#also these are meant to be holiday related so merry christmas :3

[hansuart]

cuddles 💗💜🥺

[alien-magnolia]

Mine and His <3

Fic Description: As a background type scientist, you aren’t very special in the world of Pandora. That changes, when you are noticed by Jake Sully, and fortunately, his rival, Colonel Quaritch. 18+ MDNI!!!

Tw: Implied non-con, power dynamics, dom-coded! Jake sully + Miles Quaritch, sub-coded hyperfem!reader, fingering, Jake/Quaritch talking down to reader/ bimbofication, ownership, major size kink bc human reader.

A/n: this turned out way longer than I thought, and I originally meant to post it on Christmas.its a bit hard for me to consistently post now. Anyways, merry belated Christmas/ holidays, and hope yall enjoy my first time bringing the very (hot) Miles Quaritch to life!! Don’t we love the balance between a young Jake Sully and an older Miles Quaritch <3 I am planning to make a part two with more intense smut! Stay tuned! (this was lacking a bit 😭) alsooo pls help a gorl out and reblog if you like this!!

The moon rose above you as you made your way to the forest, your mask in tow, and your boots. You were meeting Jake at the edge of the forest. He would not want you to venture in alone. Your tiny human form could not take it, as he would say. The Na’vi man was extremely possessive over you. The leaves rustled amongst the wind, bioluminescent crickets danced in the air.

You stand still as the ferns brush against your leg, wondering where your Jake was. You came to Pandora as a sort of background character — always behind the scenes, never noticed, usually brushed to the side. You were apart of the anthropological and religion team, researching and observing Na’vi culture, religion, and social relations and norms.

Every morning, you rose from your cold, metallic, cot, put on your oxygen mask, and worked at the lab from 8-5. Sometimes you would be invited into the community to learn, yet you never lingered around too long. The other scientists were more fluent in Na’vi than you were, and so, they would make a better impression.

It was only until one night, where the half-moon rose and shone over the sky, swirled as if it was cotton candy, was the night where you became noticed. You, made an impression.

~ Three months ago ~

You stayed to observe a Na’vi ritual, one called the “Sun Dance,” where one ingests a hallucinogenic worm in order to have a vision of their fate for the future, their destiny. This ritual served to breach the gap between the sacred and the normal, the ordinary, to alter reality in which a religion exists everywhere — not only in a book or a house. This was Na’vi religion — Animism.

You enjoyed the ritual and truly felt that you were starting to grow connected with the community. However, you were still a bit unfamiliar with the forest, and accidentally happened to wander onto a slippery log — that also acted as a bridge for a deep canyon below. Your tiny human feet stumbled across the bridge, and then slipped. You landed on your stomach, then realizing the vast canyon below — and that you would face sudden death if you were to drop into it. You screamed out in pain as a branch pierced your leg. You hear heavy steps behind you, you pass out.

You wake up beneath a bioluminescent large plant, with its long tendrils gently swaying over your face. You feel something on your leg, and look to see quite a handsome Na’vi man tending to your thigh, which had a large scrape on it.

“Hey. You’re awake. Almost fell there, girl.” You study his features a bit more. His hair is long, black, his eyes a deep yellow. Chiseled jaw, veiny arms, and wide shoulders <3 adorned with an interesting necklace. You muster the courage to speak to this beautiful man in front of you.

“Yes, I — um, sorry. I should have been more careful. I’m still a bit unfamiliar with the forest, although I’ve done many studies here,” you explain to him. “S’alright. I can take you back to your home base, if ya like,” the man offers, his tail swishing a bit. He must have been excited to talk to you. You blush at the note of attention from him, and agree.

The two of you begin walking back, the Na’vi man stopping momentarily to make sure there were no creatures of harm nearby. You learned his name was Jake. Jake Sully. You watch his long braid sway from side to side, like a pendulum, as you walk behind him. The two of you have been talking, sharing your stories, your journeys, what brought the two of you to Pandora, respectively.

“Was a marine, when I first came here. I was trying to pay for my surgery, to well — get my legs back. M’sure you know, the RDA loves screwing everyone over. ‘Specially me,” Jake explained to you, as he led you through the dark, softly glowing canopy of trees.

“So you weren’t very good at school, then, I assume,” you snicker, trying to poke a bit of fun at him. “And you are?,” he retorts back, emitting a deep hearty laugh, a sound you liked. “I do have a PhD, yes,” you giggle a bit as you look to see his reaction. He only huffs, yet you swore you could see a little smile behind that stoic face of his.

The two of you continued to walk back and engage in this somewhat flirtatious banter. He led you back to your lab, wishing you a goodnight.

“Jake, wait,” you touch his arm as he was about to leave, and he flinched, his ears folding back. He turns to you. “I would want to see you again. It would be nice, I think,” you offer, hoping he would take the initiative. “Hmm. Doubt it. You stay safe, miss PhD,” he retorts, and runs off into the forest.

Yet you wouldn’t take his “doubt it” for an answer.

The following night, you ventured again into the forest, hoping to find him. You might as well take a few pictures, hoping to find your way into the Omaticaya village. You did not find your way there, and instead ended up running into a few creatures. Jake saw, luckily, and saved your “prissy lil’ self” (as he called it) again.

Nights with Jake became a regular occasion. Although you and him had more of a fair share of differences, you found it to be true, that opposites attract.

————

~ Present Day ~

You smiled as you remembered how you first met him. The two of you only went on ‘dates’ together, where he would show you an interesting place he liked in the forest, or take you on a ride on his ikran. Nothing more, just conversation.

Yet, the more you got to know him, the more you wanted him. In a way that surpasses conversations or dates. You really had hoped that tonight, you could go further.

Everything about him was just perfect. His shining eyes, his strong arms, his beautiful voice that made you feel so safe <3.

You hear his footsteps behind you. “Babygirl. How’s my favorite scientist doing?,” he chuckles, his big hands gently gripping your face, giving you a kiss on top of your head. “Good,” you giggle, reaching up to give him a hug. You always have felt so safe in his arms.

“Where are we off to tonight?,” you curiously poke at him as he leads you over a bridge — the both of you hearing the gentle splash of the pond below. “You’ll see, hun. Somewhere real special,” he reassures. Where could this place be? How exactly could you get here, to be spending time with this beautiful Na’vi man, who possibly could be yours??

The anticipation was simply too much to handle. “Wanted t’a bring ya here, to ask somethin’. Was thinkin’ you see, that you could become a true member of the Omaticaya. Pass all our tests and all,” he says, while you lean your head on his shoulder.

You think on it for a bit. “But why, Jake? It would mean that I need a Na’vi body…,” you trail off. “Exactly. Ever since the day I met you, sweetie, I wanted you to be mine. You’re just too goddamn adorable for your own good,” he chuckles. “Can’t make you mine though, officially, without you becoming a tuté (woman) of our people. You will prove yourself to the Tsahik. We will mate, then. For life. You’ll be mine, girl,” he smiles warmly at you.

You agreed, overwhelmed with happiness!! “My Jake, why can’t we mate now?,” you ask, although as a Pandoran anthropologist, you knew the answer. Your human body was no match for his Na’vi strength. If you were to mate now, not only would it be against Omaticaya customs, his sheer power would most likely kill you!!

“Thought you knew the answer there, Miss PhD,” he teases. “How’s about this. I give you a little taste of what’s to come if you join the people of the forest,” his voice shifts to a deeper tone, his eyes a bit hooded now.

A large blue hand the size of your head gently grips your face, turning you towards him. His soft lips plant a few kisses on the top of your head, moving down to your neck. All of a sudden, your oxygen mask gets a little too hot for your face <3 your heartbeat quickens as well.

“Jake…I’d love nothing more than to join the Omaticaya,” you pant, in between breaths as he continues his ministrations. “That’s my good girl. See if those scientists of yours can make you an avatar. Want you to be mine,” he purrs, with a bit of a darker undertone as his large hands squeeze and grope the plush curves of your body — to the point where it’s painful.

You pant and squeal as his fingers trace patterns on your soft tummy, his large face planting a few kisses there as well. “Love this human body, babygirl. Bet your Na’vi one would be even better…,” he praises you. <3

His fingers were getting lower and lower, tracing circles on the hem of your waistband. “Jake…,” you pant out. “Want you…,” a cry, a plea for help. You had no idea how intense your fervor was for him, until now.

“Can’t give you all of me, hun. You can’t take me yet, m’ too big for you. Don’t want ta hurt your pretty little body,” he chastised you, his yellow eyes full of concern.

Just about when you were to agree, to let him give you a taste, that taste that you’ve been waiting for, that taste that your heart (and other parts of you) ached for, the two of you heard a rustling behind, in the bushes.

Out step two steel toed boots, a blue RDA uniform. At first you thought it was someone human — you were surprised to see that it was a Na’vi man wearing the suit. You quickly try to hide, using Jake’s wide chest as a safe haven.

Jake’s eyes burn with rage, disgust. His ears fold back, a low growl escapes his throat, his Adam’s apple moving slightly.

“Miss me, corporal?”

This man had a smug way of expressing himself, hands on his hips. He looked to be a bit older than Jake.

“Forgot about our agreement, all those years ago, Sully?” Jake hissed in response, telling this man, whom he called ‘Quaritch,’ to kindly fuck off.

Quaritch, a man of his word, did not take this as an answer, and continued to move closer.

Until he saw you. He stopped. “Whose this you’ve got here, corporal?” Jake hisses again, standing up this time to shield you from Quaritch. “Leave her out of this,” his tone low, possessive, angry.

“Why don’t you come on out, cupcake?,” his eyes turn towards you. Just like your Jake’s, you saw that they were full of lust, hunger. No affection, though. They were cold, empty. This man was attractive — yes, yet something about him felt off.

Jake reassures you that you don’t have to do it — until Quaritch himself pulls you out from behind Jake’s back. Quaritch circles you, tutting, eyebrows raised.

He turns to Jake. “Got yerself a sweet little toy, huh, Sully? My, my, she’s quite a looker,” Quaritch comments, his voice sickeningly sweet, as his large blue hand plays with your hair. Jake was fuming — ready to start a fight with the man. It was clear that the two had a past rivalry, and never made amends.

It was also clear that the two wanted you.

“How’s about this, corporal? Your little girl here, could very well seal our agreement, don’t ya think?,” he taunts Jake.

“She’s mine, Quaritch. Don’t even think about it.” Quaritch then retorted that it was either this, or his rifle. Jake then agreed.

“Glad we’re on the same page, Sully. She’ll be ours, to share, won’t ya, cupcake? How’s about I show you how we do things where I’m from, hmm?,” his southern accent cooing at you goes straight to your core, between your legs.

You glance at Jake, hesitantly watching. Quaritch then sits down, his giant arms pulling you into his lap, one hand behind your head, the other on your hip.

“Such a pretty girl. Gonna give you something to feel good about,” he chuckles, peppering your face and neck with kisses, his fangs slightly biting into your shoulder as you gasp!!

Jake is infuriated, still watching from the side, although he looks like he is enjoying watching you get ravished by the older Na’vi. Quaritch’s soft lips trail down your soft tummy and waistline, your small hand intertwined with his rough, calloused one.

His fingers trail your waistband — realizing that Jake already pulled off your clothes — your wetness soaked his thigh. <3

“Aww. How cute, pussy’s all soaked f’me. I think I know what she wants,” he taunts you, showing you his big fingers, almost the length of your arm. <3

You nod vigorously, completely forgetting about Jake. “Yes. Please, please, anything,” you beg him. “How’s about you call me sir, hmm, sweet cheeks? More fittin’, don’t’cha think?,” his southern voice drips as if it were melted caramel, seeping through to your inner submission to these beautiful, tall, men.

You were their toy, theirs to own, theirs to play with, theirs to use as they please and see fit. That’s all you could think about, as your tongue hung out, your eyes closed, small hand gripping the watch on Quaritch’s hand, as his two fingers worked and massaged your gummy walls over and over.

You thought of belonging to the two Na’vi men, passed around from the loving arms of your soon to be mate, to the vicious and unrelenting force that was Miles Quaritch, your ‘sir.’ For these two men, you were fine with leaving your life as a scientist behind, just to trail them around.

You were giddy with the thought of it, as you came undone around Quaritch’s fingers, his reassuring words, “let go f’me, cupcake…,” and Jake’s hands behind you, rubbing the small of your back, this was a taste of a life you never knew you wanted.

Now that you had this taste, you were ready to risk it all to keep this.

You fall asleep in Jake’s arms, as Quaritch bids him a ‘till next time,” and your soon to be mate is left wondering what that phrase entails.

Avatar taglist: @aerangi @jake-sullys-whore @drinking-tea-and-be-obsessed @brioffthegrid

[misha-moose-dean-burger-lover]

for @bend-me-shape-me's SPN Advent Calendar 2020. prompts (II & III): childhood memories + motels.

dedicated to @xojo <3

"Dude, I swear."

Dean enters the room to Sam's laughing voice, and glances around to take note of the occupants. Cas is sitting with his chin in his hands and wide eyes, cross-legged at the edge of one bed (his and Cas's, Dean guesses), while Sam is sprawled out on the other, pink-cheeked (drunk) and shaking with mirth (drunk again), the storyteller of the evening.

The sight makes his stomach drop — kind of — but in a good way, and he bites his lip to contain a smile as he puts the dinner on the closest table and goes back to lock the door.

It's been a while since all of them shared a room, but it's almost Christmas and motels are crowded, so here they are.

And as much as Dean loves sharing a bed with Cas every night, even if they're not at the bunker (also, minus the unenviable cost of Sam bitching his ears off about needing brain bleach the entire next day, even if all they did was spoon and Sam's obviously the one with the problem) — sometimes he misses the three of them just hanging out. And there's no better place than a shared motelroom for it. Case-free, stuffed with diner foods, and up to absolutely nothing of 'import'.

"Dean wanted to be Santa so bad." Sam finishes, and Dean's pulled back to reality; the one where letting Sam and Cas spend time without him mostly just meant them feeding each other fodder (blackmail, usually for laundry-related situations, or plain, simple annoyance ammunition) about Dean.

"That's fascinating." Cas says, sounding absolutely delighted, because of course he is.

Dean picks up the food.

"Screw you both."

"Hello, Dean." Cas smiles up at him, reaching up with a hand Dean belatedly realizes he's supposed to take. He does then, blushing, and Cas beams, squeezing as Dean sits down beside him (and starts untying his boots with just one hand because goddammit, he still wants to get his feet under the damn covers) and turning back to Sam. "What happened then?"

Sam gives up on his (failing) attempts to fake-gag effectively, easily ignoring Dean using his not-occupied-in-being-held hand to flip him off, and continues. "Epic things, Cas. So Dean shows up, right, at the audition — or, you know, whatever it was supposed to be, choosing ceremony, christmas cult initiation, something — and there's all these kids, about his age, but they're all dressed up in tights, and —"

Dean groans, cutting him off.

He remembers this story.

It had been one of the longest hunts until then, and Dean credits that now to having been just a month away from thirteen — the perfect age, John decided, to leave Sam with him for days without checking in. That's about when it started to become the norm.

Dad had moved them from a ratty motel to an even rattier, and considerably colder apartment before leaving. One bedroom, one couch (although Dean avoided it with a passion; it was springy, smelled odd, and felt too obviously not theirs, so they ended up living almost entirely in their beds that December) and a kitchen so cold Dean remembers debating with himself if he should just bring the damn plates to the bedside table and call it a day.

God, he'd hated living there.

Way more than he ever did in worn-out, roadside motels with staff you could befriend and most guests (albeit concerned, but) easily persuaded to make conversation. It had felt more deserting, more abandoned, and certainly more alone.

But of course he'd played it up for Sam — the kid was eight for hell's sake — and the building-wide Christmas gig (weird, for such an otherwise to-each-their-own sorts of people, but semantics didn't bug Dean at the time, and they don't bug him now) had seemed like a perfect opportunity to solidify his claims of this being a better place to spend the holiday season, Dad or no Dad.

So he'd decided to be Santa.

(In Dean's defense, when the building manager had showed up — old, gruff, but not unlike Bobby Singer — he'd told them they could participate in whatever way they wanted to, and shortly after, told them about the Santa Claus & Elves gig.

Probably because he thought Sam (not Dean, right?) might be into something like that.

He'd obviously not anticipated a skinny twelve year old boy would pick up from those informations that he wanted to be Santa, or he would've stressed a little more on the options, well, skinny twelve year old boys had.

More specifically, green-pointy-hat and striped-tights-wearing options.)

He sighs.

Dean can tell Sam notices it all coming back to him, because the bastard's dopey smile widens. (Way too little tolerance for being the size of a friggin' door, Dean would've claimed, but he's more than familiar with Sam's eggnog recipe.)

"What's the matter, Dean?" Sam snorts, clearly pleased with himself for having brought up an embarrassing enough story, god knows how. "Let me finish for Cas, at least, geez. Don't —"

Dean buries his face in his palm.

"— be elfish."

Cas tilts his head. "I believe you mean selfish, Sam."

"Oh no," Sam cackles. "I really don't."

*

The night ends soon after a late dinner, with a smug Sam passing out and starting to snore the minute he's on his pillow (bitch really just played into all ridiculous drunk stereotypes, Dean scoffs) and Dean emerging from the shower to find no Cas in the room, and the door unlocked.

He spots the ex-angel staring at the sky the moment he steps out of their room to look, and joins him, circling an arm around his waist to slide a hand into Cas's warm pocket, entwining his fingers with the latter's.

Cas leans into his warmth. It's midnight. "Merry Christmas, Dean."

Dean presses his lips to Cas's cheek, just for a second, because they're not in their room and he isn't keen to get into a fight at twelve am on Christmas Eve because a random dickhead sees them. "Merry Christmas, babe."

The air is cold, heavy, but it doesn't remind Dean of that godawful kitchen — just waking up blanketless, because the love of his life is a sworn-to-denial blanket hog. Similarly, the sky's speckled with stars, and he can tell it invokes emotions — nostalgia? — in the former angel, but he doesn't look sad. He just squeezes a little more snug against Dean.

As if in each other, they've found ways to forget the pain, the guilt, and the sadness. It's not just the proximity, not just the heat, but the reassurance, the company and the comfort.

And isn't that exactly what love's about?

"So," Cas gently breaks the quiet, as if he understands that Dean's thoughts have drifted somewhere. "Santa Claus, huh?"

"Man, I'd even borrowed a hat." Dean grumbles back.

"Don't elves wear hats too?" Cas teases, mouth quirked in a half-smirk, radiating happiness and fondness, with a hint of pride at probably understanding a relatively human concept, and he sounds so much like himself, and so adorable, and god, Dean loves him.

So he buries his face in Cas's shoulder, hiding a smile he can't hold in.

"Okay, screw you too."

[stonerbughead]

writing tag game

finally getting around to this! thanks to @acenancy @thetaoofbetty @iconic-ponytail @imreallyloveleee and @satelliteinasupernova for the tags!

How many works do you have on AO3?

19! when did that happen?

What’s your total AO3 word count?

555,869 holy yep

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

on AO3, only 2–riverdale + my one nancy drew cw nace fic! however back in the ~day on FF.net I wrote for Harry Potter and I def wrote a Zoey 101 fic too L O L

What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Exhale (stoner bughead college AU with demi jug)

if it feels like a home (canon divergent bughead getting back together fic with a SEVEN YEAR TIME JUMP I DID IT FIRST @ RVD WRITERS)

betty, it’s legitimately cold outside (snowed in bughead christmas oneshot. aww this was my first holiday bughead fic)

do you like or like like me? (my class of ‘12 high school bughead field hockey AU)

love in the time of coronavirus (the omg they were quarantined fic I wrote from march-june 2020)

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

yesss! comments make my heart soar, and i love to reply to them and especially to take the time to respond in depth to longer comments. also, as a comment-leaver i like seeing replies when people get around to it! which leads me to my next point...often it takes me forever to reply but i always get there eventually!

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

i don't do angsty endings bc i personally am writing fanfic for happy endings tbh but i WILL say the biggest angsty cliffhanger i've ever left my readers on was the end of ch 3 in do you like or like like me? i intended to go only a week between ch 3 and 4 but then didn't...so that's probably the angstiest i've ever left bughead if that makes sense lol

What’s the fic you’ve written with the happiest ending?

hmm, i feel like all my stories have happy endings! but maaaaaybe a merry little retail christmas, since they end up with their own bookstore and jughead proposing to a very surprised betty in said bookstore as he reveals they own it?

Do you write crossovers? If so what is the craziest one you’ve written?

does my riverdale O.C. AU count as a crossover? bc if so then yes. also i really want to do a nace/bughead crossover at some point. @heartunsettledsoul and i have discussed this a tiiiiny bit but nothing specific.

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

not hate exactly, but i have gotten people kind of bluntly asking me to include particular characters in a fic that are either a) already in the tags or b) not in the tags for a reason, and that's not...my favorite thing, ngl.

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

yes, yes i do! i guess i'm usually solidly in the M side of things rather than the E side, and it's typically equal parts horny and fluffy since it's always between characters who are ~in loooove! i did write a kink week oneshot entirely as an ode to the Satisfyer, a sex toy i highly recommend to anyone who owns a clit.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

not that i know of! so god i hope not!

Have you ever had a fic translated?

nah

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

nope

What’s your all time favorite ship?

bughead, for sure. see the 18 fics / thousands on thousands of words i've written about them. and the podcast (@bodysuitsforbughead) i put their name in the title of!

What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

eek okay so it's ~possible~ i'll never finish love in the time of coronavirus bc idk if i want to/am capable of going back to that headspace of early pandemic but A L S O i maybe will? chapter 8, the only unfinished chapter, is supposed to be a time jump epilogue so you never know, an idea might inspire me to write it at some point in the future! maybe it's meant to be written at a point in the future that's ~actually post pandemic, you know? we shall see.

What’s your writing strengths?

oh god, this is a hard one. i feel like i'm good at dialogue? it's hard to self evaluate!

What’s your writing weaknesses?

describing people!!! why am i so bad at it? i'll never know. however i do think it's part of the appeal of fanfic for me, bc everyone kinda already knows what characters look like so you can get away with the least amount of physical character description more so than original fic.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I don't really know any other languages besides English besides some rudimentary/faded italian and the amount of spanish you get in middle school, but if the character calls for it, like a stray Lodge family "mija" and such, i do that? but i think it's super cool when others who are bilingual, multilingual, etc. incorporate other languages!

What’s the first fandom you wrote for?

WAIT lmao @iconic-ponytail my answer is identical to yours: Harry Potter on fanfiction.net. For me, which is apparently unpopular in our fandom, it was all about Romione.

What’s your favorite fic you’ve written?

hands down, do you like or like like me? it just captured a lot of things i've always wanted for high school bughead in that fic AND the process allowed me to get out a lot of angst and nostalgia about my high school years, which was super cathartic. and the fact that i seem to have produced something that a lot of people could relate to as former nerdy teen girls makes me really happy. Exhale is a close second favorite, and probably mainly because i have a lot of anxiety attached to Exhale bc i never update it as fast as ppl want me to.

i'm late to the party so idk who has or hasn't done this yet, but i guess i'll tag some writer friends who *didn't* tag me? lmao @heartunsettledsoul @literatiruinedme @bugheadsextape @sullypants @fallout-mars @go-ldy

[all-about-remadora]

Wotcher, everybody!

Let's be honest, we all like Christmas fics. So here is a list of some of them :3

All Roads Lead Home by aqua-pura.

•It’s Christmas during HBP and Remus is about to return to the werewolves. However, he bumps into someone he’s missed but didn’t expect to see…

The Sweetest Thing by Bookish Brownie.

•Remus remembers his first kiss with Dora as their family gathers to celebrate Christmas.

The Glass Slipper by Gilpin. 

•Cinderella shall go to the ball. And Remus is going with her… Christmas, OotP.

Christmas in London by Greenholy.

•Remus was staring at the lighted window on the fourth floor. A window that only meant one thing: that Molly was right and Tonks was home alone on Christmas. HBP missing moment.

The Season Bright by Wild Magelet.

•Christmas, 1999. Wizarding England, had Voldemort never managed to create the horcruxes but stayed dead and buried after the attack on the Potters. Some events have unfolded a little differently. Some couples are just meant to be. AU.

A Merry Auld Christmas by bratty-jedi. 

•Sirius made his way through the halls and down the stairs, humming merrily to himself and mentally reviewing his holiday preparations checklist. This was shaping up to be an excellent holiday for Harry.

Tonks’ Christmas Mischief on Remus by pet-munchikin. 

•She had wanted to get back at him badly for months and Christmas seemed such a wonderful opportunity… - Tonks is angry with Remus because he’s mocking her all the time. As a result, she comes up with a plan to catch him off guard. Wil it work at all?

All I Want For Christmas by Bookish Brownie.

•Tonks has a rather unusual request for her Christmas present from Remus.

The Christmas Lists by sugarannie.

•One evening in front of the fire, Remus and Dora talk about wishes and Christmas list. AU after Deathly Hallows.

I Can Hear the Bells by train-lidz.

• On Christmas Eve in HBP Remus thinks back to his Christmas Eve during OotP, which happened to be his first date with Tonks.

I Must Go by pinkhairedauror.

•It’s December 1997. And the full moon is rising soon…

A Saintlike Claus by aqua-pura.

•Remus and Tonks end up spreading Christmas Joy to muggle children.

We Three Kings by Gilpin. 

•In the days leading up to Christmas at Grimmauld Place, 1995, three people see the relationship between Remus and Tonks through very different eyes.

The Five Kisses of Christmas by Bookish Borwnie.

•This story shows encounters between Remus and Tonks over five Christmases.

Chione by cafei_au_lei.

•Remus has confirmation that Tonks may return his feelings - now all that's left is to decide what to do with this rather exciting and terrifying information. And although it's been a strange year, this year's Christmas could shape up to be one of the best Remus has ever had.

Nadie debe pasar navidad solo by  GiiszLT.

•Y si Remus fuera a la madriguera pero al enterarse de que Tonks está sola va a verla a su departamento.

¿Cómo lo recibiria tonks?

NADIE DEBE PASAR NAVIDAD SOLO.

In From The Cold by Jess Pallas.

•A drink with Tonks at the Three Broomsticks and an unexpected surge of bad weather has a surprising impact upon Remus Lupin's life...

The Hopes and Fears of All the Years by MrsTater.

•When Tonks finds a book she must read during a Christmas shopping trip with Remus, it affects their relationship over three Christmases.

Happy New Year by VentoSereno.

•Seasonal New Year's Eve New Year's Kiss Fluff.

The Werewolf Who Stole Christmas by Lady Bracknell.

•Rated: M, English, Humor & Romance, Remus L., N. Tonks, Words: 284k+

What Friends Will Do by Gilpin.

•Remus has spent some much-needed, restorative time at The Burrow over Christmas, and is planning a surprise thank you in return. But he may not be the only one who has plans.

The Delicate Art of Present Giving by Gilpin.

•Tonks thought that buying a present for the man who has everything must be positively simple in comparison to buying for one who hasn't very much at all.

Last Christmas by darija305.

•It's Christmas time and Remus Lupin never felt lonelier. He lost his job, his parents died a few years ago and his best friends all moved out of the city. He decides to get drunk and ends up meeting someone who might change his entire life.

Home for Christmas by cae-prince.

•Tonks' Christmas Eve is ruined. Can Remus change that?

All Tonks Wants for Christmas by I Luv R-T.

•Will Tonks get her Christmas wish?

Tonks' Christmas Mischief On Remus by pet-munchkin.

•She had wanted to get back at him badly for months and Christmas seemed such a wonderful opportunity... - Tonks is angry with Remus because he's mocking her all the time. As a result, she comes up with a plan to catch him off guard. Will it work at all?

Remus Lupin and the Christmas Snail by Mercurie.

•In which a werewolf receives some well-deserved Christmas cheer.

The Great Christmas Pudding Caper (Or, Ways in Which Remus Lupin is Still Very Much a Marauder) by So_Caffeinated (so_caffeinated).

•Sirius proves he has more on his mind than just women (there's also food). Remus proves he is still a Marauder (perhaps even more so than when he was younger). Tonks proves she is a very skilled auror (but with very poor defenses against a suspect's diversionary tactics). And Molly's Christmas pudding proves itself thoroughly delicious.

First and Last by tjs_whatnot.

•Mr. and Mrs. Remus Lupin share a Christmas...

On Bethlehem Down by aegle.

•Remus Lupin finds himself at Nymphadora Tonks' flat on Christmas Eve, 1996.

Best Christmas by Sxpphie.

•In Which Nymphadora and Remus didn't die violently and you get some incredibly soft and fluffy Christmas related things about the two being good parents, Mostly Nymphadora being an amazing mother to her kids.

Nymphadora also has a surprise on Christmas eve for her amazing husband.

jealous by brainyisalwayssexy.

•Remus tells Tonks to find someone else. And she actually does, to his immediate regret.

Takes place during the Half Blood Prince book.

Milk and Cookies by sherlockian1895.

•"He consumes books like he expects them to disappear as soon as he puts them down; a book, literally any book, would’ve been a better gift... Stupid, stupid, stupid."

Baby, it´s cold outside! by Moony221b

•Baby, it´s cold outside...

[skippyv20]

Hi Skippy. I wanted to wish you and everyone happy holidays. I am looking forward to visiting to find out about the infamous Christmas card. Last year i sent you a birthday tribute to my Dad on this day. We lost him 3 years ago. The heavenly angel you sent meant alot to me. Im glad you are still here. Its very nice what you do. This year my son and his wife and 4 year old daughter will not be visiting from the big city. He did not come for Thanksgiving either. I have not seen them for a year. I am very lucky because my daughters and 8 year old Grandson are in my “bubble”. I love the idea that an anon sent about sharing Christmas past and present. I will be reading them perhaps after Christmas because now i am wrapping presents and packing packages to send. Baking and cooking. Everything is off kilter this year and I look forward to and am “saving” reading about the BRF. Following this saga has actually helped me so much. I have learned so much about Narcissistic behavior and PR. One of my favorite authors, Rex Stout’s, character’s Nero Wolfe abhorred public relations as an affront to humanity and now i understand Exactly how it currently works. And I Now understand the behavior of narcissists. And wish that i would have known about this with my own husband (out of the house for 12 years!!❤️) and Father of my 4 children. I wish my mom and dad would have also known exactly what we were dealing with. It would have really helped explain the classic behavior as they and I were left baffled. So thank you so much for helping with this education. And for being here. I miss Brewster and ejemoji. I hope they are good. And thank you for providing a place to see what others are thinking about what is going on in the world right now. Its been a rough year but i feel that it Has happened for a reason and ultimately will bring certain things to light and show us what is truly important. Love to you and all here. 🌲

I do recall that post about your dad.

I am so sorry about not seeing your son, his wife and their daughter.  You are very lucky to have your bubble family.  It sounds like you are putting your heart into making the best of Christmas.  Good for you.  That’s all anyone can do.  We have learned much, I am learning something new every day here.  It amazes me.  We are blessed to have this amazing community.  It has been a difficult year.  We have much better days coming.  We stay strong in faith and move ahead...one day at a time.  Merry Christmas to you and yours.  God Bless you all and keep you safe, my friend.  Thank you for participating.😊❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

[star-gamerxox]

Holiday Special 2020

(This takes place in a world where none of their written stories are canon, it’s a work where all shipkids exist. It also brings up their canon age-

This is 'Second Canon' although true canon fits in their actual stories.

I didn’t include any child partially done or that don’t have canon ages figured out to work with these babs-

I also won’t add Kai and Maelee.

Also I put a couple in development characters under the guise of pregnancy-

Most ship kids belong to me

Viri’s original design by @amarald  

Picmlaoho belongs to me and @seertale )

“Merry Christmas!” A tiny body flopped on Nightmare and he let out a groan, wrapping his arms around his child.

“Hello baby. Where are all your siblings?” He asked and the child giggled more.

“Downstairs with papa!” The child, a very happy Aurora, bounced on Nightmares chest while he groaned.

“You are four, child, why are you like this?” He grumbled and his daughter squealed before deciding it was time to finally leave her dad alone.

“Don’t start presents without me!” He yelled out and aurora giggled. He groaned before his eyes widened.

“Shit… which kids are here this year? I know Cayda is here but… would Error even let EveFalcity here?” He groaned a bit before opening his door and going downstairs.

“But papaaaaaaa!” That was Pearl. She was the youngest of his kids, at 3 years old, but she didn’t remember Reaper, her biological papa.

“Nope. We gotta wait for your dad.” Killed hummed. EveFalcity wasn’t there but she was 16 now and he had hardly been in her life. 

“Hey kiddos!” He called and Pearl stood and darted over.

“Daddy! Daddy! Presents!” She wasn’t his only child that only saw Christmas as gift time.

“Wait baby,” He hummed. Onyx grinned, laughing while Cayda and Cobalt simultaneously groaned.

“But daaaad.” 

“Wait.” He chided yet again as he walked over to Killer and kissed his head. He loved his kids and he loved Killer. He just realized he had found his love for Killer much earlier in his life, although that would mean most of his kids wouldn’t even exist.

“Papa gets a present first.” He hummed and Killer smiled up at him.

“Oh?” He grinned

“Yep.” And then Nightmare got on one knee.

“No way!” Onyx sat forward and laughed. He was the oldest besides EveFalcity and yet not even he had seen his dad married. Killer nodded and Nightmare kissed him before sitting back a bit.

“Yes way.” Nightmare smiled as he slipped the ring onto Killer’s finger. They both reached to rub the almost invisible baby bump Killer had. They were both grinning widely.

“Now presents!?” Pearl whined and Nightmare turned before he started to laugh.

“Yea baby. Now presents.”

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

Cross looked at Calypso through a slightly pained gaze. The boy was just a year or two older than his own son he had with Nightmare. It was a vivid reminder of the five years he spent apart from Dream after their fight. Dream had went to Killer while Cross had, admittedly, gone back to the only other home he knew. He had gone back to Nightmare.

But then he left his son there. Thinking about Cayda wasn’t a happy way to celebrate his Christmas though so he tried to focus on the ten year old that sparked those thoughts, Calypso.

“What’s up kiddo?” He asked. Calypso giggled more and hugged him.

“Morning Papa.” Calypso didn’t know Killer much but he did at least know him.

“Morning baby… were is your dad and siblings-“ he has that question answered for him as Dream ran in with their eldest two. 

One thing that always stuck out was the fact that Calypso got none of the corruption that Dream had at the time of his birth. He also got none of the corruption his older siblings got.

“Daybreak! Toss it here!” Sunrise called and Dream laughed.

Dream wasn’t corrupted like that anymore but their eldest children were, which was a grave reminder of that time. 

“Hey… where is Nelaya?” Cross asked suddenly.

“Hiding.” Daybreak said as he threw a wrapped item at his sister.

“Again?” Dream asked.

“She’s six. This is her first Christmas without Dust.” Sunrise mumbled. Dream sighed a bit and rubbed his head.

“I swear… my poor baby…” he rubbed his small baby bump before going to go find Nelaya.

“Baby… come on sweetheart… we can call him…” he called out until he heard a familiar sniffle.

“No! I wanna go home!” She whimpered.

“I know… I know…” he whispered quietly before slowly going closer to her and lifting her up.

“I wanna go home…” she whispered again and he bounced her a bit.

“I know… but for now this is your home… let’s go…” he mumbled as he walked back over to the others. The kids all moved to surround them and Nelaya managed a small smile.

“Presents?” She spoke up and Cross started to laugh softly. He gently placed his only picture of Cayda in his pocket as they went to the tree.

~~~~~~~~~~~

“Evelyn shhhhh!”

‘I can’t talk! How can I make as much noise as you!?’

“Just shush!”

‘You’re the only one making noise, Dawning!’ 

“Quiettttt!” 

“I hear two little eleven year olds trying to sneak presents at 6am while our parents are asleep.” A warm voice was heard.

‘EveFalcity!’ Evelyn darted away from her twin and tackled her eldest sister.

“Heya kiddo. Let’s not do presents now. Viri will be very upset if she finds out you did this without her.” EveFalcity sighed.

“Well… what about Syntax?” She hummed.

“He comes at one. Currently he’s at his dads.” She picked up Evelyn and threw her over her shoulder.

“Let’s go find our brother.” She hummed and Evelyn cheered. Picmlaoho was still asleep in his bed. Evelyn and Dawning moved to lay in their beds

“Morning kids!” Ink chirped as he threw open the door, holding the two year old Viri on his hip.

“Morning dad…” Picmlaoho mumbled as he rubbed his eyes and sat up. Evelyn decided to roll off the bed and Dawning laughed.

“Chri-mas! Chri-mas!” Viri chirped from her spot in her dad’s arms.

“Yep.” Dawning reached for her baby sister who squealed and made grabby hands for Dawning. She stood and took her sister from Ink before laughing as Evelyn rolled on the floor.

“Seriously?” Error walked over and rolled his eyes before lifting up Evelyn and Pic, since both were small, and walking downstairs. The laughs of the eldest child were heard in the hall and Ink threw an arm around Dawning before going downstairs. 

Error had finished making breakfast as the kids did stockings. Viri came in waving around a very small teddy bear. Dawning, Evelyn, and Picmlaoho all had matching bracelets. EveFalcity’s big stocking gift stuck out compared to her siblings. A beautiful necklace with a moon charm.

“I saw that Night sent a gift and you put it under the tree… that’s new.” EveFalcity spoke up as she sat down for the meal.

“He wants to be in your life… he has for years. He usually sends you a gift but he sent you two and he sent you that necklace.” Error hummed and she smiled a bit.

“Well that’s nice… maybe I can see him tomorrow?” 

“He’s still your parent Eve. Of course you can. He has other kids now. He’s realized a whole lot about himself over the past years. He really wants to be in your life… he really does.” He smiled and EveFalcity rested her head on the table and looked at her necklace.

“Thanks Nightmare…” 

“He really does care about her, huh?” Ink smiled as he watched his kids unwrap their presents. Somehow Viri now had a bow on her skull and Evelyn had somehow put one in her right eye. EveFalcity was resting peacefully on the couch, looking at the gifts from Night, Ink, and Error.

“He always has Ink, it’s just, he was scared when she was born. That was 16 years ago and our lives have changed a lot.

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

“Daaaaaaaaaad. Come onnnnn! I gotta go to papa and Ink’s place at one!” Syntax bounced around a bit despite being almost as old as his elder brother Zenai. 

“Yea, yea. Ze, go get Elliot and Azalea.” Blue hummed and Zenai nodded before hurrying off. Elliot was four and Azalea was already almost eight.

“Elli. Come here bubba.” Zenai grinned. He was Dusts son but for a lot of his sixteen years, it had just been him and his dad. His dad had dated others, that’s how Syntax came along, but then Blue met Red. Red came with his daughter, Azalea, who was two at the time.

No matter how much Blue loved his husband, he openly would admit he would have stayed with Dust if the other hadn’t flat out disappeared. Zenai loved his step dad and his younger siblings though, that never changed. He just missed Dust.

“Zalea! Come on!” He called the girl over and she grinned. She poked the still half asleep Elliot and the child whined loudly.

“Okay! After breakfast we’ll do gifts and stockings. At noon, Syntax gets to go to Errors so he gets to celebrate Christmas at both of his homes!” Blue always looked tired but Zenai was impressed how excited he seemed for this holiday. He did it every year and Zenai was always impressed with his dad because he had been like this since the year Dust left.

“Yay! Waffles!” Suddenly Azalea was standing on her chair and nearly jumping off it. Even without being biologically related to Blue, she somehow got his crazy energy, 

“Yep. Waffles. Although you better be careful princess or there won’t be waffles for Christmas, it’ll be a trip to the emergency room for Christmas.” Red hummed as he walked over.

“Wouldn’t be the first time.” Zenai hummed and Blue snorted.

“You were a very chaotic child.” Blue responded cooly.

“No. I meant that it wouldn’t be the first time for Azalea. Remember when she was four? She was trying to get her stocking down using Elliot’s bouncy chair. She bounced straight into the fire and we spent Christmas in the burn wing with a sobbing two month old. We all already know I spent many Christmas’ getting a cast put on some broken limb.” Zenai hummed as he ate breakfast.

“I have no clue how your girlfriend handles you.” Syntax hummed.

“Well you’ll see her at Error’s, why don’t you ask her for me?” He grinned and Syntax shot him a glare.

“Just because you grew up with my big sister doesn’t make this any less awkward. You’re my big brother and EveFalcity is my big sister. Even if you two don’t have any family relation, it’s strange for me.” He stuck out his tongue and Zenai laughed.

“Yea, yea. Come on. Presents.” Somehow the younger two were finished. Zenai was mostly finished and Syntax was too.

“Yay!” Azalea ran ahead and Zenai laughed.

“Be careful!”

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

Bryin groaned and flopped on his back.

“When can we start?” He mumbled. It was already noon and his presents were mocking him.

“When Pandora gets here. The Foster place was very iffy about letting her spend Christmas here. We said around lunch.” Spoop, Bryin’s younger half brother, mumbled. Bryin didn’t hate Spoop but he definitely didn’t like him either. His parents had been separated for a couple years when they finally got back together. Horror came back with two toddlers and, sadly, the elder twin- Rye- died in a car crash a month later with his biological dad. Spoop didn’t remember either of them.

“She’s your friend, go get her.” Bryin glared and his six year old, younger, brother held up his hands.

“Im six, not a miracle worker!” He yelped and Bryin groaned.

“Kids! Guess who’s here!” Lust yelled from downstairs and Bryin ran down.

“Finally!” He laughed. Pandora was a skinnier girl with super tiny wings. She was seven, a year older than Spoop, and she had lost her parents about 6 months ago. Somehow Spoop and Pandora had convinced their parents and her foster parents to let her stay the day here. At their House. On Christmas.

The older brother wasn’t amused by Spoops plans.he was eight by now, almost nine, and he was supposed to get his first tablet this year. That wasn’t happening now. They could afford a tablet and gifts for Pandora.

Or so he thought.

Bryin had come to terms with the fact he wouldn’t get his long awaited gift. He didn’t blame Pandora, or Spoop.

Spoop and Pandora were finished with their presents and Bryin stared at his final one, a bit confused. As he opened it, his eyes lit up.

“No way…” he looked up at his parents. “How?”

“Well… I know you wanted a tablet to help you play games and we didn’t wanna take that away from you… so I picked up extra shifts at the restaurant and Horror did some extra odd jobs.” Lust smiled and Bryin lit up. He moved to hug Lust who just grinned and spun his son around. 

“Thank you Daddy! Thank you so much!” Bryin nearly cried and Lust just smiled.

“Of course baby… of course.” He whispered as Horror moved to join the hug, surrounding his love and their eldest child.

“Of course.” Horror’s voice was more raspy but it always made Bryin smile, just as the boy was now. Both parents moved slightly when Spoop wanted to join, letting him in. They even encouraged Pandora to be part of a family hug.

“You’re the best…” Bryin whispered and, as if sharing a brain wave, Horror and Lust smiled.

“No you are… all three of you.” They whispered, almost in unison.

What a good Christmas this turned out to be.

[thegayfromrulid]

How about something holiday related for Eugeo x Asuna?

Hello friend!! Since this prompt left a lot of creative room, I ended up focusing on the romantic aspect of Japanese Christmas that I see a lot in shoujo manga. I really had fun writing this rare pair, they’re so soft and sweet and wholesome. <3

           A strong peppermint fragrance met with the cloud of sweet gingerbread that wafted out of the bakery at the corner of the street. It was a special-edition perfume, only up for sale around the holidays; a special treat for lovers who felt the holiday spirit lifting up their souls. Eugeo had come to learn something about Japan. Christmas wasn’t born here, by any means, but it had come, and it had taken its own unique shape for this culture. It was important for him to know how it went, after all, when his lovely date, meeting him here with that tantalizing scent, was from Japan herself.

           Unlike the Underworld, where there was a Winter Solstice that was focused on sharing and gifting to one another, this Christmas in Japan was a romantic holiday, filled with brightly colored outfits, glittering lights displays, and special treats, made both locally and imported from the same countries that invented the holiday elsewhere. As he walked up to Asuna, he noted that she was dressed up in red, a color that Kirito said was special to her and the holiday itself. He smiled and offered her his hand. She took it.

           “Merry Christmas, Eugeo-kun,” she said, her voice sounding cheery and light. “Have you thought about how you want to spend your first Christmas in Japan?”

           He wrapped his fingers around hers. He’d looked up everything he could, researching the traditional and modern ways to spend this holiday with a lover. The holiday seemed very important for young couples, it seemed, so he wanted to make sure this was an event that Asuna would treasure in her heart. He started off walking into the café they’d met in front of. For this outdoors date, they’d need something warm in their bellies. She kept her eyes up on Eugeo, though, focused on him rather than the menu.

           “I’d like to see the lights with you,” he said, smiling at her. “Does that sound nice?”

           She wrapped her arm around his and pressed up against his side, humming in a musical tone. She nodded her head up and down, causing her hair to bob from under the knitted cap that was covering up her crown and ears.

           “It sounds lovely,” she said.

           His smile widened.

           “How about something warm to drink as we look at the lights, then?” he offered, pulling her into the line.

           She giggled and nodded again.

           “I think I’m going to get a gingerbread latte,” she said. “What do you think you’ll get?”

           His eyes wandered over to the menu. A lot of the options seemed foreign to him. There were a few seasonal drinks, like Asuna’s selection. There was a snowman-themed milk tea, a cinnamon coffee, and a peppermint mocha. A sugar cookie cappuccino also had its place on the menu. If he selected according to his own taste buds, he’d probably go for either the milk tea or the cappuccino. He decided to be a little daring and match Asuna’s peppermint perfume, though.

           “Probably a peppermint mocha,” he said. “You’ve put peppermint on my mind.”

           Her cheeks flushed a little red, but she looked rather pleased with herself. He determined that he’d somehow made the correct choice. They stepped up to the cashier, and Eugeo took care of the orders for both of them. He was getting the hang of little things like this. Asuna squeezed his arm while he handled the order; it was her own way of telling him he was doing a decent job. He handed the cashier his card, took his receipt, and stepped off to the side with her to wait for their order.

           “You’re getting good at navigating Japan,” she said, her voice only slightly teasing. “In no time, you’ll blend in with all of the locals.”

           Asuna reached over to pick up their drinks when they were ready. She handed Eugeo his cup. It was warm to the touch, still quite hot from the brewing process. Asuna latched onto his free arm, and they walked out of the shop, each clutching their warm cups as they headed off to look at the lights downtown.

           He took a sip of his drink as they walked. The coffee flavor was still present amongst the chocolate and peppermint, but it wasn’t so strong that Eugeo felt the need to run back for sugar and milk. It was sweet with only a hint of the bitterness he disliked in coffee. Asuna offered him a sip of the gingerbread latte. It, too, was a bit on the sweet side, but unlike the coolness of the peppermint, the gingerbread spices made the drink seem a bit warmer, and his tongue tingled from the flavor.

           They discussed for a moment which way they should go. Asuna pulled up a map on her phone and showed him all of the places where light displays were set up throughout the city. She suggested a few that she thought might impress Eugeo the most, and he told her that he trusted her instincts about his taste. Having decided on a route, she grasped onto his hand and assumed the position of leader.

           It was clear that Asuna knew the way. She’d told him that she’d spent a few Christmases in Tokyo since coming to the SAO Survivor school, so she was getting rather good at navigating. He was much newer to the city; he’d have to let her be the tour guide for today. She hurried him into an open square and turned around to watch his reaction as they walked into the space. He turned his eyes upwards, trusting that she wouldn’t lead him into any walls or other immovable object, and he took in the full view as they entered the square.

           The display was enormous, consisting of thousands of little colored lights. They made huge shapes of trees and gifts, and there were some deer pulling a sled with a jolly-looking man inside of it. The lights flickered on and off, appearing to dance in time with some music that was playing from nearby speakers. Eugeo turned around and looked at the buildings. They, too, were covered with these little lights. He hadn’t imagined them to be so plentiful. There were too many to even try to count.

           “So, what do you think?” she asked, laughing. “You look a little overwhelmed.”

           He shook his head.

           “How long does it take to put these up?” he asked. “It looks difficult.”

           Asuna smiled and squeezed his hand gently.

           “Oh, it takes hours,” she said. “And many, many people come to help put them up. They make intricate plans and have to follow them exactly in order to make sure everyone puts the lights up in the right place. It takes a special kind of eye to see all of this in three dimensions.”

           Eugeo hummed and nodded.

           “It all looks so magical,” he said.

           In his heart, he wanted to tell her the lights weren’t the only magical thing about this night. When he’d come to Japan, he hadn’t imagined getting to spend a special, romantic holiday with someone like her. The way she smiled up at him while they walked around and took in the lights made the magic of the holiday seem real. He found himself gazing more and more at her instead of the grand displays.

           They arrived at the final spot just a few minutes before midnight. Eugeo drew in a deep breath and pulled a small wrapped package out of his coat pocket, handing it over to Asuna with an awkward smile. Her cheeks flushed red as she accepted the gift with both hands. She smiled up at him.

           “What’s this?” she asked.

           He swallowed.

           “I…I heard it was also traditional to give your lover something nice for Christmas,” he stammered. “I hope you like it.”

           Asuna’s smile felt a bit warmer now. She thanked him and started to open it very carefully, pulling off the bow with the grace of a swan taking flight. After removing the bow, she opened up the top slowly, careful not to accidentally spill any contents on the ground. She slipped the lid underneath the bottom and daintily pulled aside the crinkled-up tissue paper, taking care not to rip it. When she’d opened it all of the way up, her mouth formed a little ‘o’ and a gasp escaped from her lips.

           “It’s beautiful,” she murmured, her breath visible in the cold air.

           Eugeo reached over to the box.

           “May I?” he asked.

           Asuna nodded. He reached into the box and removed the necklace. She pulled her hair up away from her neck and let him place the necklace on her, latching it behind her to let it rest against her chest. Her hair fell back down, and she held the charm in her hands. It was a delicate-looking piece of glasswork, a red rose set into a gold backing that attached to the gold chain that graced her neckline. She smiled up at him, her cheeks rosy.

           “Thank you,” she said.

           She pushed herself up on her tip-toes and wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him in for a kiss as midnight struck. Eugeo wrapped his arms around her waist, drinking up the lingering taste of gingerbread on her lips. If this was what was meant by holiday spirit and cheer, then he’d look forward to the holidays even more next year.

           “Merry Christmas, Asuna,” he whispered.

           Humming, she touched her nose to his. It was warm.

           “Merry Christmas to you, too, Eugeo-kun,” she said.

           They pulled together for another kiss, a pair of tender lovers filled with joy under the glittering lights.

[loveobsesspink]

Hello Merry Christmas! I meant to post this yesterday but something came up. I got this Battle Maid Long Outfit (F) and the short version as gifts along with the Battle Maid Shoes (F). What I really wanted from the gach was the cooking tools (As a Master Chef, I want to collect everything Cooking related). Gached out the Antique Cooking Pot and friend who also gached was kind to give me the other 3 Antique items I was missing ;O; Bless their soul. I like both versions of the Maid outfits though at the time, I had been wearing the Long version so I took pictures of that one (they look about the same but I’ll take pictures of the shorter version later). I didn’t get the matching gloves so I used the Northern Lights Gauntlets (F) which matched really well. I really liked how the Steamy Hot Spring Wig (F) looked with the outfit (and it was short in the back so could see the new wings I got). Lastly, I love the new Doily and Rune Wings. The Pink Doily Wings (and the Brown ones) were awesome since they both had pink and brown on them. I also happened to find the Pink Rune Wings for cheap and I love how they look at night. Happy Holidays and hope you guys have a awesome Christmas Day!

Outfit: Battle Maid Long Outfit (F) Headpiece: Steamy Hot Spring Wig (F) Shoes: Battle Maid Shoes (F) Gloves: Northern Lights Gauntlets (F) Accessories: Baby Bunny Doll, Pink Doily Wings, Peach Royal Marionette Halo

[beneaththetangles]

12 Days of Christmas Anime: Sword Art Online Progressive, Vol. 3

Day 10: Hope

Just as you know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen, but may not recall the most famous reindeer of all, you probably know about the Sword Art Online anime adaptation’s Christmas episode, but you may not be familiar with Kirito and Asuna’s first Christmas in Aincrad. Sword Art Online Progressive is something a retcon series. The original Sword Art Online novel skipped from the first level of Aincrad all the way to the 75th floor, nearly two years later. SAO Progressive goes back and fills in Kirito and Asuna’s adventures on the intervening floors, offering character and relationship development and crunchy world-building details that were missing from the original story.

The third volume of SAO Progressive finds the protagonists on the fourth floor of Aincrad, a water-themed level. It’s Saturday, 24 December, 2022, about a month and a half since 10,000 players were trapped in the virtual world of SAO. As Kirito and Asuna are visiting a small floating village, Kirito learns that the two leading guilds of front line fighters have organized a Christmas party back in the main city of the fourth floor. The endearingly dorky Kirito muses, “A few days ago, it had occurred to me that some special day was coming up. December 24…meant the day before December 25, making it…something eve…” And a little later, when Asuna wishes a mutual friend “Merry Christmas,” Kirito tries to repeat the salutation but comically mangles it.

Because he’s got a bad reputation among some of the front line fighters, Kirito was not invited to the aforementioned party (not that he minds). Kirito urges Asuna not to let their temporary partnership keep her from attending the guilds’ Christmas party, but Asuna shoots down this suggestion, saying she never intended to go. While Kirito is sometimes oblivious, he’s also thoughtful enough to realize while he has no attachment to Christmas Eve, it might be more important to his erstwhile partner. Kirito awkwardly suggests “Having our own…Christmassy thing,” but Asuna dismisses this suggestion as well, noting that the tropical island vibe of the village doesn’t feel like the right setting for observing Christmas.

Hardly does she get the words out when SAO promptly starts snowing. Apparently someone wanted to make sure the players trapped in this virtual world could experience a white Christmas. “‘Why did it have to do this…? …Just when we escaped the main city and came here, so I could avoid thinking about Christmas,’ [Asuna] mumbled. ‘It’s not fair.'” She also takes the opportunity to gripe that if Kirito wanted to do something for Christmas, he should have said so sooner so that she could prepare appropriately. Kirito realizes what this means: “The three essential elements to any Japanese Christmas celebration were fried chicken, cake, and presents,” and they have no presents to give each other.

art by 我美蘭＠1日目西れ－32a (reprinted w/permission)

Processing all this, Kirito then apologizes to Asuna for not keeping better track of the holiday’s approach. “…it’s messed up,” he says, “If we can’t take our mind off the game for this day, at the very least…” Asuna quite reasonably concedes that if she’d really wanted to do anything for Christmas, she should have brought it up herself. At this juncture, Kirito has an epiphany, based on his knowledge as a beta tester of the game. He tells Asuna that he doesn’t have anything physical to give her, but does want to give her something…

Setting out in their gondola, Kirito navigates the fourth floor’s winding rivers until reaching a thick wall of fog. Passing through the mist, they find a grand island fortress, festooned with snow and banners. “‘…It’s beautiful,’ Asuna murmured, staring at the snowy castle as we approached. ‘More beautiful than any castle I’ve seen in real life.'” Asuna thanks Kirito for the lovely sight of the snowy castle, but he admits that this is only half the present he intends to give her.

It turns out that the castle is a base of the Dark Elves, one of a few competing factions of NPCs in the game, and the one with which Kirito and Asuna have allied themselves for the purposes of story quests. The castle’s front garden, dusted lightly with snow that glitters in the lamplight, is a work of art unto itself, but Kirito leads Asuna through the castle to a second lovely garden, this one centered around a massive juniper. And beneath the tree’s boughs they find Kizmel, the oddly realistic Dark Elf NPC they’ve fought alongside in quests related to elf war storyline. This is the other half of Kirito’s gift, and Asuna rejoices to be reunited with this ally.

A variety of other events occur, but as the day draws to its close, Asuna thanks Kirito again. “It was more enjoyable and lovely than any Christmas Eve I had in the real world.” Asuna explains that because her parents were always so busy, she usually spent Christmas on her own. When Kirito notes that they lack a proper Christmas cake, Asuna answers that they can have one next year. Her offhand comment makes Kirito’s thoughts turn sober at the realization that they might still be trapped in SAO in a year’s time. He asks if Asuna was thinking about next year. She answers:

“Until now, I’ve been trying not to think about the distant future. I told myself that I would only focus on what needed to be done each day. But that’s just the same as trying to run from the future. Not even just thinking about the number of floors left or how much time it would take…I was just trying to avoid facing the question of how much longer I could survive in this place. But then I was sitting in my room, looking out the window…and it all just sort of…bubbled up inside me… I want to survive until next Christmas and see the snow falling in Aincrad again.”

Kirito finds himself at a loss for words, and admits that he is too weak to say or do anything to encourage her, or to guarantee her safety in the coming year. To this, Asuna replies, “Then get stronger… Get stronger. Until one day…you can tell me, and other frightened people like me, that it’ll be okay.”

Alongside the obviously hugely important virtues of trust and love, the New Testament repeatedly includes a third key virtue: hope. Meeting your favorite elf in a snowy castle is nice and all, but it’s this last speech from Asuna that really ties in to Christmas. Though she doesn’t use the word, what Asuna is talking about is hope. She had no hope for the future, so she did her best to concentrate only on the present. But Christmas challenged her to want more than a harried day-to-day existence. Christmas invites Asuna, and us, to hope for something. Part of Christmas is looking back at a past historical event and pondering the reality of God entering this world, but another part of Christmas should be about finding a reason to live and to look forward to something in the future.

And what is Asuna’s exhortation to Kirito but a call for good news?

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”

When Jesus reads this passage from Isaiah in the synagogue at Nazareth, he declares that he is the fulfillment of it. To put it another way, Jesus came to tell frightened people like us “that it’ll be okay.” Jesus came into our world and offered hope, resurrection, the chance to survive and see good in the future. Christmas is an entirely fitting occasion for Asuna to rediscover hope for the future, because Jesus’ coming, with all that it entails—i.e., the cross and the empty tomb—is the ultimate source of hope. Christmas should stir up hope within us, and should push us to share that good news with others.

=====

Volume three of the Sword Art Online Progressive light novel is available for purchase. Tomorrow, we’ll look at two Christmas Eve episodes (ep 10 and ep 11) of Patlabor.

[manygalaxiesinone]

Orphen 2020 looks great!

((Hee ho doods, Prinnyfrost reporting for duty!

First, I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. I hope this year has been a good one to you and if not, then hopefully things won’t get completely terrible in the future. We ARE about to enter a new decade after all. In the meantime, how about what we share what we got for gifts for the holiday?

I finally got a new phone which is good because apparently it was so outdated, the guy at the first store we went to get the new ones kinda laughed a little bit and sighed. That’s how I know my phone was pretty much ancient.

I have been enjoying it so far by pretty much just playing Pokemon Masters and Digimon Re:Arise. I’m enjoying them so far, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it starts to fade at some point like other mobile games I’ve played. At least now I’ve completed the trifecta of childhood with the inclusion of Yugioh Duel Links on my tablet.

I also got the new Mario and Sonic game for the Switch. I’m enjoying it so far as well, but I have been having troubles with some of the timings of the buttons in certain mini games. I hope it’s not an actual delay on the button pushing in the games or we may have some problems.

Finally, my brother decided to get me more Orphen, like he did last year. This time, he ended up getting me the first 2 volumes of the rebooted series that’s supposed to get an anime sometime next year,

and after reading the manga, my hype for it just changed from manageable into overdrive! No joke, I’m really looking forward to the return of this series and hoping it’ll gain recognition. So, I figured it might be fun to talk about what I’ve read and the changes from it and the original series.

Something to keep in mind, this will contain spoilers from both the original and the remake, so if you want to read it for yourself first or wait for the anime to come out and watch it, then I’d advise avoiding the rest of this post. For those who don’t care, let’s get started.

We start off with Orphen dreaming about his childhood at the Tower of Fang with his best friend, Azalie. Yeah, in this story, they’re close friends instead of adoptive siblings, which is something I found odd because this was one of the changes in the original Orphen anime, while in the original manga, they consider each other as siblings even though they’re not related by blood.

He’s soon woken up by Volcan and Dortin, who are pretty much the same as they were before except possibly one little detail. I could be wrong about this, but I think in the original story, the two of them ran away from home together (most likely Volcan’s idea), but in this story, it’s revealed that the two brothers were not only disowned by their family, but also exiled out of their home. It’s not explained why, but I do believe it’s most likely Volcan’s doing. Anyway, they wake him up in order to get him involved with some crazy scheme to pay of their debts,

because it worked so well the last time. The plan is to disguise Orphen as a successful business owner (even though he’s actually a money loaner), and take part of a marriage interview to get hitched to Mariabella Everlasting.

For those who might not remember, Mariabella is Cleo’s calm and kindhearted older sister. Now I do remember in the original manga that Orphen was asked to marry her and Cleo was on board with it, but he refused. The plan was busted when Cleo eavesdropped on Ophen, Volcan, and Dortin’s conversation while they were alone in another room, but she didn’t turn them in right away as she got curious of their true motives. That is until they were attacked by the Bloody August, the dragon monster that Azalie turns into after a failed experiment with the sword of baltanders. I’ll be honest, when I first saw it,it was a bit unsettling for me. Not because it was scary, but because it looks well...

like that which reminds me a bit of...

yeah...and it gets worse considering what happens near the end of the second volume. It did leave without anyone getting harmed, but Orphen, Volcan, and Dortin are still arrested for fraud, vandalism, and a few other fines, most likely property damage and attempted theft. They spent 3 nights there until Cleo comes to bail them out in exchange to protect her family as they’re being targeted for assassination. Orphen agrees and then returns to the pub where Magnus and his father runs in order to recover more, which i where it’s revealed that unlike in the original where Magnus has at least a few lessons under his belt, here Orphen never accepted him as a student until he made the offer for it. And this is pretty much the only amount of screen time he’s getting until the end of the next volume. Sucks, huh? They went back to the Everlasting household in order to find the sword of baltanders...

only to find out that they have more swords than in Yosuke’s hall closet, which would make finding the darn thing like finding a needle in a haystack. Then when they come outside for a bit, they run into the black tiger, which is still being portrayed by Hartia (and yes, he’s still called “shrimp”) and well it’s time for another compare and contrast.

This is what Hartia’s Black Tiger costume looks like in the original series, both in the anime and in the manga.

And this is what it looks like now. It’s kind of the same with him riding on some ox or bull, and with his shirt, but the folds on the cape are gone, part of his face is out and he has a fake beard now. To me personally, it looks goofier than the original costume, which arguably works better, considering it’s Hartia we’re talking about, but I do like the original costume more for the more dangerous and mysterious vibes it’s meant to give off, only to be foiled in the end by not being taken seriously. The new scythe does look pretty cool though. I want one. After fighting him a bit, he discovers that he’s just a decoy and heads back inside to find another assassin who is indeed Childman. Now Childman’s new design is something I feel a bit off about. When people saw the new anime trailer, they mentioned how younger he looks compared to before, which I don’t really see. He looks the same age to me and even so, he’s not even that old. He’s only in his early twenties. Childman on the other hand looks kind of younger yet older at the same time? I don’t know.

This is what Childman looks like in the original series,

And this is what he looks like now (person on the left). He kinda looks like this series version of All Might after he used too much of his powers. I showed this to my brother and he said it makes sense for him since he’s not all buff like before, but I don’t know. What do you guys think? So anyway, the two fight and I gotta say, I felt a surge of nostalgia after seeing the return of some of the spells like Sword of Light, Halo Armor, and even the Sword of the Fallen Devil! I’m not joking! Childman leaves, which resulted in Orphen saving Mariabella and Orphen goes to the Tower of Fang to have a little chat with Hartia. Something else I should point out, it’s been revealed in this story that while they are among the top schools in magic, it’s in fact not the only one. From the looks of it, there’s likely one in every continent, which makes me wonder if we’re going to see different categories of spells at some point. In the original manga, Magnus explains that voice magic is what they’re teaching at the Tower of Fang and it’s divided into two subcategories, Dark magic, which allows the user to control the elements around them, and white magic which controls the body, soul, and even time itself. Like I pointed out in my Orphen and Shantae crossover, pretty much anyone can learn dark magic no problem, but white magic is some seriously powerful stuff not to be taken for granted and Azalie excels in both. Speaking of voice magic, Orphen explains that you don’t really need to shout the exact name of the spell you’re using, just some focus and access to, well your voice. So if we ever do end up getting a new game from this reboot, I’m hoping for an option to include our own preferred shouts for spells.

I’m totally going to yell “Persona” for one of the elemental spirit spells. Anyway, after Orphen’s little conversation with Hartia (which went sour by the way), he goes to look for Cleo, Volcan, and Dortin who took off while they were waiting on him. Turns out, they decided to go eat, and after a while, Hartia shows up to cause havoc again, but Cleo steps in and fights him in a duel until Orphen shows up. Now let me just say this one thing about the new Cleo...

I know it’s still the first volume, so things might change latter on, but right now I gotta say, I FUCKING LOVE CLEO!!! While she still has her rage and mischievous moments, instead of the annoying spoiled brat from before, this Cleo is more sweet, energetic, and potentially bad-ass. She genuinely wants to help Orphen out because it’s the nice thing to do and instead of before where she may have but a little experience with a sword despite her aggressive attitude, here Cleo has actually learned how to use a sword at school and is the starter member in the club she’s in. When I first read that I couldn’t help but think that’s probably why her father got her the sword of Baltanders for Cleo’s 18th birthday in this version as she’s an actual decent sword fighter and is willing to trust his daughter to be mature enough one day to look after it, but no. It’s revealed in the next volume that Childman left it in her father’s care for safe keeping. And speaking of the sword itself, it’s been revealed like in the original manga, that it’s able to cut anyone into anything the user wants, and also that Azalie screwed it up because she got distracted by the pain the blade was causing her (here’s a hint, don’t stab yourself in the chest with it like you’re a spawn of Sparda), but honestly I like the explanation from the anime more, that the sword is incomplete and can’t be wielded properly on its own and even when completed, it could potentially harm the wielder. That makes more sense to me on how even skilled sorcerers wouldn’t be able to handle the sword. With the original story, it kinda creates some plot holes for me. If anyone can use the sword to change anyone to anything they want then... 1. Why didn’t Azalie tell Orphen to use the sword to change her back to normal in case the experiment goes wrong? 2. The Tower of Fang wanted to kill Azalie to get rid of a possible stain on their reputation. Why not just use the sword to turn her back as quick as possible? I get the sword is forbidden, but wouldn’t killing off a student just to cover something up be extremely shady, thus making their reputation seem worse? I mean they had 5 years to do it from the looks of it. 3. I get Childman went along with the plan to hunt down Azalie in order to please the hire ups when he was actually trying to save her. Why not just tell Orphen the location of the sword in secret while no one’s watching, get him to track down Azalie and cut her, thus turning her back to normal? 4. Why doesn’t Childman himself do it in secret? Just explain that he has to go on an important journey or something and remain hidden from the eyes of the higher up sorcerers. 5. I get that Azalie’s mind became more corrupted the longer she remained in the dragon form, but why didn’t she use the sword to turn both Childman and herself back to normal after switching bodies with him, getting the sword, and having their one on one battle with him? Like Orphen said near the end of volume 2, she basically killed Childman. 6. Finally, why not tell Orphen in secret about the body switch and how the sword works in order to turn her and Childman back to normal after switching bodies? Once again, I understand that her mind has been corrupted due to the transformation, but at the end of the second volume, he does show possible hints of guilt and the fact that she didn’t want things to end like it did, so why not turn to the one guy you could trust in secret and explain everything?

Despite this, I find this to be a rather enjoyable read and I can’t wait for the anime release. So until then, happy holidays, and stay safe everyone.))

[callboxkat]

Merry (part 3)

Author’s note: I finally have wifi, so I get to post the last part of this! I hope you guys like it.

Warnings: talk of poor family relationships, food mention

Word count: 1451

“Ready to go?” Patton asked brightly. He was standing on the doorstep of Logan’s apartment, wearing his favorite pale blue sweater and a hat with cat ears. Logan, standing before him, nodded.

“Certainly. Would you mind helping me carry out my bags?” he asked as he pulled on his own plain black coat.

“Not at all!”

Patton and Logan carried out the luggage together, loading it into Patton’s car.  This would be the second Christmas that Logan spent with his friend. When Patton had found out the year before that Logan wasn’t going to spend the holiday with his own family, he had invited him on the spot. Logan had been reluctant, but after Patton called his mom and made sure she was okay with it, he had relented.

Logan and his parents didn’t talk. He hadn’t even seen them since he’d left home at eighteen, and he had no plans to see them any time soon.

Patton’s family was much closer-knit. They actually liked being around each other, and they didn’t only get together for holidays out of a sense of obligation. The love they had for each other was clear to see. Logan couldn’t relate.

At first, partially due to his unfamiliarity with most of the family, he had felt rather out of place. Patton’s parents clearly hadn’t known how to act around him, especially since his presence wasn’t anticipated. They had also seemed a little off-put: Logan knew his mannerisms were a little odd, but he couldn’t help it. That was just how he was. Patton’s parents had soon figured this out, though, and things had gone well from there on. And Patton had been so overjoyed to have him there.

Logan had never really properly celebrated Christmas before, at least not in the way that many other families did. In the few days leading up to that Christmas, he and Patton’s family had partaken in a number of activities that Logan previously had thought only happened in sappy movies. They made Christmas cookies, put ornaments on the tree, watched Christmas movies, and even made a snowman in the yard. Logan remembered how Patton had started giggling uncontrollably when he put a business-like necktie on one of the gingerbread men they had decorated.

Logan had paused, the forgotten icing pipet still held aloft, and looked at his friend. “Did I do something incorrectly?”

“No—no no no,” Patton had giggled. “He’s perfect.”

“Oh,” he had said with a relieved smile.

“He looks just about ready to go to the gingerbread prom,” Patton’s mother had joked. “Why don’t you give him a suit jacket to go with the tie?”

Logan smiled at the memory, hefting his heavier suitcase into the car beside the lighter one that Patton had already deposited there. He removed the backpack from around his shoulders and added that as well. Even with Patton’s suitcases and the collection of stuffed animals his friend was bringing home, there was plenty of room remaining.

“I have one more thing to fetch if that is unobjectionable to you.”

“Sure, buddy,” Patton said. “I’ll start the car. Go ahead and make sure you’ve got everything while you’re inside.”

“Thank you.” Logan turned on his heel and walked back inside. He grabbed his phone off the desk, did a once over of the entire apartment, then grabbed a large box and headed back outside.

Patton turned around in his seat as he loaded it in the back of the car, trying to get a look. “Oh, what’s that?”

“I… um…” Logan rubbed the back of his neck, looking into the open box. “I can’t help but feel indebted for your and your family’s kindness, both this holiday season and the last. So I purchased a few offerings to indicate my gratitude for that, as well as for your friendship.”

“You got us Christmas presents?!” Logan could hear the joy and surprise in Patton’s voice.

“Yes,” he confirmed, before shutting the trunk and joining Patton in the front seat, bringing a couple of books with him. It was nearly an eight-hour drive to Patton’s parents’ house, so he’d brought several novels in addition to his textbooks.

“That’s so sweet of you!” Patton beamed.

They were on the road. It was three-thirty in the afternoon, but by Logan’s calculations, it would likely be midnight before they arrived, accounting for breaks. Logan read for a while, bearing with Patton’s chattering at the same time. He had purposefully chosen books that he had read before for this precise reason. Occasionally he would chime in, nod, do something to indicate that he was paying attention. After a while, he got absorbed in his book, and Patton had turned on the radio, probably well aware that it wouldn’t disturb Logan when he was really immersed.

…

“Hey, Logan? Lo?”

Logan opened his eyes and blinked slowly. It had gotten too dark to read pretty early in the drive, so he’d put away the books. He hadn’t meant to actually fall asleep, though.

“Hm? Yes, I’m awake,” he responded, rubbing at his eye and sitting up straighter.

“Did you want to get dinner soon?”

Logan turned on his phone, the light illuminating the car. It was nearly seven at night. A decent hour to dine, as well as a fair time to switch drivers.

“Sure. Is there an exit coming up?”

“Yep. I was thinking we could just grab something and get back on the road.”

“That sounds acceptable,” he agreed, turning the phone off again. He rested his chin on his hand, looking out the window as they continued down the road.

They arrived at the gas station about ten minutes later. Patton agreed to refill the car while Logan picked out food. Patton had said he didn’t mind what Logan got him so long as itd took his vegetarianism into account, and of course, included a cookie.

Logan returned to the car with the bag of their food. Patton was just finishing up paying for the gasoline.

“Hi!” he chirped when he saw Logan.

“Hello,” he replied. “I got you a ‘veggie hummus wrap’—no carrots—and a double-chocolate-chip cookie.”

“That’s perfect. Thank you.”

“Would you care to switch drivers? I can take over for the time being. I really only need you to navigate for the final hour or so.”

“If you don’t mind, sure,” Patton agreed.

The rest of the drive was rather uneventful. Patton dozed for most of the time Logan was at the wheel, so to him the time must have passed rather quickly. During the final hour, Patton insisted that they put on a radio station playing somewhat obnoxious Christmas music. It didn’t take long before Patton roped him into singing along, despite his perhaps slightly fallacious claims that he ‘did not like to sing’.

They pulled into the driveway of Patton’s house at 11:57 precisely. Patton assured Logan that they could unpack the car after they greeted his parents, who were bound to still be awake despite the hour.

Logan hovered behind his friend on the doorstep as he knocked on the door, right in the middle of the thick, green-and-red wreath that hung there. The entryway light flicked on, and then the door swung open. The smell of peppermint and the excited barking of Patton’s beloved golden retriever greeted them. Logan watched the cheerful reunion between Patton and his parents while the dog did her best to jump in the middle. He smiled at the sight, but then he was pulled into an unexpected hug.

Patton’s mom was hugging him.

Logan wasn’t sure what to do, so he just stood there until she let go. She didn’t seem offended by his lack of reciprocity, just smiling at him through a curtain of ginger curls.

“We’re so glad to have you both here for Christmas,” she said. “I’ll help you get your things inside.”

They had been delighted when they saw his box of gifts, and Patton’s father had admitted that they got him a present, too, having assumed that he would be joining them.

Twenty minutes and a quick cup of hot chocolate later, Logan was lying on the Foster family’s couch, looking up at the ceiling. The Christmas lights, which he had insisted could remain on, cast a kaleidoscope of colors above him.

Logan wasn’t home, this was still true. He didn’t really have a home, outside of his apartment at school. He hadn’t seen his parents in years. But he was here, with Patton, and he wouldn’t rather spend the holidays anywhere else.

Logan pulled the heavy fleece blanket up to his shoulders, turning onto his side. He fell asleep with a smile on his face.

Tag list: @patton-loves-coloring @starryfirefliesbloggo @purplesoul-at-hogwarts  @lotusthatexists-festivestyle @quoth-the-sparrow @awesomelissawho @amuthefunperson @faithfreedom @heck-im-lost @gayfandomsaremything @bunny222 @syndianites @astraastro @momolinia @captainswan618 @hamilin-manuel-miranda @goldenkiddos @afilhadehades-blog @virgeofselfdestruction @theresneverenoughfandoms @iris-sanders-athena @super-magical-wizard @rainbow-sides @thefallendog @fanficptsd @zodiac-awesome @lookitsthatquietgirl @soft-boy-patton @nerd-in-space @pearls-of-patton @ab-artist @angered-turtle @im-so-infinitesimal @enby-kiddo-with-a-blog @raygelkitty @dr-gloom @whats-going-on-kiddos @spider-parker14 @oh-star-how-the-mighty-fall @fillyourteacup @kittiebrick

[toumakibangs]

°*TouMaki - Advent Calendar 2018*° DAY 06 - “LIGHTS” by @grimelius

Mod’s Note: …remember what I said about ActualChristmasTree!Makishima being universally accepted as canon? Good. Please enjoy this winter trip to Toudou-an - the season really becomes the place and its inhabitants! Thanks, @grimelius, for sharing!**

Author’s Note: Merry Christmas everyone! I hope your year ends well!

Makishima stepped off the train platform at the Hakone station and took a deep breath as he tried to force himself to relax. There was nothing strange about spending time with a friend over the winter break and since he was going to spend New Years with his family, that meant that the most convenient time to go visit just so happened to be Christmas. One of the more romantic holidays, spent with Toudou Jinpachi and the rest of his family.

Makishima figured it would either be a complete wreck or extremely entertaining and he was hoping for the latter. The real issue that worried Makishima was between him and Toudou. After all they were… what exactly? Makishima sighed and hitched his bag up and headed towards the exit, following the stream of busy people.

Neither he nor Toudou had actually talked about what was happening between them. They were now far beyond friends but neither had said that word and it was looming over both of them, creeping into the silent spaces whenever Toudou or Makishima couldn’t find something to say.

It had almost been enough to make Makishima decline the invitation when Toudou had called him up a few weeks earlier and told him that winter break was a perfect time to come down and spend time relaxing at an onsen and no one in their right mind would pass up a free stay at a spectacular historical inn and wasn’t Maki-chan lucky that he could go for free and so on and so on.

But he did want to go, nerves aside and well, if he was being practical, the two of them really should talk. And he wanted to do it in person, not over the phone and-

“Maki-chan!”

Makishima almost jumped out of his shoes. He looked around surprised since he’d expected to be tackled but where was Toudou? The exit was full of people rushing in every direction and Makishima didn’t see Toudou anywhere.

“Over here! Quick!”

Makishima swiveled to follow the voice and finally saw it, a small white pickup truck and looking out from the drivers’ side; two nearly identical people were waving at him enthusiastically. Jinpachi and his older sister Nana. It was unnerving how similar they looked even though they were siblings, though Nana didn’t share her brother’s obsession for headbands.

“Toss your stuff in the back and hop in” Nana called out and Makishima obeyed before cramming himself in next to them and they took off down the road.

“How was the train down?” Toudou asked.

“Quiet. Nothing really happened,” Makishima replied. “Which is how I like it.”

“Well prepare yourself for chaos because we’ve got a Christmas on a weekend this year so the inn is extra busy. Not that you need to worry about that, but I have to work a little,” Toudou admitted.

“Heh, I don’t mind helping out if you need me too. As long as it’s not guest relations,” Makishima offered.

Both Jinpachi and Nana laughed at the suggestion. “Don’t worry, Makishima-san. We’ll save that for the fifth time you come to visit,” Nana teased him and Makishima grinned a little. Next to him, Toudou slipped his hand into his and squeezed.

Between the two over-talkative siblings, it was almost impossible for Makishima to get much of a word in but he didn’t really mind. Hakone was as beautiful as ever and Jinpachi and Nana took the opportunity to point out every interesting or historical thing they drove through town. It didn’t take long for them to reach the inn and as soon as they got up to Toudou’s room, he pulled Makishima’s bag away and slipped into his arms, and kissed him. Makishima wrapped his arms around his waist and pulled him closer until they broke apart and Toudou nestled in closer, resting his head against his shoulder.

“Finally some privacy. I missed you! I don’t get to see you enough now that the season is over,” Toudou complained.

“Mmmm. The season hasn’t been over that long,” Makishima replied but he would be lying if he said that he didn’t miss seeing Toudou constantly at races. Finding the time and energy to get to Hakone or Chiba was always easier said than done.

“Long enough, plus you were supposed to come down sooner than this,” Toudou replied as he stepped back. “Let’s get you settled in for now” and he grabbed Makishima’s bag and set it out of the way by his bed. “I’ll grab a futon and bedding for you later.

“Thanks.” Makishima looked around at Toudou’s room. It looked like Toudou had put a little tree on his desk but otherwise it was as Makishima remembered, a small bed against the wall, a mirror next to his closet, dresser drawers, a desk and a ridiculous amount of biking and mountain posters. It was small and cozy, so different from Makishima’s own large and fancy house.

“Maki-chan, are you listening?”

“Hmm?” Makishima turned his attention back to Toudou who looked a little annoyed.

“I was saying texts and phone calls aren’t the same and that we need to work harder if we want to see each other during the off season,” Toudou pointed out.

“Oh, yeah. Okay,” Makishima agreed.

“Well, make yourself at home,” Toudou offered. “Are you hungry? Do you want a drink or anything?”

Makishima shook his head and sat down on the bed and Toudou regarded him carefully before sitting next to him on the bed.

“Are you okay with spending Christmas with us?”

Makishima thought about it. “It’s fine. We usually just have cake and junk food and stuff. My sister likes to decorate a little but that’s about it. Sometimes our parents get us presents. It’s not a big thing for us,” Makishima explained. “I just don’t want to get in the way.”

“Don’t worry,” Toudou reassured him, “You’re a guest. And my parents only put their own children to work so you’re safe.”

“You don’t want me scaring away your guests?” Makishima teased him.

“There is proper way to treat guests at Toudou-Ann and if you want to work with them, you’ll have to go through training, Toudou said primly. “We have a high reputation to maintain. Now it’s my turn. Did you get me a Christmas present?”

Makishima was surprised by the sudden topic change but he nodded yes.

Toudou looked absolutely delighted and Makishima said quickly, “It’s nothing too fancy or anything. Just so you know.”

“I’ll love anything you give me Maki-chan,” Toudou promised him. “I got you one too.”

“I hope you like neon,” and he smiled a little when Toudou rolled his eyes and elbowed him in the ribs.

“You ju-st got here, don’t make me kick you out so soon.”

Makishima laughed and let his head fall onto Toudou’s shoulder and he felt his chest swell when Toudou leaned his head against his and wrapped an arm around his waist.

 ———-

Makishima spent the remainder of the day visiting with Toudou’s family, getting introduced to some of the staff, helping out around the inn and hoping they would get to into the baths that evening. Toudou insisted that Makishima could sit and relax while he finished up his chores but Makishima liked having something to do and after all he was there to spend time with Toudou even if that meant folding his own weight in pillowcases.

“Usually we’re not this busy at Christmas time but as soon as it’s a weekend, everyone decides to turn it into a trip,” Toudou complained, glaring at the vast piles of folded sheets and bedding all over the huge laundry room. Makishima kept folding what felt like endless piles of pillowcases, the static in the air making his hair frizz up.

“It should be quiet for New Year’s right? You guys aren’t as busy then?” Makishima asked, pushing his hair behind his ears for what felt like the thousandth time.

“Well we technically shut down for the 1st through the 3rd so we’re not busy, we’re just closed. Some places stay open but for us, it’s one of the only times we close during the year. Maybe we’ll get snow this New Year? he wondered.

“Do you get snow for Christmas?” Makishima asked.

“I think it’s happened once or twice in my life before but not usually,” Toudou replied thoughtfully.  “We usually get snow further into winter.”

“What’s the plan for tomorrow?”

“Hmmm, well you can sleep in if you want; I have to help with breakfast prep. Then we can go into town and or do whatever we want, Toudou suggested. “We can hang out here if you want. Maybe go hiking? I’m sure we’ll need to go to the store for some reason. We’re doing presents for sure though!”

The next day, Christmas day turned out almost exactly as Toudou had predicted. Makishima woke up to busy inn, staff members busy at work and members of the Toudou family scattered all over the premises. Makishima took the time to eat, read and then soak in the baths, enjoying himself but also trying not to add more work to the already busy family.

Finally in the late afternoon, Toudou and Makishima managed to sneak off to Toudou’s room to exchange gifts.

“Me first! I want to open mine first, the suspense is killing me. After what you said, I need to know the color!” Toudou demanded impatiently.

Makishima laughed but went and pulled a vividly wrapped present from his bag and tossed it to Toudou. “Merry Christmas Jinpachi. I uh, I hope it fits?” he said hopefully. “We’re the same height so…”

Toudou didn’t bother with finesse; he tore into the present scattering paper everywhere and yanked the box open as quickly as he could.

“Oh my god, look at this!” Toudou gushed and held up the shirt so he could see it better. 

Makishima had bought Toudou a long sleeved shirt with different traditional Japanese patterns crisscrossing each other. The fabric was light grey and the patterns were printed in dark red, orange and black.

“I love it! I would never have bought this myself but I love it! It’s a weird mix of traditional and crazy.”

“That’s what I was going for, said Makishima, happy that Toudou liked his gift. “It’s traditional but also not.”

Toudou’s gift on the other hand was very practical; a book about long distance cyclying, with a special section focusing on the Tour de France. Makishima had never read this one so he was very happy with his gift.

“I got you one more thing to celebrate Christmas with but you have to wear it today okay? Otherwise it doesn’t make sense,” Toudou added, dragging Makishima’s attention away from his new book.

“Okay?” Makishima said hesitantly. He acknowledged that Toudou’s typical fashion sense was all right, but not his holiday one which could be a little more ahem exuberant than usual. And Makishima knew exuberant for crying out loud.

“Close your eyes,” Toudou ordered and Makishima sighed but obeyed.

“Aaaand open! Tadah!” Toudou crowed. “Christmas lights for your hair!”

Makishima grimaced as he looked at the headband in Toudou’s hands. It was white with a little present on it but dangling from the side was what looked like 30 white lights on a copper wire. Apparently the present was a battery pack that let you turn on the lights. At least they weren’t shaped like Christmas tree lights. Makishima shuddered, that would be even worse.

“You do know that you’re like the 10th person who’s told me to decorate my hair like a Christmas tree right? And that I’ve said no to every person who suggested it?” said Makishima, a little annoyed. 

“Let me French braid your hair! Please?” Toudou pleaded. “It’ll be awesome. And not like a tree at all.”

“Why do you know how to braid anyways?” Makishima asked.

“My sister.”

And that was the only explanation that Makishima needed, but he kept protesting.

“I’m going to look ridiculous. My hair is barely long enough to braid anyways.”

“Excuse you! This summer your hair was just a little further than your shoulders and now it’s way past that. It’s going to be by your waist by the summer interhigh if you don’t cut it soon. You’re the hairiest guy I know!”

Makishima glared at Toudou who shrugged and added sheepishly, “You know what I mean. It’ll be beautiful.”

“Nothing can make me beautiful, let alone a weird braid,” Makishima thought dryly but it was Christmas and only Toudou would see him and he’d already taken it out of the packaging so…

“Fine,” he agreed. “You can braid my hair but don’t even think of hanging ornaments off me. Or anything like that.”

“I hadn’t even thought of that; that’s a wonderful idea Maki-chan,” Toudou said cheerfully.

Makishima groaned but sat down on the floor in front of the bed so Toudou could scoot behind him and still reach his hair. It didn’t take long for him to relax under the feeling of Toudou’s hands as he brushed his hair out and then began to braid, carefully weaving the lights into the long strands until Makishima’s hair was tied into an elegant braid, with the copper wire making his hair look even more iridescent than usual. Toudou tied the braid off with a hair tie and sat back so he could admire his work. Makishima reached up and tried to feel his hair but Toudou swatted his hands away.

“Hold still! Let me turn on the lights then you can look, okay?”

“Hurry up then,” Makishima complained and he twisted and turned around trying to see his back.

Toudou clicked the switch on the headband and Makishima tried to crane his neck to see but it didn’t matter. He couldn’t see but he heard Toudou gasp and he reached out to grab his shoulders to pull him around.

“You look amazing. It’s gorgeous! Here, go look in the mirror.”

Makishima went over to the full-length mirror that hung next to the door and tried to get a better look as Toudou hounded his steps.

Well it was certainly… something. His braided hair did look attractive and the lights scattered throughout it made him think of a Christmas tree but it also made him look almost ethereal, like a forest creature. Well, as ethereal as one could look wearing grey plaid lounge pants and a white t-shirt that said ‘Climb High!’ in neon blue letters. It wasn’t the worse thing that he’d done with his hair, Makishima decided.

“Pictures! Come back over here so I can get some shots.” Toudou waved him back over to the bed with his phone in his hand. Makishima knew better than to protest and he went where Toudou directed him and obeyed as Toudou pushed him into different poses and took pictures from every angle possible.

“I’m tempted to put you in some of my clothes but I don’t think that would really capture you. Besides, you look beautiful like this.”

“What?” Makishima said incredulously. “I’m in lounge pants and an oversized t-shirt. There’s nothing beautiful about me.”

“I disagree,” Toudou said. “I think you look beautiful. And I know plenty about beauty since I’m at the top of the scale. Why? You don’t believe me?”

Makishima shrugged him off. “I believe what you say, not what you see. That’s all.”

Toudou sighed and set his phone down. “Fine, let me show you then.”

“What are you talking about?” Makishima mumbled, avoiding his gaze.

“Let me show you,” he repeated and he went over to the door to turn off the lights, plunging the room into darkness except for Makshima’s hair. The tiny lights illuminated everything and yet nothing. Toudou came back to sit next to him and he reached out to cup Makishima’s face with his hand. Makishima had barely a moment see his face and all the tiny lights reflecting in his eyes when Toudou kissed him, gently at first but putting some pressure behind it until Makishima began to kiss him back. Then Toudou reached out and wrapped his arm around Makishima’s waist but unlike every other time, he slipped it under his t-shirt and across the small of Makishima’s back, running his hand down his side.

Makishima felt his brain short circuit as he suddenly realized what Toudou meant by ‘show you’ and his stomach clenched from nerves. He froze up, not sure if he wanted Toudou to keep going or if he wanted to push him away. Fortunately, Toudou noticed his reaction immediately and pulled back.

“Don’t worry. We don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. I promise. You set the pace,” Toudou reassured him gently.

“I want- I’m not sure what- do whatever you like I guess…” Makishima mumbled, his tongue thick in his mouth, making it even harder to speak than usual. Ever since they’d started getting closer, he’d thought about them doing things, very specific things but it had always been hypothetical, not really something that he ever expected to happen and now he was sittin in the dark, on Jinpachi’s bed with his hands under his clothes and his hair providing otherworldly light it as moved and unraveled around them both.

This was not how he expected to be spending his Christmas but he was not complaining either.

“Do you know what you’re doing at all?” Makishima asked, half shy, half embarrassed by his own lack of experience.

“Not really,” Toudou admitted cheerfully. “I just like touching you. It’s nice.”

Makishima blushed so hard it felt like his entire chest on up was on fire. He didn’t know how to react. A small part of him wanted to curl up and pull away but a far larger part of him desperately wanted Jinpachi to touch him more, to cover his entire body with his hands and mouth and the heat of his body.

It was terrifying. And wonderful.

So Makishima decided to be bold. He scooted backwards until he had a enough space so that he could lie down on his side and Toudou moved with him, lying next to him so they were pressed together or as closely as they could be as they awkwardly jostled each other trying to figure out how they could fit their bodies together but not accidentally elbow one of them in the face or gut. They almost cracked heads at one point and Toudou had to get off Makishima’s hair so it wasn’t crushed underneath them.

But then they were together, face to face, chest to chest, their legs intertwining and hands carefully reaching out to touch, trace and creep under clothing. Toudou kept kissing Makishima on his lips, his face, his neck, his hair and it made it hard for him to him to focus on anything. He was certain that he had a hand wrapped around Toudou’s back, clutching at his shirt but where was his other one? Maybe he could pull Toudou even closer? The sudden need to get even closer consumed Makishima. He ground his hips against Toudou and he heard the groan slip from his mouth and there had to be some other position that would let them get closer and-

All the warning they had was a loud bam against the closed door but it was enough. Toudou flung himself so far away from Makishima that he fell over the side of the bed with a loud crash. Makishima managed to push himself into a sitting position and pull his shirt back down as Hana swung the door open, stopped in apparent confusion then flicked the lights back on.

“Come on you two! It’s snowing and it’s is starting to stick. We need you two to help sweep it up before it gets really bad. Also salt. Everyone else is already outside! ”

Then she noticed her brother laying on the floor, clutching his head and swearing loudly.

“What are you two doing up here?” she demanded, looking suspiciously between them.

“We were exchanging gifts before you decided to interrupt!” Toudou snapped at his sister. Makishima tried to avoid Hana’s gaze, certain that his bright red face would give both of them away. What if she figured it out? This was not how Makishima wanted anyone to find out about their relationship.

“Well, wrap it up! And stop spreading your ridiculous headbands around. The poor guy looks like a walking Christmas tree. ”

“My headbands are not ridiculous. You’ve told us what’s up now go away!” Toudou yelled. 

“Both of you get downstairs then!” she snapped back. “You look very cute Makishima, but don’t let my brother corrupt you too much” and she winked.

“I’ll try not to,” Makishima muttered under his breath.

“Let’s get shoveling then its dinnertime and cake,” and she headed back out the door leaving them both to fully recover from the shock.

Toudou sighed and hauled himself to his feet. “I know what I want for Christmas this year, a lock for my door,” he grumbled and slammed his door shut.

“I’m surprised you don’t have one already,” Makishima said weakly flopping back onto the bed and trying to calm his racing heart. He was so relieved that they hadn’t been caught that he didn’t care in the slightest that the mood had been completely ruined.

“Our house is really old and I’m at the dorms most of the time now. But I think it’s time to ask for one.” Toudou turned and offered a hand to Makishima. “Shall we? Before the rest of my family comes in?”

Makishima reached out and Toudou pulled him to his feet but kept holding his hand.

“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you move that fast outside of a race,” Makishima teased him lightly.

Toudou snorted. “Careful. I’ve got ornaments somewhere. We can still deck you out for Christmas.”

“How about we switch?” Makishima suggested instead.

“Hmmm?”

“Later tonight, you can wear this ridiculous hairband and I’ll kiss you.”

Toudou’s entire face lit up and he pulled Makishima in for a hug. “Well I do tend to look better in headbands than you, so I guess that’s fine with me. You have to take some picture though. Oh! And I can try on my new shirt for a few and…”

Makishima grabbed Toudou and yanked him in for a kiss to shut him up. “We can figure it out later,” Makishima promised. Okay? Before you sister drags us out?”

“Okay,” Toudou agreed happily. “Let’s go. Merry Christmas Maki-chan.”

“Merry Christmas, Jinpachi.”

[ararosecrocker]

Merry Christmas, @ask-timaeustrickster ! Here’s some DirkJohn from John’s POV. Many thanks to @homestuckss for organizing this event in the first place! I hope you both have a very happy holiday. <3

Listen. It’s not like you meant to skip out on Earth C’s Annual 12TH P3R1G33S 3V3/c͖h̪̹̻ri̠̣̠̯͖̜ͅs̥͈m̰̣̥a̭s͉ͅ/Assorted Winter Holiday party. It’s just that that’s exactly what wound up happening. December’s a hectic month, okay! It only happens to be the birth month of exactly every other human you know whose last name doesn’t start with ‘C’ and end with ‘rocker’.

So the beginning of the month always involves a lot of running around preparing for the parties, and shopping for gifts, and then the parties happen, and then there’s people and their expectations and hey what if you didn’t get them the right thing and honestly do they actually even like you anymore or do they have no choice because of everything that’s happened between all of you and what’s the point of all these birthday parties when you have an endless lifespan ahead of you will you still have these spanning into your hundreds and

You just kind of

Disconnect.

It was barely even noticeable, probably? You showed up for every birthday party you needed to. Maybe you were kind of distant, but you were there. And maybe you shut yourself up in your house for the rest of the month but like, who cares. Everyone else was probably busy doing important things that you’re supposed to do when you settle on a new planet, like developing sustainable food sources or at least not avoiding every other person they know, including their dad-not-dad.

Whatever. You're the Heir of Breath, not emotional maturity. You're not cut out to be the smart one, anyway. Not like literally everyone else you know. You're too busy laying face down on a couch and avoiding your friends. Watch out everybody. You've got a head full of empty,  a face full of pillow, and a psyche full of rapidly developing avoidant personality disorder.

Shit. When did you become such a sadsack?

“Can't say I'd personally be able to determine when that started, dude. Try the other Strider, he’s the time one.”

“GAH!”

Nevermind. Make that face full of floor.

“Dirk!” You pull your face off the ground in a manner that can of course only be described as 100% suave and manly, by which you mean your glasses are hanging halfway off your face and you got lint in your mouth, somehow? Gross. “How did you get into my house?”

Dirk leans against the wall and adjusts his glasses in a manner that’s so deliberate that it’s somehow simultaneously insufferably smug and also very, very awkward. “Well, you were reaching dangerously Striderian levels of self pity and monologuing, both of which my godlike senses are finely attuned to-” holy shit, you were saying all that out loud??? “-And also you left the door unlocked.”  

“Oh,” is all you let out, intelligently.

So, this is new. Dirk. In your house. Existing. I mean, it’s not like you guys have never hung out before! Dirk has been a pretty solid friend to you through the years. When you first met him, he just seemed like a combination of Rose’s excessive wordiness and Dave’s...Dave-ness? Like something inherently Dave. Probably douchebaggery (hehe). You’ve learned since then that Dirk’s more than just a wordy douche, though-I mean, you could’ve guessed that from what you’ve heard about Dave’s bro! Though, Dave and Dirk both seem pretty uncomfortable comparing them so you should probably leave that alone-he’s a wordy douche that somehow also manages to be a terse douche. OOOH, BURN.

No, um, actually, that was kind of mean. Dirk’s actually really nice and cool! Not like, actually coolkid cool, but like the kind of cool that matters. The kind of cool where you help people and you’re a generally nice and good person? That cool.

Wait.

Shit.

“Oh god damn it. You’re right. I was doing it again. I was monologuing in my head.”

Dirk cracks a small grin and extends a hand to help you up. “I can tell. At least it was entirely internal this time. Unfortunately, it appears that I must now diagnose you with Stage Three Strideritis.”

You take his hand (his weirdly calloused hand, which actually feels kind of nice despite that and nope nevermind that) and HWOOP yourself up. “Stage Three already? But doc, I haven’t even become a huuuge nerd that swings big anime swords around yet!”

“Egbert, I’m sorry to be the one that informs you of this, but...you were always a huge nerd. The power of limitless dweebery was inside of you all along.”

“Dang, you got me there! Well, if I’m going to become a Strider, does this mean I can finally lose this flab already?”

“You look good like that, though.”

Your cheeks flush in response to that, and- “I do?”

“I.” -if you didn’t know better, you’d say Dirk’s just did too. “In a purely objective way.”

You take a step forward and lean closer to him, flashing a smile that you only hope can be described as ‘shit eating’. “So, are you saying I’m so good looking that it’s just objective fact at this point?”

“You’re a regular Adonis, J-Bert. Now, are we going to keep doing that thing where you heterosexually flirt at me, or are we going to address the fact that it’s December 25th and you’ve spent your day becoming intimately acquainted with your couch cushions? Not to mention the predilection you’ve had with avoiding human contact for the past, let’s see...month, maybe?”

Aaaaand there goes the mood. Bleeegh. You really didn’t want to get into this.

“I’m fine! I just didn’t feel like Christmas is all. It’s...it’s fine.” Ugh, that sounds weak and even you know it.

“Hm. Well, it’s a shame that you didn’t feel like Christmas today, because I may or may not have gotten you a present.”

Oh, shit. Of course he would, who would just show up at someone’s house on Christmas empty handed??? Crapcrapcrap.

“Wait, what? Dirk, nooo! I didn’t get you anything!”

He smirks and pulls out a wrapped box that he was (somehow??) hiding behind his back. “I know. I felt it in your heart, which you don’t have, because you are in fact a heartless monster.”

“Okay, well, I know for sure that is not how your powers work-”

“Present. John. Take it.”

He shoves the box into your arms before you can ever so graciously accept it yourself. Geez, rude! You turn the gift over in your hands a couple of times, adhering the time-honored tradition of trying to figure out what’s in your gift box before actually opening it even though that’s probably never helped anyone actually figure out what their gift was like, ever? It’s a human thing.

“Wow, Dirk. Horse wrapping paper, really? Where did you even find this?”

“Present. John. Open it.”

You hoped to unwrap the gift as slowly as possible in order to torture Dirk, but honestly those soulless equine eyes staring up at you from the wrapping paper kind of creep you out, so you tear it apart as quickly as possible. You open the box, and...holy shit.

“I, uh, thought since you missed out on a lot of Earth cinema playing SBURB I’d try to get movies related to your interests except you know, good. There’s Kick-Ass, that Ghostbusters reboot, Interstellar, uh...this one might be stretching it a bit, but Kubo and the Two Strings has a main character voiced by Matthew McConaughey…”

“Dirk, oh my god. How did you do this?”

“Well, you know, I got some help of course. Lot of failed attempts at alchemizing and some help from our friendly neighborhood voidmistress Roxy Lalonde.”

“I’m...wow. Okay, now I feel really bad about not getting you anything.” You bite your lip guiltily before a thought strikes you. “Hey, uh. About your earlier ‘heterosexual flirting’ comments...does that bug you?”

“It, uh. Well, it confuses me for sure.” Dirk tilts his glasses down and stares at you meaningfully. “John, I don’t know if you know this, but I am not a heterosexual.”

“Okay, yeah, I can see how that would be confusing! But what if it wasn’t, uh, hypothetically...completely joke flirting?”

“Uh.”

“Like, hypothetically!”

“That would be…” He swallows. “Pretty cool, I suppose.”

“And like, what if hypothetically as a gift I took you out for, I dunno, lunch or something and then we went back to my place and watched some of these ‘except you know, good’ movies?”

“That would also be pretty cool. Hypothetically, of course. I wouldn’t know how cool it would be in practice, seeing as-”

“Will you go on a date with me, Dirk?”

“Will you tell me what’s bothering you eventually?”

“Uh, yes. Just...not now, okay?”

“Alright, I believe you. Then...yes. Yeah. Let’s go on a date.” He pauses for a second. “And also let’s go back to that Christmas party because that was almost the whole point of me coming in here in the first place.”

You feel your face flush in embarrassment. “Oh! Yeah. Okay. That makes...five, seven, eight other gifts I have to make up for, doesn’t it?”

“Sure does.”

“Heh. Guess that’s my fault, huh?”

“A little bit. They won’t hold it against you, though.” He smiles at you, small and shy. “Hey John.”

“Yeah?”

“Merry Christmas.”

You smile back at him. “Yeah. Merry Christmas.”

[lightoftruth]

Christmas is an annual holiday on December 25 commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ. The original term for Christmas meant “Christ’s Mass,” related to the celebration of the Eucharist of the Christ. The holiday was introduced in AD 379 in Constantinople. Though Christmas is a uniquely Christian holiday, it is often celebrated by both Christians and non-Christians in different ways.

Christians who celebrate Christmas remember the incarnation. That’s when Jesus, the Son of God, entered into human history, became a man, lived a perfect life, was unjustly crucified on a Roman cross, and was raised from the dead (Acts 10:39–40; 1 Corinthians 15:3–4). Christians commemorate actual historical events in Christmas activities and celebrations. Though many in 21st-century Western countries reject Christian references and import secular ideas into the holiday celebrations, Christmas is still a much-beloved holiday throughout the world.

CONTENTS

The Story of Christmas

Christmas commemorates the birth of a baby—an event recorded in the New Testament and prophesied about in Old Testament passages such as Isaiah 7:14. The name given to this baby was Jesus. The Gospel of Luke records the birth of Jesus.

And in the same region there were shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And an angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were filled with great fear. And the angel said to them, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger.” And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”

When the angels went away from them into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let us go over to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has made known to us.” And they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in a manger. And when they saw it, they made known the saying that had been told them concerning this child. And all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. (Luke 2:8–20)

Christmas Traditions

During Christmastime, many churches display nativity scenes. These exhibits show the newborn Jesus in a stable surrounded by various animals, shepherds, and Mary and Joseph. Such nativity scenes traditionally have also been displayed in public places (shopping centers, public schools, parks, etc.) in much of our Western world.

In addition to the overt Christian traditions, many have adopted non-religious traditions to celebrate Christmas. These traditions include decorating houses and buildings with lights, giving presents to each other, and a day dedicated to Christmas shopping at the end of November, Black Friday—among other traditions. Non-religious celebrations also incorporate an entire mythology about Santa Claus, his workshop elves, and gift-giving to children. Though many of these traditions have Christian roots, the Christmas holiday in Western countries is often devoid of Christian meaning.

Four Misconceptions About Christmas

The X Stands for Christ: Though the first Greek letter of this title (the letter chi) looks like an x in English, some have used it as an abbreviation for Christ, but there is no question that many use the X today for the very purpose of eliminating Christ.

Jeremiah 10 Forbids the Use of Christmas Trees: If a Christmas tree is ever elevated to the point where it becomes an idol or a stumbling block to worshiping the Lord, then it would be wrong. However, many people choose to use an evergreen tree in other ways.

Jesus Was Born on December 25: This is another issue that can sometimes turn into a heated discussion, but such argument is unnecessary. The fact is that we really do not know.

We Should Not Celebrate Christmas: While we are not commanded to celebrate the birth of Christ, we do see precedent in Scripture.

Genealogy of Jesus

Jesus is the Savior who was promised throughout history. The genealogy of Jesus in Matthew and in Luke show him as the descendant of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and eventually David—men to whom these prophecies were made. God promised Abraham that all nations would be blessed through his offspring, which was ultimately fulfilled in Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:7–9, 16).

By reading these genealogies, we also see that Jesus was a direct descendent of King David. Jesus’ genealogy is also a fulfillment of many Old Testament promises. The promised Messiah would be the descendant of David (2 Samuel 7:12–14) and would one day rule on David’s throne (Isaiah 9:6–7).

The Creator in the Manger

At Christmastime, we celebrate the day that the eternal Creator entered his creation. The Creator who stretched out the heavens was laid beneath them in a manger. The limitless Son of God took on human limitations, being born in the flesh. As a baby, Jesus depended on Joseph and Mary for care and nourishment. Yet the humility of his incarnation did not detract from the glory of his deity: “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1:14).

Virgin Birth of Jesus

The virgin birth of Jesus is a miracle. God the Holy Spirit worked supernaturally in a human womb, and a child was conceived apart from a human father—a child who was truly and fully both man and God. With a human mother and God as his father, Jesus was the only God-man ever to exist.

The Christmas Star

The star mentioned in Matthew is not necessarily what we normally think of as a star. That is, it was not necessarily an enormous mass of hydrogen and helium gas powered by nuclear fusion. The Greek word translated star is aster (αστηρ), which is where we get the word astronomy. In the biblical conception of the word, a star is any luminous point of light in our night sky. This would certainly include our modern definition of a star, but it would also include the planets, supernovae, comets, or anything else that resembles a point of light.

Visit of the Magi

Many scholars believe the Prophet Daniel’s influence in the Babylonian and Persian empires led to the magi’s familiarity with the Jewish scriptures. Whether or not this is the case, the magi were being drawn by the God of the Jews to visit his Son in Israel.

What About Santa Claus?

Sadly, our culture has shifted its focus to dazzling decorations and away from a dazzling Savior. Commercialism has swallowed whatever Christmas used to be. Battles are fought over the very name of the holiday, and Santa Claus is embraced more freely than the infant Jesus. Santa is an icon in modern culture, and his image is used to sell everything from soda to sports cars. We can learn from God’s Word How should Christians view Santa Claus—in light of the true meaning of Christmas?

Is Christmas a Pagan Holiday?

The Church has often failed during the Christmas season because we rarely talk about the birth of Christ while explaining why he came. Whether Christmas happens to occur at the same time (or close to the same time) as a pagan holiday is irrelevant. There is nothing inherently wrong with celebrating a Christian holiday at the same time pagans celebrate (Colossians 2:16), especially if it gives us opportunities to present the gospel.

What should be of greater concern to Christians is the extent to which we have adopted some of the pagan practices during Christmastime. Some have gone overboard on this, and we should be cautious of making Christmas more about mythical beings like Santa, Rudolph, and so on than about the historical birth of Christ and, most importantly, why he came.

“War” on Christmas

Today, conflicts surrounding Christmas include whether it’s ok to say “Merry Christmas” or display nativity scenes in public places. There are even claims that Christmas was originally a pagan idea!

As the influence of secularists has grown, there has been an attack on Christmas. Even if Christians choose not to celebrate it, they should be at least equipped to defend the historicity of the account of Jesus coming to earth as recounted in the Bible and ready to tell others why he came and what that means for humanity.

Conclusion: The Real Meaning of Christmas

The true gift of Christmas is Christ—the Son of God, who chose to become one of us to effectively sacrifice himself for the atonement of our sins and to save us from a just, eternal punishment for Adam’s and our rejection of our Creator. We are blessed exceedingly by Jesus’ gift. Do we truly understand who Jesus is and what he did? Forget about all the secular Christmas hype, focus on what you are giving to Christ, what he gave to you, and worship him. The real reason for Christmas is the gift we have received from God, so we gratefully give back to him the worship he deserves and a life centered on him.

[abadmeanman]

Secret Santa! @do-the-fandom-mash!

Merry Christmas and happy holidays, @do-the-fandom-mash! I’m your secret santa! My Adrien/Rose fic is below, and I’m going to post it on AO3 at this link, too: http://archiveofourown.org/works/13088808. 

Title: 

Not That It's A Competition Or Anything

With a flash of lightning, and a clap of thunder, the akuma struck Ladybug with a jolt of electricity. Her pigtails briefly stood on end and her skeleton briefly become visible, cartoonishly. She blinked, shook herself, swung out of the way on her yo-yo as a thin plume of steam rose from her head.

“I can’t believe Aurora got akumatized again! I didn’t even know that could happen!” she shouted to Chat Noir, as he pole-vaulted Rose Lavillant away from the park-cum-crime-scene. “And as basically the same akuma!”

“And same park! It speaks to Hawkmoth running out of ideas, my Lady,” he said, as Rose’s floppy sun hat and picnic basket flapped in the akuma-related turbulence. Juleka had already been safely spirited away by Ladybug, pre-zappage. “How else would he land on Stormy Weather 2: Electric Bugaboo?”

Ladybug paused, mid-swing. Which is to say, she kept swinging, but turned to stare at him, incredulous.

“How long were you waiting to use that pun?!”

“ALL DAY,” he shouted over his shoulder, alighting on a rooftop and setting Rose down gently. “There you are, Ro--I mean, citizen with whom I am unfamiliar.”

“Chat Noir, haven’t we met like, seven times?”

Chat Noir simply grinned and shrugged, turning back to re-enter the fray.

And then he made a little cringing sound as he saw that her picnic basket had tipped over during his landing. He scrambled to set it back upright and replace the no doubt delectable confections therein, except…

“Hey… is this picnic basket just full of flowers?”

“Of course!” said Rose, chipper despite the mortal peril. “It’s a romantic picnic date, after all!”

“Uh, very good, citizen,” said Chat Noir, batonning off back into the fray. “Carry on! Stay safe!” He threw her a wave with one hand, which she returned with a smile and a blown kiss.

And meanwhile, in his own private monologue, he kept repeating to himself: Damn. That’s romantic.

--------

Once Stormy Weather 2: Electric Bugaboo had been defeated (using same lucky charm, it turned out), Ladybug and Chat Noir went stealthily back to the Louvre to detransform.

“Hey Marinette… if I were, to, say, ask Rose out…”

“Do I think she’d go for it?” replied Marinette. “Oh definitely. She’s just about the only person who could manage to out-romance you, I think.”

“Part of me wants to take that as a challenge, but my heart is aflutter regardless.”

“Well don’t use up all the magic,” said Marinette, slipping her hand into his. “But I doubt anything could beat when you learned how to bake for me. You are my king of romance, after all.”

“So sweet, my lady,” he said, pulling her up into a kiss. “Put in a good word for me in the girls’ group chat?”

“Oh babe if you think she doesn’t already know all your tricks you’ve got another thing coming.”

----------

The date was off to a promising start as soon as both Adrien and Rose brought flowers.

It went like this:

Working up to it, Adrien was a little nervous about bringing roses to a date with a girl named Rose. But what can you do--romance traditions are heady things, after all, and what was an impressive first date without roses.

He went with one dozen, pink. A little off-brand, as you’d expect the color red to do the heavy lifting in the romance department, but bonus points for being her favorite color, Adrien thought. And given that Marinette’s favorite color was also pink, he already knew a guy who could get him the good stuff, and by good stuff he meant pink roses.

And so he found himself, hand-on-the-back-of-his-neck nervous, holding a dozen pink roses, standing in front of Rose’s door, blushing.

Rose, for her part, practically bounced in her pumps as she opened the door, one dozen red roses in hand, with a blush almost exactly matching the pink of Adrien’s bouquet. Nice, Adrien thought to himself. Nailed it.

“We match!” said Rose, leaving to the interpretation of the viewer whether she meant the flowers, or them both blushing, or her blushing matching his flowers, or what. It worked on multiple levels, but then again, so does… rrrromance. And nothing is more romantic than matching your bouquet to your date’s blush. He’d picked that trick up with Marinette on like, date two.

Not that it was a contest or anything, but Rose: 0, Adrien: 1.

-----------

“Oh Adrien! These seats are perfect!”

What’s an evening on the town without some theater? Adrien had managed to score some primo matinee seats at the (AUTHOR’S NOTE: look up a famous French theater and put it here) (EDITOR’S NOTE: this omission was intentional, as a gag). Front row, center, with plenty of legroom. One could practically high-five the comic relief.

“Oh!” said Rose, folding down her theater seat to find yet another bouquet of flowers decorating the velvet. Red, this time--Adrien had figured he’d cover all the romance-color bases. Rose picked them up with a grin, and read the note aloud.

“My dearest Rose,” she read. “I hope that a gift of more of your namesake will bring you as much joy as I have in accompanying you. Oh you scamp!” she said, slapping his arm lightly. “Double roses! I am impressed.”

“I can’t get enough rose in my life, I suppose,” he said, smirking. At last. The five days of puncrafting pay off in this moment.

Rose made a sound somewhere between a squeal and a squeak, and kissed him on the cheek, sweeping up her new bouquet and settling onto the cushion. “You scallywag! What a line,” she said. “Well don’t just stand there! Join me! I’ve got all of these knees, and no free hands to squeeze them with.”

Adrien obliged.  

-----

The play that evening? A romance, of course.

Well, a romantic comedy. Twelfth Night was technically one of the Bard’s comedies, but it carried its weight in raised eyebrows and kissing and innuendo and what-have-you.

The perfect kind of play to see while holding hands with a lovely young fashion model, or an adorable young parfumier. And if Rose’s foot happened to slip up Adrien’s calf a little bit during the final few acts, and if Adrien’s hand squeezed a bit northward of the knee, well, that’s no problem at all. After all, Shakespeare was a dirtybird, as we know.

Adrien did, however, receive the start of his life when, after the cast had done the curtain call and taken their bows, “Viola” stepped forward and announced that the performance was dedicated to the most striking man in Paris, who happened to be in the audience that very night: Adrien Agreste.

Not that it was a competition or anything, but Rose: 1, Adrien: 1.

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

Adrien was very proud of himself for his next trick.

Modern restaurants are generally equipped with electricity, for a variety of reasons--candle-only illumination had gone the way of the dodo back when France had an emperor. But, if one happens to be the scion of the Agreste fashion empire, it’s a simple matter to reserve an entire restaurant for a night, and have the whole place lit with candles.

Rose gasped, putting a dainty bisexual hand up to her lips. “Oh Adrien! So romantic.” She reached to her left (daintily shifting her many bouquets to the crook of one arm) and pulled on a velvet rope that Adrien hadn’t noticed. “It matches the chandelier!”

His heart skipped a beat, with a surge of anticipation making his fingers buzz. Directly above their table, a panel opened in the ceiling and a glittering glass chandelier, illuminated by dozens upon dozens of pink candles, descended to light their meal. The flames danced in the shape of a heart.

Adrien, for his part, gawked. Now that was romantic.

“Thank you,” said Rose, and kissed him on the cheek, gracefully accepting Adrien’s silent compliment. “Now, what did Monsieur Agreste select for the wine pairing?”

Not that it was a competition or anything, but Rose: 2, Adrien: 1.

-----

The problem was (and it wasn’t really a problem) that Rose was incredibly, unbelievably, dramatically romantic. She was an elite, and Adrien had never before been truly challenged, in the romance department.

He was sweating under his cravat (blue--matched her eyes), and dabbed lightly at his temples as his next romantic maneuver was wheeled out. It already seemed so weak, so tawdry compared to the various glories of romance that Rose had devastated him with.

The waiter placed the chocolate fountain on their table, and Rose clapped excitedly. That was simultaneously the best and worst part. She was soundly defeating him in romantic firepower at every turn, and yet she also sincerely and earnestly enjoyed and appreciated every gesture he made. No matter how she’d outdone him.

By god, she’s gracious in her victory, he thought. And I’m just getting competitive as Kim trying to keep up. I should… I need to live in the moment. And with that, he picked up a fork, speared one of a curated assortment of tidbits to envelop in liquid chocolate, and began to truly enjoy the decadence of the chocolate fountain.

… Until he unfolded his napkin and discovered a small, folded piece of paper under it, which contained a poem that she had written for him.

And it rhymed.

Adrien sat back, eyes drifting to the glimmering chandelier above. I am absolutely destroyed.

Not that it was a competition or anything, but Rose: 3, Adrien: 1.

--------

But Ladybug never gave up and dammit neither did he.

Adrien thought he had Rose on the romantic ropes when an attendant wheeled over the grand piano. Nothing is more romantic than playing a song you wrote for your lover true.

“I was so happy you said yes when I asked you out, Rose, that I couldn’t help but compose a little song. If you’ll indulge me, I’ll--wait.” He looked around. Where had she gone?

“Oh Adrien,” said Rose, reclining slinkily atop the grand piano, flower clenched between her teeth. She somehow maintained perfect diction with a mouthful of stem. “How you do go on. I’d love to hear your song!”

How did she… damn, thought Adrien. There is nothing more seductively romantic than a woman draping herself over a grand piano, or at least that’s what all the midcentury black and white movies implied. But… I haven’t unleashed my art yet.

He grinned as rakishly as he could up at Rose, who beamed around the flower in her teeth, and fingered the first chord of his--

And someone had put a note reading “I hope that chord isn’t the only thing getting fingered tonight” in the middle of his handwritten sheet music.

He played, because there was absolutely nothing to do but serenade her. Even if she’d absolutely devastated him, romantically. Even if he was helpless silly putty against her powers of seduction. How had she even gotten to his sheet music?

Rose stretched languorously, or as languorously as a very short French girl can stretch, arcing her back up from the piano, as the perfect aperitif to the last resonant notes of Adrien’s song. She removed the rose from between her teeth, and, holding it at arm’s length, prodded him on the nose with it.

“How did you even…” he began, but couldn’t continue.

“I’m exquisite,” said Rose, by way of explanation.

And she was.

Not that it was a competition or anything, but Rose: 4, Adrien: 1.

But Adrien mentally rolled up the sleeves on the romantic leather jacket of his imagination. He wasn’t nearly done romancing Rose.

-----

Red velvet carpet muffled their steps up the stairs as the doors to the Agreste mansion parted, and the string quartet started playing. Rose gasped, and Adrien felt her hand (which he was carefully clasping as he led her up the portico) squeeze his, in an involuntarily clutch of delight.

One of the advantages of being filthy rich (or as they would say in France, crasseux riche), is the fact that the atrium of your mansion becomes a ballroom if you simply add an orchestra. And oh, Adrien knew a great orchestra.

After all, if you’re going to take the most romantically inclined gal in Paris back to your place, one simply must do it in style.

He might not be able to outdo her at romance activities in a restaurant, but something must be said for having a private ballroom at one’s disposal. And so they laughed, and spun, and Rose found out just exactly how much she could feel like a princess all in one night. Adrien had nailed it.

Not that it was a competition or anything, but Rose: 4, Adrien: 2.

-----

As Adrien and Rose made out on their way to the boudoir (which is French for bedchamber), bouncing off of the walls at irregular intervals and giggling, a corner of Adrien’s mind was congratulating himself for absolutely and literally romancing the pants off of the most romantically-minded girl in Paris. She had been sneaky--romantically sneaky--during their dinner and during his piano recital, but oh, a ballroom dance is a pièce de résistance before which no romantic heart can fail to melt. Or, as the French would say, a pièce de résistance before which no romantic heart can fail to melt.

In anticipation of this eventuality, Adrien had made some preparations. The pathway to the bed was lined with candles, a cheery fire glowed softly in a fireplace he’d had specially installed, and he’d done some decoration on the bed itself.

Just in case.

(It was more rose petals)

… But how the fuck had Rose managed to scatter rose petals in a pathway to the bed?

… And how the fuck had she managed to surround the bed with candles in the shape of a heart?

… And how had she managed to install a hidden reservoir of rose petals which would gently shower over two people in a bed when you pulled on a velvet rope?

“How did you--” he began, surrounded by a cascade of petals. Because he had to know. But before he could complete the thought, he was interrupted by the soft plap of a pink tulip plapping against his lips.

“Shhhhhh, shhh shh, my darling,” said Rose, raising one hand to cup his cheek as she whispered. “Let the romance find you.” She tugged him gently, but insistently, to sit upon the bed.

Aha! thought Adrien, who had also prepared for this eventuality. He plapped an orange tulip of his own against Rose’s lips, even more gently, shushing her, but in a romantic way.

“Shhhh, quiet my love, let the emotion overcome you…” he whispered, around the tulip, delicately cupping her chin, and reclining further on the bed.

“No no no, shhhhhh,” replied rose, plapping him in the eyebrow with a second tulip, red this time. “We need no words.”

“But I must express what I feel,” said Adrien, who felt like he had just aced that delivery. Pure rom-com dialogue, right there. He stroked his second tulip (pastel yellow this time) down the line of her cheek and lips as they lay down on the bed.

“Shhhhhhhh,” said Rose. “Our love is so much more than we could ever say,” she said, as she plapped a third--

Wait a minute.

Adrien took a quick inventory: One tulip plapped against his lips, another against his eyebrow, both of which Rose was still holding in her dainty, pinkly manicured hands. And a third tulip plapped against his nose, held by…

He looked down his and Rose’s reclining figures, to see an appealingly bare length of Rose’s leg extended from her hiked-up dress and bent up towards his face, the third tulip daintily clutched between her toes, plapping it onto his face. Adrien turned back to her, phenomenally impressed.

There is nothing more romantic than softly holding someone’s face and plapping them with flowers. And Rose had done it thrice.

His admiration must have shown on his face, because Rose blushed the perfect amount, averted her eyes a tiny bit, then brought them back to gaze full into Adrien’s own extremely fucking emerald orbs, and giggled softly.

“I’m very flexible.”

And at a certain point on a date, that is one of the most romantic lines you can say. Rose had undoubtedly, unbelievably vanquished him with romance.

Not that it was a competition or anything.

And, cinematically speaking, the rest of the night gently faded out on a soft-focus shot of the fireplace.

--------

“What’s the final score?” asked Marinette, cuddled up with Juleka under a blanket in front of a horror movie.

“Looks like Rose: 23, Adrien: 2, from Alya’s latest update.”

“Sweet. I beat the spread,” said Marinette as she popped another piece of popcorn into her mouth, and fed another one to Juleka.  

“Honestly, I’m surprised he scored at all,” said Juleka around said popcorn. “Rose is phenomenal.”

“What can you do? Bringing flowers to the door is a power play, and so is a ballroom dance. Those were his aces in the hole,” said Marinette. “Plus, I think we both knew he was going to… score.” Marinette emphasized her extremely mature joke by elbowing Juleka in the ribs. Juleka giggled, and elbowed her back, which started a brief elbow fight that ended with them getting yet snugglier.

Juleka sighed, and tilted her head into the crook of Marinette’s neck. “It was awfully sweet of Alya to spy on them for us. How extra do you think they’re being right now?”

“At least extra extra, we’re in 2X territory absolutely.”

“Maybe even extra extra extra?”

“Oh definitely possible we’ve hit 3X.”

“Well, I for one know that Rose was definitely hoping for it to get a little triple-X at the end.”

They giggled at that for almost the rest of the movie.

When the credits were rolling, Juleka got a little smirk on her lips, and ran her hand up the back of Marinette’s neck, very gently. She whispered into Marinette’s ear:

“I’m, uh… a little scared after that movie. Maybe you could… escort me back to my room?”

Marinette smiled and nodded, walking back to Juleka’s boudoir still wrapped in the blanket. After all, who said Adrien and Rose got to have all the romance?