#WHICH IS LIKE EXPECTED I KNEW THIS WOULD HAPPEN KIDS GROW UP BUT I HATE T

[cowardlycowboys]

might cry because tomorrow is the last sprinkler day and school starts next week and my Kingston goes upstairs and I hate my job i hate my job

[foxy-eva]

Rite of Passage

Summary: Spencer is home alone with his daughter when she gets her period for the first time

Request: Spencer and Reader are married. They have a teenage daughter who gets her period for the first time (initially requested to @imagining-in-the-margins)

Pairing: Technically Spencer Reid x Fem!Reader but it’s mostly about Spencer and his daughter!

Category: Comfort, Fluff

Content Warnings: mentions blood, menstruation, period hygiene, cramps, female anatomy and biology, crying, food

Author's Note: I wrote this for @/imagining-in-the-margins Kid Fic Writing Challenge! 

Masterlist

Sunday mornings always brought a certain calmness with them. Spencer was still half asleep when you kissed him goodbye, leaving for a little day trip with your friends when the sun was barely up. 

Spencer mumbled something that should have sounded like I love you before he closed his eyes once more, looking forward to some father-daughter quality time with your wonderful kid Marie. 

That was until he was awoken by shrill screams coming from her room. 

You were long gone when Spencer jumped out of bed, all of his years working with the FBI having him expect the worst. He rushed into his daughter’s room, finding her sitting in her bed, a look of horror spread across her face. 

“Are you okay!?” Spencer almost yelled when he reached her bedside. 

His daughter slowly shook her head while pulling back the blanket, revealing small blood stains on her pajama pants and the sheets. It only took Spencer a split second to realize what was happening. His facial features softened instantly. 

He thought he still had a few more months, maybe even another year, until this would happen. He had also hoped that you would be home for this occasion, certainly handling this a lot better than he ever could. 

“Oh sweetie,” he cooed while sitting down on the edge of her bed. “I think you got your period.”

Instead of saying anything, Marie just buried her face in her hands and started wailing. Spencer wasn’t sure if she was still in shock or if the general discomfort made her cry. 

“It’s okay. It just means you’re becoming a woman.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, he wished he could have taken them back. He hated the thought that his little girl was actually growing up more than anything. And it certainly didn't help in this moment. 

Without thinking about it, he did what he was most comfortable with and started rambling, “We talked about this, do you remember? It means that your uterine lining is shedding which results in the discharge of blood through your–”

“Dad!” She cried. “Please stop talking about my… you know! It’s weird!”

“I’m sorry, I’ll stop.” 

His little girl wiped away some tears from her cheeks before muttering, “Where’s mom? I wanna talk to her.”

Spencer sighed. He would have liked nothing more than to be able to let you take over right then. “She already left for her day trip. She won’t be home until six.” 

This explanation only led to more crying. Spencer reached out his hand to offer comfort with a gentle touch on her arm but Marie shied away from him.

“I feel gross,” she whined. 

“Why don’t you hop in the shower to get clean and then change into fresh clothes?” 

It seemed like he finally said something helpful. Her sobs simmered down as she got up from her bed to walk over to the bathroom, locking the door behind her. Spencer quickly changed the sheets and put out some clean clothes for his daughter before disappearing in his bedroom.

He let out a loud breath as he reached for his phone to call you. Before you could say anything, he blurted out, “She got her period and won’t stop crying and I don’t know what to do!”

“Oh my poor girl! Is she with you right now?” You wanted to know. 

“She’s in the shower. Can you please come home?” 

You knew that he wasn’t being serious. A quiet laugh escaped our mouth before you said, “Don't be so dramatic, Spencer. I’m sure you're very capable of handling this.”

“I told her that her uterine lining was shedding. It was not helpful,” he sighed. 

“Yeah, maybe hold off on the biology lesson for now. You know where my pads are, right?”

“Oh yeah, right. She's gonna need them.” Spencer paused for a second. “Oh god, what if she wants to use a tampon? I can’t explain that to her. That conversation will make the both of us cry.” 

“Give her a pad for now, those are self-explanatory. I can talk to her about tampons later if she wants.”

“Okay, okay, yeah. She just turned off the shower, I gotta go!” 

“Good luck! And stop panicking!” 

That was easier said than done. Spencer almost jumped when he heard Marie knocking on the bedroom door. 

“You can come in!” 

His daughter, tightly wrapped in a bathrobe, stepped into the room. She had stopped crying but still seemed upset. Spencer’s heart always broke a little when he saw his little girl in discomfort.

“I’m still uhm…bleeding,” she whispered. 

“Yes, that's gonna last a couple of days,” Spencer replied with a soft voice. He disappeared in the master bathroom for a second to get a pack of pads. “Here. Do you know how to use them?”

“I’m not an idiot, dad,” she snubbed.

The tone of her voice gave away how irritated she was. Usually Spencer would remind her to be more respectful but decided to let it slide this time. 

“I know, Mimi. I just wanted to make sure,” he said instead. 

The use of this nickname for his daughter was yet another reminder of a time that seemed so long gone right then. Marie had trouble pronouncing her own name as a toddler so she’d say Mimi instead. Spencer loved it so much that he stuck with it ever since. 

Without saying another word, she disappeared in her room. Spencer rubbed his temples for a moment before getting ready for the day himself. He decided to give his daughter some space and prepare breakfast in the meantime. 

He was focussed on not burning the chocolate chip pancakes he was making when Marie stepped into the kitchen. 

“I’m sorry I snapped at you,” she mumbled. 

Spencer turned his head to smile at his daughter. “It's okay, sweetie. I know you aren’t feeling well.”

She placed her hands on her lower stomach and muttered, “It hurts.”

“Here,” Spencer said as he reached for the hot water bottle he had already prepared. “Heat has a proven effect on relieving period cramps.”

“Thank you.” 

A timid smile appeared on her face when she realized her father was preparing her favorite breakfast. She stepped closer to catch a glimpse of the pan while chirping, “Chocolate chip pancakes?” 

“You know I’d do anything to make you feel better, Mimi,” Spencer spoke in a soft voice while offering his daughter a hug. 

This time she accepted, tightly wrapping her arms around him. Spencer was relieved that he didn’t mess up yet another thing. Marie was very bright and realized something Spencer had thought about earlier, too. 

“Wait,” she said as she stepped back. “You always make mom her favorite meal when she’s in a bad mood.”

“You have a lot in common with your mother, “ he explained. “I figured I should try what works for her.” 

“Now you’ll have to deal with two cranky girls in the house,” Marie laughed while taking out two plates. 

“I really don't mind,” he sincerely replied. “I can’t imagine what it’s like to have all kinds of uncomfortable side effects during your period. Taking care of your mom – and now you – is the least I could do.”

After a moment of silence she said, “Earlier you said that I’m becoming a woman now. I thought about that when I was in the shower… What if I don't wanna grow up yet?” 

“I don’t know if that helps, but… You’ll always be my little girl,” Spencer responded while filling both plates with pancakes. 

“So you’ll still watch Disney movies with me?” 

A wide smile spread over Spencer’s face as he took the plates to walk over to the couch. “I was hoping you'd ask!”

Please like, reblog and leave a comment! I need your lovely words to stay motivated to write more stories.

Taglist: @nomajdetective @reidsbookclub @gspenc @samuel-de-champagne-problems @matthew-gray-gubler-lover @malindacath @reidselle @alexxavicry @frickin-bats @spencersprettyslut @sebs-oxygen @happymangospot @cynbx @hotchandspencearedilfs @emiliaserpe @thenerdthatwrites @velvetthunder93 @saturnstringz @missabsey @guacam011y @hugyourlungs @reiderwriter @enamoradax @hales-17 @cham9ions @loaksulluyswife @ecneremili @xserenax-13 @grumpyy-bearr @luredwithpretzels @castiels-majestic-wings @super-nerd22 @pleasantwitchgarden @yeonalie @r-3dlips @evvy96 @torigorie @meyaareads @luvdella @luvley2k @bunnylovesani

[threepandas]

Bad End: Preserve Us

You know how in conservation biology you sometimes try to introduce a pair to be mated and one will just... just fuckin' merc' the other? Just absolutely obliterate them in a hissing, growling, nightmare ball of fury? Before anyone can stop them? Territorial and (to put it lightly) "uninterested", dispite your desperate desire to save their species from extinction, and need for them to get frisky?

I know.

Holy SHIT do I know.

There's a lot of reasons. Ways you can (hopefully) get around it. But first? Is finding out WHY it happened. Was it just the one? The environment? Were they sick? Or... as is the case sometimes, did they decide their Handler was their mate? Some species only mate once. Are loyal for life. You gotta work around that.

Which is all well and fine and good.

When we're talking about ANIMALS.

Non-sentient, non-sapient animals! Not ALIEN SPECIES! What the ABSOLUTE FRESH HELL did they expect from me!? Compliance?! This was UNETHICAL! Monstrous! I had been trying to slip my gaurds long enough to radio for help SINCE I GOT HERE.

I hope the fuckers ROTTED in whatever their Gods considered a Hell.

"Conservation facility" my ENTIRE ASS. You can't run CONSERVATION EFFORTS like this on SENTIENTS. Eugenics loving, atrocity fetishizing, immoral BASTARDS!!! And they KNEW it too. They HAD too! Or they wouldn't be HIDING it! Fucking KIDNAPPING scientists! Biologists! Doctors!

I was on my ways to study Lekku monkeys!

God...

I'm? I'm so tired of being pissed.

Furious and outraged and SCARED. Horrified and sick. There are PEOPLE here. Kids! And I don't... oh god, I don't... H-How LONG has this been going ON? Why did no one NOTICE?

Every day I feel my heart break. The desire to scream and scream and never STOP, grow inside me. I have to get out. I have to get us ALL out. Get these people FREE. Do SOMETHING. But I am forced to "conserve" the species assigned to me. The group assigned to me.

It's killing my love for the field. Making a mockery of everything I worked for.

I don't... I don't think my hands will ever be clean again.

But I have to help. Do everything I can. Make hell a little kinder, if nothing else. At least while I figure out a way OUT. My group deserves better. The groups I do not work with, deserve better.

I disguise games as "testing". Pages and pages of meaningless numbers ans scores. INSIST that enrichment is the key to success. Diet is EVERYTHING. Oh, and habitat? Well unless we can mimic their habitat there's no WAY they'll "breed".

No, no, using machines would stress them out too much.

It's like you DONT want babies!

Who's the expert here? That's RIGHT! Dr. Cho, but FAILING her and like five other people? Me. And I know for a FACT they are pulling the same scam. We ALL fucking hate you. Dr. Cho has KIDS, you FUCKS. Hasn't seen her son in YEARS thanks to you bastards. He was engaged. She's probably missed his WEDDING thanks to you!

Getting distracted, spiraling again, gotta stop DOING that.

It wont help anyone.

But God, if my brain doesn't slowly feel like it's shorting out the longer I'm here. Stress is called the silent killer for a reason. Or what that something else? Fuck. I can't even look it up! Bastards cut us off from the galactic web. Full information blackout. Because of COURSE they did... can't risk us rightfully calling for help.

Getting the Feds involved to shut this hell pit of a black site DOWN. Or a "whatever it truely is" site. Because it sure as SHIT has nothing to do with conservational biology. Except maybe the abuse of it.

But that doesn't help me right now.

Focus, damn it!

The Yanderens. Old, absurdly rare, nearly extinct, with a home planet they'd reduced to uninhabitable wastelands millennia ago due too... something. No one knew what. There had definitely been fighting. It WAS documented they were excellent fighters. Ruthless ones at that. But it was ALSO documented they strongly pack bonded.

There had been a lot of strongly worded warnings on what few documation my captures were able to find, translate, then shove at me. But honestly? They said the same thing about humans. Ooooh big scary persistent hunters~ oh nooooo! Watch out for the omnivores with a history of war! Sins of the father and we are defined by our diets! Class systems! Let's all JUDGE each ooooootheeeeer~!

Yeah, no. Not buying it.

Especially when the "warnings" were so damn vague and poorly documented. All "the HORRORS!" and "we barely SURVIVED!". Cause honestly? The Yanderens I was watching over? Easily the most mild and temperate individuals I had ever met. No tantrums from the kids, no big emotional meltdowns, just curiosity and at WORST? Mild frustration.

It made everything ten thousand times worse for me, that these poor people were in this hellish place. They were calm. Curious. Meant for greater, BETTER things! They should be out, playing and learning. Exploring and enjoying peaceful strolls in some art gallery or zen garden somewhere! Not... not this sterile fucking LAB.

But then M-17 loses his SHIT.

And now I'm kinda panicking. Because F-6 is not just dead, God rest her soul (she didn't deserve this. Oh god. She was so SWEET.), but M-17 might just be too, soon. If I can't find out what HAPPENED. Because if he's "feral" or "diseased" or whatever other horrifying terminology they end up using? They DO something about it.

And I can't actually stop them.

I... I don't know if it was a trauma response. Or I did something wrong. I could PROBABLY pass it off as my needing more studies into their observed "mating habits"? That... that I somehow... turned it... uuuuh... dominance battle? Shit. Where are my notes?!

F-6 is DEAD and its all my fault.

She was such a cuddle fiend too. Always excited to hear about my studies, from before. My life. Wanted to join me after we got out of here. I never should have let her volunteer. Granted, she wouldn't have taken no for an answer. Wanted to spend the pregnancy plotting our escape. Asked me to help raise the kid once we got out. Had a whole grand plan. But I...And I...

God...

I should have said NO. Insisted. It was just so hard, when F-6 had made it all sound like it would be okay. Like she had a plan and all I need to do was trust her. Believe in her. Then we could be free.

I had hoped M-17 would work best. He was always the most agreeable and quick on the uptake. I figured... well... ha ha. God, I'm such an IDIOT. I should have CHECKED. Who KNOWS what happened before I arrived? What triggered I just accidentally rammed my foot into? FUCK! I sweep everything from me desk onto the ground. Don't give I shit that I'll have to clean it up later,

I had figured M-17 would be COOL with it.

This place is getting to me, isn't it?

Why the FUCK would anyone be COOL with getting jumped? Bred like an animal? Shoved in some random ass room, with a vaguely familiar stranger, and told "now fuck. We want a literal litter from you two"? All while some biologist watchs and makes god damned NOTES!?

Of course he fought back. OF COURSE he didn't stop!

The only one there he could trust was himself.

I...I'm becoming a monster... aren't I?

Oh god.

At least we're in the satellite facility. The gaurds are definitely going to rat me out, but the news will take time to filter back. And... and the Yanderens being so "dangerous" might work in my favor. I... I can spin this. I HAVE to spin this. I can't let TWO people die for my fuck up.

I promised myself I would get as many people out as I could. I refuse to back out now. Even if that means crying, puking, then going out there to lie my ASS off. This was TOTALLY NORMAL. In fact, expected! Yep! It means that's we've determined that M-17 is the alpha Yanderen! A thing that is both REAL and possible to BE!

I rinse my mouth, stomach empty. Crying has exhausted me. But I can't give up. Too many lives count on me now. I... I wish so badly I was just a nobody again. Just some random biology student, trying to make a name for herself. Being "important" is a CURSE.

I try not to chug my water as I half stumble out of the glorified shoebox that is my bathroom into the much larger and Fancier CLOSET that is my room. Truely, no expense spared, for the captives they ripped away from their lives. So glad I am here willingly and of my own volition.

I gather myself. Finally ready to go and try to untangle the mess I have made of everything. When a deep booming alarm rattles my bones. The lights flickering to red. Blast doors slide down, SLAM shut over the transparent recessed bit of wall that counts as my window, the door to the rest of the facility.

Trapping me inside my small room.

Almost immediately after, an EXPLOSION rocks the world hard enough to knock me from my feet. Only the bed's limited padding keeping me from a nasty concussion. The edge of it still ramming painfully into my shoulder. Another explosion. Then another. I sit for a long, terrible, second stunned.

The moment passes.

I scramble on my hands and knees for the in facility communication device that I had knocked from my desk in anger, grief. Not daring to stand lest I be thrown down again. I manage to find it as the world shakes again for the fifth time. Followed by what sounds like gun fire out in the halls.

I fling myself back towards my shitty little bunk. Drag every bit of padding and protection I can, down and under it with me. If the roof goes? I want shock absorption. If shots get through the door? I want something to slow those blasts down. Anything. ANYTHING! To increase my fucked chances of surviving.

I burrito up and wriggle back as deep as I can. The world muffled but ending just outside my crawlspace. Then I desperately try to get one of the others on the line. I got nothing but chaos. Running. Running. Hiding. And Dead.

Dead. Dying.

Remember me.

And GONE.

Some of them fighting with their groups too freedom. Some being targeted right along side their captors. Others savaged by the ACTUAL animals they had been working with, the one's Galacticly deemed too dangerous for effort like this. Someone or something had set EVERYONE free. A simultaneous attack on all fronts that our captors could not put down or escape.

The Yanderens were out there.

Oh god. Please let them be okay. They wer-

My thoughts ground to a halt as M-32 LAUNCHED his tiny body onto the screen of one of the security feeds I was desperately looking through. F-6 had figured out how to get us a backdoor to them a long time ago. M-32 was just a kid. A small, soft, cuddly little thing that loved to lean against me and crawl into my lap. All cherubic cheeks and cute little curls. Shy!

Yet I watched... in mounting horror... as like a lion on some unfortunate animal, he landed on a gaurds back. Small arms going around his body in a mockery of a hug. Head tilting so he could BITE at the back of the man's neck, small hands clawing and ripping at weak points in his armor, as he screamed. Thrashed. Tried desperately to get M-32 OFF of him.

There was so much blood.

My hands were shaking. So much, I accidentally hit the next screen button. Jerked my thumb back. But... but oh god. There was F-26. Using the butt of a rifle to slam down against the head of a scientist. Again and again and again. Long after the begging and thrashing stopped. I flipped again. M-4? No... please not M-4. Not the soft spoken and wise...

I watched as he grinned, a cold thing, and shot out another joint. His foot on the chest of the head scientist who had moved him to a different group. In the background, his supervisor lay dead. They had not died quickly. The head scientist was begging. A mess of tears and pain. M-4 shot another joint, pressing his foot down harder.

I wanted to be sick.

I flipped again. And again. And AGAIN.

H...Had I known them at ALL? Like demons wearing the faces of those I'd known. People I'd trusted. Not a SINGLE ONE was... oh... oh god. F-6. Had she been too? Would I have ever known? Was THIS what all those warnings meant? I couldn't think. Couldn't breath. Had... Had never had a panic attack but... BUT-!

I wheezed.

Shook.

"Oh, Clever giiiirl~" A familiar voice sang, before a blood splattered face flickered into being on the screen in my hands. "Where aaaare yoooou~?"

M-17. He'd somehow managed to take over the security cameras. That or the communication feed. His eyes were bright. A grin on his face like I'd never seen from him. ALIVE in a way I'd never seen him. The excitement transformed his face. No longer softly doll like, but something DANGEROUS. Unhinged. His eyes dilated and deadly teeth on display.

"Come out, come out wherever you aaaare~. I have so much to TELL you! We have so much to DO! I'm going to make you MINE sweetheart! No one else can have you. So come out. I won't hurt you much, I promise! Just gotta make you mine then we can leave okay~?"

Furious snarls echoed through the halls. Male and female alike. Old and young. I... I recognized each of those voices. What was HAPPENING?

"Aaaah? Did you TRASH really think you DESERVED her? Ha! Please." M-17 grin was cruel. Mocking. "You don't have a chance in hell of taking what's MINE."

His eyes seems to shift away from unseen enemies and back, somehow, to me. Warming to something euphoric. Resting his head on his hand as if to consider me. His fingers spread, stroking his own face, as if the desire to TOUCH was simply too great. As if what he was imagining was bleeding over into the real world.

"Oh clever girl~ my clever, clever girl~♡ I can't wait til it's just you and ME. Start think of where you want to go first, okay? We're going to get married. Have that child you wanted me for. All the things you ever dreamed~♡ I'm going to have you all to myself. No more annoying others. Ah~ can't wait to find you soon!"

"But first?"

"May the best of us Win."

[underthecrosshold]

Chisaki was wasted

With the MHA manga ending and getting an end to Chisaki’s story I have just a couple of things to say.  Most importantly wtf was that. Fortunately in every other piece of media I chose to consume my favorite character is usually one of the main ones or at the very least they are a fan favorite, originally when I started to watch MHA I fell in love with Bakugou but then everything changed when I saw season four and laid my eyes on Mr. Evil Bird Man. I was not expecting Horikoshi to dive into characters who really despised quirks and their existence. It was a fresh perspective on the series and as we got to learn more about  Chisaki I started to understand him more and more. I know fans of the show sometimes make jokes about being reincarnated into the show and being born with a hammer for a head. At first it would be fun to go into your favorite series, but the implications of that universes rules can seriously mess you up. For example Dabi’s flames burn him. Quirks are not always a blessing they can be a curse, a sickness. 

I believe Chisaki was the first character to bring this up maybe besides characters like Skinner showing that he was bullied for his. Quirks are terrifying when you think about their potential effects, Eri accidentally killed her parents when she got hers and Shigaraki killed his when he manifested an altered version of overhaul. This brings up my next point. Why did nobody dwell on the fact that decay is the first half of overhaul?? Dose this not imply that Chisaki was experimented on as a kid as well? Is that why he is fine doing it to Eri since he clearly shows no remorse to her for his actions, only Pops? Is there some sort of trauma with him and that that he never addressed so he believes that what hypothetically happened to him was okay? Is that why he doesn’t care that he did the same pain onto Eri? This is where my issue lies. Chisaki was used as nothing more than a plot point to push the story further. We barley know anything about him. Why is he the way he is? There are so many unanswered questions. 

Chisaki was used to introduce Nighteye, the big three and Eri’s quirk so there was a way to defeat All For One. He doesn’t get expanded on past the bare minimum which I think is insane for a show that has as many flashbacks that it has. The time line we have is that he was in one of All For Ones orphanages, he was somehow on the streets, Pops picked him up, he got into fights growing up defending his fathers honor and he was never really stopped from continuing to do so, then he’s a grown adult and we see his crazy plan being told to his father and he freaks out to then Kai needing to please and repay him so bad he did with anyway. Did Pops not give him enough love and reassurance growing up? Why did he feel the need to go out of his way to help his family. We know the Yakuza was weaker, were they being mistreated? If so why were they allowed to exist if they were just going to be mistreated?

Next thing I want to talk about is Pops and Kai’s reunion, I’m so upset that Pops was somehow woken up via technology. They should have just left him in the coma if Chisaki wasn’t going to get his quirk back. Now I like how Chisaki didn’t get his quirk back but it would have been so easy for him to with the way other characters quirks evolved, like Toga being able to use other people’s quirks of the blood she took, why couldn’t Overhaul turn into creating matter or having skin touch not just hands touch? How hard was it for Pops to be one of the civilians Shigaraki killed and Kai to go into such a panic that his quirk evolves and he helps the heros or goes after Shigaraki himself??? Which brings me to my next hot take. The only reason people hate Overhaul is because we got to meet his victim personally. Shigaraki, Dabi, Toga, all killed and hurt others but their crimes get overlooked because we never knew the names, faces, or anything really about the people who’s lives were taken. I’m not excusing Overhauls behavior whatsoever because the whole Eri thing was insane. I don’t understand why he couldn’t have just taken her hair, or sweat or something. Why blood??? If he needed her DNA it’s literally all over her, you really needed her blood? Okay crazy. ANOTHER THING THATS CRAZY IS POPS COMMENT. What do you mean Hari should have done better? This guy seems to love putting his problems onto other people, Kai is Hari’s problem, Eri was Kai’s problem. Dude you are his Dad maybe if YOU parented him he wouldn’t have turned out like this. Hari was his somewhat equal you had power not him.

Another thing people get mad about is the killing of Magne, she attacked first, just saying.

Lastly him losing his arms was beautiful irony. Yakuza getting fingers cut off for messing up in missions, him cutting off Compresses arm, him wanting to destroy Quirks. Shigaraki was a twisted genius when cutting off Overhauls arms. I’m not mad about him getting the consequences of his actions. I’m just upset he was never expanded on and the fandom collectively hating his surface level character when he had and has so much potential. 

I might type more later I just wanted to get this off of my chest.

[meow-town]

Dee x Fem! Very Girly! Reader

Requested by @grape-flavored-lipgloss !! Took me a while because I wanted to mass-post a bunch of requests, but I really hope you enjoy this! (Pretty long because I adore this idea and went a little bit off of the rails)

Summary : Dee with very girly s/o who wears a lot of pink. The Shvagenbagens don’t necessarily like her at first but she gets them to warm up to her.

-You definitely weren’t the person he expected to fall for. He expected to start liking someone with his style, his taste in music, similar interests. Someone like Lif, to be honest.

-Obviously, you weren’t the person he’d want to date the least. Diana easily takes that spot.

-He recognized your sweetness, and how kind you were. You knew how to dress, and you obvious took care of yourself.

-The science fair was coming up, and teams were assigned for projects. His teacher forgot to sort him into a team, and when they found out, they were both pissed.

-The teacher, cause Dee hadn’t told him anything. And Dee, because now he couldn’t work alone like he wanted to. (Not me basing this off of my dee x reader story)

-Anyways, he got paired up with you and some other kid who didn’t do jack shit to contribute to the project.

-You we’re constantly nice and kind, and never got very aggressive with the other student, despite his laziness. You would give great ideas, constantly be giving words of encouragement to Dee when going through experiments, offer to hold equipment, etc, etc…

-You were a team, which means you all shared a group chat, which means he had your number. (Thankfully he already had it before he started crushing, otherwise he never would’ve worked up the courage to ask you for it).

-Because Dee’s petty as hell, he put credits in the science project so the teacher would know that you and him were the only ones who did work. He deleted the group chat, as well.

-After that, you spent the rest of the science fair with each other. People would crowd around your project stand, amazed. Because, lets be real, it’s Dee. He would explain how it worked, and you shared the thought process behind it.  -After that, he invited you to a drink at the vending machines, his treat. What a gentleman.

-You two had a conversation over fizzy sodas (or something else, if you don’t like those) and mostly complained about peers or teachers you hated. It brought you together, to say the least.

-He began to text you more, talk to you more and even choose to spend time with you over Lif! Lif!

-mf didn’t even notice he was crushing on you. He was just looking at you during lunch and it clicked.

-Dee’s internal monologue:

‘Are those new earrings? They look great. I should buy some jewelry for her, I know she likes that one brand. They match perfectly with her makeup. … She looks pretty in that makeup. …Prettier than… anyone else.  …

I don’t like her, thought. That’d be weird. She’s just my friend…. A very good friend….A very sweet friend who I can rely on… A very kind friend who just so happens to be the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen, sweet little thing. I don’t like  her though, soft as her hair might look and as badly I might want to run my hands through it. Caring as she may be. I don’t like (f/n).

….

HOLY FUCK I LIKE (F/N)’

-The man was too stunned to speak 😦

-When I tell you he turned his head away SO FAST

-His face and neck were as red as a fire truck, and he was starting to sweat bullets.

-He choked on his food.

“Dee? Are you ok?”

-Can’t even face you. His coughing fit was interrupted by small, broken syllables.

“YE *COUGH* YEAH, IM *COUGH* FINE. DONT *COUGH,COUGH* WORRY”

-He went a whole other level of flustered when you started to pat his back. Heart beating at a thousand miles per hour. Palms growing sweatier.

-He couldn’t look at you for a straight WEEK. He avoided you everywhere he went, otherwise the whole blushy routine would start all over again. A part of him wanted to be by your side at all times though, so it was hard for him.

-When he started to hang out with you again, he had to mentally prepare himself for it. Just imagine Dee shouting to himself while he did his makeup every morning.

“Okay, Dee! You will go out there and you will be charming! And handsome! And she will fall for you!”

 -Heavy doesn’t have the heart to tell him that he can hear him from his room.

-Heavy already knew you from around school, and wasn’t judgmental of your style or friendship with Dee whatsoever! He though you looked very pretty, too!

-And back onto that, he gave away his brother.

-You were chatting, waiting for Dee to leave his final period. And out of the blue, Heavy went :

“Yeah, he was planning how to ask you out for months now! Never gets it right either.”

“He what?”

“Wait, he hasn’t told you yet?”

“Noooooo..?”

…

-Of course, you kind of figured and told him you also liked him. He’s really obvious. But the second Dee heard his brother had told you he liked you, he was seconds away from choking Heavy the way he did in the 2nd episode.

-He was really grateful once you reciprocated though.

-He asked for a kiss so shyly, too.

-His hands trembled as they cupped your cheeks 💓💥

-Meeting the folks was… interesting -Glam was very polite, he just didn’t expect a person so different from his son would win over his heart. -And I love Victoria, but she was straight up judgemental 😭

-She’s had a bad experience with girly girls, so she’s initially quite defensive. Thankfully, once you’re gone, the kids confront her about it.

“Ma, what is your problem with (f/n)?”

“Yeah! You keep giving her the stink-eye! She’s nice!”

-She gets super nervous and over sensitive. Glam knows about her past problems with girly girls and talks her through it. She’s on much better terms the next time you meet :)

-It gets awkward with the parents, but once you’ve proven to them you won’t hurt their son and that you’re very sweet, they treat you as a child of their own.

-Ches just full-on didn’t believe you were dating. You passed by his shop with Dee and Heavy and he cackled when Heavy told him you were dating. Once things got cleared up, he was very supportive although surprised.”

“Wow, you actually got a girlfriend. And here I thought you were going to be one of those guys who stays a virgin until 40…”

“UNCLE CHES-”

-Lif through your dynamic was super cute and she drew you two together! (Also she’s very glad Dee likes you because she was scared of rejecting the guy)

[winchesterszvonecek]

Big Hug Mug - [ Brian ‘Otis’ Zvonecek ]

Summary: You accidentally break Otis’s favourite mug and his reaction was not at all what you expected it to be

Word Count: 1700

Warnings: female!reader, fluff

Masterlist | Otis Masterlist

There was an unspoken rule within the walls of firehouse fifty-one. A rule that nobody dared break should they face the unbearable consequences, that were basically just Otis sulking for the remainder of shift, no matter what may have happened regardless.

Seriously, he could have won the lottery and yet he’d still sulk if anyone broke the rule.

You knew this rule. Hell, you helped implement this rule into society and even went as far as to draw up a little notice to stick next to the coffee machine and yet today… Today you broke that rule.

You used Otis’s mug.

And to make matters worse, you didn’t just break the rule, but you broke the mug as well. You broke the big hug mug and the second it hit the ground, you knew you were done for.

To be fair, technically Capp broke the mug by throwing a football around inside and knocking it out of your hands, but still. You’d used the mug and if you hadn’t? Well, let’s just say it would have been in one piece still sitting on the counter rather than in multiple pieces and scattered all over the floor along with your coffee.

“Oh no. Oh no, no, no.” You mumbled to yourself, practically falling to your knees in the middle of the common room, where the camaraderie within had died down severely after the smashing of the mug. “Otis is going to kill me.”

“We’ll give you a good funeral.” Mouch muttered, earning a few stifled chuckles from the others and a stern glare from you.

“Shut it, Mouch.” You gritted, your jaw tensing as your eyes dropped back down to the mess on the floor. You picked up a piece of pale orange mug, running your thumb lightly over the broken words that once spelled out ‘big hug mug’.

You knew how much Otis liked this mug. How much he loved it. He was always going on and on about how it was the perfect shape. The perfect size. How it seemed to keep his coffee warmer for longer and how the exterior didn’t get too hot which meant he could hold it without burning his hands.

Even the shape of the handle was something he often talked about, how his fingers fit perfectly around it without any discomfort as most of the mugs in the firehouse had small handles, making for awkward holding and a lot of near misses.

Otis really treasured this mug and now it was broken.

You had broken it and even though it may sound silly to some people, you were really afraid that he wouldn’t be able to forgive you for doing so. Which would be even worse now given the fact that you were dating.

After a hellishly long year of pining for one another you were finally dating. You were finally happy, together, and maybe even a little in love too. And now all that could end up crumbling beneath you because you broke the one rule you swore you’d never break.

“Where is Otis right now?” You glanced up, your eyes wide as you shifted them around the room, only getting shrugs in response which had you grumbling in annoyance. “Don’t all jump in to help me at once.”

“I think he’s in the bunk room.” Cruz replied, a touch of sympathy slipping through his lips as even as Otis’s best friend, he never dared use that mug.

“Okay, maybe this won’t be so bad then. Maybe I can fix it before he notices… Right?” You chewed at your lip, which was actually wobbling a little as you began to grow nervous.

“I hate to say it, kid.” Herrmann said softly, crouching down in front of you and picking up a small piece of the mug, the ceramic crumbling between his fingers. “But I think the mug is done for.”

“You’re right.” You whined quietly, hiding your face in your hands and taking a few deep breaths as you actually felt rather sick over the whole ordeal. To the point where your hands physically shook and your stomach tightened to where you thought your torso was about to snap in half. “Oh, I have to tell him, don't I?”

“Or…” Mouch dragged out, gaining your attention. “You hide the evidence and blame it on third shift.”

“Interesting.” You pondered, chewing at the skin of your lip as that wasn’t a half bad idea. But you knew it was wrong. Otis was your boyfriend and he deserved to know the truth. You shook your head, beginning to gather up all the broken pieces. “No. No, I can’t do that. I can’t lie to him. I’ll just tell him the truth. Capp broke it.”

“Hey!”

“Well if you hadn’t been throwing that football around like a child, it wouldn’t have broken now, would it?” You pointed out, raising your eyebrow as you got to your feet.

A rather excellent point if you did say so yourself.

“You don’t know that.” Capp replied, shaking his head. “You shouldn’t have been using it. And you shouldn’t have gotten in my way.”

“You shouldn’t have been throwing a ball around inside.”

“Alright, that’s enough.” Herrmann said in a way far too similar to the tone he used with his kids. “All this yammering ain’t gonna fix that mug. Now you got two choices here…” He turned to you, innocence clouding your face that had been firing looks towards Capp. “You do what Mouch said and blame somebody else…”

“A wise choice.”

“…Or you tell Otis the truth.” Herrmann finished, ignoring Mouch’s comment. “It’s your call.”

As tempting as the first choice was, you knew you couldn’t lie to him and so you picked the right one. The one that wouldn’t eat away at you inside as you never were good at lying, or keeping them rather. You knew it would come blurting out of your mouth at some stage and you’d rather it be now than later as that way, if Otis hated you for it, it might not hurt as bad.

You sucked in a breath, holding it until your legs had carried you all the way down the corridor and once you reached the bunk room doors, it burst out of you all trembling, making you want to turn tail and run as far away as you could. But you didn’t. It was only a mug. It was a piece of coloured ceramic and it really wasn’t something you should be worried about.

But you were. You were so worried and yet to your surprise, you still managed to push open the bunk room door and walk all the way over to Otis without passing out completely or throwing up on the floor.

“Hey baby.” Otis said with a smile the second he glanced up from his book. Only, when he saw the look on your face that smile dropped quicker than his mug had only minutes ago. “Hey, are you okay? What’s wrong?”

“I have to tell you something.” You mumbled, biting at the skin around your nails as you took a rather slow seat on the end of his bunk, the soft creak of it making you jump a little. “I did something…”

“You did something?” Otis repeated, a nervous chuckle leaving his lips as he shuffled closer to you, swinging his legs over the edge of the bunk to mirror your position. He couldn't help but feel sick. Couldn’t help his mind from racing with the idea that you were about to tell him you’d cheated on him.

“Mhm.” You nodded, dropping your hand from around your mouth and allowing it to settle on your lap, which your gaze fell to. “I broke your mug.”

“Wait, what?” Otis asked, his eyes squinting a little as you finally brought your focus up to his confusion riddled face.

“I broke your mug.” You said louder and more clearly, your brow furrowing when all Otis did was laugh softly to himself in a way that showcased those cute dimples of his. “You’re laughing… Why are you laughing? Didn’t you hear me?”

“I heard you.” Otis nodded, shaking his head as another laugh escaped his lips. “You just looked so nervous I thought you were about to tell me you cheated on me or something.”

“What? I would never cheat on you.” You defended, unsure where you should feel offended or not. “I was just… Scared because I know how much you love that mug, that’s all. And I didn’t want you to be mad at me.”

“Oh, baby, I’m not mad at you.” Otis said softly, cupping your face with both hands and bringing it to look up at him. “I could never be mad at you.”

“But I broke your favourite mug.” You whispered, the small pout on your face almost breaking Otis’s heart had it not been so downright cute.

“I know. And yeah, I’m a little annoyed but I’m sure it was an accident.” He replied, running his thumb lightly over your cheek in a way that had all your silly worries fall from within you. “It was just a mug and I may have loved it, but baby, I love you more.”

“You love me?” Your eyes widened, your face lifting beneath Otis’s touch as that was the first time those words had ever passed either of your lips.

“I do.” Otis nodded, his hand dropping from your cheek to gently hold the side of your neck, where he was able to feel the increased beat of your pulse beneath your skin. “I love you… And I have from the very moment I met you.”

“I love you too.” You whispered, your vision blurring a little from the tears that formed in your eyes.

You leaned in, pressing your lips softly against his and the moment they connected, he took control. His fingers thread through your hair, pulling you closer as he kissed you deeply. And with each brush of his moustache over your skin and the heat of his tongue against yours, it quickly made you forget all about what happened. As Otis was right… It was just a mug.

Like this? Apply to my Otis tag list here!

tagging: @sancochillo @kellykidd @violetmacher @kiddbegins @neapolitantoebeans @alexxavicry @babyyoda89 @wandamaxim0f @bloodybagels @stephydearestxo @evanbuckbuckley @annchersita @doublebassallie @orileyrandom @sjhhemmings @gretsky0321

Enjoy my work? Why not consider buying me a coffee?☕️

[madhatterbri]

Lost And Found | N.J.

Summary: Y/N always had a crush on Nick. One fight costs them their friendship. A wedding makes them both realize what they lost.

Play the AEW Virtual Escape Room I created.

Taglist: @plentyoffandoms

Pure fiction

Growing up with the Jacksons wasn't for the weak. Especially when they were in their pro wrestling phase, which happened to be all the time. Y/N would need other people's fingers and toes to count all the times they used a wrestling move on her. It would be fine, they insisted, they saw it on TV. No one was hurt when they saw it on TV.

She would allow them simply because she trusted them. They would never intentionally hurt her. There was a bigger reason that she allowed them to practice wrestling moves on her. Y/N had a major crush on Nick. More than anything, she wanted him to succeed and achieve his dreams.

After being friendzoned by Nick once again, she started to date one of their friends. It wasn't the same, but at least she could still be close to Nick. Whenever she and Matt got into an argument, Nick was there for her.

Things went south the moment Y/N found out his friend cheated on her. She ran to Nick for comfort. Expecting to just cry on his shoulder, he admitted he knew about it all along. The younger Jackson brother never said anything because he didn't want there to be any awkwardness.

Devastated at her friend's betrayal, she vowed never to trust either Jackson again.

They tried to get in contact with her. After blocking their numbers, she felt worse but knew it was for the better. Y/N ended up finding a new guy. He hated wrestling, much to her relief. It was like her past life was finally behind her.

🔔

One of Y/N's old friends invited her to be in her wedding party out in California. Forgetting about the Jacksons, she accepted the invitation happily. Even her boyfriend wanted to attend. After landing in California, they drove to a restaurant to meet the wedding party.

It wasn't until she saw them at the restaurant that Y/N realized she made a mistake. They brothers looked so shocked to see her. Y/N's boyfriend wrapped his arm around her waist. She smiled at him, and they walked to their seats.

All was going well until the bride called her over. Nick was with her looking tense. The bride told Y/N that she would be walking with Nick down the aisle as they were both in the wedding party. Not wanting to start drama, she begrudgingly agreed.

🔔

That night, the wedding party lounged at the beach behind their resort. The group of friends sat around the bonfire to combat the cool ocean breeze. Y/N stood in the water. A part of her missed Cali so much.

"Hey," Nick said and stood next to her. He shuffled his feet nervously.

"If it isn't about the wedding. Save it, Nicholas. I don't wanna hear it," she warned. He rubbed his hands together and looked at her.

"I don't know what's colder you or this breeze," he tried to joke. Y/N turned to look at him. She was sure everyone would be upset if she drowned him in the water.

"Don't you have another friend you can lie to? Preferably not anyone here? Are you still friends with the cowboy?" She asked.

"I was going to apologize and extend an olive branch to you, but forget it. We can both be awkward and miserable about all this,"

"There is no reason to be awkward or miserable about this. In a few days, I go back home, and we never see each other again," she snapped. "Now, please leave me alone. I'm not going to ruin their wedding,"

"I'm not trying to ruin their wedding," he said in frustration. "I get it. You are hurt, so you are lashing out like when we were kids, and I deserve it. I'm sorry for what happened,"

"Sorry won't make any of this go away," Y/N muttered and walked back to the party.

🔔

The wedding rehearsal was tense. Neither of them was speaking to each other. Last night, she cried over her dead friendship with Nicholas for the first time in months. She missed her old life with them but couldn't bring herself to just allow them back in.

Things went bad to worse when the bride suddenly had an idea for the wedding party to do a dance.

"We don't want you guys to kill us. But we wanted to do a dance with the two wedding parties. Nothing crazy and I promise you'll get back to your dates," the bride assured the members of the parties. All the other participants were excited about trying something new except for Nick and Y/N.

Her disgust at the idea melted when he wrapped his arm around her waist. She hated the way her body longed for his touch. This wasn't going to happen. Nicholas burned that bridge long ago. Y/N only had one more day to deal with him.

🔔

During the wedding, she couldn't help but stare at him. All the times she made him pretend they were marrying each other as children. It was part of their agreement for her being their practice dummy. Y/N kept a notebook with all the details. Pages were scribbled with Mrs. Y/N Jackson.

He seemed to stare at her. Maybe he was thinking about the past as well.

🔔

"The decorations at this party suck," Nick whispered to her during the dance. His arm around her waist. His lips were dangerously close to hers. "And you made us wear toilet paper for our weddings,"

"Shut up, Nick," she giggled. She couldn't help but crack a smile.

"Back to Nick now? I'm honored," He asked with a small smile. She rolled her eyes.

"Don't get cute with me. We have this dance, and then I never have to see you or Matt again," she reminded.

"This the guy?" He asked and motioned towards her boyfriend. "Seems like a dick,"

"Doesn't cheat on me, lie to me, or like wrestling. He's perfect," she defended. Nick rolled his eyes.

"You changing your likes for him? Match made in heaven. I can't wait to get my invite," he told her sarcastically.

"Unfortunately, your invite will get lost in the mail along with Matt's. Besides, he doesn't want to get married," she pointed out.

"Then why are you with him? He is your polar opposite," Nick questioned.

"What do you want from this conversation, Nick?" She asked in frustration. The man was getting on her very last nerve.

"I want my friend back," he answered truthfully.

"She isn't coming back, Nick. You hurt me. I dated your friend because you didn't want me. Then I got cheated on, and you lied to me. I'm no longer part of team Jackson. To join that team again would be heartache,"

"I never said I didn't want you," he defended.

The song ended. She left his arms and rushed back to her boyfriend. "Everything okay?"

Y/N blinked back a couple of tears. "Yeah, just looking forward to going home,"

🔔

The next morning, Y/N and her boyfriend made it to the airport. She felt sad about leaving California. The trip was so quick. Another month was needed to go down memory lane. Her boyfriend was more than happy to leave. He was a small town guy. Never liked the hustle and bustle of a big city.

Before passing through security, her boyfriend needed to use the restroom. She leaned against the wall and waited for him. Mindlessly scrolling through all the pictures on social media. There was one that caught her attention. Nick and her when they were younger. He had his big, goofy grin. The next picture showed them smiling as they danced.

"Y/N, I made it in time," he said out of breath.

"Nick? What are you doing here?" She asked.

"I.... last night, you implied that I friendzoned you. I wanted to clear it up, but you avoided me all night, and you have me blocked on everything,"

"The past is the past,"

"While we were at the wedding, I thought about us. You in the Belle princess dress and me in a suit like we always talked about. I know I fucked up. You should have never dated my friend. It should have been me," he told her. "I thought that if he would push you more towards me, but it cost me you,"

Her mouth dropped open in shock. "Nick,"

"Don't board that plane, Y/N. Stay with me. We will make it work. Fix everything. I don't wanna lose you again. I can't lose you again,"

Tears silently fell down her cheeks. Her boyfriend walked out of the bathroom. She quickly wiped them away.

"Oh, hey man, you flying out for work?" He boyfriend asked. Before Nick could answer, he turned to you. "Come on, honey. We start boarding soon,"

She looked between her boyfriend and Nick. Her eyes rest on Nick. "I'm so sorry,"

She turned to your boyfriend. "But I'm staying here in California,"

[ya-zz]

Hi! I got a small idea for my Genji request, so I'll share it with you. Imagine growing up with the Shimadas, always being so close to them up, having promises of marrying the younger brother - until Genji's murder - resulting in reader's family backing them away completely due to fear of the actions. I would love if you could write a bit of how Genji would feel, what would he do when he finally sees reader again - since they're unhappily married off to a rich merchant. And a simple wish escapes their lips -- "Take me with you." -Nia

Oooo we love angsty Shimada stories! Hopefully this meets your expectations!

Genji x Reader (gen)

Word count: 1334

For the majority of your childhood years, you spent them with the Shimada’s, more specifically Hanzo and Genji Shimada. The two brothers were practically your brothers with the amount of time that you had spent with them. 

The three of you would play in the Shimada castle, running around playing tag or hide and seek. The elders let you, of course, you were kids after all. They allowed you to have fun despite their beliefs in raising the brothers. 

However, whilst Hanzo was growing older, his playtime grew shorter and he grew more intimidating. Less like a kid, but more of a boy following strict rules. Genji, on the other hand, was still running through the garden with you whenever you visited. While your parents discussed many a topic with his parents, the pair of you continued to play games. 

No matter the day, no matter the weather, Genji would always find something to do. Some days consisted of roaming the garden, or sat in his room playing games on his consoles. Other days the pair of you were trying to distract Hanzo or pulling him to come play with you despite his best efforts to decline. 

There were silly little games, one of which was pretending to be married to the younger brother. Both being a giggling mess, it caught the attention of your parents who then deemed it suitable for you to marry the younger Shimada. The elder Shimada’s agreed and with firm handshakes from both families, it was then set in stone. 

The older brother knew, of course, what was going to happen between his younger brother and you. He was told about most of the family affairs… and then he was told about all the wrong his brother was doing as they hit their young adulthood… 

Then the fateful day had arrived. Hanzo bit back what tears he had, straightened his attire before setting out to the training hall where he found his brother. Genji’s deep meditation came to a grinding halt when he heard footsteps approaching, and thinking nothing of it, tried to focus on his breathing once more. 

Spattered blood marked the floor as screams echoed around the room. Genji tried to run from the monster that was his brother but slash after slash came, cutting into his body and almost bleeding him dry. 

The pain was unbearable for the younger brother as his body lay limp on the ground, the life slowly fading from him as the last sight he witnessed was his brother standing over him, muttering “I’m sorry” as tears streamed down his face. 

Things weren’t the same from then on. Hanzo never saw the removal of his brothers body, assuming that the elders took care of it. The Shimada clan kept it on the downlow, nobody knew that Genji was murdered, just that he mysteriously vanished that night.

From there on, your family completely withdrew you from the Shimada’s, more so in fear of what would happen to you if you were to do something wrong. Rumours were quickly spread around Hanamura; how the Shimada’s assassinated the younger boy, or how he ran away after some unfortunate event. Some ladies claimed he ran from his shame. 

If only they truly knew… 

Genji knew. 

He was still alive. 

His appearance had change significantly. From what he was, a human boy, to a half cyborg man. At first, he hated his body, but there was something that was eating away at him more so than his hatred of himself. 

He wondered what you would think. 

Where are you? Are you okay? Does Hanzo still speak of me? Is my family treating you well? I miss you. I want to get married to you again. Remember our childhood days? I was so happy with you, I felt at home with you. You were someone I trusted, someone I felt safe with… Where are you, [y/n]? How is life treating you?

So many questions that were to be left unanswered as he laid in this uncomfortable medical bed being fed through a tube as his body recovered. 

Do you still think of me, [y/n]? I’m still thinking of you. I need you here. Please… Someone tell [y/n] that I’m alive… I need to see them… 

Someone would probably consider it possessive, obsessive even. His head isn’t on right, too high on drugs. He had muttered your name more times than one, medics trying to unscramble the words that spilled over. 

Days turned into weeks and those weeks into months and while Genji was still recovering, his mind was still replaying his childhood. The days he spent running with you in the garden, hiding under his bed from Hanzo, beating you at video games. Then he wondered where everything went wrong. Why did he deserve to be cut up like his? Why did he have to be mutilated? Why by his own brother?

—

Spring in Hanamura was serene. With the cherry blossoms falling to the asphalt below, the residents continued to prepare for the spring festivals. The streets were bustling with life, stalls were being set up and the smell of food seeped through every open window within the vicinity. 

The majority of the residents had forgotten about the whole Shimada situation, having happened several years prior. By forgetting and moving on, they were doing themselves a favour. 

However, there was one household in particular that didn’t forget, and that was yours. Not a night went by when you didn’t think about the missing Shimada. You had begged night and day with Hanzo and the elders for them to tell you what had happened but they refused each request. 

Eventually, you gave up begging, you gave up looking for answers. You just had to accept that Genji was gone. 

You had to accept that you were married to someone you didn’t even love. You shared the same bed with this man, had sex with him many nights in the week but each time was just to satisfy his needs.

You did not want him. 

You wanted Genji. 

Each day you hoped he would appear, a miracle in itself if he truly was murdered. So when you wandered through the festival streets that were overcrowded with vendors and customers, you had to look twice at the man who was stood in the middle of the street. 

Despite the hood and the metal, those eyes had never felt more familiar, so when the man turned and ducked into a nearby alley, you followed. Squeezing through the tight gap, you ended up on an empty street and there he was, stood beside the wall on the left. 

“[y/n].” That voice… 

“Genji…” You muttered, almost in disbelief. 

“I didn’t think I’d see you again.” He responded as his hand came up to caress your cheek to which you leaned into without hesitation. “I have been so scared. I only wanted to see you, to make sure you were okay.”

“You’re alive.” With a quiet voice and tears pricking your eyes, all you could do was stare at him. “What happened to you?” 

“That is a long story.” He looked down at your hands as he grabbed them. “You are married?” 

“I wish I wasn’t.” You half smiled. “Genji…” 

“I know.” He sighed. “Are you happy?” 

You shook your head. “No. Every night I laid awake thinking about you.” 

Genji chuckled. “Maybe we just weren’t meant to be in this life.” His tone was full of sadness, it was pained. 

“I still want to be with you.” 

The ninja cupped your cheeks before he pressed his forehead against yours. “I know, koibito.” Genji then placed the metal half of his face against your cheek, mimicking a kiss. 

“This is goodbye…?” Tears pricked your eyes once more as you stared at him. He only nodded before turning and vanishing into the night.

Before he truly left, however, he heard your final request, one that pained him deeply. 

“Take me with you…”

[hayanwulf]

Can you write StrangeFrost with both of them being powerful magic wielders and nobody knows why they team up but then they start flirting with each other heavily and everyone is shocked. Or if that’s too long just have them flirting. That’s something I would love to see :)

I don’t know why, my brain always thinks that the default mode of flirting between them is throwing condescending remarks and backhanded compliments.

Anyway. This is pretty mild lol, but I think I'll likely continue this in the future.

---

The battle ended early; thanks to two resident magic users who had shown up and made it a point to end it as quickly as possible in a game of one-upping each other, making everyone else’s efforts look like a drop in the bucket.

Darn magic. Tony hated magic.

“That was overkill,” Natasha remarked when everyone regrouped back in the Quinjet. “One of you could’ve helped with search & rescue while the other handled the actual fight.”

“You ask an impossible task of them,” Thor said. “The infinity beer wizard and my brother have been inseparable as of late.”

‘Infinity beer wizard’? Peter mouthed at Tony, frowning.

‘He can drink that much,’ He mouthed back. He deemed it best to not let the underage Spiderling know about Stephen’s little magic trick to conjure infinite amount of alcohol. Though, he was sure that Stephen would never just hand a mug of beer to the kid, still, Peter’s puppy eyes were a force to be reckoned with, one he knew even Stephen wasn’t immune to.

Both magic users scoffed at Thor’s remark.

“We’re not inseparable,” Stephen hissed, pointing an accusing finger at Loki, “He keeps breaking into my Sanctum to steal books.”

Loki rolled his eyes, crossing his hands and casually leaning against a wall of the Quinjet. “And are we not going to mention the notes I leave behind on how to improve your antiquated usage of magic?”

“Oh, you mean your personal opinions on a magic style completely different from Asgard’s?”

“They have plenty of useful insights, if you have the eyes for it.” Loki leaned away from the wall, slowly sauntering closer and closer to Stephen.

“I don’t know,” Stephen seemed to match his steps, a sparkle of amusement in his eyes. “All that my eyes spy is ..rather unimpressive.”

Loki’s eyes glinted with green magic. The two stood only an inch apart, staring deeply into each other’s eyes.

“I am more than prepared to go another round with you, second-rate sorcerer,” the Asgardian said in a voice so deep and low, it wouldn’t have been audible had it not been for the utter silence in the Quinjet.

Tension was heavy in the air.

And it was far from the kind of tension one would expect here.

Thor, Tony realized, was looking deeply troubled by now, ready to jump in and stop his brother from possibly stabbing Stephen. Tony pulled him back by an arm and didn’t let go, watching the exchange between the two magicians with growing amusement.

Stephen smirked. “For a god of mischief, you’re surprisingly predictable.”

Loki had a retort right on his tongue, but before he could spit it out, a portal opened behind him, shooting orange ropes that firmly wrapped around Loki.

“Escape this in less than thirty minutes,” Stephen spoke, “And I’ll consider going another round.”

“You—” Loki started, but he was already swallowed by the portal which then quickly closed, leaving everyone to just stare and blink at what had just happened.

“Loki!?” Thor freed himself from Tony’s weak human hold to go and grip Stephen’s shoulders. “Wizard, what did you do to my brother!”

Stephen sighed. “Nothing of harm, I assure you. We do this all the time.”

“..You mean throwing each other into places full of eldritch monsters?” Clint spoke up, apparently having caught a glimpse of the other side of the portal. “That’s normal?”

“Most of those are passive, actually,” Stephen dismissively told him, walking over to the same wall where Loki had been leaning, and leaned himself there. A little to the left of Loki’s would-be place, Tony noted. “And it’s good exercise to break each other’s traps. So, yes, that’s normal.”

Silence fell over the group, and Tony couldn’t help but look curiously at Stephen. Something was most definitely going on between the two magic users.

Come to think of it, what exactly were they referring to when they were saying ‘rounds’?

“Sooo..” Peter spoke up, hopping closer to Stephen. “Mr. Stark told me that you can just magic infinite beer into existence?”

Stephen shot Tony a look of betrayal, who just stared, jaw on the floor.

“That’s literally not what I told you, kid!”

[lightlycareless]

How strict is Naoya in his parenting style and how might that appear when he’s parenting the child he’s chosen to succeed him? I’m sure it’ll look different than how Naobito treated him but I also wonder if he’d have struggles falling into old patterns on occasion

Hello!

Another interesting ask 👀👀 One I haven't wondered to myself, always thinking that he'd be like, spoiling his kids rotten... but anyways!!!

If we’re talking about the version of Naoya that doesn’t care about anything else but himself, then yeah, he’s going to be super strict + detached. You cannot force him to care and will undoubtedly replicate the things he saw when growing up to his kid; his children are going to hate him, and I think… Naoya might hate them too.

However, we’re talking about a man that has you as his wife, whom he loves very much and has slowly begun to change for the better, learning that he too is deserving of happiness and capable of harboring such feeling, which he tries his best to extend over to his children 😊

It’s not easy, certainly not with someone as the Zen’in as relatives, but he does his best to raise them in an environment vastly different from his. And if there’s a silver lining to all this, is that he has such bad examples around him, that he knows what not to do lol.

The real issue here is when it comes to putting down boundaries, in other words, dealing with the consequences of their never-ending, unrestricted doting.

I mean, there was no way they knew it would be difficult, right? Everything had been nothing but smooth sailing when (for example’s sake) Naomi was a baby! She was just an adorable toddler, as well as their first child, so they had to give her all that she wanted, and more; besides, she was too young to know any better, and as first-time parents, you deserved to do this!

What could go wrong?

The two would soon find out the moment she begins to walk, talk, and, you know… everything else.

Because Naoya and you had spoiled/doted on her so much, she thinks that your warnings are, well, playful suggestions; and it becomes difficult to get her to understand that you two were being serious…

Leaving the two with no other option than to look into punishments.

I think this oneshot is the perfect example of what would happen when Naomi does get grounded, as well as everyone’s surprise from the fact the two actually kept their word and did it.

Because of her spoiled, and lenient upbringing, Naomi is exaggeratedly sorrowful. Straight up miserable which leads her to isolate herself from her parents, upset that they would “betray” her like this, which honestly makes Naoya and you feel like an absolute piece of shit, heavily debating whether to just save her from being grounded and move on!

However, you both decided against it after coming to the conclusion that this was, in the long term, for her good.

Yes, it definitely hurts to see her avoid the two, and yes, sometimes you’ll cut her “sentence” a bit shorter… but you always do your best to explain why she’s being grounded in the first place; one of the many things Naoya does differently from Naobito, and while it takes a while for her to get it, they eventually bear fruits.

Over all, the Zen’in clan is astonished that someone as Naoya was capable of raising such a well-mannered child (considering his upbringing and what seemed to be hers at that point.) but no one will deny that they’re relieved she’s not bound to be as crazy as her father was.

She’s still a child of course, so expect a lot of mischief here and there, but nothing too crazy—that’s for the youngest of your kids 🤭

Now, referring to the “old patterns” section… Yes. As any human, Naoya will undoubtedly fall into his old self from time to time, when it happens the first time though the reaction to it will be so, so painful to him, he’s actively going to avoid his children because he thinks of himself as a “danger to them.”

But that’s the beauty of families; you both have each other for support, so when he doubts himself, you’ll be there to lift him up and reassure him he’s a good father—and vice versa—by reminding him that it was not intentional, and him knowing such proves it all together.

These things don’t happen very often after years go by, if anything the two just become more lenient, when the rest of your kids bring it up, Naoya will quickly jump to deny it lol.

I believe the only places he’d be very strict though would be when naming his successor and training them to be sorcerers—but it’s all because he knows the dangers such responsibilities entail, and he wouldn’t want any of his children to be unprepared to face them.

So, the final conclusion is: while Naoya will be highly doting of his children, spoiling them with whatever they want whenever they want it, he’ll still manage (although very, very hardly, to his very best) to be strict when needed, but never borderline abusive—he’s at a point where he wants to give them only the best.

Doesn’t stop them from being mischievous little devils, but they’re all lovable, nonetheless.

Extra: he’d be a total soccer mom. The way he gets into it is kinda scary, but not unexpected, he is highly competitive after all…

Y’all sending me these asks have me very very happy, ngl. Thank you so much for indulging me, you literally how over the moon I am to know there’s people that like what I do :’)

Thank you so much for sending in this ask! I hope you have a wonderful weekend, take care and hope to see you soon!

[666writingcafe]

Sibling Bonding

Luke

I'm scared.

The look on Simeon's face...that's going to be in my nightmares, no doubt about it.

This room is only a temporary sanctuary--and not a very good one at that--but it's the best I have at the moment.

Someone knocks on the door.

"Go away!" I yell. I don't want to see Simeon right now.

"Luke, it's okay. It's just me." Oh. It's MC. The one person that can comfort me right now.

I get off the bed and sheepishly open the door, allowing them to enter. They sit down at the desk, leaving me to return to my position on the bed.

"Are you okay?" Three simple words, and yet they're enough to make me tear up. I was trying to keep my composure in the dining car, since I knew Mammon would tease me for crying.

Speaking of which, why was he picking on me? I mean, we're far from being best friends, but as we were preparing for the trip, we both were really excited about it. He even helped me pack some of my things. So, I don't understand the sudden switch.

Unless somehow merely mentioning Michael triggered something in him, and I just happened to be the closest thing he could lash out against. But that wouldn't make much sense, either; Michael's not a bad person.

"I-I'm sorry for behaving like that in the dining car." I choke up as the tears begin rolling down my face. "I k-know I embarrassed you b-back there." MC leans forward and grabs both of my hands.

"You were reacting to someone bullying you. Perhaps you could have handled that better than you did, but you're still growing. I don't expect you to have the emotional maturity of an adult, angel or otherwise." It's strange, hearing those words. Everyone else expects me to act older and tease me if I don't, and yet they talk to me like I'm a little kid.

Not MC. Not even once.

"If anything, I ought to be apologizing to you." Huh?

"Why? You didn't do anything wrong." MC smiles slightly, gently squeezing my hands.

"Not intentionally, but nevertheless I am partially to blame for Simeon's outburst." They clearly see the confused look on my face, for they add,

"When I saw Simeon start to become irritated, I grabbed his hand to try to soothe him."

"Like you are right now with me?" They nod.

"Part of my power comes from the pacts I have with the seven Avatars of Sin. The physical connection of our hands caused that power to meet up with Simeon's frustration and give it more energy. By the time we realized what was happening, the connection became too strong for us to break it ourselves. The energy had to release itself on its own."

"Kinda like a circuit."

"Exactly."

"I didn't know you could even do that!"

"Neither did I." I don't like seeing MC sad. I know that they can't be happy all the time, but I want them to experience more good than bad. They deserve it.

Besides, how can they know something they weren't taught?

MC lets go of my hands, gets up, and starts walking towards the door.

"Wait!" They stop and turn towards me.

"Yes, Luke?" I'm not even sure if I should bring this up. It's the type of thing most people would tell me I'm too young to understand before changing the subject to something more "appropriate". It's rather annoying, actually. I hate being underestimated simply because of my age. Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm stupid.

"There's something I've been wondering for a while now.

"Which is?" Well, here goes nothing.

"Why does Michael still care about Mammon and his brothers? I mean, they may have been angels once upon a time, but not anymore. They're demons now. They did something awful enough to warrant being cast out of the Celestial Realm."

MC's initial hesitation worries me. Are they finally going to dismiss me the way everyone else has?

"Relax, Luke. I'm not ignoring you. I'm just trying to figure out the best way to answer your question."

"Really?" MC nods.

"I may not be able to tell you everything, but that doesn't mean I can't give you some information. I mean, you're not a little kid anymore; you're old enough to know about certain things." An idea must have come to MC in that moment, for they walk back over to the desk and start rummaging through its drawers until they find a piece of paper and a pencil.

"Come on over, Luke," they instruct, sitting down. Once I'm standing next to them, they turn the paper horizontally and draw two dots on either side of it.

"Let's say that these dots represent the pinnacle of good and evil." MC writes the two words down underneath the dots. "Do you see all this empty space?"

"Yes."

"That represents all the different combinations of good and evil. Some things are easier to contribute to one or the other." MC draws some smaller dots around the two original dots. "But most things in life exist in this space in between. Am I making sense so far?" I nod my head, allowing them to continue.

"Now, there are many factors that make deciding if something is good or bad rather complicated. I think the one that's pertinent to your question is this one." MC writes down the word "love" on the paper. "As you've stated, the brothers were once angels. Would you say that the residents of the Celestial Realm act like one big family?"

"Yeah."

"Then it would make sense for Michael to feel that way about the brothers. It's hard to cut ties with people you hold near and dear to your heart, even if they've hurt you in some way."

"Then why cast them out of the Celestial Realm to begin with?" The question slips out of my mouth before I can stop myself. "I mean, if Michael loved them so much, then he should've just forgiven them." That prompts MC to write down the word "politics".

"Michael's kind of like the Vice President of the Celestial Realm, right?"

"I mean, I suppose so. I hadn't thought about it like that before."

"But you understand why I made that comparison, right?" MC looks at me expectantly, and I realize that they want me to actually explain why. They're quizzing me, in a way.

"Well, a Vice President has a lot of power, but they still have to answer to the President. The Vice President can't just do whatever they want." They smile at me.

"Very good. Now, obviously I wasn't there at the time, but I can guess that God issued the order to Michael to cast the brothers out to the Celestial Realm. If he failed to do so, then he would face punishment of some kind. Perhaps he'd be kicked out as well, or worse. Whatever it was, it was severe enough for him to decide it was better to follow orders than it was to push back against them."

"Even if he didn't want to see the brothers leave?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Love sometimes has to bow down to politics. It sucks, but life isn't always fair. It can be awfully cruel at times."

"Do you think the brothers hate angels? If so, then all of Michael's love is in vain. They'll never love him back." MC grabs my hands again.

"I think that deep down, they miss the Celestial Realm and the people in it. It's just that the love they may still have towards that place often gets clouded by other emotions."

Oh no. I'm going to be in so much trouble. I can't start second-guessing Michael's judgement. That's totally not okay.

"Luke, look at me." MC can sense that I'm freaking out. "Despite of what people tell you, you are allowed to question why things are the way they are. It's part of learning. Don't ever let anyone take your curiosity away from you."

"O-okay."

"If they have a problem with it, they'll have to go through me." They pause. "I will do everything in my power to protect you, Luke."

"Why?"

"Because you're part of my family." I let go of MC's hands, only to hug them seconds later.

"Thank you," I whisper.

"You're welcome." When we separate, I notice something on their hand that wasn't there before.

The Star of Generosity.

It suits them.

[fragaria-imagines]

its fine of i also request pregnancy headcanons for Kurode and romarriche?

Kurode:

When you told Kurode that you were pregnant, he was shellshocked to say the least. He couldn’t believe his ears, you, pregnant? Him, a dad? That didn’t even sound right….

It goes without saying that Kurode’s reaction was not what you were hoping for, he didn’t say anything, and you wondered if he even heard you.

The more he stayed silent, the more you anxious you were becoming. Did he not want a child? Does he hate the thought of you two being parents? Suddenly, the joy and happiness that you felt, when you found out about the pregnancy, slowly faded away into a more depressing and anxious feeling.

Eventually, Kurode lifted his head from the ground, and spoke with tears in his eyes, voicing that you deserve better than him.

His words caught you off guard, what would make him say that? He further explains himself, letting out all of his worries and insecurities about fatherhood, how he doesn’t think he’ll live up to your expectations, how he doesn’t want to mess up the baby, how he worries that he’s not cut out for fatherhood.

As he speaks, you start to understand why he was so quiet and distant when you told about the pregnancy. Kurode has always been insecure about his role in life, no doubt, having a baby all of sudden, would question his purpose and his abilities even more.

But even so, you reassured him that it was fine to not know all the right answers immediately, and that you were also worried if you were cut out for parenthood as well, to which he immediately interjects.

You kept going, ignoring his interruption, saying:

“The point is Kurode, none of us know what we’re doing, but that’s okay, because as long as we have each other, then everything would be alright. We can only grow from here, and I’m excited to grow with you.”

Something about your words, deeply affected him, because once you were done speaking, he bursted into tears.

But unlike before, where the tears stemmed from self pity and sadness, this time, he was crying tears of relief.

Seeing the state that he was in, it warmed your heart, knowing your words has a positive affect on him, and as you held him close to you, you knew you two would be alright.

Romarriche:

You and Romarriche have been planning to have a kid for a while, so when you found out about the pregnancy, you two were ecstatic!

How you found out about your pregnancy, was a little out of the norm, you didn’t even know that you were pregnant until a friend told you.

Romarriche was over joyed when he found out, he had always wanted a child and to raise a family, but given his line of work, he thought that he would never be able to. It wasn’t until you entered his life, that he finally considered that maybe he can start a family.

After your pregnancy announcement, you and Romarriche decided to wait a while before you told all your friends, families, and lords. Deciding that it was better to wait and be safe, than to jump gun and tell everybody, in which Romarriche was very supportive, and was attentive to all your needs.

But even so, even with Romarriche’s overwhelming positivity and support, there was a nagging voice in your head, that was telling you that you weren’t good enough to be a parent.

Unlike, Romarriche, who went above and beyond for the bouquet members, and is the unofficial elected dad of the group, you didn’t possess the same maternal instinct as him.

Like the rest of the red bouquet, you always turned to Romarriche for answers, but what happens when your baby needs help or guidance, and you don’t have an answer for them? What do you do? Do you turn them over to Romarriche? But wouldn’t that make you an incompetent parent, for not helping your child?

It was thoughts like these that made you insecure about your parenting, and therefore made you insecure about your pregnancy.

Ever the observer, it didn’t take long for Romarriche to catch on to your sudden mood change regarding the pregnancy, to which he politely asked if you were alright, one day.

His gentleness and how he looked so genuinely concerned for you, made you burst into tears, as you open up about all your insecurities, fears, and worries, regarding your baby.

Romarriche didn’t saying anything as you rambled on and vented, listening to your every word.

When you were finally done with your speech, Romarriche looked at you sympathetically, and gave you words of encouragement, saying that he understood your worries, but there was nothing to worry about, because you’re a great partner, and would make an even greater parent.

It’s safe to say, that his words moved you in a way that you couldn’t even describe how, yet moving forward, even if you have your doubts and question your ability to be a good parent, you know that you’re not alone.

[year2000electronics]

Ok so what’s shimmer relationship like with the main cast like in the brotherhood au?

RUBS HANDS TOGETHER EVILLY. I ACTUALLY HAVE SOMETHING I WROTE A WHILE BACK ABT SHIM AND THE BROTHERS. HEHEHEHEHEEEE

i havent gotten to the outcasts Yet but. one day. i'll put it below the cut!!

“You probably don’t remember me, but-”

That was the first thing Shimmer had decided to say to baby Branch- no, it was just Branch now, wasn’t it? No matter how hard she looked at him, she could still only see the hopeful, gleaming eyes and the sweet smile as that kid she had come to briefly know so many years ago. It was a tough habit to kick- and the other members of the village clearly had a leg up on her with that.

“No, I remember you!” He replied, swinging his hands back and forth as the two of them walked through the village together. “Johnny doesn’t talk about you anymore, not really, but I remember going over to your pod!”

Shimmer tried her best not to seem too desperate for knowledge. Johnny? Her Johnny? Well- formerly hers. Not anymore? She knew it, he hated her, dammit, why did she come here-

“Oh, yeah? That so?” She laughed quietly. “Gosh, you’d make a mess of the place… you were so cute.”

“Yeah…” Branch said, looking off to the side. He was clearly quite a bit surprised, hearing someone talk about him through their sole memories of him being a baby. “It’s… been a long time since then, though.”

“I know, I know,” Shimmer assured quickly. “You’re all grown up now. And it makes me feel… very old.” She gave a laugh to shrug it off, but… it was true. Staring her in the face was the very sobering realization that it had been nearly two decades… Two decades since she had seen any of these people. And yet, somehow, despite Branch going from a baby to an adult…

…It felt like he had changed the least.

“Well- you don’t look very old,” Branch chirped. “Not to me.”

Shimmer looked back at him with a sort of sad smile, combing her hair out of her face.

“...You’re sweet, kid,” She mumbled. 

“No, really! You look Johnny’s age, and he’s not old, so… you’re not old either, right?” Branch grinned. He thought his logic was flawless, clearly. 

Shimmer snorted. “Is that how you see it?”

“Yup.”

Shimmer laughed, and decided to leave it at that. Branch’s peculiar little sense of humor did amuse her, to be sure. 

“So-” Shimmer asks after a bit of silence. “Do you mind if I ask you something, ah… a bit personal, kid?”

“Depends,” Branch said with a shrug. “What is it?”

“What was it like? Growing up here, I mean,” Shimmer asked.

Branch paused for a moment, to think about it. He looked up at the sky, down at the ground, every which way, except at her.

“Normal, I guess?” He shrugged. “We’re safe here, and I had my brothers. I don’t know what else a guy could want.”

Shimmer supposed she should have expected an answer like that. Of course Branch would see everything as deceptively normal. From the time she spent at the village, she didn’t exactly discover any blood sacrifices or chaos magic rituals happening behind closed doors or anything, and even though John and his brothers had morphed into slightly mythic figures, they weren’t referred to as His Holiness or anything. 

“Guess so,” Shimmer replied. “I was just… gone for so long, I’ve been curious, I suppose. About all the changes.”

“There aren’t that many,” Branch mumbled.

“No?”

“No.”

That’s what Branch’s mouth said. But his eyes told a different story. 

—---------------------- 

Shimmer sat down in Bruce’s pod, staring him down. 

His hand automatically moved to grab some matchmaker’s tarot cards when Shimmer lowered it before he could.

He glanced up at her, confused.

“Don’t,” She grunted. “I’m not here for that. I don’t even want to know.”  The sooner she could stop Bruce from doing the matchmaking thing, the better. There was a whole nest of hornets there- and whatever he said about her “potential prospects” would just remind her that a part of her never moved on from John Dory. 

“Then-” Bruce furrowed his brow, leaning back. “What are you here for?”

Shimmer gave him a surprised glance. “For you. Is that so hard to believe?”  

Bruce scoffed, leaning on one of his hands as he pressed his elbow onto the table. “Usually people come to the matchmaker’s pod because they want their match made, miss Shimmer. And yet, here you are, asking for me and not even wanting a match while you’re here! I think that makes you the strange one.”

Shimmer groaned. “Neither of us are strange, Bruce, don’t play this game with me-” 

Bruce laughed. “Oh, man- I did miss this. How is it that I’m always able to get under your skin?”

“I don’t know, you little devil-” Shimmer snorted. She cleared her throat, combing some hair out of her face. “But- that’s the only part that feels like it hasn’t changed, after all this time. What’s someone like you doing with a job like… this?”

Bruce frowned. “Are you trying to imply this isn’t a real job? The village won’t like that.”

Shimmer furrowed her brow, putting a hand up. “That’s not what I said. I mean- this job feels so prestigious. And everyone I asked about you immediately followed ‘Bruce’ up with ‘The matchmaker’. Doesn’t that… bother you at all?”

“Would it really matter if it did?” Bruce said with a shrug. 

“I mean-!” Shimmer gave an exasperated sigh. “I… I just want to understand. Everyone here is used to this, used to you all being leaders, I was just…” She shrugged. “I guess I was just hoping an old friend might be able to help me stop sticking out like a sore thumb.”

Bruce frowned, studying Shimmer’s face and body language. She seemed to be sincere, though her pride clearly held her back from just straight-up begging. And he did feel quite a bit bad for her… it was true that Bruce and Shimmer had been pretty close back when he was Spruce, and back when Shimmer was “JD’s girl”. They got on each others’ nerves endlessly, but that was almost part of the charm.

…He could use something like that again, perhaps. Nowadays, the only teasing he could get away with was either to Baby Branch or doing something so subtle to JD and Floyd that most other people shouldn’t be able to notice. 

“...Being a matchmaker is fine,” Bruce began to speak. “I’m rarely ever wrong, I’ll have you know. People trust me, and I like that. It feels… good to be trusted, I guess.”

He took out a tarot card from his deck, studying it. “I mean- I’m trusted for manners of romance, friendship, intimacy… But nobody is puttin’ pressure onto me to be a leader. In a way, I guess… I’ve got the best job in town.” 

“Still,” Shimmer said quietly. “I wouldn’t mind hanging out with Bruce-the-man instead of Bruce-the-matchmaker. If you can bear taking some time off your busy schedule.”

Bruce tilted his head noncommittally. “I’ll think about it. Gotta keep up appearances, y’know. That’s a big part of everything.” 

“I guess,” Shimmer half heartedly agreed. “Not that I’d know.”

“It’s good that you don’t,” Bruce replied, an oddly soft tone in his voice. So soft that Shimmer dare not toe the line and ask him to elaborate on that. Her absence of a question, though, left the two of them sitting in the candlelit room in silence.

“...So what’s the story behind the new name?” Shimmer asked to break it.

“Eh,” Bruce waved a hand casually. “I wanted a reinvention.”

Shimmer paused, mulling that over. “It suits you,” She said, finally. 

“Thanks,” Bruce smirked. He held up a hand, tilting it towards her. Between his fingers was a tarot card.

“Hey! I thought I told you not to do the matchmaking thing!” Shimmer protested with a frown.

“Relax, miss Shimmer,” Bruce replied coyly. “This one’s just about your social standing.” 

She took the card from him, studying it- oh. It was The Star.

“It means renewal,” Bruce said simply.

—--------------------------

“Morning, Floyd. I’d apologize for interrupting but I feel like that ship’s sailed already,” Shimmer grunted, going to sit on a mat near where Floyd was meditating.

He cracked an eye open, glancing over at her. “...Shimmer,” He said with a simple nod.  

She began stretching her legs, grunting every so often- this type of stuff didn’t come as easy to her as she wanted it to. 

“...Why did you come back?” Floyd asked bluntly. That made Shimmer stop in her tracks, glancing over at the younger troll with a befuddled look on her face.

Floyd put his hands up in a gesture of false surrender. “I don’t mean it like that! Don’t misunderstand! It’s just… one doesn’t just wander back into a place like this without reason.”

“Well- it’s home,” Shimmer admitted, bending down to touch her toes. “I was feeling… disoriented. Like I had lost myself. I didn’t know where else to go, so… I came back home.”

“Yeah, sure, but… you said it yourself. This place has changed. So, I guess, a better question would be… what made you stay?” Floyd asked as he bent himself into a different position. His tone was casual and calm, but there was a certain hunger in his eyes that let Shimmer know that he was very invested in this line of conversation. 

Shimmer’s mouth went dry. That… that was a good question. Especially since Floyd was playing a bit of a dangerous game, where she would make a major social faux pas if she wasn’t careful- Floyd was implying that someone coming to the village and staying there was strange. Of course, it was a perfectly safe place, but Shimmer knew she and Floyd both could feel the gated-community vibe of the village where nobody ever comes in and nobody ever comes out. She counted herself damn lucky that they even let her in at all. 

“...I suppose I’d say- it’s because some part of this place didn’t change,” Shimmer mumbled. 

“Really?” Floyd asked, stretching one of his legs to the sky.

“Really. That’s what keeps me here… I think. It’s all very confusing, this new village stuff, but when I look at all my old friends here… I guess I can’t help but see the boys I used to know,” Shimmer bashfully said as if she was admitting a crime. 

“So you really believe that…” Floyd said quietly. “And- is it the same with me?”

“Sure it is,” Shimmer said, rolling over to be on her stomach as she grabbed one of her legs. “You were always the one who sat in the back, weren’t you? Just… watching. Soaking it all in. I still see a lot of that in you today. With Branch and Bruce, too, the more I talk to them, the more I realize there’s still parts of you I’ve met before.”

She sighed. “Stupid, I know.” 

“No, I don’t think it’s stupid at all…” Floyd replied. “I… I think it’s kinda nice, actually.” 

He smiled, looking up at the roof of the large cave they called home. He let the moment sit for a bit.

“Sometimes… I don’t really feel like that boy anymore. I don’t feel like I was ever him at all. It’s… confusing, I guess,” Floyd said at last.

“Ugh, tell me about it-” Shimmer grunted, stretching out another one of her joints. “I was looking at an old poster of myself yesterday, and it was like- who WAS she?” 

Floyd gave a gentle little laugh. “I guess we’re more alike than we thought, then. It’s… nice.”

“I don’t get to talk to people much about this stuff,” Floyd continued. “Me, Johnny and the others try to be strong… for the village. So- it just… doesn’t come up.”

Shimmer gave him a nervous glance. “I’m not stepping over a line, am I? You’d tell me if I broke some sort of village rule. You would. Right?”

“Calm down,” Floyd squeaked desperately. “You’re fine.” 

Shimmer sighed. “Sorry… sorry. It’s just-”

“A lot, yeah,” Floyd finished. “That’s the village for you.”

—-------------------------

Shimmer was never sure if it was her place to mourn Clay or not. She had known him once, but at the same time, that was a long time ago. Was it illogical that she felt like she didn’t deserve to mourn him like his brothers did? Maybe. But she couldn’t change how she felt.

Still, that wouldn’t stop her from leaving some lily-of-the-valleys near his memorial spot every now and again. 

“Sorry I missed you, Clay,” She murmured. “I would have liked to have gotten to know who you grew into.”

—---------------

Shimmer wasn’t looking forward to this. She wasn’t looking forward to any of this. In fact, she had taken extreme, deliberate steps to avoid this from happening.

But what she hadn’t accounted for was bumping into John Dory on his stupid shitty morning walk, DAMMIT- 

He dusted himself off, clearly taking on a facial expression that was preparing for an apology, only for him to realize exactly who it was he had bumped into. Right- the troll he hadn’t talked to since he initially told the village to let her in.

Oh, yeah.

Also, his ex. 

“...Shimmer,” He was the first one to cut through the silence as he looked up at her, adjusting his scarf. “You look… well.”

Shimmer scoffed, looking away. “You and I both know that’s a gross exaggeration.”

John frowned as she looked away. That caught her eye. She coughed, immediately trying to steer the ship of a conversation back on topic. Much as this was her old flame… this guy was also someone she clearly didn’t want to get on the bad side of. Best not to get… too testy.

“But- other than looking like I rolled out of bed basically every day, I’ve been-” She sighed. “Fine. How about… you? How- uh- how have you been?” 

John Dory blinked once or twice, not expecting her to turn the question back on him. “Me? Oh, yes, I’ve been great, as usual. Never a bad day here in the village. Heh. You haven’t… been having any trouble, have you? I know the villagers can get a bit testy with… ‘new’ people.”

Shimmer shook her head no, folding her arms. “No, it’s been fine. Just… just fine.”

“Good… and you’ve been behaving too… right?” He said- although his tone was light as a feather, he knew the underlying meaning in what he said- here was a girl he had been close with before she disappeared- She could drag him back down to feeling mortality, be so casual with him in a way he hadn’t felt from anyone besides his brothers in years- and if she wanted to disprove his lie, he’d have to put whatever feelings he still had for her aside. For the sake of the village.

“You think so low of me, John,” Shimmer scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Yes, I’ve been behaving. I’m a guest here- guests follow the host’s policies, and they’re thankful. That’s how I was raised.”

“Good!” JD chirped. “I wasn’t too worried about that,” He lied. It slipped naturally off his tongue as smooth as butter. 

Shimmer paused, looking him up and down some more. He looked at her looking at him, waiting to see her reaction and cautiously preparing for it.

“...It’s a bit of a different look for you, I’ll admit, but… I don’t hate it,” Shimmer spoke with a shrug. “The red looks nice.”

John laughed, flicking an earring. “Ahhh- thank you. It does, doesn’t it? I’ll admit, your look was a bit surprising, too. You’ve really changed, I almost didn’t-”

He paused, not wanting to finish the sentence… but Shimmer knew what he was going to say.

I almost didn’t recognize you. 

She knew that’s what he wanted to say, because she thought it when she first saw him.

Jeez, what were they? They used to be a teen hot couple, the poster boy and poster girl for puppy-love… But here she was, a disgraced pop troll who couldn’t sing… and there he was. The hero and saviour of an entire village. 

It was more obvious to her now than it was to her than that him even noticing her at all was… nothing but a stroke of luck. A fluke. There he was, brilliant, important, in control… And then there was her. A total mess. A flop. She felt like an intruder in the village, and now, being face-to-face with JD only made things worse. In every other brother, she saw that past part of them she once knew, but with John, she felt like she was only reminded of her own insecurities, her own failings. 

She swerved past him, eyes firmly trained onto the ground.

“I’ll get out of your way, John,” She mumbled half-heartedly, trying to just put a miserable end to the conversation and stop her mind from attacking herself so loudly. But as soon as she started walking, she found herself unable to keep going. Locked around her arm was none other than JD’s hand. She glanced back, looking at him in confusion.

“Wait,” He started. “...Come over to my pod sometime. You, ah, need to update me more on how you’re settling in. Yes. As the village leader… it’s part of my responsibilities, y’know? So- don’t leave me hanging.”

Shimmer’s breath caught in her throat. She hated the idea of seeing him more, and yet, the fact that he had requested her presence specifically… It made her heart skip a beat. 

“...Sure, yes,” She replied quietly.

She expected John to let her go at this point, but he kinda just kept staring at her in silence for a while. Somehow, she found herself staring back.

“...I’ve missed you,” He confessed with a breathy whisper. 

Shimmer tried to muster back a reply, but words failed her. She tried again, and again-

“I didn’t even think that was possible,” She finally said back. 

[iknowshocker]

Do you believe kai is redeemable?

hi anon!

the short answer, in case it's all you'd like is: yes, 100%.

i either agree with or understand all of his choices, even the ones that suck. so in a lot of ways, to me, he never needed redemption.

the long answer, if you'd like to know why:

first i think i have to explain my general thoughts on kai as a whole, because some of my personal headcannons differ from others in the fandom.

i've never, not from the moment he showed up a feral little gremlin munching pork rinds in the prison world, considered him to be evil.

Kai lies/disregards things and masks 90% of the time, and yet he's always super open about what was done to him growing up. "they called me ____", "i remember them doing ____", etc. it would be super easy to paint his childhood any way he liked, and yet he doesn't. he knows what happened to him was wrong, and he's going to remind you every chance he gets.

i think he developed sociopathy as a coping mechanism after years of abuse and isolation. i headcannon that they were a homeschool family, which just furthers his lack of social interaction. if he was allowed/forced to help at all, it was doing the manual labor chores while Jo was the one handling anything that involved physical touch.

as an older sibling myself, him being the oldest boy specifically and the complexities around his feelings of wanting to protect them/being jealous/getting robbed of his birthright haunt me.

if you want to get into my true roman empire (those freaking christmas sweater photos) then i don't think he outright hated any of them growing up. sure, they were annoying and loud and sometimes sticky, but they were still his siblings. those feelings of resentment obviously grew stronger the sicker he became, but like, he never hurt anyone until he realized he was being lied to.

so i view the initial murders as a mental break, and i doubt he was in full control of himself at the time. if it was planned out, why didn't he drain someone's magic? killing them the human way is yes, a lot more personal, but it just doesn't make sense to me given his drive for magic based power. you'd think he'd want to go into the merge charged up, you know?

speaking of the og merge: did they expect him to just ... not ask about it and be cool with getting told no? like the fact that no one foresaw him lashing out so violently only proves to me that he wasn't *that* scary growing up. joshua probably had the ascendent prepped and ready to go, and he was just waiting for an outburst bad enough to use it. shame it took that, my guy. i feel we could have handled this whole thing a bit better.

i think kai was probably obsessively dedicated to his magical training leading up to 1994. i take "been practicing my whole life" very seriously, lol. he wanted to prove that he could do it, and prove the coven wrong for doubting him. i imagine him hoarding objects to drain and being super freaking annoyed that even Jo stops letting him borrow what he needs to just do basic work. we find out later that Valerie wore a necklace she could siphon from when she needed magic, and you're telling me no one thought of that in modern day?? enchant the beeper, for gods sake.

despite all that, he ended up being the strongest witch in TVD next to bonnie, and that was with him being mostly self taught. he's stupid good at voiceless magic, which i've always taken to mean he's a very instinctual wielder. he doesn't need the verbal spells, he's strong enough to just will the magic into listening.

"i had a soft spot for one of my sisters" and the repeated use of "sissy" for jo, make me wish we knew more about them as kids and how she let herself be turned against him. they have so much in common and such an obvious twin connection that lasts until the very last moment when he stabs himself and chooses to bleed out right beside her on the floor of the ruined church. Jo (and Bonnie) are the only people that seems to be able to get through to pre-merge kai. then post-merge kai is laser focused on making things up to them. i wish we saw more of him realizing he suddenly had a full range of emotion and what that did to him.

that sweet spot of post merge/pre 1903 prison world is the closest we come to kai's actual personality (imo). he's so shockingly, desperately earnest, while still being darkly funny and a little too aggressive. it's my favorite version of him.

those scenes show us the side of him that so obviously wants to be needed, even if it means hurting himself to be helpful. yes, luke is the reason why the emotions manifest, but luke is also not down for self sacrificing (ironic as hell, given his choice to merge). luke routinely tells the mfg to get fucked, so to say that he's the one making kai risk his life/the coven to help bonnie is just untrue. i think kai is trying to earn a spot in the group, and if they'd given him one, he would have been insanely useful.

like i said i think he masks 90% of the time, and the confidence that he shows is often hiding a huge insecurity over feeling like he's not good/strong/smart enough. there is always going to be a part of him that is still that scared little broken witch locked alone in his room, begging to be let out. i don't know how to view him as "hot bad boy who f*cks" because that's just not how i've ever seen him. don't get me wrong, i love those fics as much as anyone, but it's just not true Kai to me.

look i know some of you are like, hey op go back to when you said you agree with his choices, so here we go:

we know that the parker kids grew up being taught "coven over family", but what does that even look like inside the house? do they love each other but feel conflicted about it? is there constant fighting over who is closest to their parents? is it just anarchy? no matter what you think, it's clear they're all deeply traumatized.

kai has every right to be angry over the og merge, and lashing out makes complete sense. say it with me: murder is not okay BUT what better way to show joshua he's not messing around? if he's used to acting out for attention, what happens if he breaks something that can't be put back together this time? if they've been raised to think that family doesn't matter, why would any of them even care?

it's horrible, flawed logic, but it's there.

look me in the eyes and explain to me why it's okay when Daddy tries to kill you, but when it's your brother suddenly it's this big unforgivable crime, Jo. i'll wait.

Liv makes some of the most realistic decisions in the show to me, including the fact that she sides with Kai. unlike luke, she points out how they have every right to be mad at Jo. after sending Kai away, she abandoned them to an abusive father, (not to mention moved across the country with a new name to make it harder to ever find her!!) leaving them stuck fulfilling a merge that wasn't theirs to begin with. good for you for trying to get your brother on the throne livvie-poo 👏🏼 let him make the hard choices so you can run off with tyler and live in the woods 👏🏼

the parker's also make a lot of comments about how if kai is let out, he'll go full homicidal maniac and kill everyone just for fun. and yet, every murder we see him commit is a means to an end. again, in case you missed it the first time: murder is not okay BUT they act like he's some random spree killer when he's just ?? not ??

every murder/crime he commits has a clear reason, even if a lot of them are small/petty.

the taxi driver: he couldn't pay the fee

the random college kids: he needed to get into the hospital to see Jo

the grill manager: he was hungry, the guy was in his way, and elena was unconscious over his shoulder, lol

the coven murders/stabbing Jo: he needs to hold onto power, and they've given up on him yet again. at this point, let's just burn the whole thing and start over !!

there are so many characters in TVD that actually kill without reason, feeling, or second thought. (including enzo, bon-bon, so jot that down). while i'm not diminishing how violent kai can be, i certainly don't lump him in with characters like klaus or damon.

this is a slightly unpopular opinion especially amongst people that don't ship Bonkai, but i view everything done in the prison world as mutual retaliation. bonnie and kai are fighting. i'm not excusing his behavior anymore than i'm excusing hers, but she quite literally killed him not once but twice.

once they're both out she feels endless hatred towards him as a coping mechanism to give herself something to focus on so she doesn't break, and i wish !! so badly that it was used as a way to bond them. like who better to help her navigate violent magical outbursts then mr "killed half my family in a fit of jealous rage" himself?

we could have seen them grow together, navigating standing up for themselves in healthy ways and encouraging each others strengths, but no.

ill die on the hill that if bonnie knew what kai did on her birthday we wouldn't even be having this conversation, anon. I don't think he expected anyone to actually 100% forgive him, because at the end of the day he also knows he's made some huge mistakes/poor choices. but if specifically Jo or Bonnie had said something like "i see that you are trying" i think it would have been enough for him to stay on that path.

i don't think kai likes being the bad guy, its just another means to an end. if he can't get what he wants (or what he feels he deserves) by asking, he'll take it. and yes, showing off and being scary does give him some sort of thrill - but it's also the only way he can get them to look at him.

listen you don't even understand the things i would give to see him realize the heretics were once siphons. to realize they were geminis and that it's basically a coven gene !! to finally know he's not the only witch to be born like this !!

imagine getting to hear lily tell him there's nothing wrong with him ?? that she's sorry his parents kept the truth from him ?? that he didn't deserve the childhood he had but she's happy to help him now ?? i truly don't know if i could handle it.

kai is so completely desperate to be part of a group that it ends up blinding him and making him vulnerable to attack. i guess i just don't know how to see a character like that and not believe in them.

alright, as you can see, anon, im not great at short answers and i clearly think about him too much. it doesn't help that im currently working on a book series with an MC inspired by him 🙈 the brain rot is real and i fear it may never end. hope you enjoyed this ted talk tho!! thanks for being my first ask ✨

[aussie-the-hedgehog]

My Hero Academia - Chapter 425 Thoughts (Spoilers)

I'm surprised I haven't done a post like this for the previous chapters. It's always healthy to get my thoughts out through posts, so I might look to do it more often! Obviously I left the spoiler tag here, so if you don't want to know what happens, don't click it! Peruse at your own risk.

I was not expecting this chapter to jump so quick back to the academia portion of the series. I was thinking we would get another hospital chapter or two. I guess when Horikoshi said after 424, "We're going back to the title," he really meant it. I'm honestly glad for it given what we got in this chapter. I dearly missed the school shenanigans and character interaction. It hasn't been since before My Villain Academia we've seen it.

It was cool to start with the graduation ceremony involving Mirio, Nejire, and Tamaki. It was delayed because of this war, so it makes sense for Horikoshi to start with this.

The boys of U.A. lamenting Nejire's graduation will never not be funny.

It's cool to see Nejire grow into a social butterfly from not having friends due to her quirk. I do wish more was done with her character. She screams like a Starfire clone and could have had an arc similar to the TT03 iteration.

I enjoyed Mirio's speech. It captures the essence of his character and shows what he desires to do as a pro hero. Honoring Sir Nighteye with his motivations sounds like a good wrap up to his character arc.

I liked seeing Mawata being an outspoken leader in this chapter. I hope we find out what her quirk is before the series ends. I wish she was more fleshed out earlier on in the narrative, but I'm not losing sleep over it.

It's so refreshing to see the kids in class together again (now as 2-A). Like I alluded to before, it's been a very long time since we've seen the "Academia" side to this series. I love how Horikoshi is dedicating a solid amount of time returning to class shenanigans before he ends it.

I love the ending for Aoyama's arc. I had a feeling Tsukauchi would grant him the ability to return to U.A., but the twinkling hero wants to redeem himself on his own terms. For that, I deeply respect him.

Aoyama giving Izuku cheese as a parting gift was too pure. It made me tear up.

Shinso will be Aoyama's replacement! Obviously we knew Shinso would come to the hero course at some point since the end of the joint training arc. We only didn't know which class he would join. It makes sense for him to join 2-A given Aizawa is his mentor. Speaking of that..

Aizawa remaining their homeroom teacher was a great choice. U.A. is still not at normalcy (and may not for a long time). so it makes sense for 2-A to remain under his tutelage.

Mawata makes it clear the upperclassmen of U.A. will play a major role in helping rebuild hero society. It is not a huge surprise given Endeavor lost an arm, Hawks is quirkless, Mirko has one limb left, Jeanist is working through legal trouble, and Edgeshot gave himself to save Bakugo (not sure about Edgeshot's fate atm). U.A. is a beacon of hope for hero society now, so it is up to them to carry the mantel.

Ochako still being flustered by any mention of her speech is adorable (and totally something I would do).

Many are calling out Ochako for hating Izuku's "haircut," but she recognized very quickly it had to be shaved because of the damage he suffered against Shigaraki / All for One. She hopes she sees him with a full head of hair again. I don't see it as teasing or hating on him. Ochako has always been one of the more blunt characters in the series.

Tokoyami's reaction to his new hairdo is amazing.

Izuku's concerned face next to Ochako's laughter screams seeing through her facade. They are best friends. He knows when she's struggling. He can see through that laughter.

Horikoshi is definitely using this as foreshadowing to a conversation where they unleash their feelings on the war. It's obvious from this chapter and the last that they are mentally struggling. I believe this eventual conversation will end in a resolve they will look to change hero society for the better and confess their love for each other.

The mystery character is quite interesting. Is it Tenko? Izuku's father? Someone totally different? We'll have to wait and see.

Shoto is not in a great place either. He looks so exhausted from the panels he's in. At the end we find out why.

Endeavor potentially sitting in front of where Touya is being contained. He has probably visited him every day since he was put in there. He provided Rei with flowers often while she was in the hospital. It doesn't feel too different.

It will be an agonizing wait to see what happens next, but I will patiently wait. I'm very excited to see what Horikoshi does next. My prediction is 426 shows us Touya's fate.

I'm hoping in the ensuing chapters after 426 we get an Izuku and Ochako talk. I've had my anxieties about it not happening. Yet, with the buildup we've had and Ochako confessing her love for him to Toga, I can't help but feel it would be bad writing if it doesn't happen.

Honestly, if I think about it, Ochako is probably intertwining her confession to Izuku with her failure to save Toga since she confessed her feelings to the villain. There is definitely lots of emotional tension there. We'll see what happens!

[originalwinnercheesecake]

Hearing about the Hunger games continuation and thinking about all the Story continuations/prologues I wish we could get for The Underland Chronicles

Gregor's dad

I want To know what Gregor's dad (Who I want a name for... Steve, Lee, Heidi... What is his name? ) first trip to the underland was like. How was he found and brought to Regalia? We know he met Vikus and Luxa's Parents, SO what did he think of them? The Books say he stayed in Regila for two weeks (During which time he was very worried about his pregnant wife, children, and mother) and that he took a BB gun from the Museum. So I am guessing he knew about the war with the rats, but his family was in hell and he felt he had to get back soon. What happened during his capture.

I don't really want to know about his torturous time with the rats, but I would like some on how he was able to keep both hope and his humanity, the interesting relationship he is hinted to have had with Ripred in book 3 (He says Ripred used to feed him sometimes. He also was not scared of Ripred, Even though he was a rat and was "pretending" to attack his son). And lastly I want to know what coming home felt like for him and why, unlike his wife, the experiences did not make him fear or hate the underland.

Ripred

Speeking of Ripred I want All of his backstory, being a pup and growing up with his litter mates. Going into battle and finding out he is a Rager. How this made him famous all around the Underland, but also made him hated by enemies, and feared by allies, unless they needed him. What was going on when He tried to "Take over the fount with an army of Lobsters"? Seriously the Rat's don't even want The Fount. It is surrounded by rapids and sea monsters! What did was your interest Buddy?

Also I want to see his Mate, their family, and how their loss first broke him then made him change his stance on the war. Him building his relationship with the human side. Going up to the Overland to visit Libraries. His view of his relationships with Gregor and Lizzie and how it feels to him to being taking care of kids again after so long.

Hamnet

Up Next is Hamnet. Solovet and Vikus son, the beloved twin brother to the wife of the King/Queen, Brother in Law to the King (recently reread has me thinking they had more of a business relationship than a familiar one), the Regalian Army's most skilled soldier, and for a long time he was Solovet's heir to becoming captain of the Army, because everyone thought he was just like his mother. This is what everyone thought, but they thought wrong. Unlike Solovet Hamnet felt guilt. Guilt that drove him to speak against his mother in a war meeting to which she locked him in the dungeon for a month. When he was finally let out he went back to being obedient to her and buried his grief down, let it eat away at him, until one last horrible act (As a solider) destroyed him.

But give me Hamnet's complete story. Show him being a ruthless soldier and a fearsome killer on the field of battle, then coming home to be a loyal son, good friend, loving brother, and doting Uncle; becasue that is how many soldiers have to be. Show me him not being Okay but doing his best to hide that because that is all he could do. Then show me when everything went to far, and when he decided to leave Regalia, everything he knew and loved and run to a place that he and all his allies feared, for good reasons. Show me him missing his former friends and family. But also show me him meeting Frill and her deciding to take a chance and help him, him also taking chance and letting her (The books generally imply he wanted to leave his old life but did not expect to make anew one). Give me him learning about life in the jungle. How the animals there do not attack each other and instead employ a method of survival where first you hide, then you try to give a warning, then run. fight last. Show me him finding an overland women lost in the jungle and helping her. With the pair eventually forming a relationship and going on to have a child. Why did she never return to the Overland? Hamnet is a good father to Hazard, but you cannot tell me that he wasn't terrified during the entire pregnancy. Anything about Hamnet has to end where he ended. Having to once again fight in a pointless battle on behalf of Reglia, that the city once again brought on itself and got nothing out of. Our tragic beauty

Ares

Speaking again of Tragic Beauties I want Ares to. What kind of Stuff did he get up to to earn the reputation of a reckless, rule breaking, ...thrill seeker?...strength tester? To where he bonded with Henry to be able to get away with more. What were things like in the time HE and Henry were together. I don't think it was all bad. The Books clearly state that what hurt Luxa, Ares, Aurora, Nerissa the most was that they had loved Henry and could remember good things about him. Things that no longer felt the same after he betrayed them, and things they struggled with only becoming memories in the wake of his death. But the also show me his side of his and Gregor's bond, of him coming to love Gregor like he once loved Henry, and how their friendship helped him move on from the Trauma Henry put him through.

Nerrisa

This last one will never happen because its not really Susanna Collins style, but since none of this will happen, I want more Nerissa. What is it like for her loving her family and people so much, but knowing with her frailty and the Kingdom consistently being on the brink of war she cannot protect them. Show me what her visions are like for her. Note whatever we learned about Sandwhich I do believe Nerissa is an actual visionary. Her Visions of a bad and mysterious fate happening to Henry, Hamnet living for 10 years and building a diverse family, and Gregor being secretly being hidden away in the dungeon by Solovet...all came through.

Knowing that I have another question: Did she know suspect that Sandwhich was a fraud? Nerissa spends more time in the Prophecy room, analysis them than any other character. Many of the "misunderstood translations" are later "explained" by Nerissa. She got Gregor and the other questors off death row by replacing Boots with the Bane as the aforementioned "Baby" in the prohpecy and telling everyone: "they actually did complete the prophecy, you are are safe from the imaginary threats Sandwhich illueded to. Let them go and let's get back what's actually going wrong." When Greogor sobs about not understanding what the point of the journey to the jungle was (It had no point) and how him fulfilling the prophecy did not make everything better, Nerissa twist the prophecy to being about a war for the cure and reminds Gregor that because of what they discovered in the Jungle the council was forced to give the Gnawers the cure instead. Lastly she loves the one Prophecy that suggest hope for peace, even though its title is the only suggestion of it. On the day of the surrender she knowing her cousin will want to make the wrong choice about how to end this. So when she see's Ripred marked himself with an X (If Gregor and Luxa knew he did it himself there was no way Nerissa did not, she was always smarter than the pair of then) she decided to lend him a hand in getting everyone to believe he is the peacemaker, and they need to have peace. I really love the theory that Nerissa had realized what Sandwhich and the prophecies were and spent the books studying them, so she could try and mitigate the damages they caused.