#and i learned a lot about them that i never knew despite growing up beside them

[canismajorly]

when I was a very impressionable, socially stunted and nerdy gay 14 year old, my high school drama club put on a production of dracula, and I had never read it. i was in the crew, and mostly just sat around the auditorium and watched them rehearse. all the main roles were played by a friend group who had incredibly fun to watch chemistry off stage. the Dracula was this very very VERY tall person with long hair who was in my chorus class and insisted on singing soprano from time to time despite naturally being a bass (... estrogen when, queen?). the Johnathan was this short Flynn-Rider-from-Rapunzel-looking twink who was (in my mind) fought after by women around him. the Jonathan and the Dracula intentionally made their interactions extra homoerotic (I overheard them talking to the English teacher director about it one day) and would spend off time at rehearsal trying to do the dirty dancing "time of my life" lift. because I was 14, I unironically shipped them. the Mina was so beautiful and had a face that, imo, would be cast in one of those terrible BBC/netflix period dramas now. she had been friends with the other two since before I started high school. because I was a polyamorous 14 year old, I also shipped the Jonathan with the Mina. i had a crush on the person who played Lucy in the cast since middle school, they were my age but so cool and likeable they melted into the older drama kid friend circle effortlessly. i had some interesting emotions about the scene where Lucy is covered in blood in a wedding dress. during the final cast and crew party, the Dracula threw a chocolate flower into the group and I caught it then proceeded to hold onto it for years after. then they all graduated, besides the Lucy. anyway, those are the versions of all the characters that live in my head when I read my Dracula daily.

[makeitmingi]

Cause Baby You're My Muse [Chapter 44]

Genre: Romance, Idol!AU, Music, Slight angst

Pairing: Mingi x Reader (y/n)

Characters: Producer!Reader, IdolLyricist!Mingi, IdolProducer!Hongjoong, Idol!Seonghwa, Idol!Yunho, Idol!Wooyoung, Idol!San, Idol!Yeosang, Idol!Jongho, cameo(s) by other celebrities

Summary: You always preferred producing underground, having an unknown face and governed by your own rules. But when you start freelancing for idol groups, you say goodbye to your lone wolf lifestyle as you learn to work with idol producers and lyricists.

Word count: 3.2K

Warning(s): Indigo gets accosted and harrassed, toxic behaviour by side character, Indigo has a panic attack, someone gets punched.

Today was the last day of the music video shoot. The boys were amazing, giving it their all despite being exhausted from working tirelessly the past 4 days. You supported them all the way, not just Mingi. You would go to the shoot every day.

"How's it been?" Eden asked.

"Great. I'm learning a lot. And the boys work so hard. They really are dedicated to their craft." You replied, looking at the 8 boys film.

"They are." He patted your shoulder with a chuckle. You were told by Hongjoong to be careful when interacting with the members today because they are also filming their behind the scenes.

"Hello Atiny~! Today is the last day of filming for the music video." Yunho waved at the camera.

"Woohoo!" Wooyoung jumped up and down excitedly behind the taller boy.

"Are you excited to see Atiny? I hope you like the video. We've been working really hard on it. Look." Yunho pointed to San, who was currently filming his solo part.

"What's going on?" Seonghwa entered the frame, slinging his arm around Yunho. You watched in adoration, they reminded you of puppies but they each had their own personality which was rather adorable. You went to the camping chair where your bag was and picked up your coffee cup.

"It's time for us to go. Watch us, Atiny~" Seonghwa winked at the camera before going with the rest to the filming area.

"Wanna hear the project I just submitted?" You asked Eden, who was beside you. There wasn't much to watch now since they were filming repeated scenes.

"Sure." He sat up.

Eden was a good mentor, he gave good feedback and advice on how you could always improve. You were grateful that he was always open to guiding you and helping you whenever you asked.

"I'm going to stretch my legs and walk around for a bit." You told Eden. He nodded, turning back to his phone.

"Sohee. How's it going?" You asked.

"Hey, Indigo! It's going great now that it's the last day of filming. I feel like I finally have time to breathe and talk. What about you? How's your first music video shooting experience?" She giggled, waving for you to sit with her.

"Learning a lot. Everyone's been very kind." You said. She held your hand excitedly.

"Seyoon, please take over the behind the scenes filming while they film." You all heard the director say.

"I heard through the grapevine that you have a new fanboy. He was apparently asking about you." She nodded over to Seyoon. Your mask hid your sour expression.

"Is he a regular in the film team?" You asked.

"Not sure. I think he's new? The film team is usually amongst themselves, they don't go for the dinners with the rest of us." She shrugged. This meant Seyoon lied to you.

"Why do you ask? Do you think he's cute?" She asked, a little more excitement in her tone.

"He's... not my type." You replied with a slight shake of your head. You weren't going to reveal too much about your uncomfortable encounter and interactions with Seyoon, still uncertain of how she felt about him. For all you knew, she could grow to be friends with him or like him.

"You probably like the cool type of guys, right? From what I've heard, he seems too eager, too energetic." She scrunched her nose a little. You just nodded in agreement.

Mingi was energetic but it was different than Seyoon. Mingi was kind, patient and never made you feel uncomfortable.

"Do you have a boyfriend?" Sohee asked.

"We just started not too long ago." You rubbed the back of your neck shyly, making her squeal happily. Jihyun, who was passing by, heard Sohee's scream and walked over, sitting with you.

"What are you so excited about?" She nodded over to Sohee, who had a big grin on her face.

"Indigo was just going to tell me about her boyfriend." Sohee giggled.

Meanwhile, Mingi's eyes were searching the area for you. They were having a break now and usually, you would come to them to chat but you were no where to be found. When he looked at where Eden was seated, your chair was empty.

"Wow, Indigo is really chatting up the stylists and make up artists. They're having a gossip session out there." Jongho chuckled, walking over with a can of soda.

"Ooh, gossip. Now, I'm interested to hear that." Wooyoung's head immediately turned.

"Just let her make friends with other girls to chat. Besides, we told her we're filming behind the scenes today so she's giving us space."

"Yes, I don't want her being caught on camera. Try to protect her identity as much as possible. We'll ask the editors to cut her out too if she does accidentally make it into the frame." Hongjoong said.

"As expected of protective older brother Hongjoong." San teased, clapping his hands.

"We should keep her away from that guy..." Yunho said lowly.

"Especially since he's one of the ones filming our behind the scenes now. I'm not sure if he'll try something weird or mess with her." Seonghwa added. Internally, Mingi let out a sigh of relief. He was glad that the others were just as protective of you or that they felt something about this guy was off.

"Meal's here." The managers announced. The Ateez boys lined up, each one picking up the styrofoam box that had their name and picture on it.

"Atiny~ We're eating delicious food. I hope you're eating well too." Yeosang smiled to the camera.

"We'll be back after finishing our meals. Bye~" Hongjoong covered his mouth as he chewed, giving a friendly wave to the camera.

"Everyone have your lunch breaks too." They heard all the other crews calling for lunch. You entered the room, greeting the boys with a brief wave before sitting behind Hongjoong.

"Are you gonna eat, Indi?" He asked casually as you leaned your back against his.

"Later." You replied.

"We heard you were making some friends out there, Indigo. Looked like a juicy gossip session was happening." Wooyoung teased. You pushed yourself off Hongjoong's back, making him grunt in annoyance as he almost fell forward.

"Are you guys spying on me?" You crossed your arms, raising a judgement eyebrow at them.

"We're just looking out for you." San cooed.

"I don't know if we're friends but we talk. It's weird, I've never really connected with a girl or girls before. The conversations are definitely different." You noted.

"True, between us and the other underground artists you're close with, Haneul's the only girl you're ever around." Jongho said.

"Yeah. Gender isn't what I look at when I make friends but I guess it is a coincidence that all my close friends are guys." You scratched your head. Seonghwa patted a space on the couch next to him.

"Want a drink at least?" He offered his bottle of juice out. He leaned over to grab a straw and stuck it in.

"Thanks, Hwa." You tucked the straw under your mask to sip. Mingi casually came to sit beside you, perching himself on the arm rest. His hand rested on the back of the couch to steady himself and not fall on you. But he made no conversation or interaction with you, he just wanted to be near you.

"When you guys are done, we're doing some tight shots of the units. So whoever is ready first can come out." The manager said after speaking to the director outside.

"Means Mingi's gonna be last because of how slow Joong eats." You snickered. Hongjoong glared at you.

"Here you go." Eden handed you a box of food.

"Thanks." You bowed your head, setting the box on the table. From the way he pursed his lips, you knew that he wanted you to eat now instead of delay.

"You should eat before it gets late." He said. Wooyoung, Yunho and Yeosang went out first for their unit shoot.

"Eat in here and close the door, then you can remove your mask. Or you can eat behind the changing curtain since we're coming in and out." San patted your shoulder.

"Thanks, guys. Really, don't worry about me. I'll eat. I'm just not too hungry now." You chuckled. In the end, you ate behind the changing curtain. Just in case someone didn't know you were here and came in, you stole Jongho's cap to cover your face.

"We'll let the managers and stylists know you're here so they don't come in." Hongjoong smiled. You nodded, waving him off to go shoot and not worry about you.

"But..." Mingi frowned slightly, trying to worry too much about you removing your mask with strangers around.

"We'll take turns coming in after filming and make sure she's safe, hyung. She's fine." Jongho assured, walking out with the taller.

While the boys continued filming and doing whatever you needed to do, you called Haneul on video call to speak to her. You missed her, having seen her for what felt like months already.

"Are you filming a movie?"

"It's not a movie, baby. Remember when Wooyoung showed you that video with seeing and dancing? It's that." You chuckled.

"You're gonna sing and dance? But unnie, you can't dance... You're not good when you dance."

"I don't think I'm that bad! But don't worry about my bad dancing, baby. I'm not filming, the oppas are. I'm just here to follow them and watch them film." You laughed. Haneul was probably the only person that could get away with insulting you or jabbing you without getting hit. She was always painfully honest.

"When are you coming home? I miss you."

"I miss you too, baby. I'm sorry it's been so long since I've seen you. But soon, I'll come see you and we'll do whatever you want. I promise." You sighed.

"Don't say sorry... Wooyoung oppa said you're always working so you can buy me ice cream, toys and take me to the zoo."

"That's true." You smiled softly. You made a mental note to thank Wooyoung later. For as long as you remember, Haneul was always kind of resentful towards your job for taking you away.

"I have to go, baby. I'll speak to you soon?" You didn't want to hang up but you heard voices outside.

"Mhmm. Bye, unnie. I love you."

"I love you too, baby. You're my entire world." You watched her wave before she hung up. You couldn't bring yourself to be the one to hang up. With another sigh, you gathered your empty food box and wore your mask. You quietly pulled the curtain back.

"Yah, stop making fun of me!" Wooyoung whined as Yunho and San made fun of his hand gestures. You felt Seyoon's eyes on you as he filmed them but took the opportunity to slip out of the room.

"Can I throw the food trash here?" You asked.

"Sure. Thank you!" She bowed her head. You walked to the area where the toilets were to wash your hands.

"Hey, Indigo." You stepped out of the female bathroom to see Seyoon there. You must have shot him an apprehended look because he took his hands out of his pockets.

"I just wanted to apologise. I realised my behaviour the other night was not very gentleman-ly of me." He spoke. You didn't react to that.

"So, I'm sorry." He repeated.

"Okay." You gave a brief nod before intending to walk away. You just wanted to leave the conversation. Odds are, you won't see each other anymore after today so you didn't want to bother too much with him. As you moved to walk past him, he suddenly grasped your forearm. You recoiled with a hiss, as if his touch burned.

"That's all you can say when someone apologises to you? 'Okay', that's rude." He frowned.

"What? Want me to jump for joy or fall to my knees in gratefulness? This just made it clear, you're not apologising because you genuinely feel bad. You're apologising for yourself." You couldn't hold back.

"Listen, here-"

"Indigo? Are you here?" You let out a mental sigh of relief when you heard Yeosang's voice. Seyoon shot you a look, challenging you.

"I'm here, Yeosang!" You yelled out, all the while maintaining eye contact with Seyoon. There were other things to be scared of but he wasn't one of those things.

"There you are." Yeosang walked over with San in tow. The two shot Seyoon a cautionary look, they definitely felt the tension in the air. San wrapped an arm around you, pulling you to stand behind him, almost protectively shielding you.

"Everything alright here?" San asked, a displeased frown on his face. You shrugged, subconsciously rubbing your arm where Seyoon grabbed you.

"Yeah, we were just talking." Seyoon replied.

"Well, the captain is freaking out because he thought you got lost. Let's go." Yeosang paid no attention to Seyoon and smiled at you. San turned you around and led you away.

"Are you okay?" San frowned worriedly once you were a good distance away from the bathrooms.

"Mhmm, he wasn't going to do anything but still, you guys came in time." You sighed.

Mingi sighed in relief when he saw you emerge with San and Yeosang. What he didn't like was seeing Seyoon stroll out a few seconds after.

"Did something happen?" Mingi asked. Yeosang shook his head, which made the rest of the boys there let out sighs of relief. Hongjoong and Seonghwa frowned, they would definitely be bringing this up to the lead director later as well as the KQ staff when they get back to Korea.

They weren't doing it just because it was you or because of favourtism. Well, yes there was but they also didn't want such a person to be working under KQ's name and harrassing others.

"Keep Indigo safe but remember where we are and who we are. We are always being watched." Hongjoong reminded the rest. Now you felt bad.

"I'm sorry. You guys shouldn't have to worry about me. Focus on the shoot, I'll be okay." You assured them.

"I didn't say that for you to be guilty." Hongjoong raised an eyebrow.

"I know, Joong. I wouldn't want you guys compromising your image just to protect me as well. Seriously, there are people around, he won't try to do anything." You said.

"Just stick with Eden or your friends if we're filming okay?" Wooyoung placed a hand on your thigh. You nodded with a hum.

This reminded you of the harrassment situation back in Korea. The reason why you didn't want to tell anyone else. You couldn't have them sacrificing their image, their career, their reputation as idols for you. It wasn't worth it.

"Go film! It's the last day, give it your all. Even if I know you guys always do." You chuckled, waving them off, trying to show that you're unbothered so they wouldn't worry anymore.

"Watch us." Yunho grinned, patting your head with a soft smile. You gave a thumbs up as they went to continue filming.

"Wow, you're really close with them, aren't you?" Jihyun raised an eyebrow as you sat with her.

"Do idols usually separate themselves from the crew?" You asked.

"Sometimes, just because they're closer and have their own stuff to do. Doesn't mean they're rude of unfriendly, they're still playful with everyone." Sohee shrugged.

"But they seem to really care about you. Like the way Yunho sshi patted your head just now." Jihyun pointed out.

"I've been working closely with them every day for the past few months since I've joined the company so I guess we're closer than work colleagues. Especially Hongjoong and Mingi since he's always in the studio with me producing." You reasoned. The two girls nodded, it made perfect sense.

"They're good boys. Playful and chaotic but honest and hardworking." Jihyun said. You agreed, seeing them in the studio and filming, they are very hard workers.

"Hey, Indigo. You got a little something on your mask." Sohee pointed. You hadn't even noticed.

"Do you need a spare? But I only have pink ones." Jihyun offered. She must have noticed you only wore white or black masks.

"No need, I have some spares. Thanks for telling me, I didn't even notice when I went to the bathroom earlier. That's embarrassing." You said shyly.

"It's not! It happens." The two assured you.

"I'll be right back." You stood up and went into the artists resting room. You knew that Mingi always had some spare masks in his bag, he had them in case you ever needed one.

Going behind the curtain, you removed your current mask and checked to see that there were some finger stains. Your hands must have been dirty when you put it back on after eating. This is why you mostly prefer wearing black masks over white ones.

"So that's what you look like." The curtain drew back, making you jump back in shock. Seyoon stood there, a smirk on his face. What made you stunned was the recording camera in his hands.

"Stop!" You yelled, scrambling to find the dirtied mask to wear. You reached for the camera but he held it away.

"I think now, you owe me an apology. Don't think you're all high and mighty just because you're some one hit wonder producer." He grabbed your collar.

"Let go of me!" You squirmed.

"YAH! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!" A loud shout made Seyoon turn around. Even so, his grip on you was relentless.

The Ateez boys, managers, Eden and some staff members stood there in anger and shock, witnessing the scene before them. Seyoon's eyes widened, he didn't think anyone heard you shout.

BAM!

"Mingi!" Hongjoong and Yunho went forward, holding the tall rapper back and pulling him away from the fallen male. Seyoon was on the ground, holding his jaw in pain. Mingi's force made Seyoon released you immediately but you dropped to the ground. Your heart pounded in your ears and you had no control of your body.

"Get a hold of yourself!" You've never seen or heard Yunho yell before but now that you have, it scared you. Everything was so loud, you wanted to curl into a ball and just be away from everyone.

"Indigo." Seonghwa moved first, rushing to your side on the ground. Your head hung low while your eyes shifted from left to right, your entire being shaking.

"Breathe, sweetheart. Breathe." Wooyoung was on the right, rubbing your back to get you to catch your breath.

"Let's clear the room. Get Mingi out of here. Now." The managers stepped in immediately.

"We're pressing charges." Hongjoong said to no one in particular as he and Yunho removed Mingi from the room. Two bodyguard came and grabbed Seyoon and escorted him out.

"H-He... H..." You tried to form words but nothing was coming out coherent.

"Ca-Came...ra..." Was all you could say. But Wooyoung seemed to know what you meant. He left you with Seonghwa and left the room.

"He got her on video! Where's the damn camera he was using?!" You heard him yelling outside. Seonghwa pulled your head to his chest but you couldn't stop shaking. Your mind was racing and tears blurred your vision.

"I..." You choked as dark spots appeared and you blacked out.

~

Series Masterlist

[meear]

The state of siblings in HP&the Deathly Hallows

Deathly Hallows is the book that shines a (new) light on every sibling in the story.

This is where we see Lily and Petunia's childhood, we learn about Aberforth and Albus' story, we read about Regulus' death, Percy's return (and even, to some extent, Harry and Dudley's goodbye, though of course they were never raised as siblings nor did they ever consider each other as such, but they did grow up under the same roof). This is the book where Ron finally confronts his insecurities, by destroying the locket who was throwing all of his family issues back into his face.

We finally meet Andromeda, the last Black sister, and we have Bellatrix mention her ("We—Narcissa and I—have never set eyes on our sister since she married the Mudblood"). In HP7, Molly even tells Harry that Fabian was her brother, which is something the reader never knew

I often see people drawing parallels between Sirius&Regulus and Lily&Petunia, both of these pairs being estranged siblings, but... They really don't have that much in common.

I've never seen anyone commenting on the Blacks' similarities to the Weasleys (by which I mean Percy) and the Dumbledores, when these three families have SO much more to offer. I think about them so often you do not understand. I don't even know where to begin. I've ended up putting a bunch of dialogue from the book, so it's a bit lengthy, but long story short:

Albus, Aberforth, Sirius, Regulus and Percy make me feel insane

Percy and Albus, two brillant, ambitious and arrogant young men, who felt trapped, who thought they were destined for more than the condition their family had condemned them to, who were desperate to leave their home and get their chance to shine despite their father's awful reputation, even by supporting corrupt ideals. Read what Dumbledore tells Harry at the end of HP7, and tell me it couldn't have come out straight of Percy's mouth:

"I resented it, Harry. I was gifted, I was brilliant. I wanted to escape. I wanted to shine. I wanted glory [...] So that, when my mother died, and I was left the responsibility of a damaged sister and a wayward brother, I returned to my village in anger and bitterness. Trapped and wasted, I thought!"

"[Percy] said he’s been having to struggle against Dad’s lousy reputation ever since he joined the Ministry and that Dad’s got no ambition and that’s why we’ve always been — you know — not had a lot of money"

Mind you, there's a bit of Sirius in it too, Sirius who also left. We learn about Percy and Sirius at around the same time (the beginning of Ootp, chapters 4 and 6) and I don't think it's a coincidence (edit: forgot to mention it but there's even a chapter named "Percy and Padfoot" in that book). Here's what Ron says:

"And if Mum and Dad were going to become traitors to the Ministry [Percy] was going to make sure everyone knew he didn’t belong to our family anymore. And he packed his bags the same night and left."

" 'You ran away from home?' 'When I was about sixteen,' said Sirius. 'I’d had enough.' "

"As far as I’m concerned, they’re not my family. She’s certainly not my family. [...] D’you think I’m proud of having relatives like her?”

Fred and George were angry at their older brother for putting his ambitions above his family and morals (I'm Percy's #1 fan and defender btw), and Aberforth was furious with Albus for the same reason. Again, this reads like something that Ron could've said about Percy, the pompous little snob (i love him):

Sirius and Percy are also not present on the family pictures:

"A photograph of the Weasley family stood beside the in-tray. Harry noticed that Percy appeared to have walked out of it."

" “I used to be there,” said Sirius, pointing at a small, round, charred hole in the tapestry, rather like a cigarette burn."

"Not Albus, he was always up in his bedroom when he was home, reading his books and counting his prizes, keeping up with his correspondence with ‘the most notable magical names of the day’ "

It's just that Percy and Albus betrayed their family by supporting wrong causes and Sirius betrayed his family by supporting the right one. but Regulus' support was an act of loyalty to his family. Aberforth and Kreacher tell Harry about Albus and Regulus' former goals:

"Didn’t I understand, my poor sister wouldn’t have to be hidden once they’d changed the world, and led the wizards out of hiding, and taught the Muggles their place?"

"For years [Master Regulus] talked of the Dark Lord, who was going to bring the wizards out of hiding to rule the Muggles and the Muggle-borns...."

I know I've been comparing Albus to Sirius, both of them being the oldest brother, but really Albus' ideological progression and death most resemble Regulus'. (both Black brothers share traits with both Dumbledores really). though of course, Harry didn't let Ron and Hermione make excuses for Dumbledore just because he was young:

" 'it’s an awful thought that Dumbledore’s ideas helped Grindelwald rise to power. But on the other hand, even Rita can’t pretend that they knew each other for more than a few months one summer when they were both really young, and— '

'I thought you’d say that,' said Harry."

" 'Dumbledore being pals with Grindelwald, but now it’s just something to laugh about for people who didn’t like Dumbledore, and a bit of a slap in the face for everyone who though he was such a good bloke. I don’t know that it’s such a big deal, though. He was really young when they— '

'Our age,' said Harry"

" 'He was a Death Eater,' said Harry. 'Sirius told me about him, he joined up when he was really young and then got cold feet and tried to leave' "

(i would like it on record that the exact expression "really young" is found thrice in HP7, two of them being about Albus, the last one about Regulus. i'm so incredibly normal about this)

"and when he was sixteen years old, Master Regulus joined the Dark Lord"

"[Dumbledore] changed, Harry, he changed! It’s as simple as that! Maybe he did believe those things when he was seventeen"

"I know what you’re going to say, she went on as Harry began to protest, that Regulus changed his mind . . ."

Albus and Regulus were two misguided brothers who both drank the drink of despair in the Inferi cave before dying, the only two wizards to have done so. Not only that, both of them had actually planned their own death; though it was a secret only known by the one who had assisted them (the chapters revealing the truth about Regulus and Albus are literally called "Kreacher's tale" and "the Prince's tale", like they're referencing each other, I'm in my incredibly delusional era right now). They started something (the same thing, in fact) they could not see through to the end, and "faced death in the hope" someone else would finish it:

"We want to finish the work Master Regulus started, we want to—er—ensure that he didn’t die in vain"

"he left me a job [...] Your brother knew how to finish You-Know-Who and he passed the knowledge on to me"

Both Sirius and Aberforth hated their brother's choices, but actually (as Harry told Aberforth) neither of them fully understood their brother's last moments. and because they didn't have that knowledge, neither of them ever gained a complete understanding of their brother:

"And Albus was free, wasn’t he? Free of the burden of his sister, free to become the greatest wizard of the— '

'He was never free,' said Harry."

"From what I found out after he died, he got in so far, then panicked about what he was being asked to do and tried to back out."

"And he drank— all the potion— and Kreacher swapped the lockets"

"The night that your brother died, he drank a potion that drove him out of his mind."

"He thought he was watching Grindelwald hurting you and Ariana... It was torture to him, if you’d seen him then, you wouldn’t say he was free."

"Kreacher and Regulus’s family were all safest if they kept to the old pure-blood line. Regulus was trying to protect them all."

You know who ELSE "was never free" though??

I ask, but you already know.

" 'I don’t like being back here,” [Sirius] said, staring across the drawing room. 'I never thought I’d be stuck in this house again.' "

"I returned to my village in anger and bitterness. Trapped and wasted, I thought!"

Albus was never free. Sirius was never free either.

But wait! there's more!

"But Harry, his mother had just died, he was stuck alone in the house— '

'Alone? He wasn’t alone! He had his brother and sister for company, his Squib sister he was keeping locked up— ' "

Of course, knowing this about Albus Dumbledore, this scene at the end of OotP might hit a bit different:

“ 'I was trying to keep Sirius alive,' said Dumbledore quietly.

'People don’t like being locked up!' Harry said furiously, rounding on him. 'You did it to me all last summer —'

Dumbledore closed his eyes and buried his face in his long-fingered hands. "

Now do I think there's a link between Albus&Sirius being stuck in the house and Dumbledore keeping his sister locked up to protect her life and keeping Sirius locked up to protect his life... maybe it wasn't intentional, or maybe it was; either way, it's very juicy to think about, and Dumbledore's reaction after what Harry says? if there's even the slightest possibility he might have been thinking about Ariana...I'm EATING this up.

Let us not forget about Percy Weasley though. In the end, both Percy and Albus came to their senses, though not without losing a younger sibling, Fred and Ariana. Is it possible that Albus saw a bit of himself in Percy at the time? Maybe, maybe not, but he did try to comfort Molly about Percy:

" 'Dumbledore says people find it far easier to forgive others for being wrong than being right,' said Hermione. 'I heard him telling your mum, Ron.' "

"Reality returned in the form of my rough, unlettered, and infinitely more admirable brother. I did not want to hear the truths he shouted at me."

So yeah, they made wrong choices, but again, that doesn't mean they can't change:

" 'I was an idiot, I was a pompous prat, I was a— a— '

'Ministry-loving, family-disowning, power-hungry moron, said Fred. "

"Stupid idiot . . . he joined the Death Eaters."

" 'Don’t worry about Percy,' said Sirius abruptly. 'He’ll come round.' "

Remember the previous comparison between Albus and Percy, about both of them being the stuck-up pretentious brother?

"It was a porapous little sign, neatly lettered by hand - the sort of thing that Percy Weasley might have stuck on his bedroom door: Do Not Enter Without the Express Permission of Regulus Arcturus Black"

I think about this description a normal amount, the exact amount of thought warranted for such a short, inconsequential description, in fact

Another thing Deathly Hallows did was challenging our perception of Sirius and Albus (granted, mostly Albus) by developing a younger brother who, against all odds, might have been more admirable than them in certain aspects. when Regulus and Aberforth are first mentioned, one is a cowardly Death Eater and the other is implied to be a goat-fucker. alright. and yet, if you only read the last book, you end up having a more positive impression of Aberforth and Regulus than of their older brothers, to the point where Albus and Sirius even get compared to Voldemort. Interestingly, I feel like Albus makes an indirect reference to Kreacher here:

"That which Voldemort does not value, he takes no trouble to comprehend. Of house-elves and children’s tales, of love, loyalty, and innocence, Voldemort knows and understands nothing."

of course Regulus was not brought up in his last conversation with Harry, but there really isn't anyone else this comment could refer to, and it does echo "Kreacher's tale" nicely:

"Of course, Voldemort would have considered the ways of house-elves far beneath his notice . . . It would never have occurred to him that they might have magic that he didn’t."

"I’ve said all along that wizards would pay for how they treat house-elves. Well, Voldemort did . . . and so did Sirius."

"Sirius was horrible to Kreacher, Harry, and it’s no good looking like that, you know it’s true"

"He’s loyal to people who are kind to him, and Mrs. Black must have been, and Regulus certainly was"

"my rough, unlettered, and infinitely more admirable brother"

"Was I better, ultimately, than Voldemort?"

"Master Regulus always liked Kreacher."

"The barman face was impassive. After a few moments he said,

'I’m sorry to hear it, I liked that elf.' "

Sirius and Albus really wanted to distance themselves from the reminders of their home, and as a result, they weren't always decent people. Of course I don't believe for a second Sirius and Albus were actually as bad as Riddle. they both did fucked up things, so did Regulus who joined the Death Eaters and Aberforth who suggested using Slytherin students as hostages (tf), so I'm not saying one amongst these four is obviously better than the others, but. this reversal is still really interesting.

The fact that Aberforth was helping Harry through Sirius' mirror. The fact that one of Albus' names is Percival. Hell, let's reach even further, Albus meaning "white" and Sirius&Regulus' last name being "black".

Like I'm sorry, but to me this is cinema.

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

May I humbly request some Volo x reader crumbs please? Thank you!

Why settle for crumbs when I can offer a meal? 👀

Summary: Some post-game comfort where Reader (not the MC) is Volo's S/O, but despite finding out about his plans, they know in their heart he's not all bad and wants to stay with him.

(obvious PLA spoilers ahead!)

.......

After overhearing Volo's sinister plans and subsequent defeat at Spear Pillar from Akari/Rei, you wanted to find him. As his s/o you were concerned.

According to Cogita, he went into self-imposed exile and abandoned the Ginkgo Guild, still determined to face Arceus itself without the help of some ridiculous flute.

But with knowledge of his usual hangouts near ancient/historical spots, you eventually do locate him, seeing that he definitely looks a lot worse for wear, sporting a dirty and dull version of his Arceus-inspired garb. And his hair was down, messier than ever. He just looked like a total wreck and in no condition to meet every Pokémon right now.

His Togekiss immediately senses your presence and goes to embrace you in her wings, chirping happily, which in turn alerts Volo.

He's stunned that you actually went out of your way to find him. Surely, the entire village caught wind of his evil deeds, as did you.

So why did you come here? To yell at him for his selfish desires? To cry about how he betrayed everyone?

Well he was about to find out. Tbh he was ready for whatever insults you had to get off your chest. You had to be furious at him.

"[Y/n], you...you were looking for me?" He rasps.

"Of course, Volo..I learned about what happened and-"

"You're disgusted, right?" He immediately assumes. "I deceived everyone and you've come to reprimand me for my heinous actions? For my hubris?"

"....no, that's not-"

"You're not one to lie so easily, darling. So drop the act and just admit it..what I did was abhorrent and unforgivable. I backstabbed a child, I summoned Giratina itself..I threatened to destroy this very world!! How do you not see a monster in me?!"

You're quiet for a moment, looking to Togekiss, and then the nearby field where Lucario and Roserade were having a sparring match.

"Because your Pokémon don't." You say to him. "They still love you, and...so do I. Of course, I was shocked at what you did on that mountain. I mean..you tried stealing the plates from the kid who risked their life to get them."

The answer was simple--because they didn't.

His team knew he didn't truly "wield" them, nor was he as heartless as he claimed to be. Otherwise he wouldn't still have Pokémon who evolved based on friendship status.

Plus you knew that what Volo was before isn't a facade. He was just good at hiding his ambitions.

"Because they weren't worthy of possessing them. I would've used them to make a better world for us." He gritted his teeth, eyes burning as he felt the stinging defeat in his heart all over again. "I would’ve summoned Arceus for you, I would’ve taken its powers for you, [y/n]! Yet once again..fate has been cruel to me, declaring me still unworthy of meeting it, even after all I’ve done. Now I’m left to suffer..as always.”

By the end of his rant, his voice was drained and defeated, as he hung his head low, feeling some great deal of remorse.

"...my dear, you don't need to take a deity’s powers for me to love you." You kneel down, cupping his face, where you could feel both sides growing wet with tears. “I can’t find it in me to hate you. So please..let me stay. Even if I never go back to the village again, that's alright. I'd rather be here with you. I know this world has been unkind, but there's so much beauty in it. And we'll seek it out together."

Volo just looked up at you, his heart swelling with emotions. Part of him wanted to push you away and focus on his mission, believing he deserved to be hated and alone...

Besides, his Pokémon were starting to miss you a lot when he went into exile, yearning for the treats you’d spoil them with ever since you two began dating.

But on the other hand, he knew you weren’t that easy to get rid of.

No matter how far he travelled in Hisui, you’d just find him again, being the stubborn partner that you are.

So he just nods and silently embraces you with his head buried into your chest, relieved that he still has someone to cling to even after everything.

Meanwhile, his Togekiss raced outside to tell the rest of the gang the good news: 

You were here to stay with their wie-no, trainer forever.

[prettyiwa]

I do not authorize the translation or reposting of my work.

(previous) Relationship: Miyuki Kazuya x F!Reader Rating: SFW Content Tags: POV Miyuki Kazuya, Childhood Best Friends to Lovers, Soulmates (if you squint), Brief Mention of Grief, Adolescent Teasing, Light Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Hints of Jealousy, One (1) Instance of Profanity (guys, it's me.), Concerned Miyukis (Toku makes an appearance), the Author Has Unrealistic Expectations About Seating on Public Transit, Reference to Kazuya's Name Etymology Summary: What are best friends for if not dragging into playing catch or forcing to model for your art? Word Count: 3,100

A/N: Let me know if you'd like to be tagged for future updates. I cannot promise a timeline/schedule for when they'll be published, but the option's there if you want it.

@tyga-lily, @no1frogfan, @bajiissofine (since you'll be reading the first in a bit)

He forgets how old both of you were, but it was around the time you were learning how to ride a bike. It was you who went first, terrified and unable to find your words. Absolutely petrified. Maybe your nerves carried over but he remembers feeling antsy, too. All he really knows is, you started calming down when he ran alongside the bike—as fast as he could, anyway. He shouted at you and you heard him clearly, despite high emotions and adrenaline.

I’m right beside you.

When it was his turn, you said the same thing.

Age 13 (Almost 14) | August 23

With the exception of you sitting on the benches next to his bag, Kazuya’s alone on the practice grounds. The upperclassmen left a while ago, uninterested in bettering themselves beyond regular practice, and the players in his year left not too long after. Adults still hover at the top of the hill, chatting with one another before they’ll eventually head home, taking the remaining teammates with them, but he’s not counting on them. They aren’t gonna help him keep practicing, so he’s not worried about them. It makes things difficult, but not impossible.

You’re here, so it’s definitely not impossible.

Kazuya approaches you, calling your name, unable to stop his grin from growing. You look up from your sketchbook with a smile of your own, but it drops the moment he tosses the ball into the air. By the time he’s caught it, your smile has turned into a frown and your nose is back in your book.

“C’mon. Just ten more minutes. Play with me for ten minutes.”

“I don’t want to play with you for ten more minutes because it’s never just ten minutes.”

“Okay… what do you want to do, then? Can’t be as fun as playing baseball.” He knows what you’d rather be doing, you art nerd, but he’ll ask anyway.

“I’d rather be drawing.”

“Ha! I knew it, art nerd!”

Your brows scrunch together and he can almost hear you call him baseball geek before his coach calls out to you both, interrupting whatever you were gonna say.

“Hey! Are you kids coming along? It won’t be light out for much longer.”

That catches your attention, making you jump to your feet to address him. Offering a slight bow, you call out, “We’ll be okay to travel alone.” Kazuya’s smirk grows again, knowing you’d only say that if you planned on helping him anyway. “I’ll make sure he doesn’t push himself too hard. Thank you!”

Coach seems satisfied, but Namikawa’s dad isn’t.

“What about your mothers? Won’t they worry?”

Even though it’s supposed to be hot, late summer, it feels cold. Kazuya looks at you and notices the way you freeze up. Coach leans over and Kazuya knows what he’s saying, even without hearing it. Your shared reality for the last six years, but it bothers you a whole lot more than it bothers him.

Your grip around your sketchbook tightens and his smile is gone when he shouts back, “We’re fine. My dad knows where we are. You guys shouldn't wait for us.”

“Kazuya, you’re being kinda rude,” you mutter, turning to face him. He doesn’t like the way your smile’s disappeared.

“I don’t care about that.”

Coach doesn’t either, it looks like, because he bids you both good evening, reminding Kazuya that practice starts later tomorrow.

You return to your spot on the bench and he stands there a bit longer, wondering why people have to make things into something they’re not. What would it have mattered what your guys’ moms think? It doesn’t since they don’t. Glancing your way, he sees that you’re still frowning and he remembers it’s always been a little harder on you, especially since your dad won’t do anything to help, but there’s not a whole lot he can do about that.

Tossing the ball into the air, he catches it, again and again, higher and higher each time.

“Stop moving so much.”

He catches the ball once more, looking over at you, watching him from just atop your sketchbook. Again.

“I can’t stop moving,” he says, tossing the ball up, up, up. “I’m practicing.”

“You don’t even have to practice right now. You did that for three hours already. It’s just you.”

You’re still moping, so he decides to goad you, just a bit. “This’ll go faster if you pick up the ball and help.”

Glaring at him, you scoff. “How could that possibly help?”

“If I get used to your crappy and wild pitches, I’ll be able to catch anything.”

That does it. His smile returns in full when you close your sketchbook and almost slam it down beside you, looking like you want to fight.

“I’m going to end you, baseball geek.”

He can’t contain his laughter, not when your pride prevents you from taking any slight lying down. “Practice with me and then you can sketch all you want.”

“Alright. Fine. Jackass.”

He laughs again as you start to warm up your shoulder, but your scowl only deepens. He knows that once you get going, you’ll actually enjoy playing with him—getting you to start is always the hard part. He doesn’t understand why, especially since it didn’t use to be like this. You used to enjoy playing with him and do it willingly. But things change, he supposes. Like what Akari said yesterday (though he’s pretty sure she only said it to annoy Kazuya). Her comment festers and he tries to remember how you reacted and it’s enough for him to laugh again.

“So vulgar! How do you expect to make other friends or find a boyfriend with a mouth like that?!”

For a couple of minutes you don’t say anything, focusing on warming up while shooting him a withering glare once or twice. You raise your hand to ask for the ball, catching it without flinching or looking away and it makes him excited.

“I make friends fine.” There’s a crawling under his skin when you say that, a light itch that doesn’t really go anywhere. He opens and closes his mitt, hoping you’ll throw your first pitch and he can forget about it. “No one would even want me to be their girlfriend so long as you’re around.”

Or not. You could say that and the itching could get worse and it could feel like something heavy’s twisting his stomach. The dropping in his chest reminds him of those dreams he sometimes has where he’s falling.

He shouldn’t have asked.

You throw your first pitch with more control than you usually exhibit. He doesn’t have a retort or a compliment to offer and he thinks he can hear Akari laughing at him. “So what? You want me to stop hanging around as much?”

You catch the ball he throws your way and he can tell that, at the very least, you aren’t upset at the question about your mom anymore. He sees it in your eyes as you wind up—you don’t even have to say it. He hears you clearly simply by being the person to catch your pitches. Harder than you usually do and with better aim than you usually have. Maybe his comments went too far this time.

Waiting until you have the ball again, you answer before you throw. “No. I’d rather be friends with you than have some boyfriend.”

It’s like you’re spitting the word, like it’s the worst insult he could’ve thrown your way, but he doesn’t care. That twisting stops and the itching does, too. The way the ball nestles into his mitt tells him you’re still mad, but it’s hard to focus on that because his heart stops completely, turning him cold before burning him up. Heat spreads across his face and he feels dumbfounded until you call out to him, expecting the ball.

Throughout the rest of your practice, you don’t say much more, letting your pitches speak for you. That’s fine—your words won’t stop replaying in his ears anyway. All in all, he shouldn’t push you. You’re not an actual pitcher, despite the promise you show and the way the girl’s team would probably love to have you. It’s getting dark but he likes this.

He likes playing like this with you. No matter how much of a fuss you make, you always end up having fun, too. He likes that he can understand you perfectly when you throw the ball his way. It reminds him of when things were a little bit easier. The natural light is running out and you complain that you’re getting hungry, meaning he can’t keep this up much longer.

The distance between the field and the bus stop seems shorter than usual, filled with him trying to get you to admit you had fun, no different from any other time you two do this. He gets nothing but non-answers and he knows you’re still annoyed with him, so it’s no surprise when you pull out your sketchbook the moment you two are seated on the bus.

At first, you don’t mind when he leans on you, looking over your shoulder as you touch up what you had been working on earlier. Most of the pages are filled with him, but he spots his teammates there as well. The bus continues on its route and gradually empties as it always does around this spot at this time of night and you push him away.

“Hey, what’s that for?”

“Shut it. I want to draw you. You said I could.”

He sighs, giving up whatever fight he planned on giving. It’s not the worst thing ever and he kinda likes the attention you give him, especially since it means you won’t be angry with him for as long. As you try to steady the pages, you end up lowering your sketchbook and he gets caught on the fact that you’re using the purple pencil again. You always seem to use it when you draw him, but he can see Namikawa and his coach in orange and red at the bottom of the page, just beneath your hand.

“You always draw me in purple, but you draw Namikawa in orange.”

“Okay?”

You don’t stop sketching, only looking up for reference. He knows that look—like you’re not only seeing him, but seeing through him. Sometimes he hates that look, but he imagines it can’t feel that much different when you sit at his games and practices.

“Why?”

“Why…? Why do I draw you using purple?” Your brows scrunch together and your tongue peeks out as you try to get the lines just right.

“Yeah. Why not orange or red?”

“Because you’re not.”

“I’m not what?”

“You’re not orange or red. You’re purple.” Spoken like the truth. Something known, like the depth of the Mariana Trench being over 11,000 meters or that the sun will always set and that he’ll seek out baseball when it rises again or that you’ll call his name and he’ll come running. Kazuya doesn’t quite understand how you’ve made this your truth.

As if you can feel his confusion, you look up, properly. Your face relaxes and you tilt your head back before saying, “You’ve always been purple. Does it really bother you?”

Again, you say it like it’s a fact.

But he considers your question and comes to the conclusion that it doesn’t bother him. Not really. “I guess not.”

Nodding before returning to the page, you take a moment before speaking again. “Kazuya, I don’t remember asking since we were kids.”

“Asking what?”

“What’s your favorite color?”

“Oh.”

What a silly question, but you’re an artist, so it makes sense that you’d ask him something like that. While he thinks, wondering whether he even has a favorite color, you grab his chin and move back into position.

“Uh, I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it.”

“What about orange?”

It’s a nice color. Reminds him of summer and how hot it gets and how much fun he has. It reminds him of you a little bit. “I like it. It’s warm.”

“It is. It’s connected to sunshine and happiness.”

“No kidding? What about red?” He likes that, too, but it’s everywhere. Not that it’s a bad thing, but there has to be a reason for that.

You hum, tilting your head to the side before answering. “Protection and strength, I think.”

“What about purple?”

Why do you think he’s always been purple?

“Well… it was hard to get, for dye and paint and stuff, so only royalty and people at the top had access to it—”

He laughs and you pull him into position again. “What, so you think I’m some kind of royal?”

It’s your turn to laugh, and it’s the infectious kind that drags him in, too. Your pencil pauses for a moment and you look at him. “No, you idiot. Maybe it’s because of your name or because you’re jersey number two on the field. I don’t know. I mean, I can’t think of anyone who’s all that better at catching than you.”

There’s a catcher that comes to mind, but he can’t be bothered to think of him when you give a compliment like that. Even if you tell him you don’t know a thing about baseball (which is an absolute lie) and you tell him that your opinion on the sport shouldn’t matter, it does. You continue your thought and he’s unable to put away his cheeky smile.

“I read somewhere that purple sometimes means strength and drive. I don’t know. That all seems like you.”

“I suppose so.” You return his smile before gently closing your sketchbook, denying him the opportunity to see how much progress you’ve made. The bus comes to a stop and he follows you off it, happy when you take a moment to wait for him instead of just going ahead. “So… what’s your favorite color?”

You glance in his direction before taking a step in the direction of home. “Purple.”

“Oh, so you draw me purple because it’s your favorite color and I’m your favorite person.”

“No!” He snickers at your reaction, at the playful way you push his shoulder, glad to have pushed the right button at least once today. “Purple’s my favorite color because I’m always drawing you and you’ve always been purple.”

His words die on his tongue and he can’t tell why. He wants to respond (maybe tease you some more) but he can’t find any words. A smirk forms on your lips, happy that he’s being quiet. The two of you walk in silence for a couple minutes and it’s not until you’re a block away from home do you turn to him with that smile that means you’re up to no good.

“Y’know… Tanaka-sensei was complaining that sometimes purple can be really difficult to print. Maybe that’s why you’re purple. You’re just difficult.”

“Seriously?”

Your laughter echoes down the street before you skip in front of him, stopping in front of his house as he catches up.

“Hey, don’t you wanna stay and eat? I don’t think your dad’ll have anything at home.”

“Nah, that’s why I have to get home. I might need to make something.” You say that, but you glance toward the lights that are still on in the factory.

“You’re going to end up poisoning you both. Just stay and eat with us. It won’t take too long.”

“I shouldn’t.” Even though it looks like you want to.

He can try once more—

“How else are you supposed to finish your drawing?”

A smile appears on your face, nice and wide and one he only sees when you’re really happy with him. “Seriously? You’d sit still for me?”

“Yeah!” If it gets you some proper food tonight, yeah.

You bite your bottom lip, chewing on it while you think. “Could you do that tomorrow? I gotta make sure he’s good.”

That feeling in his chest gets smaller and his smile feels heavier, but he still makes it come. “Yeah, I’ll do it tomorrow.”

The light inside the factory turns off and you both turn as the metal doors shut, bringing Dad and Kusaga outside. After locking the doors, Dad catches sight of you both, walking forward after wishing Kusaga a good night.

“You two are out late. Did Kazuya keep you at practice again?”

“Nope! He was helping me with my art today.”

Dad gives him a look that tells him he knows better, but he simply asks you, “Can I take a look?”

Flipping through the pages, you land on the ones of today, bringing it to him. “This is what I was able to do while he was practicing, but this is what he helped me with after.”

Dad takes a moment to look through your sketches, the same ones Kazuya peeked at earlier. You never let him see how far you got with the sketch from the bus and it bothers him a little that Dad gets to see it first. But you’re trying to save him from another lecture about keeping you out too late, so he’ll leave it alone.

“You’ve improved quite a bit.”

“Thank you! I’ve been working at it as hard as Kazuya’s been working on baseball, I think. I can’t let him be the only one with talent here.” Dad laughs but that doesn’t stop your smile from starting to slip away. “I should start heading home. Dad’s waiting for me.”

His dad looks at him briefly before turning to you. Part of him hopes he’ll invite you to stay for dinner because you suck at telling parents no, but a larger part of him knows that Dad wouldn’t do that.

“You good to travel alone? Kazuya and I could walk you.”

“No, it’s okay. Thank you for offering!”

“Alright. Tell your dad I said hi.”

You wave to them both as you continue heading down the street, turning away without much of a smile. Dad turns to him again but, before he can say anything, Kazuya speaks up.

“Can I walk her home anyway?” He thinks about it for a moment, glancing the way you’re going, and Kazuya adds, “It’s just around the corner.”

That seems to do the trick and Dad extends his hand, gesturing to Kazuya’s bag. “That’ll be fine. I’ll get started on dinner.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

Kazuya doesn’t give him any time to respond, hurrying after you like you had called. Even if you didn’t call his name, he’s sure he heard it anyway.

Promises We Exchanged Fic Page | Daiya no Ace Masterlist | Next

[offorestsongs]

Lysander ― fun facts ✦

context for people outside my follower circle: Lysander is my Yuu and since he's been living in my head very intensively recently, i've decided to put out some fun lil trivia about him that isn't included in his bio! some of those things i've probably mentioned before, but i thought i'd be nice to expand on them/have them all in one post [dividers]

as you may infer from most of my other posts about him, cooking/food is basically Lysander's special interest. his main way of expressing that he likes/cares for other people is cooking them food. while visiting new places during the events, his favorite thing to do is always trying the local foods and learning the history behind them. he often tries to replicate some of the dishes he tried after coming back home. despite that, he still has some texture issues and there's generally a lot of foods that he's willing to cook for others but that he probably won't eat for himself

he's also more experienced with cooking than with baking - he's using the fact that he has more time on his hands to finally get better at it... with varying results. he has the tendency to go off-recipe because "he just feels it". Ace and Deuce are usually the test guinea pigs for all of his baking experiments

he grows a lot of different plants and herbs at Ramshackle not only because he simply enjoys gardening, but also because it's cheaper than buying them at the store all the time. besides using them for his cooking, he also makes his own tea blends that he gifts to all his friends

speaking of tea - eventually every single one of his friends that regularly visit him at Ramshackle has their own cup in his kitchen. some the others just picked from the cups Lysander has already had, some Lysander bought specifically with that person in mind. he also keeps a detailed chart in his special notebook of what teas everyone prefers so he can always be stocked on them (and also how much sugar/what type of sugar do they take and if they put anything else into their tea. Lysander is very serious about his tea alright)

he gets the Disney princess treatment; it's not as strong as in Silver's case, but animals are still drawn to him, tend to approach him a lot and generally feel calm in his presence

while his favorite animals are cats, his second favorite animals are actually chickens! in his home world, he used to keep chickens and treated them like his fluffy little friends and always got sad when one of them had to be killed

he possesses a wide array of unexpected, but practical skills, mostly related to doing things around the house; he was never really discouraged seeing the state Ramshackle was in since he already knew how to fix a lot of things there. what is probably the most unexpected, tho, is the fact that he can pick locks - he's not super skilled at it, but he can still handle your basic front doors. it's not something he really boasts about and he doesn't remember how and why he had learned it (though based on some other memories he had regained, he can make an educated guess)

while he loves both sewing and dressing up, he's very picky about the textures of his clothes. he can never buy new clothes or fabric without being able to touch it first

while he's good at hands-on skills, he's not very academically talented and generally studying doesn't come easy for him. however, he feels like he has an obligation to be a good student since he's allowed to stay at the school despite having no magic, and he puts a lot of effort into studying so his grades are actually pretty decent. the one subject he's effortlessly good at is potionology/alchemy because "it's just like cooking but with extra steps!"

despite how he may look, he actually has a pretty good stamina and he's surprisingly strong for somebody his statue, mostly due to all the physical labor he did around his original home (and that he now does around Ramshackle as well)

he generally doesn't wear jewelry because he doesn't like the feeling of it against his skin. everytime he tried to wear a ring or a necklace, he was hyperaware of it and couldn't focus on anything else

he has insomnia; it's mostly caused by the fact that he's afraid of losing his memories again and since he can't remember how he lost them in the first place, he's afraid it may happen in his sleep + by the fact that some of his experiences since coming to NRC have been,, less than pleasant and left quite an impact on him. he is, however, able to fall asleep quite easily near the people he trusts and feels safe around (that mostly means Ace and Deuce, Rook, Vil and Malleus, if he ever got to sleep in his presence)

his favorite flowers are lily of the valley - each spring he could see from his bedroom's window that they were growing in his backyard. when he couldn't leave his room, he would look at them and imagine their smell; on the occasions he was allowed to leave, he would run and pick as much of them as he could, to bring back to his room and keep on his desk so he wouldn't have to feel as alone

since he doesn't remember his birthday, he chose the date of the day he came to Twisted Wonderland as his new birthday - it only seemed fitting. based on his "actual" birthday though, he's a Cancer

[yannaryartside]

I want Carmy to have a best friend.

Besides Sydney.

I have been trying to find this gif, but there is a moment in 2x08 when Carmy is talking to Sydney about where to buy some product. He mentioned, "Yeah, my buddy from high school, he is running an Ibero account," and I went: "bitch you lying. Weren't you a total loner in high school?" he probably just wanted to sound better than say, "yeah this guy I know from high school" maybe to pretend to be more "normal." There are multiple scenes that could be evidence of Carmen having not friends at all growing up, not closed ones anyway:

In 1x04, when Cicero is describing his friendship with Carmy's dad, Cicero says, "We had the same problems at the same age, so we had a lot to talk about," and Carmy says, "That sounds nice," like he had never had a person like that in his life. In 2x05, Carmy says, "You always had so many friends, I don't know, I really wanted that." There is a pause here, his eyes moving because it's a big confession, before trying to continue the conversation and saying, "Mickey had that," to top it all, he mentions in his monologue that he thought Mickey was his best friend. After all, Mickey is the one person who knew him best, despite how little Carmy knew about Mickey. Here is the thing: Carmy still doesn't have any friends. Richie is not a friend. He is more like an older brother, somebody that can scold him. They are not equals. Most of the figures in Carmy's life are authority figures/relatives.

You may argue that Sydney is his friend, and she is, but he hasn't referred to her as his "partner" (business) yet, and I think there may be something behind it. His trauma dumps on her; he shares a passion for cooking with her, but they are not there yet on the emotional stuff. I know they are going to star calling each other friend, or best friend, in future seasons as their relationship grows, but I do not want that responsibility to rely completely on Sydney's shoulder; she is going to be "his person," but I think it may be healthy for Carmy to get a friend that he can talk to besides her, maybe somebody that he can relate to in the things he cannot relate to Sydney. So he can get perspective on things, and find confidence in his value as a "friend" or learn to be a good friend to begin with, to trust deeply on someone. On that note, while consuming fiction, people get this feeling when they see a loner/isolated archetype fall in love with their best friend because he is the "only person who gets them," like some codependency stuff. This will not be the case for Syd and Carmy because he was attracted to her even before they started to connect.

I think Marcus and Carmy don't have that chemistry yet; if there was a chance of them becoming more friends than acquaintances, it would have shown already. This was one of the reasons I was excited to see the new staff, to see if Carmy could get a friend that way. I honestly want Sydney to get some friends too. We don't know much about the staff yet, and there is a position open since they fired that guy.

So here is my wish list: I want somebody Carmy can think of as an equal (not necessarily in the cooking world), but somebody of the same age and preferably with similar issues. Maybe somebody who has tragically lost a dear one or somebody who is in the program (not an addict, that probably would not work, but somebody from a family of addicts). And I want them to have similar interests, like fashion, art, and other stuff. This comes from a person who was really depressed in high school and only started to recognize my own destructive patterns when, one summer, I met my best friend, who was also very wounded and depressed. I had an abusive father, and her classmates harassed her. You see my point here. We held each other through some very dark times. I want that for Carmy, especially when his relationship with Richie (and maybe Sydney) is complicated in what could be arguably the darkest moment in Carmy's life. "The more people I cut out, the quieter my life got," I think he is going there again. That being said, can I suggest somebody? (this is totally a fanfic scenario that I am starting to write to fight writer's block, but here we go).

Listen to me, I know. You don't have to tell me to get over this man. I am currently re-reading Six of Crows as I do once a year.

But here is the idea of the fic. This is Nikola. He is from a russian family (politically persecuted refugees back in the '80s). Ten months before the time of the series, Nikola's father killed somebody in a liquor-induced rage, the victim being the man Nikola's mother was having an affair with. How did the father figure it out? Nikola told him, hoping they could divorce and his father could live with dignity. To make matters worse, Nikola is a lawyer, but after trying to represent his dad, he has a sense of guilt related to his profession, for reasons I explain on the fic. So he tries a new career trying to figure out who he is after this mess, running away from all ot it, and he decides to be a cook, he gets good at the quick stuff (a comi) and the first scene is Carmy hiring him personally (because he wanted to give Sydney a break). Nikola's nickname is "Fox," he is quiet for the most part, serious, and looks perpetually confused and amused by Richie and Fak's shenanigans. Carmy and Nikola start talking about the program for families of alchoholics, and because of Carmy, Nikola goes to his first meeting.

Let me know what you think.

[extremelyblackandwhite]

the price of power - 04

pairing: mob boss!sebastian stan x wife!reader

part of handmaid | masterlist

warnings: swearing, mentions of organised crime and violence, arguments

There were many things about Y/N that made Sebastian fall in love with her over and over again. Waking up next to her, witnessing her eyelashes flutter and her chest rise up and down in a slow lull was one of those things. Nothing else really mattered to him when he got to wake up next to her, it was always a reminder that she was real, that she hadn’t quit, that she loved him. The mere vision of her made him fall in love with her but the fact she loved him and had stayed despite everything - that had his heart beating faster. She stirred in her sleep, her fists loosening on the duvet that stood on top of them. God, she was gorgeous, he thought to himself. 

      - Stop staring at me, you weirdo. - she mumbled, eyes still closed. It was a habit of his, a habit which she had caught on. - Go to sleep. 

      - How can I go to sleep when there’s a goddess in my bed? What have you done to my wife?

She attempted to hide her smile, wanting him to go back to sleep and rest. The past days had been difficult, scratch that, the past days had been hell on earth for both of them. He remembered being young, being raised and molded to become the man his father wanted him to be, learning how to run a business and how to protect and continue a legacy built by those before him. However, he had not learned how to handle this situation. How could he? In his eyes, her father was willingly throwing his daughter to the wolves with little to no care about what they could do to her. It was reckless, specially when a man like Michael Forrest and by extent his son Daniel knew what came with the job. It wasn’t as glamorous as others wanted to portray it, at least not when you sit at the top of the power pyramid. He could no longer sleep, not when all he could think about was how he was lying to her - telling her it would be fine, when he knew deep down it wasn’t. She had noticed it and all she’d been trying to do when she wasn’t settled in between arrangements for her father’s business and the needs of her infant son, was to have him rest but Sebastian couldn’t rest. All he could do is go through his contacts, wondering who and what could be a threat to her new place and their family. 

       - You’ll be tired. - she opened her eyes slowly, her hand resting upon his warm cheek. - Just go to sleep, darling. I’ll be here. 

       - I know. - he mumbled, voice still haunted by sleep. - I just want to look at you for a bit longer.

       - You can look at me when you wake up. - she cuddled closer to her husband, staring at the wedding band on his finger as his hand settled on top of her hip. - Please.

       - I'm resting, I just have my eyes open. - he kissed the top of her head. - I’m always resting when you’re laid by my side. 

      - Sweet nothings won’t get you anything. 

He just mumbled in agreement, holding her close to him as if she was going to disappear. He didn’t like this world, at least not if she was involved. It was a ugly and vicious game who could easily take a person out as if they’d never even existed and he couldn’t even think of what it could do to her without making his heart stop. He just wanted to make moments like these last, moments were it was just the two of them, bathed in the early morning sunlight. Besides, he’d rather make the morning longer as once the end of the day hit, they’d have to go to her father’s house for an introductory dinner - one of her father’s associates’ idea as to introduce her to the wolves. 

      - Nate’s quiet. - Y/N looked over her husband’s shoulder at the crib by the side of the bed. - We’re getting lucky, huh? 

      - He can’t cry forever. - he groaned, thinking of the past months where all the young infant could do was cry. - But we best not talk a lot about it before he starts crying. 

      - That means he’s growing out his newborn stage. - she frowned. - I thought we’d made a deal he would stay little forever. 

     - No worries, angel. We can have another one. - he kissed under her jaw, smirking against her skin. - We can have as many babies as you want. 

     - Not until our baby is past being a baby. - she pushed him away. - If we’d have it your way, I’d be pregnant all year long. 

     - Nothing wrong with enjoying the world knowing you’re my woman.

     - I took your last name, Mr. 

     - Yes only for everyone in your dad’s circle to call you Mrs. Forrester. Can’t wait for tonight when we get announced as Mrs. Forrester and Mr. Stan, the favourite daughter and the deadbeat husband. 

     - It’ll be fine tonight, right? - he wasn’t sure if she was asking for reassurance or if she was trying to reassure herself. Either way, he could only hold her closer to him. - You’ll be by my side?

     - Of course, angel. 

(...)

He had forgotten just how hard it was to leave their son with someone else. They weren’t used to leaving their baby alone, much less with a sitter, even if it was Daniel’s wife. Y/N appeared to trust her enough to worry only to 70% of her full capacity, yet Sebastian throughly disliked the idea of any Forrester that wasn’t his wife spending alone time with their son. After all, her family did not have the best track record with babies; yet again, he couldn’t say his family did. Instead, he just sat on the ground, by the many, many toys that were scattered around his infant son. 

    - You tell me, bud ... - he mumbled to his son. - You tell me if she’s untrustworthy. 

Nate merely cooed looking up at his dad with a silly smile before biting onto one of his many plushies. He’d much rather spend the night in, watching his son destroy and go through all the toys on the floor before deciding to find interest in the most random household item. It sounded much better than the tango dance that were associate dinners. Yet again, he guessed he could scope out the situation and better protect Nate and Y/N if he went. Besides, he’d rather put up with a boring dinner than let Y/N walk into the wolf den all by herself. 

    - I’m trustworthy. - Adelaide rolled her eyes at her brother-in-law. - I have a kid myself, remember? 

    - Don’t fight. - Sebastian heard Y/N’s voice echo from upstairs as she came down. 

He swore that woman had a talent to knock the air from his lungs no matter how long he saw her. She looked beautiful, breath stunningly beautiful and that was still an understatement. He recognised that dress, they’d bought it during their honeymoon in Italy, a long black Prada dress which reached mid way past her knees. It was simple and it just suited her so beautifully he found himself jealous of other people seeing it. On her ears rested the earrings he’d given her a few months ago, nothing impressive or she wouldn’t wear them - just simple gold drop earrings. 

    - You know where the bottles are? - she asked Adelaide. - There’s some milk frozen as well if he gets hungry. If he gets si ...

    - He’ll be fine. - she interrupted the concerned mother. - I’ve raised a child to the age of seven, I’m sure I can do well with Nate. You go and enjoy yourself. 

    - It’s okay, angel. We have security cameras everywhere. - he wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her close. - If Adelaide screws up, we’ll know. 

She still worried even as she sat in the car and in the middle of her worry about her baby son, she didn’t find the time to worry about the dinner she was going to chair until she saw the house she’d grown up in the distance. This was big and this was important. Her father had told her it was important to give the best impression to all associates, to show them she could lead, she could be strong. She wished she could easily lie about all those but based on the first meeting she’d chaired, she doubted she’d make much of an impression. The whole meeting had been a constant critic on her and her character or her husband and how his way of ruling did not line up with the way they wanted things done. No one really wanted her there and no one wanted Sebastian to be anything but another mob boss, they wanted him far from business. 

     - The De Lucas like you. - he held her hand as the car came to a stand still in front of the big illuminated home. - They think you could bring in new clients. 

     - I don’t know the De Lucas. 

     - They mostly work with me but they’ve dealt in some Vegas’ casinos with your dad back when your mum was around. You have their support. 

     - Just not my dad’s associates. - she pursed her lips in a tight line. - You’ll be by my side, right? 

     - Of course, angel. 

Her childhood home felt foreign. She’d spent her first 18 years here, she knew every hall, every door and every window like the back of her hand and as she walked through the front door it felt foreign. It was filled with people and waiters carrying different silver trays of food she didn’t want to touch. Her grip tightened around her husband’s hand, thinking of trying to slip in something dirty into his ear that would convince him to go back into the car and the closest motel. Yet, before she could even ask him, they were already being pulled apart. She looked at him with willing eyes, begging him to return but he was already far gone and she was being roped into conversations she didn’t want to have. The first hour was spent like that, being thrown around like a rag doll and introduced like a novelty as she wiped on flute after flute of champagne until the waiters eventually started serving her elderflower water.

     - All I’m saying Mrs. Forrester is that we don’t have as much pull in Long Island as we do in Vegas. - Rosso, she guessed, followed her as she attempted to leave the crowd and find her husband. 

     - We need to strengthen Vegas before we think of Long Island. 

     - Other families have links in Long Island. Your husband has strong ties there, not only in casinos but banks, hotels, real estate. 

     - We deal in casinos, Mr. - she smiled politely. - Besides, this dinner is no time for business discussions. 

     - Well, have you considered how pregnancy will affect your run replacing your father?

     - My pregnancy? I’m not pregnant, I’ve just had a baby 6 months ago. Perhaps you weren’t aware.

     - I know you have a son, Mrs. Forrester, but you need to have a least two. One to helm your family and the other one for your husband’s. 

     - Will you excuse me?

She looked around trying to find her husband, she just wanted to find Sebastian. She moved through all those people in the living room and the foyer trying to find him, hoping he’d be as miserable as she was. Instead, there he was, in the middle of everyone yet in control. He looked every bit as magnetic, charismatic and electric as people described him before they met. He was almost a different person to that one who’d she’d awaken up next to this morning. She wondered if he kept it hidden for her, if he kept how irresistible he was when she was with her. Everyone was looking at him, every woman was lusting over him and every man wanted to talk to him. She found herself wondering if she’d stopped him from fully being who he was. She wondered if he was torn between being the good man he thought she deserved and enjoying all the opportunities available to a man like him. In that moment, she understood why everyone spoke his name like it was law, why everyone was so afraid yet respected him - his stature demanded it. The trouble was, here she was, his wife, watching it as if she was behind a glass window and as that thought settled into her mind, tears welled up in the corner of her eyes. 

Fuck, there it was. She was not him, she was not her father, she was a cry baby finding herself running to the bathroom to cry about it. Her hands gripped the tile as she looked at herself with disdain in the mirror. Gwen would’ve known how to handle this - the snide remarks, the expectations, yet all she knew was how to hide. Was she the right choice to represent the family? And on that vein, was she even the right woman to be the wife of a man as magnetic as Sebastian? 

       - Are you ok? - a woman became clear behind her reflection. She looked composed, like the kind of woman Y/N was trying to be. Red hair perfectly curled and brushed behind her ear, in a tailored scarlet dress and diamond jewellery. 

      - Overwhelmed. - she mumbled, turning around before smiling. She could always smile, even if inside she was screaming. 

      - These functions are always overwhelming. - she offered her a kind smile followed by a few tissues. - I’m Alice and you’re the Forrester girl. 

      - Am I that recognisable? 

      - I used to attend some meetings back when Gwen was the Forrester girl. My father’s is Mark Rosso, he was buggering you all night about Long Island. 

      - Oh yeah, that.

      - If you want my opinion, I think you’re doing great. It’s never good to cause any waves when you’re first starting, specially when you’re married to who you’re married. 

      - He’s something else, isn’t he?

      - Different worlds. We do things differently here and they work. If you want, you can stay here and cry about it or you can go outside and politely tell them to fuck off. 

      - How do you even tell that to someone politely? 

      - Usually a polite smile and ignoring them will do the trick. - she shrugged, before opening the bathroom door. - If you’d let me, I’d love to take you to lunch. I’ll pay. After all, my dad is trying to get you pregnant again. 

      - You’d do that?

      - We girls have to stick together. 

(...)

The morning rose like a bad memory. Her dreams had been nightmares and she had been so tired, she had gone to bed in her dress which she now found herself tangled in. She turned around in the sheets, extending her hand to feel her husband’s but was instead met with cold cotton. She opened her eyes, raising her torso and looking around. Everything was the same and everything should be comforting to her, but her husband was missing. Turning to the left she found a post it note next to a single red rose and some aspirin. Grumblingly, she unfolded the note to find a quickly scribbled ‘Had to go to a meeting. Be back before you know it’. She guessed it hadn’t gone to plan. 

      - Dad’s an early bee. - she whispered quietly as she got up to find her son who was peacefully sleeping in his crib. - I’ll let you be, Nate.

She was trying to be positive about things yet all she could think about was how things had gone downhill. The dinner itself was awful with belittling comments and when they weren’t belittling her it was back to the topic of who was going to be her heir as if her dad was dead. Meanwhile Sebastian just charmed everyone easily, talking business as if it was his first language - looking back on it, it was. Even as she got off her dress and into loungewear, she still felt terrible. Maybe some food was gonna cheer her up.

     - You have nothing in the fridge. - the sound of a voice in her kitchen had her almost dropping a bowl. - Really, Y/N. You’re rich, you know you can actually get someone to buy you food,right?

     - Gwen. - she smiled, putting the bowl on the counter before running to hug her. - You’re here!

     - I was here last night at your dinner but I couldn’t find you. Are they gate keeping you now that you’re the big boss?

     - It was awful. - she confessed. - They spent the whole night going on and on about business and about babies and about Sebastian. 

     - Rosso? 

     - Rosso. - she nodded. - How are you? When did you get in? Where are you staying? You know you can stay with us. 

     - I’d rather not fraternise with your husband and be in the house with a crying baby. 

     - He doesn’t cry as much anymore, Gwen. 

     - I know he’s my godson and I love him, but he yells very loudly and while I support your decision to procreate with the devil, I don’t particularly enjoy loud screaming when I’m trying to sleep. 

     - I see. - she smiled. - Christian with you?

     - He’s outside. Told him Sebastian might be in and he didn’t want to deal with it. How’s dad? I went to see him and he was pretending to be fine. I guess as the newly adopted child, I don’t get to know the news. 

     - Well ... - she took a seat. - The nurses are trying their best to ensure that he takes it easy but you know dad. He doesn’t. 

     - What about you? Are you taking it easy? I mean, it hasn’t even been a year since you got married and you’re ... you’re the boss. 

     - It’s only temporary ... for dad, you know? I’m sure when the time comes I’ll know what to do. Besides, I met this girl at the dinner who’s taking me to lunch, giving me some pointers. 

     - Oh, nice, who?

     - Alice Rosso. - Gwen rolled her eyes at the mention of the name. - She said she knew you. 

     - Oh she did. - she said sarcastically. - Dad used to like me hanging around her because she was older and Mark’s daughter. Hated her. 

     - Why is that?

     - She’s not my type of person. Actually, I’m surprised she’s your type of person. 

     - What is that supposed to mean?

     - Well, for starters, she used to sleep with your husband. 

////////////////////////

taglist: @buckysteveloki-me​​ @sadbucksblog​

[fluentmoviequoter]

With Our Hands Tied

Requested Here by @astroherogirl !! (20 Surprise Parties✨ Info)

"Dancing With Our Hands Tied" by Taylor Swift

Warnings: spoilers for Vicious, angst, fluff, open ending (I'm open to a part 2 if anyone has ideas; although I'm not a Taylor fan, I'd be open to another song to continue this!)

Word Count: 0.9k+ words

You were twenty-two years old, and your love had been frozen when you met Victor Vale. Despite his blunt, sometimes harsh personality, you fell in love at first sight. You loved him in a secret, a love without reason. That frozen love you'd grown familiar with was thawed and turned golden at the hands of Victor Vale. He held you close, and you saw forever in his eyes.

Until forever faded away, and his eyes reflected police lights, broken hearts, and shattered lives.

✯✯✯✯✯

"I could stay here forever," you whisper.

Victor stands behind you, his hands tucked in your pockets as his chin rests on your shoulder.

"Nothing can stop it," Victor replies.

"Everything is changing."

You lean back against Victor as he hums.

"I shouldn't have gone to see Eli," he whispers against your shoulder. "If they come for me, you run. Okay?"

"I'm not leaving you."

"You have to."

You twist in his arms, looking into his eyes as you say, "I will spend forever here. With a picture of your face in an invisible locket. No one in the world can take it. Right?"

"Our hands are tied. And it's my fault."

"Maybe nothing will happen," you soothe, running your fingers through Victor's hair.

A knock on the door pulls you from your sacred oasis, the secret time spent with Victor.

"Merit PD, open up!" someone yells.

You gesture for Victor to stay where he is and open the door. The officer says your name, and you confirm your identity as a bad feeling grows within you. You and Victor have been dancing with your hands tied, but if anyone can destroy it in a breath, it's Eli Cardale. And right now, he seems to be in control of everything.

"We need to find Victor Vale. We understand he's your boyfriend and you'll know where to find him," the officer says.

"He's not my boyfriend. I haven't seen him today," you lie.

Victor wants to tell you not to cover for him, but it's too late.

"We were also told you'd say that. Down on your knees, we're coming in."

You don't have a chance to comply before you're shoved to the floor and handcuffed, something about obstruction yelled beside your head. All you can do is watch as they seize Victor. He looks at you and sends you a nod, a promise that everything will be okay.

It won't, and you have a bad feeling that knows it. Your time with Victor, all of your hidden moments, and learning who he really is, is ending. And you can't stop it; you can only watch it burn.

Eli told the cops everything he knew and what he suspected would happen, and they believed it. You stick to your story, covering for Victor and trying to incriminate Eli. The police have already started talking, putting you through paces, and your life with Victor is already fading into a memory.

✯✯✯✯✯

You get a letter from the prison system that your letters have been in holding. It's been years with no reply, but you never considered that Victor wasn't getting them. As you read, you learn that he was in solitary and was moved to general population. So, with your signed consent, he can get your letters now. Although, you have a better idea.

You reach for your favorite pen and stationary and begin pouring your heart out, imagining what life would be like with Victor. A life where it didn't matter what people thought when they saw you together. You may be invisible, but Victor is worth it.

✯✯✯✯✯

Victor sits on the other side of the barrier, looking pale and tired in his jumpsuit. His eyes light up at the sight of you, and he raises the phone, content to listen to your voice until he wakes up. He knows this must be a dream.

"Here," the guard says, tossing an envelope to him.

"That's from me," you say quietly into the receiver. "I- I've had a lot of time to think, and that's how I feel."

Victor nods, holding the end of the phone connection between his jaw and shoulder as he opens the envelope.

I loved you in spite of deep fears that the world would divide us. So, baby, can we dance through an avalanche? And say that we got it? I'm a mess, but I'm the mess that you wanted 'cause it's gravity keeping you with me.

You recite the letter as Victor reads, but when he glances up, convinced he's awake, you continue.

I'd kiss you as the lights went out, swaying you as the room burned down. I'd hold you as the water rushes in if I could dance with you again.

"I've missed you," Victor says as you finish.

His voice sounds the same, enveloping your entire being. You smile, telling him that you've missed him, too, and wrote him hundreds of letters that went unopened.

"I'll hear every single one of them," Victor promises. "When I get out, we'll be together again. But this time, we're showing everyone."

"No more dancing with our hands tied?"

"Never again. But, there's something I have to do first, and I want you by my side while I do it."

"Anything."

"I want to kill Eli."

Your smile grows as you lean closer to the glass separating you from Victor.

"Tell me when to pick you up."

"I'm still the mess you want?" Victor asks.

"I'll kiss you as the lights go out," you remind him. "And Eli put us here, so let's return the favor."

[dreamersbcll]

“Whistle”

A Black Widow x Scream crossover

for @psychofreakforc

——————————————————————

1995

Sam threw her bike down in the front yard and ran to the backyard. It was the first day of spring, and she knew Tara would be outside playing.

Their parents have been so busy at work lately. Christina has been working overtime, while Dad has been working nights. That meant the sisters had spent a lot of time home alone recently. As long as they were quiet and the neighbors didn’t notice, it was okay.

Christina had taught them well. They knew how to hide and be quiet. Sam had her background of protecting herself and Tara. They were prepared in case anything went down.

Besides, Sam preferred when the sisters were left alone. It made everything easier. There she could love someone and not be reprimanded for being soft. It was part of the mission to assimilate on American soil. She was doing her job.

Walking to the backyard, she whistled. A long, continuous note. One key.

She waited for a beat and heard it whistle back.

A short, shaky whistle.

Tara.

Grinning, Sam sprinted to the backyard. There she was, her baby sister on the swings, her beautiful black hair drifting in the breeze. Tara looked up from swinging, a smile spreading on her little face. Her baby sister was so beautiful. So kind and young. Her little freckles splashed across her face, making her look like a little angel.

Sam prayed that they would be able to stay this young forever. She prayed that they would never have to go back to that hellhole.

Tara didn’t deserve that.

Bounding over to Tara in two steps, she scooped her sister off the swing, despite the squeak of surprise that slipped from Tara’a mouth. She held her sister close to her chest and swung her around.

Truthfully she didn’t know how much longer they would be in California. And she didn’t want to know. If she could hold Tara forever and give her a life of gentle touches and sweet love, she would be the happiest person alive.

“Sammy!” squealed Tara, giggling hysterically.

“What, baby girl? What’s going on? You miss me?”

Tara squealed in delight, wrapping her arms around Sam’s neck. Sam kissed her cheek, holding her close.

She let Tara down, both collapsing onto their backs on the soft grass. Tara turned her head to face Sam, still smiling blissfully.

“I missed you, Sam. We learned the alphabet today. The English one!”

Sam grinned. She remembered doing that at four years old. She knew three different alphabets right now. She would be happy if she could stop there and grow up as an American.

Reaching over, Sam brushed the hair out of Tara's face. “That’s so good, baby. You’re so smart,”.

Tara blushed and scooted close to Sam. There the two sisters pressed their foreheads together, eyes closed. They sat there for a while, soaking in each other’s touch.

Sam tried to remember everything about this moment, locking it up in the treasure chest in her head. If they ever returned to that place, she needed to remember how Tara smelled and felt, how she hugged Sam and laughed. She didn’t want to lose whatever time with Tara she had left.

“Tara,” she softly whispered, feeling her sister open her eyes at the sound of her name.

Her baby sister snuggled closer, hand resting on Sam’s neck. “Yes, Sammy?”

Holding the hand on her neck, Sam squeezed it softly. “This is real, okay? Remember that. Everything right now is real. Repeat that for me, please,”.

“Everything right now is real?”

Shuddering, Sam took a deep breath. “Yes, my love. That is so good. That’s so good. This is all real. I love you, okay?”

“I love you too, Sammy,” Tara fondly said, curling into Sam’s embrace.

Sam whistled a low noise. Tara didn’t respond, but that was okay. Sam had her here with her now.

That was all that mattered.

——

2023

“Come on, Carp, let's go.”

Sam dumped her dog, Carpenter, out of the car. The two made their way to the trees. It was their new ritual. Sam tried to drag the pair out at least three times a week to find Tara.

There behind the mighty oak trees and small shrubs lay a tiny graveyard. It was in the backwoods of their Ohioan neighborhood. She wasn’t so sure if this was where Tara wanted to be buried. They had only reconnected for a week to take down the Red Room before everything went to shit.

Now Tara was dead, and Sam was alive. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

If only Tara had listened to her on that stupid mountain, Tara would be standing here and not Sam.

Instead, Sam was standing at the grave of her baby sister, staring down the gifts that random people had left. It was strange knowing that others cared for Tara, leaving her flowers, teddy bears, and notes of love. These people didn’t know Tara. They didn’t know that she loved vests, dogs, and playing card games. They didn’t know how much pride Tara took in being a kickass spy while being 5 '1, even though her big sister was six inches taller than her.

And now Sam would forever be eleven feet taller than Tara for the rest of their lives.

Bending down, she cleaned up and organized the gifts left for her dead sister. Notes of love and encouragement could stay, but she had to read them all to ensure they were appropriate. No messages that called her sister hot or inspirational were allowed to stay. Tara wasn’t an inspiration. She was forced to do the work she did. They didn’t know her. They didn’t know her baby sister.

The teddy bears could stay, especially if they had a purple ribbon. Tara loved purple. The flowers had to go. Tara never loved flowers as much as she loved the stars. She used to tell Sam when she was small that flowers die, but the stars live forever.

Sam hopes that Tara lives on in the stars forever.

After she cleaned up the grave, she reached over and traced the words on the stone.

Tara “Carpenter” Belova

December 14th, 1989- October 16th, 2023

Beloved sister & Hero

“This is real,” Sam murmured. “Everything right now is real.”

Hero. What a fucked-up word. Her baby sister wasn’t a hero. She was just Tara. She was her baby girl. Tara was born into a dynasty; forced to kill, maim, and destroy. Her baby sister was so gentle and kind. She loved Sam and she loved dogs. She wasn’t a hero. She was just Tara.

Sam shuffled closer to the grave and whistled. One long continuous whistle, one key. The whistle filled the quiet autumn forest, the wind carrying it through the air.

No response.

Taking a shuddering breath, Sam leaned forward and pressed her forehead against the grave. She wasn’t met with warm, freckled skin and a giggling body. All she felt was a cold gravestone.

Tears escaped her eyes, falling onto the teddy bears and notes. She didn’t care. The gifts didn’t mean anything to Tara and certainly didn’t mean anything to Sam.

Everything was real. Tara was dead. Sam was still alive.

She would make sure that everybody would rue the day that the earth took away her baby sister.

[sunny6677]

Hazbin hotel rewrite for funsies part 1! I haven't thought of much of a plot for my rewrite yet since I'm working on the characters, but here's what I've thought of for Vaggie and Charlie so far!

So this is Charlie in my Rewritten version! She's heavily inspired by Snow White here, and I even imagine her voice kind of sounds like her when speaking normally, or sounds like Debbie Reynolds. Charlie is sweet and overly kind in my AU—she's gentle and elegant. But she is also very composed due to being the princess of Hell, and is usually able to keep her emotions under control. Due to this though, she is VERY intimidating when enraged. And she's also kind of intimidating already since no one can ever tell what she's really thinking, but she is a total sweetheart despite usually bubbling up her emotions.

Charlie's goal is to start redeeming sinners and getting them into Heaven because she deep down doesn't wanna face her own problems, and tries to avoid confronting them by solving everyone else's problems besides her own. She sees the world the way she does because Lillith always told her very romanticized versions of tales from Hell, and hell (pun intended), even the story about her and Lucifer falling to hell was a romanticized version of it. So Charlie quite literally sees everything and everyone around her with rose-tinted glasses.

She also spent most of her time with her mother as a child due to her dad always being busy, so she never got to spend much time with him. Due to that, she holds a minor grudge against him, but is only making that grudge worse and worse day by day by just ignoring it and pretending like it isn't there.

Besides that though, some other little details about her is that she head-butts people as a sign of affection due to being a goat, and she is also very skilled at psychological warfare due to being a demon, but since she's sweet, she usually doesn't use that in any way shape or form. And despite wanting to be better, Charlie kind of sees everyone as below her even though she doesn't realize it (because she grew up as a princess and was never used to seeing others on her level). But she does learn to grow from this over the show.

She also isn't with Vaggie in this au, but Vaggie has a BIGGGGG ass crush on her due to her saving her life after she got banished to Hell. And Charlie doesn't realize just how much Vaggie dedicates herself to her in the most unhealthy of ways. Charlie usually let's Vaggie help her, and will help Vaggie if Vaggie needs help, but she's usually too caught up in her own goals to just help Vaggie without Vaggie asking for it.

Charlie also likes the color red, and used to like the taste of blood since that was what her and her mother drank when she was younger. But upon learning it was sinners blood, she didn't like it anymore, so she decided to start just eating strawberries or drinking strawberry flavored things instead. Charlie is also very good at things like the flute and the fiddle—she has an opera style singing voice. And she is also very nice to animals.

So Vaggie is like one hell of a edgelord. But not for any dumb reason. When she was in heaven, she was always very quiet and emotionless, and never usually talked to anyone. But due to how the exorcists are taught, Vaggie also has struggles with empathy and is actually kind of selfish. She is incredibly strong and muscular beneath all of her clothing. She also had white hair before due to being an angel, but her hair became black as soon as she was stripped of her wings (since that's what happens when an angels wings is somehow ripped off).

Vaggie was always very alone though since she grew up without any loving people to guide her, and never really thought of the demons as anything but pests she had to kill like she was an exterminator or something. But during one extermination, a demon child she found looked a lot like an angel child she knew back in Heaven, so she decided to let it go free. But the angels caught sight of this, and without giving her a chance to explain, they pinned her up against the alleyway and basically tormented her. And when they were done, her eye had been completely taken out and her wings were ripped off. Terrified and weak, Vaggie tried to crawl out, but passed out from stress on the sidewalk. And Charlie—who had already been going around helping hurt sinners—found her on the sidewalk and carried her all the way back to the castle she lived in.

When Vaggie awoke, Charlie was immediately kind to her, helping her with things like getting up if she was struggling and helping her with other things. And this is sort of where Vaggies little crush on Charlie begins to start. From the start, Charlie was taking care of her and helping her out. And due to this, Vaggie always sort of felt like she owed it to her in a way (since she was taught in Heaven if someone helps you, you HAVE to help them in return). So she began to dedicate herself to Charlie in the most unhealthy of ways.

Vaggie still struggles with empathy, but due to the way Charlie taught her, she tries her best to be empathetic even if it's hard. She's kind of obsessed with Charlie, but doesn't even realize it since she's so blinded by feeling like she owes everything to her. Vaggie is also still very good at fighting—and can kick ass if needed to. She also never really wields a spear unless necessary since she doesn't want Charlie to know she was an angel. So she usually uses stuff like her fists or kicking for combat, which isn't an issue since she's already fairly good at fighting.

As for Vaggies voice, I imagine she either sounds like Jane Russel, or literally just the female version of Shadow the Hedgehog lmao.

Thats kind of all I have for the both of them rn? But if I think of more stuff, I'll add to it.

[uraveragelonelyhuman]

Jayce x Councilor Reader

Jayce first saw you when he was being shunned after his apartment was robbed

He looked up and met your eyes, captivated in them for a moment despite the circumstances

Then he looked down, kinda ashamed of meeting a person such as yourself in these circumstances

He only looked up when he heard your melodic voice grace his ears

You actually defended his findings

Stated that maybe he was right, and outright disagreed with Heimerdinger

He was happy he at least had you defending him, but even that wasn't enough, and he was still shunned

After he saw you send him a sympathetic smile

He wasn't angry, so he returned his own small smile at you

When he and Viktor were trying to prove his magic, they were caught by you

They were worried you would turn them in but you merely had a sly smile on your face, placing a finger to your lips as you walked away

After he and Viktor proved magic and hextex grew, he saw you around more

He learned you were Viktors close friend

Both born and raised in the Undercity

Hearing that made him admire you

You both never really interacted, small smiles, waves but that was about it

He usually saw you with your face in a book

You were quiet, never speaking up in meetings usually, but when you did, he struggled not to laugh

You would usually retort at councilors, sometimes insulting them at the things they would say to outright shaming them for how they acted

He admired you didn't back down when challenged and you stuck to your morals and views

As he and Viktor worked on Hextech he found out you were very intelligent

Not even, the right term was that were a a fucking genius

As he worked on Hextech he noticed notes that didn't match his or Viktors handwriting

When he brought it up his partner stated that they were yours, you knew your shit and helped Viktor a lot when developing it

Your notes actually helped a giant bunch

Helped them go further in their research

He would love to watch as you would speak up in meetings, your words leaving councilors shocked as you sent Jayce, who very miserably failed at keeping his laugh in, a small smile

But even then he never really interacted with you

Until a day of chance

Jayce was stuck in the lab, this was one of the rare days Viktor wasn't here. He was working on the Atlas gauntlets right when he heard the door handle click, the hinges creaking as he turned to see who it was.

He was surprised to see it was you, looking around the lab then seeing the man frozen in the middle of the room.

"Oh, sorry to interrupt." You apologised. "No, it's okay." Jayce waved off with a small chuckle to the worried look on your face as you sighed. 

"Is Vitkor here?" You asked, walking further in as you looked at the notes on the board to the left.

"Sorry, no, he isn't coming in today." He apologized, his hand rubbing the back of his neck as you looked at him surprised and sorta amused. 

"Really? Viktor not in the lab? Must be a miracle." You laughed, Jayce smiling as he nodded his head. 

You both fell into a small silence as you noticed your handwriting on the board, surprised you pulled the paper off, looking at Jayce as you held it up.

"Are these my notes? Do you still have them?" You asked, Jayce looking at the paper as he recognized it. 

"Yeah, they still help. Even helped with these." He gestured to the Atlas gauntlets, you walking over to stand beside him as you observed them.

"What are they?" You asked, running your finger across the smooth metal. "Gauntlets, for mining in the fissues. We were looking to help improve the Undercity, even just a bit." He explained.

"Wow, only if we had those growing up." You chuckled, Jayce looking at you surprised. "You worked in the mines?" He had never heard Viktor mention that.

You nodded your head. "Yeah, the only way to get by really." You stated, Jayce frowning a bit at the new found information. "Hopefully I can help with the Undercity, just gotta get through the idiot councilors' thick skulls." 

Jayce laughed a bit. "You really like leaving their mouths hanging, huh?" He asked, smiling as you sighed a bit.

"I don't mean to, just come out before I can think." You rubbed your arm sheepishly, laughing a bit. "They're just idiots, except Mel, y'know?" He nodded his head.

You looked at the desks, numerous items scattered around as you observed the contents before your eyes caught the cover of a book. You picked it up, observing the cover as your eyes lit up.

You had seen this book before, it was one of your favorites as a kid and you had been looking for a copy for, God, you couldn't even remember how long.

Jayce noticed the smile on your face, looking down at the boom as he got an idea. "You can have it." You looked up at him surprised, shaking your head. 

"No, it's okay, I can't." You denied, placing the book back down. He shook his head, picking it back up as he held it out to you. "No, take it. I've noticed you like reading."

You looked up at him with a raised eyebrow. "How do you know that? You're stalking me now, stranger?" You asked, Jayce laughing a bit as he shook his head.

"No, I just have eyes."

You looked back down at the book, taking it from his waiting hand and sending him a small smile. 

The silence was small as your eye looked out the window, widening a bit. You had spent a bit too much time in the lab, it was supposed to be a quick trip but you got caught up talking to Jayce.

"I have to get going now. See you around?" You walked away, towards the door before looking over your shoulder. "Yeah, see you around." Jayce smiled, waving at you.

You smiled back, turning around as you opened the door. "See you, Jayce." You finally opened the door, walking out as you closed the door behind you.

Jayce watched the door close, frozen like a statue as you said his name in your melodic voice, smiling a bit as he looked down at the ground.

He never heard you say his name before, but he hoped he would hear it a lot more soon

[orangesunsets12]

A Stranger Things The Greatest Showman AU that I wrote up very quickly because I just watched the movie:

Quick warning: there are a lot of mentions of scars from burns

Steve Harrington has always been someone that people gawked at. Every since he was trapped in a burning building, lost among the rubble and flames, he had been stared at. First it was the bandages catching everyone's eyes, covering his arms, his back, and his torso, unable to be hidden under clothes, but then, as the flesh under them healed and the bandages could be removed, it was the scars. They were nearly white against his light pink skin, some of them too visible on his hands and neck to be hidden at all, no matter how many layers of clothes he wore.

No one got used to it, no one could see past the skin to see the man underneath it all. People still stared at him like his scars defined him. But, it wasn't like it wasn't staring them in the face; he could never cover the scar on his head.

It was a large blotch of pinkish-white skin right above his right eyebrow, traveling up his forehead, and eventually tucking under his hair. Visible. Noticeable. The first and only thing people ever saw.

It stopped him from finding love. It stopped him from working at banks, at schools, in any respectable business'. It shopped him from being around his family, as they had disowned him. He was alone.

Steve could never understand how his physical appearance could change so much about him, make people hate him so much, yet it was something that he had learned to accept.

But that was until he saw the poster. A poster saying that someone wanted strange people like him, someone strange, someone different, for some sort of show.

Steve couldn't believe it. Someone actually wanted him? He knew that it could just be a ploy to be laughed at, but why shouldn't he give it a go? It was a job, and he would happily take it. A part of him was happy to know that he was wanted though, despite the reason why. It had been too long since someone wanted him, and even longer that someone wanted someone with scars such as his to be seen beside them.

He got the job instantly, and, unlike existing in the world that surrounded him, he was meant to show off his scars here. He would show them off, never hide who he was, being proud of the scars on his skin, showing what he survived. He found himself slowly liking himself again, too. The crowd was there to see him with his scars, only there for his scars, but little by little he felt himself grow proud of who he was on the inside, too. He soon found his worth, a worth that had burned in that fire long ago but had been reborn. It was a great feeling.

He was more than the scars that everyone saw in him. He was stronger than the stereotypes. He was stronger than what everyone thought of him, and he wasn't alone.

There were a lot of people who liked him, who liked the man under the scars. A lot of people like him.

There was Eddie, a firebreather who was covered head to toe in tattoos, who wore them without shame. Robin, a girl with more flexibility than Steve thought possible, a girl who Steve knew instantly would be his best friend. Dustin, who was missing bones but never forgot to have a smile on his face, and so, so many more.

These people became his friends, his family. They reminded him of his worth. They reminded him that he was more than his scars. That he was who he was meant to be, despite the scars on his skin.

Even when things got bad, Steve knew that nothing could separate them from each other. And Steve knew that, despite the scars on his skin, he finally, finally, had found a place to belong.

[ninocence]

Lloyd wasn't the spoiling sort of sibling. He wasn't very good at it, nor did he really believe it was a good thing to do. Getting something that was supposed to be special too often made it...less special, in his eyes. Linus had never really needed to be spoiled -- he liked attention and to be involved with things, and that had been easy enough to accomplish. Even if he was fantastically annoying at times in their younger years.

But Nino was not the same sort of child that Linus had been. She was gentle and immensely positive, though there was an insecurity there that hid in the long shadow cast by her otherwise sunny personality.

And so, while he didn't particularly think it was a good idea, Lloyd had never stopped Linus' doting on the girl. He was guilty of it every now and then himself. But he tried to steer it towards helpful things, where he could. Gloves and boots that could handle the weather in the mountains of Bern, replacement tomes for when she was practicing her magic or simple books that she could enjoy.

But, right now...It was just a gift to be able to spend time with her again. To see her safe. To know that she has a future that she has a say in.

"You know," Lloyd hummed, letting his gaze shift from the slowly fading sunset to the young girl beside him. "I never knew too much about magic before coming here. I knew of it, read about it, but...never thought to try it. Maybe, if you'd like...it's something we could explore together. You have a great talent for it -- a natural one, which I do not -- and as your brother...I would like nothing more than to see you grow into it and make it your own. Not hers, yours. I want to see you bloom, dear sister."

“Really…?” Nino fidgets a little in her seat, nerves coloring her tone despite her best efforts. Being able to spend an entire day just with Lloyd is a rare treat indeed, and she'd hate to say something wrong and ruin it. But magic — it had been such a rarely broached topic within the family. Her mo— she had never come right out and said that Nino wasn't allowed to talk about her own powers (though she'd made her opinions on Nino's lack of any positive qualities painfully clear), but there had always been the ever-present sense that magic is something different, something to be set apart and kept quiet about.

It had made her feel special, in a way. It allowed her to continue wishing and waiting, that maybe, maybe, one day she could do something that Sonia would finally approve of, would love her for.

(It never happened. But it kept her hope alive, kept her alive, for better or for worse.)

But the sincerity in Lloyd's words reach into her heart like a balm, settling her after the initial bout of nervousness. Now that she’d finally, with the help of Jaffar and then Lyn and Eliwood and the others, been able to have a taste of the freedom so long denied her… she is allowed to be freer with her magic, these days. She's just gotta keep reminding herself of that. Nino takes in her brother's kind words, cups them in her hands like a treasure, and tucks them away in a warm corner of her heart. So long as he believed in her, she would bloom for his sake...!

“That’d make me really happy, Lloyd,” Nino says, with a smile gradually blossoming into confidence, sitting up and turning fully towards him as an idea pops into her mind, "Maybe... maybe I can show you how to commune with spirits first! There's a lot we can learn from them if we spend a lot of time with them..." It's the furthest thing from what Sonia had done, after all, which means it must be the best step to making magic her own.

...Maybe just a little later, though. Nino settles back down and, after another extra moment of hesitance, she lets herself wiggle closer to her older brother until she is leaning against him, his solid presence a comfort she'd never known she would have the chance to experience again until she had arrived in Garreg Mach. "I'm happy no matter what we do, though," she says quietly, closing her eyes. As long as Lloyd could stay here, and she could still see him, spend time with him...

Like always, the love of her family would always be what Nino hopes for the most, in the end. With her brothers here, maybe the wish isn't so far out of reach after all.

[deusexlachina]

Things I Did Not Get in Wandering Son

Wandering Son is a slice of life comic that's mostly very grounded...which makes a few very odd subplots stand out.

Let me know in the notes if you have any explanation for these. Or if you want to vent about other weird stuff in the comic. I'm in a Wandering Son mood lately, and there is not a lot of talk online about this comic, despite its wide influence.

Spoilers, also cw for CSA/transphobia - it's a very heavy comic, and the most confusing elements are also among the most distressing.

The myth of "consensual dating" Nitori sister Maho has a crush on her classmate Seya. Seya has a crush on Nitori. Maho arranges a date between Shu and Seya? Seya wants this, but Nitori doesn't, and it's not clear what, if anything, Maho gets out of this arrangement, especially since she also has no intention of letting Seya know Nitori is trans and doesn't think he would love her if he knew. How does she think this is going to go? If she wanted to sabotage things, she could've very easily just discreetly told Seya "the girl you saw was my little brother trying on girls' clothes" and saved all three parties a whole lot of unnecessary drama. As it is, she basically pimps out her little sister just to make them both look weird to the guy she likes. What. Why did she do this.

Last-minute found family Nitori has a mentor, Yuki. She wants to work at Yuki's gay bar when she grows up. She does indeed work at a gay bar, though before she turns 18, because Nitori Commits Identity Fraud. But it's not Yuki's bar, because, again, she's not 18. It's Lulu's, a colleague of Yuki's introduced at the end. Lulu names her Lily, and she calls Lulu "mama," a title she notably never applies to anyone else, including Yuki and her biological mother. She...she just got kind of adopted, right? There's less than a full chapter's worth of panels dedicated to any part of this massive transitioning milestone in this comic about the milestones in a trans girl's life. It's especially odd because there was a lot of space dedicated to Nitori being mentored by Yuki, but Yuki ends up mentoring Mako, who barely knows her in the period we actually see. It would have been much smoother to just have Yuki mentor Nitori, as the two originally planned. But maybe it's for the best that she didn't...

The time this was a horror comic for a single chapter There's a scene in the first third of the comic where a dysphoric Takatsuki (a kid!) goes to Yuki for refuge, and Yuki is very very gross to them, being so sexually predatory and dysphoria-triggering that Takatsuki has a panic attack and walks out. They make up shortly afterwards, and the most morally repugnant action in the series has no discernible lasting impact on the story, on Takatsuki, Yuki or anyone else. In the comic itself, Nitori never learns what her mentor did to her first love, though she must have eventually been told, since the comic is implied to be her memoir. Frankly, I would've just cut this scene (the anime does). It doesn't really do anything besides cast a shadow over all of Yuki's scenes. The same is true of her boyfriend also touching Takatsuki on a separate occasion (does this run in the family????), though that one is at least mentioned later on. But Mako's "What?!" is all the reaction it gets. That's my reaction to all this, too.

[soundwavemain]

A Bifurcated Time Branch (Or Science's Way Of Saying "You Are Not Alone")

Chapter 4: Cabbage Patch

Casey had a nasty gash on her thigh that throbbed with every other minute. Leo had taken one look at it when she came hobbling in from a rescue mission and told her, “You’re on bedrest, Jones.” He then proceeded to stitch the wound closed, all the while telling her everything she couldn’t do until she properly healed. Thankfully, his bedside manner was good enough that he offered his belt for her to bite on while he patched her up. It also stopped her from arguing with the medic. She knew why he was so thorough in his explanations.

Casey Jones was a bad patient.

She was stubborn. She fought Leo and Donnie on everything. She never listened to their orders for resting from an injury.

The list could go on and on.

But this injury was different.

Junior shifted against her side. He was playing with her left hand, head resting on her chest. He was about five now, growing slower than most kids she knew before the apocalypse. She tried not to let that worry her. Instead she smoothed his hair back and pressed a kiss to his crown. He made a little noise–it reminded her of Mikey’s chirps–as he looked up at her.

“Mama,” he started, a silent question.

She pulled him closer. “Yes, my little champion?”

“Where do babies come from?”

Casey froze. “Why are you asking?”

Junior went back to tracing the lines on Casey’s palm, eyes following his fingers. “Professor Donatello was teaching me biology–”

Casey was going to throttle that turtle–

“He said that babies have three hundred bones in their bodies.” He ran his finger along her wrist. “And when they grow up their bones fuse together so there’s only two hundred and six. I asked him how babies are made because I’m the only kid around here.” He wrinkled his nose despite the fact that it was him he called a child. “He got all weird. Said he wasn’t qualified to answer that. Doesn’t he know everything?”

“Purple knows a lot,” Casey got out through gritted teeth. “It’s just that you shouldn’t have to worry about where babies come from.”

Junior hummed, seemingly content with that answer since he didn’t say anything else. Casey relaxed, not noticing until then that she’d been tense. It shouldn’t have come as a surprise that her son was a curious little shit. The moment he knew something, it was only a matter of time before he was sitting down with someone to fill up their day by asking them questions. Typically, it was Donnie that answered Junior’s queries but Casey couldn’t exactly blame the scientist for bailing hard on this topic.

Suddenly, Junior shifted, letting go of his mother’s hand to kneel beside her. “You wanna hear my theory?”

Of course, she sighed internally. He just wanted to talk about his idea of how things worked. That was usually how it went. He learned something new and spent an hour talking her and Raph’s ears off. She smiled. “Sure, kid.”

“Okay, so there’s this factory–”

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