#YOU CAN ALSO FIND SOME OF THESE PICTURES IN @ORION-DOES-THINGS!

[batsandcranes]

I’m doing quite well, thank you for asking and I love to see the photos you’ve taken.

It’s nice to see things that aren’t from the Tea Room! Living or photos! :D

-FA

YIPPE!

[dragonfly0808]

Sky: The Thesis

This has been the most difficult thesis for me to write, I just don’t always know how to explain just what I wanted to do with Sky and I really hope I did manage to properly convey this here

So, here goes nothing, also, MAYOR SPOILERS FOR A WHOLE LOT OF PLOT POINTS, DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN’T READ AT UP TILL S4 CH 22 IF YOU DON’T WANT SPOILERS FOR SKY’S CHARACTER

First Things First

From the very start I knew I wanted Sky to suffer. Just joking (kinda).

 I know that in the OG he could ocasionaly come across as insufferable and I really did not want that.

I chose to give Sky somewhat of a ‘sins of the father’ kinda narration. Sky bears the burden of his father’s crime. His main objective in life is to fix what his dad broke.

From a young age Sky realized that it would be up to him to save Eraklyon from his family line, a duty that he takes very seriously.

Sky has an absent mother and a father that never truly saw him, he saw the way his dad’s betrayl destroyed him and he is determined to never suffer the same fate.

Sky blames himself for pretty much everything in existence, a situation that is not helped either by the duty of acting as King since 15 and actually becoming King at 18 + all the stuff that has happened in the rewrite.

Sky’s main trait and his main objective revolve around redemption, at first, the redemption of his bloodline and of Eraklyon and, later on, his own redemption.

Tried to Bargain with the Stars for More Than Half Your Heart

Sky is stuck from a very young age in this in between place of being the son of destruction and the hope for redemption.

He is partially desperate to be seen as something more, as who he could have been if he’d been the son of anyone else, which is why, when he makes his first true friend (or more accurately his first friend with no royal ties), Brandon, he finds some solace

This is also part of the reason why the switcharoo happens. Yes, it happens mostly for safety reasons, but Sky does take the opportunity to know what it is like to be treated like anyone else

In S1 we see him with a lot of built up frustration over not being able to help his planet and being dismissed by his father, which eventually results in his falling out with Riven

Sky’s frustration is born from a helplessness, he’s not allowed to do anything for his planet nor for himself. The only way he’s told he can help his planet early on in the rewrite is by marrying Diaspro and giving up the chance to marry for love, which obviously causes a bit on anger and resentment which can explain (but not fully justify) some of his attitude in season 1

Sky wishes to be seen and loved for who he is and not ‘in spite’ of his family’s past crimes.

I Can Run But I Can’t Hide From my Family Line

Sky’s greatest fear is turning out like his father, being unable to escape the generational curse of cowardice and betrayl.

We see him at his lowest when Valtor curses him, causing him to undergo his greatest fear, being like his father.

Right before the curse, we see him prioritize Eraklyon and his friends, asking Diaspro to kill both him and his father to prevent any harm from being done if they are cursed, which Diaspro can’t go through with it

Sky has a love/hate relationship with his father, between everything that he did that Sky feels responsible for repairing and also the fact that, after betraying Domino, Erendor was never the same and simply not that great a father to Sky, he tried, but never enough

Sky desperately wants to see the man his father was before, the man who seemed so happy next to Orion and Radius in portraits and pictures, the man his generals have told stories about. But he never gets even a glimpse of who his dad was before, which just causes a bigger rift between the two

Erendor thinks there is nothing left for him, no redemption and no real hope for the future, he gives up, this in part, impacts Sky in the sense that, he is someone who will always cling on to the hope of redemption and who will never back down nor give up

Sky is absolutely determined to keep going, he’s not always sure how he’ll do it, but he knows what giving up does to a person and he doesn’t want that for himself.

Castles Crumbling (You Don’t Wanna Know me Now)

Season 4 Sky is in shambles but he will not let anyone see it.

As I’ve said before, Sky carries the weight of both things that he was responsible for and things that weren’t his fault with equal guilt

In S4, Sky struggles with the sense that he doesn’t deserve forgivness nor does he deserve help in his struggles or pain, his thought is ‘I caused them enough pain and troubles, I shouldn’t burden them with my pain’

Sky is low-key having a months long breakdown, no longer sure of who he is or who he will become, feeling partially isolated in the squad. Valtor took something from him, took his confidence that he would never be like his father, that he would never forget the mistakes of the past

Even if he was cursed and not fully in control, Sky doesn’t see it that way, he still sees everything he did while under the curse as his own failure and as a betrayl to both his friends and to himself since he’d always been adamant about promising himself to never be like his father

Everything that Sky truly has is himself. Eraklyon, the crown, all of that is an inheritance stained by his father’s past. The only thing to truly belong to himself is the determination to right past wrongs, and, by being forced into making choices more aligned with his father than with himself, it truly breaks a part of Sky

We’ll see in his arc in S4 that he is very haunted by the idea of his father and wondering what could have been if Erendor had been just a little bit different

I’m really excited to explore a bit more of his mentality and see how his view of himself slowly changes through the healing of a few of his relationships, specifically with Flora and Bloom

Sky embraces the weight of the crown and is, at his core a very selfless and guilt-ridden person. If he could have it his way, he’d study architecture and lead a quiet life, but he will never try to pursue that life until he feels he has achieved giving Eraklyon peace, and even then he’d probably still feel a sense of responsibility to stay on the throne to ensure peace remains

Thoughts Behind His Main Relationships

Brandon

Brandon is Sky’s very first non-royal friend, they meet at 13 and Sky feels like he can just breath around him, Brandon was the first person from Eraklyon Sky felt safe enough to let his guard down around and he really helped him in becoming a socially functioning person since up until then he really only knew how to interact at balls and formal events or with Stella

But Brandon doesn’t just give Sky a friend, but a whole family. Brandon has a huge heart and a big family, the second he realized that Sky’s family was not like his own, he made sure to integrate Sky into his family.

They see each other as siblings, Sky absolutely sees Brandon’s sisters as his own (especially Alexa) and Brandon’s parents are Sky’s parents. They give him a safe space and the kind of unconditional love Sky had never known

Brandon and Sky are both very dedicated and strong-willed, they push each other to be better and, one of Sky’s favorite things about Brandon is that he doesn’t care about Sky’s royal status, if Sky does something stupid, Brandon will let him know and will tease him

Their friendship is one of absolute trust and brotherhood. They see each other at their lowest and never think for even a second to leave each other

Sky is one of Brandon’s biggest supporter once he’s back in regaining movement in his hand and there is no one else he could even think of to be his right-hand man and be right there with him as he becomes King

And, while Brandon is partially impacted and saddened when he learns of Sky’s choices when cursed, he never doubts that it wasn’t technically Sky truly and knows he will forgive him, because that’s his brother.

They are brothers, they could destroy each other and they’d still love one another, they could end each other, they’d forgive one another. What other word could possibly describe their relationship?

Bloom

They are a friends to lovers situation. From the moment they meet they are quite soft with each other and I think it took them a second to develop a crush but it happened quite organically, nothing dramatic just being like ‘huh, everytime I see you I like you more and more and I’d like to get to know you even better’.

However, after Darkar and Valtor, their relationship is at a standstill. They both have too much on their minds and find themselves tortured by their own thoughts and weights far too heavy for their ages resting on their shoulders

I feel like Sky and Bloom’s relationship is a tragedy, but like, a tragedy because of the narration ya know? Like there are these two kids who for all intents and purposes would’ve known each other their whole lives if Domino hadn’t fallen. Who care about each other so much and just want to be there for each other but have also hurt each other (for Sky, it’s his bloodline that hurt Bloom, for Bloom, it’s the very loyalty that Sky loves that winds up hurting him when Bloom choses a side).

Their tragedy is one of; I love you so much but the universe keeps fucking us over and revealing things that make me wonder if we truly can love each other and be together without another wave of hurt falling upon us.

Their tragedy in s4 converts into one of; I love you but I don’t know if there is room in my mind for that love anymore. I love you but I’m not sure if I even know you anymore. I’ll always love you but I don’t know what to do with that love anymore.

Can two people grow apart and them grow closer once more? Can you forgive that it wasn’t you I hurt? Can you forgive the side I chose wasn’t yours? Can we be friends again? Can we try? Would you like to try?

Their love of each other is pure, it’s just a question of whether or not it can survive all the bullshit the universe keeps throwing at them.

Stella

Sky and Stella have known each other since birth. They’ve been best friends since they were less than two years old and have always had each other’s back.

One of the major changes I made to season 1 was having Stella know about the switcharoo between Sky and Brandon, mostly because, since she’s known Sky her whole life, they couldn’t really keep it a secret from her.

This formed a dynamic for the trio and made them the closest subunit in season 1 since they’ve known each other the longest.

Stella and Sky are two kids who bonded as kids but continued to deepen their bond as they both realized the weight on their shoulders due to being the future rulers of their respective planets.

These two are definetely siblings. They both had somewhat strict mothers so when together, they love to get to just be goofy teenagers. Their friendship is one of ‘We both have so much to do and a lot of weight on our shoulders but when we’re together we can let go and try to trip each other into a fountain for the fun of it and stick out our tongues just because we can and I know you’d never get mad at me over something like that. But you know that if you even need anything I will be right here and nothing will stop me from helping you.’

Stella utterly and fully believes in Sky, she sees right through him and is perhaps the only one who truly knows just how deeply Sky’s eternal guilt runs

Sky can see through Stella just the same, and for a long time, was the only one that was even aware of just how insecure Stella once was deep down

Who is Sky in this Rewrite?

Sky is a good man but a bad son.

Sky is a boy king bearing the weight of past crimes and sins and of his home planet on his shoulders.

He is a boy whose greatest fears came true and he cannot forgive himself for not being strong enough to prevent that from happening. To keep from betraying himself and everything he stands for.

Sky is someone who is ultimately selfless and with a well of guilt deep in his gut that sometimes won’t allow him to breath

Sky is someone who, in a short 3 years has kind of lost himself. He knows what he wishes his life were, he knows what his life must be, but he no longer knows quite who he is, if perhaps he was partially playing a role in fear of what would collapse if he were to stop

Sky is someone who is trying to not only be forgiven but also to forgive himself

Sky is someone determined to not repeat the mistakes of the past and someone determined to redeem his planet and himself

Sky is someone terrified of himself. Of who he could become if he were unable to run from his bloodline, if he is unable to keep himself from turning into his father

He is someone who feels like an outsider and an imposter within his own friend group. He was made into an outsider by circumstances out of his control but somehow, he is the one who keeps himself at the border, even when everyone else has begun to move on and forgive him

—————————

Masterlist

Sky Moodboard

Sky’s Instagram

Sky and Brandon Moodboard

Sky and Bloom Moodboard

Sky and Stella Moodboard

[kiame-sama]

I have a kinda wholesome request if you’re feeling up to it? How would your oc boys react after having a bad day seeing a cup of freshly brewed coffee plus cookies sitting at his desk? It also has a note that says “Hang in there! :)” from their lovely wife who was peacefully snoozing on the couch! I hope that would cheer up the oc boys!

Walter Woods;

- Walter has no idea what he did in his life to deserve you, but bless you and all you do for him. He can't put into words how much he adores you.

- Walter is a surgeon- one of the top surgeons in the country- and that means he literally holds lives in his hands. This puts some serious stress on the poor man and it isn't like the idea of having lives at stake puts him at any ease. Once he is out of one surgery, he is likely being called to the next. Some surgeries are routine and less than an hour, some take 12 hours or more to complete.

- Any ounce of kindness you give him means the world to him and he is so happy you think of him.

Evan Rothchester;

- Well, ain't you just the sweetest thing in the world? Evan finds it extremely endearing to find you thought of him and he will be joining you on the couch to cuddle and unwind.

- Evan lives with the constant threat of death always in the back of his mind and he can get fairly stressed with everything he has to deal with. The kindness you show him soothes him and truly gives him a genuine joy. He has always wanted a sweet lover to come back to at the end of the day and spend his evenings cuddling affectionately to unwind.

- Evan will be napping with you on the couch and he will be holding you tightly. If you wake up, he will hush you and tell you to go back to sleep while he holds you secure in his grasp.

Carlos Vargas;

- Carlos is ECSTATIC to see you were thinking of him. He will be taking pictures of you while you are asleep and he will coo over your sleeping form before he even touches the treats you give him.

- Odds are you are not alone on the couch and the ever loving house Serval- Mimis- will be lounging with you. Carlos thinks this is precious and will completely melt.

- He won't wake you, but he will sit and enjoy the coffee and cookies you prepared for him as he waits for you to wake up from your nap. The dogs will most likely wake you before he does, or the lions doing their afternoon roaring near sunset. He will greet you and kiss you affectionately when you do wake, thanking you for the kind gesture.

Jackson Locklear;

- He is going to cry happy tears. The kind of support and affection you give him will be enough to make him weep from joy at having you with him and caring so much about him. Truly, Jackson appreciates the gesture more than you will likely ever know.

- Jackson already holds you in very high regard because of you saving him from his loneliness and longing for a place in the world, he will only see the gesture as even more reason to obsess over you. He adores your kindness and he will savor every cookie and every sip of coffee he takes. If you ask, he will say he can taste the love you put into it in every morsel.

Orion Medici;

- Aww, Darling, how sweet of you! Orion is thrilled you took the time to think of him and prepare sweets for him, he finds it quite endearing.

- Orion was likely working on a new novel or editing chapters when his head started to hurt and his eyes began to strain. Stepping away when he is in full swing while writing is difficult for him, but if he knows you are ready and waiting for him to return he will likely be able to pull himself away faster. He thinks it is precious that you showed such thoughtful behavior towards him and took the time to do something nice for him.

Hahne Yamare;

- Wait... These are... For him?

- Hahne is used to being the one to do the nice things, not having nice things done for him. He will genuinely become a flustered mess when he sees the cute note and the prepared snack you placed for him. He thought it wasn't possible for him to adore you any more than he already did, yet here you were.

- Hahne appreciates the ever-living hell out of your sweet behavior and is thrilled that you think of him. He will try to repay the kindness however he can, even if it is something simple that helps you out.

[ladydaybreaker]

Some Friends to play with!

*cracks knuckles* Alrighty @jamieenthusiast you asked for it haha. So. The Ad Astra Kiddos would like to make some new friends. Let's start with the oldest and go down to the youngest (pick and choose at your leisure! I'll give le pictures from @officialarmrest for them.

Orion

Orion is the eldest of the Working Disassemblers, Uzi and N's son. He looks dead on like his father save for the fact that he dresses more akin to his mother (beanie with his daddy's pilot wings and a hoodie that looks like his mama's). The only difference between him and his father? Orion's got scars around his true eyes, wings and tail from...some things he really doesn't like to talk about. He also very rarely smiles, opting for his mother's resting look of annoyance and/or boredom. Orion's a bit...well, he's his mother's son. Let's just put it at that. He's a bit cold and standoffish (angsty teen energy) until you get to know him. In terms of lil' Mango? The second Orion finds out about the guitar he's sold. Orion's big into music and scavenged an acoustic guitar that his aunt Cyn taught him to play. He'd probably get right along playing with the lil guy and maybe even smile a little bit for the first time in a long time.

Victoria "Tori"

Queen Bee of the school and V and Thad's only child. When she's around her classmates and friends you can definitely see Thad's chill personality and V's sass...but around her family? That's where the sweet little manor maid V comes out full force. Tori is very much V's little doppleganger save for the fact she has very light colored blonde hair. She has her mother's vision glitch and does need glasses (they tend to slide down and she uses her tail to push them up). She's big into nature science and will go on for hours on some cool animal fact that she's found. She also loves flying and is one of the more graceful of the Fledgeling squad.

Astra

N and Uzi's youngest child and only daughter. Astra's a bit different than the rest of her squad...in that being she looks almost 1:1 like Uzi. However, like her brother, it's not all like her look alike parent. She's very bubbly, very excitable, and very much a people person (just like dad!) She loves shiny objects and her clothes and being as pristine and clean as possible. She's even made some of her own jewelry and clothes (She was given a coat like her dad's and a hat similar to her dad's pilot hat...her mom gave her a skull pin she found instead of the pilot wings because Orion took that. She has her mom's old combat boots though!). She has many many rings and bangles and necklaces on her person. Her pride and joys though are a pin of a vaguely earth-like planet encircled by stars and a crescent moon that her aunt J gave her and a crystal collar around her neck with a silver plate that reads 002. She adores her grandma Nori and wants to be just like her...even with adopting her hairstyle. I could definitely see her and Mango bonding over making jewelry (if Astra doesn't scare the poor kiddo away because of her bubbly nature).

Vesper

Finally, there's Vesper. Vesper is a bit of an odd duck but he's a sweet little gentleman. He might as well be, his mother's Cyn. Vesper is a small, young little worker who loves music and can sing like an absolute cherub. Perfect little southern gentleman with his bright blue eyes and freckle artifacts that are shadowed by curly white hair and an equally as white stetson that he may or may not have stolen from his Pa. One of Vesper's favorite things to do is play piano while his Ma plays her violin beside him...but he can and will pick up any instrument he's given and play the heck out of it as easy as breathing. He loves working with his cousin Orion because of that. He also loves penguins and if you get him started talking about penguins that boy will not stop.

Ya don't have to do anything with them if you don't want to, but I saw the chance for these four yahoos to make some friends and I leaped for it.

[missfrieden]

Tech as a father Chapter 51

Next one is a concept I did find endaring and deep. Especially given how protevtive Tech is of Orion.

Masterlist

Chapter 51: Seriously Wrecker?!

Back on Kamino, Wrecker for once was quiet, leaving the barracks more often, fingers and hands also bandaged when he returns. It is odd, but not entirely out of the norm. He could be working on breaking his record in disarming some explosives, faster than anyone else. Each one had own things to attend to. But Wrecker will soon be himself again.

Wrecker, in his boisterous and enthusiastic manner, proudly presented Orion, who sits in his father’s bunk, with a miniature play blaster that he had crafted with his own hands. The small, carefully designed replica mirrored the appearance of the squad's blasters but in a scaled-down form, tailored for the tiny hands of the now 22-week-old infant. The edges smoothed out, so Orion would not hurt himself. Tech, observing the scene unfold, couldn't help but feel a mix of emotions. While he appreciated Wrecker's intention to create something for Orion, he harboured concerns about introducing a blaster-themed toy to an infant, even if it was just a playful replica. He believed in fostering a sense of safety and steering clear of imitating weaponry, even in a light-hearted context.

Expressing his reservations, Tech calmly voiced his concern to Wrecker. "Wrecker, I understand your enthusiasm, but perhaps a different type of toy would be more suitable for Orion at this age? Something that doesn't involve imitating weaponry." Wrecker, puzzled but receptive, scratched his head and looked down at the miniature blaster. "But Tech, it's just for fun! Imagine the adorable pictures we could take when he's wearing his mini armour and holding this tiny blaster."

Tech, recognizing Wrecker's good intentions, sighed and relented. There is no way that Wrecker would give up. "Fine, Wrecker, but let's keep it limited to playtime at home. I'd prefer if we didn't encourage him to associate weaponry, even in play, outside of playtime." Or rather at no time at all. With a nod, Wrecker agreed to the compromise, understanding Tech's perspective on maintaining a balanced and safe environment for Orion. As the squad continued to navigate the unique dynamics of raising a child within their ranks, Tech remained vigilant about the influences and stimuli that surrounded his growing son, aiming to strike a delicate balance between fostering creativity and ensuring a secure and nurturing atmosphere. And Tech sadly is aware that Orion is surrounded by weapons more than a kid should, and he does not like it. But he can try to control it.

As the squad embarked on another mission, Tech, with practiced ease, had Orion securely nestled in his carrier, adorned in his miniature armour. The sight had become so familiar that the squad almost operated on autopilot when it came to accommodating their youngest member during missions. Like they did before Orion came along. Orion, now accustomed to the routine, observed the world around him with wide, curious eyes. The earplugs, designed to protect his sensitive ears from the loud noises associated with their missions, were a constant presence, creating a muffled soundscape for the infant.

However, Orion's attention was drawn to his father's blaster, holstered on Tech's side, as he was removed from the carrier for a moment, while Tech adjusts something on his boots. His tiny hands reached up as he leaned back against his father’s leg, attempting to grasp what he thought was his own toy blaster. A hint of confusion flickered across his expressive eyes as he squirmed and fussed, eager to explore the intriguing object. Tech, attuned to Orion's cues, adjusted his boot, and picks up Orion setting him on his leg to allow his son a better view. "Sorry, little trooper," he whispered, his gloved hand gently guiding Orion's hand away from the blaster. "That one's not a toy. This is daddy’s blaster. We'll get you something to play with when we're back on the ship."

The squad members, glancing over at the adorable interaction, couldn't help but smile at Orion's attempt to engage with the environment, albeit mistaking a real blaster for his plaything. Wrecker, always quick with a joke, chuckled and remarked, "Looks like he's eager to join the ranks." Tech, maintaining his focus on both his son and the mission at hand, replied with a wry smile, "He'll have plenty of time for that when he's older." And Tech rather not have that happen, like never.

As the squad proceeded with their mission, Orion, still in his miniature armour, continued to observe the world with wide-eyed wonder, a tiny trooper in the making, experiencing the intricacies of the galaxy from the safety of his father's care. Grabbing, tugging and pulling on Tech’s armour and the straps he can reach.

Wrecker, having noticed Orion's interest in his father's blaster, decided to play a small prank on Tech. As he walked past his brother, placing a Hand on Tech’s shoulder as he passes him, he subtly nudged the small toy blaster he had grabbed earlier from where Tech placed it, allowing it to slip from his grasp and fall between Orion and Tech in the carrier. Tech, engrossed in monitoring their surroundings and ensuring Orion's comfort, remained unaware of the playful interference. Wrecker, suppressing a grin, continued on with the mission, leaving the little surprise for Tech and Orion to discover.

Orion, still fidgeting and reaching for anything on Tech and his grasp, now found an unexpected, miniature version of the blaster within his reach. His tiny fingers grasped the toy blaster, and he examined it with fascination. The squad members, catching on to Wrecker's prank, exchanged amused glances. Tech, finally noticing the added item in Orion's hands, raised an eyebrow in mild surprise. He carefully took the toy blaster from his son's grip, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Looks like Uncle Wrecker had something to do with this," Tech mused, glancing in the direction of his mischievous brother. Orion ready to have a tantrum as his toy got taken away smacks his tiny fists against Tech’s chest plate.

Wrecker, now a few steps ahead, turned around with an innocent expression, feigning ignorance. "What? I didn't do anything, Orion geared up with all of us." he replied with a playful grin, earning a few chuckles from the rest of the squad. Tech shook his head, amused by the unexpected addition to their mission gear. Securing the toy blaster within reach for Orion, quickly pulling a stable string from one of his pockets and attaching it, he continued with the squad, the incident serving as a light-hearted moment in the midst of their responsibilities.

As Orion gleefully played with the toy blaster, bouncing slightly in the carrier, Tech couldn't help but acknowledge the inevitability of his son's fascination with blasters. Growing up surrounded by clones and the weaponry commonly used by the Republic, it was only natural that Orion would show interest in such objects. Tech observed Orion's animated exploration of the miniature blaster with a mixture of parental amusement and a touch of contemplation. The realization that Orion's early exposure to military equipment might shape his future preferences crossed Tech's mind. He made a mental note to maintain a balance between fostering Orion's curiosity and ensuring a safe environment. Even if Orion at the moment finds it more fascinating to try and put it in his mouth, stopped by the helmet. And even if he manages to push it slightly off his head, Tech is quick in securing it back in place.

The squad, witnessing this endearing scene, shared approving glances. Wrecker, still revelling in the success of his playful prank, threw a light-hearted comment Tech's way. "Looks like we've got a future sharpshooter in the making." “We will see” Crosshair remarks from behind, glad his helmet covered the proud grin of an uncle, who already tried to make his nephew hold a rattle like a rifle. “Afraid he will be better?” Wrecker looks over his shoulder to Crosshair. “Never, not to brag, but even if he shows talent, he could never beat me unless I break a hand” Crosshair retorts sarcastically and shakes his head.

Tech chuckled, acknowledging the truth in Wrecker's jest and enjoying his brother’s banter. While he recognized the importance of raising Orion in an environment that prepared him for the realities of their galaxy, he also understood the significance of preserving the innocence of his early years. With the toy blaster serving as a symbolic representation of Orion's growing awareness of his surroundings, the squad continued their mission, watching over their youngest member as he happily engaged with the miniature version of a tool that had become an integral part of their lives.

Orion's small, gloved hands explored the exposed skin on Tech's neck, a subtle awareness guiding the infant to seek the connection that went beyond the confines of armour. Tech, accustomed to the tactile nature of his son's exploration, felt a warm sense of connection with each touch. The squad, while focused on their mission, occasionally stole glances at the endearing interaction between father and son, a habit which formed since the little one joined their missions, and if one would ask them, their answer would be they just check if Orion is safe. The tiny blaster, momentarily forgotten, lay between Orion and Tech's chest as the infant discovered the sensation of his father's skin. The glimpse he is able to spot when his father is all geared up.

Tech, despite his analytical mind, couldn't help but appreciate the simplicity and purity of these moments. The touch of his son's fingers, the softness of his gloves against bare skin, it was a reminder that amidst the complexities of their lives, there existed a bond that transcended technology and war. As Orion continued to explore, his father's attention divided between the mission at hand and the precious connection with his son. The squad, silently acknowledging the significance of these seemingly ordinary yet profoundly meaningful moments, carried on with their duty, guarding the future sharpshooter in the making.

Amidst the blaster fire and echoes of combat, Orion, nestled securely in his carrier against Tech's chest, gleefully mimicked the sounds of explosions. His tiny hands wielded the miniature blaster with an enthusiasm that matched the squad's firepower against the clankers. Each playful 'boom' echoed against his father's chest plate, a harmonious blend of innocence in the midst of battle. Tech, focused on his tactical analysis and managing the squad's movements, couldn't suppress a subtle smile at his son's spirited imitation. The juxtaposition of war and the joyous sound of Orion's playful 'booms' served as a reminder of the duality inherent in their lives.

The squad, familiar with the unique dynamics of having Orion on the field, appreciated the light-hearted moments that punctuated the severity of their missions. Wrecker, in his typical fashion, chuckled at Orion's antics, while Hunter maintained a watchful eye on the squad's newest member. As the skirmish continued, Orion's 'booms' became a sort of rhythmic accompaniment to the sounds of blaster fire, adding an unexpected touch of levity to the battle. The squad, with their enhanced senses and keen instincts, navigated the chaos, cherishing the camaraderie that included an infant's playful rendition of war.

In a brief pause between blaster shots, Tech's gloved fingers delicately ensured that the tiny earplugs nestled in Orion's ears remained securely in place. Despite the chaos of the battlefield, Tech's attention to detail extended to the well-being of his son, ensuring that the protective measures in place shielded Orion from the deafening sounds of combat. Orion, seemingly aware of his father's care, gurgled happily, blissfully unaffected by the external turmoil. The small act of checking the earplugs became a routine, a quiet interlude within the larger symphony of battle.

The squad, accustomed to Tech's meticulous nature, acknowledged the significance of these seemingly mundane moments. It underscored the balancing act Tech navigated, juggling the demands of a soldier's duty with the responsibilities of fatherhood. As the skirmish resumed, Tech, with Orion secured against his chest, seamlessly transitioned back into the tactical intricacies of the mission, his parental instincts seamlessly integrated into the rhythm of the battlefield. Ready to end another successful mission.

Later Tech, with a deliberate precision that mirrored his strategic mind, stowed the toy blaster in his locker. The small space, now temporarily housing the remnants of battle gear and the cherished memento of a miniature blaster, held a sense of order. The space where Tech will store the small armour of his son later, now also having an eerily realistic looking toy blaster there.

This compartment, designated for special occasions, became a symbolic space, a realm where the lines between the responsibilities of a soldier and the joys of fatherhood intersected. Tech, ever mindful and aware of the delicate balance he maintained, intended to impart to Orion the significance of the blaster as a tool used only in specific circumstances. Deciding he is now only allowed it on missions too. The act of stowing away the toy blaster wasn't just about safeguarding a cherished plaything; it was a silent commitment to fostering a deep understanding in his son. The ritualized nature of retrieving the blaster before a mission would underscore its unique purpose, a lesson carefully woven into the fabric of Orion's early experiences.

As the locker closed, securing the miniature blaster within, Tech's thoughts briefly lingered on the duality of his roles, soldier and father. The compartment held not just a toy but a testament to the intricate dance he performed, navigating the responsibilities of duty and the warmth of parenthood in a galaxy rife with challenges. And Tech makes the decision not to inform Amanda about Orion’s latest toy. As he is sure, she would take the next ship, find him and give him a piece of her mind. Worst case in that hypothetical scenario, she takes Orion and takes him with her, everything else seems less daunting.

Chapter 52

Reblogs are very welcome and I am open for feedback, as english is not my first language, so maybe my sentences may be weird sometimes, or I write a word wrong even with google, or I use a wrong word for an item.

Tag: @spectacular-skywalker @aalizazareth @neyswxrld @clonethirstingisreal @sleepycreativewriter @moonwreckd @sskim-milkk

Any input on length? Longer or keeping it at what I planned? Like putting two as one? Or would that be to much in the end?

[birlwrites]

Hello! I'm still vaguely bouncing off the walls because music(!!!).

"but for me singing is much more about technique/performance than it is about songwriting. it probably creeps out in my writing in how i talk about things like breathing, but they occupy very different parts of my brain"- birl

Breathing patterns definitely feature in your texts as of notice. Other characters certifiably breath and vary their tone of voice! It's on Regulus' radar even! Clothes are not, people are sometimes faceless indistinct voiceboxes to Regulus measure purely in proximity to himself and what he thinks of that (people and Evan and Barty and Sirius that is, but Evan particularly gets the full picture of himself picked up on, he should be honoured).

In ATFHV/TTDL specifically, or else just close to the original setting, so discounting your two separate music-centred aus, who actually plays an instrument/cares about music/sings (to whatever level of expertise you want to specify).

I seem to recall Evan probably does as a Rosier(TM) necessity to perform but nothing else off the top of my head. I know none of them have a toad that would allow them to participate in that particular interspecies choir.

Feel free to take your time, of course, I'm simply curious.

western classical singing is really about a balance of physical tension and relaxation designed to make a lot of stuff happen while also making it look very easy/unstrained and that's regulus all over tbh

one of the things that i find so funny is the idea of sirius being. an incredibly annoyingly loud child. will never shut the fuck up. rules-lawyers everything within an inch of its life. all his games he made up involve destruction/yelling/crashing. this means i think he definitely learned violin when he was little and was So Bad At It that orion and walburga quietly changed their minds about that one

just like. HORRIBLE SCREECHING NOISES FROM SIRIUS'S ROOM AT THREE IN THE MORNING

sirius: *was so bad at violin that his parents didn't even try to get his younger brother to learn an instrument*

the rosiers are more ~patrons~ of musicians than they are musicians themselves - evan can plunk out some simple tunes on a keyboard, but he didn't really formally study piano. he can talk a lot about performance and interpretation though

i have a whole roster of people in the hogwarts choir but none of our important characters are in it afjlshgjkjf

my brain is vibrating re this topic but i'm also sleepy aghlkshgkjsdf i may have more thoughts later but i shall post this as primary thoughts!!

[topaztimes]

Orion

Orion is also known as Blue Yellow. When Invictians encounter him, they recite his titles: Orion, Leon, Topaz, Szard, Adam, Creator of Man, Origin of Free Will, Successor of the 5th, Visage of J, Lover of Triangles, Mother Satan. Which is a lot of names for a handsome kitty! It also mortifies him every time someone does recite his titles because it wasn't him who made it 'polite' to do so -- that was Void, and Orion isn't exactly Void's biggest fan. Therefore, if you begin to bow and recite, he will quickly ask you to stop and possibly disappear on you before you can ask why. Anyways: Orion is a godcub, which means that he is only part of his complete spirit. The rest of his spirit stays in the aptly named 1st reality -- the Reality of Spirits. The part of his spirit (usually about 2%) that gets reincarnated on various planets in the 2nd often start life without remembering anything about who they once were. Therefore, Orion is the collective name for Blue Yellow, but the reincarnated godcubs acquire different names over their lifetimes. Now, onto who he is as a creature! Being a major spirit, Orion has no problems with morality or mortality. If he wants to kill, he will, as he knows that anything that happens is part of the TBC's design. If he wants to bring someone back from the brink of death, he knows the same thing. Overall, this makes him an aloof and distant person, generally preferring to stay to himself and catch up on what new professions or educational routes has been implemented since the last time he visited the 2nd. When on Earth, he generally gravitates towards teaching in secondary schools -- although, this is always before remembering who he was. When reincarnated, as human or otherwise, he will always begin to remember the Invictian World Model. Usually, it starts as a childhood game -- 'Let's play being dragons!' -- but quickly devolves into something that would be diagnosed as delusions and schizophrenia. He will never be certain of what he is, and where he places in the world unfolding in his head -- never be sure if what he thinks is real, or if they genuinely are delusions. "What lies after death?" he'll ask the moon. "You'll have to find that out yourself. I've never died before," she'd answer, but always in his head. Therefore, he has no way of knowing if it was a real response or fanciful thinking. He'll quickly stop asking questions to the moon once he realises that she is his first daughter. Remembering who he is... is always very painful. The return of his magic happens at the same time, hence the agony -- a mortal vessel can only just about hold 2% of his spirit, and goes through multiple forced mutilations to hold the 15% needed to wield magic. Therefore, he is unhappy and quite bored. When human, he struggles massively with understanding his instincts and emotions. He often wishes he couldn't feel at all. Anyways... have some more drawings of him! His defence mechanism when he's uncomfortable is to send out good vibes. Here's a diagram:

The tiniest guy. This is my ArtFight profile picture lol (look closely and you can see his ring! It always covers his left eye)

A sweet little guy!

And uhm yea. He also technically is Drago. You'll get it eventually.

[ashes-writing]

filth alphabet | jimmy darling ; ahs freak show

taglist babes || req rules / fandoms+characters || send ?s || masterlist

For the lovely anon who sent both names to me yesterday in case I didn't write for one or the other. Hey sweetheart, I did promise you this. I hope you're out there and you see this and enjoy it? I love this man, your honor.

Warnings;

Minors, I think the entire fuck not. This content is for 18+ only. breeding kink, hosiery kink, choking/biting/marking/hairpulling - rough sex, body fluids, dick size, aftercare, d*ddy kink, praise kink, nipple play, spanking, overstimulation, orgasm control/denial, underwear, the usual stuff you find on one of these tbh.

Taglist:

@krys-orion and @sporadiccherryblossomgladiator are the only people on my american horror story taglist. If you'd like to be on it, click the little link up top.

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

... he loves to hold you, play with your hair, talk to you in this soft and whispery voice while he's kissing you. He will baby the hell out of you, especially if he got a little rough. He's so good at taking care of you and it's all the time, not just during or post sex..

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

Legs. This man loves legs. And lips. But he really loves eyes? Eyes are the first thing he notices on a girl and they'll sucker him in every single time.

His favorite body part on himself is also the part he wishes were normal. Hands. Because he's had them for so long he can do anything that a normal guy would -and in the case of using them to get you off, a thousand times better, but... He loves and hates them.

C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)

.... he loves to cum inside you, ugh. If he's not cumming inside you, he'll cum on your stomach, ass, tits.. When he cums, it's a lot and it's hard. You will be leaking when he's gotten off and sometimes, when he sees it, he'll fuck it back into you or push it back in with his fingers. He loves to kiss you after oral (when you're giving to each other 69) because he loves the way you taste mixed with him.

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

... doesn't really have one. he strikes me as another open book.

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

... He is very, very experienced. Very.

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

Edge of the bed, your legs on his shoulders, him standing. Missionary. Cowgirl.

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

... He's more serious than anything, to be honest. He can be goofy, he's just not typically goofy in bed unless it's a rare moment.

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

... He's clean down there but it's hairy. I feel like he dyes his hair the shade of brown it is, idk why, but anyway. The hair down there is darker, coarse curls. He keeps himself spotless clean, but he doesn't like.. groom it that much.

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

... he's so intimate. so intimate. even when he knows it's just a money for sex exchange, he can't help it, some part of him like.. gets attached briefly. He's constantly kissing and touching you, praising you and making sure you're okay, that he's doing good enough, that he's pleasing you. And it's so sweet.

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

... he's got a dirty picture or two of you (taken at the carnival's photo booth) and those are literally all he needs to jack it if you're not around. He keeps these photos in his overalls or tucked into a mirror in his little trailer, btw. He loves to masturbate together, he loves to watch you get yourself off while he gets himself off.

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

hosiery, listen he fucking loves thigh highs with the lil fancy lace straps. I mean he's got brute strength enough to rip 'em right off but anyway, nipples / nipple play -he loves to bite, lick, suck and fondle your breasts because it gets him hard when he sees the way they stand up, poke through your little lingerie or slips or whatever, orgasm control, breeding kink -this man wants a family, marking/biting/choking/hair pulling, soft!Dom, praise kink -giving and getting, body worship -this man will go on for hours about your body, dominance kink -call him sir or daddy. see what the hell happens, i dare you oh my god., food play, underwear -he's stolen so damn many pairs of your panties..

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

... Anywhere, to be perfectly honest. Just not right out in public, god knows he gets watched enough when he's performing in the show. I feel like he's the kind of guy who will absolutely rail you on the kitchen counter or against your closed front door or a wall.

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

... kissing his neck. Drag your tongue over the outline of your lips -or his. Your hand against his chest, clutching at his shirt. playing with your hair, biting your lips, grinding his lap or riding his thigh, snuggling yourself against him -do anything that makes him feel like the strong and protective man he is, ugh, fuck...

N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

... Sharing you, esp if he really loves you. He's not fond of bondage after the hands incident, he hates anything to do with piss or shit, he's not into people watching, either.

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

... He prefers to get, but he loves to give 'em too and whew, listen.. If you think his fucking hands are magic.. That tongue, holy shit. He knows exactly how to work his tongue and fingers?hands? to get you screaming and shaking. He is a messy, messy boy though. Because he really does enjoy giving, so he's just going to town with it, the most lewd -and hot sounds, saliva, your juices, ugh, fuck. And I'm down bad again, your honor.

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

... Typically, he's fast and rough -esp if it's a situation like I wrote down in the q answer. But if he's really in love with someone and he has limitless time oh my god. This man will make it last all night, he is huuuuge into teasing and foreplay and he tries to get you off as many times as he can before he ever gets inside you because it's the one way he really knows how to show love.. with his body..

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

... Jimmy will take sex however he can get it. If a quickie is all that's offered, he's taking that quickie. They happen a lot too, because girls will call him over -if he's not with someone, and then he'll have to rush through the act because their husbands will be due home in less than an hour...

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

... He loves risks, are you kidding me? Will screw you in an alley up against a wall if you're into it and the mood hits to do so. Now, experimentation, I feel like he's got mixed feelings. Depends on what it is, tbh.

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

Two rounds, tops. Has to rest up between 'em too. Those two rounds last so long though, especially with all the teasing and overstim.

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)

... His hands. His hands are his toys. If his hands, mouth and cock don't get the job done, why are you even around him?

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

... He loves to tease, mostly because he feels like it'll go no further than teasing because of his hands. Women tend to run for the hills when he takes the gloves off. Which is dumb, but anyway.. He teases so much, holy shit. He likes to try to break 'em before they bolt?

... in the case of a lover, he teases because he's horny, he wants your attention and he needs to be inside of you. Still a constant tease, only this time around it's because he's in l-o-v-e with you entirely and he just can't get enough of you.

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

Jimmy's laughing quietly against your tits neck and ears, whispered praises against your skin, groans and grunts and the occasional slightly louder growl. Lots of swearing under his breath, lots of telling him he loves you -particularly if you're with him with him and this isn't just a tryst or paid action he's taken to make side money. He's quieter, but he's not silent.

W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)

... I lowkey feel like he was/is touch starved, but his is totally different from the norm? Like.. most people it's haven't been touched at all and they go feral. Jimmy, it's hasn't been touched intimately by a person who actually loves him and isn't using him for his hands or cock and isn't family. I feel like even as a child, Ethel wasn't the most physically affectionate parent? So.. yeah. The first time he's with someone and they touch him intimately and he knows that they love him as much as he loves them, whew boyyy.. He will go absolutely off the rails and he won't be able to stop touching you.

X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)

... Slightly above average girth but average length. I feel like he knows how to work with it though and personally on my end, the verdict is still out on whether he's cut or not. I feel like he might not be, a lot of men probably weren't back then, but anyway. The tip is reddish pink and he has a thick vein down one side of his cock. When he first pushes into you, it will burn because he's just slightly above average in girth.

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

Hiiiigh, oh my god. But here's the thing... Jimmy can absolutely ignore it if there's nobody he's pulled to or attracted to present. So it's there, but he kinda ignores it.

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

... he takes longer to fall asleep. likes to lie awake holding you and talk for a little while. Or you hum to him and play with his hair, he loves that. But it takes a little while for him to fall asleep after it's over because he likes to bask in the afterglow.

[kryptonitecore]

Re-Read: Autocracy, #1-12

Okay, how to respond to Autocracy… I will admit this is one of those books I had never read before. It’s a lot and I’m finding it quite difficult to decide whether I like it or not.

Ramondelli’s art works quite well here, with some shots being atmospheric, and I’ve always liked how he draws winged characters. The darkness and scale of his art suits the tone of the story, as I think this amps up the edge more than the previous instalments, and we see far more places. I also think this book does a more effective job of establishing the scale of the pre-war conflicts, especially recognising just how much of the population is ‘neutral’. The pace also means that there is always movement, without necessarily being frantic - the 12 issues gave this book more room to breathe.

It’s interesting character-wise for Hot Rod/Rodimus, though I’m going to have to keep an eye on how this is integrated going forward. His approach to leadership earlier on in the book, an opposition to ‘big picture’ idealism of the kinds practiced by Megatron and Optimus, is rather interesting - though that seems to drop off towards the end, as he falls in line with Optimus more. Starscream’s growing irritation with Megatron is a sudden jump from Origin, but also makes quite a lot of sense, as this is a fairly self-indulgent version of Megatron.

Some of the continuity issues were there even for me, though, and that’s with a fairly incomplete knowledge of the continuity. The little thing is Springer knocking about pre-war, but I think Roche’s Sins of the Wreckers backstory came later, so that’s not avoidable. No, the big thing is Starscream being a Senate delegate despite the… events of Megatron: Origin, which is very jarring. I think that could have done with a bit more explaining, also just when Starscream got into politics, as I don’t remember that coming up previously? (I’m starting to realise how little concrete backstory I have even for some relatively major characters…). I can probably find in-story reasons to justify it if I reach hard enough, but it would be difficult and I suspect it was just a miscalculation.

Speaking of characters, this book is a mixed bag. You get a lot of characters, but on the other hand if you were hoping for gradual character arcs happening on page, then this is not the story for you. By the time this book gets going both Megatron and Zeta Prime have gone off the deep end and Orion Pax is most of the way there, too. This is particularly bad for Megatron and Zeta in the sense that it cuts short the time they get to be more grounded characters, which could have been narratively valuable. Rodimus’ characterisation is interesting, but I also went back and forth about whether it’s going to add texture as my re-read goes or, or whether this is a characterisation that was largely dropped by later writers. In a way, it felt like I was reading a character who was already at the end of a character arc that we didn’t get to see.

This comic fell off for me towards the end, especially when the Matrix reappeared. I have very mixed feelings about the Matrix in IDW1, which might become a bit of a theme... The book shifted from the rather edgy tone it had earlier to go more optimistic (?), which I found a bit jarring. The jump from early story Orion Pax to Optimus Prime thinking it’s a good idea to line up all of Megatron’s challengers in a tightly-knit column outside the defended walls of Megatron’s new base, seemingly because of the symbolic value of those panels rather than any in-story decision, was weird, not simply because it makes the Autobots look silly, but also because it’s like I could feel the author’s hand trying to pull me towards a more hopeful version of the narrative. 

My feelings are still mixed, but it was certainly interesting. Spotlight: Wheelie comes next, and I think I I remember it being in rhyme?

[grappel-writes]

Part 2 of Orion as a companion: approval/disapproval, how to make him leave the party, recruiting/dismissing, and some unique dialogue from interacting with the story.

Approves:

Political maneuvering. An alliance now, a betrayal later. Helping someone not necessarily out of the goodness of your heart, but because they could potentially help you later. Playing a situation to your advantage. This can be influenced as you guide him, to either use that sort of maneuvering for good for others, or to use it exclusively for selfish means.

Taking a moment to have fun. Orion comes from a life of leisure, and treasures his free time. Throw the ball for scratch, humor a kid, get on a stage, tell a bad joke. This world sucks, and finding the fun in it is the only thing that makes it worth living. He'll also approve if you send him on stage with Dribbles.

Succeed medical checks: help the paralyzed gnome, resurrect Gale according to his instructions, fix the owlbear cub's hurt paw. He admires healers, and any successful attempt at aiding another will win his approval.

For his personal quest, encourage him to follow what he actually wants to do, and not what he feels he should do. There are a lot of influences and responsibility put on him in his story that he can step up and handle - it's up to you to decide if he should or not though. Let him live his own life, and he'll appreciate it.

Disapproves:

Doom and gloom responses: pessimism and a defeatist attitude won't get you far with him. Between his unwavering optimism and sense of invincibility, he only sees this as a waste of time.

Encouraging him to do the right or responsible thing with no justification. He'll do it - but needs to be given a reason. Good leaders always explain why, draw the full picture, and demanding his support or obedience for no reason other than "because I said so" will piss him off.

Stealing the Blood of Lathander, or anything else that mocks, desecrates, or belittles a religious practice. While he doesn't consider himself to be a good representation of the faithful, he respects those that are.

Trying and failing to get him to accept the tadpole's powers. Similar to how Karlach and Wyll feel, Orion doesn't trust these things one bit. He could care less about the powers they provide, he's sure he's strong enough without them.

Evil aligned decisions in general: jumping to kill, being cruel, many Durge exclusive options all fall under this. When asked, he explains that he doesn't mind being self serving, but does it always have to involve mindless violence and gore? Surely all those people would be more valuable alive? (Bonus: he really dislikes grossness. He'll disapprove of touching slimy things, dumping blood on him, and complain loudly the entire time they're in the sewers.)

Can he be made to leave the party?

Yes, but not right away. Even with very low approval, he won't leave until the beginning of Act III. Once you're at Wyrm's Crossing, you'll find a note in your camp (like Arabella's and Volo's) explaining that he's gone ahead and gone home. Please, don't follow him, and no he won't be giving you the address. Like a good politician, he used your party and resources to get him this far despite how he feels about you, and now that he doesn't need you anymore, he's gone.

Durge specific: "I don't know what you are or what you're trying to do anymore. I thought we had a plan, an idea to save ourselves, but you've been sidetracked by bathing in blood. Best of luck with whatever game you're playing with the dead three, but I'll go it my own from here. For your sake, I hope we don't run into each other again." Additionally, during his storyline, if you kill his brother when he appears in Act III (either just to see if you can or to remove him as a political opponent), he'll leave your party. Defeated and broken, he'll tell you to finish your journey on your own, and if you ever cross paths again, one of you isn't walking away from the encounter.

Recruiting/Dismissing Lines

>Come with me, I've got people for you to hit. "I love when you say that. Ready when you are, just point and say march." >I need you to stay in camp. "Ah, sending me back to guard our friends and valuables? >I am. "I'm honored you trust me with that. I'll see you there." >Actually, never mind. Stay with me. "Of course, you're probably carrying all the good stuff anyway." Unique Dialogue Reactions (For Now) If you steal the blood of Lathander: He'll look genuinely sad for the first time at this point in the game. "Well... that's. I don't even know what that is. Probably the worst thing I've ever done, is what that is. I always did wonder if praying did me any good, now I know for sure it won't. No coming back from this one. Whoever holds my soul now, I just hope the take mercy on me." Trying to force through his sadness, putting on a smile. "But the mace is a sight to behold. I'm glad I get to see it up close like this."

After killing Minthara: "Just dead weight in fancy armor... I can't stand her type, you know. You're only as good as the men you lead, and acting like you're above them, not willing to get on the ground floor and help them when they need you... Well. Not like she did anything more than hide in the shadows anyway. No one's going to miss her."

Finding Volo: "Volothamp? The Volothamp! Oh-ho! I would throttle you if I wasn't raised better than that! I had to read every single one of your rambling tomes! So many lost hours to the most menial, and dubious, details!" laughs, taps his chest with a fist, he's in disbelief that he's meeting his childhood tormentor. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sorry it isn't under better terms."

Saving Oskar: "Do we really think he's going to make it on the road by himself? I guess if we see a trail of canvases, mediocre portraits, and paint we'll know where to find his body, at least. Do you think his patron would want him delivered if he were dead?"

The Reveal of the Emperor: "I feel... dirty. All this time, he was under our skin, swaying us and telling us everything we wanted to hear. All for his own benefit. I go back to what I said when we thought he was just a friendly guardian: I don't trust it. I don't like it. And we don't need him."

Gortash's Inauguration: "I heard about the Steel Watch, but never knew it would get this big this quickly. I know my father voted in favor of it, and knew I usually disagreed with the things he supported, but this is a new level of disgusting. Whether it happens amongst the patriars, or at the end of my blade, we have to see this taken down."

Saving the Duke: "Duke Ravenguard, pleasure to finally meet you. And save you. No worries - I won't cash in this favor until you're well and recovered, and the city doesn't have the looming threat of destruction hanging over it anymore."

[justsomeectoplasm]

I've moved him away from being a sky oc because. Reasons. But he originated as a sky oc and I think he qualifies here <3 his name is Orion, he uses he/vey pronouns (vey/vem/veirs etc.) and vey're. A bit stuffy and have a Better Than You attitude towards a lot of other ppl. He doesn't rlly care to put in the effort to be nice especially if the other person approached him first,, when vey were a moth vey got hit by a krill and he lost his memories of everything that had happened to him before, including his name + friends + such,,, vey work as a historian in the vault now. He can't speak and communicates with signs and using light magic to draw pictures/simple words in the air (his gloves help channel this, above other things)

(first and last images r outfit refs, the middle is more of a colour ref that is. Unfortunately quite old,, his design here is also old but this was what he looked like before I totally redesigned him out of being a sky character avdhrbhr) (ill leave where he ends up to u because all ur realms are SO cool and I'm awful at decisions abdjfnfjnr)

Please tell me if u actually get this ask because tumblr has been in the habit of not sending them for me ahdurrjjrib (also pls tell me if there's anything I forgot to say bc I'm on mobile and if i wanna check the post while typing this I have to copy/paste all my text every time 😔)

(A/N: Op your art is AMAZING. I love orion's design.)

No kingdom was selected, so I'm randomly choosing one.

The kingdom I'm placing your skykid in is: Melinka, the desert kingdom

"The feeling of the cool tiled floor was enough to wake up Orion. He rubs vey's eyes, feeling something on his cheeks ...sand? Yeah, that's sand. Vey're laying near a sandune that looks like it seeped in through the temple. Great. Where are vey?

Before he came here, he was told of this kingdom when the portals were replaced. A kingdom of vastness, it's lands mimic a sea of gold and abandoned temples laid scattered across the planes. Vey didn't believe it was another desert kingdom, his pride telling others to leave vem alone when vey're heading out to explore the kingdom. As a historian, this place intrigued vem. While vault is gone, Orion wanted to be the first to discover the secrets of this empty kingdom. And a kingdom without much skykids roaming around spells out that vey can get some bragging rights out of this.

But now vey're in an...abandoned temple? The runes of an ancient language and broken pillars certainly sells the idea. And the roof is partially caved in and orion is lying in the shade of what's left of it. And it's dreadfully hot. The coolness of the shade almost does nothing to help him.

....Welp. Beggars can't be choosers. If vey want to get some cool ancient story or artifacts out of this, vey better start looking. And their first step is to get out of this temple without suffering from a heatstroke."

• Maneuvering through the temple, Orion used his light glove to light the way. For a place that had an abundance of history, it sure is empty. The runes that are littered around the temple are a bit hard to read with it's faded paint, but luckily there were some spirits that were hiding around the corners, so Orion had a good chunk of info already jotted down.

• After exploring for who knows how long in the temple, Orion finally found the exit. The sun was already beginning to set. Did they arrive here at the afternoon? Wait since when did time move? Vey thought only home was capable of doing that. What a strange world. Shaking his head at veir lingering thoughts, he opens up his cape and start flying across the desert. He needs to find some more murals vey can document while there is still light.

• Orion flew for who knows how long across the desert. Everything looks the same and there's not a temple in sight. And with the moon already rising, vey felt his light weakening....wait? Him? Weakening? Preposterous. Vey could fly up vaults temple without feeling an ounce of fatigue. Is it because of the heat? He did feel a bit stuffy in these clothes. What's with this world? Vey mumbled something to vemself, obviously annoyed at how things turned out and he hasn't even explored an inch of it. Maybe he should meditate, head back home and restock some supplies- Is that a town?

• Orion squinted vey're eyes, trying to make sure he wasn't hallucinating. Yup, there's a small town, abandoned too. Half of it's buildings are sunken into the sand, but the other half looks like it's still functioning. Vey look into veir pouches. There's only have one recharge potion left, and since he didn't expect the kingdom to be this big, vey didn't bring a torch with vem. Deciding it's best to hide out in the buildimgs for the night and use the potion for the next day, Orion glides his way towards the abandoned town, hoping to find at least a decent home to sleep in.

• It was dead silent in the town. Even the wind seemed to stop howling. Orion feet sank into the sand as he walked down the empty town. Using his candles, Orion looked into every shop and home, trying to find one that doesn't look like it will crash on vem. He later picked out a small home, it's roof and windows still intact but the door is gone. When vey entered, it was as if time stood still in the house. The little decorations and furniture lay untouched in the house, covered in dust and cobwebs. Orion cautiously walked around the house and later discovered a tapestry. It depicted a family, like a portrait. He didn't know why, but Orion felt a sort of...connection on the tapestry. The same any skykid would feel when a spirit is near. Maybe vey should bring it with vem the next morning? For history purposes of course, not because of the family reminding him of the belonging spirits. Orion plopped his stuff down and laid down on a couch that was placed neatly in the corner. Vey slowly start to drift off to sleep, veir exhaustion taking over.

• "...he....y....HEY!" Orion jolted awake, almost falling off the couch. Vey looked around frantically before seeing...a human child? A living human child at that. "Who are you?" Orion looked sourly at the girl. Vey should be asking her that. He signed a picture with his glove, a question mark and an arrow pointing at the girl. "Me? I'm Kalina." She gave a grin, a tooth missing from her smile. 'Ugh. What the hell is wrong with her.' Orion thought as he rubbed his eyes. "You've got some weird tattoos on you. Why are they glowing? And what group do you come from to get those? The west? Or do you come from the east? Your tattoos look like the air symbols they got. Where's your group by the way? Did you get seperated? My dad told me kids can't get seperated from their groups cause the nightwalkers will get them, but I saw my older brother chop off the head of one and I gotta say they're pretty weak and-" Orion put a finger on the kids mouth, a sign for her to shut up. Orion does not want to deal with...whatever kind of human this is. Picking up their supplies, they start to walk towards the window, the human girl continuing her rambles.

• The sun is on the horizon now, the colours resembling the same as isle. Ah....how nostalgic. Orion wish vey could feel the same feeling vey had as a moth when he was born. Although, whenever he remembers, it's all so...fuzzy. The human girl pulled on his glove, to which Orion harshly ripped it out from her grip. The girl stumbles back, falling. "Jerk! I just wanted to see what's up with your glove! What kind of magic are you using? And why aren't you saying anything?" Orion rolled his eyes. He doesn't have time for such a tiny brat like this. Vey sign something, telling her no and that she should go away. The human girl pouts sticking her tongue out and Orion does the same before turning to walk out of the house.

• But he bumps into something hard and immeadiatly backs away as if vey heard a krill call. "Woah, sorry about that." A deeper voice. Orion looked up to see a human man. The girl excitedly ran towards him, holding his hand. "Papa! I found this weird kid sleeping here! They're old enough to have tattoos and they can't talk. Can we sell them our dragon skin?" The man smiled at his kid, telling her to go help someone before turning back to Orion. "Sorry about my daughter. She can get a bit too curious about people too much." Orion only stared at the man, veir eyes watching veir every move. It was a well built man, dark skinned and having some strange white tattoos on his arm. Except his looked more sharper than Orions marks and they don't glow.

• The man cleared his throat, trying to get rid of the awkward silence. "Well, I don't think you're here with a group, are you?" What's with these humans and groups!? Orion shook his head, his expression turning a bit sour. The man nodded and then asked; "What's your name? Mines Halfin" Orion immediately drew an x, signalling that he vey didn't want to give their name. The man stared amazed. "You're traveling with a magic item? That's very dangerous you know! Bandits might ambush you. Where did you even get that?" Halfin said as he stepped closer, to which Orion stepped back, his expression saying 'Don't touch me'. Halfin sighed and rubbed his head, crouching down to meet Orions eyes. "You know, I can see you're not...." He gestured towards Orion's glow that coloured the floor in an orange light "....human. And that you're not from here. That cape you have will attract too much attention to yourself and that it's too thick. What were you even thinking when you stepped in here?" Orion simply glared at Halfin, not signing anything.

• Halfin looked back at Orion, his smile unwavering. "I have heard that there were some strange flying children popping up across the kingdoms. Are you perhaps one of them?" He looked at Orions cape. "I heard that some don't visit this kingdom that often because of how hot it is here. So I'm assuming you came alone and without a map." Orion nodded slowly, wondering where this is going. "Our group recently lost a lookout. We need someone to help us keep a watch from a distance on our journey. So I was wondering..." He smiled softly. "Would you like to join us? In exchange, we'll give you a map. The journey isn't that long. We'll only be traveling for three days until we get to the city. How does that sound?"

• Orion scrunched up veir nose. Traveling with strangers sounds awful. He doesn't want to hang around longer with them and veir suspicions over him just got cranked up to 10. But....having the first map of the kingdom sounds useful. Vey could sell it for candles among the historians and brag about it to the cartographers that are always so annoying when they start rambling about the kingdoms. Vey click their tongue, frustrated that vey're actually going to choose the latter.

• Orion slowly nods, and Halfin clasps his hands together, his grin widening. "That's great! I just know our village would love you. If we go now, you can help out with the tents." Halfin reaches out to grab Orions hand and starts guiding him out of the house, Orion tripping over a bit to keep up with his pace. As they walk, the sun started to fully appear above the horizon and the unbearable heat started to get warmer by the minute. Orion took off veir hat, the fabric already absorbing the warmth of the sun and almost burning their hand. He looked at Halfin and wondered just what did he get himself into.

Additional headcannons

• Orion became quite popular among the children of the travelling group, which is awful because everytime vey tell them to go away or look down on them, they keep coming back and it's annoying.

• The markings on Orions arms became very praiseworthy in veir travels in Melinka. Some started to mimic the designs in the bigger cities, mostly rich people who have way too much time on their hands.

• After departing with the traveling group, the map became useful for Orion. He managed to found an incredible number of ruins and even a hidden underground library!

• Orion became an expert of the kingdom, despite the strange interaction he had in the beginning. Vey won't admit it, but vey sometimes missed the traveling group. He'll deny it if you ask him about it, though.

[kythed]

I have a fic request for Kuroo! A childhood friends to lovers situation based off the song Take my Hand by Picture This! (Just a cute song that has been haunting me because Kuroo ❤️)

I have been through and stalked your blog and I love it! I also saw the ficmas prompt list and I’m looking forward to requesting those too!

I hope this is okay and thank you so much! Your stuff is a joy to read! ❤️❤️❤️✨✨✨

take my hand

kuroo tetsurou x reader

hope you enjoy <3

five.

“You’re my best friend,” he tells you, swallowing the heart that keeps straining to burst from his throat, to lay itself at your feet in all its humiliating devotion. “Of course I love you.”

And he does love you, he reassures himself, letting you walk ahead of him. Just not in the way you think he does. He struggles to keep his eyes above your waistline, tearing his gaze from the hem of your skirt and pointedly pinning it to the back of your head, where your hair is loosely tied with a glossy silk ribbon. His efforts succeed for nearly thirty seconds before he again finds his eyes tracing their way down your neck, down your back, down to the arch of your waist and the flare of your hips, relishing the curve of your--

Damn it. He abruptly stops in his tracks, rubbing his eyes until he sees only stars. (Maybe if he rubs his eyes with enough vigor he’ll stop noticing things he shouldn’t notice while looking at his best friend.)

“Tetsu,” you say, turning around with a laugh. “You okay?”

“I’m fine,” he says gruffly, blinking hard.

He’s not fine.

four.

Life is painful when you’re in love with your oldest, dearest friend. Let Kuroo Tetsurou be the first to testify that when you’ve grown up with someone your entire life, when you’ve made the long, tedious trek from diapers to graduation gowns with them, it feels almost sinful to find yourself slipping into daydreams about pressing that person against your wall, about hearing them whisper your name on soft linen sheets, about kissing them breathless and glassy eyed until the sun plunges beneath the horizon with a brazen wink.

He hates himself for staring at you and hoping to catch you staring back. He hates himself for letting your words wash over his head, unheard, in favor of watching the way your lips curve and curl when you speak.

Most of all, he hates himself for loving you so fiercely in a particular way that would surely sour your stomach and send you running.

“I love you too,” you say, waiting for him to catch up and fall into step beside you. You take his hand and lace your fingers with his as you make your way up the street to your house. The windows glow a domestic orange, dimly illuminating the patch of asphalt before your front door.

It’s nearing seven now-- the gentle clinking of silverware and some sort of faint, savory scent from within inform you of dinner’s impending commencement.

“I know,” he says, cracking a crooked smile. You roll your eyes as he brushes a mocking kiss over your knuckles. “I’m hard to hate.”

three.

Most of the summer passes uneventfully, according to Kuroo’s standards. He manages to keep himself in check, even as he spends each and every day with you, dawn til dusk, savoring your presence the way a starving man savors his last ration.

He manages to treat you almost exactly as he’s treated you his entire life-- like a best friend. He tells his silly jokes that make you giggle and groan simultaneously. He pushes you off the pier when you least expect it, howling with laughter as you resurface, sputtering and flinging fiery invective. He shares an earbud with you as he walks downtown with you by his side, arm slung over your shoulder with carefully calculated composure.

He almost makes it to autumn without incident.

The small, hidden moments are what gives him away, though, layered within false nonchalance and easygoing grins like brightly painted matryoshka.

The way his chest constricts almost painfully when you laugh at a pun he’s ad-libbed on the spot, sending a flurry of butterflies freewheeling in the pit of his stomach.

“It really wasn’t that good,” he chuckles, tenderly watching as tears of laughter prick at the corners of your eyes and you grip his forearm in an attempt to steady yourself as giggles rack your body.

“No, it wasn’t,” you agree, struggling to catch your breath. “It was awful, and that’s what made it so funny.”

(He makes about a dozen more puns that day, feeling like he’s won the lottery whenever you so much as smile at his pitiful attempts at wordplay.)

The way his hands tremble when you turn around and ask him to tie your bikini string before you jump into the lake, the way he bites his lip so some horribly incriminating comment about how he really thinks you’d “be better off without the bikini at all” doesn’t slip out from his mouth.

“Thanks Tetsu,” you chirp after he ties the string around the back of your neck in a neat double-knot. You give him a wink and take off towards the water, kicking up sand in the process. “Last one in buys lunch!”

(He was already planning on paying anyways.)

The way he sits up a little straighter when you lean over and slip a hand under his arms to press ‘skip’ on his phone while you listen to his playlist-- you’re so close he can smell your lip balm.

“Sorry,” you say, smiling apologetically. “I don’t really like that band.”

(Later that evening, Kuroo goes through his Spotify and deletes every single song from that band he has on all of his playlists.)

Yes, he manages to keep himself in check outwardly. But inside, he can feel himself digging his grave a little deeper with each passing day. He watches the sands of summer run through his fingers with the dread of a man counting down the days to his funeral.

He just knows that one of these days he’s going to slip.

two.

He’s right, of course. There’s only so much emotional torment one person can humanly endure. It’s just that he’s hoping he can extinguish this inconvenient, one-sided flame before August comes around. Maybe then everything can go back to normal, whatever normal might entail.

Needless to say, Kuroo’s hopes are dashed before summer comes to a close.

It’s a sticky July evening when you and he drive out to an empty parking lot at the edge of town, a blanket and an old transistor radio in tow. You’re wearing a pale yellow sundress that falls to just above your knees-- he’s glad it’s not any shorter, and that the breeze isn’t quite strong enough to lift your hem.

“I think I can see Orion’s belt,” you say, pointing towards somewhere far into the cosmos. Kuroo squints, trying to follow your finger.

“I don’t think that’s Orion,” he says. “Looks like a cat to me.”

The two of you are sitting on a blanket spread across the hood of his car, craning your necks to make out vague shapes in the stars. Between you, slow, muffled music trickles out from the radio’s small speakers, some sort of vintage tune from the forties.

“How in the world are you seeing a cat?” You shake your head, giving him a hard poke on the shoulder. “Looks more like a swarm of astral bees than anything.”

“Astral bees,” he repeats with a laugh. “Laziest constellation interpretation I’ve ever heard.”

“It’s not lazy,” you protest. “It’s accurate.”

Kuroo just smiles and shrugs, sneaking a glance at you. Your face is bathed in milky starlight, eyes wide as you peer up at the cloudless sky with a blend of wonder and appreciation. There’s some competition, but he thinks this might be the prettiest you’ve ever looked in a single moment.

As if you can feel his stare, you turn to catch his gaze. A gentle smile breaks onto your face, and you absentmindedly tuck a strand of hair behind your ear with the endearing shyness of a schoolgirl. “What is it?”

“Nothing, nothing,” he says, mirroring your grin. “You just… look nice right now.”

“No, seriously,” you laugh disbelievingly. “Is there something on my face?”

“I am being serious,” Kuroo insists, fidgeting with the blanket beneath his palms. “You look good. Yellow suits you.”

You flush, glancing down at your dress. You bought it two summers back, and he’s seen you in it a million times before. This is the first summer where he’s really seen you, though. “Well, thank you. It’s a warm night, so I figured I was better off in a dress than pants.”

“Yeah,” he says softly, breaking eye contact to squint up at the stars. He grins and points, finger trembling slightly. “I think I can see where you’re coming from, with the bees.”

one.

A staticky, syrupy waltz comes on the radio, bleeding into the cracks in the comfortable silence. You sigh contentedly, leaning back onto the windshield. “I like this song. It’s… nostalgic.”

Kuroo cocks an eyebrow at you. “You’ve heard this before?”

“No,” you laugh, biting the inside of your cheek. “But it reminds me of times gone by, you know? Like, this is the sort of music I imagine playing when a soldier reunites with his wife after the war.”

“When he comes running out of the train and drops his bags on the platform,” Kuroo continues, watching you carefully, “only to sweep his girl off her feet and spin her around wildly.”

You nod, sneaking a glance at him. “You really know me that well, huh?”

“Yeah,” he says, eyes crinkling with humor. “But I get it, too. It has that old fashioned romance thing goin’ on.”

“Mhm,” you agree. You reach over and fiddle with the radio’s volume, turning it up just enough to round out the sound completely.

Kuroo sits for a moment, watching you close your eyes and hum along to the music. Then, a sudden boldness taking the reins, he hops off the hood and walks over to you, extending his hand. “Take it.”

“What?”

“Take my hand,” he insists, so you do, gingerly placing your palm atop his. “We’re going to dance.”

“Oh, no,” you laugh, nonetheless letting him help you down from the car and resting a hand on his shoulder. He lightly places his own on your waist, leading you out into the parking lot. “You know I can’t dance.”

“I can’t either,” he reminds you. “But I want to dance with you right now.”

As you begin to sway slightly to the music, Kuroo pulls you a little closer to his chest, letting his chin brush the top of your head. “Why are you into that whole idea?”

“What idea?” you ask quietly, letting him lead you in slow circles around the lot.

“The idea of an old fashioned love.”

“Oh,” you say, laughing as Kuroo spins you in his arms, catching you before you stumble. “I’m not sure… maybe because it seems more constant than love today. Like, today, if you tell someone you love them, it’s a compliment, not a promise. But back then, it was a vow. It meant something.”

Kuroo swallows, looking down at you. His heartbeat pounds in his ears, threatening to burst out of his temples. I’m about to do something I might regret.

zero.

“I need you to do something for me,” he says, voice low and thick with caution. “Close your eyes.”

“What?”

“Please,” he says, voice breaking. He knows that if he doesn’t do this now, he never will. You look beautiful to him in this moment, dancing with him in the empty parking lot to the faint melody of an old waltz. Your eyes glisten with life, your lips gently parted, hair slightly curling over your cheeks.

You roll your eyes once but nonetheless close them obediently, relying a little more on his arms to steady you. He swallows. “Okay. So, imagine we’re living in the 1940s.”

“Okay,” you say, smiling slightly. “I’m imagining.”

“Imagine I enlisted in the war, and I just got back home. Imagine you’re waiting for me at the train station.”

“Mhmm,” you say, trying your best to envision the platform. “You look good in that uniform, Tetsu.”

He chuckles. “I look good in anything.”

“Yeah, yeah,” you say, squeezing his hand. “Get on with it.”

“Imagine I come sprinting out from the train and you’re waiting there with open arms. This song is playing on the platform speakers. I ask you to dance just like we are now.” Kuroo watches you grin, feeling his heart flutter. “Then, imagine I tell you something.”

Unconsciously, you shift closer to him, almost pressing your body flush to his. A breath hitches in his throat. “What do you tell me?”

He leans down, brushes his lips against your ear. “I love you.”

You open your eyes, head cocked, slight confusion cloaking your features. “You mean, like…?”

Kuroo shakes his head. “No. I mean, like, I love you. Not just in a friend way. In that old fashioned way you were talking about. I love everything about you. I’m in love with everything about you.”

“Tetsu…” you breathe, searching his face. He gazes down at you seriously, not a trace of humor tainting his stare. He takes a deep breath.

“I love the way your hair falls in the summer. I love your stupid, annoying laugh. I love how your hand fits in mine. I love the way you rant about anything and everything and expect me to listen, and I do because I can’t help but get excited about what you get excited about. I love you like a soldier loves his wife,” he says, the words flowing out like a river bursting from a dam. “I love you so much it hurts, and it scares me, and I’m sorry if this ruins stuff between us, but I just had to--”

“Shut up.”

He blinks, mouth gaping. “I-- what?”

“I said,” you whisper, gripping the back of his neck and guiding his face down to yours. “Shut up, Tetsu. You talk too much.”

Then suddenly you’re kissing him, and he can’t believe it, but he kisses you back like it’s what he was born to do. He lets you crash your lips into his and watches as shooting stars burst forth and the planets align. Somehow, your hands find their way up into his hair, tangling themselves in his dark locks, and his own travel down to your lower back, pulling you as close as humanly possible, so tightly he never wants to let go. He revels in the warmth of your skin, the icy, tingly sensation of your lips, and when you pull back, it’s all he can do to refrain from pulling you right back in again.

There’s a brief silence. His lips are swollen, his lungs are devoid of air. “I… wow. Just, wow.”

You grin wickedly, slipping your hand into his. “I’ve been waiting to do that for a while now.”

“You have?” he asks, eyes wide in disbelief. “I didn’t notice.”

“Of course you didn’t,” you laugh. “You were too worried about not letting me notice you staring at my ass every chance you got.”

Kuroo flushes but gives a sheepish smile, massaging the back of his neck. “You know, I really thought I was being smooth about it.”

--

As it turns out, you love him back. And not just in the best friend way. You love everything about him, his stupid jokes, his loud, booming laugh, his teasing, his smile, his successes and his failures. You love how your hand fits in his. You love that it took him years and years to admit to himself that he loved you, too.

Kuroo Tetsurou may not be the smoothest guy in the world, but he’s certainly the only one you want. And you’re certainly the only one he wants.

And that’s really the most you could ever ask for.

[lyallblacklupin]

If you are taking suggestions, then can you please write Remus being a little shit and just driving sirius crazyyyyy like Remus smirks and Sirius just dies. Ps love your writing!!

Wolfstar AU: Enemies to Lovers. 

Sirius is breathing raggedly. His heart isn’t beating at a normal pace. Not because he is at a dinner party at the Black household but because he is at the dinner party of the Black household. And with none other than Remus Lupin.

“Will you relax?” Remus whispers in his ear.

“How can I relax when I’m in the middle of people who don’t just despise their son’s ‘house mate’—“

Remus bits the inside of his cheek to keep himself from sniggering.

“—but the son as well! Look, there are Lestranges, Averys, Malfoys and fuck here is Lupin? How?

“Because you invited me?” Remus suggests with a smirk which pushes Sirius on the edges.

“I cannot believe my parents approved of letting me bring a friend to this party.”

“Sirius, it’s your birthday.” The birthday party is just a platform made by Walburga and Orion to eradicate all of the doubts and misjudgments of the high pureblood families towards Sirius who was on the front page of the Daily Prophet last year to be almost beaten to death by his family and ended up in the St. Mungos. The news was accelerated faster, in Great Britain, than the Black Family’s anticipations, so to keep up with their reputation, they have thrown Sirius a formal birthday party. The guests seem relaxed to see the Black heir suited up on the staging area with his parents on either of his sides. So, technically the birthday party is not for Sirius in any way. “And what did you just call me your friend?”

Sirius rolls his eyes at him. Remus Lupin is one of the roommates he shares his dorm with at Hogwarts. They have survived four years together without ripping each other in halves. But one day, the enemies became allies when James Potter interfered with his utter generosity by asking him and Peter to become Animagis to accompany Remus on the full moon after they openly confessed that they knew about his condition. Peter has been humble like James—but dense, of course—but Sirius has been unable to. However, Remus has softened up comparatively to him. Again, Sirius finds it difficult to reconcile. Fortunately, now he knows why.

Remus takes the champagne from a grim-looking waitress before Sirius bats his hand away and puts the drink back on the tray.

“Don’t you dare drink or eat anything from here. They must be trying to poison you.” Remus slams his palm on his face in exasperation but then he smirks.

“So you do care about me, don’t you, Black?” Remus winks at him, and Sirius swallows hard. The blood feels to be reaching up to his neck and cheek. He feels very hot all of a sudden because Remus Lupin is stupidly grinning in an abnormally tight suit. The blue shirt underneath his black mackintosh is unbuttoned from the collar, and his tie is loosely hanging around his neck. Sirius tries to avert his eyes from him.

The fact that he has a filthy half-blood werewolf in the middle of the dark pureblood families, and how he has to cope-up with an extreme sweet behavior—not to mention, fake—of his parents, are not the only reasons for him to look like he has ants in his pants. He is troubled by his very own fact that Remus Lupin looks utterly, insanely, and hopelessly breathtaking. He doesn’t want to accept that he is head over heels in love with him, and no one is ever going to find out.

“Sirius, that was the same drink Bellatrix picked up,” Remus whispers when Sirius doesn’t answer, eyeing the Lestranges cackling loudly as if they are competing against each other on who cackles the loudest.

“Oh, her blood is already venomous. I highly doubt a poison could kill her.” Sirius whispers back harshly. He feels like he is stuck to stand too close to Remus—not that he doesn’t enjoy it because he relishes it a little too much—and it does no good to him in breathing normally. His nostrils are filling the scent of Remus’ cologne, which is infuriating. He stops himself from picturing Remus laying shirtless on his bed.

Remus lets out a sweet chortle which brings Sirius out of the haze that sings ‘Remus’ like a mantra, but then Remus is staring at him intensely. His amber eyes remind him of honey and autumn. Sirius looks away again.

“What’s going on?” His voice is so gentle that Sirius feels his insides squirm.

“Shut up.” He mutters.

“Okay.” And Sirius is extremely indignant at him for not arguing. He loves to argue with Remus because it makes him love him fiercely. It is nonsensical, but it is what it is.

Push him on the wall so hard that his head bleeds, and then I kiss him firmly on the lips. What!? Yes, disturbing. An absolute disturbed heir, everyone!

“What do you mean ‘okay’?” Sirius protests.

“You command me to shut up, so I shut up.” Command? Command, Lupin? Are you trying to kill me? Remus looks thoroughly oblivious while Sirius thinks he must be looking like a raging psychotic because he believes he is one.

“Fuck you.” He says under his breath, and fucking Lupin smirks!? Sirius grabs the first glass of the pack of champagnes the waitress comes with and drinks a long sip of it.

But then Remus begins to wander here and there. Sirius feels like his anxiety is back taking a toll because a dark-skinned girl is smiling at him. Before he knows it, they are hitting off with each other. Sirius clenches his teeth at the sight, and the grip on his glass is tight enough to break it as he feels his magic raging up inside him.

Thankfully, the party goes on, people have come to wish him birthday greetings with hopes that he might offer them to take a picture with them, but his feet remain grounded on the spot he was standing at, with Remus. His eyes fixedly are following him everywhere he goes with that girl. At the same time, Sirius is surprised about how the girl hasn’t figured out that he is a half-blood who also hasn’t suited up like an aristocrat. He smiles deviously to himself with the satisfaction that soon the girl is going to figure out and eventually she wouldn’t date him, and then…

“Mine,” Sirius growls.

A few minutes later, Sirius finds Remus reachable—fortunately, without that girl—trying to make a conversation with other people. Sirius immediately smells something bad when he realizes that Remus is going to talk to some Averys. Without thinking, he lunges towards Remus and grabs the first thing his hands could reach. He hasn’t completely registered that his fingers have caught the loops of his belt, which takes Remus off guard. And he slams his steel chest against Sirius’ and the champagne pours on his expensive suit. Remus gapes at him, looking angry and apologetic.

“Oh, Merlin! Sirius, I am so sorry but what the hell!?”

“Wow, the audacity!” He spits with venom in his voice, “My suit is spoiled, not yours!”

“Wha—? You pulled me!” That’s it, my boy, keep arguing! You drive me crazy, Lupin.

“You were clumsy enough to ram into me!”

“I—“ His anger is like a feather. It flies away, “I’m sorry…come here, let me fix it for you—“ He is taking out his wand but Sirius doesn’t like it because he doesn’t approve of the simplicity in the situation. He needs fire and set himself on it. But for that, he needs Remus Lupin.

“No. You have driven me crazy tonight, Remus Lupin. I am going to make you pay for it.” Sirius grunts, and then they are out of people’s sight as he drags Remus to his room. He looks genuinely surprised. His parted lips, his rosy cheeks, his silver scars glowing on his face make him look ethereal. Sirius walks towards the dumbfounded prey of the night.

But then Sirius is rammed into the wall as Remus crashes his lips against his. He instantly kisses him back. Hard, like he has been wanting. For years.

“I drive you crazy, huh?” Remus says against his lips, before slamming his mouth back to Sirius’.

Sirius pulls him closer by those fucking belt loops that have gotten them here in the first place. He deepens the kiss but Remus pulls away to take a breath.

“I will drive you crazy for the rest of your life,” Remus whispers in his ear maliciously, which causes Sirius to shudder beneath him. He has no time to process how it is all happening, but for now, he knows that this is the best birthday of all of his years.

“Yeah, you better.” He manages to say between his breathlessness but then Remus takes him again by the back of his neck and doesn’t stop kissing him.

[autisticcassandracain]

what is the scott free reading list that you're using? he's one of my favorites and I wanna go and read his appearances in order lol

I'm using this reading list from comicbookherald, combined with Scott's dcuguide chronology. I've used the dcuguide mostly to find small gap-fillers or keep the justice league order of appearances straight, while keeping the reading list as the main guide.

I just hit the N52 part of the reading list, so I'll save you some of my pain and give my preboot comics advice.

Series That Are Good and You Should Read:

Mister Miracle (volume 1/1971): First appearance and first series by Jack Kirby, and serves as the foundation for Scott Free canon. After he comes back from Apokolips it really goes downhill imo (issues #12-18 I think? You can skip these, but they contain Scott and Barda’s shotgun marriage and Shilo Norman’s first appearances), but aside from that, it's very solid.

New Gods (volume 1/1971), The Forever People (volume 1/1971): The other main parts of the original Fourth World launch by Jack Kirby. Not necessary if you're just looking for Scott, but it definitely gives you a better understanding of the lore and that might help later on. That said,

New Gods (1971) #7 is essential reading, as it explains Scott's backstory.

Justice League of America (1960) #183 - 185: This is in no way essential, I just happened to read it and really liked Scott and Barda in this.

Mister Miracle (volume 2/1989): Has some duds/flaws and I'm not a fan of the ending, but for the most part very solid. His longest solo.

Orion: Barda's characterization is eh, but it does some unique things with Scott. If you're just here for Scott, read the back up 'Tales of the New Gods' story in #10, the anti-life equation arc in #12-15 (he's not in all of them and plays a big role in just one issue, but I think reading the whole arc is pretty necessary for context; the issue he has a big role in is #15 if you do want to skip though), the one page in #16 he's in, and #25. Personally, I recommend the whole series, though; again, it has flaws, and I don't like the art, but overall I found the writing very strong and compelling.

EDIT: WAIT FUCK I FORGOT THE MISTER MIRACLE SPECIAL! It’s really good and you should read it! It was apparently intended as an introduction to Mister Miracle v2, but Scott’s characterization in the two don’t really line up. As it’s very self-contained and outside of the timeline, you can read it basically whenever.

Series That Are Necessary For The Timeline But Suck Ass:

Jack Kirby's The Fourth World by John Byrne: should be read before Orion. For the most part it doesn't do things that are terribly offensive ('most' being the keyword here, it definitely has some Choices, the most prominent one being getting Orion together with his childhood teacher, so you know, trigger warning for that); its greatest crime is being dreadfully boring, expanding on things that didn't need to be expanded upon in a boring way, having too much text, and also being very very boring. That said, it expands on Scott's backstory and powers, and contains a lot of important events for the Fourth World lore as a whole. If you want the complete picture, you should read it, but if you don't care about all that, don't bother.

Death of the New Gods: Barda gets fridged in the first issue. Scott changes his costume colours to be edgier. That about reflects the quality here. Occasionally has its moments and some interesting ideas, but it's really just a slog. However, it's (as far as I can tell) the last major Scott appearance in preboot verse, for reasons that become obvious when you read it. Again, important timeline wise, but don't read it if you don't care about that.

Series That Suck REALLY Bad and You Should Avoid:

Mister Miracle (volume 1) #19-25: As far as I've been able to tell, this was a relaunched continuation of the original Mister Miracle; rather than Jack Kirby, it was written by Steve Englehart. It sucks REALLY bad and gets ignored by pretty much everything I've read after it. There is absolutely no reason to read this. Spare yourself from seeing Messiah Scott.

Mister Miracle (1996): Barda gets absolutely character massacred in this one, but then again, who doesn't? First few issues were so bad it was almost funny, after it just become boring real quick. This series has very little influence on the timeline and just plain sucks all around. The important thing to note here is Scott gains some godly powers. That's literally it.

New Gods (1995): Until John Byrne takes over, it's so bad it's pretty much unreadable. And after it's still bad! Important things in the timeline do happen in this series, but most of it gets retconned later; the important things to note here are a) the source seemingly gets corrupted, which gets fixed, and b) New Genesis and Apokolips collide and form a single planet due to the machinations of Highfather. Do not recommend reading this.

Justice League International is kind of a grey area to me. Some of it is necessary context for some events in Mister Miracle v2, so I do recommend reading it, but I'm deeply unimpressed by JLI's characterization of Scott and Barda. I wouldn't say it 'sucks ass', but I definitely wouldn't say it's a great representation of Scott and Barda's characters either. If you want to read Scott's Justice League appearances in this era, dcuguide is your friend.

[sunflowerspectre]

Hellfire and Ectoblasts

For @cleanlenins

Title: Hellfire and Ectoblasts Fandom: Danny Phantom x Lucifer Summary:  The devil works hard, but Vladimir Masters works harder. When Vladimir Master dabbles in dealing favors to others to get his way - much easier than constantly possessing everyone - Lucifer Morningstar has a few choice words for the business tycoon. Rating: T for cursing (multiple uses of the F word, mentions of drug abuse) Final Word Count: 5005 Ft. Uncle/Redeemed Vlad AU

Read on A03 Read on FF

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Los Angeles is new territory, despite all the places Vladimir Masters has traveled. He has drunk martinis in the sands of Bahamas, made deals in Cancun, and has a passport larger than most politicians. He has even traveled further into the Ghost Zone than most of the fully ghosts there.

Yet the city of angels has always eluded him, or rather he eluded it. It never quite appealed to him, with the oddities and gaudy casinos. It felt almost beneath him and it has, honestly,  never been on his priority list - at least, not until now.

Business is business and Vlad Masters will always go where business is; even if it is in a city like Los Angeles. Even if it is with an admittedly annoying sixteen year old teenager for a long extended amount of time.

Honestly, what was he thinking when he wanted Daniel as a son? He should have gone after Jasmine, he begrudges. At least she knew when to be quiet.

“Are we there yet?”

Vlad feels his eyebrow twitch, a vein throbbing in his neck. Daniel Fenton has the nerve to look at him with large innocent, doe eyes as if that is not the hundredth time he has asked that question in the past hour.

His somewhat nephew had jumped on the chance to go to LA with him; he would have been more suspicious of Daniel’s intention if not for the fact that the space shuttle endeavor will be within one quick bus ride from their hotel. As challenging, and even powerful, as Daniel can be - he is very much an open book that has been quite easy to read.

Danny opens his mouth, as if to ask that infuriating question again, but is stopped short by a small ecto blast. The ectoplasm effectively sticks against his mouth and despite the way he claws it, it refuses to budge. He settles for crossing his arms in a huff with a narrow glare. He idly considers it for a moment before a middle finger raises in contempt.

“Curse at me all you want, Daniel, but I refuse to listen to that infernal question the entire trip.”

Danny’s body language makes it clear that he is mocking him. Vlad waits until his fit is over before removing the ecto blast. Danny, huffing about being cut-off, leans back into the seat of the private jet. When he glances out the window, catching glimpses of clouds, he can not help but think wistfully how much better it would be to be flying Airline Danny. Jets, private or otherwise, are too confining now that he knows what it feels like to touch clouds.

He bets that the skies of Los Angeles is beautiful up close. He absently wonders if he gets far away enough to the nearby desert if he will be able to get a good view of the stars. The Orion constellation, not to mention a few planets like Venus and even Saturn, should be more visible here than it would be in Amity Park. He wonders if he flies high enough if he can get a good picture with a smartphone.

“Why are you going to LA anyway? Don’t you have enough money that you don’t need to be blowing it at casinos? Or is that the whole point?”

He barely even spares Vlad a glance through the corner of his eyes, arms crossed lazily against his chest as his cheek presses against the cool glass of the window. While being with Vlad is not the worst thing in the world - at least not anymore - he can not help but wish he would’ve been able to bring Sam and Tucker along. He imagines that they would be thrilled to go somewhere that’s not the Nasty Burger. At the very least, they would be better conversationalists.

Well, I guess it’s at least fun to mess with him, Danny thinks wistfully, a more devious smile on his face. If anything, it is a great way to pass the time. Messing with Vlad has always been a treasure, but now with little repercussions, at least nothing that compares to the way he used to threaten to kill his dad, it is like the entire world is his oyster.

“You can never have enough money, young badger.”

Danny coughs something into his elbow that sounds suspiciously like ‘ eat the rich’.  His eyes watch Vlad carefully with feign innocence, as if he never said anything at all. His elbow hides the large shit-eating grin threatening to break on his face.

Vlad makes a point to ignore the comment, continuing easily, “Since our - my -”

He struggles to find the right word, fumbling a bit with a strained look on his face. Mentions of the past have always been hard to bring up when he is, honestly, doing his best to move forward from it. He feels strained at the mere mention of how he behaved beforehand, somewhat even embarrassed by the things he tried to pull. He cannot be thankful enough that the Fentons, including even Daniel, have even given him this second chance. The young badger’s trust is not an easy thing to earn.

“ Your redemption arc,” Danny offers somewhat helpfully.

While not fond of the term, Vlad has to admit that he cannot think of a better phrase.

“-Yes.”  

He accepts the term Danny offers with clenched teeth, “-and as such, possession has become quite unfavorable . I have taken up doing business the old-fashioned way.”

Danny turns to face him. His innocently blinking eyes do not fool anyone with the gleam of mischief shining brightly in them.

“-Legal suits and proper paperwork?”

Vlad snaps at him suddenly, a vein throbbing in his forehead as he regrets taking off the ecto-gag.

“Oh will you - stop that?”

The outburst sends Danny reeling  into a laughing fit, clenching his sides tightly.

__________________________________

Danny’s smartass comments cost him; though, in his opinion, it was absolutely worth it. To his dismay, Vlad drags him along through the city of angels instead of leaving him at the hotel. He claimed he needed to meet a new potential business partner. He gave an entire speech of how it would be good for him to learn how the business world works, but Danny can only recall maybe the first few sentences of said speech. Vlad even went as far as stuffing Danny into the most uncomfortable expensive clothes that he could find. Honestly, couldn’t the man at least get comfy expensive clothes? Gucci makes sweat suits. He makes a mental note to send some links to Gucci sweat suits to Vlad later.

Comfy or not, he still would have preferred to have just headed straight to the space shuttle endeavor. At least then, he would be in ghost form most of the time anyway. It would have been a ten - maybe fifteen - minute flight himself from their hotel room; he even promised Vlad that he would stay invisible the whole time and not touch anything he was not supposed to. A promise that was hard to give since oh man did he want to touch the shuttle just to say he touched something that was in space. He even begged his uncle. Slipped in a few mentions of how his mom would be so happy if he was able to go and get pictures.

He almost got him too, but alas, his efforts were in vain. Instead, he is stuck in a limo. It is not a bad thing in and of itself, but even a luxurious car feels suffocating when you want to be somewhere else.

He eyes the protesters lining up on certain streets. Sam would have loved it here. He keeps track of all of the ‘trendy’ vegan cafes he spots along the way for future reference; he even spots a few goth-centric stores. He snaps a few pictures, sending them over their group chat. He follows them up with pictures of pictures of every BBQ stand he finds for Tucker’s sake.

Sam: Still with the ex-villain?

Danny snorts, scooting away from Vlad as much as he could before snapping a picture of his unsuspecting ex-arch nemesis. Vlad visibly sighs, the exhaustion showing on his face as he does not even bother to look at Danny anymore.

Tucker: Someone looks like he’s having a great time

Danny: He’s with me, of course he’s having a  great time. I’m a joy to be around. An absolute blast.

Tucker: Isn’t every party you’ve gone to nowadays a bit - dead?

Danny audibly groans at the bad attempt at puns, sending a quick message of how puns are his thing; it’s his whole shtick.  But like all group chats do, the conversation grows dead pretty fast.

He is already growing bored again after having sent all the memes he could find ( and how dare they not laugh react at them) . He settles for rolling the window up and down obsessively, occasionally even sticking his head through it. When that adrenaline rush is short-lived, he ends up leaning against the door while obnoxiously clicking the window button repeatedly until Vlad is forced to ask the limo driver to put on the child lock. He considers the idea of just phasing his head through the window, but as weird as LA is, he thinks even that would be a stretch.

He could just phase away entirely. After all, the limo is not ghost proof. Vlad even got rid of most of his more outrageous contraptions and traps so he knows that the seat will not suddenly grow restraints if he tries to get up from it. He wonders if the oddity shop that they passed is still open? He did promise everyone souvenirs and the weirder the better (as is the whole point with souvenirs).

But he also promised his mom that he would get along.

Besides, Vlad said he would pay for lunch when they are done and they passed the most delicious looking burger place.

After what feels like forever, watching all the places he wants to go but can’t right now like a sad puppy begging for the window to be let down, the limo finally pulls up in front of a nightclub. LUX. Danny raises a brow. He may not be the smartest out of his family, but dead languages are his specialty. He glances to Vlad, wondering if he should be more concerned about his pseudo-uncle doing business here. Any nightclub named after light that looks this shady can not be good.

He is also pretty sure that he just saw a drug deal around the corner and some of the people in line already look under the influence of something .

“Am I even allowed here,” Danny questions, pausing a moment to count on his fingers, as they exit the limo. “I’m only like - sixteen? I am a literal child. ”

Vlad continues walking as if he does not hear Danny’s voice grating on behind him. Somehow, the teenager has a voice that seems to stick out like a sore thumb against the boom of the music coming out from the club’s doors.

“You are not a child, Daniel,” Vlad finally acknowledges.

“Uh the law would disagree, sir,” Danny waves a finger after him, “I am a minor.”

The sun is already starting to set, which means the club is steadily filling up; a majority of people are still out in long lines outside of the club’s door. He glances at them briefly, if in a bit of curiosity at the club wear. He blushes wildly at some of the more out-there club wear and focuses quickly on the fact that Vlad is steadily getting ahead of him.

“We are not here for drinking, Daniel,” Vlad’s voice comes out a bit exasperated as he fixes his tie. He eyes the people in line with a bit of disdain, but otherwise ignores them.

Vlad continues on past the lines, not acknowledging the way that some of them call after him. He keeps his hands in his pockets as he gets closer to the crowd; Danny realizes that it likely has something to do with the high possibility of getting pick-pocketed. After all, Vlad does not exactly blend in, but neither does Danny in the suit that Vlad forced him in.

Danny is close in tow as they head straight for the bouncer at the door.

If Vlad was not so used to the way that Maddie could ( has and absolutely will) beat him, he would have been more surprised at the woman at the club’s door. The choice being a bit abnormal in the job. Her intimidating presence is enough to make most of the more pushy people at the front second-guess themselves. A few of the people who dare to test the boundary of the velvet rope quickly change their mind as she just glances at them. Danny’s first thought is how much Sam would like the bouncer. The entire leather outfit is just something that feels like she would like, compared with how tough the woman seems to be. If the woman didn’t scare him so much, he would have tried to take a picture.

His second thought, however, is how off she feels. The closer he gets to her, the more his core vibrates deeply in his chest. As if it is trying to transform and get him out of there, like an animal’s instincts to a predator. Run. RUN. RUN. He digs his heels into the ground and refuses to listen to his gut. He refuses to let his gut determine what he thinks about someone, or how he acts on them. He learned the hard way to control that impulse.

Besides, she does not seem that dangerous - he thinks? He glances to the knives strapped to her thigh and the mean look in her eyes. Mostly. But his ghost sense has never gone off. That means that possession is off the table - so is her being a ghost. But he has never felt his core vibrate this way, in such a paralyzing instinctual fear. The only thing that comes close is when he faced Pariah.

Danny is sure that Vlad notices it too, he is way too smart not to. Vlad’s expressionless face does not give a single thing away, staring straight on even as the woman looks him over closely, a sneer on her face. Something about the way she bares her teeth feels more like a threat, as if she is prepared to rip your throat out herself at any given moment. The worst part is that it feels like that is something she is very much capable of doing. She gets startlingly close to Vlad’s face, sniffing him. He refuses to flinch and let this woman know how much she intimidates him.

He seems to pass whatever test she was giving him. Finally she just snorts, taking the card that he offers her. Danny only catches a glimpse of the red and  gold lining against black with some sort of name written on it. He barely sees the flash of some sort of horned symbol on the edge. Just who is Vlad doing business with anyway?

Whatever the card is, it works. She backs off, crossing her arms against her chest as she moves out of the way of the door to let them through. The glare she gives some of the people at the front of the line scares them out of even thinking about shoving their way in through the open door.

Danny sticks close to Vlad’s side this time, feeling the urge to get as far away as he can from the woman. He is not sure if she will stop him. He would love to get out of this situation with Vlad, but he would hate that it meant staying anywhere near the woman. The wild beating of his core is getting worse and it feels like he can’t breath.

He is unsure if he can handle being around her much longer with his core acting up like this. He feels like he is this close to a heart attack.

“You smell weird, but whatever. He’s inside.”

He smells weird, Danny wonders how she can smell anything especially when all he can smell is all the people around them not wearing deodorant. He tries his best to brush it off as some sort of intimidating tactic. But when Danny passes by the woman, she leans forward, visibly sniffing him as well.

“Sorry it’s my - uh - aftershave,” Danny’s panicked lie confuses even him as he just waves at the woman as he enters the club, finally taking a deep breath in as the door shuts behind him.

Still thoroughly weirded out by whatever that was, something that does not improve when he’s suddenly surrounded by drunks and loud blaring music, he sticks abnormally close to Vlad. The people surrounding them are too drunk to notice when he phases through the elbows that are just too close to him or the shoulders that almost bump into him. Vlad looks back at him briefly, a ghost of a smile on his face, before he turns attention to the crowd.

“Whatcha looking for? The bar? Drugs? A confessional?” Danny asks as they finally reach a section that gives them some elbow room. He brushes off imaginary dirt, and not so imaginary something , off of his shoulders.

“My business partner,” Vlad answers curtly, eyes still scanning the crowd. He knows what he’s looking for, despite not having met the man before.

When Lucifer Morningstar reached out to him, insisting that they meet in person to discuss business, Vlad almost brushed him off. However, a combination of the man’s obsession with the devil and the fact that Lucifer Morningstar’s very identity doesn’t go back any further than a few years intrigued him. How does a man who legally has only been around for a few years get so ahead in the business world? More importantly, who is he really?

“What does he look like, maybe I can help.” Danny offers, looking over the crowd as if he would suddenly be able to who they are looking for.

“It is our first business meeting, I’m afraid, but if he looks anything like his photos, you can’t miss him.”

That gets Danny’s attention. He swerves suddenly on Vlad, jutting his hands out to form a T, his fingers press against his palm, “Whoa, time out! You brought me to a business meeting with someone you never met before? How do you even know the guy’s like, I don’t know, a ghost hunter?”

“You're a paranoid teenager, young badger.” Vlad’s voice is dry with a lack of amusement, “I’ll have you know that I reach all my partners quite well. Lucifer Morningstar is nothing more than a lunatic, however he is quite popular with our mutual partners.”

“ Lucifer,” Danny harshly whispers, his voice only half-way kidding, “Don’t tell me you actually made a deal with the devil?”

Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise him if Vlad did - if such a thing is really possible - but it would put a strain on their now alliance. Vlad’s about to retort, likely something along the lines of you’re being ridiculous Daniel, but he gets cut off prematurely by another voice.

“Well not yet, but let’s see if that changes today, shall we?”

A particularly British voice gets their attention as a man in a well fitted suit, looking vastly more comfortable in it than Danny is, struts their way. Despite looking like every other business man he’s seen, the man doesn’t feel like the usual stuffy suit type. He feels dangerously charismatic, with an easy smile on his face and a magnetic pull that makes it difficult to turn their attention away from him. He has a few beautiful women, and at least one man, at his side. He whispers something that Danny wishes he didn’t hear, to each of them before they regretfully leave his side.

“You must be Vladimir Masters.” The tone of voice is not a compliment, coming off more mocking, “Look at you, a bit older than I expected, but ultimately age is never an issue. Provided you’re at least an adult.”

The sultry look that the apparent Lucifer Morningstar has as he looks Vlad up and down appreciatively reminds Danny too much of how Vlad used to look at his mom. He starts to feel sick to his stomach, gagging exaggeratingly in the background as he tries his best to ignore the way his core has returned to vibrating, thumping hard against his chest.

Whatever the woman at the door was, Lucifer Morningstar must be at least the same thing - or something close to it - to make his core react the same way. He should be more concerned over it, but he glances toward Vlad. He looks stony as ever, the only sign of discomfort being a vein beginning to throb on his neck. Ah, so he does notice.  

He doesn’t seem surprised either.  Danny wonders if this is some sort of test again, to see what he will do and how he will react. Especially in front of an unknown factor. Shit. Danny curses when he realizes that’s why Vlad brought him along in the first place and then curses again - more directed at Vlad himself this time - for Vlad being as cryptic and vague as Clockwork.

 I just wanted to see the endeavor, Danny bemoans as the man ushers Vlad (and by extension, Danny) to a clear booth. Taking Vlad’s lead, Danny acts more confident this time around, trying his best to act like every inch of his being isn’t screaming to run.

“Drinks,” Lucifer offers, seeming comfortable in the booth with his arms stretched out wide against the edge of the seat across from Danny and Vlad. While Vlad accepts the offer, ordering a simple old fashion, Danny speaks up with a cheeky grin.

“I’ll have a coke on the rocks,” Danny orders, showing a lot of teeth in his grin as he gives finger guns, of all things. After a pause, he adds on, “Not shaken nor stirred, please.”

Vlad’s exasperated sigh is barely audible as he breathes out through his nose. At the very least, he should be glad that Danny is acting normal - as awkward and tiring as normal is.

“I must admit Mr. Morningstar, I was a bit surprised to receive your invitation,” Vlad speaks easily. He politely sips at his drink, but otherwise leaves it untouched, more focused on the conversation. He tries to not let his eye twitch when he hears Danny suck up his coke through a straw.

Lucifer looks at Danny in amusement, seemingly unoffended by the teenager’s manners (a small blessing). Unlike Vlad, Lucifer doesn’t shy away from his own drink, downing it easily. He orders a few more at one of the ladies passing by, followed by flirtatious compliments that make her giggle and once again, makes Danny wish that he couldn’t hear what was being said.

“Well how could I not invite a man such as yourself, Vladimir,” Lucifer’s voice is exaggerated, almost strained, “Or is it Vlad? Vladdy?”

Vlad does twitch at that and Lucifer grins, “Vladdy it is. Better than douchebag, I suppose.”

Danny snorts at the sudden word, laughing hard enough that he barely stops the coke from pouring out of his nose. He takes in a deep breath, wiping at his face with a cocktail napkin as his nose burns from the soda.

“I prefer to use the term fruit loop,” Danny speaks up helpfully.

Lucifer seems delighted at this information, his eyes lighting up in glee as Vlad visibly sinks into the seat.

“ Fruit loop,” Lucifer repeats gleefully, “Lacks a bit in curse words for my liking but fruit loop it is!”

“You can always say fucking fruit loop,” Danny offers as if he is still being helpful, the grin on his face more genuine, “Or fruit by the fucking loop?”

Lucifer’s laugh is infectious, his eyes gleaming as Danny joins him in laughter at Vlad’s expense. For a moment, the two continue back and forth before Vlad is forced to intervene; the vein is his neck is more noticeably throbbing at this point.

“Mr. Morningstar,” Vlad cuts in, his voice stern, “What exactly was the point of the invitation, if I may? I hope it wasn’t to just call me outrageous names.”

Lucifer nonchalantly waves off Vlad’s growing ire, “Oh no, I invited you over for much more than just that. Favors, you will find, are my  specialty. One could say it’s my whole business. I grant favors and I do not take kindly to others who sneak up on my business and steal it away.”

There’s a flash of something in Lucifer’s eyes. Something dangerous. As brief as it is, it’s enough to make Danny’s core hum against his chest, his hand grips his knee tightly. His eyes flicker to Vlad and as much as the older man is trying to hide it, Danny can tell that he’s just as suddenly bothered by whatever that was.

“It’s the point of the matter, you know,” Lucifer continues, “Steal my business, shame on me, steal my shtick, shame on you.”

He downs another glass and grabs something off a platter as someone passes by. It looks suspiciously like a joint. He lights it up without a second thought; Danny tries his best to act like he doesn’t know what it is as Vlad eyes him through the corner of his eyes.

“Word is that you, Vladimir Masters, have been sneaking around granting favors to a chosen few. I don’t know how you grant said favors, I don’t particularly care. But I do wish you would stop.”

The dangerous aura that’s thick in the air is heavy, but the realization that Vlad has still been up to shady business is heavier. Danny slumps into the seat, leaning forward with a heavy sigh.

“So you have been up to shady shit,” Danny mumbles under his breath as he absently stirs the straw in what has to be his third glass of coke.

“If you don’t stop,” Lucifer continues, “I’m afraid I’ll have to make you stop. If Mazikeen does not get to you first.”

He gestures his thumb toward the woman that was outside the door; she hovers nearby as if she knows exactly what they’re talking about. The grin on her face is malicious, bordering on feral as she twirls a knife across her knuckles without breaking eye contact. That woman is intimidating, Danny swallows thickly, but grins wildly at Lucifer.

“Oh he’ll stop,” Danny reassures the man before Vlad can even get a word in. There’s an edge to his words; a very clear message underlying his words. “Otherwise I’ll make him stop myself.”

A flash of ectoplasmic green swirls across his eyes. Vlad, not quite intimidated by a sixteen year old still going through puberty, simply mumbles under his breath, oh stop with the ‘scary’ eyes, Daniel, honestly. Lucifer catches the moment, eying them both with interest as he relaxes into the chair. He makes a motion with his hand and suddenly the woman - Mazikeen - isn’t there anymore; Danny isn’t sure where she went, if he should be worried about it, or if it was a sign of good faith.

“ You are a very interesting child,” Lucifer says, “At first I thought you two may have been one of mine, but that’s not really the case is it?”

Danny isn’t sure what one of mine really means; he doesn’t really want to know either. The way Lucifer says it feels off, as if he’s not concerned by it or that they would have been in worse trouble if they had in fact been one of his (whatever that means). Vlad recovers fast, eying Lucifer with narrowed eyes.

“Just what is it that you’re inferring, Mr. Morningstar?”

“Why, that you’re not human, of course!”

He says it as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world, a large grin stretched on his face as he finishes off the suspicious joint, making a point to blow the smoke away from them. It may have been a trick of the light, or even just a magic trick, but Danny swears that the smoke formed some sort of devilish face. Complete with the horns and all.

Danny’s grin falters as he watches Lucifer closely.

F-uck-ing typical. At this rate, he will never get to see the endeavor or any other of California’s space museums. Why can’t he have just one normal road trip for once? No circus ringleader, no reality altering devices, no ghosts, and no ghost hunters. He just wants to get a selfie with a space shuttle, order as much hotel food as he can off of Vlad’s card, and then crash. Maybe even go to the Griffith Observatory. Fly to the Hollywood sign. Sneak into a Disney park and take a selfie on top of Cinderella’s castle. Just a normal trip (with a few added advantages to being a half-ghost boy). Now, he has to instead worry about some devil-obsessed (but definitely weird and maybe not human at all) club owner finding out his secret.

This is exactly what Danny told Vlad; meeting someone you don’t know is just a risk. At the very least, Lucifer doesn’t look like a ghost hunter. He definitely doesn’t fit the M.O. of a Guys In White agent. There could be other agencies out there though, other people who want to hunt them down. Who knows, maybe whatever this guy really is likes to eat ghosts or hunt them for sport. This is exactly what he was concerned about. Now, his secret, and Vlad’s secret too he supposes, could be blown all because Vlad had to go make a shady business deal.

Danny turns to Vlad, not even bothering to whisper as his voice cuts through the loud music.

“I told you so.”

[lifeofkaze]

When Stars Ignite - Chapter 12

HPHM Rockstar AU

A/N: Surprise, a new chapter already! This one and the Chapter 11 were actually supposed to be one single chapter but we decided to cut it due to my inability to keep things short length. Hence, the same title with an addition and the consecutive days - just so you don't wonder. Also, in case anyone was confused by the timeframe reading Chapter 11, this supposed to be a flashback to when the whole thing between them started - sorry for not making this clear in the first place 💛

General Warning: This whole fic has a general warning of being NSFW / 18+. We will give specific warnings for every chapter in itself, but several adult themes will be more or less present in every chapter, may it be explicitly or in mention. These include sexual topics, drug abuse, (ab)use of alcohol, smoking and a whole lot of cursing.

Specific Warning: Langague, mention of alcohol and drug abuse, mention of NSFW content

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Find the masterpost here, the previous chapter here and the next one here. The songs featured before every chapter can be found on this pretty badass playlist here.

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This work is a collaboration with @the-al-chemist

Taglist: @slytherindisaster @night-rhea @carewyncromwell

It's just the way that you walk

It's just the way that you talk

Like it ain't no thing

And every single day is just a fling

Then the morning comes

~ Smash Mouth - Then The Morning Comes ~

Lizzie woke the next morning to a painful pounding inside her head and a mouth as dry as dust. It took her a few moments to find her bearings; the light of the morning sun didn’t fall onto her bed like it did now, and neither did her sheets smell like Orion’s aftershave.

With that thought the memories of last night hit her like a freight train. Covering her eyes with her hand, she let her head slump back onto the pillow, a breathy chuckle leaving her parched throat. She certainly hadn’t expected that to happen when she had agreed to go to her first poetry slam with Orion. Saying she regretted sleeping with him would have been a blatant lie, though; it had been far too good for that.

Sitting up slowly, Lizzie stretched her back, rolling her neck from side to side; her head hurt like hell but it wasn’t as bad as she had anticipated. Orion seemed to be up already, which didn’t surprise her; Lizzie knew he was an early riser from the many years they had spent touring together.

Her eyes fell onto the nightstand and the corners of her mouth twitched into a smile. A full bottle of water and a blister pack of painkillers were waiting for her there. Not sure what she was more grateful for, the meds or the water, Lizzie took a large gulp out of the bottle first before washing down one of the pills with a second, smaller sip; her mouth was so dry, she wasn’t even sure any of the water was reaching her stomach at all.

She sat between the sheets for a little longer, her back leaned against the rough brick wall. Taking small sips out of her bottle every now and again she contemplated last night’s events.

In a thousand years she wouldn’t have anticipated ending up in bed with Orion when all they’d had planned had been a night out together. And it wasn’t like she could blame it all on getting drunk and high out of her mind either; Lizzie was honest enough with herself to admit she’d always found him more than a little attractive, but so far, it had stopped for her at that.

The dreamcatcher hanging from the window frame directly above the bed was painting intricate shadows on the sheets. Lost in her thoughts, Lizzie watched them, trying to discern if she felt any different after spending the night with one of her best friends.

If she was completely honest with herself, the answer was no. Neither she nor her feelings towards Orion seemed to have changed in any way.

She shrugged the thought off and swung her legs out of the bed, standing up slowly in case her circulation was still funky. She grabbed her shorts from the ground where she had unceremoniously tossed them last night. Exchanging the shirt Orion had given her with her own top, she pulled a new hair tie from her pocket and pulled her tangled hair out of her face.

With the warm shirt and her hair gone from her bare shoulders, Lizzie noticed how cool the morning air felt against her skin. She grabbed the black hoodie she had borrowed yesterday from another place on the floor and put it on again. Following the soft sound of Orion’s guitar that was drifting down from the rooftop terrace, she climbed up the steps and through the open skylight.

Orion was sitting on the deckchair with his acoustic guitar in his hands, playing a melody Lizzie didn’t recognise. One of his countless notebooks was lying in front of him and she could spot a pencil being stuck behind his ear. Lizzie waited until he stopped playing to write something down before she walked over to him.

He looked up from his notes as she sat down on the end of the deckchair. “Good morning.”

“Morning,” Lizzie smiled. She tilted her head, trying to catch a glimpse of what Orion was composing. “What was that you were playing?”

“Something new,” he smirked. He closed the notebook and carefully put his guitar away. “Did you sleep well?”

“Like a baby,” Lizzie chuckled, “No wonder though…” She indicated the water bottle she was still holding, “Thanks for that, I didn’t even realise how thirsty I was.”

“That’s what smoking does to you,” Orion shrugged. “I got us some fruit from the market down the road for breakfast, if you want some.”

Lizzie had already spotted the huge plate laden with an assortment of colourful fruit on the table behind him. It was only now that she realised just how hungry she was. “How do you know that’s what I like for breakfast?”

He looked at her as if she had lost her mind. “We’ve been touring together for five years now, remember?”

Lizzie felt her cheeks go red. “Obviously. I can’t think before coffee.”

“I made you some, but no idea if it’s good,” Orion shrugged. “You know I don’t drink coffee myself.”

Lizzie made her way over to the table and poured herself a cup. “Then why do you have coffee in the first place?”

“Merula likes some when she’s here.”

She took her first sip after adding sugar and milk but even then the bitter taste was so overwhelmingly strong that Lizzie couldn’t help but grimace.

Orion watched her with a sympathetic expression. “Too strong?”

“A little,” Lizzie croaked, trying to wash the taste away with another sip of water.

“Sorry, that’s how Merula likes it.”

“No wonder she never laughs if her days start like this,” Lizzie replied sardonically.

Orion had to chuckle at her words. “Our tastes can mirror our personalities, that’s true; I wouldn’t tell her that, though.”

He raised his own mug that had been resting on the floor beside him. “If you don’t like the coffee, I can only offer you tea, I’m afraid.”

Gingerly pushing her coffee cup as far away from her as possible, Lizzie nodded gratefully. “I’d be fine with that.”

Lizzie was surprised at how relaxed and comfortable the atmosphere between them was; it was like having breakfast with her best friend, just like it always had.

None of them spoke about what had happened last night, nor did they feel the need to. Now, in the light of a new day, the fact that they had slept with each other seemed almost surreal. Lizzie was relieved to see that, just like her, Orion didn’t seem to have any issues with it whatsoever.

She had just picked out another cherry from the fruit platter when her phone started ringing, the familiar picture of Skye flashing across the screen. She motioned for Orion to be silent before accepting the call.

“What’s up, Skye?” she greeted her breezily.

Skye didn’t seem to share her good mood, however. “Where the fuck are you?”

“What?”

“We were meant to go running today? I’ve been waiting for a solid twenty minutes now.”

Lizzie mouthed a silent curse; she had completely forgotten about that. “Oh shit, I’m so sorry! I slept in, it got a little later yesterday than I expected.” She tried not to grin as her eyes flicked over to Orion.

“Oh yeah, how was the slam?”

Lizzie almost choked on her tea as she tried not to snort with laughter. “You want to know how the slam was?” she repeated Skye’s words, watching Orion cover his mouth with his hand as he, too, was trying very hard not to laugh.

“It was very good, thank you for asking. I got some whole new perspectives out of it.”

“Maybe I should come next time.”

“Oh, believe me,” Lizzie grinned, “it wouldn’t have been your thing at all.”

“Hm, if you say so. How about Orion? Haven’t seen him quite so excited about something in a long time.”

“Well, I think he had quite a good night,” she smirked, throwing her cherry at Orion as he was shaking with silent laughter.

“Anyway,” Skye sighed through the speaker, “what’s the deal now? Could be at your place in ten minutes.”

Lizzie racked her brain, trying to come up with a suitable excuse. “Uhm no, I’m actually not home right now.” Her gaze fell onto her cup of green tea. “I ran straight out of coffee this morning and I’m on the hunt for some.”

Luckily, Skye seemed to buy it. “Fine, want to meet for lunch later?”

“Make it dinner and I’m in,” Lizzie answered, “Say hi to Erika for me,” she couldn’t help but add with a wicked grin.

She could practically see Skye blushing, even through her phone. “What makes you think I’m with -”

But Lizzie had already hung up on her.

The laughter was still dancing in Orion’s eyes when he shook his head. “You’re truly evil, do you know that?”

Lizzie chuckled. “That’s not what you said last night.”

“Fair enough,” Orion conceded. “But I’m curious, why did you lie to her?”

“First of all, I didn’t lie; I just didn’t tell her all the details. It’s none of her business anyway.” The smile vanished from her face and Lizzie averted her eyes. “And besides, I don’t want her to get into a conflict because she’s hiding something from her father.”

She took a deep breath, the mood suddenly not at all relaxed anymore. “And about that…”

But Orion had already guessed what she wanted to say. “You want to keep this a secret.” It wasn’t a question but an observation.

“If that’s cool with you.”

To her relief, Orion nodded. “It suits me well. I agree with you, it’s no one’s business but our own. And a secret shared between friends can only serve to deepen the friendship.”

Lizzie nodded in agreement, glad to see they were on the same page about this. She finished her tea, popped another cherry into her mouth and got up to leave.

“Is it okay if I borrow that for today?” she asked, motioning at the sweater she was still wearing. It wasn’t cold by any means, but the sweater was cosy and soft, just what she needed on a hungover day like this. It smelled like something resembling ginger, a scent she found very pleasant.

Orion followed her inside and showed her to the door. Just as she was about to leave, he caught her wrist and held her back.

“Any chance for another kiss?”

Lizzie hesitated, looking at him apologetically. “Sorry, I don’t usually do that.” Her lips twisted into a sly smile as she added, “And you got way more than a kiss anyway.”

She turned to go, but changed her mind on a whim; standing on her tiptoes, Lizzie pressed a quick kiss onto his cheek.

“Maybe next time.”