bottom and revealed she was wearing boot-like shoes with heels. At least that's what Marco thought they were. But what had made Marco stop, what made him gasp was not her choice of attire but rather her appearance.

She was deathly thin, her skin a pale blue as if air no longer flowed through her body. One arm was nothing more than bone and while the other still possessed what Marco assumed to be skin, her fingers were long and skeletal. The most curious aspect, however, were the pale pink hearts that covered either cheek upon her face. She was hauntingly beautiful and she was slowly approaching the trapped man.

Marco wish he could say he did something amazing. He wish he could tell some extraordinary tale of heroism and bravery in the face of danger, that he fended off the ghostly beauty, that he was safe in and sound in the church with nary a fearful thought in his mind.

He wish but he'd be lying....

The truth of the matter was as the unearthly specter cupped his face with her surprisingly soft, warm bony fingers, his ring glimmering in the darkness at him, he fainted. Just up and passed out.

The land of the dead was a rather strange place if Marco was going to be honest. For one, he was still alive in such a location and for something that people talked about with such anxiety and dread, it was a rather lovely location.

It was no different than the local pub within the city though it felt brighter, more joyful than any establishment Marco had been to (not that he would've gone to such places of ill repute of course.)

The varied dead from all walks of life and ages long passed laughed and sung. They drank (which was strange in itself) and they told stories of their former lives, not with a tone of regret and longing but with one of satisfaction and contentment.

Well they did before Marco ran a small Napoleonic character through with a sword and began waving the tiny impaled man as some sort of deterrent.

He was quickly caught up to speed by a rather charming, bowler hat wearing, one eyed, strange jawed skeleton named Bonejangles who sang a delightful yet slightly uneven tune in a style Marco had never heard of before. One that told the story of his undead bride.

Her name in life was Star Butterfly. She was peasant girl who did not have much but always gave what she could. She was set to marry Tom Lucitor, the adoptive son of a local merchant and while the two had not exactly gotten off to the warmest of starts, the two gradually fell in love and made plans for their wedding day. Until Tom's adoptive father Toffee had gotten wind of Star's less than noble background. Father and son argued and Tom had decided he was going to marry Star regardless of what his father wanted even if that meant leaving his fortune behind and running away with his bride.

Toffee did not take that well and his revenge was a cruel as it had been cold. He forged  a letter in Tom's name asking Star to meet him deep in the woods where they would elope and as Star waited, alone and unsuspecting, Toffee murdered her.

Her soul did not rest, however, and she waited for the day her greatest wish would come true: To become a bride.

She waited. She waited decades upon decades, through scorching sun and freezing night in her makeshift grave for someone to speak the vows she's always longed to hear.

Which was today it turns out when Marco foolishly recited them and placed his ring upon her finger.

How someone could mange to fit such a large and rather deep lore into a three minute song was pretty impressive and while he wasn't sure how one skeleton could use another as musical instrument, he had to admit that was a sight he would not soon forget.

So Marco's proposal was valid and he was now engaged to lovely corpse of a woman (a statement that really brought rather conflicting emotions to the young groom.) and while he wasn't completely sold, he had to admit Star had this energy that was intoxicating.

Despite her tragic back story, she was vibrant and cheerful. As she readjusted herself to the world of the living (or was it the living dead?) once more, she greeted old and new friends with an eager fever. She asked countless question about everyone was doing, what she had missed as she slept. Laughs, jokes, unnecessary battle cries and fighting stances. It was...nice. For someone so dead, Star breathed life.

And since things were going so well, naturally Marco had to mess it all up.  

It was a tiny lie. A tiny, harmless white lie that shouldn't have hurt anyone....except it had and the person he'd hurt was his new wife.

He hadn't actually expected Star to readily agree to his casual comment about visiting Jackie and letting her know about the new situation he found himself.  Of course she meant it as informing his friends and family about their future wedding while Marco saw it as a chance to find a way to escape the Land of the dead and figure out how to break his oath to the undead bride.

In retrospect, barging into Jackie's home, rambling in a panicked, stuttering mess was probably not the best idea especially given the current circumstances and once the weight of his choice began to dawning on him, his voice slowed, words ceased to flow out of his lips and the crippling shyness began to grip him tightly. What was once a fantastical story about how he married a tree branch and found himself being serenaded by a deep voice skeleton became a murmur about how it wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be before finally drifting into an awkward silence once he realized he was currently alone with his fiance.

She was as beautiful as ever but the reality began to creep up on the awestruck groom as he realized she was dressed in a wedding gown. A wedding gown she was supposed to use for their wedding.

It was traditional as most outfits but Jackie was absolutely angelic in it: A modest yet well kept wedding veil tied to her bun. The fabric that covered her neck and shoulders held simple ruffles, the sleeves were long enough to cover her bare arms but Marco could see her exposed fingers reaching out for him in concern. The bottom of the attire was bell shaped with layers upon layers of cloth cascading downwards like waves upon the ocean and like Marco, Jackie had decided to wear her most prized possession for their union:  a small belt hugged her waist composed of fine string and beads that held her beloved sea shell in the center of the dress.

“Marco?” she asked softly, approaching the shell shocked groom slowly “Marco, I don't understand....what are you talking about? You speak of the dead and corpses singing and marrying trees? And you seem pale....paler than usual.”

“Oh!” Marco snapped out of his stupor “No no no. I didn't marry a tree, I married a corpse that was buried in the ground whose fingers resembled tree branches. I-it's...ah....very, very easy thing to mistake...or....not believe....”

“I....I'm not sure I follow.”

Marco and Jackie jumped as, without warning, the door flew open and in walked Star, her pleasant, polite smile melting into shock and anger.

Looking back, Marco could only fathom how bad it had seemed at the time: Here he was, a groom Star had been waiting for all of her dead life for and he was talking to another woman dressed in a wedding attire.

And instead of trying to clear up the situation when Star revealed that she was in fact Marco's bride, he had dug his grave (so to speak). It turns out the dead are not fond of people reminding them they are no longer among the living or that there were other women that he was supposed to marry.

And for someone who hadn't been alive in such a long time, Star was rather strong. She effortlessly dragged him away from the home and as Marco called to Jackie one last time, a swarm of crows blinded his sight.

The following scolding was no doubt the worst moment in his life: Star was nearly in hysterics, alternating between anger and sorrow as it all came forth: his lies, his broken promises, his real intentions and if he truly cared for his corpse bride.

He said nothing. Courage had left him and in its void, shame filled its place. Guilt weighed heavily on his shoulders as he realized Star had feelings and he hurt her in ways far worse than her death had.

Star finally stopped and sent him away, too distraught to continue the conversation further and thus we are where we began: A human consumed by his guilt and his bride, pained by his actions.

Marco sat up in his bed. He hadn't meant for all this to turn out this way and hadn't the slightest idea how to fix it all. Star was far more fun and wonderful than he'd expected and his moment of deceit cost something he was unaware he valued.

The once lively, cheery tune of the untuned piano was now somber and melancholy and while Marco knew it was simply a song composed in a minor key, he couldn't help but feel sadness at each note held.  

Marco took a deep, calming breath. He needed to fix this. He wasn't acting out of malice but fear wasn't an excuse either.

He made his way out of the bedroom and peeked fearfully into the next room.

The Ball and Socket pub was empty save two occupants: Bonejangles, leaning lazily on his stool and Star, head laid against the aged wood of the piano, her skeletal fingers dancing across the ivory keys.

“Star?”

She made no indication she heard him as she continued to play the same note over and over again while she refused to meet his gaze.

“Look....” Marco began slowly “I....I know you're mad at me....”

“No kidding” She muttered sarcastically “I let my fiancee go invite people to our wedding and I find you with another woman.”

“Well...I mean...”

“SHE WAS WEARING A WEDDING DRESS MARCO!” Star glared “Why was she wearing a wedding dress?”

“Umm...” Marco awkwardly paused “Well....”

“Were you planning on marrying her? After you proposed to me?”

“...that's not quite....”

Star let out a defeated sigh “Look Marco, that hurt. A lot.”

“...I know....”

“I mean...” Star uneasily said “I get it. She's alive, she's cute, you obviously have history with her..”

“I do?” Marco rose a confused eyebrow “I mean I-I do! If you count staring creepily at her from afar...”

“What was that?”

“Nothing!”

Star sat up though she still refused to look his way.

Marco inched his way closer under the watchful eye of Bonejangles and took a seat neat to Star.

The air was thick with an awkward silence that Star refused to break and Marco was unsure how to. This situation had wildly span out of his control and for once, the safe kid had no idea how to get out of it. Jackie still made his heart skip but...Star was slowly doing the same.....

Marco sighed, halfheartedly pressing a random key over and over when an idea formed in his mind.

Carefully keeping one eye one Star and the other on the keys, Marco slowly began to play an upbeat duet his parents would often perform at home. His fingers effortlessly ran up and down the upper register of the instrument, the upbeat song filling the air before Marco paused, glancing towards Star in hopes she continue the call and response aspect of the piece.

She did not.

Marco bit his lip nervously, deciding to go on with his next part of the musical piece. He'd never played this particular song before and was rather surprised how naturally it came to him: E to F, F to D with an E sharp chord coming up next measure. Each note rang with a longing twang as he poured his apologizes, his guilt, his heart into this song.

Star did not respond.

Marco felt dejected. His best effort was not enough and no matter how hard he tried, it seems he could never heal the pain he caused Star.

His masterfully playing devolved into playing the same lonesome note over and over as Star once had. He saw why she'd done it: It was oddly therapeutic in a way. An endless repetitive action that numbed the mind and the regret.

Marco blinked as his single note was joined by another and another. Note after note filled the air as Star's skeletal fingers played.

Marco smiled softly as their individual parts forming into a beautiful symphony. When she rose, he followed. When he played a chord, she filled it. And each note brought the two closer into their own world and before they knew it, what had been a few minutes had stretched into hours as Star's hand escaped her wrist and began running across the keys wildly.

“Whoops” she nervously chuckled while Marco caught the escaping appendage “Must've been a bit too enthusiastic.”

“That's okay” Marco muttered, his warm hand in hers as he reattached it to the wrist “I like your enthusiasm. It's fun”

The two shared a small grin

“It's late” Star stood up “I don't need to sleep but you are still alive so off to bed.”

“I don't know how to feel about getting curfews from my wife” Marco snickered as he made his way past.

Star could feel her cold dead heart thump loudly in her ears, a pale blue blush warming her cheeks as she realized what he had said but as she whirled around to speak, Marco had vanished beyond the door frame and a moment later, darkness plunged his room.

She stood, dumbfounded as shame began to pour into her undead body.

“So” croaked Bonejangles “getting cold feet?”

Star scoffed “All of me is cold Bones.”

“That's not what I mean princess.”

“I know...” she frowned thoughtfully “I...I've waited so long...and he's just so...” The pale blush worsen “But I'm stealing him from the living and he's already got fiancee waiting for him.....Can I really just....?”

Bonejangles leapt off the stool “You can't marry the living darling and he ain't dead. That's gotta change.”

Star remained silent.

“Besides” Bonejangles shrugged casually “Most marriage vows break when death does them part.”

Star was unsure what he was getting at “Bones, I don't understand....”

“Just saying” he waved her away “Who says he can't remarry when he gets down here?”

Star pursed her lips as the skeleton's song filled the air, her longing and guilt pulling at her resolve.